.................a BitTeRSwEet sYmpHOnY ThiS LIFe.

Books.

2009-01-07T21:08:00.004-05:00

I know that YA fiction is supposed to be for kids, but I have always loved that genre. I used to have a motto in high school, when I would go to the library every day after school and take out every YA book they had (no lie): "A book a day makes you smarter."

Well, if that's the truth, I got a heck of a lot smarter during the past week and a half!

In 10 days, I read the entire Princess series-those which were available at least. Yes, I know these are kids books. However, when my dear friend Anna gave the first two to me as a gift my junior year of college, I got hooked! We had gone to see the first movie that summer and of course loved it. So, for my birthday she got me those books. And I became obsessed, not only with those, but almost everything the author had written. I would stalk Meg Cabot's website, constantly looking for her newest releases. And proceeded to read every other book that she published (except for most of the weird supernatural ones).

And last winter, she (Meg Cabot) left me hanging with Book #9 of the Princess Diaries. I was actually quite furious with the way she had left things in both books 8 and 9. And then I had to wait a year to find out the end.

Well, the very last Princess Diaries book was released yesterday, January 6th. A date I waited and waited and waited and counted down for.

In preparation, on Saturday, December 27th I began re-reading the P.D. books.

On Monday, January 5th, I finished Book #9.

So, between 12/27 and 1/5, I read:

The Princess Diaries #1, 2, 3, 4, 4 1/2, 5, 6, 6 1/2, 7, 7 1/2, 8, and 9 (yes, there are 1/2 books...they are shorter in length and sort of supplemental to the rest of the series).

Well, yesterday I had to go to Rochester to have dinner at a friend's house. Truly, I would have gone regardless to go to Barnes and Noble to pick up the final masterpiece.

I got home super late from dinner last night because of the weather. I do admit however, that I read about 10 pages before I couldn't stay awake any longer.

Then today I read all through my lunch break.
And I came straight home from work and parked myself and my book on my couch for the afternoon...and the evening...into the night.

And 383 pages later, at approximately 8:45 pm, I finished.

I won't comment on the outcome of the story(ies), because some people will be reading it (them) and I don't want to spoil anything. Let me just say however, that Ms. Cabot certainly made up for making me so furious with the way she left things in her previous books.

And now, life can go on. And I can read the other book, Ransom My Heart, the romance novel that Princess Mia wrote herself (not Meg Cabot, but Mia wrote it...hehe).

For more info, check out this article:
http://www.usatoday.com/life/books/news/2009-01-04-meg-cabot_N.htm

And please...let that thing about the College Years be true! :-p

And as I close, let me say, that I will forever love Michael Moscovitz. With all of my heart. :-p

2008 in Review

2008-12-31T18:27:00.002-05:00

As 2009 dawns upon us (in just a few hours!), I thought I'd do this little year in review survey everyone has been doing.

01. Where did you begin 2008?
At the Feller's house.

02. What did you do in 2008 that you’d never done before?
Started teaching full-time, moved into an apt.

03. What was your status by Valentine’s Day?
The same as every other V-Day. :-p

04. Were you in school (anytime this year)?
Yes-I taught at 4 different schools in 2008.

05. How did you earn your money?
Teaching, vocal directing shows, working at church, teaching lessons, Thomas the Crap-tank announcing, working at the park.

06. Did you have to go to the hospital?
For an ear infection once.

07. Did you have any encounters with the police?
Um...I got pulled over for a headlight. And, I ALMOST did a few weeks ago because I didn't have any cash w/me when I went to the gas station, so they were going to let me go back and pay the next day, but I didn't get there by early afternoon, so they called the cops! HAH! Obviously I was going to pay it, but yeesh!

08. Where did you go on holidays?
Um...Easter was church & home, 4th of July was work and Feller's & fireworks, Christmas was home and g'rents.

09. What did you purchase that was over $1000?
Lots of furniture.

10. Did you know anybody who got married?
Stacey & Justin, Jessica & Paul, Miranda & Ron, Derek & Laura, Anna & Alberto...I know there were others but I can't think of them right now.

11. Did you know anyone that passed away?
Yes, my pastor's husband passed away a week ago today on Christmas Eve.

12. Did you know anyone who had a baby?
Justin & Amy, one of my cousins, bunches of other people. Lots of babies to come very soon...like little LEAH, Tim & Kim's baby in a couple of weeks! :-D

13. Did you move?
Yes, I did.

14. What concerts/shows did you go to?
Oh gosh, too many to count! Favorites: Pride & Prejudice the Musical, Wicked, Legally Blond, and a gazillion others.

15. Are you registered to vote?
Absolutely

16. Who did you want to win Big Brother?
I don't know who was on Big Brother.

17. Where do you live now?
an apt.

18. Describe your birthday.
I was in You're a Good Man Charlie Brown and we had a performance that night. Lots of friends & relatives came. After it some of the people in the show went out to Chili's and got food.

19. What’s one thing you thought you’d never do, but did in 2008?
I have no idea...I don't think I did anything that outrageous.

20. What has been your favorite moment?
I can't think of a favorite. There were lots of good ones though. Maybe seeing Houghton people back in March.

21. What’s something you learned about yourself?
I'm much more of a perfectionist than I ever thought I was.

22. Any new additions to your family?
Ashley-Robert's girlfriend...I guess you could say she's an addition.

23. What was your best month?
I loved December :o)

24. What was your worst month?
Ugh...probably August or something. That was a crazy month.

25. What music will you remember 2008 by?
Viva La Vida

26. Who has been your best drinking buddy?
Lol...I certainly don't have any drinking buddies. Katie drink water and lemonade when we hang out. Does that count?

27. Made new friends?
I don't think so. I made new acquaintances though.

28. Lost friends?
No

29. Favorite night out?
Anytime out w/the BFF's...to shows and then dinner/Friendly's, etc.!

30. Compared to this time last year, are you:
i. happier or sadder? Probably happier
ii. thinner or fatter? A bit thinner
iii. richer or poorer? "Richer"

31. What date from 2008 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
Well, September 20th was my birthday...I don't think I'll forget my own birthday. :-p

stuff

2008-12-03T18:16:00.004-05:00

I just heard this song for the first time yesterday, but it's my new favorite already. In fact, I looked up their website today (Tenth Avenue North) and they had streaming mp3, so I listened to them for a while at work. :-p If the auditors come to get me for listening to Christian music on my work computer, oh well! ;o)

In other news, I'm in the middle of the 3rd of the Twilight books, Eclipse. I had put off reading them for about 2 or 3 years now and I'm so sorry that I did! They're so not what I expected...so much better. I LOVE Edward Cullen. :-p Bethany, her best friend Erica, and I all went to see Twilight on Saturday. I might take myself again this weekend. And the next. And maybe even again. Continuously until it comes out on DVD. ;o) Yes, I loved it that much. Very intense. Very romantic.

My mom, Ashley (Robert's girlfriend) and I also went to see Australia on Black Friday after shopping all day. It was very long, but oh so good! I loved that one too. I'm sure it'll get some Oscar nods, though I've also heard that it got some poor reviews. Sadness!

I got a tree and decorated it for my apt. It's not done quite yet. I think I still need some ornaments. I also might want a tree skirt even though it's in a pot. The floor around it looks weird though, so I have to figure something out.

Apt. is getting closer to being done every other week (haha-when the paycheck comes!). As soon as it's finished, I'll post some pics. Until then, I don't dare show my bare walls on here! ;o) For now though, you may all settle with these poor representations of my Christmas Tree (I hate how it looks in the picture! :-p).

*I should add that I should have edited these pics before posting them. The tree is not really leaning. The pics are just lopsided. :-p

And now, I'm off to read more about dear Edward (:-D) and wait for Robert and Ashley to arrive for dinner. :o)

What a week...

2008-11-20T21:15:00.002-05:00

and it's not even over yet!

Things were great coming back to school on Monday. I finally had most of my voice back. I was speechless last week...literally, as I had acute laryngitis and couldn't make a sound for a couple of days. So my voice was back, my choirs were sounding pretty good in prep for our concerts coming up, and my general music classes were having fun working on their commercial and Stomp projects.

