Music Director's Diary from Long Beach

	Greg's Daily Blog Long Beach, California
Preparation for the trip... My plans are to pack really light and send on ahead what I will need for the conference with Pastor Kate. I am leaving on the bus on Monday evening the 6th of July. It is an overnight trip and will arrive in Long Beach at about 6am. I plan on taking the short walk from the bus down to the beach and get some pictures. I will touch base with Judy and Marshall so that we can meet for lunch and get to the hotel. Between this page and Facebook, I will be trying to keep everyone up to date on my trip.
Day One - July 7, 2009
The note is written end of the first day. This day started while on a bus from Tucson to Long Beach. I arrived in Long Beach at about 6am today. It was a VERY tiring trip and only managed to pull together a couple hours of sleep during the whole trip. Unexpectedly though I had a little energy when I arrived and chose to do the walk to the beach. A couple hours later however, that energy left suddenly. I called Judy for a ride to the hotel and got checked in for a little rest before going over to the church to register. Following that, we went back to the beach for an early dinner. Another short rest and then back to the church for the opening introductory session on "The 3 Days" in Holy Week. I'm having computer trouble so may or may not be able to complete the rest of the updates until I return. More later. Link to slide show above.
Day Two - July 8, 2009
Still having computer trouble. Laptop wants to shut down after a few minutes of use. Day two looked at Ash Wednesday and Maundy Thursday services. I assisted with stripping of the alter which is something that I don't do back home as I am involved in a number of other activities relating to the music.
Day Three - July 9, 2009
It's a little hard to think about Holy Week in the middle of the summer, but that is what the week is about. The notes here are very brief due to continued trouble with the laptop. But this morning was the Good Friday rite. It was very different than I have experienced before, but there were a number of things that I might like to look at in the future. The Gospel reading was sung by three cantors. I am going to look at getting a copy of what they used to sing it in the near future. Tonight I experienced my very FIRST Easter Vigil. Considering I am a 'life-long Lutheran, that may sound surprising. I very much liked the experience and look forward to another opportunity soon.
Day Four - July 10, 2009
In the interest of getting back to Tucson at a reasonable hour, we will be starting out on the return trip to Tucson on Friday at 8am. Pastor Kate, Becky and I will be driving back together. No bus for me on the return. How do you spell relief???? I want to thank Beautiful Savior for the opportunity to experience this intensive worship and learning experience of "The Three Days". There will be opportunities in the near future to utilize some of the things we saw, heard and experienced. Some even before Holy Week next year.