diva dilemmas….

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And I’m not saying that in the “I’m an amazing singer” kind of way, but more in the “I refuse to give up the mic” kind of way. Continuing in the new tradition that I have created of making every weekend worth being single, we had a party last night at the OL. “We” being the roomies, although it’s more of a Sarah and Richard thing…I just provided the location. Anyway, it was a theme party (I would put the invite on, but it has my address, and, well, you can never be too careful…which makes me sad because Richard did a great job with it) and “Hitch” was the theme (we like movie themes). The best part is, we never got to watching the movie and here’s why: We were singing (and DDR–ing…but I didn’t get any pics of that). Richard brought his karaoke machine…well, not a machine really, just microphones with chips inside that plug right into the t.v. (can I just reiterate that I love technology?), and we rocked the house. The last party…themed “Nacho” and we did watch the movie…I had no voice and was unable to participate in the karaoke portion of the evening. Well, I made up for it last night. Thank goodness there were fewer people than expected because it could have been ugly, except that we were all missing Jennifer and Sungti…the Hsu’s need to come back from Taiwan.

I would try and explain all of the fun that went on, but it’s one of those “you had to be there” things. Seriously, though, I am in love with Richard’s 2,000 songs and I think he should let me borrow them. I let him borrow movies.
And while, as mentioned, I was quite the diva, that only happened later on. I tried to share in the beginning, but as the night wore on and fatigue set in, I just couldn’t control myself. Another reason not to hang out when tired…it only leads to trouble. Oh, and did I mention that we combined Moods with karaoke for a bit? It was fantastic…too difficult to do for a long period, but definitely good for a few laughs. So, last night was fabulous (although I am EXHAUSTED and I have, once again, done nothing productive over the weekend) and what I realized, upon further reflection which always happens as I am extremely introspective, is that I am finally back to me. Not just back to me, but better. This is the person I have always wanted to be. No, not the Diva part…but the fun, carefree, semi-spaz who can enjoy people and laugh at herself. I really like me and that is a wonderful feeling!P.S. In case you were wondering…Richard really stole the show. (Literally…he wasn’t sharing either…but I guess he can’t really steal it since the karaoke does belong to him.) And I don’t think Richard reads my blog, but just in case…Richard, we could all tell that you wanted to want to share. 😉

Aqualung and Pete Yorn…my life is good!

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I was reading my friend’s blog the other day and she was talking about being a single, LDS woman with a career. (If you want to check it out, her blog link is over to the right–katie) and it made think a little bit about my life and where I’m at and how I feel about being 29 and single and a member of a church that is centered around families. And I have to tell you that I feel pretty good…great, actually. Not that I don’t want to get married…someday, but my life is so fun right now. Not that people who are married don’t have fun (they do…and Jennifer and Sungti are great examples because they are uber-cool married people), but I love that this last Thursday night, I could just go to a concert without worrying about a babysitter, if my husband would want to go with me, and if not, would he care that I was going, no one to ask for permission to go or spend the money on it. I guess, what I’m trying to say is, I just appreciate being able to do these things now. And, Utah is pretty cool if you just look for things to do besides going to a movie (not that I don’t love movies…but, there are things to do besides movies).

Moving on to my real subject…Thursday night I went with the roomies and Kelly (supercool friend of Sarah’s who just moved here from Chicago and also happens to work with the roomies–yes, I feel a little left out) up to Park City to see Aqualung and Pete Yorn at Suede and it was fabulous. I wish that one could adequately describe a live performance so that others could experience it, but it’s just not possible…so buy some tickets and go to a concert yourself.

Besides the music being amazing, we were at the very front, so we also had an amazing view. Our feet killed afterwards and we couldn’t hear very well for a bit, but it was totally worth it.

A Gastronomic Tour of the Beautiful Bay Area…

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I wish I could describe for all of you my fabulous trip so that you could really experience it, but I can’t. I do have lots of picture, though. Unfortunately, I also have a cruel sister who likes to get the WORST pictures possible, so just know that I am much cuter that some, if not all, of these pictures. Also, it’s not that I don’t love my sister, but she refused to be in any pictures…so, while I did manage to get several of her hand, I didn’t feel like uploading them.

