Hi everyone,
I will be restarting my blog when I get back to the UK on October 1. Instead of using Blogger, I will be using a new Tumblr account that you can access from my personal website, www.jenniferdavisflute.com.
You can also find the blog at www.jenniferdavisflute.tumblr.com
xx
Jenny
14 September, 2012
21 January, 2012
22 January
I know you probably can't believe it, but I am here to post another blog entry! It's been a while since I've written, so I have lots to write about. But if I were to recap all that has happened in the past month and a half, I might end up writing a short novel. So, to avoid writing a short novel, I will just restart blogging from today, January 22.
Actually, no. Wait. I will write briefly about what's happened these past few weeks:
We went to Rome for the Italian Flute Convention. Ate lots of pasta and gelato, heard some good flute playing (Emily Beynon, Juliette Hurel, Silvia Careddu, Matthias Ziegler), saw the Colesseum, Spanish Steps, Trevi Fountain (and more) and of course managed to do a bit of shopping. : )
Shortly after the trip to Rome, Trevor had a hip replacement, and of course since he is Trevor, he was up and about only days after the surgery. Back to kicking students in no time, which we all expected. While he was in the hospital, William Bennett, Rachel Brown and Ian Clarke came to the Studio to teach class. Three wonderful classes - all very different, too. I especially liked Rachel Brown.
We then had the Christmas concert at the Hastingliegh Church, which went very well. We played quite a lot of music and had a good time rehearsing and putting the concert together. I played bass flute for most of the concert, so our three hour rehearsals were more like three hour workouts for my poor arms. And thumbs... I challenge anyone to thumb wrestle me now.
Recordings from the concert:
Tico Tico, arranged by Trevor
Smoke Gets In Your Eyes, arr. by Trevor
Of course December flew by and before we knew it, Christmas had arrived. On Christmas Eve, we had a lunch (or feast, rather) at the Old Dairy then went to Trevor and Dot's for drinks, games, and a movie. Christmas day was spent at Trevor and Dot's and I think we all ate three times our weight in delicious food. New favorite Christmas things: mulled wine, minced pies, Christmas pudding and Christmas crackers. I will never again have a Christmas meal without Christmas crackers.
Adrian, Kristin, Jhen Wei and I celebrated the New Year at the Bowl Inn Pub in Hastingliegh. The party was pirate-themed, and some people had some very convincing costumes. We, however, had none, so we were kindly supplied with some plastic pirate hats and eye patches. :)
Since then, it's been back to work. A few exciting things are coming up though. This week a few of us are spending a few days in London for a bit of a "vacation". We plan to go to the Tower of London, the British Museum, the Wallace Collection, Buckingham Pallace and perhaps a few more places. In February, Jhen Wei and I are doing the British Flute Society competition and after that, we are all going to Wales for a pedagogy class with Julie Wright. I'm especially looking forward to that! So, the next few weeks look quite busy... I expect these last two months to fly by. I can't believe we only have about 9 weeks left here! I am looking forward to seeing my friends and family back home though. Also - the first meal I eat when I get home is going to be something fried, greasy, and served with cornbread. I never thought I'd miss southern cookin' (yes, cookin') so much!
Other than that, I've just been practicing. Lots of practicing... : ) But in an effort to avoid going crazy from so much flute playing, I have been enjoying a few normal-life activities. I've been running a lot recently, I just finished watching the Mad Men series (so good!) and now I am reading all the Harry Potter books. I've somehow managed to see only one of the movies and I read a few of the books years and years ago, so I think it's time to see what this Harry Potter is all about...
Alright, well now that I'm all caught up with what's been happening here in England, I plan to start blogging again - and more than once every six weeks! : )
We're going to London tomorrow very early for a class with Robert Winn at RAM, so it's bedtime for me.
~ Jenny
Actually, no. Wait. I will write briefly about what's happened these past few weeks:
We went to Rome for the Italian Flute Convention. Ate lots of pasta and gelato, heard some good flute playing (Emily Beynon, Juliette Hurel, Silvia Careddu, Matthias Ziegler), saw the Colesseum, Spanish Steps, Trevi Fountain (and more) and of course managed to do a bit of shopping. : )
Shortly after the trip to Rome, Trevor had a hip replacement, and of course since he is Trevor, he was up and about only days after the surgery. Back to kicking students in no time, which we all expected. While he was in the hospital, William Bennett, Rachel Brown and Ian Clarke came to the Studio to teach class. Three wonderful classes - all very different, too. I especially liked Rachel Brown.
