The Harmony Project

You know those moments when you realize that what you are doing right then is something you will remember for the rest of your life? How about a moment when you type something that is true about your life, and it strikes you as completely surreal?

In two weeks and two days, I will stand on a stage, in a theater, with 99 other people who were mostly strangers a few weeks ago, and sing 10 songs that people have paid to hear us sing. And no, I'm not kidding!

http://www.harmonyproject.com

The link above is the website for The Harmony Project. When I first heard about this project and was invited to audition, I was waffling and equivocating. Our schedule is so crazy, I'm usually looking for ways to pare it down, not add more to it. Ten weeks of rehearsals, singing in front of a paying audience--I just didn't think I could do either of those. I was wrong. And I'm glad.

To see what I've been doing for the past eight Mondays, play the video on the website. As the video explains, the concert is not the whole story. The Harmony Project is more than just strangers coming together to sing on a stage. It is a fundraiser that benefits three children's charities--Marine Corps Toys For Tots, Columbus Firefighters4Kids, and After School All-Stars. Not a single dollar, dime, or penny raised goes into the pocket of the participants, including the director and organizer. It is 100% volunteer-based. Corporate sponsors have already pledged large donations to help us meet our goal. Area businesses are partnering with our toy drive.

I have truly "changed my tune" (see tag line on website) in many ways because of this project. I have gone from shaking my head in consternation at wrong notes coming out of my mouth to singing boldly and loudly, and not being afraid to hear my own voice. I have made friends out of strangers, a skill at which I normally do not excel (believe it or not, I'm shy). People whom I wouldn't have met otherwise are now my "alto buddies." Best of all, I have done something purely for myself, because I want to do it, and I have recharged my soul. Oh, and all of this is benefitting needy children!

I am honored and blessed to be a part of this. Thank you, David Brown, for organizing and directing this. Thank you Costa and Erica for being the infrastructure so the rest of us can participate. And thank you to everyone who stands together and sings.

Sometimes, it's just hard to be me.

Do you ever drive yourself crazy? I'm talking on the verge of having an argument out loud with yourself. Certain aspects of my nature--that work quite well in some areas of my life--cause significant problems in other areas.

For instance, I am incredibly picky. Stupidly, outrageously picky. (And yet, I can be so laid back in many ways...how does this happen?) The pickiness works well when it comes to grocery shopping--my kids know they can't have many foods that contain hydrogenated oils or high fructose corn syrup* and they know these things are not good for their bodies. Not only does this raise their level of nutrition, but it also cuts down on the arguments we might otherwise have. When the kids ask if we can buy a certain cereal/treat/whatever, I get to say, "Well, let me read the ingredients...uh oh...hydrogenated oil...sorry, sweetie," and they don't put up a big fight.

But sometimes, I can get in such a picky mood that nothing works for me. I'm talking about normal, everyday life stuff.

We had to buy a new refrigerator recently. Normally, I spend a good couple weeks to couple months researching, analyzing, and just plain deciding what I want for a major purchase like this. Without a working fridge, I had to ramp up the process. What struck me as I looked at all the options (freezer on top? freezer on bottom? water through the door?) was that in general, I just didn't like any of the fridges. I don't like the weird texture of the outside. I don't like the freezer on top, because then all the produce is out of sight down by the floor. I don't like side-by-sides, because the freezer is a nightmare to organize (this is what we had) and there's no room for anything really big in the fridge. Bottom freezers solved both of these problems, but then all your frozen stuff is lumped into a big pile. Whatever.

The best thing to come out of this process is that I realized, once again, that I just don't like the way many things are designed; so I finally figured out that I have to choose the option that will bug me the least. It's still going to bug me, all right, but not as much as the other choices. I've let go of trying to find something that I truly like, and made peace with the fact that this is just the way I am. There are many, many times that I would change myself if I could. Most of the time I can't, and I just have to deal with it. At least now we have milk and yogurt again.


*Have you seen the ads now PROMOTING high fructose corn syrup??? Read this article for a great rebuttal:
http://mygreenside.wordpress.com/2008/09/14/high-fructose-corn-syrup-yes-it-is-that-bad/

I could just burst with pride.

First of all, I have to say that our school system's art program ROCKS! I am blown away by the projects our kids do in art, and the art history they learn. I'm pretty sure I didn't learn about Piet Mondrian in kindergarten! I remember something about "this is red, and this is a red circle," or something along those lines. But this post isn't about me. It's about my groovy daughter.

Every fall, our school system has an All-District Art Show. Art projects from the previous school year are selected to be displayed in the high school; each art teacher selects the best works from his or her students to showcase. (Warning: bragging, dead ahead.) So far, Helen has participated in the show every year! After the show, a committee selects two works from each school to be added to the district's permanent collection. You can see where this is headed--Helen's 2nd-grade artwork is now part of the permanent collection!

