Winter, Winter, Go Away

It's the beginning of March and winter had to have one last go around.  The weather last week felt amazing and there were a few days where I was able to go outside without a jacket; I honestly thought I was going to be putting our winter coats up.  The forecast changed near the end of last week, predicting snow and ice.  I'm a optimist and like to look for the good in things, so I was hoping that the forecast would be wrong.  Unfortunately the forecast was actually right, and we ended up getting around five inches of snow on top of a quarter inch of ice.

The roads were so bad that Murray State closed campus for not only one day, but two.  Campus hasn't been closed for weather since my freshman year (four years ago), and even then it was only closed for one day.  My senior recital hearing is less than ten days away and I'm stuck at home because of the fluffy white powder that fell from the sky.  I'm keeping my hopes up that campus will reopen on Wednesday so I can get some much needed practice time in!

After about twenty minutes of brushing and scraping, I was able to clear off the majority of snow and ice from the cars; but as you can see there is still a bit of ice left over.  It was way to cold to stay outside any longer.

Not much longer until Spring arrives and warmer days are here to stay!  Until then, I plan on staying inside where it's warm and safe!

Kentucky Intercollegiate Band 2014

Every year around December the MSU Wind Ensemble is informed of the Kentucky Intercollegiate Band, and how we should sign up because it would be a good experience.  Every year I would just pass the sign-up sheet to the person next to me because my thought process was, "I don't have the time...I can't miss any classes to do this."  I was so wrong!  This year I finally put my name on the sheet and was blessed to have been selected to go.

The drive to E-town was one of the worst driving experiences I've ever had.  Earlier that morning it had started to rain, but within a few hours the rain had turned to sleet and a wintry mix.  A drive that normally takes three hours turned into about five.  I couldn't drive faster than 45-50 mph the entire way, and actually had to stop once to calm my nerves.  Luckily I arrived safe and sound at my parents place!

The next few days were spent practicing in preparation of a concert that was to be given in the spectacular Whitney Hall at the Kentucky Center for the Arts.  The guest conductor was fantastic and the ensemble did amazing.  I don't think I've ever been in an ensemble setting that performed as well as that specific ensemble did.  We performed a wide array of pieces from Olypmic Fanfare and Theme by John Williams as the opener, and To Tame the Perilous Skies by David Holsinger as the finale.

I won't go into too much detail, but the overall experience was well worth the horrible drive, early mornings and late nights.  The performance was one I'll remember for years to come!  I wish I'd have given KIB a chance in the past, but I'm glad I had the chance to experience it at least once.

PASIC 2013

This post is way past due.  I've been meaning to write about my experience and adventures at PASIC shortly after the trip, but with the crazy schedule last semester I never found adequate time to do so.  Almost three months later, here it is!

PASIC stands for Percussive Arts Society International Convention; which essentially means a percussionists heaven for four days straight.  Early last semester I was asked if I wanted to go to Indianapolis with a group of percussionist from my college, in which we would compete in the college small group division.  Of course I said yes, I had been wanting to go to PASIC since I was in high school.  After the group was formed, a practice schedule was set and we started working towards an end goal.

A few months of hard work and determination paid off as we traveled to Indy for performance and fun times.  The first night was spent settling in to our hotel rooms and catching up on some much needed rest.  The following  morning was our own time to walk around and get acquainted with the area and the convention center, and that night was our performance.  The last performance in competition was the best we had done; we left the room in excitement, not caring what we placed because we knew we had given our best and that was what mattered.

We didn't place as well as we thought we did, but we where proud of ourselves and how we did.  We had raised our score a considerable amount compared to previous years competing at PASIC.  The last few days were spent celebrating and enjoying the convention and guest speakers/performers.

