A City Excursion

        

I must make note of this monumental event. For the second time in my years of driving I made a safe and successful trip to the "big" city in these parts. I will avoid city driving (and drivers) at all costs but when it comes to visiting close friends I can't resist. I had to see for myself how they were fairing college life. So I set off after my piano lesson Friday morning with my large print mapquest directions and Rush blaring on the radio. 

             

My first stop was to visit my loyal childhood friend Sarah. Time was too short like always, but it was enough for lunch and a little chitchat. And of course we also tried to take pictures of ourselves to document this visit. Sarah truly has a talent for photography. Check out these winners.... 

   

                        

Second stop of the day was my dear friends from church Marissa (lower right)and her sister McKenzie (left... yes she does smile. I just have a bad habit of catching people off guard when I take pictures. But look at how photogenic she is, she doesn't even have to try!). I got the grand tour of there expansive college dwelling and gave them my approval (yes, of course they needed my approval). After we went out for dinner it was back to

 the country, only this time I had

 navigators.  

So we all headed home

for the weekend. I was so 

happy when I started to see tractor crossing road signs again instead of one way, five lane city streets. 

There's no place like home! 

Making the Grade

I never thought I would be saying this so soon but here it is ....

I PASSED!

For those of you who have been my loyal supporters over the past year will know what I'm talking about and why I'm soo excited. For the rest of you I'll explain.


What am I talking about...


I've been studying piano since I was 8 but for the past year or so my goal has been the Royal Conservatory of Music's level 10 piano exam. Which meant long hours of piano practice on top of violin stuff and teaching. I was able give it a go the end of November and just got my results.


What is RCM....


RCM is a school in Canada that offers a certification for pretty much every instrument... levels 1-10 and then a performance or pedagogy (a fancy word for teaching) diploma is an option after that. They recently opened exam centers in the US so I was blessed to have one less than an hour away from where I live. If you are interested in more info you can visit their website: http://www.nationalmusiccertificate.org/(they just changed the name for the US branch to National Music Certificate Program, not nearly as good a name as their last one in my opinion.)


Why am I doing this...


Teaching violin and piano seemed to drop in my lap so to speak 3 years ago and now I don't want to stop. So this program gives me the extra education I need without leaving my home or my students.


Why am I so excited...

The piano playing exam requires five works and two etudes memorized along with scales in all keys and forms that I didn't even know existed (memorized of course), and to top it all off ear tests and sight reading on the spot. For those who like performing and can memorize quickly, this would be no problem I'm sure. But in my case, I need to analyze every measure before I even get close to memorizing and I get physically ill when I have to perform. So I never really thought I could pass one of these things. To tell you the truth I had decided it would be an accomplishment if I made it through in one piece! Only through God's grace was this possible for me... that is why I'm so excited! It's always amazing to see how God uses our weakest areas to show His strength.


I learned so much more than notes in preparation for this.... and that's the best part of all! Now it's on to the next one.

Lessons in Eliminating an "Innocent" Moth

Brian, this is for you....

If you have a special place in you heart for moths I suggest you ignore this post entirely. But if you are like me and have or could possibly have a need to eliminate your own mammoth monster on your own I  hope this helps..... or at least amuses you. 

I have recently discovered a great dislike for moths. I don't know why but my bedroom attracts them. I ignore them whenever I can and if that is not an option my valiant father catches it in his bare hand and returns it to the outdoors where it belongs.... he's my hero! Well not long ago I found myself without either of these two options. 

Here's the scenario.... Late at night, everyone is asleep. A fat, terrifying, room invading moth sits with wings out stretched and antennas whirling on the lamp stand next to my bed.  I am at the door standing, staring, thinking.

My Solution  

Step 1.) Assess the situation... (this is the most time consuming.)

I couldn't ignore it. I also could not touch the thing with my bare hands or I wouldn't sleep for a month (I'm sure this is a slight exaggeration but you get my point.) so my dad's approach was out. I did not want to wake up my dad for such a thing... I mean who wants to be that pathetic anyway? I thought of the vacuum cleaner but I might as well wake up my dad if I'm going to do that. Tissues?..... still too close for comfort. 

Step 2.) Design your own eliminating mechanism... 

My creation needed two simple things... length (distance from moth) and surety that it could not get away. Here is where we get to my bit of genius. This is the real reason my brother wanted me to post this report. Are you ready?..... The moth wand, is made from a long rod of some kind. I used my rod for those disposable toilet cleaner brushes.... amazing the stuff you come up with late at night. After you find a suitable wand next you need a lint roller (no that is not a typo). Take some sticky paper off of the roller and rap it around the end of your wand and presto, you have a moth wand. 

Step 3.) Elimination....   (no explanation needed)

Well, there you have it. I hope that is to your satisfaction brother Brian. For everyone else, please don't take me too seriously! I can see how all this may seem a little disturbing. But you never know when you yourself may have to eliminate a monstrous moth... if so, you now know what to do.  

A New Year... A New Blog

Welcome and thanks for the visit! You are partaking in my very first blog post... congratulations. I was introduced to the concept this past year and decided the new year was a great time to start. And so my first New Years resolution was born. I've been realizing how easy it is to forget the things that happen from day to day. The few times I have kept track I'm always amazed to see how God is at work in all things no matter the size. Of course you can't see the big picture until you have all the pieces. So this is my resolution to keep track of my time. Hence my blog name, Keeping Time.  Stay tuned... I hope to be a posting pro in no time.