I have some jobs.

My room looks as though a tornado ripped through it. You can tell its Friday. Not only should I be cleaning my room, I should do my laundry, go grocery shopping, take a shower, do some work, pay some bills...all that stuff I've been meaning to do all week but just haven't gotten to yet. I just can't do it. Not yet. I need to decompress. Today I was on campus from 8:30 to 5:00, and none of that time was spent doing work in the library, like I wish it had been. What was I doing with my time then, you may ask? Well, let's see. 4 and a half hours were spent in class, one of which included an exam (already!), and the other 4 hours were spent with a violin in hand. 4 hours with a violin in hand? I know! Well, I have a new job. Well actually, two new jobs, only one of which requires the violin. I didn't go looking for this job by any means. The job came to me and I accepted reluctantly, but only because I have a violin and there is money involved. My orchestra conductor conducts a conducting class for an hour and a half three times a week and he needed individuals to play in a "laboratory orchestra" that his students could conduct. How could I pass up being in a "laboratory orchestra"? Sounds like we're going to be doing fun and sciency things. So basically, I get paid to go to a class I don't get credit for and play the violin. Its really really interesting. These kids have never conducted before so when they approach the podium they look like they're going to vomit or die, or vomit and then die. It's really kind of cute, if you can imagine. They're fun. They have no idea what they're doing. I'm learning so much though - there is a lot more that goes into conducting than you would ever imagine, and this is coming from a musician of 15 yrs! The downside to my job is that I have to practice all the music, and that eats up a lot of my time. Then, because my orchestra conductor is a rather unpleasant fellow, I have to play in a chamber ensemble to fulfill a requirement of our orchestra class (a class I'm actually enrolled in as a student), but my job doesn't count as the chamber music portion. So, that's an extra hour a week of violining, plus practice time. Now you can see why I spent 4 hrs today with a violin in my hand. That ensemble met today too. There are 7 of us, and I'm the only senior, so everyone is looking to me for direction. Too bad they don't know yet that I'm the laziest violin player ever and will be practically of no use to them. I hate responsibility.

My other job is fun too. I tutor an older woman in French. A senior French Major tutored her last year, and another the year before that, so this is my lucky year. She's pretty much precious. She told me she's been struggling with the language for 30 yrs. All of that time she was teaching herself out of various text books, and while she can read and write decently, she's not so good on the speaking end of things. She is a piano teacher and has a few beginner books in French, so I told her I play a little piano and that next week I want her to conduct a lesson in French with me as her student. I'm looking forward to that. I'm sure I'll have more to say about that next week.

So, those are my jobs. I'm keeping busy, that's for sure. I'm kinda ready for a break already. Good thing its the weekend.