HOLY CRAP I ALMOST FORGOT!!

I got to strike #14 off of my list of 25 things!! (see side bar, or link below).

First class, baby!

Sweet.

only a few days left...

This year is coming to a close and I can't believe that it's the LOWEST blog-entry year so far!
Usually I'm in the 200s per year- meaning, I write about every two days-ish (you know I can't do math let's stop this numeric thing in it's tracks right now and just say I didn't write as much. Period)., but this year I wrote less less less than 2006, the first blog year (well actually it was 2005 but I important my livejournal entries all at once in 2006).

Yes, but what does it all mean?
Oh- nothing.
I suppose maybe I was busy with things IRL (in real life). Maybe I also COULDN"T share as much about some musical things as I would have liked to.

This is still as anonymous as I can make it..without talking about specific productions and places, but it's still not too hard to google-ninja your way into my 'real life'--but there are some things that I still can't write about. I'll save it for my memoirs. HA!

What am I looking forward to this year? Well, again- I am happy and thankful that I am really a 'working singer'. I have no other job. This is what I do.
Prepare for the next show, rock the next show, NEXT.

I am also loving the time off that I have---for said preparation, and for 'real life'.
I am still trying to make that weird transition to living in Europe and singing..anywhere.
I'm not going to say that it would be so so so much easier if I was just here a Majority of the time (although it would be)...but I can't give up on contacts and colleagues and inroads that I have made with a number of companies in the US that I've sung with and will sing with in these last few and next years.

I guess this is the life, right?
I mean- there is no more 'school', there is no more 'living in NYC as a poor singer with a part time job trying to find an agent or get an audition'. There are no more 'programs'.
It's pretty much laid out for me.
If am granted the audition, if I sing well, if I"M the one that they choose for whatever reason it is, then I work.

Weird..can I please do this forEVAH? evah evah?

the entire story

It's Christmas day--what else do I have to do besides recount my tales of travel from the past week?
Oh yea- memorize dialogue and that last aria in upcomingopera1. Buuuut---I'm so laaaazy and it's CHRIIIIISTMAS..you can't do work on Christmas! hahaha--right? Right.

Ready? OK!

Thursday night: Leave NYC via train to upstate parents-house where all my stuff is waiting for me to unpack and repack, as usual.

Friday: Repack my stuff, adding more winter sweaters, dropping off Tshirts I had still not brought back since the summer, add necessary items from Target such as citrus ginger spice for chicken/fish, baking soda and baking powder, and figure out a way to pack my newly purchased Gucci by Gucci for him AND for her scents (how cute, we match)...without having the bottles break all over my sweaters in transit. Oh. Also packed a bottle of Alkalol. Singers, if you don't know what this is, look it up ASAP. A teaspoon of this plus some warm water in a "nasendusche" and you are officially cured of EVERYTHING.

Also, wrapped my full sized keyboard in my jeans, cuorderoys, leggins and workout clothes, wrapped THAT in a body pillow I wanted to bring back here, wrapped THAT in tons of tape, and put the whole caboodle into an extra long garment bag. (wrapped in tape).

Saturday: Looked at the weather report at 9am and was like- hmm...this looks KINDA bad. Should I take my HUGE 48 pound suitcase plus the unwieldy unfoldable and unbendable garment bag-keyboard to NYC a day early? I mean, JFK is known for general crappiness in bad weather and..IN GENERAL. So. What can I do? What if I can't get to the airport because of the snow?

Last minute decision at 11am:
Get in the car with my dad, drive directly to a best western near jfk (2 miles away) that was charging TWO FIFTY a night instead of the regular NINETY NINE just because of the IMPENDING snow storm. EVERYWHERE else was sold out. I'm not kidding you.
So. I pay. I get to the hotel at 1:15, JUSt as the first flurries start to fall.
My dad has to turn around and try to out-drive the snow to get back upstate (he did).

And me- I am like- oh, let's go outside and grab some food and some magazines at cvs.
Except--outside is the BELT PARKWAY and I am surrounded on the left by a Days inn and on the right by the Holiday Inn. There is seriously nothing.

The front desk gives me three menus- chinese, indian and pizza. And so- I order for the next day and a half, since I know no cars are going to be on the road that night.
A wrap, a pizza, and buffalo wings. I know- SO healthy.
I make good choices! YUM. NOT.

Ok, food comes 40 minutes later. The wings are GROSS. Eat one and then basta.
The pizza is fine- eat three slices (oops). Dinner was the wrap (the wrap was grossly hard, but whatever--turkey and cheese is inside, so it's ok).
I am telling you people, when EVER I have the option to watch tv- FINALLY- there is NOTHING on. I even had three showtime channels!
But what- am I going to watch The Mist? That crap is SCARY! NO WAY!
They were playing CRAP the entire day, AND there was no law and order marathon--what's up with THAT?! Yea, thanks Saturday afternoons.
By 9pm I was so stir crazy that I actually decided to check out the 'gym'.
The 'gym' actually being a room with 4 computers, a treadmill and a bike--which was also the 'business center'.
I jogged for 27 minutes, and then called it quits.
A warm shower and 2nd half of the wrap later and I was ready to attempt to go to sleep, all the while checking my flight status online (via iphone) and changing the channel on awful tv.

Next morning: Must check out at 12. Got on the airport shuttle at 12:30. Streets were being cleared, there were MAJOR delays and cancellations from last night, BUT- it looks like there is NO reason my flight shouldn't leave.

So. I get to the airport, I check my 2 bags (pay 50 bucks for the keyboard), and ..what else--DUTY FREE!! I already received an overseas 'order' for Tanqueray, I bought myself Coco Mademoiselle, and then wandered around.
What to do..what to do... for 7 hours in an airport.

Study the music I'm supposed to memorize? NO! Buy Wedding Magazines!!
Eat at Au Bon Pain!
Have chocolate chip cookies for NO REASON!

Yes, that was until 5pm, when I was like- OK, let me be the 'good' passenger and go through security EARLY to get to my gate (which is isolated from all the stores).
I walk up to the monitor to make sure my gate is the same ... and...
my flight is NOT THERE>
WHAAAAAAT?

I check my iphone flight status.---
CANCELLED!!!

WHAAAAT?

And now the fun begins.
I walk upstairs to where I checked in, and there are FIVE HUNDRED people at least-- waiting in the 'rebooking' line. And about 30 waiting in the 'check in' line.
OBVIOUSLY I did not wait in the 500 person line.
I kind of attached myself to some Germans who were complaining about their flight being cancelled too..and when the next person was free in the rebooking line, I went up to them.

I must have seemed about to CRACK to the lady at the desk although I was extreeeemely calm and collected and said- I need to get to Europe. Anywhere in Europe. As soon as possible.
And she was all like- "honey I will get you there.".
The next time you can fly to Frankfurt is on THursday.
GREAT! Cuz it's SUNDAY today.

So. No.
Anywhere else?
Brussels. Tomorrow night at 7.
DONE.

AND she put me in first class. Although- no mention of where I was supposed to sleep tonight, OR the fact that we weren't "sure" my bags would be re-tagged for Brussels and not Frankfurt.

And so- I took a car service to my bff in Brooklyn who always so kindly lets me crash on her couch and gives me an extra tshirt to sleep in when all I have are the gross clothes I've been wearing in the airport all day.

Next day- get a NY bagel in the morning, take ANOTHER car service back to the airport at 2.
Check in- thank the LORD I was upgraded, because they have a separate checkin line, and the coach line was MASSIVE.
I ask the woman where my bags will go. She says- supposedly Brussels. Awesome.

I go to DUTY FREE- AGAIN (oh, by the way- when my flight was cancelled yesterday I had to go BACK to duty free, tell them my flight was cancelled, and give them my receipt to get my money back---since they only deliver the stuff to you when you get on the plane).

Buy the same stuff, and wait.
Wait.
Wait.
Music learn? NO.
There's just something about being stressed at an airport. It's not conducive to ANYTHING.
Try to read. Check the flight updater.
Now, it's 6:15. Check-in time.
They even made the announcement that we will board first class first. The flight crew already is ON the plane...

And then...

DUE TO TECHNICAL/MECHANICAL PROBLEM..... OH NO!
So. We are delayed. Who knows for how long.
First, an hour.
Then, the pilot comes out and says- it's a problem with the FLAPS--which we need in order to LAND.
But he "thinks" it will be fixed by 11- which is our max. time that they can hold the flight for.
GREAT.
So the whole flight is told- go to gate 11 and get a dinner voucher.
7.50!!
And do you know how much a meal ANYWHERE in the airport costs at dinner-time? Yea...at least 14.
Thanks.
I stand in a line, AGAIN to ask ANOTHER lady whether there is ANY other flight going anywhere in Europe. Tonight.
She's like- you were supposed to go to FF, why aren't you going there? And I'm like- the lady last night said I could only get to Brussels.
Of course- for her to put me on standby for the frankfurt flight (with 16 other people which means I'd never make it)..she would have to take me OFF the brussels flight.
FOOLISH.

So. I sit. I eat at Chili's. I wait. We have a gate change! Halleluja! Are we leaving?
We have a NEW PLANE! They kicked an LA-bound flight off to our plane, because they could wait longer than we could.
SWEET!
so. 10:15. I'm ON the plane.
But no, we can't leave the gate because--there is another plane BLOCKING us from moving..they don't know where to put it...
umm--hello? it's an AIRPORT! I'm sure you can figure out how to move a plane 50 feet so we can BACK IT UP!

11:15pm.
We take off.

12pm- I land in Brussels. Look, I'm not going to say first class on an intl. flight wasn't super-snazzy, but I was already having such a bad time of it all...I couldn't take full advantage of my situation.

So. Brussels. Of course the greatest thing ever is getting off of the plane first and going through customs with no line--but all of that is only worth it if you DON"T CHECK BAGS!
And of COURSE mine came out THREE MINUTES after I was supposed to catch my TRAIN from Brussels Airport to Brussels Central, so that I could make a Brussels to Cologne and then Cologne to Frankfurt Train- BEFORE FIVE PM.

Fast forward to the next train- the SLOW ONE.
I get to Brussels Central, RUN with my two freaking huge and heavy bags, get on the Thalys train (French fast train)--with NO ticket, (along with a zillion other people who had been cancelled or delayed from the storms in Belgium and England and France for the past day)...and am STANDING for three hours on a train.
AWESOME.
The conductor comes by and there is such a fuss by everyone else that me not having a ticket seems totally fine. Pay with credit card. Nice.

Get to Cologne and have 6 minutes to change trains..without suitcases, I would have been GOLDEN.
With them--I get to the ICE (fast) train to Frankfurt AS the doors are closing..and the door conductor doesn't hold it. RUDE!
So I'm super angry now, AND the handle on the garment bag that's holding the keyboard breaks, AND I'm full of general grime from lugging already-dirty bags.

30 minutes later and one station change later via Sbahn, I'm on the Frankfurt bound train. To the airport...where I was supposed to arrive on Monday morning. Not Tuesday at 8:30pm.

Made it home via tram by 9.
Best part?
Home.
Home.
Home.

Silver Lining? Went to a spa the next day for 2 hours of sauna, hot spring, steam room, foot bath and other amazing relaxing things.

And now, Xmas day- woke up at 2 (well...got out of BED at 2)...it's 6 now. Maybe I'll do something musical that I'm supposed to...
Hmm.
Internetssss.

Merrrrrrry Chinese Takeout Night!

Oh to be back in nyc--where the takeout flows like the streams of urine in the subways...and where not every.single.store is closed for the next 3.5 days.

I was going to go shopping today--and then I only woke up at 2pm and had 'things' to do--such as, check the internetzzz for mail for a long time, and...what was that other thing I did before wasting this entire day? Oh yea, nothing. I love jet-lag.

So-- we have cheese. Three different kinds. We have one piece of bread. But we can BAKE bread- take THAT!
We have activia...because I like the flavor NOT because I need to regulate my probiotic intake!
We have some frozen salmon and some frozen chicken. We have apples and clementines. And most importantly, we have SOUR PATCH KIDS and CHOCOLATE.

That is really all that is needed for three days of movie-watching which will commence shortly after I press "post".

I'm still not in the mood to recount my full travel ordeals from this past weekend through Tuesday night..but just another tidbit-

While carrying the garment bag which was filled with a full sized keyboard wrapped in all of my yoga pants, pjs, a body pillow and a blanket, the strap broke before my last train transfer.
In my OTHER hand I was pushing a full sized suitcase that weight 48 pounds. Yep- two under the limit, ye almighty handlers of baggage who rain down torment and lightning upon all of my amazing packing efforts!

More when I feel like it.
MerryXmas.

oh, and p.s.

that very important thing that i was auditioning for after i had to cancel the first time due to the swine flu? callback. sweetness all around.

home sweet home

I will not attempt to recount my travel ordeals for the past three, yes, three days tonight...I'm already unwinding from those long hours by a visit to the spa today.
Plus I'm still jet-lagged, and it's 3am here..so really, how much joy and sarcasm could I bring to writing about airport closings, plane cancellations, 7 dollar dinner vouchers for airport food, and the two heaviest suitcases I have ever packed and how I lugged them across two countries...
I know, I have whet your appetite. Too bad! You'll just have to come back and read all about it (most likely tomorrow) :)

the morning after...

yesss...I went there with the title. Dealw/it.yo.

I feel GREAT today! The more I think about it, the more I'm like--yea..that kinda actually rocked...I mean...how many people can sing..what was it- over 40 high E's in the span of 5 minutes? And then also sing low Ds and sound good on the them? Take THAT yo!

So-in "secondary" review of the fact that so few people can actually DO this at ALL decently...I am giving myself an extra 3 percentage points of 'rocking'.

Which...if I had to say that I've done this 100% in practice and coaching, at at the audition I was like a 92---I'm bumped up to 95!
I love my crazy logic sometimes.

But no--I'm feeling good about it no matter what the outcome.

What did I do today? Bought out target again (things to take back to Deutschland that are not 'easily' or 'cheaply' found), and- the biggest challenge--
wrap up a full sized keyboard in clothes and soft body pillows, fit it into a long garment bag, tape that thing UP, and...voila- 2nd checked bag under 50 pounds and now I can practice PROPERLY and not just using my pitch pipe in Dland.

NICE.

The run down

Is it even healthy to write about my impressions and what happened so soon after? Yes, my audition was a 6:15. It's now 8:26 and I'm already on the train to my next destination.
So- what's it like to audition for something so so so important and that I want so much?
I won't lie. I got a BIT nervous. In a 'is this really happening' kind of way...
So. I show up 30 minute early, get shown to a warm up room. I'm already warmed up so I chatted a bit with my manager, met an online blogger who happened to be passing through covering (fun!) and kind of did little bits of my 4 excerpts for a few minutes.
Half a ricola and a few swigs of water later, we are walking to the room.
I was first, and they were only hearing 2 singers. I announced myself, the excerpts, and then...go time.
First piece- the one I've known since 2005-- nicely done. High notes, some dramatics, but basically I just wanted to start off with a bang and a lot of good high notes.
During the piece I started feeling the 'whoa this is big' thing, so I took an extra second or two before piec number two which is the hardest slowest highest and most sustained piece. This one was not as good as the best time I've sung it in rehearsal because of nerves. So yes the high was there and I did it right but SOME notes had more vibrato than I would have liked and therefore may have sounded a tiny bit at the lower resonance of pitch instead of right on. Regained myself for third piece which rocked out and was dramatic followed by fourth piece which I nailed, was dramatic on, and hit the last cadenza with one unplanned breath but otherwise awesomeness.
Sooo. I felt kind of in a daze afterwards. I mean, I did it, right? What I've been planning for since I got the call the first time, got sick, and then had to reschedule to today. It's done. I am proud of my work. I am happy with the singing. I can only hope the panel was impressed enough to want to hear more for the people that are 'final say' in charge.

it's the day of the...'day' y'all

Went to sleep around 1am, woke up quite early but stayed in bed until 9:30, checked my email and puttered around on fb.
About to take a hot shower and do some lip trills, DRY my hair, go outside and get a hair cut at noon, pick up a present for my hosts on the way back uptown, warm up for 30 minutes around 2 or 3, and then stay INSIDE until 5:45pm!

Then I walk three blocks and half an avenue to audition-venue, and the fun begins.

one day more...

Of avoiding 'the sick'.
Lesson on Monday- awesome.
Coaching yesterday- confirmed that it's all still there.
I had an amusing morning yesterday, as I walked into a bridal shop in NY to try on...gulp...wedding dresses.
Yea..I knew that would be a big mistake, as I'm particular about what I want, and saw nothing that I liked.

But I still wanted to have that 'experience'. Of the lady picking out some things and then fitting them on you..and telling you that she liked something that you thought was so atrocious it was a joke.

Aaanyway, listening to the conversations around me was Hi-larious.
There was a bride and a mother-of-the-bride trying on some dresses for the mom. One of them was a salmon-pink-ish really tight mermaid dress with TONS of organza poofiness at the bottom that made her look like she should be one of the chiquita banana dancers, or at least like she was going to a tacky miami or vegas wedding- AS A JOKE costume!
But no, the daughter was like- that looks good on you. And the saleslady was like- this is the first dress that you've put on that I can see you feel comfortable in.
O.M.G....PLEASE don't wear that as a MOB dress? Thanks.
So then she was trying on this TIGHT black/brown dress w/nude underlay laciness that looked like she SHOULD wear it to a cocktail party IF she was 25. I mean, she looked good- but hello- not wedding appropriate.
I'm not kidding- I think they went with that one.
And it was poofy at the bottom too.
No.

So. I'm back to square negative one again..seeing as how I have no motivation for any planning of any part of the upcoming events of 2010.

Nice.

In musical news, The 2010-2011 season is shaping up nicely SO far. I mean, being semi-busy until March or April of 2011. Of course, there's always room to be busy-ER, but it's nice to know where I'll be starting this January and ending next April. SO FAR.

Audition tomorrow--feeling good. Want to spend about 30 minutes warming up today..maybe an hour.
Tomorrow- get hair 'did' in the noon, (no, this does not mean concert styling, I just need a haircut..but I like the way they blow dry it!), then probably a light warm up, and head to the audition a little before 6.

I don't THINK I'm nervous...I REALLY like this music. And I know that I do it well. So what else is there to THINK or BE nervous about? Right? right.

the big apple...view from the window

Ok, I'm being careful again.
I slept for 7 of the 9 hours of my flight here ( mostly because my tv/movie screen wasn't working so there wasn't much else to do).
I arrived in a downpour of rain, went immediately to the apt., took off the wet jeans and socks, put on my PJs and stayed under a blanket for the rest of the evening.
This morning- 1 hour of practice, lunch with friends (only 5 blocks away, I promise!), and now, back in the apt. before my voice lesson in 2 hrs.
Evening plans- nada.
Feeling good--KNOCK ON WOOD--and that is the update.
Warming up today- audition pieces felt good. Sang through upcoming opera1 (previous known as upcoming opera2)--seems like some more Frenchiness may be sticking in my head..that's a lovely thing.

And that's the view from inside.

T minus one week

In exactly 7 days and two hours, I'll be singing the audition that I was supposed to sing when I got sick last time.
Yea, it's big and important and all that, but what is MORE important is that I like the music and I know that I do it well.
In the meantime,
I have one more performance of Queen in 2 days (which is weird, because it's been a WHILE now, but I still don't really feel pressured. I've done it before, and I'll do it again), an early morning flight in three days, a mid-morning lesson in four days, coachings in 5 and 6 days, and audition--as I mentioned, in 7 days.

There has been some hullabuloo of other sorts recently--upcoming opera1 is now upcoming opera3 due to financial reasons. The rescheduling and confusion has led to a flurry of ticket rebooking and new purchases, which sadly, are exhorbitantly priced due to the holiday season.

So NEWupcomingopera1 is what I'm turning my focus to now--
I like the music, but there are three strophic 'ariettas' that I'm not BFF with ... yet.
They are slow, low-ish, wordy, and generally, I love the ensembles more than my actual solo parts. But maybe in the next month my mind will change as I practice more and make them my friends.

Also I just got a google alert about my name (yes, I do that) and UpcomingConcert, and SHEESH! It's kinda famous! Like, I already knew I would be working with a big time conductor, but it's going to be broadcast on like 250 radio stations and replayed and replayed...bottom line being--GAHHHHHIIIIIII better not screw up!

hahaha.
No. I have looked at the music. And while it's not a lot of singing for me, it's a crazy sing.
Fast and crazy.
Not weird and atonal crazy. Just bordering that.
So- I LIKE it.
And I shall learn it and BRING it.

In the meantime, as I write that I have to spend more time with the Frenchies and the crazies, what have I been doing from 7pm-11pm?
You betcha! Watching online TV.
I mean, I NEEDED to watch Glee. I didn't REALLY need to watch 2 episodes of madmen, but it was there. And then obviously Dexter. Half the time I get kicked off the websites any way because of bandwitdth or the fact that I'm watching an illegally downloaded/recorded-from-tv show through some japanese 'youtube'-esque website...
So a 40 minute show takes about an hour to watch.

But I'm finished now.
Maybe I'll type out some words to the French.
Yea, that will make me feel like I did something.
Or WRITE them out. Better yet. The eye-hand-memory connection.

Niiiice.
Scientists- I'm still waiting for that new shot you'll come up with to 'administer' memory via osmosis so that I can look at a piece once, store the info. like in a zip drive, and then just 'plug' something back in and have it sitting there perfectly ready, as if it were in my desktop the whole time!

trains, trains, and ... trains

Yesterday I woke up at 7:25, got home at 9:15pm, and in between, was on trains, strassenbahns and busses for the entire day besides 8 minutes of singing. And 20 minutes of warming up.

Strassenbahn 8:13-8:32
Buy tickets at the main station
Train #s 1-4 from 9:10-13:00 (with changes at different stations.
Arrival at 'audition location'- except that the theater has TWO audition locations (an hour apart, conveniently), and since I was sick for last week's audition, the reconfirmation and rescheduling person didn't tell me that the audition venue would also be different.
It was.
So. Bus back to train station. 1 hour train to next audition location. Bus to audition.
Warm up, sing, bla bla bla...
Oh wait, here's an actual musical part of the blog entry instead of me talking about trains and transportation.

Ok, so I was auditioning for a Donizetti bel canto role a season and a half from now that I have NOT sung before, but have prepared the aria for a while now.
But of course, I always want to start the audition with what I do best, or things I feel show me off best. Which of course is NOT the aria from this opera.
So I walk in all ready to sing DurchZ, when the panel (who was SUPER friendly) says, well, you're auditioning for Adina, so taking a look at your rep list, let's just hear that first and see if we need to hear anything else.
BOO! BOO for not letting me make a general 'musical' impression and THEN seeing if I'm right for the role.

And it's not like there were 20 other singers waiting outside. There was ONE.

Oh yea, also- if you're going to hire a pianist who gets SNIPPY because I brought the actual SCORE and-- heaven forbid, unless you crack it back with your hands really well before you play, the pages MIGHT just start jumping up at you while you're playing...
I mean, really??
He was totally like- I don't know if I can play like this.
And I"m like- EVERY.OTHER.PERSON who has EVER played this for me had NO problems with it.
Thanks.
Just bend the binding a little....is it NOT like you're a rehearsal accompanist anyway who plays from scores EVERY.DAY that there is a staging rehearsal?
Thanks.
Pipe down now.

Ok. So they only asked for the first piece. And since it's long and has line AND coloratura of course they didn't want to hear any of the pieces that I totally ROCK at...not saying I didn't rock, it was FINE, it just wasn't 'me'. There is a comfort zone around all of my other pieces....duh...because I've sung them at every audition ever.
And this piece..maybe 5 times. Only when asked for, specifically for the role.

So anyway, no 2nd piece later and I'm getting on the next bus back to the train station...but of course, the round trip ticket I bought is from PREVIOUS audition location.
But I'm not about to get on a train to go one hour NORTH of where I need to be, just to start this whole travel ordeal again with the RIGHT trains.

So I say- screw it.
I just looked up a new routing from current-station, wrote it down, and got on the trains despite not having the right ticket.
I did HAVE a ticket, it was just from city A to city B via city C and D.
And I went to city B via city E and F...from city G.
Still on the *kinda* same-priced trains (ICE--the most expensive).
So even though my ticket got checked on every train, and asked about...I managed to convince them I wasn't trying to ride for free or cheat them...but that I just had 'missed' a connection and now THIS was the fastest connection back home.

And it felt GOOD to be home.

progress

Lingering bronchial cough is still here, however--
I feel MUCH much better.
Went for a bike ride today, walked around the city yesterday, cleaned the entire apartment today, and vocally, although I still feel a bit fatigued after one hour of practice, the one hour is definitely as it should be in my voice.

Doesn't feel like I have a huge head cold anymore.

Repertoire for upcoming audition feels really good again (finally), and other general repertoire for upcoming operas/concerts feels equally 'in line'.

FINALLY!

catch up

Ok, day 3 of taking a one hour 'energetic' walk....yesterday I didn't feel like immediately falling into bed after the walk--that's some improvement after day 1.
About to go out again and brave the cold weather.
But it's really the only thing I can do to get outside and do any kind of moving around since I'm still feeling ... well, I'm FEELING a lot better, but my body hasn't caught up yet.


Singing- yea, I also went from 40 minutes to about an hour. Felt really tired after ward, and also had the feeling that my face was stuffy and I was still kind of 'singing through a cold'- even though I don't have a cold.
So again, I just have to slowly get used to it, I suppose.
But at least all the high notes and low notes that need to be there--are still there.

Thank goodness. Welcome back g, baby. I was beginning to miss you.

weak/week

Ok, so now my symptoms are just pretty much a cold (ie my face feels like it needs to be decongested), and still this lingering bronchial cough, but it doesn't really hurt to cough and I can pretty much control it.

What still hasn't gone away is the extreme weakness of my body. Yep, lying down for 10 days and barely eating will do that to you, I suppose.
I took a walk for 40 minutes today and by the end of it I was exhausted. Came home and had to lie down for an hour.
Then I tried to practice a bit (to my ears my voice sounds like I"m singing over a cold...but maybe my ears are still blocked a bit too)...nothing hurts, everything is "OK" although not as easy and smooth as I'd like it to be.
And after about 45 minutes of practicing, again, I felt like I needed another nap.

This recovery has been pretty rough. Had to delay an audition that I was supposed to have tomorrow--until next week. I only have 13 days left here. 13.

After that I have to be GAME ON for the big re-audition, and of course game on for upcoming shows/concert 1/2/3.

Hope I can start feeling game on instead of naptime on soon.