"Mercy? You wanted mercy!? I'm chaotic/neutral!" --some crazy guy on the internet.
So DnD is back in full swing. I must say, though, that it has a tendency to consume some people. Thankfully, not us. Schoolwork, shindigs, and other commitments (like concerts) take precedence. However, I have now performed a nerdism.
You see, I've noticed that almost everyone in our little group of "questers" owns a pair of their own Roleplaying Dice. In fact, so much that I found myself more often than not using their dice rather than the DM's. This became confusing, so we had to call out each of our throws, which only helped mildly. So:
Yeah. I got dice.
Goldish auburn dice. Only 4 dollars online, so no biggie. I just feel like an even larger nerd than before. BUT: I'm not any different than a gaming group that meets each week, especially when we punctuate dungeon crawls with games like Bang!, Fluxx, and Chrononauts. It's fun, and a welcome reprieve from the constant barrage of musicality.
Just finished with half of my midterms. Vocal tech had us sing and then get critiqued from the class, then sing again (A-). Linguistics was 35 multiple-choice questions in an hour on lecture material; no problem. The Beast this past week was Music History; 30 musical pieces memorized ("name that tune" essentially), and about 1500 years worth of historical facts. Woot. (I think I got about a B, and I hear there's a massive curve :) ).
Well, I have go eat dinner, then work on, what else, Music History, head to an interview, then practice my keister off.
Over and Out,
Adam
PS: Wind Ensemble concert on Thursday at 8:00 PM. And I have solos.
Monday, October 09, 2006
Tuesday, August 08, 2006
Who wants to be a geek?
Quote of the week:
"I salute you, you ferocious animals!" -- Major Victory
I have a new guilty pleasure. It consists of now 7 crazy people. I call them crazy because they want to be Superheroes. I call them crazy because I am crazy, and I wouldn't mind doing what they are doing.
The first two tasks were nothing special. One they had to change from street clothes to superhero garb inconspicuously, then "race to the finish." However, a crying little girl was positioned just before the finish. Very few of the heroes stopped to help her; she was the goal.
The second major task had the heroes try to traverse a back yard to the back door of a little old lady's house because she had forgotten her key. Thing was, that two very strong, very angry trained attack dogs laid between the fence and the door. So the heroes donned protective suits (with their colors and names on the back), and took on the ferocious animals. It was a satisfying play-by-play of events as the canines plowed over and dragged most of the heroes (all of the women, in fact). When I say 'satisfying', I am referring to my least favorite hero: Cell Phone Girl.
First of all, she runs like an idiot; similar to how some girls run across traffic at school, their hands making little windmills as they hop forward on alternating toes. She looks like she's half-assing high-stepping. Anyway, she took three "steps" before the dogs knocked her over. She gave up 4 seconds in. Yeah, Stan wasn't pleased with her.
I wonder what her Superpower was supposed to be, Unlimited Minutes?
The other element I am excited about is Stan Lee's control over the heroes. At the end of last Thursday's episode he grilled into one of the characters, the Iron Enforcer, who was by far the most egotistical, strong, and misread hero there. He doesn't wear a shirt, and carries a massive gun, with one 'robotic' arm to balance. He was booted on some strange terms, like "You're not very well liked around here" and "You've been on the chopping block every time so far; that's not good." I thought it was a strange basis to let someone go on, but...
With only a few minutes left in the show, we see the Enforcer carrying his stuff down the street. He passes a junk pile, with a strategically placed TV Set. Stan Lee's face appears on the monitor and he talks to the Enforcer. He tells him that he finally figured out what was bugging him about the Iron Enforcer's costume makeover.
Turns out that the Iron Enforcer makes a lousy superhero...
But he makes a great Supervillain.
He gets shoved into a van and emerges in a full cape and cowl.
Ha ha, I'm still geeking out about it.
Over and Out,
Adam
PS: Expect a few rants/editorials to pop up before school.
"I salute you, you ferocious animals!" -- Major Victory
I have a new guilty pleasure. It consists of now 7 crazy people. I call them crazy because they want to be Superheroes. I call them crazy because I am crazy, and I wouldn't mind doing what they are doing.
The first two tasks were nothing special. One they had to change from street clothes to superhero garb inconspicuously, then "race to the finish." However, a crying little girl was positioned just before the finish. Very few of the heroes stopped to help her; she was the goal.
The second major task had the heroes try to traverse a back yard to the back door of a little old lady's house because she had forgotten her key. Thing was, that two very strong, very angry trained attack dogs laid between the fence and the door. So the heroes donned protective suits (with their colors and names on the back), and took on the ferocious animals. It was a satisfying play-by-play of events as the canines plowed over and dragged most of the heroes (all of the women, in fact). When I say 'satisfying', I am referring to my least favorite hero: Cell Phone Girl.
First of all, she runs like an idiot; similar to how some girls run across traffic at school, their hands making little windmills as they hop forward on alternating toes. She looks like she's half-assing high-stepping. Anyway, she took three "steps" before the dogs knocked her over. She gave up 4 seconds in. Yeah, Stan wasn't pleased with her.
