Christmas Performing!

It has been such a hectic week with practice, practice, practice... traveling, decorating, choreographing, wrapping, cleaning, singing, and yes... more practicing. I have just come off a week of traveling to Page, AZ to practice for a gig in St. George, then came home to practice and get Christmas trees lighted and boxes wrapped for The Kidman's concert in Page. In the midst of all that we had two sisters and crew travel down from Idaho (thank goodness) and it was none too late I tell you what. The day of the concert the school had a gas leak and we couldn't get in to decorate the stage until about 2 hours before the concert started. Thanks to our "helpers" we were good to go by the time people started showing up.

It was by far the funnest concert I've done since we had a very special guest that stole the show right out from under us... Yes - Santa was there (aka my dad). Dad's beard looked so great and thanks to the Santa outfit my sisters bought him last year, dad was excited as all get-out to get up on that stage and do a jig with his daughters. It was so funny and he was perfect.

The most awkward part of the show was when I was singing "The Night Before Christmas" and I accidentally said Santa was covered in "ashes and shut" instead of "ashes and soot". (at least I didn't do what I did in practice the night before and accidentally said "a__es and shut". Yeah--- that would have been bad.) As it was I just giggled at myself and corrected my mistake while the audience laughed and kept going. The show MUST go on... no matter how stupid I look! (this is a picture of me and my boo-boo)

It was great seeing a lot of people and it is always nice to have an "admirer". I had a young man come up after the show and told me that I had the voice of an "angel" and wanted me to sign his CD and asked to get a picture with me. The young girl scouts were there too and just huddle around us, wanting to talk to us and get pictures (I guess to some people I really am a STAR!!!!) (-: I like that thought!

After the Page concert, Lynda and I headed back to Phoenix the next morning to sing for a Jubilee of Trees. I just gave the guy our CD and we started singing. We didn't consider the fact that we didn't have Jen with us, so on all her solos and melody Lyn and just kept looking at each other and would signal who would take this or that solo. It turned out ok after all. Then the next day Jen joined us to sing at the Mesa Temple Christmas Lights.

This week I have try-outs for the High School kids (since I'll be choreographing thier show), then I head back up to Page to pick my mother up to travel down to Willcox, AZ (down by the border) for the next concert on Friday, then I travel back up to Page with my mother for a dress rehearsal and Stake Choir concert on Saturday and Sunday, then we are back down to Phoenix for a concert on the 18th and then I'm DONE (for a day or two until I have to buckle down and choreograph this show for Jen's High School) Whew! Wish me luck!

From Icicles to Sunshine!!!!

Wow it's been a while and there sure are a lot of things to catch up on... but... I'll just tell you the latest!

Work has been good, and one of my favorite catering events so far had to be this Daddy-Daughter Dance for a catholic school up North of the City. I never had such a good time watching a bunch of High School girls get dressed up in these fancy dresses, then all wear these high heels that made them look like chicken when they walked. It was hilAAAAAArious! If you want to try it, slap on some heels... bend your knees slightly and... strut 2 3 4, strut 2 3 4... work it girl! Work It!
Then when it was time to dance I had a good chuckle watching all these Daddies out there with their little girls trying to dance the latest hip-hip style to a song that talks about getting down and dirty on the dance floor (yeah... that was just WRONG!)


This last weekend before the trip out here I had a great time with the roomies. If any and all of you love the TWILIGHT series, you all know what I'm talking about when Friday the 21st was a giggle fest of screaming girls at the movie theatre. Yes - even though me and my two room mates were there right along with the fourty thousand middle-schoolers (who were at the TWILIGHT movie on a field trip - all I have to say is, "Where was this when I was a kid?") we did have somewhat of a more mature approach to the movie... somewhat. But yes, we did enjoy sucking on our RING-POPS from the local store as we ahhhed and ooohed.

The next day was the long-awaited-for "TRAILER TRASH" Party. It was a birthday party for two of my room mates - what can I say, Sarah can sure pick a theme! I had the lovely costume of rollers in the hair, bright blue and pink make-up and a robe over sweat pants. I looked HOT!! To go with this night of cheese-doodles, pork rinds and cool-aid I whipped up a birthday cake of Ding-Dongs, Twinkies, powdered donuts, and tootsie rolls. It doesn't get more "dorky" than that. The evening was spent listening to Sarah and her guests talking in strong southern accents and doing every thing possible to make it a "hick" night.And yes, I'm a nerd and recorded this facing side-ways. So just crane your neck "REAL GOOD".

