This Day In History: 01/12
The Jam Miami CD which came out at the end of last year is really good. It's a series of live performances of Latin jazz in the Miami scene, with names like Arturo Sandoval and Chick Corea. There's a fair amount of gratuitous high notes on the part of Sandoval, but he's never played as tastelessly as Maynard Ferguson. The CD has some solid charts and performances, and some of the solo work is really excellent. I'm a big fan of through-composed jazz, so it's pretty rare that I find a combo setting or solo-saturated recording enjoyable. Of the small group recordings I've listened to, the only two that I really liked were Chick Corea's early fusion work and the Lennie Niehaus saxophone octet. Most other combos get caught up in their own importance and start talking to themselves in their solos, neglecting the audience. Herbie Hancock and Wynton Marsalis are pretty bad in that regard.
"If you're in jazz and more than ten people like you, you're labelled commercial." - Herbie Mann
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For the musically inclined, which of these examples is the proper way to notate a passage of violin double stops that's not easily divided into top and bottom (for two players)?
I'm now up to 15 and 17 students in my two sections of sightsinging. One of my students started in the afternoon section, transferred to the morning section, and then transferred back to the afternoon section two days later. Apparently it was determined that 9 AM was just an impossibility when it came to waking up.
I finally got the Blackboard site for my class set up yesterday. You can see it by following this link . Click GUEST to log in as a guest, then click the Courses tab at the top of the page. From there, following the links: School of Music, and then Music Theory. My course is the only one listed.
Anna got an administrative job at a software firm in Tyson's Corner, so she doesn't have to run the office at the dealership anymore. She starts there on Wednesday, just in time for the big snowstorm expected in Thursday. Go Anna!
Last night's Alias was really good, and for once they didn't drag out the exposition. They answered more questions in one episode than they did in the past five, and all the answers fit into the mythos of the show, luckily.
I did my first mortgage preapproval today. Good times.
Yesterday's notable search terms:
There were no funny or interesting search terms yesterday.
If you want a good example of a mediocre song made worse by a horrible performance, find a recording of With Those Eyes by Elena. It's so horrible that I can't even listen to it all the way through -- I have to change the station. The vocalist sounds like Ashlee Simpson with chronic bronchitis brought about from smoking a pack an hour, and her caterwauling across the anemic chorus sounds like a hyena in pain.
Alias and Lost are on tonight. I wasn't totally impressed with the season premiere of Alias last week, but I just rewatched it and like it a lot more. It suffers from being a little too long with a little too much filler, but otherwise it actually sets up a fourth season pretty well.
Eliminating your blind spot
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5:14 AM: When half asleep and taking a picture over your head, make sure to get the lens cap out of the way.
5:29 AM: You can't really tell from this shot, but I am wearing a sombrero on the mirror.
5:36 AM: The new Catkins Diet requires that you pretend to feed your felines twice a day until they get thin.
5:42 AM: This is one of those annoying stop lights that automatically stops the main road so all the yuppies in their cul de sac community can get out as quickly as possible. Crossing the road is one of said yuppies.
5:52 AM: No one else is in the office yet. At least there's not a cubicle in sight -- everyone gets an office here.
8:25 AM: Working hard.
11:47 AM: Friday afternoon tradition of stopping at Popeyes for lunch. You know you go to a fast-food restaurant too much when they start ringing up your exact order before you even get to the cashier.
1:14 PM: Telecommuting after lunch, from the perspective of a fly on the wall.
4:42 PM: Bonus Picture "Something New" -- fiddling with my new antenna, trying to get free over-the-air HDTV so I can cancel the wallet-leech that is Comcast. It's Comcastic!
5:52 PM: Freshly shorn and ready for mischief.
7:12 PM: Other people eating lots of my cookies.
9:45 PM: Playing games while waiting for the late pizza guy who may have been an axe-murderer.
11:58 PM: Returning home just in time for the end of the day.
See more 12 of 12's at Chad's site !
Happy Birthday Anna's Dad tomorrow!
Monster bunnies for North Korea
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It's time for the fourth year of 12 of 12, where you take twelve pictures of your mundane day! You can see more 12 of 12ers at Chad's site.
