House Matters and a Concert

I sat down and talked finances regarding the house with the parents yesterday and we agreed on a figure. (The discussion was complicated by the differences between the underlying logical structure of what we're doing, the actual financial movements, the way the mortgage company views the transaction, and the way the IRS will view the transaction. It's not that we're doing anything shady or underhanded! It's just that it made it more complicated to identify what each number meant when we were talking about them.) In the end, I'll be getting a smaller loan than I'd ball-parked to the mortgage company, and some of the loan will be paying off my existing student loan (which makes my monthly-payment situation much better). I'm getting a very good deal on this house and I know it.

Last night was the jr high winter concert at my nephew's school and we all turned out for it. He hadn't quite communicated to us that he was one of the improvisational soloists in a jazz piece. Cool stuff. I have to say, though, that it must take a very special sort of musician to spend their life teaching beginning instrumental music. My mother's comment (who has been one of those beginning instrumental music teachers), paraphrased, was, "A major third in tune is such a beautiful thing to hear ...." (implication: too bad we didn't hear more of them) The school gym was packed to overflowing with audience -- it's nice to see a school with a well-supported music program!