Quote of the Week

"My favorite animal is steak."

- Fran Lebowitz

Take Me Out to the...Opera

Well it has been quite awhile since my last posting about life in Cooperstown. Over the past two weeks work at the opera and life in Cooperstown has been extremely busy. July 27-29 was the National Baseball Hall of Fame Induction Weekend. Cal Ripkin Jr. and Tony Gwynn were both inducted into the Hall of Fame and to support them some 75,000 people descended upon normally quiet Cooperstown. There was so many people in town that they closed off Main Street, as well as several other downtown streets, to car traffic. When a town with a normal population of around 2,500 enlarges its population by nearly 32 times the result is seeming chaos. I felt like a local whenever I complained about the people invading "my town". Of course I had plenty of reason to be upset, the Box Office is right off Main Street which means parking was a garish nightmare. In the end I was excited to be part of the largest Hall of Fame weekend in history, even though I didn't see anyone famous.

The Enormous Crowd on Main Street

This past weekend was busy in another way. Gala Weekend at Glimmerglass Opera brings the biggest donors, patrons, Board Members, and press to attend all four operas in one weekend. Nearly every performance sold out. It was a whirlwind to say the least, but certainly beneficial in reinforcing the overarching theme of box office sales: "Do your best to make everyone satisfied with their tickets." When a big donor shows up unannounced, one has to be able to give them two seats at the drop of a hat. So Saturday, with the Box Office Manager and Asst. Manager not at the theatre, I was suddenly thrust into satisfying everyone on the busiest night of the season. Luckily it all worked out and I believe I proved my competence at the seating program ProVenue.

Not much else is new here in Cooperstown. The opera is now performing every day of the week accept Wednesday. I still enjoy eating lunch at Danny's Market on Main Street. Some people claim I have an unhealthy addiction to their sandwiches, but I think I simply enjoy their food...a heck of a lot. The other day Amelia and I went to the Farmer's Museum which is really a lot like a small scale version of Old Salem. It featured an entire exhibit on the birth and development of ice cream. To say the least I found it fascinating. And finally, today I visited the Baseball Hall of Fame. Besides the crowds of fans and 12 year olds it was a great museum with a lot of history that was very well displayed. I wish the crowds hadn't been so bad because then I could have enjoyed the museum a lot more. I bought a mug as a souvenir, had to be a little bit like a tourist!

Finally, here are some pictures of the house here in Cooperstown. It's hard to believe that I only have 2 weeks left here, although in retrospect I really have not been here that long compared to the other interns.

Me in front of Ryerson

The living room

The view into the backyard

Otsego Lake

Quote of the Week

"To be conscious that you are ignorant is a great step to knowledge."

- Benjamin Disraeli

Quote of the Week

"Never again clutter your days or nights with so many menial and unimportant things that you have no time to accept a real challenge when it comes along. This applies to play as well as work. A day merely survived is no cause for celebration. You are not here to fritter away your precious hours when you have the ability to accomplish so much by making a slight change in your routine. No more busy work. No more hiding from success. Leave time, leave space, to grow. Now. Now! Not tomorrow!"

- Og Mandino

Soile Isokoski sings Strauss...

Soile Isokoski, a Finnish soprano, sings "Beim Schlafengehen" from Strauss' Vier letzte leider.

Quote of the Week

"I think I should have no other mortal wants, if I could always have plenty of music. It seems to infuse strength into my limbs and ideas into my brain. Life seems to go on without effort, when I am filled with music."

- George Eliot

The Cooperstown Farmers Market & Philip Glass

Today was my day off and the weather has finally turned sunny again. Some of my house mates and I went to the Cooperstown Farmers Market this morning. Around the Cooperstown/ Otsego County area there are a bunch of local farmers and even Amish communities. Every Saturday they come together in downtown Cooperstown. It was nice to go around and select fresh fruits and vegetables versus the ones in the local grocery stores. I got a loaf of homemade Walnut Bread, green beans, peaches, and goat cheese. To finish off the morning we went to some of the bakeries on mainstreet to get more bread and some cookies. Clearly there are advantages to living in such a rural and small community.

Work has been going very well. Although I work from 9-5/6pm 5 days of the week, the work has rarely been boring. When you work at a box office you are constantly busy helping customers who call in or walk in to the ticket office. Thursday night I finally got to see some opera when I went to the final dress rehearsal for Philip Glass' Orphee. I have always enjoyed Glass' music and his opera was exquisite. Tonight is opening night for the opera and most of the people in Ryerson are going, and I am thrilled to see the opera again. Tomorrow I have to work the kiosk for the afternoon performance.

Quote of the Week

"Many of life's failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up."

- Thomas A. Edison

"Glimmerglass Opera Box Office, this is Tim..."

