Kung Fu You!

So, last night I went jealously to Kamas to watch my lady perform in her show Kung Phooey. She. Is. Fabulous. The show is a riot, and Sunny stands out from the crowd. She's animated, the audience can hear her (not the norm, trust me), and she exudes energy and enthusiasm. What a blast to watch.


It's always amazing to watch people with incredible talents get to share them. Sunny blew people away when she sang. I love to watch/hear her. It's thrilling. The whole night was a blast. I did a voiceover part on the down-low and made a few cast members chuckle.


The whole Kamas thing actually is amazing. One of the most exciting parts of doing a summer show at OBT. Kamas is gorgeous, the people are super friendly, and easily the most appreciative crowds they get all run. This crowd was crazy. The absolutely loved it. What a neat experience to watch people just die laughing.


We went back to the villas that Sunny, as usual, set up for the cast. I hung out for a bit but then had to jet back to the SLC for work this morning. I miss her. I miss her a lot. It's only a day, but still. All in all, it was a GREAT night and I'm so damn proud of my Sunny. Way to go love.

3 Little Monkeys

Today I had two of my adorable nephews and one adorable niece over for an all-day-playdate!  I can't resist posting some pics, just because of said adorableness.

The three of them and I spent the morning at my house, playing dress-up with my cowboy toys, watching superhero cartoons, doling out snacks and bottles, and making my dog really really jealous that my attention was not focused on him.  Around 1:00, Kori joined us and we all went on an adventure to Liberty Park.  Here are the highlights.

Our first attempt at fun was a complete failure.  Just so you don't make the same mistake we did, a word of advice: The ducks at Liberty Park pond are NOT interested in your bread.

Addison was a bit skeptical of the whole water idea, but Logan was positively overjoyed!  This may be my very favorite face he's ever made.

Turned out she had a blast if and only IF I was holding her hands.  Sign me up!

Kori and Logan are cute and I love them.

Goof.

All my favorite lovies in one pool!

Sleepy girl, spider-monkey boy, and happy auntie, ready for the trek home!

Ash always has some superhero adventure going on in his head, and playing out daring feats often caused him to lag behind.  On the way home, I turned around to call him to catch up and he was carrying... a tree.  He kept it up for about 5 blocks before I made him put it down. He got kinda mad at me... but he got over it when we got home, had treats, and watched Avengers and X-Men cartoons. 

Rusty's ER Excursion

First of all, I would like to sincerely thank everyone for their well-wishes, concern, thoughts, and kind words in Rusty's behalf.  Last night was quite an ordeal!  I will recount our ER adventure forthwith. And fair warning: I am a detail oriented girl so if you don't want the play-by-play, this is not the blog post for you.

Russell John Bringhurst Jr. loves his new bracelet!

Rusty was taking an afternoon nap. Around 7:00 PM I decided nap time was over and dinner time was imminent.  Rusty opened his eyes and tried to lift his head, when he was abruptly overcome by muscle spasms, profuse cold-sweats, and dizziness.  His hands clenched and collapsed on themselves like arthritic claws, and he went from dry to drenched within seconds.  He said he felt like his head was a thousand pounds, and could not lift it or move at all, aside from writhing from the pain.  I felt his skin and it was frighteningly cold.  He began to panic from this sudden onset of dread illness.  I left the room for a moment to google his symptoms, and rushed back in at the sound of violent retching.  He puked his guts out into the bedroom garbage can and stumbled his way to the bathroom, where the retch-fest and sweat escalated to vicious ferocity.  He was talking delirious nonsense and looked like death itself so I decided it was time for action. 

Waiting for treatment... Rusty was practically unresponsive and pretty darn green.

Rusty is a stubborn, stubborn beast and would freak out with every effort I made to dress and move him.  I finally had to get  forceful and demanded that he either find the strength to get up and help me move him or so help me I'd chuck him in the car on my own terms.  He swallowed his weenie man-pride and let me dress  and take him to the car, trusty garbage can in tow. 

