Winter Break Distractions

1. Pick 15 of your favorite movies.
2. Go to IMDb and find a quote from each movie.
3. Post them here for everyone to guess.
4. Strike it out when someone guesses correctly, put who guessed it, and the movie.
5. NO GOOGLING/using IMDb search or other search functions.
6. No checking peoples’ Facebook or My Space profiles where they list their favorite movies

Got this from Midwest Teacher

Well, here's the ones nobody got (bold)

1. "I don't mind a parasite. I object to a cut-rate one." Rick Blaine - Casablanca

2. "Come on now, be honest! Which one of you wouldn't rather listen to his hairdresser than Hercules? Or Horatius, or Orpheus... people so lofty they sound as if they shit marble!" Wolfgang "Wolfie" Amadeus Mozart - Amadeus

3. "Do you not know that in the service one must always choose the lesser of two weevils?" Capt. Jack Aubrey - Master & Commander, The Far Side of the World, guessed by Lani

4. "Let's face it... this is not the worst thing you've caught me doing." Tony Stark - Iron Man, guessed by OKP

5. "Wait a minute. What am I doing? This is a very interesting situation. Hmmm...A man doesn't get in a situation like this every day. Not in Bedford Falls, anyway. This requires a little thought here." George Bailey - It's a Wonderful Life, guessed by Midwest Teacher.

6. "You look strong enough to pull the ears off a Gundark." Han Solo - Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back, guessed by Q6

7. "If the Pirates of the Caribbean breaks down, the pirates don't eat the tourists." Ian Malcolm - Jurassic Park, guessed by Q6

8. "I will eviscerate you in fiction. Every pimple, every character flaw. I was naked for a day; you will be naked for eternity." Geoffrey Chaucer - A Knight's Tale

9. "So now I'm in deep trouble. I mean, one more jolt of this death ray and I'm an epitaph. Somehow I manage to find cover and what does Baron von Ruthless do? He starts monologuing! He starts like, this prepared speech about how feeble I am compared to him, how inevitable my defeat is, how the world will soon be his, yadda yadda yadda. Yammering! I mean, the guy has me on a platter and he won't shut up!" Lucius Best / Frozone - The Incredibles, Guessed by Q6

10. "Excuse me, Sheriff, I'm a gambler who'd like to run an honest game in your town. To whom do I speak about that? [notices the dead man lying in the dirt] I hope it's not this gentleman." "Slick" Calvin Stanhope - Silverado, guessed by Q6

11. "It is a strange fate that we should suffer so much fear and doubt over so small a thing." Boromir - Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring, guessed by Midwest Teacher

12. " To crush your enemies, see them driven before you, and to hear the lamentation of the women." [On what is best in life] Conan - Conan the Barbarian

13. "Give an Arab a sword, he makes a knife..... When you die, can I give that to my daughter?" Weath the Musician - 13th Warrior

14. "Looking at the cake is like looking at the future, until you've tasted it what do you really know? And then, of course, it's too late." Merlin - Excalibur

15. "They're not gonna catch us. We're on a mission from God." Elwood Blues - The Blues Brothers, guessed by english maven

Peace at Last

So much to write about this month... and only now have I had a chance to sit down and write it all out. December is, after all, a busy month for musicians. So busy this year that I actually almost missed the holiday spirit myself.... almost. I didn't put up any decorations. I got my holiday shopping started very late. I didn't go out of my way to wear Christmasy things. Heck, if I wasn't dragging my choir all over So. Cal caroling for cash, I wouldn't know it was Christmas at all. But like Ebenezer Scrooge, I did manage to find my "Peace on Earth, good will to men"... if not a little late.

Here are the highlights of the December:

The End of the Football Season (Finally)

I resolved myself that I was going to have to play the remaining games for football play-offs. Fortunately, there was only one more after the fateful Thanksgiving game. I managed to get a decent students turn-out, but I had to cancel some personal plans (which put me in a bad mood). It did, however, earn me some brownie points with Assistant Principal Bob, who knew that I had places to be that weekend. This is the issue that probably delayed my holiday cheer early on.

I would like to add that after all that talk about school spirit and how sad it is that I don't support the athletic teams enough... none of the administrators, coaches or athletic parents bothered to show up to either of our winter concerts (see below). Funny how that works, isn't it?