After 11 hours of driving through North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania, I have finally arrived and started my internship in the bustling metropolis of Cooperstown, NY. The drive was relatively uneventful and there were only a few spots of congestion, however I will say that Pennsylvania and New York need to spend some time improving their roadways. I also didn't appreciate the 40 miles of I-81 around Scranton, PA where the speed limit is 55 MPH.

Once in Cooperstown I checked in at the main office and then headed to my room at the Glimmerglass Opera leased Ryerson Estate. Words really come short at describing this enormous turn of the century mansion. Once owned by Arthur L. Ryerson, who died on the Titanic but whose family survived, and later used as a Episcopal summer camp, Ryerson Estate has not AC, 30+ rooms, and is located in the middle of the woods off of a dirt road. I was going to take some pictures, however I decided that a video would better capture the essence that is Ryerson. Look for the video in the next few weeks. The housemates here are great and have been extremely welcoming. Luckily I wasn't the token southerner but I have been interrogated about life in North Carolina. I think I've convinced them that the south is vastly superior to the north in many aspects.

Work is going very well at the box office. The internships at Glimmerglass Opera require a lot of work, however the work is extremely beneficial and rewarding. My first week at the box office was filled with a lot of training, especially learning the ticketing program ProVenue. I started taking phone orders on Wednesday and so far everything is going really well. The staff at the box office are really great and extremely helpful in helping to teach the myriad of tasks required of box office interns. A benefit of working at the box office is that I get to drive into downtown Cooperstown every day. The box office is located just off Main Street which is only 4 blocks long and during lunch I go grab lunch amidst the hundreds of baseball loving tourists here for the Baseball Hall of Fame.

Finally, the weather. While the first few days were in the upper 80s, the past few days have been glorious, humidity free, 70s, and sunny. On my day off last Thursday I went exploring around the area and stopped in Glimmerglass State Park to eat lunch and enjoy the afternoon reading next to Otsego Lake. Enjoy the pictures and more updates will certainly come.

Quote of the Week

"Never be afraid to laugh at yourself, after all, you could be missing out on the joke of the century."

- Dame Edna Everage

Cruisin' in the Chris Craft

So here I am at Lake Lure, NC with my extended family for the 4th of July enjoying the relative peace and relaxation of the lake. Among the several boats my family owns, I have always loved the 1955 mahogany Chris Craft. My Dad has been teaching me how to drive it over the past few days. It's a boat that requires lots of concentration and practice to drive because unlike modern boats it lacks maneuverability, but it makes up for it in the beauty of the boat. Here are a few pictures of the boat hoisted up in the boathouse. More pictures of me behind the wheel and on the water to come in a few days.

Quote of the Week

Two quotes this week in celebration of July 4th.

"You have to love a nation that celebrates its independence every July 4, not with a parade of guns, tanks, and soldiers who file by the White House in a show of strength and muscle, but with family picnics where kids throw Frisbees, the potato salad gets iffy, and the flies die from happiness. You may think you have overeaten, but it is patriotism."
- Erma Bombeck

"In the truest sense, freedom cannot be bestowed; it must be achieved."
- Franklin D. Roosevelt

CNN...get it together

It is extremely distressing to me that many cable news networks have become unreliable for meaningful reporting and analysis of US and world news. Most recently CNN spent considerable time marketing its Larry King interview with recently free Paris Hilton. During the Paula Zahn Show they actually ran a countdown clock for the Hilton interview. Not to mention the fact that when Hilton was released from prison CNN.com featured that story as the cover story on their website. All of this leads me to question to credibility and integrity of our news organizations. When CNN pays more attention to Paris Hilton than to Tony Blair's resignation and the transfer of power in Britain it clearly demonstrates the growing ignorance and ineptitude that pervades television news. Sadly it also reveals that the American public is more interested in Paris Hilton than in other events which deeply impact their lives.

We should expect better news and we should receive better news. I'm tired of this cheap and flashy production that lacks in meaningful content. Get together CNN and maybe you can regain some journalistic credibility.

Senate Seersucker Thursday

As part of an annual tradition initiated in 1996 by Senator Trent Lott (R-MS), last Thursday was Seersucker Thursday in the Senate. I'm proud to see both democrats and republicans decked out in their seersucker attire. Senator Dole represented North Carolina well and I believe Senator Burr was also spotted sporting his seersucker suit. So if you don't own any seersucker I suggest you get some soon so that you can enjoy it for the remainder of the summer.

Senators in their seersucker finest for Senate Seersucker Thursday

Quote of the Week

"One doesn't discover new lands without consenting to lose sight of the shore for a very long time."
- Andre Gide

Well darn...

