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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 Wednesday and Thursday.
--- --- --- --- --- ---
WEDNESDAY
Up at 7:30. It was cold but sunny out, yay :)
Breakfast and a little Foodie Finds work, then I Ubered to UPS to ship my mutes. You may recall that I used the mute box to send my sister's BATB souvenirs last week, which is why I had to physically visit the store today: I had no packing materials, and the hotel's wifi was down all morning so I couldn't even print the return label (go figure.)
But it's all good. Got that done and did meal planning at the hotel, then walked to Lone Wolf Banh Mi for lunch. I've been here once or twice before, it's one of my absolute favorite Tulsa casual restaurants. They have banh mi of course, but recently they've added rice bowls that look amazing and that's what I went to try today.
This is "The Jam": crab paste fried rice, pickled carrots/daikon, bean sprouts, candied bacon, fried egg, cilantro, peanuts, and kimchi vinaigrette. CLICK HERE to see video of me breaking that gorgeous golden yolk.
It was heavenly. The rice was savory and just a hint of crab flavor, and rich, almost like a risotto. The bacon was the star, it was chewy and hot-sweet, thick cut, absolutely delicious. Of course a fried egg makes everything better! And the pickled veg and the kimchi dressing were acidic and complemented the richness of the bowl so nicely. This was a big portion so I will get to eat leftovers tomorrow, yay!
I did a loop around the block to work off my meal a bit, and a loop around the theater to take a picture of our logo truck.
On the way I found this cute, somewhat scuzzy little snowman sitting on top of a concrete thing.
Back at the hotel I put the leftovers away, took out the trash, chatted with Jameson, and tried to do a run-through of my presentation. The overall timing is under an hour, but the "gigs" section still runs longer than the "portfolio building" section and if possible I'd like them to be more even in length. I'll work on that. After doing the run-through I tried to go back and work on just "portfolio building" but lost steam and focus (public speaking is hard, y'all!). So instead I typed up this post, packed snacks for intermission, and read my book for 30 minutes or so.
The evening show was good, nothing of note except that DAR is leaving us for the next 3ish days to conduct a "Tango Caliente!" concert with the Oklahoma City Philharmonic (how cool is that!) We all wished him safe travels after the show. The assistant MDs, Connor (Key 1) and Josh (Key 2) will take turns conducting, with Michael (Key 3) filling in their respective books (this is also why Michael's job as the "swing" key is so impressive...he knows ALL of the keyboard books and they are NOT easy!!!)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
THURSDAY
The morning routine of coffee, slow-cooked Koia-infused oats, and working on Foodie Finds for about an hour. Philadelphia is thankfully almost done. Before lunch I tried a run-through of my masterclass, and for the first time, I got the timing right! The goal was:
- 5 minute introduction
- 15-20 minutes "Gigs and Expectations"
- 15-20 minutes "Gigfishing Tactics"
- 15 minutes Q&A
I went through my whole spiel not looking at the timer, and when I got to Q&A I had the 15 minutes! The first time that's happened. Yay! I'll keep practicing to make sure it's consistent.
It was still cold and very slushy outside, and I had nothing that I wanted to see or do downtown (and there are no thrift stores), so...I kind of wasted a bit of money on an Uber to the nearest mall. Indoors I could walk as much as I liked, and there's the eternal hunt for good black dress pants, Hazbin Hotel merch, and travel-sized scented candles. None of which I found of course. But I got 3 miles of walking just from doing a circuit of each level and exploring some anchor stores. I did pick up a travel vial of By The Fireplace perfume, which has become my favorite (btw if anyone has any other unisex peppery/spicy and NOT sweet scents to recommend I'm all ears.) But other than that I was not a very good consumer.
Back at the hotel a little rest and snack and reading my book. I'd picked up a small box of conversation hearts at the DGX because I'd seen on TikTok that they'd changed the messages to be more..."Millennial."
And it was true! From left to right/top to bottom: Split Bill, Joint Acc(oun)t, Share Log(i)n, and Buy N Bulk.
Crazy.
A "fancy" dinner of smoked sturgeon, avocado, sourdough, and beets before walking to the theater. It's bitter cold again so even the short 2-block walk feels brutal. Connor (Key 1) was conducting tonight and did a great job.
We have been getting more of the pink streamers from Be Our Guest falling onto the pit net in this city. When that happens we like to gather them into piles, or decorate our stands with them, or just throw them out. This week someone found a little rubber duck in the pit. Dane (flute) has built it a nest.
Oh, and Mariah, my fellow female trombonist and "Phillipa" over at Epic Universe, got to walk through the Beauty and the Beast display at EPCOT's International Festival of the Arts! She sent me a very thorough video of her walkthrough. You can see some of our amazing costumes, and the Beast's makeup station, but so far the best part that everyone's been raving about is the immersive section where it feels like you're actually backstage and watching the show from the side. You can hear our Stage Manager making the lighting cue calls. It's VERY cool!
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Friday: Laundry, sharing Fayetteville Foodie Finds with the group, posting an advert in some trombone forums for my masterclass for upcoming cities. Working on Philly Foodie Finds, masterclass practice, and one evening show.
Saturday and Sunday: Two shows each day, no plans.
This post covers Wednesday and Thursday.
--- --- --- --- --- ---
WEDNESDAY
Up at 7:30. It was cold but sunny out, yay :)
Breakfast and a little Foodie Finds work, then I Ubered to UPS to ship my mutes. You may recall that I used the mute box to send my sister's BATB souvenirs last week, which is why I had to physically visit the store today: I had no packing materials, and the hotel's wifi was down all morning so I couldn't even print the return label (go figure.)
But it's all good. Got that done and did meal planning at the hotel, then walked to Lone Wolf Banh Mi for lunch. I've been here once or twice before, it's one of my absolute favorite Tulsa casual restaurants. They have banh mi of course, but recently they've added rice bowls that look amazing and that's what I went to try today.
This is "The Jam": crab paste fried rice, pickled carrots/daikon, bean sprouts, candied bacon, fried egg, cilantro, peanuts, and kimchi vinaigrette. CLICK HERE to see video of me breaking that gorgeous golden yolk.
It was heavenly. The rice was savory and just a hint of crab flavor, and rich, almost like a risotto. The bacon was the star, it was chewy and hot-sweet, thick cut, absolutely delicious. Of course a fried egg makes everything better! And the pickled veg and the kimchi dressing were acidic and complemented the richness of the bowl so nicely. This was a big portion so I will get to eat leftovers tomorrow, yay!
I did a loop around the block to work off my meal a bit, and a loop around the theater to take a picture of our logo truck.
On the way I found this cute, somewhat scuzzy little snowman sitting on top of a concrete thing.
Back at the hotel I put the leftovers away, took out the trash, chatted with Jameson, and tried to do a run-through of my presentation. The overall timing is under an hour, but the "gigs" section still runs longer than the "portfolio building" section and if possible I'd like them to be more even in length. I'll work on that. After doing the run-through I tried to go back and work on just "portfolio building" but lost steam and focus (public speaking is hard, y'all!). So instead I typed up this post, packed snacks for intermission, and read my book for 30 minutes or so.
The evening show was good, nothing of note except that DAR is leaving us for the next 3ish days to conduct a "Tango Caliente!" concert with the Oklahoma City Philharmonic (how cool is that!) We all wished him safe travels after the show. The assistant MDs, Connor (Key 1) and Josh (Key 2) will take turns conducting, with Michael (Key 3) filling in their respective books (this is also why Michael's job as the "swing" key is so impressive...he knows ALL of the keyboard books and they are NOT easy!!!)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
THURSDAY
The morning routine of coffee, slow-cooked Koia-infused oats, and working on Foodie Finds for about an hour. Philadelphia is thankfully almost done. Before lunch I tried a run-through of my masterclass, and for the first time, I got the timing right! The goal was:
- 5 minute introduction
- 15-20 minutes "Gigs and Expectations"
- 15-20 minutes "Gigfishing Tactics"
- 15 minutes Q&A
I went through my whole spiel not looking at the timer, and when I got to Q&A I had the 15 minutes! The first time that's happened. Yay! I'll keep practicing to make sure it's consistent.
It was still cold and very slushy outside, and I had nothing that I wanted to see or do downtown (and there are no thrift stores), so...I kind of wasted a bit of money on an Uber to the nearest mall. Indoors I could walk as much as I liked, and there's the eternal hunt for good black dress pants, Hazbin Hotel merch, and travel-sized scented candles. None of which I found of course. But I got 3 miles of walking just from doing a circuit of each level and exploring some anchor stores. I did pick up a travel vial of By The Fireplace perfume, which has become my favorite (btw if anyone has any other unisex peppery/spicy and NOT sweet scents to recommend I'm all ears.) But other than that I was not a very good consumer.
Back at the hotel a little rest and snack and reading my book. I'd picked up a small box of conversation hearts at the DGX because I'd seen on TikTok that they'd changed the messages to be more..."Millennial."
And it was true! From left to right/top to bottom: Split Bill, Joint Acc(oun)t, Share Log(i)n, and Buy N Bulk.
Crazy.
A "fancy" dinner of smoked sturgeon, avocado, sourdough, and beets before walking to the theater. It's bitter cold again so even the short 2-block walk feels brutal. Connor (Key 1) was conducting tonight and did a great job.
We have been getting more of the pink streamers from Be Our Guest falling onto the pit net in this city. When that happens we like to gather them into piles, or decorate our stands with them, or just throw them out. This week someone found a little rubber duck in the pit. Dane (flute) has built it a nest.
Oh, and Mariah, my fellow female trombonist and "Phillipa" over at Epic Universe, got to walk through the Beauty and the Beast display at EPCOT's International Festival of the Arts! She sent me a very thorough video of her walkthrough. You can see some of our amazing costumes, and the Beast's makeup station, but so far the best part that everyone's been raving about is the immersive section where it feels like you're actually backstage and watching the show from the side. You can hear our Stage Manager making the lighting cue calls. It's VERY cool!
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Friday: Laundry, sharing Fayetteville Foodie Finds with the group, posting an advert in some trombone forums for my masterclass for upcoming cities. Working on Philly Foodie Finds, masterclass practice, and one evening show.
Saturday and Sunday: Two shows each day, no plans.
