We're home safe.

I stayed up until 10:30 last night, but my stupid body still got me up at 5:30. It may be 1:30 in St. Petersburgh, but I think I'm going to be royally jet lagged for a few days.

St. Petersburg is something else entirely. Perhaps it's the different alphabet, or the fact that the architecture is spectacular and crumbling simultaneously, or the subconscious awareness that the country doesn't have a functioning rule of law, but the city is amazing and scary and wonderful all at once ( Read more... )

Today's the last day of the conference - Leigh gives her presentation this afternoon. Last night I went to a concert of Finnish military jazz bands ( Read more... )

Another quick update, as I'm at a public terminal. Finnish keyboards don't shift keys around, but they move the "enter" to the right to make room for ä,ö, and å keys ( Read more... )

Hey folks, just a quick update to keep my chronology in order later. This is the end of our second day in Stockholm, and it's just a wonderful city. We're staying on a boat that used to be Barbara Hutton's yacht, and is now a semi-snooty hotel ( Read more... )

I've just had an article accepted for publication in The Instrumentalist, which is a big deal in the "professional bando" set! They want pictures and a biography and everything. The article is titled "Rehearsal Etiquette for the Conductor," and is about treating your band with respect during rehearsals ( Read more... )

Say, Cleveland persons... I'm thinking about driving down this weekend to play with the Italian Band on Sunday. Anyone want to get together for dinner and or bridge on Saturday? It doesn't HAVE to be bridge, but I'm jonesin' for a fix.

...and that's BACON!

This evening, I went to a bacon tasting. I can die happy.

And based on the amount of sodium I just ingested, I probably will.

Last night I played a really dreadful gig. The Lansing Concert Band Big Band played our annual tent gig for the Lions' Club in Williamston. Usually, a fun evening. Last night, just the other side of the fence?

A Tractor Pull. No, really. From before we got there until after we left, enormous very loud tractors. Try playing "Moonlight ( Read more... )

Having never even HEARD of an Erdös number before today's xkcd, I am pleased to report that I have an Erdös number of no more than 7.

Update: If you count this video and community theater productions, (A HUGE stretch, I am aware) then I have a Bacon number of 2. This would mean that I have an Erdös-Bacon Number of 9.