Tonight was the big fireworks and performance at church. It was amazing! Actually, the entire day has been pretty nice, until the very end, but we'll get there.
I slept only about 3 hours last night, for some reason I just wasn't tired and couldn't sleep. We were supposed to get storms, which would have meant girls waking me up in the middle of the night, but they never came. That might be why I just did not fall into a deep sleep. My alarm went off at 7:15 am so I could get ready and get to the two services we had this morning. We did a 30 minute Patriotic program at the beginning of each service, I played piccolo and a few solos...yay. Those programs went very well and even though we had to wear solid black "concert wear", the choir ladies had these beautiful black dresses with dark silvery jackets, so elegant, while the male choir wore tuxes. We sure looked snazzy this morning! I am again in awe of the musical ability of this place. The singers did an a capella version of the Star Spangled Banner that was the best I have EVER heard. For me to say that means it was something special indeed. I do wonder what those high notes were that the sopranos were singing, it was VERY high, but in tune and pretty. They brought 4 of these columns into the church and decorated it with some patriotic stuff, so it all was a nice change of pace and scenery. I started the whole service with teh snare drum on my piccolo and Carter was joking with me and telling me all sorts of Patriotic historical people to play for them to hear like we lived in their time (he is so goofy and funny) and to play LOUD. Well, I did and they had the microphones turned up so loud I KNOW the could hear me outside that enormous building and probably across the street at my own church! It was great! I later had solos in Battle Hymn and played those well too. SO MANY compliments. Is it a bad thing that I thrive on these good words people give me? I love it and I love playing.
We usually stay out for the sermon during the first service, but today Carter decided we needed to go back in the orchestra room and use the time to sing through our parts for some of the fireworks music. Oh it was a hoot! It did help us, but we were trying on purpose to sing in the right range our notes were written in and we sounded hideous I am sure! We had a blast! Our fun came o an end when we had to go back out and do the same program again. We then all quickly departed the building to go home for a few hours before we had to be back.
You know that laundry I have been talking about folding for several days in this blog? Well, it never got folded, so I sat down today and folded for a good, long time. I have 2 more loads of the stuff to wash to be caught up, and will do that tomorrow then get everything out away. This is part of the reason it is 12:30 am and I am still awake. I am waiting for a load to dry so I can switch the wet ones over then get in my bed. I wasn't home until 11:45 pm.
After folding, I packed the girls some snacks and dinner. Abbi went to Dave's softball game with him (she got to come up with me to practice last night at the big church so I felt it only right too let Libbi come early with me today. Libbi and I headed to the church around 3:30, though we did not have to be there until 5, I wasn't sure how traffic would be. It was absolutely fine, so we were very early. We were the first ones in the orchestra room, so we went to the church lobby (well, one of them, there are many, many) and chilled. Once others started getting there, we put on our dress jackets and loaded up the charter buses to head the 500-600 yards to the stage area. Libbi was in HEAVEN to get to ride that darn bus, and we did get to hang out on it for a bit. They were not only to transport us, but we could use them for rest in between our sets and they kept the AC on in them (normally it is really hot here in TN this time of year, but today and this evening was quite near perfect and NOT hot). That girl just thought she was the deal getting to ride a big bus. Once we got to the stage area, we had time to go grab something to eat (we were given a voucher to get dinner). Libbi was thirsty, so I got her a pink lemonade and after a few drinks she did not like it anymore. She wasn't hungry, though my dinner was a corn dog. I wasn't real hungry either.
Abbi and Dave met us just before we started performing, and they sat very close to the front. Some friends of ours and their two girls joined them shortly after things started, so you know the kids had a great time!
It was quite windy when we started the first of the three sets of music we were playing. It was difficult to get the music and clips just right, especially when the song had 5 pages and the only rests were fairly short. It was a little tiny bit shaky of a first set, but by the end of it, we were really doing great! After that set, a few band parents found me and it was so very good to see them. One was taking my picture off the huge jumbo tron tv when they had me on it, as well as real pictures, she will send those to me and I will try to get one here. My girls were running around and Dave was talking to our friends. We had about 30-45 minutes off after each set we played, how nice! It kept my piccolo from getting too water-logged. The last set was when we played while the fireworks were shot off. I could see some of the fireworks from my seat, but they were shot behind me. It was right there and then that I remembered that as a teenager, I put on my list of "dreams to do" that I wanted to play with an orchestra backing up a fireworks show sometime.....well, it happened! How cool. Was a neat moment personally.
After the end, Carter had us play "Raiders" and "76 trombones" again, of course our music by this time was all out of order and amuck, so it is amazing we played! In the craziness though, I bumped my flute stand on the floor that was holding my flute and piccolo...both instruments crashed to the floor. EEEEEEKKKKK, and almost one of those want to throw up moments. These instruments mean the world to me. My flute landed on the side, and the lip-plate on the mouthpiece is scratched some (buffer should get it out) and it sounded a little off at first, but then was ok. The piccolo was ok. I am glad that the flute seems ok, but am mad at myself for not being more careful. My instruments are very expensive, and so is having to get them repaired. 'll play o the flute tomorrow again and if I think I need to get it looked at by my repair tech then I will.
That was the only not so hot part of my day!
I am so happy and thankful that Dave and the girls and my friends Ellen and Jim were able to make it! I don't think Dave was expecting the complete organization of this event and he was pleasantly surprised at how well the girls acted and how it was all so scripted and planned that it couldn't possibly become boring.
Afterwards, the girls rode the bus back to the main building with me and then we came home. They were so good (we had to sit quite a while before moving) and I had them both dressed alike in these cute patriotic outfits I bought for them. Dave kept asking them if they had fun and they kept saying YES!!!! I think he was VERY glad they did not have all sorts of kids games/toys/etc because otherwise they would have been trying to drag him all over and I know he was enjoying just sitting talking to our friends. There were probably 15,000 people there...BUNCH of people and cars.
My shoulder and arm are really bothering me. I will try to get in to my doctor next week and have him refer me to the orthopedic clinic that we used when Abbi broke her arm. They have all the testing equipment right in one building so the need to travel to office all over is not there. I have a torn rotator cuff in my right shoulder, and in the past few months, the elbow is becoming involved. I may have injured it, it could be connected to the rotator cuff...all I know is that raising my right arm requires me to think about it. It is like my arm is dead and I have to think and almost will my arm to work joint by joint. Once it is up, I am ok though and really do not feel pain. While the cortisone shots I had gotten in my shoulder before hurt like you know what, I am almost begging for them now. You can hear my shoulder creak and crack and I can feel it too! There's more going on now than before though with more of my arm being involved. Should I take bets? I bet the ortho will say cortisone shot, immobilize and sling it and make me take it easy. I also think they might mention that surgery may have to take place (eeeeekkkk, this would be a scary one). This is just one thing about NOT teaching high school that has me relieved....the conducting itself and all the heavy duty work involved of moving stuff, etc, won't be there since I will not be teaching hs. Perhaps shots and therapy and not using it will help. However, I am afraid that I will be told not to play flute/picc for a bit too, and I would hate that. But I do not want to go the rest of my life with the arm feeling the way it does now.
My laundry is now ready to switch, so this gal is going to switch, then head to bed. I think the girls will sleep until 8:30 or 9 am, I sure HOPE so. We'll have a nice LEISURELY day at home. Time to start the leisurely right now!
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