27 Days and Disney???

So, I've figured out how to fully prepare for Paris. From this moment on I am watching every Disney/Princess movie based in France or about Paris. I started off this spree by watching Anastasia with the roomies. Next up: Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, Cinderella, Hunchback of Notre Dame, Ratatouille, and any others we happen to come up with. Since I'm a child of the Disney era, I figure there is no better way to get ready. Right?

Speaking of Disney, last night ranks as one of the most awesome nights in my apartment. We had a massive Disney dance party. EPIC. You only wish you were there. The end.


Ps. I've always had a crush on Demetri, since I saw this movie when I was like, eight.


And I've always just loved this, possibly because Eric is also a stud.


Not gonna lie, this movie terrified me, but, to be fair I'll watch it too.


In this one it's not the prince I'm in love with. It's Gus-Gus.


Seriously, what's not to love?


And finally Beauty and the Beast, here I just want the library, not really the beast, 'cause he looks like a femi-boy.

28 Days and Counting

That's how long I have until I leave for Paris. Not that I'm excited or anything. Actually, after a few weeks of being a bum, I'm realizing that I have things that I have to start getting ready, and these next few weeks are going to be busier than I had previously expected. Not a bad thing, but I'm actually going to have to get out of bed in the morning and get things done (says the girl who got up at noon... oops...)
In the next 28 days I have piano music to learn (chord progressions and modulations, ugh) flute music to master, travel plans to finish (I'm trying to figure out what I actually want to see in France so that I can make good use of my time) and in my spare time I'm going to a music camp, playing in an opera, and being a councilor for BYU's Summerfest, oh and flute lessons to teach. Should be fun.
Now looking back, here are pictures from the last few weeks showing just how AWESOME this apartment is. All pictures swiped from Megan, THANKS!

This one is the ever lovely Tae on the Y, we hiked up one friday night and this was the best of the surviving photos.



We also love to cram onto the love sack, all of us at once. *grin*



And when in doubt, we eat.

Hello World...

So, I haven't blogged in roughly forever. Sorry. I've been busy/bored-out-of-my-mind/sick. None of those make particularly interesting posts and I figured I'd save everyone a few moments of their life and just ignore my blog. However, after two weeks of being home, I feel I might have a few things of interest.
I'm moved into a new apartment. Possibly my favorite. EVER. No, really. Apartment life in the evenings goes like this: the four of us return home from various activities. Someone begins making something DELICIOUS and we all eat shamelessly. This is generally followed by three things a)HOUSE *grin* b)absurd conversation and partying c) absurd conversation, partying and more HOUSE *bigger grin* Oh, and there is some YouTube and other assorted goodness mixed in for good measure. Other favorites of the last few weeks include toe nail painting, Y-mount hiking, and grilling hamburgers for Memorial day. Just wait, I'm working on epic pictures. These burgers were amazing. Certain apartment members who will remain nameless were willing to leave their not-so-significant others for these burgers. Also, we have unleashed the decorators with in, and I have to say, this apartments bathroom decorations are about as cool as it gets.
Did you know Beethoven's mother would get him out of bed in the morning by playing a scale and stopping on the seventh? (At least rumor says she did, if so, I know why he was so messed up. That's cruel and unusual.) Anyhow, that has always fascinated me. Musicians have a definite need to finish a musical phrase, and it really tends to bother us when something is left unresolved. With that preface I can now introduce you to my recent experiment. *grin* I noticed after living with my lovely roomie Megan for a few days that we have very similar song preferences. Then I began to wonder if I could get her to finish songs for me. So, at various time during the day I've taken to humming a single line of a song. With out fail, about a minute or so later she hums the next phrase. It's kind of AWESOME. (Oh, and I did let her in on what I have been doing, after a few days that is...)
Other random tidbits for you... in a month and two days I leave for PARIS, also stoked about that. Hmmm... oh, and I'm playing for the spring opera, it's an operetta by Mozart. Rehearsals start on Tuesday. That's about it. Sometime when I have access to my computer and pictures again I'll blog about China, but right now that's not much of an option.

