Midterms

Midterms for school are over and I am so ready to register for classes for the very last time. Only about 6 months left until I'm a master.

Midterm elections were also yesterday so I had to trek back to Long Island to put in my vote. Thank goodness Carl Palladino didn't make the cut - anyone who has such a creepy, skewed view on the gay pride parade is a no-go in my book.

Dennis's birthday was the 30th and to celebrate we went out for a delicious dinner in SoHo and saw a midnight showing of Poltergeist. For Halloween, I dressed up like my boyfriend and he dressed up like Carl from Aqua Teen Hunger force. Some ridiculous/horrendous pictures are posted on Facebook.

On a musical note - I have a performance coming up on November 20th that should be really great - It doesn't get much better than Tchaikovsky's Fifth Symphony! http://www.sssymphony.org/

It's autumn. The leaves are changing and so am I.

Due to some scheduling conflicts, I haven't been playing much this season. My first performance of the season is on Sunday, October 24 at the Tilles Center. It's a benefit concert for the United Cerebral Palsy Association of Nassau County. I'll be playing some fun tunes with the Nassau Pops - http://www.npso.org/schedule.cfm.

The research assistantship that I'd started working on this fall has been canceled. My professor had forgotten to write unpaid interns into her grant. During a site visit from the foundation that is funding her research, she was told she had to give us up. At first, I was pretty bummed out but since my classes are so time consuming this semester, maybe it's a blessing in disguise.

I kicked off the fall with a case of pneumonia! Eek - It's been rough the past few weeks but in 3 weeks, I should be back to 100%.

Since I wasn't having more fun as a blond, I decided to go back to my roots as a brunette again. (Pneumonia, a lack of orchestra gigs, and a canceled assistantship - it was time for a change). I'm really happy with my new 'do! AND my luck has certainly improved.

This past weekend I joined a bunch of my girlfriends for "pumpkin picking" (at the farmer's market in Union Square). We took our goods, went to one of the girl's apartments and carved our pumpkins. It was an autumn extravaganza! We made caramel apples, ate some pumpkin soup and pumpkin cheesecake, toasted our pumpkin seeds, and had some quality girl time.

I'm no target

October - I took a self defense class.

I always thought it was important as a woman living in a big city to be prepared for the worst case scenario - the man lurking behind a dark corner, the nicely dressed guy at the bar who may put something in your drink, the punk teenager looking for a rush while you're riding the subway home at night. These people are out there and their looking for a target.

After a scary experience a few weeks ago with one of my girlfriends, I decided it was time to take action. I had the illusion of safety before this class - carrying pepper spray in my bag (which I had never tried and didn't know how to use properly), thinking that living in a safe neighborhood made me off limits (even though I often spend my evenings outside of my safe bubble on the Upper East Side). It was time to be realistic and get my head out of the sand.

The course was held in a studio in Chelsea and was lead by a female instructor with 22 years of martial arts experience. In 2 hours, I learned tons of tricks, tips, and skills to prepare myself for an attack. I feel so empowered and safe.

Here are some of my favorite take-aways:

-A woman's strongest weapon is her voice. Don't be afraid to use it.

-Never take your keys out - it's like saying to everyone "Hi, I live somewhere close by. Want to follow me home?"

-Practice Practice Practice the moves you learn - if you think you feel uncomfortable doing them now, imagine how you'll feel when you're actually forced to use them.

I would recommend a self defense class to any one of my female friends. I guarantee that after the class you will feel stronger than ever.