The Big Question

What a great night! Good friends, a great crowd, delicious food, music and ballroom dancing! What more could one ask for?

Saturday night the Hotel Conneaut, located in Conneaut Lake Park, PA, was the scene of this extravaganza - a celebration of the reopening of the Crystal Ballroom. Among the 80+ people were my parents, Carole and Lew! It is really special to watch your parents dance the night away to the music that you are making. Thanks, Mom and Dad, for coming down and sharing in this great evening with us!

You see, I lead the jazz combo that provided the music for the night (truth be told, they are so good that my leadership is basically, "stay out of their way and try to keep up!"). The dance floor at times was packed and there were dancers all evening - very good dancers I might add! Although, don't let that scare you away as it rolls around again (perhaps as early as this spring!), because ballroom dancers are not judgmental or pompous as some might think. Instead, they are generally helpful and quick to show newcomers how to join in the fun. So next time put on your dancing shoes and come swing the night away!

Of course, all of that being said, my highlight of the evening, was not the food, or the dancing. Not the fellowship (all though that was great!) or making music with friends. Spending the evening with Dawn is always incredible, but that wasn't the highlight either. I always love to have Jackie sing with us since she is incredibly talented, but even that wasn't the highlight!

The highlight was definitely when Jackie came up to me after our second set of music and joyously told me that Will had proposed to her. She, of course, said yes!

So, the big plans include wedding bells early next summer. Will is going to start a new job in California in 10 days, therefore, after the wedding Jackie will be moving there as well. Many emotions are swirling through our household right now, but undoubtedly, we are thrilled for them. They care a great deal for each other and are certainly two peas in a pod, for sure!

One of their challenges will be trying to focus on work while being so far apart, Jackie on her studies and Will on his new position. They happen to feel as though they are up to it. We happen to know that they are!

What a sa-weeeeeet night.

Congratulations Jackie and Will - may the Lord richly bless you both as you step out into your very own Great Adventure!

One More Day

Ok. I'm not gonna lie. This week has been exhausting. Yesterday was much like Thursday, PACKED! But the band show was energetic and very entertaining. Way to go band!

The football team pulled out a big win against a very strong opponent. At the end of the first half it was anybodies game, but once again, they made the right adjustments at the half and powered their way to the end. Way to go team!

This morning? Waterfowl Parade in Linesville.

This afternoon? Set up for a ballroom dance at the Conneaut Hotel in Conneaut Lake Park.

This evening? A ballroom gala event celebrating the grand reopening of the Conneaut Hotel. My jazz band, The Baseline Combo (comprised of local professionals), will be providing the entertainment for the dance. Dinner at 6:30pm, dancing begins at 7:30. I do believe the cost for the entire evening is only $50/couple.

Tomorrow? Church, Sunday School, then a little R & R!

A Day In the Life

In walk the normal group of students, asking questions and getting ready for the day. High school students seem to have a lot of questions at times. Then again, there are other times that one simply feels invisible around them.

As the bell rings to start the day, they all head off in their own directions, lumbering off to begin another day. The typical half closed eyes and shuffling of the "night owls" mix with the laughter and optimism of the "morning people".

Then in walks the new student I met yesterday. A very nice young man. Very polite and excited about this new opportunity to learn a band instrument. He is a junior and has just moved into the area but has an interest in music.

"I'm going to have to see what level of aptitude you have for the instruments." I ask, "have you ever played an instrument before?"

After taking a moment to think about the question, he answered, "Well, I have never played a trumpet. But I would like to try. I think I can do it."

"I hear that you have played the drums before. Would you like to show me how you can play those?"

"Yes," he said. "I would like to do that." What a great lesson we had. A very pleasant young man who has some special needs but was able to brighten the room with eyes that smiled and eager enthusiasm!

He definitely showed some aptitude for music and was a joy to work with. At the same time, in the other side of the room was the other extreme. One of my very gifted seniors who was working on a piano piece that she wants to perform at an upcoming show. "Hey, 'P', what do you think of this? It is really frustrating me."

A few other lessons come through the room, then my first class arrives - Music Appreciation. We spend our time working on some rhythmic theory and reading notation, mix in some ear training and a bit of sight reading. We laugh a little at some of the "music" they created - and I must say, the term music is used very loosely!

Next is a group of about 45 students. A mixture of 9th and 10th grade students that I hadn't planned on, but were sent to me to watch while our juniors and seniors were pulled out to discuss graduation projects. Since it is very hard to waste any time that could be used encouraging young minds, I begin a discussion on what they can expect as they move into their junior and senior years in regards to their graduation project requirements. Of course, once again, the class is a mixture of blank stares, looks of fear, fatigue, interest and confusion. In an attempt to motivate, I link the project requirements to interests and hobbies they currently have. "Do something that you enjoy! Try finishing it early - don't procrastinate! In the end, you might actually learn something about yourself that you didn't know before."

