Good Bye Real World ...

Today is the last day of real life until September 5th. At midnight tonight I check out of the real world and board a plane bound for DCA and what I hope will be the best drum corps week of my life. History tells me that there’s no better place to achieve performance focus like tour where you can shut out all of your real life, adult concerns and concentrate on being the best you can be at the thing you love. No lie, this year Renegades has been a difficult physical and mental challenge for me unlike any other. I’ve worked really hard to get my chops up, keep my body from shutting down and keep my attitude in check. A lot of self-talk has been involved in making it this far. I did a pretty fair job of bringing it all together until this past Sunday when I had a brief but serious melt down. Reflecting on it now though, I wouldn’t take a moment of it back. I had to work this season to keep the faith … and admittedly I was not always 100% successful … to persevere through what virtually everyone has predicted would be a disastrous season for the Renegades … even some of the alums. I was happy to see so many of them at our Family Day show last Saturday … and I was happy to hear them eat their words. This is going to be the season that everyone wishes they had marched because this season is a Renegades legend in the making.

We’re taking a show back east that barely resembles the show we performed in Season 1.0 and it’s pretty much guaranteed to not only make finals but possibly place as high as 6th depending on the performance we actually pull out of the bag this Sunday. Those of us who have hung in there this season, through members quitting, staff quitting, a friend being cut, a 1-man snare line, questionable show design and choreography and overall high drama, have an awful lot to be proud of.

I’ve developed a large amount of respect for Emily Mavroudis through the course of the season. When everyone else stopped believing, she held us together and brought some sanity to a situation she was totally unprepared for and dealt with it like a true pro. Sincere and heartfelt thanks Em. Without your dedication and tenacity, we wouldn’t be here. Em is very Santa Clara … as an old-school SCV biatch that’s the highest compliment I can give.

Kathy is back and a collective and audible sigh of relief was heard round the guard field when she emerged from her van gok in hand. In about two hours it was clear that we were going to be okay.

So as I pack my sunscreen, bug spray and sockbun, I also pack my expectation to go to Paetec Park and surprise the hell out of everyone. Whether we’re first or last, the reality is we’ve already won … we made it there.