Seasons

I love California, don't get me wrong.

I have also discovered, since we moved into our house 5 years ago, that I love Utah. Let me clarify, before some of you die from a sudden lack of oxygen to the brain. I love Utah, the state. To get even more specific, I love Northern Utah. Why do I love it so? Two things: The mountains, and the seasonal change. There is something absolutely mystifying about watching a tree throughout the year.

In our backyard, we have this ornamental plum tree that turns the most amazing shade of pink in the springtime, just before the leaves start to grow. Its blossoms are so beautiful.

On the street where we live, there are several of these trees that bloom, reminding me of Anne of Green Gables - She's riding with Matthew on the way from the train station, and as they're going through "The Avenue," she says something like, "No, that's not a good name. I'm going to call this 'White Way to Light.'" That's what my street reminds me of. I tried getting a full picture, but there really is no way to come close to capturing the total beauty of the trees in bloom. All along the block there are pink and white blossoms. Last year, Rod planted three more of these ornamental plums in the front yard to help out with keeping the front yard a little more shaded and to add a little more privacy in the years to come. I look forward to these blossoms every year.

I can't be a polygamist...

So Rachel and I are in the car yesterday, and two polygamist women and a man walk in front of us. I was on the phone with Olivia when this happened, so there's some backup to what I'm about to say.

Let me preface this by saying that Rachel is the funniest damn kid on the planet. EVER.

So the polygamists walk in front of us, and I shout out, "Look! Polygamists!"

Rachel says, "What's a polygamist?"

I think, "Crap, what do I say??"

"Rach, polygamists are people who believe that it's ok to have more than one wife. That's against the law, and it's against God's law. Polygamists can go to prison. Heavenly Father will hold them accountable, too."

"That's gross, Mom. I don't want to be a polygamist."

"Me neither. I wouldn't want to share Daddy with anyone else."

"Well, I can't be a polygamist, Mom. That means I'd have to be gay!"

I know I've told the story to a handful of you who read this, so I apologize for repeating myself. I just can't help it. This is the funniest thing I have heard all week. Rachel gets her sense of humor from her father, that's for sure. Her one-liners are killer. For me, I think of the witty comeback and catty remarks three days after the fact.

Best. Episode. Ever

Holy cow!!!! I don't know how many of you watch Survivor. If you don't, you're missing the best season ever. And not only is this the best season ever, tonight's episode was the BEST. EPISODE. EVER! I have been rooting for Ozzy since day one 'cause he's my guy. I love Cirie, too. However, that girl has done a few things this season that have just made me so angry. But going back to tonight... that girl is puh-laying the GAME! That was the best tribal council ever. And just when I thought Eliza's eyes couldn't get any bigger (or buggier, for that matter)... I am so full of adrenaline right now from watching this episode. That should be good for a little more studying.

I'm a Lumberjack and that's ok.

Yesterday Rachel and I are playing baseball on the Wii. She's pitching, and I'm desperately trying to hit something. Out from nowhere, she says, "Keep chopping that tree down, Mom."

Record players

I remember having a tan and brown record player growing up. If I had a picture of it, I'd post it. I listened to as much music as I possibly could on that thing. Albums I remember having: Rachmaninoff Piano Concertos (He was on the cover), Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto #1, Supertramp - Breakfast in America, Alan Parsons Project - Eye in the Sky, The Neverending Story soundtrack, Elton John - Too Low for Zero, The Mission soundtrack, Bach Violin Concertos, and (at the time) my most favorite album was Watch Me Sing, Vol. 1, by Janeen Brady.

I remember looking at the cover of that album and pretending that I was the brown-haired girl in the center. I would flip the cover over and see times printed by the song titles and think, "Why are these here? Am I supposed to listen to each of these songs at the listed time? One of these is 1:52 and another is 1:53. How's that going to work?" Aah, the naivety.

EDIT: Every single one of those albums is still monumental to me. Many, many memories are correlated with the songs on those albums. Even to this day I can remember where all the skips and scratches were on those records.