To keep this post a reasonable length and not full of unneeded details, I'll just bullet a list of everything else we experienced:

• We stayed in a five star hotel in downtown Indianapolis, fully paid for by the university.  I have never stayed in a hotel that was that nice.
• Explored the city and all of it's beauty.  I'm not a city person to say the least, but Indianapolis is one of my favorites!  If I had to chose a city to visit, it would be this one.
• Walked around the expo center and visited over a hundred percussion booths that were selling and advertising some of the best instruments, equipment, and accessories.
• Played on multiple different drum sets, marimbas, and other percussion instruments I could get my hands on.
• Spent too much money on mallets and other percussion goodies, but came away with every set of mallets I've been wanting for the past few years.
• Bought two solos that I'll be playing this semester on my Senior Recital.
• The concerts and clinics I experienced:
• Chad Smith, the drummer from the Red Hot Chili Peppers gave a drum set clinic.
• The Chain Marimba Trio in concert.
• Saw an amazing Tabla concert by a group from an Indian Drumming School.
• The Eastman Percussion Ensemble from the Eastman School of Music.  I didn't know this until I sat through the concert, but the director of this group is Michael Burritt, who is one of my favorite marimba composers and soloist.
• I later got to meet Mr. Michael Burritt in person, shake his hand, and watch him solo on a marimba up close.
• Indiana University Percussion Ensemble in concert.  (This is where the awesome Dr. Hill attended school.)
• Bob Becker and Yurika Kimura in concert.
• And the highlight concert that all of us attended the last night there, Dave Weckl!  I had never heard of him until that week, but was enlightened at how great his musicianship skills were on the drum set.  I had attended his drum set clinic earlier that day and learned quite a bit on soloing across the entire set, and have been trying to apply what I learned then to my playing now.

Overall this was a great experience for me and I hope to go back someday.

Two Weeks Too Long

It seems like it's been forever since I posted last, and quite a bit has happened.  I wont drag this post out too long but I do want to have a post for today!

Shortly after posting my last entry I visited my hometown to see my family and two best friends.  It was a great visit with some fun happenings and good laughs.  My grandpa had no idea that I was coming home, so I decided to surprise him; I picked him up from work on Saturday morning after staying the night with my friend Ashley.  I'd parked my car in front of the main entrance to his work and had the sun visor down to cover my face when he'd walk out.  This normally wouldn't have tricked him, but the best part was that me and my mom have the same make and model of cars, just slightly different colors.  He walked out of work and looked at my car questionably, not recognizing who it was behind the wheel.  I slowly raised the visor up and he got the biggest smile I haven't seen since my wedding.  He then walked took off in a brisk walk to the passenger side and got in, saying "I didn't know you were coming home, I thought you were you mom!!!".  What a great surprise!  I love visiting family and friends, I always come back refreshed and relaxed.

Next to vising home, I've transitioned into my new practicum placement very well.  It's a great school with great teachers and students, and I'm glad to spend this semester there.  One of the best things about it is it's only a few miles down the road from where we live, so me and Michael are saving on fuel money.

Last but least, a few days ago one of my best set of mallets, A. Putnams, broke.  I wasn't expecting one of them to snap so soon seeing as I just bought them at PASIC, but it did.  I tried to get just one replacement mallet through the company I bought them from, but unfortunately they only sell them in a set of four.  After a few phone calls and emails I was finally able to get the situation settled.  The best part is, Amy Putnam herself replied to all of my emails and is setting me up with a replacement mallet for the broken one, and the other three to be re-wrapped for a cheaper price the a brand new set. (Amy Putnam is the creator of these mallets by the way).

Hopefully it won't be this long between posts next time...but it's hard to tell with a ridiculously busy schedule.  Here's to a great weekend and even more productivity!

When Schedules Fail

Happy Friday everyone!  This week was officially the last first week of college I spent on campus.  Being a new year and new goals, I attempted to make a rigorous schedule and follow it; but life decided to throw a few wrenches into the gears.  It wasn't a bad week at all, just one that had a few surprises.

