Some pics to hold you...

Do give books - religious or otherwise - for Christmas. They're never fattening, seldom sinful, and permanently personal." ~ Lenore Hershey

 Pretty much everyone involved in The Gothic is a volunteer ~ which means we carry our own costs for travel, food, uniforms etc, & I can assure you none of that comes cheap.  Actually nothing to do with music is ever cheap, which could explain why it is such an elitist thing these days. The massed choir alone is over 600 voices ~ which is probably why this monster is supposedly cursed.  Logistics, logistics, logistics.  An absolute nightmare.  It hasn't been performed in over thirty years & never before outside Great Britain.  Consequentially the camera crews...

However, in gratitude the powers that be arranged for every participant to be given a coffee mug saying they survived the curse of the Gothic.  Only they've handed them out before the performance!  Wishful thinking?

Star is chuffed.  I think it's a pretty cool memento, don't you?

 And here we are inside the Old Museum.  Six hundred voices warmed up in here while the rain blustered down yesterday.  I curled up on a couch & caught up on some much needed sleep in between my reading.  The driving has been awful.  Yesterday the left lane down Kingsford Smith was all awash & every big truck that flew past sent water skirling across the road skewing my car & flooding my windshield.  The white lines disappeared & we couldn't see any of the signage until we were practically past it.  Yuk!  It is tiring.  We were time deprived too, rushing to get the car back to Liddy in time for church.  Neither Star nor I were interested.  We were wet & getting cold & thinking about hot showers & hot coffee & warm toes.

 More caroling Saturday at the local performing arts centre.  As you can see it is a very, very small group but they do get a big sound & they are all fairly experienced.

And we rocked up as per usual to the island carols on Friday night ~ a performance Star hates to miss because, while a participant, she is not required to perform, something so rare she has been known to comment how odd it is to be in the audience.  Throws her a bit.

I am hugely grateful for the couches at the Old Museum & that no~one threw me out as my alternative, the nearby Victoria Park, would have been most unpleasant under the circumstances & the thought of driving anywhere & having to come back on my own just does my head in completely!  I thought it was just me:  World's Biggest Woos; but apparently not.  I have met a number of mum's over the past few days who refuse point blank to drive in Brisbane!  Believe me, I completely understand this! Now I feel rather brave & daring ~ not that I ever had any choice!

Sound check today, dress rehearsal tomorrow.  The last of the logistics to get everyone on & off stage at QPAC get nailed down over the next 2 days.  We have all been advised to keep a sense of humour as things get ever more fraught.  Good advice I think.  Advice I had to take almost immediately when Star dropped our mobile in a puddle & killed it.  Star is carolling at Southbank as well over the next 4 days then I will have just 24 hours to tie our Christmas together.  I expect Star & I will sleep through it.  I am past caring.  Hibernation is starting to look highly attractive for the next 6 months or so.