Proximity

So, since I'm moving to California on Friday I've been looking up a lot of information about where places are in relation to my new home. For instance, Disneyland is about 6 hours away from Mountain View. Now, I don't consider this far at all. But I'm sure my mother would consider it an extreme distance.

The story of my parents' courtship places a heavy emphasis on the fact that their respective parents lived an hour apart. Therefore, to meet halfway meant they each had to drive 30 minutes, and they really felt that was quite the ordeal. When I first started dating my husband, he lived 20 minutes away (no biggie). Because I went to a countywide preparatory school for grades 6-12, it was not all that uncommon to have my closest friends live 45 minutes from my mom's house. She was disgusted at this fact, and pretty much never drove me to anyone's house unless it was a birthday party. I went to college 6 hours from home, and my mother only came up to drop me off originally, for graduation, and one other time because I needed a ride home after the end of a semester. She just felt it was too far to bother, LoL.

But she's not the only one. I've had several friends who don't want to drive two or three hours to a place and back in the same day. My husband and I certainly don't understand this point of view, as we have, on several occasions, driven ten hours in a day to get to and from a location. Even at 2:30am, we don't have a problem driving an hour and a half home from parts of Orlando. I'm not sure if it's because of the way we were raised (in a county where going to the movies or the mall was a half-hour drive), but distance is no big deal. Yosemite being 2-3 hours away (I forget which at the moment) is certainly no cause to make a fuss, and I imagine we'll head out there more than once in order to take in the full wonder of nature's beauty. For the next two days, his parents are about 50 minutes away, and it's been no hassle to run down there when necessary. I've been known to jump on I-95 and visit friends in Vero Beach and Fort Pierce at very little notice, no need to plan it all out a week in advance.

I guess my main point here today is that sometimes people make too big a deal out of going somewhere. West Palm Beach was less than an hour from my mom's house growing up, but in my memory the only time she went there for a reason other than the airport was to shop at CompUSA (where I demanded we go to pick up some stuff for college), and to look at the Kia dealership when I was shopping for my first car. It just isn't worth the travel time to her, I guess. Currently, Orlando is 60-90 minutes away (depending on traffic and where you want to go), and unless it's after 11pm, we don't mind heading up there to meet some friends. I even spent one summer working at a summer camp that was three hours away, driving there on Sunday mornings and back on Friday evenings.

What do you consider "too far" for a day trip? How far does your significant other have to be to consider it a "long-distance relationship"? Because for me, I think my limit is 5-6 hours on-way for a daytrip, and I'm curious to see how that fits in with the average...

The DJ Survey

Put your music player on shuffle with all your music in the list. Make a list of the first 40 songs that come up. You can repeat artists if you want. If you have any repeat tracks, skip to the next track.

1. Tango Maureen (RENT soundtrack)
2. A Whole New World (acoustic version from Disney's Wedding Album)
3. Ironic (Alanis Morissette)
4. Figure.09 (Linkin Park)
5. Look at Me, I'm Sandra Dee (Grease Soundtrack)
6. Good People (Audio Adrenaline)
7. Maria (West Side Story soundtrack)
8. But For Now (Jamie Cullum)
9. Teenage Dirtbag (Wheatus)
10. Caberet (from Ultimate Broadway Disc 2)
11. I Turn to You (All-4-One)
12. Born in the USA (Bruce Springsteen)
13. Hand in My Pocket (Alanis Morissette)
14. Thrive (Newsboys)
15. Better Off (Pete Stewart)
16. Cruella DeVille (Disney's Rascal Songs soundtrack)
17. Don't Cry for Me Argentina (Ultimate Broadway Disc 2)
18. Leo at Work/What am I Waiting For (Parade soundtrack)
19. Conga (Gloria Estefan)
20. Send in the Clowns (Ultimate Broadway Disc 2)
21. Mind's Eye (dc Talk)
22. Drug Ballad (Eminem)
23. Belly of the Whale (Newsboys)
24. First Tube (Phish)
25. Revolve (Nine Days)
26. No. 2 March (Nutcracker)
27. I am Hydrogen (Phish)
28. Hey Mickey (Toni Basil)
29. You Can Fly! You Can Fly! You Can Fly! (Disney's Hero Songs soundtrack)
30. Bitter (Nine Days)
31. Ever After (Into the Woods soundtrack)
32. Good Life (Audio Adrenaline)
33. Poor Unforunate Souls (Little Mermaid Soundtrack)
34. Music of Heaven (Wearing Someone Else's clothes soundtrack)
35. Don't Turn Around (Ace of Base)
36. Free (Phish)
37. Hakuna Matata (Mannheim Steamroller Meets the Mouse)
38. Cup O'Tea (Newsboys)
39. I Think We're Alone Now (Tiffany)
40. I Want You (Savage Garden)

