Stop Vandalizing!

So Janalee, my partner in crime, is also my accomplice in vandalism! Saturday night we were bored and trying to figure out what to do with our evening. We were going to watch a movie, but seriously, we always do that. So Janalee lighted upon a brilliant idea! She had the mother of all sidewalk chalk collections under her bed! But it was dark, so we had to stay within the glow of our own porch light, but we decorated our step for Halloween!

But while we were out I heard someone say "Stop vandalizing!" and I turned and saw a guy riding toward us on a bike. I thought it was probably one of the guys that lives in the apartment below ours just joking with us, but then he rode right up to us and guess what! He was a cop! I wasn't entirely sure what to say and Janalee seemed utterly speechless, although her dad is a cop and should have more experience than I do, right? So I said "we really do live in this apartment," and I was about to point out that it was just sidewalk chalk, but before I could he had me in facedown on the ground and wearing handcuffs!

Ok, just kidding.

Really, he was just chuckled after I said it was our apartment and said "Nah, just kidding. I'm just out to disuade the bad guys and startle the innocent." (Or something to that effect.) It was pretty funny, though.


Me and our Halloween art


And Janalee

After Janalee and I had finished our artistic masterpiece, we came inside and I stuffed thirteen pieces of bubblegum into my mouth at once. It was great until I started gagging. Actually, it wasn't great at all. I don't even like bubblegum. So why did I do this, you ask? Well, quite frankly, I don't know... but I got a great picture out of it!

Wonder of Wonder "Musical of Musicals (The Musical!)"

I was just thinking about how boring my life really is. I mean, things happen, of course, but nothing of interest to anyone but myself. Like getting hit by a truck, or my car breaking down in Provo last week, leaving me stranded at my grandma's house. Believe me I have all sorts of interesting things going on in my head, but I just don't know how to put them in words. That said, here's the old college try anyhow:

Last night I went to a musical entitled "Musical of Musicals (The Musical!)." It was a highly enjoyable performance, filled with parody, excellent facial expressions, wit, and lots of laughter. The production took place in SUU's blackbox theater, a small area with a small audience; for instance: I sat on the back row, a.k.a. the fourth row. Because of the setting, everyone is able to see the actors (all six of them) very well and feel involved with the production, rather than just be a spectator. The show comprised of five short sections, all telling the same story of a girl who can't pay her rent, her boyfriend who pays it at the end, a conniving landlord, an advice-giving woman, and two chorus members who play various parts in each section. The music is from a lone pianist, who also serves as a narrator, with parts such as "Abby makes her forty-second grand entrance! The audience applauds out of habit," to which we, the audience, respond with habitual-like clapping.

Each of the sections was based on the different styles of popular musical composers. The first act, simply entitled "Corn!," was based on the musicals of Rodgers & Hammerstein. Of course it starts out with Big Willy riding in on his horse singing "Oh what beautiful beautiful beautiful beautiful beautiful (*Inhale!*) beautiful beautiful beautiful beautiful (*BREATHE!*) beautiful beautiful beautiful (*GASP!*) beautiful beautiful CORN!" He runs into June, his love, and they sing "I Don't Love You" until interrupted by Jidder, the landlord with a lease that says if June doesn't pay her rent she had to marry him. After Jidder and Big Willy leave, June gets some advice from Mother Abby in the form of a song that sounds suspiciously like a spoof-medley from The Sound of Music (something about "ford every stream"). Exit Abby, and June falls asleep and has a "highly-symbolic dream-ballet" until Jidder wakes her up and carries her off to be wed. Big Willy debates, in song of course, whether to save her and settle down with his beloved corn (oh, and his girl) or to go off and see the world. Unfortunately, when he finally decides to save his girl and pay the rent for her, she is already married to the villain. Fortunately, Mother Abby realizes that the marriage certificate says 5 o'clock, but Kansas has just adopted Daylight Savings Time, so at 4:10, they are not yet married. Big Willy is to marry June afterall, but Jidder comes out with knife! But he trips and falls on his own blade and the story ends happily with "D-A-Y-L-I-G-H-T-S-A-V-I-N-G-S-T-I-M-E Day! OK!"

The other four parts are respectively based on the musicals of Stephen Sondheim (five scary tenants of an apartment complex called "the Woods" with an unappreciated artist/serial killer landlord, and
"Roses are red
Violets are blue
Some lyrics rhyme
Some don't"),
Jerry Herman (Abigail von Schtarr: "I can't sing or dance, but I'm the star of the show!" with numerous costume changes, and a background semi-plot of Mr. Jitters: "you must pay the rent" Junie Faye: "but I can't pay the rent" boyish William in short pants:"I will pay the rent" and a cross-dressing villain in red heels),
Andrew Lloyd Webber (a through-sung rock opera about a washed-up diva who feels that she is above rent-paying, a phantom landlord who is actually a cat-of-many-colors, and some harsh digs about over-the-top, stealing from Puccini, and a recurring piece "I've heard this song before!"),
and Kander & Ebb (set in a 1930s Cabernet-- scarily gay, prostitution, jail, lots of foreign languages, and Fosse-like slinking).

It was awesome. I know some people didn't get it, (like the old couple sitting next to me who laughed only during the "Corn!" part, or 95% of the theatre who didn't laugh at all during the Sondheim section, which, in my opinion, was probably the funniest), but truly magnificent writing: both lyrics and the almost-but-not-quite-the-same music.

Yay I Have a New Follower!

