I did it. And then we broke up.

Phew. What a relief. That was stressful. Since my last post, I practiced flute like my life depended on it. I took flute to work and practiced on my lunch breaks. I set my alarm 10 minutes early and practiced in the mornings. I was not going to let flute own me. The plan for the concert was that Heidi (flute coach extraordinaire) was to accompany me on the piano. On Friday afternoon, I took one look at Heidi and knew it was not to be. Red, stuffy nose and hoarse scratchy voice - she did not look good. Heidi left work early, assuring me that she just needed some rest and she'd be back in action for the Saturday concert. I wasn't convinced. So I went home, reached Eddie Vedder via youtube and requested his accompaniment at my concert (I pressed "play" on the youtube video). We worked well together but whoa, Eddie! It was fast. Really fast. But, if worst came to worst, we would figure this out. My fears were realized when Heidi texted me Saturday morning, "flu is worse. I'm so sorry, buddy." (isn't that super unfair when you get sick on the weekend?) Ok. Don't panic. The concert will go on.

Chardonnay: building confidence since 1997

I quickly ran to the liquor store and stocked up on wine, beer, vodka - anything and everything to get my audience as drunk as possible, as quickly as possible...and then I practiced. I practiced until my lips bled and my shoulder seized (well, not really, but I'm building suspense here people). As I practiced, something miraculous began to happen...I began sounding kinda, well...good. As 7:00 neared, I figured, what the hell. A little chardonnay would loosen me up. I poured myself a glass of wine and waited...and waited. 3 large glasses of wine later, my full audience was in attendance...and I was kind of sort of drunk. Well, pleasantly buzzed. Which was good. Hey, you can't tell me Pearl Jam never went on stage three sheets to the wind. So, plans changed. Performer drunk. Audience sober. Confidence was high (or perhaps the wine had numbed my frontal lobe - the part of your brain that prevents you from making a mockery of yourself). My audience consisted of Ev, my Lawyer, Lawyer's husband, and Colleen. You'll be getting to know Colleen in the next month, as she is leading me in my November challenge. She's a very positive person - someone you'd want in your audience when you're about to make a total ass of yourself. Surprisingly, Shaw Cable was nowhere to be found :) I could sense a nervous energy from my audience. I sat down and played. Eddie and I were slightly out of a sync a few times and there were a few notes that were misplayed; yet, all-in-all, it wasn't half bad. It was kinda almost good. Once the performance had been completed and wine glass was comfortably in hand, I broke up with Flute.

Me: Flute, we had a great run together. I think you're fabulous and you'll make someone really happy. But...I just don't think there's a future for us. It's not you, it's me.

Flute: Well that's 1 month of my life I'll never get back, biatch.

Well, who said breaking up is ever easy. It had to be done.

So - I did it! Here's what I learned:
1) It was fantastic hanging out with Heidi outside of our little speech office. We had a fabulous trip to Winnipeg together and I feel like although I've known Heidi, Speech -Language Pathologist, for the past 2 years, I really got to know Heidi as a person. It blows me away how self-sufficient and independent she is. She moved to Prince Albert without knowing a soul, bought a house on her own, and fixes pipes and doors with hack saws and various tools which I know nothing about. And she can sexy dance. That's cool and inspiring. Thanks, Heidi, for being patient with me. You were a fabulous instructor.
2) Playing the flute did not come easily to me. It was challenging. It's hard to be sucky at something. It would be much easier to just say, "It's not for me" and move on. I persevered only because the experience was being broadcasted on this blog. I am so happy that I didn't quit. I watch the video of my performance now and I feel proud. I learned how to play the flute in 1 month! That's kind of awesome. There is no doubt in my mind that areas of my brain that lay dormant for years are now buzzing with the construction of various new and intricate highways.
3) One of the most exciting, unexpected consequences of this experiment is the connections that I'm making with people. A LOT of people played the flute in their younger years. I received tons of tips, advice, and experiences from colleagues, friends, and family who played the flute at one time in their lives. Thanks for all the positive comments and support fellow flautists! Whether it's an encouraging email from one of Ryan's friends or a random nurse on level 4 inquiring about my flute lessons, people with whom I've never even spoken to are now approaching me. I'm meeting a ton of new, interesting people through this blog. So cool. And it's only going to get better.

Great month! Bring on November!

Here it is folks...