Picture Sunday

Yes, by request of Mr M - hello, end of weekenders! Welcome to another edition of Picture Sunday!

Yeah, Picture Sunday's turned into a bit of a red-headed stepchild lately, but let's welcome him back into the fold. Now, what's worthy of a visual this week?

First off, I spent so much time telling you about my Floydfest experience last weekend that I've only just realized that I didn't tell you about the weekend before that. That was the weekend of the BigAss Clarinet Recital, organized by no less a person than Mr M himself.

This was the recital I whined about in earlier blogs, the one consisting of duets, trios, quartets, all the way up to the finale, the nine-player piece. The one we'd never practiced with all nine players in the room.

I was reticent - oh, yes, I was reticent! I never thought it would come off. But I have to admit right here in the old blog that not only did it come off, it came off beautifully. Everyone did a great job. Well, everyone except yours truly, who muffed one of the arpeggios in the duet with my clarinet friend Mary. But one muff in a long piece - hopefully that's not what people will remember.

And the nine-player piece - it was called "Monochrome III," by Peter Schickele, it came out so well I still can't believe it. It was one of those things that happens that just makes one happy to have been a part of.

I uploaded some of the videos on my Facebook page, maybe I'll upload the audio here for those of you not on the Facebook. Anyway, it was a lovely (if hot and rainy) night.

And I had some special support from some of the boys who came along to hear the music.


















Yes, Woody showed an interest in coming to one of our musical 'dos, and Huckleberry Hound was sure to have plenty of tissues ready. He gets so emotional when he listens to music.

And here's an after-recital picture of all of us.













That's, from left, The Very David Niethamer, me, Dixon, Rick, Colleen, Mr M, Amanda, Christine, Kelly, and Mary. Some I already knew, some I met during rehearsals, and one I only met the day of the recital. But such nice people, and I really enjoyed meeting and playing with all of them.

OK. What else is going on in Betland?

Well here's another picture I posted on Facebook, but if you're not Facebookally inclined or missed it there, I'll post it here.

You know how you see lots of stickers on cars nowadays - especially bigass SUVs and minivans - that are little stick figures of the driver's family? A stick mom, stick dad, a few stick kids, some stick pets, an occasional soccer ball or cheerleading megaphone?

Well, I'd been harboring an idea for about a year, but I couldn't find any of those stick figures anywhere. And lo and behold, last weekend my sister was out shopping and found some, knew what was on my mind, and purchased the stickers I wanted for my back window.

























Yes, there's my family. Stick me and stick Milo! Thanks, sister!

And finally, speaking of the little doggie, we're having a little crisis in Miloland. It's the way it is now, you know, that I don't crate Milo anymore. I go off to work or the grocery or wherever, I close the gate into the den, and Milo has the rest of the house to roam while I'm gone.

And for a while, he was great. A perfect little doggie gentleman. Nothing was disturbed, he was waiting at the gate when I got home, and we'd say hello and go out to pee. (Well, he would. I like to pee indoors, thanks.)

But the past ten days or so, Milo has been making mischief. And it's driving me bats. Why is he doing this now? And what's worse, he knows he's getting into stuff he's not supposed to! When I walk into the living room and find something he's looted, say, one of Sherman's hats, and I pick that item up, he immediately turns tail and runs. "OhGodOhGodOhGod!" he seems to be thinking. And yet he does it anyway.

This past Tuesday I came home to find he'd found my change purse. And while I really was mad and scolded him with a serious yell and frowny face, somewhere inside I couldn't help but appreciate the irony of what he picked.



















Yes, it was my Archie McPhee "Good Dog, Bad Dog" change purse. I guess he was daring me to take sides.

























Now there's a change purse that won't be holding any more pennies.

Bad dog!

And so there you have it. A little catch up on Betland and a Picture Sunday to boot.

Happy week!

Betland's Olympic Update:
* Been watching "Arrested Development" on the Netflix Wii, and the new season of "Mad Men" on TV. Totally in love with "Arrested Development," still settling into "Mad Men."