Music at St. Stanislaus (again)
The Dedication Mass went well however my attempt to record it did not. I’m told that the video is still in production.
Since then, we also had to plan for Holy Week and the Triduum. It was hectic but I think that Holy Thursday went exceptionally well. Good Friday was meh, and the Easter Vigil went well, but again, Thursday was really good. Several musicians from the Spanish choirs as well as several people that were new to music ministry at the parish sang with the choir for one or both days. It was the first truly bilingual Triduum that we’d done at St. Stanislaus.
For weeks prior to Easter, I’d been saying that I couldn’t wait for the 13th and be done with the preparation for Holy Week, etc. But come the 13th, I was already trying to look ahead and plan for the next big thing(s) for music at the parish. I identified four specific things that I want to move forward with.
• First, we need to be looking for more opportunities to bring everyone together to do (bilingual) music. Perhaps Pentecost will be the next logical opportunity.
• Second, I want to try to restart the local chapter of NPM (National Pastoral Musicians). Maybe instead of trying to organize this on a diocesan level, we can work on a greater Modesto area gathering. Anyway, I’ve asked Beth Holtan, Music Director for Our Lady of Fatima to consider taking a lead on such a project.
• Third, I want to start a hand bell choir at St. Stanislaus. I believe that we can make a start at this with 2 octaves of bells and 6 ringers to play them. I’ve asked Jeff Bonilla, my friend who teaches music at Central Catholic to consider directing such a group. Or even if he’s not willing to do that, maybe we could borrow the school’s bells. I think a hand bell choir is doable and I’m setting Christmas 2009 as the target date for the debut of this group.
• Fourth, I have long lamented that there are all these kids that study instruments in jr. high and high school (and college) and never do anything with that experience after graduation. Parallel to that, we have all these kids in the parish who play clarinet, or baritone, or tenor sax, or whatever and we do very little if anything to allow them to put that gift to work for the church. I’d like to try to put together an orchestra of these kids (and adults who still want to play) that could play a couple or three times per year (Christmas, Easter, mid-summer maybe). In addition, if there were a few parishes doing the same sort of thing, we could even get together for combined orchestras now and again. Now, I say orchestra, but it would probably be more like a concert band, and not a full one at that. I imagine that we would do stuff like four-part choral arrangements of hymns arranged for A, B, C, & D parts so that any instrument could play one of the four parts.
Any suggestions about how to approach any of these ideas?
Dedication update
So here’s the current sitrep for the Dedication Mass. The Dedication Committee has selected a Music Director for the Mass. It’s Mike Joyce who used to be the director at the cathedral in Stockton. He’s a nice guy; I’ve sung with him before. He now works in the Oakland Diocese. Anyway, several of the parish musicians met with him last Saturday to talk about plans for the music. I was really impressed with the meeting. Mike made it clear that this was our celebration; that we knew our people (those who might be considered for participation) and what songs parishioners knew. So we settled on the songs for the Mass. Here is the list:
Gathering: Gather Us In, Somos El Cuerpo de Cristo, Que Allegria – PS 122 (FyC – #262)
Sprinkling: Agua de Vida/Water of Life – FyC #262 (bilingual)
Gloria: Mass of Creation
Psalm: Psalm 18/19 – FyC #177 (bilingual)
Gospel Acc: Celtic Alleluia (verse to be determined)
Litany of the Saints: Becker setting
Deposition of Relics: IF NEEDED – “Saints of God” – Bob Hurd #450 in acc. Book.
Anointing of the Altar and the Walls of the Church:
“How Lovely Is Your Dwelling Place” – #84 in Acc. Edition
Incensation of the Altar and the Church:
Psalm 138 – David Haas – Gather Comp #84 – 1st Refrain
Lighting of the Altar and the Church:
Psalm 26/27 – The Lord Is My Light – FyC #190 (bilingual)
Presentation of the Gifts:
(Combined Spanish Groups to Present Gift Presentation Selection)
Eucharistic Acclamations:
Misa del Pueblo Inmigrante – Acclamation “C” “Por Tu Cruz”
Litany during the Breaking of the Bread:
MOC
Communion: Amen, El Cuerpo de Cristo, Ven Al Banquette, Pescador de Hombres
Closing Song: Holy God, We Praise Thy Name – Official Closing, Santa Maria del Camino (Music Ministry Only, Go, Make A Diff’rence – (Music Ministry Only)
We also made some choices/recommendations about musicians. Unfortunately, the decision has been made that only so many people can be involved with doing music that day, so we had to make a list of people to ask to be a part of the group. There are 6 groups/choirs for the Spanish Masses and 3 for the English Masses. This adds up to about 75 people. We were told to keep it to 30 singers + instruments.
So that part of the process is ongoing. People are being asked if they’d like to participate, steadily we are getting the list finalized. It needs to be settled on pretty soon because the Dedication is in 4 weeks!
