There are lots of activities today.  Judy has a program at school with her choir.  They, of course, had a great performance.  I’ve posted a few pictures from the rehearsal earlier in the week, and the performance today.

Performance pix

I had regular morning classes at BHSFIC.  I had lunch at school, then returned to my classroom to clean up some of the loops on the “Loopy” app.  Back at the apartment later, I reviewed the presentation several times, cutting down the time, and making sure I was familiar with all the technical aspects of using the iPad, with our portable speaker.  There’s nothing worse than watching a performer suffer through “technical difficulties,” punching buttons, and plugging and re-plugging cords.

Around 5:30, Dom and I traveled over to Homeplate BBQ in Sanlitun, where we met Judy, Shannon, and Lara.  Afterwards, we walked 200 yards to “The Bookworm” for the evening’s “fun.”  I checked all my settings, and everything seemed to be working.  The program was called “Bokaupu”, roughly translated as random things.  They weren’t kidding.

The first thing on the program involved audience members shouting out numbers that translated into notes on the piano (C-1, D-2, etc.).  Then the organizer improvised a tune from the selected intervals on piano, and was joined by an oboist, and a performer on French Horn.  Other performers included a pianist, singer, tap dancer, beat boxer, several magicians, and a guy who manipulated a crystal ball while the pianist and others improvised music in the background, as well as my kazoo performance.  Several of the performances were good, but we really enjoyed the crystal ball guy.  As to why I’m doing this……refer back to the blog entry “Me and my big comb”, 9/9/14 for the answer.

The organizer & Master of Ceremonies

Here are a couple of links to videos:

 KAZOO PERFORMANCE –

https://www.dropbox.com/s/hgadszi3j54oht0/Bokaopu.Kazoo.MOV?dl=0CRYSTAL BALL

CRYSTAL BALL PERFORMANCE –

https://www.dropbox.com/s/l4un7zlg1l5eryv/Bokaopu.Crystal%20Ball.MOV?dl=0

Thursday’s are early for me this year, so I head for the train at 6:30 am.  Arriving at school, I have to chase down someone to open my classroom.  They hadn’t given me keys yet, so it takes time before I’m able to set-up for class.  Classes go well.  We’re working on rhythmic reading, and I have their attention right now, especially when I single out individuals for counting.

After class, I begin to work on ideas for my kazoo performance tomorrow night.  I have the rest of the day to kill before Orchestra Club at 4:00.  It’s not going to be good enough to just play a few snippets, so I’m trying to figure out how to get an accompaniment I can play with.

I decide to use “Stars & Stripes Forever”.  I’ve taught it, and worked on it enough times that I have most of the parts memorized.  I start working with an iPad app called “Loopy” to develop some 16 measure percussion and bass loops to accompany the kazoo.  It takes a while for me to figure it out, but I begin to make progress on verbalizing a snare drum and bass drum part, and then singing a bass/tuba line to go along with it.  I have to figure out what key works best for me on kazoo, and then make sure the bass and the chord changes work in a range I can hum it in.  The whole act will only be entertaining if I can get into some extreme low and high ranges in parts of the song.

Along with “Stars & Stripes”, I decide to use a simple “Blues” progression I can improvise on top of.  I setup a second “session” on the Loopy App, and start recording the loops, trying to make sure they’re in tune with each other.  This is way too much work and serves me right for agreeing to do it.

After lunch, I record some loops for Michael Jackson’s “Dirty Diana”, in case the others don’t seem to work.  I’m beginning to get quicker at the recording process.  I don’t sound any better, but it’s happening faster.  Later in the afternoon, I finish up an arrangement of “The Pink Panther” for the Orchestra Club.  I get all the parts edited, printed, and copies ready for the students.

At the rehearsal, we work through our performance piece for the Club Fair next week.  It’s beginning to sound decent (for such an odd/eclectic instrumentation).  Then I passed out Pink Panther, and we began to talk about swing style, etc.  They’re really good students, and a few of them are truly great musicians.  It’s a shame I can’t offer them more.  They are so busy getting ready for all their tests and college entrance exams, they have little time for music.