I wonder what her Superpower was supposed to be, Unlimited Minutes?
The other element I am excited about is Stan Lee's control over the heroes. At the end of last Thursday's episode he grilled into one of the characters, the Iron Enforcer, who was by far the most egotistical, strong, and misread hero there. He doesn't wear a shirt, and carries a massive gun, with one 'robotic' arm to balance. He was booted on some strange terms, like "You're not very well liked around here" and "You've been on the chopping block every time so far; that's not good." I thought it was a strange basis to let someone go on, but...
With only a few minutes left in the show, we see the Enforcer carrying his stuff down the street. He passes a junk pile, with a strategically placed TV Set. Stan Lee's face appears on the monitor and he talks to the Enforcer. He tells him that he finally figured out what was bugging him about the Iron Enforcer's costume makeover.
Turns out that the Iron Enforcer makes a lousy superhero...
But he makes a great Supervillain.
He gets shoved into a van and emerges in a full cape and cowl.
Ha ha, I'm still geeking out about it.
Over and Out,
Adam
PS: Expect a few rants/editorials to pop up before school.
Sunday, July 23, 2006
A non-ranting post
I made brownies today.
Not that exciting, I bet, but these were brownies I had never seen before. Usually when one mixes brownies, after adding the eggs, oil, and water to the mix...the mixture becomes sort of goopy. Mine was a milkshake. I was confused. I still do not know the reason behind such a phenomena, but they're mighty tasty anyway.
Last night was annoying. Chest pains and mild discomfort served as the prologue to sleep. I went through 4 Pepcid and 3 bottles of water try to, I don't know, flush out the pain or something. All it took was a few belches. Ha ha.
Today was a full day. About 45 minutes on the mouthpiece this morning, followed by 20-30 minutes drumming, then exercise after breakfast, lunch, a lot email correspondence and I'm not done yet, a failed attempt at continuing to practice tuba, some startling news about placement auditions, and a successful sketching of some original comic characters; really just doodling, but I like some of the results.
Anyway. It is late. I need sleep. I will do landscaping in the morning.
Thanks for reading. Have a nice night.
Over and Out,
Adam
Not that exciting, I bet, but these were brownies I had never seen before. Usually when one mixes brownies, after adding the eggs, oil, and water to the mix...the mixture becomes sort of goopy. Mine was a milkshake. I was confused. I still do not know the reason behind such a phenomena, but they're mighty tasty anyway.
Last night was annoying. Chest pains and mild discomfort served as the prologue to sleep. I went through 4 Pepcid and 3 bottles of water try to, I don't know, flush out the pain or something. All it took was a few belches. Ha ha.
Today was a full day. About 45 minutes on the mouthpiece this morning, followed by 20-30 minutes drumming, then exercise after breakfast, lunch, a lot email correspondence and I'm not done yet, a failed attempt at continuing to practice tuba, some startling news about placement auditions, and a successful sketching of some original comic characters; really just doodling, but I like some of the results.
Anyway. It is late. I need sleep. I will do landscaping in the morning.
Thanks for reading. Have a nice night.
Over and Out,
Adam
Wednesday, June 14, 2006
Splurge!
I've been having password issues across the board: City of Heroes, Newgrounds, here, ...uh...UConn email (big oops there). Apparently I was off the grid long enough for nearly every service I am subscribed to, including Norton, to effectively squelch me. Oh well, all is righted again...kind of.
But first, lightning round!
May term came to a close without a hitch. I have a much greater appreciation for history now and it became rather obvious that I did way too much research on 1961 for my PowerPoint presentation. It was a good, well-rounded presentation, I just spoke very fast :).
During the two days between my real summer vacay and the end of the first summer term, I spent roughly a day at Dan's house playing DnD. Yes. You heard me.
I am a cleric. For some reason they made me team leader; apparently I'm cool under fire and I listen well. Go figure. Anywho, the game was executed well, that is, when we finally got underway. We were expecting a few late arrivals (I was first), so we planned to bring other games. Well, this burden was supposed to only fall upon myself to bring gang favorites like Bang! and Fluxx, but our DM also brought a plethora of computer games (Worms2 included). This soaked up too much time, even when we got underway, then took a break for dinner, then played Worms AND Bang!. Bad Idea.
With another team member dead, the party wounded, we worked out a truce with our enemies which could have a huge payoff later, all of which at around 1 AM. However, from my point of view, I feel pretty bad as a leader, especially because Armin's death could have been avoided. But that is the beauty of hindsight. The good coming out of this: we know not to bring as many games as to decrease the level of distraction and work on the quest when we have to; get a better webcam and mic so Andrea can actually quest with us effectively; and I leveled, which means I can actually heal people now instead of just shouting orders, which also means I can a more effective leader. Yay for me.
In other news, City of Heroes sucks. Tuba practicing is much better. Today was the last straw: lost connection to the map server 17 times, and the game tried to duplicate Pokemon's initial effect on half of Japan by suddenly and vociferously flickering the screen on top of freezing when I'm walking forward. Blah, books are much better.