In other Mass news, the choir has decided to take the month of January off. What incredibly poor timing! So in addition to the 3 Masses I usually do on the weekends, I’ve stepped in to do the 10:00 AM this month. And then, last week, John who plays at the 7 AM Mass called on Saturday to let me know that he was ill. So I ended up doing that Mass too for a total of 5 Masses last weekend. Yikes! More than ever I cannot wait until the new Mass schedule is in effect. I will let you know what that will be when I find out myself.
Phoenix-esqe
You will recall that I posted not too long ago about my friend, Alyssa. Alyssa had moved away and the connection that I had with her was severed. Over the past 18 months, there have been a few emails and text messages, and she has called me once. But these are not enough to sustain or grow a friendship. I have no doubt that she remained fond of me in the same way that I still have great affection for her. But our lives were now on different tracks.
Well, yesterday I found out via the Board of Trustees Agenda that she would be returning to the college as a short term contract employee. What great news! I sent her a text message letting her know that I had learned of this. Right away she called to shed some additional light on the situation. It’s only temporary but while she is back working for the college, she will be living back in Modesto. It’s tough managing expectations, but I am giving it a go. I would love to resume the same relationship we had, but what might the past year and a half have done to it? And is it really the best thing to go back? It’s probably better to be thinking of how to move forward. In any case, I shall try to make the most of the situation. I’ve missed my friend.
Sometimes you get the best light…
I had something very nice happen to me recently. As you know, I did not get the job in the MJC Music Department that I’d applied for last year. I have not been particularly shy about expressing my disappointment to my friends. Danny, who plays viola with me at church, related the following to me last Friday night. Anne, who directs the orchestra and was on the hiring committee, has been doing her regular chore of beating the bushes to get people to come play in the orchestra. She contacted Danny to come play viola as he has done many semesters before. Danny told her no and said the reason was that I hadn’t been given the job. What a flattering show of support for me. I do not believe I have ever had anyone stand up for me so definitely in my life. As I told another friend the other day, it’s like he burned a bridge in standing up for me. I would never have asked him to do that but it feels great that he was convicted enough to do it on his own.
My own episode of ER
Recently, I experienced my first significant medical ailment. On November 6th, late in the afternoon, I started experiencing discomfort in my lower back. I didn’t think much of it as I have had back pain several times in the past. This was a little different however. In the past, pain had been more or less central on my lower back. This time, it was definitely on the right side only and it seemed deeper inside my body than I was used to. The discomfort began to get worse and after a short time, I decided I needed to leave work early.
On the way home, the discomfort/pain rapidly got worse. By the time I arrived at my home, it was hurting quite a bit. I took an Advil and tried to lie down to relax. Normally, with back pain, I can find a position to sit or recline in that will not cause pain. This was not the case here. No matter how I moved around, the pain remained and continued to worsen. After a short time, I took a second Advil and tried to go to sleep. This proved difficult and I managed only to doze for about 20 minutes. I took a third Advil, and I immediately threw up due to the pain I was experiencing. I decided I had to go to the hospital. I got ready and drove myself over to Doctor’s Hospital ER.
After a moderately lengthy check-in, I was taken back to a hallway bed. By this point, I was sort of thinking it was a kidney problem, and the only kidney problem I really know about is kidney stones. It wasn’t long before a doctor came around to see me. He did a brief examination and decided on a course of action. He said that he’d have the nurse administer three injections, an anti-nausea medication, a narcotic pain-killer, and a second pain medication that is used for kidney stones. After a bit, the nurse came and gave me the shots. My nausea went away immediately, and the pain disappeared after only a few more minutes. Maybe an hour later a technician came to collect me and take me to get a CT scan. It was about 1:00 AM when I’d finished up with that and the doctor came back to talk about what the x-ray showed. I did indeed have a kidney stone. It was small and low in my kidney so the doctor thought it would pass during the following 12 to 24 hours. He prescribed pain medication and Flomax to dilate my vessels.
I had to hang out in the hospital until 2:30 AM because I wasn’t allowed to drive for four hours after having received my injection of pain medication. So I slept for a bit and at the appointed hour, I was allowed to leave. I stopped at Walgreen’s on the way home to pick up my prescriptions and when I finally got home at 3:30 in the morning, I went to bed. I had already called in to work letting them know I wouldn’t be there on Friday so I slept as long as my dog let me. By combining the pain medication I’d been prescribed (acetaminophen) with ibuprofen and naproxen, I made it through the weekend ok. I did try to come to work on Monday, but after a couple of hours, I had to return home.
My stone finally passed on Tuesday, the 11th; Veteran’s Day. I had thought that the painful part would be the actual expelling from the body. That didn’t hurt at all. The painful part was the stone making its way from the kidney to the bladder.
