Brad and Jenny

Warm Vacation 2012: Tuesday, January 17

2012-01-29T16:59:00.000-08:00

We finally got up early to watch the sunrise and it was well worth it.

It seems almost sacrilegious to include the swap shop in this post, but that's what we did after breakfast and another walk.

It's like a garage sale, with people selling stuff out of their vans, combined with a farmer's market, combined with a really strange mall. Pictures do it the most justice, although I didn't always feel comfortable taking pictures. I didn't take pictures of anyone's store--it's their livelihood, you know? But there were a lot of cell phone bling stores, religious iconography, luggage, perfume, jewelry, and watch stores. Strange combination, but there it is.

You can sit and watch the security cameras in the mall....

A neat little xylophone piano!

Unfortunately hidden behind a sports car :(

We didn't want to actually sit in the chair, so you can see us, or at least you can see our feet in the mirror.

Could it indeed? We'll never know...

After the swap shop, we had some really tasty food at a wings store. Brad had wings with the special sauce and I had a hamburger and fries. I do love a good hahmbugah (said in a Wimpy voice).

After all that, we boarded a plane back to the cold, cold world of the midwest. Sigh. I like having things to do, but it was really nice to be in such a warm place! Special thanks to Brad for actually making the vacation happen! He's the baste!

Warm Vacation 2012: Monday, January 16

2012-01-29T16:40:00.000-08:00

We arrived at the port of Palm Beach Monday morning, disembarked, and waited in line through customs. The funniest thing is that Brad got nervous. The guy asked us where we were born and Brad was like, "Colorado....I mean! Provo! Utah!" You can never tell if they're trying to trap you or just making small talk when you're disembarking from a cruise to the Bahamas.

We drove down to Hollywood, Florida, and found a motel to stay at. It was right on the beach, which was awesome, and it was really cute. We found two cockroaches, but both were mostly dead, so I think it was OK.

We walked along the boardwalk, looking at people, and briefly swam in the ocean, but the lifeguard kept blowing his whistle, and there was no one else in the water, so it was probably at us. Oops. I guess red flag means "don't go in the water."

We couldn't decide if these things (which were everywhere) were jelly fishes or not. We saw jelly fish, and they were filled with air and had tails and were blue. These things were solid and we couldn't see any tails.

We walked to this pier, but couldn't get on it--without paying, that is.

This video has some noisy birds!

Something funny about this place--Quebecois license plates everywhere, and signs indicating that the French Canadians were welcome. What is the connection between Quebec and Hollywood, Florida?

"Canadian products sold here"

Quebecois license plates

"Parlons francais" on the sign above the address

Anyone know what poutine is?

We finished the evening with some Turkish food at Istanbul restaurant (super delicious), and ice cream. I got a regular old twist, but Brad had a mix of pistachio and strawberry--it had a funny name and was quite tasty!

Warm Vacation 2012: Sunday, January 15

2012-01-29T16:18:00.000-08:00

On Sunday we took some last minute pictures of this beautiful place.

Don't worry, I didn't pick this hibiscus. I found it on the ground.

View from our hotel balcony

Another view from the balcony

Terrace area outside of the lobby

Again. The colors are just brilliant!

This may be my favorite flower. Check out the bee inside!

Some sailing and parasailing

I'm not sure why the palm trees had two different types of bark...

We boarded the bus to go the cruise, boarded the boat, and ate lunch. We read that afternoon, but it was a little noisy.

Here are some pictures of our cabin--small, but we had a window, which was nice!

I know people who speak Scandanavian languages. Can anyone tell me what this means?? It's a red button--it must be pushed....

View of the port from our window

We ate dinner at 6:00 that night, and played a bunch of Phase 10 while we people watched. We also attended a magic/spinning shapes/comedian show, but only stayed for the magic and spinning shapes. Here's a thought about cruise entertainment. The spinning shapes were really quite beautiful by themselves. Two people had these enormous...three-dimensional shapes (I don't know how else to describe them) that they spun around as you would a baton. The resulting image was beautiful. But combine that with stage smoke, stage lights, glittery costumes, and loud music, and it felt disappointing. We were expecting Art as a freak show, rather than Art that is beautiful. Why should we be impressed with that? It's like appreciating music because you like it, rather than because it is genius. Enjoying listening to artists because they are expressing, not because they're being amazing. Twirling these shapes obviously took skill, but it was presented as "here is something that takes skill" rather than "here is something that is beautiful for its own sake."

Yikes! I almost forgot to include the sunset! We saw the sunset! It was beautiful! And we saw where all the white sand for the white sandy beaches comes from!

They mine the sand!

Us dressed for dinner

Warm Vacation 2012: Saturday, January 14 (includes SNORKELING)

2012-01-22T18:00:00.000-08:00

On Friday afternoon after our parasailing adventure we decided to visit the "marketplace." Really, it was a place for tourists to buy things.

The Marketplace

We were not 5 minutes into our outing when we were invited by a woman named Patrice (she said people just called her Big Mama, but I don't know how true that is), to go to a sales pitch the next day in exchange for a free breakfast and free excursion of our choice.

First of all, I should explain. We didn't want to spend money on food there, so we had bought (and like Dave Barry, I am not making this up), rice cakes and canned salmon that we brought in our bags from Florida and that was going to tide us over (and it really is "tide" and not "tie." The Internet said so).

The prospect of a real breakfast, therefore, was pretty nice. Also, it meant snorkeling for free. And since Brad is maybe not the only one who has a hard time saying no, we agreed. Patrice was telling us that there are lots of Joneses in Freeport, so she decided to call Brad her cousin.

Cousins (Brad and I are dressed to snorkel :) )

So that morning we met Patrice and boarded a bus over to the resort right across the canal. It is Taino Beach and is the only locally-owned resort on Grand Bahama Island, which is kind of cool.

View from the restaurant

Other view from the restaurant

We had breakfast with a woman named Gwen who told us about her family, how she takes her vacations in the US, how she had invited our missionaries to go to church with her and they did, so she felt she should go to church with them too, all kinds of different things. She was really nice and it was one of the most fun parts of the trip. I liked being sold stuff by people, because it meant that I got to get to know some people who actually live in the Bahamas. She took us on a tour of the facility (and trust me, it's beautiful), then brought us into a room to deliver the pitch. It was everything you'd expect from a sales pitch for a timeshare. She eventually brought in the numbers guy to really get dirty and figure it out with us, and it got to the point where Brad asked them to leave so he could try to convince me (See? I told you he can't say no!). I was able to talk him down from the timeshare ledge and we left with all our money intact.

After chillaxing on the beach,

we snorkeled (but took no pictures). It was beautiful! Here was one fish from the Internet that I saw! (Brad didn't see much--no glasses when snorkeling.)

Check out those teeth!

Warm Vacation 2012: Friday, January 13 (includes PARASAILING)

2012-01-22T14:32:00.000-08:00

The cruise left at 6pm and had arrived in Freeport on Grand Bahama Island by the time we got up the next morning. We ate breakfast, went through customs, and took a bus over to our hotel. We stayed at the Grand Lucayan Resort and it was BEAUTIFUL!

The hotel

A giant chessboard (that we didn't play)

The pool (that we didn't swim in)

The beach (the real reason we were there!)

You know those pictures of vacation spots and they look a little too good to be true? Well, they're accurately perfect.

We sat on the beach for only a while when a man approached us about doing an excursion. We had decided that we were going to do parasailing, no matter what, so we paid for it and went out!

A view from the air

I was perfectly comfortable, sitting in the little harness. But poor Brad--not so comfortable. You can see in the picture below that he's just--kind of hanging there. He described it at the time as "a long, slow kick to the groin." Good thing he can do pull-ups on that bar above to provide some temporary relief. Poor Brad. We're leaning in this picture to prepare for landing.

Unhooking after landing

These are two very short videos. The first one shows you a view of the island, and the second one I started to take as we were landing. However, it happened slower than I thought it would, so it's only a few seconds. The funny part is Brad, talking about the long nightmare being over.

Warm Vacation 2012: Thursday, January 12

2012-01-21T14:41:00.000-08:00

On Thursday morning we played a game of tennis (this hotel had a tennis court and rackets and balls you could check out, so that was good!). This was the first time we had played together. The nice thing about tennis is that it doesn't matter how bad you both are--someone always scores. But Brad might actually be better because he won both games. We decided that we are going to take up tennis.

After checking out of the hotel we drove 45 minutes north to West Palm Beach where the port was out of which our cruise would leave. We were starting to feel a bit nickeled and dimed with all the hidden costs, and the parking at the port was $15 per day, so we decided to find a hotel that would let us keep our car there while we were gone, then we would stay there Monday night. We drove around, across the bridge to the island. We said, "Huh, we've heard that Marriotts are nice!" The valet parking should have warned us. Brad ran in to ask. He came back and said that they cost $400 a night! Guess not.

We drove to the port, paid the parking, and gave our passports to get on the boat. I'd been on a cruise before when I was about 10, but this was Brad's first. It didn't disappoint! While standing in line for lunch, I met a lady who took out some sunglasses shaped like pineapples and put them on over her glasses and asked, "Do you think these are too much?" I said, "If you can't wear them on a cruise, where can you wear them?" That gesture just made me think, "Ah, this is it! Just kick back and enjoy!"

Here we are, kicking back

We had made our dinner reservations for 8:30, just to be extra fancy. But somehow, after eating a buffet lunch and feeling like we'll never eat again in our lifetimes, we got so hungry by the time dinner rolled around! Good thing it was delicious! We spent the afternoon exploring the ship and watching the cargo ships be filled with cargo. And reading, obviously. We ate dinner with an older man and his daughter who was a grandma. They were from Ohio and he had served in the Korean war, building atomic bombs in Alaska that, thankfully, were never used. She was going back to school to become a nurse. He traveled a lot and took her with him this time. He had bought a timeshare during that presentation that we didn't go to. But he had already owned one, so he knew what he was getting into.

