Fortune in Misfortune

I should not be here right now. Were this the first Friday in July of any other year, I'd be sitting on a stage in a park overlooking water, playing music as the sun set. Just last Tuesday I went to the first rehearsal for this band but, as I mentioned in Wednesday's(creepy-in-hindsight) post, band is on hold. My dad spoke with one of his friends and a fellow alumnus in the band yesterday, and it doesn't look as though things will be starting up any time soon. Another band member offered to supply music from another band he plays in, but the school district wouldn't allow it. Not only will they not allow us to rehearse in the school, but our conductor is a teacher there and if he were to continue conducting, even in another location with someone else's music, they would FIRE him.

Layoffs and other budget cuts are not uncommon in the business world, and it's really sad to see it hit a high school, to see music considered expendable. The concerts in the park were free, and generated no revenue for the school. Any donations people made voluntarily to the committee members went toward the maintenance of the bandshell at the park where we played. The only thing this band benefitted for the school were its STUDENTS, the young musicians who would continue to play in the Summer with their band leader, continue learning from a great teacher and continue having motivation to practice instead of putting their instruments aside for three months. The only asset the school gained was better musicians, but there was no dollar value on their students, no benefit with which to balance their budget.

Kids grew up in that band. They went on to college, to get scholarships because of their music. My own high school didn't have a Summer program but because my dad's offered one, I was able to stay in shape year-round. Playing music paid for HALF my college tuition, so I don't consider the arts any more expendable than sports. The kids from this school went off to college, but came back every year. Some even went on to become teachers. People of all ages were a part of this band. My dad and some of his friends graduated from the high school over FIFTY years ago. The location had changed a few times over the decades but it's not a building that makes a band; it's the people.

I must admit to feeling a certain guilty relief in everyone else's misfortune. Throughout the month of July I'll be active with three of the paying bands I play for, and I'm facing an insanely busy month at my regular job. I'm barely keeping up with my responsibilities there and if I work late every night of the week I might just keep my head above water. Having to leave on time three nights of the week for band would have meant staying later the other two, and in all of that there would be no time for the gym to alleviate stress. This past week I didn't make it to the gym once, and it's starting to show. Last night my mom guessed what I must weigh now and when I got out a scale to prove her wrong, found her estimate was only off by one pound, and it's the most I've ever weighed. Of course, if she's concerned about me being overweight she probably shouldn't buy 10 mini apple pies just because they're on sale, or cookies, or cheese puffs. My dad shouldn't make me have second helpings of pasta just because he doesn't want to put too many jars back in the refrigerator. That's a hazard of being Italian.

I remember one year when the 4th fell on a Friday. I’d taken my girlfriend and her sister to a barbecue thrown by a coworker who lived up the road from a beach. It was a good day, but then we had to rush back so I could get ready for the concert. I’d taken my own car so after the show I politely said goodbye to my aunts and uncle who had come to the performance, and tried to get the girls back to the barbecue in time to see fireworks. Unfortunately, our coworker lived in an isolated beach town with one road in or out of it, and we sat in traffic for an hour, arriving after the last of the fireworks had fizzled.

Tonight would have been our first concert, and I would have had three more weeks of band. Now the only work I'm facing on this long weekend is an un-mown lawn and a 2-mile parade on Monday with the fire department band. As far as my day job is concerned, I think I can get back on track without working more than an extra hour each night, which means I'll have time for the gym this month after all. I can't remember the last time I was this at ease on a Fourth of July weekend. Last night, on a Film Geeks recommendation I checked out Romeo is Bleeding, which was everything Darrell said it was and more. I have a greater appreciation of Lena Olin's Alias role now as well--J.J. Abrams must have seen Romeo is Bleeding, although Mona Demarkov is far more crafty and extreme than Irina Derevko. This afternoon I finally saw Mad Max which gave me a new appreciation for the extent of Mel Gibson's career, then Spanglish which gave me a new appreciation for Adam Sandler's range as well as James L. Brooks' gift for blending laughter and tears and making me relate to people I couldn't possibly relate to. I'm not a wealthy nice-guy chef and good father, nor a single hispanic mother, nor a borderline alcoholic old lady who once had a singing career, nor an overweight self-conscious teenage girl, nor any of the other characters in this movie, but I still felt what they felt, smiled when they smiled, and felt sad when they felt sad. It wasn't a bad flick at all.

Today was a good day. Besides watching some good movies, I went for a drive in a light sun-shower, something we've experienced a few times this week. Sun-showers rule. I feel bad, really bad, about what's happened with the community band and if they can't find a way to reassemble in the next three weeks, I hope they find a way to come back next year. It's bad for all involved but for me it isn't as bad. This month, this year, I could use the break.