26 IX 2001 - 16:56 - vita1

A quick note after school for those who have asked about this whole weekly update thing (all one of you): um, yeah, things are getting busy with papers and stuff due (wow, I'd forgotten how school is) and I've resolved this year actually to get some sleep (although, heh, I broke that last week with my whole I-got-two-hours-of-sleep-from-4AM-to-6AM thing) and so there's less opportunity for digression on dland, although I still haven't rid myself of the habit of hanging around on AIM and ICQ (so introduce yourself, goshdarnit: I don't bite, and if you have ICQ, there's an added bonus: you can talk to me even if we're not online at the same time). I did manage to update almost daily at school last year, but the thing was then that I had a free period right before lunch or first thing on Tuesday, which meant that I had a bunch of time with nothing to do but update and, perhaps, homework (although I couldn't do the homework for that day, not having received it yet.) Now, my free period is the last period on every day but Thursday, the day I don't have a free period, and so I go home or go to PE classes and no longer update at school which translates to, if I'm not being a slacker and trying to put my essay off, infrequent dland updates.

In addition, I have now a neat little book which I am writing in, longhand and with my atrocious penmanship (anyone have good handwriting? anyone want to teach me how to have good handwriting?) - and so issues that I wouldn't write about on dland anyway are going in there but then I don't feel as compelled to get something out here as a placeholder because, well, it's not quite as if I confuse the two or anything, but I do enjoy writing in that thing more.

Chamber orchestra: still bad, although I now have a couple of neat solos and I'm practicing my alto clef by playing the viola part in the Nutcracker. Any cellists who happen on this diary will know that, although the stringing is the same, the harmonics and the chords are a pain to figure out. Any cellists are now asked to send letters of condolence because I deserve them for sitting there with my hand permanently in high thumb position. It's a challenge, yes, and it keeps me busy (better than playing the cello part in "unison" with a-co) but... yes, the alto clef practice is good but I don't like the part. No wonder violists are weird- that's what comes of resolving to the third too often. (I am *not* a music dork! I'm just... preoccupied.) Not only that, but I get a wonderful cello solo in the requiem mass we're doing with our chorus that almost makes up for the fact that my stand partner a-co can't play the gli altri part.

Latin pop quiz was a farce on Monday - the teacher threw them out because "the average number of words answered correctly was 2.5." This, mind you, on a 10-word quiz.

As I said, I'm getting more sleep these days. Which means that I should probably get around to my analysis homework so I don't show up next Saturday without my homework. I don't like analysis. It was invented by cruel musicologists who got off on the thought of the suffering of generations to come. All right, maybe I'm exaggerating, and maybe a small part of me thinks it's neat. That doesn't mean I have to admit it, does it?

I kept the same seat in SFSYO; fourth outside. It's sort of weird, because in a section of thirteen, four of the five who stayed are together (in the first through fourth seats); then there are new people; then me, seventh chair; then more new people. The guy who sits in front of me is sort of cute. (No, shallow? Me? Never!)

We switched quartets at SFCM because someone's teacher complained. Instead of a middle Beethoven quartet, which I was excited about (Op. 95), I get to play a late Haydn quartet ("Reiterquartett,") which I'm told can mean "horseman" or "rider" quartet but which I was always taught meant "knight." Whatever. I'm not so happy about it because my part goes from being very interesting to being mildly interesting, but I suppose I should count my blessings as it could be, say, a Haydn piano trio (doubling the bass line of the piano your idea of fun? it's. not. mine...)

In Western Civ we are learning about Christian theology and iconography and I know way too much about it. I know I've absorbed some of it from the culture around me and some of it from my sisters when they were in high school but I never expected it to be this much... in other words, I have the vocabulary to talk about it, even if I don't understand/believe in it. Curious...

So, I should go soon. I have places to go and work to be done. It's a little late, but I hope that if they are for you, that your High Holy Days are going well; may your fast be easy tomorrow (well, today at sundown, right?)

Oh, I'm starting Debussy cello sonata, Haydn D Major cello concerto, I get to choose a Popper etude (finally, I get to choose one myself!) and I'm continuing in the fifth Bach Suite... so I'm looking forward to this stuff. I need a different edition of Haydn, though.

Please. Take a moment now to remember Isaac Stern... if you're religious, pray; if you're not, just... well, do something, please. He was a great man...

What do these cities have in common?

Carthago, Carthaginis f. Carthage
Corinthus, Corinthi m. Corinth

And, just for kicks...

vita, vitae f. life
numen, numinis n. divinity

J