Productive day in many a way:

Rehearsal this morning went well. I dislike the morning, and I was a few minutes late because I stopped to get a timmy ho cappuccino; as I predicted, they were running behind anyway.
We covered the remaining 2 grades of students today - this music was easier and while I was sightreading everything today, I concluded that there was nothing that I couldn't play well enough or fake my way through if need be.
Nevertheless, after my lesson today, I practised piano like I haven't practised in ages... wait - I haven't practised in ages! Anyway, a few hours of metronome practising and I think I'm good to go. I basically had to make a judgement call on my professionalism. My call was to not spend every waking hour of today at a piano - the result is that I spent enough time to learn things to about 80% - the remaining 20%, I will supply tomorrow!
That number is pretty made up, I don't know how I got it - the ones I was most worried about, I tried to learn as close to the tempo marking as possible. There is one piece that just isn't possible to learn accurately with the time an resources given: I practised it so I could play it PERFECTLY at maybe two-thirds tempo. With that as a basis to which I kept going back, I was also practising it up to full tempo using some tricks of the trade - aka faking it. I think I've finally gotten over some of my modesty (whether that be a good thing or bad) and realized that some of the things that I do - improvising, recomposing music at sight (usually to make it more playable) are skills that most other pianists can't or don't do. I'm still not convinced that others CAN'T do improv, but I'm accepting that it is one of my highly marketable skills and I need to treat it like that. I still embrace my altruistic goals of getting the whole classical world to improvise, but ya, I need to take advantage of my skills when I can.

Anyway, the exams are EARLY tomorrow, I have to be there for 8:15ish. Yuck. They run until the late afternoon!! = Long day.

My lesson today was good. He gave me a few more suggestions, therefore there's lots of work still remaining before Monday when I take the piece to the players. Tomorrow evening will be intense with finalizing the piece. Monday, I will have time to final edit, make sure formatting is perfect, then take it to get bound and printed and all that fun.

I am looking forward to this weekend being over.

Also, the chair I sit in at the studio is uncomfortable - I am going to have back pain tomorrow, I know it!