I have been missing choir for SO LONG. I belong in choir. Church choir doesn't count. There aren't enough people with enough experience and the music isn't challenging. I need choir. I am and always have been a "choir voice"- meaning, it's best for everyone involved when my voice is blended in with a choir rather than alone. I love harmonizing. There is nothing like singing with a large, polished group when each person knows his or her part and sings it like the whole choir depends on it. And the sound reverberates through the hall and directly into my soul.
I get to do it again. The mere thought of it brings tears to my eyes. I know I'm a sap. It's just that I am and always will be a choir girl. My high school choir director was Mrs. Linda Schmidt. She is a phenomenal teacher. She taught us to feel the emotion behind every song we learned. She picked difficult songs and we practiced and rehearsed and bled and sang and memorized them until they were ready to perform. She didn't accept mediocrity. We were to learn the parts and rhythms and feeling of the song or die trying. She pushed us. We grew and improved.
I saw Mrs. Schmidt last week at my sister's improv comedy show downtown. We chatted for a few minutes, during which time she told me she will be teaching part time at BSU, directing two choirs. One is an audition choir that is an official class and requires enrollment in BSU. The other one is a community choir that meets every Tuesday evening at the Morrison Center. I am going to be there one way or another. Somehow. I need to. I am so excited! I realize the thought of joining a community choir sounds a bit iffy to everybody. Ordinarily, I'd be wary of the idea. But I happen to know that whatever Linda Schmidt touches has the tendency of turning into pure spun gold.
Once again, I know I am a sap. I shouldn't have to apologize. I just like to gush about the things I am passionate about.
I can't wait to sing in a big, good choir again. How do I know it will be good? Because it has to be. Mrs. Schmidt accepts no crap. And I can't wait to be challenged by the songs she picks, because I know she'll choose some toughies. I can't wait. I can't wait! But I suppose I'll have to wait until Tuesday...
Thursday, August 19, 2010
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
"My name is Zoom and I live on the moon..."
This is what my girls wake up to on their birthdays. (As illustrated in the video footage, Jane wasn't quite ready to rise and shine.) What can be heard in the background is a personalized birthday song sung by "Zoom" who purportedly lives on the moon. Cora already pointed out that it couldn't be real because people can't live on the moon.
I had the same song with my name in it given to me by my grandma when I was around my girls' ages. I can hear it now... "Hey, Shannon! It's your birthday! I'm in charge of the stars and I'm here to say: Hey, Shannon-you're the big star today! (dum-da-dum-da-dum, doo-doo-doo-do-doo-do) My name is Zoom and I live on the moon, but I came down to earth just to sing you this tune, cause Shannon- it's your birthday. Today!" I loved it! It was a floppy black"record" and I'm sure I wore it out. Sadly, I don't know whatever happened to it.
A couple of years ago I decided to look online to see if they still made the songs. My kids' childhoods would not be complete without the tradition of Zoom serenading them every year on their birthdays! I found exactly what I was looking for, thanks to a little Google search! Not only do they still sell the songs, but the website was filled with comments from other people just like me who had such fond memories of their special song. Oh, so heartwarming. They are available on CD these days. How exciting!
So I ordered them for Cora and Jane (they have a huge assortment of names! I couldn't believe they had Cora.) Unfortunately, both Cora and Jane claim to "hate" them. They get embarrassed hearing their name in a song! What is wrong with them?! I thought it was the coolest thing when I got mine. I honestly felt that it was recorded just for me.
I think they secretly like their songs, but don't want to give me the satisfaction of admitting it.
Either way, I am going to play them for the rest of my life every year on their birthday. I'm sure they'll wind up ordering them for their kids one day. Maybe I should buy a bunch now and have them name their children according to what name songs I have in my collection. Now there's an idea!
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
A Busy Day and a Play!
Tuesday, August 3rd was probably my most over-scheduled day this summer. I insisted on taking the kids to the free movie at Edwards that morning because they were finally playing "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs". It was cute. I'd heard the song "Sunshine, Lollipops and Rainbows" was in it, so it had to be good. I love that song!
I left Oliver at my mom's because when we took him with us to see "Kung Fu Panda" (loved it!) the week before, he kept trying to run away. He's just not ready for watching entire movies, because, well, he'd rather be moving around!
After the movie I picked Ollie up and took the kids home for lunch. We had Jane's friend Bella with us, too. Oliver's naptime was fast approaching, but I hadn't made any preparations for Jane's birthday which was the next day! Not only am I a major procrastinator, I was also sick almost the entire week leading up to then, so I'd had no desire to be out shopping for presents. So I asked Bella's mom if Jane could play at their house while I ran (well, drove) to see what I could drum up for the birthday girl. I threw some chicken and stuff in the crockpot so we'd have something for dinner when I got home. I made sure Oliver was fast asleep before I dropped Jane and Bella off. Cora was playing games on the computer, so I left her home with the doors locked and told her to call me if Oliver woke up. I don't make a habit of leaving her, but it was a birthday emergency! (Cora's going to be 9 this week and is quite mature for her age. It's all good.)
