"Today is your day! Your mountain is waiting. So... get on your way." ~Dr. Suess

Friday, August 21, 2009

Any Suggestions?

I'm such a sentimental girl.... I've been feeling the need to watch a "tear jerker" lately. Often, they're my favorite types of movies- not because I'm depressed or anything, but they're just so touching!!

My sister, mother and I recently watched a taped version of an episode of "Touched By an Angel" (A TV show that is no longer airing; it's about these three angels sent to do work on earth disguised as regular people. It may sound cheesy, but it's so beautiful!!) , called "Petey Comes Home." It deals with a little ten year old boy with a fatal disease, and the angels are sent to help him through it. It was so touching, because the little boy [Petey] was all about others! His list of things to do before he died centered mainly around helping others, and finding someone to help his mom when he is gone! It was so sweet!! I cried my little eyes out to my hearts content, shaking the entire couch.

But anywho, does anyone have a name to recommend of a tear jerker to watch? Truly moving ones are rather hard to come by, I find. So if you could help me out in this area, I would be deeply gratified! Thank you dearies!!

Sunday, August 9, 2009

Musical theatre perhaps at its PEAK?? Official favorite musical in the entirety of the universe!

**Note, prepare for major rambling like you have never heard before!**

If I were to pick a single word to describe it.... I doubt I could actually decide. Maybe, "Beyond-wow" (The dash makes it one word ;) ), "thrilling," or perhaps, "Indescribable!!" Or, there's always the cliched "Wicked," that being the name of the object under scrutiny.

Yes, I had the wonderful experience of seeing "Wicked: the Musical" on stage.

What a darn gift!! So much I could say! It is my favorite musical in the entire world of musicals!!! The subtle hints toward the "Wizard of Oz" movie; ("Lemons and peaches and mango's, oh my!," "There's no place like home," etc.) The costumes-- oooooh, the costumes!! I could write an entire post going off in tangents about their costumes!! Galinda's sparkling ballgowns, Elphaba's discreet yet powerful black gowns, and the chorus' costumes - Each one seemed to tell it's own story!

And, of course, the cast and the music. Wow. To put it simply, I cannot imagine a cast to work better together! There was such amazing chemistry between all of the characters! Ah, so much talent!!

OK, the music-- I can't even begin to describe.. I laughed delightedly at the lightheartedness of "Popular," and I got chill-bumps when I heard Marcie Dodd belting out "The Wizard and I." Then, there was the long-awaited for "Defying Gravity." Neither words, nor even youtube videos can ever do it justice. There is so much energy and passion in that song... I mentioned I got chill bumps in "Wizard and I?" My heart was pounding so fast at the end of the song, my mind racing with the sheer energy in the theatre... I honest-to-goodness thought I was going to defy gravity myself (Cheesy as it sounds, yes.)!

Oh, here is an amaaaaaaaazing gift God gave to me while we were there! During intermission, my friend and myself ran down the stairs to rent some binoculars to use during the show (This is the most inspired idea perhaps in the universe!), and ran back up the stairs. We then realized how amazingly these worked (seriously, we were in the balcony and, with these handy little devices, could see every single facial expression on the stage!- wow!), and were sent back down the stairs for another pair! (Note that I was still on a high from the last hour-and-a-half, and hadn't tired yet of the stairs) Once we were down to the lobby, and had the binoculars in question, I turned to my friend and suggested that, "Since we are already heeere, why don't we go to the orchestra level and see the stage from there!" Now my friends is a very level-headed person, and suggested we go back to our seats since intermission was almost over. A valid point. But, being a stubborn little moi, I said something to the effect of, "Come on! Intermission is FIFTEEN minutes!! It hasn't been that long!! Let's just go take a look and seeeeee, then we can go back up stairs!" She gave in.

We walked to the stage, so close that we could see into the orchestra pit and probably could have walked onto the stage if we had a mind to... when, all of the sudden, the lights dimmed. The show started. And we were not in our seats.

