I'm grateful for . . .

Wednesday lunches with Jenny. Long car rides with Megan. Seeing plays again (I always pick more up the second time). Seeing really well from the cheap seats. Nate laughing out loud at Psych. Nate talking me out of being out-of-my-mind stressed. Child leashes that masquerade as little backpacks. Lessons from a milk jug (see Ensign July 2008). Sharing the bounty of my garden, like supersweet and crunchy grape tomatoes. Others sharing with me, like fresh lettuce and zucchini. Colored pencils (that won't melt in the car). Relatives that let us crash with them when we travel! Tortoises eating right out of Ryan's hand. Cruise control. Singing songs from Newsies at the top of my lungs. Waking Ned Devine. Taking vacations with Nate and the kids, even if we don't get to spend the whole time with Daddy.

Tag

My friend Rachel tagged me, so if you want to play too, post your answers on your blog or as a comment to this one.

Two names you go by:
1. Mommy
2. Marie

Two things you're wearing right now:
1. A T-shirt with a pic of Shakespeare composed with the name of his plays
2. A cute new hat from the Shakespeare festival (it looks like the hats the Russian peasants wore in Fiddler on the Roof) with new metal buttons to replace the mother-of-pearl ones that the kids broke

Two things you want very badly at the moment:
1. To get over my cold
2. A nap :D

Two people who will fill this out:
1. Nate
2. Megan

Two things you did last night:
1. Watched Cyrano de Bergerac with Nate, Mike, and Megan in Cedar City
2. Discussed Taming of the Shrew, which we saw as a matinee

Two things you ate yesterday:
1. A pub salad from the Pastry Pub, made of lettuce, avocado, tomatoes, cucumber, muenster and cheddar cheese, carrots, sprouts, turkey, and balsamic vinaigrette
2.Humbug drops (buttermints)

The last two people you talked to:
1. Nate
2. Ryan

Two things you did or are doing today:
1. Went swimming in the hotel pool
2. Picked grape tomatoes from my garden to put in a salad

Two longest car rides:
1. Provo, UT, to Juneau, AK
2. Provo, UT, to Washington, DC

Two favorite beverages:
1. Fresh squeezed lemonade with fruit (I really like it with raspberries or blueberries)
2. Ice cold water with slices of lemon/lime

Color of the Sea

I started reading Color of the Sea by John Hamamura because I found a reading list about Japanese American internment during World War II and decided to read through it to see which were really worth reading. (This is one of my dad's big interests; he even designed a class that teaches around this.)

Anyway, the first book on the list wasn't very good, so I wasn't expecting much out of this one. However, I loved this book. It tells the story of Sam, born in Hawaii, raised in Japan, educated in the U.S., his early samurai training, his falling in love with a beautiful "samurai woman," and how World War II affects both them and those they love.

The story itself is compelling; it wasn't predictable, it was human, and you care about the people. Even better, though, is how the story is written. Hamamura conveys the beauty of the Japanese culture using vivid poetry and imagery. (It is so vivid that I often found myself dreaming in poetry on the nights I read the book.)

Unfortunately, I do not have his command of language to praise him highly enough, but if you are interested in this time period, I highly recommend this book.

Memory Lane

My friend Rachel started this on her blog, and I thought it was a great idea! And it would be really fun if everyone participates! So here are the ground rules:

1. As a comment to this post, write a memory that you and I have together. It doesn't matter how well you know me. It can be a big or little memory, good or bad, just be nice about it.

2. Put a memory lane on your blog for me to comment on. Or if you don't want to post it on your blog or don't have a blog, I'll leave a memory of you in my comments.

I think this will be really fun! So go to it, my friends!

Random Acts of Kindness

A special thanks to the woman (Sharon?) who helped me out yesterday. I biked to Costco to pick up some diapers and a few other things . . . I had loaded the kids and groceries into the trailer when I discovered that the back wheel had completely separated from the frame. I tried to figure out what to do, but Sofia was screaming and I was at a complete loss. Originally, I planned to walk home with the kids to pick up the car and then come back for the groceries, which an employee was going to put in a cooler for me.

Sharon asked what she could do. I asked to borrow her phone to call Nate and tell him that I'd be really late for lunch. After she heard my plan, she offered to drive the kids, the groceries, and me home. We loaded everything up and were home very quickly. I left all my money in her van, so she came back and returned that too. It took so much stress off, especially since Sofia was ready for a nap and had just had it. I only hope that if I am in a similar situation that I can have the presence of mind to help someone else in just the way that they need it.

And a special thanks to Warren for then fixing my bike. I told him my adventure and without hesitation, he offered to go over to Costco with me, assessed the situation, and quickly fixed it. I don't know what I'd do without you!! (And Nate, I know you would have fixed it when you got home, but this way it was completely fixed before you got home, so I could make dinner and the family could eat before Webelos. :D)

I'm grateful for . . .

Cuddling with the kids in the morning. Grandad playing with Ryan. Naps (either for them or me). Warren coming to Cedar City. Attending the Utah Shakespearean Festival for 16 years. A husband who loves to watch plays with me. Child care! My first project all year. Opportunities to travel. Living in such a beautiful and varied place. The opportunity to get such a great education and to pursue the career I want to. The many freedoms I enjoy and those who have served the country in numerous ways to ensure that they remain. Water fights. An active imagination. Ryan loving to read. Spending time at Thanksgiving Point as a family. A husband who is positive and optimistic and tries to do the right thing.

The Utah Shakespearean Festival!

