Possumblog

Band Concert!

In amongst all the other stuff to be done, Boy had a band concert last night. He's been somewhat nervous about it, at least according to what he kept telling us all the way up until the night before.

Adding to the level of familial stress was the fact that he had to be on stage at the high school at 5:30 so both classes of the beginner band could practice together--there are two separate beginner groups, taught at two separate class periods, and they hadn't practiced the program together. Talk about a faith-based initiative!

Anyway, since Reba has worked so late the first part of the week, she managed to convince her boss to let her off early yesterday so she could go get him, get him home, let him bathe and change clothes, and get back up to the auditorium by 5:30, and I would meet them at the school as soon as I got there after work, which would have also been about 5:30 or so, depending on traffic.

Surely, you see where this is going.

Reba got off at 3:00 and headed home. Plenty of time. Got to Trussville around 3:30 or so, and decided to stop at the bakery to check on cake prices for the anniversary party. Tick tick tick.

Got to her mom's house sometime after 4:00. Exasperatedly told her mom to quit bothering everyone about the anniversary party, and moping, and pining, and hinting, and fuming, and fussing, and acting forgotten, and every other thing she's been doing, because we had been planning the party, and have a room,and invitations ordered, and it was supposed to be a surprise, but we'd gotten so tired of her acting like a pouting child (not in those exact words, but close) that we'd just decided to go ahead and tell her and spoil the surprise just to shut her up about it. Her mood has not been helped by people where they go to church who ask about it, and by Reba's STUPID BROTHER who had first called us several weeks back to find out about what was going on, and then who turned around and called his mom this week and ASKED HER ABOUT WHEN HER ANNIVERSARY WAS, just to get her more upset.

Not that it matters, but such childishness on everyone's part makes me want to get all Old Testament on some folks.

Anyway, rather than being relieved that something was indeed being planned, and no one had forgotten about her, Reba's mom was perturbed about the time and place. GAAGHHHHHARRRRRRRRRRRRR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It's like living in a damned Faulkner novel.

Anyway, Reba left there with the kids around 4:30 or so and went on home to get Boy ready. I left at 5:00, and right at 5:30 was getting off at the exit when my shirt pocket started buzzing.

"Where are you?!"

"Uh, well, I'm just now getting off the Interstate--I should be there in about five minutes."

"Well, we're just now pulling out of the driveway--we got ready to go and left and then I had to turn around and go back to get his music book, so we're just now leaving, and we're probably going to get stuck trying to get out onto Watterson, so we'll see you as soon as we can."

There's a lot of traffic now that the the main north-south route is closed for them to replace that bridge I talked about a while back. And no traffic signal where our subdivision dumps out onto the detour route. ::sigh::

I went on and parked, went in, bought my ticket, and waited. And waited. The kids were already up on stage and warming up when I got there.

5:40, my pocket buzzed again--"We just now got onto Watterson!" A good 15 minutes away. I asked if I should go tell the director why Jonathan was late, and she said yes, but as I was walking down there, they started up again on a new warmup. ::sigh:: Oh, well.

Right at 5:55, Boy came charging into the lobby with his drumsticks and his music book, "Go on, Bud--they're about to start!"

I watched him run down and take his place--if he was nervous before, I wondered how he must be feeling now. At six on the nose, Reba and Catherine came in (the other two girls had to stay home and do homework) and we went and sat down. And waved at Jonathan.

The show started, and doggone it, the little fellow did just fine--not a missed lick. They played five songs--being the beginner band, they were of the slow-tempoed oompah variety--but still, it's amazing how quickly kids learn this stuff.

Concert over, kids off the stage, and I asked Reba if she thought she should go tell the director why Jonathan was late and apologize. "Well, I..." A little too much hesitation, which signaled a change in plans.

"Tell you what, you take Catherine and wait in the lobby, and I'll go tell him what happened."

Which I did. The director was very gracious about the whole thing, which is something profuse abject apology will sometimes lead to, and said he was just glad he got there before it started since Boy had a couple of important parts. "He did great, though--he's a very good student, and he does very well in class."

Hard to make Daddy much prouder than to hear something like that. Boy finally made his way out the door and I gave him a quick hug and asked him if he was still nervous.

"Daaaaad. It's OVER now!"

"Hey, you did a good job, son--and your teacher said so, too."

"Thanks!"

And he really did just fine.

Posted by Terry Oglesby at February 10, 2006 09:11 AM