Within 2-ish hours of store-hopping I'd found the perfect gift. Then I had to take it to my mom's house to hide it. Then I carefully rushed back to get Jane and then home to start getting Cora ready for ballet. She had to be ready to go by a few minutes after 5:00. That was right when Ryan was getting home from work. He was going to take her, but I could see that he was too tired to do that, judging by the way he flopped on the couch and closed his eyes. So I got the kids their chicken and rice and started wetting Cora's hair down and brushing it into a bun (teacher's orders). Her hair is just barely long enough for a bun.
So I loaded the kids up and drove downtown to drop Cora off, with the plan that Ryan and the kids would come pick her up afterward. We turned around and came back home so I could get ready to go to Maria's. Maria, Renee and I were trying to leave her house by 6:30 so we could make the drive up to Starlight Mountain Theater in Garden Valley before the 8:00 showtime. We were so excited to see "Thoroughly Modern Millie"! We're big fans of the movie, so we couldn't pass up the chance to go see a stage interpretation of it.
We went with the "help" of Maria's GPS, which speaks Norwegian. (Maria served her mission in Norway.) We got to the ticket office with more than 20 minutes to spare. We moseyed in and claimed our tickets before climbing back in the car. The GPS said we still had a short drive to the "actual" theater. We saw some quaint little eateries that would've been fun to dine at if only we'd planned enough time to do so. We drove for a good 5-6 minutes before we started to wonder why we hadn't seen any trace of the theater. Why wasn't there a sign telling us we were heading in the right direction??? The GPS said we still had .3 miles or something. We pulled off the road to deliberate. A tour bus passed and we speculated about where they were heading. They wouldn't be going to Silver Creek Plunge, would they? They had to be headed to the theater... right? Should we follow the bus or retrace our path? We decided to rebel against the GPS. It chastised us for turning around, but time was not on our side. It was after 8:oo and we... were... confused.
About 20 minutes after 8 we came up on the street we were supposed to be on and we saw the huge Starlight Mountain Theater sign. At last! We quickly realized it was just the dang ticket office again. But where was the theater? It was then that we noticed a dirt lot full of cars off to the right- a short distance from the ticket office. Boy, did we feel silly.
We parked, but from there we couldn't see the entrance for the theater. I can only imagine how helpful a couple of arrows pointing guests in the right direction would be! We walked past some people who turned out to be cast members. One of them commented on our tardiness. The guy we'd seen 40 minutes earlier at the ticket office helped us to our seats. He may have recognized us and wondered why in the world we'd taken so long to get from the ticket office to the theater, but we didn't give any details. For all he knew, we stopped off to look at the "neat stuff" at the store down the road. (There was a building with a stenciled sign stuck in the ground out front that said "Neat Stuff". Unfortunately I think it was closed for the evening.)
It turned out that we probably didn't miss much of the show. We feared we missed the tapioca dance from the movie. We kept waiting for that part, but it never came. After the show I saw someone I knew and asked her if they had done the dance. She said it didn't sound familiar. How could they do the show without it? The nerve! On second thought, maybe they were originally rehearsing it and then quickly realized it was out of the question considering the gal they picked to play Millie. Not to be rude, but she wasn't a very strong dancer. (Renee and Maria were separately wondering if one or both of her legs were prosthetic. ) And her singing was a little... um... not very... good. I know I couldn't do any better, but it was just too bad that Julie Andrews (who played Millie in the movie) couldn't be there to take the role that can only belong to her. She's kind of a tough act to follow.
Me, Maria and Renee. Looks like Renee's having an IBS flare-up.
Real cute.
During intermission. The actors came out to sell concessions. That's some emotion-inducing popcorn! Sheesh!
Maria dreaming of getting her chance onstage.
The final scene.
I wish I'd gotten a picture of Millie's "supposed-to-jump-into-Jimmy's-arms but hesitate and awkwardly lean on him instead" move at the end. It was the most entertaining part of the show!
The show was good, but I haven't seen the movie since high school - so I couldn't remember story details to adequately compare the play and the movie. I had to rent it from Netflix last week to refresh my memory. I almost forgot how fun the movie is! I highly recommend it. I hate to say it, but the Starlight people seemed to have left out all the quirky parts that made the movie so delightful. (yeah, yeah!)
This place was right across the street from the theater. Sounds like my kind of establishment!
What a fun night! The perfect end to a crazy busy day. I can always count on Renee and Maria for a laughing good time!
I left Oliver at my mom's because when we took him with us to see "Kung Fu Panda" (loved it!) the week before, he kept trying to run away. He's just not ready for watching entire movies, because, well, he'd rather be moving around!
