Super Hero Pals
I’m just coming off a weekend with Georgia during which we traipsed around the Triangle of North Carolina – just two gals. We hit Garner first (just outside Raleigh) with our duo concert as part of the Broadway Series at Garner Historic Auditorium; and from the hospitality, to the wonderfully warm audience reception, to hanging with some of Georgia’s local relatives, we had a fantastic time. Sunday we hit the road past Durham and Chapel Hill, to Elon University for a three-hour master class and an informal concert – SUCH fun. The students energized us and were so beautifully prepared and open that Georgia and I could truly delve into performance details usually reserved for very seasoned actors. Their enthusiasm for our music later in the evening kept us there well after 11pm and was lovely icing on the many pieces of cake (real and figurative) we consumed this weekend. Such glamour!
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It was a nice reminder.
See, Georgia has been holed up at various retreats and with writing projects lately, and I’ve been swamped with symphony concerts, moving to a new home, and a tour schedule that is taking me away from family for lengthy periods (causing me equal parts anxiety and intrigue). The point is: I haven’t seen much of Ms. Stitt since our albums were released in November. So coming together this weekend, what struck me most of all is that this partnership I have with Georgia is invigorating. We can talk for hours about healthy children’s dinner menus (as we eat pancakes at iHop – tweet) or the reluctance of modern classical composers to embrace today’s theatre music. We can share a Thelma and Louise moment as we enter the decidedly-wrong sort of establishment (goop) on our search for any open food joint on a Sunday in NC and simultaneously make a u-turn back through the door as every eye at the bar turns to stare in our direction. And then, while debating whether or not to eat the candy bars given to us by the kind people of Garner (we do), we can plan and plot our world domination. This was a 48-hour reminder to me of just how much Georgia and I are able to accomplish together both as professionals and mommies and as mutual moral support.
I come away from time spent with Georgia with a list of to-dos that somehow trump the endless items currently inhabiting my ledger. Suddenly, I am more gung-ho about pursuing further bookings for our tag-team master classes than, say, installing the upgraded modem in my home office. I’m more intrigued by the ridiculous love/life song we brainstormed on our car ride back to Garner (thank you Garmin), than packing up those boxes for my family’s impending move. Shocking, I know! The irony is: though I am currently swamped with projects, commitments, and catch-up, after my weekend away I feel up to the challenge of not just accomplishing all the obligatory tedium, but doing it swiftly so I can get to the “real” projects: writing that song, trying out the toddler-proof dinner recipe.
One student referred to us as the Dynamic Duo, and he’s right. There is a super-hero energy about us at times.
I admit there were moments of guilt. As we each called our husbands to check in, we could hear chaos in the background. But we hung up the phones, opened candy bars and got Carolina back on our minds. Wow! These weekend mini-concert-tours are better spent “mommy time” than that trip to the spa.
Moral of the story: when feeling entrenched in the hectic survival mode of a multi-tasking maniac, it’s lovely to be reminded that we don’t need to rely merely on caffeine to get us through. Just call that certain person in your life (I know you have one or two!) and go grab bite. Spending just a little time with that smart, supportive and equally insane gal-pal, will provide you with the best and longest-lasting energy boost. Can’t you just picture her kicking you in the butt with her fabulous, Wonder Woman, red boots? I knew it. Glamour.