I went to Palo Alto to visit my sister and decided, having grown up in the Bay Area, that it was time to visit my favorite restaurants (and I use that term loosely to describe any establishment where edibles can be purchased and consumed) and to discover some new ones. San Francisco is known for it’s world class gastronomy and I wanted to partake. I also got to enjoy some very vacationesque (yes, I’m making up words) experience, including a massage, facial and some pool side time. I miss California and 65 degree winters.

The gastronomic tour began the evening I arrived. Erika and I hit Fenton’s in Oakland (my flight was late–I love me some Southwest–so Chevy’s was out). Fenton’s is this great creamery and restaurant. It’s similar to Leatherby’s, which I have in Provo, but sooo much better. They have much better food and I think they do a better Swiss Milk Chocolate, as well (my favorite kind of ice-cream). Not only that, but it has the dive ice-cream parlor thing going for it. I don’t know the Leatherby’s owners were thinking when they decorated the new locale in P-town, but “yuck” is what I have to say. Unfortunately, as I was extremely tired and stuffing my face with ice-cream, I didn’t think to take a pic at Fenton’s. You’ll have to just check out the website.

Saturday morning, after getting a late start (I love vacation) we headed to Hobee’s, this great local breakfast place in PA. They have eight locations in the south bay. They are known for their blueberry coffeecake and it’s delicious. I actually didn’t order it, I just ate some of Erika’s because I had cranberry-sourdough French toast with banans, toasted almonds and a sour cream and nutmeg sauce. Delicious!!!

Then it was off to Erika’s club for massages and facials. I am a big fan of Equinox, where we had our treatments. As an esthetician who has recevied more treatments than I can count or remember, I have to admit that I’m quite critical. Well, Jessica and Alejandro knew what they were doing. I was in HEAVEN!

We followed this by a trip to Santana Row in San Jose. Erika wanted to try out this Italian place that my aunt loves, but the first available reservation was at 10:15…a little late to eat, even for me. So we headed down and decided to look around and see what there was and much to my delight, there was a restaurant that I have wanted to try for years (ever since one opened in the town next to the town where I grew up). It’s called The Left Bank. It’s a French restaurant. It took a little convincing to get Erika to go with me, but once she saw the menu, she was sold. It was amazing, other than the fact that we were seated in the back of the restaurant because we were not dressed as nicely as some other patrons (although, I think I looked good, but aparently even a sweater with nice jeans…is still jeans). The food was delicious and the service was fantastic. We went ahead and ordered four courses (well, five if you count each appetizer individually). The Steak Tartare was my favorite…oh, and the bread. For those of you who have never had the privilege of experiencing bread in France, this comes in a close second. I was in heaven. I had to be rolled out of the restaurant, but it was worth it.

Sunday, I got up and painted my sister’s wall. That was my slave duty for my weekend of luxury. Erika came out and said, “I love that you get up early.” It wasn’t my best work ever. I’ve decided that I don’t like taping things off. I’m much better free hand. Anyway, after that we headed into The City. This is how we have always referred to San Francisco…The City. We started out looking for this little creperie I wanted to try. Unfortunately, it was in the financial district and closed on Sunday…so our next stop was Citizen Cupcake, on the third floor of the Virgin Records Mega Store. This is a branch of Citizen Cake, a patisserie in SF. We went for cupcakes. Yes, cupcakes for breakfast. They were supposed to be for lunch, but our breakfast plans fell through, so cupcakes it was. They were delicious. And I had a bowl of hot chocolate. Yes, a bowl, as you can see in the picture.

We then shopped our hearts out. I love The City. And, fun new discovery, they have H&M. I love H&M. I fell in love on my mission and have not since lived close enough to one to go. I had a great time.

Shopping was followed by sushi in Chinatown. That’s right, Japanese food in Chinatown. We went to Rock ‘n’ Roll sushi. Now, when you click on the link, realize that I’m not an idiot (if you know SF). They have two locations, but only one is listed on the website.

