Tuesday, April 19, 2011

My wonderful wife

Yes, I've been a bit of a slacker this last weekend. That's life. I'll be as consistent as I can, but there will still be days that I miss. Anyway, this post is about my wife. She's the best. It was her birthday yesterday, so I was going to make this post then, but I figured that she'd rather have me help clean the house and make dinner than have me write a blog post. Actions and words and all that...

So, on to Bonnie. I met her when we both worked at the classical music radio station at BYU. It would be great to say that it was love at first sight and all that, but I don't really work that way. When we met, she'd recently broken up with her boyfriend and had lost some weight. She didn't have any extra weight already, and I remember thinking that she was cute but too skinny. Shortly after we met she went off to London for the summer and I stayed in Provo and kept working. I don't think I ever thought of her, and I'm sure she never thought of me.

When she got back from London, we started talking all the time. Our jobs were not exactly difficult or time intensive, so we had a lot of down time that we could sit around. We quickly realized that we had a lot in common, but nothing really happened for a while because I had been dating another girl who had just gone to Japan. So clearly I was off the market.

I really started to like her and we began hanging out and watching British tv shows. Eventually I got up the courage to ask her out. We went to see "The Flying Dutchman" at Utah Opera. We both got free tickets from our work, so we technically had four tickets between the two of us. I had actually asked something like 5 or 6 other girls to go, but they were all busy, so I called and left a message with Bonnie just a few hours before the opera was going to start. Happily she hadn't gotten anyone to go with her either (because she'd been hoping that I'd ask her).

Pretty much once that snowball started rolling down the hill, it didn't stop and it just kept picking up speed. We officially started dating on October 31st, got engaged in March (though we'd been talking about it since December), and got married in June. Best decision ever.

Bonnie is the best thing in my life. She's pretty and funny. She does an amazing job taking care of our daughter. She's one of the smartest people that I know. She's talented and creative, and is the one that makes my our house worth going home to. I don't know how I'd get through life without her, so today (and yesterday...and really every day) I'm grateful for my wife Bonnie.

Friday, April 15, 2011

Making my wife happy

I've mentioned before that Bonnie and I play computer games together as a way to spend time with each other. We like it because we're playing a game, but we're always cooperating so it doesn't cause disagreements. In addition, it's more interactive than television, so it strikes a nice balance for us. Anyway, her birthday is coming up, so I spent a bunch of in-game gold to buy her this rare mount. It's basically a status symbol, since it doesn't confer any benefit that you can't get somewhere else with much less effort, but it looks really cool. Anyway, I'm grateful today that I got to make my wife happy with a small little thing that didn't cost me anything other than some yellow pixels.

Thursday, April 14, 2011

Evening Walks

It was warm enough tonight for Bonnie and I to take Lydia out for a walk. The birds were singing, the sun was setting nicely, and the ducks and geese were swimming in the pond near our house. It was a very nice evening. We may have to make a habit of that. I'm grateful for nights when I'm not at rehearsal and I can slow down and spend some time with my family.

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Something like a star

The reviews for Vincent have been coming out, and almost all of them have been positive. They all have one thing or another that they wish had been different, but since each reviewer seems to have different things that they want changed, I'm not too concerned about that. Every time that I'm in a show that gets reviewed, I always think of two things. The first is a story that the opera director at BYU told me. He said that while he was touring with the Goldovsky opera theater, one of his performances got a very bad review. He was talking to Goldovsky about and the man gave him some great advice: "When I get a bad review, I read it and I throw it away. And when I get a good review I read it and I throw it away."

I think that's a healthy attitude to take. Don't ignore criticism and praise, but don't obsess over them either.

The second thing I think about is really just another way of saying that, but it always seems to come to my mind when dealing with reviews or criticism (constructive or otherwise). It's the last bit of Robert Frost's "Choose Something Like a Star."

So when at times the mob is swayed
To carry praise or blame too far,
We may choose something like a star
To stay our minds on and be staid.

That sentiment is particularly fitting for this opera, given that Vincent van Gogh is inextricably linked with stars in our popular culture. I'm grateful for stars, and for people who see profound things in their shining.

Tuesday, April 12, 2011

External Motivation


The opera is like a great bulldozer. All the things in my life that I'm supposed to get done are just pushed along, with no real progress being made on them. As opening weekend has come and gone, the bulldozer is slowing down. Soon, it will drive away into the distance, leaving a pile of missed deadlines and mediocre efforts that pass for schoolwork. I've been surveying the detritus being shoved upon me, and a part of me definitely considered throwing a rug over it and pretending it didn't exist.

