Memorial Day Weekend 2011

I spent Memorial Day weekend with my family in Southern Utah.  It was an absolutely wonderful and much needed break from the daily grind!  Early Saturday morning my Dad and I drove down to St. George to get the motor home out of storage and get everything hooked up to the RV park.  We were very happy because the motor home survived the winter without any leaks or damage and it even started on the first try.  All we had to do was get some propane and then we were set!  We have not taken the motor home anywhere this year because my Mom has been recovering from some major back surgery.  We are so glad that she is doing well enough to go camping once again!  Marilyn drove my Mom to St. George later in the day and we spent the evening enjoying the sunshine!  We ended the day with a birthday cake for Marilyn.

One of the best things about staying in St. George is being so close to so many different National Parks!  On Sunday morning Marilyn and I went to Zion National Park and spent the day there.  I absolutely love Zion!  Here are some of the amazing geologic formations:

In the evening my cousin John, who lives in St. George, came to visit us and we had a BBQ.  It was a lot of fun talking to him!

Monday morning Marilyn and I headed to Bryce Canyon National Park.  It is unbelievable that all of these formations were caused by weathering and erosion!

After spending the day at Bryce Canyon Marilyn and I made the long, but scenic, drive home along S.R. 89.  It was hard to leave sunny Southern Utah to come home to the dreary weather of Salt Lake, especially when my parents were able to stay for a few more days!  But some people had to work in the morning!

Monday Motivator

"The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams."

- Eleanor Roosevelt

The Rite of Spring

This evening you could find me at Abravanel Hall listening to the final Utah Symphony concert of the 2010-2011 season.  It was exciting for me because it was another chance for me to see Thierry Fischer, the new Music Director, on the podium!  Apparently he will be conducting the majority of the concerts next season! I can't wait!  The orchestra played a piece called Four Last Songs by Richard Strauss which was based on the poems of Hermann Hesse.  Thanks to my cousin Eric I have read a great deal of Hermann Hesse this year and I have to say that he is an absolute genius!  Hermann Hesse, that is.  Although my cousin Eric is pretty awesome...but I digress. I loved this piece because it was beautiful, ethereal, and other-worldly which is how I would describe the writing of Hermann Hesse.  Trust me!  Read Narcissus and Goldmund right now!  After the intermission the orchestra played The Rite of Spring by Igor Stravinsky.  You know I love the Russian composers!  It was dramatic, stately, and decidedly pagan.  Ironically, it was entirely suitable for the gloomy weather we have been having this spring!

A Pirate's Life For Me

I have a long four day weekend for Memorial Day so I decided to see another summer blockbuster on my list to start my vacation.  This evening I saw Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides which is the fourth installment of the popular series with Johnny Depp as Captain Jack Sparrow.  The story begins in London with Jack attempting to rescue his first mate from being hanged only to be detained himself at the Tower of London.  Ultimately, King George II asks him to be a part of an expedition to the Fountain of Youth led by his nemesis Captain Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush).  He escapes from the British and soon learns that someone is impersonating him and recruiting a crew to find...you guessed it...the Fountain of Youth.  The impersonator is Anjelica, (Penelope Cruz) a former love interest.  She forcibly compels him to join the crew of her father, the legendary Blackbeard (Ian McShane) who wants the waters from the Fountain of Youth because he has had a premonition of his death.  Of course the Spanish, at the behest of King Ferdinand VI, are also looking for the Fountain of Youth.  After a treacherous journey to retrieve two chalices from Ponce de Leon's ship and the tear of a mermaid, there is an epic confrontation between all of the characters.  I enjoyed this movie but it may have had too much swashbuckling and derring-do even for me!  My favorite scenes involved Judi Dench in a cameo as a noblewoman and Keith Richards, once again, in a cameo as Jack's father.  I recommend this movie for fans of the Pirates franchise.

