Spangler's Blog

Work, workout, etc.

2010-07-09T16:02:00.000-07:00

San Diego was awesome! Seeing my best friend Dave was great and his job in the navy is awesome. I can't wait to have a full time job in the military. I wish things would move faster ;(. I need to be busier and get my mind off the negative parts of life.

So in case you didn't know I joined up with the US Air Force. I am pending until the Officer Candidate board meets in January to discuss my duties, and my pilot application. But I am hopeful.

So far the summer has been a roller coaster of emotions and activities. I have good days and bad days to be expected right? I tried coming off Zoloft while in San Diego....Didn't happen very well, I started going crazy emotional at night. So back on the pill! Playing with the Family Funk has been a nice treat, the guys are a blast to play with and all the crowds dig it and are jumping and a good number of hippies come out and do their semi-ritualistic hippie dancing.

Beth is in her room right now practicing that 4 non blondes tune "whats going on"....I am going out with some folks tonight, either to Jungle in Atlanta, or to hot tub party. Either way fun will be had.

In the meantime I am working at West Gwinnett Aquatics again, training for the triathlon, working out a lot of stress by doing p90x and drumming, and of course playing xbox games when time is available. I just picked up my iPhone 4 and LOVEE it. I advise you to get one and FaceTime me. hmmm what else is new, I am getting remarkably dark and tan this summer thank the lord, my new hair style is fabulous thanks Sis, and I love my new cologne "Light Blue" from Dolce & Gabana, as well as my Prada cologne.

I have officially left Hattiesburg for good. Beth and I moved my entire apartment of stuff in two days a few weeks back! It was very hard being back and I saw Josh driving one time and I had to get out of there. It was hard to avoid crying while there, but I did enjoy seeing friends Luc, Jason, Tracy, Melissa and Dave, Christian, Michael, Noah and Faith, and as always my favorite Lesbian Mackenzie! I did not get to see Lindsey and Brian but I miss them a lot! MOre than they both know.

Till next time tootles.

The week in review

2010-06-12T08:15:00.000-07:00

Mary's funeral was sad, but also a thankful time for all friends and family. She will be missed and we know she has been accepted into heaven and will be watching over us.

Beth and I saw the Killers movie and enjoyed it. Pretty funny at parts. My meetings with recruiters for the military went well, and I have decided on the army and air force as candidates depending on my commissioned officer test and ASVAB on Monday. I have been spending time studying my math skills and vocabulary. WHEW who knew how fast algebra and geometry skills flee after your bachelors! Today I am playing with the Family Funk again at the wheelbarrow festival at 3pm in Atlanta. Not sure where anything is so you will have to google that.

I am moving out of Hattiesburg next weekend, and then flying out to San Diego for awhile to visit David and enjoy being back in CA! Hopefully I will find a new home in germany or Cali. with the Army. but, if they send me to the Mid-east I wouldn't mind at this point. I hope everyone has a blessed weekend. Stay in touch and those of you who have been calling and e-mailing, THANKS. It means a lot.

JDS

Insurance BS

2010-06-05T08:11:00.000-07:00

So I went to pick up my prescription today because I am out...Aetna will not pay for it until tomorrow because in their system it says may 6 was the start of the 30 day supply...aka when the paper work was processed by some lazy secretary at Aetna. Meaning, I have to wait till tomorrow to get my medicine. So glad insurance companies are very caring and and considerate of my money that I spend for them to reject my claims and make me wait on them. Thanks Aetna.

Today I am playing two shows in Atlanta. One at 5 and one at 1030 at the five spot in lil 5 points. be there.

Sad day

2010-06-04T14:32:00.000-07:00

Mary lost her battle with Cancer this morning ;(. Funeral will be Thursday afternoon.

Daily Update

2010-06-03T08:20:00.000-07:00

Rehearsing with Family Funk was good fun. Today I am going to a Gwinnett Braves game with Beth and Michael. Tomorrow out on the town with Claire. Saturday don't forget, Family Funk plays at the Five spot around 1030pm.

In other news, it looks as if the Oil cap may work later today, so hopefully that will take care of that issue. My medicine seems to have kicked in this week finally, and it has made controlling my mood and impulsivity much more manageable. Coupled with my deleting the several pillars in my life that I used for the wrong reasons, such as Facebook and Myspace and the instant messengers, as well as keeping my family in the loop when it gets tough, I feel much more confident than I ever have. But, I know that I shouldn't let my guard down anytime soon. p90x workouts also have contributed to helping take care of the hormone levels in my body so I don't get any sudden urges. It has been a tough 25 years for sure, but a blessing for me to grow from my experiences.

