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Il dolce ma niente

A few weeks ago, I watched Eat, Pray, Love. I liked it, no homo. Whilst Julia Robert's was in Italy, she learned il dolce ma niente which translates into the sweetness of doing nothing. Americans can be lazy, but while they are doing nothing, most feel guilty that they should be doing something. I am going to master the art of enjoying doing nothing like the Italians. I practiced a bit today by slep

Food

Chicken pesto sausage, ravioli, spinach salad with watermelon, homemade marinara
Salmon with red lentils, spinach and avocado.

The Mozart Requiem

I realized last night that the control over an orchestra, choir, freshmen, ringers, soloists is all just an illusion. In the end I have no control. All music is made by the musicians. I am only a suggestion, a request at best.

Some common courtesy for you

In case you didn't know, when going to somebody's house, you always come bearing an offering. This is seen to the host as a token of appreciation. This can be anything as simple as some food or drink. Libations should be brought unopened and unchilled if it is meant to be chilled.

When presenting your host with a bottle of wine or some libations, it can be assumed that it is a gift for consuming later. If the host decides to open it now, then it can be drank, but never assume that he/she wants to. Bringing food, beer, or other consumables usually indicates that everyone will partake in the night of the invitation. Flowers are also a great offering especially for an older couple. Chocolates and confections are great for grandparents. I like bringing my grandparents something homemade such as cookies or some soup.

I'm not the only choir director teaching sex in my class

I went to the Vegas ACDA in 2004 and saw this choir. I found a great translation of this piece, but first see the Italian and then the English

Matona, mia cara, Mi follere canzon,
Cantar sotto finestra, Lantze bon compagnon.
Don don don, diri diri, don don don don.

Ti prego m'ascoltare, che mi cantar de bon,
E mi ti foller bene, come greco e capon.
Don don don, diri diri, don don don don.

Comandar alle cacce, cacciar, cacciar con le falcon,
Mi ti portar becacce, grasse come rognon.
Don don don, diri diri, don don don don.

Se mi non saper dire, tante belle razon,
Petrarcha mi non saper, Ne fonte d'Helicon.
Don don don, diri diri, don don don don.

Se ti mi foller bene, mi non esser poltron,
Mi ficcar tutta notte urtar, urtar, urtar come monton,
Don don don, diri diri, don don don don.

My lovely Lady, I want a song to sing
Under your window: this lancer is jolly fellow!
Don don don, diri diri, don don don don.

Please listen to me, because I'm singing well
And I'm as fond of you as a Greek is of a capon!
Don don don, diri diri, don don don don.

When I go hunting, I hunt with the falcon,
And I'll bring you a woodcock, as fat as a kidney
Don don don, diri diri, don don don don.

I cannot tell you many elegant things,
I know nothing of Petrarch, nor the Fountain of Helicon
Don don don, diri diri, don don don don.

If you'll love me I won't be lazy
I will fuck all night long, I will thrust like a ram
Don don don, diri diri, don don don don.

More Foods

Most underrated and rare breakfast called the Dutchbaby, try it sometime. Had this with yet another Kenny and Jeremy after an awesome CMEA performance at Mountain View High School.

guilty pleasure! Creamy alfredo with sundried tomatoes, chicken, and garlic bread.

Eating alot of fish these days

California's fruit of Monterrey county, artichokes with some fresh trout.

Best fucking lentils ever!

Boil 2 cups of water. When water is boiled add 1 cup of french lentils. Reduce heat to medium. Cook for 30 minutes. About half way through the lentils being done, chop an onion and fry in some oil. Smash up a clove of garlic and add to it. Take a cardamom pod, smash and add. Add 2 dashes of tumeric and 2 dashes of cumin. Let that cook for 5 minutes. Add a bunch of spinach and let wilt. Once that is done, the lentils should be ready. Add the cooked lentils to the spinach and stir it up. Cook it up a few minutes, add some salt, and serve!

Four Twenty

What bothers me about our lawmakers and society is that it is okay to own a gun to kill people, but it is illegal to smoke cannabis which doesn't kill anybody. Where is the logic in that?

April 20 is a day that people in my community celebrate cannabis. It is also the anniversary of the Columbine shootings and Hitler's birthdate. Yesterday we had a faculty meeting about code-red procedures. The person doing the presentation said that its only a matter of time before somebody comes on campus and shoots us. We're supposed to keep students in the class and barricade our doors and keep out of the "fatal funnel". We were also told that it's not called "code-red" anymore because the person who created the procedure has a copyright on it and if we use those procedures, that person should get royalties.

