A sure sign that we have moved beyond summer has nothing to do with leaves changing, or cooler evenings or even threats of frost.  The most emphatic sign for me is when the community band starts rehearsing again.

This week I went to my first rehearsal.  I haven’t played all summer.   That’s a bad thing.  I could use the excuse that I had my instrument in the shop getting a tune up.  And I did.  But I didn’t take it in until sometime in late July.  So I have no excuse for not playing in June and July.

Tuesday night as we ran through what seemed like endless sheets of music I knew I was out of shape.  I was hot and tired and more than that was often dizzy from blowing inefficiently into the mouthpiece of my instrument.  Not a good combination.  I won’t even comment on the missed accidentals, fingering mistakes, the times I was lost.  The multitude of times I looked up at the clock, hoping for an end to my misery.

The good news is that I was not alone in that misery.  The bad news is that I was not alone.  We sounded pretty terrible.  But we have a few weeks before the Halloween concert, and my stand-mate and I have made a pact to practice at least four times this week.

Wait.  It’s already Thursday night and I haven’t practiced.  How many nights are there between now and Tuesday?  I need to stay focused and make sure I get that practice in.

Because I don’t want to spend another Tuesday night sweating and trying not to fall over.  No one else wants that either.