I had promised updates on my jury. It was fine. MY specific comments from the judges were largely that I should do more with dynamics and phrasing and that my vibrato should be more consistent through out the piece.
My girlfriend has been diagnosed with lymphoma with certainty, Hodgkins to be specific. She has started her first round of chemo this week and she is tired but hopeful. I, too, am tired but hopeful.
As for me, I'm hanging in there. I'm with my family, for which I'm grateful. We're being active, doing yoga, pickle ball, going for hikes. Overall, though, I'm surprised with how tired I am. I'm getting plenty of sleep, but I feel the looming effects of burn-out from last semester. I know that it's burnout from last semester because I'm having an incredibly difficult time practicing and doing the research that I need to do for my thesis. Even more than that, though, I'm completely burned-out on Christmas. I feel angry at the holiday, for whatever reason. I'm having a particularly hard time understanding my aversion, because last year while I was in Haifa with Mendon, I freaked out when I wasn't able to have Christmas be a special family day. (Actually, I made Mendon go out with me to buy KinderSurprise Eggs and then I also required that he, Mara, Mark and I go out to dinner to make it an event). My mood swings with the holiday confuse me. Hopefully, I'll find a better answer for next year's holiday season. In spite of this gloomy thought, I really enjoyed spending the day with my family and I'm thankful that I can be here.
I am considering a non family holiday next year. A trip just for me - that is actually relaxing and feels like a vacation. One of the main points of this trip include being kissed by the sun.
Your jury comments are pretty much exactly the same as mine.
You mentioned Yoga-are you taking a class? Hayley and I are thinking about doing some kind of yoga class at the rec. We could both use some healthy relaxation, and it would be a good activity to do together. Also, I'm taking a seminar in Alexander Technique for musicians, and I bet yoga would reinforce a lot of the same concepts of control, body awareness and relaxation.
I enjoy reading your blog from time to time.
:)
When I was in Phoenix, I was sneaking in on Dad and Jerry's regular yoga classes. They were very different from anything I've ever seen in the States, but almost exactly (in part) like the yoga I did in India, which was fantastic. I didn't realize that you were doing the Alexander Technique; that sounds great. I would love to hear what what you're learning in there. I look forward to hanging out again sometime soon. (and thanks for the comment!)