Chamber Music Concerts at Old Christ Church
AdventureMan and I have discovered a concert series we really like. The University of West Florida Music Department has a chamber music series, giving students a chance to play publicly, and offering chamber music lovers (moi) a chance to see and hear them perform in a delightfully intimate setting, old Christ Church in downtown Pensacola. It’s so far downtown that it’s almost on the waterfront.
The concerts take place once a month, Wednesdays at noon, and are FREE. There is a donation container in the entry at Christ Church but there is no one shaking it or looking at you meaningfully. If you can’t make a donation, the donation police are not going to hunt you down.
Meanwhile, if you show up for these concerts, you are in for a treat. The Director of the chamber music program, Hedi Salanki-Rubardt, gives her students a lot of leeway, and a lot of inspiration, and you can see they truly love what they are doing, and enjoy being a part of the program.
Giustino Carrano – tuba
Matthew DeDowell – trombone
Allison Gilliard- soprano Marshall Corzette – baritone
Lynsey Boothe – steel drum
You don’t usually think of a steel drum as a traditional chamber music instrument, but Hedi Salanki played the harpsichord, and Lynsey Boothe played the steel drum and they rocked Vivaldi. It was a lot of fun.
Final Week of Mardi Gras in Pensacola
Tonight is the Grand Mardi Gras parade in Pensacola, and I thought I would go. I was even betting I could talk my daughter-in-law into going with me, but the day has dawned windy and rainy, and the forecast is 100% for thunderstorms tonight.
Of course, 100% predictions just make me laugh. It could be that there will be no storms tonight, and no rain and no wind. But I’m putting any plans on hold.
Meanwhile, everywhere you go, you see the green, purple and gold of Mardi Gras in Pensacola. Houses have Mardi Gras wreaths on their doors, and masks decorate tables and walls.
Wreaths for sale at Sam’s Club:
Wreath at the Marina Oyster Bar:
Kuwait Independence / Liberation Fireworks 2011
Wow. Magnificent. Amazing. I’ve never seen anything like it, so creative, so wonderful:
Come back and watch this when you have twelve minutes, and click the expansion box so that it fills your screen. Oh WOW.
Thank you, N, for sending that link. WOW.
Update – Part 2
Al Seif Palace Lights Up
A fabulous video posted on youTube; camera jiggles a little but not so much that you can’t get the full effect of the kaleidoscope effect – MAGNIFICENT!
BRAVO! BRAVO! Magnificent, Kuwait!
Happy Birthday / Liberation Day, Kuwait!
Wishing you only good in the coming years!
Update:
Here is what Ken found at Google.com.kw
How cool is that??
Embassy Posts Liberation Day Warning
Kuwait City, Kuwait
February 23, 2011
To: All American Wardens
From: Consular Section
Subject: Warden Notice 2011 – 4
Please circulate the following message without additions or omissions
immediately to all U.S. citizens within your area of responsibility.
In connection with the Liberation Day and National Day celebrations in Kuwait
February 25-27, the Embassy wishes to share with U.S. citizens the following
information we have received on planned road closures:
Friday, February 25: From 07:00 to noon the 6th Ring Road from the intersection
with highway 60, heading north to the Parade site will be closed in both
directions.
Friday, February 25: Road #206 and the 6th Ring Road will be closed from the
Palace to the Airport due to a reception at Bayan Palace.
Saturday, February 26: Due to a Parade, the Sixth Ring Road will be closed from
early morning until the Parade concludes.
Friday, February 25 – Sunday February 27: The Gulf Road will be closed on
Friday and Saturday from the 2nd Ring Road to the Flag Square. You may wish to
avoid Gulf Road as much as possible during the weekend due to heavy traffic.
