We can't really let July pass without a single post, now, can we?
(general murmur of agreement) No, we can't have that.
Okay, agreed on that.
So... what's to tell?
Hm... (wrecking brain)
Um...any minute now...
Well, sunny side up - it's almost over!
Okay, enough with the egg-puns already.
I'll spare you the gory details of the inevitable, end-of-term song and dance at university, as well as the annual run-up to the holidays, kids becoming impossible, colleagues even more so, everyone's good and ready not to see the others for at least six weeks...
Yes, there was some nice stuff as well - that student of mine did a lovely job at rendering her version of Cohen's "Hallelujah" at the students' leaving ceremony, truly lovely voice... And I've finally managed to teach some of the older students that, yes, I am indeed open to bribery in form of chocolate...
But apart from that, it's the same as every year, only this tiny bit worse because of the extra music stuff I got to do, so I am just a tad stressed out, or so my body tried telling me, giving off little hints like heartburn (which I chose to ignore) and now this charming little infection (which I chose not to ignore but bombard with a quick course of antibiotics)...
Anyhow, forget it all, it's more or less all over now, and as of Friday, I'll be off on holiday!!! Gee, can't wait for a little bit of freedom and adventure and air and sunshine...
Catch you later!
Dienstag, 19. Juli 2011
Sonntag, 26. Juni 2011
Wondering.
What makes you smile? What makes you sad?
Who do you turn to when things seem real bad?
Who do you talk to last thing at night?
First thing in the morning, what’s your favourite sight?
Do you play your life’s music by ear?
Do you mind me asking? I wonder, my dear.
When’s the last time you did something for the first time?
Did you ever tell someone “I need you. Be mine!”?
Were you ever so happy you thought you could burst?
Or ever so lovesick your fingertips hurt?
Do you play your life’ music by ear?
These are just some things I think of, my dear.
What’s your favourite sound, your favourite smell?
Do you think you’ll be going to heaven or hell?
Do you plan ahead or just see and wait?
Are you always on time or generally late?
Do you play your life’s music by ear?
I’m not waiting for answers, just wondering, my dear.
When’s the last time you cried? Are you ever afraid
of the future ahead? Or of things left unsaid?
Do you ever miss home, your family, friends?
Are there things for which you feel you must make amends?
Or do you play your life’s music by ear?
D’you ever wonder yourself? I wonder, my dear.
Which do you prefer: the mountains, the sea?
And who could be possibly more nosy than me?!
What’s it like being you? What goes on in your head?
I could go on forever. - I’m just glad we have met…
I know, too many questions, my dear!
But I wonder and wonder and wish you were near.
Who do you turn to when things seem real bad?
Who do you talk to last thing at night?
First thing in the morning, what’s your favourite sight?
Do you play your life’s music by ear?
Do you mind me asking? I wonder, my dear.
When’s the last time you did something for the first time?
Did you ever tell someone “I need you. Be mine!”?
Were you ever so happy you thought you could burst?
Or ever so lovesick your fingertips hurt?
Do you play your life’ music by ear?
These are just some things I think of, my dear.
What’s your favourite sound, your favourite smell?
Do you think you’ll be going to heaven or hell?
Do you plan ahead or just see and wait?
Are you always on time or generally late?
Do you play your life’s music by ear?
I’m not waiting for answers, just wondering, my dear.
When’s the last time you cried? Are you ever afraid
of the future ahead? Or of things left unsaid?
Do you ever miss home, your family, friends?
Are there things for which you feel you must make amends?
Or do you play your life’s music by ear?
D’you ever wonder yourself? I wonder, my dear.
Which do you prefer: the mountains, the sea?
And who could be possibly more nosy than me?!
What’s it like being you? What goes on in your head?
I could go on forever. - I’m just glad we have met…
I know, too many questions, my dear!
But I wonder and wonder and wish you were near.
Samstag, 25. Juni 2011
Touched.
I don't know what it is, but lately I've been so....what's the word... happy!
I know, I know, it's not like me at all, very worrying indeed. But there you go.
Maybe it's because of so many good things happening lately. Very probably so.
Like the field trip we took to follow J.S. Bach's traces through Eastern Germany. To be honest, it was a fair bit of work to organize it all and, yes, as soon as you are the one knowing the schedule you get pushed into the role of mum/teacher/chief nagger/cruise director, but we had so much fun, too! And we were so, so lucky in every single thing and person we met during those four days. And our prof was so happy, it was really touching to see him so touched in turn!
