A Rockin' Weekend

Woke up this morning looking for that beautiful orb that hangs in the sky over my house, and found clouds! Talking about putting a damper on things! I had big plans, but now I must be relegated to the movie theatre this afternoon. Bah, humbug! I moved here to have sunshine,What the heck is this? Oh, I am told that it is one of the 40 days a year that we don't have sunshine and I should get over it.

After further thought on the subject, I am decided that my wife is right for this once... (just once, lest this a habit be.) I could be like my friends in Flagstaff and have to worry about snow that is 1-2 FEET deep! They are under blizzard warnings for today and tomorrow, so i am glad I am not them. Just goes to show you there is always a valuable lining to that grey cloud.

I went to a concert last night with Dorothy. She bought me tickets to Trans-Siberian Orchestra's (TSO) Christmas show out in Glendale. I have not been to a rock concert in about 40 years, so I was really excited. TSO is a group that takes classical music and updates it into rock, adds a light show and fireworks. They put one one whale of an event. I was amazed and astounded at how Bach and Beethoven sound as rock music! What must these masters think from their graves? I imagine they would surely be appreciative.

During the show, I noticed my wife just sitting and watching, but not really reacting with the same enthusiasm she had had when we had gone to see Joel Osteen just a couple nights before. But, I was enjoying it, and afterall, it was my gift. I had never had the masters come alive like that! The explosions the lights, the vibrations of Beethoven's Fifth and Bach's Toccata and Fugue resonated through my body. It was exhilarating.

As we were walking out, I asked her how she liked the Christmas music at the beginning of the show; they had played almost an hour of carols in the hard rock style they use. She said that she did not recognize any of the music, but she said she had fun watching the light show and the look on my face as I listened. She said I was like a kid in a candy store, trying to take it all in, but having some oozing out the sides of my smile.

To my former band teachers and chorus teachers, I say thank you. Thanks for opening up my mind to the music of the ages, for teaching me about the masters and their sounds. Tschkovsky, Brahms, Warner, as well as the other two "Bs" all make the heart race and the imagination run wild, especially when they are updated with the sounds, rhythms, and instruments of today. This makes them truly timeless classics.

Thanks to my lovely wife for a great weekend. From Friday with Joel, to Saturday afternoon with Ellyn, to church with you on Sunday Morning, to Sunday night at TSO...the whole weekend ROCKED!

Doughnut