Trust Your Gut

Have you ever known the outcome of a situation well before it happens or have just known you are, without logical reason, supposed to do one thing instead of the other?  

I received a bit of news last week, and made another decision, contrary to my wants.  If I were making the road map for my life, these directions would not be included.  Yet I knew bit one before I received the news and I know the other decision is right even though I will not see the consequences of my choice for a couple of months to come.

How do I know?

I decided to trust my gut and not second guess myself.   Even though some could construe these bits as negative, I'm ridiculously excited.

Why? 

I can trust my gut even when it isn't exactly the outcome I'd prefer!

Neither of the things I'm mentioning are in reference to romantical interludes, just to give that lil disclaimer to Nosy McNosersons.  I learned a couple of years ago that when a certain feeling hits my gut in romantic situations (in spite of my heart and my head), the relationship will soon come to a close - even if nothing up to that point would indicate anything but progression.  I appreciate having that little heads up for the ole ticker.

But trusting my gut in every day life situations?  Hot dog!  This is a new experience for me and it is pretty darned cool!

Lost Followers

I just lost a follower.

Why is it that I feel broken up with?

*sniff, sniff*

I love you guys!

Busy Dating

Several of my friends have been lamenting to me lately regarding how busy they are.  They think that perhaps young ladies aren't wanting to date them because they are so busy.

I find myself thinking this same thing sometimes - perhaps I am so busy that young men try and give up or don't try at all.  Then I remember the several that have waited for me or taken a chance with that spare two hours I have here or there.   Those are the ones I end up with.

I stand by my belief that if someone is interested in you, they will find a way to spend time with you.  I know I do.

And anyone I know worth two cents will find time once they meet someone worthy of it.  I've seen this over and over again.

Are you too busy to date?  Not for the right person:-)

Stranded

Sometimes, the reality of my "aloneness" hits me in a cruel and unusual fashion.  Several times as of late I've felt alone - when I am sick and I have no one to help take care of me or run me to the doctor or pick up a prescription, when I am terribly busy and need to run errands but just do without, when something tickles my funny bone and I get all excited to share only to realize the only one there is my kitty...you get the point.

But I have never felt more alone than I did last night.

Thursday I had an oil change and inspection done to make sure my car was ready for my post-work Friday trip to Boise to visit my life-long friend Scot and his wife Megan, who also happens to be one of my favorite people.  I can be 1,000% myself in the most geeked-out manner around those two and never feel a twinge of guilt.  Love.  I'll post more about the trip, complete with photos, later - it was amazing with an extra zing.  Just what the doctor ordered.

Yesterday I felt a little blue to leave my friends, but life must resume as normal.  I stopped at the Stinker Stores for a soda, hit up a rest stop, you know the drill.  Just north of Brigham City, Utah, I pulled into quite the nice rest stop for one last break before the home stretch.

Just as I pulled away - *POOF*- smoke everywhere. You want to know what was running through my head as I stopped?  "Huh...uhhhhhhmmm...hmmmm....uhhhhh.....weird.  Uhhhhhhhhhh....huh."  And my thoughts continued like that for quite a few minutes.

Almost immediately two rough and tumble bikers with their daughters in tow came to help check the problem.  No genius was required to see the exploded top radiator hose.  I found it before the men did, actually.  It exploded like a hot dog in the microwave and the "smoke" had actually been the steam of the anti-freeze hitting the hot engine.  The kind men walked me through what parts I needed, had me repeat everything to them, and waited until they knew my phone worked.  A little bit later, another kind man came up and told me he'd had the same problem with his old vehicle and gave me some more tips.  I must have been at a rest stop for nice people only.  In spite of these sweet folks, I felt completely and utterly alone.

And then...

I called my dear Blake.  He immediately fetched the correct parts, my darling Shayla, and began the hour and fifteen minute journey to rescue me without a moment of hesitation.

As I waited, I contemplated the love these two people have for me.  I contemplated the kind strangers.  I contemplated that I could have literally been anywhere along the stretch of oblivion between Salt Lake and Boise when that radiator hose exploded.  Anywhere.  The odds that I made it so close to Salt Lake and just happened to be at a well-kept rest stop near a town are nothing short of miraculous in my book.  I contemplated the love of those who continued to call me and text message me to confirm I really was being rescued.  I actually laughed through most of the evening because, hey, what else are you going to do?

Once Blake and Shayla arrived, I was fixed and on the road within ten minutes.  They followed me home and now I just need to find some time to go get a little "peace of mind" inspection.  They are my heroes.  I am a very lucky girl to have such angels in my life.

Sometimes, I feel startlingly alone - my family all live in Ohio or Virginia, I am unmarried, and I am just a darned unique individual.  Then some miracle of a catastrophe happens to show me that I am anything but alone. 

 

Hugs

"A hug can turn your day around.  It's like an emotional hemlich.  Someone puts their arms around you and they give you a squeeze and all of your fear and anxiety come shooting out of your mouth like a big wad and you can breathe again."

Thanks, Pushing Daises.

Table Talk

I just ran into the table in the lunch room and apologized to it.  Out loud.  In front of witnesses.

What a day.

I'm the Girl of your Dreams

A couple of weeks ago, within about five days, I had three people tell me about their dreams, starring me.

This is very amusing to me, as I am a vivid dreamer and love when people think it isn't too weird to share with them.  I present their dreams.