After the movie I picked Ollie up and took the kids home for lunch. We had Jane's friend Bella with us, too. Oliver's naptime was fast approaching, but I hadn't made any preparations for Jane's birthday which was the next day! Not only am I a major procrastinator, I was also sick almost the entire week leading up to then, so I'd had no desire to be out shopping for presents. So I asked Bella's mom if Jane could play at their house while I ran (well, drove) to see what I could drum up for the birthday girl. I threw some chicken and stuff in the crockpot so we'd have something for dinner when I got home. I made sure Oliver was fast asleep before I dropped Jane and Bella off. Cora was playing games on the computer, so I left her home with the doors locked and told her to call me if Oliver woke up. I don't make a habit of leaving her, but it was a birthday emergency! (Cora's going to be 9 this week and is quite mature for her age. It's all good.)
Within 2-ish hours of store-hopping I'd found the perfect gift. Then I had to take it to my mom's house to hide it. Then I carefully rushed back to get Jane and then home to start getting Cora ready for ballet. She had to be ready to go by a few minutes after 5:00. That was right when Ryan was getting home from work. He was going to take her, but I could see that he was too tired to do that, judging by the way he flopped on the couch and closed his eyes. So I got the kids their chicken and rice and started wetting Cora's hair down and brushing it into a bun (teacher's orders). Her hair is just barely long enough for a bun.
So I loaded the kids up and drove downtown to drop Cora off, with the plan that Ryan and the kids would come pick her up afterward. We turned around and came back home so I could get ready to go to Maria's. Maria, Renee and I were trying to leave her house by 6:30 so we could make the drive up to Starlight Mountain Theater in Garden Valley before the 8:00 showtime. We were so excited to see "Thoroughly Modern Millie"! We're big fans of the movie, so we couldn't pass up the chance to go see a stage interpretation of it.
We went with the "help" of Maria's GPS, which speaks Norwegian. (Maria served her mission in Norway.) We got to the ticket office with more than 20 minutes to spare. We moseyed in and claimed our tickets before climbing back in the car. The GPS said we still had a short drive to the "actual" theater. We saw some quaint little eateries that would've been fun to dine at if only we'd planned enough time to do so. We drove for a good 5-6 minutes before we started to wonder why we hadn't seen any trace of the theater. Why wasn't there a sign telling us we were heading in the right direction??? The GPS said we still had .3 miles or something. We pulled off the road to deliberate. A tour bus passed and we speculated about where they were heading. They wouldn't be going to Silver Creek Plunge, would they? They had to be headed to the theater... right? Should we follow the bus or retrace our path? We decided to rebel against the GPS. It chastised us for turning around, but time was not on our side. It was after 8:oo and we... were... confused.
About 20 minutes after 8 we came up on the street we were supposed to be on and we saw the huge Starlight Mountain Theater sign. At last! We quickly realized it was just the dang ticket office again. But where was the theater? It was then that we noticed a dirt lot full of cars off to the right- a short distance from the ticket office. Boy, did we feel silly.
We parked, but from there we couldn't see the entrance for the theater. I can only imagine how helpful a couple of arrows pointing guests in the right direction would be! We walked past some people who turned out to be cast members. One of them commented on our tardiness. The guy we'd seen 40 minutes earlier at the ticket office helped us to our seats. He may have recognized us and wondered why in the world we'd taken so long to get from the ticket office to the theater, but we didn't give any details. For all he knew, we stopped off to look at the "neat stuff" at the store down the road. (There was a building with a stenciled sign stuck in the ground out front that said "Neat Stuff". Unfortunately I think it was closed for the evening.)
It turned out that we probably didn't miss much of the show. We feared we missed the tapioca dance from the movie. We kept waiting for that part, but it never came. After the show I saw someone I knew and asked her if they had done the dance. She said it didn't sound familiar. How could they do the show without it? The nerve! On second thought, maybe they were originally rehearsing it and then quickly realized it was out of the question considering the gal they picked to play Millie. Not to be rude, but she wasn't a very strong dancer. (Renee and Maria were separately wondering if one or both of her legs were prosthetic. ) And her singing was a little... um... not very... good. I know I couldn't do any better, but it was just too bad that Julie Andrews (who played Millie in the movie) couldn't be there to take the role that can only belong to her. She's kind of a tough act to follow.
Me, Maria and Renee. Looks like Renee's having an IBS flare-up.
Real cute.
During intermission. The actors came out to sell concessions. That's some emotion-inducing popcorn! Sheesh!
Maria dreaming of getting her chance onstage.
The final scene.
I wish I'd gotten a picture of Millie's "supposed-to-jump-into-Jimmy's-arms but hesitate and awkwardly lean on him instead" move at the end. It was the most entertaining part of the show!The show was good, but I haven't seen the movie since high school - so I couldn't remember story details to adequately compare the play and the movie. I had to rent it from Netflix last week to refresh my memory. I almost forgot how fun the movie is! I highly recommend it. I hate to say it, but the Starlight people seemed to have left out all the quirky parts that made the movie so delightful. (yeah, yeah!)