Then came Wednesday. Wednesday was the day I woke up late, only to find an inch of snow on my car. So, I rushed trying to get it cleared off so that I would still have extra time for my drive to work in case the roads were icy. However, as I got in my car and pressed the brake and clutch to start the car, the brake went ALL THE WAY TO THE FLOOR. Ugh. I thought that maybe it was just snow or ice on my brakes and they just needed to warm up, so I pumped them and drove. And they didn't work. And I coasted into the gas station around the corner from my apt. Thank God I drive a stick. So, after the brake fluid that I poured into the reservoir did nothing, and after I called the school to tall them I wouldn't quite make it to teach first period (or at all-ugh), and after calling my parents to get my dad's advice and my mom's help w/a ride, I walked back to my apt.

After coasting my car through town to the shop, waiting all day and missing a day of work, and shelling out lots and lots of dollar bills, I had Betsy back almost as good as new. Or so I thought.

And of course there was other crap that went on, which I'll refrain from mentioning. And I had to spend a ridiculous amount of money on stupid bills of various types.

But today, I left school excited because I'm going to Fredonia for the weekend to take some students to Area All-State, which should be fun!

Then this afternoon, as I was driving, my speedometer quit on me. From 60 to 0 in .5 seconds.

The end.

Procrastination

2008-11-14T17:26:00.002-05:00

I am procrastinating. I should have left already to head to Rochester, but I haven't. Instead, I'm reading blogs and now posting this fun little survey thing that Em did. :-p Oh well...I'll leave in a few minutes!

10 years ago I was:
1. 17 years old and a senior in high school
2. playing in the pit for Fiddler on The Roof for Lake Plains Players (I wasn't "in" it either Em! ;o))
3. Getting ready to audition for The Music Man-I wanted Marion and got Mrs. Paroo, but it was a fun part anyway.
4. Usually busy with babysitting, rehearsals, hanging out w/Tim, and youth group/church stuff.
5. Procrastinating on my college applications.

5 things on today’s to-do list:
1. mail out some bills
2. Go to the Glu Factory to buy the awesome painting that I saw the other day which I will hang over my kitchen table
3. Pick up a birthday card for Joe
4. go to Joe's birthday party
5. clean up my kitchen from the nasty dinner I just made (I burned the rice because I turned the wrong burner down...DUH!).

5 snacks I enjoy:
1. ice cream
2. various crackers like cheezits and triscuits
3. granola bars
4. cereal
5. SOME chocolate

5 things I would do if I were a millionaire (or billionaire):
1. pay off all of my student loand
2. pay off my family's debts
3. buy everyone in my family big beautiful houses (or barns/garages if they so desired)
4. buy all of us awesome cars (like the black fusion w/black leather interior that I want...or the fleet of Ford Escorts I'd love to have).
5. Buy up properties/buildings/homes to transform into businesses and homes and give them to people for free.

5 places I have lived:
1. Rochester, NY
2. Lyndonville, NY
3. Houghton, NY-Lambein
4. Houghton-Garden Apts :-D
5. Houghton-Yorkwood
AND, I just moved to Medina, so I'm adding a 6th. I haven't actually lived anywhere else. :-p

5 jobs I have had:
1. summer drama teacher
2. Professional singer (for real!)
3. Library clerk
4. Choir director
5. Music teacher

Alright, I need to get out of here. Maybe once this apt. doesn't like like a big expanse of potentiality and actually has some stuff on the walls and looks decent, I'll post pictures! ;o)

Why vote?

2008-11-03T16:37:00.005-05:00

It seems that many people are "donating their statuses" and blog entries to voting, so I thought, why not me too? That's for the blog post, not the facebook status. I should warn that this entire post is coming from someone who is very right-wing. While I am willing to listen to the opinions of others, I am not inviting an argument here. This is my blog, and I will post my personal opinions freely. You can post yours on your own blog. ;o)

Anyway, I keep hearing a lot from people who thinks that Christians only vote one way because of abortion, or about the Christians who are going against the "mainstream" Christianity and voting on social issues...voting their "conscience." Well, being a Christian, I would like to defend myself and my reasons for voting the way that I do.

Neither of the candidates running for this election are people who I actually like or want to see running this country. However, because I feel that it is my duty as an American (and because I LOVE voting, as I've blogged about before :-p), I have made a choice and will vote for that person for the following reasons.

Yes, I feel that abortion is a huge issue. Are there other more important things going on right now? Some people say yes, but I'm not so sure. The democratic candidate stated that "Nobody likes abortion." I do hope this is the case. A lot of people feel, including that democratic candidate, that regardless of how horrible abortion may be, overturning Roe vs. Wade is not the answer. Instead, they need to educate and provide services and family planning to people, because it's people who live in economic hardships who get abortions the most. Ok, this might be true. We do need a lot more education and family planning. We need abstinence initiatives in schools. I wish that people like Pam Stenzel could go into every Middle & High School in America and speak. DESPITE ALL OF THAT, I 100% believe that abortion is wrong. I 100% believe that nobody has the right to choose to kill a baby inside of them, whether it's their body or not. Are their grey areas where mothers might be taking a fatal risk by carrying their baby to term? Yes. However, those cases are few and far between. The fact that thousands of unborn babies are killed every week is so very sad. Of course people bring up the "How can you be against abortion and support war?" question. My answer is this. While I wish we had no war, and it's HORRIBLE when civilians particularly are killed, I believe that wars are fought for a reason. Our soldiers fight to protect our country, to protect our property and assets (and yes, I know oil is one of those assets), and to further DEMOCRACY in this world. Is it right that people lose their lives because of war? No. However, is war necessary? Absolutely. Is abortion? Absolutely not.

When thousands of babies are dieing weekly (even daily), I'd say it's a pretty huge issue. However, that is not the ONLY reason I will vote for the candidate I plan to vote for. Piggybacking on the abortion is stem-cell research, both of which can fall under the Sanctity of Life umbrella. Life is precious. No one should be able to take a life away-not for war, not by abortion, murder, for scientific research (I believe that stem-cell research should be done, but with adult stem cells, and not embryos), etc. Now, lets move on to the topic of gay marriage and shove that under the same umbrella (because I do believe that it belongs there). I am not homophobic. I do not hate gay people. In fact, some of my very best friends are homosexual. And, I love them very much. Do I agree with their lifestyle? Absolutely not. Do I love them anyway? Absolutely! How can you not love a person just because of the sin in their life? I love a lot of sinners. In fact, I don't love anyone who is not a sinner (besides Jesus of course :o)). Anyway, I truly, truly, truly believe that the sanctity of marriage is so important. I believe that God meant for a man and woman to be joined as one. God is not for homosexuality. However, he is for marriage. Marriage should be a protected holy union. I fully believe that one of the greatest break-downs of this country is due to the breakdown of the nuclear family and the sanctity of marriage. I am against gay marriage. Would I support civil unions and same-sex couples receiving tax breaks and joint health insurance, etc.? I would support that if the same were granted to my best friend and I if we were unmarried, yet chose to be roommates and share a household. Obviously in no way would we be in a committed romantic relationship, but if we committed to live together because we were both unmarried, for the purpose of sharing expenses, and it was a long-term commitment, then we should be afforded the same options.

Moving on, I am going to jump back a bit to the abortion issue, but this time in terms of Supreme Court Judicial nominations. The next president will have the honor of nominating new justices for the Supreme Court. Depending on who fills those positions will depend on whether or not Roe vs. Wade is overturned. This is obviously important to me. I was very alarmed however, when I heard an interview recently between a television journalist and the democratic candidate. The candidate was asked if they would nominate a judge who firmly holds to the Constitution, and in a round-about way, that candidate said no. He wants the Constitution to be stretched in a way that would support the Marxist ideology of the redistribution of wealth. I have always been against socialism. I am a staunch capitalist. I do believe that our capitalist system has enumerable flaws. I do not believe that the answer to our problems, however, is to "tax the rich," which will not amount to enough money to give the tax breaks that this candidate is talking about. "Tax the rich" is going to turn into "tax everyone who isn't already on welfare" and then expand the welfare system to include everyone! I know that I'm being extreme, but I already pay a ridiculous amount of taxes. I have no doubt that my taxes will go up regardless of who is put in office. I believe that the redistribution of wealth is not the answer though. Especially when (even though he says it's not true) my bank account is going to hurt even more than it does now.