Which is another thing. As part of a personal summer project, I am reading all of the books in my bookshelf and setting them aside, either to be donated, stored, or set back in the bookcase. I suppose I became sick of glancing at my bookshelf and realizing I haven't read most of the literature in the case. But I do say this: Harry Potter's stayin' put.
From July 7-15th I will be in Michigan visiting friends. Should be a raucous time. ;)
That's all for now. Thanks for reading, have a great day.
Adam
PS: Got to see A Prairie Home Companion. Funny, musical, great heart. Kevin Kline's character = disposable. Open-ended and strange plot. Meh. I love the middle.
But first, lightning round!
May term came to a close without a hitch. I have a much greater appreciation for history now and it became rather obvious that I did way too much research on 1961 for my PowerPoint presentation. It was a good, well-rounded presentation, I just spoke very fast :).
During the two days between my real summer vacay and the end of the first summer term, I spent roughly a day at Dan's house playing DnD. Yes. You heard me.
I am a cleric. For some reason they made me team leader; apparently I'm cool under fire and I listen well. Go figure. Anywho, the game was executed well, that is, when we finally got underway. We were expecting a few late arrivals (I was first), so we planned to bring other games. Well, this burden was supposed to only fall upon myself to bring gang favorites like Bang! and Fluxx, but our DM also brought a plethora of computer games (Worms2 included). This soaked up too much time, even when we got underway, then took a break for dinner, then played Worms AND Bang!. Bad Idea.
With another team member dead, the party wounded, we worked out a truce with our enemies which could have a huge payoff later, all of which at around 1 AM. However, from my point of view, I feel pretty bad as a leader, especially because Armin's death could have been avoided. But that is the beauty of hindsight. The good coming out of this: we know not to bring as many games as to decrease the level of distraction and work on the quest when we have to; get a better webcam and mic so Andrea can actually quest with us effectively; and I leveled, which means I can actually heal people now instead of just shouting orders, which also means I can a more effective leader. Yay for me.
In other news, City of Heroes sucks. Tuba practicing is much better. Today was the last straw: lost connection to the map server 17 times, and the game tried to duplicate Pokemon's initial effect on half of Japan by suddenly and vociferously flickering the screen on top of freezing when I'm walking forward. Blah, books are much better.
Which is another thing. As part of a personal summer project, I am reading all of the books in my bookshelf and setting them aside, either to be donated, stored, or set back in the bookcase. I suppose I became sick of glancing at my bookshelf and realizing I haven't read most of the literature in the case. But I do say this: Harry Potter's stayin' put.
From July 7-15th I will be in Michigan visiting friends. Should be a raucous time. ;)
That's all for now. Thanks for reading, have a great day.
Adam
PS: Got to see A Prairie Home Companion. Funny, musical, great heart. Kevin Kline's character = disposable. Open-ended and strange plot. Meh. I love the middle.
Tuesday, May 09, 2006
The Art of Discipline, Zero Packing, having only one Class to worry about
The first two days of summer session are progressing nicely. I had a short panic attack that I was taking the wrong class, which was immediately alleviated upon finding my old schedule plan for music majors. I am precisely on track. :)
May 9th, 1:00 AM (sort of) Tuesday, technically Day 1
My roommate appears an intriguing character. He has ample capacity for immense things of little worth or substance, not to mention three computer monitors, a TV, one tower, four gargantuan speakers, two fridges, and more toilet paper than I can count. He is like a pack-rat. A tall, muscular, could-pummel-me pack rat. He complains upon every entrance (he's still moving stuff from his room upstairs as I write this) into the room yet continues to accrue every electronic device in existence, as well as hurl bag upon bag of random crap that he just doesn't want to deal with into the closet. There is no longer a floor in there. I am glad I have so few clothes that I can take up the corner and fish my stuff out from there.
Based upon our conversations, which come very easily, a fact I am thankful for, it has become clear that we have made very different choices that have brought us here. So far, so good, but I fear I have thrown myself in with a partier, but no matter, that is not why I am here.
Breakfast, lunch, and dinner are served in one dining hall: North, which is directly behind Charter Oak, if you count behind as being under the river, through the woods, and down the hill (mighty scary to walk up at night). It feels like camp. Sure, the campus may be dead, but that doesn't stop the minimal personnel from mounting giant neon signs that read: "Welcome to summer classes! Yay!"
But the overrall feeling outside is that of a focused, peaceful, and beautiful setting. Every now and then I will pass another student, but most of the time I walk alone. I sort of like it that way. Without knowing anyone, more time can be left for me (like this blog), and I am rather enjoying that. Now it is just working my Musical Maintenance around the afternoon History class.
I've been passing a lot of cleaner construction sites. The SU food court is operational but not open (we're getting a Wendy's). However, the grounds outside look gorgeous. Good times are one the horizon. I am excited, can you tell?
