Moving Forward

I officially have a date and time to go meet with the assistant executive director of this school and to tour the facility. Whooooo hooo! I have a couple of weeks before I go which is plenty of time to prepare some items like an updated resume, sample documentation, and a little glossy pretty powerpoint thing to leave with them. I'm also starting to think about creating my own little contract -- just in case--- for my services. I don't know what the school has in mind yet, but its probably a good idea to start thinking about what to include.

If any of you faithful readers have experience in contracts (like consulting contracts and whatnot) and feel like you can impart some wisdom, please shoot me an email.

Well... back to work. I have to keep practicing my score for the children's theater gig and start on my resume/documentation party. sounds thrilling, eh?

Breaking News

Ah!

Today I heard from the school that I had approached a couple of months ago (the school where my friend's mom works). The therapist they were working with was suddenly unable to provide services at the school. I've been asked if I'm still interested in speaking with them about an in-service. AHHHHH! exciting.

So now I am painstakingly crafting the perfect e mail that says, "YOU BET I'M STILL INTERESTED!"

Sigh. Poor Aimee. She's sitting on the couch dealing with my writing process.

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Today I spent some one on one time with my boss and learned about how to better facilitate drum circles and the techniques she employs when working with groups with disabilities. That was great. My skills aren't very strong in this area, so it was nice to get the individual attention and the opportunity to practice on her. THEN we went to a monday afternoon session and I ended up using some of the skills I learned that morning! It was a nice real-life experience to reinforce newly acquired skills.

Back to email composing!

Fashion Tips

Forgot to mention the excellent fashion tips I received from The One, The Only, Chic. He graciously provided a list of tips before going out shopping with my Aunt for new dresses:

Avoid:

Lime green

Paisley

Plaid

Orange

Fushia

Yellows

Do Look For:

Dark Black

Thanks Chic.

Duly Noted. And Thanks for the Laugh.

The past week

Sorry Kids! Its been almost a week since I updated. Well... Not much has happened. I found a couple of new dresses for outings and the upcoming wedding and some shoes ( of course). Today I got a haircut.

For the next few days I am house/dog sitting the lovely Ms. Peaches. She's a little bit bigger since the last time I saw her AND she has really gotten a grasp on "fetch." We're playing as I type here.

She's such a cutie.

It will be nice to spend some down time. Maybe watch a bit of football and prepare for a session on Monday. that's right--- Another billable hour.

In fact, since I've posted, I've gained a couple more hours in my schedule starting in February. That's pretty exciting. I had a great chat with my boss this past week about long term goals and building my schedule by creating new work- just for me. Mom says that my boss must like what I'm doing. My boss and I also talked about my future in her company- from just being a contractor, to creating more work for me, to creating contracts for incoming contractors. I'm excited because I really want to learn the business side of providing services. its not something that they can teach in school--- it varies by geography, agencies, populations, even therapists and there just isn't enough time in school to cover it. THere is barely enough time to cover the mandatory/competency areas. My boss has been doing contract work for over 15 years in this area- so I think she will be one of the best teachers to enlist for help and post-bachelors study. :) Maybe someday, music therapy curriculum will encompass entrepreneurship, contract writing, and reimbursement (3 things that I am quickly learning are important in the real world).

This line of thought almost always begins, "well, when I have my own program and design my own curriculum...."

For now.... I am happy to grab some extra hours and learn some new techniques and sides of my field. My boss has a ton of experience using drum-play techniques (techniques that I don't have a lot of experience using), in addition to all the contract/business work. We're starting on Monday by doing a quick workshop so that she can share some basic techniques to use with the populations. I am excited, as I figure, my learning is never ever finished. I like that aspect of my career and discipline. There is always always more to discover and learn. Anyhooo, I'm on my way.

We're getting closer to february which is shaping up to be pretty busy! yay!

Thanks DiAnne for the reminder to update. Sorry to leave you all hanging!

Pomp and Circumstance, but better

I hung up my diploma and my CBMT certificate. They look great on my wall. You still can't read them in the picture. Sorry. They both have my name on them.

Not much going on here. I have a potential new project, but I am hesitant to talk about it until it is a sure thing.

I picked up a couple of hours for next month! That is good news. And the orchestra pit for Guys and Dolls is going to be fun. I have to get my little songbooks printed this week so that they will be ready for other sessions and really plan out what I think I'm going to do. Its always helpful to plan even though sessions NEVER go according to plan.