In case you're wondering, the picture is a Storybook Self-Portrait. It's fitting that this piece was selected, as two of Helen's major loves are reading and art. Oh, and I just realized that her third love is represented--Maisy is dancing! A mom could cry over something like this.

Blog? What blog?

So I dropped off the blog for several months. What can I say? Basically, I have issues. Even though personal blogs are supposed to be informal, it's impossible nearly impossible for me to write without agonizing. Obsessing. Over-analyzing (as in, should over-analyzing be hyphenated? I think it should--but maybe I'm wrong. Better stop to look it up.) And that's what happens only after I've spent much time deciding what is blog-worthy, and how I can write it in the most entertaining way. Oy vey, how did I get this way?

So here's the deal: I am making a monumental effort to NOT obsess about blog entries. Some entries may end up poorly organized, poorly expressed, and not all that interesting to boot. How can you resist an offer like that? But I will try to make this blog what it should be: a way to keep up with friends. I love reading my friends' blogs, and while I'll never stop comparing the entertainment value of their writing to mine (theirs always wins), I'll choose to look at my blog as an exercise in just writing without agonizing. I agonize about many things, but writing most of all. Maybe if I can learn to keep agonizing in its place...I can't think of what should go here. But I'll let it go. See?

It's officially the Christmas season!

Thanks to the good weather we had yesterday, hubby got the lights on the house! Unfortunately the icicle lights weren't all working, so we didn't have enough to stretch across the entire front. BUT we have some multicolor C9s that we've never used, and they were long enough. So for the first time, our house has multicolor lights. I was looking at the house across the street, with its three windows upstairs and two downstairs, with a wreath on each one. I love that. They also have the icicle lights, lights on the shrubs, and a Christmas tree made of lights. I want my house to look like that! Would it be wrong to select our next house based on how I can decorate it at Christmas?

With the lights on the house, the tree up (lights and ornaments today--woo hoo!), and Christmas music playing throughout the house, we're now full-on Christmas! I wish it wasn't too early to start baking. But since I've almost finished shopping for the kids, I can start wrapping soon! Maybe hubby and I can enjoy some time together on Christmas Eve this year that doesn't involve wrapping presents until 1:30 a.m.

So maybe I am a Christmas nut. I admit it. Don't care who knows. My daughter and I have already watched It's a Wonderful Life, and we're making plans to watch Miracle on 34th Street. I missed How the Grinch Stole Christmas on TBS the other day, and I was so bummed! (Even though I own it.) I love sitting down with the kids and watching the same shows I watched at their age.

It's the most wonderful time of the year...

Total implosion = good management?

This is what GM CEO Rick Wagoner said regarding the bailout the big three automakers want:

"I'll always do what's right for the company," Wagoner said, regarding the possibility of him stepping down. "But even more critical during a difficult time period is having the best possible management team. We have a good team at GM. That's not what I would recommend."

Of course not. Why would you recommend replacing the management team that has brought you to the brink of implosion? Is it just me, or should an industry asking for a multi-billion dollar assistance package oh, I don't know, apologize for screwing up so badly that only the government can save them? (Which is not true--the automakers could file bankruptcy, they just don't want to, apparently.) I think the last thing I'd be saying if I was asking someone to save my butt would be that I was doing a great job--it's just that I'm about to go under. Right.

Not even a teensy little inch

I've always found it frustrating that even though I am a complete play-by-the-rules, do-it-by-the-book, respect-the-law (okay, you get the idea) person, I can never get away with anything. I mean nothing. Some people I know openly flout rules of any kind. They never seem to get caught. I obsess over following the rules. I can't even think about skating close to the edge of approaching a little bend in the rules, or I get completely busted.

Yesterday morning, I pulled into the drop off zone at school to let the kids out. Being me, I'm familiar with all the rules and protocol of this procedure. The road is three cars wide, with parking on the other side. To drop off, I pull into the marked zone, right up against the curb. I happen to be the first car in line. A couple cars pull in behind me. The kids get out, I wave, and watch them start to walk in. As I prepare to inch forward very slowly (the crosswalk is just ahead) I let my foot off the brake as I look in the side mirror. I see a car coming (a little too fast) so I brake again. I have moved, I swear, three inches. Against the curb. Not steering out into the road at all. At 0.5 miles per hour. In the drop off zone where cars are constantly moving forward. There is a cop sitting in his car on the other side of the street. He gives me the grandmother of all dirty looks. I roll my window down, because I see he's upset about something. He looks at me and says, "Yeah, ma'am, if you put your turn signal on, then people will know you're about to pull out." Then he shakes his head and rolls his eyes. Like I'm a total idiot and menace on the road. I look ahead of me, to the car that passed me--did I mention it was going maybe a little too fast for a school zone? Right past the cop? It's now pulled over ahead of the crosswalk in a NO PARKING zone, marked with signs and brightly painted yellow curbs. Blocking traffic from moving either direction. I'm wondering if the driver used a turn signal to indicate she was pulling over to the illegal spot.