As they leave, some stay behind with questions. I tend to get a lot of questions in a day - I mean A LOT!.

In walks my band. They have a very wide spectrum of abilities and interest levels. Through the class, we cover a few theory items then have a short discussion on the level of performance we are at with our marching band. "How can we improve our performance? What is wrong with it? What have you heard from people concerning the show?"

High school students can be very insightful at times. They were able to identify many areas that need attention and improvement. Then we played some music. Unfortunately, our music rehearsal wasn't very productive - once in a while, we have those days where nothing seems to go right, musically speaking. Oh well, we will have another crack at it later in the evening and perhaps it will go a bit more productively.

Next, I work with several students on various things, from piano parts, to broken horns that aren't playing right, to reading music for the guitar, to improvising on a pentatonic scale.

The bell rings and everyone slowly trickles out, on their way to their next class. Ahh. Peace and quiet. Now I can get some work done during my lunch time - there is always a pile of paperwork to be accomplished, especially during marching season. Ahh, who am I kidding, there is always a pile of paperwork to do all year long!

Just as I sit down, it is like I have a button on the chair or something that summons students, because in walks the senior pianist, "Hey, 'P', mind if I work some more on that piece of music during lunch? I won't stay for long."

What's a guy gonna say? Of course it is alright. What's the harm? After all, now I get to do my paperwork to piano music! Although, it isn't long and I have to actually kick her out of the room. Sorry, but you really have to get to lunch!

Then I get the news that one of my seniors will probably be withdrawing from school. A great member of the marching band and one that has so much untapped potential. He has a fantastic personality, is really bright and very talented, yet hasn't found those organizational skills that make him successful academically. What a kick in the gut. I was really pulling for him - and still am! I pray that he will find that motivation soon because he has a great deal to offer!

Several classes, lessons and great moments pass by. Including the boy who handed me the instrument during junior high band and said, "Mr. Peters, this piece just fell off. What do you want me to do?" It was one of the mounting posts for the keys! Basically, the instrument will not play without it! The humor is that this poor boys seems to have a good dose of my dad's luck - you know, things seem to fall apart in his hands!

The day finally comes to a close at 3:05 and the students all head for the door. That is of course, all of them except the handful that will hang out in the room until marching band practice at 6pm. That is okay, tonight I have a pile of work to get caught up on so they are fine in the room while I get some work done. Some of them messing around, you know, playing around with the drums and guitars, some working on homework, and some just playing games while listening to music. A great environment for me to get my work done, wouldn't you say?

More and more students gather until 6pm quickly rolls around and we begin our practice. Once again, we begin with a discussion on what needs addressed followed by an overview of the rehearsal order; we will begin with parade work, focus on basics, then review pre-game, run the show as a review, then clean up the 4th song.

Our parade rehearsal was pathetic. I gave them a swift kick for motivation (figuratively, of course!). Wow! We ended up with a fantastically productive rehearsal through the rest of the night!

I drag myself into the door at 8:30pm to the smell of a wonderful supper that Dawn and prepared. We chat for a while then I grab a shower. And, well, here I am. 11pm.

So, why do I share all this with you? I'm not sure. Perhaps you can get a glimpse of what happens behind those walls of a music room where those strange combinations of sounds seem to continuously stream out. Perhaps you are pondering working with children in some capacity and you find this to be a confirmation to that thought. Or maybe you are simply rejoicing that your days are much more peaceful than mine! Go ahead, rub it in!

Last Ride?

We got out for another motorcycle ride today with Steve and Rita and it turned out to be a great afternoon/evening for us. There were a few moments when we had to wonder about it though, as we watched the sky turn darker and darker the farther north we went. At one point we had a discussion as to whether we were looking at rain clouds or snow clouds! After all, it is that season when football is on every weekend and the leaves are not only changing colors, but are beginning to fall from the trees! Can't believe it is already that time of year.

Don't be fooled by this photo, you are actually looking at Steve and Dawn hanging out at the anchor on the shore of Findley Lake, NY. Rita and I caught them red-handed messing around! We took the picture just for evidence.

So Rita thought she would take a break along the waterfront, but I had another idea! She didn't even know that I was about to get her.
Findley Lake is a great destination for a day's ride. The lake front is beautiful and the town is quaint. You can easily ride around the lake and enjoy all the cottages that line its shore.
As we were in town, we decided to get a bite to eat for supper at the Blue Heron Bed and Breakfast Inn and Restaurant. The food was great and made even better by the atmosphere of the front covered deck overlooking the lake.
On our way out of the restaurant, we came across a couple young fishermen who quickly announced they had caught a 19 inch northern pike. It took little encouragement to get one of the young men to reach into a bucket and pull out his trophy for the day. Nice fish!