Grades have long since ceased to motivate me. When the bar is set so low, it's difficult to care one way or another. I need a reasonable challenge to get me going, but slogging through old work wasn't sounding very appealing. Happily I married a wonderful person who cares about my success. She got me to get started on my stuff. I'm not through the pile, but I'm chipping away at it, and with a few more nights of this I might even catch up in the next week or so. Yes, carrots and sticks don't work well long term, but as far as I'm concerned, they have their place. So, thank you external motivation: for when you just can't make yourself do it.

Monday, April 11, 2011

Gardens

I found out a few weeks ago that Bloomington has community gardens where you can rent plots and grow your own stuff. Bonnie and I just did that with a couple of our friends, so between the four of us we have 400 sq. feet of ground to grow stuff in. I'm totally excited. Huzzah for gardens!

Sunday, April 10, 2011

Frozen Pizza Crusts

This is another post about the awesomeness that is sourdough. Usually when you feed your starter you discard half of it. But we found a recipe for a sourdough pizza crust that you partially cook and then freeze. We now have a good supply of the things built up, and that picture is from when I got home from a late rehearsal and wanted a midnight snack. I love sourdough. In fact, right now Bonnie and I are experimenting with adjusting a bagel recipe to use sourdough. I'll give a report later. I'm grateful for frozen sourdough pizza.

Saturday, April 9, 2011

World Premiers

Yeah, I'm totally in a world premier of an Opera. And it's at a well-respected opera program. IU is really cool if only for the opportunities that it offers students to participate in big musical things like this. Even if Vincent is quickly forgotten and never performed again, I'm still glad that I've had the chance to work on something like this. Hopefully all goes well at tonight's performance.

Friday, April 8, 2011

Things that keep you doing the right thing

Frequently I think of funny things to post on this blog that in some way mock someone or something. Whether it's a youtube video of someone doing something stupid or some business that I feel is producing a really worthless product, sometimes I have a tendency to do the internet version of pointing and laughing at things I see.

Happily, I have not yet succumbed to doing this. I really don't have a problem with people using their blogs to share things they think are funny, but the reality is that there is simply too much negativity in the world. This blog is about gratitude. For me to write a blog about being grateful for my blessings and then to turn and mock other people on it seems in my mind to cause irreconcilable mental dissonance. So at least on this blog, I will remain positive and will try my best to lift up others. Today I'm grateful for small things that keep you pointed in the right direction.

Thursday, April 7, 2011

Open Your Mouth

It is 11:20 tonight, and as you may have noticed, I have not posted yet. You're probably thinking that I forgot, but since the title of the blog implies that I will be posting daily, I'm here to make sure that I do in fact do that. I mentioned in an earlier post that I had a really good discussion with a friend about the church. I have been feeling like I didn't quite do everything because I didn't invite her to talk to the missionaries, I did that tonight and she accepted.

We're waiting until the opera is over to get together, but at least the idea is out there and she seems open to it. Today I'm grateful for small nudges from the Holy Ghost that help you overcome some fear and nervousness and do that right thing. The bit that I think is really funny is that in the last few days, all my friends that are Mormons have been asking how my investigator is doing. Anyway, it's nice to have some good missionary experiences while I'm having a good time playing dress-up on stage.

Wednesday, April 6, 2011

Funny People doing Funny Things



Yes, this is a post about a bunch of weird Welsh shepherds. Actually, there's more to it than that. I love seeing someone do something really well, especially something for which you have little to no talent or experience. In this case it's a bunch of guys messing around with sheep and lights, but it could really be anything.

Some people get that feeling when they see a good musician or singer, but since I know too much about it, my enjoyment is always a little different than theirs. My brother-in-law gets really excited about a beautiful piece of code. I don't know anything about computer programming, but I couldn't recognize a good piece of code either. For something to really be this kind of experience, it has to be something that a lay person can appreciate but not really understand.

It's entirely possible that those guys are really mediocre shepherds. How would I know? Either way, I got a chuckle out of it, and for a moment I felt some of that childlike wonder and fascination that is perhaps too rare for us as we get older. So I'm grateful for weird Welsh shepherds who have too much time on their hands (or who maybe just got paid well to plug Samsung).