Creme de la Creme

I took today off so that I could recover from the amazing U2 concert last night!  Consequently, I was able to finish The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie by Muriel Spark, the May selection for my book club.  I absolutely loved this book!  Of course I was totally predisposed to love it because I am a single female teacher who has reached a certain age!  Jean Brodie is a teacher at the Marcia Blaine School for Girls in Edinburgh, Scotland during the 1930s.  She has some very unorthodox teaching methods and the headmistress is always trying to find ways to remove her from the school.  She takes an interest in six girls, whom she calls "the creme de la creme," and mentors them throughout their schooling by nurturing their artistic talents and instilling within them independence, passion, and ambition.  Ultimately, one of "the Brodie Set" betrays her for her radical politics and she is forced to retire from teaching.  My very favorite part of the book is when Miss Brodie has the girls hold up their history text books so anyone who is watching them will think they are having a history lesson while she proceeds to tell them stories about her doomed love affair with a soldier during World War I and her travels around the world.  I will have to remember that trick as I am easily duped into telling "stories" in my classroom instead of proceeding with the lesson.  I completely identified with the character of Jean Brodie because she is so passionate about art, literature, music, travel, politics, and teaching.  I am not sure why I haven't read this book before!  

360

U2 has a very aptly named tour: from the moment I entered Rice Eccles Stadium until the final notes sounded my head was literally spinning 360 degrees!  Look at the absolutely amazing stage known as "The Claw."

Here I am trying to contain my excitement before the show!

The opening band was the Fray (can you see them on the stage?) and I was quite excited to see them perform because I had to miss the show the last time they were in town.  They played their hits but they also played some new songs off their forthcoming album.  The lead singer joked that most of their songs were about bad break-ups and failed interventions so they were now going to sing some happy songs.  They were fabulous!

Then U2 took the stage!  As soon as the crowd got a glimpse of Bono they went into hysterics, me included!  They began with "Even Better Than The Real Thing" and then sang "I Will Follow" which was one of their very first hits off their first album Boy.  I loved it!  They sang a few songs from their most recent album No Line On The Horizon (which is amazing) such as "Get On Your Boots" and then "Magnificent."  Of course they did some old favorites such as "Mysterious Ways," "Elevation," "Beautiful Day," and "Pride (In The Name Of Love)."  Bono was as charismatic as always with his rock star poses with the microphone and his cavorting around the giant circular stage.  I absolutely love how passionate he is when he performs!  I thought they had some interesting songs in their set such as "Zooropa," "Scarlet," "Miss Sarajevo," and an unbelievable acoustic performance of "Stay (Faraway So Close)" which is a lesser known song that is one of my very favorites.  In light of recent events, the audience got a laugh out of "Until The End of the World."  About mid-way through the show the LED screens on the stage began expanding and it was incredible!

Absolutely spectacular!

Then U2 really got going and sang "Sunday Bloody Sunday" and "I'll Go Crazy If I Don't Go Crazy Tonight" with more than 50,000 people singing every word.  I was thrilled when Bono sang "All I Want Is You" which, apparently, was added to this leg of the tour. The crowd really enjoyed "City of Blinding Lights," "Where The Streets Have No Name," and "Vertigo."  There was a touching moment when U2 sang "Walk On" and talked about political prisoners around the world.  One of the highlights for me was when they sang "One" during the encore because Bono talked about how important one person's voice can be in solving the problems of the world.  That is something I truly believe!

For the final encore U2 played stirring versions of "With or Without You" and "Moment of Surrender" that were just beautiful.  U2 made such an emotional connection to the crowd that this is a concert I will not soon forget.  Definitely worth waiting a year to see!  Definitely!

I Heart U2

I absolutely love U2!  I have been a fan since I was in junior high school and I have every single album they have ever recorded (several of which I purchased at midnight release parties).  I have seen them in concert every time they have come to Salt Lake and I couldn't be more excited for their concert tomorrow night!  U2 did not come to Salt Lake until the PopMart tour in 1998.  I wanted to go so badly but I was teaching all day and couldn't get a wristband the day the concert was announced (back in the day you had to wear a wristband denoting your place in line until the tickets actually went on sale to discourage people from camping out for days to get a good spot).  In my despair I decided to just show up on the appointed day and stand at the end of the line.  It was a long shot but such was my mania to attend the concert!  Then a miracle happened! The ticket agent said that the ticket printing machine had broken so they were going to pull eight tickets (the maximum tickets you could buy) for each wristband before they went on sale.  The only problem was that everyone in line would have to wait for the tickets to be printed at another store.  I knew that not everyone would want all eight tickets so I stayed put!  After standing in that line all day I was actually able to get three tickets!  Many of my friends who had wristbands did not get tickets because it sold out in minutes!  The next time U2 came to town was for the Elevation tour in 2001.  This time I had a wristband but it was a high number and I knew it would sell out quickly.  When I got in line, I was so far back that I was in the parking lot of the store.  Then the ticket agent said he was going to draw a number and that person would become the first in line (this measure was to discourage people from camping out for days to get a good wristband).  The number drawn was three ahead of me so I became the fourth person in line!  The concert sold out when the seventh person got to the ticket window!  For the Vertigo tour in 2005 tickets went on sale during the school day so I had every single one of my students who had a cell phone call in with me for tickets but to no avail.  There was no way that I was going to miss this show so I bought tickets from a ticket broker.  I won't tell you how much I paid for those tickets but it was worth every penny because my friend Susan came out from California to see the show and we had so much fun.  I was driving to school when the 360 tour was announced and I almost got into an accident!  This time I took matters into my own hands by becoming a member of the U2 fan club so I could buy tickets before they went on sale!  Just days before the concert, Bono had to have emergency surgery on his back so it was postponed for almost a year.  As you can imagine, I literally cannot wait to see my favorite band (after the Beatles) take the stage at Rice Eccles Stadium!

