Currently:
Watching: Nothing. I have been so tired I've been falling asleep on the couch. Over vacation I did see the new episode of Castle, which I really enjoy. I also watched a lot of other shows that I don't really see often- River Monsters, Dirty Jobs, Survivor, etc.
Actually, we did go to see the Aleppo Shriner's Circus last night. It was a lot of fun. They had a lot of great acts this year- some white tigers that were beautiful, a tightrope act, dancers, aerial artists, clowns, camels, bears, motorcycle riders, contortionists, quick change artists, and more. Timmy liked the camels. David was a big fan of the motorcycle act and I think I liked the tigers best. I love that the profits all go to a great cause too. The Shriners are all Freemasons as well. The Masons have greatly helped my Chorale through their donations. I feel like we have made a great community connection with them as well.
Reading: Still reading "Tchaikovsky" by Herbert Weinstock. I'm still fascinated by his letter writing and his diary, though I do still find him odd. Here are 2 excerpts from last night.
A woman named Mme La Mara, once asked Tchaikovsky's publisher to give her a letter that would represent Tchaikovsky in a compilation of letters about/by musicians over the past 50 years. The publisher said that none of the letters Tchaikovsky had sent him would work for those purposes. Tchaikovsky agreed saying: "Isn't it strange that it should be hard to find an appropriate letter from a man who has been carrying on- and still carries on- the largest correspondence, dealing with not only business details but artistic effort? I constantly exchange letters with 4 brothers, a sister, several cousins, and with many friends, in addition to a quantity of persons of whom I've often never heard. The need to give so much of my time to letter-writing is such a burden to me that from the bottom of my heart I curse all of the postal systems of the world. The mail often causes me sad moments but it also brings me the greatest happiness. One person plays the leading role in the story of the last decade of my life. She is my good genius; to her I owe all my prosperity and the ability to devote myself to my beloved work. Yet I have never seen her, never heard her voice. All my intercourse with her is by mail. I can certainly say that I flood the earth with my correspondences and yet am not in a position to help you out of your difficulty. " (p.277)
In his diary of July 9, (doesn't mention the year- 1886?) he describes that "It seems to be that letters are never entirely frank. I am judging, at any rate, by my own. No matter what or to whom I write, I always worry about the impression my letter will make, not only on my correspondent, but even on some accidental reader. It follows, therefore, that I am showing off. Sometimes I try to make my letters sound simple and sincere, so, that is, that they should give such an impression. But in no letters except those written under emotional stress am I ever myself. For that reason the latter sort of communication always remains a source of regret and repentance, at times even painful. When I read the letters of famous people, published after their death, I am always worried by an indefinable feeling of falseness and lies."
This paragraph was disappointing since I was really enjoying reading Tchaikovsky's personal thoughts and correspondences. It made me think about my own letter writing. People who penpal, what are your impressions of his thoughts? I find that my most honest letters are usually written "under emotional stress" as well but I don't feel like I am not myself in my letters. In fact, I often feel that if someone was to collect all of my letters from everyone I send them to, they would probably know me better than my closest friends do.
Listening: Not much this week. I've been walking a bit since the weather is nice. When Timmy has practice and Matt is home, I walk the local rail trail. I walked 4 miles today with my IPod shuffle. I listened to everything from Les Miserables to Elvis Presley to Chris Tomlin. I love shuffling my music. I know, I'm a nerd.
Making: I have made a few cute envelopes with a Crafter's Workshop, cherry blossoms template. (The same one I used for the homemade postcard.) I have realized that I'm not the best at stenciling. Doesn't that sound odd? How hard is it to fail at stencils?
Feeling: Good. Today I did a few things that were good for me. I walked double what I had intended to this morning and then I went down to my parents' house and did some cleaning there. They are trying to improve some things at home and I figured they could use a little help. Now, if you don't know me well- I hate cleaning; with a passion. However, I had a good time knowing that I was doing something that was really benefiting people I love. It was much easier cleaning up their mess than my own.
Mail has stunk this week though. Boo.
Planning: Returning to school. I pretty much failed at all my goals this week so that's a bit disappointing. I'm looking forward to going back to school. I have quite a few concerts in May and there are lots of things to be done. I'm feeling like I'm in an okay place though. I have a big field trip that I'm struggling a bit with the organization.
Loving: Watching Timmy play baseball. He has had a lot of practices and seemed like he felt like a bit of an outsider. He had a scrimmage this week and he was a blast to watch. He is not super competitive but he loves playing and doing his best. Today at practice they were doing a drill where he had to hit the ball and try to run the bases before his team could field it. He did and was giggling as he was running through third base. It's just fun. I appreciate all the time the little league coaches put into our children. Watching the kids grow in their skills, act with good sportsmanship and have a good time is one of my favorite spring activities. David starts baseball next week.
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