Day 2
Zebra Cakes do not taste as good as I remember them to be. Perhaps they changed the ingredients or my body no longer accepts junk food as readily as it used to. But I continue to buy them every now and again in the hope that maybe this time tehy will allow me to revisit my childhood. Maybe this time they'll satisfy my longing for something that doesn't taste like guilt. Or not.
I love my History class. The instructor is a Grad Student hell-bent on making sure we get involved in the class. It's not a lecture, but a discussion. He has a certain amount of material he wants to cover in the 3-hour period, but our participation is constantly encouraged with questions and commentary. I have always loved that form of teaching; those usually turn out to be the classes I learn the most in, because I can make the education my own. That's what counts.
Today was a day of research mostly. I have discovered that walking from one end of the campus to the other only to practice for an hour or two is not worth getting scared out of my wits, so I have to practice earlier in the day, and then just work into the evening. That should be fine for me.
But the research was for a slew of different things. Here's the rundown, see if some of these words make sense: Helleberg, Altieri, Schilke, Canadian Brass, Gastroesophaegal Reflux Disorder, Eccentric Inventions of 1972. Well, the Canadian Brass should alert some people. Yes, I was looking at mouthpieces, as well as a Tuba backpack. Why? The Helleberg II - Schilke and CB Arnold Jacobs mouthpieces are ones I borrowed from my instructor to try out for Jury. Their thinner rims and deeper cups allowed a sudden ability to articulate my music that I had never experienced before...then I had to give them back. Also, immediately following commencement, my case had its last hurrah, as one wheel got crunched sideways and the other jammed, so I proceeded to haul the behemoth from Gampel pavilion all the way back to the music building (good arm workout I guess). On top of this, I found another amazing reference site: MedicineNet. So I looked up Acid Reflux...
Well, I can't eat much chocolate anymore. And my right as a 21-year-old has been perpectually squelched. As of now, that's fine with me. My funds should stay where they are.
Thanks for reading, have a good night,
--Adam
PS: This, I hope, will be the first of many for the summer. You want recaps of my day? Anecdotes of eventful eccentrics? Fine! You'll get it buddy!
May 9th, 1:00 AM (sort of) Tuesday, technically Day 1
My roommate appears an intriguing character. He has ample capacity for immense things of little worth or substance, not to mention three computer monitors, a TV, one tower, four gargantuan speakers, two fridges, and more toilet paper than I can count. He is like a pack-rat. A tall, muscular, could-pummel-me pack rat. He complains upon every entrance (he's still moving stuff from his room upstairs as I write this) into the room yet continues to accrue every electronic device in existence, as well as hurl bag upon bag of random crap that he just doesn't want to deal with into the closet. There is no longer a floor in there. I am glad I have so few clothes that I can take up the corner and fish my stuff out from there.
Based upon our conversations, which come very easily, a fact I am thankful for, it has become clear that we have made very different choices that have brought us here. So far, so good, but I fear I have thrown myself in with a partier, but no matter, that is not why I am here.
Breakfast, lunch, and dinner are served in one dining hall: North, which is directly behind Charter Oak, if you count behind as being under the river, through the woods, and down the hill (mighty scary to walk up at night). It feels like camp. Sure, the campus may be dead, but that doesn't stop the minimal personnel from mounting giant neon signs that read: "Welcome to summer classes! Yay!"
But the overrall feeling outside is that of a focused, peaceful, and beautiful setting. Every now and then I will pass another student, but most of the time I walk alone. I sort of like it that way. Without knowing anyone, more time can be left for me (like this blog), and I am rather enjoying that. Now it is just working my Musical Maintenance around the afternoon History class.
I've been passing a lot of cleaner construction sites. The SU food court is operational but not open (we're getting a Wendy's). However, the grounds outside look gorgeous. Good times are one the horizon. I am excited, can you tell?
Day 2
Zebra Cakes do not taste as good as I remember them to be. Perhaps they changed the ingredients or my body no longer accepts junk food as readily as it used to. But I continue to buy them every now and again in the hope that maybe this time tehy will allow me to revisit my childhood. Maybe this time they'll satisfy my longing for something that doesn't taste like guilt. Or not.
I love my History class. The instructor is a Grad Student hell-bent on making sure we get involved in the class. It's not a lecture, but a discussion. He has a certain amount of material he wants to cover in the 3-hour period, but our participation is constantly encouraged with questions and commentary. I have always loved that form of teaching; those usually turn out to be the classes I learn the most in, because I can make the education my own. That's what counts.
Today was a day of research mostly. I have discovered that walking from one end of the campus to the other only to practice for an hour or two is not worth getting scared out of my wits, so I have to practice earlier in the day, and then just work into the evening. That should be fine for me.
