The past few days.....

Somebody please pinch me. I really have died and gone to heaven. I will miss you all dearly, but heaven really isn't so bad, so I think I'll just stay. Here's what I have been up to lately.

Tuesday:

Lots of Rain. Practice shacks are kind of a bummer because it isn't fun traipsing through the mud to get to them. Boo. We had rehearsal in the morning for 2 and a half hours and things went considerably better than Sunday. Considerably. Phew. My section rocks. Let's be honest. I'm so lucky to be playing with such strong players!!! Cafeteria food is preeeeeeeeetty crappy. I have a pita with hummus and cold, stewed vegetables (because by the time I get to them they are cold) every day so far. It's not bad, but I could do better. I have to take an hour and a half or so off after lunch because I am pretty beat. I can't play all day straight! My friend from Ecuador said that he practiced from 10 PM to 2 AM last night. Weird. He's the bomb, though, so I'm not going to argue. I am doing an intense Preach My Gospel study program and it is making my life extra good. 24 is coming in 2nd. Actually, it's probably first if you consider how much time I spend watching compared to PMG. I'm prioritizing, though. And all I have to say about 24 is one big sigh. I am sad. Last night we also had what is called the "Connections Picnic." Every arts student here has a "Connection." This is basically just someone who is here to help us out, support us, and be our cheerleader at all of our performances. Me and the other girl flute player, Emlyn, were placed with a very sweet lady named Judy. She has been coming here for over 20 years and is just a doll. She runs a private music school in NYC, has never owned a car, and has a private flute studio of 21 students. She is awesome. After the picnic she took us over to her little house, which she totally remodeled herself and it is adorable. I will take pictures and post them because it is like the most perfect thing you could ever see. It is a white house with yellow shutters, flower boxes on the windows, a cute little garden, and there are even swings on her front porch! And yes, this is totally for real. Judy told me and Emlyn that she is totally taking us for hamburgers at the best burger joint in Chautauqua and we are coming over for dinner a few times. And she told us to come sit on her porch swing whenever we want. She is so cute! And her house is so quaint. It's so great that she is a flute player, too, because we talked about flute stuff with her for awhile and she things we are superstars, so it's kind of fun. This whole idea of connections is so smart! I love it.

Wednesday:

Today was crazy!!! I got up and went running for the first time since I've been here (hoping to make it a habit). It was so beautiful! I ran around the lake, but eventually got lost and had to ask someone for directions back to my dorm. The great thing is that there are SO many people out exercising, so it's just kind of fun! And everyone says hello and.... it's just pleasantville. Then I got ready and ate breakfast, which was actually good for once. Fresh blueberries and strawberries and good bananas. By the way, this town has a strawberry festival in July and Judy is going to take us to it! I can't express my excitement. I practiced a bit before rehearsal and then was at rehearsal for most of the morning. We are sounding pretty good. I am about to whack the clarinets if they don't start playing in tune and chilling out, but other than that we're good. I didn't realize how much difficult flute stuff there was in Pictures. It's a great piece, though, and we're going to sound fantastic. I practiced some more after rehearsal, then I went to a meeting about teaching private lessons. So far I have a student for one week in July and he is 9 and I get $40 for every lesson I teach. Keep them coming, please! I took a break for some 24 before I went back to practicing, then I went to community band practice. All the members of the MSFO (Music School Festival Orchestra) pretty much got roped into doing this, but it is hilarious and a lot of fun. Anyone can play in this band, and we are playing on the main town square on July 4th. It is going to be a riot. We are playing one song on kazoos. Elmers!!! And I'll have a chance to brush up on my piccolo for Stars and Stripes. The best part is we all have these awesome matching T-Shirts, which I will take pictures in and post. The T-Shirts were even called "Collectors Item T-Shirts." Don't think I would miss on that. After rehearsal I went to the Chautauqua Women's Club Picnic because part of my scholarship came from them. The food was delicious and all of the old women were so cute. It was like Steel Magnolias. And a bunch of the vocalists got up and started singing while we were eating. Jaw drop. This one guy started singing Some Enchanted Evening from South Pacific and I pretty much melted in my chair, I think. It's a good thing my mom wasn't there or she might have run away with him. It was a delightful picnic and then I had a sectional for an hour and a half and things are starting to gel a lot better. Now I am back in my dorm, ready for an episode of 24 before I go to bed. My life is awesome.

No MSFO rehearsal tomorrow, so that will be nice. I do have my first lesson with my flute teacher tomorrow, though, which I am really excited about. He ran the WW/Brass sectional today and was really fabulous, so I'm looking forward to my lesson!

Sorry if this is more than everyone wanted to know! It's kind of nice to have some documentation for myself, though.