A Nasty Fall

Last night on my way to orchestra I took a nasty fall -- tripped by the token campus blind guy and his swinging stick of death. No, really; it was traumatic. You know how most blind people swing their cane in a small radius in front of themselves? This fellow swings a full 180 degrees around him, with his arm outstretched as well... and he is a tall, lanky guy. Basically all over campus people leap to the side and get run off of sidewalks to avoid him when we see him coming. Yesterday I wasn't so lucky. I was coming out of a door, and couldn't see him coming until it was almost too late. When I saw him, I did a little hop, skip, and jump to get out of the way. Just when I thought I was totally clear, somehow - it's all still a bit unclear in my mind - his flying stick of death and terror caught my shin on the backswing, and the combination of his force and my hop-skip-and-jump-momentum sent me crashing into the concrete, complete with my bookbag spilling its contents all over the sidewalk and my violin (in case, of course) taking a nasty fall as well (it's okay, though). My hands were skinned, my favorite jeans in the world (1969 brand from the GAP!) were ripped open at the knee, both my knees were bruised and bleeding, and the pizza I had just got in the cafeteria to carry to Nathan for his dinner was overturned about two yards from where I tripped. It was a very sad experience. My eyes welled up with tears because it was so surprising and painful all at once. The blind guy seemed confused. I can't remember if he said something or just went on, but the next thing I really remember is him being gone and me picking myself up and hobbling to orchestra to cry on FavoriteBoy's shoulder. By the end of the evening, I could see the humor in the situation. I even took photo documentation:

That's just one of 'em. The other knee is wounded as well; although it's less nasty to look at, it's actually more painfully bruised. Today I was sort of limping around, because both of my knees are so swollen and bruised. They feel hot and painful.

The moral is: avoid blind folks with their wildly swinging sticks of death.

In other news, this morning a small chamber orchestra from here at Gordon played three concerts at a nearby elementary school -- Carnival of the Animals, complete with engaging narration. The kids were smart and well-behaved and fun to play for. I met some of them, and it was a blast.

Then this evening I drove Cara, Michael, and myself to my own amazing violin teacher's amazing recital in Jordan Hall. He did five of the ten Beethoven sonatas, with the remaining five to follow in the Fall. He was wonderful. He's probably my favorite performer alive. A two hour and fifteen minute concert, and I was riveted the whole time. His sound is the most beautiful I've ever heard. Also, I got to see Adele, Brian, Julia, and others there. Whee.