". . . little shall I grace my cause

In speaking for myself. Yet, by your gracious patience,

I will a round unvarnish'd tale deliver . . ."

(William Shakespeare's Othello, I.iii.88-90)

Tuesday, February 8, 2011

Where did it go?

The week, I mean? I don't really know. But obviously blogging took a back seat, and for the next few weeks will probably continue to do so, as Solo & Ensemble season is upon us and I will be looking to fit in practicing and rehearsals for the 40 or so junior high and high school students that I am accompanying at contest this year. Add in four junior high choir concerts (plus the necessary rehearsals for those) and a conference at our church this weekend, and it will take all I can muster to keep up with much of anything beyond the absolutely necessary. It's like this every February. March isn't much better. Maybe I will be able to stop holding my breath in April.

Speaking of breathing, I have been having trouble doing so lately. Just can't seem to get enough air. Has anyone out there ever experienced this? I feel as though I'm in constant need of a yawn, but I can't seem to succeed in getting one. I have had this sensation at other times in my life so wonder if it's just stress. Then again, maybe it's allergies, or the chlorinated air that I have been breathing several times each week since I started attending a water exercise class, or the carrot I accidentally inhaled last week. Who knows--I'll just be glad when I can breathe again.

Anyway, the piano calls, so in lieu of more lengthy blog posts on the topics that have been on my mind of late, here are some pithy comments:

The Super Bowl halftime show was pathetically bad. I am aghast at what has become of our popular culture.

That Ronald Reagan was one of our greatest presidents has become a truism. Everybody acknowledges it, even those who opposed him when he was alive and would oppose him now if he were still with us. But after watching the Reagan 100th birthday tribute on Sunday and then viewing with my husband and children a documentary about his life and presidency, I have been reminded anew of the reasons for his greatness. And while I am saddened to see how far we as a country have traveled from the place that he took us to, I am also encouraged to remember how much he managed to accomplish in his eight years as president. It gives me hope that if we as a nation can find and elect the right leader we can reverse our current course and return to the path that he put us on.

Finally, if you homeschool in Illinois, you need to be paying attention to this. Really, if you homeschool anywhere I think you will want to watch how this effort plays out. With apologies to John Donne, "Any homeschooler's loss of freedom diminishes my freedom, because I am involved in homeschooling. Therefore, never send to know for whom the educational despots grasp; they grasp for thee."

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