Eggstravaganza

I really love holidays.  Nearly all of them, actually.  I have favorites of course, but overall I welcome an excuse to celebrate.  It seems that holidays allow an extra opportunity to let your inner child come out to play, and everyone who knows me knows how much I love to play!  This week's adventure coincided with Easter so I thought it prudent that we should dye Easter eggs.  We invited our lovely pals the Armstrong's to join in the fun. 

After a somewhat disappointing dinner I made of linguine, meatballs, and asparagus, our coloring fun began. 

See how much fun we're having?!?

 

We decided to up the ante a bit by creating categories which we would vote on once the coloring was complete.  Rusty unanimously won BEST IN SHOW with his Teenage Mutant Ninja Egg.

Raphael's a cool but rude dude.

Mine were runners up in the same category, but I'm hesitant to take credit for what the Candy Apple coloring kit pretty much did for me. My camera blows, but I swear these look a bit cooler in real life... a bit.

Tie-die eggs to let my inner hippie shine

I didn't grab a snap, but my first egg won BEST IN EFFORT.  This was a category created to denote a valiant effort that just missed the mark.  I spent a lot of careful time drawing intricate patterns onto what was meant to turn into an awesome henna-paint style boho paisley sort of creation... and the result was really unfortunate.  Oh well.  

One of Clarissa's creations prompted us to create a new category on the fly.  The orange-ish monstrosity with the bloody spot on it won the honor of CRAPTASTIC. I think honorable mentions in the awesome categories are due for many of Eric and Clarissa's other creations though, don't you think?

Hooray for coloring!

After all was said and done, I was elated at the chance to finally get my picture taken with the Easter bunny!  Kia and Eric's baby Izzy played mascot for the event!

That's my Rusty... he's cute.  At least darling Izzy pulls focus :)

All in all, a very exciting adventure!  We actually lost complete track of time in our artistic endeavors and made Rusty late for his improv show that night... oops.  Next year I will research the heck out of how to hard boil eggs without having over half of them crack.  In the meantime, we will be eating a lot of egg salad and deviled eggs for the next week or two.  

What's a Mazza With You?

Okay, here's how bad I suck. I've been dating Sunny a while now, and I hadn't taken her on a date yet. We've hung out, had some foods, kissed a little before, but I haven't ever actually taken m'lady out for a good night. This all changed Wednesday, April 20th 2011.

I had been fretting about where to take said lady all day at work. At first I thought Ruth's Chris, but then I realized I didn't have the wealth of a small country, so I settled on Mazza.


Mazza is a Lebanese restaurant, with other middle-eastern flavors thrown in here and there, and it. Is. Amazing.
 This place reeks of cool and classy at the same time. While the decor was elegant and sleek, it's the food that sets this joint apart. Anyway, I just now realized I am doing a restaurant review. Back to the date. So I came home, and Sunny looked frakkin' amazing. This is one gorgeous girl folks. So we headed to Mazza, neither of us having eaten there (although I did have the hummus there once). We loved the joint and the 9th and 9th area, and were seated after a short wait.
 
We both got dinner specials which included an appetizer, entree, and a dessert. I went with the Lebanese salad and Sunny got a smelly rice, bean, and stuff combo. No thanks. We also got some hummus, and that stuff is magic. Literally, Sunny spoke 14 languages at the end of the meal. Lost it 2 hours later though. Shame. Anyway. For main courses, I went with a kebab sandwich, and yes it's EXACTLY what you think it is. Sunny got a pocket of bread stuffed with 2 lambs and their despair. It was delicious. Dessert was Back7ql32otadfkjelava squares....or however you spell it. Delicious.
 
After dinner, we went home, and immediately jumped into pajamas. Look, it's neat to look handsome and pretty for your girl/boy, but it was time for BSG and that's not a denim time. We watched, and subsequently had our frakkin' minds blown by the 3rd season premier and next 2 episodes. So say we all. Love it.
 
