i'd go the whole wide world!

First, start this song playing in a new window while you read the rest of the story:

The problem with working on cruise ships, or leading any sort of travel-y lifestyle, is that you meet great people, and you get to know them very well, and then you all go off to different corners of the world and may never see each other again. My cruise gig was two years ago exactly, but I have kept up with three incredible people from that ship - and through them, I've met some other incredible people.

Yesterday, all of these awesome cruise people (except one, and I'll see her in two weeks), on two different ships, were in Miami at the same time. A little while ago, around the end of February (when we first realized this was happening, and when plane tickets were cheap) we started planning the day. And since I enjoy very much making things more epic than they already are, I didn't tell Full Tilt that I was going to be there. (they just thought they were meeting up with Ken for lunch - no idea that I was flying down for the day to see them)(because no one expects awesome people to show up a thousand miles away from where they're supposed to be).

Here is their reaction as they walked into the restaurant and saw me there:

So much happy all in one place!

We had a great lunch together, made some faraway plans to see each other again, then ran some errands. Too soon, they had to get back to their ship, the Millennium.

It would have been nice to have more time (and I wanted so badly just to go on their ship with them and go on a cruise - but I have too much to do on land right now) So then we walked around, found the water, and sat by it for a bit. The weather could not have been nicer!

My flight home connected through DC - if I had been able to get out and see all my DC folks, that would have made the day even better. But a Potbelly sandwich sufficed (Tennessee doesnt have Potbellys, so whenever I get a chance for a delicious sandwich, I have to take it!) By the way, the Reagan National airport is pretty swell. Free wifi, charging stations all over the place, all the good Maryland food in a row? I enjoyed it.

Then I flew back to Nashville. 2,630 miles total.

This awesome day was brought to you by:

The Ken Ge Center for Shenannigans and Laundry Studies

American Airlines

PF Changs

The Atlantic Ocean

The Celebrity Millenium and Equinox

Reagan National Airport

Apple, Inc.

Potbelly Sandwich Shop

so.

Let's talk about my lent endeavors for a minute.

Not drinking is fine, more annoying than anything else. I've actually come to the same conclusion about not drinking as I did about not eating meat, last year during my vegetarian phase. It turns out that at home, I don't eat a lot of meat anyway, and it's no problem not to drink at home - but going out, restaurants don't usually have super yummy vegetarian options, and it is completely annoying when everyone else is out and drinking yummy beers or bourbons that I would very much like to try, and I can't. It's two more weeks (from yesterday), so I'll stick it out, but I probably won't be going cold turkey again anytime soon.

Lent.

I gave up pizza for lent, mostly as a healthy decision in the first place. I thought it would be easier than it was. It was fine for a few days, and then last night I ate a bunch of pizza. It was 2 for 1's at Mafioza's, and the torture of not being allowed to drink either just made me sad. I'm still not drinking, but I realized that giving up both my favorite things at the same time was a hard decision. I'm still cutting back, but the binge after a week was apparently unavoidable.

Conclusion? I don't have a whole lot of self control when it comes to food. I like it a lot.

I guess it's better than most other addictions one could have.

(in related news, I've stopped biting my fingernails for the 356th time)

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Happy Leap Day, by the way. Go take a leap and do something that scares you! I did.

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P.S. Could someone please explain pinterest to me? I feel 80 years old, I don't get it.

Thanksgiving

What an odd holiday this is, so overshadowed by the Christmas season. Barely standing on it's own feet - but at the same time so like Christmas in that the real meaning is very lost, and people just use it as an excuse to take off work to eat lots of food. And then people complain that the true meaning is lost. But who cares? Who cares about the pilgrims. Yes, it's good what they did, it's good to know the history of your country. The point has shifted from a history lesson, and the fall harvest, to just a time where people who love each other have an excuse to get together and show it. Yay! I didn't mean for that whole thing to sound grumpy, if it did.

I am following in my usual Thanksgiving tradition of sleeping until halfway through the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade (shuffling in around the Snoopy balloon) drinking coffee, starting food prep.

"All right everyone, its 2:30, that means dinnertime, because for some reason on Thanksgiving dinner is at 2:30" -Lois Griffin

Five Things I'm Particularly Thankful for This Year:

1. Sarah and Josh for letting me come over and be family for their Thanksgiving.

2. My family, for letting me swoop in and spend most of my Maryland time playing music with my friends and liking me for whatever (however little) time I can spend at home.

3. Nicole and Jenny White. They are the greatest people, and I have known them forever, they have put up with me for over five years, through all my moving around and away and back.

4. The fact that this year, I am finally, finally finished with school, and finally getting paid to do what I've been doing for years anyway.

5. The discovery that no matter what state I'm in, I can find people to play string quartet music with. Thanks especially to Three Hits and a Miss (Red Wing, MN) and the Chroma String Quartet (Washington D.C.) (How'd you like that shameless plugging?)

There are more things I'm thankful for, but I've gotta get cooking. :) Hope everyone has a wonderful day, full of love and food and napping!

(apologies- I have both recital and french party posts pending, I'm just waiting on some pictures)

III. Food

In my transition from student to realperson, some of my tastes have transitioned, and some have not. When I was living in Minnesota, I had a lot of free time, no homework, and a kitchen to myself, so I cooked and baked a lot. I made breads, dinners, appetizers, desserts. I was very fancy. Now, I'm working full time and I eat most of my meals at work or out, so when I actually do have the time and energy to cook or bake (like on Sundays), I don't even have a well stocked pantry (since these moments are few and far between) so I end up with the old standby, my good friend Ramen. Or occasionally I step up the game with some Pasta-roni. Or Spaghetti. I have reverted back to my college days, but -- as long as I stick with white wine with white sauce and red wine with red sauce, it doesnt matter that I paid $1.50 for my entire meal, right?

music is ear food

This is not a groundbreaking analogy. But I came upon this comparison the other day when I found myself defending Debussy to a friend who was not fond of this particular composer. I was trying to explain that he was good, and why. In describing his music I found myself using words like “complex,” “chewy,” “layers,” and “nose.” (kidding about that last one) but, halfway through my monologue, I realized I could easily be describing a wine. And Debussy does indeed compare to a fine wine, in my opinion. There are many different sensations you get from beginning to end when listening to his music.

But more than that, music is so much like dining; the more I thought, the more easily I compared. Rossini is a lovely piece of cake: easy to eat, but too much is too much. Tchaikovsky is a beautiful, delicious steak, cooked perfectly medium rare, with a side of asparagus so well matched - by the end of it you are completely satisfied. Bartok is an interesting foreign meal that you don’t quite like, but you get through it and pretend you did anyway. And some people quite enjoy it. Brahms is a good stew. Mozart is pizza – all around good, you can never have too much, very good any day, any time of day music. (fancier Mozart is fancier pizza – but pizza is still pizza, and Mozart is Mozart.) And Bach is vegetables, so very good for you, even if one might get tired of it occasionally.

As Shakespeare said, “If music be the food of love, play on.” I would change that, perhaps, to: if music be delicious food in general, continue playing and eating all the wonderful things. All day.

Your glass of music for the day (red, not white) :

(if you’re in a particular hurry, start at the 3:30 minute mark and listen until at least 5:15)

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