fdsailor.blog-city.com — October 2004
11:25 pm: Trying to get back in t he groove
OK, so its been a long time since I have written. I offer no excuses - it just is what it is. I am trying to scrap back together some semblence of my past schedule, however. In particular I need the exercise and the oboe back. While Masha is here I won't be able to do everything I did before, of course, but this is fine, since I am doing other things instead (and enjoying them).
I started by going out and running last night - I have been doing this now and then, but it is time to get back to at least 3 times per week. All told, it went just fine. The temperature was only around 10C, which is colder than I was used to. I wore lightwight tights and a long sleeve coolmax shirt, and this seemed to work fine once I started running. I could tell that lightweight gloves could be useful, however.
Gee, no surprise, but you don't sweat as much when you are cold, so running is a much less messy experience. I had not drunk much, however, before running, and this started to show with some minor stomach cramps. But once I stopped they went away. Today my legs are a bit sore.
Tonight we went to Masha's school open house. What fun! 8 minute periods with 5 minutes to change classes - got through the entire school day in 2 hours (including an 8 minute lunch!). Met all the teachers, and boy are they a fantastic lot! I wish I had teachers like that - very bright, very perky, and willing to help. We now have email addresses for everyone. It really is a team effort, between student, teacher and parents to work a student through high school. Masha can certainly do it without all this help, but there is a great support structure there if it is needed. And she works really hard...
Time for bed... Laterbye
11:31 pm: Sorta normal Saturday
Today was pretty normal, although for me normal means not particularly predictable. This morning G and Masha went off on errands, while I woke up and orgainized the house a bit. We then met two of our friends a "House of Phad" or something like that for lunch (Chinese). The restaurant was actually very good - now rates in my "top 4 list" - currently Kam Wah's, Golden Phoenix, House of Phad and Chung Thai (#1 for thai, #4 for Chinese) House of Phad. Afterwards Masha took off with one of her friends (to return 8 hours later!), G went shopping, and I took Anya for a walk. Later on we both got home and slept.
In the evening I went to a concert at Eastman - the Philharmonia and Eastman Chorale. The concert was very good, and one again it was clear that the new "shell" in the theatre really has helped the sound. The groups themselves were quite good - you could just tell they were not professional, but only by occasional mistakes, not sound or phrasing problems. There was one thing that was pretty interesting - the bobbing bassoon! For some strange reason through much of the concert, including when the bassoon was not playing, it would swing randomly back and forth like a reed blowing in the wind (or like an American Bittern, if anyone reading this has ever seen this bird do the same thing). This person will need a bit of coaching...
Two pieces were played: Four Seascapes for Chorus and Orchestra (2004) composed by Dominick Argento, and Beethoven's Symphony 5 in c. The first piece was a premier, and it is a very cool piece. New, but very assessible. Rich harmonies and textures. The texts were not as poetic as I may have liked, but heck, I never can understand the words anyways. Eastman theatre was about 1/3 full - very good for an ESM concert.
So now I sit at home listening to Gorecki's Sym. 3 - a favorite of mine. Its soundscape to me feels like looking across a broad, flat, field which reaches as far as the eye can see, with only occasionally scattered, single trees here and there. On a cold day but in the early evening when all the wind has stopped and the land awaits the sunset. Stark, beautiful and a bit haunting.
10:25 pm: Strange show...
OK, just got back from a very strange show - the Tractenburg Family Slideshow Players http://www.slideshowplayers
Maybe I am too young - maybe I am too old, but this just didn't do anything for me...
Had Abbot's afterwards - that was good...
7:11 pm: Finally getting some exercise
OK, the 'reclaim my routine" routine is making progress. In the last week I have managed to run 3 times - 3.5 miles, 5 miles and again last night at 3 miles. My indoor track pace for 3 miles averages 8:15 a mile, with some reasonable effort, and the 5 miles (OK, so it was really 4 miles, do something else, then run a final mile) was at 8:40 pace. And sure 'nuff, if I chart my weight vs running it indicates a simple rule I know is true - if I don't exercise, I slowly gain weight, and if I do, I slowly lose weight. Currently at an average of about 172 lbs, which is fine, although 168 is my final target.
This weekend we are going flying with a friend (who is a flight instructor). We will be flying in an overhead wing plane, so the view should be great. Let's hope the weather matches this. I am looking forward to it.
