Happy Grammarians

I entered the marks for my college students today - those brave souls who have been coming out to class for 3 hours every Wednesday morning. And they came. If the final exam results are any indication, they even learned a thing or two about the English language.

This was a rare term in which all my classes - the creative writing class, the grammar class, and the more casual teaching and coaching I do - were a blast. The students were creative and alive, and they were a tonic through a period which is generally typified by the gloom and exhaustion I feel as the sun goes south and the work pace picks up. Without those vibrant students, I would have had a rough go of the past month. The constant round of chiro, and now acupuncture, to deal with the aftermath of the August car accident. And my beautiful dog is showing her age - she has terminal liver/kidney disease. It's winter, and she's lost much of her coat. The vet didn't sound optimistic about her prognosis; all I can do is keep her on a special diet and wait while the disease takes its toll. She seems perfectly happy. I am not. But I refuse to dwell on the dreary. Life on this side of the tracks has enough to be blue about, and I refuse to wallow. Why should I?

Vinok Worldance hosted their traditional Christmas Around the World program in mid-November. This was my seventh year as host, and it's one of the happiest gigs you can imagine. Partly because my other half celebrates a birthday November 16th, and Vinok means I can provide her with a party that includes live band, dancing, 200 guests and...Christmas carols! Back when I was first hired, the powers-that-be wanted the script weeks in advance. Now we're comfy enough that I can show up at a dress rehearsal. The exception is the new musical numbers. This year I massacred Norwegian and Puerto Rican Christmas carols.

There is a law of theatre, and I don't know if it has a name yet, but if it doesn't I'll claim it! The law states that if you are going to go outside your comfort zone and tackle new material - a language, subject matter, a different skill such as juggling - an expert will be in the front row for at least your first three shows. I know - I had the Norwegian fellow right up front!

The year I brought someone up from the audience to teach them a basic German Schuhplattler step, the man turned out to be visiting Canada...from Germany! The year I sang a faux-drunken version of the Bartok Roumanian Christmas Carols...yep, Roumanians in the front. There has to be a way to make this law work for you. If I were to mimic a media tycoon, would the front row suddenly be reserved for Black, Murdoch et al?

The Vinok show is a tough sell. "Folk dance?" Yes! But it's more than that. The dancers are excellent, and that should be enough. But the costumes are stunning - they come from the places where the dances originate. And the 4-person band switches styles and instruments at a whirlwind pace. I counted, and one of those folks played 9 different instruments in the course of the show. Instruments as far apart as the accordion, string bass, hammered dulcimer, violin...

November is the busiest month for me. Early Christmas performances, the crunch of end-of-term at the various institutions where I teach. The month flies by, and I am left exhausted. Christmas then passes in a haze.

So I have neglected the blog. And that must change! But it can't change tonight. I have to write a short story for a performance tomorrow. And I have to look up an acronym for a procedure done in pediatric intensive care - not sure what the acro stands for, and I need to know. And my dog needs walking.