For the last week, my daughter and I have been participating in a strings camp (she on the violin and I on the cello), and tonight is our finale concert. It’s been a tremendous amount of work but a roughly equal amount of fun.
Yesterday, during the 433rd play through of the most challenging song in our lineup, there was a moment where we were all completely in sync. The difficult rhythm came together, and something magic happened. I don’t know about anybody else, but I felt relaxed, calm and totally in the moment. Although it’s a fast tempo piece, I felt like I had all the time in the world to make each bow stroke.
The magic lasted only a few lines, but it made me want more. If I wanted to play well before, I want to strive even harder now. I want to be able to slide into that little magic zone as often as possible, whether I’m playing alone or in group. I’m hooked.
In honor of the end of strings camp and that magic moment, I want to share a cellist that inspires me. Everything he does with his music is magic:
I’m almost never bored. My imagination is far too active to allow that (it’s entirely possible my imagination is far too active period). Whenever I’m stuck in a situation (especially if I’m stuck without a book) where my brain is not otherwise engaged, my inner theater usually queues up some dramatic cinema feature to entertain me.
Those features (or featurettes, if I don’t have time for a full length show), usually start with a “what if.” What if I walked outside right now and everybody was gone? What if I started growing wings? What if alien soldiers dropped through that skylight up there? What if I open this closet door, and there’s some kind of portal in there instead of my shoes?
What if? What if? What if?
Some of these what ifs turn into stories or will someday. Most of the time, they just entertain me briefly. And save me from the horror that is boredom.
I suppose they sometimes “save” me from stuff I should be doing or thinking about instead. Oh well, blame it on my imagination.
Now, as wild as my imagination is, I think this guy’s imagination may be a bit wilder (which is what makes his videos so fun):
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Alrighty, time for a quick ROW80 update.
Overall, I feel like I’m doing well. I need to change up a few of my goals because they’re not fitting what I can realistically do this week. I’m comfortable with that because I think it’s important to be flexible as well as diligent .
Writing
Still working on the STO scene. It’s coming a lot slower than I hoped. There’s a lot going on this week, so setting a writing goal may have been a bit of a stretch. I’m going to keep working it though.
Cello
I’m solid for practice so far. In fact, I’ve clocked about an hour more than the minimums I set.
Health
I think I’m going to cancel my intermittent fasting goal for the week. I’ve been eating very healthy, but not fasting, due to the strings camp.
As for exercise, I took a day off on Monday but am otherwise on track.
Family
Haven’t instituted game/movie night yet. I’m thinking that’s going to have to wait until after next week.
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ROW80, aslo known as a Round of Words in 80 days is an opportunity for to set goals (for writing and/or other areas) and share them with a community ready to keep you accountable and cheer you on. If you’re interested in ROW80, you can find more info here and the latest check in post here.
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Tell me, do you let your imagination run wild?
For ROW80 folks, or for anyone who’s working on a goal, how are you progressing?
Adam at writet.wordpress.com kindly shared the Real Neat Blog Award with me. If you’re looking for great conversation on writing and book reviews, hop on over to Adam’s blog.
Now, on to this award business.
First, the rules for sharing the Real Neat Blog Award:
Display the award logo on your blog.
Thank the folks who nominated you and provide links to their blogs.
Answer the seven questions asked by your nominator(s).
Nominate any number of other bloggers to share the award and give them some linky love.
Notify the nominated folk.
Ask your nominees seven questions of your own.
Next, Adam’s questions:
What is your favourite scene(s) from a book / movie / comic / any other media?
I could go on all day about favorite scenes, but I’ll pick just one: The scene in Stephen King’s The Gunslinger, where Roland must choose between letting his young friend Jake die or catching the Man in Black. Jake tells Roland “Go then, there are other worlds than these.” And Roland lets Jake fall to his death, a choice that will eat at his soul. Continue reading “That’s Just Neat”→
Summer is in full force here. That means temperatures in the hundreds. Really, you can’t be expected to set foot outside in weather like this. Not when you have air conditioning and brownies indoors. The only thing a reasonable person can do is stay home and watch movies.
And, since I’d rather not trek to the theater to see a new one (at least until the temperatures drop below 95), I might as well watch a few old favorites.
Sometimes, what makes me want to re-watch a movie is not so much the whole movie but a single spectacular scene. Here are a few of my favorites:
Kill Bill
It’s next to impossible to pick just one favorite scene from the Kill Bill series. But, if you held a katana to my neck, I’d have to pick the one where O-ren Ishii (Lucy Liu) collects Boss Tanaka’s (Jun Kunimura) head for bringing up a taboo subject. The only taboo subject, in O-ren’s opinion.
*Note: You may already know this, but this scene might not be safe for work. But only for a little violence and language.
Lucy Liu is absolutely perfect in this scene.
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Sadly, I wasn’t able to find clips for the following scenes. Youtube let me down on this one. But, if you haven’t seen the films, I highly recomend them.
Poltergeist
This is one of my all-time favorite movies. It’s surprisingly well written and has a few truly touching moments (something I love in a horror film).
It’s that time of the week again. Time for a little laugh and (maybe) a little nostalgia.
Anybody remember awkwardly slow dancing to this at a school dance?
Wow.
That thought maybe brings back some memories better left forgotten. Anyway…
You know, this song is excellent advice for writers. We’re always being counseled to show more and tell less. Now, when you’re tempted to tell too much, just picture Jimmy and Jack telling you to show them how you feel.
Some time ago, I was punished awarded with the Memetastic Blog Award. I crafted four lovely lies and one (un)remarkable truth to delight you. I am certain you all have been waiting on the edge of yours seats to discover just which is which. To spare you further agony of anticipation, I now reveal the whole truth and nothing but the truth (I’ve got my hand on my copy of Dune and everything): Continue reading “The Meme-ing of Life”→