For ten blissful minutes, I watched the most thrilling musical closer to the stage than I ever thought I would be that night. How darned sensational!!!! It was a highlight of my night! ( After the aforesaid ten minutes, an usher realized our plight and escorted us out of the orchestra level. Or else, you can bet your best bucket I would have stayed there all night!!) But is God good or what?!

That is all I can say for the moment, as it is getting rather late, but I can most surely state that I will be on a major high from this for [at least] the next month!! As I told an usher on the elevator I took up, "Musical theater goes to my head like wine." (My level-headed friend gave me a warning look at this, so I stopped. Otherwise, I probably would have pulled an Anne of Green Gables, and went on with something to the effect of, "At least, that's is how I imagine it would be; your face is flushed, your head is reeling, your heart is beating a mile a minute ; everything is vivid and exciting, and you just want to drink it all in so that you never forget it!")

But goodness, how I ramble! I'm very sorry! If you really read all the way through this post, let me know, I may give you an award or something! I shall stop now, and bid thee farewell!! So long, dear readers!

Saturday, August 1, 2009

Auuuuuuuuugust

Time once more for the special monthly feature! Goodness, it's AUGUST already?? Where has the year gone!! Anywho, I'll bet my best bucket you didn't that August is:

  • National Catfish Month,
  • National Golf Month,
  • National Eye Exam Month,
  • National Water Quality Month,
  • Romance Awareness Month,
  • Peach Month, and
  • Foot Health Month

Quite the interestingness, no? And other bizarreness:

August 8 is . . . . . Sneak Some Zucchini Onto Your Neighbor's Porch Night! (How random!!)

August 14 is . . . . National Creamsicle Day (yumyumyummmmmmmmmm)

August 17 is . . . . National Thrift shop Day (FUUUUUN!! We have the best little thrift shop about two minutes away from our house!! By the way, when one hears "thrift shop," does anyone else think of the Briers from Regina Doman's books? From some reason I always associate the two.. )

August 30 is . . . . National Toasted Marshmallow Day (Once again: Yuummmmmmers!! Believe it or not, I didn't have my first real roasted marshmallow until quite recently. Last month, to be precise.)

Saturday, July 25, 2009

Post title in process of being created... Once author is inspired with something that fits

Goodness!! I've hardly been a good blog keeper! I am distraught to a point you cannot even imagine over the fact that I haven't posted in several weeks!! I am quite sorry.

Now, I check in to share a couple splendid discoveries:

1~ I think I've shared this with you before, but it deserves repeating: Dipping warm chocolate-chip-cookies in hot chocolate is, in few words, the BOMB.com!!

2~ Not that this a particularly new discovery, but I've appreciated it a lot more than usual lately: Sun shine is wonderful. Period. That's one of the beauties of summer; almost every day (When it isn't SCALDING outside), you can step out into the glorious cheerful rays of the sun. It really helps to lift one's mood, just to step out there for a moment and tilt you face to the sun. (The refreshment is especially welcome when your family keeps the house at the approximate temperature of an ice-box, as does mine. I kid you not, I wear my fuzzy socks and a jacket[s] in the middle of July!!)

3~ Improv Everywhere. Oh my crunchy GOODNESS!!! These people crack me up!!! In their words (From the site):

"Improv Everywhere causes scenes of chaos and joy in public places. Created in August of 2001 by Charlie Todd, Improv Everywhere has executed over 80 missions, involving thousands of undercover agents. The group is based in New York City."

Seriously: they are hysterical!!! I would so do something like what they do!! My favorite is the "Food Court Musical" A couple agents go undercover to start a musical out of nothing in an L.A. Food Court!! PWAHAHAHA!!!! A couple of my friends and I are starting to put something together like this, actually! For more splendiforousness, check out the website, http://improveverywhere.com/!

4~ One of my many new favorite quotes: "A woman's heart should be so lost in God that a man must seek Him in order to find her." I'm not exactly sure who said that first, but PWAAAA, isn't it wonderful!?! So true, and that is what I am trying every day to do!