Anyway, it was an AMAZING night out with the lady, and promise not to tell Sunny, but I think I scored some points in the relationship bank. I've long cashed those in in the form of video game time, but it was nice all the same. Love my gal. Great date. Hungry now...

Be Still My (Hasty) Heart

My Rusty is an amazing actor.  

Rusty's journey of The Hasty Heart began over 15 years ago, but I will leave that story for him to blog about.  I joined him on the path last year, when he found out that Hale Centre Theatre was bringing back this production for their 2011 season.  Come along, friends. I will take you with us.  

Milestone 1:  The Cut

No World War II soldier would have a prayer of squeaking by with hair like Rusty's. The decision was painful, but clear. In January he went from this...

To this...

To this.

Step one complete.  Rusty showed he was in it to win it by parting with his beloved Sampson coif.  I have to admit, although I loved running my fingers through his long locks, I think he looks ever so handsome with boy hair. 

Milestone 2:  The Audition

I will leave any sentiments of the emotions and anxiety hanging on this audition for Rusty to document.  I will however, report that though we knew his heart was all the way in it, and that he was well qualified for the job, the casting process is a mystery I will never solve-- and Hale casting may very well be the biggest mystery of all.  Getting the callback was a triumph over hurdle number one.  After reading at callbacks, Rusty came home and said "I did well, but there's no way they'll cast me."  And the waiting game began. 

Milestone 3:  The Call

The next day, though he felt good about his audition and call-back, and said that no matter the outcome he did the best he could, anxious anticipation took hold.  Rusty blew up my phone and gchat at work with exclamations of elation when he got the call that sealed the deal!  He had not only been cast, he had gotten the role of Yank-- a role of a lifetime.  If I remember correctly, I left work that day because the excitement was too much for me to handle as well!  I can only imagine what this meant to Rusty. 

Milestone 4:  The Time

Rusty commenced rehearsals every weeknight and Saturday mornings for the next several weeks.  We spent a lot of our free time running lines.  I would read all the lines preceding his, with Rusty rolling his eyes at my rendition of the various accents.  I must say, this was some special one-on-one time that we got to share, and I treasure every second. Aside from that, it was an interesting progression-- I would get the snapshot view of all his dialog, but miss the context.  I made it a point to not read the entire script, so that the completed puzzle could be revealed to me when the show opened.  I was not disappointed. 

Milestone 5:  The Payoff

Opening night, Saturday April 16. Though opening night is what an actor anticipates throughout the entire rehearsal process, somehow it always seems to take you by surprise when it finally arrives.  Rusty had gotten me comp tickets for the following Thursday, and as far as he was aware, that would be my first time seeing it.  Silly Rusty... as if I'd dream of missing opening night!  

Clarissa (whose husband is also in the show, playing Tommy) and I conspired to surprise our men by showing up for their Hasty Heart debut.  As soon as Rusty was out the door, I giddily texted Clarissa: "Oh my gosh, I am sooo excited! Rusty has no idea we are coming, it will be the best surprise ever!"  ... And sent it to Rusty. 

He called several minutes later, during which time I was wondering why the heck Kia hadn't responded to my text, and said "Ooooh, babe!  You should really check who you're sending secrets to!"  I was devastated at blowing our awesome surprise. But I suppose it all turned out alright in the end. The show exceeded my every expectation, and I was absolutely blown away by everyone's performance. I may be biased, but I was particularly stunned by my Rusty. 

I'll wrap up this already-way-too-long post with some anecdotal snaps of opening night. 

"Yank" is recovering from malaria in an allied military hospital during WWII. So what better to send than a get well package?  

My care package included some gummi band-aids, a can of mosquito repellent to stave off further malaria infection, a candy bar that (according to the package) was used as a ration bar in WWI, Mike & Ikes with throwback packaging to the 1940s, Rusty's favorite lemon curd in the packaging from Yank's nemesis- the Scot, and some Georgia Peach soda as a tribute to Yank's home state. 

Clarissa and me with the men of the ward, Tommy the Englishman, Digger the Australian, and Kiwi from New Zealand. (Eric Armstrong, Jon Baty, and Adam Dietlein) 

Me and my handsome soldier!  So proud of my sweetheart!

