Violin Stuff

Hello, world... can you believe it? I did not blog for two days! And just when you thought I was becoming a real chain-blogger!

So, life has been busy but good. I've been practicing a lot. I actually feel pretty good about the amount of practicing I've been doing. I'm satisfied with myself for the first time in a very long while. Zigeunerweisen provided just the needed kick in the pants to get me excited about being in the practice room each day. So after the obligatory time spent each day on scales (why is F Major hard?), Rode, orchestra music (the last two pages of Smetana!), Telemann, Beethoven, and Barber... I can pull out Zigeunerweisen and spent a bit more time in my cozy (or depressing, depending on my current mindset) little practice room! I started doing some work on it on Friday, and it's just a fun piece. My frustration with the Barber concerto was keeping me from being enthusiastic about practicing, and having a fun piece to fiddle around with has provided me with a needed respite of sorts. The Barber... I had already memorized the first movement before I was finally able to get a copy of my teacher's fingerings and bowings. And at this point, I do not have any interest in entirely re-learning the first movement. Ugh. But I am practicing and doing my best even when it's not fun. I have a lesson this Wednesday, and I know he'll expect a lot since he's been gone for a few weeks now. Oh, please let him be happy with me... please... ?

Anyway. I was actually still feeling somewhat down until last night, in spite of my improved practicing. I had dinner with Melissa, after which we decided to go to the mall. I had just found out that I had $600 more than I realized I had, so I felt okay with spending money. And in some weird way, the new outfit I bought last night makes me feel ten times better about myself. After weeks of feeling like a fat, ugly blight on humankind, I felt glad to be me today! (Is this wicked of me? Allowing superficial things to matter?) So anyway, between having new clothes and having improved my practicing habits lately, today was remarkably better than yesterday and the days that preceeded it. Oh, and maybe the fact that today was Saturday helped a little, too.