OK, now to practice some oboe, then off to volleyball for the evening.
5:40 pm: Flying...
Just got back from a wonderful, "fall colors" flight with a friend of ours (who is a flying instructor). We (G, Masha, myself and J the pilot) took off from Rochester Airporta bit after before noon. We first flew up to lake Ontiario, over Braddock's bay, over Irondequiot bay, then over Fairpot, then Canandaigua Lake, the mountains near Naples, then landed in Dansville for lunch. As we ate, we watched the sailplanes fly overhead. When we returned, we flew over Letchworth gorge (which really DOES look more spectacular from the air, if this can be believed), then finally back to Rochester.
It was a wonderful, sunny day, with not a cloud in the air. The fall leaves were at the peak - couldn't ask for more... Here are some of the pics:
On the left, Jon (the pilot), G and Masha. To the right, Canandiagua Yacht club from the air. Today was the day when the club hires a crane to lift all of the keel boats out of the water to store them on the blacktop for the night. Our boat (which is not a keel boat), is the single boat on the beach to the right.
Canandaigua lake, looking north. Also, the bristol hills. In the distance you can see the ski slopes of Bristol Mountain.
We ate lunch in Dansville. From there back to the airport, Masha flew most of the way, including doing a number of circles over Letchworth gorge while we took pictures. And we're still alive to tell, so I guess she did a good job!
The waterfall at Letchwork and the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) campus.
12:34 pm - Electoral college ?!
I was listening last night to a rather interesting discussion about the electoral college - always a hot topic before the elections, because an large percentage of the American people think that it makes no sense and should be replaced by a simple, popular vote. Well, as it happens, formally changing it like that (at the constitutional level) would require an amendment to the constitution, which is a REALLY hard thing to do. More promising is for individual states to decide that their electors be instructed to vote in proportion to the popular vote in that state - in fact Colorado is asking the voters (in a referendum) if that is what should happen. Interesting...
One interesting point that I liked. When the EC was conceived, the individual states were relatively much more powerful (compared with the overall country) than they are today, and not particularly trustful of that government. As a result, it seemed important that "New York State" should vote as a state who they wanted for president of the US. This sounds a bit silly now, when the US governement and the role of president dominates our thought process these days. But this program gave a modern-day example - consider if the European Union wanted to elect "the president of Europe". In this situation (which is not exactly analogous, but close enough), the individual countries have a stronger identity to the voters than the "president of Europe" does, so you could imagine France, for example to have a "vote" instead in this concept of "countryless" individual voters casting their votes.
Food for thought....
7:16 pm: Listening to music
OK, it's early evening, and I am sitting at the computer listening to McLean's "American Pie" - a classic by any definition. If anyone (from any country) has not heard this song, they should. Just trust me on this and listen. I can remember when this song came out teachers were assigning essays on what this song was about. Another good one, if you can find it is "Vincent", which is about Vincent VanGogh.
Tonight skating as always. G is on a diet, and I (just for fun :-} have gone back to counting calories again - talk about motiviation to exercise! BTW - a great Palm app for diet calorie and exercise counting.
The hot tub lid project (I am building a new one myself because the ones I buy just keep gaining water and getting too heavy to lift) is progressing, but far from done. You can imagine it - large chunks of 2" thick foam half glued together in the basement. For the next phase, I get to assemble the major pieces in the living room, because otherwise I could never get it out of the basement! I'll keep everyone posted, because I am sure that keeping track of this project is the most important things in everyone's life right now.. :-)
11:33 pm: Dancing?
Last night G and I went to a Viennese Ball that the music department was putting on at the University of Rochester. Since I had purchased a tuxedo a month ago as required "dress" for the wind ensemble concerts I play in, I had no excuse not to go. And G turned this into a great excuse to buy a nice "ball" dress. We went with several friends and had a great time. No, I can't dance, but our ballroom dancing friends, Kev & Kelly are awesome, and spent quite a bit of time teaching us. So we all had fun. And it was amazing to watch K&K as well as our other friends David & Stephanie dance as well - they all know how to do it, which makes all the difference.
Meanwhile, Masha went off the a Halloween party with friends from school - she dressed as a surgeon, which is cool, since this is going to be her profession in a number of years after University in Russia. We arrived back around 1:30 am, picked Masha up and went home. M and I talked until 3:30, and then finally crashed.
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