So I JUST got out here to sunny AZ - and YES! it IS sunny! (at least until today where it rained most of the morning and evening) I arrived from NYC (and it is quite cold there - I have to bundle up with shirt, sweater, coat, mittons, scarf and hat to survive there at the moment) and the very next day my sister, Jen (yes she is doing better everyone - and the baby is so cute), and I went down to Tempe Town Lake where they were having the Iron Man extravaganza and lo and behold there is not a person there that does not have shorts, a tank top, or a pair of flip-flops on. You would think I had died and gone to heaven. I have been looking like the odd-ball out there in NYC for a while now thanks to AZ dressing habits dying hard. I have to say I love my shorts and my flip-flops. I tried to wear my flip-flops for AS LONG as I could, but when a short walk to the corner of the street and back is enough to about give me frost bite, I have to finally concede.

November Madness

What's better than a day shopping, eating at Applebees (yes I live in New York and sometimes we STILL go to Applebees) and having a hair-dying party in the bathroom. There were four of us in there at the same time. Carrie eating her dinner ( a bowl of salad), Sarah (the dye-ee), Lynette (the dye-er) and Sarah C. (the Photographer and supervisor). If you don't know it, NY bathrooms are tiny. There really should never be more than 1 person in there at a time, but here we are - four of us with the door CLOSED and getting high on hair-dye fumes. sniff sniff smell the toxins!

So I haven't had the best of luck the past couple of days. Oh, my days have been going pretty well, but for some reason I can't quite seem to walk straight. As my room mate and I headed uptown to go to the Bronx "TARGET" (yes - it is quite a treat out here to be able to go to the TARGET) we were walking toward the subway, engaged in an intense conversation apparently, because out of the blue Sarah juts her hands out and I full on RAMMED into a wall. Well I guess I can't actually call it a "wall" since the little old man with the walker is not so solid. In fact if I had not followed Sarah's example of jutting my hands out and grabbing onto whatever my hands fell on (which in this case happened to be his coat) that little old man with the walker would have gone sprawling across the pavement. Thanks to my firm hold it was just a REAL good jostling which resulted in him swearing at me and asking "What the Hell are you doing?" (since I am quoting I don't feel like I can change the language in order to be more "pg") and me apologizing profusely over and over. Apparantely Sarah and I were having an AMAZING conversation because neither I or the little old man saw that one coming.

Post election blues. The evening of the elections I was invited over to a ladies house for dinner. It turned into an evening of talking politics (mainly every one there completely bashing the Republicans (yes I am a Republican), praising Obama (no I did not vote for him), and watching the polls close (with them doing a happy dance and me crying on the inside). I guess people think that JUST because you live in New York that you are automatically Liberal. Not so my friends. Of course you have to have a good sense of who you are, what you believe in politically, and a good support system back west to keep you updated to what REALLY is happening instead of relying on New York News to tell you the biased and ridiculous. I spent the evening humming and hawing. I tried to find points where I could be on the same page with these people, so I finally was able to say, "History will definitely be made tonight. We'll see what the future brings." See - I can add to conversations too. What is nice is that my meaning and how it was interpreted can be two totally different things! The joy of choosing your words wisely. Another "plus" to the night was the entertainment of listening to these people emphatically declare that Jesus Christ is black. Yes... I know... humorous isn't it?

Halloween... More of a Treat this Year

Halloween fun!

Well, there wasn't TOO much Halloween craziness this year. It was fun to watch all the little kids go trick or treating at the local markets and shops. I counted 3 pairs of little girl twins, all dressed the same in some sort of angel/princess outfits - I was lucky that my mom let me dress myself instead of making my twin and I be the same - but then again, Lynda and I missed out on looking incredibly adorable in our "twinsiness". It was interesting to see how many little girls were dressed like angels while they held onto the hands of their mothers that were dressed as hookers. Interesting... very interesting.
I just love how at the beginning of the night all the kids are excited and then as the night drags on, you hear more and more crying from the kids than anything else. It just goes to show... candy will NOT bring happiness. (I wish someone would have told me that BEFORE I got hooked.)

I did have a great evening watching "Wait Until Dark" (an old suspense movie with Audrey Hepburn). I have to say that there definitely was a scream in the course of the movie - all three of us screamed - so that was my Halloween fright for the year. Me and my my room mates (that's me and Sarah right there tonight), indulged ourselves with popcorn (with chocolate chips and gummy bears mixed in), fudge bars and hot chocolate. Yes... tonight was a night of INCREDIBLE indulgence. Ahhhh... what joy. (once again- I wish someone would have told me sooner that chocolate DOES NOT BRING HAPPINESS... although it DOES bring happiness until it runs out!)

Me and My Apartment

We have some funny qirks here at the apartment, and one of them lately has been the fun little habit of watching the bravest, sexiest, strongest, and prettiest heroine known to mankind... yes, we have all been deeply involved in the intense saga of "SHE-RA"--

yes eveyone "I am SHE-RA!" not to be confused with her twin brother, HE-MAN aka -"I have the Power!" We all are disturbed by the fact that she doesn't get to say that she has the POWER too. I guess that's just us feminist women out here in the City. But watching these awesome episodes has made me seek out even more goodness, like "Gem and the Holigrams". I'm going to have to buy these shows for my kids to watch instead of the filth that is all over the TV now-a-days.