This place was right across the street from the theater. Sounds like my kind of establishment!What a fun night! The perfect end to a crazy busy day. I can always count on Renee and Maria for a laughing good time!
Monday, August 2, 2010
Utah Trip: Part 2 - IKEA and Paul McCartney!
I finally have time to post the second installment of our trip to Utah! I know it's been an agonizing wait for all my blog stalkers. What can I say, I've been busy.
Tuesday morning, July 13th, we got up, got ready, helped ourselves to some continental (why is it called that?) breakfast, and headed for IKEA! Ryan had never been there, so it was a must. I think he was more impressed than he admitted to being. He especially liked the office chair selection. He noticed how well-made yet inexpensive the furniture was. He's learning. ;) We wandered through the showroom(s) and admired everything. I always enjoy the kitchen and baking section. Well, I actually love most all of it. Ryan pointed out that I go crazy about anything miniature, and said I buy things for that reason only. He's right! I love tiny things! We got Jane a cute ceramic cup and saucer set, me some cupcake dish towels, and the few random things pictured below. If I had been there with anyone else besides Ryan I might have gone a little overboard. He keeps me grounded. We'd already spent a lot of money on the trip, so we couldn't really justify buying a bunch of things we could do without. So we just got a few things. :)
Ryan picked out the cork trivet things. I hope that means he's going to be cooking!
We had some time in the afternoon to drop in and visit my friend Lynsey, whom I've known since junior high. She lives in Saratoga Springs, which was a short drive from IKEA. Lucky girl...
We chatted for a while and I got to hold her baby boy, Sorrin. So cute! She and her husband also have an adorable 3-year-old (I think!) girl, Isis. It was so fun to see them.
After that we went back to the hotel and I had a brief nap before we started getting gussied up for the main event!
We planned on leaving with plenty of time to stop and eat somewhere before arriving early to the stadium. Not surprisingly, we didn't leave ourselves quite as much time as we had anticipated, and we weren't perfectly clear on the directions to the nearest Cafe Rio, which several people had recommended to us, so we circled around the concert venue and found a place to park, then had to walk around until we found somewhere to have dinner. Thousands and thousands of other people had the same plan! Duh. Well, that was why we were hoping to eat somewhere a little further away than the rest of the concert goers, but it just didn't work out that way. We walked a few blocks and, running out of time, we settled on Crown Burger, one of Lynsey's suggestions. The line was out the door. I didn't keep track of how long it took us to order and get our food, but it was worth the wait. Their signature Crown Burgers come dressed with a nice helping of pastrami. That's what we both got, and shared some fries. The food was yummy and came to us piping hot! My only regret is we didn't get a milkshake. Once we were out of the line, there was no returning.
The concert was supposed to start at 7:30 (that's what the tickets said), and we got to our seats right around 7:00. I wanted to get there earlier, but it turned out I had my undies in a bunch for no reason. The show didn't begin until about 8:00.
It was fun watching all the people filing in. Kids, teenagers, adults, old folks. What a beautiful sight. All the generations of fans coming together for this rare opportunity. Not only was it Paul's first time in Utah, he noted that it was also his band's 200th gig together.
Waiting for the concert to start!
Huge screens on either side of the stage. So grateful for those. Without them, from where we were sitting, Paul looked like just a tiny beetle on stage. :)
More pre-show graphics. I was getting excited!
Paul!!!!!
He was such a fun entertainer! So energetic and seemed so happy to be there. He was making jokes, doing silly jigs between songs, and acting cute in general.
He started out wearing a suit jacket, but shed it after the first couple of songs due to the heat. He specified it would be the only thing he'd be removing during the show. As an afterthought, he added, "but we ARE in Utah, who knows what could happen as the evening wears on." :)
After numerous guitar changes he said they just do that to show off. :)
Hitting the high note of "Yesterday".
He and his band played over 20 Beatles classics! Yes, I'm going to list them.
Drive My Car
Day Tripper
All My Loving
Yesterday
Lady Madonna
Helter Skelter
Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da
Eleanor Rigby
Paperback Writer
Something
The Long and Winding Road
I've Got a Feeling
Blackbird
Get Back
A Day in the Life
Back in the USSR
And I Love Her
I've Just Seen a Face
Let It Be
Hey Jude
Sgt. Pepper (reprise)
I screamed a lot.
It was the perfect weather once the sun went down. There was a cool breeze blowing through my hair, adding a nice touch to the surreal experience.
They did a bunch of Paul's post-Beatles songs as well, including Band on the Run, My Love, Jet, Let 'Em In, and Live and Let Die. The memory card on our camera was full by the end, so I was frantically trying to sift through pics and delete lame ones, making more room to adequately capture the concert of a lifetime!
