Day 181: The End

I finished. I am done. There a nothing left here besides graduation. I have no forced connection here. My end here is almost done. I only await for graduation. I have ran my course. I have done as much as I can, and all that I have done is much more than most others here at this school will ever do, or dream to do. I am privileged to have gone to this school, to meet the people that I have met, to make the friends that I have now, and live the life that I have lived in my four years here. To those reading this, I thank you, thank you for allowing me to share this year with you, thank you for listening to me complain day in and day out. Thank you for being the one that knew everything and that I trusted in. You were there for me always. Thank you stranger. Thank you.

I promise to post two more times after this. An epilogue, one this Saturday and one right before I leave for college.

And with this, I say "Goodbye", and "Good luck".

Godspeed, my friends.

Day 180: Chance Music

This is how they do it in Russia. Throwing up the horns. So metal.

When we listen to music, we listen selectively. Everything goes in and for the most part we select the parts that we listen in our heads. There are certain types of music in which the point is that you listen and key on into a part the music that you only hear and that cannot be played the same way. This is called Chance Music. It is quite akin to a raga. In my theory class we all wrote a measure and then we all combined our measures together into a piece. You take the piece one measure at a time. You are given a tempo and you take you can repeat a measure as many times as you want and then when you feel like it is time to move to the next you do, but you cannot go back to the previous measure. This way no one is on the same measure at the same time and you have people going in between different keyboard instruments and this piece that cannot be played the same way again is born.

I see this piece as a way of moving on. You take each measure one a time and you repeat them again and again until you move on. To me, this is how I am able to move on. When I feel it is time to move on and I come to terms with myself, or the measure, then I move on. The psychological aspect is beyond me.

I am ready for my last day tomorrow, but I must steel myself, for tomorrow will be a long day.

179: Pins

Left to Right: Chris, Jose, Kevin(me), Simon, Isela, Ben, and Ian.

I have many things that I can show for my years in Music: Carnegie Hall, Kennedy Center, NorCal Honor Choir Medal, etc. For all of my efforts, I have been awarded, for each of the groups I have been in, I have received a pin: Band, Jazz Band, Pit Orchestra, and Choir. Like a soldier who wears his or her medals in honor, on graduation I get to proudly wear mine to show for my dedication to Music.

Day 178: The Letter A

Ash Jong-il

Let me tell you about the United States Government. Article One of the United States Constitution tells us the powers of Congress. Now take that fact, and tell it to yourself three times, or more if you wish. Make a test about the United States Government and make as many questions about that one statement. Then make the rest of the questions have the answers all be "A". That was my Government final.

Easiest. Test. Ever.

Another word that starts with the letter A is asthma. I was diagnosed with asthma today. I have to have two inhalers. The first a steroid that I must take every morning and night and my other is my rescue inhaler. This is part of my life now.

Day 177: I Wish To Take It All Back

I want to take it back. A lot of things back. I am not saying I have regrets, but a redo would be nice right now.

Today was the Poetry Slam, more specifically, the "Senior Slam". That is where are all of the senior poets come in and say some kind of deep poem. I finished mine 15 minutes before the poetry slam. It was 12 lines long and it was stupid. I feel so bad about it.

This is a goodbye
I was hoping to make it cliche
I have a massive headache
Mr. VanEyken, is my rhyming OK?

I wanted to say I love you
And all of those cutsie things
My brain still hurts
We are all word smithing kings

So basically I love you all
I am cutting you all down with my poetic scythe
Je suis mal a la tete
Have a wonderful life.

Please invent a time machine so that I correct this mistake. Someone after the Poetry Slam in my French class told me that of all of the poems, mine was the most unmoving. I feel so bad about this. I really had a headache and I made myself look like a fool, as I usually do.

I feel horrible remembering it. Good job, me.

Day 176: Drum Circles and Conducting

My hands hurt. I think I legitimately bruised my hand. We have been having drum circles all day. I have been leading them on Djimbe. We tried to go through different styles of drum circling and in the end we ended up going African to Latin and then we settled on Native American. We did Native American chant and it was so cool to be able to lead that. I want more, but I should let my hands recover.

I conducted in Wind today. I am slowly growing to dislike conducting that group. They are so unruly and judgmental. They hardly ever listen to a word I say so in the end I look like an *insert curse word here* to them. The only sections that listen to me all the way are the Percussionist. They are the good children, maybe the flutes, but they gossip and hardly listen. They follow me well, but meh. The group almost refused to play unless we played these two songs that they requested. I hate how they never listen to me. It irritates me so. I understand Mr.A and his frustrations so much. They always say how stressed he is and how he is so mean, it is not his fault, it is our fault.

I have to conduct again tomorrow. Great.

Day 175: Make Our Garden Grow

Think of a plant. Most plants have roots, a trunk, and leaves and flowers. If you cut the leaves and the flowers, most of the time they grow back. If you cut the trunk, the plant will be stuck there and no flowers and leaves will ever grow. Not imagine if you ripped out the roots, then the plants die. Apply this to Music programs across California, where Music programs are cut. Some High Schools(Leaves and Flowers) lack a program. Some Junior Highs(The Stem) lack a program. Some Elementary Schools(roots) lack a program. Think of everything as a garden. We are the garden and slowly but surely the garden is dying. If something is not done about saving the garden, then our garden will die. There will be no more Music.

I will get off my high horse now.

Also, today was my last concert as a high school Senior.