#IOMBC JAKARTA, FEBRUARY 2011

Leaps of faith

One less call to answer, feeling full of despair, don't think I can get through it, just one last prayer. And it's a leap of faith, when you believe there's someone out there, it's a leap of faith when you believe that someone cares, and when I call out to you, will you be right there, right there.

Searching for the answer, nobody seems to care, oh how I wish that you were here beside me to wipe away my tears. Waiting for the answer, remembering times we would share, somehow I feel you here beside me, even though your not there.

Right there, and I'll be waiting by the window for your smile to come through, and I'll be waiting in the darkness when I call out to you, and I'll remember when you told me, I could trust in you. And it's a leap of faith, when you believe there's someone out there, it's a leap of faith when you believe that someone cares, and when I call out to you, will you be right there. It's a leap of faith, and I believe that you are out there, it's a leap of faith and I believe you truly care, and when I call out to you, I know you'll be right there, right there, and it's a leap of faith.

Leap of Faith-Michelle Branch

Let me hold your crown, babe

Keep drinkin' coffee. Stare me down across the table. While I look outside. So many things I'd say if only I were able. But I just keep quiet and count the cars that pass by.

You've got opinions, man. We're all entitled to 'em. But I never asked. So let me thank you for time and try to not waste any more of mine. Get out of here fast. I hate to break it to you babe, but I'm not drowning. There's no one here to save.

Who cares if you disagree? You are not me. Who made you king of anything? So you dare tell me who to be. Who died and made you king of anything?

You sound so innocent. All full of good intent. You swear you know best, but you expect me to jump up on board with you, ride off into your dellusional sunset. I'm not the one who's lost with no direction, but you won't ever see. You're so busy makin' maps with my name on them in all caps, you got the talkin' down just not the listening.

And who cares if you disagree? You are not me. Who made you king of anything? So you dare tell me who to be. Who died and made you king of anything?

All my life I've tried to make everybody happy while I just hurt and hide, waitin' for someone to tell me it's my turn to decide.

Who cares if you disagree. You are not me. Who made you king of anything. So you dare tell me who to be. Who died and made you king of anything? Let me hold your crown, babe.

Sara Bareilles-King of Anything

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

BLAME NODAME FOR MY RECENT MOOD

WE WON!

Holy shit! We won! My squad won 1st place on this year's annual Grand Prix Marching Band! Holy cow! I had never actually expect such amazing thing to end my December, but jeez, we won! This'd be the cherry top of my beautiful 2010 December cake! We won we won we won we won we won we won, woo hooooooo!

Beside the title of "Band of the Year 2010" (amazing, huh!), we also won Best Music, Best General Effect, Best Visual, Best Field Commander, Best Field Percussion, 2nd place Colorguard, & 3rd place Front Ensemble. Awesome, awesome, awesome! That was one awwwwwesome night! My first year joining this squad, it had been super duper amazing :) That night was the perfect end to wrap my memory of 2010. AWESOOOOOME!

Walk A Mile With My Flag

We, colorguards, are spending 15 to 20 hours a week marching up & down a 50 by 70 foot area spinning a 3 1/2 pound rifle or a 5 1/2 foot flag. It's our free time to strive for perfection & hear; "That's wrong! Pay attention! Try harder!" over and over. Sometimes we march with blisters on our feet, splints on our fingers, even when we're sick or when every muscle in our body aches. It means willing to try again even though we have just suffered a defeat; tears were streaming down our face & our heart was breaking. Then the show day come. For five or six minutes, every ounce of our strength & concentration are dedicated to making our family, friends, school, and town proud of our competitive unit. The demanding, endless hours of practice have been a prelude to this moment. A prelude to show that color guard is something much much more than work & intense competition.

Colorguard is Science:

It is exact, specific and it demands precise execution. A designer's drill is a chart; a graph which indicates x and y coordinates for constantly changing geometric shapes and forms in both time and space. Our equipment and props are always pushing the laws of physics with force and speed, action and reaction. All of this with an incredible control of time.

Colorguard is Mathematical:

It is rhythmically and metrically based on the subdivision of time into fractions which must be done instantaneously. We have angles and degrees, both acute and obtuse, sequences, ranges, and hypotenuse.

Colorguard is a Language:

It is a visual picture alive with message and meaning. We use interpretive phases, sentences, and words many times with music which creates a most complete and universal language, to be recorded for others to see, feel, and understand. It is a language which is recited and shared many times both near and far.

Colorguard is History:

Colorguard can be influenced by the environment and times of it's creation, or it can reflect the past as well as the future. It can send us to a far away country or bring us closer to home. We are rich in our heritage and have forefathers as well.

Colorguard is a Physical:

It requires fantastic coordination of fingers, hands, arms, feet and legs; in addition to extraordinary control of the back stomach and torso; all of which are called to respond instantly to the sound the ear hears and the sight of the eye see. Colorguard surrounds around endurance, ability, strength, and balance.

Colorguard is a Sport:

A game which we play with others in which we share and we shine. Competing with ourselves to perform better each time.

It allows us to learn more on our inside on confidence and fear, self-esteem and self-image; as we get better on the outside with performances, people, expressing our feelings, and sharing our dreams. It is a chance to realize our attitude is what makes us or breaks us, not anyone or anything else. It is a kind of mind set with an increase awareness which challenges us to realize the potential in our selves.

Colorguard is Performing Arts:

It is a show which can be entertaining and enlightening! With directing, acting, producing, managing, and touring. Colors, fashion, flair, excitement, piazz, sophistication, and subtlety. Always realizing the traid of performance; audience, performer, designer.

Colorguard is Educational:

It allows a human being to learn how to take all of these things; some dry and technically boring, some difficulty and challenging; and use them to create EMOTION! The one thing that our world needs.

If ya haven't noticed from my older posts yet, well, I join a marching band & I'm in the colorguard section. Yes, I do spend 20 hours for practice on normal weeks, & 40 on holidays. And yes, I have lots of blisters & scars & injuries, so much I practically lost count.

And yes, I just realized how proud & serious I am in this marching band/color guard thingy since:

1. Weekends are forever lost to practice

2. I see my band more often than my family

3. The gym/hockey/football field is my second home

4. Leggings & tank tops has become a permanent part of my closet

5. My nails have never extended beyond my finger tips

6. I have 4 tan lines: tees, gloves, shorts, & socks

7. I have a permanent rifle bruise on my left & right thumbs

8. I know exactly what a jell-o arms & legs feel like

9. Every song becomes a possible flag routine; I start to count songs to beats of 6 or 8

10. I push myself to try dangerous routines; sometimes I suspect I've put life as my second priority

11. I begin to conclude that "one more time" never really means one more time. It usually means 5-10 more

12. I have 2 rifles & sabres. One for practice at the practice venue & one for practice at home

13. I look forward to getting new gloves

14. I know if I break a bone I'd still insist that I can march (even if on crutches)

15. I have more bruises, scars, and injuries than a military solider

16. My non-band friends know that I'm almost never available to go out

17. The term democracy is not in my vocabulary

18. Life? What's that?