Happy National-Credit-Card-Debt-Exponentially-Increases-on-This-Day Day!
After 8 hours of shopping, I feel it is my solemn duty to update you on how my break is going. Actually, after 8 hours, I'm at another family thanksgiving BORED OUT OF MY MIND. So, I figured that I'd write an update and post it when I actually return to civilization from this middle of nowhere place in Western Iowa!
Regardless, I spent most of my hard earned work-study and accompaniment money today. Not smart choice # 1 of the day. Then, I proceeded to have not one, not two, but 3 Venti Caramel Macchiatos AND a Grande Mocha, which came at a close # 2 not smart choice. And, on a lighter note, my #3 was eating 12 pieces of pie...among other things. That binge is by no means reflectant of how the food at Luther is, but, nothing EVER beats a home cooked meal.
(Tangent)
If you don't appreciate them now, start appreciating them. Once you start up next year, its hello 2 meals a day of salad bar, potatoes and chicken. Ok, so that's an exaggeration, but if you get the chance ever, actually come up and eat in the Luther Caf. or any of the other fine dining services we have on campus. My personal favorite: Cream-Cheese Cinnamon Rolls from Sunnyside Cafe.
Anyways, the big thing I learned from break is that I was not near enough prepared to see all of my family. I don't mean emotionally, but mentally. I had, at minimum, 50 people ask how school was going, and I couldn't seem to break from the strict regiment of "Good, thanks" 's. Next year, stock up on any stories that you can share with your family. Whether it's the time you hit your head on the ceiling of your room, or the 210th time you hit your head on the ceiling, it doesn't matter. All they want to hear is something besides "Good, thanks."
You've been warned.
Well, I hope you all have a great remainder of whatever Thanksgiving Break is left for you.
Later!
Jake
Friday, November 28, 2008
Monday, November 24, 2008
Yes...I did fall off the earth
Hello readers!
Thanksgiving break starts this Wednesday! Naturally, that means that already, 50% of campus has left. Thats one of the great things about having this "every-other day" schedule of classes. A lot of the time, you can swing it where you don't have any classes on Tuesdays or Thursdays. However, I was not so lucky. I have an 8:30 am class every Tuesday to Thursday. Woo hoo...
Apart from being stranded on campus here with a few upper classmen and the faculty, I'm doing great. I recently registered for my J-term and Spring classes. I'm pretty much taking all the same classes; Paideia, Music Theory, Ear Training, and my Ensembles. But I added a religion course. I'm not registered for this "Intro to the New Testament" class. I also changed my mind on my J-Term class. Instead of taking a 6 hour course that satisfied none of my graduation requirements, I'm taking a 2 hour course (average) that satisfies 3 of my graduation requirements. Its called "The Rise and Development of Black Nationalism." We'll see how it goes.
As far as now goes, all I can say is Christmas at Luther. I'm pretty sure that this upcoming event owns 99.9% of my life.
Actually, that would be untrue, the real percentage should be 100%.
We now have mandatory Sunday night rehearsals for 2 hours. Next Sunday when we get back from Break, we have a 6 hour rehersal. I. Love. Christmas. Sometimes.
Now that we're having these mass choir rehearsals though, I can hear what the music actually sounds like, so its "sort of" a motivation to keep working on my part in the music. I think that we get to practice with the full symphony on this coming Sunday. That should be pretty cool.
I also cashed my first check today, and it feels like a million dollars. You know when they say that college students are usually broke. Well...I was. And let me tell you, going 2 months without anything but your mooching abilities and dining dollars SUCKS. Either way, cashing that check (work study) was like a breath of financial freedom again. We'll see how long it lasts :)
Well, I hope all is going well for everyone!
Later
Jake
Thanksgiving break starts this Wednesday! Naturally, that means that already, 50% of campus has left. Thats one of the great things about having this "every-other day" schedule of classes. A lot of the time, you can swing it where you don't have any classes on Tuesdays or Thursdays. However, I was not so lucky. I have an 8:30 am class every Tuesday to Thursday. Woo hoo...