Spontaneous and/or planned demonstrations take place in Kuwait from time to time
in response to world events or local developments. We remind U.S. citizens that
even demonstrations intended to be peaceful can turn confrontational and
possibly escalate into violence. U.S. citizens are therefore urged to avoid the
areas of demonstrations if possible, and to exercise caution if within the
vicinity of any demonstrations. U.S. citizens should stay current with media
coverage of local events and be aware of their surroundings at all times.
For the latest security information, U.S. citizens living and traveling abroad
should regularly monitor the Department of State’s Bureau of Consular Affairs
Internet website, where the current Worldwide Caution, Travel Warnings, Travel
Alerts, as well as the Country Specific Information for Kuwait can be found.
Up-to-date information on security can also be obtained by calling
1-888-407-4747 toll-free in the United States and Canada or, for callers outside
the United States and Canada, a regular toll line at 1-202-501-4444. These
numbers are available from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Eastern Time, Monday through
Friday (except U.S. federal holidays).
If you are a U.S. citizen in need of emergency assistance in Kuwait, you may
reach the U.S. Embassy by calling +965-2259-1001 and requesting the duty
officer.
U.S. citizens living or traveling in Kuwait are encouraged to enroll in the
Department’s Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP) so that they can obtain
updated information on travel and security. U.S. citizens without Internet
access may enroll directly with the nearest U.S. Embassy or Consulate. By
enrolling, U.S. citizens make it easier for the Embassy or Consulate to contact
them in case of emergency. For additional information, please refer to “A Safe
Trip Abroad”.
This message may be accessed on the Embassy website, http://kuwait.usembassy.gov
Please note that the Consular Section is closed for U.S. and most local
holidays. The current holiday schedule for 2011 is posted on
http://kuwait.usembassy.gov/holidays.html
“We All Have Red Blood in Our Veins”
I joke with my bible study group that God kept sending me back to the Middle East until I ‘got’ what he was trying to tell me. The dilemma now is how do I share this? When my Christian friends see Islam as the great enemy, how do I tell them that some of the best Christians I know are Muslims?
Sunday, at Christ Church in Pensacola, Father C. Neal Goldsborough gave a sermon on loving one another, a “who is my neighbor?” sermon. He is only the second priest I have ever met who mentioned Osama bin Laden, that we have to forgive him and to love him. The first time, it was in a military church, and the gasp was audible. What a courageous priest! Imagine, going among the warriors and telling us we have to love our enemy! Imagine!
Living in the Middle East, living in Tunisia, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Kuwait, I was greatly blessed. My friends were of all nationalities, and I learned one great lesson – we all have red blood in our veins, and we all share more similarities than we do differences. I try to texplain to my friends here by telling small stories of my experiences. I blog a little about them. We are all God’s children, and we create needless barriers when we draw lines that say the equivalent of ‘our way is the right way and you way is not.’
This is from today’s Forward Day by Day meditation for today:
Today’s Meditation
Tuesday, february 22
Ruth 1:15-22. Do not press me to leave you or to turn back from following you! Where you go, I will go; where you lodge, I will lodge; your people shall be my people, and your God my God.
During political upheaval and mounting racial tensions, we were having a Bible study at home. A Fijian woman came in great distress. She was from a rural area that grew sugar cane. She had grown up alongside people of another ethnic group. They were her friends. She could not understand why people were being victimized because they were of another ethnic group. She was so disturbed she had to be taken aside. She kept clutching her arm. “We have red blood in our veins. We all have red blood in our veins!” she repeated, weeping.
In the scripture we have the moving words of the widow Ruth to the widow Naomi, whose son Ruth had married. Ruth and Naomi had in common that they were bereaved, but Ruth was a Moabite, whereas Naomi was from Bethlehem. Naomi shows kindness to Ruth, and Ruth proves loyal to Naomi—a loyalty that goes beyond narrow family blood ties.
We are all God’s children. Today I give thanks for strong bonds of friendship. I give thanks for loyal friends who are not of my ethnic group.