So I love my room mates. They are great great great. The other Sunday I was curled up in my bed reading when Sarah Ratliff (the Drama Therapist from Arkansas (in the middle of the group) - yes we have the southern accent come out "real stong" sometimes) comes in and curls up on the other side of the bed and we start chatting. Before long Carrie George (our gypsy room mate (second from the right)- since she's half here, half in DC) comes in to join us. About an our later in walks Meredith (far left). We're up to 4 - then the OTHER Sarah(far right) comes home and we are one big, happy roomie family. Life doesn't get any better in NYC!

And what is being in a singles ward without your lovely "dinner groups". Back at ASU and Dixie State this was formerly known as "the free meal ticket --- male only". When did the girls EVER get a free meal out of the guys in the ward. If they did, apparantly I was running with the wrong crowd. Bet here in NYC the guys actually cook too... at least they attempt to. They are improving their skills, but those first few tries were something to behold.

The good thing is that I'm back cooking again... well, at least once every 3 weeks. I kind of went on strike there for a while - for about 2 years now. But I'm back baby! And unlike other skills, cooking isn't exactly something you lose. haha



I'm also learning to throw some AWESOME parties here. Cause "Who wouldn't want to eat pudding?"

Yes, we threw a Pudding Party.
All Kinds of pudding, all kinds of fun. Banana pudding, steam pudding, rice pudding, pumpkin pudding, vanilla, chocolate, pudding pops, pudding sandwiches, mud pie, tapioca, tofu pudding, etc etc... we are ALL puddinged out!!! at least for the next 6 months.



The next party we're doing is a double birthday party that is going to be centered around the theme of "Trailer Trash". Yes, I'm excited. I want to make a cake from ding dongs and tootsie rolls.

A Doosy of a Week! What else could happen?

So I have learned that there are several people that have had much harder weeks than myself. There are those who have had a hard week because of stress, sadness, monetary problems, etc... And yes, we all go through those bad weeks - some obviously more than others. But perhaps, just perhaps we can find it in our hearts to shake our heads in pity for my friend, Nisha.

Nisha was coming to the end of a very hard week. She was very happy to get the week over with and was exhausted, on her way home on the Subway. The train was by no means empty, with people sitting on all sides of her... a normal train ride home. Not only people sitting, but some are standing, as is normal. What is NOT normal is that, without warning, a man zips down the old zipper, whips out the ... well... you know, and starts relieving himself right there on the subway. But WAIT! It gets even better than that! Swiveling his hips just right, this man proceeds to spray Nisha and 3 other bystanders (actually they were sitting - so I guess they were "bysitters") with his lovely, sticky stench. If Nisha's week was not bad enough, this was enough to make it absolutely ridiculous. She had to ride the train for about a 1/2 hour more before she could get home and change out of her soiled clothes.


Yes, Nisha admits that there was something wrong in the head with her un-expected "attacker", and even though she can somewhat chuckle at her experience in hind-sight, you have to admit, no one is surprised that stuff like this happens... at least when it's New York City.

Wine Natze Unleashed

So the other night I was off to work. Yeah... I work at a catering... temping... staffing agency. Every day it's different, and that is ok by me. I hate the boring ins and outs of a regular job (which is probably why I'm a performer - I like to be entertained). So the gig was the "Meat-packing district 'Un-corked' ". Yep, you guessed it - a wine tasting extravaganza. In other words, a LOT of people, drinking a LOT of wine, getting VERY tipsy. I had the ultimately cool job of being the wine natze - aka the girl who stands by the door and makes sure no one takes wine onto the street. Interesting night. Not only did my cheeks feel like a Barbie by the end of the night from smiling so much at these people, (and no, it's not easy to do that when the smell of alcohol is so potent that it makes you literally dizzy and sick to your stomach), but I had the opportunity to have some real doozy conversations with people who were completely drunk. Let's just say, I was their favorite person in the whole world by the time they went out the door. My favorite conversation of the evening was an older woman who was convinced that the poster hanging on the wall, which was of a beautiful male model, REALLY was making eyes at her and REALLY did want to take her home. Of course I agreed with her 100%. She seemed to REALLY like me after that.
The other highlight of my night was when the head boss got upset at me for letting a man through with an empty wine glass. I tried to explain that I was told they could take their EMPTY glasses with them, as long as there was no alcohol leaving the building. But apparantley he didn't want ANY glasses leaving the building, so not long after I had to chase some punk guy out the door who was trying to run out with a glass of wine. No LITERALLY run after him, since he was running out himself. But when there are cops all over and will give my boss AND myself a ticket for slacking, I figured a little workout was worth it.