Foxy and fabulous

receiving line comments: Spitfire

2012-02-13T13:20:00.000-08:00

Well folks, another show has come and gone. For those of you who showed us some love--THANK YOU. For those who didn't-well it's your loss.

I'm a swiper (and incapable of creative thoughts of my own...) and I'm copying my sweet sweet Larissa. You see, she's started recording the things people say to her in the receiving line. I got a few during my most recent run with Spitfire. So many that I can't remember them all and I WISH I had written them all down. Here are the few I do remember off the top of my head:

"You nailed the busy-body type"
"I hope you're not that bad in real life"
"Your hair is so shiny" No joke I was told this QUITE a few times.
"Do you color it?" Asked this after above comment.
Have you ever been to Manilla? The postmistress there is JUST like you!
"I hated you" (I hope it was Effy they hated and not me...)
"You were just so obnoxious...it made me so mad!"
"You have such a great voice!" (Said to Mason-our Eli-who says NOTHING the duration of the show...everyone thought they were so funny.)
"How in the world do you all keep your voices warm?"
"What great comic relief you were!"
"I could listen to you sing all day."-Aww thanks!!
"I just loved to hate you."
"Every time you came on stage I couldn't stop giggling."
"You were just so fun to watch! You looked like you had so much fun!"
"You all sounded so great together."-I'm assuming they were referring to Act 2's opener 'Come Alive Again'
"I had never heard of this show, but I'm so glad I came! It was so good!"

Those were the few I could remember, but everyone who left seemed to really have a good time. I'm grateful for everyone who came out to support us and I hope you all had as much fun watching as I did performing. I truly believe this show was Kismet; we all clicked and got along so well. Although it was so stressful in the beginning it was also so much fun and one of the best theatre experiences ever. I will miss it and my wonderful cast mates, but I'm ready for my life to be my own again, to have my weekends back to actually go on dates with Mr. Wonderful, and tap. Can I just say how excited I am to see my tap peeps again!? I have missed them so!

i am

2012-02-10T13:32:00.000-08:00

Last week kind-of-sucked. Why, you may ask? Well I was called some names by someone. Names in a million years I never thought I’d be called-and especially not by who said it.

They called me fake and judgmental.

I would be lying if I said it didn’t hurt. It did-and still does; but I think that was their point. Well, mission accomplished. All for giving them the honesty they asked for.

I’ve always prided myself as being the “what you see is what you get” person, but apparently in their eyes I am not. Apparently to them I am fake. And Judgemental.

Man, I’ve always hated that damn word. Judgmental. What an unfair term. Why? Everyone is judgmental by definition alone and somehow it has become a negative term filled with hate.

Judgment:

1: The process of forming an opinion or evaluation by discerning and comparing

The last week I have been stressing over what I am not; today I decided to focus instead on what I AM. Haters can go to hell.

I AM a daughter of earthly and Heavenly parents. I know they love me. I know they are proud to call me 'daughter'.

I AM a big sister. I may not always be liked by my siblings; but I always have their best interest at heart

I AM the sweetheart to a wonderful man who I am always striving to be worthy of

I AM a friend to many, an enemy to few

I AM an auntie to the most beautiful, smartest nieces and nephews ever

I AM a singer. I may not be the best, but I know I AM good.

I AM an actress

I AM a tap dancer

I AM a cook

I AM a ‘live and let live’ person

I AM fiery and passionate

I AM trying to be more patient

I AM giving-almost to a fault

I AM someone who takes accountability for my actions and tries to be better

I AM always trying to learn from my mistakes

I AM flawed, but it’s ok

I AM not afraid to stand up for myself and the people I love

I AM a Facebook junkie
I AM always trying to be a Christ-like example to others

I AM not perfect, nor do claim to be

I AM loud

I AM fun

I AM kind

I AM important

I AM an advocate

I AM a family person

I AM a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints
I AM trying to be a good represenative of my faith

I AM not afraid to question ‘the norm’

I AM a teacher

I AM a supporter

I AM a believer in the arts

I AM a listener and an advice giver

I AM a pet parent

I AM a hugger

I AM a Disnelyand addict

I AM objective and rational-most of the time.

I AM always striving to be someone ‘who breaks the mold’

I AM me.

You know what? I AM not always going to be everyone’s favorite. But guess what? That’s OK. I go to bed each night knowing I was true to ME and the people who love ME. And that is the most important thing any of us can do.

a photo-a-day: week 1

2012-02-07T10:24:00.000-08:00

Once again I took a page from Guy Smiley and in the interest of saving everyone's-well mainly my-sanity I think I'm gonna post once a week. The goal is every other day though. Here's last week's photos:

DAY 1: My view

My view day to day can get kind of tedious. Good thing I have Mr. Wonderful, Disneyland, and the ever changing photo in my digital frame to liven it up!

DAY 2: Words

'Alice in Wonderland' has always been one of my absolute favorites. I find it fitting that I found a cover for my nook that has the first page of 'Alice' printed on it.

DAY 3: Hands.

I'm a sucker for strong hands. Always have been. Good thing Mr. Wonderful has the perfect pair! Look at how well he holds Miss Lexi!

DAY 4: A stranger

One of the things I love the most about Disneyland is the random people who come home with you in your pictures! This is one of my all-time favorites-the random Asian guy who looks like he's lost...

DAY 5: 10 AM

Part of my job includes having the Food Network on ALL DAY. Most of the time it's torture, but at 10:00 it turns into one big stress-fest watching chefs race the clock to make the most outrageous culinary creations on Food Network Challenge. If you've never seen it I highly recommend it.

DAY 6: Dinner

Since I had a show last night and was going straight from work to the theatre I stopped at Cafe Rio and enjoyed the Monday special: Chile Rellanos. They were OK, but I have yet to have one that usurps my favorites at El Habanero...

DAY 7: Button

Here is a button from my new favorite purple cardigan. I hate to admit I am one of those girls whose mood is affected by what she wears, but alas, it is true.

moving by the numbers

2012-02-02T09:00:00.000-08:00

Well ladies and gentlemen, the day has come and gone and I am officially moved!! It was a long, stressful, not fun process, but I'm glad it's finally over and done with. Tuesday night as I was unpacking the last of my boxes I realized there are a LOT of numbers involved in moving. For your reading enjoyment, here they are:

People recruited to help: 5
People who came from St. George: 2 (thanks Momma and LB2!)
Moving trucks rented: 1
Hours spent loading and unloading truck: 6
Shins hit into ball hitch on truck: 3
Washer and dryer on loan from awesome man: 1 of each
Back injuries: 1 (it was Mr Wonderful, and he's fine now, just twisted it weird trying to maneuver his washer up his parent's stairs.)
Increase in square footage: 110
How much bigger it feels: 0
Balcony entrances: 2
Trips to Lowes/Home Depot: 3
Boxes moved/unpacked: 50-ish
Times I misplaced my box cutter: Countless
Cuts/scrapes/other odd hand ailments: 4
Days taken off of work: 2
Days I wish I had taken: 5
Loads of laundry waiting for me over the next two days: 5 or 6 (It's amazing what you put off washing when confronted with the reality of having to lug it to the laundromat)
Trips to the dumpster: 5
Bags sent to the DI: 4
Happy birds: 1 (or it could be because she's Lizzy Borden .)
Emotional melt-downs: 2 (In my defense I was just done)
New neighbors met: 3
Change of addresses submitted: 5 ( I THINK I got them all...)
Days without DVR: 3
Keys turned in: 5
Noisy Neighbors: ZERO!!!

To sum it up moving sucks. It's expensive, stressful, emotionally and physically draining, and has the potential to ruin even the strongest relationships.
My friend Steve said it best: anything it can cost you to move it will. Well put Steve, well put.

a photo-a-day

2012-02-01T13:39:00.000-08:00

I've been a crappy blogger as of late. I know this. In an attempt to be better I'm taking a page from my friend Guy Smiley and I'm going to attempt to do this. It's only 29 days-what could possibly go wrong?

angry birds updated

2012-01-26T13:54:00.000-08:00

**I thought this was going to be a short story when I started—no such luck. Stop reading now if you’re not interested in a novel**

As most of you know I’m a proud pet parent. About six months ago LB2 gave me three canaries he had received as a tip-I know, right? Since he and SIL2 already have a menagerie of their own and birds are usually one of the few animals you can have in an apartment without having to pay any additional fees I was glad to take them off their hands. I have been convinced I’m an unfit parent since.

In November Moki had a monster stress molt, caught a chill, and died before I could take her to the vet. LB2 assured me she was very old (I am the third owner that we know of) so it was just her time. Yeah, I didn’t buy it. After a mini (ok huge meltdown) Mr. Wonderful bought her final resting place (a Tupperware container), and we laid her to rest in his parent’s back yard.

Two weeks later Red started making wheezy noises akin to a broken squeaker toy. Since I was convinced I was a horrible pet owner and still grieving the loss of Moki I rushed him and Gobo to the vet (avian respiratory issues are very communicable). Naturally the second I got in the exam room Gobo starts singing and showing off, and not to be out done Red jumps onto his perch and starts singing his little lungs out and showing off in a fine fashion too. The vet checked them out, said they were just fine, and sent us all on our merry way. I started to settle down, but I was still convinced that I would do something wrong and kill them both at any moment.

Red and Moki were parents to Gobo so my birds have always shared a cage. Most of the time they lived together peacefully--but they did have an occasional squabble. I also noticed the older Moki got the more the other two picked on him which I think is what caused him into the stress molt. Anyway, Sunday night Mr. Wonderful and I had just returned from the weekly parent dinner and were settling in to watch a movie when we heard a ruckus coming from my bedroom. Mr. Wonderful witnessed the tail end of the fight, but apparently Gobo was on top of Red and kicking the tar out of him. I didn’t think much of it; they pretty much forget why they were fighting once it’s over. Not this time. I had noticed Red was still on the floor of the cage and a sulky ball of fluff on Monday after I got home, but I decided to give it one more day. Last night when I got home and noticed he was still in this position, favoring his right leg, and didn’t seem to mind Gobo had pooped on him I started to really worry. I worried even more when I put my hand in the cage to check their food and didn’t get his usual freak-out (canaries are NOT social birds. They like to be seen and not handled) I knew something was wrong. I know he wasn’t eating while I was home, so I figured it was safe to assume he wasn’t eating when I wasn’t there either. I told Mr. Wonderful my fear and said I was going to take him to the vet today after I got home from work. Mr. Wonderful true to his wonderfulness said to make it for ASAP and he would take him before he had to be to work. (Is he a keeper or what?)

The diagnosis:

Gobo is a bully and Red is a pansy. Apparently Gobo inflicted a critical level of trauma on Red. They don’t know what’s wrong with his leg, but they think Gobo is to blame for that too. So now my little guy is being held over night and will receive oxygen and pain meds as needed, and lots and lots of TLC. Now I have to keep them in separate cages, and depending on the level of trauma Red has experienced it’s possible I will need to keep them separated AND out of each other’s sight. Oy. I’m a bad parent.

I’m going to prove my unfit-ness further by asking this question-the bill is already at $50 and will likely be double that tomorrow. When do you decide the pain, suffering, and cost outweigh the attempt to make them well again? I love my birds, and I will do what I can to make and keep them healthy and happy, but I’m also not willing to spend hundreds of dollars on an animal that is suffering.

Who would have thought birds who have peacefully co-existed all this time would suddenly start hating each other? Maybe Gobo is trying to assert her independence from dad? Whatever it is I'm at a complete loss.

**UPDATE** My quandary is moot; the vet just called to tell me Red succumbed to the shock and passed this morning. After the reaction I had with Moki I would have thought I would be more upset. I'm sad, but I was able to joke with Mr. Wonderful about how funny it must have looked to see the vet perform CPR. I'm not going to lie; I feel a little guilty about that.

Maybe part of me knew that when Mr. Wonderful took him yesterday he wouldn't be coming home. I also know aside from not taking him in sooner I did all I could this time around and if the vet couldn't save him it was meant to be and I'm glad he's no longer suffering.

It's sad, I'm sad, but it's ok, and who knows, maybe when I actually see him tonight when I pick him up the reality will set in and I will shed a tear or two.

I guess I will just have one bird who thinks an awful lot about herself and I don't have to worry about her bullying anyone anymore. I also am relieved I don't need to worry about the potential vet bills, buying one bigger cage, or spend anymore time thinking about where I'm going to put two cages-not only while I'm in the middle of moving, but also where I'll put them once I'm moved.

Does that make me a terrible person (and pet owner) for finding relief in that?

a desperate theatre zombie plea

2012-01-13T12:36:00.000-08:00

Few words strike fear into the heart of an actor like 'tech week'. The fear is even more intense when you've only had three weeks of full-time rehearsals and your first run through of the show is on your preview night. On the other hand, only actors can know the satisfaction that comes after a particularly stressful (and rough) tech week and preview, knowing that it will only get better from there. Yes, I look like (and feel) an extra off of 'The Walking Dead', but you know what? It's worth it.

Once again here is my plea. PLEASE come see 'The Spitfire Grill'. I will warn you-due to a positive but crazy rehearsal experience and essentially putting an entire show together in three weeks-the first few performances will be especially rough, but I promise there is a diamond underneath just waiting to shine--and boy oh boy it will. Please come and support me, the Empress, and most importantly this AMAZING show. It is our 2012 season opener and we have been all but forgotten. There has been NO marketing and we need butts in the seats. Then we need those butts to go out and tell other butts to come sit in the seats too. We need YOU to help spread the word. Bribe them with 2 for 1 tickets when they use 'coffecups' at the box office or online if you have to. Just PLEASE help!

More than anything I am worried people will miss this show simply because they didn't know about it. I know you all can't come, but you all can help spread the word. It takes next to no time to send out a mass email (Empress ,Facebook)--people do it for stupid stuff, why not do it for something that's important to a friend? I would do it for you. *oh yeah, I SO went there.

Ok, I promise that's it for the shameless plug, and my next post won't be quite so desperate.

say whatcha want, say whatcha will...

2012-01-06T12:49:00.000-08:00

Something's cooking at the Spitfire Grill!!!

Percy Talbot has just been released from a five year prison sentence and she is trying to find a place for a fresh start. Based on a page from an old travel book, travels to the small town of Gilead, Wisconsin. The local sheriff, Joe Sutter, who is also Percy’s parole officer, finds her a job at Hannah’s Spitfire Grill – the only eatery in this struggling town. The Spitfire Grill is for sale, but with no interested buyers, Hannah decides to raffle it off. Entry fees are one hundred dollars and the best essay on why you want the grill wins. Soon, mail is arriving by the wheelbarrow full and things are definitely getting hot at the Spitfire Grill.
This musical triumph is an inspiring celebration of fresh starts, frienship, and the power of what one person can do.

Directed by Shawn Maxfield and featuring the talents of Mia Detton, Brittany Boynton, Lindsay Boucher, Jacob Clark, Shawn Maxfield, and Kristen Fox this is a show you don't want to miss!!

'The Spitfire Grill' runs January 13-February 11 on Fridays, Saturdays, and Mondays at 7:30 pm. There will be a matinee on Saturday February 11. Tickets are $12.00 on Friday and Saturday evenings and $10.00 on Monday evenings.

Use 'coffeecup' at the box office any time during the run for 2 for 1 tickets!

We are having a hard time getting the word out on this great great great show.

PLEASE help by coming to see us and then spreading the word! It is such a great show with so much heart. If you can't come but you're on Facebook please join the event and invite your friends.

https://www.facebook.com/TheEmpressTheatre#!/events/319716504717731/

I know I sound a little (ok, a lot) like a clingy girlfriend, but I'm proud of this show and the talent I get to share the stage with. I want everyone who can to come see it, but we need help getting the word out and getting butts in the seats...PLEASE HELP!!!

couch potato

2011-12-29T10:00:00.000-08:00

I have a confession. My name is Miss Kristen and I am a bona fide couch potato.
I had been living in a state of denial until earlier this week. You see, until recently all I've had is the red couch I bought almost new off of ksl two years ago. Although it serves its purpose it has HUGE back rest cushions that have a tendency to take up the entire couch, making it hard to stay seated on the thing; forget about lounging on it. Until...

Fast forward to two weeks ago. LB2 and SIL2 came to Salt Lake for brother's work. They brought me a glorious gift: a Love Sak. Not just any Love Sak. The big one. The one that's so big it takes up my living room. The one so big Mr. Wonderful and I don't have to be contortion experts to snuggle on and watch a movie. The one that's so big there's no way I could have afforded it-sand neither could they had it not been LB2's last employee purchase before changing jobs. That Love Sak.

You guys, it's like sitting in a hug. I've napped in it several times. It's where I sought respite after the horrific event that was last Wednesday. It's also where I have sorry to admit I have begun to forge many a bad habit. Bad habits like eating garden veggie reduced cal cream cheese and triscuits. Catching up on the last five episodes of Glee--in one sitting. Simply sitting and doing nothing. It's a major time suck, but I love it.

If these weren't indicators enough of my current plight I got excited planning my first free evening in almost a month as sitting in the hug and catching up on the Grey's, New Girl, Once Upon a Time, and How I Met Your Mother quickly accumulating on the DVR.

You guys, it's bad. I know I shouldn't, but I just can't get enough of this thing. Everyone should have a Love Sak! If being a couch potato is wrong I don't wanna be right...ok, maybe I do, but it's gonna be a hard thing to give up for sure.

things that must go

2011-12-28T11:13:00.000-08:00

I will freely admit that for reasons unknown to me I was a complete and utter Grinch this Christmas. You would think I would have been ecstatic because it was the first Christmas I spent up here with Mr. Wonderful and his family. I was-at first, but as the day got closer I just became sadder which I then allowed to turn into anger over what I was missing down south. Allow me to clarify and say this was not the first Christmas I had ever spent away from my own family, so I still don’t understand what my deal was. Although this was not foreign territory to me all I could focus on was the fact I was missing them something fierce.

