My "Yogier Than Thou" Friday

Right now, I'm happily chomping down on some frosted mini wheats out of a ziploc bag, sipping orange blossom tea, and, before starting this post, reading up on the news of the day. I sincerely hope that Wate/Killiam enjoy a long, felicitous marriage and use their presence on the global stage to shed light on the plights of the world like Princess Di did, God rest her.

Much closer to home... I'm sending all of my positive thoughts and prayers to one of my best friends, Sarah!!! It's a big day, and I have no doubt she'll perform beautifully in every possible way :) :) :) :) :)

I'm mostly just waiting for Trader Joe's to open so I can buy a banana to complete my breakfast. This morning, I got out of bed at 5:15 and hauled ass to La Jolla for some heated yoga at 6:00. It was sweaty, soreness-inducing, and all around exhausting. But those last few minutes of meditation... the first breath of fresh air outside the sauna-studio... the caress of cold water in the shower... It was like being brought back to life after sizzling in hell for an hour. In a good way. I don't know how I'll feel later on in the day (OMG THERE'S AN AUSSIE SHEPHERD PUPPY PRANCING AROUND TOWARDS ME!!!) but this morning is feeling pretttyy darned nice.

I'll be teaching my first lesson with Audrey this afternoon. Nervous. Excited. Mostly excited :) I think we'll start with phonation, vowels, a little bit of theory and Italian diction, and, if there's time, some breathing. I think that breathing is something she can do on her own. No need for me to be there unless there's something fundamentally wrong with what she's doing. It's more of a assign exercises & practice individually kind of maneuver. Honestly... it's not that different from how we breathe naturally. Unless trying to suck your gut in is part of how you normally breathe lol.

Anyway... BIG DAY. Stephanie's last DMA recital. Classes. Rehearsal. I've got lots to do!

My Crazy Coincidence

I shouldn't have said that Jeff and I have nothing in common over relationships. We also came to this little epiphany yesterday:

Jeff has dated 3 Michelles.

I have dated 3 (3.5?) Michaels.

INSANITYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY.

My Bestie Bum Sessions

So a new feature of this quarter has been the addition of lots of hanging out. Specifically with Jeff. Today we had lunch, as usual, and ended up talking over coffee. He had some really exciting news to share, and even though I'm not a party involved in the situation, I'm superexcited and happy for him :)

It got me thinking though. If there's one thing we have absolutely nothing in common over, it's relationships. I suck at them because I can't seem to stay emotionally invested in people with whom I am romantically involved (odd, right?) I guess another excuse could be that I just haven't found the right person (although that's not entirely true), but the fact of the matter is that I almost always manage to lose interest in those who make up the ever-growing list of people who have called themselves my significant other. And Jeff? Well... he's in a pretty solid place. A SUPER solid place. I can't even fathom the idea of him being with anyone but Ellie.

Even though I'm ecstatic on their behalves, it's such a strange concept to me. The only way I plan on changing my name within the next decade is to tack on "M.M., D.M.A." to the end of it. I didn't always think of myself that way though. Four years ago, I thought Ray and I would be married at the end of college... so... that would have been this year. I think my view has shifted because of my career choice... and because, even if we had followed through with the engagement, Tim Burton movies excepting, people generally don't marry the dead.

So many of the people I have great respect for are incredibly late bloomers in this department. Phil went through all of his undergrad and grad school biznass, lived with a gf in Austria for a while, moved back to the states and hung out in Berkeley, and did all sorts of crazy touring with his performance duo before finally settling down in San Diego with a wifey. And Janos? He didn't settle down until the nineties! When he was fifty-something.

I used to call myself a skeptic. Broke things off with guys left and right, never stuck around for more than a month or two, even before I knew I wanted to sing and pursue this cosmopolitan style of life. But you know what? I no longer think of myself as a skeptic. It makes me happy to see my friends in happy, meaningful, fulfilling relationships. With that said...

A VERY HAPPY FOUR YEARS TO MY FAVE PAIR OF GORGEOUS PEOPLE!!!!

My Tranquil Tuesday

Got up, had breakfast, gave those new supplements a test run (success!), attended class, aced a midterm, had lunch with Jeff & co., practiced, ran errands, and went to more class.

So yesterday I "decided" that I would order some fries or something from Wendy's. We got there. I stood in line... and ended up not ordering anything. Today I "decided" I'd ditch economics to go home and watch basketball. Once again, totally didn't happen. Lol. I did, however, get really pissed at Jeff for texting me about the game while I was trying to appear alert during a lecture on investment supply and demand.