Warm Vacation 2012: A Valuable Lesson

2012-01-21T14:19:00.000-08:00

No pictures for this one--that would have been insensitive.

We arrived at the beach and saw a man sleeping on the sand. He was dressed like a homeless man, and it was about 10:30am or so by that point, so I was worried that he was still asleep. But he was breathing and it wasn't cold, so we went on.

When we left at about 2:00pm to go back to the car and buy some more stuff at CVS for using their parking lot, he was still there, still asleep. I told Brad we should talk to the fire station (we passed one walking to and from the beach). I was even to the point of ringing the bell at the fire station, but was convinced that it would be more of a bother than was necessary, so we walked away.

We walked to the car, ate, and started walking back to the beach. As we approached it, the engine pulled out of the fire station and stopped right at the place where the man was. An ambulance came later. They were there for a half hour or so. After they left, I talked to the lifeguard and asked what had happened. He said that people who are homeless often sleep on the beach and they sometimes have taken drugs. They checked the man and found Valium on him. They tried waking him up, but he wouldn't, so they hooked up an IV and woke him up chemically. He said they would take him to the hospital, but there was not much they could do to get him long-term help.

I have been a witness to people helping strangers, but I don't recall ever successfully doing it myself. Once, as children, Krysti and I were with our mom when someone started seizing right in front of us. Our mom went from door to door, finding someone who was home who could call 911. Another time I was at a store with a friend and a lady fell down. My friend went right over to her and started helping her. I don't remember how she was hurt, but I just froze. Maybe some people are more inclined to step up when others need help, but that doesn't mean that those of us who are uninclined should stay away. I could have helped this man, but I didn't. Had he really just been asleep, I would have been embarrassed and he would have been embarrassed, and the fire station might have been annoyed, but at least no one would have been hurt.

What is the valuable lesson? I should trust my feelings. If I feel I should help, I should help.

Warm Vacation 2012: Wednesday, January 11

2012-01-21T14:02:00.000-08:00

We packed up a bag after our breakfast of powdered eggs, and drove to the Fort Lauderdale beach! The weather was a bit windy, but not cold, and it was perfect. There was hardly anybody there! We looked for parking close by, and found some at one point, but it was in an area where there was only one car. We pulled up next to the car and saw that it had a club on the steering wheel, so decided to park somewhere else. We finally pulled into the parking lot of a strip mall about a half mile away. We bought some cough medicine at the CVS, then walked over the drawbridge to the beach!

Brad among the waves

Brad within the waves

Brad goes through the waves

The beach

Brad beyond the waves

Me within the waves

Brad above the waves

We both decided that playing in the waves is the best thing to do when the waves are high and you feel like you are struggling with nature. The sea was beckoning us. Brad says I made the lifeguards nervous. I swam out far, then kept going further, then I'd turn onto my back and float with my arms out, just to see where the waves took me. Apparently that looks a little like unconsciousness.

But it wasn't all fun and games that day. We learned a valuable lesson.

Warm Vacation 2012: Tuesday, January 10th

2012-01-21T13:52:00.000-08:00

Last week we took a belated 6th anniversary trip to Florida and the Bahamas to bask in the sunshine, play in the ocean, and eat lots of food. Unfortunately we both spent some time being sick--I left sick and the day I got better, Brad came down with it. But it did not deter us from enjoying our vacation!

We left Tuesday morning.

Brad slept on the plane

Us at the Chicago airport

We arrived at the Fort Lauderdale airport at about 5:00pm, picked up our rental car, and drove to the hotel.

Wait, first an explanation of how we got into this in the first place.

Brad cannot say no (this is important to remember for future posts). Someone called and offered a free(ish) vacation where we just had to pay for taxes and fees. They kept sweetening the deal and he bought it. Without talking about it with me. But he probably knew that I would have never agreed and then we would have never taken the vacation. So all's well that ends well. But he's no longer allowed to answer the phone.

Back to Tuesday: this hotel that we stayed in was pretty junky. When we walked into our room, I thought the TV was on, but it was the TV next door. There was a smoke detector that needed its batteries changed, and kept beeping. Though Brad called it in, and someone even came to look at it, it never got fixed. The halls smelled like mildew and stale cigarettes. But considering what we paid, can I really complain (I know, I know--I just did)?

We were given meal vouchers for the hotel restaurant. Neither of us turns down free food, and we ate it, to be sure, but it wasn't good food. I've never been to boot camp, but someone compared it to that fare....

But luckily we didn't have to stay there all day! We were supposed to go to a presentation in West Palm Beach the next day, but when the lady found out that we were both students, she said we didn't have to go and gave us our cruise vouchers right away. Free day at the beach!

Another Sewing Project

2012-01-01T19:16:00.000-08:00

I'm particularly proud of this one because a) it turned out well and b) it turned out better than if I had used a pattern.

I traced one of my skirts on a piece of fabric, added seams, calculated the darts and the belt, and with a lot of careful thought and measuring made this:

Well, I guess you can't see it that well. But I'm happy with the results! Already Latin danced into the New Year with it!

Happy New Year!

Choices

2011-11-20T20:35:00.001-08:00

The other day one of my adult students' child was told that he couldn't have a lollipop after her lesson that day because he hadn't behaved like he should have. At his sad protestations, his mother encouragingly said, "I know you can get one next time." He replied, "No I can't!" She asked, "Why not?" His desperate response was, "Because I keep making bad choices!"

Do you ever feel like that? Sometimes I'm really on top of the things I need to do and I feel like I'm being the person I should be. And then sometimes I keep making bad choices, but not because I don't know any better, but because I would rather choose what I know will not ultimately make me happy. My friend was talking about something like this at church the other week. She said, "I know we should be anxiously engaged in a good cause, but when can we stop and get back to doing [whatever your harmless but ultimately unfulfilling vice is]?" Can we really ever stop? I suppose our goal is to get to the point where what brings real fulfillment is also what we want to do.

We talk about good choices and better choices, but I don't know that it's always best to do the "best" choice. For example, it may be best for me to always serve others. But if I did that to the neglect of all else, I would become a lousy pianist and wouldn't know the minute details of the Star Trek universe (ha ha, I jest, but only kind of). On Saturday Brad and I went and listened to Bill McGlaughlin (you know, of Exploring Music, and, by the way, someone who struck us both as just a really nice person) give a lecture and I found myself wondering about his early life and his personal life. He talked about listening to Schoenberg and how his mother really tried with him to understand it. What kind of child tries to listen to Schoenberg?? He has such an obvious wide and deep understanding and love of music literature, and that kind of knowledge takes lots of time. Are people who have that kind of passion for something that is so good born that way, or is it something that they develop? Do any of you, my friends, have experience getting from the point where you know you should do something to wanting to do something? And not just for a while, but to the point that that desire consumes you?

Star Trek Party!

2011-10-16T16:16:00.000-07:00

Last night we had a Star Trek party.

Our guest of honor (see this post)

Our entertainment was a trivia game Brad bought :)

How we watched it

I included some prizes for the trivia. Those were:
*A Ressikan Flute
*A Risian Lei
*A Puzzle
*Poker Cards
*A Chocolate Brownie Mix
*A Gingerbread Candle (replicated scent)
*An Egg of Gold Putty
*A Tropical Fish

The Risian Lei

I also made some AWESOME (looking) cakes.

Do you get it?! It's a cellular peptide cake...with mint frosting. Brad had the idea of painting the dye onto the fondant. It otherwise would have been brown. And don't compare the cake too closely to my uniform. I made a mistake.

This one's OK. This party was my first foray into fondant. Hey, that's alliterative.

Friends brought Risian chocolate and some Romulan ale (synthehol, of course)

We also had some nice costumes.

Anna and me

Regina and her "Vulcan smile"

I'm so glad people came! It was a very enjoyable evening :). I wish I had taken more pictures of people. I'm so grateful to have nice friends!

Camping in a Wisconsin Autumn

2011-10-09T14:20:00.000-07:00

We went camping at Wyalusing State Park this past weekend and so I have a monstrous number of pictures to share--it was so beautiful!

Brad, looking great as always, next to our enormous tent (5-person for just the two of us--Brad asked me the next morning why I was right up next to him when we could have fit seventeen people on my other side).

Do you see the moon?

The leaves are white--it looks like the tree of life!

The gaping maw of this tree

After the two of us went on a little hike before others arrived, we went back to the campsite and joined in the campfire festivities!

Kylee and Carston sharing a chair

Daniel, chillaxin'

I love fire...

I think we were still laughing at the story Adam told. I could say that it's the story of Rindercella, but it's not as funny to read about as it is to hear it well-rehearsed and aloud.

S'mores are finger-lickin' good

Roasting a marsmallow

The Harts

And they're happy to see each other!

Love this one!

Do you see all the marshmallow on his face?

Bethany and Daniel

Many of the Sanchezes

I didn't know Eliza was posing for this, until I saw the picture! Seems like she can see better than I can.

The next morning we went on a hike.

This just kills me! So cute!

You can see how bad I look when camping, but the flowers are pretty :)

I love the immensity of this tree with the sun behind it and Alyssa looking so small beneath.

Kylee doing monkey flips with Steve

A very contented Brad

A leaf-fall

Look at the blue of that sky!

We hiked to the sand cave

A very small waterfall, but the kids were pretty excited about it.

A picture of the group getting ready for a picture. How many cameras can you count?

A bit o' graffiti.

Some Seussian fungus

The Blakesleys

I love the contrast of the yellow and green

A very fuzzy caterpillar that Eliza saved from untimely death by directing off the road.