So after spending an entire year crossing one of the busiest roads in Nashville multiple times a day, Vanderbilt decided to put in a brand new pedestrian bridge. Now instead of waiting for the safety of the WALK sign to flash, pedestrians can, at their leisure, stroll across the new bridge high above the hazards from the ignorant drivers of 21st Avenue. Not only would this bridge have saved me time when walking to and from class, it also would have made my daily trek a little bit more safe and secure. No doubt I will make use of the new bridge to get to Peabody from Blair, but I really would have liked to have had the bridge when I lived on Peabody. Come on Vanderbilt, you are a a year late in building the darn thing. But bravo for at least realizing you needed it and thereby improving the quality of life for future Commodores.

What are the odds?

What are the odds that I would start out this summer with virtually nothing to do and then halfway through the summer find a free housing, paying, interesting work, in-my-line-of-business internship? Well, it happened and I could not be more grateful. It's not that I am trying escape Winston because being able to float around all summer is honestly not too bad of a deal. And although I complained about it a lot I realize now that by having no plans at all I was allowing myself some time to chill, refuel my batteries, and just indulge in laziness. Yet I still wanted to do something that was just a little bit more adventurous.

So July 9th I will arrive in Cooperstown, NY were I will be the Box Office intern for Glimmerglass Opera. I'm driving up there which should be a small adventure itself, but having my car will allow me to get to the Box Office on my own from the house in which I am staying. Driving also makes sense since Cooperstown is in the middle of nowhere. The locale should be quite delightful actually, and I am looking forward to escaping the heat of NC for the delightful temperatures of the Catskills.

(The Alice Busch Opera Theatre...on the lake)

For the internship I'll be working with phone ticket orders, internet orders, market studies, income reports, and occasionally staffing the box office during the night of performances. During down time who knows what I will be up to. Hopefully the other interns will be welcoming and I'll quickly have my time filled. I am working a 37 hr. work week that will certainly have me busy during the day. August 21 or 22 I'll be back in Winston to quickly turn around and head back to Nashville for the fall. Suddenly my life has gone from no plans to a full schedule! But I am enthusiastic about everything that this internship will have to offer. It is a little bit of the unknown, but it makes life much more interesting.

More updates to come...

Salute to Ina

As part of the "Summer of Tim" I have been under the cooking tutelage of my mom as well as the many chefs on Foodnetwork. To say the least it has been a learning experience. I've learned many valuable tips, including my grandmother's secret ingredient. Through trial and error I've managed to cook a few good meals. Many of my recipes have come from various FoodNetwork shows, and although I do appreciate the overflowing butter-filed recipes of Paula Deen, the everyday Italian of Giada, and the unending knowledge of Alton Brown, one chef reigns supreme. And it's definitely NOT Rachel Ray

Ina Garten, a.k.a the Barefoot Contessa, is undoubtedly the superior chef. With her calming manner (Paula Deen needs to watch Ina and take a few behavior notes) and her sophisticated, yet simple and delicious recipes; Ina cooks up memorable meals from her home in the Hamptons. Check out some of her recipes or tune into the FoodNetwork at 12pm and 5pm EST for her show.

Here is an easy recipe for Herb Goat Cheese Sandwiches:

For the Spread:
8 ounces low-fat cream cheese, room temperature
10 1/2 ounces mild goat cheese, such as Montrachet, at room temperature
1 1/2 teaspoons minced garlic (2 cloves)
1/2 teaspoon minced fresh thyme leaves
3 tablespoons minced fresh parsley

5 to 6 tablespoons low-fat milk

3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

For the Sandwiches:

1 loaf dense 7-grain bread, thinly sliced

1 hothouse cucumber, unpeeled

To make the spread: Place the cream cheese, goat cheese, garlic, thyme, parsley, 5 tablespoons milk, salt, and pepper in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Beat on medium speed until well mixed. Add an additional tablespoon of milk if the spread is very thick.

To make the sandwiches: spread each slice of the bread with the goat cheese spread. Slice the cucumber into thin rounds and arrange on half of the bread slices. Top with the remaining bread and press slightly. Cut the sandwiches into halves, thirds, or triangles.

**TCP's Suggestions: Don't worry about being exact with your amounts, adjust them to your preference.

The spread is delicious on bagels, wheat thins, gourmet crackers - basically anything!

Quote of the Week

"I have discovered that it is enough when a single note is beautifully played."

- Arvo Pärt

Fortissimo at Last!

Following the suggestions of my friend Kate, journalist and soon-to-be blogger for the Daily Tar Heel, I have launched myself into the world of blogging. To be honest, I never imagined myself as the author of a blog. And yet here I am writing the exposition to what I hope will be a worthwhile and potentially meaningful endeavor. To open my blog I share the ending of Gustav Mahler's Symphony No. 2 in c minor. Here it is conducted by Leonard Bernstein with the London Philharmonic Orchestra.