I realize that fear is a product to be sold and it always has been. Let me offer some examples:

• In Pre-Protestant Europe, the Catholic Church sold indulgences so people can sin and still get into heaven
• In the 1950's, people bought bunkers to build in their backyard for when Russia nuked America
• In California, supplies of Potassium Iodide sold out after the Fukashima Nuclear plant halfway around the world released some radiation
• Y2k...no need to explain how millions stocked up on survival supplies and filled their bunkers for the coming apocalypse
• Handguns...anyone who needs one is probably afraid of something
• The TSA
• A few of my Asian friends have never played baseball in his life, yet he owns a ba

The business of selling lock-down procedures, federalizing airport security, buying baseball bats without the intention of playing America's pastime seems to be a lucrative business these days. If we didn't broadcast all of the world's atrocities on network news 24 hours a day, what would this world be like?

Everyone is more scared of you than you are of them. -Fight Club

Engelstadt

Otherwise known as Los Angeles for you who do not speak German. I have been here in SoCal for since Saturday.

On Sunday in San Diego I went to the flea market. It was pretty cool. Bought a vinyl of Coltrain's Favorite Things. Also bought my friend Chauncey a poster with Chairman Mao on it saying "let's party".

I was actually down here on business, I recorded a sick track for Kenneth. I'll make sure to post the finished product.

I really like LA. I always get inspired and rejuvenated when I hang out here. Irvine, Riverside, and San Diego are not the same. It's particularly Los Angeles that inspires me and gets my juices flowing. Walking around on the beach in Santa Monica is awesome, hangin' out in Venice is cool, and eating at cool places in Westwood are some of the things I enjoy while coming down here. I don't enjoy driving down here, but its a necessary evil, so I make the best out of it.

The Importance of Music Theory

So my Jazz band went to CMEA a few weeks ago and were criticized pretty harshly by the judges about playing in the changes. They play the right scales and have some good rhythms, but they never outline the chord changes in their solos. All that theory that I taught them last semester didn't seem to make any sense. As they have matured as musicians and become more comfortable with their scales, they realize how important spelling out chords really is.

Next week I think we are going to be making some riffs out of ii V I changes.

The Greatest Life to be Lived

I don't think there is any greater life to live than mine.

I have family, friends, students, and colleagues who love me for who I am more than what I do.

I have a nice place to live, a car, an apartment, a job that affords me my lifestyle.

I have no enemies, no outstanding debts, and nothing to be stressed about.

I have good health.

Which brings me to these "I haves"! I realized that I and many American children are all raised with the mentality of having stuff. My mother convinced me when I was young to be a doctor so I could drive a BMW. I'm sure she also thought I would want to help people. Santa Clause is the ideal of having stuff on Christmas if you were a good boy. The whole Jesus and Christian thing is about going to heaven so you can have all this stuff when you are there.

AND THE FEAR OF NOT HAVING!!! How many of you cried watching Disney's the Christmas Story because Ratchet got squat for Christmas? You pitied him because deep down you were afraid you wouldn't get anything for Christmas if your parents were poor. How many of your parents pointed out a homeless man and said thats what happens when you don't go to school because then you can't get a job causing you to fail and live on the streets?

Kings and Queens once ruled our lands across the world because they were appointed by God. God was worshiped and feared by all humans. This fear of God drove man to work to feed, protect, and honor his king. Now our primary source of motivation for the continuity of human life is having shit and the fear of not having shit.

Can anybody really have enough shit? Where do we stop and say "I have enough shit,"? And what do we do when we have acquired enough shit? Get a wife, have kids, and buy all of them shit? Some would say give it away. Why? So other people need more shit?

I'm going out today with grandma and grandpa to buy some shirts. It is to replace some old ones that have alot of food stains on them. So I am replacing old shit with new shit.

Answer me this: When do we have enough shit and what do we do when we have acquired it all?

Etiquette of eating crab and other shellfish

I had an interesting experience today going to the Chinese restaurant with mis amigos chinos. We ate crab and I had to place to put my shells. I asked the chinos what to do and they said to just put them directly on the table. I was twitterpated! How rude is this? But its not. So here are some guidlines for eating crab.

1. When eating at a Chinese restaurant, you may just put your shells whether they are shrimps, clams, oysters, lobsters right on the table. BUT NOT WHEN YOU ARE DINING AT SOMEBODY'S HOME.
2. When eating crab at a European or American setting, you will get a plate to put your shells.
3. You will also get a finger bowl so that you can clean your hands when you're done. A crabfork and crackers will also be given to you at a classy place. It should be placed above your plate before you arrive to your seat.