Epilogue to the story. After a couple of weeks, I received an itemized bill for the trip to the ER. The total cost for all serviced was $17,260.46. I’d already paid $100 and I still owe $280 but insurance covered the rest. So all in all, this is the first time I’ve ever been glad to have insurance, because this is the first time I’ve ever needed it.
I didn’t mind my time in the hospital. In fact, I kind of liked it. That’s surprising to me. Everyone always says they hate hospitals. Not me. Sign me up.
Spending and planning
Hmm, well, it’s already been an expensive month. I paid an expensive traffic ticket and bought a new guitar. I needed the new guitar because, although my old one still worked fine, the crack that it had developed could get worse at any time. The last thing I wanted was to open my case one day and find out that the guitar was unplayable. So I bought a new one. I chose a rather inexpensive one, but the guitar and case cost over $400. I’m glad to have the new guitar but I am sad that I will have no money.
I should be used to having no money. I definitely spend more than I should. My next purchase will be at the end of the month, or first week of January. I plan to buy an iPhone. I think it’s going to cost about $300 and I have that in my budget for January’s paycheck. Technically, I do not need a new phone. But my current phone is a couple years old and I’ve been wanting an iPhone for a while now. So this month and January will be pretty lean months. I fully expect to run out of money at least once and maybe twice. Such is my life. But I am very much looking forward to having the new phone. All the cool stuff I’ll be able to do with it.
I have been recommended to Fr. Ramon to be on the New Church Dedication Core Team. Specifically to help with the planning of music. He hasn’t approached me yet, but I certainly hope he will. I am of two minds about how to go about doing the music for the dedication. One approach would be to bring in all the ‘ringers’ we need to do a service worthy of the building. This idea has the advantage of being inclusive of all the neighboring parish musicians and is more likely to produce a full, quality sound. The other approach would be to do only what we ourselves are capable of. This would be more authentic and pastorally appropriate. I think what I’d really like to do is put together a group from the parish musicians we have, and invite those from other parishes and folks that have been involved with music ministry at St. Stanislaus in the past to participate. I think it will be tricky to balance the desire for grandeur on the one hand, and the idealized version of what the parish already does on the other hand. But I am ahead of myself. I haven’t been asked (and may not be) and all of the decision making may be out of our hands anyway. It is going to be a diocesan Mass, after all.
Status update
Well, in the month and a half since I last posted I finally got a call to interview for a job I’d applied for back in July. I didn’t get the job. It’s actually the second time I applied for this position. The first time was back in 2002. Then, the person they hired turned out to have the surliest disposition I’ve ever run across. Regardless of his qualifications, his unfriendly attitude made him unsuitable for the job, imho. I don’t know who they hired this time but I can only hope that he/she is more approachable. One funny thing that happened after I failed to get the job was that Cherrie, a woman who was on the hiring committee the first time I’d applied told me that she was sorry I didn’t get the job (this time), that she wished she’d been on the hiring committee. Well, I happen to know that she didn’t vote for me the first time around so her expressions of regret sounded rather hollow to me.
So I am stuck at this job that I pretty much hate. I can’t seem to get ahead in my financial situation. I owe everybody something. What happens when I need to pay for car maintenance? I clearly wasn’t meant to be economically comfortable. I guess there are lots of people who have it worse than me. I should shut up and count my blessings, eh?
We still have a problem with lack of communication at St. Stanislaus. We are starved for information and the parish seems content to let us go hungry. I am responsible for two Masses each weekend and it looks like I will be providing music at a third Mass which in practical terms means I am there for four Masses. Who’d have thought I would turn out to have such an overdeveloped sense of responsibility?
And it looks like I need a new guitar. But, of course, I can’t afford one. My old one is about to break so soon enough, I will not have a choice. I will have to buy one. *sigh*
The latest
I haven’t posted in quite a while. Here’s what I’m up to these days.
I’ve been taking lots of photos. I post almost all of them to my flickr page so feel free to take a look. My cousin Danny came up to help shoot an event a couple of weeks ago. It was the Edible Extravaganza. We did a couple of model photo shoots while he was here too. He and I have also been playing LOTRO a little more than we had been for almost a year. Nice!
I applied for a new job recently. The due date to turn in my application materials was July 10th. So far, they’ve done nothing about trying to fill the position. 70 days and counting. The job is the lab aide over in the Music department. I’m still hopeful.
Stuff at church has kept me busy. I am back to doing Mass on Saturday evenings again so that makes four that I am at each weekend. I am trying to cut back to two by handing off the 11:30 Mass to A) the Philippino group, B) Carmelo, and/or C) Kyle. But once we start using the new church, who knows what the Mass schedule will be! Latest I hear on that is we are hoping for Thanksgiving. First Sunday of Advent would make more sense to me, but whatever. In some ways, I am the de facto music coordinator. I’m the one that gets calls about absences and I get notified when there is information to disperse to the other musicians. I don’t get paid to do this but someone has to do it.
