deckardcanine | (no subject)

Some life updates:

Starting last Sunday, my mom has practically begged me to join my old junior high school's pit band as a synthesizer percussionist — vibraphone, glockenspiel, and xylophone — for the Oliver! production. I had started with several reasons for saying no: I had been tired of the music for weeks already, I was nervous about mistakes on the big night, I didn't feel like taking the time (particularly when it meant going to work early so I could leave early), I didn't feel like hanging around junior high jerks, I wouldn't get to watch while playing... Even having it suggested by my mom was a negative in my book, despite general personal history reasoning to the contrary.

But last night, after consulting my friend Thomas — i.e., flipping a nickel — I decided to see how I could handle the accompaniment. FYI, I took piano lessons from first to sixth grade, so I was cognizant but out of practice. Mom says I read scores well, even if I (strangely, in her mind) saw fit to write the names of the notes above so I wouldn't have to study the staff lines carefully. The practice session reminded me of my early stick-shift driving lessons, in that I kept sweeping my arms in frustration. Playing music publicly requires you not to correct your mistakes, which is not my style at all. However, I got the hang of things rather quickly, impressing myself. The glock and vibra sounds lend a unique appeal to the otherwise tired songs, too. As a result, I came to enjoy it.

For the next day, I was as indecisive on whether to join the pit band as the character of Fagin is on whether to become a law-abiding citizen. Tonight I finally said yes. It's not like I have so many better things to do in the few total hours that this practice will take. At worst, I'll build character. Besides, the alternative player would be a suspicious seventh-grader.

Lent is starting sooner than I realized until today. I've made noises about giving up forum activity, but the realist in me has awoken: cutting it all off six days a week will not help my social life. I can't count on myself to compensate with a lot of, y'know, RL friend interactions. Plain email is too slow, and IMing is rarely possible at convenient times anymore. Phone chats? Not for this dork.

Still, I've felt like upping the ante a little over last year's addiction battle somehow. My latest decision: no video/computer games and no bulletin board-style forums outside of LJ. That oughta do it.