NIB

I recently returned from Phoenix and the National Intercollegiate Band. I'm glad to say I didn't die from the heat (worst was about 115°) and we got some monsoonal weather. The whole experience went really well. The director, John R. Bourgeois, is the director emeritus of "The President's Own" Marine Band. He was a really down to earth and great guy who had some amazing stories from his 40 years of service. The composer was Mark Camphouse and his piece was pretty heavy (in a good way). It was really neat meeting some new people from around the country and running into some old All Southern/State folks. It was a great experience and really fun time. I'll post some audio when I get it.

The day after I returned, Casey, Andrew, Josh, Julia, Julia, and I made a last minute journey down to the Hollywood Bowl to see Philip Glass and his ensemble play with the LA Phil. Many people aren't fans of minimalism so it was really neat to see the Bowl packed with people who really appreciate it. The music was incredible (Einstein on the Beach!) and the musicality amazing, as expected.

After enjoying a few days of laziness I'm off to Colorado and New Mexico later this week. We'll be spending a few days up at the cabin then make our way to Santa Fe for the Santa Fe Opera. Should be a good time. When we return I have a few days before heading back to Cal Lu for RA training.

I know many of my peers are having difficulty in the summer months with waking up early. ThinkGeek has a solution: for every minute you sleep past the alarm on this clock, your bank account automatically donate money to an organization you hate. Genius.

Many of you may have seen youtube's top hit for this week, the awesome wedding entrance dance. For those who haven't, you must check it out. Cool little tidbit: apparently Karl's sister, Erin, was actually at the wedding. Pretty funny stuff.

That's all for now, I need to go post an ad to sell my Public Speaking and Spanish books. If anybody is interested, let me know.

Off to Phoenix

It's only 112° right now...

For the next few days I'll be participating in the National Intercollegiate Band at the Arizona Biltmore. I auditioned on a whim a few months ago and was pretty surprised when I actually made it. It looks to be a really good experience (complete with the director of the President's Own and Mark Camphouse) and I'm looking forward to it. Hopefully I'll get some pics and audio to share.

The past few weeks of summer have been pretty busy. To quickly sum, I've:

• Made the annual Kling/Crane Dodger game excursion
• Made the annual Stutelberg/Crane Dodger excursion
• Witnessed 5 births including a C-section with twins (absolutely incredible!)
• Moved my sister from Canyon Country to Acton with the help of Casey and Josh
• Persuaded four other people to donate blood with me (you should too)
  
• Completed a 5 week summer school term of Public Speaking and Spanish 102 (thankfully it's over)
• Written letters and had petitions signed to the Governor and Mayor.
  
• Seen the Monty Python musical Spamalot (very funny...definitely recommend)
• Discovered an unknown function of the MacBook.
  
• Hosted a surprise birthday party for Andrew LORDKEMPER.

I'm probably forgetting a few things, but you can tell it's been an action packed summer so far. I wish I had time to go more in depth on some things but maybe when I have some free time in the next couple of weeks I'll be inspired to share my wacky attempts at political involvement or innermost philosophical feelings on witnessing the miracle of life. Or something like that.

I should probably start packing so that's about all for now. I leave you with Obama and the "Mom Jeans" controversy.

Karl Runs 30 at 30

A fun and awesome day...more details.