Lord, Smite This Music...

I don't think I've mentioned it, but my choir is performing a piece that was commissioned (read: brand spankin' new) for us ... and it's KILLING us. Over the weeks we've been rehearsing we've sloooooooooooowly grown fond of a few certain parts but the majority is still just unbearable and difficult (Direct quote from a singer last night during break: "Can you spell 'painful'?"). Our concerts are this Thursday - Saturday and I cannot WAIT for it to be over. We had a last minute rehearsal on Saturday afternoon (hooray?) and every night this week is rehearsal/performance (rehearsal didn't even END until 10pm on Monday). Let's just say that while I know we desperately need all the practice we can get, I am NOT pleased that THIS is the reason I haven't really been home except to sleep since Sunday. The only thing that makes it better is that Liz promised we could go see Transformers 2 on IMAX on Sunday. Nothing clears horrible choral music out of your head like 2 hours of robots fighting and blowing shit up. Later this weekend I will also post the only thing that kept me sane during this process: the series of (slightly blasphemous?) cartoons I did wherein the composer is a completely oblivious devil who doesn't realize that his music is making God cry. Stay tuned - we'll see if I survive.

Eat, Eat, You're Skin & Bones!

My sister came up for a visit last weekend and it was GREAT. Fortunately my sister and I actually like each other a whole lot (though we wouldn't make for any good dramatic films involving awkward holiday homecomings with tears and bitter recriminations that end in the realization that even though we fight we love each other and we're all we've got - how unfortunate). We started the weekend right with a trip to the Triple Door to see The Portland Cello Project. I'd heard of them from the sister but hadn't listened to them -they were great! And it was actually like seeing about 6 mini concerts because every few songs another guest artist would come out and there would be 2-3 totally different kinds of music. There was pop (covers of Justin Timberlake, anyone?), classical, trumpet-infused folk, soulful delicate folk, modern indie girl rock, and straight up cello. We also went to the symphony (yeaaaah comp tickets!) where we heard Mussorgsky's Night on Bald Mountain, a 20th century violin concerto (interesting, and ultimately enjoyed it) and Stravinsky's The Firebird. The funny thing is that, though I've been in the symphony hall plenty, I've only done it as a performer, so I had no idea how to go about entering through the front door - I honestly didn't even know where the entrance to the hall was. My main reason for attending was The Firebird. I'd never heard all of it, but I do love the ending - I think "rousing" is a good word for it. Verdict: Awesome (I would be the worst music critic ever). In between concerts there was a LOT of eating. Man, do Sis and I love to eat and boy are we good at it. And Liz got to come along for the gastronomic ride. The best discovery was a Puerto Rican restaurant on Market called La Isla. I pass it all the time and don't know why I've never been in, but we LOVED it. Shrimp, rice and beans have never tasted better. They have a plantain sampler plate! Their margaritas are EXCELLENT (and pretty sturdy)! Their happy hour is AWESOME! ($2 plantain plate, anyone?) They bring my favorite flavors into one place: garlic, cilantro and margarita. Damn, I love eating. That was a good weekend.

Holy Crap! It's the Sun!

I believe I mentioned in an earlier post how much happier the sun makes me here in Washington than it did in Santa Barbara...

Sorry for the bad image quality, I am neither a technological nor photographic wizard, so just go ahead and click on it to see a bigger version.