But the research was for a slew of different things. Here's the rundown, see if some of these words make sense: Helleberg, Altieri, Schilke, Canadian Brass, Gastroesophaegal Reflux Disorder, Eccentric Inventions of 1972. Well, the Canadian Brass should alert some people. Yes, I was looking at mouthpieces, as well as a Tuba backpack. Why? The Helleberg II - Schilke and CB Arnold Jacobs mouthpieces are ones I borrowed from my instructor to try out for Jury. Their thinner rims and deeper cups allowed a sudden ability to articulate my music that I had never experienced before...then I had to give them back. Also, immediately following commencement, my case had its last hurrah, as one wheel got crunched sideways and the other jammed, so I proceeded to haul the behemoth from Gampel pavilion all the way back to the music building (good arm workout I guess). On top of this, I found another amazing reference site: MedicineNet. So I looked up Acid Reflux...
Well, I can't eat much chocolate anymore. And my right as a 21-year-old has been perpectually squelched. As of now, that's fine with me. My funds should stay where they are.
Thanks for reading, have a good night,
--Adam
PS: This, I hope, will be the first of many for the summer. You want recaps of my day? Anecdotes of eventful eccentrics? Fine! You'll get it buddy!
Sunday, March 26, 2006
Best in Show
Pepperidge Farm Soft Baked Chocolate Chunk, Dark Chocolate Brownie cookies.
“Frome your first bite, you’ll see why Pepperidge Farm Soft Baked Chocolate Chunk Cookies are The BEST Chocolate Chunk Cookies in the World!
Baked with an abundance of big chunks of rich chocolate and crunchy macadamia nuts or chewy caramel. Also enjoy our Soft Baked Oatmeal Raisin cookies. So satisfying, so delightful, so scrumptious.”
Intrigued, I snagged the bag after a rigorous workout at the Fieldhouse. “Best Chocolate Chunk Cookies in the World” huh? Well that’s pretty presumptuous. They must be right to make that kind of claim.
The cookies are the darkish brown or light black and smell of Hershey’s distinct dark chocolate aroma. Well, at least they’re accurate. I took a bite.
Meh. I am sorry I just implemented one of the most overused words of my generation to describe something that was neither correct or wrong, good or bad. It was just…meh.
Which got me thinking: How does one make the greatest cookies in the world? Or better yet, how do you rate them? By what standard that exists are we rating these cookies?
I suppose the standard of opinion, but that’s not much of a standard. These cookies obviously aren’t the best cookies in the world to me, so how does one advertise and attempt to skew my opinion which will be whatever it is upon tasting the morsel. I keep expecting a Pepperidge Farm Jedi to show up at my door, wave his hand and say, “These are the cookies you’re looking for.” Oh well, they didn’t quite hit the spot, in fact they were off by about 60 yards, but who’s counting?
Anyway, what I hope may become the JFS band (the Brass Sextet, really) had their/our first performance Thursday and more or less rocked the house. True, our intonation and dynamic balance was off, and I’d like to kill our first trumpet for tuning backstage while slouching and then sitting up straight for the performance and playing sharp. BUT, for a premiere performance, it was well executed. Most of us have long-term plans for the ensemble, and we learned a lot from that concert.
Speaking of concerts, the Wind Ensemble is really funny drunk.
Wait, let’s backtrack. We performed Mirror, Mirror by Stacy Garrop (wicked-cool lady) for the second time on Monday. The Sackler competition founders, Mr. and Mrs. Sackler, were there to witness the performance too, along with the Dean and Music Head. Though I spied Mrs. Sackler clutching her ears, her face all screwed up, during some of the more dissonant sections in the second and third movements, she later said it was just her “old ears.” From my seat, it was a joy to play something with a contemporary style, but a programmatic approach. Too much of the “harder stuff” we play has mucho dissonance just for the sake of sounding strange; the dissonance builds a lot of tension, but never resolves into a distinct melody. Mirror, Mirror felt like a film score, and comparable to James Horner’s ability. I’ve been humming this tune (Mirror, Mirror) for the past week, it’s that good.
But after the performance, they gave us White and Red Wine, amazing triangular brownies, and cheese. I stuck with water, which was actually club soda…which I drank a third of before “accidentally” leaving it on a resting tray and forgetting about it. No one was tipsy after the wine, but after we got back on the bus for the 2 and a half-hour ride back, the trombone section broke out the Captain Morgan. Nuff said, I fell asleep and woke up just in time to see the tank scene from the Last Crusade. Golly I love that movie.
Well, time to go practice before Sisterhood stuff (which is going quite well), and then I’ll travel to Bridgeport for the Basketball Tournament (I hope we win).
Thanks for reading and have a great day.
Over and Out,
Adam
PS: There wasn't a lick of Caramel or Nuts in those cookies, lying possums.
“Frome your first bite, you’ll see why Pepperidge Farm Soft Baked Chocolate Chunk Cookies are The BEST Chocolate Chunk Cookies in the World!
Baked with an abundance of big chunks of rich chocolate and crunchy macadamia nuts or chewy caramel. Also enjoy our Soft Baked Oatmeal Raisin cookies. So satisfying, so delightful, so scrumptious.”
Intrigued, I snagged the bag after a rigorous workout at the Fieldhouse. “Best Chocolate Chunk Cookies in the World” huh? Well that’s pretty presumptuous. They must be right to make that kind of claim.
The cookies are the darkish brown or light black and smell of Hershey’s distinct dark chocolate aroma. Well, at least they’re accurate. I took a bite.
