Someone Like You

Someone Like You by Adele

^How true this song is.^

I freaking love this song. And I Love the music video. That dancer! I just love Adele.

Thankful

Thankful by Josh Groban

Have a great day, everybody.

Eye of the Tiger

Eye of the Tiger by Survivor
(If you're a fan of the show Supernatural-you may have already seen this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XTsxF47wx5M )

I can no longer say that I have never competed in dance.
The US Western Region Oireachtas was this past weekend. It was pretty overwhelming for someone who has never done any sort of competition before. I'm glad I went-but I'm still on the fence about if I'd ever do it again. It kind of re-established to me that I'm not much of a competitive person.
Preparing for it was great, I love feeling like I'm apart of a team and we're all working for something. The actual dancing for the competition part is fun-because, hello, you're dancing. (AND! I didn't get my nervous nausea!) After that it's wait, wait, wait for the recall list to come up. (If you recall it means you placed but you won't find out where you placed until the awards ceremony that night.)
So we danced (repeating: Smile, arms, cross over. Smile, arms, cross over. in my head to remember to do so while dancing). We felt we did well, and our teachers were pleased with how we danced. They were sure we had placed in the top 3. The elephant that was compressing my chest turned into a balloon as soon as my feet started moving on the stage.
A few hours after we competed we found out we had recalled. So then we waited and waited for the awards ceremony. We found out we placed 5th. Went up on stage, got our medals, and our picture taken. We were disappointed we didn't do better. But our teachers were proud of how hard we had worked, and how well we did that day. And hey, we were the only team from our school to recall and place. (And I got a medal at my first competition.) There's always room for growth, which is good.
Friday, Aly, Emma, Sarah and myself spent the day at California Adventure and Disneyland. Saturday was the day we competed. Sunday we spent at the Oireachtas to watch our champ dancers compete. Monday morning, early, Aly and I flew home.
As for the competing thing...like I said, I'm still on the fence about. The energy and atmosphere of the event is filled with anxiety and tension. Dancer's at this level are all great-and discerning who's better is insane because everyone was so talented. I don't know how the judges do it.
I personally dance because I love it. I don't care what judges say. I don't see the draw to dancing for 3-5 judges who sit and look for reasons to dock you down. I'd rather stick to performances. I know some people love competing-and that's awesome for them. At this point for me, though, I just don't see it. I don't thrive on the competitive atmosphere. I am more of a team dancer anyway. I like working with a team or being in a company/ensemble to create something people will enjoy watching. Team figures I could see myself doing again, but I don't think I'll be solo competing anytime soon. I'm grateful for the chance that I had to go, be on a team, work hard for something, try something new, and learn a lot about an area of Irish dance that-to me-had been previously unexplored.
I'll post pictures when I get them.

Jar of Hearts

Jar of Hearts by Christina Perri


Dear Monday,
Thanks for having the word "mon" in you. That's French for "mine", in case you weren't aware, Monday, but it makes me think of you as "my day", and frankly that sounds like a much more promising start to the week.

Another Monday. A snowy Monday, no less. I'm telling you, the universe knows when I need things like this. To either help me feel better from a sad/mad day, or to enrich the good days. The flakes today are slow falling, fluffy, snow-globey. I love it. Now I know not everybody loves snow--but I'm probably happy enough to cover for those who aren't so thrilled. No worries. I've gotcha covered.
Happy Monday.


P.S. Scary thought: Oireachtas is NEXT Weekend!

And Winter Came

And Winter Came by Enya


Ladies and Gentlemen, we have flakes. Flakes have been sighted. Flakage, if you will, has begun. It's the first snowfall of the season. It's very lucky. Make a wish.
It finally happened. It snowed!
The world changes when it snows. It's quiet. Everything softens. Everything's magical when it snows, everything looks pretty. The clothes are great. Coats, scarves, gloves, hats.
It's sparkly, blanketing everything in a peaceful, white coat. You get to curl up under a blanket, watch a movie with some hot chocolate (cocoa-lattes!!). When it's summer you get so hot and you can only take so much off and then you're still too warm! In the winter-you can pile on as many layers, blankets, and sip tasty warm drinks as you like! Snow. Pictures in snow! There's just a beautifully cozy feeling about when it gets cold and snowy.
Luckily I made it home from dance rehearsal just before the roads started to get covered. Not even kidding. I was home two minutes when the roads started going white. Oireachtas is two weeks away. Holy crazy! The stress is going away and I'm starting to get excited.
Now, if you'll excuse me, there's cozy warm clothes and a cocoa-latte waiting for me.

The Inferno

The Inferno from The Divine Comedy


"And when, with gladness in his face, he placed his hand upon my own, to comfort me, he drew me in among the hidden things. Here sighs and lamentations and loud cries were echoing across the starless air, so that, as soon as I set out, I wept. Strange utterances, horrible pronouncements, accents of anger, words of suffering, and voices shrill and faint, and beating hands-all went to make tumult that will whirl forever through that turbid, timeless air, like sand that eddies when a whirlwind swirls." [Dante, as he enters the Gates of Hell. Canto III, Inferno]

Happy Halloween to all. I remember when my band played this song for one of our fall concerts. It was crazy to learn, but amazing when we pulled it off. Listen to this song, I get lost in the eerie beginning and haunting melodies that this composer was inspired to create. Sometimes I really miss band.
When you're feeling down, try what I did yesterday: Drink some root beer, watch Anne of Green Gables, and take a nap. No day is so bad that it can't be made at least a little better by a nap.
Now today, to help me hopefully continue to feel better-I will do some yoga. Run. Dance. ahh yes, endorphins. And then another Halloween party.