This is not typical of our drive (mostly rolling tree land with lots of beautiful color), but I enjoyed the look of the lonely tree at the side of the road.

This was such a successful camping trip, we may just do it again sometime!

Cute Piano Student Story #7

2011-09-25T14:04:00.000-07:00

And the problem is that I've had many cute stories since living in Utah, but I haven't written about them. The other day one of my five-year-old students saw me walking home and ran up to me, giving me a big hug. She walked me to my apartment, telling me that she knew where I lived and even which door was mine (not an easy accomplishment!). As she held the door open for me (seriously?!), she told me she wants to have a playdate. No, she doesn't think I have kids. She wanted a playdate with ME. I just about died. I told her I would invite her family over so we could play games.

Jokes

2011-09-25T13:24:00.000-07:00

These may need explanations, and I've heard that if you have to explain it, it isn't funny. But here are some jokes we've invented.

The first one is not a joke; it is art (as you can see). I had a rash on my legs (TMI?) that meant I couldn't shave for about two weeks. It was really uncomfortable. Those are my tears next to my hairy leg (OK, that really is gross).

This next piece should be self-explanatory.

I asked Brad if he would enjoy having a surprise party thrown for him. He said he wouldn't. He's weeping in the second frame. So I guess that's not really funny, either.

This is my favorite.

Back story: I was flossing my teeth after having taken a personality test. This personality test said I had absolutely no attributes of a free spirit. That might be accurate. But as I was flossing, (in case you can't read it), I realized I was flossing my teeth out of order. Show's what they know!

The two lines on top of the next picture are ideas for a Star Trek party (coming up!), so they have nothing to do with the joke. The first frame shows a vial of Science with a pair of pants and a melon. The second frame shows the Scientist, triumphant. The third frame is his dreadful realization.

The story behind this is that Brad was talking about how nice it would be if you could create a melon that could be opened with a zipper--much easier to open. But, oh, the irony, if you accidentally created a button fly.

Well, maybe these jokes aren't so funny.

Standing Desk

2011-08-25T13:28:00.000-07:00

This standing desk: $212.

Since we already had the desk, $13 and change (parts and labor--see below).

Brad decided he wanted a standing desk (OK with me since I get his comfy chair!). I must say I've always thought of myself as a pretty handy person. And maybe I still am...as long as it doesn't involve hammering things. I'm too afraid of hitting my fingers and honestly, I was too winded to get it all the way through. Brad, on the other hand, is the handiest. I see home improvements in our future (especially good news considering the home part)....

Golandsky Institute Summer Symposium--An Overview

2011-07-19T12:06:00.000-07:00

I am tearing myself away from sightreading through some Chopin scherzos to write this post--yes, I am still riding the wave of inspiration and work ethic from my trip to Princeton, NJ last week. This may sound like a commercial. Sorry.

The Golandsky Institute hosts a summer symposium at Princeton each year for a week. During this week we learn about the Taubman approach to technique, listen to masterclasses, attend concerts, and talk shop at lunch with fellow pianists and piano teachers. It is a jam-packed schedule that includes three private lessons, four supervised practice sessions, and scheduled and unscheduled time in a practice room. Though I never went to EFY, I imagine my reaction at the end of the week was much like those of my peers when I was a teenager, or my students when I got older (I'm never taking this lanyard off my neck. Ever.).

What is the Taubman approach? For my purposes, it's a way of deconstructing how to play the piano. What is the easiest, most efficient, injury-preventative way of playing this piece or this passage? Much of what drew me to the Taubman approach was the idea that unless you have some specific physical impediment, anyone should be able to play the piano well, without pain, and with ease. How awesome is that?! The other day I was listening to this Radio Lab story about words and how words literally shape our thoughts. They told the story about a man who was born deaf, but no one ever taught him language--not sign, not reading--nothing. Long story short, a lady figures this out and teaches him sign. Later, she asks him about what it was like before he had language, and he literally could not tell her about it. As in, having language shaped his thoughts and he couldn't think in the same way before he had language.

Dorothy Taubman took apart the pieces of how to play the piano and labeled these pieces, and even the simple act of giving something a name gives it meaning. For example, you may already move in and out when you play the piano--for some it's intuitive. But let's say you come to a passage where you're not quite sure how to play it, or you can't get it up to tempo, or it hurts to play it. "In and Out" is just one of the tools available. You ask yourself a series of questions, testing the tools to see if they'll fit the solution, and once you find the easiest solution, you do it. It's a thoughtful and efficient way of approaching problem solving.

The posts to come will have few pictures, and those that I have are going to be from websites (I forgot to bring a camera) :(, but I hope you enjoy! I did!

An Unhappy Ending

2011-06-08T04:04:00.000-07:00

At least 10 protected eggs

plus one crow

from Florida dept. of Health

equals an unhappy ending. Those are scattered feathers and only two eggs left.

I think I should care as much about the crow as I do the duck--afterall, he has to eat. But I wish he hadn't been picking out these eggs. The mama duck hasn't been there in a day. Brad saw the crow with an egg yesterday and then again this morning inside the garden. I don't know if the mama abandoned the nest because of the crow or if something else happened. She's had a rough go of it. On Sunday a bunch of kids were throwing things at her. I talked to the kids (kindly and patiently--on the outside at least). Someone put up a box to protect her and she seemed happy on Monday. But she wasn't there at all on Tuesday and it looks like she's given it up.

I've been talking to the kids at church about her and now I'm going to have to break it to them. I even showed them pictures on Sunday and compared faith to a duck egg (she has to nourish it, protect it from predators, incubate it, then when it hatches, teach the duckling how to swim, how to fly, how to avoid predators and if she does all of this, the duck egg will grow into a full-grown duck). Maybe I should have stuck to comparing faith to a seed.

Berceuses

2011-05-25T06:07:00.000-07:00

Berceuse d'un petit soldat blesse Chaminade
Berceuse heroique Debussy/Arr. me
Le Dodo Couperin/Arr. me

Ed Senechal is on flute/alto flute
Sarah Reed is on violin
Liz Maxfield is on cello

More Music from the Recital

2011-05-24T19:57:00.000-07:00

This isn't everything, but it's everything I'll post from the recital. The Chopin wasn't great and it threw off the Faure (which is really too bad because it's a lovely piece). The Ravel was good, but not as good as I can play it, so I'll try re-recording those pieces and posting them at a later date. Enjoy!

Jardins sous la pluie Debussy
Napoli: I. Barcarolle Poulenc
Napoli: II. Nocturne Poulenc
Napoli: III. Caprice Italien Poulenc
Ondine Debussy
Poissons d'or Debussy

SHE CAME BACK!!

2011-05-24T05:17:00.001-07:00

I'm so glad! She got nervous when I approached, but I backed up and she sat back down. Make way for duckling!

And they made signs!

2011-05-23T16:38:00.001-07:00

Aren't our neighbors adorable?!

Another nature encounter

2011-05-23T15:49:00.001-07:00

Brad is doing another garden this year, but because I was so unhelpful last year, he's doing this one himself. Behold, his garden:
He tells me I may get to eat one pea. Not one peapod, one pea. Thanks Brad :)

However, nature is already involving itself (herself?) in this year's garden. This morning Brad went out to water his plants and through the open window I hear, "What are you doing there? Gol-ly! Get out!" What was in his plants? A duck. A female duck, it turns out. She was just lying in the dirt between the nets. And what was she doing?

One of our neighbors said she saw the ducks hanging around here Saturday morning. It seems like they were sniffing the place out.

My favorite part of this picture is the dried grass--the neighbor kids are the ones who discovered the egg in the bed. One of them decided it needed to look more like a nest, so he added the grass :D

So, folks, we have a real duck egg in our garden bed. I hope she comes back to take care of it. Now we kind of want her back.

L'isle joyeuse

2011-05-15T17:33:00.000-07:00

I'm on youtube. Yikes. You can only view it through the link--not through any search. I've seen the mean things people write about others' performances. Hope you enjoy it!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=itfELojGe_E

French Recital

2011-05-15T12:55:00.000-07:00

I played a recital of all French music on Friday, May 13, 2011 (I'm triskaidekaphillic--are you?). It went really well and I was so grateful that so many people came! Here are some pictures:

Our chamber ensemble--we played two pieces together

Just me

I'm posting a video, too. This is "L'isle joyeuse" by Debussy. Yes, I know everyone plays it and I wanted to play it too! This was actually a very good performance of it for me, which is why I am willing to post it (it is also the only video with only one piece and I don't know how to edit it so that each piece is a separate video. Anyone know how to do that?). Sorry for the long wait in the beginning. I start playing about 30 seconds in.

Alright. I tried for about four hours to post a video. Maybe another day.

The whole program was French water and night music. These are really great pieces and I loved playing it!

Napoli Suite pour le piano (Francis Poulenc)

I. Baracarolle

II. Nocturne

III. Caprice Italien

Une Barque sur l'ocean (Maurice Ravel)

Two Nocturnes

Op. 48, no. 1 (Frederic Chopin)

Op. 104, no. 1 (Gabriel Faure)

Things that live in Water (Claude Debussy)

Poissons d'or

Ondine

Jardins sous la pluie

Three Berceuses

Berceuse pour un petit soldat blesse (Cecile Chaminade)

Berceuse heroique (Debussy/Arr. moi)

Le Dodo (Francois Couperin/ Arr. moi)

L'isle joyeuse (Debussy)

Happiness

2011-04-28T05:58:00.000-07:00

When my alarm went off at 5:45 this morning the first thing I thought (or said aloud--I'm not sure which) was, "I've been looking forward to this all day!"