Numero FIVE!!: I know I had one... waaaaaiitt, what was it???? GoodNESS, I can't stand it when this happens!! I think it was something to do with a musical...? Oh, yes, I finally got to listen to the entire Wicked soundtrack!!! YES!! It is amazing!! I knew several songs already, somehow, but then I borrowed the soundtrack from the library and realized I'd missed a couple... So of course now I'm singing them all around the house, driving my family to the point of critical insanity!!

[Speaking of Wicked, here is another instance of my being incredibly into my music (Recall my former post "Surely I'm not the ONLY one..."): My brother had kindly loaded a couple songs from said musical onto my ipod (as I'm too technologically inept to do such a thing), including "Defying Gravity." Soooo, as I was listening to it on my little musical gadget for the first time... shall we say I lost myself?? In short, I was brought out of my imaginary little world by the sound of my sister laughing hysterically at the sight of me standing on the couch, passionately singing along to the last part of the song. "So if you care to find me, look to the Western Sky..." etc. What can I say? It's the best part of the song. How could I not? *Sighhhh*


That is all for now; dinner is calling my name! But, indeed, I really will try to post more often! (I really mean it this time!! It's just that I don't want to bore y'all with writing that sounds forced...) So, cheerio dear friends and readers!

Friday, July 3, 2009

As you may have noticed...

I've changed the name of the blog :) (Yes, a rather "Thank you, Captain Obvious" moment.) The address, however remains the same, and if I ever do change that, I'll will give you a warning.

Wednesday, July 1, 2009

A Lovely Day...

The sun is shining, the sky is clear, the wind blowing... I suppose that sounds cheesy. Today, after laying out in the sun for awhile, my sister and I went to enjoy some wonderful snow cones in the summer-i-ness of our backyard. (I don't think it is possible to enjoy a snow cone as much inside as you can outside. It's just one of those funny things...) My sister and I put on our snow-cone shirts to boot!!

Before anyone take that wrong (I realize now that that sounds kind of nerdy), let me elaborate; the other day, as my sister, mother, and I were shopping, my sister came across this adorable pink shirt with big white polka dots on it. She modeled it [and I thought it was just darn cute] but wasn't sure she would ever wear it. I think her words were, "Yes, it's [really] cute, but when on earth would I wear it??" And I promptly answered, "When you go get SNOW CONES!! Obviously!! It's def. a snow cone shirt!!" We laughed; because THAT made a whole lot of sense... :) At home, I have my own bright, candy-striped shirt, which makes me feel like a little girl from the sixties, but is soooo fun!! And thus explains, in more words than necessary, the snow cone shirt.

Anyway, after enjoying our snow cones in our snazzy snow cone shirts, we came in and watched "West Side Story". I hear it talked about quite a bit, but I had never seen it before. It was...... interesting. Definitely copy of Romeo and Juliet. The choreography was amazing, however!

Now, I sit here blogging to get out of setting the table. Clever, no? What else happened today...? A-ha!! I was listening to the Christian radio station, and the played a BRILLIANT song!!! It's by Johnny Diaz, and is called "[[There can never be a]] More Beautiful You." Good message!! It talks about how you are beautiful THE WAY YOU ARE!!!!! Boy, do we need that today in some places! The link to the music video is here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ks3R2BwyO0
Check it out!! Good stuff.

Holy cow, it's dinner time already!! I shall try to post some more later!! Til then...

Oh, once again, if anyone has any musical-theatre-audition tips or songs they cared to share with me, I would really appreciate it! I'm a mezzo soprano... who is reminded she must go to dinner now by the calling of her little brother. Cheerio!!

Julyyyy

Yes, I know I haven't been posting much lately! Not to make excuses, but I just got back from a wonderful Catholic girl's camp, and before that... there was life ;) But don't think I've forgotten you!! Or my monthly feature... Speaking of which, did you know that July is...
  • National Baked Beans Month,
  • National Ice Cream Month, (A Month after my own heart...)
  • National Tennis Month,
  • Read An Almanac Month,
  • Anti-Boredom Month, and (Awesomeness, I tell you!!!)
  • Hitchhiking Month

And a couple other random holidays in July:

  • July 1st: Creative Ice Cream Flavor Day
  • July 11th: National Cheer Up the Lonely Day
  • July 27th: Take Your Pants For a Walk Day

Seriously-- I didn't make these up! The last one really gets me... Randomness, no? I shall try to post more soon. Cheerio!