Open Your Eyes

Open Your Eyes by Snow Patrol


Um..Where did October go? It was pointed out to me today that this will be the last full week of October this year. This makes me sad. But, that means we're getting closer to winter. And that news thrills me.
Now, I know a lot of people do not like winter and are not looking forward to it. You can go ahead and blame me when it snows. I have people who already do. I'm fine with it. I'll save my reasons for why I love snow when it actually snows so stay tuned. In the meantime-watch this:

Mmm..pretty.
P.S. there's nothing funny about hitting your funny bone.

Dreams

Dreams by The Cranberries

Had a new experience this week. A new sensation, perhaps. It starts with an A and rhymes with schmallergies. I guess I should consider myself lucky that I've managed 22.5 years without exposure to this inconvenient human experience. I also thought that since I made it 22.5 years, that I had missed out on the "allergy gene". Nevertheless; I am not a fan. To those of you who have been unfortunate enough to have been learning to cope with this biological phenomenon, I am sorry for your suffering.

<< That thing might have been helpful-except it wouldn't have been, really. Plus it would have looked a tad silly.
I cannot tell you how many times at work I have said, "I'm not sick, I promise, it's just allergies." Actually- I can. During every session. I felt I should preface my unpredictable sniffling and congested sounding voice before anyone got worried about contracting some sort of illness. But learned that my clients didn't care. And even sympathized with me. "Oh, don't worry about it. It's completely fine. I understand." And commenced to turn into lethargic putty as I massaged away.
In any event, when I get to create my own world-allergies will now add the list of things that will not be invited. Along with thunder+lightning and mosquitoes. (Speaking of the nasty, relentless, little blood suckers; I got a mosquito bite on my leg while I was practicing dance in my garage today. Boo.)

To you reading this, I have a question. Do you believe our dreams have meanings? Or are they just our brains way of keeping us entertained while we sleep? Because while I am subconsciously entertained by saxophones and giant tubas in one dream, I can't help but draw similarities to real life in hiding in a bathroom stall waiting for someone to find me, and being found by said person in another. So, is this whole dream thing just stuff and nonsense, or is there really some almost vision-like parallel?


Please, feel free to discuss..

Falling Slowly

Falling Slowly by Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová

A new adventure will be coming to me next month. I will be doing my first Irish Dance Competition. On November 19, I will compete with a team (thank goodness!) at the Western US Oireachtas in Anaheim California. A regional competition. So not only will it be my first competition-it will be a regional competition. Not a local feis. This both excites and terrifies me. I just wish to do well for my team, and myself. This will give me a taste of the competition world, and see what it's all about. Yes, I have been dancing for a while now-but competing is something completely new. I'm just glad it's with a team, we'll give that a try. I'm not sure about solo competing yet.
Other than dancing (and work), life has been filled with bowling, laughing until I cried, baking a TARDIS cake, turning Voodoo into Tinkerbell into super birds, Holy cows into people worshiping dogs. Eye shadow into a magic carpet, and secret admirers into stalkers (only a few people will understand that last bit).
It's starting to turn into Autumn. Which is wonderful. And Winter will follow closely, which makes me even more excited.
I forgot how cathartic painting was (Not quite as good as the feeling of flying Irish Dance gives, but can hold its own ground), must paint more often. I even have my idea for my next piece.
I really really want to go play with my camera.
And horseback riding.
:)
This weekend (and last weekend, too, for that matter) can be summed up in one word. Great. Hanging out with friends, painting, personal growth, lots of dancing (return of the evil dance blisters), being blessed to watch General Conference. Life is good.

Rolling in the Deep

Rolling in the Deep by Adele

(P.S. Adele is fantastic to work out to.)
I did a stint of 6 weeks eating no sugar. Mostly to see if I could do it. And I did. I felt so much better not ingesting processed sugar. Natural sugars from fruits and honey I would still eat, but no sweets. No candy, ice cream and (sigh) root beer. Now that I know I can get along with out added sugars I've decided to carry it on-yet indulge once in a while.
My sister is expecting baby # 2 in April! Exciting, yes. Though I'm not sure how she's going to manage with Muppet and now a Muppet Jr. (Poppet).
I switched dance studios and am now back at my original school, The Crawford School of Irish Dance. It was not an easy decision to leave LaRae's. I am incredibly grateful for all she's done for me and know that she's impacted my life in a greater sense than anyone possibly knows. But I feel that at this time, this is the best decision for me. I want to explore as much of the Irish dance world as I possibly can-and part of that is competing. Now while I am not a competitive person, I think starting with some figures/team dances may be a good way to explore this area and see what it's all about. Crawford recently got two new instructors, Alan Scariff & Kieran Hardiman. Both former World Champions and also former Riverdancers. Incredible dancers and teachers. I got dance blisters for the first time in years this week in class. Right on the ball of the foot. Painful yet awesome.
Speaking of Irish Dance, my friend Aly (fellow Crawford Irish dancer) posted this article on her Facebook, about the toll Irish dance has on the body (Click HERE and read). It's incredible. I had no idea all these years I was a paratrooper, and was subject to 4.5 G forces! But does that scare me? Nope. :) Haha. If anything-it definitely makes me more proud of what I do.
Fall is fast approaching, which mean...Winter is closer. Which makes me happy. We got some rain the last few weeks, the air is cooling down. This is great.

The Wandering Kind

The Wandering Kind by Josh Groban (The little prelude song on his Illuminations album)

Today my friend Sheree and I went on a hike up Alta Basin area, on Catherine Pass. It was beautiful. Here's pictures.

