OMEA

So I've had a relatively uneventful couple of days at OMEA. Always a surreal experience for me. I already find the phenomenon of specialization fascinating, and when you pile thousands of people from a specialized field into one building and give them freedom to talk about their own specialization, wow can you learn a lot about them.

Anyway, as is often the case, many people seem to be here just to socialize and network. Well...yeah...if you know me, you know that aint happenin'. Aside from the obvious fact that I'm asocial, I actually know very few people here any more. My college friends are either out of the business or out of the state, and anyone I know from my working life is either still in the band world (whose paths literally do not cross with the general music crowd at these things) or from an uncomfortable time in my life which makes conversation tricky. Believe me, because I actually tried it this time. Yeah. Not worth it.

But some of us actually come here to get ideas. I am one of them. It's always hit or miss, knowing that high-energy dances or happy puppets are never something I will be able to pull off. I've learned one thing in teaching - I can do anything as long as at the core of it, I'm still being me. I can adjust my personality to fit the needs of the kids or of the school, but I can't run counter to every fiber of my being. Sorry, John Jacobson...I won't be doing "Dancing Shoes" with my kids in this lifetime.

Anyway, there have been some good sessions and some bad ones. A few more this morning and then I'll be home for the rest of the weekend to help out the recovering ear infections. A lot of amoxicillin at our house.

Later all.
Matt