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These may not be the best written books in existence, but Meyer's writing is certainly compelling and they're very hard to put down once I've started. I read them so quickly before, that I wanted a second chance. Since only the first three are in paperback, getting all four to match meant hardback. This box set was MUCH cheaper than buying individually, even used.

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My temporary backyard... at my host's house. Pine trees towering and a carpet of sweet-smelling pine needles. Joy.

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A day off meant a trip to Bloomington to see DG - here's my former home away from home. JH, the other ASM, is also an IU/DG graduate, so fun times were had. The town has changed so much since I've been there. SEVEN YEARS AGO. Yikes!

Perpetually behind... while the internet situation is better, the time allotted to this is less.

Happy List, Week 44

Happy List, Week 44



1. Panera - aka St. Louis Bread Co. It's both a taste from home and an opportunity for internet access.

2. Bloomington. Getting a chance to get out of Indianapolis, seeing an old friend and a colleague unexpectedly.

3. The end of the time in the rehearsal hall. As much craziness as tech week begins, it also means performances are near.

4. my iPhone. Despite its occasional annoyances recently, I would be lost without it due to lack of internet access.

5. Seeing DG yesterday was very very good for the soul. Very good.

6. Amazon for having fast, FREE shipping. I now have nightly reading material again... woohoo.


That's it. It's be a long, slow week.

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You'll note that we've suddenly jumped a day. I forgot to upload a picture to flickr way back on Day 19, so everything is off by one day. The blog and flickr. I've just fixed it all. It was such a relief to know that the error was in the uploading process, not the picture taking process.

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A little taste of home and some free wi-fi. Yay internet acces.

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Our hosts have a pool table in the basement and during laundry night, I got my rear kicked soundly by KS.

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One of the decorations in my bedroom.

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Yats' is a Cajun/Creole place where you can get this tasty dish real fast, real cheap. And it is REALLY delicious.

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Birthday flowers for our hostess.

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A mega catch-up post because I'm so very behind on posting. After next week, I'll be around daily internet access on the computer.

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Day 117 lead me to Michael's Arts and Crafts where I found all these art supplies for less than $3 each. I've never really experimented in these mediums before and it'll be fun to give them a try cheaply.

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It's packing time again as I prepare to drive to Indianapolis. Time to choose just a few of my necklaces from my ever-growing collection to come with me.

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Day 119 was 9/11. Flags were already at half-staff in honor and memory of Ted Kennedy, but I couldn't let this terrible anniversary go by without acknowledging it.


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Day 120 was my last day in St Louis for awhile, and it was also a busy day. It started with some time spent at the St Louis Art Fair.



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My mom and the pups walked about halfway towards my apartment to give me a send-off on my way out of town. Aren't they the best? Dad might've joined except it was too early in the morning.

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In rehearsals already - this is our prop trunk for the commedia troupe. Incidentally, this not-so-exciting picture is my official 1/3 of the way through picture.

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I adore this purple wine bottle. These aren't the real props for the show - they're just stock stand-ins until the real ones arrive.

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Whisks in the kitchen of our hosts.

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Pieces of fabric transformed with thread and safety-pins into mock capes. Sometimes stage management is all about creativity.

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KS and I have taken to watching a movie or TV every night and these little piggy statues are right next to the TV. Incidentally, the movie on screen in the picture is "When Harry Met Sally" which neither of us had seen in quite a long time.

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Sometimes you need sanctuary and our rehearsal space is an ex-church. I took a few minutes out of a crazy day to just sit. And enjoy the silence.

Happy List, Week 43

1. Working with friends. KS and I bonded pretty quickly on a slightly crazy show and we've been friends ever since. In actuality, we've only worked on two shows together, this is our third.

2. Being back at work. After several weeks off, it really is nice to have a schedule. Even if its means really really long days.

3. Meeting new singers/colleagues. I always enjoy meeting new colleagues and realizing exactly how small our industry is. We don't need six degrees, try about two or three.

4. Returning to a familiar city. This is show #10 with this company, and I used to go to school an hour south of here, so Indianapolis is a familiar city. Its nice to know your way around, even if you have to re-remember, sometimes from a different perspective.