I'm going on and on and I'm suddenly tired of writing anymore. I just feel very strongly about holding to the constitution and keeping people's freedoms in tact. I should have a right to spend my money the way I want to. I am not a Libertarian. I don't believe that there should be no taxes. In fact, I don't mind paying taxes. I don't think the answer is to create additional taxes though. I don't think the answer is to have more federal government control than we have now. More power should be given to state governments.

Why do I support one candidate above the other? I am anti-abortion. I am pro-life. I am pro-marriage. I am pro-stem-cell research on adult stem-cells. I am a Capitalist. I am pro-liberty. I am pro-spending my own money and not having state-mandated programs. I am anti-welfare. I am pro-guns (I support the right to bear arms). I am pro-capital punishment. I am pro-freedom of speech. I am pro-Democracy. I 100% support the Constitution of the United States of America. And yes, I have read it.

For me, it comes down to ideologies. I know that I only touched on a few areas. I left out so many other issues, and there is so much gray area, especially when it comes to provisioning for the poor. I think that more state aid should be given to religious and private organizations and they should be the ones to take care of the poor. Like I said, I really don't like either candidate. However, I must vote. I will be voting my conscience, my morals, my values, and my ideologies. Maybe I sound like your typical conservative Christian, but I am making an educated decision. I've watched a million interviews, the various debates, and read umpteen articles. I do not only vote my party line. I have voted for the opposite party before. I will step into that voting booth tomorrow and know that I made the right decision. I'm not telling anyone else what to do. This is my decision...and my blog! :-p

Thanks for reading this. Sorry it was so long and scatter-brained! Hopefully those of you who disagree won't go crazy on me. ;o)

A post!

2008-10-08T21:12:00.002-04:00

This is mostly for my sister because she requested that I update.

Anyway, I do love Christians...dearly. Sometimes they make me laugh a little bit though. Especially the following.

This song is near and dear to my heart. We were first introduced to it in our Music and Christian Perspectives class freshman year at Houghton. So very funny. :-p

This one is also quite funny. It was sent to me by a friend, and I felt the need to share it with the world. You know that just like me, even though you're laughing, deep down, you want to sing and dance this song. ;o)

Religious Dudes Can Break Dance - Watch more free videos

In other news, life is good. School is busy, but going extremely well. I'm trying to get students ready for All County auditions right now, which are all in a few weeks. I've also begun a select choir and a men's quartet, not to mention all of the other things that are going on. We also have finally picked our musical, but aren't telling any of the students until December...hahahaha!

I also was just cast as Winnefred the Woebegone, the lead in Once Upon a Mattress! I'm very excited about it, however, if we don't get any guys to come be in it, no show! :o( Hopefully by the end of the week we'll get some more. I've already brought in 2 more guys (not to mention the fact that I got 2 of the leads to try out as well!). Hopefully we can get about 4 more!

Anyway, that's about all I feel like writing about...hope you're happy that I've updated, BETHANY!

Wreckage

2008-08-30T18:23:00.002-04:00

Shane & Shane...it's no secret. My all time favorites.

Completely adore.
This song kills you...

As does this one.
It just wrecks you.

(the girl is Shane Barnard's wife, Bethany Dillon).

And just because I LOVE this hymn:

Unproductive productivity

2008-08-27T23:11:00.006-04:00

Well, school officially begins one week from today. I have spent a lot of time preparing what I can at home, but there is still so much to do. My biggest obstacle right now is that my classroom is being remodeled and won't be finished until possibly Friday. "If not by Friday, than definitely by Tuesday morning" is what the head of buildings and grounds told me. I am the kind of person who takes a long time to think things through as I'm planning, and I really feel like I need to be able to just be in the room with all of my stuff to decide where things should go and how I want things to happen. Since this is obviously not a possibility, I took pictures of my classroom so that I could get some idea of where I might like to place things. Of course, it's not only one room that I have to situate, there are actually 4: the classroom, my new office, the new storage room, and a practice room. I might just stay overnight on Tuesday. Then I can just be there all night getting situated and be ready for school Wednesday morning. ;o)

Another wrench that got thrown in the mix yesterday was the lovely little illness that decided to take over my body. Ugh! I had been running a fever until late this afternoon, but thankfully that finally broke. I think it's just bad cold. Thankfully, though I don't feel great, I'm feeling much better. Hopefully (well, maybe not hopefully :-p), I'll feel well enough to go to work at the park tomorrow. If I don't I think my boss will have a fit, as I didn't go yesterday because I was sick.

In the midst of my sickness yesterday, I had a Creative Memories party last night, which was a lot of fun! I'm excited about the stuff that I'm planning to get and for everyone else's orders. I think the people who came had fun. I felt bad though, because my mom did a lot of the leg work for me since I wasn't feeling well.

We need a young-adult, 20-something, Christian group around here. Desperately. I think is something something I won't be able to sit on and think about anymore (after months of doing just that). It's time to act and get things started. Yikes. Prayers please! :-p

Anyway, I'm off to bed...again (because I only spent my entire day in bed). I'll leave you with these lovely pictures of the mess that is my classroom. After it's all put together, I'll have to post the after pictures of the room in all its finery. :-p

Here's the office and storage room:

And here's the classroom:

Terrorist readiness

2008-08-18T11:20:00.005-04:00

I received this a long time ago and just came across it today. I thought this information could be extremely helpful for all of you in case you ever come across one of these symbols. It's important for all of us to know how to properly respond. :-p

*You might have to click on the pics to make them bigger so you can read the captions.

Not much to say...

2008-08-10T17:37:00.005-04:00

I don't have a whole lot to blog about right now. I'm pretty busy between work, rehearsals for Charlie Brown, and now lesson planning, and preparing for the school year!

Charlie Brown is going to be really fabulous. I hope everyone who lives in the area is able to come!!! So far the vocals are awesome, and the choreography has been a lot of fun. We'll finally begin blocking next week.

I'll leave you with this video of Kristin Chenoweth as Sally Brown, singing "My New Philosophy," which is one of the songs I'll be singing as the same part in the same show. My friend Joe is playing the part of Schroeder.

New photoshop

2008-07-29T12:29:00.003-04:00

I made this blog banner for my mom. She asked me to make her one that was "beachy and vintagey." :-p I hope that this suffices!

P&P love

2008-07-27T13:23:00.005-04:00

I have posted before about all of the wonderful things I get to do at work: read, scrapbook, watch moveis, etc. :-p Don't get me wrong, these days are long, and it gets very boring and tiring at times. However, I mostly don't mind being here (yes, I'm at work right now :-p).

One of the nice things about working long hours here is having the opportunity to watch long movies. As I'm sure everyone is aware, I'm quite enamored with all things Jane Austen, and have multiple film adaptations of every one of her novels. Each novel has at least one adaptation that's been shortened to under two hours, and then at least one that is four-plus hours. I used to watch these movies every night before I went to bed, a half-hour at a time which took at least a week or so to get through one movie. When I'm at work, I can watch an entire movie in one shift, which is very nice indeed.

So, yesterday I watched my favorite Pride & Prejudice, the A&E/BBC adaptation w/Colin Firth and Jennifer Ehle.

Most people I know prefer this version to any other, myself included. However, I do also love the newer version that came out in 2005 with Kiera Knightly and Matthew MacFadyen...a lot!

I don't mind that they've shortened the story a great deal or changed parts of it around. And, though I don't like her as much as Jennifer Ehle, I don't mind Kiera Knightly as Elizabeth Bennett. I do LOVE the Jane in this film, as well as the cinematography, setting, and sound track (which is to-die-for!).
I am watching this version of P&P this afternoon. :-D

When I am finished with this one, I will watch the 1980 BBC version.