I may also be stepping up to fill the Deputy Grand Knight position in my local council. I am willing but not necessarily eager. I should find out in the next week or so.
New tv season is starting. I’ll post soon about the shows I am watching this year.
I’d try to think of more to write but my lunch is almost over.
Entropy
It is deathly hot here in Modesto. Yesterday had a high of 109 and today is forecast to get up to 112.
Every year during this open house to hell, I start thinking of moving out of the Central Valley. And so it is that I am looking at options for a cooler clime.
For years, I’ve dreamed of moving to Vancouver, BC. But as I was thinking about it today, I realized that this is too big a hurdle to jump. As I’ve mentioned before, I am entrenched in my inertia. The very idea of moving is contrary to my nature. The idea of moving to another country… well, unless I work up to that sort of thing, it will never be more than an idea.
So then I was thinking, Seattle. Lots going for it. A friend of mine lives in Portland and she suggested that I would enjoy living there. So now I am looking into the idea of Portland. It may be that this will never be more than an exercise in imagination. To be a reality, I would need to secure a job and housing before I went up there.
How to do that from here?
Friendships do sometimes end
A couple of years ago, a woman named Alyssa came to work at MJC in the Financial Aid Department. Alyssa and I became good friends. Our friendship grew at first through numerous daily phone calls and email messages; later through much time spent together. It was a platonic relationship but a uniquely special one. Alyssa had a boyfriend, John whom I got to know, and he and I got along well. I spent many hours at Alyssa’s house. I got to know her family and in particular her sister, Kaleena. I would flirt outrageously with Kaleena but just in fun. Neither of us had any interest in the other. Weekly dinners, time spent with each other running errands, shared work environments all contributed to my friendship with Alyssa.
Although we had this great friendship, one should not be misled into thinking that there were no points on which we disagreed. There are two points that are germane to this story. Early on in our friendship, Alyssa told me that she did not believe that friendships should be work. We argued gently about this a time or two but there it was. The second thing that bears on this story is that I have a pattern or tendency to not do a very good job with long distance friendships. I have had several good friends that have moved away at the height of our friendship. Though there was a bit of effort in the beginning to maintain the friendship, it has always faded as our lives go on, now on separate tracks. I do not like this reality but I accept it. Alyssa, Kaleena, and many other people claim to be able to pick right up where they left off when they have the opportunity to see their old/distant friends. I do not possess this ability. I have a finite capacity for relationships.
So, a year ago, Alyssa decides to quit her job at MJC and move to the Bay Area to live with John. This was a very sad thing for me to have to accept. At the same time, Kaleena had announced that she was moving to Los Angeles to live with her boyfriend. To me, this effectively signaled the end of our friendships, at least the active friendships. Alyssa was my connection to her sister and the rest of her family, and with her gone, I no longer had a connection. Kaleena was also moving away and truth be told, she had never been much for reciprocating the effort that I put in to be her friend.
So neither Alyssa, nor Kaleena, nor I have really put any effort into communicating with each other since then. I’ve emailed Alyssa a couple of times and received replies but they are essentially meaningless. Kaleena ended up not moving out of town and as it turns out, it wasn’t at all important to tell me that. I always felt with her like I was the one putting in all the effort. I’d actually decided to stop to see what would happen and very predictably, I never heard from her. A couple of times, Kaleena would include me in the distribution list for a mass email she was sending out. Not exactly the personal touch but it was something. Upon receiving one of these emails from her, I would immediately respond with an offer to get together. For whatever reason, we never did. Until this last week.
She sent out one of her mass emails and I responded with an inquiry about when we might get together. After a couple of false starts, we ended up meeting at the Queen Bean on Sunday evening. The first minute or two of conversation was awkward. So much for her alleged ability to pick up right where things left off. Then she launches into a “why haven’t I or Alyssa heard from you?” She accuses me of not putting in any effort.
Let me tell you, I was pissed. The fracking phone rings both ways! My entire history with Kaleena was a one-sided effort on my part to be her friend. The only time she’d ever call me was when she needed something. Here’s an example: on Sunday she asked if I would be willing to go with her to a club here in town that caters toward an older crowd. Was she asking because she wanted to do something with me? No, no. She wants to go there to pick up on older guys and didn’t want to go alone. She would be very happy to ditch me if some sugar daddy happened along.
Anyway, as I read over this whole thing, it just looks stupid. Maybe it is stupid to have put this much thought/time into it, but it’s how I have felt and I won’t apologize for it. The reason I wrote this out is that I had posted somewhere that I had a good weekend until I saw Kaleena and one of my friends asked me about it. It would have been too hard to explain via text messages so I told him I’d post an entry to my blog about it.
Hope you enjoyed the story. 🙂