Winter Instrumental Concert

It went pretty well, actually. Everyone did well... even band. (They managed to pull it out of their butts at the last minute). Lovesick Choir Mom rallied the parents together to provide a massive reception (which is interesting given that she doesn't have a kid in the instrumental program... but then it's really no surprise, either.) Actually, in the weeks before the concert she managed to stress me out more than help. I think she wants to help so badly, but not being a musician she doesn't know how to contribute to the musical product... so she frets about all the peripheral stuff, and throws things like receptions to the forefront of my attention. That usually does nothing but tax my already stretched attention span even more (and folks... I do not multitask well.)

Vocal Concert

This also went pretty well. The funny thing is... I wasn't looking forward to it the way I usually did. By the time this concert rolled around I was just tired and stressed out. So what pulled me out of my funk? Maybe it was the girl singing the Brazilian pop song to her sobbing mother in the front row. Maybe it was listening to the vocal duet that I heard being rehearsed back in September... and realizing how far a journey that they had come with that song. Maybe it was the fact that more than anything else I was worried that little Autistic Billy might have a meltdown in front of an audience. But once he got on and off the stage (without incident, I might add)... well.... everything seemed to just mellow out. When we finally got everything packed up afterwards, it was the firts time I felt that "good" kind of tired.

New Sherrif in Town

So... the new drum coach came in to meet the 3rd period drummers. They liked him.... no... they loved him. I left him alone with the durmmer for one period, after which they told me they learned more from him in one day than they had learned from the old drum guy in a whole semester. Probably and exaggeration... but the point is... it looks like drum line is set.

Holiday Caroling

So... my advanced choir has been doing caroling gigs since early December. It's usually one of my favorite things to do. This year it felt kind of like a "job"... you know... I was showing up to everything and getting the task done... but all the while I'm thinking "Okay, when do we get the check?"

The last few gigs turned that around:

A) Singing for the teachers and staff at the yearly PTA holiday party - We got lots of warm fuzzies for that (we do every year)

B) Caroling through the school halls on the day before winter break - I get a kick out of hearing things from students like "Wow... we have a choir?...... and they're good?"

C) Choir Party/Caroling in residential area - I had a bad taste in my mouth from last year's party; some of last year's seniors had gotten kind of cynical and almost ruined it. This year was different. We even had alumni show up and join us as we walked up and down the streets singing our gig set. There's something about knocking on a door and letting loose with a gorgeous arrangement of "Angel's We Have Heard On High" on unsuspecting residents and holiday party-goers. But the best reaction... well that was bringing a little holiday cheer to 90-year-old Harriet (Who I am told is not long for this world)... watching the look on her face as she stood on her balcony... held up by her family members so she could see over the railing... well that sort of thing stays with you.

So... after weeks of aching for winter break, I find myself mulling over the photos I took over the last few weeks... and I realize how proud I am of my students, and how I'll miss the joy of the holiday music.

Happy Holidays everyone.

Perspective

Every once in a while life reminds me that my problems are small in comparison with others. Here's what's happening in the lives of my students:

* Ms. Glossy Violist hasn't been in class for a couple days. Today I found out her dad up and abandoned the family on Friday.

* The mother of two students in the music program works on campus as a college counselor. I ran into her just before lunch. She told me her husband lost his job last week (a victim of the economy). She said he got a good severance package, and that he has a lot of skills and connections... he should be fine. Still, it's weird to think that my job is a little more stable than that of a lot of people living in the upscale community I work for.

* Today, the parents of the most high-profile autistic student in the whole district awoke to find that he had shaved his eyebrows completely off.

Yeah... things could be worse.

A Fine How-Do-You-Do

This one is good folks...I've been waiting to blog about this one.... Had to wait to see how some of it worked out, first.

For the last year or so, one of the choir moms has been doing an insane amount of organizing for me. She's been taking the point on just about every project I have going: concert receptions, parent communications, special events. You name it, she has her hands in it. (This, by the way, is the same parent who organized my massive 40th birthday party)

Well, a couple of weeks ago she let me know in quite clear terms that she has a "thing" for me. She had come to see me in my office on usual music dept. business... and in the course of the conversation she said "You work so hard... your wife must be very patient." I responded "Yeah... well... I'm out late so often, I'm surprised she doesn't think I'm having an affair." That's when she let it loose: "Well, if you ever considered it... I'd be up for it...."