I feel bad for Mr. Wonderful and his family-they have convinced themselves that I didn’t have a good time and I don’t like their traditions-I did, and I do-and I am so thankful that they welcomed me with loving and open arms. I just missed my family and our traditions.

In an effort to get rid of my Grinchiness and have a better outlook for the impending New Year I feel it’s necessary to perform an exorcism of sorts. I present here for your reading enjoyment my most recent list of things that must go-if you want butterflies and rainbows you need to stop reading now because this ain’t gonna be pretty:

Announcing huge life events via updating your status. I get that you’re happy. I get that you want to share your good news with everyone in the quickest way possible. What I don’t get is how the second you get the ring on your finger or the baby in your belly you are too quick to forget the people in your life who want that very thing but keep falling short. You may not think it’s a big deal, but it stings. A LOT. Maybe you should check your empathy button before you go off on how you are so happy and how you can’t believe your wait is finally over, and how it’s everything you want it to be and MORE, and how lucky in love you are—ESPECIALLY when the platform you are proclaiming this from gives the recipient no warning, and no ability to filter it until AFTER it’s been read. I get you’re happy, but your insensitivity is breaking a lot of hearts.

Sending mass texts about said life event AFTER you’ve posted on Facebook. I already was blindsided on facebook. I don’t need you to add insult to injury via text. If I can muster my fake mommy smile long enough to be polite I’ll pass along congratulations. If you go fishin for congratulations before I’m ready to play nice you won’t like the results.

Face-boxing. If I want a steady stream of political bashing I will join a political site. If I want to read your latest dramatic diatribe I’ll subscribe to your blog. I’m on Facebook to keep in touch and because it’s mindless fun. Facebook is not your personal soap box. Let’s keep it light and fun, people!

Facebook over-shares. On that same note Facebook is not a place to over share. I don’t need to know about your cramps, or how you’ve been puking your guts out the last three days, or how your sister’s labor is progressing (*guilty* and lesson learned within 30 seconds of hitting ‘send’). I don’t log in to be made uncomfortable or grossed out. Save the gross stuff for your doctor and give me the funny you tube videos and picture parodies.

Repeats on FoodNetwork. It’s bad enough that I have to have you on and be tormented by your deliciousness all day, but come on. You are an older station with quite the archive of shows. I shouldn’t be seeing the same episodes of Paula Deen, Gi-a-DUH, and Rachel Ray all week. It’s ok to mix it up peeps.

Giada. If her necklines get any lower or her hairstyles any higher she’s a gold chain away from being a bad Italian stereotype. It’s bad enough you named your kid the English translation of your OWN name, but if I have to hear you over pronounce ‘Riz-oh-TOE’, ‘pah-st-AH’, ‘mas-ca-PONY cheese’, ‘pan-chain-TAH’, ‘CRRReamy’, ‘CRRRunchy’, or ‘CRRRust’ again I might just need to put my head through a wall.

People who should be riding on the short bus rather than driving it. Driving is a privilege, not a right. Do us all a favor, pull your head out of your ass, and quit driving like you own the road. You don’t, and I’m tired of having to up my defensive driving game because you don’t understand how a merge works.

Doing all the work so someone else gets all the credit. You didn’t do it all on your own. Recognize that. Makes it easier for me to WANT to help you next time.

People shortening my name. It still isn’t cute, and it still bugs the hell out of me. STOP.

Forcing me to repeat myself. Making me say the same thing over and over again only confirms your stupidity and irritates the hell out of me. You won’t get a different answer no matter how many times you re-word your question. Shut you mouth, open your ears, and we’ll all get along great.

Drama Queens. I have enough drama in my own life. I don’t need you trying to suck me into yours.

The Inversion. I miss sounding like a girl, not an 80-year old chain smoker. And breathing. The non-smoker smoker’s hack has got to go too.

Finding a place to move/moving. I hate where I live. I think I hate trying to find a place to live more. Although I have a few options available to me I don’t want to make the same mistake I made two years ago by not looking and blindly jumping into the first option presented to me. I’m down to three weeks, no time to look, and stress levels rising. Not to mention finding time to actually pack and GET moved once I figure out where.

And that is my list of things that must go, and I am already feeling better. Whoda thunk it?

christmas soap box

2011-12-15T12:26:00.000-08:00

I am fortunate enough to know people from all different walks of life. Gay, straight, Jew, Christian, Agnostic, Atheist, liberal, and conservative. We don’t always see eye to eye, but I will always love them.

The other day one of my friends got their knickers in a twist on Facebook about how they felt that the Christ part of Christmas was being shoved down their throat, and saying ‘Happy Holidays’ was the more ‘appropriate’ thing to say. Can I digress for one minute and tell you just how much I hate Facebook soap-boxing? A lot.

I try to be a live and let live type, but this irked me. Just because I choose to celebrate Christmas doesn’t mean I’m shoving a Christian agenda down your throat. It just means I’m wishing you a Merry Christmas because that’s the holiday I observe. It is as impossible to celebrate Christmas without Christ as it is to celebrate your birthday without you.

Yes I know many of our Christmas traditions originated from Pagan and Druid traditions, but the reason for the season has always remained the same. I don’t celebrate the tradition, I celebrate CHRIST. If you don’t like it, tough.

I don’t get offended as a Christian when someone wishes me Happy Holidays, or Kwanzaa, or Hanukkah, or whatever it is they believe. I don’t understand why these same people who talk about equality and open-mindedness are usually the first ones to cry foul when people say we need to keep Christ in CHRISTmas. Did I miss something here?

Why is it so hard for so many people to actually practice what they preach? I merely proclaim that I am Christian; I have never shoved my beliefs down anyone’s throat and I understand what anyone else chooses to believe is their choice. It’s annoying to me that for some you’re only allowed to believe what you want-as long as it falls in line with that they themselves believe.

Please know that although I believe Christ needs to be the center of Christmas I am NOT forcing my beliefs on you when I wish you “Merry Christmas”, I am merely wishing you a Merry Christmas because I am Christian and Christmas is what I celebrate.

Happy Christmas everyone!!

kristen's kitchen:trainwreck omelette

2011-12-08T14:01:00.000-08:00

Hello dear readers. It is I. No, I didn't fall off the face of the earth. You would think that once I started Caroling I would have loads of stories to tell. Nope. I'm very very boring. Maybe once I'm there all week (that starts TONIGHT btw) I'll have stories to tell. Today I just have a recipe to share.

After my parents moved to St George I moved in with my Aunt Joan and Uncle Brad. My Uncle Brad (the Bradster) created a dish called the Trainwreck Omelette. It's fast, easy, and delish. You can add whatever you want to it, and there's really no measurements. You just have to feel it out. This round I made WAY too much, so I adjusted it before I posted here. Hopefully I got the quantities worked out so this will serve one-depending on how hungry you are.

Ingredients

9 Tater tots

1 large egg

Shredded cheese

Salt and pepper (to taste)

Nuke tater tots for 15-30 seconds to soften up a bit then place in skillet. Heat over medium heat for 2-3 minutes until they have a little color and are easily mashed with a potato masher.

Yes I know there's more than 9 tots in there. I told you I WAY over shot.

While tots are heating scramble eggs in a bowl with salt and pepper. If you are adding additional ingredients add them to the eggs. Grate desired amount of cheese. Set both aside.

When tots are heated through gently mash until they are broken apart. Add salt and pepper, turn heat to medium high and finish heating through and are lightly crisp. (They'll stick/clump together so you may need to flip like a pancake.)

Turn heat to medium medium-low and pour beat eggs over tots. Gently stir to incorporate but be sure tots and eggs are even to ensure even cooking. Once eggs start to set turn heat to low and cover to cook the top of the eggs. You can flip it instead if you want, but I'm not coordinated enough to do it without ruining it.

* NOTE* Make sure all your prep is done BEFORE you pour the eggs. This round was way over-cooked because I was trying to watch them and grate cheese...well that and I may or may not have forgotten to turn down my stove.

Once eggs are cooked, sprinkle with grated cheese, turn off heat, and place lid back on pan. The residual heat will melt the cheese.

Once cheese is melted serve immediately. I like mine with avocado, cholula, and a cottage cheese pear side, but you can do whatev. Enjoy!

Mr. Wonderful works swing now, so I will give you a rating of delish! It's super versatile and you can add whatever you want...if you do let me know how it works out! I'm thinking next time I'll try some spinach and mushrooms. The tricky part is mastering the measurements for the size of group you're making.

burning the candle at both ends

2011-11-10T14:00:00.000-08:00

I either did the coolest-or dumbest thing ever...
I know you're all thinking that's not possible, but believe me friends. It is. It really is.

Monday while I was at caroler rehearsal I received a text from my good friend Don Quixote that read:

"Are you familiar with the musical 'The Spitfire Grill'"?

Not sure where this was headed I replied "I'm not, but I can be if you need me to be. What's up?"

Well, my friends it turns out that he is directing this show and would like me to play the role of Effie. I must admit I know very little about this show, and although it's been well-received everywhere there's not much information on the interwebs. My friend Piano Man assures me that this is a wonderful ensemble show and Effie is a role I would be stupid to pass up. A non-ensemble role that the director wants me for? Without an audition? I know I'm fiercely talented and I deliver when it counts, but I also know I am no good at auditioning. This makes earning the right to deliver on stage difficult. I've had a few close friends who have seen me audition confirm this to me too so I know it's not just my perception.

With that being said: of course I'm gonna do it!

Here comes the stupid part.

Rehearsals will start while I'm in the middle of Candlelight Christmas. This going right along with fitting in a post-Christmas jaunt to St George with Mr. Wonderful, my own Christmas celebrations, shopping, altering my caroler dress-oh I didn't mention that? Well for the first time EVER the damn thing is too big in the bodice and has to be taken in. Like TEN INCHES. I'm not joking. The thing is HUGE. Thank goodness I was born into a sewing family. Oh and did I also mention we're singing for the FIRST PRESIDENCY now too? Well we are. Oh, and I'm still a day late and a dollar short on my music. Ack.

Phew. Now that I'm looking at it, that's a lot-and I'm not even trying to fit in silly stuff like the gym, eating, or sleep. This is the first time I have been grateful Mr. Wonderful is now on swing shift at work-I don't have to feel guilty for neglecting him.

Don Quixote is wonderful and must really want me, because even with the uncertainty of my schedule he said we'll make it work. I'm excited...well excited and scared. Ok. Mostly scared that in my inability to say "no" I've bitten off more than I can chew and am now just waiting for it all to explode on me. But come on. I've gotta do it, right? RIGHT? I'm not complaining, I promise. I'm just not sure how this all happened to me. This sort of thing never happens to people like me. I'm the one who's looking for things to do, not how to make them all fit. I'm awed and flattered and have had my ego sufficiently stroked-all at once.

We shall see if it's epic or just an epic fail.

attitude of gratitude: day 2

2011-11-10T09:23:00.000-08:00

Today I am thankful for:

1) Mr. Wonderful's silly sense of humor that reminds me to not take myself so seriously.
2) My mother who is willing to drive 400 miles to help me alter the bodice on my caroler dress.
3) My Aunt Joanie who has stepped in to help alter said dress.
4) my crock pot-dinner will be DONE when I get home!
5) A car that works.

thankful: Sparky

2011-11-09T10:06:00.000-08:00

Four and a half years ago I did a show. I'm still in awe about how much that one experience changed my life.
It was that experience that blessed me with one of the most important people in my life.

Last night we were talking about how we are both in a funk as of late and have no idea (or a good reason) as to why. I suggested we make lists of five things we are grateful for every day without repeating through November. It can be big or small, as long as we are grateful for it then. I then suggested we text them to each other to make us accountable for it. He agreed, and here we are.

Tis the season, and if you'll humor me, I am going to share my lists with you each day. Although this isn't the list I sent him today I find it fitting mine should start with the person who inspired the idea. My Sparky.

He's silly.

He supports me in everything I do.

He has the best picture face. No really, he does.

He's oh so strong!

He can make his legs dissappear!

He survived an ENTIRE week of Disneyland with me.

Not only did he not kill me, but three years later still tells me that was the

best trip he's ever been on (and he's been around) and that we HAVE to do it again.

Yes, it's fun and silly, but in all seriousness I wouldn't trade my Sparky for anything in the world. He is my doppelganger (well, if I were a gay man anyway), a huge support to me, we can literally go MONTHS without talking and pick up right where we left off, we can get into the deep stuff conversations, he lets me tell him that he's being dumb without taking it personally (and vice versa), he knows me ALMOST as well as Mr. Wonderful and can read my moods at a glance, he will go see a cheesy community production of whatever with me without complaint, and quote random lines from Steel Magnolias with me. Above all he is my friend and such a huge blessing in my life. It may seem simple, but that's what our friendship is. Marvelously simple, which is exactly what each of us needs. I am so grateful I will always be his Foxy.

i guess i didn't get the memo

2011-11-01T08:14:00.000-07:00

I don't know about you all, but my Halloween was pretty lack luster. So much so that I'm kinda losing faith in the holiday...

I had only four trick-or-treaters-yes you read that right. I said FOUR-and I know I live in an apartment, but come on, it's practically kid central here. Plus I had my cute, fun Halloween wreath up to prove I am TOTALLY legit and everything! Pathetic, yes? Well I can top that...I was one of three people at work who didn't get the memo you don't celebrate Halloween ON Halloween anymore...oh well. At least I looked cute and I got to wear jeans to work on a Monday.

On a happier note my butternut squash and freshly baked rolls were delish...recipe to follow soon after I tweak it a little more.

Side side note...I just looked out the window and it's SNOWING. Yuck. At least we got a little bit of a fall before the Christmas crazies got their way.

make a joyful noise

2011-10-24T08:35:00.000-07:00

Well, folks carolers rehearsals are now in full-swing. Aside from being behind because I'm a newb and learning everything from scratch instead of refreshing, it's rad. I haven't been in an honest-to-goodness choir for almost eight years and I had forgotten how happy choral singing makes me. There is nothing better to hear than a talented ensemble singing 8-part harmony. It's rad-I can't say that enough lately.

Last week I got some news. I don't know if it's a done deal so I doubt I'm supposed to tell, but we're all friends here so I'm gonna. But first a smidge of background:

As you are all aware, This is the Place Heritage Park is run largely in part by the LDS (Mormon) church. Because of this the "world" is pretty small.

Last week the person over the Heritage Carolers got a call. What kind of call you ask? Well an invitation. Not just any invitation, mind you. An invitation for our little group to sing for the Mormon Tabernacle Choir.

Yes, you read that right.

MoTab.



The Mormon.

                       Freaking.

                                  Tabernacle.

                                                      Choir.

My old Institute Choir director is a member.
No pressure or anything Kristen.

Needless to say I'm excited. Well excited and scared. Alright, mostly scared. I haven't been this excited since my A'Cappella choir was invited to sing with the Utah Symphony my Senior year.

We're awesome, but it's the freaking Mormon Tabernacle Choir for crying out loud! Here's hoping it doesn't fall through and make a liar out of me. Regardless of whether or not that happens you need to pencil "A Candlelight Christmas" into your holiday schedule. As of right now I am the Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday cast. Those are all the specifics I know right now. I will definitely keep you all posted, and I must say although we are only two weeks in, we have an AWESOME music director, and we are already sounding pretty darn incredible, so I know it'll only get better from here.

You're missing out if you decide not to come!

the best is yet to come

2011-10-15T10:28:00.000-07:00

Today is Mr. Wonderful and I’s anniversary. I always feel odd saying that. Why, you may ask? Well the answer is three-fold.

1. We started dating in July ‘07, but we didn’t decide to make it exclusive until that October. I say we started dating July, he says it doesn't count because we weren't officially a couple until October, so it can get confusing.

2. We’re not married, so I always feel a little odd celebrating the fact we’re committed but not committed in the bonds of matrimony...

3. We’ve been together for four years and still aren’t married. Although that’s not unusual outside of Utah, it is here-the state of child brides and marriages after knowing each other two weeks. Around the two-year mark I started getting the well-meaning but does-nothing-but-come-off-as-condescending-and-judgemental comments like: “why do you stay with him?”, “you should tell him it’s time to shit or get off the pot.”, and my personal favorite, “may I ask why you’re not married yet?” Which seems innocent enough, but is a cloak-and-dagger attempt to get me to spill, which usually ends up with them giving me “advice” wrapped in a heavy dose of judgment. Ugh. Suffice it to say it is NOT a matter of "IF", but "WHEN". Our ducks just need to be in a row first.

I digress. This post is about Mr. Wonderful, not the stupid mc stupids and their ~~hurtful~~ well-meaning comments.

So here for your reading enjoyment is a few of the reasons I love Mr. Wonderful so.

-He willingly-and patiently puts up with me and my hot-headedness on a daily basis.

-He’s SO handsome.

-He can play ‘Seven Degrees of Kevin Bacon’ with ANY actor-case in point: His brother in law tried to stump him with Charlie Chaplin. He had to use IMDB to get started, but he did it.

-He is patient.
-It took him a year to decide to buy his "big ass tv"-he doesn't take making big decisions lightly.

-He plays with me (not THAT kind of playing, get your mind out of the gutter!)

-He makes me laugh and we laugh together every day.

-He is full of surprises-I never cease to be amazed by him.

-He is an awesome cuddler.

-He loves my family ALMOST as much as they love him, and there was no awkward time with them. He has been a member of my family since the second he met them.

-He is a good teacher.
-He is SO smart.
-He is not afraid or ashamed to be himself. Because of this I'm not afraid to be myself either.
-He is a big kid in a grown-up's body.

-He brings out the best in me.
-He is patient.

-He is kind.

-He is thoughtful and considerate of others.

-He tells and shows me every day how much he loves me.

-He makes me want to be a better person.
-He got me interested in gems like 'The Walking Dead', 'Being Human', 'Supernatural', 'Avatar', and The Dresden Files books.

-He can quote ‘Ghostbusters’ verbatim-which is fun until you try to watch the re-release in the theater, then it’s obnoxious. Adorable, but obnoxious.