Bullet From A Gun

Bullet From A Gun by The Script

I know, I've been horrible at updating this. Mostly cause there's not much to update lately. And the people that read this, I'm guessing I talk to them a lot in "real life" that they don't have to keep updated on my life through the internet. But for any of you who follow this and I don't talk to often, I apologize.
My brother, sister-in-law, and nephew came to visit the week before the 24th. It was so great to see them again!! I haven't seen them since Christmas, and my brother got time off approved so they were able to come down from Washington. I greatly enjoyed seeing them and hanging out with them.
One of the main things lately has been my ankle. About a month ago I was going down the stairs and my right ankle popped quite loud. Ever since then if it gets at too much of a dorsal or plantar flex, there's a good amount of pain that goes on there. So, before I continue dancing, I wanted to get it checked out by a doctor. I went to Advanced foot and Ankle, and Dr. S said that he thinks it's either the fluid capsule in my ankle is inflamed and pinched, or my extensor digiti minimi tendon (Which is what I thought it was before I went) is inflamed and strained. So he gave me a brace (which is similar to the one I'd been wearing since the incident) and heavy duty anti-inflammatories and a follow up appointment in 3 weeks. So far I can't tell much of a difference, but I did a little testing on my ankle today dancing and it seemed to hold up better than I was afraid it would. So keep your fingers crossed! Dr. Said as far as dance goes-as long as my foot/ankle will allow me to, I can do pretty much whatever I want. The strength in it seems fine, he's not worried about me rolling and spraining it. Just to know my limits and not overdo it.
I'll leave you with these thoughts: Pro/Con lists are only helpful if they aren't equal in numbers. If they are-prioritize which ones are more important. And: If you want something bad enough, you'll do everything you can to make it happen.

Time

Time by Chantal Kreviazuk

Crazy last few weeks. We had some scare with my kitty kitty, Tiger. He's a rather old cat (17 years, basically he's an 83 year old man) and had some strange behavior occasionally. So we took him for a geriatric feline checkup. He had some pretty bad mouth problems, a thyroid that was like it was on speed, and a slightly overactive liver. So we took him home with some medicines to help get thyroid and liver down so he could have mouth surgery. But he stopped eating and drinking and started throwing up a lot. 5 days later the poor cat was basically just a bag of bones, and was pooping blood. Terrified that this might be the end, my parents took him to the vet once more. The vet seemed optimistic, and wanted to keep him for a few days to see if he could make a comeback. He was severely dehydrated and had lost a little over a pound in 6 days. (He only weighed 6.12 to begin with) So they kept him, and I visited every day (except the first day he was there, that was too much of an emotional day for me). The day after he was admitted he seemed like a whole new cat, purring instantly when I picked him up and rubbing his head on me. He even started eating on his own again while I was there. Day 2, more improvement. All his levels were back down into the normal range. Day 3 in the animal clinic he was even eating hard food-which he hasn't done in over 6 months. He's insisted on canned soft food. Because he was doing so well, Dr. Ben and Dr. Joe thought he could undergo his mouth surgery and we could take him home shortly after that. They let him gain strength and fill up day 3 and morning of day 4 he had his mouth surgery. And handled it beautifully. I visited, like always, before I went to work. He was a little drunk on kitty morphene but seemed great. Afternoon of day 5 (Friday) they let us bring him home. As soon as I carried him out of the clinic he wrapped his paws around my neck and tucked his head under my chin. Super happy to be going home. Friday night, he started out curled up by my legs like usual but then, he climbed onto my stomach and fell asleep ON me. Which he hasn't done before. He's really glad to be home, and I'm really glad to have him home. He's my shadow/my life companion (I've had him since I was 5)/my child/my sibling. Every close relationship you can imagine. One of my favorite things is when he climbs up on me, lays down, purrs loudly, and head-butts my chin. It's his form of snuggling. This picture was yesterday:
And this picture was this morning:
He's still eating and drinking all on his own, and doing great. And I couldn't be more happy he's still with me.

Mr. Dublin Taxi man shared this: "The Mad cabby in Dc had a good customer who worked in the finance sector. One day he saw her driving a cab in Washington. So he paid her back for all the good tips he got from her as a passenger and coached her in the art of taxi driving. I often wonder how people would cope if positions are ever reversed." I share that because of a-the kindness of the Mad Cabby, and 2- the last sentence. How would you do if you were in the position of someone else. IE your waitress, cab driver, massage therapist, etc. Makes you maybe appreciate their services a little more?

Set In Stone

Set In Stone by Brian McFadden

It's been quite a while. I don't have much of a reason. I was either really busy or nothing was happening. Let me tell you about the first two days in April and how they were basically the happiest weekend of my life. April first, we had two main Riverdance dancers come up to our studio and do a workshop with us. Caterina Coyne and Maeve Croke. A number of local newspapers covered it, there were reporters and photographers in the corner of our studio. It was so incredible. I have never been so exhausted and exhilarated. Pushing the gas pedal driving home from the studio hurt my calves. They helped with some technique pointers, and taught us some drills and choreography from the show. It made me want to be like them. I know my chances of that are, well, non existent. But even a local thing like that would be cool.
The next night, Mindy (a good friend from dance) and I went to Riverdance at Kingsbury Hall. From the beginning dance, Reel Around the Sun, I was enthralled by Irish Dance all over again. By the end I had cheered so much through it I lost my voice a little. Who looses their voice at Riverdance?!?!? Oh yea...I do. heh.
Here's some pictures from the workshop.
In this first picture-my legs are on the right. In the black shorts.