This mingling biznass is the shitt. I'm pretty sure my day-tp-day interactions with my school friends would make a really awesome TV show. We're a special bunch--conversation is lightning quick, we rip on each other nonstop, and we make fun of any/everything... nothing is sacred. In other news, I'm not sure why this surprises me, but I love Jeff's friends outside of our tiny little two-person social circle. Especially Chris; that guy is fuckin hilarious.

SPRING QUARTER WILL BE THE END OF ME. I don't follow through on poorly made decisions, but I don't feel particularly motivated to study with all my music, friends, and fun times. Oh well! Love love love love loooooooooooove. Too much fun? Nahhhhhhh.

OH YEA! NEW GOAL: GRADUATE SUMMA CUM LAUDE. WHOOOOO!!!!!!!!!

My Manic Monday

(I feel like I've used this title before...)

but OMG. I had a latte for lunch today with Janos and Paivikki and I've been super on edge ever since. I also received this fatass score for this 20th century piece I'm supposed to stage with Janos next year. But then I've run into problems because it's superadvanced and the voice department might not like that I'll be attempting it. And then there's the fact that I have to hunt for repertoire for this audition in June (application due at the end of this week). And almost none of that rep is going to double up with what I have to learn for my recital in just TWO AND A HALF WEEKS. I'm not off book for some that yet, which is starting to stress me out. And my honors application is due on Friday, and I have yet to finish compiling my repertoire for THAT audition. O. M. G.

And midterms this week.

I really hope it's just the excess of caffeine freaking me out, but I've been really panicky for a couple of hours now, and that is definitely NOT normal. I mean... I usually manage to stay calm and collected no matter what. BUT NOT RIGHT NOW FOR SOME REASON.

My Influx

I officially start teaching a week from Friday. I have a midterm at 5. My recital program has to be on lock by Sunday. Dress shopping on Saturday. Audition in late May.

And in the middle of it all, NBA PLAYOFFS!!!

On a different note, I'm seriously feenin for a latte right about now.

My Minor Update

1. GOING TO VEGAS IN 3.5 WEEKS WITH MY FAVORITE CREWWWW!

2. Singing well is hard.

3. I have a really bad case of jungle fever.

4. Photo shoot tomorrow.

5. Sudden influx of many MANY obligations in my life.

6. Skyping with my grandma is always weird because we don't have any languages in common anymore :'(

7. I'm moderately stressed about the Lakers-Hornets series. Sad, I know.

My Superfantastic Sunday!

Woke up. Cleaned half-heartedly for a little while. Then I got around to having some breakfast, plopping down on the couch with econ homework, and watching today's 10 am matchup of the NBA playoffs. Practiced some... and then the awesome begins.

1. Drive to Jeff's during Lakers-Hornets halftime.
2. Watch the Hornets take down the Lakers at Staples!!!
3. Watch the last hour of Rush Hour 3 before Knicks @ Celtics.
4. Play Modern Warfare 2 SpecOps on Veteran mode during halftime.
5. Eat home-cooked Chinese dinner, courtesy of Jeff's cousin Evan!
6. Watch first quarter of Nuggets @ Thunder.
7. Drive downtown.
8. See the China Philharmonic at Copley Symphony Hall.
9. Check scores during intermission.
10. Go home :) :) :)

I have watched almost every single game of playoffs so far. Holy mamas. I LOVE BASKETBALLLLL. WHOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!

My FIREWORKS

I'm a long ways from where I want to be, but holy shit this week has been amazing.

I've consistently warmed up to my highest note for an entire week. I'm attempting my biggest aria yet, and it's going wonderfully well. And I have a really hard time getting myself to stop singing, because it's never been more fun :)

When did it become so easy? Fall quarter, I kicked my repertoire up by a half octave with relative ease, but notes above the staff were still not as focused as I would've liked them to be. Winter quarter, it all got pretty easy up to high C. Right around there, my voice really started to lose its ring. And now... my rep hangs out an octave higher than it did last year. I'm singing arias with high Es and Fs with hardly any trouble at all.

I have no idea how it happened, but I am sosuperexcited to keep working at it.

Best of all, Phil is really proud of me!

TOMORROW IS GOING TO BE SO FULL OF MUSIC/AWESOME!!!

My Recital!

It's all beginning to come together. We have a photo shoot scheduled for next week with Dobey. I've bought (another) dress. Repertoire is getting memorized.