This version is older, the camera work is not nearly as nice, the actors not as pretty, and the music not as good as the first two adaptations I wrote about. What I like about this version though (and all of the other BBC Jane Austen's I have) is that they stick extremely close to the novel.
I will begin watching that version either later this afternoon, or tomorrow morning I'm sure.

Once I finish with the 3 Pride & Prejudices I have (there are others as well, but I don't currently own them), I will probably go back and watch my other Jane movies. I like to watch them in alphabetical order (even though P&P comes after four of them :-p), so when I'm done w/P&P, I'll move on to my 3 Emma adaptations (and possibly Clueless, because that is a modern-day Emma and I love it!), then 3 Mansfield Parks, 2 Northanger Abby's (though I may skip these, as I really don't like them :o)), 3 Persuasions (my favorite!!!), and finally 3 Sense & Sensabilities! If that doesn't take me through the end of the summer, I'll throw in some Jane Eyre's and possible Anne of Green Gables. I love that I can watch these movies from beginning to end in a day!

Alright, I must get back to my P&P viewing. Everyone reading this probably now thinks that I am lazy and is shocked that one person could watch this much television! Trust me though, if you worked here, you'd do the same (though probably with other movies. ;o)).

Bee & Tom's wedding

2008-07-22T16:15:00.004-04:00

Bee & Tom's wedding
Originally uploaded by jenneroni

In my quest to get caught up on scrapbooking, I made this layout today of Bee & Tom's wedding, which was over 4 years ago. That's ok though, because I'm sure if I'd scrapped it then, it wouldn't have turned out nearly as well! I must admit, I'm pretty happy with this one! I didn't think I was going to like it at first...at all. None of my colors matched and it didn't look a bit wedding-ish. However, I sanded off the brighter colors of the scalloped paper around the photos and made some other alterations, added my embellishments, then printed all of my writing (which I had originally hand-written, but hated), and here it is!

Yes, I do like this one. It's nice to like what I make for a change! :-p

I should also add these pics of the altered Altoid tin I made. It's for a swap that my mom signed me up for on flickr. I had never made one before, so I wasn't sure how they would turn out, but I didn't think I did too badly for my first time! :o)

Fabulous weekend of favorites!

2008-07-20T17:36:00.004-04:00

Friday night after work I rushed off to Buffalo to meet some favorites. Matt, Laurel, and Rachel Moran were in town for the weekend, so I met up w/them, as well as their friend Jonathan, and our friend Emily. It was nice to hang out and catch up...when we could hear each other speaking that is. They have a new jazz combo playing there now (for a while they've had Latin Jazz on the weekends, which began after the legendary DoDo died a couple of years ago.), and lets just say that they don't hold back! Anyway, I don't think I've seen any of the Morans since Matt & Laurel's wedding a couple of summers ago, so it was especially nice to hang out with them.

Here are some pics from all of our excitement at the AB.

Last night I went to see the Music Man in Spencerport with some friends. This is the production that I was originally going to be in, but dropped out of because I couldn't afford to travel an hour each way every night of the week.
Anyway, the show was a lot better than I thought it would be! There were some really strong parts, particularly the quartet and Marcellus, as well as the Pick-a-Little Ladies. My friend Mary was one of the directors and my friends Joe and Lance were in the show, as were a number of other people I know.

Here are some pics from after the show w/Bridget, me, Mary Kate, Mary, and Joe:

I'm at work now...I haven't had a single person come in to pay today, and I've had 3 cars come through and stay since I arrived here at noon. I was going to call and see if I could leave early, but what's one more hour? I might as well just stick it out!

PS....HI LAUREL! ;o)

Amazing

2008-07-15T09:21:00.002-04:00

I know that I just posted this morning, but I received this e-mail a little bit ago I thought that other people might like to see. It's really quite amazing:

This is the most amazing story... the perfect example of a parent's unconditional love for their child...

True story.
The son asked his father, 'Dad, will you take part in a marathon with me?'. The father who, despite having a heart condition, said 'Yes'.

They went on to complete the marathon together. Father and son went on to join other marathons, the father always saying 'Yes' to his son's request of going through the race together. One day, the son asked his father, 'Dad, let's join the Ironman together.' To which, his father said 'Yes' too.

For those who don't know, Ironman is the toughest triathlon ever.

The race encompasses three endurance events of a 2.4 mile (3.86 kilometer) ocean swim, followed by a 112 mile (180.2 kilometer) bike ride, and ending with a 26.2 mile (42.195 kilometer) marathon along the coast of the Big Island . Father and son went on to complete the race together.

View the race.....

Posting...for posting's sake

2008-07-15T07:34:00.008-04:00

I have a very nice summer job. It doesn't pay a lot, but I don't do a lot, so I guess the trade-off is fairly even. In fact, I am at work right now typing this very blog post on my laptop. No, my place of employment doesn't have wi-fi, but the person who lives in the giant lake house next door does, so I get to "borrow" it from them. of course the signal goes in and out if I close the door to my box (booth), large trucks w/boats pull through, or it gets super windy or rainy. The house is a good distance away. I'm surprise their signal reaches this far at all!

Anyway, I work at the boat launch of a state park. I worked at this park all through college and after, every summer except for last. Why would I work such a low-paying job every summer when I could make more money doing something else? Well, basically I don't want to work during my summer. I want to enjoy it! The money is really not bad. It's well over minimum wage, so it pays a lot more than some other jobs do. And what do I do at work all day? Well, I sit here and play on my computer, I read books, I watch movies, I scrapbook, I talk on my phone, I paint my nails, I clean my car, etc, etc, etc. It's great because I have a lot of study time (for whatever I might like to study at the time), and a lot of time to do the things I would have wanted to do all summer anyway. Occasionally I do get customers...a few a day (I think yesterday I had 6...in 10 hours). It's nice to have them come through, as they break up the monotony of the day for me. ;o)

So needless to say I'm not complaining about my job! Sure I've had to work an insane amount of hours the past few days (12 on Sun, 10 yesterday and 10 today), but at least it's not hard work and generally goes by pretty quickly!

And now in closing, I will post this video of me and Joe singing "Summer Lovin'" from Grease a few months back at karaoke. We make me laugh, so I thought you might like to laugh as well! :-p And, it is summertime! :-D

Pictures and more

2008-07-11T14:21:00.007-04:00

I realized that I had never posted any pictures from Anna's wedding like I said that I would, as well as none a while back from Stacey's or Jessica's, so here are some photo only posts.

Anna (Drake) & Alberto Ayala:

The next pics are of dinner at the Anchor Bar w/high school friends and their spouses: Jerod, Derek & his fiance Laura, Amber, me, Whitney & Jesse, and Brian (minus Stacy who couldn't come).
Then we have Stacey & Justin's wedding, followed by Jessica's wedding (I do write a lot about weddings, don't I??? :-p).

Tim & Kim's wedding page

2008-07-07T16:39:00.002-04:00

Tim & Kim's wedding page
Originally uploaded by jenneroni

I decided yesterday that I really need to try to get caught up on at least some of my scrapbooking. I think the easiest way for me to do that is organize things by which album they'll go in and do one album project at a time. I have a bunch of different albums that have many pages that need to be made: weddings, shows, family, me, college, friends, etc.

I thought that the easiest album to start with would be the wedding one. I already have a number of pages in that one, and I love creating wedding layouts because I try to make them as beautiful as possible. I decided a while back that I would do a page/layout for every one of my friends weddings (at least the ones I attend). As of today, I'm down to 12 that I need to complete. I think I have close to that many in the album already.

This is the layout I created today. It's of my friend Tim's wedding 4 years ago. Better late than never, right? :-p I'm pretty happy with the way it turned out, though the photos were taken on a fairly crappy camera from far away, so they definitely leave much to be desired, but I think the page still has the effect I wanted it to. Because I made and photographed the layout at work, it's hard to really see all of the details, so I plan to take another pic later when I can set it up on an easel and use my tripod.

why not, write?

