“24” returned last night — and boy howdy, did it return. It was certainly a strong start. Any show that features the hero killing a guy by biting him to death is ass-kicking in my book. I hope they can keep it strong for the bulk of this season, unlike last season, which I thought sucked.

February is shaping up to be non-stop busy. I’ll be at Florida State for rehearsals and a performance of “Turbine” from January 30-February 3. My mother is coming to visit LA from February 5-8, and I leave for Atlanta on the 8th to work with David Vandewalker’s band at Harrison High School through February 10. On the morning of the 11th, I fly to Dallas to rehearse “Turning” with the Texas Christian University wind ensemble. Monday the 12th, I’m working with Steve Andre and his group at Grapevine High School (just outside of Dallas) on their premiere of “Turning.” On Wednesday the 14th, I’ll ride with the TCU band to San Antonio for the TMEA convention, stopping for a few performances of “Turning” along the way.

TCU’s performance of “Turning” is on Thursday the 15th at 8pm at the TMEA convention. I’ll be working with Gary Hill and the Texas All-State band on rehearsals for “Turbine” on Thursday through Saturday, and their performance will be on Saturday afternoon. I finally fly back home to LA on Sunday the 18th, after 10 days of travel including 5 performances. I’ve still never heard “Turning,” but that week, I’ll hear 4 performances by two different groups. Man, I hope that piece is good.

In other news, last night, AEJ and I made homemade sloppy joes, courtesy of a recipe in the Cooks Illustrated “The Best 30 Minute Recipes” cookbook. Delicious. Of course, it took me an hour to make the 30 minute recipe (I tend to be a little “exacting” — which is a nicer description than “anal”), but it was worth it.

(The Fritos were not from scratch, just FYI.)