-Chivalry is not dead with him. He is always opening my doors, making sure I’m happy and taken care of, and he always puts himself between me and any potential danger.

-He gives the best back rubs. (I’m a trained Massage Therapist so I know.)

-He has seen me at my best and my worst. Not only does he still love me, but he also still thinks I’m beautiful.

-Speaking of beauty he tells me every day how beautiful I am.

-He is a Marvel nerd-and it is adorable.
-Kids LOVE him, and he doesn't mind when they use him as a human jungle gym.
-I know he'll be a great dad. Firm but fair.

-The longer we are together the more I love him. We just get better and better as a couple-cheesy, but true.

-He knows how to fight fair, is willing to compromise, and he’ll admit when he’s wrong and apologize.
-He has the best voice. It is calming and comforting, and just nice to hear.
-He grounds me. Just seeing him is enough to make a bad day better.
-He isn't afraid to call me on my crap-and he's never a jerk about it.

-He never says ‘I’ or ‘me’. It’s always ‘we’ and ‘us’.

-He is respectful. Not only to me, but to others as well.

-He loves the Gospel and is a good example to everyone-especially me.

-He humors my Disneyland obsession.

Don't be fooled. He only looks miserable because he was.
First vacation in seven years and he got the swine flu. Go figure.

-He is supportive of me in everything I do-even if he doesn't get it ie my love of theatre.
-He is the one who encouraged me to start taking tap again and every week he asks me to show him what I learned. He thinks it's great-even if I have to start over three times. :)
-He is my best friend and my rock. I couldn’t ask for a better man.

-Aaaand just when I thought he couldn't amaze me more, he had these delivered to me at work yesterday...

Yes they're delicious, and no I'm not sharing!

The longer I sit here the longer this list gets, so I'll wrap it up. Suffice it to say I am truly truly blessed with the best man. We have had our ups and downs, and it hasn't been sunshine and roses every step of the way, but he is my best friend, my rock, and I couldn't ask for a better person to have along for the ride.
If this is just a glimmer of the future we have together-man oh man, what a lucky girl I am! The best is definitely yet to come!

wordless wednesday

2011-10-12T19:44:00.000-07:00

http://www.buzzfeed.com/mask824/leia-the-riveter-kwh

it's a major award

2011-10-10T11:15:00.000-07:00

Mr. Parker: [unveiling his major award] Would you look at that? Would you look at THAT?
Mother: What is it?
Mr. Parker: It's a leg!
Mother: But what is it?
Mr. Parker: Well, it's... A leg, you know, like a statue.
Mother: Statue?
Mr. Parker: Yeah, statue.
Ralphie: Yeah, statue.
Mother: Ralphie!
Ralphie as Adult: [narrating] My mother was trying to insinuate herself between us and the statue. Parker: Holy smokes. Do... Do you know what this is? This is... A lamp!
Ralphie as Adult: [narrating] It was indeed a lamp.
Mr. Parker: Isn't that great? What a great lamp.
Mother: I don't know...
Ralphie as Adult: [narrating] The old man's eyes boggled...
Mr. Parker: Oh WOW!

Well folks, we're only 10 days into the month of October, but the battle of the leg lamp has officially begun.

For those of you who don't know my favorite Christmas movie is 'A Christmas Story'. If you aren't familiar don't tell me, just go here.

Six Christmases ago my parents bestowed upon me the greatest gift ever-they built me a leg lamp-complete with 'FRAGILE' (frag-ee-lay) crate. I love it, Mr. Wonderful hates it. Every year around this time he starts to gripe about it-how it's the ugliest thing he's ever seen, usually as melodramatically as possible. Although it always begins in jest it usually ends in the silent treatment.

It's a losing battle for us; I will never get rid of it and he will never like it. I just wonder if we argue about it this much now-what will it be like once we're married? (No, that's not an announcement.) Mr. Wonderful and I agree/can come to a compromise on everything else-except this. To me it's not Christmas unless the leg lamp is in the window and Mr. Wonderful claims his is ruined if it's up. Who knew something so silly and fun could bring out such passion? I now have a better understanding of the tension between Mother and The Old Man because of it.

What say ye? Do any of you married folks have things you brought into the marriage that the spouse HATES? Did they bring something you hate? I'm pretty sure Mr. Wonderful and I will have to agree to disagree on this one-he'll make sure the tree is gorgeous, and I'll make sure the lamp where it should be...right next to the tree in all its glory...

i'd tap that

2011-10-06T10:07:00.000-07:00

I've had a fascination with tap for as long as I can remember. My Grammy V would make us tapes with movies recorded off of cable for our birthdays (wow I just dated myself there...), movies like Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, the Glass Bottom Boat, Pillow Talk, Katy the Caterpillar, and my personal favorite, the Shirley Temple movies.

Captain January

I remember watching these movies and wanting to dance like her-I may have even fast forwarded to the dance scenes...as I got older I remember being so jealous that my neighbors across the street were cloggers-I realize it wasn't tap, but it was close enough. I would put on my Sunday shoes and 'tap' on the kitchen floor. When I was a teenager I became mesmerized with the dance troupe Stomp!-yes I know they use percussion primarily, but watch the dancing. There is a LOT of tap influence there. I read an article in TV Guide and thought it was so cool that Nana Visitor-Major Kira for those not in the know-is also a tap dancer. I still watch biographies on Fred Astaire completely captivated. Hearing taps on a dance floor has always made me happy and has always been one of my most favorite sounds in the world.

Last year after a lifetime of wishing it was me, I finally decided it was time to make it happen. Using a referral from a friend the Bestie and I found and enrolled in a beginner tap class. It was horrible. The teacher was brilliant, but cold. She had trained with some very prestigious tap dancers-Gregory Hines being the one I remember best, and because of this she took herself far too seriously. Bestie and I were beginners so she was easily frustrated with us and our trying to learn AND have fun. Instead of helping us learn she focused on the more advanced dancers in the class leaving us to our own devices. We stopped going after that first month.

I was heartbroken. I wanted nothing more than to learn to tap and it wasn't as fun as I had expected it to be. I ~~put~~ hid my taps in the closet and wondered if I would ever find someone willing to teach me and let me take it seriously enough to learn, but lightly enough to enjoy it.

Then this summer I was in 'All Shook Up'. Our choreographer owns her own studio and I learned she would be offering an adult tap class in the fall, and our music director was the teacher! If any of you saw the show Patti choreographed the tap number in 'Blue Suede Shoes'-and most if not all of those guys had never tapped a day in their life. When she was done with them they looked UH-MAZING!! I was so jealous I wasn't in that number.

I started TLC tap in August and the last four weeks have been the best. experience. ever. I still have a long way to go and lots to learn, but I love it more and more with each class. Patti is a gifted dancer and a wonderful teacher-she will break a step down as much as you need it and wants you to succeed. We work hard, but we have the best time. It's awesome. I leave class each week sweaty and tired but as happy as can be. I can't wait to get better and be able to show people what I've learned. I can't say enough good things about Patti, the people in the class, and TLC dancers-check it out. They are RAD, and I have found something that makes me as happy as singing. Almost.

Sadly I have to take a little break so I can embark on my next big adventure-rehearsals for Heritage Carolers starts this week and rehearsal conflicts with class-but I WILL be back. I am considering taking Stephanie's advice and taking another class during the week to stay in the habit--it all depends on how full my plate gets once rehearsals are in full swing. Oh! Speaking of swing Mr Wonderful bought me six weeks of swing lessons for my birthday so we might just do that. Yes he's willingly offering to take a couple's dance class with me. And then taking me dancing once we learn how. Be jealous. Be very very jealous.

kristen's kitchen: roasted chicken

2011-10-03T10:49:00.000-07:00

Up until a year ago nothing instilled fear in me like "roasting". I don't know why, but it always seemed so daunting, so scary, so HARD. Well folks I'm here to tell you that it's not as hard as it sounds. Actually it's a piece of cake.

Yesterday Mr. Wonderful and I got a well-deserved break from the one woman show of crazy that is his mother. He's been battling a cold the better part of the week and since his father and sister hate it (therefore making it difficult to serve for Sunday dinner), he decided he wanted roast chicken. I wanted something simple so I just did a basic recipe, but really the sky's the limit on this one.

I forgot to take pictures until after the fact, so you'll just have to use your imagination-again.

Roasted Chicken

1 whole chicken
olive oil
2 tsp salt
2 tsp pepper
1tsp garlic powder

2 tsp thyme

1 cup water or chicken/veggie stock
Roasting pan with or without rack-I don't use a rack but if you have one and want to use it, by all means do so.

Place racks so roasting pan will be in center of oven and preheat to 375F

Mix seasonings in a small bowl; set aside.

Prep your chicken:

Remove chicken from package and giblets from body cavity (Liver, kidneys, sometimes neck. You can cook these, but I think they're gross so I throw them away), and rinse inside and out with cool water. Drain well and place breast-up in roasting pan. (I place the chicken in the roasting pan and prep it there. This helps to keep the mess and possible contamination to a minimum.)
Check to ensure all the excess fat and pin feathers are removed, and pat dry with a paper towel. This helps to ensure a crispy skin, not to mention using your kitchen towels is just gross.
If you didn't buy a pre-trussed chicken, do this now.

Trussing a chicken is easy-it just takes a little time to master:
Place bird breast-up in pan.
Cross drumsticks at 'ankles' and bind with kitchen twine. (easiest way is to make a slip knot and attach to the 'ankles' and kind of hog tie them together.) This doesn't need to be pretty; you just want them to stay together during cooking.

Once bird is trussed drizzle a little olive oil (about a tablespoon) over it and spread with hands-don't forget the body cavity. Then rub seasoning mixture on skin and inside cavity. Add 1c water or broth to pan cover if your roasting pan has a lid, and place in oven.

The cooking times will vary based on how big your bird is. The general rule for UNSTUFFED chicken is 20 minutes per pound of meat, plus an additional 10-20 minutes. Confused? Me too. This link is my go to-as it has a cooking guide, general info, and tips on how to make variations to the basic recipe. I am afraid to eat stuffing from body cavities, but I am not opposed to putting things in there for extra flavor. Just be sure to use caution if you do choose to use the stuffing from your bird.

I covered and roasted my bird for an hour and 35 minutes. Be sure to baste your bird every 15-20 minutes if it's covered, but watch it if you don't have a cover for your roasting pan. You don't want the juices to cook off and dry the meat out. To baste you don't need anything fancy, just a large serving spoon. Just remove bird from oven, close the door to retain the heat, and spoon the juices over the bird. Recover, and put back in oven. If you want to roast veggies with your chicken don't put those in until the last 30 minutes-unless you like mushy veggies.

After the initial roasting time I like to put it uncovered into a 450 degree oven for an additional 10-15 minutes to brown and crisp up the skin.

The best way to check if your bird is done is to use a meat thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh without touching the bone. Once it reads 180 you are good. If you don't have a thermometer there are other ways to check for doneness-the easiest is to cut between the leg and thigh and be sure the juices run clear.

Once bird is cooked remove to a plate, cover with foil, and allow to rest for at least 15 minutes. Resting allows for the juices to redistribute in the meat. If you cut the meat before it's had time to rest you lose all the cooking juices onto your cutting board and get dry meat. So do it. It's worth it. Plus it gives you time to make pan gravy with the drippings:

chicken gravy
1cup cold water
3tsp cornstarch
chicken drippings

milk or water

Place roasting pan on burner over medium heat. Mix water and cornstarch in small cup until blended and there are no lumps.

Whisk cornstarch mixture into drippings and stir continuously until thickened and everything is incorporated. If the gravy thickens too fast whisk in milk/water a little at a time until it reaches desired consistency.

Remove from heat and serve immediately with mashed taters or over the meat.

Carving your bird takes some practice, but super easy once you get the hang of it. Good reference link is here

Mr. Wonderful rating: went back for thirds...had to threaten him to leave some chicken for chicken noodle soup later in the week...

busy but beautiful

2011-09-30T07:58:00.000-07:00

Three days, three craft stores, a ton of floral wire, a tacky glue mess, more glitter than a gay club, numb bum from sitting on the floor, and tired, purple fingers I have finished my Halloween wreath. I couldn't be more excited about it.

It probably would have been less stressful-and cheaper-to just buy a ready made wreath-I only had a vague idea of what I wanted it to look like so I bought whatever looked cute-I must admit I'm pretty happy with how this turned out. I don't know why, but I think the fact it's busy is what makes it work and I'm super happy with the results.

What say ye?

hallowthanksmas

2011-09-28T09:54:00.000-07:00

I remember a time-eleven years to be exact-when I would get weird looks for telling people I was prepping my Halloween costume in August. I was Aurora that year-my mom made the pattern for my (blue) dress from scratch using the patterns for a wedding dress, a little kid's Disney Princess pattern, and her brain to make it work. Yes, my mom is that boss.

My my how things have changed. My friend Liss mentioned on Facebook this week she wanted to make a Halloween wreath. I commented that I would like to make one too-because in this age of zombies and gore it's next to impossible to find a cute, whimsical Halloween anything. We decided to go Tuesday after her class.

Last night I walked into Michaels and was accosted with Christmas-call me crazy, but we haven't even killed the pumpkins yet-so why in the hell are we already counting down to Christmas?!?!! I am SO against celebrating the next holiday before the previous has past I have known to be bugged to the point of violence- my friend posted a Christmas countdown on FB the other day. She was promptly hidden after I told her how WRONG that was-and THAT was at someone I love. True story. I'm sorry. I digress.

What little Halloween stuff we could find behind the Christmas crap had either been picked clean through, was on 40% sale, or final clearance. An entire MONTH before Halloween. Great deals for me and my friend, but talk about putting the horse before the cart!

The lesson I learned is this: people are WAY too eager to get to Christmas, and waiting until September 27th to look for stuff to make a Halloween wreath may seem reasonable, but it is both unwise and like waiting until Christmas Eve to start your shopping. Looks like I was onto something eleven years ago and will need to start planning for Halloween in August--or better yet-July.

What happened to celebrating each holiday and enjoying what each had to offer? Now we just burn through them in eager anticipation of the next. It's sick I tell you, sick.

(I'm still in the market for a plain Halloween wreath that I can make pretty. I still have to try Hobby Lobby and Joann's, but if you see/know of anything, let me know.)

Apparently some ingenious person sells Hallowthanksmas cards and this is the site where I ~~stole~~ borrowed this creative artwork. http://hallowthanksmas.com/

wordless wednesday

2011-09-21T10:24:00.000-07:00

Guy smiley, this one's for you:

mama mel's super easy rice pilaf and kristen's grilled brussel sprouts

2011-09-17T11:05:00.000-07:00

After my traumatizing revelation (on my birthday of all days), I regained the resolve to get my body back. Believe it or not I was not always the blob you all know and love-I did have an actual figure at one point. I just love food WAY too much and don't love the gym enough.

So last night I decided that grilled chicken was the way to go. Mr. Wonderful thinks I'm weird, but I was raised that a meal consisted of a protein, a vegetable, and a starch. So I put him in charge of choosing the veggies and picked up some lovely chicken breasts and the fixin's for my mom's rice pilaf. Once you try this you will never make it from the box again. Although this is the recipe I learned-I would imagine you can make it with any ingredients you want-the technique is all the same. I didn't think to take pictures until the end so you're gonna have to use your imagination on the prep steps.

Momma Mel's super easy rice pilaf (serves 2-4)

1/2 lb Crimini mushrooms (Liss, I'm sure you could sub zucchini or artichoke hearts for these. If you play around let me know what you come up with.)
1 medium yellow onion, diced
1-2 cloves of chopped garlic-depending on how big they are
2 stalks celery, diced (optional-but I like the crunch and texture they add.)
Rice prepared according to package directions (I use brown minute rice because of my inability to not burn regular rice)
Olive oil (my mom uses butter cause she's old school, but I'm trying to keep it figure friendly)
salt and pepper (S&P)

Prepare rice according to directions. Set aside.

Heat medium sized sauce pan over medium heat, add a few tablespoons olive oil (I usually go around the pan once or twice), and a pinch of salt. When oil is warm-NOT hot, add onions and celery. Sweat onions and celery until they are tender-we aren't using these in a white sauce or soup, so if they have a little color, that's ok. You just don't want them sauteed. Once onions and celery are tender, add mushrooms, garlic, and a little more S&P* to pan. I usually need to add a little more olive oil to cook the mushrooms, but this is all to taste. (Cook's note on garlic: be VERY careful when you're cooking garlic as it burns in the blink of an eye. I always add it very last regardless of what the recipe calls for and NEVER cook it over high heat. Try to keep it on medium to low whenever possible.)

Once mushrooms and garlic are cooked, push all veggies to the side and add rice.
heat rice through and add a little color with the residual oil in pan, then combine with veggies. Taste for seasoning, add more S&P if needed.

This dish is great with poultry and pork. Even BETTER on the next day.

Cook time: 20 minutes if you're using minute rice.
Mr. Wonderful rating: went back for seconds

*Most people wonder why their food still tastes bland although they follow the recipe. The secret is to taste and season your food with each step (unless you're dealing with raw meat-duh). The goal is to build flavor as you go. I add salt and pepper with each step rather than a ton at the end. You're cooking-it's allowed, even expected that you're tasting and checking for seasoning as you go. No one likes to serve a dish when they don't know how it tastes. As long as you're tasting it you can tweak it however you need to. Always start small and build. Anyone who's over salted a dish will tell you that you can always add more, but once you've gone too far you're S.O.L.

Brussels Sprouts get a bad rap. They are one of my favorites and not just for Thanksgiving anymore! I cook these several ways, but Mr. Wonderful managed to find HUGE ones I decided to grill them instead of caramelize them on the stove like I usually do. They turned out so well I may just I refuse to put my grill away so I can make them outside for a while. If you don't want to grill 'em outside you can use your grill pan.