We then had the Christmas concert at the Hastingliegh Church, which went very well. We played quite a lot of music and had a good time rehearsing and putting the concert together. I played bass flute for most of the concert, so our three hour rehearsals were more like three hour workouts for my poor arms. And thumbs... I challenge anyone to thumb wrestle me now.
Recordings from the concert:
Tico Tico, arranged by Trevor
Smoke Gets In Your Eyes, arr. by Trevor
Of course December flew by and before we knew it, Christmas had arrived. On Christmas Eve, we had a lunch (or feast, rather) at the Old Dairy then went to Trevor and Dot's for drinks, games, and a movie. Christmas day was spent at Trevor and Dot's and I think we all ate three times our weight in delicious food. New favorite Christmas things: mulled wine, minced pies, Christmas pudding and Christmas crackers. I will never again have a Christmas meal without Christmas crackers.
Adrian, Kristin, Jhen Wei and I celebrated the New Year at the Bowl Inn Pub in Hastingliegh. The party was pirate-themed, and some people had some very convincing costumes. We, however, had none, so we were kindly supplied with some plastic pirate hats and eye patches. :)
Since then, it's been back to work. A few exciting things are coming up though. This week a few of us are spending a few days in London for a bit of a "vacation". We plan to go to the Tower of London, the British Museum, the Wallace Collection, Buckingham Pallace and perhaps a few more places. In February, Jhen Wei and I are doing the British Flute Society competition and after that, we are all going to Wales for a pedagogy class with Julie Wright. I'm especially looking forward to that! So, the next few weeks look quite busy... I expect these last two months to fly by. I can't believe we only have about 9 weeks left here! I am looking forward to seeing my friends and family back home though. Also - the first meal I eat when I get home is going to be something fried, greasy, and served with cornbread. I never thought I'd miss southern cookin' (yes, cookin') so much!
Other than that, I've just been practicing. Lots of practicing... : ) But in an effort to avoid going crazy from so much flute playing, I have been enjoying a few normal-life activities. I've been running a lot recently, I just finished watching the Mad Men series (so good!) and now I am reading all the Harry Potter books. I've somehow managed to see only one of the movies and I read a few of the books years and years ago, so I think it's time to see what this Harry Potter is all about...
Alright, well now that I'm all caught up with what's been happening here in England, I plan to start blogging again - and more than once every six weeks! : )
We're going to London tomorrow very early for a class with Robert Winn at RAM, so it's bedtime for me.
~ Jenny
30 November, 2011
november 30
I know, I know, I know.... I haven't written in almost a whole month, but you'll have to forgive me. I've been more than just a little busy, so blog writing hasn't made its way to a high enough position in my to-do lists. But I am back and ready to blog! Yay!
I got back to England on Monday, and after about a week and a half away from my flute, getting back to 5+ hours of practice a day is proving quite difficult. Being jet-lagged doesn't help this either... But it's all okay because......... WE'RE GOING TO ROME TOMORROW!
I guess I don't have too much to write about right now since I've been in the States since November 16th. For those who don't know, my dad was not doing well so I went home to see him and to be home for Thanksgiving. I was lucky to get to Memphis just in time to see him for about an hour before he passed away. Honestly, I did not know I was going home to see him for such a short time and then go to his funeral, but I am so thankful that I could see him for even a short time. So, needless to say, things have been tough. My mom and I are very lucky to have some really wonderful friends who have been overwhelmingly generous to us these past several days, and that makes everything so much better. So, thanks, friends. : )
But back to happy things... like ROME. We are going for the Italian Flute Convention and of course to do a bit of touristy things... and eating. I fully intend on eating a lot of delicious food and drinking a lot of coffee. And of course some good wine, too. My camera battery is charged, so be ready for way too many pictures. I'm sure I will have some good stories to write about when I am back, too. Hopefully none of them will involve missing train stops and catching rides from strangers. But who knows?? Oh. And scooters. I must ride a scooter while I'm there (or at least take a picture next to one...I'll take what I can get). And I'll need a cute scarf of course.... oooh, can't wait!