There isn't a ton of time left... especially considering I'm still making revisions to the program and replacing my moderately difficult pieces with big showpieces that really show off the power and agility I've developed in the past few weeks. It's all new stuff.

SO MUCH TO DO.

I'm super excited about practice today. It's going to be amazing. I'm totally going to lock in my Rossini.

My Give and Take

I think a huge part of what I do is acceptance: of uncontrollable circumstances (humidity/lack thereof), of physical limitations (bodily fatigue), and of structural happenstances (limited availability of roles).

It can be moderately disheartening to work particularly hard without feeling as if any progress has been made, even though I know it's entirely irrational to expect tangible differences in technique with each and every practice. Some days are just meant to be spent honing and building strength to prepare for a big breakthrough to come. I just wish those days could feel a little more satisfying.

The good: It looks like I'll be taking on a student. Possibly very soon!

The bad: The San Diego Opera Chorus is taking on a minimal number of females for next season :(

The meh: I sound the same as I did yesterday.

For the next few days, I will be laying aside the Donington text I've been reading (the smaller book on opera history) and diving purely into readings on pedagogy. If I'm going to be tackling my very first beginner, I'd better do it right. It's one thing to instill some technique on college-aged music-hobbyists. It's something else to build a good foundation for a budding youngster. This terrifies me more than any stage commitment ever has. I want to do right by this kiddo and impart as much as I can possibly offer her.

Of course this entails me not coming off as the child-phobic jerkface that I am. Cultivating some patience. Empathizing with the strengths and weaknesses of others. I've never been much of a softy (just ask the sopranos i was section leader of back in choir...) and I could probably use some practice in the subtle arts of gentle instruction and free-flowing encouragement. Nix that. I could definitely use some practice in the aforementioned. Jennifer, this could be the challenge of a lifetime.

If anything, I hope I end up just like Phil :)

My Loooooong Conversation

Diarmid and I had a really long talk today about... everything. I couldn't possibly detail out the craziness that went down, but it was awesome. Let's just say I have a lot to look forward to in the coming year. Folk music traditions. Improvisation. Microtonality. It's a whole world of sound out there!

Gotta love the clash of like, creative individuals. Exciting :)

Mon soirée petit

I had such a blast tonight!!! There's nothing quite like post-performance champagne. It's a beautiful ritual to share with my fellow performers. It was also the second alcoholic beverage I have consumed since St. Patrick's Day. Shocking, I know.

Also, I met someone at the reception who went to high school with James Franco! Cool guy.

I could really get used to this business of performing and being fawned over. Now I've got to go deflate my head because I've gotten a little more full of myself than usual.

Plus my beloved friends came to see me despite being crazy busy :) Love!

My Memory Has Failed Me?

There are very few things I take personally. Most of that stems from my tendencies toward arrogance and general dislike of people. When someone says or does something I find disagreeable, I leave it at "that's what makes me better than you, my saucy little trollop."

...unless they speak ill of the Golden State Warriors. I'm not sure what it is (perhaps exposure to an excess of testosterone in utero?) but something about my beloved team inspires ferocious defensiveness of illogical proportions in me. Even more so when I drink, as Richard kindly pointed out to me a little while back. According to him, I also start talking in colloquial dialect of the impoverished urban persuasion... id est ghetto.

And then there's Taiwanese politics and the importance of arts education (if you can't tell Bach from Bellini, you were severely robbed of a well-rounded upbringing. If Bellini is merely a prosecco cocktail to you, then power to you; Italian romantic opera isn't everybody's cup of tea. If you are frowning at the word "prosecco," seek help...)

Those exception aside, it's actually quite difficult to offend me. (I promise this next bit is relevant.) With that said, a specific ex-boyfriend of mine is no longer on my friend list, and I'm quite unsure whether it is of my own doing. Yes, I did pare several hundred people from my social media network sometime last week when I'd taken in an excess of caffeine and been unable to sleep. It was rather late, though, and I don't recall un-friending any of my exes. Then again, I don't recall deciding not to un-friend a number of people. I guess it's entirely plausible that he got the old boot along with 200+ others.

A more attractive alternative is if he got as sick of me as I did of him. Although I can't imagine how that would happen if none of my posts were accessible to him, I'd applaud him if this were the case.

More likely, though, if he were the one to have initiated this severance, I am of the opinion that it would have been more deeply rooted in matters of self esteem. That is, to emulate an air of blasé with a key aim of emotional injury to yours truly. Rather a pigheaded presumption for me to make, but seeing as this is all purely hypothetical, I don't see the harm in hazarding an educated guess. By and by, I do tend to be correct in these kinds of matters.

