Book fair and fish tales and debate

Did you watch the debate? What did you think?

I went to the book fair for the first time yesterday. Heard four authors including Cokie Roberts. No seats for that one! Also looked over the maps and artifacts on Central and South America at the Library of Congress, which I'm taking the residents to this week. There is an early map of Cusco, Peru and several Inca artifacts. They've also computerized the display so you can turn the objects around on screen and gain more info. Downstairs is a Bob Hope exhibit if we have time.

Today I played with the two E's right after they'd visited the new marine display at the Museum of Natural History. Emma was full of observations such as how huge the jaws of the shark were and how he had tiny teeth.

Got a call from Juan last night. He still hasn't found a serious girlfriend. Any ideas? He lives in Australia now, but may someday come to the US. Love, Mom

La Traviata

I got to go to the Portland Opera's dress rehearsal of La Traviata last night with my voice teacher (who's 2 years older than me and really cool). She got tickets from a friend of hers who is in the Opera chorus, so I got to go for free. I've never seen La Traviata, and that was a treat, but it was also great to have a combination of the experience of seeing it with the added bonus of it being almost, but not quite show-time. It was interesting to see some lighting be screwy, to have the house be mostly empty, and to be able to have conversations about it with my teacher without fear of bothering people nearby - no one was really within earshot of us. The set was really lovely, there was a great baritone, and afterward, we went out for a drink and a nosh with her friend in the chorus. I enjoyed the opportunity to talk shop with other singers and meet someone who has a day job but gets to moonlight with opera too. But it was a late night and I am really tired today. I'm really glad there's only one day left in the workweek!

Great weekend

Great weekend. Had some fun with Emma and Eileen at the nearby Pumpkin Patch on a glorious afternoon, got some work done for the church, went to a great little folk concert, enjoyed an interesting talk at church by a couple who worked in the schools in Dubuy(did I spell that right?) Another member had been there years ago with the Voice of America. The comparison of pictures and experiences was fascinating.

Finally got to see Fugard's The Road to Mecca at the Studio theatre. It's a play I've long wanted to see. The production was extraordinary and there was much to chew on about old age, relationships, and life's meanings. It fed my soul. Have not been to serious theatre for awhile and I miss it.

Samuel is trying hard to turn me into a computer guru. Should be quite a challenge. Love, Mom, etc.

Last weekend

John, Harry and I had a great time with the KirvinWoods in San Fran this past weekend! We flew in on Saturday with Harry seated by the window (we had an extra seat in our row) saying, "Whoosh! Up in the air! Whoosh! Down on the ground!" and making his hand fly up and down like an airplane. :D

In less than 2 days, we: ran through North Beach, eating at the Stinking Rose and finishing with gelato, took a walk through the redwoods at Muir Woods, stopped to take pics at the Golden Gate bridge, listened to "Taps" at the Civil War fort under the bridge (where Harry gave his mama heart attacks by going up and down very steep stairs), drove through the Presidio, ate dinner with Anne Elvin (aka Anne Marie Kornbluh) and her husband, celebrated Harry and TK's birthdays, saw sea lions and the Musee Mechanique at Fishermans' Wharf, saw Tommy's new school, visited a playground, and listened to "You Are My Sunshine" roughly 8,417,612 times... (Harry fell in love with a version of that song on a CD that Lisa made for Tommy, and as soon as it finished playing, Harry would say, "Sunshine, please!" or "Again!" or occasionally "Waaaahhh! SUNSHINE!! AAAAAAAHHH!!!")

And Tommy and Harry had a terrific time together! Harry asked for Tommy over and over after we left.