Monday Motivator

"As our self-interest diminishes, our anxieties disappear, and then comes quiet and firm joy, which always diffuses us with a good spiritual disposition and a clear conscience.  Every good deed helps to kindle this feeling of joy within us."

- Leo Tolstoy

Quiet Bravery

It seems like everyone I know has read (and recommended) The Help by Kathryn Stockett.  The other day I saw the paperback version at the bookstore and decided to get it.  Wow!  I literally couldn't put it down and spent three hours this afternoon reading it so I could find out what happens to these compelling characters!  It is the early 1960s and the Civil Rights Movement is in its infancy.  Socialite Skeeter Phelan has come home from college with a journalism degree but without a husband.  She has lofty ambitions about writing a book someday.  As she reconnects with her old high school friends Elizabeth and Hilly, she sees how they treat their African American maids and she is deeply disturbed by it.  The maids are trusted to raise their children but are not allowed to use their bathrooms!  She approaches one of the maids about getting her perspective on what it is like to be a "colored" maid in Jackson, Mississippi.  Even though it is extremely dangerous, several more maids volunteer to tell their stories and Skeeter begins writing a book that will change everything.  It is a beautifully written story of courage and unlikely friendships.  I cannot recommend it enough!

Soccer Ball Cupcakes

My friend's son Harry has some mad soccer skills!  In honor of his very first goal I made him some soccer ball cupcakes!  I made chocolate cupcakes with white buttercream frosting and then used the Betty Crocker tubes of decorator frosting in black to pipe the soccer ball pentagons on the white frosting.  My first one was a disaster but then I got the hang of it!  My biggest problem was trying to center the first pentagon but I think they turned out pretty cute!

GOOOAAALLL!

Linking here.

The World Is But A Jest

Tonight I went to the Utah Opera production of Falstaff by Giuseppe Verdi.  The libretto for this opera is based on William Shakespeare's comedy The Merry Wives of Windsor so it is extremely funny.  I will admit that I am a bigger fan of Verdi's tragic operas such as Rigoletto and La Traviata, but it actually felt good to laugh out loud after a really long week!  Sir John Falstaff is unable to pay his rather large bill at his favorite tavern so he decides that he will romance women who are married to wealthy husbands to get the money he needs.  He writes love letters to two different women who inadvertently discover that they have both received the exact same letter just with two different names!  They, along with one very jealous husband, vow revenge upon Falstaff and the merriment begins.  In the end Falstaff gets the last laugh because he claims that they have gone to great trouble and expense to fool him so he must be a very important person!  The scene where Falstaff boasts about his prowess with women is so hysterically funny that I almost couldn't breathe because I was laughing so hard.  The performances were stellar, the sets innovative, and costumes opulent.  I definitely enjoyed myself!

Note:  I am pretty sure that I was the only person in attendance checking a hockey score during intermission!

Labeled Bath Jars

I really hate clutter!  I especially hate clutter in the bathroom but it seems like all of the different products that I use take over my whole counter.  It just looks so messy!  Of course Amy at the Idea Room came up with a solution for me by creating these labeled bath jars!  I really love how they turned out!