Don't ask me what exactly I've been looking forward to, or why I wouldn't say I'd been looking forward to it all night. But since I awoke I've just been happy, and nothing has been able to get me down. The 10-day forecast is all cold, but I don't mind. The swimming pool is only open Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, but I just changed into a non-swimming suit and rowed instead. And I realized that I haven't felt this happy in a long time and I'm not sure what it is. I even thought, "If someone told me I'd just won $100, I wouldn't feel any differently than I do now."

I hear (and I'm sure you do, too) many axioms about happiness; things like, "Happiness comes from within" and things like that. While I'm sure that's true, my happiness is more often connected to good things that happen and when I feel like not many good things are happening (which is kind of ridiculous since I lead a very charmed life) I get really down.

So maybe my happiness today is just a contrast to my unhappiness yesterday. I had to muster all of my courage to deal with something that was causing me a lot of stress. In the past I have been known to just avoid things I am afraid of, but I psyched myself up, reading lots of inspirational quotes and scriptures about courage, and I got through it. Maybe my happiness is a physical, chemical reaction to that lack of stress.

My question is: how can I tap into that low-stress level, like tapping into resting tension when I play piano? Is it possible to deal with stress without feeling stressed? Is there a physical reliever that can actually lower whatever chemical is caused by stress? Mental? Spiritual?

Have a happy day :)

Frog update

2011-04-17T18:43:00.000-07:00

I told one of my five-year-old students about the frog and she asked, "Was it brown or green?"

I said, "Probably closer to brown."

"How big was it?"

I showed her.

"Then it was actually a toad."

"How do you know so much?"

"I visit a lot of dot.coms."

I stand corrected. I guess I should also visit more dot.coms.

Whose job is it anyway?

2011-04-11T20:31:00.000-07:00

I don't know about your house, but in our house, Brad takes care of spiders (unless he's not home, in which case I am perfectly capable of disposing of them...shhhh).

But last night we had a different kind of animal in our house. I was walking out of one room, turning off the light, when my eye caught something move. I thought, "I'm imagining things, that couldn't be what I thought it was." I turned the light back on and IT WAS!

Wait for it...

This may just look like a bathroom door...

But look again!!

Do you see him?!

Look at his eedy-beedy eyes!!

Yes, folks, somehow a FROG had gotten into our house! We don't leave the door open--we had the windows open, but they're screened and even then I don't think he could jump that high. I have no idea how he got there--and if others could follow....

Brad really wanted me to take care of it--he said he took care of spiders so it's my job to take care of frogs. I got him into the box, but then he took it outside.

He's kind of cute, actually.

The frog, I mean.

And Brad, too.

Fail

2011-04-05T17:44:00.001-07:00

Most days I really enjoy teaching, but today I had a student come to her lesson, and before we even start anything, she starts sobbing saying that she hates piano and wants to quit. I don't do well when people cry. I really don't know how to respond. So I got a box of tissues and told her that I thought she enjoyed piano and reminded her of pieces she has played. She said she had only been pretending to enjoy it because her dad makes her take piano.

Now, I've been eleven. I know that life feels extra hard at that age (actually, from about 11-17). In sixth grade I tried to go a single day without crying, and I rarely succeeded. I cried at a lesson once, not because I wanted to quit piano, but because my teacher wrote in my book in pen instead of pencil. Yeah. I was pretty sensitive.

So what I'm trying to say is that I doubt she really hates piano. I believe that she's stressed and emotional. But it doesn't make me feel any better. I wish I could convince her through logic that she actually enjoys playing and that she'll be glad for the skill later on. But when I told her that she said she doesn't want to waste her time doing something she hates. I asked her if she liked violin and she said yes, because it's easier (umm...violinists? is this true?). So I just tried to have her accomplish something so that she'd feel good after this lesson. I'm sure she'll feel better next week.

But I still feel rotten.

At My Leisure

2011-04-02T06:07:00.000-07:00

Last night I stayed up until 1:01 reading Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother. It was every bit as good as I hoped it would be, and better. But reading it, I felt chastened and disappointed with my choices--particularly with my choices during my four-year interim between my undergraduate schooling and graduate school. I was working only part-time, though the work that I was doing was one of the best things I could have done to get ready for grad school. Teaching private lessons to over 30 students a week and group lessons to many more than that gave me so many ideas for pedagogy and I feel like my real-world experience has been an advantage in my program.

But it's not what I was doing at work that disappoints me--it's what I did in my leisure time. Many of you know that I like Star Trek. I mean, I really like Star Trek. I watched a lot of Star Trek during my free time. But I also watched a lot of archived TV online--Love Boat, Major Dad, Bewitched, MacGyver, The Addams Family, The Biggest Loser, Charles in Charge, House, and these don't include the episodes that Brad and I watched together that I would rewatch. This also doesn't include all of the made-for-TV holiday movies that are really, really awful, and I've seen most of them. Most of the time I justified it by doing dishes simultaneously, cleaning the house, sometimes knitting--I tried not to be completely lazy. But what I have really been doing is filling my head with noise so I don't have to think about real life. Why? I don't know.

This week I've been reading the autobiography of Benjamin Franklin. (In fact, yay me, I've been reading it while running three miles every day. Fifteen miles--three blisters). Franklin wrote Poor Richard's Almanack and he has many things to say on indolence and leisure. Here are some samplings:

*If you were a Servant, would you not be ashamed that a good Master should catch you idle? Are you then your own Master, be ashamed to catch yourself idle.

*Methinks I hear some of you say, Must a Man afford himself no Leisure? I will tell thee, my friend, what Poor Richard says, Employ thy Time well, if thou meanest to gain Leisure; and, since thou art not sure of a Minute, throw not away an Hour.

*Leisure is time for doing something useful; this Leisure the diligent Man will obtain, but the lazy Man never; so that, as Poor Richard says, A Life of Leisure and a Life of Laziness are two things.

How much better would I be at the piano if I had spent my time practicing? How much more well-read would I be if I had spent my time reading (caveat: reading good books, not every book written my Mary Higgins Clark, Carol Higgins Clark, Mary Jane Clark, Joanne Fluke of Strawberry Shortcake Murder and the like, and countless other mystery novelists)? And those are just things I could have done for myself. What about what I could have done for others? Could I have volunteered somewhere? Could I have visited with my neighbors?

So, I am resolved to use my leisure time for good (it's like a super-power). More self-improvement, more self-discipline, less empty clutter for my mind. People are often telling me, "Take advantage of this time when you don't have children--you'll miss the free time when you no longer have it." As much as I don't love hearing it, because I really think having kids would be better than having free time, they're right in that I can use this time well rather than not at all.

It's easy now because I'm in school--I can always find things to do. But this summer and after only two more semesters, I'm back to part-time working, full-of-free-time me. Suggestions?

The Counter Protest

2011-02-19T11:04:00.000-08:00

We wanted to see the counter protests today. We arrived at the Memorial Union just as the group was leaving for the Capitol. As you can see, it's small.

That is a "Don't Tread on Me" flag.

The main complaint of the counter protesters was that public employees have much better working situations (things like sick days, pensions) than private sector employees, so they should stop complaining about having to contribute to their pensions, etc. However, I think the issue for the protesters is that the governor wants to shut out collective bargaining.

This video is just to show just how full of people Capitol Square is.

A True Taste of Madison

2011-02-17T18:10:00.000-08:00

This is an exciting week to live in Madison!

Our governor, Scott Walker, proposed a Budget Reform Bill that, among other things, cuts back drastically on collective bargaining for unions. The teachers have not taught in the Madison school district since Wednesday (word is that kids won't be in school tomorrow either), and there are massive protests at the Capitol. Brad and I went up there to check them out tonight!

Lady Wisconsin, with a sign that says, "Black Thursday."

Just outside the doors of the Capitol, discarded signs. This looked as trashy in real life as it did in the picture.

This video is shaky--sorry. The protesters are saying "Kill the Bill!" and "What's disgusting? Union busting!"

This was actually pretty touching. The only unions not effected by the bill are policemen and fire fighters, so they don't really have anything to be upset about. But here are the fire fighters showing solidarity with members of effected unions.

When we took a tour of the Capitol last spring, our tour guide told us all that it is our Capitol and we can come in anytime we want. Well, they've been taken up on it! Last night (or was it the night before?), protesters filibustered the legislative hearing. We got emails encouraging us to bring our pillows, blankets, and toothbrushes. They ended up ending the session at 3:00am. These protesters are saying, "What do we want? Justice! When do we want it? Now!"

What we've been up to...

2011-02-04T18:31:00.000-08:00

Here is a list of the things we love...

Science AND music (if you want details, just ask!)...

One oven-roasted grapefruit chicken made by Brad...

Cute piano student notes...

Getting really good cards while playing Settlers of Cataan Card Game with the expansion pack...

Beautiful lattice pies made by moi...

The end.

5th Anniversary

2010-12-16T18:16:00.000-08:00

Some pictures of us through the years!

Christmas 2008
Christmas 2008

At a diner after the Star Trek Convention 2009

On our way to the Star Trek Convention 2009

Pre-birthday happiness 2010

In San Francisco 2008

In Maryland 2007

In Canada 2008?

Canadian Tattoos

Marine Corps Ball 2007

First year of marriage :) 2006

Driving to the reception after the wedding 2005

At the wedding lunch

In the snow

Just Married!

Unbelievable that we've been married five years already. I was talking with some friends today who mentioned that it's momentous when you've been married longer than you were single. If I count my singledom beginning at 18 (before then I wasn't really single--just underage), then I have been married longer than I was single! But more important than just being married is being married to Brad. Brad treats others kindly and treats me kindly. I don't have to be beautiful or intelligent or talented for him to be kind to me--he just is. He assumes the best in me, even when I act my worst. He encourages me to be the best I am and loves me though I fall short. Through trials he's patient and tries to see a longer view. I am better than I was five years ago, and I owe much of that to Brad. Thank you. You're the baste.

