Two Travelers

Friday night I had the opportunity to travel to Logan to Thirteen-Eight Productions recording studio and record vocals for the title track of the independent short film Two Travelers. The song's lyrics were written by Dave Morgan and the music was composed by Adam Ward. (Adam is my best friend Kristine's husband.) In addition to composing the song, Adam also performed the piano accompaniment and the male vocals of the duet. When he asked if I would record the duet with him, I was thrilled. I've been hired to record music three or four times before - once before in a recording studio - but it has been a while. I was a little nervous, but I was able relax more as the night went on, and I think it went well. I loved singing, I appreciated getting feedback from everyone to help achieve the desired sound, and I loved watching John, the studio owner, work his magic on the computer to help us create a polished product. The hope is that the film will be accepted into independent film festivals, such as Sundance. I hope it does well. I know the director and his father (Dave) have worked hard on this project. I was so pleased to be asked to participate. If you would like to hear the song, I believe Adam will be posing it on his website soon, so feel free to check it out.

Geek Conference

I tracked-off a day early and got a sub to cover my class a week ago Friday so I could attend the annual UCET (Utah Coalition for Educational Technology) conference. I had a great time, even though I didn't win any prizes. :) I enjoyed being with my friends from Grad School. I enjoyed the classes. I enjoyed meeting new people and seeing old friends. I enjoyed learning about new technology for the classroom. I enjoyed wandering through the vendors and getting free pencils. (Rossi, I KNOW I got more than you did! You should see the pile of Apple pencils I got!) And I enjoyed the keynote speaker. It was great!

The keynote speaker was David Pogue. He spoke all about the world of Web 2.0. He was hilarious! At the end of his presentation he sang a couple songs about technology. (He changes the lyrics to well-known songs.) One of them was to the tune of "I Did it My Way", only his version was all about the iPhone.


About half way through his song, members of the audience who had iPhones pulled them out and held them up, swaying to the beat of the song. (You know, like lighters were used in the olden days. :) We all started cracking up. Then, with a thrill, I realized I HAVE AN iPHONE! I grabbed my new iPhone out of my bag, and joined the crowd! David Pogue finally became aware of what was going on and had to stop playing to laugh at us too. Very funny. A video of his presentation will be available online soon. (Here is the link to it.) But, for now you can view the music video of his iPhone song on YouTube.

I attended a lot of other great classes and visited plenty of cool vendors at the conference too. When I do my conference write-up for my grad school class, I will post it on my EDPS 6446 blog. You can read all about my great geek conference there. Enjoy!

You Move Me

I want someone to love me enough that they will move. No, not move to another place. Move. Move forward. No, not change. Move. I want someone who will love me enough to do what it takes to be with me. No, not play "games" and pass "tests". Just move. I'll be willing to do the same.

I have a habit of finding songs that match and describe my life, my emotions, and my hopes. Two songs come to mind with this train of thought: "You Move Me" by Garth Brooks and "For the Love of a Woman" by Tyler Castleton and Staci Peters (performed by various LDS artists). The lyrics of songs are not always a perfect match to what I feel, but these come pretty close. I will post the lyrics and add the songs to my play list at the bottom of my blog if I'm able to.

You Move Me
This is how it seems to me
Life is only therapy
Real expensive and no guarantees

So I lie here on the couch
With my heart hanging out
Frozen solid with fear,
Like a rock in the ground

Whoa, but you move me
You give me courage I didn't know I had
You move me
Now I can't go with you and stay where I am
So you move me

This is how love was to me
I could look and not see
Going through the emotions,
Not knowing what they mean
And it scared me so much
That I just wouldn't budge
I might have stayed there forever
If not for your touch

Whoa, but you move me
Out of myself and into the fire
You move me
Now I'm burning with love and with hope and desire
How you move me

You go whistlin' in the dark
Making light of it, making light of it
And I follow with my heart, laughing all the way

Whoa cause you move me
You give me dancing and you make me sing
You move me
Now I'm taking delight in every little thing
How you move me
Whoa you move me
Whoa you move me
Whoa you move me
Whoa