We had another good day at BISS with the beginners today. I go in later since class doesn’t start until 11:35. As I head out the door, there are lots of UHN workers cleaning the fountain area. They must be getting ready to drain it for the winter.

After they’ve drained and cleaned it up.

I’ve posted a few pix of UHN early in the morning. Judy is out and walking around 5:00 am most mornings. It’s staying dark later each day. It won’t be long before it’ll be pitch dark as she makes her way around the complex.

Beginning Band class went well at BISS today. Students are maintaining their enthusiasm and we’re making slow progress. They’re not allowed to take the instruments home (administrative decision) so there isn’t much practicing outside of class taking place. Judy is opening the room and allowing students to come in during lunch to practice if they want, and she’s had good participation.

I may have created a problem for myself today? Several of the teachers at BHSFIC celebrated a birthday party for one of the new teachers, LaShawna, at “The Veggie Table”, a vegan restaurant. I met them at the restaurant. It’s really close to a train station, so the trip was easy. The food was interesting. I had a “Southwestern Bean Burger”. It was very good.

My Bean Burger

Vegan pastes to spread on bread. Left to right, Hummus, cole slaw, ???, olive, beet

As the dinner finished up, and we were saying our congratulations to LaShawna for her birthday, I pulled a comb out of my bag, a 100rmb bill out of my pocket, and played “Happy Birthday” on my improvised kazoo. As I finished, several people from nearby tables started watching. Eventually, a Chinese man came over, and started enquiring about how I was creating the sound. As we talked, he invited me to perform at a small activity he was having Friday night. I succumbed to pressure from my “friends” at the table and agreed to go.   As the details of the event became clear, I began to regret the decision.

The event was going to be held at “The Bookworm”, a well-known bookstore/performance venue/café in the Sanlitun area. ULP!!! What have I done? Friday night at the Bookworm, and I’m performing on Kazoo? There’s a 100rmb cover charge for the 7:30 pm performance. Oh no! Me and my big mouth (comb)!

Judy came home yesterday, not feeling well. As it turned out, she spent most of the weekend lying in bed, reading, trying to rest and get ready for students next week. She has some kind of a cold, and didn’t feel good all weekend. It ran over into Monday. Luckily, Monday was a holiday (Mid-Autumn Moon Festival), so she didn’t miss any school. The sad thing was the weather was the best we’ve seen since we’ve been back in Beijing. Pollution was the lowest we’ve ever seen it. The skies were crystal clear, and the heat seems to have broken a little.

I did get to Metro on Saturday for some groceries, and visited the wet market Sunday for fruits and vegetables. Monday, Judy went to the dentist. She’s had pain in one of her teeth. The dentist decided an old filling needed some adjusting, and also did a cleaning. She felt much better when the dentist finished. I think she’s ready for the short week ahead of us.

I leave for school at a more leisurely time today. Out the door at 8:15 and I arrived at BHSFIC at 9:15. My commute time hasn’t varied more than 5 minutes any day. Classes go well, and I manage to keep the students engaged.

Lunch is special today due to the upcoming Mid-Autumn Festival holiday. We have some of my personal favorites, as well as orange and apple juice (usually it’s hot water to drink). There are also Moon Cakes to select from for dessert. “Moon Cakes” are everywhere in Beijing, and they’ve been advertising them for a month. There are many types of cakes with many different fillings. It’s a little bit like “fruitcake”, some people love it, and others, not so much. I haven’t really developed a taste for them. Maybe I’ve just had the wrong kind. I have sampled some Starbucks Moon Cakes that were pretty tasty, however.

After lunch I head home. Back at the apartment, I have every intention to go to Metro and get groceries, but it just doesn’t happen. I managed to sit on the couch, and dozed off. When I woke up, the grocery shopping was no longer at the top of my list. I was able to rationalize that it could wait till tomorrow.