Birthday no. 27 (not including my ACTUAL birth day)

2010-10-27T06:15:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was my 27th birthday and how did I spend it? Quite enjoyably. I made cake while watching Star Trek :) and practiced a bit of piano. (taken a different day, obviously)

In my Renaissance Polyphony class we started learning 3-part writing! (sisters, are you ready for this?!)

A photo opportunity while we waited for guests to arrive!

Another year older

I made four cakes to serve to friends coming over.

The aftermath

Thanks, friends and family, for the birthday wishes and for coming over to help us eat cake!

9 Great Things About Chicago

2010-08-08T12:23:00.000-07:00

On Saturday we went to Chicago. Here are the highlights!

We saw the Bahai'i Temple in Evanston. It has nine sides. Nine is the highest single digit number and symbolizes completeness in their religion. It was a really beautiful building and the grounds and visitors center reminded me a lot of our own temple grounds and visitors centers.

It was a given that we should have pizza for lunch, but unfortunately finding lunch involved taking a train and walking for about an hour until we could find a place. Ridiculous, right? It's Chicago! But we did eat and we ate at Rinaldi's Pizza Pub. Our pizza had eight slices. Great food--lots of cheese :)

Is there something auspicious about August 7, 2010? We saw seven weddings! The first one was exciting, but after a while it just got old! (Just kidding. Can a wedding ever get old?)

Getting to Chicago was a bit of an ordeal. We had to ride for six hours on a bus (there and back). More on that later!

Much of our conversation centered around where we would live if we did live in a city. Brad wants to live close to where he works so he has a short commute (I agree), but I want to live in a place with room. We found a house for sale in Evanston--right next to the train station in a beautiful area for one point one five million dollars. We also found apartments right near Lincoln park that were for about twice what we pay now, but they were beautiful. Unlike what I hear you get when you live in New York City....

We bought day passes and took four train rides. I think that's my favorite part about visiting a new place--figuring out their public transportation. First, you wander for an hour or two on foot, just to get your bearings. Then you start riding and go as far as you want!

Brad wanted to get a real ginger ale, so we bought one for three dollars and 23 cents. After he drank it and declared it good but a bit too sweet, I said, "we could make that!" Maybe we will.

We almost weren't able to go on the trip at all. We didn't send our reply in time, so we were lucky there were two seats left on the bus. Really, only one and a half. I got to sit next to our guide in the half seat in front and Brad sat next to a stranger. Luckily, on the way home we both sat in the half seat. Luckily.

All in all, it was a great one-day trip!

Here is the dress that I built.

2010-07-18T12:24:00.001-07:00

And by built I mean designed, created a pattern, bought the fabric (dress cost me a total of $8.16!), sewed, and hemmed. It's not perfect, but it's pretty good! Just a few hints--use common sense. The first bodice I cut out was right except I added three inches in a diagonal line to each neckline--making it six inches longer than it should have been. The neckline should have notches so that it can be hemmed straight across. I'm not sure how I would do a round neck.... And my back looks really pink in this picture because it is.

South Beach Diet--A Review of Phase 1: week one

2010-07-10T06:02:00.000-07:00

Brad and I decided to try phase one of the SBD, not to lose weight but to lose cravings for sweet things (we love sweet things :)). Week one went a bit like this:

The first day was pretty hard. I felt hungry, which is not how it's supposed to work, so I guess I wasn't eating enough. I realized that I usually eat straight from 6pm until I go to bed, and it's usually sweet things. In case you don't know, phase one lasts for two weeks and means no flour, rice, sugar, fruit, or sweet vegetables like corn, peas, beets. We're supposed to eat lots of vegetables, lots of beans, lean meat and low-fat dairy. We're allowed sugar-free sweets, but only 75 calories a day of them. So, we bought sugar-free fudge bars and Jello.

Usually we don't eat very much meat, so that was one disappointing turn--our grocery bill for that week was twice what it usually is. That's probably because we bought fish as well as chicken breast, turkey sausage, and canadian bacon. So anyway, the morning after the first day I was famished and woke up thinking about fruit. As the week went on both Brad and I developed sinus congestion. We're trying to figure out why that is. I take a multi-vitamin (a must without fortified milk and cereal every morning!), so I should be getting enough vitamin C, but who knows.

Additionally, we both became more and more sluggish. This surprised me since I was eating way more protein than I usually do, but Brad said it has to do with glycogen. Our bodies have used up the glycogen stores in our muscles and they aren't being replenished, so our bodies have to use up fat which is less efficient. Perhaps it was the sluggishness that made me feel irritable as well. I was unmoved--unmoved by beautiful music, by friends' complaints, by a desire to help anyone. Not a nice side effect.

We decided that for week 2 we would cut out the aspartame and Splenda. I'm not a fan of sugar substitutes, and I don't know if it helps my cravings for sugar to be substituting a carcinogen (I'm kidding--we don't know that for sure). But seriously, it's probably not good.

Oh, I just thought of another hard thing--potlucks! It's really anti-social to attend a potluck and eat only what you brought! That happened twice in week 1. The second time I was at the Terrace, so I went inside and bought a diet soda so I wasn't just sitting there righteously watching everyone else consume good food.

But enough of the bad. I've really enjoyed quite a few things:
*Trying interesting new vegetables, like turnips (thanks Bethany!), swiss chard (again, Bethany), portabella mushrooms, eggplant (in new ways), artichoke, and then your standard fare.
*Spending time cooking. We pretty much can't eat processed foods (excepting the sugar-free snacks), so we spend a lot of time boiling beans, chopping vegetables, and preparing meat. It's kind of fun to cook!
*Being creative about breakfast. It's easyish to cook for lunch and dinner, but breakfast--we're really cereal-and-milk kind of people. At first we ate a lot of eggs, but it makes more sense to have leftovers for breakfast. Because we've been getting less fiber (no raisin bran), I've started eating beans for breakfast. Beans are yummy.
*Creating new recipes. Some successful ones:
-portabella mushroom caps with homemade marinara sauce and mozzarella. Spread olive oil on the caps, broil for 7 minutes on each side, put the cheese on for the second side, top with sauce. Surprisingly really good.
-turkey brats with eggplant. The eggplant was like a bun. Thinly slice it and put olive oil and salt and pepper on both sides, then broil for 7 minutes per side. Put the brat in it with sauerkraut and mustard.
-lentil swiss chard soup (thanks, Jen!). If you want the recipe, let me know. Lots of cilantro :) . I was worried the swiss chard would taste like spinach (I have unrefined tastes, I know), but it was really good.

Unsuccessful recipes--I won't bother telling you about them!

Stay tuned for news on week two--will we be able to eat no sweet at all?!

Our Garden

2010-06-20T13:07:00.000-07:00

Some pictures from our garden:

Our squash

Our cilantro :)Our basil
Our bush beans
Our one red strawberry :)

Our rhubarb (and Brad, for perspective)

Our neighbor's garden (do you see what we have to be compared to?! Talk about inspiring.)

Happy Father's Day?

2010-06-20T13:05:00.000-07:00

While drying out our tent, we found this walking along. Not quite sure what to think of it....

For Clarification...

2010-06-07T18:23:00.003-07:00

I made it sound as if Brad didn't do anything. He did all those things! And they made him tired.

Bizarro Brad

2010-06-07T16:23:00.000-07:00

For your role-reversal enjoyment!

I came home from working today and this is what Brad told me after staying home all day:
"I thought, 'I'll show her! I'll do the laundry, all the dishes, get all my work done, and be happy!'"

This is what happened instead:
Brad is at his computer, still in his pajamas, pining over pictures and reviews of the ipad. Then he takes a nap. And when he wakes up, he says, "I don't know why I'm just so tired."

It feels good to be vindicated.

I do love you, Brad!

Spring Recital 2010

2010-06-05T13:19:00.000-07:00

My students who played in our recital! They all did a fantastic job! Aren't they adorable?!

Bratfest 2010

2010-05-30T16:56:00.000-07:00

Nothing says "summer" or "Wisconsin" like Bratfest! (pronounced braut) Brad and I joined hundreds of happy-peppy people as volunteers grilling brats. We were raising money for our ward's scout troop. You can't quite see it (thank goodness), but we're sweating like crazy. It's hot, humid, and we're standing over grills.

Enjoying the fruits of our labors! For FREE!

Out with the old and in with the new!

2010-04-08T17:13:00.000-07:00

Hair today...

Gone tomorrow!

And accessorized!

I found my second silver (and yes, it is silver, not gray) hair the other day and decided it was time for me to leave the ranks of the long-haired. My friend Charise, a fantastic hairstylist, cut my hair for me! Not to sound conceited, but I think it looks adorable.

Spring Break 2010 Part 2

2010-04-02T10:50:00.001-07:00

On Wednesday we went on a 25 mile bike ride. We first rode up to Black Earth and stopped at the Luckenbooth for lunch. I got the Luckenbooth burger (pictured below). 1/3 lb beef, American and Swiss cheese, barbecue sauce and onions. I've still never had heart burn, but I'm sure that this could've taken me there. It was delicious!

Then we rode up to Indian Lake county park and walked around. The weather was perfect--in the 70s and not too sunny! Here is Brad:

At the park they have a little chapel devoted to St. Mary. Apparently a man built this after his wife and child survived an epidemic back in the 19th century. It was quite charming and a nice memorial to his faith. As you can see it's very small--maybe about 6 feet wide and 10 feet long.

On our hike back to our bikes we ran into a guy flying a kite. He had rigged a camera to it and was taking videos of the lake. He stopped us and showed us part of his video. You can see a different day he did this here.

We rode back to Cross Plains and had ice cream at Culvers!