For the Love of a Woman
For the love of a woman a man unlocks his heart
And reveals all the secrets it holds
And the love of a woman will find his better part
When he gives her the key to his soul

He will listen to her dreams
He will ask her what she needs
He will help her build the life she wants to live
He will hold her when she cries
With a love that never dies
All these things he will give
For the love of a woman

For the love of a woman a man will sacrifice
While he waits for a moment of grace
With the love of a woman a man will pay the price
For the trust that he sees in her face

He will open any door
Leave the life he knew before
To convince her that he's all she'll ever need
And when he's afraid to start
He will step into the dark
'Cause he knows she'll give his eyes the power to see
With the love of a woman

And her promises to help her dreams come true
No there's nothing in this world that he won't do

Though he's not a work of art
He will try with all his heart
To become the man she knows that he can be
With the love of a woman
The love of a woman
He will give his life
For the love of a woman

Letter to Nicaragua

I wrote this letter to Emery in Nicaragua to update her on the happenings here, so I will include it (edited for content, of course) to update all of you as well.

Hi! So I miss you. I realized yesterday that I talk to myself a lot when you're not here... out loud... I'm actually quite witty.

So much happens when you go away, so I'll fill you in on some important things while I still remember them. And, if you prompt me when you get back I will elaborate.

Oh, and I know I'm totally butchering the spelling of every name and a lot of words in this email, but I'm too tired to worry about it. Forgive me? Please? Thanks.

Today in the "good news minute" (which I walked in late for - long story - I'll tell you about that later in this email), Krista announced her engagement to that guy! What's his name? Hold on, I'll text Brian...

Waiting...

Waiting...

Waiting...

Steven.

Also, Tami announced her engagement to Jimmy during her talk today! (That sounds funny, but it wasn't strange of her to say. It fit in her talk.) Crazy!

Tami told me I looked HOT today. I love that girl.

Ben was called as the assistant mission leader, Jessica was called as assistant librarian. Heidi was called as the ward women's sports leader, and Lee was called as the men's.

Nataley, Tami, and Teona spoke in sacrament meeting about self mastery and bridling your passions.

I met with the bishopric about my many callings. We're all very sad that I won't be able to continue with everything I've been doing because of my new calling as Stake Women's Sports Director. I think I'm going to remain the webmaster, but be released from calendar, public relations chair, and gospel doctrine. I think I will be the official unofficial gospel doctrine substitute. Bishop, Marlin, and Aaron were very nice and complimentary to me. This stake calling will be good. By the way, do you want to play basketball on Saturday mornings? :)

Ok, so why I was late despite getting up at 7:30:
I must admit, I agree with Tami that I looked rather cute today. :) I had on my black, short GAP dress and tall boots (ok, YOUR tall boots...). Today was ward dinner, and I made pork and sour kraut. I was on the way out the door and managed to tip the tray with the food just enough that a line of pickled cabbage juice went onto my dress right across my boobs. Yuck. What could I do? I was determined to not have to change my entire outfit, so I dabbed off the sour kraut juice, ran upstairs, and got the Febreeze bottle. I sprayed myself with the Fabreeze and ran back downstairs. So, now my bust line smelled minty fresh with just a hint of stewed pork and sour kraut. But hey, I was only a few minutes late and I looked GOOD. ;)

Friday:
Dennis and I went to Kristine and Adam's music party. I had a very fun time. I had a LOT of fun! I have a cough, so my voice was quickly dying, but I managed to sing quite a few songs. They demanded Adam and I sing "The Prayer". It was not so good. My voice was too gone. I made them promise to request it next time so I can redeem myself. Adam defended me, and so did his mom, saying that I really was sick. I sang a song with Maurine, Adam's mom, accompanying me. I sang a couple songs with Keith. And I sang "Home" from Beauty and the Beast, "Whistle Down the Wind", and "Don't Cry for Me Argentina" with Dennis accompanying me. Dennis played very well. Several of the other ladies asked him to play for them too. He is better than I realized, and I found out he has only ever taken a year of piano lessons - and they were Suzuki lessons! So, he basically taught himself. Cool.