Meh. I am sorry I just implemented one of the most overused words of my generation to describe something that was neither correct or wrong, good or bad. It was just…meh.
Which got me thinking: How does one make the greatest cookies in the world? Or better yet, how do you rate them? By what standard that exists are we rating these cookies?
I suppose the standard of opinion, but that’s not much of a standard. These cookies obviously aren’t the best cookies in the world to me, so how does one advertise and attempt to skew my opinion which will be whatever it is upon tasting the morsel. I keep expecting a Pepperidge Farm Jedi to show up at my door, wave his hand and say, “These are the cookies you’re looking for.” Oh well, they didn’t quite hit the spot, in fact they were off by about 60 yards, but who’s counting?
Anyway, what I hope may become the JFS band (the Brass Sextet, really) had their/our first performance Thursday and more or less rocked the house. True, our intonation and dynamic balance was off, and I’d like to kill our first trumpet for tuning backstage while slouching and then sitting up straight for the performance and playing sharp. BUT, for a premiere performance, it was well executed. Most of us have long-term plans for the ensemble, and we learned a lot from that concert.
Speaking of concerts, the Wind Ensemble is really funny drunk.
Wait, let’s backtrack. We performed Mirror, Mirror by Stacy Garrop (wicked-cool lady) for the second time on Monday. The Sackler competition founders, Mr. and Mrs. Sackler, were there to witness the performance too, along with the Dean and Music Head. Though I spied Mrs. Sackler clutching her ears, her face all screwed up, during some of the more dissonant sections in the second and third movements, she later said it was just her “old ears.” From my seat, it was a joy to play something with a contemporary style, but a programmatic approach. Too much of the “harder stuff” we play has mucho dissonance just for the sake of sounding strange; the dissonance builds a lot of tension, but never resolves into a distinct melody. Mirror, Mirror felt like a film score, and comparable to James Horner’s ability. I’ve been humming this tune (Mirror, Mirror) for the past week, it’s that good.
But after the performance, they gave us White and Red Wine, amazing triangular brownies, and cheese. I stuck with water, which was actually club soda…which I drank a third of before “accidentally” leaving it on a resting tray and forgetting about it. No one was tipsy after the wine, but after we got back on the bus for the 2 and a half-hour ride back, the trombone section broke out the Captain Morgan. Nuff said, I fell asleep and woke up just in time to see the tank scene from the Last Crusade. Golly I love that movie.
Well, time to go practice before Sisterhood stuff (which is going quite well), and then I’ll travel to Bridgeport for the Basketball Tournament (I hope we win).
Thanks for reading and have a great day.
Over and Out,
Adam
PS: There wasn't a lick of Caramel or Nuts in those cookies, lying possums.
Sunday, March 19, 2006
Saint Pat's Weekend
Well, Friday was chock full of drunk people. Drunk people in the halls, drunkards in the lounge, not to mention a few guys who decided it'd be a good idea to decant into the window well into the basement, where the pungent stench of urine emanated into the room as we played the next four games of Bang!. We closed the window soon after.
That being said, we avoided the inebriated masses with adroit and proceeded on our merry way. I was quite pleased to play Bang! again and not be held resposible for reminding everyone of the rules. Andrea knows the game well enough now that she outspeaks me when we catch someone misusing a green card. Four fast rounds, but one was absolutely wonderful: Robin got Elena Fuente, whose power is that "any card can be used as a missed card," upon which Robin gave a cry of "I can't die!" Oh yeah?
So I Cat Baloued three times in a row, depleting his early arsenal and proceeded to Panic another card from him. This method - and I was darn lucky to get and be able to use what I did - deprived him of cards for at least the next three turns. As Robin's ire continued to rise, though, Andrea kept everyone else at bay by sticking us all in Jail. I eventually was killed off by her...but Cat Balouing an entire line of defense in one turn was priceless enough for it. :)
Saturday yielded interesting results. I had a late start, intending to wake at closer to 8, rather than 10:00, but I still had a substantial amount of work done before Dan showed up in the lounge and began cooking breakfast. No, not just breakfast. FRENCH. TOAST. Real, homemade (if you can count the dorm as "Home"), French Toast, as made by a Quarter-French-Canadian. We brought our own silverware, as Dan only owned two forks, a knife, and one plastic spoon. It was like a starving artist's...no, a Peasant's feast. Two slices each, with various - as Dan calls them, Real Maple Products - to help slather and lather all over the Toast, their gooey substances consumed atop 2 plates, 1 towel, and 8 scraps of paper towel dredges. Now THAT's a meal.
Dan promises to try again soon.
Then proceeding to practice all day, I made my way over to Battle of the Bands at the South Dining Hall, Rome Ballroom. In summation, the final two acts made sitting, standing, and sleeping through the last four worth it. True, the lead singer to Bare Necessities (Band #5) is a music major, I cringe to think that he could ever sing. However, their last song was a Nintendo music medley, and especially for a new band on the block, they handled it skillfully. It's fun to be a Nerd.
