week 12 - some stuff happened!

but is that really surprising? as i've always maintained, i think i'm one of the busiest people i know. if not, the busiest. but i suppose i don't have friends who are CEOs. so perhaps not.
anyway.

my piano lesson last week didn't go as well as the one before it. well, i felt a lot smaller after it. but i suppose that happens - one needs to be brought down to size haha. but i tell you, it made me practice a lot because i was afriad of being crap! went to the vic on friday night, but tim was unfortunately sick again. so we hung out and talked and ate yummy food (including yummy lemon coconut slice made by jon...soo good!!!) and watched a movie, "The Great Race". So old, so cliched, but so funny. Plus a fantastic pie fight scene to die for. Well, not really, but it was fantastic. jule, jac and kristen came over fairly late, and it was cool coz then there were heaps of musos friends also there - it was really nice!

S came over on saturday night to play through his programme - this was the first time we were playing together, so that was cool. plus, i was really bored that night, so it was greatly appreciated! i did most of my homework on saturday day coz sunday was huge....

there was just lots of stuff on! had a rehearsal at 1pm with our yet-unnamed trio. then dashed off to newman at 3pm for orchestra nouveau's debut concert (M stayed in my room to practice). then had a little bit of time to dash over to the vic (for about 20mins!) to at least show up for a bit of F's 21st birthday lunch (had a slice of cake that her dad had made - yum!!!), and then dashed back to queen's for the chamber music concert at 5pm. i stayed until 6.30, then ran to chapel (i have hardly been this year because i've had HEAPS on..!) and then straight to jude's. i grabbed dinner with T, J & J (and B & E) afterwards - i was STARVING!!! and got home fairly late. but it was a big day (i did warn you, yeah?)

monday was also very busy, but unfortunately i couldn't go to everything! i need to learn about hexalocation, i think!

anyway, the lunchtime concert was the chamber music comp final. the don banks trio changed their name to the senzamento trio. i was confused for a while, until it clicked. and i laughed VERY loudly, VERY hard.
they played well. actually, they all did. the yarra trio won, so well done to them.
they played the smetana trio. and revelations over two days:
in the chamber music concert at queen's on sunday, A's trio played two movements from the Schubert. and i sat there thinking "hey! I know this! the kungsbacka trio played this at their concert earlier this year!" (the one i really enjoyed) and then the smetana - i wasn't sure coz i don't know it. except that when they started, i recognised it! the kungsbacka trio also played this one! so, having been slightly put out when i saw their melbourne programme wouldn't include the ghost trio, i still enjoyed the concert. but now, with hindsight, it was FANTASTIC! it's nice when you have those moments of recognition. :)

unfortunately, couldn't go to everything that night. this is why i needed to learn about hexalocation:
1) woodwind concert
2) comp 1 concert
3) big band gig
4) SMC meeting (which i ended up going to)
5) S's birthday dinner
6) RFP's concert at queen's

yeah, no prizes for guessing, from the above list, the things that fill my life! the meeting went for quite a long time - there was much to be discussed, esp. coz the AGM was on tuesday.

had a rehearsal on tuesday for don giovanni stuff with the sextet and M. we (and i mean 'they') staged it, which was cool! it sounds really good :) i'm really excited to be working with these people, even though more than two singers normally scares me!
so, went to the AGM dinner on tuesday night. which was good. got to talk to a few people, plus heard a report about student ministries. that was really interesting, but i suppose none of it was really surprising because we'd discussed it all (plus more!) at our meetings hehe. i have decided not to continue being on the committee, for various reasons (but one more so than the others). i had thought it out and emailled R that day. all rational. that's ok. i don't feel scared to raise an issue through a committee member now anymore, now that i know how it all works.