Kristen's Grilled Brussels Sprouts
*you can make as many or as little of these as you like-it's pretty impossible to mess this up.

Brussels Sprouts (I usually can't find them in bulk so I have to buy them in the 1-2lb prepackaged mesh bags. Those usually yield 2-6 servings depending on how much you serve and if you have to fight to keep the grazers at bay like me.)

1/4-1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2-1 teaspoon pepper
2-4 Tbsp Olive Oil

With a paring knife prep sprouts-trim bottoms (be sure to only cut off a little, you want them to stay together) and remove any wilted top leaves. Using a prep knife cut in half length-wise-you can use the paring knife to cut them if they're small, but I always recommend using the right tool for the job at hand.)
Place halves in a colander and rinse quickly with cool water and drain.
Put oil and S&P in medium to large bowl and lightly whisk together (keep in mind you will need room to toss the brussels sprouts).
Place drained sprouts in bowl and gently coat with oil mixture, adding more oil if necessary-they should look wet but NOT saturated-you are only adding enough moisture so they will steam as they are on the grill.
(Be careful with the sprouts as they will fall apart if you toss too hard-some leaves is normal-I always taste those to make sure my seasoning is on.)

Place sprouts cut side down on the grill and cook over medium heat. You want grill marks on the cut ends so
only turn once*. These will burn quickly so you will have to baby sit them.
Remove from grill and serve or you can add grated Parmesan/Romano cheese if you're feeling extra scandalous.

Prep time: 20 minutes
Mr. Wonderful rating: I have to threaten him with his life to leave leftovers for lunch.

*Cooks note: I prefer my vegetables to still have a little bite to them once they're done, but if you prefer a softer veggie do a quick blanch before you coat in oil and put on the grill.

did you know?

2011-09-15T13:05:00.000-07:00

Many cool (and not so cool) people were born today.

People like

Tommy Lee Jones

Merlin Olsen

Heidi Montag- I did say some not so cool people,
didn't I?

Oliver Stone

Prince Harry-I knew that I liked him for a reason. :)

And last but not least, the cute little blonde girl on the right:

Who grew up to be the cute brunette girl you all love:

Just a tip for the rest of you-unless you are a size 0 do not, I repeat do NOT get your BMI and body fat analysis done on your birthday. I was just bludgeoned with how much work I have to do (in the interest of full disclosure and to make up for yesterday I'm gonna tell you--but only if you promise not to judge me please! 26 BMI 33% body fat...boo on both counts so there is no birthday cake for me tonight!!).

shout it from the rooftops

2011-09-14T14:00:00.000-07:00

Have you ever had news you want to share but don't because you want to keep it all for yourself? It's news so wonderful, so so special that you want to shout it from the roof tops but you just can't...because it's so wonderful, so special?

I never did. Until yesterday. It's a strange feeling. Especially for me because I'm an open book-you all know this. This feeling is entirely new to me, but I think I kinda like it.

Something happened to me yesterday that is wonderful. Something that I have waited not-so patiently for a long time.

When it first happened my initial impulse was to run through the streets screaming the wonderful news to the world like a banshee-which was then immediately followed by the intent desire to keep it where I felt it should be-between myself and the parties involved. I want to remember every word, thought, feeling, and reaction involved; and keep it all to myself to relish over again and again without muddying it up by sharing it with people not involved.

I hate posts like this, and I'm sorry for whetting your appetite and then not telling (no I'm not engaged). I just had to share something with someone; otherwise I knew would explode from happiness.

Life is good, God is great, and true happiness does come to those who wait.

wordless wednesday

2011-09-14T10:35:00.001-07:00

my favorite time of year

2011-09-12T14:41:00.000-07:00

I don't know if you have felt it yet, but I have. That magical 'click' when the seasons change. Yes, I know it's still warm, and yes I know there's still the potential for it to still get hot, but there's no denying it. Autumn is just around the corner, and it's the best time of the year.

This weekend my parents were in town (hooray!) and we had a busy weekend filled with the State Fair-better people watching than Wal-mart-Jeff Foxworthy was SO right, eating awesome food at the Greek Festival (you missed out if you didn't go), and Mr. Wonderful and I drove up to Snowbird for some brats at Oktoberfest-it's still going on for three more weekends! Even if you don't drink beer it's worth the drive and lots for fun to just walk around. But don't forget a jacket like I did otherwise you'll be cold and miserable or pumping out $60 for a Snowbird sweatshirt like me. It was a busy weekend, but the best I've had in a LONG time.

I swear all the best things happen in Autumn-the State Fair, the Greek Festival, Oktoberfest, Halloween, Thanksgiving, the leaves change and it becomes cute clothes and boot weather, and most importantly--my birthday.

Yes folks in just two short days I will be 31. Don't ask me what I have planned, because it's not that big of a deal-besides I have no idea. Trying not to freak out about the milestones I thought I would have hit is probably top of my list, although I know it's ridiculous. The most I can say in my defense is I have ALWAYS been this way-ALWAYS been well aware and worried about how quickly time goes by. It's always worse around my birthday as that's when I usually stop long enough to take stock of my life.

Although it's hasn't always been easy and it isn't the path I would have chosen, I'm grateful for it nonetheless. It's made me who I am, and I wouldn't change THAT for anything in the world.

an entire decade

2011-09-11T13:39:00.000-07:00

It's hard to believe it's been an entire decade since 9-11. Hard to believe how much and how little we have changed as a country. Hard to believe how quickly so many people have forgotten how it felt to watch that day unfold. I am lucky; I didn't lose anyone that day, but I know people who did. My dad lost two of his close childhood friends-one was a policeman, the other was a firefighter.

I can still remember that day like it was yesterday.

I was lying in bed enjoying the fact I didn't have class that morning, but trying to milk every last second before I HAD to finally get up for work. It was a beautiful morning, and I remember thinking to myself how nice the day was shaping up to be. Just as I was giving in and getting up I heard my sister call out to my mom in terror, "MOM! There's another one flying into the building!" I went out to the living room and watched in disbelief. I remember hoping everyone would be ok, but then feeling ridiculous for doing so. I knew there were already lives lost and that the number was only going to go up. I remember asking my mom who Osama Bin Laden was and telling her he just started World War III. I immediately became afraid of what was to come-namely the draft being reinstated and having to send my brothers and boyfriend off to war.

My employees and I jerry-rigged an antenna for the television we had at work, and the news was on all day. I remember customers coming in not caring about the new releases like they normally did on Tuesdays, but rather what was playing out on the 14" TV on the counter. That's when I heard about Flight 93 and the attack on the Pentagon.

I was in rehearsals for 'The Music Man', and the mood was very distracted and somber. Our stage manager was from New York, and because of the jammed telephone lines she did not find out her family was safe until almost twelve hours later. I remember seeing the stress and the pain on her face and the helplessness I felt being able to do nothing to comfort her.

I had managed to not cry the entire day, until that evening sitting on my parents couch in the arms of Superman Lover. It was there watching yet another recap of the day that the weight of everything hit me and I finally cried for all the loss that had occurred as well as being afraid of what lied ahead. The Salt Lake Olympics were a mere five months away-I was afraid we were going to have a big bullseye on our back.

In the weeks and months that followed I remember the fear, and the heightened security everywhere, the consipracies, and all that garbage, but what I remember most is how patriotic and unified we were. I was grateful for that.

Every year my heart hurts just as it did on the original day. I hope we as a country never forget. I don't think I could if I tried.

is it convenient for you now?

2011-09-06T15:31:00.000-07:00

Today I got an email from someone that I literally haven't spoken to in five years. FIVE. Normally these surprises are welcomed, but it was one of THOSE emails-you all know what I'm talking about, the "hey, we haven't been in the same room since 2005, let alone talked, but hey let's all get together like nothing has changed and I haven't been the self-absorbed, worst friend imaginable."

I understand friendship is a two-way street, and for the first few years I tried to keep up my end-emails, birthday wishes, Christmas cards with the annual update, very simple, but very easy to reciprocate usual-all to no avail. Then I just decided to stop being the one who cared. That's when something happened. I realized I didn't miss them. I didn't miss the way I managed to leave their presence feeling less than a person because I wasn't married and popping out babies. I didn't miss feeling that I needed to survive rather than enjoy their presence. I didn't miss putting on my fake smile and pretending I was OK with the fact that although I had managed to keep myself somewhat informed about what was going on in their lives they had no idea what was going on with mine-which is shocking because in case you haven't noticed I'm a pretty open book...

I'm just bugged. REALLY bugged by the fact that they are acting like we have all stayed these great friends all this time and we can just pick up where they decided to drop off. Yeah, THAT'S not happening. At least not for me. Nothing bothers me more as a single lady (put your hands up!) then when friends get married and start families they immediately become too "busy" associate with their single friends. It's more like they become too bothered.

I realize I'm letting this bother me WAY more than I should, but come on. If I was really that important to you in the first place you would MAKE time for me in your life-even if it's only a text on my birthday and a card at Christmas, right? It shouldn't matter if you're married, single, living across the country, or having a child every year. If someone is important to you you MAKE TIME for them, not just expect them to come running when you call. I know this because I have several people in my life who have kept me around after all the life-changing stuff and don't treat me like it's a burden or weird to have me around because we're in different stages of our lives. Just because I'm not where you are doesn't make me less of a person. I'm sick of people who are supposed to be my "friends" treating me like a leper.

ok, end of rant....

the masculine mr. wonderful

2011-09-02T20:00:00.000-07:00

Apparently I'm completely daft or I have just known him so long I don't see him like everyone else does.

I always have to laugh when I introduce Mr. Wonderful to people. Why? Because their first impression is almost always "wow, he's really manly/masculine".

Not because it isn't true; he is the most positive form of a man's man out there. It's just not the first thing I think of when I think of him. There's a whole shopping list of qualities I think of first:

kind

patient

loving

considerate

strong

humble

thoughtful

funny

silly

strong

handsome

tender

nerdy-but in a way that makes him impossible not to love

giving

I can go on and on, but I'll refrain. I'll just say manly or not I'm SO happy I can call him mine!

friday confession: hate

2011-09-02T09:39:00.000-07:00

It’s Friday.

You know what that means.

Time for another confession.

Todays is heavier than the others so if you don’t read it I’ll understand.

Hatred is evil. Hatred makes my heart hurt.

I read in the news yesterday about a local man who was attacked by five people.

For being gay.

Gay. That’s pretty much the dumbest reason ever to hate someone.

There are people giving their lives so others can have freedom and these people are worried about what this man does behind closed doors. It's just so stupid, they are so stupid.

As if beating the tar out of him wasn’t enough they decided to curb him too. Who does that?! It is so evil and brutal and requires so much hate that only someone with no soul could even contemplate doing it. Just hearing the word makes my stomach turn. Because of that I’m not going to elaborate further. I hope the people responsible are found and are punished to the fullest extent of the law.

I went and saw ‘The Help’ last night.

Although it is brilliant I couldn’t help but cry for those men and women.

I can’t imagine what it must be like to be treated differently for your skin color.

It’s not like they asked for it to be that way.

Although I shed many tears last night I was also grateful I have parents who didn’t raise me to hate, but rather to love.

I can’t say it would have been the case had I grown up in another time or in another place.

I won’t lie.

That scares me.

So much that I try not to think about it.

I’m going to get on my soap box now, please teach your children how to love. Erasing the hate starts at HOME. You aren’t born with the ability to hate, you have to LEARN it. It doesn’t matter if they’re gay, straight, blue, pink, white, purple, atheist, Mormon, Catholic, Baptist, Hindu, Jewish, Agnostic, whatever. We are all someone’s child, parent, or sibling. It’s ok to not agree, but it’s NOT ok to hate.

Please stop the hate.

Did we not learn ANYTHING from the Sneeches?

operation chicken bake failure

2011-08-31T11:09:00.000-07:00

Two posts in one day? How do you rate!?

The problem with cooking is that it's not always perfect. This is especially the case with the recipes you come up with yourself.

Case in point:

My chicken broccoli mushroom bake. I've done variations on it for a few years and it's always scored a three-helping rating with Mr. Wonderful, so I figured last night would be the same. For whatever reason it fell flat and although he said it wasn't terrible Mr. Wonderful only finished what I served him-no seconds last night. This is a massive failure in my book. I'm usually shooing him away from the kitchen so there's still leftovers for him to take for lunch the next day.

I think I know what went wrong so I had every intention of sharing my recipe with you today, but I have decided that rather than sharing a sub-par recipe with you I'm headed back to the kitchen to perfect before I share. Hopefully the next take will be worth sharing.

I promise it looked better than it tasted. :(

the Vander Linden curse

2011-08-31T07:32:00.000-07:00

Remember this post? Yesterday it reared its ugly head again. The bane of my existence and the root of a lot of my body insecurities...that's right, I'm talking about the Vander Linden curse.

For those of you who have either never seen me or have been living under a rock the entire time you've known me I'm, well, let's just say more blessed than most women. I come from a long line of well endowed women. My mom's side has dubbed it the Vander Linden curse-because we all have those damn Dutch genes and let's face it-any one who has naturally what others have to pay for can tell you what a curse it actually is.

Anyway, I went up to This is the Place for my first costume fitting last night. I had hoped that since it's not community theatre they may have something that would fit the girls. Yeah, no such luck.

So the bad news is I don't fit into any of the "Work and the Glory" costumes-no really-that's what they are. The park bought them from the LHM Company.

But the good news is because I'm such a freak of nature I'm making Tate happy because I get a brand new dress and that's what he wanted to do all along...

I guess it's a good thing I didn't have to pay for my curves the way most do...but then I think the emotional price is higher... You bet I'm grasping at straws for the silver lining here...

My problem is I have enough for three...

lame?

2011-08-29T11:44:00.000-07:00

I've always loved to cook, but now because I watch the Food Network all day at work I feel oh-so-qualified to share.

Really it's just because I'm single and am always looking for good recipes that don't give me a week's worth of leftovers.

Would it be a good idea to share them here? A lot of my friends have started food blogs, but let's face it, I have a hard enough time maintaining one, let alone two blogs.

Would you welcome the occasional recipe success here for your one stop shopping pleasure, or should I just start a new blog?

here we come a' caroling: part deux

2011-08-25T09:06:00.000-07:00

Remember this?

I can now put you out of your misery and tell you what's up--and this time it's GOOD news for a change!

Tomorrow.

I'm kidding, I'm kidding! After a week's delay I auditioned to be a caroler at 'This is the Place Heritage Park" last Thursday.

Last night I still hadn't heard anything so I figured I didn't get it and was going to cut my losses when I received a phone call telling me

I GOT IT.*

There are four sopranos in this group, and I'm now one of them. After the frustrations and doubt I've had about myself this year you have no idea how great this feels! My hard work and perseverance has finally paid off, and it feels great knowing I'm what they want. I'm not the consolation prize winner yet again. The only tears I shed last night were tears of joy.

And it felt GOOD.

You wanna know the best part? (Aside from being able to work with one of my most favorite and talented musical directors and dress in awesome period clothing?) It's a paid gig. I get to do what I love the very very most, and I get to be paid for it. That all on its own is pretty rad in my book.

Be sure to pencil a 'Candlelight Christmas' into your festivities this Christmas and I will let you know more the closer it gets.

*See? I told you it would be anti-climactic, but I'm stoked nonetheless.

Hairspray in Sandy

2011-08-23T14:35:00.000-07:00

Last night I had the opportunity to see ‘Hairspray’ at the Sandy Amphitheatre. For those of you who have never been to a show at the Sandy Amphitheatre-GO. It is a beautiful, well-maintained venue; although it is not used exclusively for theatre productions it has garnered quite the reputation for being the anti-community theatre theatre. I love that you can tell Sandy is one of the few cities in the valley who not only supports their Arts Council, they take pride in it as well. I was using cast comps, but tickets are a bit on the expensive side, $13.00-15.00 for Premium Seating, or General Admission lawn seating for $7.00-and just as nice-or so I’m told. Based on my Type A nit pickiness ‘Hairspray’ was definitely not Sandy’s best production, but it was far from being one of the worst.

‘Hairspray’ is the story of Tracy Turnblad, a cute, spunky, open-minded teenage girl growing up in segregated Baltimore circa 1960. For those of you unfamiliar with the story, click here.

I decided to spare Mr. Wonderful and brought my Theatre Husband, Sparky. We were immediately captivated by the old clips from “Leave It to Beaver”, “The Beverly Hillbillies”, and commercials from the 60’s projected in black and white onto a retro TV screen backdrop. This provided the perfect way for me to slip into the ambiance being created.

My only complaint for the pre-show was I was told only one playbill was allowed per couple. Seriously?! I kind of understand the waste not, want not mentality, but I was still a little peeved regardless. Theatre Husband and I both enjoy reading through our programs and chatting about who we know before the show starts, and this is difficult to do with only one program. I am usually one of the patrons who will give my program back to be recycled if it’s made available, so I don’t understand why they don’t just do that instead of rationing them. I think now would be a good time to apologize for not using the character names of the actors rather than their real names, but I let Theatre Husband take our program home to add to his collection and the cast list is giving me error pages.

The TV I mentioned earlier played a central role during the Corny Collins Show. At first glance I thought it was another projection of pre-recorded material, but then I realized the TV camera on stage was in fact a working prop, and I was watching “live TV”. The little touches helped engage me further in the show. The rest of the set was lovely and built on wheeled platforms that made for seamless and fast set changes (kudos to the tech crew from a fellow techie!), but the height of some sets wobbled severely any time an actor was on them (particularly the jail cell bars and Turnblad home), taking me out of the show each time it waved at me.

The costumes were very well done, and there was enough diversity that I could focus on the story and not be distracted by the matchy-matchy costumes. Penny and Velma’s costumes were amazing- every single one of their best features was played up in each one. All I could do was watch in envy and WISH I looked as fabulous as they did. As wonderful as they looked I only wish a particular blue and white feather costume covered the tattoos on one of the principles. It may not have been an issue for those in the back-but being front and center I was able to see them and it took me right out of the finale.