Things are moving quite along. I have a couple more work days for music therapy stuff this month. My boss already wants to expand my hours which is great. AND I get to pick out a keyboard that the company will purchase for my use. That buys me some time before I buy my own.

February brings more hours, a friend's wedding (I'm playing cocktail hour), childrens theater, and another high school retreat! I'm going on the same retreat that I got to lead in October. My friend's sister is the organizer this time. I'm looking forward to it.

That's it. It's football and movie day around here. Dad is out of town and Mom and I are off to see The Kings Speech!

Pomp and Circumstance

My computer was the closest thing for a photo... which explains the backwards writing. Whatever. The important thing is that it's going to look fabulous up on my wall!

The Run-down

For the first 3 sessions, I shadowed the music therapist who is currently doing these sunday placements. Now that I am taking over, she gets her Sundays back! We are both excited. I met this music therapist at conferences--- she was the national student president while I was the western region student president. We've worked together before, but I don't think we've seen each other since the conference in 2009. It was fun to work with her in session (which I had never done) and to see her. We had a nice lunch and got to catch up on each other's gossip.

Session #1:

This was fun. This is the only individual session on my caseload at this time. The kid is super cute and very musical. He has some neurological issues due to some recent surgery and illness and he is a wonderful candidate for music therapy. I am looking forward to working with him. I think out of all the people I saw, that he will absolutely benefit from some of the improvisation training that I did in internship. I am excited because that means that I also will be able to work in that model- which is what I love.

Session #2:

Session 2 occurred in a home setting for a group of gentlemen with disabilities. It requires a lot of energy to get them going, but they were a great group. They have a definite routine that I will be fitting into at least when I start out. Thats the easiest way to build rapport. Once that foundation is solid, I will be able to infuse some subtle changes and all that.

Session #3:

Session 3 was in a facility that provides respite services for families with children or loved ones with disabilities. There weren't many clients there that afternoon, so we had a small and low-key group which was nice. It was nice after the high energy it took for session 2.

Session #4:

Session 4 was with my boss and it was in another home facility for 3 gentlemen. I felt a little overwhelmed and intimidated at first. It felt a little chaotic at first, but I had a good feeling by the end of the session. Sometimes you just have to jump in head first. Its paying off definitely. I got an email from my boss about creating new work for me! that's great! I would love more hours. AND it was about creating new work for me in the south bay, instead of the East Bay. I would LOVE that. Geez, we've done 2 or 3 sessions together and already she wants to talk about expanding-- that is extremely encouraging. It would work well for both of us. I would have some sessions closer to home that would require less driving and she would obtain more contracts. Sounds great to me.

After these four sessions (and four billable hours!! whoo hoo!) I was exhausted! Its a totally different way of using energy, especially with the driving between settings. I don't mind though. It feels good to be doing something in my chosen field! what a concept.

Ooh Forgot to mention! My Diploma arrived!!!!!! its officially official. I'll post a picture later!

Sunday Funday

Hi all,

I had four sessions today and went to dinner and a movie with ty and nicholas. I am exhausted and I will update you tomorrow some time. :)

We did see True Grit tonight. I absolutely enjoyed it. I even felt it was worth the $ needed to get in the door.

Okay. That's all. Goodnight!

oops

I spoke too soon.

Something came up and the kid never made it over for a piano lesson. Oops. :) We'll start next week.

Also, I was asked to play in a pit for a children's theater here in the area for a february show. Yay! I'm starting to piece some things together. Sounds good to me.

Songbooks and things

oh my

I'm working putting together song books to include in my MT toolbox- as they say.

I have a ton of songs and I'm making lyric sheets and master copies with melodies and chords blah blah blah blah.

I think tomorrow I'll take to Staples to make copies and start assembling. This could get costly, but it will be something that lasts a lifetime and that I can bring to anything. Some of the lyric sheets have nice graphics too.

Today I am starting lessons with a kid down the street. I am looking forward to it. Now i have to do those last minute preparations and confirm my plan of attack.

I learned by M&Ms on the keyboards (which I think explains quite a bit about me) and we had doggie bones for every 30 minutes we practiced (had to have a parent sign off on it) and those doggie bones were redeemable for prizes. We also got stickers when we finished a piece AND every year there was a "chuckie cheese piece" where all the kids that learned that piece got a trip to chuckie cheese.

But I'm not sure I'm going to do all that. It's just one student, so I think I'll give him the choice of stickers or something else.... I have 90 or so minutes to figure it out. Great... best teacher evvvveerrr

Boomwhacker Demo

I recorded some tracks and made a video.

