If I Burn Then I Burn For You

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Well, track started this week. Yesterday I worked with the discus coach and a bunch of girls and did some workouts that really worked on our abs and thighs. Let me tell you - I’m so sore. This makes me happy though. It took me awhile to figure out what my sport is, but finally, m freshmen year of highschool, I found it. It’s running.

There are three things in life that make me happy.

Brassline

Good friends

and pushing my limits - running.

Have you ever done something so hard you’ve had to tell yourself over and over again that you can do it? It’s like the little train in the book but this time it’s real. It’s something you keep doing over and over again. Something that even when you can’t see the finish line, you go a little faster. It feels good to push yourself to the limit like that. I don’t know if it’s the satisfaction of completing the task or the feeling you get while you do it.

Training for discus is interesting too. For those of you who don’t know, discus is throwing a frisbee shaped object as far as you possibly can. The discus weighs about the weight of your backpack and is made of metal. Coach says that you can be as strong as a rock but if you don’t have the technique, that discus isn’t going anywhere. It’s kinda funny to study the pictures of throwers to figure out the form. They are the most muscular people in the world but how they throw is a delicate art. Maybe I just like it because building that muscle for an extra edge - the muscle building that makes me sore - is part of pushing myself and growing into the athlete that I want to be. It makes me happy.

I don’t know.

Being a teenager is weird.

One minute you’re the happiest person in the world, the next you feel like laying in the mud and heaven forbid anyone see you do it. Though, sometimes I wish someone could see me fail and help me up.

I mean, I am perfectly capable of getting up and doing it, but isn’t everything better with a little company?

Well, today jazz band was frustrating.

We have competition this Friday (I’ll have to miss track practice).

Today, our band director was off doing something with EAC Honor Band so we where left to ourselves. The whiteboard had all the specific instructions and of course we didn’t do it. Sure, we practiced a little but we totally blew off bellwork. It was just frustrating because this is my first year in highschool band. My past jazz bands have always been slightly professional because I’ve shoveled out a couple hundred bucks to play for a couple hours a week. We would preform pretty seriously. Jazz was some people’s whole life. Here, it’s simply another class. Though, it wouldn’t be fair to say people just do it for the fine arts credit because I know a lot of them are in their second and third year of jazz, but no one has any heart. I don’t know if I do or not, but it’s just weird. I don’t know, we always do fine when it comes down to it for gigs. We just happen to be good at improvisation. Go figure. I don’t know, I got grumpy at our fourth chair trumpet player because he’s so different from what my ideal is. He thinks jazz isn’t about being the best. He says it’s about playing loud and having fun. Yes, it is about having fun, but it’s also a discipline. You can’t just play improv all day because you’re in a group and that means not everyone can play what they want at once. When that happens it is no longer music - it’s borderline chaotic. I guess it’s discipline vs. rigidity.

Indoor Brass is doing alright. I’m finally getting the mellophone. Well, I’m improving at least. It still leaves me out of breath, especially the music we’re playing. Ben and Kenny, our instructors, say it would be challenging for them. They say it’s drum corp level. That’s exciting. Hopefully we’ll be able to pull it off. I know it’s the hardest music I’ve ever played and to march at the same time? Geez. I wouldn’t be so worried about it but in Indoor Brass we play on a mat on the basketball court meaning there is only two people in my section (I play main/first part!) so if there is a mess up, it’ll be noticeable from the closeness of our audience and the lack of noise to cover up mistakes. We are quite the formidable sound in the gym though. Of course when we march, our music goes down a level just because it takes more physical strength, lung strength, and coordination : All at the same time. I don’t know. I’m excited to pull this off. It’s quite the adventure. I’ll have to let you know when we put all three movements (movements = parts/songs to complete the main theme of the show) on the floor. Our shows theme is <<En Route<< and we’re playing selections from Princess Monoke, Spirted Away, and Journey I believe? It’s intense.

Ahhhh so registration for next years classes are next week. Freshmen get last priority unfortunately. I’m okay with that. I’m topcat+ though! Topcat+ is a special privilege you receive at my school for upholding good citizenship grades and good grades in general. One of our privileges is priority registration. This is good because classes get filled up quickly, especially the ones I take because some are considered junior classes either because I skipped a year of that class previously or because I’m taking an AP class that is put down as recommendation as a certain year class.

It seems like everyone wants to be valedictorian. This is driving me crazy. It’s making things a whole lot harder. Stephen and I decided valedictorian is the person who is willing to cut in line and find their way through the worst storms in the ‘system’. Like my book I was reading about the study of the top kids. They go through so much stress and do pretty much anything to achieve their seat in the top 5%. You’d think we’re the good calm kids, but it’s getting pretty cut throat even in freshmen year. I think by senior it might be easier because some of the competition would have been weeded out. It’s all about who you know really. Hmm, though I love pretty much a lot of my teachers. Especially my world history teacher who is known throughout all grade levels as being hard and tough. She also teaches AP US History, apparently the hardest class on campus. She’s so great though. I’m moving into her Gifted Seminar Advisory Base sometime this week or next week. It’s for students who where in ELP. She was kind enough to put me in because she says I’m gifted even though I never finished testing and the parts I did finish I only got 96% when I needed 97%? I don’t know, I love discussing things with her and her classes. It’s a lot of fun. I needed to get out of my current Advisory Base anyway. It’s ‘musician’s study hall’. I didn’t pick it I just one day got that class. It’s easy enough because days I have it a lot of kids who are in my period after it are in that AB.

Grades get hard to maintain with a lot of extracurriculars by the way. In case you didn’t know. It’s an fyi - A warning perhaps? But without them I wouldn’t have much to wake up in the morning for! Something to work for.

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Tags: brass, discus, grades, high school, marching, mellophone, running, track, trumpet, valedictorian