a Halloween celebration somewhere near my university from some previous year

I've been following the murder trial of Utah doctor Martin MacNeill, who allegedly gave his wife a cocktail of powerful drugs before she was found lifeless in a bathtub a week or so after she underwent a facelift, reportedly at his urging. This occurred in Pleasant Grove, Utah, where I spent a portion of three summers during my youth. The homes of two close relatives of my hosts in Utah were located close to the MacNeill home, and just knowing something creepy, whatever it was, had happened there was enough to cause me to feel very uncomfortale at either of the two Pleasant Grove homes.

I feel sad for everyone involved in this rather eerie situation. I hope that the outcome of this trial will allow the surviving victims in the situation, whoever they may be, to have some closure and peace.

Even though my temperature is still hovering between 102 and 103, I was able to play for the cello recital at my university earlier this evening. I think I was powered mostly by adrenaline, but I was over-prepared for the recital, so even at 80% capacity I was most likely good enough to impress the panel. At the very least, I did nothing to detract from the cellist's performance . I don't have any details except that the cellist received his grade and that he aced the recital. I left right after the performance without staying for any of he reception, but the cellist texted me with the information. I'm glad that I played for him, and I'm also glad that it's over. It's daunting for me to play for someone in a high-stakes situation when I'm operating on diminished capacity. My mom wanted to play for me, which didn't exactly bolster my confidence, but my dad told her to leave me alone -- that I would play for a little over an hour and then would be finished with all obligations for the rest of the week. My dad went with me because he likes the cello as much as I do. He thought the recital went very well, and he's a relatively tough critic.

I will do absolutely nothing for at least four days. The professors of my Monday and Tuesday classes always record and post their lectures, and the health center has notified all of my professors that I am not allowed to attend class. I hadn't missed a class prior to last week, so I can afford a little downtime. My professors don't want a flu epidemic this early in flu season; if I and the few others who are infected show up all over campus and share our germs, we could start an epidemic that lasts for entirely too long, so everyone is happy to have me stay home. I had to get special clearance to attend the rehearsal last night and the recital tonight even though I stayed pretty far away from everyone at both events. Someone is supposed to give the keyboard and music rack of the pianoI played a thorough cleaning before Monday.

I'm somewhat drugged because I had a steriod injection plus some strong cough syrup to stave off any major coughing fits or wheezing duing the recital. It worked well, but it's starting to hit me now. I consumed major caffeine right before the recital to give me a burst of energy, but I'm crashing now. I carried juice, 7-up, and crackers to my room in case I wake up needing something in my stomach and I'm too weak to make it downstairs.
I have a feeling the next few days may crawl, but I will make it through the weekend. It would be nice to see a little of the Halloween revelry next week, but if taking myself into the situaion would be hazardous, I'll skip it. One must prioritize, and the prospect of observing drunken revelry probably shouldn't be too high on my list.