Wrestling for Armrests

North Miami Beach, FL May 4, 2002
A.H. Schectman

THINKING ALLOWED

Essays on Issues, Ideas and Reflections on the Times. Published now and
then. Opinions pro or con are welcome.

WRESTLING FOR ARMRESTS

Carol and I and Frank and Charlotte went to the last concert of
the series we have been enjoying for this past year. It was a great ending
to a marvelous experience afforded by the New World Symphony in Miami Beach.
The theater is an old art deco movie that houses the classrooms and other
appurtenances needed to school young musicians who are holders of at least
B.A. degrees with many of them with Masters. Along with conductor Michael
Tilson Thomas they are a creative and talented orchestra and we are very
fortunate to have found them.

This was an all Prokofieff evening. I was looking for familiar
sounds that are to be found in Peter and the Wolf but only at the end were
we treated to an old favorite introduced as the theme music for the "FBI in
Peace and War." The selections from Romeo and Juliet were excellent but as
always there were earlier pieces we could do without. They are necessary to
exercise musicianship and conductorship, I guess.

Now, along with noticing that there were few young people in
attendance, we saw people we thought we knew and were able to engage
neighbors in conversation before the concert began and during intermission.
I soon found that I had to wrestle for the arm rest on my right side. Carol
sat on my left and I left that one for her. She said I was too large and
slopped over in a way to deny her even the opportunity to wrestle for it.

I was wearing my jacket and it was very warm under the small
balcony at the rear of the theater. The equally large man on my right
crossed his arms and I believed that the arm rest was mine. I was aware
that he made no move to claim the arm rest while I was comfortably in
possession of it. However, it was warm and I decided to take the jacket
off. Wouldn't you know it, the moment I relinquished the right rest and
took the garment off, he moved in and was solidly occupying MY arm rest.

The story has a good ending since we exchanged some words at the
intermission about the music and from that time on we time shared the arm
rest. Carol's Evaluation: 10 out of 10.