Then a few weeks later, my "best-good" friend, Jacki came home from her mission. I went up to Logan the week after she got home to see her. As well as Tim. It was nice to be around Jacki again. And to have the three of us (Jacki, Tim and I) together again was a bit strange cause we've all changed in the past three years. But it was still as comfortable and easy as it has always been.
This week, my niece and sister were here for a visit. Jason was on a business trip in California-so instead of staying home alone, Nicole brought my Muppet for a visit. It was really fun having the two of them here. My niece is now a year and a half old. And she loves me. She's not talking "real" words much-she uses a lot of sign language she's learned. I swear she said "Hi Stacy" when she would see me. I'm pretty sure my cat got jealous of me spending my time with "the tiny human". If you've ever read Pet Diaries I could imagine my cat's inner dialogue every time he would see Syd. "Dang. The tiny human is still here." She loves Tiger. I think she talked to him more than any of us.
I had quite a bit of dancing the past few weeks. We had our studios spring recital, and then, One of my dreams came true. I got paid to Irish Dance. That's right. I had my first paying dance gig this week. There's a local famous Celtic band called Idlewild (I'm not sure how big they are outside of Utah), they had a thing Wednesday morning and wanted two dancers to come and do dances to their songs. So my teacher picked me and one other girl to go. I was so nervous! I normally don't get that nervous before a performance. I'm fine up until about 3 minutes before I go onstage, then I get nervous and forget all my dances. But as soon as I'm on stage and going I'm fine and everything goes great. This particular performance, however, I was nervous about two hours after I got the phone call up until I was done with the performance! I had a few rehearsals at the studio, and practice on my own. I had this "Dancer's Prayer" going through my head the morning of the gig:
Dear angel, Ever at my side,
Be there today, my feet to guide.
Help me dance high, and light, and free,
So everyone will be proud of me.
Every dance I'll remember with pride.
And angel, please keep my shoelaces tied.
The gig went well. The crowd and the band loved it. One of the band members said we made the show. It was pretty cool. I'd have done the gig even if I didn't get paid-but the fact that I just got paid to do dance is pretty great.

Here are a few videos for your enjoyment. The first one was shared by my friend Marné It's so incredible.

This one I stumbled upon after watching the first one.

Painting Flowers (day 30)

Painting Flowers by All Time Low

day 30- your favorite song
This is the most unfair one of the whole challenge. For me to pick ONE favorite song is just cruel and basically impossible. My favorite song changes all the time. It depends on the day, it depends on my mood, what music genre/artist kick I am on currently, etc etc. At this very exact moment, the title of this blog post I would say is A current favorite. It's from the Almost Alice CD, the soundtrack to the new Alice in Wonderland. And, in 5 minutes my favorite song could very well be something else.

Painting Flowers:
Strange maze, what is this place?
I hear voices over my shoulder,
Nothing's making sense at all.
Wonder, why do we race?
When everyday we're runnin' in circles,
Such a funny way to fall.
Tried to open up my eyes,
I'm hopin' for a chance to make it alright.

When I wake up,
The dream isn't done.
I wanna see your face,
And know I made it home.
If nothing is true,
What more can I do?
I am still painting flowers for you.

Show my cards,
Gave you my heart,
Wish we could start all over.
Nothing's makin' sense at all.
Tried to open up my eyes,
I'm hopin' for a chance to make it alright.

When I wake up,
The dream isn't done.
I wanna see your face,
And know I made it home.
If nothing is true,
What more can I do?
I am still painting flowers for you,
I am still painting flowers for you.

I heard everything you said,
I don't wanna lose my head,

When I wake up,
The dream isn't done.
I wanna see your face,
And know I made it home.
If nothing is true,
What more can I do?
I am still painting flowers for you,
I am still painting flowers for you.

Home and the Heartland (29)

Home and the Heartland from Riverdance

day 29- in this past month, what have you learned
I learned that my brain is getting really good at freestyle Irish dancing. I've been playing around with choreography and am coming up with some pretty fun awesome stuff. It makes me excited. :)
Friday is my Riverdance workshop with two of the leads from the touring troupe that's stopping in Salt Lake this weekend. I cannot wait it's so exciting.
One month from yesterday, my best-good friend, Jacki comes home from her mission. Also so exciting I cannot wait.
April is going to be an incredible month.

Silverwells (Day 28)

Silverwells by Natalie MacMaster

day 28- a picture of you from last year and now, how have you changed since then?
This was at my cousin Shane's wedding last year.

The only pictures I have of me this year so far really are dance pictures, so here's another picture from a dance performance.

So, how have I changed in the last year? I think I've pretty much stayed the same, just probably have a better perspective on some things. And I'm looking more to things to come rather than what I'm doing right now. Though what I'm doing right now will help me achieve goals that I have and whatnot.

Closer (24,25,26,27)

Closer by Joshua Radin

day 24- your last five facebook status'
*Thanks everyone who messaged, called and visited happy birthdays yesterday! I love you all. It meant a lot, you guys are the best. :)
*First me Gallbladder all weekend, now at the ER with the papa.
*Crazy weekend. Gallbladder attack, homecoming, viewing, continued gallbladder sickness..aye. I'm tired of hurting and feeling like tar.
*A Shine For Rainbows-great movie. Basically cried through the whole thing, hit a sob point in the middle. Kept crying after it was over. Highly recommend it-but keep something handy to wipe your tears.
*Of all the days for an Irish Dancer to have to go to work-today should not one of them...well hopefully my clients won't mind if I bust out in a jig or reel in the middle of the massage. ;)
day 25- what I would find in your bag
Which one? I have my dance bag and my purse. My dance bag has soft and hard shoes, black tape, ankle support, toe cushions, tennis ball, notes. My purse has hand sanitizer, lotion, chapstick/lip gloss, mints/gum, nail clippers, sharpie marker, pens, wallet, day planner, small notebook, glasses, grapefruit essential oil, camera.
day 26- what do you think about your friends
I could write novels on my friends. Bottom line is they are some of the best people I know. They are incredibly magnificent people and I don't know what I would do without them. Some I've known for years, some I've lost touch with and reconnected, some are related to me, some are pretty new, but I am grateful for each and everyone of them being in my life.
day 27- why are you doing this 30 day challenge
Cause it seemed like fun. :)

Finn MacCool's Reel (Day 23)

Finn MacCool's Reel by Pat Kirtley

day 23- something you crave for a lot
Um...That's a good question. I don't really have cravings-food or otherwise. Besides dancing, that is. haha. Travel is one I guess-I love traveling to places and don't get to do that near as much as I would like.

