Wednesday's Musings

Music & Fellowship

My first A Joyful Noise concert of a new season, and it was indeed joyful.  Unfortunately, the artist was late, but she was well worth the wait.

Chungwon Chung is a gifted pianist.  I was impressed.  Such precision!  I was mesmerized by the rich, even monumental tone she was able to produce from the piano. It all seemed so effortless.

The repertoire… Waltz in A flat Major, Op. 69, No. 1 and Waltz in D flat Major, Op. 64, No. 1 – Frederic Chopin (1810 – 1849), and Humoreske, Op. 20 – Robert Schumann (1810 – 1856).

Thank you, Dr. Chung for sharing your talent with us.  I look forward to seeing you in a more formal setting.  (As always, a special thank you to Emmanuel Episcopal Church and John Bowen for their outstanding commitment to the Baltimore community.  What you do is healing, in so many ways.)

As much as I enjoyed this music, it must be said – I loved the fellowship even more.  The conversations were plentiful, and I made my way around the church to speak to a number of different people.  (Bob, John, Robert, Cathy and James… The pleasure was all mine.  A special shout out to Mabel – hoping to meet you sooner than later.)

I took these gifts of music, fellowship and friendship outdoors with me, spending time in the gardens of Mount Vernon, chatting with my new friend Wade.  You have such a genuine, gentle spirit, and I appreciate our gift to gab – always easy and smooth.  I particularly enjoyed your words of old Baltimore.  I miss it too – deeply!  Here’s to those old haunts from yesteryear, the ones that brought us and so many others happiness – Louie’s Bookstore, Gampy’s, Brass Elephant, Charles Street Pantry, Marconi’s, Burke’s and the Harvey House, and a few others I imagine, but these come to mind at the moment.  (Thank you for educating me about WCAO Radio.  Now that really brought back some wonderful memories, especially one that reminded me of my Dad.)

I thrive in the richness and spontaneity of conversation between two or more people, more often than not walking away feeling rejuvenated and energized.  I love meeting people, especially new acquaintances.  Meeting new people is so vital to our quality of life.  It helps with my intellectual stimulation, humor and joy. – paerki

Lateness

The pet peeve of all pet peeves… LATENESS. I loathe it! Late people are always bringing others down. It’s time to diagnose what’s making you chronically late. If you strip all the excuses away, what you’re really saying is others are not that important. All the excuses made for being late are just that – EXCUSES!

I often think people who are late are living a relatively chaotic lifestyle, and still that’s not a good excuse. What’s apparent is these individuals may have larger issues, especially with organization, and many are procrastinators too. I’ve witnessed this insidious behavior too many times in the workforce. Companies need to take a tougher stance on lateness.

I have remedied lateness with my friends. I just walk away or don’t include them in my activities, and I never, ever cave to the person who is late. I call it tough love!

I can appreciate the following comment: “Chronic lateness is a form of narcissism. What you are really saying is... Stop and look at me! Wait for me! Call me! Worry about me! It's a passive aggressive way of making yourself the center of attention. The cure is leaving the late person out. Stop including them, if and when you can.” – paerki

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