I'm running supertitles for Long Beach Opera's latest production (no flute part this time - rats), The first day in the venue was Monday. Stewart Copeland attended the evening rehearsal of his opera The Tell Tale Heart, the second part of Saturday's double bill. It's going to be a wild evening. Hope to see you there!
My nephew Seth is known as "Funcle" (Fun Uncle) by his nephew James. He was a big part of the first 7 months of James' life:
"Funcle" entered Marine Boot Camp at MCRD San Diego in early June, leaving James behind.
Seth the day he left for Boot Camp
Up to that point, I had no knowledge of what becoming a Marine entailed. I quickly learned. Marine Boot Camp is 13 weeks of intense training and testing of the mettle of the man. For those of us left at home, all we could do was wait and pray.
I had come across a pattern for a Military Doll long before Seth stated his intention to enlist. Even though at that time I knew of no one in the armed forces, I saved it. Once boot camp started, I dug it out and got down to making a Marine for our Marine-in-the-making to give to his nephew.
Marine Doll came with me to the parks of Long Beach during Muni Band.
As Seth was being knit into a Marine, I was knitting a Marine for Seth.
I was grateful to be able to attend Family Day at MCRD where we got our first look at Seth in 13 weeks.
Moto Run, Standing Tall!
Here he is all cleaned up:
The following day was Graduation. Marine Doll made it to the Color Ceremony at the General's house.
The Marine Band was there as well:
The flag on the Parade Deck was at half staff in honor of Neil Armstrong:
The graduates wait to pass in review:
Seth's Platoon:
Seth is in the front row 3rd from the left:
There's Seth in the middle of the picture on the outside of the rank:
Seth became a Marine the moment his platoon was dismissed:
Seth with his proud parents (my sister Janine is a Marine Mom!):
His grandparents (my parents) are also proud:
And here is my favorite knitting picture of all time:
Seth, James, and Marine Doll
Funcle has returned.
Funcle has since returned to the Marines. He is currently at MCT at Camp Pendleton.
Opera Sweater 2 made an appearance after the first performance of Long Beach Opera's Ainadamar Sunday evening. Although my work in the pit was completed, my dear husband and sound designer Bob had some tearing down to do, and the stage needed to be made ready for another event.
I really enjoy watching the skilled crew hard at work long after the audience and musicians have left the building. Without them, there would be no show. Crew, with knitting in hand I salute you!
I'm back at LAX with Opera Sweater 2, this time to pick up future (and past) LBO stage manager and fellow knitter Cindy after her flight from New York. It's quite the commute to make for tonight's rehearsal where she'll be running supertitles.
Tonight is the orchestra's first night at the Terrace Theater. I'm excited to get settled in. Let's see how it goes. I'll keep you posted.
Opera Sweater 2 is taking shape, even as my hours of listening to and practicing Ainadamar are beginning to bear fruit.
I've been doing some work in the opera office. Friday I translated the score from Spanish to English. I've also spent a couple of nights taking notes for Andreas during vocal rehearsals. That's my favorite. I love hearing my friends as they break my heart with their transcendent arias, and listening to Andreas as ideas pour forth from his giant brain. I am so very fortunate to be there, drinking in every moment.
Next week my role will change as I assume the principal flute position with the orchestra. Right now, I'm more than content to be a fly on the wall as genius flows around me. I am so grateful to be a part of this.
Opera Sweater 2 and I are at LAX waiting to welcome Maestro Steven R. Osgood to his first Long Beach Opera production. I'm looking forward to working with him and taking the plunge into "The Fountain of Tears". I'll keep you posted.
After a drastic do-over, Opera Sweater made its debut at the family Easter gathering. Even though is was 83 degrees, the sweater was extremely comfortable. I am grateful that the original idea of a spring weight sweater was actually realized. My only problem now: what to knit next. My needles are empty, and I'm going a little crazy.
Knitting reflects life. It has its ups, its downs, its joys, its sorrows, and its setbacks.
I had actually completed Opera Sweater in time to wear it to a baby shower last Saturday. Even though I discovered (too late) that one sleeve had grown mysteriously bigger than the other, I was willing to bite the bullet and live with it. I was really happy with the fit and look of the finished product (well, except for the monstrous arm), and was in the process of grafting the underarm seam (only 8 stitches - what could go wrong) when disaster struck. I don't really want to talk about it.
Suffice it to say, I was inspired to take a deep breath and rip back the yoke and Monster Sleeve for a do over. Monster Sleeve is now tamed, and work on the yoke will commence this morning.
This whole process causes me to ponder "real life". How many times are we willing to settle for something that is not quite right because we fear "going backwards" in an attempt to make that thing glorious?
Knitting has taught me to be brave, to take risks, to stretch my imagination, and that I don't have to settle for mediocre when a little (or a lot) of pain will yield complete triumph. All it takes is the humility to admit I'm wrong and the courage to start over. The new goal is to wear Opera Sweater on Easter. I'll keep you posted.
Opera Sweater Sleeve is hanging out backstage on closing night. It is always sad to say farewell. However, Opera Sweater is traveling to the next production tomorrow. On to the next thing!
For just a couple of days, my two shows overlap. Opera Sweater Sleeve came with me to Opera le Different today. I've got a cold that could be a lot worse (I suspect Maestro might have been the source), and that makes flute playing pretty challenging. My carpool buddy of the brass persuasion is also fighting a cold. We should have some fun on the drive on Sunday.