Judy gets home early today (4:00 pm). She’s not feeling well. She heads straight to bed. Fortunately for her, today was a professional development day at BISS (no students). She did have to endure several faculty meetings, but survived. After 39 years in the profession, these types of meetings begin to lose their lustre.

Hooray! I’m back to my own classes today. Unfortunately, it’s going to be a long day. I have periods 1 & 2 classes on Thursdays. Period 1 begins at 8:00 am. With the hour commute on the train, and the need to arrive early to make sure everything is ready, I have to leave at 6:30 am. The commute is easier at this time of the morning. I spend about 20 minutes getting the room set-up with the projector and sound hooked up and ready to go.

There are four total classes of 11^th graders (17 students per class). Two are meeting 1^st period, and two are meeting 2^nd period. Thomas Potter, the art teacher and I have to meet the 1^st period combined classes and give them a spiel about our class. Then the students make their choice and off we go to our classes. I end up with 23 students, and 10 go to art. We repeat the process 2^nd period, and I get 24 and he gets 12.

Thomas grew up in San Antonio, and his last teaching position was in Dallas, Oak Cliff. It was a much different scene than the Martin Cluster in Arlington where I’d been teaching. He moved to Beijing last February and began teaching part-time at BHSFIC. They managed to spread him out into enough classes, and even a few technology classes to allow him to be full-time this year. He is living with his girlfriend (now fiancé) from Ireland. They spent 3 weeks this summer touring Southern China and Vietnam. It was more of a bus-riding / hostel sleeping type thing. They got to see a lot that country, up-clase and personal.

After my morning classes, I spent time working in my room, then had lunch at the school. After lunch, I walked across the street to a Starbucks for a needed caffeine “hit”, then back to the school teachers lounge. The administration had asked if I was willing to teach a music elective for interested 10^th graders on Thursdays. The class meets a “double-block” of periods 7 & 8. Today, we get to “sell” our class to all the 10^th graders. There are nine possibilities, ranging from French and Spanish classes, Math Contest, Physics, Confucius, Art, and Psychology (and Music). I put on my best “sell job”, and ended up with no one for my class. I thought I had a few “hooked”, but when the Math Contest guy started talking about traveling to the US for a contest, I knew I was out-matched.

After school, the Orchestra Club met, and played through our tune we’ll perform for the Club Fair in two weeks. Rehearsal went well. I had written out the parts in “Finale”, imported the file into “Garageband,” and added some percussion and bass “loops” to make it a little more interesting. We all enjoyed ourselves.

Around 5:30, I finished up, and started home. I ran into a group of faculty headed to a “hotpot” restaurant, and my stomach won me over. We rode the train to a station I hadn’t visited before, and had a blast. Good food, and good company! I also had the chance to check out a new shopping area for “odds and ends”. The other teachers tell me it’s a good place for school supplies. I finally got home around 8:45, and Judy was already in bed, looking for musical ideas on her computer for her Christmas programs.

Today starts much better than yesterday. Judy gets a taxi with no problem. I arrive at BISS for the band class well ahead of the 11:35 meeting time. The students are making steady improvement, and we’re having fun. We have all the brass and woodwinds together today, and they did a nice job of working together and having patience while I worked with the smaller groups.

Some of the band classes at BISS. It’s part of a 12 week exploratory unit.

After class, I make my standard trip to the nearby Chinese restaurant for the green beans. I also ordered green beans to take home for Judy, as well as an order of gunbao chicken.

The trip home in the taxi takes forever. I can’t believe how much traffic there is for non-rush hour. At the apartment, Lilly is still cleaning so I put away the food, and start working on my school materials. Tomorrow is my first class day, and I need to make sure everything is ready tonight, before I go to bed. I’ll need to leave at 6:30 am tomorrow to arrive in time to organize the classroom and get set-up for class.

The taxi home for Judy takes an hour? Unbelievable!!! Something’s going on, but I don’t know what. I can track her trip home on the “Find My iPhone” app. I think she could have walked home quicker.