Live and Let Die was awesome! A real crowd-pleaser. During each chorus they went crazy with the pyrotechnics and set off tons of gold fireworks from behind the stage. I decided to relish the moment without trying to fumble around with the camera at the same time. Just take my word for it. It was pretty darn neat!
He sang Give Peace A Chance as part of a tribute to John.
He played for 3 solid hours, including two encores. And he didn't leave it at one number each time he came back. He did a couple songs per encore. He just kept singing, and dancing, and playing! (Becky, keep your snide remarks to yourself; nobody wanted him to stop! Not even you.)
Our last glimpse of Paul. He was worth every penny of our $150-ish (each) tickets. I would have paid more if it were "my" money. :)
But close to the stage or not, I was SO happy to get to go! I wish I could have taken all my Beatle-loving friends. But alas...
I'm so glad Ryan made it possible for us to go. It was the best anniversary present I could have asked for. It's nice to know that a little of my Paul appreciation has rubbed off on him. He loved the concert, too!
My t-shirt's front. They had many design options. I chose the one that best represented the concert. I wonder if he wears the same outfit for every show.
Tuesday morning, July 13th, we got up, got ready, helped ourselves to some continental (why is it called that?) breakfast, and headed for IKEA! Ryan had never been there, so it was a must. I think he was more impressed than he admitted to being. He especially liked the office chair selection. He noticed how well-made yet inexpensive the furniture was. He's learning. ;) We wandered through the showroom(s) and admired everything. I always enjoy the kitchen and baking section. Well, I actually love most all of it. Ryan pointed out that I go crazy about anything miniature, and said I buy things for that reason only. He's right! I love tiny things! We got Jane a cute ceramic cup and saucer set, me some cupcake dish towels, and the few random things pictured below. If I had been there with anyone else besides Ryan I might have gone a little overboard. He keeps me grounded. We'd already spent a lot of money on the trip, so we couldn't really justify buying a bunch of things we could do without. So we just got a few things. :)
Ryan picked out the cork trivet things. I hope that means he's going to be cooking!We had some time in the afternoon to drop in and visit my friend Lynsey, whom I've known since junior high. She lives in Saratoga Springs, which was a short drive from IKEA. Lucky girl...
We chatted for a while and I got to hold her baby boy, Sorrin. So cute! She and her husband also have an adorable 3-year-old (I think!) girl, Isis. It was so fun to see them.
After that we went back to the hotel and I had a brief nap before we started getting gussied up for the main event!
We planned on leaving with plenty of time to stop and eat somewhere before arriving early to the stadium. Not surprisingly, we didn't leave ourselves quite as much time as we had anticipated, and we weren't perfectly clear on the directions to the nearest Cafe Rio, which several people had recommended to us, so we circled around the concert venue and found a place to park, then had to walk around until we found somewhere to have dinner. Thousands and thousands of other people had the same plan! Duh. Well, that was why we were hoping to eat somewhere a little further away than the rest of the concert goers, but it just didn't work out that way. We walked a few blocks and, running out of time, we settled on Crown Burger, one of Lynsey's suggestions. The line was out the door. I didn't keep track of how long it took us to order and get our food, but it was worth the wait. Their signature Crown Burgers come dressed with a nice helping of pastrami. That's what we both got, and shared some fries. The food was yummy and came to us piping hot! My only regret is we didn't get a milkshake. Once we were out of the line, there was no returning.
The concert was supposed to start at 7:30 (that's what the tickets said), and we got to our seats right around 7:00. I wanted to get there earlier, but it turned out I had my undies in a bunch for no reason. The show didn't begin until about 8:00.
It was fun watching all the people filing in. Kids, teenagers, adults, old folks. What a beautiful sight. All the generations of fans coming together for this rare opportunity. Not only was it Paul's first time in Utah, he noted that it was also his band's 200th gig together.
Waiting for the concert to start!
Huge screens on either side of the stage. So grateful for those. Without them, from where we were sitting, Paul looked like just a tiny beetle on stage. :)
More pre-show graphics. I was getting excited!
Paul!!!!!
He was such a fun entertainer! So energetic and seemed so happy to be there. He was making jokes, doing silly jigs between songs, and acting cute in general.
He started out wearing a suit jacket, but shed it after the first couple of songs due to the heat. He specified it would be the only thing he'd be removing during the show. As an afterthought, he added, "but we ARE in Utah, who knows what could happen as the evening wears on." :)
After numerous guitar changes he said they just do that to show off. :)
Hitting the high note of "Yesterday".
