Merry Christmas to all of my bestest blog-reading friends and family. It's become increasingly busy around the household over the last month or so, which is why it's taken me a little longer to sit down and blog it out. This is my favorite time of year! Ho-ho-ho and all that junk. My favorite part of Christmas is the music. Performing music, listening to music, dancing to music (okay not that one), you name it and I'm doing it. I've got my desk radio cranked to Christmas music all day and I can't explain why, but it cheers me up and lifts my spirits. How can I maintain my good spirit throughout the year?? I have two choices: 1. Learn to channel the positive energy of the season and transfer it to myself every day. 2. Listen to all of my Christmas music throughout the next 12 months. Verdict? I'm going to need a larger ipod.
Part of the Christmas season is a good Christmas concert. We had the opportunity to go to a good one in Atlanta. The Atlanta Vocal Project is a top International finalist barbershop chorus from the Atlanta metro area. When we heard that their annual concert was coming up on a weekend that I was going to be in ATL anyway, I jumped on the chance. Even better, Voices of Lee were their guest performers. Get in the car, honey!!!!
These guys looked and sounded really sharp, but not in the bad intonation sense.
There were a couple good quartets, including a past district champion.
Our favorite part was Voices of Lee. You may recognize a few of them from the NBC show Sing-Off. We think it may have been a different class of students performing on TV than the current group that tours the US.
At the end of the show, there was a large mass number with children and the other groups. It was really nice!
The next day, I threw myself back into the drum corps season. Our very first ALLIANCE camp was a success! We learned of the new show concept, played through some of the music, and made some new friends. Here is our corps director, Terry Reilley, telling us a little more about the upcoming season.
First, let me say it was cold as...um...ice. Yeah. One of the coldest mornings in my short duration in the South. I should have worn gloves to avoid frostbite from handling some of the equipment which was covered in frost. I learned my lesson. Here, you can see we were starting to load up some horns from our storage trailer.
My fellow baritone, Nick, was helping to unload the trailer. Looking at this picture, I can practically see him shivering under there. Our next camp is in mid January, I'll be sure to update you more at that time!
Even though I've been attending Messiah Lutheran with my wife, I was recently asked to sub in the bell choir at Mauldin United Methodist. I really enjoyed seeing some old friends and learning more about playing bells.
A small group of us went to a local concert for the students of the Governor's School, which is a really nice fine arts high school in Greenville.
The concert was held at a beautiful Presbyterian church in Greenville.
It wasn't a Christmas concert, per say, but it was nice to get out and get some culture. It was a great performance of challenging music by some really gifted high schoolers.
I had fun with some low light shots... It was also nice to get some sample video recordings.
As hard as I tried, I couldn't get my panos to center correctly, but this one turned out pretty nicely, I think.
They have a beautiful pipe organ there.
More good news! We finally registered our barbershop quartet with the society (Barbershop Harmony Society). We call ourselves Carolina Quadraphonic (CQ for short) and we are getting ready to compete for the fist time in March. I created a fan page on Facebook, become a fan if you feel inclined. I created a rough logo idea for the group below:
I found this in the locker room at the gym. This is what I call a "Lock FAIL"
I'm not a big beer drinker, but I couldn't pass up a recent chance to try some Yuengling Lager. Typically I like a light beer, like Miller Lite, but this had a really full flavor. I wouldn't drink it everyday, but the novelty of the oldest brewery in America tickled my curiosity and I'm glad it did!
Found this box at work yesterday. It's what I call a "Spelling FAIL"
There's a lot going on this weekend, so I'm going to wrap up. Weather here has been a little topsy-turvy, but mostly moderate. Some cool temps and a lot of rain, but we're not complaining. I haven't been on my motorcycle for a couple weeks (sniff sniff) but I'll probably find a good sunny day and put on an extra sweater and go out for a ride when the rain clears up. Erin and I are staying in SC for Christmas this year...our first in the new house...and our first on our own! We plan to stay in all day and play Wii!! Should be a good time. On Sunday, we're driving back to Illinois to stay with family and friends and enjoy some time off. I'll be sure to post some pictures of Christmas and the trip back. If you don't hear from me before then, Merry Christmas, and have safe New Year!
