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Back With a Tan
Jan. 8th, 2009 | 10:00 pm
mood: 
sleepy
Hey, all. I've had a busy last month, but before I go any further, I would like to give a shout out to Elvis who is celebrating his 74th birthday today. If you're out there reading this, stay retired. Paula Abdul is a judge on lame television competition. Queen Latifah puts out bad movies. Madonna writes bad children's books. Kanye West is doing cringe-worthy vocals. Imagine what the world will do with you. You are still alive, aren't you?
I returned to a restful stay in Minneapolis this past Monday. Where was I at you ask? I was in Florida. Beautiful, beautiful Florida. On a whim, we headed to Orlando to spend 4 days soaking up the sun, enjoying Disney, and take in an awesome football game at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa Bay. The Outback Bowl was spectacular. I don't think South Carolina even scored until our 3rd string defense was in. My beloved Iowa Hawkeyes spanked them 31-10. Yup, those poor Gamecocks didn't stand a chance. What I love is that the SC fans chanted, "Go Cocks!" Funny, that's the first time I ever witnessed a cock blow itself. As it stands, Iowa was the only Big Ten team to win a game.
My voice didn't last long this game. I used up some of my endurance booing their marching band. Yes, you heard me right. The SC marching band was horrible. They sounded bad and looked even worse. I was embarrassed on their behalf. Fortunately, the HMB looked very sharp outside of some errant saxophones during the halftime show. Why is it always the saxophones that mess things up?
Disney was an awesome time. My favorite ride is probably Mission Space. It simulates a trip to Mars. It was most excellent. My thought is that any ride that includes barf bags and has killed multiple people must be terrific. My brother really enjoyed it. It was his first real vacation. He was particularly fond of the Fantasmic laser show in Disney Hollywood Studios. Naturally, I could type up quite a bit about my days at Disney, but that would be about equivalent to sharing ugly baby pictures. I'll spare you, but I may drop bits and pieces over the next week.
With that trip, I am now somewhat on the poor side. Alas, I am still working for the Minnesota Orchestra. Our sales are up, but they're making cuts. This means that there is now less money going around. I think that part of the motivation is that the musicians all got a huge raise. The reasoning behind the raise was to make their salaries consistent with other major orchestras. It sounds simple enough except that with the lower cost of living in Minnesota, one could argue that they're actually coming out well ahead of other musicians elsewhere. I remember one day, some musicians were conveying how much they loved New York but would never move because, even with their lower income, they would not have near the quality of life in New York due to the cost of living. Now that they make as much as they do, they're living a whole lot better yet. Unfortunately, that means that others have to give up something for them to have this. You can probably read my mind.
Well, it's getting late, so I suppose I'll go. Besides, there is 3:01 on the clock in the 4th quarter in the Orange Bowl, and I really want to pay closer attention. Later.
I returned to a restful stay in Minneapolis this past Monday. Where was I at you ask? I was in Florida. Beautiful, beautiful Florida. On a whim, we headed to Orlando to spend 4 days soaking up the sun, enjoying Disney, and take in an awesome football game at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa Bay. The Outback Bowl was spectacular. I don't think South Carolina even scored until our 3rd string defense was in. My beloved Iowa Hawkeyes spanked them 31-10. Yup, those poor Gamecocks didn't stand a chance. What I love is that the SC fans chanted, "Go Cocks!" Funny, that's the first time I ever witnessed a cock blow itself. As it stands, Iowa was the only Big Ten team to win a game.
My voice didn't last long this game. I used up some of my endurance booing their marching band. Yes, you heard me right. The SC marching band was horrible. They sounded bad and looked even worse. I was embarrassed on their behalf. Fortunately, the HMB looked very sharp outside of some errant saxophones during the halftime show. Why is it always the saxophones that mess things up?
Disney was an awesome time. My favorite ride is probably Mission Space. It simulates a trip to Mars. It was most excellent. My thought is that any ride that includes barf bags and has killed multiple people must be terrific. My brother really enjoyed it. It was his first real vacation. He was particularly fond of the Fantasmic laser show in Disney Hollywood Studios. Naturally, I could type up quite a bit about my days at Disney, but that would be about equivalent to sharing ugly baby pictures. I'll spare you, but I may drop bits and pieces over the next week.
With that trip, I am now somewhat on the poor side. Alas, I am still working for the Minnesota Orchestra. Our sales are up, but they're making cuts. This means that there is now less money going around. I think that part of the motivation is that the musicians all got a huge raise. The reasoning behind the raise was to make their salaries consistent with other major orchestras. It sounds simple enough except that with the lower cost of living in Minnesota, one could argue that they're actually coming out well ahead of other musicians elsewhere. I remember one day, some musicians were conveying how much they loved New York but would never move because, even with their lower income, they would not have near the quality of life in New York due to the cost of living. Now that they make as much as they do, they're living a whole lot better yet. Unfortunately, that means that others have to give up something for them to have this. You can probably read my mind.
Well, it's getting late, so I suppose I'll go. Besides, there is 3:01 on the clock in the 4th quarter in the Orange Bowl, and I really want to pay closer attention. Later.