Well, have you had enough? Ok. Stop reading email and go play a game with your family and then take a bubble bath not with your family. See you on Tuesday. If anything great happens between now and then, I'll let you know.

Happy New Year!

Over the last few days, each time I was asked what I wanted to do on New Year's Eve my reply was, "Kiss!" And what do you know, I did get my New Year's kiss! Ok, so it was on the cheek, but it was from a guy I had just met. That's enough adventure and romance to last me till, you know... whenever.

Thanks to Andrea, Emery and I went to a fun party for "mid singles". A lot of the people there know each other from LDSLinkup, so it was a little odd to hear people saying things like, "Hey aren't you CampfireBug? I looked at your profile today." Nevertheless, there were quite a few nice people. The house was packed, actually, and I was reminded how many singles there are that are my age. Some of them are single for obvious reasons, some for not so obvious reasons, and some for no particular reason at all. Is it comforting to know there are so many? Or is it more depressing? Not quite sure.

Karaoke was going on down stairs at the party, so that's where Emery and I headed. We sang "Goodbye Earl" by the Dixie Chicks. It was fun, and many people complimented us. One guy, who said we were great singers, looked so familiar to me that I finally asked his name. Brian, as it turns out, is my friend Sarah's brother! I know Sarah from my hometown. She moved into my church ward toward the end of high school. He gave me her number so I could call her and catch up. Fun!

The Karaoke room was so full of people that everyone had to get cozy. I managed to snag a chair (good thing because my back was ready to die!) but there wasn't much leg room. I didn't mind, however, because the lack of leg room meant that Andrea's friend Mark, whom she met in law school, had to rest his arms on my legs and eventually squeeze in next to me on the chair. Mark and I became very close friends very quickly as a result. We're tight now. He is the one from whom I got my kiss. :)

Well, happy New Year, every one. I hope 2008 brings wonderful things to your lives. May all your wildest dreams come true!

Stormy Weather

I am sitting on a blue couch wearing all blue. A blue shirt, a blue sweatshirt, blue sweats, and blue slippers. Outside a blue-colored storm is brewing. It's been windy and clear and wonderful all day, but about 20 minutes ago the clouds rolled in, the sky turned dark, and little pieces of hail started falling from the sky. (Little pieces of hail, as opposed to little pieces of heaven. :) Now, the thunder has started to roll and it's getting exciting. I would like to snuggle up next to the fire for the night, but I cannot. I have things to do, I have a music rehearsal to go to in two hours, and the gas for the fireplace is too expensive. But, I will still enjoy the evening.

I saw Mayor and Sister Gray at the mall today in Bath and Body Works. I went there to run errands with Emery. It's just so crowded! I think I'm done with any shopping until January.

Today I cooked chicken, wrote a couple emails, and took out the trash. Technically, Emery took out the trash. She loaded it in the back of my car so we could drive it all over to the dumpster. (We have a habit of letting bags pile up in the garage. Don't tell anyone - so embarrassing!)
Unfortunately, we both forgot in the one minute it took us to get in the car that there was garbage in the back of the car, and we drove off to the mall. Yuck! It was in there for something like two hours! Yuck! But, it's in the dumpster now.

Well, time to get back to work. I've got videos to edit, gifts to wrap, cookies to make, and a song to rehearse!

Tis the Season

Friday night was Emery's mom's annual gingerbread house party. Emery and I drove with our new friend Dennis to eat soup, listen to entertaining conversations, and build this year's gingerbread creations. Emery made a city skyline, Dennis made a rest stop, and I made something that Dennis decided was reminiscent of the Globe Theatre. As always, the party was great fun.