This weekend will be much more sedate - John's kids are coming here for their monthly visit with John instead of John having to go up to SD - yaaay! We'll be having a family b-day party for Harry and giving him his bike a few days early so his bro and sis can be in on it. Harry will also get some new Thomas the Tank Engine books, which will really be a gift to John and me, so that we don't have to read the same two Thomas books to Harry over and over, ad nauseum!

humility

I don't think it is wrong to want a solo or anything else that means someone else doesn't get it. I also don't think it's wrong to hope that you don't have to compete for something more than once or even once. Sounds normal to me!
My philosophy in a nutshell is dare, care, and share. If you don't dare you don't even know what might be possible. If you fail, so what? Most others forget if they ever knew. A little failure helps with the humility thing, but the trick is just enough humility and not too much. Let me know if you solve that one!
If you don't really want something and getting it knocks someone else out of the running, that's the time to think hard about whether to try for it or not. I don't much like competition. Some thrive on it. Still, I wouldn't feel guilty competing for something someone else wants also.
To really care about someone or something enriches you. Sharing what you care about enriches others. I wish you both.
I hope you get the part you want. And I think it's great you feel good about your audition. You have a great voice. I don't. It's good for me to be humble about that. Mom

Audition

I auditioned tonight after rehearsal. Four of us stayed after to be heard. Two sopranos, one of whom also auditioned one of the alto solos, and two altos. There's a soprano solo, a first and second soprano duet, and two alto solos. I have my heart set on one of the alto solos in particular.

I don't think that auditions are anything close to over, if for sheer mathematics alone, I don't think he's going to want anyone to sing more than one solo. But, I can confidently say that I sounded better than the other three people I heard sing tonight. One of the sopranos was pretty good, but she was not the one who also auditioned for the solo I want. I did also make known to the conductor which solo was my favorite.

There are lots of new folks in the choir this year, at least four or so altos that I haven't heard closely, so who knows what's in store. But I did my best (discounting the general nerves), and that's all I could do tonight.

If things go the way they've gone in previous seasons, he often does not let people know who will be singing solos until about three weeks beforehand (sigh) but since the solo I want is actually part of a chorus, my hope is that I'll get a chance to sing it during rehearsal at some point. Is it bad that I hope people hear me and then don't want to audition against me? I feel shitty even saying that, and it's especially scary to type and post, but it's true. While I would like to be chosen to sing despite competition, the part of me that wants less risk wants less competition.

I feel very torn by these things. I want to have the solo. I want to kick ass at it. At the same time I feel like I'm supposed to be humble. That sucks, frankly. I want to feel proud of something I'm good at without feeling guilty about that pride. That is something I'm really struggling with right now. Just how much I get in my own way by deciding what is an acceptable level of potential reached to not feel guilty about underacheiving, without veering into the territory where I think I'm a narcissist. Has anyone figured out how to feel good about their own talent yet? What's the secret?

From Grandma K, etc

Great to read all you have written about work, house and garden, little ones, engagement rings, etc. I got bounce off the first time I wrote, so I'll keep it short.
Came home sick tonight, so I'm staying home tomorrow. Some kind of fever thing.
Scott, Lynne canceled her operation again, so if I get better, I'll plan to come to the concert on Sunday.
Ben, I'm bummed we didn't get to see you. This is the first time I've actually been able to do this by myself.
Samuel didn't come last Monday, but has spent 3 evenings here helping me learn about putting pictures in an album, how to blog, etc. He really doesn't know everything, but he's a lot better guesser than I am.
Last Saturday the metro was flooded and I had to turn around at Braddock Road. Sunday Huntley was glorious with a frog orchestra, beavers sunning themselves and all kinds of herons preening.
Lots going on here. Love, Mom,etc.

At last

I'm finally on. Samuel and I have had a time getting on, but hope I'll get it now. Will try reading everything later. Sorry I missed anything from Ben and everything you have written. I emailed Sheryl and asked Scott over the weekend for help. Will get back with more news later. Love, GrandmaK, etc.

Blog setting

Does anyone want to receive an email when new posts are added? If so, reply, and I'll add you to the list!

Making an appearance!

Gang,

Just wanted you to know that even the old gaffer is not totally locked out by all this new technology! Been terribly busy at the office with end of the contract year coming in a few weeks. Good thing is that all my acquisitions are out and drawing bids so must have done something right!

