Planes, Time Zones, and Automobiles

I'm writing this from my trusty Hampton Inn-Olathe, Kansas. This marks the third time zone I'll be sleeping in in as many days -- I think Mountain Time is the only one thus far avoided. My body has absolutely no idea what the actual time is right now. Actual time is inconsequential...I think as soon as I finish typing this I'm hitting the sack. Maybe before I finish writing this.

This afternoon between packing and a violin lesson and before heading to the airport I visited Motorcars Honda -- they had found the Honda Accord Coupe in Belize Blue I wanted to test drive at a Columbus-area dealer and had it delivered while I was in California and today was the first day they were open while I was in Ohio. In short I -- and my ladyfriend who was along for the test drive -- loved the car. It felt comfortable, it looked great (I thought the color looked good in the showroom--even better in natural light), handled well.

When I got back to the dealer since the price had already been set it was a matter of getting the paperwork done. I'm a little peeved that they hung a 0.9% APR in front of me and then changed it to 2.9% due to a limited credit history (well, I have one credit card--no balance--and a mortgage, and that's it, so I can't really say I'm surprised, but I wish they would have mentioned that when they pulled my mid-800s credit score last week.*)... more paperwork... Wrote the biggest check of my life to date (my house down payment was a wire transfer), and...I am a new car owner, though I'm not actually taking delivery until I get back to Cleveland on Saturday.

On the flight from Cleveland to Kansas City -- a bit bumpy but otherwise uneventful -- read through the owners manual, warranty booklets, etc... and started to doubt myself slightly: While the Civic was a strong contender early on I pretty much stopped considering it but I can't really articulate a reason why as I can with every other contender that fell by the wayside. Did I make a mistake? Was the price difference between the Accord and Civic worth it?

I rationalized it by saying that the slightly larger engine and additional creature comforts of the Accord pushed it ahead -- my one complaint from Day 1 with my Mercury Tracer was that it did 0-60 in about 20 minutes, and I was determined not to repeat that with my next car. But still -- should I have at least test driven a Civic?

That train of thought was interruped by the horrendous sound of an Embraer ERJ-145 with well-worn brakes touching down and then applying maximum breaking force: If I thought my car's breaks sounded bad...

Landing in Kansas City, that question was unexpectedly answered: After collecting my bags from baggage claim and hopping aboard the rental car shuttle I wound up at the Hertz counter. The first car I was offered was... drumroll, please... a 2011 Honda Civic.

The interiors of the two models are completely different, but a lot of the adjustments are the same. In the 45-minute drive from MCI to Olathe I came to the conclusion that the Civic would not have been the car for me. The cockpit design just feels weird and I couldn't come up with a configuration that was comfortable (my attempts at adjusting the headrest have so far failed and I have a crick in my neck worse than any airline flight has given me). It does handle well and is pretty responsive -- though there was some hesitation with rapid acceleration, and uphill climbs seemed to take some effort.

The dashboard design is interesting -- I like the speedometer placement and size but I don't know that I could get used to the rest of it. And ultimately I just don't care for the cockpit geometry -- it's not horrible (see: Toyota Yaris) or even bad... it's just a tad too compact for my driving style.

At least I can put that one to rest.

Speaking of the Mercury... my salesman suggested (and I'm not supprised) that I'm probably better off donating the car to charity and taking a tax writeoff than trying to do a trade in where at best their offer would be in the low 3-digits. Hmmm...

Lincoln

*- I'm going to formally request a clarification of the reasons for the adverse action, but since it only amounts to a few hundred dollars over the life of the loan, and 2.9% still beats the best rate I could find on the open market...)

eighth blackbird: Still Life (Cleveland Orchestra/Severance Hall)

Mazzoli: Still Life with Avalanche (2008)
Boulez: Derive 1 (1984)
Hurel: ...a mesure (1996)
Glass: Music in Similar Motion (1969)
Ades: Catch (1991)
Hartke: Meanwhile: Incidental Music to Imaginary Puppet Plays (2007)
eighth blackbird at Reinberger Chamber Hall, in Severance Hall
(Tim Munro, flutes; Michael J, Maccaferri, clarinets; Matt Albert, violin/viola; Matthew Duvall, percussion; Lisa Kaplan, piano)

While milling around the foyer before this afternoon's COYO concert a Cleveland Orchestra staffer asked me if I'd be coming back for eighth blackbird -- intentionally lowercase -- tonight. "I'm undecided" I think was my response -- I knew nothing of the group. "You should come". So I stopped by the box office to ask about the group and performance. I found out tickets were free...that changed things a bit.

