Sunday, July 27, 2008

Short Stuff

No, I am not referring to my height. I am simply trying to give a brief update on the last couple of weeks to the few, faithful followers of this random blog. So here are a few quick notes and pics:

1. July 18, 2008: Julina and I went to see the Dark Knight on IMAX! Holy incredible movie experience, Batman! It was so amazing to not just see the film, but to FEEL it as well (and, unlike the sadness of Sarah's experience, the sound/music did not overwhelm the dialogue, which was very well-delivered). This movie is dark, I'll grant you (which is why I was utterly flabbergasted to find that parents had brought small children and babies- yes, I mean INFANTS around, maybe even under, the age of one- to this film). But it deals with relevant issues in a meaningful way. The acting is amazing; the effects are superb; and I love the message Chris Nolan delivers regarding the power of choice and how the choices we make have an impact on those around us. If you haven't seen it, you should be running to the theater right now! (Okay, driving might get you there faster... and maybe you should wait for a day other than Sunday to do it...)

2. July 18, 2008: After watching the aforementioned fantastic film, I drove the extensive six hours to Missouri to spend a couple of weeks with my family, making a stop in St. Louis to dine with Emily, Joe and Noah and to do a session at the temple before it closes for cleaning.


3. July 20, 2008: With Emily, Joe, Noah, Steven and Tamara driving over for the occasion, we celebrate my birthday by eating Mom's fantastic BBQ chicken wings, corn on the cob, watermelon, and baked beans (all the tastes of summer!) with a yummy trifle and chocolate/rocky road ice cream cake (compliments of Emily) for dessert! I got some great games, foamy soap (one of my favorite B&BW purchases), and Reese's Pieces. We rounded out the night by playing one of my favorite games, Balderdash!


4. July 24, 2008: Miss Saigon! While I will freely admit that Emily was the bigger fan, I've always loved the music to this production- I loved the soundtrack (being poor, I was never able to buy it, a fact that will soon change), I loved the poignant tragedy of the story- so I was excited when she mentioned that it was coming to the Muni (Muny? St. Louis' Municipal Theater). Fortunately, she was able to get a baby-sitter for Noah, so Joe was able to come, too. The production was fantastic. There were a few kinks that threw us off balance, but overall, it was incredible- the performances were solid and did an excellent job with the story and the music. We were also lucky enough to have cool weather and NO RAIN (despite the rain that had come before and after the performance). It was a great night and a great way to spend time with my sister and brother-in-law.

5. July 28, 2008: I will be driving to Hannibal, MO to meet my friend Rebecca Powell and finally get my kitten! I still haven't made any final decisions on the name, so there's still time to suggest away... :) If you'd rather vote than suggest, some final contenders are: Agadore Sparticus, Thor, Cairo, Hel, Squishy, and Tonks.

So, that's my life in a nutshell (albeit a rather large nutshell). When I return to IN, I will try to post more summer updates (e.g. travels to WA/OR, Dallas, among other things...)

3 comments:

genevieve said...

Hey you! Em told me you were in town, but I couldn't believe you *worked* while here on your break!! I admire your work ethic. :)

Re. Miss Saigon: I'd always wanted to see it, but knew nothing--I mean NOTHING--about it, and had only heard "The Heat is On in Saigon," which, obviously, doesn't exactly give an accurate sample of the TONE of the show. It was playing in London when I was studying abroad in undergrad, and it was always in the back of my mind to go see, behind Rent and Les Mis and a few others.

One evening, we were all supposed to meet our new college president at the Globe Theatre for this fancy dinner, but got the terrible news the morning of that he'd canceled his flight to London, because a student at Grinnell had just committed suicide. It was such a small school that most of us had known the guy, and we all felt icky the whole day.

SO, that evening, for a treat in order to cheer myself up, I decided to go to "Miss Saigon."

You can imagine how much I was NOT cheered up that night.

(In another circumstance, I might have loved that musical!)

(P.S. Go with thor! Oh, but Tonks is really, really cute. She was always kitten-like.)

Beckie said...

Name the kitten George Clooney and then you can start the rumor you are dating him. That's what I would do.
I like them all, leaning towards agadore and tonks...

Emily S. said...

yay for updates!!!

Love you, can;t wait to hang out one more time tomorrow!