St. Marks is the closest hospital to our house, but had I known what was in store for us there I would've taken Rusty ANYWHERE else.  I was seriously disgusted at how we were treated upon arrival.  Long waits and completely negligent, dismissive nursing staff marked our waiting room experience.  I had to put Rusty in a wheelchair and he could barely muster the cognitive function to answer questions.  They took his stats and his temperature was barely above 94 degrees.  He was drenched from sweat-- and I mean as soaked as if I'd sprayed him down with a firehose-- with a low temperature, and air conditioning blasting.  I pleaded for a blanket and the nurse acted as if I'd asked for her firstborn, ho-humming and saying "Well, pssshfftt, if I can find someone who can bring you one they can get it for you.  An hour later, with Rusty shuddering and convulsing from cold the entire time, me laying over him to try to give him some of my body heat,  we got called to the accounting desk to settle insurance.  I told the girl that we were getting really distressed and said "I get that there are wait times, I know how ERs work, but all we asked for was a blanket." So she said, "Well I can get you a blanket."  Thus our very first taste that anyone besides me gave a crap that Rusty was suffering.  By the way, he was also puking his guts out into a bucket. In the waiting room.  People were moving away from us, they were so uncomfortable. I even stepped away for a minute to break down in tears at the utter lack of consideration everyone was showing us. Yet the front desk nursing staff continued to turn a blind eye.  I asked the guy we checked in with what the estimated remaining wait time would be.  He was very irritated that I'd interrupted the moment he was sharing with his ham sandwich and didn't even make eye contact as he dismissed me with "We'll get to him when we get to him, go sit down."  Shameful!!!

Nurse Tiffini got the IV in one stab but underestimated the power of Rusty's mutant veins-- dark brown, chocolate syrupy blood gushed out as soon as she had it in.  Bwahaha, blooooood!

So Rusty had gotten sick at 7:00 PM.  We arrived at the Emergency Room at 8:00, were given the blanket I asked for at 8:35 by about 9:45, and were finally shown to a room a little after 10:00.  We waited another half hour to be seen by a doctor, and after that things started to clip along.  Our doctor was fantastic.  He didn't presume anything and was genuinely committed to not only making Rusty feel better, but also discovering the cause of his illness.  Now I should interject here that this is not the first time Rusty has had similar symptoms: On June 27, he awoke from a nap dizzy and puking.  We assumed it was from a migraine he'd had over the course of the day.  A few weeks before that, same thing-- we thought maybe food poisoning was the culprit.  This history led the doctor to his conclusion that Rusty has Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo, or little crystals in his ear that offset balance and sense of gravity, inciting extreme nausea and vomiting.  It's a frustrating disorder because episodes are frightening and unpredictable, and there is no cure available-- just management techniques.  

You should've seen how the Valium turned that frown right upside-down!  I don't think Rusty's ever felt better! 

Rusty was plugged into an IV, where fluids and quick doses of anti-nausea medication and Valium had him feeling better almost immediately. The doctor ordered a CT scan and blood screening.  Rusty was wheeled away by a kind angel who, after giving him his CT, brought TWO WARM blankets so that Rusty had his first real relief from chills all night.  The CT came back normal (phew!) but they found some disconcerting results from the blood work-- Rusty's white blood cell count was alarmingly high.  Normal levels fall between 5,000 - 10,000.  Rusty's were at about 24,000.  High white blood cell count is generally the result of 3 causes: Infection, high stress, or leukemia.  The doctor thought to rule out infection and leukemia, and hoped that vomiting for several hours had increased his stress level sufficiently to elevate the white blood cell count.  All the same, we were advised to follow up once normal stress levels were reattained.

See?  That's a Valium smile right there.  Getting ready for his brain-probe.

We were discharged shortly after midnight and got home around 12:30.  Rusty was feeling pretty invincible from all the happy-juice, but I venture he was a lot more wiped out than he thought, as he didn't stir from bed until after 1:00 PM today.  He's feeling much better and introducing food back into his war-ravaged stomach one step at a time.  He was given prescriptions that will manage future episodes at the onset.  All in all, no one likes to go to the hospital, but we were glad that we got such thorough treatment and a pretty solid diagnosis so we can effectively manage his vertigo.  I think moments like these are beneficial in that you are forced to examine your life, and Rusty has agreed to taking steps toward a healthier future.  

Rusty better.  Sunny tired... but also relieved that my man-cub is ok :)

We really want to thank all of you who have reached out to us.  Your support is immensely appreciated.  Salud, To Health!

I've been here since when?

I work at 6:00 a.m. That's in the morning for those not familiar with the a.m. system. Sitting here, waiting for the day to begin, and just jotting some notes down.

I have to tell Sunny how much I adore her more. I'm not sure she knows.

I have to show Sunny how much I adore her. I know she doesn't know.

Waking up at 5 is hard. Working 9 hours in a day is harder.

Working is stupid. Give me more monies please.

My dog has hilarious eyebrows. I'm jealous.

It's hard to memorize lines when you don't take your script anywhere.

I'm hungry.

7:35 a.m. Only 7 hours and 25 minutes to go. Wow...that's a lot of hours.