Of course, this is all assuming that my memory serves me well, which, in the exhausted stupor I was that unholy hour of night, I can't be entirely sure that it does. Perhaps I did throw him by the wayside while zooming through the s's.

All of this came together earlier today when Paivikki was asking me whether the ex had called since that tiny disaster of a conversation during which I callously clarified my desire to be left alone. I replied that, thankfully, no further contact had ensued. Our conversation eventually took us to me logging into my Facebook account after rehearsal, which led to this pleasant surprise!

Regardless of the means by which this adorable little intrigue fell into my lap, it serves a fine little conclusion for this all-too-long saga of painfully jejune proportions.

On to more important matters: Paivikki's nephew. Oh my goodness, heisabsolutelygorgeous. I've never been awfully attracted to blondes, but tall, Finnish, footballer who slaps a killer bass, speaks four languages, loves classical music, and has triceps to spare? A tad pale for my usual liking, but built like a viking. I always find it doubly amusing when my clauses rhyme :)

Anyway... I say it's about time I visited Helsinki.

My Most Recent BFF

JEFF! I've mentioned him a few times here, but not a whole lot.

We have been in the same music history sequence since last fall, but literally never spoke until March 3 of this year. (Yes, I looked it up on Twitter). We sang in the same choir growing up and we're both totally obsessed with norcal, classical music, and basketball. We've been inseparable ever since that fateful lecture.

We study, eat, chat online, and watch basketball together. We text each other scores if one of us can't catch a killer game. We even watched old VHS tapes of our choir concert in 1999 while talking online in norcal. And next weekend, we're going to see the China Philharmonic together.

It's so weird now knowing that we were acquainted 12 years ago. Strange, right? This is one epic friendship, friends.

All that aside, having dropped that nightmare of a seminar, I learned worked on three arias today, and am currently in the process of translating said arias before my antepenultimate rehearsal for Sunday's concert. It's an exciting program for me. I'm singing this gorgeous song by Chausson, and I'm very excited to perform it. "Chanson Perpetuelle" is most definitely one of my favorite pieces of chamber music :)

My Celebrity Crush

Li: I have a friend who worked at Starbucks in NYC. She said that James Franco would go each day and recite poetry over coffee with a lady friend. A different lady friend each day.

Wu: Well that's thoroughly disappointing.

Li: That he's a huge manslut?

Wu: That he would go to Starbucks every day. I f*cking hate that place.


Yes, it's true. I have a huge crush on James Franco. Not only is he from Palo Alto (which is also where one of my high school boyfriends is from... yes, he's still from there because he only moved 2 miles away from home when he went to Stanford), he's also a mighty fine specimen, and cultured to boot!

That Starbucks thing bugs me though, especially considering the whole NYC thing. I have a favorite independently-run coffee joint in downtown San Diego, and he can't find one in New York? For shame. (Cafe Sole Luna on 7th and Ash is totally awesome, btw. Plus side: it reminds me of Rome.)

I wonder if there's a support group for former Starbucks baristas. I despise the company and have a somewhat condescending opinion of the patrons (especially if they order blended coffee beverages and call it "coffee." Darling, those are best described as slurpable dessert.) But for some reason I love how I know exactly how I want my latte made (2% milk, 155 degrees F, 1 packet of raw sugar blended with the espresso, and free-poured foam in a short cup). That makes for a really weird love/hate thing I have going with Starbucks. Ughh.

Anyway, screw that shit. I'm going to Art of Espresso.

My Textbooks

I have to buy 2 music scores for this quarter, which totaled to <$20, which is awesome. In fact, I've probably only spent 200 dollars on textbooks ever since switching my major, which is something like a quarter of what I used to spend per year on textbooks.

However, I haven't stopped buying textbooks. Just because a class isn't offered/doesn't exist in this music department doesn't mean I can't ace it. I've been stalking the websites of other schools and calling up my friends in other programs... and I've been buying up and studying their textbooks. I've already made my way through a couple hundred pages of Italian, German, French, and Latin diction, and I'm currently working through a brief (less than 200 pages) history of the opera. Then I'll tackle A "Short" History of Opera (over 500 pages). I'm also reading a few dozen pages per day on vocal pedagogy from three separate sources. Good stuff.

I also ordered a few anthologies of arias for study, because I've pretty much gone through the entirety of the one I have.