He and his band played over 20 Beatles classics! Yes, I'm going to list them.Drive My Car
Day Tripper
All My Loving
Yesterday
Lady Madonna
Helter Skelter
Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da
Eleanor Rigby
Paperback Writer
Something
The Long and Winding Road
I've Got a Feeling
Blackbird
Get Back
A Day in the Life
Back in the USSR
And I Love Her
I've Just Seen a Face
Let It Be
Hey Jude
Sgt. Pepper (reprise)
I screamed a lot.It was the perfect weather once the sun went down. There was a cool breeze blowing through my hair, adding a nice touch to the surreal experience.
They did a bunch of Paul's post-Beatles songs as well, including Band on the Run, My Love, Jet, Let 'Em In, and Live and Let Die. The memory card on our camera was full by the end, so I was frantically trying to sift through pics and delete lame ones, making more room to adequately capture the concert of a lifetime!Live and Let Die was awesome! A real crowd-pleaser. During each chorus they went crazy with the pyrotechnics and set off tons of gold fireworks from behind the stage. I decided to relish the moment without trying to fumble around with the camera at the same time. Just take my word for it. It was pretty darn neat!
He sang Give Peace A Chance as part of a tribute to John.
He played for 3 solid hours, including two encores. And he didn't leave it at one number each time he came back. He did a couple songs per encore. He just kept singing, and dancing, and playing! (Becky, keep your snide remarks to yourself; nobody wanted him to stop! Not even you.)
Our last glimpse of Paul. He was worth every penny of our $150-ish (each) tickets. I would have paid more if it were "my" money. :)But close to the stage or not, I was SO happy to get to go! I wish I could have taken all my Beatle-loving friends. But alas...
I'm so glad Ryan made it possible for us to go. It was the best anniversary present I could have asked for. It's nice to know that a little of my Paul appreciation has rubbed off on him. He loved the concert, too!
My t-shirt's front. They had many design options. I chose the one that best represented the concert. I wonder if he wears the same outfit for every show.
Monday, July 19, 2010
Utah Trip: Part 1- Preface and Lagoon
I never would have guessed that Ryan and I would choose to recognize our 10th wedding anniversary by going on a trip to Utah. Well, actually, three words made that decision for us: Paul. McCartney. Concert!!!
One otherwise ordinary day in June, I was sitting in the same room with Ryan. He was minding his own business. I was scrolling through the day's triumphs, failures and random nothings on my Facebook newsfeed, when suddenly I happened upon one of the most glorious announcements I'd ever read. Paul McCartney was set to go on tour and would be making a stop in Salt Lake!!! I took the news well. My heart started beating out of my chest at the idea of seeing him live. I couldn't believe my dream was finally in reach. I immediately checked ticket availability and prices. My heart sank a little to see how jacked the prices were for good seats. The first couple of sections on the floor had a lovely $400-$1000 damage. Not exactly in our price range. But I knew I had to go, even if it was in the "cheap" seats. One way or another, I was going to see Paul!
Previously, Ryan had not been a fan of Beatles music. He thought it was too noisy and he didn't understand the appeal of it. So with that in mind, I surmised he wouldn't really care to go to the concert, especially since the tickets were not cheap. When I wondered aloud who I should go to the concert with, he was not thrilled with the fact that I hadn't considered that he might want to go. Yes, he is my husband. That alone should make me think of him first when choosing a concert buddy, but then again, he isn't exactly a Beatlemaniac. I have to admit that, initially, the idea of him going to the Paul McCartney concert was comparable in my mind to giving the good chocolate to kids who don't appreciate the difference. I thought such an event should be reserved for dedicated, die-hard fans. I thought it would be fun to take my mom, seeing as she has loved Paul since she was a tween. I could think of other people, including my sisters and at least one friend, who would have been much more excited about going with me than I thought Ryan would be. It didn't seem fair to leave them behind. But to Ryan, it didn't seem fair of me to leave him behind! So it was settled: Ryan was taking me to the concert.
Before I heard about the concert, Ryan had been planning something different for our anniversary. To this day, he refuses to tell me what he had in the works. I guess he was afraid his idea would pale in comparison with my choice of activities. ;) So it was decided that we would head to Utah for a couple of days, just us. We thought it would be fun to also go to Lagoon while we were in the area. The last time we went anywhere out of town by ourselves, without kids, was before we even had kids! I was largely expecting Cora then. That was over 9 years ago! Wow. No overnight getaways or anything for us since then. I guess we kind of earned the right to this trip.
Late afternoon on Sunday, July 11th, we hit the road. I drove while Ryan attempted to study for his upcoming test. And of course we listened to some Paul CDs. From the time we purchased the concert tickets, Ryan had been using YouTube to familiarize himself with anything Paul McCartney. I think he is coming to realize what musical geniuses the Beatles were. :)
We got into Sandy about 10:00 and checked into our hotel, which was within a couple miles of the stadium where the concert would be. We got settled in and naturally got sucked into the abyss that is cable TV. We don't have cable. We watched bits of this and that before settling on Cupcake Wars. The next morning we made the half-hour drive to Lagoon! So exciting!