Last paper

I just submitted my last paper for my English class... sort of. Technically it's just a rough draft, but when I write papers, there are no drafts but the final draft. I've always been like that. I've had to participate in bulletin discussions where I show my brainstorming process and how I build the contents of my papers. To be honest, I hate brainstorming. I remember in grade school taking a sheet of paper and having to draw the diagram with all the little circles stemming from the big one in the middle. I hated that. I also had to participate in a few "freewrite" sessions. That's another one that I hate doing. I do it because I have to, and usually just b.s. my way through it. I just don't write like that. I can't write what I'm thinking - my fingers just can't keep up that quickly. That and I make horrible typos.

I have had so much going on in my life lately. So, so much. I'm glad General Conference was this weekend. I had class Saturday morning, so I missed the first session. I didn't catch the Saturday afternoon session either because I was running around willy-nilly trying to get my house in order. I missed this morning because I was busy being a temporary Presbyterian. I did get to see all of this afternoon's session, which was absolutely wonderful. Jeffrey R. Holland's talk really, really spoke to me. He talked about the Bible and the Book of Mormon. I also enjoyed the talk given about participating in our communities. THAT is why I play the piano for my wonderful Presbyterian friends. I know there have been days where I've complained about having to go play, but I can honestly say that I'd miss it when I'm no longer needed. They are truly faithful people, and I love them.

I just had confirmation that yes, Rachel is my daughter. Not that I didn't think it before, especially with the opera incident, but this is just one more sign that she's MINE. Rod and Rachel went over to his brother's house this evening to visit, leaving me at home to finish my paper. As they walked in the door, Rachel heard a few bars of the Idina Menzel song I had playing in the background. I looked over through the kitchen window thingie and saw her standing there, arms outstretched, head back, eyes shut, mouthing the words, "I can't be afraid, it's my turn to be brave," right with the song. Latter-day Ruth, anyone?

Life as I know it

Holy cow. It's been almost a month and a half since midterms. My math professor FINALLY posted my grade!! Were it not what it was, I would have been slightly more irate. 98.8%. Not too shabby. I'm curious to know what the missed question was, but I figure if it took her this long to post the score, getting a copy of the test would take another year. Oh well. I'm hoping this class has caused the corroded math file in the back of my brain to open a little easier, making it so I can test out and skip the next two or three math classes needed to fufill my requirement. I hate math. I've never been good at it. EVER. I also know I share this sentiment with all of my sisters. Maybe my fake brother and sister, too.

Mendelssohn was kind to me today. I performed better than I thought I would have, considering that I wasn't able to have much prep time in the 15 minutes it took to drive from work to school. At the performance, there was a girl who played Malaguena. I love that piece. Unfortunately I can't listen to that song again without thinking of this girl. Her playing wasn't great, but it wasn't bad, either. What killed it for me (and for those of you who know how I play the piano) was the fact that after playing certain notes, she'd throw her hand almost straight up in the air. Flare? GAG ME! I HATE THAT! What also drove me to fits of giggles was the fact that she'd STAND UP. In the middle of the piece. She'd also scootch herself up and down the piano bench, which honestly wasn't that big to begin with. Oh, I wanted to stand up and tell her to stop! There also was a guy who played a Chopin piece I played as a high school senior. He butchered it. I wanted to cry. It's one of a very small number of Chopin pieces I tolerate. Oh, the humanity.

Speaking of humanity.... I accompanied a clarinetist yesterday up in Layton. It was his regional solo/ensemble performance. This kid is FAB. What totally sucked: I had to play a half-sized keyboard, plugged into an amp, set up in the middle of their gym. He still got a 1 and is going to state solo/ensemble, but I swear that if I have to play on a keyboard at the state level, I will say something to the people in charge and not just leave it to the music teacher. Totally, totally not cool for something like this.

As far as Rod goes, he got his custom plates the other day. The circle is complete. Unfortunately for Rachel, when she gets her plates later on in life, she won't be able to customize with the complete spelling of Dockstader. DOXTADR? Who's going to get that anyway? If Lara were here, she'd tell me Rachel's plate should be ENIGMA. Not for the group, either. :)