Jam Session...well...sorta...

After over 11 years, I played the trombone last night. I only played for one section of a piece, but dang, I sounded pretty darn good! LOL! I played trumpet the rest of the time, as my friend, Jessie, brought her trombone and has played more recently than I. We were fortunate that have been able to get some of it on audio/video. We even switched instruments at one point and that was a hoot too!

Later, we will work up to a more complicated piece. We have arrangments for Glen Miller's "In the Mood" and Chicago's "25 or 6 to 4." Those are some fun jazzy songs that will be good fun when we get back into the swing of things. We had some good laughs last night!

Aw we were waiting for the rice to cook, and our lips were buzzing from our earlier efforts of playing, we read Act 1 Scene 1 of Romeo and Juliet. While the hamburger concoction was heating up, we summarized what we had read, and put it into terms we felt our contemporaries would understand. It was terribly funny! Carrie, I can't wait for you to come out to California and join in the fun!

ej

rain rain go away

it's raining today
pouring cats and dogs
i remember the old days
sittin' in school
with nothin' to do
the teacher's callin' my name
i'd rather go outside to play

but we're...
playin' heads up 7 up
eating lunch at our desks
hopin' that the sun comes out
and dries up all the rain
i'm thinkin' 'bout hop scotch
pencil breakn' n' double dutch
oh please
rain rain go away

it's time for that spelling test
i didn't even practice yet
spent all morning lookin' outside
tryin' to make the sun shine bright
little prayers with a little beggin'
hoping that the rain lets up
and cancels all our tests
but instead...

rain rain go away
come back some other day
i'm tired of
heads up 7 up
eating lunches at my desk
wantin' to play hop scotch
pencil break and double dutch
oh,
rain rain some other day

ej

Feeling Old

I spent my thanksgiving playing football for nearly 4 hours straight, then rushed home to cook and shower before dinner. By the time dinner was through and the pies came out, I was already going home. I was so tired, especially since I'd been up since 4 a.m. (my regular time on weekdays). I had agreed to playing basketball Friday morning with the boys. So, we played for almost three hours. I was already sore from football the day before, and even though I work out faithfully, I was still exhausted. Pushing the accelerator on my way home was an effort. I attmepted to practice a few songs on the drums, but my legs were so tired, that it hurt to use the bass pedal. I spent the rest of afternoon getting things done around the apartment with a great effort. Saturday, I spent with my friend Amy and crew. She was moving into her new apartment. It was a lot of work, but a lot of fun. The only thing, is somehow I tweaked my back and it has not been the same since. Certainly, I am aware that it is probably my fault, as I have continued to go to the gym, and work for the Jensen's doing labor intensive tasks. But, I need the money to pay rent, so I we do what we gotta do. Take 600mg of Motrin and off you go! I've decided however, that when I am recovered and someday have a home of my own, I will have a backyard area that has a pile of dirt. Each day, I am going to go out and move the pile of dirt from one place to another for exercise. It is a full body experience, and imagine how strong you would get if you did that once a day, everyday, Sunday excluded? Yeah, that'd be fun!

ej

Driving in my car...

Driving in my car is always an experience. I have a 1986 Toyota Camry and it is the most fun car I've ever owned! The motor hums quietly, and when I am idling at a red light, the only sound other than the motor, is the soft "tick...tick...tick..." of the small clock in my dashboard control panel. I enjoy all the small details of my car that gives it character and most especially the interior. The vinyl interior of my roof is cracked in such a way, that it makes me think that Spiderman and bricklayers came together to create the fun, intricate design that exists in my car. The cloth interior is a light blue, mostly faded from years in the sun, and my exterior paint job leads me to question the original color of the car, but I am happy to call it blue, but I'm not sure. My car stereo has a little erractic at times, and at any given moment, all the speakers may decide to work simultaneously! I get excellent gas mileage and displayed above my rear window break light, I display proudly in white lettering, "TAPOUT" (this matching my favorite fighting T-shirt). I'm finding that it's taken longer than I had realized, to adjust to the manual windows, thus giving "power" windows, a whole new meaning to me. If anything, I have "power" windows, as it is because of my brute strength that I am able to operate the driver side window! It has been such a joy to drive this car, and I look forward to many adventures to come.

ej