So my ladyfriend -- who was working while I was gallivanting across the countryside, ahem, attending the COYO concert -- and I reassembled in the Reinberger Chamber Hall (under Severance Hall's main hall) for this evening's concert. I truly had no idea what to expect.

Opening the program was the interesting Still Life with Avalanche with a variety of energetic phrases on top of a constant, droning, bed laid by harmonicas. Boulez's Derive 1 was next up and quite different from Still Life. Throughout the piece the overall sound reminded me of a PBS network ident spot with a frustrated composer inspired by birds on power lines -- I wish I could give a YouTube link, but for the life of me I can't find it on YouTube. Rounding out the first half of the program, and I think my least favorite from the evening was Hurel's a mesure.

Throughout the first three pieces the common thread to me was that they seemed cinematic to me, apt selections to push the story of a film along, but it was my ladyfriend who observed that the lack of a discernible melody was largely what gave them that quality.

Following intermission, Philip Glass's Music in Similar Motion was my favorite with an ever evolving collection of instruments building on a repetitive structure with a generally steady and dramatic feel. It was intoxicating. The program notes remark that "as each new voice enters, there is a dramatic change in the music" -- I disagree. Change yes, but it's more of a natural evolution to the music than an seachange. Thomas Ades's Catch was an piece in which musicians were players not only of instruments but also games -- the clarinet as the outsider, could be found wandering through the hall at times.

Closing out the program was Stephen Hartke's Meanwhile: Incidental Music to Imaginary Puppet Plays. From the title, I really wanted to like the piece... and there were interesting sounds, but after Music in Similar Motion it didn't particularly hook me.

Lincoln

Cleveland Orchestra Youth Orchestra 25th Anniversary Alumni Celebration Concert

Wagner: Prelude to Die Meistersinger (Gareth Morrell, conductor; music director 1993-97)
Brahms: Fourth movement from Symphony No. 1 in C minor, Op. 68 (Jayce Ogren, conductor; music director 2006-09)
De Falla: Suite No. 2 from The Three-Cornered Hat (Steven Smith, conductor; music director 1998-2003)
Tchaikovsky: Fourth movement from Symphony No. 4 in F minor, Op. 36 (James Feddeck, conductor; music director 2009-)

For the past two years I haven't missed a concert weekend from The Cleveland Orchestra's Severance Hall season... until this weekend where I had a slightly more pressing matter: My mother's masters' graduation in California. To "make up" for that miss -- and partially out of curiosity about the Cleveland Orchestra Youth Orchestra -- COYO -- I made my way to Severance Hall for this afternoon's 25th anniversary alumni concert.

Not knowing how the travel would affect me I hadn't purchased a ticket in advnace... but with a solid night's sleep (and the need to stop obsessing about the car buying process, see, e.g. this post from earlier today) I made my way to Severance hall.

The concert pulled together four of the six music directors that the orchestra has had over its 25-year history, along with nearly ninety alumni of COYO. Unfortunately the hall was sparsely populated.

The concert, while not billed as such, by taking individual movements from pieces almost qualified as a "greatest hits" piece. From my seat in box 10, the strings sound deeper and heavier than I prefer, though as a whole the orchestra sounded generally delightful. (I've previously found that the strings sound a little odd to my ear in the high even-numbered boxes such as 10, 12, 14, etc., so I'm not sure if my reaction to the strings today was due to the acoustics of the hall or an artistic choice)

All four pieces on the program were generally lively and full of personality. I think that Adagio from Brahm's Symphony No. 1 which embodied a range of emotions. A dramatic opening turned a bit lighthearted and from that point the drama and joy traded the spotlight before giving way to a wistful yet dramatic passage and a bold ending.

In Manuel De Falla's Suite No. 2 from The Three-Cornered Hat, I particularly enjoyed the flute and celesta in the first movement (The Neighbor's Dance), the other two movements didn't really resonate with me however. The adagio con fuoco Finale from Tchiakovsky's Symphony No. 4 had an impressively explosive introduction.

One thing was clear, however: The Cleveland Orchestra through The Cleveland Orchestra Youth Orchestra has nurtured a lot of talent and growth over the past quarter century.

Lincoln

Guilt and Nostalgia

I think I've mentally prepared myself -- to the point of actually being excited -- about buying a new car.