Apart from being stranded on campus here with a few upper classmen and the faculty, I'm doing great. I recently registered for my J-term and Spring classes. I'm pretty much taking all the same classes; Paideia, Music Theory, Ear Training, and my Ensembles. But I added a religion course. I'm not registered for this "Intro to the New Testament" class. I also changed my mind on my J-Term class. Instead of taking a 6 hour course that satisfied none of my graduation requirements, I'm taking a 2 hour course (average) that satisfies 3 of my graduation requirements. Its called "The Rise and Development of Black Nationalism." We'll see how it goes.
As far as now goes, all I can say is Christmas at Luther. I'm pretty sure that this upcoming event owns 99.9% of my life.
Actually, that would be untrue, the real percentage should be 100%.
We now have mandatory Sunday night rehearsals for 2 hours. Next Sunday when we get back from Break, we have a 6 hour rehersal. I. Love. Christmas. Sometimes.
Now that we're having these mass choir rehearsals though, I can hear what the music actually sounds like, so its "sort of" a motivation to keep working on my part in the music. I think that we get to practice with the full symphony on this coming Sunday. That should be pretty cool.
I also cashed my first check today, and it feels like a million dollars. You know when they say that college students are usually broke. Well...I was. And let me tell you, going 2 months without anything but your mooching abilities and dining dollars SUCKS. Either way, cashing that check (work study) was like a breath of financial freedom again. We'll see how long it lasts :)
Well, I hope all is going well for everyone!
Later
Jake
Sunday, November 9, 2008
We've got trouble, folks, with a capital 'T' and that rhymes with 'P' and that stands for.....Student Academic Support Center
Hola!
It"s been one cold week, and I still can't figure out how to work the heater in my dorm room. I figure by mid-January either my roommates and I will have it figured out or turn into little freshman ice-cubes. Speaking of January, it's registration time for all spring and J-term (1 class for 1 month=1 semester) classes. I was pretty excited, but then I looked at the list of all the possible first year classes for J-term. It was intense. I mean, they had everything from Chinese film studies to "The Big Question" philosophy courses. As of right now, I'm on one of the last days available to schedule classes. At first I was upset about it, but then I realized that it would give me more time to think about what I actually wanted to take for the entire month of January.
But, back to why a capital T rhymes with P and stands for SASC. First and foremost, SASC stands for the Student Academic Support Center ( I think....). It is a entity of Luther College that helps students with anything academic: from study techniques to getting back on their feet after failing a test. I decided to turn myself in last week and finally break down and get an appointment with one of the counselors. I am a horrible studier. I always have been and hope to change that soon. In high school, I unfortunately found it very easy to not study and still get by. I've found that that is next to impossible, especially with upper level courses, here. I also have found that I find it very easy to spread myself thin because I am so busy. In SASC, they also help with time management. Mary, my counselor, and I worked though the schedule that I have on my computer and talked about ways that I can try to study, different things to try, and times to do them. It's only been three days, but I can already see improvement in the quality of what I do. It's odd that I needed someone to tell me how and what to do....but it seems to be working out so I won't complain at all.
Today I had the opportunity to play in a masterclass with some other Luther pianists for a phenomenal concert pianist, James Tocco. Skeptical? Check You-Tube. Lordy, can that man play. I heard that after his recital, our in-resident piano tuner, Conrad, said that he'd have to touch up the piano after that performance. I've done a few masterclasses back in my former piano studio, but we each had 30 minute time slots, and I actually took quite a bit from him in the small time. That's another great thing about music at Luther. We have recitals all the time, but we also have frequent guest musicians. It's really cool to see what is possible in the professional realm of music performance.
So, I guess not all of that had to do with any sort of trouble, or pool....but I had the music man stuck in my head today. I hope the college search is going well!
Later
Jake
It"s been one cold week, and I still can't figure out how to work the heater in my dorm room. I figure by mid-January either my roommates and I will have it figured out or turn into little freshman ice-cubes. Speaking of January, it's registration time for all spring and J-term (1 class for 1 month=1 semester) classes. I was pretty excited, but then I looked at the list of all the possible first year classes for J-term. It was intense. I mean, they had everything from Chinese film studies to "The Big Question" philosophy courses. As of right now, I'm on one of the last days available to schedule classes. At first I was upset about it, but then I realized that it would give me more time to think about what I actually wanted to take for the entire month of January.