I was there primarily to support my friend Courtney playing Amber Von Tussle. She had the bratty part down, but I wanted her to be more entitled and snobby. I still enjoyed her performance. I HATED her wig. It was just so HUGE, BLONDE, and OBNOXIOUS. I kept looking at it wondering how in the world Tracy was consistently put in detention for her hairstyle of choice-because it was a "monumental hair-don't" but there was hair on that stage that was much, much worse. A few cast members whose natural hair was distracting, but Amber and Motormouth Maybelle’s wigs took the cake here. They were just too big and over the top-detracting so much from both actor's performances. When I wasn’t feeling that both Courtney and Maybelle were being hindered or upstaged by those awful masses of yellow hair I was waiting for them to fall right off.

The actress who played Tracy was good-although I wanted her to be a little more energetic, a little beltier with her songs, and more than anything I wanted her to stop smiling. Not because it wasn’t ADORABLE, but because every time she smiled (which was any time she was on stage) I felt that it was forced and a little fake. For me, Tracy needs to be someone likable-someone you would want as a friend, and I caught myself a few times thinking she was neither. She is a very talented girl so I am going to say she was tired last night-and leave it at that.

Edna Turnblad is far and away one of my favorite roles. I don’t know if it’s because it’s a drag role, she’s more on the robust side, or if it’s because she’s just so darn likable, but I just love her. The actor playing Edna last night? He was perfect-and he had a set of legs that every woman only wishes she had. I know I did.

The pairing of actors for Seaweed and Penny was good, and they were both great alone, but together I didn’t believe that they were in love. They were missing something. I wanted Penny's freak flag to fly a little higher in the end, but I still enjoyed her character choice.

The ensemble was well-rounded and fun to watch, although I kept sensing that though they had ten weeks of rehearsal a lot of the actors (principals included) weren’t as strong on their singing and dancing as they should have been. Too often I saw cast members watching the stronger dancers for choreography help. The singing faltered a lot-almost like they were supposed to be singing harmony and forgot, but rather than go to the melody they began mouthing the words. This usually isn’t a problem, unless you're mic-ed like these actors were.

There were many great casting choices, but there was really only one character I didn't like. Velma. She was just so loud and brash-I wanted to see a conniving, scheming, grown version of Amber. I kept feeling she was trying to steal every scene she was in and I hated her for all the wrong reasons. On a positive note she did have an amazing figure and some of the best costumes of the night.

Throughout the evening I kept feeling like the majority of the cast was merely ‘calling in’ their performance. Those who weren’t blase' were just too corny, too over the top, making things look disjointed as a result. I don’t know if it was being outside in the muggy night air, because it was a Monday night, or if they were just finally at the point where they were ready to be finished with the run, but it was very distracting. The finale was fun to watch, but I wanted to see the energy crescendo through the show to the end, but instead I left feeling it had fizzled-with one exception.

When Maybelle sings “I Know Where I’ve Been” I had gooseflesh up both arms and tears in my eyes-it was just so moving. I believed her pain, her hope, and her courage. She made me, an extremely boring white girl from Salt Lake-feel what it must’ve been like for a black person before the Civil Rights Movement.

The story of love, friendship, and acceptance resonated with me last night. In spite of my nit-pickiness it is a well-put together show and is worth your time. Just make sure you choose your seat carefully. The closer you are the easier it is to notice the little unnecessary things as well as experiencing sensory overload.

Sandy City’s ‘Hairspray’ runs this Wednesday August 24^th through Saturday August 27^th

green-eyed monster

2011-08-18T13:14:00.000-07:00

I think I do an ok job of being genuinely happy for people and not letting their successes get me down....most of the time.

More and more I have been feeling the green-eyed monster clawing his way out-and when I say green eyed monster I don't mean the adorable Mike Wazowski from Monster's Inc...

Sorry Mike.

No, I'm talking about the snarling, ugly, drooly teeth, nightmare inducing, nothing good comes from it green eyed monster.

His eyes aren't green, but this is all Google's got

I really just don't know what the hell my problem is. I know I'm blessed. I know I'm talented. I know I'm worthwhile. What I don't know is why I immediately compare people's successes to my failures and become resentful towards them as a result. I find this is especially the case where theatre is involved. I don't know why, and I'm definitely not proud of it, but there have been a few-ok, A LOT of times where I have watched a show as a techie, been in a show, or was passed up for a show, and upon seeing the person doing what I have tried so hard for and fail-succeed-I can't help but feel that all too familiar twinge in my belly from the monster being roused-thinking how they're all wrong, I could have done it right, I would have been better.

It's not just theatre. I see people younger than me, who haven't worked nearly as hard who have everything. Perfect house, perfect spouse, perfect children, perfect career that just fell into their lap so naturally they don't really appreciate it. I can't help but resent it--and them---even the people I barely know. ugh. I'm a horrible person. I KNOW it's terrible, I KNOW I don't know their whole story-maybe they did work hard and I just don't know it...

I KNOW a lot of you will think less of me now-hell I think less of me now as I'm typing this, for everyone to see--please know this isn't something I'm particularly proud of. I just want it gone. I WANT to be genuinely happy for people, I WANT them to know I'm not just being fake, and I NEED be able to say that I control the monster, the monster doesn't control me.

How do we silence that monster inside? Everyone has one, and if you say you don't you are a LIAR. I DO know plenty of people who are experts at having control over it-several of them read this blog and I look up to them immensely. I'm throwing out this question to everyone, but them especially. HOW DO YOU DO IT? How do you always stay so positive and likable? How do you keep the monster at bay? Cause I REALLY want to know. I don't like knowing I have given the monster control without knowing how to get it back.

*For those of you waiting on news about this post, there was a delay (on their end, not mine), I haven't forgotten you, and I hope I will have news soon!

friday confession: crazy crush

2011-08-12T09:41:00.000-07:00

I have a confession. Yes, another one. I'm full of those, you know.

I have a crush.

Most people think I'm weird, but I've had it as long as I can remember.

It's Jareth...

You know, the Goblin King from Labyrinth.

But I don't have a crush on David Bowie. Just Jareth.

I know it's ridiculous, and I have no idea what it is about him, but I just can't help it.

Especially when he starts to sing.

That really makes me weak in the knees.

I know you're probably thinking I'm crazy, but it is what it is.

everybody's a critic

2011-08-11T09:00:00.000-07:00

I may have just done the best or worst thing.

I just applied to be a critic for the Utah Theater Bloggers Association. I figure since I see shows, I'm in shows, I have an opinion on shows, and I write this witty and well-followed blog I am clearly qualified to throw in my two cents worth, right? *sarcasm*

The more I think about it I think I just shot my community theatre career in the foot...dammit.

big things are commin' my way

2011-08-10T09:45:00.000-07:00

Or at least I hope so.

For the past few days-lie-weeks I have just had the feeling something big, something GREAT is on the horizon for me.

The only problem? I have no idea what it is.

An engagement? Possibly (although I'm not holding my breath for this one.)
A new home? Hopefully (I have been looking-but either way I WILL be moving in February.)
Finally achieving my goal and playing a leading role? Doubtful as I haven't auditioned for anything, but it's a nice thought.
The news for my big secret being good news? Hopefully.

All I know is I feel like a little kid waiting for Christmas. Hopefully HF will see fit to share His little secret with me soon, cause I'm DYING.

gorgeous

2011-08-09T08:30:00.000-07:00

Why do I have such a hard time believing people when they call me 'gorgeous'? (No, I am NOT fishing for compliments here, just making a confession.) It's always meant as a compliment, and I always appreciate they think that enough to tell me, but for whatever reason I have a hard time BELIEVING that me, Miss Kristen-the tomboy til she was 10 and the best friend* after that-is gorgeous.

I know I'm pretty, but when I look in the mirror I don't think "wow, you're gorgeous."
I also know I'm lucky; I know all of my good looks I got from my parents-especially my mom.

She's the gorgeous one.

circa 1976-77-ish. Forgive the picture of a picture.

*Best friend-The ok looking girl who befriends the most desired girl/woman and subsequently plays second fiddle to her man-luring, eyelash batting, "I have five men vying for my attention, whatever shall I do?", girlfriend

bad poetry: agency

2011-08-08T14:44:00.000-07:00

It’s supposed to be God’s greatest gift
The center of His Plan

Why is it so hard to let people use?

Feeling so inadequate

Trusting them to make the right choices

And then they don't

Wanting to control them-make them choose the right way

Frustration bubbling to the surface

Watching the pained looks of the people who love them most

Long nights of worry and fret

Watching helplessly as their choices change their life path

Hoping one day they see the light

Before it’s too late

And the consequences of abusing God’s greatest gift catch up to them

here we come a' caroling

2011-08-08T08:20:00.000-07:00

I bet you're wondering why in the world I'm talking about Christmas in August?

Well I have some news. Some news I'm VERY excited about, but since I don't want to jinx it (or have to explain my failure later) I'm just gonna whet your appetite a little with a picture and leave it at that:

Now I'm pretty sure it won't start controversy like this one did, but I'm leaving you all with baited breath until next week--hopefully I will have some GREAT news to share...

that girl

2011-08-04T18:48:00.000-07:00

Sometimes I write bad poetry.

she's the girl they all know

the one with her mother's smile

if they only knew what the smile hides

the lump that never fades

the rage buried deep inside

the air of confidence

hides a mountain of insecurities

letting emotion flow is not allowed

must keep up appearances

and remain the girl they all know

register or die

2011-08-04T12:53:00.000-07:00

“Let's be honest. Sometimes there is nothing harder in life than being happy for somebody else. Like lottery winners. Or extremely successful people who are 27. And then there's that hell on earth that only your closest friends can inflict on you -- the baby (wedding) shower."

~Carrie Bradshaw

I love my friends. I do. I love that they want me to share in their happiness and ~~subject~~ invite me to their bridal/wedding/baby showers. What I DON'T love is when they ~~force~~ ask me to buy ridiculously expensive gifts off a boutique registry that is CLEAR across town, ESPECIALLY when I can get almost identical stuff from Target. That's across the street from my house. For a fraction of the cost. I try to practice good gift-giving etiquette and stick to the registry, but COME ON.

I get that you are starting out and you need, well EVERYTHING. I also understand there are some things that are just expensive no matter where you go. I have no problem contributing because let's face it-I'm expecting you to return the favor when I marry/have kidlets, but come on. Are you so worried about appearances that you will make it almost impossible for those of us who can't afford the $150 car seat to give you something? If we're being honest here, and I like to think we are-I wouldn't ask you to spend $40 on a blanket for me, so do you really think I'm gonna do it for your kid knowing full well that it's gonna be used as a puke rag? And what about convenience? My idea of a fun afternoon isn't driving clear across town to the ONLY location in the state to buy over-priced binkies.

What ever happened to the days of Target and Bed Bath and Beyond? Am I totally behind the times in thinking these are completely acceptable places to register for gifts?

I'm not driving clear across town to visit one store, and I'm definitely not spending $50 on an outfit your kid will be too big for in eight weeks. Is it awful of me to buy items that aren't on the registry (but are damn near identical) from another place simply because I refuse to drive clear across town and pay double for a product I can get somewhere else cheaper?

Or am I just being a catty biotch who is bitter she didn't get a gift registry when she started out because she is still single? Do I need to suck it up and stop whining?

back-handed compliments

2011-08-03T10:40:00.000-07:00

I usually have to laugh when I'm the recipient of a back-handled compliment, because in my experience nine times out of ten an insult is the LAST thing on the complimenter's mind.

Today I got a doozy and can't help but share. I just got my hair done last week and one of my sales people came in and said to me:

"I just love your hair. It looks just like a wig I have at home."

The name of this wig-which is VERY similar to my own style and color:
DARK BROWN FANCY PARTY WIG
No joke.

She went on to explain she wears a wig similar to my color and style when she wants to feel prettier, but the damage had already been done. Our Corporate Chef was red with laughter-and I was second-guessing my style choice.

attention whore

2011-08-01T15:05:00.000-07:00

You wanna know the best way to get people's attention on Facebook?

Put a well-known line from one of your favorite movies as your status update. Sit back and watch the hilarity ensue as your friends add THEIR favorite lines from said movie into the comments.

Today's movie I quoted to get said attention?

Ok, ok, I didn't post it to get attention. I DID post it because "Are you crazy? A man in a really nice trailer is gonna put our song on the radio. Gimme a pen. I'm signin', you're signin', we're all sighnin'." randomly popped into my head at lunch and I had to share.

It's quite possibly one of the best movies. With some of the best one-liners. Evar. What? You've never seen it? Do yourself a favor and rent it-or else I'll have to sic Captain Geech and the Shrimp-Shack Shooters on you...

You can thank me later.

what's in a name?

2011-07-26T12:30:00.000-07:00

I have a HUGE pet peeve. I HATE it when people shorten your name unless you give them the OK to do so. I always try to clarify BEFORE I shorten someone's name, and usually they are ok with it-Riss, Meg, etc. Although I HAVE slipped up in the past-I'm sorry Stephen.

Just for those of you who were ever in doubt, my name is KRISTEN. Not Kris, not Krissy, not Ten-ten.

ESPECIALLY not Kris. Most of you don't know this, but I have an older brother. His name is CRIS.

When my dad named me Kristen my mom was concerned that I would be confused with my brother, Cris. My dad said that my name would never be shortened-it would always be Kristen. And it always has been, but just so we're clear I'll reiterate:

CRIS

KRISTEN

CRIS

KRIS-TEN

And lastly for those who are still confused, this is my brother CRIS:

NOT to be confused with me, Kris-TEN:

This is the face you'll get if you call me by anything other
than Kristen.

*Too bad the people I REALLY need to say this to don't read my blog.

if ever i would leave you

2011-07-26T10:00:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I left work early (woo-hoo holidays!) and went to visit Mr. Wonderful at his being as he is literally five minutes away.

He introduced me to one of his newbs, and somehow we got on the subject of "my arts" which then went to the beautiful Miss Brittnie Behunin who is-well-exquisite. And a red head. A REAL red head. Mr. Wonderful's only known kryptonite (aside from me). I know I shouldn't, but I just can't resist giving him a hard time about this, because when we first started hanging out (no, really, we hung out before we started dating, not that stupid cloak and dagger method of "not really dating dating" some men choose to employ.) he told me what kind of girl he was attracted to, and natural redheads were part of that list. Well, the top of that list actually. That makes me laugh. Why you ask? In case you haven't noticed I am NOT a red head- yet I know he is hopelessly in love with me. So much for types, huh?

I jokingly told him he was going to leave me for Miss Brittnie, and his reply?

"If I was going to leave you for anyone in your shows it would be Larissa."

There you have it folks. Larissa gets everything I want*. Roles, cute figure, and now my man.
Oh well. Can't say I blame him. She IS adorable. And tiny-especially next to me. ;)

That's Britt. #1039. Looking gorgeous. Like always.
Yes that's me behind her looking not quite so amazing.

*Mr. Wonderful will NEVER leave me for another woman, nor am I worried he ever will. I just have to give him-and Riss grief (who is better than I could have been in any role she played because she's "it's not fair" type of talented.) because I love them so. And I have nothing but love for Miss Brittnie. She is exquisite and absolutely wonderful.

strut your stuff

2011-07-21T10:23:00.000-07:00

When did strutting become synonymous with douchiness?

It's a well-known fact that many species of male animals use strutting as part of their attempts to attract a mate-most notably peacocks and roosters...

Last night I was running late for my call-time-AGAIN. As a result I didn't have time to get/eat dinner beforehand. True to his complete and utter awesomeness Mr. Wonderful came to my rescue and brought me food.

After exchanging a few pleasantries with a couple of my cast mates-they loved his Punisher shirt (I gotta admit it is one of my favorites from the dreaded comic book shirt collection), he headed home. Immediately after Riss came back and I told him she just missed Mr. Wonderful. Her response cracked me up-although I'm paraphrasing here- "Yeah I saw him, actually the back of him, but I saw a tight shirt, muscles, and a strut so I knew it was him." This cracked me up.

Lemme give you a little background on Mr. Wonderful. He has not always been in the shape he's in now. Although he was far from obese he has struggled with weight for a lot of his life. He still has the "fat kid" mentality, so when people tell him how great he looks rather than being proud of his achievements all he can focus on is how far he thinks he still has to go. Shirts in general are a sore spot for him because he's broad. So broad that he's in that annoying area where the size up drowns you and the size down looks like it's painted on. If I'm there I usually tell him to opt for the size down because hey, I don't mind the eye candy and he's worked hard. As long as he can move and he's comfortable wearing it I tell him he should show off his hard work. He is also one of the most humble people I know and he worries a lot about the way people perceive him, so he works hard to make sure the way he is perceived is positive.

This morning he texted me and asked how the show went last night. I replied it was fine, and that everyone loved seeing him. I then mentioned what Riss had said to me hoping it would give him the same chuckle it gave me. Instead he worried about how he was being perceived, and has spent the better part of the morning trying to convince me he didn't have a choice on the shirt, he loves it too much to not wear it, and he doesn't strut, because only douches wear muscle shirts and strut. He completely missed the point on this one-and I can say for a fact that is not the way Riss wanted her comment to be taken.

Oh sweetheart. You are the furthest thing from douche there is and I say "if you got it, flaunt it". I for one don't mind.

self help

2011-07-20T15:30:00.000-07:00

Why do self-help books have such a stigma? I realize there are some that are nothing but a load of garbage, the covers alone BEG for judgement and public ridicule, but I would like to think most are helpful to those that read them and actually apply its teachings.

