band concerts

I was ten years old when I started playing the clarinet, and I was 18 when I stopped. (In the five years since I graduated high school, I have not touched my clarinet once. I'm almost afraid to open the case.) I wasn't bad at playing, and even though I was First Chair my senior year, there was at least one person who was better than I was. (It was only because I was a Senior that I was First Chair. If this guy had been a Senior, he wouldn't have been Fourth Chair.)

Last week, my friend texted me, asking if I wanted to go with her to our band teacher's final concert. I couldn't resist. This guy was the best band teacher I had, hands down. He has been playing saxophone in the Army for 31 years now. He was probably playing that instrument longer than that! He was passionate about music, and it showed through the concerts he set up at the high school. He was a very strict teacher, and the best of us knew that you don't mess with him and you had to strive to do your best in this class.

I was fortunate enough to be in the Wind Ensemble all four years of high school. Not trying to brag or be mean, but I was better than the Concert Band. That was really a beginners band, or for those who really don't have much play time. I really enjoyed all the music I played, partially because I was in such a good band and all the sounds from the music just sounded beautiful, and also because the music really helped me grow as a musician. (I was also in Symphonic Band, and while I liked the music I played in there, the teacher wasn't the best, nor were her strings students.)

Anyways, back to last night's concert. I'm happy to say that the music played last night was amazing. I got to see three bands perform: Concert Band, Wind Ensemble, and Jazz Band. (That was in order of who played, and also level of talent.) Listening to last night's concert made me miss my clarinet-playing days.

Will I go out and attend symphonies now? No. They're expensive and they make me sleepy.

I'll present you with the setlist from last night, and link you to a few of my favorite selections. (I didn't record any of the songs, so selections from YouTube is what you shall be receiving.)

Setlist:

Concert Band

1. Matrix

2. The Muppet Show Theme

3. Impact

Wind Ensemble

1. Exaltation

2. Washington Post

3. American Folk Rhapsody #3

4. Gloria Estefan Greatest Hits

Jazz Band

1. That's Life

2. Sidewinder

3. Hot House

4. Angel Eyes

5. The Girl From Ipanema

6. A 5th of Beethoven

7. Manteca

8. Funkytown

And here is a picture of my dear ol' band teacher from last night:

survivor 26 recap

Ah, Survivor. Have we really just finished season 26? It feels like just a few years ago as I, a then 10-year-old, was sitting down in my living room watching "Survivor: The Australian Outback". (I didn't watch season one, "Borneo".)

I love the setup of the show - find a bunch of people and throw them into the wilderness, only giving them the basic essentials to survive. The show started out really basic: you have a "Reward Challenge" (you play for rewards), you have an "Immunity Challenge" (you play for immunity), then you have "Tribal Council" (you vote somebody out), then there's the "Final Tribal Council" (the "Jury", a handful of previously voted out contestants, votes for the winner). Like I said, it started out pretty basic.

Over the course of 26 seasons, or 13 years (the show premiered on May 31, 2000), we've seen a numerous amount of additions to the show. You've got tribe switchups ("Gabon" had two of them), "Exile Island", "Redemption Island", hidden immunity idols, the "Medallion of Power", former players returning... just to name a few.

When talking about last night's finale to my parents, I said, "This is the first really good season of Survivor since... well, last season was good, but before that, it's been a long time since there's been a good season of Survivor!" I'll admit, there have been a few seasons of Survivor that I haven't really cared about. I've always watched the show, but I know I haven't seen every episode.  I'm not a "super-fan" (like this season's winner, John Cochran), but I'm more than a casual fan.

[spoilers ahead]

my trip to Huntington, WV

I was going to write a "Survivor 26" recap today, but I have so much to talk about, and I missed the first ten minutes of last night's finale, so that probably won't be up until tomorrow or Wednesday.

Last weekend, I went to Huntington, West Virginia. I went with my sister so we could visit our grandparents. It was quick trip; we left around 5pm Thursday afternoon and got back Saturday evening. It was nice being away from Nashville and laying low, not having to worry about much.

I wanted to take more pictures, especially since the weather was perfect those days. (Once we hit Lexington, KY, though, that's when we hit nasty weather.)

community - renewed for season 5

This image is very appropriate for the past few days

[spoilers ahead]

I'll admit this: I've been very hard on Community this season. Perhaps a bit too hard at times. With the showrunners changing, cast members quitting, the constant back and forth of schedules... the show just felt different.

I still advocate this show. I fought for this show throughout all four seasons, and I love it with every fiber of my being. Like I said yesterday about "The Office", all great shows have a down moment. This show was Dan Harmon's baby, and when he's suddenly thrown out (and how he found out was, to say it bluntly, messed up) and replaced with new showrunners, old writers leaving and new ones coming in... The show, while it still had the same cast and some of the same writers/producers, again, it felt different.

