![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
taz_39**Disclaimer** The views and opinions expressed in this post are my own, and do not reflect the views or opinions of my employer. DO NOT RESHARE ANY PART OF THIS POST WITHOUT PERMISSION. Thank you.
This post covers the weekend.
--- --- --- --- --- ---
SOME RANDOM STUFF
I completely forgot to share that the Chip Kids gave each of us this cute gift at the start of the week! A nice message with a bronze-colored Mickey key. Not sure where I will put mine yet but I will find a good place :)
As mentioned (though I'm sure few of you read it), I've decided to use most of the money from selling my car to buy a second large tenor trombone. Mid-2025 I was able to visit O'Malley Brass Instruments in Chicago and try out their trombones, and liked them A LOT. I've since talked to people who have owned these horns long-term, and everyone I've spoken to has been very satisfied with them. Coincidence/Providence of the surname aside, these are very good handmade instruments. I've sent a check. It takes about 4 months for their 6-person crew to build a trombone from scratch, so we are aiming to have one ready for me to try in March/April, hopefully lining up with my next layoff.
And in addition to the beautiful hand-engraving that comes with each horn, I've requested a little extra something. TBA...
(remember that you can click on the image to enlarge it in a new tab.)
---------------------------------------------------------------------
FRIDAY
I woke up too early but managed to relax enough to fall back asleep, and stay asleep until 8:30 (9:30 ET so that's a record!)
And once I was up I didn't do much either. Fridays on tour are traditionally my "chill day." I'll do laundry or slug around online or maybe run small errands. This is mostly to save energy before the two-show weekends and also to sort of take stock before Monday travel days or Golden Days.
Did not need to do laundry yet so instead I buckled down on Tulsa Foodie Finds, and finished it! Wrote an email to a relative I haven't spoken with in a while, talked at length with my sister about a group of family possibly coming to Philly to see the show. My sister Raven got a promotion at work, I am so proud of her!! It sounds like it'll be a challenge but I very much think she's up for it and so does her boss :) And I ordered two of the face washes/creams that are supposed to be a part of my new skin care routine, since it seems the local pharmacies don't carry 'em.
In the late afternoon I walked to CVS to get the prescription cream, declining the oral medications (cannot convince myself that mild acne is worth taking a diuretic in my line of work, sorry not sorry.) Then dinner and off to the theater.
The show was good, we had an understudy in for LeFou for the first time and he did wonderfully. I always enjoy the first night with understudies in a new role, because the way they convey the character is different from what the leads do and it's fun to see what changes they make. I think it's great to have different people rotating into lead roles, because it brings out more facets and possibilities for the personalities of these fictional characters :)
We have been informed that there will be a protest very near the theater tomorrow (you know what the protest is for.)
It's from noon to 2pm and our show is at 2. The hotel is 1/2 mile away and I typically walk, so I expect to be able to see some of the action. Hopefully safely. And I hope that our audience is able to get inside safely and without harassment as well.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SATURDAY
Houston is SO wildly different from Austin. The weekends in Austin were RAUCOUS, earplugs were a must. Lots of people out having fun and blowing off steam after their work week. Friday night in Houston is dead silent. Only an occasional car swishing by. People don't even like to drive through Houston after hours, it seems.
Breakfast and I packed dinner and some snacks because there were supposed to be protests this afternoon plus a 30-degree temperature drop and it might be nicer to stay at the theater between shows. Did not accomplish much in the morning...mentally I was a bit "down" I suppose, what with the current national, umm, "vibe." But after lunch I walked to the theater. It is indeed much colder, and windy, and I didn't see any signs of a protest except for a few people here and there with signs, looking miserable. Suspect that the weather was disheartening + as mentioned several times now people don't really seem to LIVE in downtown Houston.
The matinee went well though I still haven't hit my stride. How can I explain this? It's the same thing as an athlete getting into a "slump." They are doing all of their normal things but somehow it ain't working. A lot of times it's psychological (at least that's been my experience.) Very annoying! But I must be patient and keep doing my best, and trust that it will resolve.
Between shows I did walk back for no reason other than I felt restless. Dinner and essentially turning right back around to walk back, but that's ok, cardio is good for you?
