Sing like a Canary.

Truly to sing, that is a different breath. ~Rainer Maria Rilke



Ditz has been done like a dog's dinner. Liddy & I were beside ourselves. No, we're not being mean. We get a lot of *temperament* from Ditz, a lot of unwarranted theatrics, a lot of pseudo drama & while it can be good fun it is also very wearing & from Liddy's point of view proof positive that her little sister is a complete nut job. To see Ditz meet her match was just too entertaining for words.

Liddy, who tends to regard all theatre types with an extremely jaundiced eye because sane people just do not behave in the extreme sorts of ways that music & theatre sorts do ~ so by definition all arts types are ripe for the loony bin ~ insisted on coming with us to Ditz's singing lesson to do the driving for me. I warned Ditz she would probably be singing scales ~ & so she was. All the way in in the car we suffered Ditz ooohing & aahing & ninging away so her voice was on pitch & nice & relaxed for her lesson. Liddy was nearly beside herself. As I'd tried to dissuade her from coming I wasn't overly sympathetic. I have had a lot of experience of Ditz in a confined space the last two years & am perfectly capable of driving serenely through this particular Ditzism. Besides, understandably, Ditz was a little nervous & when Ditz gets nervous her more aggravating peculiarities are uppermost.

As it turned out Ditz didn't do much singing at all. Alison is very happy with her voice & began rattling through her cupboards pulling out music ~ bray vocal exercises, As long as he needs me from Oliver Twist [Ditz should sound wonderful with this one], Yea Bank & Braes by Robbie Burns [which I've always thought is just lovely] & Cowles Lurking in the Pond because it suites Ditz's personality. We don't know it but it is a funny with a swing tune & ends with a be~bop de doo! which Ditz really will enjoy! Casually, in passing, Alison mentioned this was Ditz's grade 3 exam work. Ditz nearly died on the spot! Liddy & I clutched each other howling silently. Alison just took it for grated Ditz would do her exams & no~one, ever, argues with Alison, not even Ditz. Just, no nonsense, you do your exams, girl. More than capable of grade 3. Torpedoed & Ditz never even saw it coming!

Meanwhile Alison put together a CD with the notes & the accompaniment so Ditz can practise & we have our very own homeschool singing program because, " You're used to doing this, aren't you!" OK. Hm. Ditz is still in shock but these will be the Trinity exams rather than the AMBE ones. I've heard people speak disparagingly of the Trinity exams but Alison just said they are performance motivated rather than geared to AMBE "performing monkey" ones. I have no idea except the AMBE ones so did Ditz's head space in we have had issues ever since. They are simply terrifying ~ & seem meant to terrify & what is the point of that?

Ditz was very quiet in the car afterwards but we took her out to the point where the Dawn Treader is being built & had a look at the *hull in progress*. All the fancy trim is still lying all over the grass but the hull itself is now in one piece & looks very like a real, if rather small, sailing ship. The we went home & Liddy, who had nabbed a couple of DVD's while we were out, put in St Trinians ~ which I was a little dubious about, but it was terribly funny & after about 5 minutes Ditz was laughing, a little colour came back into her wan cheeks & the horrified look in her eyes faded somewhat.

So happy it is not me what wants to sing like a canary & has to do these thing!