Aside from the mechanical issues (a questionable oil problem, a "Check Coolant" light that's been on since I left Springfield Missouri on June 16th, 2005 -- driving Northeast from Southern California to my then-new job and unknown future in Cleveland, shocks and struts that are probably nearly 100,000 miles past their use-by date, a cassette deck (yes, cassette -- used for iPod playback) that's no longer functional [it stopped working one frigid night in the Cleveland Play House parking lot, I can only assume that a belt snapped], some frightening noises at high(er) speeds and in all honesty probably being time for a new set of front tires -- and I'm not sure how much life the breaks have left) I just think 12-13 years for a car that was bought new is probably a good run.

Yes, my 1998 Mercury tracer, purchased with 64 miles, now with 181,352 miles, has been a reasonably good car -- there was the serpentine belt about a year ago, a couple batteries, an alternator, a set of breaks (yes, only one), tie rod ends and more tires and oil changes than I care to remember -- and I'm conflicted as to what to do with it. It only left me truly stranded once (twice if you include the serpentine belt, but I think I could have driven it to safety if I had to)

On one hand, the most logical approach is probably trade it in -- even though the trade in value is (literally) "no value" -- because, practically, what use do I have for a second car and the hassles of insuring and registering it?

On the other hand, I feel a bit guilty turning my back on my first car -- a car that's been as loyal as an object can be (I wonder of Disney/Pixar films like Cars and the Toy Story trilogy have ruined me in this way). I may have promised it that it would see the Atlantic Ocean before I traded it in (or I might have just implied it). Since it's been from the Mexican Border to the Canadian Border, from the Pacific Ocean to Cleveland I had often thought about a weekend trip to New England to cross a few of those states off my list -- and get the car to the Eastern border of our country -- before I moved on to a new car.

But honestly -- running through the list of issues mentally -- I'm afraid I might be pushing my luck, and being stranded along the way doesn't excite me, but I don't want to spend any money just for that purpose.

Who knows I'd be so conflicted about an inanimate object?

Cleaning it out today just in case I do decide to go the trade in route, I found all kinds of memories, particularly between the back seats -- long forgotten fur from my childhood Golden Retriever, Goldy (creative name, right?), who passed away just before I moved to Cleveland -- business cards from people encountered along the way. A gas receipt from a 2005 road trip to Seattle (gas was $1.73 just before Christmas at the Seatac airport Shell). Some ticket stubs. It occurred to me that objects are more important to me than photos in remembering an event. As I looked over each document I remembered the associated events. Sigh.

Maybe that's part of the reason I'm feeling so conflicted about the car -- it's my first car. It figures prominently in so many of my memories, from driving it from the dealer to the home I grew up in, to transporting my first (and only) pet, high school, moving to Cleveland, road trips along the way...A horrendous downpour on I-94 in Michigan while I drove to Grand Rapids for work, etc., etc.

I test drive the 2011 Honda Accord Coupe tomorrow, and if everything goes well I'll be buying that car tomorrow to lock in the rate, and taking delivery when I get back from Kansas City. But I still can't convince myself what to do with the Tracer. Maybe I hold on to it for a few months and then sell/donate it? But do I want to deal with that hassle?

Lincoln

La Jolla Playhouse: A Dram of Drummhicit

It seems that the La Jolla Playhouse has figured directly or indirectly in my theatrical life, a regional powerhouse with a track record for new play development (the one thing I feel is missing from Cleveland), at least two of my favorite musicals (The Who's Tommy, Jersey Boys) originated here -- for Jersey Boys I was in the house with director Des McAnuff and Frankie Valli before the show hit Broadway and I moved to Cleveland. For Tommy, while I never saw it at LJP one of the original cast members was involved in my high school's staging of the show. I could have sworn that I saw reference to Spring Awakening somewhere, but nonetheless, on the drama side one of the most moving I've seen -- Cleveland Play House's I Am My Own Wife -- workshopped and premiered at La Jolla.

That's not to say that there haven't been disappointments -- you can't hit it out of the park every time for everyone.

A Dram of Drummhicit wasn't the greatest offender in that category but it certainly seemed rough: The pacing and chemistry felt off, several characters felt overly stiff, and the script was full of tangential subplots that just served to obfuscate the actual point, if any. Add in some juvenile humor, and full male and female nudity and I was at best confused: Early in the play it seems that the plot to pay attention to is, essentially, dead bodies popping out of the ground, being stored in a church that no one attends, by a priest who claims that he has to hide them from the locals who just want to put them back in the ground. The locals, however, seem to have no such interest -- indeed, in the local pub the bodies are being used as coat hangers.

By the end of the first act, this thread has seemingly frayed and unraveled. A shame considering this was the most interesting part of the play and provided the most laughs. By the end of the play you're left unsure about the message, which parts were actually important, and to a certain extent the maturity of playwright and/or designers. I'll admit to briefly closing my eyes and nearly falling asleep a few times during the second act.