We got there right when it opened. We planned to go on as many back to back rides as we could, all day until closing time! It was quite a warm day, and it seemed like the more water I drank, the thirstier I became.
The lines for rides were nice and short for the first half of the day. By the time we were on our 10th ride, I started to feel a little ill. We had never been able to run free like that at Lagoon without big breaks between rides. I had never felt yucky after going on any one ride, aside from maybe a headache, but it turns out that if I go on 10 rides in under 2 hours, I start to feel like I might be sick. So we decided to take more breaks than I had originally anticipated needing. :)
It was fun to sit and watch all kinds of people go by. I was paying special attention to everyone's shorts. I hate all my shorts. I think they look too frumpy and stupid (Ryan agrees) , but I can't find any cute ones. I have this bad habit of trying things on and settling for them even when they don't look good. Somehow I think they will look better on me when I get them home. And maybe they do look okay for the first wearing. But then they lose their shape and I end up looking like a dummy. Not the look I am going for...
We talked about how seemingly impossible it is to keep from making hasty assessments on everyone who passes by. I found myself observing something about everyone I laid my eyes on (I always do) , thinking things like "she's so pretty", or "Oh, that outfit does not look good". Whether positive or negative, it's an automatic reflex, at least it is for us. Maybe we're just jerks. Except for the kind impressions we have of people. It would be interesting to listen in on other people's minds as they watch passersby. On that note, I wonder how many Lagoon patrons thought to themselves how stupid my capris looked.
(There's a reason I nearly named my blog "Ramblin' Shan". . .)
This was our view from the Sky Ride that takes humans across the length of the park.
An astounding aerial view of one picturesque flower bed. And to think I didn't even have to tell Ryan to take a picture of it. When I was about to take one myself, he said he already got a shot. I guess he knows by now how much I like flowers.
Still on the Sky Ride.
Since we needed a break from the rides, we actually took the time to meander through Pioneer Village. I've always enjoyed looking at old-timey cabins and collections of stuff.
We liked the train museum. I'm sure we would have been in trouble if Oliver had been along with us. I can just imagine him clawing at the glass and begging to play with the trains.
Then we stumbled into the telephone museum. It was cool. I thought of what a great gag it would be to clip one of those huge wooden phones to my belt loop like it was a cell phone.
Someone ripped the receiver off this phone. How maddening!
As 5:00 approached, we strolled over to the indoor (cement floor with metal bleachers) theater for a special limited show by Cirque Innosta, called L'ORAGE. It was awesome! They had an impressive-looking stage set, and some crazy-talented performers. It was 40 minutes of fascinating fun! And of course it was included in the admission price.
This light fixture was so pretty. There were two of them, one on each side of the stage. The next morning we figured out where they bought them -- IKEA, of all places. Just another reason to look back on the show approvingly.
I really liked these girls' costumes. Those purple wigs were far out!
Tight rope walker.
Hangin' on the hoop. I think I could do that, no problemo.
This guy should be dead the way he gambles his life with every nail-biting move he makes. He is balancing on stacked metal cylinders, with every other one turned on its side so they would carefully roll back and forth. I was sure he was going to biff it. Somehow he didn't!
Another recipe for disaster.
After the show, we went on more hair-raising rides. By about 9:30 we had reached our goal of 25 total rides. I think our overall favorites were Rocket Re-Entry, Colossus, and the old stand by, Tilt-a-Whirl. It was a fun day, but we were all tuckered out.
To be continued...
One otherwise ordinary day in June, I was sitting in the same room with Ryan. He was minding his own business. I was scrolling through the day's triumphs, failures and random nothings on my Facebook newsfeed, when suddenly I happened upon one of the most glorious announcements I'd ever read. Paul McCartney was set to go on tour and would be making a stop in Salt Lake!!! I took the news well. My heart started beating out of my chest at the idea of seeing him live. I couldn't believe my dream was finally in reach. I immediately checked ticket availability and prices. My heart sank a little to see how jacked the prices were for good seats. The first couple of sections on the floor had a lovely $400-$1000 damage. Not exactly in our price range. But I knew I had to go, even if it was in the "cheap" seats. One way or another, I was going to see Paul!
Previously, Ryan had not been a fan of Beatles music. He thought it was too noisy and he didn't understand the appeal of it. So with that in mind, I surmised he wouldn't really care to go to the concert, especially since the tickets were not cheap. When I wondered aloud who I should go to the concert with, he was not thrilled with the fact that I hadn't considered that he might want to go. Yes, he is my husband. That alone should make me think of him first when choosing a concert buddy, but then again, he isn't exactly a Beatlemaniac. I have to admit that, initially, the idea of him going to the Paul McCartney concert was comparable in my mind to giving the good chocolate to kids who don't appreciate the difference. I thought such an event should be reserved for dedicated, die-hard fans. I thought it would be fun to take my mom, seeing as she has loved Paul since she was a tween. I could think of other people, including my sisters and at least one friend, who would have been much more excited about going with me than I thought Ryan would be. It didn't seem fair to leave them behind. But to Ryan, it didn't seem fair of me to leave him behind! So it was settled: Ryan was taking me to the concert.
