Oh, the weather outside is frightful

Get this straight. I'm not complaining. I love it here. It's far preferable to being in the Midwest right now. Or the blustering, snow-covered Northeast. Really. But, for this week, it's bitterly, bitingly, abnormally cold. My friends are taking pictures of their temperature gauges because single digits awe them. I imagine them craning their heads, looking for the preceding "3" before the "8" sitting solo like a headless snowman on their digital dashboard reading.

But, like I said, I'm not complaining. See, we also are having blazingly beautiful, bright, sunny days with the mountains all snow-capped and glistening, and the usual slate blue of the Puget Sound looking brighter and more cerulean than it has a right to be this time of year.

It's the interview season for residencies. Which is interesting because it helps me look at TFM from a fresh angle. Last year I got to interview people I hoped to work with! None of who ended up here, as far as I can remember. Now, at the time I write this, I have 202 days left of residency. So, interviewing is more like interviewing my replacement. I'm hoping to get a queer-friendly, pro-choice extrovert to come here. Wish me luck!

This weekend I am caroling with my band in downtown Seattle. I did this last year and it was great fun! Next week we get to have a fun Holiday Concert. I say "holiday" instead of Christmas because interjected into all the X-mas classics is a little klezmer medley ending with a dizzying rendition of the hava nagila. Jews even got a little cookie parity at rehearsal last week (see left)! My favorite song we perform this year, however, is not the usual Sleigh Ride (because I'm a sucker for the horse whinny) but a kazoo rendition of Jingle Bells, to be performed concert night with local school children. See video below for a short preview from rehearsal!



Now, I hate to kill the mood, but I have to wrap up with a bit more somber news. Tacoma has been rife with tragedy and crime lately. The economy has hit everyone hard but for some reason gun-related crimes seem abnormally high. Most have already heard about the four police officers who were gunned down the day after Thanksgiving. Their memorial was this week. Also, my neighborhood bank was robbed and my favorite breakfast place was held up at gunpoint and the elderly owner assaulted by one of the robbers. My bank was robbed! Two blocks from my house. Seriously?

In hard times people are supposed to band together. It seems some haven't been getting the message. For Christmas this year I want a Kevlar vest and all the weapons in Tacoma and Seattle to turn into gumdrops.