March 28, 2009 at 3:38 pm · Filed under Life
Last Thursday was my second piano recital since I started taking lessons last April (wow, nearly a year has gone by!). I was pretty nervous again, but not as bad as last time. I made some mistakes (including completely demolishing the ending to the first piece), but overall it was really pretty good. By the time I got to my last piece, there were a few parts where I felt like I was actually able to play with feeling and convey some emotional meaning instead of concentrating only on the notes.
And for those of you who weren’t able to make it, here are some recordings I made at home of the pieces I played:
Chopin – Prelude in C minor
Bach – Invention 1
Beethoven – Fur Elise
March 22, 2009 at 3:10 pm · Filed under Life
Last month, I went to go visit Spence in Seattle. It was really great to hang out (I hadn’t seen him since graduation) and to finally meet Theresa, his girlfriend. I also really enjoyed the city of Seattle. It’s extremely scenic (mountains and water everywhere you turn!), and the city itself was very clean and inviting.
Spence and Theresa did a fine job of showing me around the city. We visited several parks, including Gas Works Park and Volunteer Park. I really liked how Gas Works incorporated the old industrial elements of the site into the park. Some of the old machinery was even turned into a playground!
After that, we went to the Pike Place Market. I’ve heard that the fish market has some really interesting fish-throwing vendors, but when we were there, they apparently weren’t in a fish-throwing mood. Oh well. We did get to see some pretty cool street musicians. But, the real highlight of the market for me was finding some Romanesco brocolli. It’s a fractal veggie! We enjoyed eating it over the next few days. The taste is very similar to normal broccoli, but maybe not quite as strong. Goes great with a ranch dip.
The next day, we took the ferry to Bainbridge Island. Those ferries are pretty nice! They’ve got a bar, a cafeteria, tons of indoor and outdoor seating, and even Internet access. I wouldn’t mind having a ferry as a part of my morning commute. Once we arrived at Bainbridge Island, we quickly discovered that it’s mostly a tourist trap. But we did find a nice yarn and tea shop and a trail to walk along the water. The best part was just hanging out. That evening, we returned to Seattle and went to go see Slumdog Millionaire. I really can’t recommend that film enough. But, it’s one of those movies where it’s best if you go in not knowing anything about it. So, I won’t say anything more.
On my final full day there, Theresa, Spence, and I drove a ways out from Seattle and hiked up Rattlesnake Ledge. It was yet another stunning example of Washington’s beauty. I was surprised how many people were on the trail. It wasn’t a particularly easy trail (we were all pretty tired when we got back), but we were constantly passing lots of people, many of them with dogs or kids. I guess Washington folks really like their nature!
On Sunday morning, right before I had to go to the airport, Spence took me to Teacup, a tea shop in Seattle. It was awesome! The atmosphere was perfect (not overly frilly, but still fancy), and the tea was superb. I asked if they had any Darjeeling, and the lady at the counter pulled out canisters from 3 or 4 different estates, as well as a house blend, and then proceeded to tell me the differences between all of them! I chose the Margaret’s Hope estate (mostly just because I’d heard of it before), and it was perfect. I’m not used to other people being as passionate about tea as I am, and the people at this place are even more passionate than I am. Maybe I should move to Seattle and get a job there!
More Seattle Pictures
Hi there. My name is Curtis Hawthorne, but most of my friends call me Fjord.