The weekend provides a solace for the working man and woman. When I was younger, I had more energy for weekends. How do I get so tired during the week?

6:30 I arise, get breakfast, shower, collect whatever I was working on last night that may be scattered in the living room or music room and try to get it together and back in my bag. I grab my lunch and a drink and put everything in my rolling crate. By 7:45 I must go out the door to walk to work.

By 8:05, I'm either on duty, watching students gather for school, or teaching sightreading, or attending a parent teacher conference, or helping a student with voice instruction.


Before class, 20 students will speak to me, many asking questions. I have already told them the answer to every question at an earlier time. At 8:40 the first class begins and I rehearse with 70 ninth grade girls. It is difficult to keep them all on task and motivated to learn to sing. They sing, I talk, I dance, I cajole, we learn. My assistant is there too. We are both active in the rehearsal doing different things, singing directing, playing piano. We must take roll and enter the absentees onto the computer in the next room. Morning announcements are on the tv at 9:33. We say the pledge of allegience and then struggle to keep students quiet while the announcements are presented poorly, mangled, often unintelligible, even when the students actually are quiet.

Class change. I race to check email, or sign in if I have not gotten to the office so far today. Ten students will ask me questions. Some just need to have my attention. Chamber Choir (mixed choir) begins with student leadership. I slip in to lead the vocal warm-up. 50 students are in the class, upperclassmen mostly. We have as intense a rehearsal as the students will allow. I constantly push them to go faster. I am teaching them first and foremost, how to rehearse. Before rehearsal is over I am getting tired. Often I am sweating. Class change. Ten more questions from students.

We have two choruses the next period and my assistant stays put to work with the B choir women while I go to the gym lobby at the other end of the school to work with the Varsity Glee Club, 25 guys. We have to break out chairs and music and a keyboard from the closet in the concession stand to set up our class in the lobby. The boys know the routine and are helpful. We lose about 4 or 5 minutes of class a day setting up and taking down. Oh well. Another intense rehearsal follows. I'm constantly onstage, leading, talking, playing, directing, encouraging. They are good and they are proud of themselves. At the bell I walk back to the chorus room. It's noon. I get my lunch and buy a milk in the cafeteria. My assistant and I eat lunch in music theory room (there are tables). We talk shop. Somedays we have a fine arts department meeting in the debate teachers room.

My best choir meets after lunch. There will be numerous questions before we begin. They have the most intense rehearsal of the day. Often I am sweating before we finish. They will get tired too. I have failed to mention that there are interactions with student aids, office secretaries, parents, and other teachers that also happen sporadically during the morning. In each case they need my attention for something.

Fifth period is my "off" period. My assistant has a class in the chorus room so I may not work in the room. During this downtime I do some of the following: get a soda, check the mail, check email (I get about 20 emails a day from within the county. Many require me to download a page and read it, print it, and file it. Others require an instant answer. Half are totally stupid and waste my time.) clean up messes, order music, look at music, study music, do lesson plans, fill out forms for fund raisers, read confidential forms on student modifications that are required, read medical alert forms on students, plan programs, type programs, contact travel companies, write letters of recommendation, record grades, plan for the next day's classes, go to the restroom, return phone calls. This period is never long enough. Somedays I stay in the intermediate women's chorus that meets this period and help them. If my assistant is out then I direct this class too.

The day's final period is the most difficult one, beginning men's chorus. Their skills are weaker and their self discipline lacking. I have to work very frantically to maintain control and move the class forward. They do the simplest music of all the classes and perform it the worst of all the classes. Discouraging. By the end of class, I hurt. My shoulders ache, my back hurts. My voice is exhausted. I have 10 minutes to recover before private voice lessons begin at 3:30. I teach 4 students voice lessons until about 5:15 each day.

Then housekeeping begins. Straighten chairs, put away lost folders and music, make certain trash is where janitors will pick it up. There are always more emails and more phone messages to look at. Papers need to be filed. I make notes for what needs to be done the next day (need sharp pencils, reply to publisher about purchase, get check for invoices, tell bookkeeper to pay purchase order, cancel backordered items and reorder, search catalogue for order numbers, call guest conductors, confirm auditorium use, remind office that student calendars are incorrect, document poor student behavior, document poor administration, etc.).

At six Mrs. G will call if I am not at home to get my ETA. I walk home and arrive between 5:45 and 7:00. After I eat I come back about twice a week and put in another hour.

TMI right?