As we left Findley Lake, we pointed our bikes south on Route 426 and enjoyed the rolling hills and curves that made their way through farmland and small patches of woods which leads into Corry, Pa. From there, we traveled west on Route 77 toward Meadville, Pa.

It is about time to harvest many of the crops as evidenced by their coming to fruition. The leaves on the trees are beginning to turn and it won't be long now before they are in full color. This is a beautiful time to of year to ride in northwestern Pennsylvania. The sights sounds and smells are quite refreshing. Except of course, the manure spreader that we came up behind! Wow! Was that ripe!

So is this our last ride of the season? I certainly hope not. But if it was, it was great to spend it with such good friends. What did we discover today, you might ask? Well, that we really are becoming geezers after all! Unbelievable!

Movin' up!

Looks like I'm movin' up in the world. Remember that picture of Mel working away on his computer? Well, it must of had a rather profound effect on Dawn, or perhaps it is the fact that every time we go to her parents house, Mel is on the computer (which is located right there in the living room - imagine that!).

You see, for years I have been relegated to the "music" room, which actually translates to tundra zone in the winter and sweat box in the summer. But no longer will I freeze in the winter or roast in the summer - no sirree! Tonight we found a nice little glass top desk that Dawn said she can live with - right here in the living room! It has only been 20 years in the making, but I'm not complaining, that is for sure (cause if I complain too loud it could very well be back to the tundra for me!).

Oh yeah, movin' right on up, baby!

A Little Fresh Air

Took a ride up to Mom and Dad Naylor's tonight just to say,"Hi." Mom had a rough day today trying to get her breathing under control. Keep her in your prayers.

On the other hand, how is it that a couple hours of fresh air on a motorcycle can help to clear your mind and ease the stresses of life? Hmmm... Freud never addressed that one!

In Common?

What does campfire, clean-up, school work, family, raking, a bike ride and computer time all have in common?

They all occupied a slice of my day today.

Last night Jackie and Will had some friends over to enjoy a campfire so Dawn and I joined them for a while (being very careful not to overstay our welcome!).

So this morning, Dawn and I thought it might be nice to kick off the day with a quiet, "camping style" start. You know, coffee, campfire and muffins. By the way, if you haven't sat around a campfire for breakfast recently, you really should - it is such a relaxing way to start the day!

Then we picked up the chairs and stuff from the party and the day began.

I went over to the school and spent a little under an hour getting ready for tomorrow, then came home to find everybody finally awake. Nothing like sleeping most of you life away, eh? Haha! (Couldn't resist that little jab - after all, it's my Dad's fault because he always had a comment if we slept past 9am!)

We talked the morning away and caught up on all that was happening. Throughout the day yesterday and this morning, Will filled us in on his new job opportunity in Chico, CA. As with any big move, there is a lot of excitement mixed with a bit of apprehension and about every other emotion in between!

On a very different note, we talked about his new computer. He was really irritated that PC's have so much stuff running in the background. We pulled up the task manager and looked over the very long list of items (that might as well be written in Greek since you can't figure out what they are for and what they are doing!) and he was going crazy looking at so much of his RAM was being eaten up by stuff he didn't even need. It didn't help at all when he found out how much RAM Vista uses! "A brand new computer and why does it have to come with so much junk on it?! Errr!" (or something like that. haha)

Okay, the Mac is running really well. Jury's still out though! Keep you posted.

After lunch we said goodbye to the kids as they headed back to school and work, and we went over to Steve's house to help him rake up the yard. He had some excavation work done in his back yard so now he has new dirt covering most of his front and side yards too. I must admit, working for PennDot has honed his skills to a superb level of expertise! Man, he can lean on a rake like no body's business!!! Just kiddin' Steve, just kiddin'!

After that we took a ride to the southern part of Pymatuning Lake, Pa., to relax and talk for a while. It was a very good way to work through the likely hood that our daughter will be moving to California next year. (Well, that is their plan!)

On our way back home, we stopped at an ice cream stand and watched a little girl glowing over the fact that her mother said she could keep the change from their ice cream order - two whole dollars! Oh, was she happy! We sat one table away from them to eat our ice cream and watched her finish the Superman cone, smiling and chattering away at her mother.

Dawn and I sat and reminisced about our little three year old girl that loved to wear old dance costumes and her Dutch wooden shoes clip-clopping down the sidewalk in town! She was adorable! Now we get to appreciate the stunning beauty (both inside and out) of this very talented nineteen year old young lady that we have the privilege of calling "our daughter".

Later, the little girl at the ice cream stand finished her cone and half skipped, half bounced away to the car holding her mothers hand.

"I just want to tell her mother, 'enjoy this moment because before you know it she'll be all grown up and moving off to California,' " Dawn said.

Don't forget to enjoy this day, they truly fly by in the blink of an eye.

God bless.