But Tap Out (Band #6), one of the first Ska bands I have ever seen - 2 Trumpets, 1 Sax, 1 Trombone, 2 kickass guitarists, 1 drummer, and a very enthusiastic, on-key vocalist - took the show from the first song. By the third, Spence, the Pianist from Bare Necessities, turned to his drummer and said simultaneously: "They won."
That they did, and I wanted more. I left the ballroom on a mental high. Ska rules...my ears are bleeding, but Ska rules. Where metal makes you want to kill someone, Ska makes you just plain happy. Go forth and have fun, my friend, have fun.
Instead of sleeping, though, we ended up watching the Ringer.
If only I could type something other than "Shudder" to tell you how much I shuddered with this movie. It could have been so much better than it was...and it wasn't much. It hurts too much, let's not talk about it.
Sunday was a visit to the Gym, another late lunch, Homework, and then a Premiere performance of Mirror, Mirror by a new composer named Stacy Garrop. This lady is freakin' awesome. A joy to work with, and one heck of a songwriter. We perform again in Stamford tomorrow (technically, heh, today), so I'll post again after that so you can get the whole scoop.
Hope everyone's weekend was a blast. Thanks for reading and have a great day.
Adam
PS: I'm getting more sleep, can you tell? :)
That being said, we avoided the inebriated masses with adroit and proceeded on our merry way. I was quite pleased to play Bang! again and not be held resposible for reminding everyone of the rules. Andrea knows the game well enough now that she outspeaks me when we catch someone misusing a green card. Four fast rounds, but one was absolutely wonderful: Robin got Elena Fuente, whose power is that "any card can be used as a missed card," upon which Robin gave a cry of "I can't die!" Oh yeah?
So I Cat Baloued three times in a row, depleting his early arsenal and proceeded to Panic another card from him. This method - and I was darn lucky to get and be able to use what I did - deprived him of cards for at least the next three turns. As Robin's ire continued to rise, though, Andrea kept everyone else at bay by sticking us all in Jail. I eventually was killed off by her...but Cat Balouing an entire line of defense in one turn was priceless enough for it. :)
Saturday yielded interesting results. I had a late start, intending to wake at closer to 8, rather than 10:00, but I still had a substantial amount of work done before Dan showed up in the lounge and began cooking breakfast. No, not just breakfast. FRENCH. TOAST. Real, homemade (if you can count the dorm as "Home"), French Toast, as made by a Quarter-French-Canadian. We brought our own silverware, as Dan only owned two forks, a knife, and one plastic spoon. It was like a starving artist's...no, a Peasant's feast. Two slices each, with various - as Dan calls them, Real Maple Products - to help slather and lather all over the Toast, their gooey substances consumed atop 2 plates, 1 towel, and 8 scraps of paper towel dredges. Now THAT's a meal.
Dan promises to try again soon.
Then proceeding to practice all day, I made my way over to Battle of the Bands at the South Dining Hall, Rome Ballroom. In summation, the final two acts made sitting, standing, and sleeping through the last four worth it. True, the lead singer to Bare Necessities (Band #5) is a music major, I cringe to think that he could ever sing. However, their last song was a Nintendo music medley, and especially for a new band on the block, they handled it skillfully. It's fun to be a Nerd.
But Tap Out (Band #6), one of the first Ska bands I have ever seen - 2 Trumpets, 1 Sax, 1 Trombone, 2 kickass guitarists, 1 drummer, and a very enthusiastic, on-key vocalist - took the show from the first song. By the third, Spence, the Pianist from Bare Necessities, turned to his drummer and said simultaneously: "They won."
That they did, and I wanted more. I left the ballroom on a mental high. Ska rules...my ears are bleeding, but Ska rules. Where metal makes you want to kill someone, Ska makes you just plain happy. Go forth and have fun, my friend, have fun.
Instead of sleeping, though, we ended up watching the Ringer.
If only I could type something other than "Shudder" to tell you how much I shuddered with this movie. It could have been so much better than it was...and it wasn't much. It hurts too much, let's not talk about it.
Sunday was a visit to the Gym, another late lunch, Homework, and then a Premiere performance of Mirror, Mirror by a new composer named Stacy Garrop. This lady is freakin' awesome. A joy to work with, and one heck of a songwriter. We perform again in Stamford tomorrow (technically, heh, today), so I'll post again after that so you can get the whole scoop.
Hope everyone's weekend was a blast. Thanks for reading and have a great day.
Adam
PS: I'm getting more sleep, can you tell? :)
Monday, January 30, 2006
The Magic is Gone
I watched Mulan a few days ago, and Aladdin about six minutes ago. Now, one would think I would grow out of Disney movies the same way that I grew out of Ninja Turtles...but they would be wrong.
I remember seeing the trailer for Disney's next masterpiece (Mulan), how I would rewind the VHS to the last movie over and over again just to see the preview. And this wasn't just a preview, it had everything. You knew who the composer was, you saw shots of cel-animation, storyboards, saw the lyricist at work, how the concept was started, what the animators did to find inspiration for their art...the works. It was an event, and I looked forward to it with all my heart.
