the last few days 8-27

The students all did really well today at the nursing home.  It lasted about 50 minutes and I was happy with how they did.  We had 15 songs with 12 performers.  Acer and Calli sang a duet, "Ave Maria".  Overall, it was good.

After the concert, I got the usual, after concert bad headache and I was wiped out from the anxiety of getting everything ready for the concert.  It took 2 days to fully recover from the concert and this is normal for me.  I refuse to give in to fibro and not do the concerts because I think it is really important to have them for the students.  They work hard and I want them to have opportunities to perform.  I don't want to take away the 2 concerts we do a year.  Star has volunteered to help.  She is such a nice young woman.  She really is.  Star already has some of it planned.  I will be hearing about it in a few weeks.  Both of us want to see the City of Bones movie.  Kathy wants to see it too as she has read the books.  I have them, but I haven't read them yet.  I plan to, I just haven't gotten to them.  It is so strange because pre-I was always looking for things to read and now, it is like finding time to read the 229 books that I have.  It is so nice not to have them as paper books because that would take up way more room than I have in this house.  I am working on taking all the books that I do have and putting them in plastic bags for Bill to take to work for the next book sale, which I think is next month.

Today was a busyish day.  I was supposed to have 7 lessons but 2 had to cancel because the car broke down.  Amy had her last lesson for 7 months today.  She is going to Kuwait for work.  I am excited for her as this will be an exciting journey for her and she is really looking forward to going.  I will miss her.  She is such a nice woman.  We get along really well.  I look forward to her facebook updates from Kuwait.

Tomorrow is a busy day too.  Tuesdays and Wednesdays are my busy days.  Every other day is no where near as busy, which is good.  I have tried to spread out the lessons but really, I have to be available when the students are.  I don't expect too many new students for the fall.  I have a good number right now that I am happy with.  I probably could fit a few more but that would be about it.  Monday and Thursdays are not really filled at all so there is room on those days.  I am expecting Sally back in a couple of weeks and that will fill my Saturday schedule.  I have a new one, Karen, on Saturday and she is wonderful.  We get along very well and I am very pleased with what she remembers from when she was a child.  Karen and I giggle a bit through the lesson and we enjoy the music during the lesson.  I think that all my students and I get along rather well.  I try to make the lessons around their interests with keeping the importance of technique in the lessons.  All piano students do play classical music just like most of the vocal students sing classical music (the exception would be my younger vocal students).  It is the foundation of music but it is also very important to have other music in other styles too.  That is also rather important and sometimes it can get overlooked.  I try to strike a balance with all my students.  Some I am a bit more successful than others.

It is almost time to look for Christmas and competition music again.  I haven't heard from Becca so I don't know if she is going to sing or not at competition.  I need to gather all the info and pass it out to the students interested in going.  I do hope that Isabella is also interested in going.  She is new to me and plays simply beautiful!  So far I have: Natalie, Aubrey, Brooke, and Jillian attending the competition.  I am hoping for Nick, Isaac, Acer, Isabella, and Brooke Anne to attend also as well as Rebecca.  I won't know for a few weeks.  Isaac didn't seem that enthused about it but he may change his mind.  It depends on Acer's after school activities schedule on whether or not he can attend.  I just don't have a solid idea of who is going and that is normal at this time.  My job this year is to get the pianos again.  It was a pretty easy job and while I was annoyed at the company at times, they were not super hard to work with.  I plan to call in October to see who is available to rent pianos to us for the competition.  It isn't a job to start right this minute that is for sure.

We watched episode 4 of season 2 of Game of Thrones tonight.  It ended so weird but hey, it is a fantasy story so there are weird parts in it.  I really like the story line and I think the character, Arya is awesome.  She is so cool.  I love her.  Right now she is in a bit of a pickle because she was captured and is now the cupbearer of her father's enemy, Twynn Lannister.  I feel bad for her.  I hope she can escape soon and go home to winterfell.  It is such a good show.  I have the book that I have started reading.  As soon as I finish this one trilogy that I am reading, I will start that one.

Pain is better today than it was yesterday and the day before.  My after concert headache is FINALLY down to the regular headache and my knees are no longer hurting really bad.  I have noticed that as I lose weight, different places hurt than before.  It is weird.  Like my thighs were sore 10 pounds heavier ago but now it is my knees and not my thighs when I am sleeping or lying down.  I will say that the 29 pounds I have lost have helped my hips a lot.  I can only imagine what 129 pounds will be like or my goal, 160 pounds!  I only have 131 pounds to go.  Ugh, I am glad it is going steady and slow because from experience, fast comes back way to quickly and steady and slow does not.  I do not ever plan to go back to the way I used to eat.  I never want to be this big again, ever.  I wouldn't wish this on my worst enemy.  I just wouldn't.

Well, off to words with friends right now and then a bit of a read before some shut eye.