01. Which song do you prefer, #1 or #40?
#40 has always been a favorite. I used it in karaoke once.

02. Have you ever listened to #12 continuously on repeat?
No, but I've heard it quite often.

03. What album is #26 from?
The Nutcracker Complete Disc 1.

04. What do you think about the artist who did #15?
well, this is the only song of his I've ever heard, since it's on the No Lies soundtrack. It's a good song, and it's fun to sing, he could be a good artist, LoL.

05. Is #19 one of your favorite songs?
haha, no. It's good for gym mixes and parties.

06. Does #20 have better lyrics or music?
lyrics. I love it.

07. Do any of your friends like #3?
LoL, who doesn't like that song?

08. Is #33 from a movie soundtrack?
yes, actually. The Little Mermaid.

09. Is #18 overplayed on the radio?
I don't think this song has EVER been on the radio, much less overplayed, LoL.

10. What does #21 remind you of?
it's the final song on that cd, so it reminds me that I need to change the cd (back from the days of cds, LoL.

11. Which song do you prefer, #5 or #22?
5, I guess. Since I can't remember how 22 goes without pulling it up.

12. What album is #17 from?
Ultimate Broadway. But I guess it's also on the Evita soundtrack, LoL.

13. When did you first hear #39?
when Uncle Jess lets DJ and Stephanie stay up late to watch the Tiffany concert on TV (gotta love Full House)

14. When did you first hear #7?
no real idea. first fall at FSU maybe? I think that's the semester they played West Side Story at the SLB.

15. What genre is #8?
it's kinda jazzy. I never listen to it, but a good friend sent me the album over IM back in the days on campus, LoL.

16. Do any of your friends like #14?
well, Michelle and Ben and JB probably like it, since we all went to see that album performed in concert. But most of my other friends have probably never heard it

17. What color does #4 remind you of? black and grey

18. Have you ever blasted #11 on your stereo?
definitely not.

19. What genre is #37?
classical.

20. Can you play #13 on any instrument?
I've not seen the sheet music for it, but it's not a complicated song, so yeah, I bet I could

21. What is your favorite lyric from #24?
I only have it because a friend sent it to me, I'm not a Phish fan, LoL.

22. Would you recommend #23 to your friends?
sure, it's good. kinda wacky in that Reel Big Fish sorta way

23. Is #2 a good song to dance to?
sure is. It was the first dance song at my wedding! :)

24. Have you ever heard #16 on the radio?
it's doubtful

25. Is #32 more of a "nighttime" or "daytime" song?
daytime, it's upbeat.

26. Does #36 have any special meaning to you?
Definitely not, because again, it's Phish.

27. Do any of your friends like #31?
yes. it was a frequent song to sing in the grad carrel for a while.

28. Is #25 a fast or slow song?
about 120 beats per minute in the music, but the lyrics are much slower.

29. Is #35 a happy or sad song?
I guess it's sad.

30. What is one of your favorite lyrics from #9?
"He lives on my block / And he drives an I-Roc / But he doesn't know who I am / And he doesn't give a damn about me"

