Sick on Monday

Last Monday I woke up with quite a bad sore throat. I was sort of okay (but feeling a bit funny) throughout the day until I had to go out to teach a student. And somehow, I suddenly felt sick. I think it was a combination of the movement of the train and reading on it that triggered it.

My throat hurt. My body ached all over. I had bad nausea. And a bit of a fever too.

I was a wreck. All I wanted was to make it home in one piece.
I almost did too. Until the last train ride home.

I was already nauseous and wanted to throw up, but I was trying NOT to. Suddenly, I felt like I had to - there was no keeping it in any longer. But I had nothing to throw up into!

Luckily, opposite me sat a nice Indian woman. She gave me a ziplock lunch plastic bag. I promptly took it and vomitted into it. Needless to say, it was not a pretty sight. When I was done, she gave me a piece of tissue. The Indian man next to her (of no connection) gave me another plastic bag to put the ziplock bag (with all my insides) into and a packet of tissues (which I didn't really need).

Thank GOD I was sitting near such nice people. I honestly don't know what I would have done if she hadn't given me that bag.

Of course, once I threw up, I felt much better - in the sense that I didn't want to throw up anymore. But I was kind of mortified.

Because not only was it disgusting, but I will now forever be remebered as The Girl Who Threw Up On The Train.

Wicked

I saw Wicked last night, not really expecting anything, but everyone has been raving about it so I thought I might as well see it before it finishes in Melbourne.

Oh.

My.

Gosh.

It was AMAZING!! I desperately want to see it again!

Claire de Lune

is something I've always wanted to play. (It's a piece by Debussy, of course.) The piano shop I work at happens to have that score. (I hope nobody buys it soon!) So whenever I have a break or am waiting in between students, I practice on one of the Steinways. Usually on Ruby. But sometimes on the D.

I've learnt most of the notes now. It's not fluent yet, but once it is, I just have to refine it and get it memorized.

Claire de Lune
(Ignore the Payment Required thing. Just enter the link again.)

I'm not supposed to play on the pianos when I'm working, which is a sort of torture. But I find ways to make do. Like last Wednesday, I clocked off at 5 pm. But I stayed behind an hour to play on Ruby (who is a model B crown jewel, and who I lust over) and the model D (which is a concert grand, about 9 feet long).

It's ironic, because I used to avoid practising if I could help it. But now that I don't have easy access to a piano, I find myself craving to play one. Especially when I'm surrounded by Steinways. *sigh*

Lake Mountain

One Friday on July 3rd, Gowri, Mags, Mitchell and I went to the snow! It's winter in Melbourne, and while it doesn't snow here, it does in the mountains! So we took a day trip to Lake Mountain.


Mags and Mitchell fell asleep in the backseat on the way.

The scenary up the mountain was gorgeous.





I was the one who spotted the first snow!






I made a snow angel!


Mags and Mitchell on the toboggans.


Speeding down...


Gowri and me.


Whee!


Gowri got stuck.








Mags, taking it all in.


The four of us.




Snowball fight!




Bigfoot was here!


A little wombat ran up to us!


And away.






And that was our day in the snow!

Teaching Little Kids - Semester 1, 2009

So I've done one semester of teaching little kids at three different primary schools. It has been interesting, to say the least.

For the last week of last semester, which was two weeks ago, I had to get my kids to put on a concert for their parents. I had NEVER done anything like that before, so yeah - I was nervous. Especially since some of my students didn't practice, and I had no idea how they would do or what would happen. So many scenarios could possible happen, I didn't want to think about them.

But they stepped up! My kids proved my fears wrong (except for one, but that's okay). I was so proud of them! Not only did they perform their solo pieces, but I got most of them to do ensemble ones, where they either played a duet or in groups of four. Not an easy feat to get them to play together, let me tell you!

I gave them chocolate Freddos to congratulate them.


I teach this school during school hours. I have a mixture of violin and keyboard students.



Two other kids didn't perform, because they just started last term, so I gave them a lesson after the concert instead.


Minus two girls who nicked off early and two who didn't perform.


Check out what a little girl from school number 2 made for me sometime last semester! I have absolutely no idea what it is, but it was cool, anyway!

I had a total of 23 students. Boy, that's a lot. I have now dropped two of the schools as I'm starting full-time in my other job come August. I'm keeping one school because I couldn't bear the thought of letting my students there go.
That cuts my two free days a week down, but that's okay. Who needs them, anyway? =P

First Pay Check!!!

I just received my first pay check EVER!!! It's from my second job at Exclusive Piano Group from the time I started working there. Two thousand over bucks, babeh!
I'm finally going to have money in my bank account! At the moment I have less than 5 bucks in it. =P

Of course, I've been paid before by my other job with Creative Music. But they transfer the money directly into my bank account, so it doesn't feel as exciting as cashing a cheque!



I don't know which information shouldn't be shown, so I just blanked everything out. Haha..

WOOHOO!!

Hard at Work... Not.

I'm at work now, but there's nothing to do, so I thought I'd blog a bit.

During the Easter weekend, I went on a road trip to Sydney with 7 other friends. It was so much fun! I found a few really pretty stones and shells, and I got to ride a horse by myself for the first time! Took a crazy amount of pictures. Practically everyone had a camera, so I hardly used mine.

I'm taking another trip this weekend. Let's just say it's going to be very interesting...

I wish the internet was faster. And that I could access Facebook...