I got a little work done on the sleeve during the 4 1/2 hour rehearsal (I have to play the WHOLE show this time), then came home and spent another hour or so playing through tomorrow's opera. I will be sorry to say goodbye to LBO, but look forward to the May production. Meanwhile, Opera Sweater will be changing venues. I'll keep you posted.
The Los Angeles Times' Mark Swed has posted his review of yesterday's opera performance here. It is a good one, and he commends opera knitter Suzan Hanson for her strong stage presence. In other news, the work on Opera Sweater's sleeves has begun.
We're sitting backstage waiting for Long Beach Opera's opening performance. One of the stars is also an opera knitter. We compared notes before she made her entrance. What fun!
Opera Sweater is coming along. Since I only play in the second act, I spend the first act in the house enjoying the performance whilst knitting. It is a soothing activity before jumping into the fray. The first performance is Sunday. I'm looking forward to it. Meanwhile, I knit.
Rehearsals for the latest Long Beach Opera production start on Tuesday. In preparation, not only have I been practicing my part, I have also cast on for an Opera Sweater. It is possible that I will have some down time since I'm only playing in half the opera. I want to come prepared. I'll keep you posted on my progress...
My dear Bob proposed a rainy day outing to Disneyland. The Christmas decorations are up, the music is playing, and the crowds are light. I'm grateful to be here sharing it with my dear spouse!
I'm sitting alone in an empty hospital room. Bob is having an Angiogram to determine the extent of the blockage in his heart. It felt like indigestion. He began having what he thought was severe acid indigestion on Thursday. When he had to leave the Muni Band tear down early on Friday, I told him he was having symptoms of a heart attack and should go to the ER. Convinced that it was indigestion, he spent Saturday in bed. He was talking about going to see his doctor on Monday. When I checked with him as I drove home from a gig, I argued strongly that he needed to be seen immediately. Persistence overcame stubbornness, and a Saturday evening trip to the ER saved Bob's life. Although he had no other symptoms besides acid indigestion, an alert ER physician persisted in her suspicion that it was heart related instead. A stress test yesterday morning revealed a blockage at the entrance to the heart. Bob is at this moment having an Angiogram. The best case would be a stent would open the blockage. Worst case (besides death) would be bypass surgery. Please remember that indigestion can indicate a heart attack. Don't blow your symptoms off. Do the right thing for the ones you love.
UPDATE: Here is a view of Bob's heart during the Angiogram with arrows pointing out the blockage:
Here is the same view after a stent was inserted to open the blockage:
What a miracle!
Here is Bob in the park last night, 4 hours after being discharged from the hospital:
He was just there to observe and offer advice.
He was back to work at the concert tonight. He is pretty wiped out, but he is ALIVE. I am extremely grateful for that!
Close up of a birthday scarf knitted for my niece. Knitting has replaced blogging...for now
I have a new definition of major surgery.
I'd never spent much time thinking about the term before. I'd hear that someone had "major surgery" or talk to someone who had "major surgery". I thought I could empathize and understand what they had gone through.
I was incorrect.
I'd had one previous experience with an unpleasant, painful surgery under general anesthesia several years ago. As painful as it was, it was an outpatient procedure and the healing was rapid, the discomfort short lived.
My paradigm underwent a radical shift on August 17, 2010. What started out as a laparoscopic procedure quickly transformed into rather extensive abdominal surgery. My excellent surgeon tried everything possible to avoid this, but it was quite impossible for her to do so. She is well aware of my profession, of the extensive use of the abdominal muscles as part of the flute playing process, and was very reluctant to slice them up. Thankfully, she DID slice them up. Her regard for my life and well being far exceeded that of my flute playing muscles.
I thought pneumonia was difficult to recover from. It WAS difficult to recover from, although I did play a full 2 weeks of Muni Band and 4 days of a Michael Crawford show with it. There was no possibility of anything like that happening THIS time.
Long story short, it's been an interesting 10 months. I'm at about 95% right now, feeling better than I have for years, and back to extreme fluting. The remaining 5%, though, must be my blogging percentage. I have had no energy or desire to exert myself in that direction.
Having said that, I can feel a 1% improvement coming on even as I type. I am willing to be willing to blog again. I'm making no promises, but I'll keep you posted.
The newest addition to my music stand is Dimitri Shostakovich' MOSCOW, CHERRY TOWN for Long Beach Opera. Once again my dear husband is doing sound design. As Bob says, "We met at work, and I always enjoy working with you."
We get to take this production on the road - at least on the roads of Southern California - with performances at the Center Theater in Long Beach, the Barclay Theater in Irvine, and Barnum Hall in Santa Monica.
Sun. May 15, 2011 - 2pm
Center Theater, Long Beach
Wed. May 18, 2011 - 7:30pm
Irvine Barclay Theater, Irvine
Sun. May 22, 2011 - 2pm
Barnum Hall, Santa Monica
Duration: 3 hours, 1 intermission
Sung in English with English Supertitles
Here's a taste of the music (LBO production will be IN ENGLISH):
Don't expect the giant orchestra, however. We've got a cozy chamber version that looks hilarious. Rehearsals begin the first part of May.
I'm really looking forward to life in Cherry Town!
The latest addition to my music stand is the Philip Glass opera Akhnaten. Long Beach Opera is producing the West Coast premiere of this work as part of the Philip Glass Festival this month. I can't wait to sink my teeth into this one. Opera with pulsating drums like this is a must see:
