memories, music, parenthood Leave a comment

Contest Season

My son will be performing at his first OMEA marching band competition this evening. One of the judges is a friend of a friend, according to the contest info sheet. He wouldn’t know me from Adam, but I recognize his name, at least. (One of my college roommates, Mary, joked that I was taking so long to get my Bachelors that I must be on the Proczyk Plan.)

Thinking of contest reminded me of the lead-up to one of my own competitions in high school, back in the early 1990’s. I clearly remember Mr. Wardeska pacing the band room, repeating over and over, “I can’t believe I’m going to be judged by Michael Cesario!” It all turned out awesome, as Mr. Cesario was impressed with the uniform design and the cohesiveness of the show, if I recall correctly.

I’m super proud of my son’s band, and super impressed that they’ve put together a contest show without regular after-school rehearsals. Tonight will be their first of two competitions this season, with the second being next weekend. No matter what rating they come out with tonight, I hope they’re proud of themselves.

I just hope the second trombone from the left isn’t the biggest tick tonight…

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Hazy Morning Walk

Even before I stepped outside for my now-habitual morning walk, I could see something was strange. It wasn’t fog I was seeing out my kitchen window — it was haze.

Once I walked out into that haze, I knew we were experiencing some sort of environmental something-or-other. It smelled smoky.

About halfway through my quick lap around the block, I passed a retiree walking down his driveway to get his morning newspaper, appropriately decked out in robe and slippers.

“You should really be wearing a mask if you’re going to be out walking,” he admonished me.

When I asked him what this haze was all about, he told me that it’s smoke from the Canadian wildfires, and it’s likely to be around for the next day or two. I thanked him for the information and assured him I’d check the news when I got home.

Of course, when I continued on my walk and turned the corner to face east, I had to stop and spend some more time in the smoky air to take a picture of the red sun. No filter.

gardening, photos Leave a comment

Morning Daylilies

I had just started out for my morning walk when these daylilies drew me in for a closer look. The backlighting from the morning sun gave them this amazing glow, and I felt compelled to stop and take a photo or two.

These blooms are in my front garden. I hadn’t even made it down the driveway yet. But I hadn’t felt that pull of I must photograph this in so long… it was a welcome pause.

Stop and photograph the flowers.