Believe it or not these bottles once held Starbucks frappuccino!  After the bottles were empty I removed the labels and washed them thoroughly.  I painted the lids using three different coats of white.  The labels are created out of black vinyl.  Unfortunately I do not have a Cricut or Silhouette machine but my friend Heidi from Heartfelt Wall Hangings was kind enough to make them for me.  Thank you Heidi!  Then I just filled the jars with my favorite bath products.  Can you tell that I really like the smell of lavender?  Give them a try!  If you live in the Salt Lake Valley you can go here to order these exact labels from Heidi for $1.50.

Monday Motivator

"The passing moment is all we can be sure of;  it is only common sense to extract its utmost value from it;  the future will one day be the present and will seem as unimportant as the present does now."

- W. Somerset Maugham

God of Thunder

I am really looking forward to all of the big blockbuster movies coming out this summer.  There is no better way to escape the heat than by sitting in a cool theater with some over-priced popcorn watching things blow up!  Thor is the first big summer movie to be released and I saw it this afternoon.  It is awesome!  Deceived by his treacherous and evil brother Loki, Thor (Chris Hemsworth) recklessly travels to Jotunheim, against the orders of his father Odin, to challenge the leader of the Frost Giants for invading Asgard.  This disrupts an uneasy truce between the two realms and Odin (Anthony Hopkins) banishes Thor to earth.  Loki, who has always coveted the throne of Asgard, plots to take it in Thor's absence.  Meanwhile, Thor has landed in New Mexico and is discovered by Jane Foster (Natalie Portman), a scientist studying wormholes between earth and space.  Thor is also detected by the agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (thus making Thor a part of "The Avengers") who want to know who he is and where he came from.  Evenually, there is an epic battle between Thor and Loki which takes place both on earth and Asgard.  Chris Hemsworth is easy on the eyes and there are some hilarious fish-out-of-water moments when Thor adjusts to earth.  The story is interesting and the special effects are entertaining so I would definitely recommend this movie to action-adventure enthusiasts!

Note:  Is anybody else as insanely excited about The Avengers as I am?

Monday Motivator

"Everything we possess that is not necessary for life or happiness becomes a burden, and scarcely a day passes that we do not add to it."

- Robert Brault

Mother's Day Flower Cupcakes

It is traditional to give your Mom flowers on Mother's Day so why not make her some flower cupcakes!  I found these adorable cupcakes here.

They are really simple to make but they can get tedious after a while.  Bake and generously frost a dozen cupcakes.  To decorate them you will need some miniature marshmallows, some colored sugar, and some assorted candies.  Cut the miniature marshmallows in half on the diagonal.  Place the cut side down in some colored sugar.  Arrange the marshmallows in a ring around the edge of the cupcake and repeat for two more rings.  Use some small candies as the center of the flower.  I used Mike and Ikes for the pink and yellow flowers and mini M&Ms for the blue flowers.

I made these for Mother's Day but I think they would be a lot of fun at a garden party or a bridal shower!  Happy Mother's Day!

Linking here and here.

Karen's Graduation!

Today was my cousin Karen's graduation from Utah State University.  She is originally from Colorado so while she studied in Logan my family became her second family.  Whenever she wasn't able to go go home for holidays she would spend them with us.  She is almost like another sibling instead of a cousin!  So I was honored to be able to attend her graduation and show my support for her and all she has achieved!

Congratulations Karen!  I am so proud of you!

Saint-Saens' Organ Symphony

Tonight's Utah Symphony concert was not part of my season package but one of my colleagues recommended that I get a ticket.  I am so glad that I did!  It was brilliant!  The orchestra performed Concerto in G Minor for Organ, Strings, and Timpani by Francis Poulenc.  The soloist was Richard Elliott, the Principal Organist for the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, and I cannot use enough superlatives to describe his incredible performance!  It was haunting, powerful and passionate!  It reminded me of something the Phantom would play in the bowels of the Paris Opera House!  I literally jumped out of my seat at the conclusion to give Elliott and the orchestra a standing ovation!  This piece, however, was only a precursor to what was yet to come!  After the intermission, the orchestra played the Organ Symphony by Saint-Saens, again with Elliott as soloist.  I was completely spellbound from the very first note.  It seemed to me that the organ and the piano were singing to each other!  Late in the second movement I actually had tears come to my eyes because it was so incredibly beautiful!  I definitely think that Saint-Saens needs to be added to my list of favorite composers.