Saturday, June 20, 2009

Surely, I'm not the ONLY one...

...who gets *extremely* into whatever song they are listening to at the moment. In my mind... how can you not? Especially if it's a very passionate song...


It's even easier (for me) if it's a Broadway song. Then you have the whole character there right in front of you, you know their situation; it's so EASY to put yourself into the place of the character!!


Sometimes it's a deeper, more melancholic song, you may find yourself tearing up a bit (O.K., maybe some slightly more sane people don't; but I am certainly cheesy enough to do thus. Like when I'm singing "Home" from Beauty and the Beast, I can't help but feel lost and a little hopeless, just wanting to go HOME! I don't really know where I am, I just wanted to save Papa!! Anyway... *cough*), and just feeling the longing the character would feel (Be it for home, for mother, for freedom, etc.).



Then there's the more upbeat songs that are just so fun to get in to!! For instance, right now I'm listening to "I Can Hear the Bells" from Hairspray, and I actually got up and started dancing-- because clearly the WEDDING BELLS were RINGING!!!!!!! He TOUCHED me!!!!! Despite what they say, this is CLEARLY the start of something!! -- I actually go on much longer in my mind than I type out, just so you know.

Even some non-Broadway songs are fun to get into, like "Love Story" by Taylor Swift. My favorite part is towards the end-ish, just before the key change:

"I grew tired of waiting, wondering if you were ever coming around. My faith in you was fading, when I met you on the outskirts of town. And I said 'Romeo save me, I've been feeling so alone. I keep waiting for you but you never come! Is this in my head? I don't know what to think!' He knelt to the ground and pulled out a ring and said [[this is my favorite]], 'Marry me, Juliet, you'll never have to be alone. I love you and that's all I really know. I talked to your Dad, go pick out a white dress; it's a love story, baby, just say yes!'"

Speaking of "Love Story," does anyone else think someone should tell Taylor Swift how Romeo & Juliet really ends?? I always thought that was kind of funny... I mean, I wouldn't *quite* want my love story to end that way...

Pwaaaaaaa, and [formerly] speaking of musicals... I'm planning to audition for a couple musicals in the some-what-near-ish future. It'll be my first musical audition, so if any of you have tips and/or song suggestions, I would greatly appreciate it-- especially the song suggestions. I'm a teenage mezzo-soprano [but not quite a belter--yet], if that helps a little. Thank you all so much!! I must go now. Cheerio!

Wednesday, June 3, 2009

Amazing what music can do to one, no?

Seriously. Aaaand those who compose (or merge, in this case) such masterpieces aren't to be forgotten either : Love Story (Taylor Swift) meets Viva la Vida (Coldplay). Because I have yet to figure out how to post a video directly on to this here blog, here is the link to the youtube video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0v3d6SFcDys

Honestly-- it is a work of brilliance. Utterly amazable. Please watch :) It's a little long... but WORTH IT!!!! Trust me.

Monday, June 1, 2009

Jumpin' JUNE-ipers!!

Okay, so the title is a little cheesy; it's all I could come up with :/ Anyway, I've decided to make this a monthly feature :) Perhaps you know these, perhaps not; but the wonderful month of June iiiisss:

  • Adopt-A-Shelter-Cat Month,
  • American Rivers Month,
  • Cancer In The Sun Month, (:D)
  • Dairy Month,
  • Turkey Lover's Month,
  • National Accordian Awareness Month,
  • National Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Month,
  • National Ice Tea Month,
  • National Papaya Month,
  • National Pest Control Month, (I like)
  • National Rose Month,
  • Fight The Filthy Fly Month, (Along with "Pest Control month"... how very handy) and
  • Zoo and Aquarium Month