This is how it happens...

When one decides to go back to school while still maintaining a full-time performance schedule, AND becomes an Aunt all in the course of one year, things like blogging tend to fall to the wayside. Now that I have some, 'free-time' I thought I'd get back into it and do my best to update this here blog.

Being back at school this past semester has been an eye-opener. For one thing, I learned that as much as I thought I had a handle on scheduling my life, I found myself seriously lacking in this department as of late. Negotiating a professional singer's schedule is hard enough: our gigs are booked years or months in advance and through the course of our experiences in the business, we recognize how long it takes to learn a given role. What happens then, when you're assigned a 20 page paper and never wrote one before?! Does this take days, weeks, months? Yup. In the course of my Spring semester (pun intended) I discovered that while some papers write themselves, others can go on, and on, and on...Towards the end of this academic year, I realized that learning a subject is one thing, and writing about it is a different beast entirely. On page 65 of my tomb of a thesis, I was given a great piece of advice: "Wind it up." We can't do it all, be the final word on a subject, or even seek to be the very first person to discover or relate an issue in a document, all the time. Sometimes our passion for a subject (in this case, physical injury in professional opera singers/non-laryngeal) can overtake our lives, both professionally and personally. So, I'd like to take this opportunity to say to all my friends:
I'm sorry I haven't seen you in months. I miss you.

Now I find myself in sunny South Carolina, for the Spoleto Festival USA, in Charleston. This environment is so wholly different than what we North-easterners have been experiencing for months. This town is warm and friendly, the buildings are utterly historic and charming, and of course, the beach is mere minutes away. The picture featured in this blog is of the "Pineapple Fountain" in Waterfront Park. Last night I had a front row seat to a breath-taking blood-red full moon, rising over the Charleston Harbor. Ahhh. Working on an opera as dark as The Medium is made emotionally tolerable by this picturesque southern town- did I mention the food? Wow. So far I've sampled the She-Crab soup, Shrimp Po-Boy, grits, BBQ sauce of many kinds, and local micro-brews. All yummy stuff, and I still haven't had my big Southern breakfast yet...I'm willing to take suggestions.

Quick plug: performances of Gian-Carlo Menotti's The Medium will begin on May 28th, and run through June 10th, so if you find yourself in the Charleston area, I recommend you come to this amazing show. See http://www.spoletousa.org/ for more information...

Happy New Year!

Here we are, 2011!

There's always so much pressure on having "the best time" on NYE, that I decided to go for broke and run a 5K instead...Total cost, $20 for registration, and a slight ache in my knees the next morning. To be honest, it didn't seem like a daunting task, except for all the black ice on the pavement, and the freezing temperatures I experienced after the run was finished. The reward: a fantastic fireworks display in Prospect Park, and the satisfaction of knowing that I ran/jogged my way into 2011- starting my commitment to health anew, again.

With the New Year, comes the pressure to make some resolutions and better ourselves. In past years, usually by February 15 or so, I'd give in to my old ways and throw the resolutions out the window. THIS year, I decided to make some resolutions that should be easier to stick to:

1. READ 15 BOOKS.

That is, 15 non-musical, non-singing-related books, ranging from old classics to new literature. (I got a "Nook" for Christmas, so I'll not only be using my new toy, but make a promise to read some stories I've always heard were great, but never made the effort to read) First book? "Half broke horses" by Jeanette Walls- it has a very promising beginning!

2. GO VEGETARIAN ONE DAY A WEEK.

Ok, this one could be tough. I do love meat and chicken. The point of this resolution is to not only become more aware of my eating habits, but to expand my understanding of the food chain, on a larger scale. Lets face it- its all too easy to grab a ham sandwich on the way out the door, or nab a pepperoni slice at my favorite pizza joint down the street. Smarter choices= healthier Me.

3. SCHEDULE THINGS IN ADVANCE.

Too often I find myself missing important events (a show I wanted to see, a road race I could have run) by procrastinating writing it down in my planner, and making the effort to get up and go. Even meals! If I know I'll be on the road and going out for a lavish dinner with colleagues, why not plan the rest of my meals that day accordingly? How about vacations? I received another wonderful gift this Christmas- a spa package at one of my favorite NY spas. I plan on sitting on this gift until I know I'll need it (sometime this coming February or March, when my work schedule will certainly be causing some undue stress)

4. BE MORE PROACTIVE, PROFESSIONALLY.

Without revealing too much, I'll just say that its easy as we age to rest on our past laurels. Warming up and/or practicing can fall by the wayside in lieu of everyday errands and activities, however; I was asked recently about the time in my life when I was singing and feeling my best, and lets just say, with a few small tweaks, I'll be there again soon.

5. SPEND MORE TIME WITH FAMILY and FRIENDS.

'Nuff said.

Happy New Year everyone!