May 18, 2006 - Thursday
It's a little remarkably if I think too much about it, but tonight we took Harry and Jeremy to see the Boston Pops, arguably the best Pops Orchestra in the world, in Boston Symphony Hall, one of the finest concert halls in the world. It was Tufts Night at Pops and their mother was given some tickets. And since the boys have had some practice at other cultural events, I felt pretty good about taking them to this otherwise very adult event. It was an all Gershwin program and that suggested there would be something for both Jeremy and Harry, although I'll conceed that things worked out a little differently than I might have guessed. The program had three parts: the first featuring Gershwin's more operatic work (like selections from Porgy and Bess), the second with a piano soloist playing the obligatory Rhapsody in Blue, and the third part was the show tunes with singers. I'd have expected Harry to have loved the more rhythm and drum oriented last part, and I suppose maybe he did. But it was Jeremy who seemed to remember the show tunes once we got in the car and put on Ella singing the Gershwin Songbook. Of course, by that time it was after 11:00 pm and the boys were both only moments away from long-overdue sleep. They both made it through the entire program without sleeping, fidgeting, or doing anything that wasn't completely appropriate for Boston Symphony Hall. I guess the exception was that Jeremy freaked out during the finale when the balloons fell from the ceiling, although it was against the noisy background of the entire audience clapping along with Stars & Stripes Forever.

It was a curious little scene and I'm not sure what to make out of it, although in hindsight I think Jeremy was reacting to hearing the balloons elsewhere in the hall start popping. He and Harry had both caught, or had caught for them, one of the large (12-inch diameter?) balloons and all seemed to be right with the world. Then all of a sudden, Jeremy thrust his balloon over the edge of the balcony (we were in the first row of the first balcony, right center) and began to cry uncontrollably. Everyone around us, everyone that noticed anyway, figured that he was crying because he dropped his balloon and one person, Susanna, caught him a second one. But with a flair of urgency and tears, he kicked and screamed that one over the edge of the balcony as well. I really think it was the fear of having it pop in his face that was the problem. Gracious Harry got him another balloon and carried it to our car for his brother. Mostly, I think Jeremy was at something of a lack of sleep breaking point. Fortunately it was time to go home.


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