I realized that I haven’t blogged about anything since Chicago! That’s not fair to my regular life.

Though, of course, there are more interesting things to talk about when one is traveling and doing all sorts of interesting things, rather than being at home teaching students, practicing, or administering all manner of veterinary medicines. (Eye cream, insulin shots, pills, ear wash, specialty shampoos…it’s worth it?!)

For the cuddles…it’s worth it!

Monday I took Mackenzie (the dog) in to see a specialist, an animal dermatologist, for her hair loss/itchiness/rashes she’s been dealing with. Our regular vet was at a loss so it was time to bring in the big guns…(I brought my big wallet to deal with the big guns). They ran all sorts of tests and, 2 hours later, sent me home with more medications and more instructions. We aren’t at a solution yet, but we are waiting for some test results and I feel positive the new vet will find the answer.

Over the weekend we did a few social and outdoor activities. Friday night we went to Milagro Modern Mexican with friends—this used to be my go-to restaurant with my friend Melissa, before she moved to California Restaurant trends change, I guess—though it’s more than my job and living situation has changed? In any case, it was a tasty dinner, though we did have to wait a little bit, which I hate doing—when there’s not a dedicated waiting area I spend most of the time feeling like I’m just in the way!

Saturday we went to Rockwoods Reservation for a hike. We’d been there before but thought it was worth revisiting. This time we first hiked the Lime Kiln Trail, which we had done before, but we hiked in the opposite direction.

After that we decided to try another short hike in the area called the Trail Among the Trees. It was pretty neat, with tons of bridges, a cave, and some nice views, but weird in that much of it was paved with asphalt. The terrain is pretty varied and the trails are very well marked. The alpacas were still there, across the street in a farm with Llamas too, and Louie mostly wanted to go to the area in order to see those guys. We are very tempted to sell everything in order to start our own Alpaca Farm.

Mackenzie was trying to decide whether or not to jump into the water. She chose, yes, jump.

NO BOULDERING.

In the evening Manuela from the quartet played a really fun recital (with Diana on piano, who the quartet has worked with several times). It was at the Tavern of Fine Arts. We tried two items off the bar menu, one was marinated olives, and the other was pickled vegetables. Both were great—the vegetables included pickled beets and pickled cauliflower! (You can pickle that!)

Sunday was Easter, so of course I played at a church service, but we had a lunch with Louie’s family and a potluck dinner at Eliana’s (big quartet social weekend, we should do it more often!). Overall it was a great weekend—not too overexerted, but enough activity to feel invigorating.

This week has been going by quickly, as I shouldn’t even have to mention. I’ve been dealing with allergies/a cold/who knows exactly, so lots of sneezing on my end. Otherwise, I’ve been running, practicing and teaching—getting things done and set up for the rest of the school year.

One fun thing is that I got a grant/scholarship to attend to a teacher workshop this summer—I’ll be attending Indiana University’s Retreat for Violin and Viola Teachers (Part 1) in July. I’m looking forward to being inspired and learning new things—I haven’t attended a teacher seminar in several years and I’m grateful for the opportunity.

Well, I’m off to a rehearsal, then teaching, and Taco Thursday at Publico tonight. What are your weekend plans? We have symphony tickets for Saturday and are thinking of doing a hike—we have the Grand Canyon trip coming up and need to be in shape!