Em N Ru: World Beat and Errands

Sunday I woke up with a headache, sore muscles, and a cranky attitude. I drove Fred to his stage at world beat and came home to make a delicious breakfast for Ruben and I. I spent some time reading and making a new shopping list template. Ru and I got ready around 2 pm and drove to World Beat where I checked in and got ready to perform. As I waited to perform more of the madrigal ladies came and as we sat in the green room tent we watched a fun group of German dancers called Kleinstadlers. They really got the crowd going doing stunts and their dances were awesome. It was a hard act to follow.

Once on stage they gave us three microphones but only one of them was really hot. Fred said they had the mikes directly hooked up to both the monitors and the mains, with no way to control them separately. I sure wish Fred had been our sound guy. Anyway we kept having feedback issues. There were a few members of the crowd who seemed to enjoy our singing and to me that made it worth it. ne of the singers in my group was upset because there was cigarette smoke drifting past us from somewhere, but there was little to do about it as we were outside. I messed up on the first note of the first song, but other than that I think I did pretty well. Because of the way the mics were set up I don't think the audience even heard the alto section, so it didn't really matter either way if I did good or not.

After the performance Ru and I came back home where we watched part of a movie and made some dinner. Just as we were settling in Fred called to get a ride home. He was expecting the tear down to take a long time but it actually went fairly quickly.

Monday I woke up at 6:30 am. Yes really. I met my friend Elizabeth on Boone Rd. and we walked for an hour around neighborhoods, up hills, down hills, and enjoyed the lovely morning. When I got home I showered and got ready for running errands. We drove to Keizer to get Volcanoes tickets for 4th of July, then we went to PhisiQ fitness to check the place out. Its way cheaper than our old gym, and much much nicer. After the tour we went grocery shopping. It was so nice to have food in the house again! Our next stop was home where we unpacked and then headed for the pool. They increased the temp on the pool at our apartments and Fred and Ru swam while I soaked up some afternoon sun and read a Travis McGee novel.

After the swim Ruben and I pulled out the total gym and worked out while Fred cooked a delicious dinner of corn on the cob and grilled chicken served with salad from our garden.

Today (Tuesday July 1) was finally HOT. We got up early and started cleaning the house. I cooked breakfast and made Ruben's birthday cake for tomorrow. We washed clothes and hung them out to dry. Fred spent a long time watering the garden and plants. By 11:30 it was hot enough outside to close up the house and Ru and I took off. We stopped by Judson so he could get a free lunch then we went shopping for camp. At Big 5 he got a pair of nice sandals and a duffel bag. At WalMart he got all sorts of toiletries and camp items like a flashlight, bug repellent, travel sized deodorant, body wash, soap, and toothpaste. We also got chips and pop for our picnic tomorrow.

After stopping back at PhisiQ to sign up we came home and had our second lunch and watched an episode of Star Trek TNG, still one of my favorite shows. We hit the pool but didn't stay too long, Ru got a headache and there were THREE crying children which made it hard to focus on my book anyway. Ru tried his new migraine nose spray and it worked pretty well. His headache went away quickly, but it made him kind of anxious. We laid down and I read to him while Freddie grilled some hamburgers and stuffed jalepenos.

It was hot today but not unbearable in the apartment, and we stayed pretty cool, especially Ru and I who spent the hottest part of the day in cool stores. We have a fan system that works fairly well to keep the cool air moving around us. Tomorrow is Ruben's 11th birthday and we will beat the heat by going to Silver Falls.