I need my checks from USM! I have bills to pay, but luckily I am making enough money playing gigs to stay afloat.

Have a good day!

JDS

Upcoming events

2010-06-01T21:21:00.000-07:00

I am playing with the Family Funk band at the five spot in little 5 points this Saturday June 5th and hopefully again the 12th. Wednesday this week I am going to practice with the band, Thursday I am hoping to attend a Gwinnett Braves game with friends and family, Friday I am going out to the clubbing scene in Atlanta or K-Saw with Claire.

In other news, I need my mileage check from the university and of course it is in Hattiesburg. I will probably have to head back down June 18 for three days and pack and move all in one weekend. Hopefully, Beth and Michael will assist me in that move. AND any of my friends still in H-burg.

Dad really likes when I play Edelweiss on vibes as well as a few other tunes. As soon as I have firm dates and which restaurants I am playing in June and July, I will post the day and times. Best of wishes to all this summer! Be safe in your travels and activities, and hopefully I will see you this summer.

Prayers for Grandmom, as well as for me as I cope with several losses this past month and work on finding peace for myself.

Much Love,

JDS

Summer 2010

2010-05-31T10:29:00.000-07:00

So far I have spent a few days in NC taking care of grandmom with Beth, practiced vibes and congas, gone out on the boat with Hart and Dad, visited with my sister and brother-in-law and nephews and niece, and hung out with friends Ricky, Bill, Paimon, and Sam. Trying to stay busy this summer playing and making money at clubs, bars, restaurants. Still have to move my stuff from the apartment in Hattiesburg at Mark VI. I will be flying out to San Diego the 24th of June to spend time with lifelong friend David and check out the naval base and also visit a composer colleague Bryan Christian while I am out there.

I am holding onto the idea of moving to Vienna. Doing some research into schools and going about moving. It is a big jump from the US right now in this economy so I am not sure it is wise, but I do want to. I am realizing how much I want to perform with an orchestra as a timpanist and as a conductor, so now to make that become reality. For now, I am getting my life in order as much as possible and picking up lots of the broken pieces and trying to make something out of myself as a performer.

Your musical suggestion for the day:

Mozart- Lacrymosa

Peace be with you~

JDS

Opera

2009-06-10T02:57:00.001-07:00

We are wrapping up our stay here in Vienna this week. Monday we had class in the morning and then the afternoon we wined and dined. Tuesday however, I went to the Vienna state opera house and saw my first Wagner opera live; Siegfried, the third opera in the 4 part Ring Cycle! It cost 3 euro!! Mind you its standing for 4 hours but well worth the price to hear such a great orchestra and amazing singers. They simply cannot replicate that on a CD or DVD. What an amazing orchestra as well. By far the best horn section I have ever heard live. All 8 or however many horns they had. The timpanist was great also. Our view was spectacular and you could hear everything. It is very intense here with Opera. The folks line up every day starting at 9 in the morning sometimes, to wait all day to get the best standing spot in the theatre. The actual seats to the opera haus cost way more and the boxes are generational luxuries. Think sports in America cost money for box offices? Try the box offices at the Vienna state opera haus. You'd need not just money but family ties to someone that has a box office and some sort of aristocratic standing in society. They are not just for any wealthy man or woman. So no worries about Brittney Spears, or any pop stars having anymore chance of getting the best seats in the house. Today I head to the MozartHaus museum and the tour of the opera haus where we get to go on stage apparently! I am going to have to restrain myself from diving in to the orchestra pit to play the timpani. What a great headline it would be though! "Crazed american music student dives into orchestra pit during tour, just to be close to timpani!" I may be going to see a Ballet later this evening and the final 3 acts of Wagner's Ring Cycle tomorrow evening, Goterdammerung. Then we are done and leaving Friday morning. It has flown by and I am not ready to leave. I wish I could be in this enviornment all the time and walk from my house to the subway with my stick case in hand, and walk in my black tux, to the opera haus and perform a 4 hour opera, pick up my paycheck, and then do the same thing the next day!

Dr. Albrecht

2009-06-05T17:28:00.001-07:00

http://dept.kent.edu/IBEWebsite/editors/albrecht.html

This is the link to Dr. Albrecht. Please take a moment and glance over the accomplishments. Also this is in no way close to updated or as full as his accomplishments are currently. What an honor to be around such an intellectual and humble couple.

Hallo!