Assorted Photos from the Kuwait Visit
These are a few photos I didn’t really have a post to go with, just random photos from my recent visit to Kuwait:
This one was just a good combination as I was waiting for a light to change; the Athel tree along the road, and the banner celebrating 5 years of rule by the current Amir of Kuwait:
Yeh, it’s a little blurry; I’m shooting as we’re rolling along in the carnage of traffic on the Kuwait Corniche:
I am such a sucker for picturesque fishing boats:
Only thing better than fishing boats is fishing boats AND the Kuwait skyline 🙂
I love being downtown at night:
And this one is from the Kuwait airport, and it just makes me sad; I think we are supposed to overcome barriers 🙂
I had to go by the Fintas Co-op to see how the new mosque turned out – it’s mammoth!
Hitting the Wall
“Ummm . . . . I can’t stay up any longer. I have to go to bed now,” AdventureMan says to me, bleary-eyed. It’s 8:15 PM.
I’m still slowly going through mail that came while we were gone. I went through quickly the first day, checking for any bills that needed to be paid right away, and the rest I’m going through when I can.
We are not exactly not jet lagging. We are sleeping through the night, which is a really good thing, but we still hit slumps at odd times during the day. I am waking up early, but I don’t mind. This morning was a huge full moon, so I went out and walked a mile; it doesn’t even take 20 minutes, and I am savoring this spring weather. In the summer, it is hot – for me – even at 5 in the morning, even when that is the coolest it is going to be all day, it is still hot for me in the summer. I relish my walks at this time of year, relish the coolness.
We spent yesterday taking care of the Happy Baby, who was a little less happy than normal. Well, happy enough, he is such a good baby, but suffering the after-effects of the one year vaccinations, fever, lethargy, just not his normal self. We were delighted not to have anything else on our calendar, and at the same time, we were exhausted by the end of the day. My heart goes out to grandparents who are raising their children’s children . . . we just don’t have that energy anymore; it takes two of us to keep up with a very mobile one-year-old. No wonder God gives babies to young people!
Today, a beautiful spring day when the high will be around 72°, I think I will start cleaning out the garden in back. Last year, I had to completely cut it back, but when it started growing, it was lush and glorious. I’ll just pull out the dead growth this year, trim where it might need trimming, and look for a new honeysuckle vine to plant along my back fence. I love the smell of honeysuckle. I might also plant a jasmine plant, see how it does, have a great smelling back yard. 🙂
Like Magic
I woke up this morning, astounded at how easy the transition has been in this direction. Yes, there are some moments in late afternoon when I can’t keep my eyes open, but . . . well, that can happen even when I am NOT jet lagging, LOL! AdventureMan and I are both doing well. We got up at our normal time this morning, well rested. Thanks be to God!
Yesterday I finished a quilt I have been working on for a Pensacola Quilt Guild challenge; it actually went to Kuwait with me, but I did not put in a single stitch while I was gone. I had great light, too, just not the time or interest in working on it. It’s finished now, hanging, so I can inspect for stray threads, etc. that I might have missed . . .
We emptied our day of activities yesterday, no water aerobics, no bible study, we just took it easy on ourselves, gave ourselves a day to transition to Pensacola mode. I did three loads of laundry, we both unpacked, and AdventureMan is now immersed in tax documents. Maybe this year we will actually submit our taxes on time, although the mere thought is enough to make me laugh, it is so unthinkable. We are lucky if we get them in by June in a normal year, but ‘normal’ is different now, living back in the United States, and we are trying to get on track with being residents again.
No photos; we are doing things we have done before and told you about. Breakfast at the Shiny Diner. AdventureMan was dying for lunch at Sonny’s Bar-B-Q; AdventureMan laughed, I hadn’t eaten there since he left, but it’s always good, always reliable, and I especially love their smoked turkeys. Dinner was the delicious chili EnviroGirl left in our refrigerator, how can anything that delicious be good for you?
On. On. Today I think I will finally buy my iPhone. 🙂
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