This week's episode, "Advanced Introduction to Finality", was one that could have easily gone wrong. I didn't look up many spoilers for this season, so when I saw the promo for the episode, I was both intrigued and turned off. The Darkest Timeline was becoming real? The Evil Greendale Seven were going to meet The Greendale Seven? When I thought about it last week, I figured the only way this could happen is if this happened in their heads. I was relieved to find out this happened in Jeff's head. Yes, this is a show, but everything that has happened in the show, I believe it was all "real". It all makes sense within the messed up world that is Greendale, Colorado.

I remember hearing some critics were a bit harsh on the season finale, and I understand that. This has been a hard season for Community. (Honestly, the whole series has been hard for Community.) In a way, this reminded me of "Abed's Uncontrollable Christmas". Yes, these were two different episodes - one was holiday themed, one really showcased a character's darkest thoughts - but both really showed us the exact thoughts of a character. We hear a lot of the group's thoughts, we've seen some flashbacks, but there have only been a few instances where we've really gotten inside of the heads of these characters. (In my currently tired state, I can only think of Abed-related instances.)

Yes, it was weird to see Jeff thinking of the Darkest Timeline. He's always gotten angry and irate whenever that timeline is mentioned, so for him to be thinking that, upon the rolling of the dice, possibly these people could show up and jeopardize their friendships and futures. This seemed more of something that perhaps Abed would be thinking, but not Jeff. Of course, with Jeff being the "main character" of the show, of course he would be the one to think of a worst-case scenario as to why his graduation would be disrupted.

I'm glad we got a fifth season. (I say "we" because the Community fandom is one big family.) I may not have been overall pleased with this season (it may take some time to truly appreciate this, as it took time for me to like some previous episodes) but I wanted the show to get another season. The first three seasons of this show were perfect, in my opinion. These showrunners and writers were thrown into a critically acclaimed, fan dominating show. I'm sure they were fans, but of course it was going to take some time to really get going, to really achieve, or get as close as they could, to what Dan's vision of the show was.

I know the fans were dominating Twitter Thursday and Friday night, with hashtags live "#LongLiveCommunity", "#CommunityNeverDies", "#PopWHAT", "#sixseasonsandamovie", among others, being very high on the US and Worldwide Trending Topics. With the constant announcements of other NBC shows being canceled or renewed, Community fans were really getting upset at a lack of anything. I'll give it to the official Community Twitter (@nbccommunity), though - either they were being optimistic, or they already knew that the show was going to be renewed. (They kept saying "season finale", as opposed to "series finale".) I know I felt a huge weight off my chest when the season five announcement was made.

What I love about the cast is how humble they are. Community isn't the most popular show, but the fans are dedicated to what they love. I'm proud to be in a community (pun intended) with such dedicated and loving people. The cast, of course, recognizes it. If it weren't for the fans, I do think the show wouldn't still be around. I've also heard stories of the cast being floored, awestruck, and just thankful to the Community fans that have approached them on the streets, conventions, etc. I could not ask for a better cast.

I was going to do a "Best of Season 4" post, but I think I'm going to save that for a later date. Of course I have some favorite moments, but I need to go back and re-watch many episodes. I'll leave you with this video:

good-bye, the office

Despite the fact that I have not been a regular viewer of the show since Michael Scott (Steve Carell) left two years ago, I am truly going to miss "The Office".

Yes, I was one of those people who, upon Steve's departure, kept saying that the show needed to end. I watched the first few episodes of season 8, and, to be honest, I've only seen half of an episode of season 9. (I watched the first half of the 18th episode, "Promos". I do plan on watching the previous two episodes, and of course the retrospective special and the finale next week.) The show had run it's course by that point. Yes, it was interesting to see how Dunder Mifflin (technically "Sabre", but calling DM "Sabre" is like calling the Sears Tower in Chicago the "Willis Tower"; it's not going to happen) would be ran with a new boss.

I don't want to cloud this post with negative opinions, mostly of the last two seasons, of "The Office". Every great show has their slow moments. I have so, so many fond memories of this show. So many memorable moments have happened in this show, and some of my favorite TV moments are from this show.

So, today I'm presenting you a list of my top 5 favorite episodes of "The Office".

#recipe - baked shrimp

I've been trying to use up some of the foods that have been in my freezer for a couple of months now. I've been trying to eat healthier as well, and was happy to find I still had some medium-sized shrimp in my freezer.

I also wanted to try something other than frying it. Fried foods aren't healthy, and I've been eating too much greasy foods lately. I figured I could bake shrimp, but I went ahead and did a Google search on it anyway. There are plenty of baking recipes, thankfully. Let me tell you, this shrimp turned out deliciously!

I will share the recipe for you: