Spring Break
Ahh, relaxation. Spring Break has arrived. Time to get busy on that list of things I was putting off until now. Oh, and I'm terribly afraid I'm going to forget about teaching lessons on Wednesday. No use worrying about that yet!
I'm currently listening to Act I of "Das Phantom der Oper", which is the German language translation of Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical "The Phantom of the Opera". This particular recording was made in Austria, and contains some interesting choices, not the least of which is the addition of a second trombone. Coupled with the bass trombonist's tendency to tear through the texture, and you have the makings of a fascinating recording.
It also serves as an excellent segue to the main purpose of this entry: friendship. Let me connect the dots. This recording was purchased while I lived in Chicago (in 1997, if memory serves). My friends, who had come up to visit me for a short time, eventually sat up half the night listening to it. Did we play it on a stereo, like a normal person? Psh! We sat in his car, underneath the EL tracks, of course. I'm sure his girlfriend thought he and I were nuts, and I'm afraid I can't argue the point; it's pretty crazy. What can I say, it was a common interest at the time. And I was thrilled to do any kind of hanging out, having few acquaintences up there.
So, that leads me to friendship. It's not something I've given a whole lot of thought to. Maybe that's because I've got good, low-maintenence friends. Or perhaps it just runs itself if there aren't any major problems. Even friends I haven't spoken to in a while fall right back into line as soon as I send or receive a letter. I certainly don't chalk this up to any skill that I possess.
The last thoughts I had about this were a few years ago, when I spoke to a friend about "friends", and she commented that she had few. She had fallen out of touch with most of her friends from previous phases in her life, and her friends were basically from "the moment", i.e. the last year or two at her current location. I remember thinking how different that was from my own experience. I, who had left friends sprinkled around the States, all from various years of school.
Two years ago, I ran across (by accident) a friend whom I hadn't seen since high school. Had I not actually needed to get back to work, I'm sure we could have stood there for hours. Maybe that's only possible because I've known her since 3rd grade; I'm not sure. Wow. Upon further reflection, that's a long time.
So, what makes a good friend? Previously, I thought it was shared experiences. Does packing a large amount of shared experiences early help carry one through years of no contact? Seems likely, at least in my case.
But as is often the case, every time I think about this, I focus on the friends I've lost. They aren't many in number, fortunately. It's definitly something I regret. I've been advised to write off old friends who resist attempts to reconnect. I find that I can't. Unlike people who (despite my best efforts) fail my Music Fundamentals class, I can't let this go. Nor do I think I should.
After all, if I think I can't fix things that are broken, is there reason to try?
Do people harden so much? Are there some wounds that cannot be healed?
I'm currently listening to Act I of "Das Phantom der Oper", which is the German language translation of Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical "The Phantom of the Opera". This particular recording was made in Austria, and contains some interesting choices, not the least of which is the addition of a second trombone. Coupled with the bass trombonist's tendency to tear through the texture, and you have the makings of a fascinating recording.
It also serves as an excellent segue to the main purpose of this entry: friendship. Let me connect the dots. This recording was purchased while I lived in Chicago (in 1997, if memory serves). My friends, who had come up to visit me for a short time, eventually sat up half the night listening to it. Did we play it on a stereo, like a normal person? Psh! We sat in his car, underneath the EL tracks, of course. I'm sure his girlfriend thought he and I were nuts, and I'm afraid I can't argue the point; it's pretty crazy. What can I say, it was a common interest at the time. And I was thrilled to do any kind of hanging out, having few acquaintences up there.
So, that leads me to friendship. It's not something I've given a whole lot of thought to. Maybe that's because I've got good, low-maintenence friends. Or perhaps it just runs itself if there aren't any major problems. Even friends I haven't spoken to in a while fall right back into line as soon as I send or receive a letter. I certainly don't chalk this up to any skill that I possess.
The last thoughts I had about this were a few years ago, when I spoke to a friend about "friends", and she commented that she had few. She had fallen out of touch with most of her friends from previous phases in her life, and her friends were basically from "the moment", i.e. the last year or two at her current location. I remember thinking how different that was from my own experience. I, who had left friends sprinkled around the States, all from various years of school.
Two years ago, I ran across (by accident) a friend whom I hadn't seen since high school. Had I not actually needed to get back to work, I'm sure we could have stood there for hours. Maybe that's only possible because I've known her since 3rd grade; I'm not sure. Wow. Upon further reflection, that's a long time.
So, what makes a good friend? Previously, I thought it was shared experiences. Does packing a large amount of shared experiences early help carry one through years of no contact? Seems likely, at least in my case.
But as is often the case, every time I think about this, I focus on the friends I've lost. They aren't many in number, fortunately. It's definitly something I regret. I've been advised to write off old friends who resist attempts to reconnect. I find that I can't. Unlike people who (despite my best efforts) fail my Music Fundamentals class, I can't let this go. Nor do I think I should.
After all, if I think I can't fix things that are broken, is there reason to try?
Do people harden so much? Are there some wounds that cannot be healed?
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