Before I heard about the concert, Ryan had been planning something different for our anniversary. To this day, he refuses to tell me what he had in the works. I guess he was afraid his idea would pale in comparison with my choice of activities. ;) So it was decided that we would head to Utah for a couple of days, just us. We thought it would be fun to also go to Lagoon while we were in the area. The last time we went anywhere out of town by ourselves, without kids, was before we even had kids! I was largely expecting Cora then. That was over 9 years ago! Wow. No overnight getaways or anything for us since then. I guess we kind of earned the right to this trip.
Late afternoon on Sunday, July 11th, we hit the road. I drove while Ryan attempted to study for his upcoming test. And of course we listened to some Paul CDs. From the time we purchased the concert tickets, Ryan had been using YouTube to familiarize himself with anything Paul McCartney. I think he is coming to realize what musical geniuses the Beatles were. :)
We got into Sandy about 10:00 and checked into our hotel, which was within a couple miles of the stadium where the concert would be. We got settled in and naturally got sucked into the abyss that is cable TV. We don't have cable. We watched bits of this and that before settling on Cupcake Wars. The next morning we made the half-hour drive to Lagoon! So exciting!
We got there right when it opened. We planned to go on as many back to back rides as we could, all day until closing time! It was quite a warm day, and it seemed like the more water I drank, the thirstier I became.
The lines for rides were nice and short for the first half of the day. By the time we were on our 10th ride, I started to feel a little ill. We had never been able to run free like that at Lagoon without big breaks between rides. I had never felt yucky after going on any one ride, aside from maybe a headache, but it turns out that if I go on 10 rides in under 2 hours, I start to feel like I might be sick. So we decided to take more breaks than I had originally anticipated needing. :)
It was fun to sit and watch all kinds of people go by. I was paying special attention to everyone's shorts. I hate all my shorts. I think they look too frumpy and stupid (Ryan agrees) , but I can't find any cute ones. I have this bad habit of trying things on and settling for them even when they don't look good. Somehow I think they will look better on me when I get them home. And maybe they do look okay for the first wearing. But then they lose their shape and I end up looking like a dummy. Not the look I am going for...
We talked about how seemingly impossible it is to keep from making hasty assessments on everyone who passes by. I found myself observing something about everyone I laid my eyes on (I always do) , thinking things like "she's so pretty", or "Oh, that outfit does not look good". Whether positive or negative, it's an automatic reflex, at least it is for us. Maybe we're just jerks. Except for the kind impressions we have of people. It would be interesting to listen in on other people's minds as they watch passersby. On that note, I wonder how many Lagoon patrons thought to themselves how stupid my capris looked.
(There's a reason I nearly named my blog "Ramblin' Shan". . .)
This was our view from the Sky Ride that takes humans across the length of the park.
An astounding aerial view of one picturesque flower bed. And to think I didn't even have to tell Ryan to take a picture of it. When I was about to take one myself, he said he already got a shot. I guess he knows by now how much I like flowers.
Still on the Sky Ride.
Since we needed a break from the rides, we actually took the time to meander through Pioneer Village. I've always enjoyed looking at old-timey cabins and collections of stuff.
We liked the train museum. I'm sure we would have been in trouble if Oliver had been along with us. I can just imagine him clawing at the glass and begging to play with the trains.
Then we stumbled into the telephone museum. It was cool. I thought of what a great gag it would be to clip one of those huge wooden phones to my belt loop like it was a cell phone.
Someone ripped the receiver off this phone. How maddening!
As 5:00 approached, we strolled over to the indoor (cement floor with metal bleachers) theater for a special limited show by Cirque Innosta, called L'ORAGE. It was awesome! They had an impressive-looking stage set, and some crazy-talented performers. It was 40 minutes of fascinating fun! And of course it was included in the admission price.
This light fixture was so pretty. There were two of them, one on each side of the stage. The next morning we figured out where they bought them -- IKEA, of all places. Just another reason to look back on the show approvingly.
I really liked these girls' costumes. Those purple wigs were far out!
Tight rope walker.
Hangin' on the hoop. I think I could do that, no problemo.
This guy should be dead the way he gambles his life with every nail-biting move he makes. He is balancing on stacked metal cylinders, with every other one turned on its side so they would carefully roll back and forth. I was sure he was going to biff it. Somehow he didn't!
Another recipe for disaster.After the show, we went on more hair-raising rides. By about 9:30 we had reached our goal of 25 total rides. I think our overall favorites were Rocket Re-Entry, Colossus, and the old stand by, Tilt-a-Whirl. It was a fun day, but we were all tuckered out.
To be continued...
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