Some days, life in Beijing is pretty mundane.  Not today!  We’ve had rain intermittently for several days, and as we left the apartment at 7:00 am this morning, a light rain was falling.  I’m going in with Judy to help with the “band instrument” unit.  No taxis were waiting, and there were already a few BISS faculty waiting.  We stood around 15 minutes and had no luck.  A couple of the faculty walked down the street to try to catch a bus.  We walked to the other side of the street hoping to have better luck catching a cab.  Still, we had no luck, after 30 minutes.  We decided to walk to the train.  This is the first time ever Judy hasn’t managed to get a taxi to school.

After a 10-minute walk in the rain, we arrived at the station.   We walked down to the platform and I knew immediately something “funky” was going on.  There were lots of people lined up.  I had never seen lines for the train at Taiyanggong.  We got in a long line with 5 other faculty from BISS.  We stood for 15 minutes waiting for a train.  Trains normally come through every 2-3 minutes.  When a train finally arrived, only a few people got off.  We weren’t able to cram on, but we moved to the front of the line.  7 minutes later a 2^nd train arrived.  Everyone managed to get on but me.  They all had classes to get to, and I was just helping.  I caught the next train that arrived 8 minutes later.

The trains were as crowded as I had ever seen.  Lots of people were waiting for fewer trains than usual.  Every stop, more and more people crammed on.  I finally arrived at the transition station, fought my way out the door, and walked to the next train platform.  The first train that came by was jammed and I couldn’t squeeze on.  The 2^nd train (4 minutes later) didn’t even stop.  It just rolled through the station and kept going.  I got on the 3^rd train, and eventually arrived at the station for BISS.  I walked around to the station exit closest to BISS, but the escalators weren’t working, so I had to climb 9 flights of stairs (17 stairs per flight).  Out of the exit, the walk to BISS was about a quarter of a mile through the light rain.  I finally arrived at the school around 8:35 am, and headed up to help Judy with class.  Needless to say, I was wet from the rain, but sweat was also adding to the misery.  This was the toughest transportation day since we’ve been here.  Not fun, but certainly a vivid memory.

After class, I relaxed a little, then walked over to the neighborhood Chinese restaurant for an early lunch.  After lunch, I taxied home, and began working on school planning.  Judy arrived home around 5:00pm (really early for her).  We put together dinner, and finished off the evening with two episodes of “House of Cards” season 2.

Today is an early morning for me. There haven’t been too many days I’ve left the house before Judy, but today is one of them. It’s the first day of school for all the Chinese schools. Beijing #4 is having opening ceremonies at the main campus. They’ve asked us to arrive at 7:30, so I leave the apartment at 6:45. I get a taxi and off we go. The traffic is really bad. Later in the day, on the CCTV news, there is lots of discussion about how bad the traffic is around China on the first day of school. I would believe it. We were in the middle of lots of “stop and go” traffic, mostly “stop.”

I finally arrive at the main campus around 7:45. The rehearsal for the student groups is still going on. The ceremony begins on time at 8:00. It begins with a performance by the incoming male students. They’ve been doing military training for the last two weeks, and they demonstrate some of their martial arts training and marching skills. It’s followed by a flag presentation and flag-raising by student groups and singing the Chinese National Anthem and the Beijing #4 School Song. Next are a series of speakers, including a student, former faculty, current faculty, and the principal. The ceremony finishes around 9:00 am.

Pictures from the opening ceremonies. The faculty was seated nearest the camera. The students fill up the rest of the field. Parents are at the very back.

Students demonstrating martial arts training

Classes at my campus start after lunch. I don’t have a class until Thursday,, so I’m homeward bound. It takes a while to find a taxi, and I finally get home around 10:00 am. I spend the rest of the day working on plans for my classes. I’ve got a lot of material from last year, and I saved everything, but I need to formulate a better plan to present it. We’ll see how it goes.