Hits and Misses (December 1-7)

It has certainly been a wild week! Crazy things have meant that I wasn't on a normal blogging schedule either. Here's a look back at the week that was (and the week that I am VERY GLAD is finally over).

HITS

• Finals started this week! That meant I had a more relaxed schedule and got to sleep in a little later. I've forgotten just how much I enjoy sleeping because I don't get to experience it very often these days.
• The end of the week saw the first round of winter weather for the season and that meant school was closed on Friday! Hip, Hip, Hooray! I caught up on some paperwork and got to do some reading again. It was too cold to do much else though.
• Rather than fighting the crowds on Black Friday, I hit the internet and ordered a few gifts. This was new territory for me, but I'm quickly becoming a believer! The first set of gifts arrived this week and have already been wrapped. I'm loving this quick turn around without the stress of facing the people.
• Since my schedule is finally beginning to slow down, I decided it was time to begin a new personal Bible study. I am working through Beth Moore's study on the Patriarchs and thoroughly enjoying it! While I consider myself very familiar with the stories found in the book of Genesis, Beth's insights have opened my eyes to new perspectives that have challenged me and blessed me immensely. If you have not participated in a personal Bible study in a while, I encourage you to jump in with both feet. You will be blessed and you'll learn something new along the way.
• The end of the week also saw the publication of recital schedules for the spring at Union. I'm playing 7 programs and I'm going to be a very busy bee once March rolls around. It's time to hit the practice rooms in preparation.
• Because of the icy roads, voice boards at Union were cancelled Saturday. This was definitely good news and bad news. My students and I had prepared all semester for this exam; not getting to present our programs was a bit of a let down. Not having to sit at a piano for four hours straight and perform the entire time was a welcome change of pace. I suppose the good part definitely outweighs the bad!

MISSES

• Nothing makes me more irate than students that cheat. My week began with filing charges against a student for academic dishonesty. The student received notification and then emailed me asking for a second chance since this was not his intention. Really? What was your intention when you went to the web and copied large sections of text into your document that you presented as your own work? Am I really that stupid?
• With the end of the semester comes a lot of rehearsals. Long days at the piano with a headache and shoulder pain are not the times of music making that I most enjoy. They are sometimes necessary.
• I don't like cold weather!!! I like it even less when the temperature changes dramatically and quickly. On Thursday, we experienced a high in the low 70s; within 24 hours, we were facing the chilling artic air that registered in the low 20s. My body and house are not built for temperatures that low!
• I hate cancer. It's a cruel disease that has hit my family and friends too many times in recent years. As I was preparing to walk on stage during a departmental recital on Thursday afternoon, I learned that another friend had lost his battle with cancer. Tyler Decker was a student with me at Pepperdine in the early 1990s. He was always a source of entertainment with his amazing sense of humor and wit. Tyler and I renewed are friendship a few years ago as we both renewed our involvement with the Psi Upsilon fraternity at Pepperdine. What I came to respect most about Tyler was not his humor, but his friendship and insightfulness. Tyler will be missed greatly by all who knew him. My prayers are with his family in the coming days and weeks as they begin to face the world without their treasured son, brother, and friend.

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