31. Is #34 better to listen to alone or with friends?
most of my friends wouldn't listen to it. so let's say alone.

32. When did you first hear #27?
no idea if I've ever heard it, it's a Phish song, LMAO.

33. Name 3 other songs by the artist who did #6:
Man of God, Big House, Mighty Good Leader

34. Do you know all the words to #10?
apparently not. I just listened to it and drew a blank 1:56 in.

35. Does #28 have better lyrics or music?
lyrics

36. What album is #29 from?
Disney's Hero Songs soundtrack. In like 1996, you could 3 Disney CDs at McDonalds or Burger King with the purchase of a Happy Meal, LoL.

37. Who does #38 remind you of?
Jonathan, as this was the first CD he bought me

38. What is your favorite lyric from #30?
I don't ask for your forgiveness I don't care much for your actress / That's just you though shallow and selfish / So I go now oh my hollow one today / If I could change anything then I would change everything

I Believe the Children Are Our Future

... teach them well and let them lead the way!

On Friday night I went with a friend to see the Sebastian River High School's Prism performance. As is defined in the program, 'prism' is what happens to a single ray of light when it hits glass and reflects in several beautiful bands. As a performance, it's basically a chance to see various student groups perform. Musicians, singers, dancers, the flag team, and others put together a fabulous show.

While the list of songs is very long (it was a two-hour show, after all), I will comment on a few favorites.

- The Wind Symphony opened with Anderson's Sleigh Ride, which is always a masterpiece when performed well.
- A Marimba Quartet (I know, right?!?) did a short Deck the Halls, which was easily one of my favorite pieces.
- Two flag girls performed a choreographed dance to Goo Goo Dolls' Iris, but unfortunately the stereo playing the song took away from the performance.
- A Clarinet Quartet did The Grinch, which was particularly a crowd-please because of the costumed Grinch who made his way through the auditorium during the song.
- A big surprise was the Theme from New York, New York... it started out as a Jazz Ensemble piece, but during the second verse a chorus of dancers came out, really making the piece outstanding.
- What the program deemed as Traditional Tune for the tuba section was really what string bass players know as The Elephant, and it was performed with the proper amount of gusto needed for the short ditty to appeal to the public.
- Then there was the Caribbean Ensemble (a surprise in itself - steel drums are not a typical instrument in high school) which did a medley of Buffet's Best.
- The trumpets fanned out in the audience to perform Final Countdown, but it would have been better if they were facing various directions, for a fuller sound.
- Immediately following that piece was arguably the most stunning Auxiliary performance. Fog, lighting, flags, guns, and dancers illuminated the stage and the main level of the auditorium, choreographed to Spiderman's Decisions. Thank God for Danny Elfman once again.
- An original piece, Cleanin' Up was fabulous. The percussion ensemble acted as a janitorial staff and used brooms, trash cans, and other tools to create a wonderful tune.
- The trombone section did a lively Carry on My Wayward Son, and a cute little swing choir ensemble did I've Got Rhythm.
- To finish off the night, the drumline did a few cadences, and then the space filled with members of the Marching Sharks Band, performing their 2008 Halftime Show.
The talent of these students fills me to the brim with happiness and joy. The devotion it takes on the behalf of these young musicians is astounding. I can only hope and pray that the dedication and perseverance they've learned through their music will carry on into other parts of their lives and help to better the world someday.

Perhaps I should clue some readers in on why I support arts education so much...
For seven years, I was a violinist. I played for at least an hour each day, in the later years at least two. As part of the Lincoln Park Academy orchestra program, we achieved Superior ratings six out of those seven years, and performed at the national and international levels. In Paris 2000-2001, we received an award for Best Direction, which was a big deal.
Anyway, because music was such a big part of my everyday life for so long, I have a genuine passion for keeping arts in education, and giving students the opportunity to excel in a melodic manner. I truly believe that it aids in concentration, attitude, and general demeanor.

Congratulations Sebastian River High School on a job well done!