So the OaKs had our Tampa CD release party this weekend at the Crowbar. Apart from the fact that we didn’t get home until nearly 4 a.m., I had to say that overall it was enjoyable. My only beef is that the bass was turned down in the monitors. I could barely hear Jeremy during his Masood solo—one of my favorite parts of the show. On the flipside, I could actually—egads!—hear my vocals during Masood! I am still waiting for that perfect monitor mix. One day…

Plus, Severus Snape was managing our sound which is always a good time;)

One of the personal highlights for me was getting to see my friend Amanda (Yes, “Silhouette” Amanda, for all two of you who are familiar with that song of mine). We used to be inseparable in our days as piano majors in Dr. Orr’s studio at the University of Florida, staying up until 3 a.m. to practice on the school’s ancient Steinways and then heading over to Java City or Dennys' for some coffee and/or pancakes at 5 a.m., so it was truly bizarre to think that we hadn’t seen each other in almost two years. So it was definitely lovely to catch up with her…

And just to give you a glimpse into some of my favorite Melissa and Amanda memories of all time:

• Sneaking around and climbing up the catwalk in the Philips Center for Performing Arts after a show (oh yes, we were rebels)…
• Chasing around soap bubbles as big as our cars in the fountain in front of Criser Hall. We just chased them, we didn’t MAKE them, for the record, in case UF personnel stalk this blog.
• Going to St. Augustine beach the day Hurricane Jeanne was supposed to hit… Everybody and their mother was fleeing the beach that weekend… we decided to go toward the beach. Also eating bread from the Spanish bakery on St. George’s St., which I believe was our sole reason for venturing there in the first place. However, I believe on this particular day, the bakery was closed due to the hurricane. Go figure.

Anyway, Amanda’s started to teach piano and play gigs, so if anybody in the Tampa area needs a kick-butt piano teacher or pianist for any occasion, call Amanda! (http://www.amandacooleypiano.com/)