What do you do after you retire. I was able to retire this year from a career in the public schools and taught sixth grade. You get up in the morning and wonder how much of nothing you will do. Those of you that are retired know that is not true and I have noticed that I am more busier now after I retired than when I was working. The difference is that I am doing what I really enjoy doing, mostly. On one activity the jury is still out. I have auditioned and got a part in the chorus of a production of the opera Lucia. I don't even like opera.
OK, OK, I do sing in our church choir, which gives you an idea just how bad our choir (how do you spell choior) is. Actually, I have been told that I sing very well. People have stop and tell me how much they enjoy my rich bass voice, and I have soloed many times. Sometimes I wonder if my choir director has me solo because of my voice or because the regular soloist suffers from COPD and whistles with every breath like a steam locomotive blowing its whistle when it comes to a railroad crossing. He wasn't there last week, I think he was admitted into the intensive care unit of our local hospital, but I hate opera.
My business associate was an opera major in college. She has a friend that is the director of the local opera association who is very well respected in the opera world. It seems that the opera association is putting on the opera Lucia and the company needs basses. My business associate told me that practices were starting on July 17 and that this was a very big deal. I would have fun. The hook was set and the big largemouth bass (meaning me) , or bass, had hit the lure and was being reeled in. I really don't know if I said yes or not, but I found myself at the first rehearsal on July 17th. Let the performances begin.
The rehearsal was an interesting experience, to say the least. I recieved my music which to me looked like something that was discovered in a tomb in ancient Greece. What are all these squiggly lines and why are there so many of them. I do read music a little, but my "See Jane. See Jane run." musical reading abilities were a bit taxed in this situation. Why were all the words in a strange language, Italian I think. I don't speak Italian.
It was time to reahearse. Let's see now, there was Sarah who had performed at the San Francisco Opera, Frank who had soloed with the Los Angeles Phiharmonic, and let's not forget Hannah who was an understudy to lead singer in Aida performed by the New York Philharmonic. Most all the singers had great pedigrees, unlike me that studied under our choir director at church who is a mighty dentist by day. I strongly felt like a bottle of Thunderbird (very cheap "wino's" wine for those who are not familiar with the drinking scene) in a case of Dom Perignon, and I hate opera.
After I got over my feelings of total ineptitude and got back into the water to get the water flowing over my gills (fish out of water analogy, I just wanted to make sure you got that one because I know it is a stretch, well I chuckled at it ) and started singing and rehearsing. I got lost about three-quarters of the time, but I found that I was having fun and I was not as bad off as I thought. I can do this I thought, even though it is a stretch. Life is full of new experiences, these experiences make life more interesting. I hate opera!
Wish me luck on this one. I must admit that I am enjoying it, even though I hate opera. This is hard work but it is great to be asked to be a part of something special. There is a great deal more to performing in an opera than I thought. What is a Puccinni, anyway? I hate opera, maybe I don't.
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