Holy Jesus H Bartholemew Tap-Dancin Christ.!!!

I didn't know exactly how to respond.... so i didn't. In hindsight, it occurred to me that she had been dropping hints all along, I've just never noticed. I mean, I've had moms hug me before and tell me how special I am... but usually because of what I do for their kid. But now that I think about it...back in September I think she said something about us "having a connection." Man, I should have seen it coming. So yeah, I didn't really address it at the time. Probably should have.

Just a couple days ago she brought it up again. She was volunteering for an event that I was performing at. I told her in passing that if Principal Palpatine was at Empire High for another year, I don't think I could take it. I'd have to leave. She kind of wigged out. She called me later and said she couldn't bear to see me leave EHS. She loved me too much. (She did follow it up quickly with "Maybe that's inappropriate to say," and "I know we can never be together... you have someone else"... but still....)

So there's all sorts of worry built into this situation:

a) I'm married....happily....
b) She's married.... to a guy that looks like a linebacker.
c) It would be bad for students/parents/faculty to find out about this.

Out of all of them, (c) worried me the most. People might assume that something had actually happened, and then I'd be up for forced resignation. To counter that, I went to the middle school principal (not Palpatine) and told him what was going on. He was at his computer when I came into his office, closed the door and told him I had something confidential to discuss. When I laid it on him I could see that he was doing everything he could not to laugh.... and I wouldn't have blamed him after how serious I looked when I walked in the door. He basically said that he would let me deal with it however I felt best, and to keep him posted. That was fine... all I really needed was for someone to know what was going on in case things got.... weird.

Not to say that (a) wasn't a priority... but I figured that since I did not encourage this situation in any way, I probably couldn't be held responsible for it. Still, I consulted with several people before telling my wife. I didn't really want to keep it from her... but I wasn't exactly sure how she would take it. She's met Choir Mom on several occasions, and commented on how dedicated she was.... hah! if she only knew. Anyway, in the course of putting together my B-Day thingy, I think they exchanged cel numbers.... I wasn't sure how that situation would pan out.

I should have trusted my wife more. I finally told her last night. She was cooking dinner when I came home. I said I had something I needed to tell her. She looked at me a little scared. So then I laid it on her... and she started laughing. I wasn't exactly expecting that. But see, she and I had worked out issues regarding trust, jealousy and fidelity years ago... so I guess it shouldn't have been that much of a surprise(1). For the rest of the night she teased me about it. Whew.... talk about marrying the right gal!

So anyway, it looks like all I have to do is manage this so that it doesn't become common knowledge at the school. I'm going to have to talk to Choir Mom and let her know that I can't engage her in any further conversation about her feelings for me... that it makes me uncomfortable and threatens my professional image. I'm also just kind of worried that her family life could explode in ways that would leave a lot of people scarred. I'd just as soon not be party to that.

So yeah... this one is going into my professional memoires for sure....

1) Well... she also has a little work stalker of her own... some guy who works in the same building who goes out of his way just to see her. Harmless.

Use whichever leash chokes the most...

So...

Apparently I've become quite the topic at administration meetings (which include all the principals, assistant principals, ASB advisors and the athetics director.) I'm on pretty good terms with both of the ASB advisors (high school and middle school)... they've actually been my advocates when things come up. Today the middle school advisor caught up with me and told me what was discussed.

Basically, the administration is going to be scrutinizing my "outside performances" that are required as part of my $10,000 stipend. The stipend description says that I am required to do at least fiteen (15) public perfomances, football games or a combination of events "as approved or required by the immediate supervisor."

The annoying part of this is that it seems to say that the "immediate supervisor" (whoever that is) has the power to approve or deny any of my events as counting towards the stipend. If said supervisor decides that only pep band perfoermances at athletic games count... then that's the only thing I can do to get the stipend.

If I wasn't married, planning to buy a house and have kid... I'd tell them to get stuffed.

....*sigh*..... dance puppet, dance!