This is the sort of week I try not to look at as a whole. Instead I look day-by-day, so that things seem a bit more manageable. And busy means 1) employment and 2) I’m not bored! “Better busy than bored” is something I’ve been known to say, and I’ll stick by that, even as I whine.

But here I am, saying I’m busy, and yet I’m still in my robe and pjs. Ah, the musician’s life! And I’m not nearly as busy as my friend and colleague dk, who holds down a “real” job and still manages to be one of the best musicians I know. Go figure.

Here’s what’s on my schedule for the week, running from this past Monday through this coming Sunday:

• 12 private students (five lessons canceled due to conflicts either on my side or theirs)
• one morning (through to 1:00 PM) at UCSC (which means an hour + on each side for commute)
• six opera services (at least 3 hours and 15 minutes each)
• one 4 1/2 hour job in Santa Cruz (ditto the one hour of commuting time from above)

Hmmm. When I look at it that way it doesn’t look nearly as difficult as I was thinking! How ’bout that? And most of my colleagues have to drive much further to and from opera. What a baby I can be! Of course this doesn’t include any practice or reed making time (I’m not sure I’ll find any of that, actually). Nor does it include errands/chores/meals (and I’m not sure I’ll actually get lunch today, to be honest). So there’s that. But really … I think I am fretting over a whole lotta nothing. Some things never change eh?

I absolutely love Marriage of Figaro. It isn’t exactly a breeze for principal oboe, but it’s not a killer, and I love the little solos and duets I have. What lovely things he wrote for us, don’t you think?