As stated in the title I have a new follower! That brings the grand total up to...drumroll, please...two! Thank you, Amy. (But Lindsey also says she reads it, so...awesome! 3-ish!)

That is all.

Oh wait! P.S. My week is feeling better now. I don't know why, but I'm happy again! I hate being unhappy or angry or downright depressed, which I really was earlier this week, but not so anymore!

Oh, and Matt Nickerson beat me over the head today--with a paper, but still, he's my professor ;) Good times.

Oh, and The Office is on tonight. Good.

Anger, Trucks, another Mr. Darcy Incident, Elder Ahern, Worry, and Spiked Drinks

I'm so angry! I just got two letters from Kelly. Usually, this is cause for much rejoicing, jumping around, squealing, and a week of smiles...well it started out that way, until I read the first page of the first letter. Over the summer he had a companion who apparently had been sneaking out at night to be with a girl they were teaching by day. And to quote Kelly, "they weren't reading scriptures, if you know what I mean. And I'm pretty sure they weren't praying, either."

Yes, well, this caused all sorts of problems for Kelly when the truth came out. His companion confessed and went home, the area was angry with the missionaries, and Kelly was still in the area. Well, at the last interview with the President, he informed Kelly of the reason why he didn't wake up when his companion was sneaking out. The elder had been putting something in Kelly's drink before they went to bed.

What was he using!? Was it just sleeping medication? What kind of stuff do they have down there in Uruguay? What if it was just something off the street? What if he had overdosed Kelly and then left him alone while he was off satisfying his sex drive? It was so dumb and so dangerous! (Man, that's the understatement of the millenium) Poor Kelly! Kel mentioned in his letter he was pretty tired during that transfer, but he still managed to get up at 6:30 every morning like a good missionary. That bastard is damn lucky nothing happened to Kelly.

That guy is also pretty lucky he resides in Paraguay and not anywhere near here, because I'd be beating the crap out of him instead of venting here. It's one thing to go off and bang a girl. It's different matter to mess up reputations of all the hard-working missionaries in Uruguay, but the shit really hits the fan when you have to drug someone to accomplish all this. I'm so so so so FURIOUS MAD ANGRY DESPERATELY-NEEDING-TO-KICK-THE-CRAP-OUT-OF-SOMETHING HURT WORRIED UPSET LIVID IRATE ENRAGED I've run out of words. I need a thesaurus.

And then yesterday I was driving to Walmart for milk when suddenly there was a big white truck plowing into my door. It was not just a truck; it was a BIG truck--like semi-truck-sized. When I was sitting in my car, the headlights were above my head. I thought I was done for. I watched it hit my side mirror, slammed on my brakes, I think I screamed, and I moved to swerve, but I had no where to go because there was another semi and a pickup truck with a camper parked on the side of the road. I don't know how I didn't swerve into them, but miraculously I didn't. All this happened simultaneously and I also heard the most terrifically loud crash. I thought I was going to be dead, because it was the drivers side, and it pretty much T-boned me. But then suddenly it was in front of me and pulling off on the side of the road and I had pulled over and I sat in my car hyperventilating for a few minutes. with tears running down my face. I watched the man climb out of his truck and come jogging back towards me and it was as I was gazing out my window in shock that I suddenly realized my side mirror was still there on my car. I don't know how because I watched the truck hit it. I finally forced myself to get out of the car. There was a nice-sized dent and some scratches, but nothing visibly serious! How!? I have no idea. Angels, I suppose. The guy had pulled out of a parking lot into the road (and my car.) He didn't see me soon enough because the sun was in his eyes, but when he did he slammed on his breaks and swerved, so it all ended up being alright. I got his insurance information and stuff and called my dad and then today I went and had my car looked at, because I wasn't sure if it did anything around the tire, like bent the axle or something, but apparently it didn't. The mirror is damaged, though, but not crunched like it should have been. All in all, it caused close to $700 in damage to my little Mr. Darcy car.

All I can say is it's been an interesting past few days. Please stop being interesting now. I like my boring life. If something different happens, I just hope it has something to do with finding a good job.

Pertaining to Zion, Mr. Darcy, a Weekend with the Crouches, and the long stretch of I-15

Dear all my faithful readers, who, for all I know is still only Becky (thanks for following my blog, Becky, you make me feel better about myself because at least I have ONE follower.) I haven't written in more than a week, for I have had a lot on my plate.

Last weekend my dad and brother came down to go canyoneering in Zion National Park, but when we got there, there was a flash flood warning, so we hiked Angels Landing instead. Still beautiful, but a lot less gear and no hitchhiking required.

This is me at the top September 27, 2008



My dad at the top



Part of the hike

So after my exciting weekend with Kevin and Dad, I had to go back to classes for midterms and all sorts of stuff, but then I went home on Wednesday evening and spent the whole weekend with my family! They are awesome. We celebrated my little sister's birthday and Kevin came down from Logan so the whole family was there! It was great. Except my cat got in a fight which resulted in an abscess above his eye, so he looked like he was winking all the time. Arg, pirate cat! Or maybe he just learned it from Sarah Palin...



Then I had to make the 5 hour drive back to school last night...but my car (the Mr. Darcy) was struggling, so I had to keep stopping and letting it rest and driving pretty slow when I was on the road. On the hills I had to drive with my 4-ways on. But I made it! And it only took 6 1/2 hours. Yeah. It was late when I dragged my tired self through the door. But I made it to my classes today, that is the important thing, right? Now, I just have a couple of papers to write, and a ballroom dance to perfect.