Weather has been cooling down and unfortunately we are torn between gardening here and there. WV garden is looking good and we are spending more time there than we should, to the detriment of the garden here--but plenty of time to bring things back into balance.

Sorry we missed opportunity to see Ben, maybe another time. And as Kar says, pet crows are adept at some language skills--though not as much as French even to Harry's level. We had to settle on getting it to say "Caaaa, Caaaa," mostly because we couldn't get it to speak English. Somehow it was not up to "Quoth" -but that is another story.

Glad the wedding plans are moving forward, auditions in the offing, and all the youngsters are getting new exposure to their new reality--the world of school and a greater personal role in self-discipline.

More later.

Me an' Fay

Vivaldi's Gloria

We're doing Vivaldi's Gloria this season in Chorale. There are some real lovelies, as far as solos go, so think good thoughts for me. I've indicated my interest already, so I'll probably audition next week. I was nervous that he was going to hire professionals, so I'm very happy that's not an obstacle!

Okay, at least I'm up and running for now

Hey, guys, finally I followed the link and am blogging. I got the concept of it (a web page that anybody can edit), which is very similar to wikis (which I'm heavily into) and maybe Sher's Sharepoint thing ("Sherpoint"?)

In the interim I missed Ben's message about his visit coming up...last weekend....d'oh! Sorry, dude. Hope you didn't spend the whole visit waiting to be picked up at the airport.

Things are nutty here, so you probably won't hear from me really soon, but in brief, Emma's enjoying Kindergarten (full day at Hayfield), Mary's stressed but also enjoying being back teaching 1/2 time at Hayfield (mornings, five days a week). Eileen is getting better with daycare (three mornings a week) but still is unconvinced.

Love, Scott

Happy Birthday, TK!!!!!!

Hope you're enjoying the game!!

Sharepoint is my bitch

Still quite a bit of work to do, but I think I'm finally getting my head around some of the capabilities and limitations and how to make the most of things.

Harry speaks French!

Dad and Fay got Harry a cloth Mickey Mouse book a year or so ago, and each page has a phrase in English, Spanish, and French. This morning, we were reading the book, and after I said, "one, two, three," Harry said, "un, duex, trois." He's a genius! (Of course, it can't have anything to do with the fact that we've read that book eighty billion times and Dad's pet crow could probably be speaking three languages after that many repetitions...)

:D

Out in VA

I'll be in Virginia for a couple of days starting this Sunday and I'm flying back home on Wednesday. Based on the schedule I've been handed (which, like everything with my company, is subject to change at a whim), Sunday evening and Tuesday evening around 5ish are the times I roll into the dinner timeframe without anything going on with the company. And Sunday is only good if the plane gets me in on time (which didn't go so well on my last trip). I won't have a rental car and will be out at the Worldgate Marriott in Herndon. It would be fun to see the VA peeps if possible, but I can completely understand if my pieces of free time and location do not work out on the schedules of others.

I'm starting to get the hang of this manager thing and, thus far, I've only made one person cry. Sheryl would say I'm obviously not trying hard enough. But I'm enjoying what I'm doing and hoping that my people continue to make me look good.

Great idea!

Blogging is new to me... but this is a terrific idea, especially with everyone so spread out and busy!

News from our neck of the plains:

We've been pushing ourselves like crazy to try to get the house under control, and it's S-L-O-W-L-Y starting to happen. We've found a "Mother's Helper" (basically a babysitter who watches Harry while we're home) - we've been having her come over on Sunday afternoons for several hours. That means that we're both available *at the same time* (a novelty in our household) and can make noise... so we're able to do things like hang towel bars in the now almost-finished bathroom, etc. We've still got way more to do/organize/clean/get rid of than either of us wants to think about, but at least we're making headway.