After my recent audition fails I have decided to seek out some additional help. Help to figure out why someone as fantastically talented as I am is constantly failing to land the roles my little heart desires. I ventured to the library yesterday feeling oh so smart that I still remembered how to find things using the Dewey Decimal System. That smugness was quickly erased when I found the book I was searching for-and I headed to check out.
Although I knew I was being silly and no one cared why I was there, let alone what I was looking for-I couldn't help but feel like everyone was suddenly watching me and judging me for admitting my weakness and checking out a self-help book. Don't worry. I kept my head held high. ;)

Honestly I would have rather been back in Walmart the time I had to purchase "mic covers" (condoms for you non-thespians) for Man of La Mancha. There's nothing quite like a little Mormon girl carrying around four huge boxes of condoms at her local Walmart just WAITING for someone she knows to run into her-because who would REALLY believe they were for what she said they were for? Not to mention all the questionable looks I received from complete strangers-those made me laugh inside.

The book in question?

Hopefully the anxiety was worth it and I will have some insight to my current situation...

what if...

2011-07-19T15:30:00.000-07:00

Although I have few regrets I sometimes wonder how different my life would be had I made different choices. These moments of insight are usually brought on by extreme exhaustion-because I'm a big fat baby when I'm mentally, emotionally, or physically beat.

I was reading a dear friend's post this morning, and after commenting I got to thinking about my own botched second chance story and asking myself the dreaded "what if". We need a little background first...

It was the beginning of summer circa 2000. I was working as an Assistant Manager over events at the Hollywood Connection and my matchmaker boss thought it would be a good idea to set me up with her son, Butthead (you can already tell how this story ends, can't you?). Wait-that's not fair--I shouldn't tarnish your impression of him just yet. Let's call him Beavis instead.

Beavis and I had a small flirtation going (we all worked together), so I agreed to the set up. Being 19 and stupid I fell for Beavis. HARD. He remained true to boy form and "played it cool"-us adults call it giving someone the run around and playing games. I had tried to convince myself that Beavis was "playing it cool" because he was leaving for his mission in August. Although we only went on the one date we began to spend more time together in the days leading up to his departure and he told his sister (my friend) that he was seriously considering marrying me when he got home. About three months after he left I started dating my best friend and 'Dear Johned' Beavis--well I would have if he hadn't gotten sick and had to come home early. After a well-intentioned attempt to date two men at once, Beavis turned into a Butthead and Superman Lover won out. In the intrest of full disclosure I have to say I did NOT handle this situation well--but in my defense I was 20 and had never had one man vying for my affections, let alone two. Beavis just made my decision easier by not ever asking me out but having no problem being a jealous jerk any time I did anything with Superman Lover--who DID ask me out.

Fast forward six years. Superman Lover and I had broken off our engagement about ten months earlier and I thought I might be ready to dip my toes into the shallow end of the dating pool. Since I was 25 (old maid by Utah LDS standards), I wasn't sure how to get back into that whole scene so I signed up for a few (LDS) online dating sites hoping to ease my way into things. Who should be one of the first people I was matched with? None other than Butthead-no joke. Being as time (and my recent heartbreak) had offered me a certain level of clarity on how I had handled the situation with Butthead I messaged him and apologized. About a month later he wrote back, texts and phone calls were shared, and he eventually asked me out again. Even after all that time he still tried to "play it cool" and act as if he was doing me a favor by spending time with me. Of course like an idiot I fell hard for Butthead. AGAIN-although I like to think it was because I was on the rebound and adjusting to being single after so long-not because I was a pathetic sap. Looking back I'm pretty sure he was just getting me back for choosing Superman Lover, but I was up to my eyeballs in smitten-ness to realize let alone accept he just wasn't that into me.

During this time my path had crossed yet again with Mr. Wonderful. For those of you who don't know how we met here's the abridged version:
We met in High School-we had Seminary together. We had mutual crushes on each other but he never acted on it because he says he was told "He was too young for me"-which is all entirely possible given how shallow I was in HS, although I don't remember saying it. After HS our paths would cross at random times-most notably almost immediately after Superman Lover and I got engaged and then again around the time I was chasing Butthead like a fool. He tells me now that during the time I was following Butthead around his texts asking to "do something" was his attempt to ask me out, but in my book "hanging out" is NOT dating. As a result I would find excuses to not go and focus my time on Butthead instead, although there was one exception-I finally agreed and told Mr. Wonderful I would "hang out" with him. We met at the movies-saw some horribly forgettable Jason Statham movie, and had dinner afterwards. Looking back I remember feeling something for him then, but because I was still so ridiculously hung up on Butthead and nursing a wounded heart post-Superman Lover I shrugged it off as nothing.

Ok, back to the story: fast forward another seven months-I was up to my eyeballs in smitten-ness and playing occasional NCMO buddies with Butthead (Riss, I know, I KNOW. I'm ashamed to admit it-it is one of my few regrets.) trying to convince myself it was something it wasn't, when Mr. Wonderful texted me out of the blue to remind me to pre-order my copy of HP7. I started talking more and more to Mr. Wonderful and less and less to Butthead at this point. July 21 finally rolled around and I headed to Barnes and Noble with a couple friends to join in on the realease party festivites. Mr. Wonderful was there of course, and the rest is history. (If you want to know the particulars I'm happy to share.)

The whole point of this rambling post is this: how would my life have been different had I actually given Mr. Wonderful a chance? What could have happened had we actually dated in High School? What would have happened if I had blown Butthead off rather than Mr. Wonderful? Although I have NO REGRETS in my time with Superman Lover I can't help but wonder how things would be different today had I made different choices knowing what I know now.

Too bad life isn't like a Choose Your Own Adventure book and you can read ahead to the end and choose the path you like best. I know that would have saved me a lot of embarassing and painful memories...

ode to luna

2011-07-18T14:29:00.000-07:00

This weekend I joined the masses and saw Harry Potter. Although I could ramble on forever about my love of the books and the movies, I'll spare you-except this. I LOVE how the theme of friendship became stronger throughout the series. Although Hermione will always be one of my favorite heroines, I grew to love one character more and more (possibly more than Hermione) throughout the series:

Luna Lovegood

Luna in my opinion is one of the best written characters of the series. She is everything a true friend should be; loving, accepting, faithful, unconditional, and stalwart.

I recently re-read the series, and I grew to love and appreciate Luna even more. I wanted to smack Harry, Ron, and Hermione for not realizing what a wonderful friend they had in her sooner. She never doubted Harry when he said Lord Voldemort was back as well as showing just how brave and loyal she was in the Department of Mysteries--seriously who would have put themselves in harm's way to save someone they barely knew?

I was amazed at how after being held for months in the cellar of Malfoy Manor she was still her pleasant, optimistic self-I have a feeling she was the one to keep Ollivander and Griphook in good spirits throughout the ordeal.

Without Luna Harry would have never found the lost diadem of Rowena Ravenclaw-let alone made the connection that it could possibly be the Ravenclaw Horcrux he was searching for.
She was also the one who recognized Harry needed peace after the Battle of Hogwarts, and was willing to make a spectacle of herself to do so.
I like to think that by the end of the series Harry, Ron, and Hermione knew just how blessed they were to have Luna's friendship.
I'm not going to lie; I shed many a tear Saturday afternoon while I was watching the last Harry Potter. I know it sounds lame, but I'm having a harder time with this than I care to admit. I feel as if part of my family has died. There are very few things that have brought me as much happiness as Harry Potter, and I can't wait to share it with my children one day. I don't try to emulate many fictional people, but Luna is definitely someone we should strive to be more like.

Now if only I could convince Mr. Wonderful that Luna is a completely acceptable child's name...

Oh and if anyone wants to go see HP again, I'm TOTALLY game...

just say "thank you"

2011-07-15T12:53:00.000-07:00

When did it become so hard for us to accept compliments? Better yet when did it make us cocky or conceited or snotty when we gracefully accept these compliments? They are meant to lift you up and make you feel good about yourself, yet almost everyone I know avoids receiving them like the plague.

I have seen this a lot-I don't know if it's because I'm watching for it, or what, but it's interesting. Nine times out of ten when I pay someone a compliment the response I get is some form of "you're crazy", or "no, I'm really not.", or deflect it all together and turn it around to me, the compliment giver. It's infuriating to me! I'm trying to tell you something nice in sincerity, hopefully making your day better, and you shoot it down. I am no means guiltless either-and that makes me even madder--and a hypocrite. Mr. Wonderful tells me almost every day how beautiful I am. Why am I so incapable of just saying "thank you"? why do I always feel the need to discredit his opinions of me? I know I'm no supermodel, but I also know I'm no troll. Why is it so impossible for me to just say "thank you"? Don't even get me started on when someone compliments me on my talents, although I find it odd it's easier to accept compliments and congratulations from a stranger than the people who mean the very most to me.

This inability of mine has been brought to my attention even more over the last few days. My co-worker has been on maternity leave and is set to return on Monday. I have had several co-workers and customers tell me how well of a job I have done being alone these last six weeks. Rather than saying "thank you" I brush it off-although I know I have done well. Many others would have cracked under the pressure, but I think I did fairly well considering June is one of our busiest months.
This is not something I'm particularly proud of and I know I need to work on. I'm going one step further and extending this challenge to you as well dear readers.

The next time someone pays you a compliment on your amazing screenplay, your adorable curly hair, rockin' figure, fantastic eye for photography, your amazing voice, or your all around awesomeness, don't' roll your eyes, don't deflect it, and don't worry about what you may or may not be labeled if you graciously accept it. Simply smile, say thank you very much, and take it for what it really is--something nice someone wanted to say to you in hopes it would make your day.

mili vanilli ain't got nothin on me

2011-07-12T11:14:00.000-07:00

I have a confession to make.

I haven't been as good at learning the music in my current show. (Shameless plug: All Shook Up! opens THIS Friday! Click here for details.) Now in my defense I know MOST of the harmonies, MOST of the words, and I know when I'm supposed to sing said most words...but between blink-and-you'll-miss-it music rehearsals, an UNHEARD OF super strong alto section that ROCKS, but sucks for me, the struggling second-read: harmonizing therefore more difficult soprano, ZERO spare time, and no access to a piano to try and pick out my notes in said zero spare time I had just been fudging it-or what us thespians like to call-fudging it. This is the worst prepared I have ever been, but aside from being more solid on the words there's not a whole lot I can do on notes---unless I develop perfect pitch magically overnight. I HAD just planned to continue fudging it.

Last night that all changed. My dear, sweet bosom friend informed me I will be wearing a microphone for a bulk of the show. To which my reply was "you know I'm just in the chorus, right?" Apparently I have one of the better voices in the cast (REALLY? Like I didn't know that already. I kid, I KID!) and they have spares, so we're going to help add volume to the choral numbers...I haven't been mic-ed in a show since 2008...oi. Oh, and remember said notes I know most of the time? Well I've been known to go mute on the ones I'm unsure of as to not be the sore thumb. Yeah, that's pretty much impossible now...

So wish me luck as I now spend the next four days cramming more music into my already over-filled, over-worked, and over-tired brain.

On the plus side you now have an even BETTER reason to come see the show. It's called your friend Miss Kristen, the mic-ed train wreck. ;)

what i learned buying a house-looking sucks

2011-07-11T13:25:00.000-07:00

Greetings readers. Hope your Monday hasn't been as craptastic as mine.

I've decided since I'm embarking on a new adventure I should document the good, bad, and the ugly so that those of you who choose to follow can have an idea of just what you're getting yourself into-unlike me. I'm TOTALLY starting to wonder what I'm getting myself into...

Saturday I went out with Radical Realtor to start the hunting process. We were armed with about eight listings we were going to try and see. 2.5 exhausting hours later this is what I have learned...

LOOKING SUCKS. No really. It does. Here's why:

-What looks GREAT on paper usually doesn't look so hot up close.
-Some homes that are listed as vacant...aren't.
-I have yet to find a house and a neighborhood I love. Although I'm hoping that will change, it seems I don't get to have my cake and eat it too.
-Some homeowners are just gross. Did you really leave garbage and all your junk in the house you want me to buy?
-As much as I like the area the old houses in Historic Midvale kinda creep me out...strike that-they REALLY creep me out. Especially when the basement looks like something out of the Blair Witch Project and it smells like hamsters. (I couldn't make this up if I tried.)
-I love dogs. What I don't love are big, scary pit bulls (don't start, my sister owns a pit bull and I love her, so I know not all pit bulls are bad. These pit bulls however were another story. I'm pretty sure they would have eaten me given the opportunity.) who try to eat my face. On the sidewalk. 200 feet away. No where near their 'territory'. The two foot extension to the top of the fence made from chicken wire made me feel oh-so-safe too.
-Whoever coined the phrase "location location location" was clearly looking for real estate. The adorable early 20-th century cottage with a deck and HUGE maple tree out front? Charming. The freeway "sound wall" (which does nothing to block the sound FYI) directly across the street? Not so much.
-You had better be prepared for the long haul. I'm an instant gratification girl. I can't find what I'm looking for in the store? I simply order it online. Too bad I can't order a house online. Someone should look into that...
-If I had $400k I would just buy this house in Herriman:

And that's what I've learned buying a house. So far...

the mystery of the holy shirts

2011-07-09T14:00:00.000-07:00

To quote one of my favorite literary characters of all time, I'm feeling rather Saint-like lately. Over the last few months I have noticed little holes appearing in my shirts. I have no idea where they come from, all I know is they are only appearing on my favorite ones--including my Perry shirt-dammit.

As I was getting ready for work yesterday I noticed a hole in my brand-new- worn only twice top:

Being as I have NO IDEA how I'm managing to cause this, (shirt gnomes are my best guess) I'm asking YOU dear readers. What do you think?

attitude of gratitude

2011-07-08T19:00:00.000-07:00

Sometimes it takes something huge to make you realize just how blessed you are. Then there are other times, in the chaos of life, a moment of quiet thought it hits you like a train-BAM! Last night I had one of those moments while I was driving home. I am especially grateful for this revelation right this moment because I have been going through a bit of a hard time lately (What? Really? You couldn't tell from my bi-polar posts over the last few weeks?), and sometimes all it takes is a bit of a reality check to put things into perspective. So if you don't mind I'm gonna take a few and share some of the things I'm most grateful for right now-in no particular order.

Mr. Wonderful. He really is wonderful-and I'm not just saying that. He is always so thoughtful and considerate towards me. He tries so hard to make sure I'm happy and he is ALWAYS showing me how much he loves me. He brought me milk and cleaned my house last night just to be helpful-between work and rehearsals (All Shook Up!) I have had little time for sleep, let alone much else. Come on, what boyfriend DOES that? He is such a good man, I know he will be a wonderful husband and father, and I just can't wait to marry him in the (hopefully) near future. (No, that is NOT an announcement.)

The Bestie. I am lucky enough to have found a once in a lifetime friend early on. She is much more than what I deserve. She is humble and considerate, forgiving to a fault, and is an example of everything I should be in my own life. It hasn't always been easy-I am a pill after all-yet she continues to allow me to share in her life. I couldn't love her more if she was my own flesh and blood. Words just can't express what she means to me.

My Talents- but more importantly I am grateful for the opportunity I get to share them with others. That is what TRULY makes me happy. I am even more grateful for the people that are so patient with me and teach me how to be the best I can be while I'm sharing those talents with all of you.

My Friends. I have been blessed with some INCREDIBLE people in my life-so many that it's just not possible to list you all-although I WISH I could. (psst! If you're reading this, I'm totally talking to YOU). YOU are an extension to my family down south. YOU are the people that buoy me up and make me want to be better. YOU are the ones who show me the kind of person I want to be. I have learned something from each and every one of you; for that I will forever be indebted to YOU.

My Family. My family is everything to me. Without them all I would be LOST. I am so so so blessed to have been born into the family I was-immediate and extended. I have the best parents possible who are so supportive, loving, and proud of me.

Kidlets. I am so blessed with the cutest, sweetest, smartest, and most loving nieces and nephews. I am also so lucky that I get to play Auntie to all of your children. Thank you for letting me use my maternal instincts and share their lives with you. It means more to me than you will ever know, and I love them all so so so much.

My Heavenly Father. I am by no means the best person or the best member of my religion, but I am so grateful that I don't feel as lost as a lot of people I know do. I'm so grateful that He's always there, patiently waiting for me to quit being a mule and allow Him to help me. I can often feel how much He loves me, and it's pretty amazing-especially because I know how difficult I am. I don't think about it as much as I should, but it's pretty incredible that I am a Child of God.

Although I've only mentioned the big stuff, every now and then we need to be reminded just how blessed we are-even if all we can come up with is the small stuff. It's amazing the perspective you gain when you stop and actually focus on what you have, instead of what you don't.

top ten

2011-07-07T11:16:00.000-07:00

Tuesday night I got suckered into a late-night, post rehearsal Village Inn run. This morning I got to thinking, and I realized have certain "tells" for when I'm doing a show. So now for your reading enjoyment here's my Musical Theatre Top Ten (in no particular order):

10. The term, "I can't that night, I have rehearsal" becomes a conversation staple.
9. You start to forget what your friends look like.
8. Anxiety sets in at the mere mention of "Tech Week".
7. You don't have time to wash your unders so instead you buy new ones.
6. The only thing that gets done around the house is feeding the pets-and that's only because you don't want to be responsible for the death of a living thing.
5. You begin to contemplate how you will maneuver the sweaty, speed of light costume changes. You also have no problem asking people to help you get undressed.
4. Your diet consists of anything you can get from a drive-up window.
3. You begin to shamelessly plug your show every opportunity you get. All Shook Up! Get the details here. (fun side note-I was told last night I'm so fun to watch---come see for yourself!)
2. You have mic tape residue on odd places on your body days after you thought you got it all off.
1. Walking into public places in full stage makeup and hair, and wearing clothes you wouldn't NORMALLY go out in-ie shorts, cami, button up shirt and fishnets--true story--and just laugh at the funny looks you get instead of being self-conscious.

Honorary Mention: You begin to dream the show and wake up with the music (particularly the trouble spots) stuck in your head.

captain crabby pants

2011-07-06T10:49:00.000-07:00

I think-no I KNOW I woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning.

Everything bugs the hell out of me today.

