Good Sunday Practice

Monday, May. 04, 2009 - 2:31 a.m.

Yesterday, my hair was frizzy before I left home.

It got frizzier in the snotty fog we were having, when I left the car to walk to the Ferry Building.

The snotty fog kind of yielded for a few moments, so I boarded the inside deck of the Ferry with not so much frizz and smears on my glasses.

However, once we got on the ferry and neared Vallejo, much hell was to be had, thanks to the participants of the Great Vallejo Race.

Most of the boats observed the meeting and passing courtesies, but at least one of them was nearly capsized in the wash of the ferry, despite the fact that the rules of the road are common knowledge and expected to be followed.

If you own a yacht and don't know your left from your right, hire a crew that does. Please.

Otherwise, things like the Ferry staff member yelling "Oh geez, what an ASSHOLE" at the nearly-colliding seacraft will keep happening.

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But somehow, the painicked but exemplary crew managed to avoid trouble and we docked.

I disembarked, Alan found me just fine, and he listened to me decompress during the drive back to Vacaville.

As is fairly often the case during the drive, I also subjected him to the contents of my iPod.

There were songs from the band's set list, plus a few others, and the drive was quick. He made a side trip to try and stop by his favorite little music store, but, rats, it's closed on Sundays now.

So we went through the St@rbux drive-thru and 'feened up and headed to his place for practice.

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When I got there, I was greeted by Miranda, who was home sick from school last week with That Other Thing That's Been Going Around That Isn't The Swine Flu But Makes Everything Inside Somebody That Isn't Fastened Down Leave From The Attic Or The Basement At Speeds Equal To Or Greater Than Those Expected To Be Achieved By The Hadron Collider When The Darn Thing Gets Fixed.

But she's feeling better, and approached me with a bag from Disneyland.

Alan and Deanna had gone down there for a weekender, and they'd gotten something for me!

The fact that they'd had time to do this was lovely, but the gifts themselves were so perfect that perfect doesn't even begin to cover it.

Alan had chosen a pair of classic, wear-with-anything birthstone earrings for me -- and Dee had chosen a charm bracelet.

She had no way of knowing this, but a bracelet, specifically a charm bracelet, was always the gift of choice among the women in my immediate family. When my mother died, my father gave me her jewel box, and her charm bracelets are the most valuable items of jewelry I possess, based on the history they hold.

I now own a silver charm bracelet with a rhinestone Mickey Mouse, and from now on, I'll investigate the charms available whenever I go to the House Of Mouse.

And Miranda was the first person to fasten it around my wrist. Too cool.

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Drummer Tom and Guitar Kevin arrived, and soon, practice began. Mike Bassist had a gig, so he couldn't join us that day.

This time, my background vocals were not quite so murky; my strategy was twofold:. 1. Hold the microphone in my hand and put the darn thing right on my mouth instead of singing into it while it's dangling off of the end of a stick, and 2. Sing the living daylights out of everything, starting from the diaphragm and pray like crazy that the high notes don't crack like safety glass.

Rumors indicate that everybody there actually heard me this time. :-)

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Anyway, after practice ended officially, Alan and I dithered around with a few more songs and then had dinner and headed out.

Traffic was merciful and the scenery was as scenic as usual, and the drive was safe.

Thanks to Alan and Deanna and the girls and the band -- twas a great visit and a great practice.

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That's it. Have a nice Monday.

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