5. My iPhone. Yes, I know this keeps appearing on this list, but it really is one of my best purchases. Our internet situation is inconsistent so it's been a lifesaver to check email, look up a movie or even update this blog.

6. Assignment:St Louis. We're at least 28 members strong - exciting! We're also midway through our first assignment. I'm seeing some great photos and looking forward to seeing more.

Only six and posted early because internet access from my computer is limited.

Happy List, Week 42

1. Festivals. I visited both the Japanese and the Greek Festival this weekend and both were absolutely fun.

2. Reading. I've got a little "I will if you will" going on with LA. She reads the last four books in the Harry Potter series and I read the Twilight Series. We've both agreed and both of us, unknowingly, also picked up "Time Traveler's Wife" and read that inbetween. Two peas in a pod...

3. Packing for work. It's been a little while since I've worked and I'm really looking forward to it.

4. Sekiusa Pacific Rim. My new favorite sushi place. Big Cheesy is my all-time favorite roll. YUM. Plus, it's only a few blocks away.

Only four this week. Just a slow quiet week. That's soon to change..

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I finally gave in and read the "Twilight" series - mostly because I have an "I will if you will" going on with LA. I read Twilight, she finishes Harry Potter.

I finished first - because apparently I am capable of reading two 500+ page books in one day. Yes, I finished both of these books in one day, starting at around 8am, and finishing around 8pm. I did do a little other than just read, but that was about 1500 pages worth of reading.

Whew.

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Day 114 found me at the Greek Festival (for the 2nd time) with LA, and we met Max and her owner, M. Max is a support dog for her owner... he trained her himself, and should something go wrong with him, she's trained out to seek people, especially in uniform.

Since one of my own dogs is a therapy dog, I always like to meet those dogs who are trained to help others. Good job, Max!

Did I mention she was also a rescue? She was just meant to be helpful to the one who saved her.

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Day 114 was the day we chose to brave the crowds and visit the Japanese Festival. Unfortunately my parents missed the demonstration they had wanted to see, but I made it in time to see the kimono fashion show. You should visit my photostream and check them out.

We all stopped by the origami demonstration booth and marveled at the amazing creations... the semi circle of cranes above is just the tip of the iceberg. Go check out all the amazing pictures.

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Day 113 found us having our housewarming party. These were two of the appetizers that we served: brie melted on french bread, topped with peach salsa and roast beef with boursin cheese rolled up and accompanied by slices of bell pepper.

Both were a big hit. YUM.

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Yup, those are my pictures up on our apartment wall, at the request of my roommate. 22 in the closest frame and 11 in the other two at the other end of the wall. I wish this had been a life list item because its really kind of fun to have my pictures up on a wall.

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I found a new sushi place (or rather, I got introduced to a new sushi place) and I love it. And it's super-close to me. YAY! Plus its even cheaper and better than Drunken Fish. Sekisui Pacific Rim, I'm a new fan!

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No one is too old for stuffed animals. I used to have many when I was a child, and some of them are still around at my parent's house, safely in storage until it's time to pass the more sturdy ones off to my offspring.

However, these few have a story for each:

Panda: I love pandas, they are my all-time favorite zoo animal. This particular panda was bought at the National Zoo in Washington DC.

Hedgehog: This hedgehog was at one time a Valentine's Day gift option at Borders. I always thought he was pretty cute because if you look at him up close, he's not only holding a rose, but he's blushing. A year or two later, I found him on eBay for a relatively cheap price and made him mine.

Lobster: One of my favorite acquistions, I found him (her?) in a bin at Goodwill in Massachusetts. For a mere quarter, he/she was mine and I love it. Again, if you look closely, the lobster is smiling.

Puppy: My answer to not having a dog of my own was to get a very cute beanie baby version.

Pooh: This is a baby's Pooh - very very soft. My good friends VT & AF had a little girl, L... and she had one of these that I admired... so as a gift, they picked me up one too. I hadn't been around babies much, especially her size, and I hadn't realized that they made stuffed animals uber-soft for babies.

(Pooh is one of my all-time favorite cartoon characters - but my winner will ALWAYS be Snoopy.)