Alright, I'm all excited now so I'm going to go start packing. I can't concentrate anymore (this is also because I just got back from class. Class + my brain = mush). I will write again soon!
~ Jenny
07 November, 2011
november 7
9 hours of sleep....check.
1 cup of delicious coffee + hot chocolate....check.
Time to blog!
Well, it's here and here to stay I believe -- the weather, that is. It's grey (gray?), damp, a bit dreary, and getting rather cold. For the past couple of days, it's been getting dark by around 4:45 and I think someone told me that in the middle of winter it can be dark by 3! That will take some getting used to....
Oh! I have a story for you! On Friday, Adrian and I, once again, went to Just Flutes in London. Trevor took us to the train station in Wye Friday morning and asked when we'd be getting back so he'd know when to pick us up. We thought we'd be back around 4 or 5, but we weren't sure. Trevor said anytime was fine as long as we didn't call between 6 and 6:30, when he's eating dinner.
So we went to Just Flutes and while Adrian played flutes for a few hours, I walked around East Croydon, went to the market and got my hair cut. (Hair cuts are so expensive here!) Several hours later, we got lunch at Wagamama and then headed back to the center of London to do just a tiny bit of shopping. We wanted to get Trevor a small gift for driving us to and from the station so much recently. So, going to the center of the city on a Friday afternoon was maybe not the best idea because it took WAY longer than we'd anticipated. But we got his gift and headed back to St. Pancras and then back to Wye....
And this is where the story really starts.
To get back to Wye, you have to take a train from London to the station in Ashford and transfer to another train to get to Wye which takes about 7 minutes. Once we made it to Ashford, Adrian called Trevor to tell him we were almost back to Wye. At this point, it was about 7 pm, quite a bit later than 4 or 5, but we didn't know we were really supposed to be back earlier. So, Trevor was not so happy with us... On the train back to Wye, Adrian and I were of course panicking, realizing we were about to be in trouble with Trevor. We were frantically discussing what to say to him, who would say it, how we would say it... but thankfully we did have a gift for him!
Well, as we were occupied with worry, it seems we missed all the announcements saying that to get off at Wye, we needed to be in the front four cabins of the train. We weren't. Not even close.
The train stopped, we looked at each other confused, and then realized we were about to miss our stop, with Trevor waiting to pick us up. Wonderful... So we, along with two other passengers, ran like crazy people to the first four cabins, pushing people out of the way, panicking... You know in movies when everything happens in slow motion and everything is silent except for the person yelling "NoooOoooOOOOOoOOOOOOOOOOooOooO!!!"? (That sentence was poorly constructed, but whatever. You get the picture.) Well that's exactly what happened. It was terrifying.
Did we make it?
No.
So now we were not only in trouble for being late, but also for being dumb and missing our stop. We had to go to the next station in Chilham, which was not too terribly far away. The other man who missed the stop in Wye called his wife to come pick him up and offered us a ride back to Wye. We accepted his offer because he was clearly not going to kidnap us, so don't worry, parents, if you're reading this. His wife and her friend came and all 5 of us crammed into her tiny European car and drove back to Wye. She offered to take us back to the Old Dairy, which saved us at least 50 pounds. And as it turns out, Trevor wasn't even mad at us....
All's well that ends well.
Oh, and one more very important part of the story: The man who offered us a ride from Chilham to Wye was probably the most attractive person in the world AND HE HAD A BRITISH ACCENT. A real life Hugh Grant, but without all the bad things about Hugh Grant.
And Saturday, November 5th, we went to a huge bonfire/fireworks show nearby to celebrate Guy Fawks night. It's a tradition to have a bonfire and burn an effigy of Guy Fawks, a member of the Gunpowder Plot in 1605. They tried to blow up the House of Lords, but were stopped, which is why people celebrate the day. I think I got that right... I could be wrong, but I'm going to go on and just pretend that's accurate...