-Sunny

Arizony

Me, Dad, Mick, Mom atop Camelback Mountain

Ahhhhh, how lovely to escape the cold, bleak winter doldrums for a week and get my sunshine on!  This year's family vacation took us to the desert locale of Phoenix, Arizona.  Utah winters have got to be the most frustrating phenomenon; we are well into April with no trace of spring in sight. Frequent snowstorms, temperatures in the 30s, overcast and inversion-laden skies... it's enough to drive a person to despair.  My psyche needed a week in the sun.  My plan was to take a week off, get my head on straight, and come back ready to take life by the horns.  I do believe I did just that.  

So. To commence recap:

We began the drive down Saturday morning, April 2.  Mom and Dad up front, Mick, Mick's friend, and me in back.  I was unaware that Mick's friend would be accompanying us, and was none too pleased about it to be honest.  It made for a strange group dynamic and a very uncomfortable ride.  And though my dad's Audi is a treat to look at and drive, I can verify that it was NOT designed for passenger journeys and has to be the most unpleasant road trip vehicle ever created.  I was also in the thick of a dread sickness so I'm sure that added to my grumbly disposition.  But we made excellent time and arrived at Marriott's Canyon Villas in Phoenix at about 3:00 pm.  

Although I rarely left my bed for the next couple of days, I maintain that I would rather be sick on vacation in Phoenix than be sick at work.  I made some very good friends throughout the week, and rarely left their side if I could help it.  These are my very good friends:

On Monday we hiked Camelback Mountain.  I was pretty weaksauce on the steep vertical climb due to aforementioned illness, but enjoyed the trail very much indeed all the same. After we all reached the summit, and Mom had several heart-attacks because Mick and I were monkeying around so close to the treacherous cliffs, Mom & Dad descended back the way we came and Mick, his friend, and I completed the trail by scaling down the other side.  The parentals picked us up on the other side, we ate delicious Chick-Fil-A on the way back, and then spent the rest of the afternoon swimming and for me, blowing my nose and sleeping. Sometimes at the same time. 

Rusty would've never survived the heights.  He hates 'em.

On Tuesday, joy of joys-- Amy, Ashton, & Addison joined us!  YIPPEEEEEE!!!!!!!  Oh man, it was so freaking awesome to play with my adorable niece and nephew and amazing sister-in-law for the next few days.  I wish they could've stayed the whole time, but I loved the time we got.  Loved it. 

Addison, Amy, Ashton. Crazy A's.

We make a pretty good team.

Ash's famous underwater tiger growl.

Before the A-Team flew away back to Utah, we tackled another hike, this time at Pinnacle Peak.  It was a little less rigorous, and I was starting to feel a bit more normal (although still drowning in snot), so we all enjoyed the climb and abundant Arizona flora and fauna. 

Pinnacle Peak was close to an old west town thing so we ventured over to explore.  It provided a great backdrop for Amy to snap some 1-year-old photos of Addison, after which we went for Mexican food at Carlos O'Brien's.  I don't know where I'd be without chili relleno.  Mmmmmmm.

Ash and I squeezed in a bit of swim time before Amy gathered up her family and flew away.  They left sunshine, hiking, and swimming and arrived in a snowstorm a couple hours later.  Weird.  And depressing.  

The next day we finally made it out to Old Scottsdale to peruse some galleries and gift shops.  Not much more to report.  It was good fun, but I was becoming increasingly aware of the proximity of our departure back to real life.  Cold, wet, snowy real life.  Sssssigh. 

We spent our last day in Phoenix doing... nothing really.  Good old rest and relaxation.  It was almost time to leave our vacation behind.  I was glad in some ways-- excited to see Rusty, glad to see Mick's friend go (sorry, I'm a horrible human, deal with it.) but also sad in many ways.  Life seems so heavy sometimes-- work and bills and bills and getting up early and bills and work and responsibility and bills.  I left with the hopes of clearing my head and regrouping so that I would return with renewed motivation.  I definitely gained some clarity while away and hope to retain it as I recommence real life.  Be a better employee, exercise more regularly, keep in better touch with my family so I don't just see them on vacation, become a budget tyrant and work toward our financial future and security, set the wheels in motion toward graduating from college.  It's sink or swim time and instead of feeling crushed under the weight of all these things, I honestly feel ready to face them head on!  It feels good.  