I miss Sunny. I wish she'd wake up so we could chats.

7:36 a.m. Sigh.

Thanks, America!

Have I mentioned that I love celebrations?  I love celebrations.  I love holidays.  I love playing.  I love family and friends and fireworks and festivities and fun.  So this week... I love the Fourth of July!

 

My Fourth of July celebrations started on Saturday the 2nd with some family favorites-- the Fun Run 5K and parade in Centerville!  Much of my family lives in Bountiful, which is what drew me back to Davis County.  I registered for the Centerville 5K at the last minute-- literally.  They were blowing the whistle for all the runners to gather while I was paying my $8 and frantically pinning my number to my shirt.  I ran with my brother Aron, my sister-in-law Amy, and her brother and sister.  7:00 AM is a hard commitment  when I have a show the previous night and abhor any hour earlier than 10:00 AM on a day off, but it is always well worth it.  I had an amazing time with my family-- and didn't even die during the run, even though I've been super lax on my fitness for far longer than I care to admit! I did miss Rusty though, he had rehearsal and was subsequently unable to cheer me on at the finish line.

I finished at 35:25.  Not my best time, the last mile sorta destroyed my life.

Amy finished 2 minutes ahead of me.  Next year's goal? BEAT AMY! Do you hear that Amy?! ...Ok, my goal is to at least keep up with her.

THE RUNNERS.  Yes, Ashton ran too-- in the kid's quarter mile.  Next year he's doing the full mile. Heck, he could probably beat all of us in the 5K.

After the run, it was parade time.  Now, county parades are generally underwhelming, I know.  And this one was no exception-- for the most part.  But there were a couple of stand-out moments that made it well worth the sun-in-your-eyes and never-ending gaps between floats.  First of all, I was with my family.  I love Aron and Amy's family. They aren't just relatives, they're FRIENDS.  And I don't know if I'm the standard in this sentiment, but I LOVE MY NIECES AND NEPHEWS.  Like, crazy love them. I could hang out with them all day, every day.  They bring me so much happiness and delight.  So Aron & Amy were sitting on lawn chairs, wrangling little Addy while I sat on the curb with Mashkins.  I had to explain to him the purpose of a few of the entries that went by (his attention was directly influenced by the throwing of candy) which brings me to highlight #2.  I was less than impressed by all the city council and law enforcement brigades when a procession arrived that bore war veterans in vintage Cadillacs.  In full uniform, soldiers of various office and service proceeded by-- their rank and military stats posted on the sides of their vehicles.  I leaned over to Ash as the first one passed and said, "These are soldiers.  They fight to protect our country," and was surprised to find that I was in tears by the time I got to the last word of my statement. As the procession continued I read the stats and looked into the faces of these veterans.  World War II. Vietnam. Korean War. Desert Storm. Combat tours. Radar operators. It hit me that our WWII vets are becoming an extinct generation, and that WWII will become a historical war, much like the Civil or Revolutionary wars, in my lifetime.  Rusty aptly suggested that my emotions were so close to the surface because of the time we'd spent over the past few months reflecting on WWII soldiers as he prepared for his role in The Hasty Heart. Whatever the case may be, I couldn't stop the tears of awe and gratitude until the last vet passed.  I am so grateful for those who have served or are currently serving our country and defend our freedom.  These proud yet humble men in uniform struck me to my soul.  I've watched Saving Private Ryan and Platoon; these men have seen the real thing. I can't imagine what that must be like and was absolutely emotionally moved by this monumental cavalcade in our little county parade. 

I guess I should also note that Mick was playing in the Millcreek Jazz Band, also featured in the parade.  He was very dashing with his trombone as they passed by, playing Chicago's "25 or 6 to 4."

Wish it wasn't so fuzzy... my camera is lame.  Mick's the one on the corner with the white shorts and trombone.

On Sunday we had dinner at Kori & Pat's house.  It wasn't really for the Fourth of July, but since I'm recapping the weekend I may as well include it.  We celebrated Mick's half-birthday.  I think he liked my present the best. 

Ok, I also gave him a gift card. But think of how much fun he'll have with his Pretty Ponies!

On Monday, the actual Fourth of July, Rusty and I got to finally spend an entire day together! After spending most of a super chill day at home, we ventured over to Aron & Amy's for a BBQ.

WE LOVE HAMBURGERS!!!!