With my senior recital just a few months away I decided to crack down on practicing more than usual.  This was successful on Monday, but then surprises started happening.  I found out my Practicum placement on Monday, but by Wednesday morning it had been changed.  The new placement was 30 minutes away from where we live, and another 30 minutes from campus (which is 30 minutes from home as well).  I liked the placement, but the commute wasn't ideal.

I just want to say that God is good!  I was worried about fuel expenses because of all of the extra driving I was going to have to do this semester...and fuel isn't cheap.  Yesterday morning I received yet another email with a new placement; this newest placement is wonderful!  It is at a school which is right down the road from where we live, which won't be a problem at all when it comes to driving and fuel expenses!

When schedules fail, don't fret!  That rigorous schedule I had created at the beginning of the week may not have worked out the way I had planned, but God had different plans in place.  Instead of practicing, I had enough time to run all of the errands that are required in getting a background check for Practicum, and had enough time to layout a new and improved schedule for next week :).

To top off the week, I'll be traveling to my parents this weekend to spend some quality time with family and my two best friends back home!

Last Week of Break

The last week of Christmas break has finally arrived, and it is the last for my college undergrad years.  Yesterday started off kind of crappy, which is no way for the week to begin.  If you turned on the Weather Channel or radio recently, you've probably heard of the arctic cold that hit the north and north east part of the country.  Kentucky was in the path of that arctic cold, and we were hit with a rain/wintery mix that fell throughout Sunday night.  With temperatures falling near zero and the wind chill below zero, everything froze at a quick pace.

Monday morning came around and I was woken up by Michael, who had both of the front door handles from his car in his hands.  It was literally so cold and icy outside that the door handles completely broke off.  After calling up a dealership, I discovered that it is ridiculously expensive to get these replaced.  Luckily we are penny pinchers and found out later that day that we can open up the doors with a wire coat hanger!  It isn't ideal, but it works and currently saves us some money, haha.

Anyway, with classes starting next week it means that my senior recital is just a few short months away.  The cold didn't hold me back from getting into Fine Arts to practice some, which was much needed.  I'm really looking forward to this semester because it seems less stressful than last; it probably won't be, but it doesn't hurt to hope!

Here's to a great week, and even better semester!

"You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek you; I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you, in a dry and parched land where there is no water."

Psalm 63:1

The Beatitudes...What to do?

The fire for Christ has certainly started to burn in my life again!  As stated in the previous post, I didn't do so well in my walk of faith last semester due to numerous situations; and I'm making it a top priority to put God first and foremost this year and years to come.  I've started a new devotional called Coffee With God by Sarah Arthur, and have also started a one year plan of reading the whole Bible, which is in the back of my Bible.

During my quiet time earlier, I was reading about the Beatitudes.  The Beatitudes, what exactly are they?  They are the principles and standards by which God expects all Christians to live by.  I've read and heard about the beatitudes quite a bit throughout the years I've attended church, but never took the time to break each one down and study a little of each.

One of them really stuck out to me, and that was Matthew 5:6;

"Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled."

Many Christians typically go through their day-to-day lives without giving a second thought to what it means to be "filled with Christ".  The Holy Spirit fills you when you except Jesus as your Lord, but then what?  We sometimes, more than often find ourselves feeling empty.  It's during these empty situations that most people try to find happiness in earthly things such as entertainment, money, relationships, and more.  It's up to us to continue filling that empty gap in our lives...the gap that can only be filled by Jesus.

That's where this beatitude comes into effect.  "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness..."  We should continuously be hungry and thirsty for Christ; in other words, we need to have a longing for righteousness, and chase that longing with perseverance.  Jesus clearly states in this verse that those who hunger and thirst for righteousness will be filled!  Simple as day, we can fill that "emptiness" with so much more than "earthly happiness" if we earnestly seek out Christ in our daily lives; by doing this we will be filled with God's love, peace, mercy, and all things Holy.

I hope this verse brings as much joy to you as it does me!  I pray that this year also brings each and everyone of you blessings and happiness!