Just The Way You Are (Day 22)

Just The Way You Are by Bruno Mars

day 22- what makes you different from everyone else
How funny that this question comes on my birthday. I am different from everyone else because I am ME. haha. No one else can be who I am, we are all individual in our own wonderfully unique ways. We are each given talents and gifts that fit us better than we may realize, and we may have more than we think we do.
If you read day one of this 30 day challenge, you'll read "interesting" facts about me. Also to go along with those- I think the green NyQuil tastes like liquid candy. I don't know why; it just does. I absolutely love the snow. And the Universe knows when to send it to me. Saturday when I was having gallbladder pains and problems I got huge white gorgeous cotton ball fluffy snow fall. This morning when I woke up it was all snowy for my birthday. I hate thunderstorms. It can rain all it wants because I love the rain but as soon as thunder comes into play the fun stops.
No one else has been through the trials I have been through-and they've made me who I am. People can't say "I know exactly how you feel", because no one does. Nobody has gone through your Exact situations, there's always something different in people's stories that have been through possibly similar experiences-but no one has been through our exact same stuff. So each of these things: trials, talents, gifts, quirks, etc. make us who we are as our incredibly individual selves.
Happy Birthday to me on my Golden birthday. 22 on the 22nd. Thanks to everyone who messaged, called and visited to help make this day special for me. It started with snow, and it ended with dance class. In my opinion- there's no better way to book-end a day.

Star Mile (Days 19,20,21)

Star Mile by Joshua Radin

Catching up again-I had a gallbladder attack this weekend so I'm a few days behind.
day 19- nicknames you have and why you have them
Most nicknames are just playoffs of my name. My mom calls me JoJo. Sometimes my sister will call me Josephine. Apparently my niece will be calling me Auntie Tacy when she gets talking. I have also been called: Stacky, Shawty, Miss Stacy, Principessa, to name a few.
day 20- someone you love
I love a lot of people for many different reasons. It's cruel to have me pick someONE. So we'll just go with one group of people: my family. Parents, siblings, cousins, aunts, uncle, grandparents, niece and nephew.
day 21- a picture of something that makes you happy
This combines a few things. Dance. Photography. Music. All make me deliriously happy. This picture was taken by my dad, edited by me. It won in a photo contest, also.

This = Love (Day 18)

This = Love by The Script
day 18- plans/dreams/goals you have

Basically keep going on the road I am on now. Continue in my career, doing what I love and am blessed to love what I do.
I hope to travel more, to places I've never been-and also places I've visited.
Continue to progress with dance, our dances are so much fun and I love the hard work it takes to do what I do. And I hope to continue to develop the talents that I have been given and never lose them.
Keep taking things in stride, and I greatly look forward to what life has in store for me in years to come. Cause it's going to be an adventure-I can tell you that.

Little Life (Day 17)

Little Life by Rachael Yamagata

day 17- someone you would want to switch lives with for one day and why

Anyone currently touring with Riverdance. I would Love to experience the grueling schedule, completely exhausted and aching legs & feet. I've had some pretty crazy Irish Dance days-but I would love to experience what it's like to be a Riverdancer. I can only imagine what caliber of stress, pain, exhaustion those athletes go through. Call me crazy-but it's kind of a dream of mine. haha. I would love to be a part of a show like that.

HAPPY ST. PATRICK'S DAY!

So She Dances (Day 16)

So She Dances by Josh Groban
day 16- another picture of yourself

This was Saturday night's Celtic Celebration show. Our final bows, I am on the end.


Also from Celtic Celebration, this was the dance we did with the band- Stone Circle- Gravelwalk.

The Dynamo of Volition (Day 15)

The Dynamo of Volition- Jason Mraz

day 15- put your ipod on shuffle: first 10 songs that play
The Dynamo of Volition- Jason Mraz
Oceano- Josh Groban
Just My Imagination- Pete Yorn
They Do, They Don't- Jack Johnson
Tear Da Roof Off- Busta Rhymes
Learn To Do It- Anastasia Soundtrack
Down Once More/Track Down This Murderer- Phantom of the Opera Soundtrack
Take A Chance- Landon Pigg
Brokenpromiseland- Bon Jovi
Stuck in the Middle- Mika

We Are Family (Day 14)

We Are Family by Sister Sledge

Day 14- A picture with your family

This was taken this last Christmas. The first time in three years my immediate family was together. It was great.

Everything'll Be Alright (Day 13)

Everything'll Be Alright by Joshua Radin

day 13- a letter to someone

Dear Everybody.
While I've got you here I just have a few points I'd like to suggest. Just something I've been thinking about and have thought maybe we need a little reminder to us all in general. Be kind to one another. Be respectful. Be friendly. Smile. Don't judge. Give as many hugs as you can, and when you appreciate/care about/love/respect/etc. someone-tell them. It's always a good thing to hear. Be grateful for the daily blessings and gifts that we have; there is always something to be thankful for. Help your neighbors. Be there for each other through all things. We're all on this earth together-and so we might as well make it a wonderful place to be. I'll bet if we focused more on the positive things in life and ways we are blessed, perspectives would be a little brighter. Just a thought, do with it what you will and hopefully put into action for the greater well being of all of us.
Love,
Me
P.S. I love you.