And today is practice, practice, practice... the usual.
I think that's all I have to write about this morning. And I need another cup of coffee, so I'm going to stop here.
:)
PS - Please just ignore any silly typos I make... because apparently I make a lot of them. I keep finding them and it's embarrassing... :)
1 cup of delicious coffee + hot chocolate....check.
Time to blog!
Well, it's here and here to stay I believe -- the weather, that is. It's grey (gray?), damp, a bit dreary, and getting rather cold. For the past couple of days, it's been getting dark by around 4:45 and I think someone told me that in the middle of winter it can be dark by 3! That will take some getting used to....
Oh! I have a story for you! On Friday, Adrian and I, once again, went to Just Flutes in London. Trevor took us to the train station in Wye Friday morning and asked when we'd be getting back so he'd know when to pick us up. We thought we'd be back around 4 or 5, but we weren't sure. Trevor said anytime was fine as long as we didn't call between 6 and 6:30, when he's eating dinner.
So we went to Just Flutes and while Adrian played flutes for a few hours, I walked around East Croydon, went to the market and got my hair cut. (Hair cuts are so expensive here!) Several hours later, we got lunch at Wagamama and then headed back to the center of London to do just a tiny bit of shopping. We wanted to get Trevor a small gift for driving us to and from the station so much recently. So, going to the center of the city on a Friday afternoon was maybe not the best idea because it took WAY longer than we'd anticipated. But we got his gift and headed back to St. Pancras and then back to Wye....
And this is where the story really starts.
To get back to Wye, you have to take a train from London to the station in Ashford and transfer to another train to get to Wye which takes about 7 minutes. Once we made it to Ashford, Adrian called Trevor to tell him we were almost back to Wye. At this point, it was about 7 pm, quite a bit later than 4 or 5, but we didn't know we were really supposed to be back earlier. So, Trevor was not so happy with us... On the train back to Wye, Adrian and I were of course panicking, realizing we were about to be in trouble with Trevor. We were frantically discussing what to say to him, who would say it, how we would say it... but thankfully we did have a gift for him!
Well, as we were occupied with worry, it seems we missed all the announcements saying that to get off at Wye, we needed to be in the front four cabins of the train. We weren't. Not even close.
The train stopped, we looked at each other confused, and then realized we were about to miss our stop, with Trevor waiting to pick us up. Wonderful... So we, along with two other passengers, ran like crazy people to the first four cabins, pushing people out of the way, panicking... You know in movies when everything happens in slow motion and everything is silent except for the person yelling "NoooOoooOOOOOoOOOOOOOOOOooOooO!!!"? (That sentence was poorly constructed, but whatever. You get the picture.) Well that's exactly what happened. It was terrifying.
Did we make it?
No.
So now we were not only in trouble for being late, but also for being dumb and missing our stop. We had to go to the next station in Chilham, which was not too terribly far away. The other man who missed the stop in Wye called his wife to come pick him up and offered us a ride back to Wye. We accepted his offer because he was clearly not going to kidnap us, so don't worry, parents, if you're reading this. His wife and her friend came and all 5 of us crammed into her tiny European car and drove back to Wye. She offered to take us back to the Old Dairy, which saved us at least 50 pounds. And as it turns out, Trevor wasn't even mad at us....
All's well that ends well.
Oh, and one more very important part of the story: The man who offered us a ride from Chilham to Wye was probably the most attractive person in the world AND HE HAD A BRITISH ACCENT. A real life Hugh Grant, but without all the bad things about Hugh Grant.
And Saturday, November 5th, we went to a huge bonfire/fireworks show nearby to celebrate Guy Fawks night. It's a tradition to have a bonfire and burn an effigy of Guy Fawks, a member of the Gunpowder Plot in 1605. They tried to blow up the House of Lords, but were stopped, which is why people celebrate the day. I think I got that right... I could be wrong, but I'm going to go on and just pretend that's accurate...
And today is practice, practice, practice... the usual.
I think that's all I have to write about this morning. And I need another cup of coffee, so I'm going to stop here.
:)
PS - Please just ignore any silly typos I make... because apparently I make a lot of them. I keep finding them and it's embarrassing... :)
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