Margarita Cupcakes

My sister is very amused by all of the holiday themed cupcakes I have made lately!  She asked me, in a rather derisive tone of voice, if I was going to make some for Cinco de Mayo.  Never one to back down from a challenge, I searched for some and found these festive Margarita cupcakes here.

To make them you will need:

white cake mix

2 eggs

3/4 cup margarita mix

1/3 cup oil

1/4 cup water

1 tablespoon of lime juice

1 tablespoon of grated lime peel

Mix all of the ingredients in a large bowl and beat until smooth.  Fill margarita glasses about 2/3 full and place on a baking sheet for stability.  Bake in a 350 degree oven for 15-20 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.  You can put your margarita glasses in the oven if they are made entirely of glass!  After they have completely cooled you can rim the glasses with coarse sugar that has been tinted with food coloring.  I dipped the glass in water and then the sugar.  It is a little bit messy but I really like the effect. Put some vanilla canned frosting in a bowl and melt in the microwave for about 30 seconds.  Using a spoon, drizzle the frosting onto the cupcakes.  Garnish with a slice of lime.

Aren't they fun!  They are non-alcoholic so everyone at your Cinco de Mayo party can enjoy them!  Give them a try!

Linking here.

Tin Can Treats

Last week several of my students helped me with a big presentation and they did a wonderful job!  I wanted to give them a little token of my appreciation and I found the cutest idea here.

To make these containers you will need some 7-8 oz. fruit cans with a pull-tab, some scrapbook paper, some coordinating ribbon, treats to fill the cans, some tissue paper, a glue gun, and some glue.

Open the cans at the bottom (the side without the pull-tab) with a can opener leaving a small section of the lid attached.  Remove the fruit and wash the cans thoroughly with soap and water.  Allow the cans to dry completely.  Fill the cans with some treats leaving about a half inch of head room.  Fill the space at the top with some tissue paper.  Bend the lid back and glue the edges of the lid to the can with a hot glue gun.  It will look a little bit messy but it won't really show because it will be on the bottom.  Cut a strip of scrapbook paper the height and width of your can (mine was 2 3/4" by 9") and attach to can with some adhesive (I used my tape gun).  Attach some decorative ribbon to the pull-tab.

I think these would be cute for lots of gift-giving occasions.  Just change the scrapbook paper and ribbon to suit the purpose.  Give them a try!

Linking here.

Ready For My Close-Up

I am a big fan of Andrew Lloyd Webber but somehow I've never seen Sunset Boulevard!   I was really looking forward to seeing it tonight at Pioneer Theatre and I absolutely loved it!  This musical, based on the movie of the same name by Billy Wilder,  is a captivating story of an aging silent film star trying to hold on to her fame and a young writer trying not to sell out.  Lloyd Webber's music is, as ever, hauntingly beautiful, particularly the songs "With One Look"  and "As If We Never Said Goodbye."  Both of the lead actors, Lynne Wintersteller as Norma Desmond and Benjamin Eakeley as Joe Gillis, give tour de force performances.  Wintersteller, especially, is quite adept at mesmerizing the audience with just one look!  I wasn't quite as impressed with the ensemble cast but it hardly mattered because the two lead actors more than compensated!  Like most PTC productions, the sets and costumes are opulent and glamorous with some great effects used to recreate a Hollywood back lot and a mansion on Sunset Boulevard.  I would definitely recommend this commentary on the darker side of fame!

Monday Motivator

"Returning hate for hate multiplies hate, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars.  Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that.  Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that."

- Martin Luther King, Jr.

Maypole Cupcakes

Today is May Day!  Does anyone really celebrate it any more?  I have very vague recollections of dancing around a maypole when I was a little girl so when I saw these adorable cupcakes here I decided to make them.

Make and frost a dozen cupcakes using your favorite cake and frosting recipes.  Tint about a cup of coconut with some green food coloring and sprinkle on the cupcakes.  Unwrap twelve tootsie pops and dip them in a mug of melted white chocolate.  Let the excess chocolate drip off and then roll each tootsie pop in some colored sprinkles.  Place each pop in some styrofoam to set up.  While the pop is still in the styrofoam carefully tie some curling ribbon around it.  Place a pop in the middle of each cupcake.

If you can't dance around a maypole at least have a maypole cupcake!

Linking here.