Quick Update

So, I'll fix the pictures later. But, the first one is my sister with a bear at a reserve we went to... they just kept feeding him water melon and he let us pet him. Next, me with two adorable little monkeys... they were a riot! Third, the beautiful Chinese landscapes, fourth my sister and I rafting, and finally the whole familia, minus Dad.







Okay, I have a looooooooooooooooong time on the airplane tomorrow to write lots of long posts detailing the wonders of this trip. Prepare to be bombarded with AWESOME. However, I thought I'd quickly try and post a few highlights and pictures for ya'll.

Things I was not Expecting:
~ To get in a car crash in Shanghai. We're all okay, but it was a unique experience.
~ To get asked by ten different people to take pictures with them, all in one hour. (Being tall in China really does create something of a stir.)
~ To get FOUR, that's right, FOUR wedding proposals. And that last guy, he was persistent. Awkward.
~ To have an awesome mud fight with my mother... hehehe.
~ To hold two monkeys.
~ To pet a bear.

Favorite moments:
~ Seeing the Mountains of Yang Shuo, think of all those amazing Chinese prints with the funky looking mountains, that's where I was. (See above picture)
~ Rafting with my sister.
~ Mud Fighting
~ Mountain Climbing
~ Cool evening shows
~ Shopping
~ Seeing more of Chinese Culture
~ Traveling through remote(ish) Chinese villages.

Apparently you'll just have to wait.

So, I had this awesome blog written for you in which I was going to show you pictures of the Pearl Market and Walking Street but alas, China hates me. Or atleast the internet here does. I can't get the pictures to post. So, you'll have to wait 'till I am in the states. For now I'll suffice with telling you what I've done, and then you will be bombarded with pictures in less than a week. Fair?
Yesterday we visited a local orphanage, bought pearls, and went to Walking Street. I can give you more details if you so desire, but here's an overview. At the orphanage my mom, sister, two other ladies and I took about two hours to hold some little babies who just need a little more love. They were all so sweet, and it was fun to hold them. I spent most of my time holding a little blind baby and another one who has down syndrome. There was also a little girl about a year and a half old who hadn't been at the orphanage long who let me just hold her for quite some time. They were all so cute!
Later that afternoon we drove over to the pearl market and bought tons and tons of pearls. So fun! I got some stuff for myself, but the real winner was my aunt who sent a decent chunk of change. After buying pearls we went to Walking Street where there are tons of shops and booths. Morgan and I got skirts and I got a new shirt. Best of all I almost bought a skirt like one that I got yesterday, but we only payed a small fraction of the price. Lovely.

China Day 2: Thwarted

Today was our first attempt to make it to the pearl market. Sadly, it fell through. So, to prepare you for the AWESOME pictures tomorrow, I'll tell you a little about it. The Pearl market we go to is on the other side of the city my family lives in. It takes a while to get there, but it should provide some good pictures. Once we get there the fun really starts. The market is indoors and about the size of a basketball court, at least. There are hundreds of stands, each hosting a few Chinese ladies and a few bazillion strands of pearls. Not joking. We work with a lady who speaks a little English, making it easier to tell her what we want... miming gets old fast. When you get to the booth there are strands of pearls tied together in bunches of up to twenty strands. Each bunch is the same size and color, and there are a good twenty bunches of pearls on the top counter. You pick the size and color and choose your strand. The ones on top are the cheapest of each variety, so you can ask and they'll find more expensive ones. However, they're all cheap. The most expensive pearls cost a whopping $10, and they're really nice. So, after selecting a size color and particular strand the ladies standing there turn it into a necklace (I really want to get a video of this for you, because it's incredible to watch). The tie another sting to the strand of pearls and proceed to knot in between each bead as they re-thread them. This is no slow process, a 24 inch strand takes maybe five minutes, and that's if the lady is slow. Pearls are flying everywhere and suddenly there is a beautiful necklace. CRAZY!
Tomorrow if everything works out, I'll have pictures and I'll put them up for you. Other highlights from today include: going to the gym with my mommy, bowling with the whole familia, and eating sushi and beef soup for lunch.
Other thrilling moments, my 13 year old brother took me on the scooter through SuZhou and didn't kill me. Actually he's a fairly good driver, and the Chinese scooter people are less scary than the people on the rest of the roads.