Gravelwalk (Day 12)

Gravelwalk by Stone Circle

day 12- how you found out about blogger and why you have one
(It still counts as day 12 because I haven't been to bed yet-even though technically it's day 13...which I'll do later.)
Um. I don't remember how I found out about it. I have one so that my family that don't live close by (i.E. my siblings) can still keep up to date on what I'm doing (even though we still talk on the phone, And friends and whoever else wants to read about my sometimes exciting adventures.

Tonight Celtic Celebration was pretty good. The two pre-performance things that usually without fail did in deed happen to me. 1- Nervous pee. Right before the show-even if I just went to the loo, I feel like I have to go again. While I may not be nervous, my bladder thinks I am. and 2- I forget the steps. It's all muscle memory, baby. Before the show I forget how all the dances go. It's terrible and freaks me out way more than my nervous bladder. Do either/both of these things happen to anyone else?
I had lots of fun dancing at Peery's Egyptian Theater. I am proud of that performance and I'm glad I got video of it, too. :) Those of you who didn't go-surely missed out. Though I'm a little disappointed I did not see the ghosties that reside in the Theater. But it was a great night anyways and I'm sure they enjoyed the show.

For anyone who is wondering-my health is continuing to get better. If anyone has/gets a sore throat try 1/8 teaspoon Cayenne pepper in 1 cup orange juice, heat it up, and drink it. It may sound gross-but trust me it's not. And it Works! If I'd known how great that works I would not have waited almost 4 days before I got desperate enough to try it. You can't even taste the pepper, so don't let that throw you off. My throat feels SO much better today I can talk, drink and swallow without wanting to cry.

Higher Window (Day 11)

Higher Window by Josh Groban

day 11- another picture of you and your friends

Emma, Aly, Sarah, me and Kiramey. My old dance friends from my old dance school. I loved dancing with these girls and miss them a lot. But my new dance school is better suited to what I want from dance. We had a ton of fun and lots of parties and after dance trips to Dee's. Even though I was the youngest by like 5 years, our ages never seemed to matter-or even noticed for that matter. We just meshed and got along really well. This picture was taken on one of our dinners at MacCool's Pub.


This is me with Mindy. She's my new dance friend. She's pretty cool, we get along well. We're going to Riverdance together on April 2nd.


A Group from high school-at Darin's farewell. I'm not going to name them all. But this was kind of my central group of friends in high school-plus or minus a few people. We had a lot of good times.
ONE MORE

Elise, Myself, and Colton. We're a pretty great trio. Colton and I met in 9th grade when our jr. high's came together for one Valentine's dance. We had a friend in common and she introduced us and we danced together. Colton also took me to Sr. Ball. He's basically awesome. Elise and I met my senior year of high school through Joe. He and I were hanging out one day and she showed up, too. Joe had to go somewhere and while he was gone I saw that her key lanyard said "IRELAND" and I said we should be friends. She agreed. And that was that. Seriously-that's how we became friends. And pretty great friends right from that moment on. We immediately started laughing and whatnot and when Joe came back I think he may have been a little startled/confused at what he missed because we were acting like we'd known each other for years before then. It's a great story. She was and is one of my top confidants. We have many great conversations- either about serious matters or our never ending Gilmore Girls quotes. :)

Mother Nature (Day 10)

Mother Nature by Natalie MacMaster

day 10- songs you listen to when you are happy, sad, bored, hyped, mad
Music posts for me could go on for a long time..but I'll try not to get too carried away. This list is in NO way complete and/or solid, it's just to give you an idea of the type of music I listen to depending on what mood I'm in. And even then it's not always right.
Happy songs are: Love Today and Lollipop by Mika, dancey Irish melodies. Step Up 3 Soundtrack, The Script, Flogging Molly!, So She Dances by Josh Groban. . .
Sad songs: slow/ melancholic Irish melodies. losing your memory by Ryan Star, sound of silence by Simon and Garfunkle. Everybody Hurts by REM, Black Roses Red by Alana Grace, Let Me Fall by Josh Groban, Be Your Love by Rachael Yamagata...
Hyper songs: Basically the same as my happy songs. Anything with a good up beat. No specific songs pop into my head here-cause it's basically my happy music. Which is way too many to list..
Mad songs: Lots of bass, loudly. NOT scream-o stuff. "Scream-o" music is NOT music. I don't really care what you say, it's my opinion and I'm going to defend that until I die. A Perfect Circle's pretty good angry music (Lex introduced me to them in like. . .sophomore year? We were driving around in the red truck listening to them.) German rock stuff is good, too. I have no idea what they're saying-but when does that matter as long as the music is good?? Pretty much just loud music. . .no specific songs come to mind.

Sleeping On Top of Things (Days 7,8&9)

Sleeping On Top Of Things by The Voluntary Butler Scheme

Alright, I missed a few days from being sick. The bright side is my temperature is no longer 103 degrees and I can almost swallow without wanting to cry. I went to the doctor and while the strep throat test came back negative, I'm being treated for it anyway. Plus I have an ear infection. I haven't had an ear infection since I was like 12. I'm feeling better today than I have been so while I'm trying to push the liquids I figured I'd catch up on this 30 day thing. So since I need to catch up there will be days 7, 8 and 9 all on this post.
day 7- a picture of someone/something that has the biggest impact on you
Hopefully this one won't require explanation. But basically at the end of the day it all comes down to Him.

day 8- short term goals for this month and why
Um....this month I just am excited for Celtic Celebration on Saturday (for which I WILL be recovered). And my birthday. As far as goals go-just keep taking care of my health.
day 9- something you're proud of in the past few days
Haha, funny. The past few days I really haven't done anything. I've thought my fever broke twice already-but I think it's finally gone now. So-that's something to be proud of!