One of the highlights of my year has come and gone again, and I must say I had a wonderful time. Six plays in three days and both kids in child care. :D I love the women there; they still remembered Ryan 9 months after the last time we were there. He woke up every morning really excited to go back. Sofia, on the other hand, did not deal with it well; we haven't moved past the separation anxiety phase yet, but to the child care center's credit, they made it very easy to leave her. (But then, so did getting to see the plays!)

Megan, I know you've been waiting for the reviews. Here they are in the order of my preference from least liked to best.

The School for Wives: The basic story is a man, Arnolphe, who has had numerous affairs decides that for his own wife he needs an absolute innocent so she can never be false to him. The girl he had raised in a convent, Agnes, is released to get ready for the wedding day, but while he's away, Agnes is seduced by young Horace and they fall in love. Horace confides his plans in Arnolphe because he is a friend of Horace's father, so Arnolphe thinks he is keeping one step ahead of the couple. The festival does plays so well, and this one has excellent actors, costumes, and direction. The problem is that they weren't given much to work with. Moliere, the French Shakespeare, wrote it, and it is funny in places. However, most of the laughs came from dumb shows in between scenes and the notary's amusing costume.

Cyrano de Bergerac: The classic love story about the triangle amidst the man who thinks himself ugly but who has a tremendous soul, the beautiful Christian who is not so bright, and the radiant Roxane. Cyrano, the great poet, is madly in love with Roxane who is madly in love with Christian. Cyrano writes love letters for Christian and eventually wins Roxane's heart, but Christian is killed before he can tell Roxane the truth. He keeps the secret for 15 more years until minutes before his death. It should tell you how much I liked the other plays that this is ranked 5 of 6. This was the play I was most looking forward to because Cyrano and Roxane are performed by a husband and wife team who actually met on the Cedar City stage and it was directed by another favorite actor. However, there were slow moments, and I found the play itself frustrating. Megan, you'd love this play, but I found the unrequited love depressing! However, the poetry of Romanticized love and the main performances themselves were beautiful.

Two Gentlemen of Verona: Two friends, Proteus and Valentine, graduate from high school and go out into the world to seek their fortunes. Valentine falls in love with the duke's daughter, Sylvia. Proteus, leaving his love Julia at home, goes to court and falls in love with Sylvia himself. He gets Valentine banished and then sets about wooing Sylvia himself, while Julia dresses as a boy and becomes Proteus' page. As with all the comedies, everything ends well though abruptly. This was by far Austen's favorite play because they have a live dog in it! This is not one of Shakespeare's most popular plays, but this was by far the most memorable performance I've seen of it, full of great bits and a couple of beautiful comic pieces by Brian Vaughn.

Fiddler on the Roof: This is the classic musical about a Jewish family in Anatevka, a Russian village. Tevye, the milkman, sees three of his daughters married, grows closer to his wife, and then has to leave his home along with all the other Jews. Of course, this synopsis doesn't give any indication how funny and moving this production was in turn. The songs are beautiful, the performances fabulous, and the dances were incredible, especially at the wedding (bottle dance anyone?). Of course, I hardly stopped crying the whole second half, but I was in good company; I heard sniffles all around me. It was life-affirming and gave me a lot to think about, including how communities interact with each other, how parents deal with and are affected by the choices of their children, and about how the Mormon community was also driven about in our earlier history. I would love to see it again this season!

Othello: Desdemona marries Othello, a great black general, while his assistant Iago decides to ruin Othello's life because he heard a rumor that Othello had slept with his wife, Emilia. He proceeds to convince Othello that Desdemona has been having an affair with his lieutenant, Cassio, to the point that Othello kills Desdemona and then himself. That is the basic synopsis, but it hardly gives an idea of how brilliant this play is and how interesting it is to watch Iago work. This may be a definitive production for me. I've seen numerous versions, but this was hands down the best Iago I have ever seen. You could see the wheels turning in his mind as he devises his plot, and he was very ratlike. Desdemona was played assertively, which is completely supported by the text, though I have never seen her played that way. Othello was quite good too, though maybe not definitive (I don't think I have found him yet). The set suggests a chessboard, appropriate to Iago moving about people like pawns. I was blown away by the performance, but I'm not sure I could go back and see it again quickly, if only because it is emotionally draining.

Taming of the Shrew: This is my very favorite play this season. Bianca the beautiful cannot get married until Kate the shrew gets married, so Bianca's suitors arrange for Petruchio to marry Kate and get her out of the way. The suitors try to outwit each other for Bianca's hand, while Petruchio attempts to tame Kate. This production was set in Italy just after WWII. Petruchio is a swaggering American GI, but one who is not abusive to Kate, merely trying to mirror her behavior, though he regrets some of what he feels he has to do. There are so many comic bits that I laughed pretty much all the way through the play. This is a problematic play, to be sure, but I've rarely seen it done better. Hopefully, we'll be going back next month to see it again.

Colonial Days

This morning, Jenny, Camilla, and I met Warren and took our kids to Colonial Days outside of the Crandall Historical Printing Press (200 East Center Street). If you are in Provo July 3, 4, or 5, I highly recommend it. They had colonial games (like this one where you try to roll a marble through the arches--it's a lot harder than it looks):
They had a partial model of the Mayflower:
They had colonial craftspeople, like a blacksmith, a gunsmith, a candle maker, lace weavers, and a basket weaver.
Ryan tried on this basket backpack from the Adirondacks:
The blacksmith had interesting things, including a toaster, waffle iron, and trivet:
Ryan enjoyed playing the hoop and stick game:
I enjoyed spending time talking to Revolutionary reenacters. They have a number of historical documents, colonial dancing, and plenty of other things to see as well. Enjoy!