After we got home, we walked over to our friend Jeff's house for what was left of his family fun BBQ and fireworks.  I have to say that Liberty Park fireworks were an epic fail.  We found good lawn spots for viewing as they began and I got the notion to get my camera to try out the "firework" setting.  I had barely glanced into my purse when the fireworks... ended.  That was it.  Everyone gathered up their lawn chairs and quilts with looks of bewilderment on their faces.  Lamesauceballs.  But it was still nice to hang out with friends for a bit.  Jeff played the role of "Lachie" opposite Rusty's "Yank" and the two have remained soul friends since the curtain came down.  We also saw Scott & Carynn, longtime friends of mine. Scott and I traveled through Thailand together and are currently performing in Kung Fooey at the Off Broadway Theater.  Good friends, good times.  

Rusty, me, Scott, Carynn.  Just a few folks having a great time. 

So we came, we watched, and in the end... we lit sparklers.  Happy Fourth of July, all!  And to work, thanks for the day off!

Art and Soul

Rusty and I absolutely adore the annual Salt Lake City Arts Festival.  In fact, we look forward to it all year long. This summer, we had the distinct privilege of admission on VIP passes, courtesy of my dear ol' brother-in-law, Patrick.   

Kori, Pat, and baby Logan met up at our house so that we could carpool, thereby avoiding unnecessary additional parking expeditions. Once on the festival grounds, our VIP passes granted us access to an exclusive patio, where we had an unlimited buffet of fajitas, desserts, and drinks.  We stayed there for a bit and chatted, casually watching the ballet exhibition taking place on the main stage just outside the patio.

A super drunk guy took this picture for us.  I feared for the safety of my camera, and count us lucky that we got off with just a thumb in the shot.

We began our exploration of the various visual arts exhibits.  Every year, I am absolutely floored by the creativity of individuals.  I always see art that prompts me to marvel at the imagination that goes into producing original creations.  It was really fun to be there with the Witmers!  Logan is so freaking adorable, it kills me!  He was getting sleepy, but being the Linus he is, can't settle down to nap without his blankie.  This is the resulting solution:

Kori, Pat, and Jedi Master Logiwan Kenobi

Rusty and I split off from the group for a bit to explore on our own.  Rusty had been eye-balling the waffle cone ice cream stand since we'd arrived and finally broke down to get his tasty treat.

Black raspberry waffle cone extraordinaire

After we reconvened and had seen all we needed to see, we ventured back to our house to chill for a while. Rusty and Patrick had a guitar jam session while Kori, Logan and I watched our favorite highlights from Tangled.  After a while, we joined the boys for some group music time. 

Witmer Family jam session

All in all, a wonderful evening out.  Rusty and I visited the Arts Festival last summer, under completely different circumstances, and we loved the juxtaposition of being there as a couple this year.  We were actually pretty pukey-- all snuggly and kissy and gross the whole time.  I loved it.  I have no problem with the fact that we've been together almost a year and we haven't lost that new-couple shine. 

Aaahhh, lovey bums

Fondue Pour Moi et Vous

I have learned over time that when www.citydeals.com posts coupons for The Melting Pot, you jump right on that offer!  They sell out soooo fast and otherwise The Melting Pot drains half of your life savings, stocks, bonds, and 401K if you don't play your cards right.  Thus it so happened, with my super-discounted gift card, that I took Rusty out for a fancy-pants dinner date.

Now, a night out for a lavish meal may not seem super adventurous, but this marked Rusty's very first fondue experience.  Let me tell you, he was NOT disappointed.  Rusty has been enthralled with the idea of fondue years back from when he saw an episode of That 70's Show in which fondue was served.  He thought it looked delicious and decadent, and dreamed of one day trying it out for himself. 

If you have never been to The Melting Pot, you are missing out.  I particularly love it because it's not just dinner-- it's an experience.  Through several courses of hands on dining, you have plenty of time to savor your food and your company.  We started out with the Wisconsin Trio Cheese fondue, which turned out to be pretty much the most delicious eating encounter I have ever had.  We were both scraping the sides of the pot long after all edible morsels were devoured.  Next we had dinner salads, followed by a meat entree, which included chicken, filet mignon, duck, pork, shrimp, sirloin, salmon, etc.  And then delicious desert, oooh la la. We chose the chocolate on special that night-- a dark chocolate with dulce de leche and coarse rock salt swirled in.  Sound weird?  Well it was INCREDIBLE.  Somehow we finished every single bite of every single course.    

We went from this...

...To this.  Mmmm, happy tummies :)

I have to say my favorite part of the night was just seeing how into the fondue thing Rusty got.  He could barely contain himself, he was in heaven.  I sure do love delicious food, and sharing it with someone is a great way to make amazing memories. 

Thanks again, Melting Pot!  Post more coupons soon please!