My Birthday Present Arrived on Tuesday ...
... just a tad early, and it was supposed to be a surprise from my wonderful husband. His birthday was Tuesday, and thanks to the wonderful mention of Ashes and Snow on the QuiltArt list, I got him the two books of elephant photos and they actually arrived on time! I also got him flowers. Men deserve flowers too.
But back to my birthday present. This year is one of those *big ones* - f i f t y. Five-O. Anyway, when we expanded the restaurant/gallery, we had the piano moved up from the house. The idea was that we'd have entertainment at least one evening a week. The entertainment thing hasn't gotten off the ground yet, and the piano has been sitting here languishing and desperately out of tune. Steve kept asking me when I was going to have it tuned, and then customers started asking. So apparently he asked around and called the piano tuner with the intention of having it tuned as my birthday gift. Unfortunately I answered his cell phone when the guy called back so the surprise was spoiled.
For those of you who don't really know me beyond my life as a fiber artist, I started playing the piano when I was 5, and eventually headed to college with the intention of pursuing a degree in music education. No, I never wanted to teach, but I wasn't good enough to be a performance major. Steve was a voice major. We met at a party, and he needed an accompanist for upcoming juries. That was over 30 years ago. We'll be celebrating our 30th wedding anniversary in May.
The thing is, I hardly play the piano any more. The last time I played it seriously was when our daughter, as her high school senior project, gave a recital. She has a beautiful voice. I accompanied her on a couple of show tunes as well as one she sang with her dad. That was 4 years ago. Last night I couldn't resist - I was in the restaurant, alone, and didn't have to worry about anyone else hearing wrong notes, bad syncopation, or any of the other *mistakes*. You know I'm a recovering perfectionist, right? After about 45 minutes, I was really getting into it, and now can't wait to get my fingers back on the keyboard! Who knows, maybe I'll even do some practicing!
But back to my birthday present. This year is one of those *big ones* - f i f t y. Five-O. Anyway, when we expanded the restaurant/gallery, we had the piano moved up from the house. The idea was that we'd have entertainment at least one evening a week. The entertainment thing hasn't gotten off the ground yet, and the piano has been sitting here languishing and desperately out of tune. Steve kept asking me when I was going to have it tuned, and then customers started asking. So apparently he asked around and called the piano tuner with the intention of having it tuned as my birthday gift. Unfortunately I answered his cell phone when the guy called back so the surprise was spoiled.
For those of you who don't really know me beyond my life as a fiber artist, I started playing the piano when I was 5, and eventually headed to college with the intention of pursuing a degree in music education. No, I never wanted to teach, but I wasn't good enough to be a performance major. Steve was a voice major. We met at a party, and he needed an accompanist for upcoming juries. That was over 30 years ago. We'll be celebrating our 30th wedding anniversary in May.
The thing is, I hardly play the piano any more. The last time I played it seriously was when our daughter, as her high school senior project, gave a recital. She has a beautiful voice. I accompanied her on a couple of show tunes as well as one she sang with her dad. That was 4 years ago. Last night I couldn't resist - I was in the restaurant, alone, and didn't have to worry about anyone else hearing wrong notes, bad syncopation, or any of the other *mistakes*. You know I'm a recovering perfectionist, right? After about 45 minutes, I was really getting into it, and now can't wait to get my fingers back on the keyboard! Who knows, maybe I'll even do some practicing!
posted by Mary at 9:44 AM
3 Comments:
happy Happy day Mary!!! 5-0- is a great year. enjoy every bit of it.
and do sit down at the keyboard a little each day. don't think of it as practicing, think of it as meditation in the service of fiber art. big grin
Enjoy your music! All creativity leads to more creativity! Be open to it everywhere.
I think for a woman turning 50 is very liberating. You know where you are and shouldn't have to prove anything.
Happy birthday Mary! That is a great present to yourself to start playing piano again. I'm just trying to learn, myself.
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