Oh, Say Can You See ... My Happy Glow From Over There?

(aka I Am ... the Queen of Tenor Drums)
May 8, 2010 - 21:27

VE Parade Day. For those who aren't in the know, and I was one of them, today is the 65th anniversary of the Victory in Europe. Which means that yesterday was the anniversary of the day that the Germans surrendered. Earlier this week was the anniversary of the Battle of the Atlantic. If you don't know what these are, then our schools suck indeed, you skipped, or you were just not paying attention. Google them.

Anyway, today didn't start of too well. I didn't sleep very well, for one ... which means that the alarm went off WAY too early. I didn't know how half of my uniform went on, so I stuffed most of it into a bag. (Coolest part was the knife in my sock ... Yes, I was armed all day. No, nobody was killed, but it was close.) And then ... my toilet exploded. Okay, minor exaggeration. A seal had deteriorated in the ball cock and it was spraying water every time I flushed. Apparently, they started last night, but I didn't notice until I reached for a bit of toilet paper ... and found a completely soaked roll. A full roll, of course. What a waste. No time to fix it. Land lord (who conveniently lives next door) came over as soon as I got home from the ferry and he fixed it for now.

I digress again ... The parade ... WAS FANTASTIC! AND SO WAS I!!! There were two other tenors drummers there and I worried a bit when I heard that the bands would be playing together, but it worked out like a dream. I pointed out that I'd go in the middle. (Parade was three player wide.) This would balance things visually with our kilts as well as our style, because I wasn't flourishing yet. Technically, I'd been a member since early this year (Robbie Burns Night) but I'd only really been playing for about two weeks. So had one of the other tenors, and he was happy to hide his possible mistakes by not being right beside his usual partner, who has been playing for seven years. By the way, her evaluation of my performance was that even though I didn't flourish, I had a wicked supportive beat. I'm not traditional, but I like my drum style, and so does my Pipe Major and my Drum Sargent (who was unfortunately absent today) so things are going well for me. We played another couple of sets after the parade while the guests ate supper ... I got lots of nods/winks of approval from my band mates as we played and the Pipe Sargent made sure I knew that he particularly liked the beat to a song we'd just played.

Who needs drugs?!?

After the parade/ceremony, we headed over to a legion Seniors lodge and thrilled them with a mini parade, just for them. People on the street who were passing by stopped, pulled over, etc to watch and listen. If you thought my accomplishments couldn't get any brighter, well, you underestimated me. The earlier confidence booster gave me a new level to climb from. I not only performed excellent beatings, I FLOURISHED ... and didn't miss a beat doing it. Simple flourishes, but enough to make the seniors ecstatic and get applause from the bystanders.

Can you see the glow from your place?? Perhaps you are wondering why the sun is taking so long to set? :)

So I have a happy heart, sore feet, stiff neck, and I'm utterly pooped ... and I'd go again tomorrow if I could!!

Thought for the day ... I don't need a man who sparkles in direct sunlight, but ... I do admit that I'd like one who looks like he should!

Sweet Dreams!!