Or like the visit to the zoo with my sisters and nephews, to " go see the big butt!" ...The hippo's big butt, that was and it was totally worth a visit, no question! But also the sight of two little, wild nephew-tigers roaring dangerously. Or the sound of running feet catching up and the feeling of a little sticky hand taking hold of yours...
Then I had to cover a lesson with the Sixth Years yesterday - which was doomed to be a complete waste of time since all their exams are over and they'll be leaving school forever in two weeks' time anyway. Only half of them had showed up for a start, so I didn't even bother trying to teach but bought some cake and sat down and had a chat with them. We talked about their job perspectives and plans and then about their leaving ceremony. For which, since the music teacher is still ill, we are facing a bit of a live music problem. I mentioned that to them and out of the blue one of the boys said: "Well, I could play a Chopin Nocturne if you want!" My jaw dropped and we went over to the music room, where he played a couple of pieces for us. I'll never forget that picture: This lanky boy in his baseball cap, always sooo cool, rather the thug-type, who lives in a home, who is learning how to box and very busy coming across as hard the rest of the time...sitting there at the piano and playing Chopin!
And the day wasn't over yet! After classes I met up with this Fourth Year girl who had asked me very politely a few days before if it might be at all possible for her to perform Cohen's "Hallelujah" at the leaving ceremony, that the music teacher had said she might....and if I could possibly accompany her... She's a very friendly girl, extraordinarily talented, a great dancer, beautiful voice but with parents so strict and old-fashioned in their views that she, as a girl, counts for nothing much and isn't allowed to take lessons... So how could I have said no to her?!
The rehearsal went quite well and it was just so touching to see how happy she was while singing. Afterwards we walked downstairs together and she was virtually jumping up and down beside me, this girl-woman in her make-up, all excited, repeating over and over "Oh, thank, you Ms B., thank you for doing this!"
That's the kind of motivational push you obviously only get once in a blue moon, or in my case, once every five years. Better treasure it!
I know, I know, it's not like me at all, very worrying indeed. But there you go.
Maybe it's because of so many good things happening lately. Very probably so.
Like the field trip we took to follow J.S. Bach's traces through Eastern Germany. To be honest, it was a fair bit of work to organize it all and, yes, as soon as you are the one knowing the schedule you get pushed into the role of mum/teacher/chief nagger/cruise director, but we had so much fun, too! And we were so, so lucky in every single thing and person we met during those four days. And our prof was so happy, it was really touching to see him so touched in turn!
Or like the visit to the zoo with my sisters and nephews, to " go see the big butt!" ...The hippo's big butt, that was and it was totally worth a visit, no question! But also the sight of two little, wild nephew-tigers roaring dangerously. Or the sound of running feet catching up and the feeling of a little sticky hand taking hold of yours...
Then I had to cover a lesson with the Sixth Years yesterday - which was doomed to be a complete waste of time since all their exams are over and they'll be leaving school forever in two weeks' time anyway. Only half of them had showed up for a start, so I didn't even bother trying to teach but bought some cake and sat down and had a chat with them. We talked about their job perspectives and plans and then about their leaving ceremony. For which, since the music teacher is still ill, we are facing a bit of a live music problem. I mentioned that to them and out of the blue one of the boys said: "Well, I could play a Chopin Nocturne if you want!" My jaw dropped and we went over to the music room, where he played a couple of pieces for us. I'll never forget that picture: This lanky boy in his baseball cap, always sooo cool, rather the thug-type, who lives in a home, who is learning how to box and very busy coming across as hard the rest of the time...sitting there at the piano and playing Chopin!
And the day wasn't over yet! After classes I met up with this Fourth Year girl who had asked me very politely a few days before if it might be at all possible for her to perform Cohen's "Hallelujah" at the leaving ceremony, that the music teacher had said she might....and if I could possibly accompany her... She's a very friendly girl, extraordinarily talented, a great dancer, beautiful voice but with parents so strict and old-fashioned in their views that she, as a girl, counts for nothing much and isn't allowed to take lessons... So how could I have said no to her?!
The rehearsal went quite well and it was just so touching to see how happy she was while singing. Afterwards we walked downstairs together and she was virtually jumping up and down beside me, this girl-woman in her make-up, all excited, repeating over and over "Oh, thank, you Ms B., thank you for doing this!"
That's the kind of motivational push you obviously only get once in a blue moon, or in my case, once every five years. Better treasure it!
Mittwoch, 22. Juni 2011
Sonntag, 12. Juni 2011
Waterworld. More of it.
Oh, I'm really, really pissed off. No, I mean really, really, really pissed off!!!