2008-07-06T00:50:00.002-04:00

My most typical reason for not writing/posting to this here (we)blog is time. My time is consumed with other things that I deem more important at that time. Sometimes those other things might actually be reading other blogs, but that is far more important than me taking the time to write on here myself.

Another reason I don't write though is that I write it in my head all day long. Does that sound weird? Do other people do the same? I've always been the kind of person who sort of lives in my own imagination. I practice conversations in my head over and over...never do my real life convos even remotely compare to the perfect ones I make up where I am the most witty or intellectual or eloquent. I'm a day dreamer, so I'm constantly making up stories in my head...what-ifs about other people, real or imaginary who I know or don't. I know that some people are too realistic for day dreaming. I've heard "get your head out of the clouds" more than once in my life.

Anyway, my whole point for writing all of this is that as I experience my daily life, I often "blog" in my head as I go along. I think about what I'd like to share and exactly how I'd say it. However, by the time I go to write about it (as is happening at this very moment), something gets lost in translation and what I write out doesn't compare to what I've already written in my mind. Either that, or because I already wrote it, I just don't feel like going through it again. :-p

Does that all sound really weird? I'm not even going to go through and edit this now, so hopefully it makes sense! :-p

Wedding weekend

2008-06-23T15:46:00.017-04:00

My dear friend Miranda got married on Saturday...I sang and my sister was a bridesmaid. It was a very lovely wedding and fun reception! My friends Beck, Jess, Rob and Amber were there, as well as my brothers, so it was great to have the opportunity to hang out with them. Amber and I have decided that we are perpetual wedding dates. :-p

Anyway, rather than writing much about the wedding, I thought I'd post a few pics to share!

The reception was at the golf course that's around the corner/behind my house. They just added a beautiful new outdoor room. It's really quite nice. If I ever get married some day, I may want to have my reception there! :-p

Next week is my friend Anna's wedding! I'm a bridesmaid & singing in this one. After that, I won't have any more until August...I think. I do love weddings!

Weddings, OCD, and more!

2008-06-19T22:05:00.003-04:00

My friend Miranda's wedding is this weekend. My sister is a bridesmaid and I'm singing a couple of songs in the wedding. I'm super excited. Miranda was our neighbor growing up and she and her sister, Beth and I, and our other neighbors Beck & Jess (Melfi) always considered ourselves kind of the E Yates Center Rd. gang. At both Beck & Jess' weddings we had a ton of fun and I have no doubt that this one will be the same.

Today I spent a good portion of the day at Miranda's putting favors together. I wrote out all of the tags (168 "Miranda & Ron June 21, 2008"'s) and then filled/tied/put together about 50 of the actual favors. They looked super cute! I don't know if it's weird or not, but there is something that I absolutely love about repetition. I didn't mind writing the tags or filling the favors at all. I've always been a repetition kind of person. I actually think it would be great to work on an assembly line. I probably have a touch of OCD, but doesn't everybody? :-p

So tomorrow morning I have my second round interview for one of the schools I've applied at. I'm slightly nervous because I don't remember a lot of specific philosophy stuff (like all of the different who's). Hopefully they won't ask me too much of that stuff though. Someone I know who was on the panel for the first round told me that they loved my first interview. I'm crossing my fingers because I would really love to work there...if even only for the next year. We shall see what happens! Prayers are greatly appreciated!

On another random note, I think I'm going to join the gym next week. I'm going to be working at the park again this year...specifically the boat launch and because of that, I'm going to have sedentary 8-hour days. I hardly get very much exercise as it is, but I'm hoping that if I pay for it, that will entice me to go more (not to mention that it will be air conditioned in the gym, as opposed to heat of the summer that will eventually return). I have to wait until I get paid next week, but hopefully I'll stick with it and have fun.

Ok...any time I post on here, basically everything I have to say is random and unrelated. :-p I will try to post again this weekend after the wedding and post lots of pics of us all in our finery. Maybe I'll even do the same next week after my friend Anna's wedding which I'm a bridesmaid and singing in!

Survey!

2008-06-09T17:09:00.003-04:00

I stole this from Em!

Have you talked to a complete jerk today?
I don't think I'd consider anyone I've talked to today to be a complete jerk. :-p

Are you wearing socks?
No way...they would be unbearable in this heat!

Will you cuddle with someone this weekend?
doubtful...cuddling isn't really my style.

What was the last thing you ate?
Hershey pie. :o)

When did you last cry?
Well, I wasn't actually crying, but for some reason my eye was burning at Wicked yesterday and it was watering like crazy...so it looked like my left eye was crying, but it really wasn't.

Do you have anything in your pockets right now?
I've got a pocket got a pocket full of sunshine...Hehe. No, really nothing in my pockets.

How many windows are open on your computer?
Just 1: firefox

What do you hear right now?
fan blowing, lawn mower, breeze in the trees

What are you exciteed about today?
my interview tomorrow...not having to do anything today!

How many hours did you sleep last night?
about 8

Are you sarcastic?
Never! Hahahahaha

Are you shy?
yes, though people probably don't think I am.

Are you talkative?
It depends on who I'm around.

In the past week have you gotten sick?
nothing more than my perpetual headaches and maybe a stomach ache or two

In the past week have you felt stupid?
oh yes.

What were you doing at 9 am this morning?
sleeping for sure!

Did you give anyone a dirty look today?
probably...I tend to give dirty looks w/out even realizing that I am!

In the past week have you felt sad?
yes occasionally

Has someone disappointed you recently?
yes

Are you dating someone right now?
absolutely not!

Are you talking to someone right now?
No...I talked to Lora a minute ago though.

Last person who text messaged you?
Rebekah

Do you have plans for this weekend?
Going to see Urinetown, hanging out at my aunt's lake house, church, Father's Day stuff.

Are you currently texting?
not at the moment.

Are you comfortable with answering personal questions?
sometimes.

When is the last time you were truly happy with your life?
I'm usually pretty happy w/my life

Do you think relationships are ever really worth it?
yes

What do you do when you have a bad day?
try to hang out w/people...go out

Do you believe ex’s can really ever be “just friends”?
in some cases i think it's possible...after some time.

What are you wearing on your feet?
nailpolish :-p

Last thing you said?
something to Lora about going to Lockport

Would you be able to date someone who had a kid with someone else?
It depends on the person/scenario.

Have you made any mistakes recently?
oh yes...basically always!

Last person you had a heart to heart conversation with?
don't remember. Probably Joe.

If you could pack up and move, would you?
most likely

What person in your family are you the most like?
probably my mom

Do your parents really know you?
i think so

Do you always get along with your siblings?
lol...we actually do most of the time, though yesterday afternoon would be considered an exception! :-p

Funniest text in your phone right now?
Lol...there's one from Tony that says "Baaa just like a sheep"

Do you feel like you’ve got some growing up to do?
in some ways

What time do you wake up in the morning?
If I have to teach or something usually by 6:30. Otherwise I wake up when I wake up! Usually by 8:30 if I have nowhere to go. Today was 9.

Pack your suitcase...

2008-06-05T23:39:00.009-04:00

I promised to blog more, and here I am again, only a few days later!

Today I finally finished a project I've been slowly working on for a few weeks. My mom had seen an altered suitcase that one of her blog/flickr friends bought and because it was seriously the cutest thing, she went out and bought us vintage suitcase/attache cases to alter. She finished hers right away, but I only finished mine this afternoon! Because I'm somewhat perfectionistic about things, I can't just throw something together. I have to think and think and think about placing things in the exact perfect spot. It takes me forever to make anything because I have to spend 75% of the time thinking and planning! Oh well, this time I love the result!

Here is my suitcase! The first couple of pictures have my moms case with them as well.
*Note: she took these pics! I stole them all from her flickr! :-p

I posted these on my new flickr as well! Here's the link if you'd like to check it out:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jenneroni/

Thanks for looking!
More from me in the very near future I hope! :-D

Good grief Charlie Brown!