Saturday night Emery, Kristine, and I boarded Trax to travel down town for the Mormon Tabernacle Choir Christmas concert with the King's Singers. Thanks to Kristine (and her husband Adam who sings in the choir) I was able to see the wonderful concert. We had a great time, despite the strange girls who decided to provide a spiritual experience for all the southbound train passengers by singing Christmas songs the whole way home. As Kristine said, they completely wiped out our lingering thoughts of the beautiful music we had just heard. Sigh... :)

Dennis and another new friend, Andrew, came over and played a game called True Colors with Emery and me tonight. After that game session, Jerry and Sherry came over to play Probe (a word game) with us. We actually ended up talking with Jerry and Sherry for hours, but managed to fit in a fun round of Probe too. I was also able to find an accompanist for the song Andy and I will be singing at church next Sunday and scheduled rehearsals in the midst of all our fun visits. It was hard to find someone to play who didn't already have a million other songs and musical numbers they were committed to, but I think I've found a good pianist.

Christmas is coming! Are you ready? I thought I was, but now that I realize I have little time left, I'm not so sure. I am excited to be singing on Sunday and then traveling to Mom's house for the holiday.

Back to the Snow

Thursday I got the bad news that a good friend of mine passed away. Saturday I flew to San Diego to be with my friend's family and our other friends. It was a weekend filled with every emotion, interesting experiences, and great opportunities for reconnecting, reminiscing, laughing, crying, and hugging. I was so glad to be able to spend that time with friends.

I love my friend Kristine. I love my friend Ché and his new girlfriend, Stephanie. I love my mom. I love the Foster family. I love my friend Emery and the fact that she welcomed me home and let me talk for hours on Tuesday. I love all my family and friends. (I'm so full of love!) And I miss my friend Darin. It had been a while since I had last seen him, and now it will be a long time until I see him again. It was very calming to talk with people about where he is now and what he may be doing. I would not trade the nights we had this weekend to remember Darin and laugh and smile.

I was asked by Darin's mom to sing at his funeral on Monday. I was so grateful for the opportunity. I sang "Where Can I Turn for Peace?" The song was requested by Darin's brother, Devin, and it was the perfect choice. Where can we turn for peace in hard times? The Savior is the only one who truly understands all our sorrows and is always there to help make our burdens light. Devin hugged me several times and let me know how much he appreciated my singing. The look in his eyes told me we both know how true the message of the song is.

It's Been Too Long

I'm back in the blogging game! Things have been so busy with work, school, church, and of course my thriving social life ;) that I haven't had time to update my blog. But, I am off-track now, so I'll have a little bit more time to do some things I want to do - between homework and study groups, that is. So much has been going on, I hardly know where to start...

Emery and I have been singing up a storm again. Saturday we sang at our LDS Stake Conference. We performed "I Will Stand as a Witness of Christ" by Sally DeFord. It went very well, and we loved the opportunity to sing, as we always do. Elder Cecil O. Samuelson - member of the 1st Quorum of the 70 and president of BYU - presided over the meeting.

We were blessed to have our dear friend Clara Neu accompany us again due to her recent foot surgery that has prevented her from leaving to serve a church service mission in London, England with her husband. I suppose it is very selfish of me to say her breaking her foot in two places was a blessing, but I admit I was thrilled when I learned she would be here just a bit longer. She will be missed when she leaves in a couple of weeks.

We met some new friends on Saturday night at Stake Conference: Kristin, Andrew, and Dennis. They came over last night to watch the LDS First Presidency Christmas Devotional with us. We cooked s'mores and hot chocolate. Yay! Emery and I love new friends!

Friday night, Emery and I had the unique opportunity to be fairy godmothers at our friend Shae's wedding reception. Yes, Shae had a princess themed wedding. Yes, we did dress up as fairy godmothers - blue prom dresses, pink feather boas, glittering wings, crowns, wands, glitter everywhere, the works. (I'll have to post a picture when I get one.) We sang the song "Impossible! It's Possible!" from Rodgers and Hammerstein's "Cinderella". Later in the evening I sang "A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes" from Disney's "Cinderella" as she and her husband, Dave, danced. At one point in the night, Shae sang a solo which was followed by an elaborate, very fun dance performance by Shae, Dave, their siblings, and friends. It was actually a very entertaining evening. Shae did a great job putting together the program. We had a good time, despite the fact that everyone was staring at us (and yet, avoiding eye contact).

