Tuesday, October 25, 2011

A Great Weekend

My family came to visit on Friday, and just left this morning. I missed them as soon as I started walking away, but it was so great to have them come! I was excited to talk to them, hug them, laugh with them and do the things that I have been missing.

We watched Hello, Dolly! and Arthur (the greatest television show ever) as well as an episode of The Sing-Off. (I thought the Dartmouth Aires did best, but I also like Vocal Point.) Dad, Julia, Bethany, Emma, and I played a very intense game of Risk that ended late at night with Bethany blockading Australia, Emma trying to combine her two massive armies, and me hanging out in New Shakespeare Land (four Asian countries plus Fair Mother England and Scandinavia). Matthew was a spectator and Julia was also watching after we teamed up to get her out. She took England!

This morning we got to go to Hogle Zoo, which is great. The animals had just been fed and were very active. We even saw two tigers fighting! It was exciting. Joshua loved the monkeys, although he was a little frightened of the gorilla. He wanted to see snakes and did. I thought that the Black-footed Cat was the cutest animal there. The Bat-eared Fox came right up to the glass and was walking around, which was great. Two of the wolves were also running around and I love wolves. There is a baby elephant and some baby meerkats as well. Joshua got to feed the turkeys some corn. It was a great way to end the visit. When I have a family of my own, I pray it's just like mine.

Tuesday, October 18, 2011

Things I Love

A better title would have been "Things I Am Remembering Again How Much I Love", but that seemed a little long. This post is about those things in life that you know you love, but it isn't until you watch/read/whatever them again you remember HOW MUCH you love them, and why you became obsessed with them in the first place. The later remembrances almost rival the initial ones. Without further ado:

-Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte. I am saying without hesitation that this is the best book I've ever read. I've read a lot of books. I re-read it last week and couldn't sleep. It's that brilliant. It is Emily's only novel, and thank goodness she wrote it (just a year before she died). Heathcliff and Cathy are my All-time Favorite Couple. No one, repeat, no one, beats them.

-Tim Curry. He is an epic person. I just found a movie based on a Terry Pratchett novel (I've never read him, but maybe I should start), and he was a wizard. Let me just say that any man who can play a pirate (!) AND a wizard has my heart. Also, the way he rolls his eyes is sexy.

-Being in a play. Yeah, we all know that theatre has my heart forever and ever, but now I'm actually in a show, which hasn't been the case since April. I love watching the cast come together, I love getting to know my director, Jake, and his habits, I love making new friends and new memories. Tonight we spent most of rehearsal choreographing and speaking in ridiculous Spanish accents. "Bring the Christmas heat! Now cool it off! And Christmas fiesta, fiesta, fiesta!"

-Learning new things. I've taken up getting two non-fiction books every time I go to the library- one biography and one general. I am learning so much! It's good that there are people who dedicate parts of their lives to writing books about random topics, or I would probably never think of them. I've read about the first woman to circumnavigate the globe (Jeanne Baret), how America is changing the world's view of mental sickness, Kristin Chenoweth's biography, and how Disney and the color pink are changing today's girls, just to start. So much to learn, so little time!

-Donuts with sprinkles. Especially maple bars. Simple pleasure, but sooo good.

Tuesday, October 11, 2011

Annie (1999 Disney Version)

Musical of the moment for me (at least film wise) is Annie. Not the Andrea McArdle version, but a made-for-television one that Disney released in 1999. It has Audra McDonald (Ragtime) and Kristin Chenoweth (Wicked, You're a Good Man Charlie Brown, Promises, Promises) for your dose of Broadway magic, as well as Alan Cumming, Kathy Bates, and Victor Garber.

I hadn't seen Annie for years, or even listened to the songs from it, besidess the classic "Tomorrow" and "It's a Hard Knock Life." I didn't have the highest expectations. Let's face it, made-for-television versions are seldom that great. But I was pleasantly suprised. I lovd McDonald and Chenoweth, though that's to be expected. I was already a huge fan. But I also loved Garber as Daddy Warbucks, and his chemistry with McDonald was fantastic. The soundtrack will be stuck in my head for days, I can tell.

♫ Easy street, easy street.... ♪

Monday, October 3, 2011

CAST! And hired!

I've been cast as Duchess Guinea Yen in Titus Theatre Production's The Frog and I! Our show will be playing at the Murray Historic Theatre on December 15, 16, and 17. Each performance will be followed by a Christmas-themed olio with songs and sketches. This show has a very fun feel to it, perfect for the whole family. :) I'm glad to be a part of it.

Also, I am no longer a member of the unemployed! The new Brick Oven in South Jordan hired me yesterday, and I go to orientation next week. It is a good feeling to know that I'll be having a paycheck!

Song that's been stuck in my head lately: "One More Sad Song" by the All-American Rejects [Funnily enough, I'm not sad at all. I've been very positive lately. C:]