Tuesday, April 5, 2011

DIY


Bonnie and I have been trying to be more frugal, which has resulted in us taking on a lot of DIY type projects. Many of them I've mentioned on the blog like sourdough and planting some herbs and vegetables in pots. I was thinking the other day about these lifestyle changes that we've been making, because I heard someone on the radio say something to the effect that "there is something very satisfying about taking raw materials and turning it into a usable finished product."

I hadn't put the sensation into words yet, but that's exactly how I've felt about doing all this stuff. Bread tastes better when you make it yourself. Vegetables are fresher and healthier when you grow them yourself. Clothes are more stylish...okay well, maybe not that, but seriously, maintaining that sort of competence and independence that was a natural part of life for our ancestors has been surprisingly gratifying for Bonnie and me.

I have also felt a greater connection with my pioneer ancestors as I've tried to learn some of the skills that were so essential in older times. Amazingly enough, in learning the skills of a bygone era, the values of that time come more naturally. In other words, I'm finding that thrift, industry, and frugality aren't necessarily the motivation for living a certain way, but rather the result of living a certain way.

So in summary, I'm grateful for the opportunity to learn and grow as we're trying to save money. On a side note, does anyone know where I can get some good fruit later in the summer so we can try bottling it?

Monday, April 4, 2011

Cast Iron


We bought a cast iron skillet (anyone know why they're always called skillets when they're cast iron and frying pans when they're any other material?) a few months ago, and it is seriously the best thing ever. First, it's non-stick. I mean honestly nonstick. It's ten thousand times more non-stick than a teflon coated pan. Clean-up is so easy, I honestly just have to run some water in it and wipe it out. After that, just rub a little oil on the inside and you're in business.

Cast iron adds more iron to your food, so it actually makes what you're eating healthier. We're especially happy about that because Lydia was quite low on iron for a while, so we try to make sure that she gets enough.

Finally cast iron makes your food taste better. When I start heating up our pan, it gives off the best smell. It's like it remembers every good thing you ever used it to cook and it just adds a little extra flavor to your meals. So basically what I'm saying is that cast iron cookware is awesome. I definitely need to start using it more. Maybe I should get a dutch oven next.

Sunday, April 3, 2011

Good religious discussions


I had a lot of downtime at rehearsal on Friday, and ended up talking with a friend of mine for the bulk of the evening rehearsal. It was a really good and open discussion, and with the exception of another friend who stopped in briefly to assert that Mormons aren't Christian, it went very well. I'm always grateful when I get the opportunity to talk to someone else about religion and our beliefs. It was also fun because we both came away with some homework. I'm supposed to look up some sermons by Greg Boyd, and she's supposed to read the Book of Mormon. I'll keep up my end of the deal, we'll see if she keeps hers. :^)

Saturday, April 2, 2011

Dumb Luck























So last Monday, I looked at the schedule for opera rehearsal and was happy to see that I wasn't called for blocking rehearsal. I was quite pleased with that and proceeded to enjoy my unexpected break from the opera. On Tuesday, my phone suddenly found an old message from one of the stage managers. It said in essence, "Hey, I know the schedule says that you're called for orchestra rehearsal at 4:00 today, but maestro wants to work with someone else, so don't worry about coming."

Yeah, I totally would have missed an important rehearsal and gotten into trouble. Good thing I was excused but didn't know about it. Sometimes you just get really lucky and everything falls into place for you. I'm grateful when stuff works out like that.

Friday, April 1, 2011

Random moments when art touches you



(Notice: I do not observe April Fools' Day on this blog. Yes, I know I'm boring, but when I'm trying to write about things for which I'm genuinely thankful, it seems somewhat malapropos to be trying to fool people with a childish prank. That or I couldn't think of something funny to do.)

I've watched this thing like ten times today, and I'm still not tired of it. The characters are simple and fun, but their portrayal makes them seem extremely human. Little touches like the lip bite from the girl and the conversations between the astronaut and the guy really show a lot of skill and care on the part of the creator.

As a performer, I'm constantly interested in how people use their bodies and faces to portray a story, and it's done beautifully here. You get the entire story, and the most language that you're presented with is a few written words in the ship, and a few moments where you can read lips (I'm not kidding, you really can). That's quality storytelling.

I love both the artistic eye that went into this and the craftsmanship. You need to have craft before you can have art, and this beautifully demonstrates the craft as well as the art. In a recital situation you'll often hear people say that you can't touch the audience with your first song, but I found myself drawn in to this story and really caring about the characters. I felt a real bittersweet melancholy at the end. Not cutting onions sad or anything, but I was touched. So today I'm grateful for those random, unexpected moments when something in art or nature impacts you in a positive way.