Soft Kitty (Day 6)

Soft Kitty by Sheldon Cooper

Day 6- Favorite superhero and why
Batman. I just like his story best. And I like his movies the best (more specifically Christian Bale). Besides: Dunanananananananananananananana BATMAN!

In case you're wondering why the title of this post is "Soft Kitty"; I woke up this morning feeling sick. Stomachache, sore throat, headache. I've spent most of the day sleeping. And in The Big Bang Theory-when Sheldon is sick, he needs "Soft Kitty".
Anyone want to sing it to me?

Into The West (Day 5)

Into The West from the Lord of the Rings, The Return of the King Soundtrack

day 5- a picture of somewhere you've been to

Ireland

Washington

Hawaii

I know it said A picture you've been to-but I couldn't pick. So these are my top 3 favorite places I've been to (currently).

Unbreak

Unbreak by Ryan Star

day 4- a habit that you wish you didn’t have
That habit I stole from a nun. (Just kidding. Get it?? Nuns wear habits.)
Sometimes I wish I didn't need noise to fall asleep. That's the only one I can really think of at the moment.

More Than Anyone (Day 3)

More Than Anyone by Gavin DeGraw

Day 3: A picture of you with friends

Eric, Lex, Morgan, Me, Joseph and Talia hanging out in my basement one night. (The weekend before I went to Ireland)
I have known these amazing people for years. I went to Junior High with Lex and Talia, and Eric married Lex a few years ago, Morgan and Joseph I have known through High School. These friends are super important to me and where there for me faithfully and unfailingly through some of my toughest trials-they never left my side. I would not be the person I am today without these people. I love each of them dearly and feel lucky to call them friends.

Lindsays Rigby and Hanson, Carolyn and I one new years. These girls are incredible friends of mine. Rigby and I are actually related (like 5th cousins, but related nonetheless) and have known each other since Jr. High. Hanson and I bonded at a party sophomore year over me telling her to stick her hand in my gut. :D Carolyn and I became close friends as she was the TA in my band class. Each has strengthened me and shown their undying friendship for which I am incredibly grateful they are in my life.

My Tim and my Jacki. I met both up in Logan. Jacki was my roommate-we bonded over walking through the cemetery at night, and taking random road trips on Saturdays. Many late night deep conversations and midnight root beer runs. She's an outstanding friend and I cannot wait for her to come home from her mission next month. Hugs will not do it-we will most likely nearly tackle each other the first time we see each other again. She and I met Tim one night at an institute party the beginning of the semester. She, James, Tim and I saw each other every day since until Christmas break that year. We bonded over eating ice cream in the closet, hockey games and blanket forts in my living room at 2am. Frosting fights and making scones for general conference.
I have the absolute best friends I could ever ask for. I am grateful for each and every one of them. More friend pictures to come for day 11.

Winter (Day 2)

Winter by Joshua Radin

Day 2: The meaning behind your blog name.
It took a bit to come up with a title that I liked. I wanted it to (try to) fit a good chunk of who I am. Trying to think of things that fit me, dancing, my Irish heritage, and how there's a lot of layers to who I am. I can talk for a long time and you still may not know anything of significance about me. (Just ask my old roommate, Jacki. You can't cause she's on her mission for another month and a half.) You have to get through the first few layers to get anywhere with me. I've been through a lot in the past that has sort of forced me to do that. There are also a lot of layers/aspects to my life, each one has a big significance to the whole being that I am. I love music, also (as you know). So A Wild Irish Rose Dancing Through Life is what I came up with. My Wild Irish Rose is an old Irish song, Dancing through Life is a song from Wicked, Roses have layers (which was a lot more appealing than my first thought of onions. So it has music, Irish, Dancing, and layers. Pretty heavy for a short title, but I like it.

Straight To You (Day 1)

Straight To You by Josh Groban

Day #1 A Recent picture of you and 15 interesting facts about yourself.

This was last week. I woke up one morning to find my cat laying half on my pillow, half on my shoulder. I had to take a picture because it was cute, and he's my little buddy who is never far from me when I am home. We got him when I was 5, so in cat years he's an old man but he still seems to be pretty healthy which is good, I don't know what I'm going to do when he's gone.
So, I guess we'll try and find 15 "interesting" facts about me. . .
1- I am an Irish dancer. You all know this already, but (aside from my Irish dance friends) how many Irish dancers do you know? It's my go-to when someone asks for an interesting fact about me. And it may not even be that interesting to some people, oh well.
2- I am learning to play the bodhrán. A bodhrán is an Irish drum and it sounds so cool, I am not that good yet. My ultimate goal is to play the bodhrán and dance at the same time. Because how cool would that be?
3- I hate most chocolate flavored things. Chocolate milk, cake, pudding, ice cream, frosting, frosty's from Wendy's, etc. If it's actual chocolate, then it's okay. But for some reason the chocolate flavored things taste gross to me. My sister has "disowned" me many times for this because she LOVES chocolate and doesn't see how I can't love it as well. It's easy-there are much better tasting things out there.
4- I pretty much always have music or something on for noise in the background. Why? Because silence is so dang loud! On the music note- you know my blog titles are songs, but do you know that they usually are either a- the song I am currently listening to or 2- a song that is describing something or someone currently in my life?
5- Root beer is my weakness. If it's been a bad day-you can tell how bad of a day it's been by how much root beer I drink.
6- I may or may not have broken my left foot at my Senior all night party the night I graduated from High School. I say that because I never went to the doctor. Most people thought it was broken, and looking back-I think it may have been. I couldn't walk on it for a while-to turned real gross looking (bruising all over). But we taped it up and I used crutches for a bit. But-I was able to go back to dance faster than I would have if they stuck me in a boot and cast.
7- I do believe in Karma. So ya'all best be watching out.
8- My mom laughs at me (usually) at least once a day. Okay, that may be more about my mom than me, but it's me indirectly. Usually it's about something I say. I can be a very opinionated person, and apparently use humor in expressing some of them.
9- My favorite sandwich is The Junction from MacCool's Pub. Which I've learned has sadly been taken off the menu. This seriously made me way sad. It's so delicious! Why would they take it away?! It's a grilled mozzarella with prosciutto and fig jam on sourdough bread. Yeah, I thought it sounded weird too but it's SO good!
10- One of my pet peeves is hearing people chew. Not just chew but slosh their food. It makes me lose my appetite. Also if I hear chomping of gum. Yuck.
11- I have never had short hair. Except for when I was little and it was just growing. (It was also Platinum blond) The shortest it's ever been is just below my collar bone. I Absolutely love my long hair. (Which is to my low back.) I also had a perm through most of my growing years. I am jealous of all you naturally curly haired people out there.
12- I have royal blood, Irish and French (nice combo, huh?) I am related to Brian Boru, the last high king of Ireland. And one of the Kind Louis's.
13- I believe in ghosts. And have had experiences to back it up. I love watching those paranormal shows (Ghost Hunters, Ghost Hunters Intl, Ghost Adventures).
14- I actually like being pale. Or "fair" skinned, depending on who you talk to. I have never really wanted to be tan.
15- I had never planned on being a massage therapist until 2 weeks before I started school for it. But love what I do, and am blessed to have a career that I enjoy.

