Looking at me, you would never know that I was once a skinny, underweight teenager. And before that, back in the ’50s, I was served a malted milk a day to get my girth up to snuff. Those days are long gone.

With the ever-present battle of the bulge raging, the pandemic provided an opportunity to try and get myself into decent shape. For starters, I would not be dining out for quite a while, which was good news for my waistline. Maintaining a healthy lifestyle and diet was difficult on the road given the lure of late-night gastronomic delights at parties, receptions and fine restaurants. Most of the establishments I ate in did not have salad bars.

A little over a month after returning to the podium, I have been struck by how various orchestras are dealing with rehearsing and presenting concerts. In the past, a conductor could just show up, ask how long the orchestra could rehearse before taking a break, and try to accomplish the goals for the day.

Now it is all different. Every orchestra seems to regulate things depending on state guidelines, union rules, and what they feel is best for everyone. The three ensembles I worked with recently each has a different method of operation.

Sometimes, purely by accident, circumstances put us in a place where we are convinced that coincidence is also part of fate. Such was the case as Cindy and I headed off on our first real trip in more than a year.

Over the course of ten days, we took leisurely drives from and back to St. Louis, with the main destination point being my old stomping grounds, New Orleans. It is a fairly straightforward shot down I-55, and we planned some overnight stops along the way to take in the sights.