2009-06-05T16:10:00.000-07:00

Sorry it has been a busy few days here in Wien. With the Albrechts guiding us around town we have stayed busy sightseeing and learning. We visited the archives to view death records of musicians and composers to see just how Ted and Carol go about researching the lives of these original musicians of Beethoven's orchestra. We also stopped in the music and theatre archives which house archives of several centuries of performance programs and flyers all originals! We got to see the original flyer for Beethoven's 9th symphony! Also for several other works and their premiers. Our internet has been down two nights because folks were using the washing machines, the dryers, and ironing and apparently the fuses blew. The churches have all been amazing. Last night we were able to attend a free concert outside of the Vienna Philharmonic at Schonbrunn Palace!!! Pictures here.

Tonight we went to the crypts to see where the entire line of Imperial Austria was buried. Incredible. Pictures also attached. More to come.

Long Day with Dr. Albrecht.

2009-06-01T14:35:00.000-07:00

What an amazing day we had today. We spent the day with two of the foremost experts on Viennese music culture Dr's Ted and Carol Albrecht. Dr. Hafer is my history professor on the left and Dr. Albrecht and Wife on the right.

Guten morgen meine damen und herren.

2009-05-31T23:38:00.001-07:00

After awaking yesterday with plenty of alcohol still in my blood and hungover like never before, we proceeded to Schonbrun palace.(forgive me I don't know how to add text edits). We took the Grand tour of the palace and stood amidst some of the most ornate and historical rooms in world history. One room being the room in which the young Mozart gave his first public performance made all of us feel awestruck. This palace was built to trample on Versailles, but the decline in finances halted the project and did not quite trump the french counterpart. Still who could notice! It is a massive expanse of land, gardens, the worlds first zoo, and 1400 rooms, with most having Gold molding, gold door handles, gold and silver thread beds even! We then went and ate at an Italian restaurant in which I had lasagna. All of us returned around 6 to the Hostel and we crashed, waking up at 9 minutes to 10! Today should be interesting for our sleep deprived bodies. Nonetheless it is fun and I would move here in a heartbeat. My german is improving greatly, and I can carry full conversations with most of the locals. More photos to come.

Bierfest zwei tausand neun immer das Pub!

2009-05-31T02:08:00.000-07:00

Wir haben eine grosse Bier!

We spent yesterday at the Musik instrument collection of historical instruments obviously. Very cool. Then we had dinner at a Pub outside of town and gathered in singing songs and drinking bier. Afterwards we went out for a night on the town and stopped at an Australian pub...by the way, a quick word of advice for American visitors....do not ask "wo ist die Kangaroo" those are in australia, this is austria. Apparently its a problem and a joke with the townsfolk. they have shirts with pictures saying, no kangaroos in austria. We had a good day overall. I am for sure hungover and I have no problems admitting it. It was well worth the experience with friends. Who knew that bier would be the cheapest drink and wasser(water) would be just as expensive in some places as coca cola! In my apparent drunken state of mind, my german apparently improved as i conversed with several locals and my friends back home that are from germany. Alles gut! There is more music going on in this city every hour at every place we go, than in the biggest cities in america. And it is all devoted to haydn, mozart, or beethoven and several other notable composers. truly astonishing.

today we take a tour of der Shonbrunn palace

Ach, Ich bin im Wien!

2009-05-29T12:19:00.000-07:00

Hallo,

Ich bin sehr gut und im der Hostel nach Wien.

We arrived an hour and 25 minutes late due to a delayed take off in Washington. However, we arrived, dropped off luggage and immediately started our tour of the city. The Photos above are (top) Stephandsom Cathedral, being renovated. (middle) the hofburg palace grounds (bottom)me on plane to Vienna.

Almost here!!!

2009-05-27T06:28:00.000-07:00

I am packing the last few items. I am a bit upset that my International Student ID card was not mailed to me and I called the Study Abroad office, to which they did not know where the card was. What a joy it is to be told you NEED to pay 23.50 for a card that you MUST have and yet, they can't get it to me in time for the trip. Oh and in my defense I gave them a month processing when it said allow two weeks processing time.

But for the good news, I am healed, feeling well, packed for the most part, and excited to get on the plane, eat my meals, drink my drinks, and land in Austria for some excellent study and sight-seeing. Catch up with all soon.

Preparing for Wien.

2009-05-26T16:22:00.000-07:00

I am getting ready, packing, organizing, and reading for the trip to Vienna. We leave Thursday, May 28, 2009 and will be in Vienna for 14 Days. Be sure to check back for photos and blogs as well as my stickam.com/spanglerjd account or on skype username "orchpercussion20" to teleconference and see what we are doing.