Hits and Misses (September 25 - October 1)

Here's a look back at the week that was.....

HITS

• It was so much fun waking up on Tuesday morning feeling refreshed after a long day of teaching and rehearsing only to find a long string of text messages from some of my fraternity brothers in Malibu. I laughed and simply shook my head. I've really got to get back to southern California pretty soon....I miss these guys far too much and it's been way too long since we've been together.
• Tuesday just got better as I enjoyed lunch with my pastor and friend, Jason. It is nice getting to know him and finally letting down my guard enough to let him get to know me. We shared lots of stories of hurts, successes and plans. Once again, it's just more proof that College Heights is a great fit for me in this season of my life.
• I've been seeing a chiropractor for a couple of months now and definitely seeing the benefits. This week saw a new procedure though that was a little unusual when I first experienced it. I was dealing with some allergies -- it is Fall in west Texas, after all -- and just felt like I couldn't get a deep breath. Dr. Nate told me he could help me by giving me a "bear hug." Um.....OK.....What he basically did was have me lie on my back with my arms across my chest. Then he reached around my back, pulled me up, and gently pushed back my shoulder with his....and the popping that went down my spine took us both by surprise. After I got over the initial shock of what I had just heard, I took a deep breath and didn't want to move because I felt so good! I really just wanted to curl up somewhere and take a long nap after a night of fitful rest.
• Rehearsals have been productive this week. The students I work with had successful auditions for the upcoming NATS competition. Little Shop is almost completely staged now and the band had our first read-through at the end of the week.
• After a busy week -- and several stressful weeks in a row -- the Rook crew got together on Saturday night for another evening of laughter and play. I don't know if it was the fact that Kim and I won the game -- or that Daniel lost the game -- or that good friends were gathered around the table laughing together -- but once again, I had a great time.

MISSES

• Stuck keys are never something you want to deal with -- so you can imagine my frustration dealing with it twice this week. On Sunday night, I was opening the exterior door to the music building with my key to only learn that the key had gotten jammed into the lock and wasn't coming out! A student and I were fighting with the key for several minutes before we finally and miraculously got it out. Later in the week, I was dealing with a piano key that was sticking on the upright we are using for Little Shop rehearsals. I really don't know what the problem was...but it eventually went away and hasn't been a problem since. (Yes, I just walked across the room to knock on wood....just in case!)
• Once again this week, I've dealt with sore muscles in my back, neck and shoulders. I know that this is primarily due to the amount of playing I've been doing while dealing with stress in other areas of my life. Thankfully, I'm seeing the chiropractor three times a week (see the Hit above), so the soreness doesn't get as bad as it could be.
• With my busy schedule of late, I've been playing phone tag with several people. I hate making phone calls anyway, so playing phone tag is one of my least favorite activities. At least everyone I'm trying to contact right now are people that I actually like and look forward to getting to catch up.