The evening show was better, I made a few small adjustments to my Aviom mix and that was helpful. After the show quite a lot of kids and their parents came to the pit edge to ask us questions! Well, mostly to as DAR questions because he's right there haha. DAR is another person who loves it when people take an interest in what we do, especially little kids! Nobody was asking me questions, but I stuck around just to listen and enjoy watching DAR interact with the audience for a bit :)
---------------------------------------------------------------------
SUNDAY
I was up early so I could eat breakfast, pack dinner, and do laundry before noon.
Sam (an Orlando trumpeter and local AFM president) had posted some pictures from the final night of Candlelight, among which was this one of the trombone section. I like how he caught us with our slides splayed like that! Neato.
Let's see. The matinee was good from what I remember. Between shows I stayed at the theater and read my book and ate a chocolate chip cookie that someone's mom had baked for the cast (so good!). For the first time on this tour I'd decided to take advantage of our Physical Therapist's services, and went to visit her a little before 5pm just for a basic shoulder massage. Her time slots are 20 minutes so it wasn't anything crazy, but I do get very tense in the shoulders from playing the trombone. The massage was much needed and felt SO NICE.
The evening show was fine also and the massage helped me to play better (it's amazing how hard it can be to get a good breath when you're tense!)
Afterward we all went to Flying Saucer down the street for drinks to celebrate our keyboard sub Leslie, who had his debut on KeyComp tonight and did an excellent job. I grumbled about going because I was tired and not in the mood, but allowed myself to be peer pressured and was glad to have gone. It was pretty quiet on a Sunday night so it was just the band and some Stage Management. I rarely get to hang out with Stage Management and it was nice to hear Malashia (SM whom I was sitting closest to) talk about her past shows and adventures :)
When I was ready to go DAR offered to walk back with me and we chatted along the way.
Truly, it's great to be with this amazing and talented group of people, and while it was good to be home for the holidays, I am so grateful to be back on tour!
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Monday: Golden Day! My "treat yo'self" is gonna be watching Zootopia 2 at a fancy movie theater that serves lunch/cocktails, and grocery shopping at Central Market (how have we been in Texas for a month and I still haven't gone to Central Market?!)
Tuesday: Only one show at night. Will probably do one Foodie Find but no other plans as yet.
This post covers the weekend.
--- --- --- --- --- ---
SOME RANDOM STUFF
I completely forgot to share that the Chip Kids gave each of us this cute gift at the start of the week! A nice message with a bronze-colored Mickey key. Not sure where I will put mine yet but I will find a good place :)
As mentioned (though I'm sure few of you read it), I've decided to use most of the money from selling my car to buy a second large tenor trombone. Mid-2025 I was able to visit O'Malley Brass Instruments in Chicago and try out their trombones, and liked them A LOT. I've since talked to people who have owned these horns long-term, and everyone I've spoken to has been very satisfied with them. Coincidence/Providence of the surname aside, these are very good handmade instruments. I've sent a check. It takes about 4 months for their 6-person crew to build a trombone from scratch, so we are aiming to have one ready for me to try in March/April, hopefully lining up with my next layoff.
And in addition to the beautiful hand-engraving that comes with each horn, I've requested a little extra something. TBA...
(remember that you can click on the image to enlarge it in a new tab.)
---------------------------------------------------------------------
FRIDAY
I woke up too early but managed to relax enough to fall back asleep, and stay asleep until 8:30 (9:30 ET so that's a record!)
And once I was up I didn't do much either. Fridays on tour are traditionally my "chill day." I'll do laundry or slug around online or maybe run small errands. This is mostly to save energy before the two-show weekends and also to sort of take stock before Monday travel days or Golden Days.
Did not need to do laundry yet so instead I buckled down on Tulsa Foodie Finds, and finished it! Wrote an email to a relative I haven't spoken with in a while, talked at length with my sister about a group of family possibly coming to Philly to see the show. My sister Raven got a promotion at work, I am so proud of her!! It sounds like it'll be a challenge but I very much think she's up for it and so does her boss :) And I ordered two of the face washes/creams that are supposed to be a part of my new skin care routine, since it seems the local pharmacies don't carry 'em.
In the late afternoon I walked to CVS to get the prescription cream, declining the oral medications (cannot convince myself that mild acne is worth taking a diuretic in my line of work, sorry not sorry.) Then dinner and off to the theater.
The show was good, we had an understudy in for LeFou for the first time and he did wonderfully. I always enjoy the first night with understudies in a new role, because the way they convey the character is different from what the leads do and it's fun to see what changes they make. I think it's great to have different people rotating into lead roles, because it brings out more facets and possibilities for the personalities of these fictional characters :)
We have been informed that there will be a protest very near the theater tomorrow (you know what the protest is for.)
It's from noon to 2pm and our show is at 2. The hotel is 1/2 mile away and I typically walk, so I expect to be able to see some of the action. Hopefully safely. And I hope that our audience is able to get inside safely and without harassment as well.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SATURDAY
Houston is SO wildly different from Austin. The weekends in Austin were RAUCOUS, earplugs were a must. Lots of people out having fun and blowing off steam after their work week. Friday night in Houston is dead silent. Only an occasional car swishing by. People don't even like to drive through Houston after hours, it seems.
Breakfast and I packed dinner and some snacks because there were supposed to be protests this afternoon plus a 30-degree temperature drop and it might be nicer to stay at the theater between shows. Did not accomplish much in the morning...mentally I was a bit "down" I suppose, what with the current national, umm, "vibe." But after lunch I walked to the theater. It is indeed much colder, and windy, and I didn't see any signs of a protest except for a few people here and there with signs, looking miserable. Suspect that the weather was disheartening + as mentioned several times now people don't really seem to LIVE in downtown Houston.
The matinee went well though I still haven't hit my stride. How can I explain this? It's the same thing as an athlete getting into a "slump." They are doing all of their normal things but somehow it ain't working. A lot of times it's psychological (at least that's been my experience.) Very annoying! But I must be patient and keep doing my best, and trust that it will resolve.
Between shows I did walk back for no reason other than I felt restless. Dinner and essentially turning right back around to walk back, but that's ok, cardio is good for you?
The evening show was better, I made a few small adjustments to my Aviom mix and that was helpful. After the show quite a lot of kids and their parents came to the pit edge to ask us questions! Well, mostly to as DAR questions because he's right there haha. DAR is another person who loves it when people take an interest in what we do, especially little kids! Nobody was asking me questions, but I stuck around just to listen and enjoy watching DAR interact with the audience for a bit :)
---------------------------------------------------------------------
SUNDAY
I was up early so I could eat breakfast, pack dinner, and do laundry before noon.
Sam (an Orlando trumpeter and local AFM president) had posted some pictures from the final night of Candlelight, among which was this one of the trombone section. I like how he caught us with our slides splayed like that! Neato.
Let's see. The matinee was good from what I remember. Between shows I stayed at the theater and read my book and ate a chocolate chip cookie that someone's mom had baked for the cast (so good!). For the first time on this tour I'd decided to take advantage of our Physical Therapist's services, and went to visit her a little before 5pm just for a basic shoulder massage. Her time slots are 20 minutes so it wasn't anything crazy, but I do get very tense in the shoulders from playing the trombone. The massage was much needed and felt SO NICE.
The evening show was fine also and the massage helped me to play better (it's amazing how hard it can be to get a good breath when you're tense!)
Afterward we all went to Flying Saucer down the street for drinks to celebrate our keyboard sub Leslie, who had his debut on KeyComp tonight and did an excellent job. I grumbled about going because I was tired and not in the mood, but allowed myself to be peer pressured and was glad to have gone. It was pretty quiet on a Sunday night so it was just the band and some Stage Management. I rarely get to hang out with Stage Management and it was nice to hear Malashia (SM whom I was sitting closest to) talk about her past shows and adventures :)
When I was ready to go DAR offered to walk back with me and we chatted along the way.
Truly, it's great to be with this amazing and talented group of people, and while it was good to be home for the holidays, I am so grateful to be back on tour!
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Monday: Golden Day! My "treat yo'self" is gonna be watching Zootopia 2 at a fancy movie theater that serves lunch/cocktails, and grocery shopping at Central Market (how have we been in Texas for a month and I still haven't gone to Central Market?!)
Tuesday: Only one show at night. Will probably do one Foodie Find but no other plans as yet.
no subject
Date: 2026-01-12 05:05 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2026-01-13 12:37 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2026-01-12 11:42 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2026-01-13 12:36 am (UTC)