Spring Break 2010

2010-04-02T10:35:00.000-07:00

Brad and I have been doing all kinds of fun things this Spring Break. For one, we're house sitting for one of Brad's professors and she is letting us use her BMW Z3 convertible. Here's Brad driving:

And here I am admiring. I drove the car most of this week but I was a bit nervous about having the top down!

One of the things we did was go to the zoo. Here we are. You can't see the animals, but trust me, we saw them!

We've also gone on lots of bike rides. This one was in the countryside. The place we're staying is outside of Madison and right in the middle of all these farms. I see that Madison has a different view of Obama than the rural areas!

More on our bike rides coming!

Socks

2010-03-17T17:44:00.000-07:00

This happened a while ago too, but here is my first pair of knitted socks! You may not be able to tell, but there's a mistake. But for being my first pair, I was really happy with them. I'm wearing another pair underneath--that's what the green is.

Christmas 2009

2010-03-17T17:36:00.001-07:00

I realize this is behind, but I only recently found the cord for our camera.

Before we went to Colorado we had a big snow storm and Brad wanted some documentation. Behold:

When we got to Colorado we spent some time with both of our families, but I apparently only took five pictures, one of which is a repeat. So here are four pictures of family doing what we spent a considerable amount of time doing!

Krysti doing a puzzle (sorry I didn't get a picture of Joseph--he also did a lot of puzzling).

Maddie on the computer--more specifically, on facebook! Yay for social networks instead of family. Just kidding!

Brad playing the drums on Rock Band: Beatles.

Dad playing the guitar on Rock Band: Beatles.

I love that game, but I'm glad we don't have it here in Wisconsin! I'm pretty sure I would be even less productive than I already am.

I think Mom must have been out during the ten minutes I took pictures, but she was there too! And we also visited Brad's family and had a great time there, too. And I was there too, but no pictures. Merry Christmas!

Even bigger news!

2010-02-23T20:10:00.000-08:00

What could be a short story I will make long so that you can get all the juicy details!

In October I decided to audition for the master's program in piano performance and pedagogy at UW-Madison. I prepared my pieces and started practicing! The first day left little blood blisters on my pinkies--they hadn't gotten quite a workout for a while.

I thought I would do the live audition in November but it turned out I didn't turn in stuff in time for that. So I sent in mp3 files--one of the Kodaly Marosszek Dances that I recorded at home and some of the tracks from my senior recital. I was then invited to audition live in January or February.

I picked the February date and also e-mailed the professor in charge of the performance and pedagogy program to ask for a lesson. I admit, while waiting in the hall I was so nervous I thought, "I could just not knock on her door and go home and then I wouldn't feel so awful." But I'm glad I didn't because she was so warm and welcoming and we had a great conversation and then she gave great feedback for a couple of my pieces.

I had the audition February 6th but I wasn't feeling the same kind of dread I was feeling before because I knew one person who would be listening and knew that she would be kind. The audition was great! They let me play entire pieces instead of cutting me off in the middle. I kind of enjoyed it!

Then, of course you've already guessed, I got in! So now I'm figuring out residency things and REALLY hope I get residency since that would cut tuition about in half if I'm a resident of Wisconsin. If all goes well I'll be starting in the fall!

A Momentous Occasion

2010-01-22T10:44:00.000-08:00

Brad has joined facebook! He was alone in his principles for so long and has now fallen to my level! I think he joined because our adoption caseworker said that he was on facebook, but Brad said he joined because he was weak and succumbed to peer pressure. You should all become his friend!

Update

2009-12-19T13:05:00.000-08:00

1. Christmas Letter written.

2. Anniversary celebrated.

3. Now to sit back and listen to Rockapella Christmas music!

No news is...

2009-12-15T19:29:00.000-08:00

I wish I had new things to blog about. This is a place-holder--just to keep your interest until after Christmas and then I'll write all about Colorado and the fam.

Brad is well. I am well. Brad is almost done with the semester. I am kicking myself for locking keys into a car today and paying a locksmith almost $60 to get the car open. Our piano is well. Our Christmas letter is more than an idea, but less than in the mail. Our stockings are hung. Our anniversary is on Thursday. Hey! Stay tuned! I will have something to write about on Thursday!

After!!

2009-11-16T08:08:00.000-08:00

I recognize that we are very blessed!

Before...

2009-11-15T19:26:00.001-08:00

You may ask, "Why such bad feng shui? Why an empty spot and everything else pushed into the corners?" Answer: forthcoming.

Constant Vigilance!

2009-11-01T18:03:00.000-08:00

When you spend time worrying about how to fit a 6 ft grand piano into an 11x11 room, your weekly bagels suffer.

Halloween Costume

2009-11-01T16:07:00.001-08:00

An Update

2009-10-11T11:28:00.001-07:00

An update of Madison and our lives thus far.

A view going down a bike path to the library. I was going to take several pictures to show how beautiful EVERYWHERE is, but I felt silly stopping on my bike to take pictures. People in Madison are very polite. When I'm passing on my bike I say, "Passing on your left," and several times joggers have said, "Thank you!"

Brad in his office (our second bedroom). Can you tell what the shirt is hanging on the wall? Clue: he got it in January in Washington DC...

We made homemade pretzels!

We made homemade bagels!

Our ward here is very welcoming and kind. We have not gone one Sunday without being invited over for dinner or having people over here.

The DMV is the nicest I've been to. I went to get my Wisconsin driver's license and was ready to get my picture taken and the guy who takes the pictures said, "Hello there, Jennifer? How are you?" I started to hand my paperwork to him and he said, "Oh, I don't need that-- I'm just happy you're here!" Seriously, people are like this everywhere, including the post office. Except at Whole Foods. That store makes me feel guilty.

One disappointment about where we live...

2009-09-04T18:31:00.000-07:00

Final shots of Las Vegas

2009-09-01T15:56:00.000-07:00

Here are some last pictures as we left Las Vegas--other things that most people see when there, though we were very busy learning everything we could about Star Trek.

I don't remember if I already posted this, but it's translated into Klingon!

These are fake pumpkins, but really carved. Amazing, eh?

What is Las Vegas without Elvis?

And of course, a casino. Pretty ubiquitous. We watched for a while, but just didn't feel lucky!

Brad, in front of a palm tree.

These two are great: there were so many wedding chapels and this one had an actual wedding happening outside, but I thought it would be gauche to start taking pictures at a wedding to which I wasn't invited.

If you look carefully, these are Joshua trees! (Hi, Rissa!)

Outside of Las Vegas are these huge canyons. This picture doesn't really capture their majesty. I hadn't realized that I had never really been in a desert. Colorado and Utah are both deserts, but this place was DRY.

We wanted to stop at a small town diner in Southern Utah on our way home. Here we are in Parowan. The food was good, as you can see from our happy faces. But actually, we didn't have our food yet. So I guess our expectation for the food was good.

Famous people--and me

2009-08-18T07:37:00.000-07:00

These conventions always host stars of varying degrees of recognition and importance. The funny thing about regular convention goers is that they seem to like the minor stars better, simply because they have never attended a convention before and the major stars come all the time. You'll see a smattering of both.

The top, number one person who I saw was BRENT SPINER! In case you don't know, that's Data. Here are some pictures of him on stage:
The best part was that after he talked and answered questions (he was kind of a funny guy, making fun a bit, but I never thought mean-spirited), I GOT HIS AUTOGRAPH (for $40): another surprise from my great hus. Here are the pics!

I, being a foolish fan, could think of nothing better to say than, "Hi, how are you?" It was still awesome!

Other folks of the convention:
Larry Nemecek, an official Star Trek Expert. He wrote the Star Trek Companion book, which I own, and which gives a lot of insight into each Next Gen episode.
Hallie Todd, who played Lal in the "The Offspring," my favorite episode ever. Data creates a daughter and tries to teach her about humanity. I cry every time.
Carel Struycken, who plays Mr. Homn, Lwaxana's personal assitant. It's not a very good picture, but he has a distinctive look, so you can tell it's him. The best part is that he was a little shy, just happy to be there. So nice!
This group of men is from the Enterprise, as in the franchise known as Enterprise, since just about everyone there served on the Enterprise. They would have been great had it not been for Dominic Keating, third from left, who may have been under the influence and was obnoxious, rude, and inappropriate. Connor Trinneer, fourth from left, pretty much didn't say anything, because he didn't get a chance. I would imagine it's hard to go to conventions when your colleague is obnoxious. Anthony Montgomery, first on the left, was the best at just keeping things moving without seeming annoyed. John Billingsley was second from left and did get to talk some.
And here we have George Takei (Captain Sulu). He was the nicest one there! He did this great reenactment of the last part of the sixth movie. He said it should have been called Star Trek VI: Captain Sulu to the Rescue because that is what happens. He then did the voices of Bones saying, "'That is one big ship.' And then Scotty says, 'Aye, but not as big as her captain, I think!.'" It was so entertaining. He is a real fan of the show.
These are Brannon Braga and Manny Coto, writers and producers for the show. I thought they would be more enthusiastic, but they were both still disappointed about Enterprise being cancelled. Fans kept asking about the ending of the series, and since Brad and I are only in the second season we really had no idea what was going on. They wanted to talk most about their new show. I don't remember what it's called, but everyone blacks out for 1 minute 17 seconds and in that time they see six months into the future. It looks pretty interesting.
This is Jacqueline Kim who played Demora Sulu in Generations. She doesn't watch Star Trek and didn't really know anything about the series. She hasn't been in anything else that people have seen, even this crowd, who watches way too much TV. I think she was a little uncomfortable.
And if this were not such a bad picture, you would recognize Christopher Lloyd! Another very nice person to listen to. Most of the questions were about Taxi which I have never seen, but he was very gracious. He played a Klingon commander in Star Trek III: Search for Spock.

