The light at the end of the tunnel... is NOT a train.

Sigh. Has it really been since February 4. I'm not gonna lie; it's been that crazy.

First I thought, February is going to be pure hell. I have WAY overscheduled myself, and I may just die. But if I can get through Febuary, it's gonna be relatively smooth sailing.

That belief got me through February, which was-- as expected-- hellish. But then came March.

See, I didn't think I had all that much going on. And besides, Spring Break is in March, I don't have a church gig anymore, so the fact that Easter was in March didn't faze me. I came into March full of a sense of accomplishment from having survived February.

Silly girl. March was when the UH opera was in full swing. And HBU opera was gearing up and guess who agreed to design the costumes? Spring Break? What Spring Break? You mean that week I spent teaching lessons and researching papers? And there were Passions to sing (ok, only one, but we did it three times). Ack. I could tell you more, but it would upset us both.

But I knew I could look forward to April. I had no gigs scheduled in April, and I could spend the whole month working on my 4 papers and learning the music for the Houston Choral Society world premiere Adolophus Hailstork piece as well as the 2 cantatas for Ars Lyrica Houston.

Nice plan, really. But not horribly realistic.

See, although the work of the UH opera happened in March, the shows were the first weekend in April. And although it seemed like a no-brainer, costuming The Magic Flute as set in Hawaii during WWII was not a walk in the park. It ate up fully two weeks of my life. And the papers took a lot of time and effort (as we speak, 2 are in progress RIGHT NOW!). And I had to prepare a student for her pre-recital hearing, which meant extra lessons to make up the ones that the UH opera stole in March.

So, here it is late in the day on April 26. I have felt a great deal of guilt (ok, strong word. Maybe let's use complusive responsibility) about not having updated the blog and today it just seemed like 14 minutes could be spared.

Started the Hailstork yesterday. One paper is going out tonight, dammit, if it kills me. Tomorrow is 15% Hailstork and 85% Scarlatti theory paper. 'Cause next week is rehearsals out the wazoo for HCS and finishing the last requirements for completing the coursework for my DMA! And so on.

I think the maelstrom is coming to an end. But I already know May is booked solid as is July. During June I have to memorize Conspirare and Ballet music. And August is the last bit of cramming before comps. Which are the week before school. One week into which the Ballet tour starts.

Crap. Maybe I should add a question mark to the title of this post...