Sadly, though, after Tarzan (which I still adore), characters no longer sang, we no longer wanted the soundtrack, no storyboards presented themselves, we didn't care about the lyricist anymore...and then the sequels happened. True, sequels always happen, but never like this. I understand how the money machine works, but this is ridiculous. Bambi II!? What are they thinking?
Actually, that's pretty obvious: let's make more money. This has been happening for awhile, I know, but this is a yearly rant it seems. What happened to the magic? I'm sure the little kids don't care, hell that's where the money is (well, in their parents really), but what will they think when they grow up and look back on their movies? Will they find a renewed love for them, as I have, or discard them with the next shipment of trash? I fear the latter will occur more often than the former. Sequel plots and dialogue are thin, and the overruse of the 'cute' characters proves that Disney has lost its edge. Where the company would take risks and win, it is only playing it safe. ...Plus, Cel-Animation felt it's last hurrah not with Brother Bear, but with Sinbad (because no one cares about Brother Bear...cuz it was horrible). Now, animated movies have been infected with CGI, and the art is gone.
Pixar on the other hand, has the right idea. The line between them and Disney is beginning to blur I hear, but the facts and fans speak for themselves: Finding Nemo rocked. As did every other Pixar presentation in existence. So there.
In other news, the discovery of the Youngblood Brass Band is fine fuel for homework or screenwriting.
The UCMB recital has been pushed back until mid-April. Hey, maybe I'll have it on my birthday! So I have a bit more time to get my act squared away. Yay.
Wind Ensemble is proving to be quite a daunting mixed blessing. As much as I want to strangle the snickering trumpets, I am thankful for the challenge. If I could improve as much as I did last semester I can double the progress with the work ethic required for Wind Ensemble. Yeehaw.
Orchestra doesn't have parts for me yet, but Collegium and Chorus require tenors...so I have been recruited. It'll be good training for the ear. Piano is going well, I will be composing something for my brass sextet, arranging music for the pep band as soon as possible, and I'm finally in Brass Tech (learning Trumpet legitimately).
I'm busy as heck, so don't get too annoyed if I don't update for awhile. I'm in six ensembles, and I'm a music major, and I'm in a service organization, and I've got an acappella group to get off the ground. Deal.
Thanks for reading. Have a great night.
Adam
I remember seeing the trailer for Disney's next masterpiece (Mulan), how I would rewind the VHS to the last movie over and over again just to see the preview. And this wasn't just a preview, it had everything. You knew who the composer was, you saw shots of cel-animation, storyboards, saw the lyricist at work, how the concept was started, what the animators did to find inspiration for their art...the works. It was an event, and I looked forward to it with all my heart.
Sadly, though, after Tarzan (which I still adore), characters no longer sang, we no longer wanted the soundtrack, no storyboards presented themselves, we didn't care about the lyricist anymore...and then the sequels happened. True, sequels always happen, but never like this. I understand how the money machine works, but this is ridiculous. Bambi II!? What are they thinking?
Actually, that's pretty obvious: let's make more money. This has been happening for awhile, I know, but this is a yearly rant it seems. What happened to the magic? I'm sure the little kids don't care, hell that's where the money is (well, in their parents really), but what will they think when they grow up and look back on their movies? Will they find a renewed love for them, as I have, or discard them with the next shipment of trash? I fear the latter will occur more often than the former. Sequel plots and dialogue are thin, and the overruse of the 'cute' characters proves that Disney has lost its edge. Where the company would take risks and win, it is only playing it safe. ...Plus, Cel-Animation felt it's last hurrah not with Brother Bear, but with Sinbad (because no one cares about Brother Bear...cuz it was horrible). Now, animated movies have been infected with CGI, and the art is gone.
Pixar on the other hand, has the right idea. The line between them and Disney is beginning to blur I hear, but the facts and fans speak for themselves: Finding Nemo rocked. As did every other Pixar presentation in existence. So there.
In other news, the discovery of the Youngblood Brass Band is fine fuel for homework or screenwriting.
The UCMB recital has been pushed back until mid-April. Hey, maybe I'll have it on my birthday! So I have a bit more time to get my act squared away. Yay.
Wind Ensemble is proving to be quite a daunting mixed blessing. As much as I want to strangle the snickering trumpets, I am thankful for the challenge. If I could improve as much as I did last semester I can double the progress with the work ethic required for Wind Ensemble. Yeehaw.
Orchestra doesn't have parts for me yet, but Collegium and Chorus require tenors...so I have been recruited. It'll be good training for the ear. Piano is going well, I will be composing something for my brass sextet, arranging music for the pep band as soon as possible, and I'm finally in Brass Tech (learning Trumpet legitimately).
I'm busy as heck, so don't get too annoyed if I don't update for awhile. I'm in six ensembles, and I'm a music major, and I'm in a service organization, and I've got an acappella group to get off the ground. Deal.
Thanks for reading. Have a great night.
Adam
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