We've picked out an engagement ring, after investing far more time/energy/etc. in the whole decision-making process than most people could even imagine! (But that's what happens when you've got a jewelry nut with definite likes and dislikes, and two people who over-analyze everything to the nth degree.) It's an antique platinum and diamond ring, gorgeous but completely impossible to describe, so I'll have to post a pic one of these days. It needs some work before I can wear it, though, so I'm still wearing the big ol' honkin' CZ that Harry and I picked out at Target. :)

Harry turns two in less than three weeks - he's really starting to talk and sing, and runs around saying the alphabet (most of it, anyway) and counting. Sometimes he gets all the numbers in series, but often it's "one, two, three, nine, ten, eleven, twelve!" Reminds me of something Oliver and Bailey say: "one, two, skip a few, 99, 100!" We're planning to get Harry a no-pedal bike (it's a surprise, so don't spill the beans!) for his birthday - he's been crazy about bikes ever since we spent time at John's parents' house this summer. They've got a bunch of bikes in a range of sizes, since four of John's neices (ages seven to 19) are currently living with them, so Harry had a chance to mess around on a tricycle and get steered around the yard on a bike that was only a little too big for him. He still asks to ride bikes, so we're excited about getting this one for him - you can see it at www.stridersports.com

Once he turns two, Harry will be eligible to move up to the next room in his daycare - it's basically the potty-training room. Harry's one of the oldest kids in his classroom right now, and one of his best friends is about to move up to the next room, so we're excited about him moving up soon. We think he's not getting enough stimulation in his current room (they are wonderful people but he's just outgrowing the activities) and he's starting to be a bit aggressive - biting, hitting, etc. We think activities geared for older kids will help with the aggression, and getting rid of diapers will just be icing on the cake!

And we're planning a trip to San Francisco in 10 days - my first trip out there in several years, and our last trip before we have to start paying for a seat for Harry. John's only been to SF once, and it was only for a few hours, and Harry's never been, so we're really looking forward to the trip.

Sharepoint

I'm learning Sharepoint for work. The marketing department (of 3) has to manage a ridiculous amount of documents, fonts, graphics, emails, presentations and forms. The company has started to employ sharepoint to keep organized. It's kindof half intranet and half network drive. I'm now in charge of making it do what we want it to do. I'm enjoying the challenge, if finding it difficult to find the time to dedicate to learning about and creating the infrastructure when people are constantly contacting me about other smaller things.

Next week we have to present a working site to the sales force, so tomorrow is a designated all sharepoint day - I've turned on my "out-of-office" email rule and I'm going to put a sign on the back of my chair telling people to pretend I'm not there. We'll see how this works.

Anybody ever used Sharepoint? Or Infopath? (I'm also trying to learn that as a way to create forms).

The fruit of our labor (day)

Ben and I have been warring with the hillside of blackberry vines behind our dillapidated fence all month. We spent time out there all three days this weekend, and we hurt. But, we're about 3/4 done. We've got two huge piles of blackberry death built at the bottom of the hill.

Our roses are doing really well now that Ben's mom gave us a few pointers and Ben gave me a book on roses for my birthday. It's nice to have them in the yard, be able to have them in the house, and to be able to give them to people for birthdays, thank yous, etc.

It's been a beautiful weather week here. It hasn't been above 75, and the last three days have actually been cool. Aside from an unexpected downpour yesterday, it's been pretty sunny. I've slept in all three days, done some reading, taken two naps, pet kitties, and didn't do any work. While running errands yesterday, we discovered that a Five Guys is coming soon! Woooooo! Life's good!

Thank You Wood / Rodgers

Thanks for inviting me, Sheryl and Ben. Kirvinwood News: (1) Tommy's first week in Kindergarten at Daniel Webster Elementary School in the Spanish language immersion program (yo soy orgulloso de mi hijo), (2) working on Labor Day and haven't had time for much else, (3) going to Giants v. Pirates on my birthday, (4) turning 59 next Friday, (5) new law firm website with my updated bio at http://www.clappmoroney.com/, (6) hoping to make plans for an Autumn visit to Portland with the family.
See you soon.
-TK-