So there you have it. Famous people. Watch for the final installment, a wrap-up of our trip to Sin City.

Costumes

2009-08-12T13:04:00.000-07:00

One of the best parts of the convention was seeing everybody's costumes. Here are some of them:
This guy is dressed like Data. Notice his cute daughter asleep in the stroller.

And the next day as Lore (Data's evil twin). Notice his sneer and his cute daughter now dressed as a borg, stroller decked out and everything. It was so cute I could have died!
If you can't tell, this guy has three dogs in the stroller, all wearing Star Fleet uniforms!
Some Andorians. When asked how long it took them to put their costumes together, they asked, "What costumes?" I love it!

The following is one of my favorites. You'll notice that the woman has her hand on her chest. When I took the picture she said, "K'plah!" which is some kind of closing salutation in Klingon.

And here I am with a Klingon.And here I am with the bat'leth (the long weapon) and I couldn't find the name of the short weapon. The guy who sells these showed me the correct way to hold them. Can you imagine going to combat with these!?

Just the beginning

2009-08-11T20:52:00.000-07:00

The next day we woke up and got ready for our big day in Vegas. First, a picture of the sign...

And a picture of one of the shows (magic AND tigers)...

A view of the people we started following on our way to what I thought was the Star Trek Experience.But here we are when I realized we were at a Star Trek Convention!!

Here are some of the decorations they had up:

In case you can't see, that's Tiberius Cologne (as in James Tiberius Kirk).

Their ashes are going to space in 2012 and you can put a thank you message with them.

I'll show you later who uses these...

Dilithium crystals. Honest-to-goodness dilithium crystals (at least what was used on the show). In case you don't know, these are used in the warp core.

Mystery vay-cay solved!

2009-08-10T15:26:00.000-07:00

I have the greatest husband in the land! For the past few weeks he has had a mystery vacation planned for us. This past weekend, we took it.

Here we are at the beginning of our trip, sitting in the rental car.

I figured out that we were going to Las Vegas, so Thursday night we drove down I-15 and arrived at about 1:30 in the morning. Here is a picture of the city, though it doesn't do it justice. Seriously, the lights were very bright. And the city twilight before we actually saw the lights was also intense.We stayed at the Sahara on the outside end of the strip. Our room was decorated with lots of camels.

Our television played a channel on how to successfully gamble. Good luck with that!

But the real treat was where we were going in the vast metropolis that is Las Vegas....

Take a survey!

2009-07-07T17:07:00.001-07:00

Brad made this survey and needs people to take it. It's political and took me about ten minutes. Thanks!
https://byu.qualtrics.com/SE?SID=SV_5uudclRGP3kEfoU&SVID=Prod

The best tip ever: update

2009-06-06T21:52:00.000-07:00

Continuing with that comparison between Frisbee and piano--we played again and my skills have not been solved. I still have to practice. It's not magic. Just more work but with more accuracy.

The best tip ever

2009-05-30T12:42:00.000-07:00

Brad and I really like to play Frisbee. While I'm pretty good at catching it, I've always had trouble getting good distance when throwing and not having it curve to the right. But last night Brad gave me some terrific advice. I was always using my shoulder and my entire arm to give it some power, but that made it veer to the right. When I just used my wrist it went straight, but pathetically. The ticket is to bend at the ELBOW and bring the Frisbee back so it touches the arm, then release. It's completely unbelievable the kind of distance and accuracy you can get using that technique.

That being said, just learning something new is always enjoyable. That feeling that I got when I was consistently tossing the Frisbee so well is what I want my students to feel when they get a break through on the piano. Brad said something interesting while I was gushing about how enjoyable it was to throw it well. He said that that is the fun thing about Frisbee--how it kind of flies itself when you do it right. And that's true about the piano. Not that it plays itself, but when you've practiced and practiced and then suddenly, it makes sense or you are playing it right, there's nothing better than that.

From a bird and rhymes with curd

2009-05-09T09:28:00.000-07:00

I have a friend who is afraid of birds. While I'm still not afraid of them, the present one left on our porch reminds me that they are gross. The thing about this that is even more disgusting: we discovered this last Sunday morning on the way to church and still haven't cleaned it. Now that I'm blogging about it, consider it done.

Did I forget to mention?

2009-05-01T20:38:00.000-07:00

I don't know how this happened but what with all the excitement of funny piano students, I forgot the biggest and most important pair of news!

A) Brad graduated! (but didn't walk so it was kind of not climactic)
B) We're moving to Madison, Wisconsin in August, don't ya know!

We're way excited for Wisconsin and though my family informs me that the winters, if they're anything like those in Minnesota, are brutal, we're excited for a change and just to be living a new life! I'm not one who thrives on change, but I do like second and third and fourth chances, and every time I move is a chance to be a better person and try not to burn bridges. When I went to a new school in fourth grade, I decided to change my name to Jennie, and then when I went to junior high in seventh, it was back to Jenny. Maybe Brad will do something CrAzY and go by his middle name or something. The options are endless!

Cute Piano Student Story #4, 5, and 6

2009-04-22T17:39:00.000-07:00

Three in one day?! It seems to good to be true. And I only had three students today! My first student came in so tired and I asked why. Let me explain: this is the same one whose April Fool's joke was to write in five hours of practice a day. She doesn't just do what is required: she conquers it. So why was she so tired? They had a walk-a-thon to raise money for some cause and she ran 11 miles. She's about eleven years old. That's practically a half-marathon.

Number next: we have a personal progress review coming up where the students play all of the pieces they've learned this year for a judge and get feedback. It's great to prepare such a big program and really perfect it. I told one student today that the master class for said review is next week. Before she responded at all, I saw her pupils dilate. I have never seen that before but she had this visceral reaction of fear when I said that. I guess that's not really funny, but I know who will be practicing hard this week!

The last was the same student. She was playing through her piece and I made some kind of sound to let her know she had played something wrong. I don't remember what it was, but once she figured it out, she said, and I quote, "Oh, I thought I had done something really wrong like started at the wrong section!" Of all the things she could have done wrong, that seems minor. Maybe I was overreacting....

All About Me

2009-04-17T10:31:00.001-07:00

Does anyone else have the tendency to make everything about somebody else relate to you? Illustration: the other day I was walking to campus and was using the sidewalks as I usually do. I don't mind walking on the grass unless there are signs that specifically ask you not to. On this day there were signs on the grass and yet one woman was ignoring them and walking on the grass. I was annoyed, which is ridiculous, but I was. Now the point: she stopped at one point to text and I immediately thought two things: "she's texting about walking on the grass," and "she's texting about how I'm judging her for walking on the grass." Probably neither of those things were even close to the truth, but I realized that since I knew almost nothing about her, suddenly everything she was and did was related to the only thing I did know about her. While that's an extreme example I think it happens a lot. My piano students are more than just piano students, and I am more than a piano teacher, but with some of them that is the only relationship we have. They assume I only care about the piano portion of their lives, and I assume that all they should be doing is practicing piano. Any thoughts?

Cute piano student story #3

2009-04-03T09:48:00.000-07:00

I don't even remember which student this was, but we were drilling one section of a piece and he had it pretty solid. So I said, "Good! Now get into it." I was confused when he started at the same place, but when he began to kind of wave his body back and forth, I understood that he didn't understand. I meant for him to start before that section so he could get the transition, but he thought I meant to really get into the piece. Feel it.

Cute piano student story #2

2009-04-03T09:44:00.000-07:00

At the place I work we've just started the contest for the practice drawing in June. Whoever practices the most hours between now and the bbq on June 6th gets either a keyboard, a fifty-dollar bill, or an i-pod shuffle. So this student came in on Wednesday and I asked to see her notebook. She had filled in her practice times as five hours a day. I said, "Wow! You practiced five hours a day?" and she made this funny face and then turned the page over and said, "April Fools! Here are my real times." THAT was a good prank!

Sole-searching

2009-03-29T15:52:00.000-07:00

Why is this sandal here? On Tuesday night I came home and noticed this sandal at the front door. The only thing I can figure is that they cleaned our carpets that day and someone left it behind. Any takers?

No One to Sing for Me

2009-03-24T21:34:00.000-07:00

Here are my sisters and I singing a transcription from a Cherryholmes CD. You can hear that we all sing in pretty different styles, but we blend well! This was recorded by our own dear mother, to whom we were singing.

Signs of Impending Warmness

2009-03-20T16:19:00.000-07:00

In commemoration of the first day of spring, here are some signs that it's getting warmer, in the order they occurred to me. These aren't just things I thought of, but noticed them and then realized they made me think of summer.

1. Rap music--I don't generally listen to it, and as I was walking down to campus the other day, I heard it from an open window. There you go: open windows=new music.

2. The smell of grass--two guys got on the bus yesterday and they smelled like lawn. Ah.

3. Orange soda--I haven't had it in years but for some reason it is the summeriest of all sodas.

Anyone else have any ideas?

Marine Corps Ball 2007

2009-03-13T12:13:00.000-07:00

Here are some pics from our last Marine Ball--never again, and I find I'm a little sad. But only a little.

We rented a PT Cruiser because they didn't have any smaller cars, so this was still a small price even though it's so snazzy.

Me, admiring Brad's skill at driving a PT Cruiser (also admiring that he was over 25 so he could drive it).

Brad, obviously enjoying that he was able to drive the PT Cruiser.

Does this picture show you just how big the bed is? Notice Brad's sad face.

But not for me: the finished product

2009-03-07T17:36:00.000-08:00

Here's the video of us singing at the teacher's recital. The sound is actually pretty good so you can hear the gist of it! From left to right we are myself, Joanna, and Allison. Enjoy!

Brad's Birthday Cake

2009-02-27T16:01:00.000-08:00

Behold my skills at cake decorating and believe me when I say that this is good decorating.