I have a white-hot flame burning in my belly, and you know what? Not only do I not care, I have no desire to try and put it out. Spare me the "anger will eat at you" spiel. NOT saying anything has eaten at me even MORE.

I'm sick of feeling the need to censor myself to protect the feelings of others. This is MY blog. I don't name names, I don't slander anyone, and I make no bones about the fact this is MY POINT OF VIEW. I write what I want, when I want, how I want. You don't like it DON'T READ IT. As cliche as it is, there's a little thing that says I can say and write what I want. It's called the FIRST AMENDMENT.

I hate that I am always so worried about what others think I can't write what I'm REALLY thinking.

I'm pretty sure a lot of this anger stems from the fact I haven't had an honest-to goodness vacation in almost two years. Well that and the fact no one appreciates being censored.

I'm tired of being a "yes man". Since when has that EVER been productive?

The customer is not always right. Sometimes it's ok to say "no". Saying no does NOT make you bad at what you do. Learn it. Live it. Love it.

I haven't looked at more than pictures of houses, and I'm already sick of it. It's NOT fun, and those who actually enjoy it need to have their heads checked.

I'm tired of always being nice.

Quit telling me that because I'm an actress I can pretend to be the type of person that makes YOU more comfortable.

Since when did it become unacceptable to say how you feel?
I should be able to express my thoughts and feelings without being labeled bitchy, whiny, difficult, selfish, or unreasonable. I know I have my moments, but find me someone who doesn't ever do any of these things every now and then and I'll show you some beautiful oceanfront property in Wyoming.

If I have to babysit one more adult I'm going to pop my eyes out with a spoon.

When did accountability and integrity go the way of the Dodo? Am I the only one who even CARES enough to say anything anymore? Oh wait. If I do I'm being a "bitch".

I'm tired of people telling me what to do. I'm thirty freaking years old. Stop being an annoying busy body and worry about YOU.

Just because you don't agree with me doesn't make me wrong. Stop telling me that I am.

Looking out for my well-being does NOT make me selfish. If you are unwilling aide in your rescue it's not my job to put myself in harm's way. I am NOT your effing Knight in Shining Armor.

I'm tired of working my ass off and seeing no results.

I hate even more that I don't know what I'm doing WRONG, therefore I have no idea what I need to FIX.

Yes I know I'm being whiny, but you're the one who read this all the way through. Whose fault is that?

why can't we be friends?

2011-07-05T10:16:00.000-07:00

I have a friend. You may remember them from this post. I would like to say things have gotten better between us, but they haven't. It's possible things have gotten even worse. I want to save this relationship more than anything, but I feel we are at a stalemate. I will never be able to support certain decisions they are making, and as a result I'm not in their life anymore. Now I'm not playing the 'woe is me' angle, just stating these are the consequences of my choices-like it or not. For the record I HATE it.

When I try to be in touch with this person and try to reconnect with them I get a lot of 'yeah that sounds like fun, I'll let you know', and more importantly, 'we need to get together to talk about this', but nothing ever comes to fruition. They are the ones with the schedule conflicts so I ask them to let me know what days/nights work for them and I'll make it happen. They say ok, sounds good, then NOTHING. Honestly it feels like a brush-off. I'm at a loss. I want to save this relationship, but not only do I NOT know what I need to do-but also I feel like the other person doesn't care enough to try. I can't do it alone, but I'm also not going to be a nag about it. Am I asking for too much for it to be a team effort? I know they have a lot on their plate, I KNOW they're going through a lot, and I don't have any desire to add to the burden, but I also know what they're willing to save, and it feels like our friendship isn't on that list. That hurts. A lot.

So dear readers, I'm coming to YOU. I hope I have kept it as unbiased as possible because I need to know what you would do in this situation. Should I continue to try and save something that is becoming more and more one-sided or should I just let go and move on?

breakin up is hard to do

2011-06-29T09:54:00.000-07:00

No this picture is not relevant in any way, shape, or form.
I just thought it was funny.

You meet through a friend. You're a bit worried, but they soon win you over with their charisma and wonderful personality. You begin to build a relationship based on trust with them, and it becomes more and more difficult to remember what your life was like without them in it.

Then things change. You don't know if you can continue the relationship--although you REALLY want to. It's not bad at all, just hard. It becomes even harder when distance is thrown into the mix. You know you have to break the news, but you just don't know how. You begin to wonder if you will ever find someone worthy enough to attempt to fill their shoes. Each day becomes more and more stressful, because you know the longer you put it off the harder it becomes to say what needs to be said. You have been a ball of stress for weeks because you just don't know how to break the news...

* * * * *

No I'm not talking about Mr. Wonderful and I. Don't worry, we are great. Better than great-we are SWELL...is swell better than great?

I'm talking about my hairdresser. She is wonderful and fabulous, has become a great friend, and about the only one I trust with my tresses. She is the reason so many envy my hair-I don't know what she does, but she's magic. I can't say enough nice things about her. I simply adore her. I have been seeing her for about two and a half years and I LOVE her. There's only one problem. She's expensive. Like $120 every eight weeks expensive. When I was working at Joe's I could justify the expense because it was all tip money. Even after I quit I made it work because I love her so much. Your hair is the ONLY thing you wear every day so it should look great, right?

Looking into buying a home has made me REALLY evaluate my budget and where I have placed my priorities. My fear of failing and/or being a failure ranks right up there with being alone, so I'm trying to trim as much fat off my spending as possible. I got the perfect out about a week ago when she emailed me to let me know she had left the salon I saw her at and was looking at other places. Instead of telling her 'good luck' I said she had my business as long as she wanted it-which is true-but right now it's just a stretch. I thought I might have a little time, but she emailed me a few days later and said she'd taken a job at a salon in Daybreak and she hoped to see me soon. (She used to be 10 minutes away from my house) Aw crap. Now I feel like a total tool. I want to keep seeing her, I LOVE her and trust her with my hair implicitly, I just can't afford her anymore.

How do you tell someone you've built a relationship with and come to love like family that it's just not working anymore? And most importantly, how do you find someone to replace excellence?

for the birds

2011-06-27T14:20:00.000-07:00

'Day' trips to St. George (i.e. back-to-back days of driving to and from) are totally for the birds. As of right now there's only one person who can get me to make said trips-although when the time comes I'm sure I will do the same for her sister:

My beautiful Birthday Princess
FYI she has a swimsuit, Princess dress-up crown AND skirt
on as well as the towel cover-up thingy. She's a rockstar.

It was the Bug's birthday celebration this weekend. Well actually her birthday isn't until Friday but Mom's first first day back from maternity leave with the Chunky Monkey is Saturday the 2nd. She didn't want to overload herself, so she chose to get it done before hand. Since MY co-worker is on maternity leave too I have no time off so I had no choice but to high-tail it after work on Saturday.

Bug is the smartest, prettiest, sassiest two-year old around. We had so much fun counting "one...two...THREE!" and running through the splash pad. She is already a fashionista-made evident by her accessory choices of the day. She is a rockstar and already loves her pink guitar. Once that was open she had no desire to look at anything else.

I can't find the cord to my camera that has all the CUTE pictures, so you get to make due with the crappy iPhone photo above and the 'oh-so-adorable-you-have-to-be-pure-evil-to-not-LOVE-her' video of her with her pink "gi-tar".

Also while I was down there LB2 and Fishin' Sister FINALLY convinced me to take these canaries home-I've wanted them since the Easter trip but I was convinced I would kill them. Well now I have them, along with a promise of a dog when I get my house looong story but good news for me-SQUEE! I love them, but they need names and I need help because we all know how clever I'm not. There's two girls and a boy. So far the suggestions are Pan, Wendy, and Tink; Bart, Maggie, and Lisa; and I came up with Rory, Lorelai, and Luke because they sang the whole way home. I'm kinda leaning to the latter, but I wanna see what y'all can come up with.

my boys

2011-06-21T22:30:00.000-07:00

I don't talk much about my family on here, but I should. My family is flawed, of course, but it is also pretty damn rad.
So rad in fact that I am getting a little choked up as I type this.

In honor of Father's Day on the 19th and LB2's birthday on the 20th I thought I would share a little bit about 'my boys' and why I'm so blessed to have them.

My Papa.

What can I say about my dad that every other girl doesn't already say about theirs? He has the BEST laugh. (Those who've heard it know what I'm talking about.) He taught me how to ride my bike, barbecue, and fish. He taught me how to make manicotti. I am his favorite oldest daughter. :) We share a love of The Muppets-Animal is our favorite, roller coasters-the higher and faster the better, and muscle cars. I went on the White Roller coaster for the first time with my dad. All I can remember is him saying "whooooaahhh whoooaaaaahhhh!" the whole time and laughing his head off. He loved it and because of him I love it too. He is the reason I was a tomboy until I was 10. He taught me that "roughing it" does not include a camper and running water. It's air mattresses and tents. He taught me to love, appreciate, and respect nature. He loves animals. Growing up he would always complain about how we had too many dogs-but he was the saddest of any of us when they would pass away. He has the greenest thumb of anyone I have ever known-he can make almost anything grow out of almost any soil. He builds the most beautiful ponds and has a knack for raising koi and frogs. Inside his rough and gruff exterior is the softest, most tender heart. He is fiercely loyal (gee, I wonder where I got it?), and always fights for the under dog. He loves John Wayne movies, but Legally Blonde is one of his all time favorites. I remember when I was about 20 I had rented 'Chocolat' and was watching it in the family room. When he came home he started to gripe about how he "didn't want to watch that chick flick crap". Yet by the time it was over he had joined me on the couch and looked at me and said, "well that wasn't half bad." He will come up to Salt Lake to watch me perform-although he HATES the city almost as much as he hates the theatre. My daddy is just too awesome for words.

Little Brother #1 (LB1). According to my mom LB1 and I were best friends when we were little. We did EVERYTHING together-including a game where I would get a spray bottle of water and say "open up Jonsie" and spray water into his mouth. My mom didn't understand why, but he loved that game. I am the only person alive who is allowed to call him "Jonsie" (the other is my Grammy V who passed away in 2002). I don't know why, but I love that it's something only I'm allowed to do. LB1 is smart-sometimes too smart for his own good. And he has the BEST comedic timing. He has always been able to make us all laugh so hard it hurts. He loves to fish and snowboard. Growing up he was a whiz at Mario Brothers and would make up songs and sing along to the music as he played. He would build blanket forts in the living room and call them his "inventions". Legos were his thing. He was always playing with them and coming up with things WAY cooler than my lame houses. He LOVED giving people bunny ears in photos-he was a ninja about it, too. He was a year behind me in school, but I was the one who always got "you're Jon Fox's sister?" He was the boy who had girls calling our house at 13, and I'm pretty sure it didn't end until he met My sister in law. He has such a knack for keeping a positive attitude, even when he's knee-deep in turd. In the last few years he's surprised me and shown me what a big softie he is. He married one of the sweetest, kindest, most lovely ladies around and is now an adorable daddy to two of the most adorable girls. He surprised us all in what an amazing father he is. He's the most adorable, loving, doting daddy around-although he was convinced he would rule his house with an iron fist. Those three girls definitely have him wrapped around their fingers! LB1 and I butted heads the most growing up, but as we get older I have come to love and appreciate him more than I could have ever imagined possible.

Little Brother #2. What can I say about My LB2? He loves to point out how much taller he is than me-earning me the nickname "little big sis". He tries so hard to be rough and tough but like all the other men in our family he's a big softie. He is the one who's most like my dad-right down to their identical feet. He's not a dad yet, but he is so good with kids, and they just LOVE him-maybe it's because he is a big kid too. He is a hard worker and so good with his hands. He can build almost anything. He LOVES animals and has his own menagerie complete with chickens! Growing up LB2 was the one who would bring home random animals like pigeons and crickets and snakes and lizards and crawfish and catfish and BEG my mom to let him keep them as pets. LB2 LOVED Kraft mac and cheese growing up. LOVED IT. So much that we would tease him about making his birthday cake out of it instead of letting him have it for his birthday dinner. LB2 wasn't quite the ladies' man LB1 was, but he did have a pretty good following in High School. (I can't say I blame these girls though. My brothers are cute!) LB2 is so protective of me and my sister-he's made it his responsibility to make sure we're always safe and happy. (Yes he's given Mr. Wonderful "the talk".) LB2 is the scariest good driver I've ever seen. He has the sweetest, kindest wife who is the girl version of him. They are perfect for each other. He is always thinking of me and will drive all the way up to SLC from St George to let me use his truck to move. Like the rest of us Foxes he's a stubborn git, but he can also admit when he's wrong.

There are so many more memories I could share, but they are for another day. Although I don't see them near enough, I love my boys so much, and I am so so lucky to have the best daddy and brothers around.

big blonde and beautiful

2011-06-14T15:08:00.000-07:00

I love shows. Watching them, being in them, you name it, I love it. My favorite part is the costumes-especially when I get to wear them. The right costume can really make you feel the part you're playing as well as draw your audience into the world you're trying to create. I know you've all seen stage productions where the costumes didn't jive and you were distracted because of it. With that being said....

I HATE COSTUMES.

I hate even more when I have to find my own--no, I'm not a diva.
I will wear almost anything-as long as it fits into the following criteria:

I have to be able to wear a NORMAL bra. I don't want to go commando with the girls-and I'm pretty sure no one else wants me to, either.
In the event I have to change costumes I have to be able to get in and out of them relatively easy with little to no help.
I have to be able to MOVE the way the director wants me to. Besides wearing an uncomfortable costume is the pits.
I hate looking for them because:

Real women have curves.
Most of the time I love mine-until it's time
to do another show and end up feeling
like a fatty.

Nine times out of ten I'm in a show that isn't set in this century. That makes finding authentic-looking costume pieces rather difficult. Don't suggest thrift stores and DI. I ALWAYS strike out there-except last year. I got almost new tap shoes for $4.00. No joke.

I'm a curvy girl-but my curves aren't ordinary. Not many people have a 16-inch discrepancy between their bust and their waist (true story), so finding costumes that fit without making me look like a box is tough. Which leads me to reason three:

Costumes are EXPENSIVE! I have no problem contributing to my costume pieces because then I know it will actually fit-and I get to keep them after-but hot damn! I'm either paying through the nose purchasing "specialty" items or paying for it in my limited free time between rehearsals to make something.

For my latest show I need 50's era attire. Here's the catch-think Rizzo and Marty Maraschino-I am THE stereotypical bad girl-all my clothes have to look like I was poured into them-director's words-not mine.

Any comments on where to go to find possible costume ideas let me know. I've got a little less than a month so time is of the essence.

excited and scared

2011-06-06T14:49:00.000-07:00

Last year I moved into my first place. About six months into my lease the honeymoon wore off and it has been an...um...interesting experience since. If it's not completely useless management who can't answer simple maintenance requests or noise complaints or it's my downstairs neighbor smoking in his bathroom with the vent on making HIS second hand smoke vent into MY bathroom and adjoining bedroom and getting mad at ME when I politely ask him not to anymore it's the super young twenty somethings that took over chain smoker's apartment four months ago. They think that apartment shaking bass and drunken parties complete with barf all over the sidewalk every weekend are super fun. Ironically enough they are considerate enough to adhere to the "quiet time" hours; it's just the rest of the time they are a thorn in my side. Needless to say I am not the least. bit. happy.

Couple that with my well-meaning mother and sister telling me I need to buy a house and what do you get? Someone who is willing to consider something she hadn't even fathomed, that's what.

In other words....

I'm looking to buy a house. A HOUSE. Like a free-standing building. That I will live in. And OWN.

This weekend I called the "awesome" realtor who helped Superman Lover find and buy his first place. Well not really. I mentioned what I was considering and that I needed help. He came to my rescue and volunteered to send said realtor an email. Said Realtor called and left me a message this morning I have yet to return--no I'm not procrastinating...ok, maybe I am. A little.

I have been in a constant state of panic/shock/excitement/worry/stress/anxiety/disbelief/surrealism since the decision was made. I am still convinced I am not grown-up OR rich enough to be making such a huge decision--I mean come on. The biggest thing I've bought to date is a car and that's nothing compared to a HOUSE. I didn't want to be a single homeowner, but I'm tired of waiting for other people (read=stupid yet completely loveable men who are/have dragging (ed) their feet in popping the question), so I'm gonna see if I can do it on my own now.

I'm not holding any high hopes for anything because I'm still in my lease for another seven months, I hadn't planned on looking until after I was married so I have ZERO money saved for anything home related, and I'm fairly sure I won't be able to get a mortgage for close to what I'm paying in rent now. My mother DID make the comment "what's the harm in looking? If you find something, great, if not it's just experience for when you DO buy a house." And although I don't typically like to waste people's time I have to think she's right--again.

In other words I'm' hoping for the best, planning for the worst, and keeping my expectations low. I'll let you know how it goes.

happiness is

2011-05-26T11:10:00.000-07:00

Happiness for me is FINALLY being excited about a show after merely going through the motions with no passion for so long. I didn't get the part I had originally hoped for, but for the first time in a LONG time I'm excited to get this party started. At last night's read through my mind was racing on how I could make this part mine and make it shine (sorry Riss, I'm gonna do my damnedest to out shine you--but in a good way. ;) I'm a barfly/statue/Angel Devilette in Midvale's All Shook Up. A small part, but I am SO looking forward to it. I get to not only do another show with her, but my new friend as well. I honestly couldn't be happier--or more excited (well until a leading role comes my way anyway).

Thank you-you know who you are-for being patient and understanding, and telling me it's ok to test the waters and if getting out of the water was what was best for me it was ok. You are a bomb-ass friend and I love you for it.

So, I best be seeing you all at the show in July bitches--especially you B-there's lots of Elvis to be had in this one...

is your filter really THAT broken?

2011-05-24T12:51:00.000-07:00

Man, all it seems I do on here lately is bitch...I'm sorry.

I have another reason I don’t like weddings-hopefully I am not the only one and you singletons can relate. Being forced through the duration of the wedding/reception to endure the “status of your relationship/when are YOU getting married” comments if you’re with someone, and the “you’re next!/you should get on it” comments if you’re single.