That's one of the many reasons I love vacation.  I find it to be a vital component of life, not a luxury or perk.  It is on vacation that I do my best soul searching and recharging.  That's probably a big part of why I continue to work in the vacation industry-- I honestly believe vacations to be integral and compulsory for mental health.  To all my dear readers, if you haven't taken time away from work to relax and enjoy life, DO IT.  I'll help you.  I work for a little known hospitality company so I've got the hook-ups you need.  Reconnect with your family and with yourself.  Don't put it off waiting for the perfect time to present itself-- you may find yourself waiting forever.  Memories aren't generally made at work.  Ahhhh, I am still basking in the glow of a week well spent.  To my family, thanks for the great times. To Rusty, thanks for not burning the place down while I was gone.  To real life, I am ready for you now. Bring it on.  

So long, Arizona.  I had fun and I can't wait til we see each other again. Hopefully I won't be so sick next time.

A Short One

So my lady is going out of town tomorrow night. For a week. I shall miss her indeed. Here are some of the things I will miss:

1. Her eyes. Both of them.
2. Her teeth. All of them.
3. Her laughing at my stupid jokes. All of them.
4. Her delicious food stuffs. Most of them.
5. Her.

Like I said in the title, a short one.

Season of Many Adventures & Our 1st Adventure: The Liberry

The Season of Many Adventures

Rusty and I like fun.  But, like many couples I assume, we sometimes fall into routine.  So we have devised A PLAN! A plan to keep the fun in relationfunship!  Wait... is that not how...?  Nevermind.  At any rate, we are going to embark on a journey of adventures.  The rules are simple. And they're more just guidelines, really.  

1.  We must get out of the house. 
2.   We must do something we wouldn't normally do. And if we do something we normally do, we have to put  some sort of spin on it to make it not so normal.
3.   It doesn't have to be elaborate or expensive.
4.   We must take pictures.
5.   We have to plan it as an adventure.  We can't say, go to a party and then just count it. 
6.   We will each take turns planning and go on as many adventures as we can muster to prevent us from becoming one of those boring couples.
7.   We must have delightful, cheery attitudes about whatever the other person has planned. (Ahem, Rusty.)

So away we go!  A note to other friends, couples, whoevers: We are totally open to sharing adventures so if you are interested in having one with us, see above rules (guidelines), come along, and enjoy the ride!!

Our 1st Adventure: The Liberry

Salt Lake City Library of Awesomeness

Today I took my Rustykins on an adventure to the Salt Lake City Liberry. For any of you who are not familiar with this incredible establishment, you are Lamesauce McGee!  This place is so full of adventures, we could probably fill our whole season with it. 

Our destination: Children's section

Our mission: To each find a book that had personal meaning and read it to the other!

An illustrator I find amusing is Gris Grimly.  I selected a book written by Neil Gaiman called The Dangerous Alphabet.  I guess the emo side of me gets a thrill out of this guy because he draws the most creepy, twisted illustrations.  I've always had a weird fascination with books that stray a little to the weird side. The preface of The Dangerous Alphabet reads:

The Dangerous Alphabet is a tale of  piracy, danger,

and heroism told in twenty-six alphabetical lines-- although

 the alphabet is NOT to be relied on here.

The preface speaks truth, as V and W are in the wrong order, and many of the letters don't even stand for what the say they do. For example, "C is the way that we find and we look." Here's a picture of me not even reading the right book.  (But it is another Gris Grimly sinister selection, Boris and Bella.)