It's not that my roof still hasn't been fixed.
It's not even that my landlord deigned to get back to me only today, one full week after I left him a message. (Yeah, well, so he was on holiday - so what?! If he spends his retirement travelling around, being unavailable, then he needs to dispatch someone to look after his properties, check his messages for him... or something. I don't know!)
But it certainly does piss me off that my sink, you know, that sink (I guess I shouldn't have mentioned it the other day - totally jinxed it!!!) has started to leak again. Big time! Thank heavens I was home just now to hear that ill-omened dripping sound... Ooh, how I hate it! That moment when you discern the sound and have to go over there to find out that it is, in fact, not the tap doing its normal dripping, but - of course - the pipe/gasket underneath... Soaking everything. Well, we all remember well how much I love that!
The landlord will come at some stage and take a look at it (woohoo!), and I'm sure in no time at all, it'll all be history. ("No time at all", if precedence counts for anything, being something like three months.)
But I just hate this feeling of something being not right, something that I can't fix. It somehow turns my whole appartement into a discomfort zone... It's hard to describe. The place is so small as it is, and now with two big parts of it being turned into no-go areas...aargh!
I better bring my subconscious up to date though: Surely it should have made that leap from dreaming about rain drenching my piano to dreaming about that bloody sink a) beforehand and b) without my (very conscious) help?!
It's not that my roof still hasn't been fixed.
It's not even that my landlord deigned to get back to me only today, one full week after I left him a message. (Yeah, well, so he was on holiday - so what?! If he spends his retirement travelling around, being unavailable, then he needs to dispatch someone to look after his properties, check his messages for him... or something. I don't know!)
But it certainly does piss me off that my sink, you know, that sink (I guess I shouldn't have mentioned it the other day - totally jinxed it!!!) has started to leak again. Big time! Thank heavens I was home just now to hear that ill-omened dripping sound... Ooh, how I hate it! That moment when you discern the sound and have to go over there to find out that it is, in fact, not the tap doing its normal dripping, but - of course - the pipe/gasket underneath... Soaking everything. Well, we all remember well how much I love that!
The landlord will come at some stage and take a look at it (woohoo!), and I'm sure in no time at all, it'll all be history. ("No time at all", if precedence counts for anything, being something like three months.)
But I just hate this feeling of something being not right, something that I can't fix. It somehow turns my whole appartement into a discomfort zone... It's hard to describe. The place is so small as it is, and now with two big parts of it being turned into no-go areas...aargh!
I better bring my subconscious up to date though: Surely it should have made that leap from dreaming about rain drenching my piano to dreaming about that bloody sink a) beforehand and b) without my (very conscious) help?!
Sonntag, 5. Juni 2011
Perfect fourth/Perfect force.
Apart from this exhilirating concert I was privileged to hear [Which, apparently, you are not - since the video for some reason won't come up. So you'll have to take my word for it: it was hilarious! Both my nephews at our old, totally out-of-tune piano, the younger one messing about while the older one, totally absorbed, plays perfect fourths over and over again, in different places on the piano keys, mindful to correct himself when accidentally hitting a third of fifth...]
I forgot to mention that I have been asked to fill in for my colleague, the music teacher, who has been incapacitated by fickle Fate for a good while. Which means that besides worrying about her health I now also get to worry about all the stuff I get asked to do. You know, small, insignificant, easy-peasy tasks like overseeing/rehearsing/putting together the school musical. Or like taking over as conductor of her church choir. Stuff like that. I am simply thrilled at the prospect. (Mostly, I am thrilled that I have classes at university on School Mass days, or they would have delegated all musical organization/presentation of those to me as well.)
I am not overwhelmed at all.
The fifth element, or: philosophy for run-aways, or: an inventory.
Poppies
...vibrant, full of energy, but fragile to the slightest gust of air.
Barley
...glistening like the back of a giant, green, furry thing, ruffled by the wind. Pretty. Also the stuff that makes my nose run, my eyes water, my throat itch and my lungs block up.
Sun
...warms your skin and defrosts your still hibernating feelings one day, then burns you mercilessly the next.
Wind
...against any kind of stagnation. May bring you the unexpected, or carry away what you thought was yours.
Rain
...what Nature has been crying out for and what, for crying out loud, has leaked through my roof and ruined my walls and laminate, also some books. Not the piano, though, so I guess - all in all - I'm to be grateful. (And it's nowhere near as bad as the incident two years ago, so I'm not panicking at all. I heard they've predicted more thunderstorms for tomorrow? Nice...)
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