Week of January 29
If the past two weeks are an example of how the entire semester is going to be I don't think I'm going to be able to survive. The history exam and piano exam were both this week plus loads of first week homework. I've spent so much time studying for the exams that I'm already a little behind on all my other classwork. The history exam went fairly well. I was able to choose one of the five essays and write 4 pages on it. Hopefully Erik will think it's enough of the kind of information he's looking for and THAT exam will be done! I left him a little note on the front of my bluebook that said "please pass me!". Maybe that will help!!! LOL
The piano exam is a different story.... I played everything perfectly (sightreading, memorized piece, prepared piece, accompanied piece, and arpeggios plus 6 out of 7 scales) and the only 2 mistakes I made (according to the score sheets) was the fingering on a G-flat major scale and I didn't use the pedal on parts of the accompanied piece. I failed the exam. That's all I have to say about that.
Just when I thought things couldn't get worse-well they did! Friday morning I was coming back from a kindergarten classroom observation in Somerville for this study I'm helping out with at Tufts. Without going into too many details, it was pouring down rain - I was looking for a street - and I just didn't see the guy coming up over the hill. I turned left at the green light right in front of him. He hit me pretty much slightly to the right of head-on. Luckily it wasn't as bad as it sounded (literally) and he was really nice about the whole thing - probably b/c I looked like I was going to start sobbing right on the spot - but I was strong - I didn't cry! At any rate, the really ironic thing about the situation is that we found out from each other's driver's licence's that we were born in the same week of the same year and that we both live in the 400's on Broadway but one in Somerville and the other in Cambridge. At least it was something to laugh about. Save for a few bruises and my body feeling a little bit out of alignment I'm fine - mostly just a bruised and embarrassed ego.
The week actually was not all that bad - save those examples. Thursday night we went out to a Jazz club to see Patrice Williamson (http://www.riverlily.com/) and her Jazz Band for our Vocal Jazz Improv class! It was fun to go to a club as a "class assignment" (it gets us extra credit). My song for Art Song also ended up going really well considering I had not very much time to learn it in! We're German Lied (my favorite!) this semester. My next assigned song is "Hexenlied" (Witches' Song) by Mendelssohn. It looks wicked hard.
Tonight (Saturday) I went to Harvard Law School's mid-winter semi-formal at the Fogg Art Museum. Angela's friend Noah had an extra ticket so I went with him and Angela and Amy and Bernard-all her HLS friends. It was a lot of fun and a good way to end a very hectic and stressful week. Tomorrow is the beginning of a new week and hopefully a new start at this life here!