That's not to say that there aren't laughs: I chuckled a few times and there was a small contingent of theatergoers that laughed fairly heartily but they were the exception. The majority of the house was oddly quiet.

Not a show I have a desire to see again... but on the upside both the sound and scenic design were impressively cohesive. Also, Jersey Boys is returning to Cleveland's Playhouse Square in the not too distant future, if I'm not mistaken.

Lincoln

In California, My Mom's Graduation (Again), and Car Buying

I've spent the past few days in -- or at least close enough to my old stomping grounds of Southern California. The reason for this trip? My mother has participated in graduation ceremonies again -- this time for her Masters of Engineering Management at National University in San Diego. Though she hasn't officially graduated as yet (still needing to finish her capstone) it was an excuse to get In-N-Out, ahem, visit my mother, and see an aunt and uncle who had trekked down from Central California for the event.

The ceremony was, I think, designed to represent the sheer tedium that is the educational process in America -- assemble in a room about two hours, get up, move to a smaller room, see a bunch of strangers get their diplomas, Hi, Mom!, more strangers. Leave. The actual presentation of the diplomas was done quickly and efficiently, and of course, watching my mom walk for her 3rd degree (I have been there for all of them, though I don't really remember the first one!) was the best part -- the commencement address and presidents remarks weren't particularly inspiring (actually, rather depressing) but the achievement symbolized by the event was more important than the actual event.

Following, we wound up at Dick's Last Resort in the Gaslamp Quarter after walking around a bit -- for as long as I lived in Southern California I've never really spent much time in San Diego proper, let alone the Gaslamp quarter, but I can certainly understand it's appeal. Dick's on the other hand is was a little too brash for my state of mind (as my mother commented, "a nice juxtaposition against the formality of the graduation") -- with waitstaff that were openly insulting and degrading though fun. The food wasn't anything special, but it certainly was an interesting dining experience.

This morning -- as my aunt and uncle were hitting the road north to home, we stopped by the Orange Empire Railway Museum to grab a few pictures of the four of us in various combinations with my mom in graduation regalia for the benefit of my Grandfather. Growing up, I had visited OERM with both my mom and dad more times than I can remember but it's probably been close to a decade since I've been on the property -- it was amazing to see how much of it has changed and evolved and how much has stayed the same. On a future visit I'd really like to get back up there and spend the better part of the day wandering around (while I was there it occurred to me that I think I've heard of something similar somewhere in Northern Ohio and I need to look into that).

With my aunt and uncle on their way North we headed South and wound up walking to what was formerly known as Joan F. Sparkman Elementary School (now the Joan F. Sparkman Alternative Education Campus, combining a number of Temecula Valley Unified School District programs as well as select Cal State San Marcos programs), around the corner from my mom's new house and where my educational career began 22 years ago.

The prime reason for this visit though was curiosity -- the campus was built between 1988 and 1989. I started Kindergarten in 1989 (in the classroom near the center of the picture). I remember ever so vaguely in the first month or so of classes sitting for a tree planting ceremony near the main entrance, with a dedication plaque. I was curious what had become of that tree and the plaque. The tree is the giant green one behind the flagpole. The concrete post that the plaque was mounted on is still there, but it looks like the plaque was long ago removed -- so it seems like my curiosity about the actual plaque will remain unfufilled, however it's great to see the tree thriving 22 years later.

Tonight my mom and I are going to take in a show at the La Jolla Playhouse, and I'll have more on that subject later. Tomorrow I fly home, and on Monday I test drive the car that Motorcars has had delivered from Columbus just for me -- and if I like it, I buy then to take advantage of a 0.9% interest rate through the 31st, but won't actually take delivery until I get back from Kansas. I was nervous about my credit score since I have a mortgage, one credit card (with no balance), and that's it... but my score was even higher than I expected so I don't need to worry about being suprised with a higher rate at the end of this all.

Lincoln

Cleveland Museum of Art: Art Crawl

A few weeks ago I received an emailed invitation to the Cleveland Museum of Art's first Art Crawl, an after hours wine, hors d'oeuvres and conversation event open to members at the Fellow level and higher.

I wasn't sure what to expect but my ladyfriend and I eagerly RSVPed, and tonight was the night. At 6:30 pretty intimate gathering of probably fewer than 120 people met in the lower level of the Museum's north wing and were further into even smaller groups of perhaps thirty each for talks with museum staff and then wine and food nearby (but not in the actual galleries for obvious reasons!)