Rusty loves I Spy books.  Like, loves them so much, he'd probably marry them if he could.  One of the co-authors, Walter Wick, has a spin off series called Can You See What I See? It is a wealth of search-and-find goodness.  We spent the greater part of our liberry time looking for skulls in clouds or thimbles in tiny village scenes.  I guess we had an unformulated theme here because we set our spying sights on Walter Wick's On a Scary Scary Night.  I was really impressed with Rusty's selection, we could've spent many more hours working on each page, and what cooler way to spend time together?  We got so excited when one or the other found a particularly well hidden broom, or upon discovering that "find 3 bats" meant 2 animal bats and 1 baseball bat.  Pure awesome.  I think I shall make it a point to collect this series for... eh, probably just to entertain the nieces and nephews, let's be honest here.

 

All in all, adventure #1 was a great success!  We had a grand old time at the library, and I highly recommend taking your kiddos or selves to enjoy the many wonders of the Children's Section-- books, it turns out, are just the beginning.  Rusty remarked as we left that it was too bad the parking meter had run out, he would've  loved to stay and wile away the rest of the afternoon. And I quite agreed. 

Old Time Fun

Okay, so Sunny suggested that I write a blog about Old Time Radio. So I am. Here goes. When I was about 10, my Dad introduced me to the wonderful world of old radio programs. Comedies, mysteries, and adventure stories all produced in the 30's, 40's, and 50's. The very first one I listened to was a Jack Benny episode where he cut holes in his toupee so he could go to a Halloween party as the wolf-man. It's funnier than it sounds.

It was then I began my infatuation with the art of Radio Theatre. This stuff is amazing folks. The stories that are told, the techniques they use, the acting, sounds, and production quality is astounding. I have never been so terrified as I was listening to "On a Country Road" starring Cary Grant. I have never laughed so hard as I did whenever Throckmorton P. Gildersleeve would get frustrated with his nephew Leroy. These stories are magic. I want to name a few of my favorites, and maybe give a background on them. One of my favorite programs is called "Suspense". It was produced by CBS Radio, and aired every week for about 20 years. That's a hell of a run. The stories were usually original mysteries, dealing with murder, intrigue, and occasionally the supernatural. "On a Country Road" was a Suspense episode, and it was so popular it was aired about 4-5 times throughout Suspense's run, each time with different actors. I'm partial to the Grant version myself.

Sunny and I have listened to a couple dozen of Suspense episodes, and she digs folks. It's hard not to. One is transported to another world, and another time really. We always discuss the episodes the next day, as we usually listen right before bed time. The fact that she is into them as much as she is really means a lot to me, as these old radio programs are a significant part of my life.

One of our favorites is a Morse Adventure serial called "The City of the Dead". This 10 part series takes place in a graveyard over the course of about 3-4 days. Murder, bodies, graves, ghouls, and treasure all await the listener. To this day, being 31, I STILL get terrified at the sound of the ghoulish antagonist Clawfoot's wailing moan. I remember being about 13 when Dad brought this particular program home, and we laid on his bed listening to the first 2 episodes. He fell asleep. I was enthralled. I took the rest of the tapes downstairs, and listened to the whole series with my sister Candice. It was epic. Truly, one of my favorites of all time, in any media format.

Lastly, a nod to "The Great Gildersleeve". This program is a comedy about a man who takes in his nephew and niece when their mother dies. Think the Bernie Mac show. Gildersleeve was played to perfection by Harold Parry until 1950, when Willard Waterman took over. This show is probably my family's favorite. We have all listened to more Gildersleeves then you've had hot dinners. Really good quality comedy in these shows. They're a bit dated for today's audiences, but honestly, if you suspend your too-cool-for-school attitude, you will get a good belly laugh out of almost every episode. So those are a few of my favorites.

If you want to check any of these out, go to http://www.archive.org/ and search for OTR. You'll find lots to listen to. These programs are dear to my heart, and listening to them in my adulthood, they haven't lost any of their appeal. In fact, with the crap that's on TV today, it's actually more appealing to listen to GOOD, SCRIPTED entertainment, instead of watching a fatty try to be less fatty than the fattest fatty. That is all. End transmission.

Harold Parry as the Great Gildersleeve