Live Performances...

Well, you never know what will happen with live performances...

We had our show this last weekend, and for the most part things went very smoothly. The pieces I was in were pretty polar opposites. One carried heavier overtones about death/the passing and the beauty that is there like the beauty of the wind, and the other was about the crazy wierd things people do while talking on their cell phones.

But no matter how much you plan, practice, or anticipate, some variables seem to remain uncounted for... Like the wasps in the theatre? We'd seen them around, but as I was getting ready to exit during one of the numbers I see a small fiercesome being walking around the stage space where a whole bunch of barefoot people are about to come barrelling out to the William Tell Overture. So, like any logical thinker, I decided we'd better get the wasp out of the way so no one gets hurt. I didn't want to kick it, so staying in character I bent down and picked it up by the wings and finished my little section and carried it off stage. About that point the realistic side of my brain kicks in and screams, "YOU JUST PICKED UP A LIVE WASP!" And I begin thinking, "My mother is REALLY allergic to wasps. Am I allergic to wasps? She swells up for days..." It's amazing what goes through your head in a few seconds. One of the backstage girls in shoes kindly took care of him for me. A big shout out to these behind the scenes people as well- shows take a ton of work (Katey vouches for this one) and the work is much appreciated.

You Guessed It

I'd like this blog to pay a tribute to the man of the hour... the man of January himself... my dear dad... the quote from the previos blog belongs to one of my dad's and mine and my sister's- ok, so our family's- favorite movies (drum roll, please)...

The Ghost and Mr. Chicken

Folks, this is a Don Knotts classic, and if you haven't seen it yet, let me clarify. This is a must see. For all of you who have faced fears, worked with words (825 Sarah), or felt like an underdog, add this to your NetFlix or rental list.

Who knew?

Who knew taking blood pressure could be so cool? We're studying the heart and circulatory system right now, and today I learned how to take blood pressure. It was rockin' awesome. My friend Lex and I were partners, and after securing the cuff on his arm, I put on the stethoscope and using the equipment I got a reading... it was so cool. He's in good shape by the way... almost perfect blood pressure...

I also volunteered for the EKG experiment and messed up all the "typical results." She hooked me up to all these cords and the experiment began... We discovered I have a pretty normal heart rate, and after running in place for a while I still had the same heart rate after one minute (it's supposed to increase... I guess they should try it after center floor combinations at ballet... that would definitely have an increase) and holding my breath was also supposed to increase to help with oxygen transport but mine went way down (I guess I entered meditative phase rather than panic phase or something). So this Valentine's Day, a little shout out to all the cardio care folks who help us take care of our hearts.

Lighting the World

If the world is a stage (Shakespeare I believe), we spent all day lighting it. From 10am to 10pm (with meal breaks) we hung and focused lights for our upcoming show. Honestly, it's fascinating to me. Each light is placed and spaced and plugged in for a specific purpose so that it can light specific places and/or coordinate with other lights to produce some great effect. Let me tell you, there is a lot of power flowing through that place to connect all those lights. And the crazy part is, we're not even done yet. There's colors and focusing and creating left to be done. I'm learning all kinds of cool things at dance school. I'm also learning what it is to be a light...

I forgot

I forgot how hungry rehearsals can make you... Today for breakfast (using the eat-when-you're-hungry principle) I ate a huge cinnamon roll, then a bowl of cheerios, then when I got online with my sister I realized I was still hungry and made myself eggs, bacon, and a bagel... Times like these remind me of eating lunch at my grandmother's house when at the end of the meal she would turn to me and my dad to say, "There's not really enough for leftovers; do you want to go ahead and finish it off?" My grandmother is among the greatest of all grandmothers in the cooking realm, and so we would finish off the tasty morsels and then usually go take a nap to sleep off the good eats. I made the eggs "grandmother-style" this morning, and they were rockin'. No leftovers today.