1. Last night/this morning I had a dream that I was directing a medieval/Robin Hood-esque film. Except, I was also an extra, so I ended up in the balcony for a really pivitol scene while someone else directed. YOU were the captain of the King's guard, but dressed like Robin Hood, complete with green tunic, tights, and hat. Boy X was the goofy sidekick to the hero, and the hero was a tall, skinny fellow. I remember thinking I should switch Boy X and the other guy's roles, since Boy X looks like the classic hero, but during the dream there was reason not to.  Also? I was watching Golden Girls and The Cosby Show for inspiration.

2. As for the dream, you and I were at college (nondescript college). You were trying to tell me something, but I kept running away. You kept pursuing me, and I could never really avoid you. That went on for a while and I woke up.

3.  There was a huge church dance, including many people I knew, and you were one of them.

Chicken on the Bone

I do not like chicken on the bone.  I vehemently detest chicken on the bone.

Seriously, it grosses me out with it's skin and slime and bone and *shudder* - I can't talk about this anymore.

On a more hilarious note, I read this recently, "For each Mt. Vesuvius Burger sold, 50 cents will go to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Chicken® (NCMEC)."  Apparently, it really said "Children," not "chicken."  Silly hungry brains playing tricks on us.

Lazy Hazy Crazy Days of Summer

You know those summer days where nothing in particular happens, yet everything happens to fill your heart with 100% bliss and make you feel just like a kid again?

I had the most perfect summer day this past Saturday.

I woke up bright and early and did my usual cleaning before Gym and I shared a rigorous workout.  I returned home to find my Shayla sitting on my couch patiently waiting to get smoothies and lounge by the pool.  We caught up on her grand European adventures and shared other stories before heading back to my balcony and luring our Blake over.  Soon enough, my Megan arrived for round two in the pool just before Blake left.  She and I chatted in the pool whilst Shayla took a poolside nap.

Once we ladies had had enough sun, we cleaned up and went to dinner, bought some snacks, then lounged around my living room watching 500 Days of Summer.  As the movie ended and we found ourselves chatting yet again, friend Luke's power decided to go out so he and pup Zoey came over too.  Around 2am, we finally decided to call it a night.

I love lazy, friend-filled summer days:-)

Sandy Arts Guild's Hairspray

My readers have probably long figured out that I don't like to write about a show unless I would recommend the show, with a figurative scoring in my head of more than 6/10.  Either that, or all of you think that I just love every show I see.  For the record, I don't.  I do try to focus more on the positive to develop the sense of community for which community theater stands.

For the few of you out there who have missed the productions of Hairspray at Hale Orem, Scera, Midvale Main Street, Centerpoint Legacy, Riverton, Spanish Fork and most other theaters in the Salt Lake/Provo areas, you are in luck! The latest (and hopefully last for awhile) to run the show actually has a pretty great production to end the Hairspray streak with a bang (pun intended). 

What gets tricky, after seeing so many casts (including the original Broadway cast...twice), is not playing the "All-star cast" game.  My friend and I sat there saying, "Ooo, we'd pick this person for this part and this part and this choreographer and this director and this scenery and this stage and and and." After we convinced ourselves to sit back and simply enjoy the production, the night was a lot more smooth.

Upon entering Sandy City Amphitheater (Utah), your ears are filled with tunes of the early 1960s.  No music can make me happier, I tell you what.  I didn't even notice I was singing along as I spread my blanket on the hillside until my evening's company began laughing at me.  A huge projection screen on the stage displayed scenes of the same era.  What an amazing touch to grab your attention and pull you into the show from the moment you arrive.

The cast had some big talent, not just in Carissa Klitgaard's Tracy Turnblad.  Summer O'Very as Penny Pingleton was probably the biggest shock to me.  She played the part as more of a quiet nerdy type than what I typically see, which made her busting out of her shell at the end all the more emphatic.  She out sang the whole lot of 'em on "Without Love."  Big time.  Girl rocks it.  I also cannot get enough of Lisa Grow as Velma Von Tussle.  I saw her in a recent production of Gypsy, which I didn't have time to write about but would have recommended, and may just now be a super fan.  She has acting chops, vocal prowess, especially the big belt note at the end of "Miss Baltimore Crabs," and a rockin' body.  She is Velma Von Tussle.

I also have to give a huge shout out to Chantryce Diehl.  I've seen her in several productions as an ensemble member and she served as Council Member Brenda in this production.  Holy cow!  If every ensemble member could kick it into gear and perform up to the level of Chantryce, the quality of our community theater would be multiplied ten times.  You can not keep your eyes off of this girl during dance numbers.  If you see the show, watch for the girl in the red, not that I even need to point her out.  Chantryce, hats off, Lady!

All in all, I was looking for a little more animated bratiness from Amber and a little more I-can't-control-myself energy from Tracy.  I also judge all men unfairly who try to conquer the part of Edna Turnblad because I can't look past the perfection of a performance from Russ McBride as Edna Turnblad from Midvale Main Street's production last February.

Another huge asset of this production was the costume/makeup/hair combination.  I saw not a single costume ill-fitted, no slipping wigs, great facial features from the makeup, etc.  Everyone looked absolutely stunning and as if the costumes were all handmade and tailored for each cast member. 

The sets appear to have been borrowed from Centerpoint Legacy's production (if it wasn't, it sure looks familiar) and serve the stage perfectly.  Good decision.  I loved the projection of some actual live video of the council members during the Corny Collins show.  This keeps reminding me I need to perform with theaters with more of a budget. 

Summer weather doesn't get much more amazing than the remainder of this week, so might I suggest a literal breath of fresh air and supporting this talented bunch of performers? 

You can catch Hairspray at the Sandy City Amphitheater at 8pm through August 27.  You can buy tickets at the gate for less of a fee or here.