Saturday, Emery and I also babysat three of my nieces - Kersee, Mandie, and Heidi - while my sister Erin and her husband attended a convention for the business they are involved with. It was fun to spend time with the girls. They are very cute. Kersee is so smart - she wrote a story about the snow storm we were having, how her mom's car got stuck in the snow, the four men who helped push the car, and her mom yelling "¡Gracias!" out the car window. Mandie is a crack up. She managed to only fall off the chairs she was sitting on twice. (No permanent damage, Erin, don't worry.) Heidi loved seeing the snow falling out the window, and I loved hearing her babbling attempts to tell me all about it. By the way, the snow storm was fantastic! I don't know if I've ever seen the Salt Lake Valley look so incredibly beautiful!

Friday was my last day teaching for a whole month. My class and I went off track. We had a little holiday concert after lunch at which I sang "Jingle Bells?" (as performed by Barbara Streisand). The kids and my teammate Mrs. Simmons demanded an encore. It was a good time.

Oh ya - Thursday night I rushed down the hill from class to watch Kristine perform in her graduate student concert! She was great - the culmination of so many years of dancing. She is almost done with her master's degree in modern dance - just her thesis to go.

This is my last week of classes for the semester. I have one final next week as well, then I'm off for a couple of weeks from both work and school. Grad school is going well, but it is definitely keeping my busy. I don't know how some people get through all the readings assigned. But, I'm doing my best. I have a couple of projects, some online discussions, and my Instructional Design blog to work on this week, so I actually better get to work.

I will update again as soon as I am able! Until then, I hope everyone is enjoying the Christmas season!

P.S. I tried to add some links to topics mentioned in my blog in case some of you don't know what I'm talking about or would like more information. I'll try to do this frequently in my blog from now on, so keep an eye out for that.

"Alas for those who never sing,...

But die with all their music in them!"
~Oliver Wendell Holmes

Kristine and Adam had one of their fabulous music parties on Friday night. Emery, Brian, Derrick, and I all went to join in the fun. I had a great time singing! I sang several Carole King songs with my new guitar-playing friend, Doug. He mentioned that we ought to do so a couple of parties back, and we finally had the chance to practice a bit for this party. Together we performed "It's Too Late", "Where You Lead" and "Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow".

Later in the evening, I had the opportunity to sing accompanied by Marc, a Russian concert pianist. He was incredible to watch as he performed Chopin and Rochmoninoff, and it was a pleasure to be able to sing with him. Accompanied by Marc, Emery sang "Goodnight, My Someone", after which Emery and I sang "Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man of Mine". Marc also accompanied Adam and me singing "The Prayer".

As the night went on, Brian sang "Zip-a-dee-doo-dah" and "Cruella DeVille". Derrick played a few blues numbers on his saxophone. Emery sang "On My Own". I sang a couple of jazz songs with a man named Keith and "All I Ask of You" with Doug. Emery and I managed to fit in our famous rendition of "I've Been Workin' on the Railroad" and Brian, Emery and I attempted "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" and our Cole Porter medley of "You're the Top" and "Friendship". Adam performed several of his own songs, including a very comical new one entitled "You're the Best X I Ever Had". We had a fantastic time at the party!

Speaking of singing, Emery and I have been asked by our LDS stake leaders to record the song "In That Holy Place" - the song we have sung for several ward and stake events recently. We are excited at the opportunity. We will have to act quickly, as our accompanist, Clara, and her husband will likely be leaving on an LDS mission within the next couple of weeks!

I begin teaching again tomorrow. I think I am ready to have the kids come back on track... :) It should be good to be back on a more regular schedule, although I certainly had no problem filling every moment of my off-track time. There are always a million things I would like to be doing! But, I can't complain. I will only be on for about 2 months, then I have the whole month of December off. I even have a four-day weekend in October in addition to Thanksgiving break in November. Not bad at all. I have also registered to go to a technology conference toward the end of October, for which a three-day substitute will be provided. So, a lot of fun and exciting things ahead!