2008-06-04T01:00:00.002-04:00

My plan to update this blog weekly has definitely faltered a bit (like my friends Matt & Laurel! :-p)! However, now that summer is about here, I anticipate having more time, and with that more attention to this here "webblog."

I did something yesterday and today that I've been trying to avoid doing. I got myself a flickr site. Why would I not want flickr you ask? Because I don't want to become obsessed with it like some...ahem...people (who shall remain nameless!) are. I actually won't have time to become obsessed with it though...between all of the millions of things that occupy my time outside of home, and facebook :-p , how could I possibly pay much attention to flickr? Lets not count the hours I have spent recently signing up, putting pics on it, organizing things, creatin a profile, etc.

Do you like my new flickr slideshow to the right here though? ;o)

If you want to check it out, I think you can click on that slide show, or go to:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/27301861@N03/

So why did I get a flickr? Because my mom does these swaps with various people all the time on there and she recently signed me up for an altered altoid tin swap! I have witnessed the happenings of a number of these swaps right in my own home, so I know that I need to make sure I'm all set up w/the proper blog, flickr, etc, with examples of my "artwork", etc. displayed so that I can get a good partner, so here I am! Ready, locked, and loaded, bring on the good partners!

Well, I wasn't going to make this post completely about flickr and swaps, but that seems to be how it has ended up.
I should inform my sparce viewership of what happenings of my life over the past month & 1/2. I will try to do so in bulleted form (though I don't think I can make bullets on here).

Anyway, over the past 6 weeks or so:
* I auditioned for The Music Man
* I was cast as Ethel Toffelmeyer in the Music Man
* I accepted Ethel.
* I was asked to play the part of Sally Brown in "You're a Good Man Charlie Brown" come September
* I accepted the part of Sally Brown (and am super excited about it!)!!!
* I successfully completed student teaching and school (YAY!)
* I was the annoying Thomas announcer for a Day Out with Thomas 2008: The Great Discovery Tour at the Medina Railroad Museum (I'd be happy to recite you my complete script...the same one I've been saying for the past 4 years...I still have it memorized).
* I sang and played piano for my dear friends Stacey & Justin Radford at their wedding!!! :-D :-D :-D <3 <3 <3
* I resigned my role as Ethel in the Music Man as I can't afford to spend $4+/gallon to drive an hour each way for rehearsals
* I fell in love with the waiter at Friendly's where my friends and I go every week. Well, it's really just that I think he's adorable and he has amazing eyes, and is really awesome and always gives me free pop and ice cream, and.....yeah. :-p
* I cleaned my room (mostly) for the first time since December
* I bought a new camera! A Panasonic Lumix.
* I got rid of a ton of clothes, books, cd's, magazines, shoes, and junk that I've had laying around my room.
* I read some great books (none that you all would be interested...Christian fiction mostly)
* I purchased all of the Jane Austen Masterpiece Theater movies!

I think that's about it. :-p
Now I need to go to bed. I will try to post again soon!

Tomorrow I have every intention of scrapbooking or making something, which I will post on here once I do!

My name is Jen...

2008-04-16T01:49:00.004-04:00

and I'm a Coke-aholic.

There. I admitted it.

A couple of times a year I give it up. I know that it's horrible for me. According to what I've been told over and over by numerous different people, pop is one of the worst food/beverages you can consume. On the radio tonight they were talking about it, saying that both regular & diet have 6 tsps of sugar in them (not sure what size that serving is). That's not a little.

So as I said, I often quit pop. This year I did for Lent. I think I had also quit back in September. I usually give myself a time frame: one month, 40 days, etc. When that time is up, I allow myself a little bit. Then I will eventually have a little more. Before long, I'll be sitting at work/school thinking about coke and how I can't wait to get out so I can stop and have one. An ice cold, refreshing Coke. Particularly one from a fountain. Draft. On the rocks.

All it takes is one hit. One hit and then I'm gone.

It's just soooo good!

Well, I recognize that Coke is bad for me. I need to not have it anymore. So, today I quit. Cold turkey. I have not had a drop of Coke since last night around 9:30.

I've thought about Coke a lot today. I wouldn't have quit if there had been some in my house, or if I'd been motivated enough to go to the store and buy some. I guess my laziness today did amount to something. :-p

Will I allow myself to have Coke again? Heck yes! Will I still stop on my way home every day and buy myself a Coke? Not anymore. It's all about self-discipline and moderation.

They used to say "Coca Cola Classic, Can't beat the real thing." I'm beating it.

So, goodbye my dear friend with that beautiful red and white logo, with that delicious spicy carbonated goodness. I will sorely miss you...for a few days.

And to those who just read through this ridiculous nonsense post, God bless you. Haha. :-p

American Idol

2008-04-11T15:55:00.005-04:00

So I fell asleep about mid-way through the Idol Gives Back thing on Wednesday and wasn't home to see the results show last night. My mom informed me today that they sang "Shout to the Lord" as their opening number last night. I couldn't believe it and figured she'd dreamed it (as she is prone to dreaming things and then not recalling if they were real or not :-p). However, when I checked YouTube a short while ago, I did indeed find two versions of Shout to the Lord that were performed on American Idol! One is from Wednesday night and one from Thursday night.

I find a couple of things interesting about this. First of all, they edited out the word Jesus on the Wed. night one and replaced it with "shepherd". On Thursday though, they sang "Jesus." If I recall back enough, there have been contestants who have sung blatantly Christian songs on the show before, and Simon has criticizing them for singing songs they wanted to sing for themselves and trying to make a statement. Yet, they sang this one twice, and I'm sure he had to approve it. The song is obviously not a pop or rock song, and though it was "inspirational" week or whatever they called it, I found it interesting that this was the song choice. Are they trying to reel the Christians in or something? Maybe the producer is a Christian? Whatever reason, props to them! I'm sure it was awesome for those contestants who are Christian to be able to sing a song truly dedicated to the Lord. And for the others, maybe this touched them and opened some doors. Heck, this song went into millions of homes. I pray it touched a lot of people!

I think I'll go search around and see what other people think about this. Part of me thinks it's cool that they sang the song. Another part of me though just wonders why they "performed" it...if that makes sense. For whatever reason, it's great that it happened and they sounded pretty fab! Haha...reminds me of Heirborne (though we never sang that song I don't think)! :-p

I'd love to know your thoughts on this!!! Please tell me what you think.
Here are the two performances:

Wednesday's edited performance:

Thursday's "Jesus" performance:

Aqua Net anyone?

2008-04-07T21:32:00.004-04:00

Hairspray is playing at Shea's in Buffalo this weekend, and Matt and I already bought tickets to see it on Sunday, which we are very excited about! But then, they had a contest on Channel 4. You had to upload a pic of some crazy hair. Then, they did a random drawing from the pics posted. I uploaded this lovely one from last summer during Brigadoon. I had tried to put my hair in curlers for the show, but this is what came of them. I ended up missing Whitney's bridal shower because of the horrificness, as I had to fix my hair before going on stage that night!

Anyway, I got home tonight and checked my e-mail. I had an e-mail from Channel 4 saying "Congratulations, you have randomly been selected to win 2 tickets to Hairspray!" WOOT!!! I'm super excited. The tix I won are for Friday night, so I'm taking my mom. Hopefully they'll be right up front. My mom won tix to a show a few years ago and we ended up being in the front row! Sunday night's performance is up in the nosebleed section of the balcony.

So basically, I'm super excited and can't wait for Friday now! To top it all off, I have a break beginning Friday that goes all the way through the following week. YAY!!!

One down...

2008-03-14T10:33:00.002-04:00

One to go! Yesterday, I finished my first teaching placement. This means that in only 8 weeks I am officially, finally done for good!

I realize that I've hardly posted in the last couple of months, but I've been pretty busy between teaching and musical directing. Thankfully placement one has ended, and the show is this weekend. That means, starting Monday I can focus solely on getting my butt kicked at Williamsville East High!