Here is a silly arrangement of Katy Perry's "Teenage Dream" using the boomwhackers for the harmonic rhythmic support--- I played the melody on a Wurly sound... I didn't have enough boomwhackers to make the melody work. It's silly but at least you can see how the boomwhackers work. :)

I also did the main rhythm thingy to Viva La Vida- an easy enough song for boomwhackers. I got lazy on the melody and played it on a synth sound as well.

Day 1

Sound familiar?

Almost this time last year, I started this thing off with a "Day 1" post.

Anyhooo... I had my first "day" of work on Monday. My apologies for taking my sweet time to update about the experience.

I worked 1 whole hour!

I shadowed my boss at a facility for adults with developmental disabilities and mental health issues. The environment is sort of like my internship which was nice. I felt comfortable and familiar with the format. There are a few major major differences. 1. This is one big group session in the lobby area of the building-- so people can come and go as they please and 2. each client (usually) has a 1:1 aide. That means that each person has certain challenges that requires them to need 1:1 attention, meaning that there are some pretty severe behaviors that happen. No big deal. Having that much extra support can often be a good thing (I say often because sometimes the aides think they are helping by making a person do something in music when that isn't always the best way to elicit responses).

Monday was apparently an unusual day--- they were understaffed and that meant that not everyone had their 1:1 and personalities were clashing which meant they dealt with some severe behaviors earlier in the day. Plus, a new client was just starting there- it was his first day. When we arrived, most of the consumers (except the person starting the program that day) were out in the community. About 40 minutes into the hour session people started to come back, some people were agitated and some people came in and out, some people really participated for the short time they were present. My boss said that this was an extremely unusual day. My initial feelings: It was a chaotic environment- especially being out in a open space.

My boss and I had a phone appointment yesterday to debrief (she had to zip off right after the session leaving zero time to talk). I felt better after that. We went through a list of clients that usually attend music and went through their likes and important details ---- like which clients you can approach and which clients you DO NOT want to interact with directly because of volatile (and sometimes violent) behaviors. yeah... good to know that kind of stuff. :) Sound exciting?

I thought I would be more scared of this type of environment, but I feel mostly excited. I think the nerves are normal, especially starting new things and I think I have about the right amount of nerves in balance with confidence and "fresh" ideas.

I won't go back there for a couple of weeks but I do work on Sunday. I'll work a whole 4 hours! This making money thing (although it isn't a whole lot) is kinda fun! Plus, I'm having fun keeping all of my receipts and mileage for taxes. The whole "writing off" thing is way too exciting. I'm going to keep the best records ever! I can't stop talking about it. And any excuse to make spread sheets is always an exciting event.

I'm currently looking for equipment to round out my collection of things I'll actually use instead of just want. I just purchased a pack of frame drums AND some boomwhackers. Maybe I'll put together a little recording to post... yeah. That would be a great use of my time. Stay tuned for that!

In the meantime, I am officially up on my boss' website!

Here is my personal profile

Here is the page for the music therapists she employs

Wooo hooo! Its official!

Happy New Year!

What a party.

For New Years a group got together for Julie's sister's Bachelorette Party. She's getting married in a few short weeks and decided the best way to bring in this new year was with a bachelorette party.

The bride-to-be had a wonderful time and that is what matters. The whole evening was a blast. I am glad I ended up going.

Going out to a club in SF on New Years is generally not my idea of a fantastic time- I don't like packed areas of people I don't know (my introvert speaking). But this was a lot of fun. The group of ladies that went ended up being a great mix of personalities. We had a great time and that's all I can divulge on the matter.

I will say that drunk people are incredibly entertaining.... most of the time. There were some characters in the club. It seems that Julie and I make new and interesting friends wherever we go. After my New York Adventure, I was pretty dead set on playing it cool. I had one glass of wine with dinner the entire evening. Aside from being smart (I was also in charge of pictures and also around to help with whatever help Julie needed) it enabled me to dance all evening, which I did. I also woke up feeling perky. That was certainly a big pay-off. Especially as people dragged themselves to breakfast the next morning feeling like hell. :)

So... Cheers to 2011. I hope everyone had a wonderful new years celebration!

Tomorrow I have my first session as an employed music therapist! Whoa!

I don't think I have to do much and will mostly be assisting my boss who will be running the majority of the session. I am brushing up my repertoire and hope that I will be prepared! I will certainly update tomorrow to let you all know how it went!

Happy 2011!