While we are talking about the Asian restaurant, you must know some etiquette that is different.

1. At a most Asian diners, you may be given wooden disposable chopsticks. In Japanese culture it is insulting to sand your chopsticks together to get rid of any splinters.
2. It is recommended that you wipe down your chopsticks if they have been sitting at the place for awhile.
3. Never stick your chopsticks into the rice and leave them there.
4. When eating rice, bring the bowl to your mouth (totally not okay in European dining)
5. Do not expect 5 star service when going to your local Pho place. They will tell you where to sit as soon as you walk in. When in doubt, just get the Number 1 large. Don't ask questions.
6. All Asian restaurants serve complimentary tap water. Most serve complimentary tea. This isn't normal for Europeans because in Europe it's rude to ask tap water.
7. Tipping isn't a city in Taiwan. You should tip like you would any other American restaurant.
8. When asking for more tea, simply leave the lid open.

The Etiquette of beer pong

This summer I had a very different experience playing beer pong that I would like to share. In order to be more clean, this group of people put water in the cups and had two cans of beer on each side. Every time the other team made a cup, you set it aside and sipped your beer. I lost because I forgot to pull the cup and the other team made that cup again claiming the "ghost cup" rule. My partner and I were flabbergasted! So I said I would never play beer pong again. That is until I played it the right way.

College students all over have been playing beer pong ever since plastic cups were invented. The point of playing beer pong is to get the other team drunk, not to win. If you play for bragging rights or play to win, you are missing the whole point of beer pong. So I would like to present some rules to make beer pong a respectable drinking game.

Cups must always be filled with equal amounts of beer

For people of my generation, this is a no-brainer. But for the current college students, they seem to be okay with not drinking the substance in the cups. If both teams are just supposed to drink the can of beer with water in the cups, it is not a fair drinking game. You cannot regulate the amount one drinks if the cups themselves are not filled with beer and they are not drunk. If you do not like beer, then fill the cups with a cocktail, wine cooler, wine, or even pure liquor. To make it even more interesting, fill most of the cups with beer, but put liquor in a few. Having to drink the beer from the actual cups also gets rid of this juvenile "ghost-cup" rule.

Drink your own drink while playing beer pong

Chances are that if you are playing beer pong, you are at a party that serves alcohol. So you should also be drinking some beer while you are playing. I feel it is rude to not drink while you are playing a drinking game. You wouldn't drink water if you are playing King's cup, what is the point of putting water in the King's cup?

Bitches blow and dudes finger

I think most people use this rule. There is no reason that you couldn't do the opposite. But it's a tradition and you should obey this rule to honor our fallen comrades who made this rule.

On Fire

This is a bullshit rule. I don't even understand it, but if you are drunk, like you should be when playing this game, you shouldn't comprehend this rule anyways.

The Rebuttal

I also think this is a bullshit rule that was invented by law students, but it can also be very fun to make a cup and stay in the game. I think if there is one table and lots of people wanting to play, lets just have it be that the last cup gets drank along with the remaining winner's cups.

I hope that the next time I play beer pong, it is an honorable drinking game. Gentlemen and ladies need to drink from the cups in a traditional and honorable way. I hope that I play with honorable people who want to drink and are willing to risk getting drunk if they suck. But if everyone is drinking, nobody should have superior beer pong skills. If somebody is bragging that they are a better beer pong player, make sure they are drinking and maybe get them a couple of shots so their shit-talk can be nothing more than shit-talk.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year everybody!

I had a very pleasant Christmas with family and friends at my parent's house. New Years was uneventful, I didn't have a sip of alcohol on New Year's eve. The night before was a fun time with friends in which I enjoyed a nice white elephant exchange.

Resolutions:

I'm not sure if I want to create resolutions. Goals are nice projects that if approached unattached, can be very rewarding whether you complete them or not. I have my sights set on moving into the professional world this year, however. I want to find a gig conducting opera locally. It's something I have never done, but I think I would be good at it. So my resolution is to get an opera gig sometime this year.

I have been accepted into a week-long conducting program in Leipzig at the end of February, but money is tight and I'm not sure I want to pursue it anymore. It's going to cost me a lot of money. I got my cousin's bachelor party in Vegas a week after I get back from Germany. All that money and I could be skiing in Tahoe and taking trip to LA and San Diego to rock climb and play on the beach.