trio reherasal on wednesday was called off coz J had to go back home for a dentist and back appointment (not concurrently, though...) so i had a lot of the day to myself. had a don giovanni rehearsal in melba; it was good to work in the actual space. and to have the Eb actually work. :) was a good rehearsal, we're all feeling good about it! then went to Rosamund Illing's recital, which was very enjoyable. of course, i felt almost like a fake because i was a pianist, and there were lots of vocal students, but hey, i was interested. and i showing interest is a good thing too (not that it's the only reason one goes to stuff). got my techniques assignment checked by M (and had a cup of tea and a chat, which was nice!) then had the aedificamus launch. my essay, titled "Economic and Social Success or Failure?: The Impact of Globalisation on Women in Eastern Europe" was published in the journal. yay for three years running! hehe. reading back over it, i can't believe i did all that research and actually wrote it! yeah, this was the essay i wrote last semester for that online commerce subject i was taking, the one that i thought i wasn't going to do that well in (turns out i got like, a 90 for it..! haha)

missed the percussion ensemble concert that night - much as i love going to concerts, i figured i should do some homework. that was the intention anyway. but after dinner, ended up on s'north for a while. quite a while, in fact. like, till 10.30 or so. i think. haha. it was good though, to chat with friends, to hang out. and to look for 'missing' (ie. that we couldn't find) bible verses!!!! we were looking for one in particular......and called all sorts of people to see if they knew where it was! kudos to J for it!

anyway, so i got back to my room, and i checked my phone, and i'd had a missed call from a landline i didn't recognise. and an sms to tell me i had a missed call from a mobile number that i also didn't recognise. but looking at the times, it seemed somebody wanted to get onto me, so i decided to text message saying something along the lines of "i got a missed call from this number earlier tonight, so if you need to talk to me, you can call me coz i'm still awake." i get a "who are you?" back and figure it must have been a mistake in the first place whereupone i apologise "i'm sorry, must be mistaken. sorry to have bothered you". "that's ok" comes back.
Then 10 or so minutes later, i get a "are you a musician?"
now, that is WAYYY too lucky. and random!
my response is "um, yeah, good guess. i suppose i'll just say i'm a third yr pianist at the con". if that makes sense, that's cool. if they're not a muso themselves, then the con won't make sense.
the message i then get surprises me beyond anything, "Then u must be Gladys CHUA?"

WOW.

and i immediately ring it because i think that this must be a friend from uni whose number i don't have or something. but that's lucky, at least they know me! sounds personal, at least.
i didn't realise it was already quarter past eleven or so when i ring, but i figure, up this late and text messaging, they won't worry if i call them.
i call this number and say "I'm gladys, who are you?!"
and get a "hi gladys, this is PB"
AHHH. all the light bulbs go on, and then turn to confusion. because i've never met him before! but i know some about him, apart from conducting MYO. he also conducted uni orchestra last year. and i read his bio then (in the programme) and incidentally also comes from perth. I blurted this out on the phone, and said "you're from perth! so am i!!!"
the real reason he called was to ask if i was willing, available and interested in playing the 1st piano part in saint-saens' 3rd symphony with MYO on 2 dec.
we had a lovely conversation (after i called back on a landline..) about perth and all that jazz. turns out we know lots of people from home - all in music, of course! and that he is an old haleian, his mother lives around the corner from me and all that. just really random, coincidental things. that really made my day, it was just so amusing and so.......WOW..!!!
and also a lot of people from melbourne, especially current students; i didn't realise just how many people i knew from uni who are in or have done MYO! he had good things to say about them all, actually. even though his rapport with students may not be in the best shape.

anyway, so that was probably the most exciting thing all week!

thursday had classes, including the concert class which started at 10.15am..! of course, i was in the middle of ANOTHER class...what odd timing of it all! mss held a bbq for the end of semester, which went really well. another successful year, i think!
then rushed home for a rehearsal with R, then went off to hawthorn to do exam! woohoo! again, i forget what it's like to do ameb exams hehe. sat around talking to D for a while, which was nice. but then got home, and had to rush to theatre for reherasal, which unfortunately didn't even start on time (ppl before us were running late, took longer etc.) oh well.

i think i'll do the friday update another time...i'm incredibly tired right now, and feel quite ill (again...)
last day of classes was today, and it's scary! i mean, i still have tutes next week for college, and chamber music and stuff like that, but it's really coming down to crunch time now. assuming i don't fail anything, i'll be well past halfway of undergrad. and to think some of my friends are finishing undergrad now! eek!
i'll continue to aim to enjoy uni - i really enjoy it and definitely value the friendships i have there!

anyway, time for bed, i think. i'd like to do some shopping tomorrow..!