But, back to why a capital T rhymes with P and stands for SASC. First and foremost, SASC stands for the Student Academic Support Center ( I think....). It is a entity of Luther College that helps students with anything academic: from study techniques to getting back on their feet after failing a test. I decided to turn myself in last week and finally break down and get an appointment with one of the counselors. I am a horrible studier. I always have been and hope to change that soon. In high school, I unfortunately found it very easy to not study and still get by. I've found that that is next to impossible, especially with upper level courses, here. I also have found that I find it very easy to spread myself thin because I am so busy. In SASC, they also help with time management. Mary, my counselor, and I worked though the schedule that I have on my computer and talked about ways that I can try to study, different things to try, and times to do them. It's only been three days, but I can already see improvement in the quality of what I do. It's odd that I needed someone to tell me how and what to do....but it seems to be working out so I won't complain at all.
Today I had the opportunity to play in a masterclass with some other Luther pianists for a phenomenal concert pianist, James Tocco. Skeptical? Check You-Tube. Lordy, can that man play. I heard that after his recital, our in-resident piano tuner, Conrad, said that he'd have to touch up the piano after that performance. I've done a few masterclasses back in my former piano studio, but we each had 30 minute time slots, and I actually took quite a bit from him in the small time. That's another great thing about music at Luther. We have recitals all the time, but we also have frequent guest musicians. It's really cool to see what is possible in the professional realm of music performance.
So, I guess not all of that had to do with any sort of trouble, or pool....but I had the music man stuck in my head today. I hope the college search is going well!
Later
Jake
Sunday, November 2, 2008
Holy Music Competition Batman
Hello again!
I'm writing to you coming out of what could be the two most stressful days of the fall for vocal music majors and their accompanists. I like to call it "the purgatory of contests," but you'll probably hear everyone else refer to it as NATS. NATS, or the National Association of Teachers of Singing, hosts an annual "audition" in which college and high school singers have the opportunity to sing for two or three accomplished music educators for comments and possibility of cash prizes. This year, I went to sing in the Freshmen Men's division and also accompany several of my regular vocalists. All in all, I took part in 7 auditions...when the average is 1.
Now you're wondering "what does this have to do with me?"
Never EVER overbook in college...especially in your first year. As an accompanist, singer, or instrumentalist, a lot of preparation goes into any performance opportunity. Multiply that by any number and you have a lot more preparation. I think 7 "portions" of preparation was too much, and I had more stress than Monk (USA). You get the idea.
There are 3 rounds, and two of my people made it all the way to the finals, which take place the next day in a four hour recital. Luther brought more than 50% of the people participating (that's a guesstimate), and took home at least 50% of the top 3 rankings. That's pretty good considering that most all of Iowa's colleges participate in this competition.
So, this has been yet another short addition to my Luther life blog....but now that NATS is over I can go on living life, and experiencing even more to tell you about soon!
Later
Jake
I'm writing to you coming out of what could be the two most stressful days of the fall for vocal music majors and their accompanists. I like to call it "the purgatory of contests," but you'll probably hear everyone else refer to it as NATS. NATS, or the National Association of Teachers of Singing, hosts an annual "audition" in which college and high school singers have the opportunity to sing for two or three accomplished music educators for comments and possibility of cash prizes. This year, I went to sing in the Freshmen Men's division and also accompany several of my regular vocalists. All in all, I took part in 7 auditions...when the average is 1.
Now you're wondering "what does this have to do with me?"
Never EVER overbook in college...especially in your first year. As an accompanist, singer, or instrumentalist, a lot of preparation goes into any performance opportunity. Multiply that by any number and you have a lot more preparation. I think 7 "portions" of preparation was too much, and I had more stress than Monk (USA). You get the idea.
There are 3 rounds, and two of my people made it all the way to the finals, which take place the next day in a four hour recital. Luther brought more than 50% of the people participating (that's a guesstimate), and took home at least 50% of the top 3 rankings. That's pretty good considering that most all of Iowa's colleges participate in this competition.
So, this has been yet another short addition to my Luther life blog....but now that NATS is over I can go on living life, and experiencing even more to tell you about soon!
Later
Jake
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