But Not for Me

2009-02-27T15:50:00.001-08:00

There is almost nothing in the world so fulfilling as singing a capella with people who sound really good. I made an arrangement of "But Not for Me" by the Gershwin brothers for three-part women's voices and we had our first rehearsal today and sound SO GOOD! It's like there's a synergy that comes from good blending that you can't get any other way. *contented sigh* I wish I could post a recording. Maybe I'll figure that out....

25 things I love about Brad

2009-02-14T11:26:00.000-08:00

Inspired by the whole 25 things craze on Facebook.

1. The way he runs--I don't know if it's a Marine thing, but when I run my feet leave the ground as little as possible in order to "run" without expending too much energy. Brad bounds, leaps from the ground with his arms at right angles.

2. Why he runs--the other day he ran to catch a bus for me and the crabby bus driver was not happy, but that's how great my husband is.

3. How he cooks--for those of you who don't know, Brad is a gourmet chef. I could eat spaghetti and broccoli every night and not think I was missing anything. Brad is constantly experimenting with spices and flavors and ingredients and his food is wonderful.

4. He's good at surprises--I love getting surprises and I'm really bad at giving them. I get too excited to keep it a secret. He doesn't crack. He just listens carefully to things I say and days, weeks, months later I get a surprise.

5. His writing--Brad is such a great writer. One of the things that made me first interested in him was his spelling and vocabulary.

6. His eyes--he officially has hazel eyes, but that doesn't do them justice. They are brown with green (like deep lake green) rings.

7. His voice--beautiful tenor.

8. His voice--he never yells.

9. His temper--or lack thereof! Brad thinks through things without letting his emotions unduly affect what he does.

10. He's my advocate--every time I have some kind of complaint or even when he just thinks I've been unjustly treated, he makes sure something is done about it.

11. He wants me to be happy--without being unkind, he reminds me when I'm doing something that doesn't make me happy that I don't actually like doing that thing (like on my half-days off when I watch too many epis).

12. His appreciation--any time I clean the house or make dinner he says, "Jenny, what a house!" or "What a great din!" (Maybe that just means I don't clean or cook enough....)

13. He's non-judgmental--he doesn't get upset about things that aren't done the way he likes. He recognizes that there are different ways to reach the same end.

14. He's well-read--and recommends books to me.

15. He likes Star Trek--not everybody does.

16. He likes good music--that's not to say we love the same kind of music. But his music is enjoyable too.

17. He's a good driver--not that this matters as we don't have a car. But though he really doesn't like driving, he is very cautious and slow.

18. He does the laundry--seriously.

19. His sense of humor--I've been asked before to describe his sense of humor and it's kind of like explaining a joke to someone: things get lost in translation. But just take my word for it.

20. He thinks I'm funny--not everybody does.

21. He thinks I'm beautiful--and tells me ALL the time.

22. He is excellent at what he does--he's received so many acceptances from graduate programs and his professors think he's terrific (and they're right).

23. He lets me win at games--I know he could beat me, but he let's me win to protect my ego.

24. His strength--he is the most strong; he can carry my back pack, my purse, the groceries, just about anything!

25. He loves me.

A Week without Epis

2009-02-13T11:57:00.001-08:00

We don't have a TV, but that does not mean we don't watch TV. Hulu is great for online episodes and my in-laws have given us several seasons of our favorite shows (including two Star Trek franchises). Our habit is usually to watch an episode (epi) after dinner every night just because we're tired and want to relax. Now, I still definitely do not have anything against episodes. But I read Farenheit 451 this week (for the first time--odd because Ray Bradbury is my favorite author), and in it he talked not just about burning books, but the whole idea of closing our minds to things that matter. I had gotten into the habit of having an I Love Lucy on just so I don't have to think about anything while doing something like sewing.

So, we decided to try a week without epis to see if we could think of anything else to do. I'm amazed how much we can get done in that 20 or 40 minute period. One night I actually cleaned (?!), another Brad read to me from the New Yorker, and on another we listened to a podcast about Fred "Mr." Rogers. But now I can't wait to see what's going on with Data and the crew of the Enterprise.

My Great Job

2009-02-11T19:51:00.000-08:00

Back in December the bus drivers changed their routes and as much as I love change, I didn't like this one. One driver, John, was my particular friend, and I miss seeing him. This is especially made clear by his replacement who isn't into conversation. I've tried talking to him once, but it may that because he's new he's particularly rule-abiding and cautious. But he's not very friendly and always seems a bit crabby.

Well, today I took an early bus to work and he was the driver. That was the 1:24 bus. When I came back this evening, he drove me on the 7:30. I know he has to go back down to Spanish Fork from the Wilkinson Center once more after he drops me off. So I may have an idea of why he's kind of crabby. In those six hours, I worked on a Chopin prelude, interacted with six students and four co-workers, and texted my husband. Somehow I think this bus driver's shift was less eventful than mine. I would be crabby too. I do have a great job.

Five-Year-Old jokes

2009-02-10T11:52:00.000-08:00

These jokes are from my bosses' daughter, Lizzie.

Knock Knock
Who's there?
Banana
Banana who? (repeat)
Knock Knock
Who's there?
Orange
Orange who?
Orange aren't you glad I didn't say banana?
(I think she didn't get the subtle word play intended!)

Why did the fly cross the road?
To practice his flying!

NyQuil

2009-02-10T11:42:00.000-08:00

I don't usually like to take medicine. When I have a cold, a cough syrup isn't going to treat the cold, only the cough. But the other night I only got three hours of sleep because whenever I started to fall asleep I would start coughing. So last night Brad and I bought some generic NyQuil. I took it at 10:00pm and while it didn't keep me cough-free it definitely knocked me out. The couple times I woke up from coughing, I was too tired to stay awake, so I just went back to sleep. Brad called to wake me up at 8:00 this morning and I was struggling to stay awake after I got off the phone. That stuff is powerful. But there's something to be said for getting 10 hours of sleep and I think it put me well on the way to recovery. The other possibility is that I was tired from not getting enough sleep the night before, but even if that's the case I am far from immuned to the placebo effect of taking medicine. The only other time I've felt that way was after taking this motion sickness medicine Lacey gave our Romania group on the bus to Brasov. For about 24 hours I couldn't keep my eyes open. But that bus ride improved dramatically after taking it.

Scrapbooking?

2009-02-06T20:56:00.000-08:00

One of my student's moms introduced me to this digital scrapbooking idea and I love it! I'm so bad at cutting things and I hate making mistakes, so doing something on the computer that still looks nice is right up my alley. Above is only a small sampling.

A Teaching Failure

2009-02-03T11:29:00.001-08:00

Well, Brad is back from DC, which is good. He had a good time. I've been putting off posting another post because I couldn't think of anything really great. But now I have.

I teach music classes for young children (see my Michael Jackson lyrics). A funny thing about teaching two-year-olds is that sometimes they don't cooperate. I had one student who, whenever I said, "Now shake your tambourines way up high in the sky!" responded with, "I can't!" Everything was just too hard. On the last day he became adamant. "Come get a bell!" I would call. "I hate bells!" "Everybody put a flea on your toe for the flea song!" "I hate that song!" As I was explaining this to Brad, he said I missed a great teaching opportunity (cue lights).
I pull the student aside for a heart-to-heart, explaining that he can play his tambourine, that I believe in him.
The music stops.
The camera zooms into his face until we see only his eyes.
Then, very quietly, we here the hestiant shaking of a lone tambourine.
It gets louder, more confident.
The music swells and I have joined the ranks of Robin Williams and Michelle Pfeiffer as a great teacher.

But, like Brad said, I missed my chance.

Washington DC!

2009-01-17T20:43:00.000-08:00

Well, Brad and co. are in DC! They're staying with one of their friend's friends in Arlington, VA. I think their trip ended up being about 1 day and 12 hours, only taking turns to sleep in the car. Brad says they will all shower then go to bed. Sounds like a good idea. Follow along at their blog, roadtriptochange.blogspot.com.

Michael would be proud?

2009-01-16T14:08:00.000-08:00

Got to be there
Got to be there in the morning
Before 7:58
Got to be there
Got to be there at my music class
If I miss the bus then I'm late.

Oh, what a feeling there'll be
If that bus leaves but not with me
'Cuz while I wait for my rides
I realize
I need them--class wouldn't happen without me.

So I got to be there
Got to be there--bring them good times
So that bus I've got to be on
I've got to help them sing along
When we sing our "Hello Song!"

I need them--class wouldn't happen without me.

That's why I got to be there
Got to be there before class begins
And that's even when it snows
And even if nobody shows
'Cuz our class begins at nine!

Yeah.

Oh baby baby

Got to be there, got to be there, etc.

Road Trip to Change

2009-01-15T13:44:00.001-08:00

For those of you who maybe just haven't been paying attention, Friday some friends and I are leaving on a road trip for the inauguration. Hop over to roadtriptochange.blogspot.com to check out the progress we are making. We will be blogging when possible and using Twitter when its not.

Cute Piano Student Story #1

2009-01-11T16:47:00.001-08:00

This week we came back from Christmas break. On Wednesday I had a student come who had prepared a miniature essay on a sticky note on the reasons why she couldn't play the left hand for this song. No whining, no complaining, only a very lawyerly explanation. I was so proud of her!

2009-01-07T12:50:00.000-08:00

I should get extra points for yesterday. I was standing in line at Subway and it was snowing really bad outside. The man in front of me turned around and complimented me on my boots. I wanted to explain that they were hiking boots and not necessarily snow boots, but all that came out was, "These boots were made for walking."

2009-01-04T18:46:00.000-08:00

We've been bad at journal-ing these last three years and we were told that even though we don't have children we can still blog. So this may include lots of anecdotes about piano students and political surveys. Enjoy!