I work harder than any other singer in the department, and you can bet your sweet ass I ain't stoppin'. This isn't about killing Ganon. It's about catching the 25 lb fish, killing 100 gold skulltulas, capturing 10 big poes, and beating Ganondorf with a bottle and a broken goron's knife.

My Michael 2.2!!!!

So funny story. By funny I mean not that funny. A little while back I was talking to someone about the disproportionate number of guys named Michael I have dated when, all of a sudden, I seemed to recall there being an additional one that had slipped my mind for a few years. And as soon as the thought entered my head, I couldn't quite remember what it was anymore. It kept bugging me for a little while until BAM! I remembered who it was.

He wasn't my boyfriend, which is probably why I never counted him before, but we did have a thing back in sophomore year. The thing being we made out a lot when we were drunk. Problem is, he was in the same group of friends as Mike # 2, but hadn't realized that Mike2 and I had been an item for a few months prior to this little schtick. So we went our separate ways. He ended up dating a cougar who I believe he is still with. Said cougar did not like me, and he eventually stopped hanging out with all of us.

And then I stopped hanging out with "all of us." As in I went out with Pascal. And then the "official" Mike #3, who is the one I subsequently dated for over a year.

But yea. That makes FOUR Michaels now. I only just remembered him the other day. I guess it didn't help that I always called him "SARS" to avoid confusion in our crew of many Michaels (Chang, Sowers, Volpato). I was talking to Joyce about it on Sunday and we decided that SARS should henceforth be referred to as "Mike 2.2" because first base doesn't count. (Right? Right.)

Speaking of which, Mike2 got hotter (by shaving the pornstache and losing a few pounds) and I almost want to take him up on that lunch offer because I just found out that he's a fan of Philip Glass. Almost. I had a good time when we caught up over sushi last year. And we had a nice chat on Facebook back in February. He's a cool guy... we had fun together...

DAMNIT, JEN!

You know, for a smart gal, I sure am full of all sorts of bad ideas.

My Professors

I may have mentioned that I have a closer relationship with my professors in the music department than I ever did in biochemistry. (Unless you count that one time Volpato got me totally wasted at the pub before we realized he was my math professor...) It only makes sense. My theory class is approximately a tenth of the size of ochem lecture. So there ya go.

This past year I've gotten particularly well acquainted with my voice professor, Phil, and my chamber music professor, Janos, as well as Janos's wife, Paivikki, who is my Alexander Technique instructor. These are relationships that I quite cherish. My teachers are ceaselessly encouraging and have always challenged me to do my best under their tutelage. And they have so many stories to share!

The weird thing is that my history professor, who I didn't think I had any sort of connection to, invited me to watch an opera with her today. As in $185 seats at the Civic Center downtown. It was weird getting that e-mail from her. But I guess she liked me a lot more than the impression I got from attending her class? I told her I have plans, which is not entirely untrue (I have to do homework and study!) but that was an interesting diversion from my usual Sunday morning e-mails. I guess I have a raving letter of recommendation to look forward to from her.

I guess if I were a professor I would also have something of a preference for my more passionate and interested students. But from where I am now, I'm just happy to have teachers who bring me to work hard and be better.

I've always had a way for excelling in mental exercises, but inspiration isn't something everyone is born with, and I'm happy to have finally found it in my studies here. I used to fail classes left and right, and I barely graduated high school with a 2.0 GPA. I depended on the fact that I was blessed with better-than-average intellect to just get by. (I swear the AP tests and SATs are the only reasons I am even in college.) But coupling a great capacity for knowledge with a true desire for learning? It's a mighty powerful thing indeed.

I just needed the right people in my life to nudge me in the right direction. My teachers are some of the most important people in my life right now.

My Purge

I don't like it when my friends list gets too close to 1000. Every time it does, I unfriend a couple hundred people. If I didn't, my entire Facebook would be cluttered with thousands of people I barely remember. The criteria is as follows:

1. Do I remember this person? If no, purge.
2. Would I mind bumping paths with this person again? If yes, purge.
3. What would I say to this person if I were to run into him/her? If nothing or profanity, purge.
4. Does this person have any sentimental significance to me? If no, purge.

And that is how it's done. Shaved that list back down to 720. Fun stuff. I don't want to read shit about them, they probably don't give a shit about me, all is well.

Why was I friends with so many people from high school? Most of them didn't even like me. (I was weird in high school. As in pot-dealing Homecoming princess with truancy problems and perfect SAT scores weird. Yea.) Anyway. Problem solved. I didn't talk to half of those people anyway.