Leavenworth

I am now enjoying my long-anticipated vacation, but I was surprised yesterday evening to find myself feeling lonely, not knowing what to do with myself. I just needed a little time to adjust, and am now fully enjoying the time for myself, though I find myself wanting to call home more often than I need to.

This place is so beautiful--rolling hills, green trees and grass, with many varieties of birds to watch. I am not a "bird-watcher" per se, but could become one, I think. This morning at breakfast I watched several birds eat at feeders outside the restaurant. Their social behavior is fascinating--cardinal pairs feeding each other, blue jays hogging the feeder, males puffing themselves up. I suppose humans are fascinating in the same way.

There are four horses in the pasture overlooked by my deck. I enjoy observing them and their interactions. They stick together, following each other around. Earlier they were all napping in the sun, two standing, two lying down like dogs. I had thought that horses always sleep standing, but I was apparently mistaken. I wonder whether they have a schedule they follow, moving to different areas for shade and sun and moist grass as the sun moves.

I am spending some time getting to know the fingerboard again, starting with Schradieck. I usually skip over the first exercises, but today I discovered with alarm that even those are difficult for me now. Intonation and evenness are my goals. Later I'll work on some Tartini bowing exercises, to remind my arm where each string is. It's almost humiliating to need this, but I will benefit from it.

As I was practicing the Schradieck, I saw the date markings made by my teacher that summer at Meadowmount, Mrs. Vamos. It brought back a flood of memories. I remember being terrified of my teacher, because my violinist uncle had made some offhand remark about teachers there making passes at their students. I was young--13--and took most things literally. I kept waiting for her to do something inappropriate, which of course she never did. I think it got in the way of my really learning from her. Other memories also sprang from that memory, like Sarah Kwak, the Curtis student that lived with us for six years when I was younger, and who had a nickname from Meadowmount--"Spider Crackers"-- which she had put on a t-shirt. I asked her to explain it to me every time she wore it, but she always refused. What an annoying kid I must have been!

Isn't it funny how memories work in cascades?