Our group had the following itinerary:

Icon of the Mother of God and Infant Christ (Virgin Eleousa) by Angelos Akotantos with Dean Yoder, Conservator of Paintings. Followed by Boutari Kretinos Red and White wines, Domas Yolandi (Grape leaves stiffed with herbs and rice, tzatziki sauce), Spanikopita: Sauteed spinach, garlic, feta cheese, minted greek yogurt)

Mr. Yoder's discussion brought light to the importance of this icon, how it came to be attributed to the artist (somewhat rare for works of that type from that period). Particularly interesting to me were the challenges of the condition for a painting that's nearly 600 years old and the techniques used to clean, stabilize, and generally conserve the painting -- something I've been interested in since I first became really aware of the art at a Cleveland Museum of Art Member's Appreciation Day two years ago, a Science Cafe event last year. As my ladyfriend's career goal is conservation, I've been slowly learning even more lately.

A View from Moel Cynwich: Looking over the Vale of Afon Mawddach and Toward Cader Idris by William Turner of Oxford. Heather Lemonedes, Curator of Drawings. Followed by Osbourne Amantillado Sherry; Cilantro curry and spinach dip, crispy pita chip; Smoked salmon "tartar", English cucumber cup, creme fraiche.

Ms. Lemonedes discussed her role as curator of drawings while standing in front of a magnificient watercolor. Seem nonsequeter? We learned tonight that the museum considers anything on paper to be a drawing -- including watercolors. Beyond that Ms. Lemonedes discussed the importance of this particular work, and her interest in expanding the museum's holdings of British drawings to compliment the already impressive collections of other nationalities. Particularly interesting was the social nature of art acquisition, and the respect Cleveland has in the art dealer world. Ms. Lemonedes's enthusiasiam bubbled over.

The sherry was a bit too strong in both taste and smell for me, barely surviving two sips, but the cilantro curry and spinach dip on crispy pita was great. My ladyfriend and I both thought it had a hit of something familiar but couldn't quite place it.

The Age of Bronze by Auguste Rodin. William Robinson, Curator of Modern European Art. Latur Ardeche Chardonnay, Latour Valmoissine Pinot Noir; Micro baked bire, apricot compote, baguette; Duck confit, apple chip, sour cherry puree.

Topping the previous curator's impressive enthusiasm, William Robinson was clearly a curator passionate about his work. Though the Age of Bronze was the center of the discussion, it ultimately included the museum's relationship with Rodin while he was living: The casting of the Age of Bronze in Cleveland's discussion was overseen by Rodin personally and the last casting while he was living -- the patina was chosen specifically to be a "crushed grape" look unlike the patina of the same piece in the Met's collection which was overseen by the French government and Rodin felt was all wrong. Interestingly, unlike many other collections, the vast majority of Cleveland's Rodin holdings were cast while the artist was alive; many other museums collections consist posthumous castings.

While I didn't really love any of the wines, the Latour Ardeche Chardonnay was my favoirte from the evening, being farily light and not overly dry. Disappointingly, this stop's food offerings were the ones I was most looking forward to--but they had completely run out by the time my group made it to this stop.

Bringing Forth the Fruits of Righteousness From Darkness by Damien Hirst. Paola Morsiana, Curator of Contemporary Art. Menage a Trois Red and White. Trio of soup sips: cantaloupe, avocado, strawberry rhubarb.

At the peak of enthusiasm, Curator Paola Morsiani jovially declared herself the queen of the contemporary galleries and discussed Damien Hirst's monumental Bringing Forth the Fruits of Righteousness From Darkness -- a triptych made up entirely of butterfly wings arranged to resemble stained glass windows in a Gothic church -- from an angle I hadn't previously considered: The commercial nature of contemporary art, and how Mr. Hirst is aware of the business of art, and the art is a product of that business environment... in other words, he knows how to make money from his art.

Like the other curators, Ms. Morsiana eagerly and happily answered questions following her brief talk, and I took the opportunity to enquire about how a work of that scale -- on loan from an anonymous collector for 5 years, and Ms. Morsiana is not bashful about admitting that she'd be thrilled to have the collector donate the piece -- gets loaned to the museum.

Reception with Director David Franklin and Membership staff.

Following the conclusion of the groups, everyone assembled on the lower level of the East wing for a light reception and even more conversation: Perhaps most interesting all of the curators who had given their time throughout the evening seemed to remain for the reception and were just as eager to continue answering questions.

The longer I live in Cleveland and the more time I spend both in my "home" galleries and of those of museums I encounter in my travels along the way, I'm increasingly appreciative of both the strength of Cleveland's collection (and reputation) along with the pure passion of its staff at all levels.

Lincoln