A big thank you goes out to all of you who expressed concern for me on the advent of my surgery. Everything went along, right on schedule yesterday. I came out of the anesthesia on time and as expected (last time they kept calling me Jon, and, of course I have never responded to my first name). Although I didn’t speak with the surgeon afterwards (he had an off-site appointment), I did learn that he took care of two distinctly different hernias on the same side during the same procedure. I have yet to learn the full medical explanation for this, but apparently it was all successful and that’s all that matters.
After returning home about 6 pm and getting settled, I had a big beautiful steak for dinner (I was starving; no food for 18 hours at that point). The pain, although intense at times, seemed manageable with the Oxycodone prescribed for me, and I had no trouble falling asleep. Unfortunately, I woke up out of a dead sleep at 1 am with a bad case of heartburn, (which of course), made me cough like a banshee and swear like a sailor. (For those of you unfamiliar with the sensation, I do not recommend it.) And of course now, even this morning, I am prone to more coughing fits. So I am keeping a small pillow with me here in my den chair, and I pull it tightly into place when the coughing resumes. I just hope I don’t “bust a gusset” somewhere.
The surgeon reinforced that we are looking at a full week’s recovery before returning to work. I am hoping to make a “limited appearance” at rehearsal next Monday. The current plan is for Matt and I to split the rehearsal. You already have Puszta, and his part of the rehearsal will center on that piece. I will read through as much of the rest of the program as possible. I can’t promise cartwheels on the podium, but I intend to give it my best shot.

Finally, thank you again for Sunday’s dynamic and energetic performance. No concert is perfect, but you accomplished so much with this fall repertoire:

• The audience members clearly enjoyed themselves.
• They had to open the balcony! Let’s keep this as an attendance benchmark for the future.
• The inclusion of Joe and Rick on the program inspired both them and you.
• New audience members were very vocal about their return in the future.
• New donors were inspired to speak with us about long-term support.
• The audience was truly moved. We can’t ask for much more.

I must apologize for forgetting my usual row-by-row acknowledgement of the band at the end of the encore. I also forgot to invite Joe and Rick back up on stage. By that point, my “core” had been overworked, and I just wasn’t thinking straight. Last spring, I think we found the right combination for acknowledging percussion, and I was disappointed that I didn’t take advantage of that. I will make the effort to correct that in February.
So, my plans for the week include sitting (a lot), grading papers and entering grades, communicating with the Marching Band faculty about our game on Saturday, studying scores, and – oh, yes – trying to relax. Thank you all once again for your thoughts and prayers.