Happy List, Week 41

1. Business cards. They both arrived this week and they look GREAT.

2. Icing by Clarie's for having the perfect business card holders despite being aimed at preteens. My larger holder may also be known as a cigarette case. Oops.

3. Anything on sale. I'm all about the sale shopping these days. Sometimes there's nothing that replaces retail therapy and when you can get a lot of good quality for very little, even better.

4. Old friends. LA and I have been spending some quality time together, reliving our past. It's been a good thing.

5. Getting in touch with those you've lost touch with. I've done this recently and its been immensely rewarding.

6. Quality time with family. We may live close, we see each other often, but sometimes its not quite enough. I enjoy each and every time.

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Day 109 found me decorating my apartment, in advance of our housewarming party. I couldn't have done it without Mom and Dad. Seriously. (Thanks!)

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Every time I drive over the Mississippi River back into St. Louis, I'm the driver. The photographer in me wants to take a picture like the one above. On Day 108, I was the passenger, and happily snapped a few. Classic St. Louisan shot.

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A celebration of sorts, with champagne (in a wine glass - don't judge me for that) and a Godiva dark chocolate truffle. Yum.

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Day 106 found my parents and I at the Festival of Nations in Tower Grove Park. It was absolutely a lovely day, and the crowds weren't too overwhelming. Available to us was a huge spread of international food. True to form, my parents were more adventurous than I, but I still didn't have anything from a country where I normally eat from (no Thai, Chinese, Italian, American, etc). All the food was pretty darn delicious and I was pleased to see the variety.

I also had myself henna tattooed. I really liked it when I did it on Day 1, but this time, I went all-out. I had planned on a smaller, cheaper design, however when I found out that one of the booths benefited survivors of war abuse and torture, I figured it went to a great cause.

The woman did great work and I was a walking ad for their booth and henna in general all the way home. What I found out later that night is that the color is more intense on the palm than the forearm -it looks really cool!

BTW, what you are seeing in the picture is the 3-D henna paste which dries and is later removed to reveal the pigmented skin.

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I'm still in my reflections phase, as you can see. I used the magnets on my desk calendar to relfect the organization going on at my desk. Some of this organization has been neglected in the last year where I spent most of it away from my stuff. All this time off has actually been beneficial. I actually know where things are!

Happy List, Week 40

1. MOO. I purchased myself some photo 'business cards' that have my blog and flickr name on it. It seems to me at both these meetups, people had cards, regardless of whether they took photos for hire or not.

2. Vistaprint. I belong to several 'rewards' programs that email me deals or ads, and I finally gave in on getting real business cards because I finally found a design I loved. Plus they were incredibly well-priced.

3. Time off. After essentially being away from my 'stuff' for about a year, its really nice to be able to have the luxury of time to wade through papers and get rid of what I don't need.

4. Festival of Nations - there was a lot of great food and I got an amazing henna temporary tattoo that benefited survivors of torture and war abuse.

5. Photography. It's keeping me going - I'm still amazed that I was able to keep it up during the crazy part of the summer. Sometimes I'm stretching for a photo, but often times, it motivates me to get my rear in gear. I just found a blog post with a lot of great suggestions for future projects.

6. Assignment: St Louis - my new flickr group. With some urging from people at the MBG meetup, I started this group. Invited 3 others from the meet-up, and now there are 15 members. I'm excited to see if this'll be equally to Assignment: Houston's success - my inspiration.

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Day 104 found me at the zoo. I thought it was going to be a lovely day but it turned out to be very humid and yucky. Still, I wanted to go anyway, even if I wasn't going to stay awhile. Unfortunately, the animals that I was interested in were mostly as hot and miserable as I was.

Some of my favorite STL Zoo animals are the five Amur tiger cubs. They're absolutely adorable when they romp and play but that day, they just wanted to laze around. Can't say I blame them, except I did encourage them to jump around in the pool, telling them it would cool them off. They didn't listen.

Doesn't that paw and his/her fur just look soooooo soft, cuddly like a stuffed animal? Its amazing how soft can be conveyed so well in a 2-D representation of a 3-D creature? I have almost nothing to do with that - the Tiger is cute on his/her own.