My weekend really didn't go as planned. First, the shrimp creole didn't happen because that's pretty labor-intensive and I wanted to finish proofreading, and I had some country-style boneless ribs that were sounding pretty good. So I marinated those in a little liquid smoke seasoning, cooked them on the George Foreman grill (I can't use a real grill where I live), then added the sauce and broiled briefly in the toaster oven. They were almost as good as if I'd really grilled them. I'll have to do the shrimp creole tonight, though.
Saturday ended up being really busy and turned into Support the Second Sopranos Day. It takes a certain personality to sing second soprano. These are generally people who could sing first soprano (or sometimes they're altos with a higher range), and they're also people who can read music and find offbeat notes in strange chords, but they're content not to play the diva. They find more pleasure in finding those odd harmonies than in getting the big glory notes. And they have to really pull together to help each other work out those odd parts. As a result, our section is really tight-knit. The funeral the choir sang for on Saturday was for the husband of one of the second sopranos. It was a very sudden and shocking loss, so we'll have to continue being close and supportive. I did find that when social skills fail, listening and hugging work pretty well. I'm not a big hugger. It never occurs to me to initiate a hug, and I'm not overly keen on receiving them (I'm not a touchy-feely person). My personal space bubble is about the size of my house. But there are times when the thing to do is let myself be hugged (while fighting not to go stiff and rigid) and remember to hug back, and that's all the person really needs at that time.
On a happier note, one of the other second sopranos and her husband were celebrating their anniversary that weekend, and at the funeral they invited me to join them that evening for a gathering at a place in the next town over. That turned out to be a fun night at a place I'll have to go back to. It's in an old building on the very quaint town square. At lunchtime, it's a sandwich/salad deli kind of place. On Friday and Saturday nights, it becomes a wine and tapas bar with live jazz. It was nice to spend the evening hanging out with choir friends, drinking a glass of wine and listening to a really good jazz band. Now I know a nearby place I can go when I get the rare inclination to just go out. It's not even a really late night because it closes at ten.
Sunday turned into my resting/relaxing day. I mostly just watched TV, read and worked crossword puzzles, then went to bed pretty early.
Today brings two things I've been looking forward to. For one thing, the new season of Warehouse 13 starts tonight. For another, I'm starting to do the prep work for book 7. It's been a while since I wrote that proposal, so I need to get back in that mindset. I'm doing something fun and kind of experimental with that plot, so we'll see if I can pull it off. The idea seemed great in a synopsis, but writing it may turn out to be tricky. I'm developing my soundtrack for helping keep my head in the story today, as well as reviewing all my notes and plans. Tomorrow I may start actually writing, unless something happens today that triggers a good first line. Plus, I'm going to finally send my agent that other project I've been working on for ages.
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