First Published: 2019 January 26
I learned that for a class I am taking about historical improvisation, I need to learn continuo.1 As is to be expected, most of this is scarcely notated, with the assumption that it’ll be composed to fit the performer that day. Unfortunately, as I mentioned to the professor, keyboards and I are not friends.
So, I proposed that I could do continuo on the gothic harp, as I know how to play it.2 But, the gothic harp, as one might expect, is not a chromatic instrument. It has seven notes to an octave, which can be tuned. However, that’s really hard to do in the moment. Hypothetically, I could use my opposite hand to raise a note, but that’s apparently not allowed, as continuo playing needs both. This means that I’ll be learning continuo this semester.
First Published: 2019 January 24
I learned two new dives! 4041 on one meter, and 4052 on three meter. They went varyingly well, depending on how well I jumped. But, they’re both in for this weekend, which is terrifying and exciting.
First Published: 2019 January 22
The last day of break always fills me with mixed emotions. On one hand, it’s always a change, which is scary. On the other, I really miss academics, and the pressure of needing to accomplish tasks. So, I tend to feel mixed, though more positively than negatively.
First Published: 2019 January 21
John 2:3-5: “When the wine ran short, the mother of Jesus said to him, ‘They have no wine.’ Jesus said to her, ‘Woman, how does your concern affect me? My hour has not yet come.’ His mother said to the servers, ‘Do whatever he tells you.’”
Today’s readings are a set that my family has always enjoyed. Mostly, it’s due to the non-sequitur in the Gospel. Mary says that there’s no wine, Jesus says it isn’t his problem, and then solves it anyways.
It also leads nicely into the joke I’ve always enjoyed telling friends when they ask why Mary is such a big deal in the Catholic Church.1 Jesus is a good Jewish boy. Good Jewish boys listen to their mother. Mary loves us and listens to all of our prayers. So, if you pray to Mary, Jesus has to listen.
Of course, I have no idea how accurate this joke is theologically, but I hope.
other than the whole mother goddess being adopted from prior pagan traditions↩︎
First Published: 2019 January 21
Today I pr’d again, though by far less. My coach says I missed my entries, which is true.
First Published: 2019 January 18
I pr’d by 50 points in diving today, which was approximately 17%! I’m very excited about this.
First Published: 2019 January 18
Today, I got to watch my little brother at one of his last high school swim meets. During it, he lost his goggles as he started his 100 butterfly. And then he set a new personal best, by a not-insignificant margin. It’s sad when that happens, because now there’s an incentive to dive goggleless.
First Published: 2019 January 16
Sometimes people fall behind. I am a person. Therefore sometimes I fall behind. Such is the nature of life.
First Published: 2019 January 16
As I mentioned a little bit ago, bus rides make it hard for me to focus. When the bus is totally full, as it was, I find myself completely unable to be productive. So, sadly, the posts were not written. C’est la vie.1
la vie↩
First Published: 2019 January 13
We’re getting ready to return to Grinnell. As a result, we decided to clear out our food. We had around two pounds of bread, a pound of brown sugar, salt,1 and a packet of yeast. So, I decided to make bread.
With the one packet of yeast added to most of the flour, I dumped in the very precise measurements of “some” salt and brown sugar. That being accomplished,2 I added water to the flour. As I realized that there was still far too much flour, I found out we also had extra milk. So, I added more flour, and I3 added milk to the flour, and continued to work.
I then got bored while kneading, so picked up the dough and kneaded as I walked and visited other rooms. After letting it rise for 2.5 hours,4 I rekneaded, and let rest for the entirely unreasonable length of 3 minutes.5 I put it in the oven and walked away for ten minutes.
When I returned, the bread looked more like a cake. It had risen quite nicely. Of course, it wasn’t browning, even after 30 minutes, so I bumped the temp from 350 to 400.6 It still didn’t brown, but did turn a nice light brown colour.7
Reviews from housemates were positive. As for myself, I’d give it a solid neutral. As my father would say, “c’est la vie.”8
stolen from another room↩︎
sometimes Latin class pops up in the worst ways↩︎
I’ve been told I comma splice, so rather than change the problem, I just make sure to have more independent clauses↩︎
I was so forgetful↩︎
I’m impatient↩︎
F because I love small changes and hate water-based systems↩︎
wow that’s a bad sentence. Also, a break was taken before writing this sentence because I realized I’d forgotten the bread in the oven↩︎
la vee↩︎