My last 8 weeks have been spent at an elementary in Lockport. The teacher that I worked with was very nice, though our teaching styles didn't necessarily align. I still was able to learn a ton from her (especially in the area of classroom management) and had some great experiences. The kids were so cute when I would say goodbye to them...some were really sad! I also got some great recommendations out of the whole process, so that is definitely a plus!

Last night I went to Williamsville (my next school) for their spring choral concert. Lets just say that I was excited about this school before, and now I'm absolutely terrified! Even the lowest choirs sound amazing. Their chorale, their top auditioned choir though was beyond amazing. They sang this incredibly difficult Samuel Barber piece and "O Fortuna," from Carmina Burana! For those of you who don't know that piece, here's a video of another choir performing it. Williamsville used 2 pianos and percussion instead of an orchestra, but wow, they were amazing. I really was shocked that they were high schoolers up there. Let me say again that I'm quite nervous about this placement!

I have today off, so I'm going to be heading to Buffalo to have lunch w/my voice teacher, then back to Starpoint to get ready for the show tonight. I hope the show goes alright! We have cut a lot of things that I would rather we hadn't cut, but the director wanted to, and since she's the director, what she says goes! There are still some songs that the kids are having trouble with and I would have liked to just sit and run through everything with them one last time, but there just isn't time for that. Oh well...I'm sure everything will turn out. It always does!

I suppose that's all for now! I need to go make some practice cd's for my choir now for the Easter music, as they are never going to learn it if I don't!

Houghton bound

2008-02-20T10:33:00.004-05:00

I'm getting ready to head down to Houghton until tomorrow. It's the 7-year anniversary of nightly prayer. 7 years have gone by since we committed ourselves to spend every night in that basement crying out and singing to the Lord. Some people think it's been longer, and really there was much more before then, but it was 7 years ago that we began the nightly meetings. Before that, we met only on Fridays or a few times a week.

There are so many memories and if I began to write them all, I'd be here for hours! Those years were some of the most important of my life. That room, that atmosphere, that group of people-our family then was more influential to me than almost anyone or anything else in my life (excepting my biological family and possibly a few others in some ways of course).

So hi-ho, hi-ho, it's off to Ho-town I go! :-p It will be nice to reunite w/many of m old comrades and friends (Ben & Laura, Lindsay, Richad, Brent, Chris, Joe & Heba, Nickie, and others), some who I haven't seen in a year or two because we all live around the country. I know that we will dearly miss those who aren't in attendance: Matt & Laurel, Aimee, Becky, Justin & Amy to name a few.

So here we go for a throw-back to the old days and a look ahead at what's to come.

Houghton College. What a place.

It is finished.

2008-02-19T01:43:00.011-05:00

It's been a long time since I've actually scrapbooked. I did a tiny bit over the summer and even before that, I think the last time I really sat down and worked on something was about a year ago. Horrors! My life has just been so busy in the last year and when I've had time I've decided to do other things. Well, one of my goals for this break was to get some scrapbooking done, so I spent all Saturday sorting and organizing my desk and supplies and then yesterday afternoon and today were spent finishing this folder book that I have been working on/neglecting for the past year & a half. Technically the pictures are from February of 2004, so I guess this thing is really 4 years in the making. :-p

Anyway, I made this book by sewing two file folders together (spine to spine), creating 8 pages, and then scrapbooked each page.

Sorry that these pics didn't come out super clear. My scanner isn't that big and I don't feel like doing the whole scan & stitch thing, Plus, there's a little bit of bulk on some of the pages, which lifts them off the glass, leading to light & blurriness.

ANYWAY, here is my choir tour book for the 2004 Houghton College Choir!

Cover: Epcot. I should have cleaned this up in photoshop, as there are spots on the scan, but oh well! :-p

P. 2, a few of us walking through a mall in Tampa (Justin & Amy had just met and are already nice and chummy w/each other! :-p).

p. 3, Amy, Miriam & I peacefully resting at the foodcourt of the same mall.

p. 4, We were on the beach and it poured. The dear boys went and grabbed all of our belongings in the rain and got drenched while we waited in a restaurant. We then bought them lunch for being so sweet. :-p I don't think you can tell, but I used epoxy to make rain drops on the page.

p. 5, I really like this page, but it didn't scan well! Anyway, this night it was raining, so we got dressed up and went out to eat.

p. 6, Disney World...we had a blast this day!

p. 7, Coca Cola! On our tour, we went to the coke around the world thing at Epcot, as well as the Coke factory/museum in Atlanta. I do love me some Coke! :-p

p. 8, Back cover: The choir tour program. I have some hidden journaling in there, but it just tells a little bit about the choir tour.

Thanks for looking! Again, sorry for the picture quality! I promise they're much better in real life! ;o)

I love technology, but not as much as you you see...

2008-02-11T20:22:00.001-05:00

Yes I love technology, always and forever. Always and forever.

Haha.

Anyway, I have had dear Charlie the Lappie, my beloved MacBook for a year now and I've only recently begun to discover the amazing things that I can do with him. For example, Photoshop is pretty rad, and most recently I've made friends with Garage Band.

The teacher that I'm working with right now inspired me on Friday to use Garage Band. We have been trying to get kids ready for All County, and she had me record the solo to one of the pieces for one of the students to practice with. I never took any technology courses in college. Most music students take technology in music courses where they are able to learn programs like Finale, Sibelius, Garage Band, Smart Music, and many others. I've had to learn these things on a very basic level on my own. Until Friday I'd never even touched Garage Band.

I never realized that with one simple cable, I could hook my keyboard (even my ancient 500-lb beast of a keyboard) up to my computer and record myself playing. I couldn't stop thinking about this all weekend, so yesterday afternoon my brother and I braved the bitter cold and wind to head to make the hour trek to Guitar Center. I didn't feel well, was exhausted, and had already canceled all of my commitments for that day, but I was obsessed with this idea so I went for it anyway.

I found and purchased the cable I needed once I'd finished drooling over a number of instruments and all kinds of equipment that I desperately need (or just want a lot). After a quick necessary stop at Starbucks, we headed home, I cleaned my room (because you can't make music in a messy room!), unearthed my dear keyboard form the depths of my closet and hooked it all up.

My first recording wasn't a long one, but I recorded a 2 piano parts, me humming, and a little bit of shaker for texture sake. The recording is only about 40 seconds long, but I'm happy with the way it turned out, especially for my first time. I was actually so excited about it that I went ahead and put it on a cd already. :-p I wonder if there's a way that I could post it on here.

Anyway, that's all. :-p Now maybe I'll go play some more and make another "song." :-p

I should probably thank you all for reading. This was a long and not very exciting post. Sorry! :-p

40 days of new

2008-02-04T20:27:00.000-05:00

As Lent begins this week, I'm coincidentally making a number of changes/beginning new things in the next couple of days. I won't mention all of them, but I will say that I'm looking forward to a time of simplification and consecration.
I find it interesting as well that tomorrow is nine months until the presidential elections. Many (charismatics in particular) feel that there are strong prophetic ties to numbers. Interesting that over these next nine months, our nation will be preparing to bring forth a new president. Will it be a boy or a girl and will we call them Barrack, Hillary, Mitt, John, or Mike?
And with that little segue, let me please admonish anyone who may read this before 9pm tomorrow night: VOTE (if you are registered in a state that is holding a Super Tuesday primary). This is the one election where you will have more say than any other: your party and your state alone.

Personally, I LOVE to vote. I feel that it's one of my greatest privileges as an American citizen is voting. In fact, I've hardly missed an election since I turned 18...I even vote for the county and school board elections. All that said, though I love voting, I'm not completely optimistic and unrealistic. I know that our democratic society says that every vote counts. However, I am a conservative living in NY, and I know that no matter what, when it comes to a presidential election (as well as most other elections), my state will go to the blue. Without fail, NY votes democrat. Tomorrow though, is a primary election. Republicans only voting for republicans, democrats only voting for democrats.
Tomorrow I will do my part in helping to decide if McCain, Romney, or Huckabee take the field in the White House SuperBowl nine months from tomorrow.