5:00 AM: Somewhere in the world, more exciting people than I are just getting to bed at this hour. |
5:56 AM: Traveling down the danger-filled I-66 into the heart of Yuppyton. |
6:04 AM: Driving past Ballston Commons to Bailey's Crossroad. |
7:32 AM: After finishing my early morning tasks, I head home through historic Falls Church, which consists of eight churches and a Comfort Inn. |
7:52 AM: There's probably something poetic about the traffic and the storm clouds, but it's far too early for poetry. |
8:28 AM: Cats are so lazy. This one hasn't moved since 5 AM. |
10:10 AM: At Costco, using my $70 coupon for a set of new tires. |
10:39 AM: Eating the Big Two-Do at Friendly's, which is only $3.99 on weekdays. |
2:14 PM: Later in the day, with four new tires and a full stomach, telecommuting. |
3:49 PM: An afternoon snack of chips and salsa. |
7:08 PM: Shells and cheese for dinner, but a lesser version that's not the delectable name-brand. |
7:58 PM: Ending a day of pigging out with triple chocolate ice cream! |
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This year marks the fifth and final year of 12 of 12, during which anyone with a blog and a camera can take twelve pictures of their day on the 12th of the month.
6:29 AM: The post-shower picture doesn't work as well when you forget to defog the room. |
6:45 AM: One way to get to work. | |
8:36 AM: On a muted conference call in my new office, which is one door away from my old office. I need to put something on this wall. |
9:12 AM: If the view from your office sucked, and you move next door, it will still suck. | |
1:01 PM: Obligatory shot of a cat licking a newspaper. |
1:04 PM: Leftover chicken fajitas (which were surprisingly delicious even though we only marinated for 45 minutes) for lunch. | |
4:34 PM: Winter cleaning task #64 -- consolidating all the DVDs from the Too Much Packaging department into slim cases, to make room for future shows. |
5:15 PM: Booty assists with the operation, and dislikes 24 because each season comes with an odd number of discs. | |
6:08 PM: I have been eating Velveeta Shells and Cheese for dinner for longer than 12 of 12 has existed. |
6:57 PM: Amber keeps me company while I work. | |
7:12 PM: Dish washing always requires more motivation when the previous night's dishes are still soaking in the sink. |
7:33 PM: Under the house, looking for something nostalgic and fun to write about in tomorrow's post. |
See more 12 of 12ers at Chad's site!
Fans depressed after watching Avatar
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6:03 AM: Making the executive decision to call it a Snow Day. |
6:37 AM: Learning that my new computer has been delayed by snowstorms in the South. | |
8:33 AM: A late shower after a morning's work. |
9:22 AM: Telecommuting. | |
9:53 AM: Hiring a local to shovel my driveway while I work. |
11:02 AM: On a conference call. | |
12:53 PM: Checking on our herb garden after lunch, to see if the parsley is ready for devouring. It was not. |
2:42 PM: Cats, anxious for lunch. | |
4:46 PM: Tidying up the Guild Bank in World of Warcraft. |
6:48 PM: To offset the atrocious mundanity of a stay-at-home day, I decided to make homemade pasta for dinner, finally using one of our wedding gifts for the first time. | |
7:24 PM: Making pasta is fun. |
8:00 PM: Spaghetti with a tomato, basil, beef sauce! |
Today was also "no flash" day. See more 12 of 12ers at Chad's site!
Monkeys hate flying squirrels, report monkey-annoyance experts
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7:24 AM: Waking up late in hopes of combating a cold with extra sleep. |
7:31 AM: A peek behind the bathroom mirror. | |
7:35 AM: All of Rebecca's classmates swear by this stuff, but I don't notice it doing much that Dayquil can't do. |
7:41 AM: A quick bagel breakfast. | |
7:55 AM: Working from home in the morning. |
10:01 AM: Amber is my office assistant. | |
11:15 AM: A quick ham sandwich before heading to the office. |
11:41 AM: View from my (new) office. | |
4:06 PM: Finished with afternoon meetings. |
4:17 PM: Sunset on the way home. | |
4:35 PM: Booty is pretty much right where I left her. |
6:50 PM: Leftover Chicken Reuben from the crock pot for dinner. |
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12 pictures of your day on the 12th of every month
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12 pictures of your day on the 12th of every month
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12 pictures of your day on the 12th of every month
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