November 4th, 2003
Things are starting to settle down here now that I've been here almost a month. Here's what's been happening recently.
Today I went to the beach, but it was kind of rainy so we didn't stay long.
Yesterday I played soccer with a bunch of guys in Freeport. The field was kind of uneven and the goals were small and didn't have nets, but it was fun. It was really hot and humid, though, which really wore me out. The captain of the ship showed up and played too. He's really cool for a captain--he shows up in the crew bar, and just kind of hangs out sometimes. From what I've heard, most captains are pretty aloof.
Last Thursday our drummer got replaced. He resigned about a week before that, but he had to stay until they could find a replacement. The new drummer is doing a lot better already. He's much more confident and has a better knowledge of different styles.
For those that are interested, here's some info on all the guys in the band and some of the people that I hang out with:
Dan Potter - musical director, trombone. Dan is a really nice director. He jokes often, and treats us well. He is from Missouri, and sold insurance and played trombone for a long time before teaching at a catholic school, and a couple of years ago he started doing cruise ships.
Marcel - tenor sax. Marcel is my new roommate, and he's from Canada. We have a lot in common, but he is more into contemporary music that me. He has graduated from college, and wants to either play on broadway or write music for TV or something. He's only here through December, but he's not making much money because he's still paying rent and stuff at home.
Chris - trumpet. Chris is one of the most normal guys I've ever met that is a musician. This is his second contract, and after this he plans to attend grad school somewhere with his girlfriend.
Steve - piano. Steve went to the Berkley school of music in Boston. Interestingly, he knew Brian Breech, who I went to high school with. He's a pretty cool guy, and he laughs at everyone's jokes (even mine). As a players he's kind of average, but he plans to form a band with his twin brother and write songs when he's done here (in like May or something).
Steve - guitar. Steve was my old roommate. He's about 55 and jewish, and looks a little like Albert Einstein. He can get kind of moody and agitated at times, but he's played with a lot of people. He left college in the 60's to play with Peggy Lee.
Ed - bass. Ed is from Oklahoma, but of Perto Rican descent. He's a pretty good player, but can be kind of a jerk a times. I think he went to some college, but didn't finish.
Mike - old drummer. He was from Canada, and he kind of reminded me of the guys from Strange Brew.
Dan - new drummer. Dan is from Texas, and he did some work with high schools before he came here (kind of like what I did). He went to college somewhere, but it wasn't North Texas so it doesn't really matter.
Ryan - dancer. Ryan is from Australia, and he's pretty cool. He's the only male dancer that is straight.