As I've said, it's no secret that I'm a conservative. Pretty staunchly so. I'm still not positive who's little lever I'll be pressing tomorrow night (I assure you it will NOT be Romney's, but my mind isn't made up as to whether I should give my vote to McCain, or vote for Huckabee who I truly want). Because this is my blog though, and I'm able to freely express my opinion, Let me yank on your shirt sleeve and beg at you for a little bit. Please vote AGAINST Romney if you are a republican, and against Hillary if you are a democrat. Especially against Hillary. I strongly believe (and I could go into the hundreds of reasons why in a later post) that if she takes office, this country-and this world will be in more trouble than we've ever seen. Vote against Hillary. Just because she's the senator for NY, doesn't mean she has to win here. Ann Coulter's a bit off her rocker at the moment for saying she'd vote for Hillary over McCain.

Ok, political rant is over. Now I must go to bed. First though, does anyone know of any great Christian music I should check out, particularly new worship music? Even though I am the music director for a church, I am not up on who's the best and what's good in Christian music anymore. I have my favorites that I follow and purchase (Shane & Shane, Casting Crowns, Passion, United), but what's good out there that I don't know about? Share with me PLEASE! :-D

Thanks! Goodnight & happy voting! :-p

Time goes by...

2008-01-14T00:21:00.000-05:00

5 years ago was our senior year at Houghton. Weird. Life has changed a lot since then. I have changed a lot since then...some good, some not so good.

Now that I've started this post, I'm feeling tired and am deciding not to elaborate anymore. Maybe I will at another time. Hah.

Made changes to this little blogger...new layout, added LOTS of music (hope you enjoy...it's all mixed up, but scroll around and you might just find something you like!). The music is a hodgepodge of my favorites. Numerous favorites (heck-I'm famous for my never-ending list of favorite everythings! :-p).

Alright, well I'm going to bed now. More thoughtfulness at another time I hope!

SHANE & SHANE...a post w/a few controversial comments and exciting prospects

2008-01-09T01:14:00.001-05:00

For a lot of reasons I was never ever going to go to Canada again. Ever (sorry Canadian friends...Canada and I just don't agree!). Unless Hillary becomes president, in which case I'll be moving there in January of '09 (hope I'm not offending you liberals too much w/that comment).

However, I might have to take that back (the never going to Canada again part).

I decided to check the website of my most favorite Christian singers, Shane and Shane to find out if they'll be touring anywhere near me anytime soon. See, I've loved them for years and have never seen them live. These boys are my loves. Shane Barnard and I are supposed to get married. He just doesn't know it yet. Hah.

*Shane Barnard on left.

*This is one of my most favorite songs of theirs.

Anyway, I saw that they do indeed have some shows coming up in May in Ontario. One of them is only an hour away from me in St. Catherines.
ONLY AN HOUR AWAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm thrilled by this news.

In other events, I went w/my friend Lora to see National Treasure tonight. I loved the entire thing. There were some parts that I chuckled at because of the ahem...lack of realism...ahem (as if any of it's that realistic :-p), but overall, I really enjoyed it. I had that fluttery-heart feeling most of the time as I gripped the arm rests in suspense. I'll definitely be looking forward to the next one. Pg. 47 huh? *only those who have seen this movie will know what I'm talking about. ;o)

Alright, well once again it's late and I shouldn't be allowed to be awake. Especially since I think I only slept for a few hours last night due to a very late night of doing virtually nothing and an early morning of substitute teaching today.

Tomorrow is my first musical rehearsal for Into the Woods, which I'm vocal directing at Starpoint High School! Hopefully it will go well. I should really watch the musical once more before tomorrow and come up with some rehearsal plans. Hah. That can wait until tomorrow afternoon. ;o)

In the middle of the night...

2008-01-07T02:15:00.000-05:00

It's the middle of the night and I'm hardly tired. I hope I don't get called to sub at 5am, because I'm not going. Actually, maybe I'll shut my phone off tonight. Then I won't have to answer it at all! My phone...ugh. I dropped it in a bucket of dirty mop water yesterday. Thankfully I was able to blow it dry with the blow-dryer it and it works again!

Well, since I'm not wanting to go to sleep, here's a New Year's survey that I found. :-p

1. What’s the first thing you did on New Years?:
I stayed home and made some videos on iMovie for a little while before heading out.

2. First thing you ate?:
I ate vegetables. I actually don't think I ate anything else that night.

3. First person who called you?:
I think my sister

4. First thing you drank?:
I drank pop and this sweet raspberry wine.

5. Did you kiss anyone when the ball dropped?:
no

6. Were you out?:
for part of the time, yes.

7. First person you called?:
I don't think I called anyone. Texted a bunch of favorites though.

8. What’s your new years resolution?:
To do something creative every day.

9. Go to any parties?:
Yes

10. With friends?:
Yes, I'd consider them my friends.

11. With your parents?:
Yes, my parents were actually there too.

12: Do you think this will be a good year?
It had better be my best year yet!

13. In a relationship with anyone?:
Negatory.

14. Wish you had someone to kiss when the ball dropped?:
Yes, I do wish that.

15. Have a best friend?:
Yes! :-D

16. What do you hope to improve on?:
communication, discipline, organization

17. What are you most excited for to start off your year?:
student teaching, getting things done

18. Were you in your pj’s when the ball dropped?:
no

19. Like anyone?:
No one!

20. Did you drink?:
yes, but only a little.

Alright, well I might possibly be feeling sleepy now, so I guess I'll try to go to sleep...or work on the pic of my sister I was making in photoshop. :-p

FABULOUS NEWS!!!

2008-01-03T08:40:00.000-05:00

We receive a lot of Canadian television stations at my house, as we live close to Lake Ontario and transmit stations from Toronto (and since we don't have cable). One of the stations we watch frequently is TVO, which is like Canada's version of PBS (yes, I watch a lot of PBS...I have no trouble admitting that I'm a nerd :-p).

The other night, there was some commercial on TVO about Jane Austen, which said to go to this website: www.tvo.org/janeausten. I finally thought to look there this morning. My findings were bittersweet: they were airing a number of new Austen films, but in December. I missed it all.

On a whim though, I decided to check PBS out, as the films looked Masterpiece Theater-esq, when what to my wondering eyes should appear, but the greatest news of the new year thus far:

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/masterpiece/austen/

Four new adaptations and a new series, plus they're airing all six Austen works in a row.
I hope that this news is as exciting for some of you as it is for me! :-D

Now, once the new films come out on dvd and I buy them, I will have multiple adaptations of each Austen (as I have at least one of each now):
3-Emma (I already have the one they're showing)
3-Mansfield Park
2-Northanger Abbey
3-Persuasion
3-Pride and Prejudice (they're airing the BBC one w/Colin Ferth...MY FAVORITE, which I also already own)
3-Sense and Sensibility.

Plus, a new drama based on her life! Ooh! :-p

Alright, sorry for my nerd-dom. Back to reality now. Heading to Ithaca for the day w/Tony to look for apartments for him.

A new beginning

2008-01-02T22:34:00.000-05:00

Welcome to my new blog! :-D It's a new year, and I've decided to take the plunge and transition over to a new blog! I'm switching from livejournal to blogger (I know lots of you are going over to wordpress, but I like the features here so far). I'll probably still keep my lj up occasionally, however I doubt that I'll post there very often (not that I do now anyway...haha).

This site is currently under construction so sorry for the lack of posts thus far. I'm hoping to use this space to post lots of blah-g-posts about life (hopefully not too blah though!), performing, Christianity, and creating. I will probably also post lots of clips and pics of performances, fun, scrapbooking, and art work.

Please feel free to add me to your blog roles (I will try to get mine up soon...let me know if you want me to add you too!) and to pass the link along to anyone you think might be interested in checking things out here.

By the way, I made my banner and the photo below it myself using photoshop. I really have no idea what I'm doing with the program, but I like my meager beginnings! I guess you really do just have to play around with it. If anyone can recommend some good tutorials or tips, PLEASE let me know as I'm sort of in left field with the whole thing.

Anyway, thanks for stopping by and Happy New Year! :-D