I get that it comes from a place of love. I get that you’re trying to be supportive. I get that because we are friends or family you feel you have a right to say these things and it immediately exempts you from being tactless or stops you from being a jerk. What YOU don’t get is it’s NOT loving. It’s NOT supportive, IT IS tactless and it DOES make you a jerk. By keeping these comments to yourself you are being light years more supportive than the people who let it fly and subsequently make me feel like shit.

I am all for girl power. Girls can do most anything that a man can do. Except propose. So don’t suggest it. I have never and WILL NEVER entertain the idea of getting down on one knee. Proposing is the one thing that should ALWAYS be left to a man. I have yet to meet a man that wants his woman to propose, and I WILL NOT take his thunder. I want to know he wants me because he asked me, not because I flipped the tables and put him on the spot in an awkward situation. More power to the girls who do it, but it’s not for me. I also find it HILARIOUS that the people who tell me to do this are the women who are waiting for their own man to propose or had their husbands propose to them after they waited for them to do it. If you yourself didn't get down on one knee (or aren't planning to) and ask for your man's hand in marriage telling me to will promptly make my eyes glaze over and start to drool profusely. Plus it makes you a hypocrite. So don't.

It’s one thing if I was making comments to anyone who will listen, but I’m not. With the exception of my blog (which is mine and my thoughts and feelings so I'm just entitled to put them here as you are to NOT read them) I don’t say anything to anyone. Why they feel the need to constantly remind me of what I don’t have, I don't know. I’m well aware, thanks. Although I know I could be happier, I’m not unhappy. I’m content. Why isn’t this good enough for these people? MY OWN PARENTS aren’t riding me to get married, so why is everyone else?

I’m not the only one who is privy to these tactless, insensitive comments. My friend is 7.5 months pregnant, not any bigger than any other pregnant woman who is 7.5 months along, yet people think it’s ok to tell her she’s having twins, looks huge for how far along she is, ready to pop any day now, or may be giving birth to a horse. A HORSE! When did tact become optional?

I'm tired of not saying anything because I don't want to be percieved as the bitter girl unable to get herself married off-which is NOT the case. Unless I bring it up, IT’S NONE OF YOUR DAMN BUISNESS!! I’m to the point I’m just going to start making snarky comments about the things THEY don’t want brought up about them in retort. Maybe by turning the tables they’ll get that it doesn’t matter how well-meaning their comments are. They hurt, it’s none of their business, and I’m tired of being forced to endure them with a graceful “joke’s on me” smile on my face.

I just want to live my life and not have to endure any more unwanted or unsolicited marriage comments. From anyone. Exept Mr. Wonderful. Those are welcome. But only from him. Everyone else needs to shusha their mouths.

a rock and a hard place

2011-05-23T10:32:00.000-07:00

*DISCLAIMER* This blog is the closest thing to a journal that I have. Because of this sometimes it's a dumping place for things I need to work out, stuff I need to feel sorry for myself over, and the occasional rant. Today is one of those days and this post contains all three. Because it's my blog and I do what I want, I am not censoring myself. Consider yourself warned if you read on.

I'm stuck. I hate being stuck-especially over something so trivial. I know I'm making this decision harder than it should be, but I've been in a similar situation before. I made the wrong choice and I was MISERABLE. I don't want to do it again, and if that means I have to over think things, so be it.

I wasn't offered a principle part in the latest show I auditioned for-whatev-I didn't have my heart set on anything and I'm used to not being what directors are looking for. I was, however invited to be part of the cast. There are still six women's roles available they are casting after the first rehearsal (think Ronettes from Little Shop, Silly Girls from Beauty and the Beast, and Hot Box Dancers from Guys and Dolls). Not originally something I had thought of doing, but it's something I tend to be cast as a lot, something that I know I ROCK at (because come on, that's ALL I'm cast as), and something that could be fun none the less. Bad news: I have to commit to the show before I know exactly what I will be doing. I don't want to commit, get passed over (again), and spend my summer being miserable, nameless, faceless scenery. But I have to commit. Soon. And by soon I mean TODAY. A blind leap if I ever heard one. Mr. Wonderful doesn't want me to-mostly because he doesn't want me to be as miserable as I was the last time. I just don't know. I don't have the sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach like I did before, but I don't like not knowing exactly what I'm committing to and potentially getting something I will NOT be happy with. I'm just tired of feeling like all I ever do is settle.

Maybe the Universe is trying to tell me I need to be done for a while. Every part I have lost recently I have lost to a beautiful, petite ingenue, and let's face it-as much as I want to be those things, I'm just not. I'm just not ever what these people are looking for and I'm tired of letting stupid things continue to break my heart and make me doubt my talent and worth. I just don't know.

the rapture. it's real

2011-05-20T14:49:00.000-07:00

The CDC has finally issued a statement on the impending Zombie Apocalypse. I think it's because the Rapture is supposed to happen tomorrow.

I'm not kidding about the CDC. See?

*For the record I don't believe any of the Rapture hogwash. It's this decades Y2K, and we all know how THAT one went...
The zombie Apocalypse on the other hand is a different story..

one day more

2011-05-20T10:11:00.000-07:00

Mr. Wonderful's sister is getting married tomorrow. Although I am GENUINELY happy for her weddings and friends having babies still make me a little sad. Almost to the point I dread seeing 'those' envelopes in the mail. Because I know I will have to smile and pretend everything is ok whilst my heart is breaking--and it sucks. Mostly because I feel guilty for being upset when it's supposed to be a happy time. And I am GENUINELY happy for these people, I promise. It just hurts.

I'm trying hard to stay positive and remind myself every day brings me one day closer to my turn...I just wish it would hurry the hell up-I'm tired of trying to not let this stuff get me down-and failing miserably.

Maybe I should focus all my pent up emotion on my call back tomorrow--or the impending Rapture?

I promise my next post won't be so lame. I just had to get this off my chest.

show friends

2011-05-18T12:20:00.000-07:00

This was the fortune my cookie from Panda had yesterday:

Although it's hilarious (and eerily true) this is not the reason for this post, but rather an odd segue. Because I do theatre I'm lucky enough to know a lot of great people. And I mean A LOT. Sadly enough most of them I only actually see and do things with when we are in a show or at an audition together. This pains me.

Saturday I was at yet another audition and I was in the same group as one of my newest favorite people (I'm lookin' at you Dizzy). Afterwards we spent the better part of an hour chatting in the parking lot. I find it hilarious-and a little bit sad-that I know all these great people that I only see when there is theatre involved. I know we're all busy, but I'm callin you out-you all know who you are. We need to get together more because frankly you are just too awesome to limit my exposure to said awesomeness only when I'm lucky enough to share the stage (or audition room) with you.

I'm hoping this is the beginning to a beautiful friendship...

wordle thursday

2011-05-12T12:45:00.000-07:00

As I was blogstalking friends of friends I came across this little beauty. My mom has one with the Vander Linden family names. It's pretty cool so I decided to do one with words from my blog-here's the link:

http://www.wordle.net/show/wrdl/3610942/misskristen

The web site isn't very user sharing friendly, but it's still fun.
http://www.wordle.net/create

day thirty!

2011-05-10T10:28:00.000-07:00

Woot! I made it! I agree with my friend Most Lucky Girl-I feel good knowing I did it, will miss blogging every day, but won't miss the pressure to blog every day, or the bizarre questions one bit.

I'm 24 hours away from a cut and color-and look like HUD-so you don't get a picture of me from today. Instead you get a half picture of me (but it's one of my favorites regardless) from about three months ago:

May the force be with you.

Three things I'm glad have happened to me:

Mr. Wonderful
The Gospel and the blessings it gives me.
Over all I've been blessed with a happy, full life. Good friends, good work, AWESOME family... I've got it all.

day twenty-nine

2011-05-09T09:07:00.000-07:00

Something I never get tired of:

Bonus points to whoever knows who she is...

I've been singing as long as I can remember.

day twenty-eight

2011-05-08T09:02:00.000-07:00

My favorite movie? That's a loaded question. I worked at a movie theater from the summer I graduated High School until 2001, and then at Hollywood Video until 2006. So I've seen a lot of movies. Some good, some bad, some excellent. Whenever anyone asks me what my favorite movie is one of these titles pop into my head:

Mr. Holland's Opus. This movie has been my favorite for as long as I can remember. I was a band student and I'm lucky enough to have had my own Mr. Holland-this is probably why I love this movie so much.
BUT-if you haven't seen it. GO. WATCH IT. It is probably one of the most moving stories I've ever seen. Makes you wonder how many lives you've impacted just by being YOU.

Moulin Rouge. I wasn't too interested in it the first time I saw a trailer, but then I went to see it. Oh. My. Word.
The music, the colors, the story, the passion. Wow. I. love. this. movie. If you enjoy musical theater, a good love story, Baz Luhrmann (good rule of thumb-if you didn't like Romeo+Juliet or Strictly Ballroom you won't like this one), retoolings of favorite pop culture songs, and an evil maharajah this movie is for you. Plus you can't go wrong with Nicole Kidman and the Singing Jedi.

day twenty-seven

2011-05-07T14:00:00.000-07:00

Here is a picture from a year ago:

Most current headshot

How I've changed in the last year:

My hair was about four inches shorter--seriously contemplating cutting it that way again.
I've gained about 10lbs since then-BLAST!
I was at a job I 110% HATED-but now I'm not there. Yippee!!

day twenty-six

2011-05-06T08:05:00.000-07:00

I'm a simple girl. I don't need to travel to exotic locales to be happy. Aside from Disneyland Seattle is one of my most favorite places.
Lucky me I have a very good friend who lives there-I only wish I had the money to go up and visit more. Because it's that rad.

day twenty-five

2011-05-05T09:54:00.000-07:00

What's in my purse? Well I'll tell you. But first I have to show you my purse. Because it's AWESOME.
Mr. Wonderful gave it to me for my thirtieth birthday:

The contents of my purse are as follows:

My Alice in Wonderland wallet
keys
phone
lotion
hand sanitizer
lip gloss
ibuprofen
pen
iPod
sunglasses (and case)

day twenty four

2011-05-04T08:22:00.000-07:00

A picture of something that means a lot to me:

I know it said one. But I put two because it's my blog and I do what I want.

(semi) wordless wednesday

2011-05-04T08:00:00.000-07:00

day twenty-three

2011-05-03T10:00:00.000-07:00

The only thing this picture and this blog post have in common is
that they're both random.

Fifteen random facts about me? Huh. You know it’s funny; you can name quirky things about yourself UNTIL someone asks you to share them. Most of these are known, some are not, there’s quite a few Disneyland related ones, but here we go:

I didn’t ride on an airplane for the first time until March of 2002-I was 21, it was to Seattle to attend Fiancée #1’s father’s wedding, and since it was six months after 9/11 I was more than a little bit nervous about it.
I am such a Disneyland junkie I purchased an Annual Pass in 2009. I only went twice that year-but the perks and discounts it afforded me made it well worth it.
I know how to get around Disneyland better than I do our own local amusement park: Lagoon. People ask me for navigation tips before they go.
I have movies in my collection that have never been watched, let alone opened. (Like plastic wrapper opened-some still even have the tag on them...)
I have never had a tan in my life thanks to my 50% fair Dutch skin. I have two levels: burn and peel.
Thanks to my father I have a soft spot for classic, American muscle cars.
My mother is the reason I like the Beach Boys.
I wish I had more time (and space) to scrap book.
I have had one cavity in my 30 years.
Cooking for the people I love makes me happy.
When I was eight I won an essay contest and got to ride on the Channel 4 float for the 24^th of July parade. I ended up with heatstroke.
I always have some sort of music playing device with me, whether it’s my iPod or Pandora on my phone.
People watching in
New Orleans Square
with a mint julep and some beignets is one of my favorite things to do.
I always get a little misty when I walk under the bridge for the Disneyland Railroad and onto
Main Street
after a long time away.
Although I have lots of gadgets I have no idea how to use half of them. I have to rely on Mr. Wonderful and Superman Lover for help more often than not.

day twenty-two

2011-05-02T10:17:00.000-07:00

Write a letter to someone who’s hurt me? I’m not going to lie; I’ve been giving this day a lot of thought since I saw this little doo-dad. Since I’m not the kind to air grievances in a public forum I decided from day one that this letter would be to the person who hurts me the most: myself.

Dear Kristen:

You are a strong, loving, beautiful, talented, amazing woman, yet you are constantly selling yourself short. Whenever things don’t go the way you had hoped, worked towards, or planned, you immediately blame yourself. Why do you do this? Why is it so impossible for you to think that no one but you could be at fault?

It hurts me so much to see you sell yourself short and accept the mediocre instead of the EXTRODINARY- although I do need to commend you on Mr. Wonderful-he is the best decision you’ve made in a long time.

I wish you would believe the nice things people tell you-because they wouldn’t say them if they weren’t true.

I wish you would let yourself believe in your happy ending. I know you’ve been hurt, but by expecting the worst all the time you are missing out on so much.

For hell's sake will you quit being so stubborn all the time and just let people HELP YOU? You don't need to always do it on your own, and asking for help is not a sign of weakness. Please let Mr. Wonderful help you. He loves you and hates to watch you struggle because you are too proud to ask.

There is so much more I want to tell you, but in the effort to save time I won't. All I will say is you are stronger than you think you are, and you need to give yourself more credit. You have overcome so much and it has made you who you are now. You make your family and the people who love you proud. It’s ok to be proud of yourself too. You’re worth it.

Love,

Kristen

day twenty-one

2011-05-01T14:00:00.000-07:00

There are a lot of things that make me happy, but right now she's it:

Allie is so smart, loving, and beautiful. All at the ripe old age of 21 months. I am so proud to be her aunt!

day twenty

2011-04-30T14:00:00.000-07:00

They story behind my blog name is rather boring, actually. Although I like to think I'm creative, I'm not. When I decided to start blogging I had been reading through so many other people's blogs and wanted to follow suit. Blogs with their wittiness and clever alliterated names and I wanted to be like them. But all I could come up with was "Foxy and Fabulous" because, well my last name is Fox and I would like to think I lead a fabulous life...but in all honesty I'm not fabulous at all. It's all you wonderful peeps that make me feel fabulous...

she likes it...maybe

2011-04-29T10:43:00.000-07:00

So upon reading a Dizzy post from a friend this week I decided I would follow her example and give it a go.

I listened to NPR this morning on my way into work...and I actually ENJOYED it. For those who know me know that although I do my best to keep up with the news I claim no political affiliation whatsoever. Although I have been known to agree with both sides on occasion.

The main reason I don't listen is because I'm a music and pop-culture junkie. I realize it's good to know what's going on in the world, but honestly the state of the world is so depressing I have adopted an "ignorance is bliss" approach. Not to mention by being in the middle politically makes it hard to listen to a station that is known for being RADICALLY liberal-well any radically left or right station actually. That and the fact the NPR broadcasters have the most boring voices. EVER.

But I enjoyed this morning, so hopefully it will be something I can listen to during my commute. Plus I'm not gonna lie. I totally feel smarter just by saying I listened to NPR this morning...

day nineteen

2011-04-29T09:33:00.000-07:00

This is one of my favorite pictures of Mr. Wonderful and me. Shows how he REALLY feels about having his picture taken. :)

day eighteen

2011-04-28T09:17:00.000-07:00

Lately the thing I crave the most is:

Fountain, please. In dire straights I have been known to get it from the bottle though...

day seventeen

2011-04-27T08:47:00.000-07:00

This is Mia familia circa 2009. Allie is no longer an adorable newborn but an adorable toddler with a baby sister coming any day now...

day sixteen

2011-04-26T09:07:00.000-07:00

I have a trifecta of celebrity crushes that is as follows (in no particular order):

Bradley Cooper-there's a reason he played Face in A-Team

Ewan McGregor-It's the singing Jedi.
if you haven't seen Moulin Rouge go. NOW.
Thank me later.

Hugh Jackman-He's just dreamy. And I have a thing for men who are
capable of long-term commitment. Watch him with his wife.
You can tell he loves her more today than the day he married her.
Adorable.

Don't worry, Mr. Wonderful knows about these, fully condones them, and he will always be my #1.

Foxy and fabulous

receiving line comments: Spitfire

i am

a photo-a-day: week 1

moving by the numbers

a photo-a-day

angry birds **updated**

a desperate theatre zombie plea

say whatcha want, say whatcha will...

couch potato

things that must go

christmas soap box

kristen's kitchen:trainwreck omelette

burning the candle at both ends

attitude of gratitude: day 2

thankful: Sparky

i guess i didn't get the memo

make a joyful noise

the best is yet to come

wordless wednesday

it's a major award

i'd tap that

kristen's kitchen: roasted chicken

busy but beautiful

hallowthanksmas

wordless wednesday

mama mel's super easy rice pilaf and kristen's grilled brussel sprouts

did you know?

shout it from the rooftops

wordless wednesday

my favorite time of year

an entire decade

is it convenient for you now?

the masculine mr. wonderful

friday confession: hate

operation chicken bake failure

the Vander Linden curse

lame?

here we come a' caroling: part deux

Hairspray in Sandy

green-eyed monster

friday confession: crazy crush

everybody's a critic

big things are commin' my way

gorgeous

bad poetry: agency

here we come a' caroling

that girl

register or die

back-handed compliments

attention whore

what's in a name?

if ever i would leave you

strut your stuff

self help

what if...

ode to luna

just say "thank you"

mili vanilli ain't got nothin on me

what i learned buying a house-looking sucks

the mystery of the holy shirts

attitude of gratitude

top ten

captain crabby pants

why can't we be friends?

breakin up is hard to do

for the birds

my boys

big blonde and beautiful

excited and scared

happiness is

is your filter really THAT broken?

a rock and a hard place

the rapture. it's real

one day more

show friends

wordle thursday

day thirty!

day twenty-nine

day twenty-eight

angry birds updated