There are too many things taking me eight times longer than expected to deal with rather than the usual four, as well as bizarre mechanical/technological bugaboos, but there are pleasures as well:

In addition to the gorgeous Michael Harrison song I raved about last week, my church's Lessons and Carols service also included a tenor+choir+brass setting of Peter Mayer's Stables. Loved all the music this year; it turns out I still have my high F-sharp, and I was blending pretty well with my neighbors by the time of the actual service. (There are several pieces for which I can now claim a trifecta, having sung tenor or alto on them in previous years.)

This is the arrangement of "In Dulci Jubilo" the chamber choir sang on Sunday. I'm nowhere near as cute as the alto soloist in the video, but I did okay. :-)

Singing for Christmas = not stranded at O'Hare for fourteen hours. Unlike the BYM. Poor lad.

The sun's been shining most of this week. It was mild enough this morning that I blew off billable work in favor of outside chores, and then I sat on our front steps for a while, drinking juice and snuggling with the dog.

All sorts of pretties and shinies have arrived in the mail, including a terrific multi-layered e.e.cummings card from Margaret Shepherd.

I am getting back the habit of practicing music (outside of rehearsal/imminent performance). It is massively frustrating, especially with the chronic bronchitis compounding my general out-of-shapeness, but it is also mentally stimulating and emotionally therapeutic. Singing/playing "Abide with Me" and "A Promise Through the Ages Rings" is the closest I've come to crying this week over the things currently making me feel helpless and/or under-ept, and the act of working on playing/singing them well made me feel significantly better.