Procrastination

It was ever thus. I can remember nights of sweaty anxiety, feverishly trying to complete a project that had been due for ages and was only now being done the night before it was due. Parents must feel so torn watching their kids go through that; a combination of kid's gotta learn and how can I help my poor sweet baby get through this any way I can? Well, now there's no parent to soothe me as I try to catch up on 2 months' neglected Jazz Theory studies in time for my midterm on Friday.

Ok. Diminished 7th chords: what are their chord scales?
Name the 6 Harmonic Formulae and provide examples.
What defines a blues song?
Analyze this song, pointing out all instances of Modal Interchange.
Provide the 8 examples of Dominant Chords with a non-Dominant function.
Provide the 7 examples of Deceptive resolutions.
Does this song have an AABA or ABAC form?

These are some of the questions I'll be asked in 2 days. Actually, I do know the answers to a lot of these questions, after a few hours of grind. But I'm annoyed with myself for letting illness, financial difficulties and lack of energy get in the way of my studies. I do these 2 courses for myself, to learn more about this subject that means more to me than most other things. To let myself get behind is to let myself down, not to mention my mom, who generously provided the cash that made these courses possible. I had a great Fall term and it would be shaming to fail an exam after such a great start. So I'll take a few more minutes to finish off today's blog entry and then dive back into my notes again.

My ambivalence about practice has probably come up before in these entries; I love rehearsing with others but have such a hard time buckling down at home and playing music alone. It's best to do it every day: I really need to make time at least 5 days a week to work on my instruments and get better at playing them. I'll see if I can make this a part of my daily routine, like running- oh, wait a minute, that went really well, didn't it? When's the last time you slipped on your sneakers, again? (...and the waves of guilt crash completely over my head.)

On a more positive note (and who could be anything other than positive on such a sunny day, even when I can't go out and appreciate it?), the Redboot Quartet has their debut performance this Friday and I can't wait! Playing music with these guys is the best incentive for becoming a better musician.