Musings from over the Pacific

***completely unedited, so you may see what a travel wearied mind looks like… read at your own risk.
I bet you’ve never been blogged to from over ten thousand feet in the air. Feel free to add that to your list. The tv screens in front don’t work, otherwise I’d tell you exactly where we are and all the cool flight information. I guess you’ll have to do without. I think I shall outline the highlights of my trip using that “Roses and Thorns” game we always played at all the camps I went to in high school. I remember it particularly from the music camp I went to my junior year. All twelve of us in the cabin plus two councilors would say the best part of the day (our rose) and the worst part (our thorn). So, I’m going to tell you about a whole bouquet.

Rose: I managed to get out of bed. This is a bigger miracle than you think…
Thorn: It is a miracle because it was before 6am and I had went to bed the previous night at 2:30 am… you do the math.
Rose: I made it to the airport.
Thorn: They couldn’t find me anywhere. Note to anyone planning a long plane ride: try to minimize your stress by avoiding it early on… bring your confirmation number, because I nearly had a heart attack.
Rose: I had plenty of time even after freaking out at the check in desk. I had a lovely chat with Amber & Noelle.
Thorn: Chatted a little too long with Noelle and they had nowhere to put my carry-on luggage. I was then informed I would have to check it all the way to China.
Rose: Pleading and tears do work. ‘nuff said.
(I had lots of normal non airport food in my bag, no way on earth were they taking that from me. Hello, airplane food is D-I-S-G-U-S-T-I-N-G!)
Rose: Landed in Portland, had time to recharge my computer, chat on-line with my auntie, call two more friends, pee in a regular toilet etc.
Rose: The cool guy at the check-in counter looked at me and said, “I bet I can find a set with more leg room for you” GLORIOUS
Rose: I’ve been reading and eating string cheese for many hours now… this is the way to travel, and the plane is uber empty, so not only do I have a good seat, but no one is next to me, and I am stretched with my legs up on the seat across from me… this is the way to travel.
Rose: I finally saw Twilight. Pathetic, I know. Now I really can say that all the movies I see are on planes. ( I actually am harboring hope that in July they will show an edited version of the new HP movie so I can watch it, because airplanes can’t show R rated videos, so they have to edit it… and I’m still bitter that Rowling let them make an R rated HP movie. LAME!)
Thorn: So, remember how I have a problem with blood. Well, I almost got to add an airplane over the pacific as another place that I have passed out. You know that scene where her hand is cut, then blondie bites Bella, then she freaks out, and Edward has to save her. Well, it made me rather ill. I had to pause the movie and sit with my head between my knees. Basically, you all now want to invite me to parties. I know.
Side note: I actually had a rather mild response to the movie. It was neither as awful nor wonderful as I had been lead to expect. I think by having many many months to gage the reaction of everyone I was able to come in with a fairly balanced view. I liked how it wasn’t as ridiculous as the ads made it seem, but it still was rather cheesy. But cheesy isn’t a bad thing and I’m exhausted and easily amused right now… so this review could be moot.
Rose: I w as flipping through the songs on my zune and came across an old James Galway CD I haven’t listened to in forever… HE PLAYS WITH AN ELECTRIC GUITAR IN THE BACKGROUND. Only Galway. Only James Galway… *shakes head*
(Later somewhere between Japan and China)
Rose: Landed in Japan
Thorn: Swine flu… all these people in masks and covered in protective clothing came on board to check and make sure we were safe. It was really sci-fi. They had almost no skin showing, and this guy walked through with a infrared scanner. Then they pulled two people… I think those two got quarantined or something. Crazy!
Thorn: No highly coveted passport stamp. Tragic.
Rose: Boarded again and was finally able to sleep for the first time all trip.
Thorn: Said sleep lasted a whopping hour, and I awoke to the smell of airplane food (you know my sentiments). And it is currently 5am in Utah, so if I sound like an idiot, remember I have just effectively pulled an all-nighter.
Rose: TWO HOURS AND I GET TO SEE MY FAMILY!!! WOO HOO! Sooooooooooo excited. *excessive grinning*