And then, we did some late night eating at Chevy’s. They have the best, best, best chips and salsa ever. I know people here like Los Hermanos, but it doesn’t even compare to Chevy’s. And their fajitas are the best.

You’ll be happy to know, after all of that eating, that Monday I didn’t eat anything until we headed to the airport. I got up and painted another wall that Erika wanted painted and then I was going to head to the pool when I discovered that Erika had not left me keys (she had a meeting and work and an 11:00 tee time) and she was not answering her phone. I had no way to get into the pool, and even if I could get in, I couldn’t get back into her building or the apartment. I searched everywhere (much to her dismay when she got back that evening to take me to the airport). Finally, I called the appartment office and explained the situation and they said they’d let me back in. Down to the pool I went. It was a perfect 65 degress, with a slight breeze. When I got cold, I just hopped in the hottub and warmed up. It was fabulous.

Around 3:00, I headed upstairs to get ready to head back to Utah. And off we went, to the airport via Casper’s Hot Dogs. The best hot dogs ever! I challenge anyone who would claim otherwise.

So, as you can see, I enjoyed my little tour of the Bay Area. The good news is, surprisingly, I didn’t gain any weight. I think all the running I’ve been doing has sped up my metabolism a little. I’ve been much healthier since I’ve been home, though. I really don’t eat like that all the time.

a million thoughts, a few moments…

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You know when you have those days when you just have so many things you want to write about. Today (and yesterday) were days like that.

First, I loved my English class last night. I finally enjoyed poetry…not sonnets, I’ve always enjoyed that, but I finally got it, I finally understood what people fall in love with. It’s incredible. There are so many hidden meanings to discover. Last night reminded me of that first time I found a shiny, pink tile in our sandbox. The sandbox is often fun at face value, but when you discover the treasures hidden within, it becomes magical and every scoop becomes a sort of treasure hunt. If you don’t understand what I’m talking about, I will explain a little further. Growing up, we had a jungle gym in our yard that was in a huge sandbox. In the sandbox there were tiles, the largest being about 1″ x 1″ and when we discovered this (my little brother and I) it became our mission to find the tiles. Now that I’ve discovered poetry, I want to find the treasures within. The history of the authors, the words, the rhyme, the form, the sound…it’s all so deliberate and there is so much to be found within.

Next…My dad sent me flowers yesterday (a day early for Valentine’s Day) and they are beautiful. I know that flowers on Valentine’s Day may seem a bit cliche and foolish since we are buying into the marketing machine that has perpetuated the irrational spending on items that are normally half the cost, but I love them. I will always love getting flowers, especially lilies and roses and tulips and iris’. And it is so fun to have them on my desk at work. And I love Valentine’s Day, single or not. While I realize that is a contrived holiday, I love to watch people in love.

Third…Katie Melua’s version of “Just Like Heaven” and the XM version of Sting’s “Fields of Gold”. While I love the originals (The Cure did “Just Like Heaven” and I love The Cure), these two versions make me happy.

Fourth…I have decided to make a regular habit of volunteering at the Missionary Training Center on Wednesdays (when the French speaking missionaries do their time in the Training Resource Center). Today, of all days, I didn’t have time, but I had planned on it, so I didn’t take any homework with me to do on my lunch break. I knew that if I had, I wouldn’t have gone and I would have missed out on one of the best and most spiritual experiences that I have had in a long time. I will spare you the details (plus, while I do share so much about myself here, some things are too special to share on a public blog), but I will say that there is something so sweet about two 19-year-old boys who have decided to give two years of their lives to go out in the world and teach people about the thing that is most important to them, a thing that they hold so sacred, a thing that is so easily discarded or mocked. As I sat across from these two missionaries, humbled by their limited ability to speak a language they are just learning, I could feel of their desire to convey to me their feelings about the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Last (at least that I am going to share because I need to get to bed)…and a little less important…I went to see “Music and Lyrics” tonight with the girls. It was so cute. And, with my dreams of cutting my own little album someday, I always enjoy a movie about music of any sort, even the silly, chick-flick kind. I definitely recommend it.