This Could Be The Year (Intro 30 day blog challenge)

This Could Be The Year by Ryan Star

I'm stealing this from my friend Gwen's blog. I'll start hopefully tomorrow. 30 day blog challenge. It looks fun so I think, hey why not? You should do it, too!

day 1- recent picture of you and 15 interesting facts about yourself
day 2- the meaning behind your blog name
day 3- a picture of you and your friends
day 4- a habit that you wish you didn’t have
day 5- a picture of somewhere you've been to
day 6- favorite super hero and why
day 7- a picture of someone/something that has the biggest impact on you
day 8- short term goals for this month and why
day 9- something you're proud of in the past few days
day 10- songs you listen to when you are happy, sad, bored, hyped, mad
day 11- another picture of you and your friends
day 12- how you found out about blogger and why you have one
day 13- a letter to someone
day 14- a picture of you and your family
day 15- put your ipod on shuffle: first 10 songs that play
day 16- another picture of yourself
day 17- someone you would want to switch lives with for one day and why
day 18- plans/dreams/goals you have
day 19- nicknames you have and why you have them
day 20- someone you love
day 21- a picture of something that makes you happy
day 22- what makes you different from everyone else
day 23- something you crave for a lot
day 24- your last five facebook status'
day 25- what I would find in your bag
day 26- what do you think about your friends
day 27- why are you doing this 30 day challenge
day 28- a picture of you from last year and now, how have you changed since then?
day 29- in this past month, what have you learned
day 30- your favorite song

Count On Me

Count On Me by Bruno Mars

I just wanted to update whoever is interested that for the Celtic Celebration show on March 12, I am now in 4 things. I was recruited back into Celtic Beat for one dance in this show- but now I'm in 4. This makes me happy. Even better-all are hardshoe numbers. Reel Around The Sun, The Drunken Piper, and debuting Horse With A Heart. I'm also in the a capella finale number we do. Horse With A Heart is a dance my teacher just came up with like three weeks ago, and we've been working hard at getting all the wrinkles out so it's going to be GREAT! Mindy and I have the hardshoe duet-it's pretty fun and has some sweet footwork.
I love dance. I love putting on my shoes and dancing for as long as I possibly can. I do it often. There's something liberating about laying it all out on the floor. Structured or freestyle, soft or hard shoes. It doesn't even matter what music you use. It's basically awesome. I may be a bit addicted-but hey, there's a lot worse things to be addicted to.
I am also designing a few sweatshirts that I'm so excited about. I found good lightweight sweatshirts for $5. Win. And I have some pictures of cool Celtic knots and designs I'm going to work out and put on them. I can't find and Irish sweatshirts that I like-so I'm taking matters into my own hands. I am excited to see how it turns out. I'll post pictures when I'm done.
On the music front: Ryan Star=amazing. I adore this man and his music. If you haven't heard any of his stuff, do so now. I also got Bruno Mars CD, and there's an amazing friendship song on there that just reminds me of all my friends. Here's a lyric snippet: "If you ever find yourself stuck in the middle of the sea, I'll sail the world to find you. If you ever find yourself lost in the dark and you can't see, I'll be the light to guide you. Find out what we're made of, When we are called to help our friends in need. You can count on me like one, two, three. I'll be there and I know when I need it I can count on you like four, three, two. And you'll be there 'cause that's what friends Are supposed to do." Also Alana Grace and Rachael Yamagata.
Work is work. But I love my clients and the people I work with. Nothing really new in that area, it's pretty consistent. Speaking of work, I need to go because I have to get ready for work.
Later.

Science and Faith

Science and Faith by The Script
(They are Amazing. End of story.)

Horrible, I know it's been over a month since my last post. For the few of you who follow this, I'm sorry. Life has either been busy or boring.
Christmas was SO great. It was the first time in three years my family has been together (minus my cousin Kevin who is on a mission). Both my brother and sister and their families were able to come to Utah, which was awesome.
New Years I spent with Rigby. Playing games and laughing. Reminiscing of the year, previous New Years I was in Ireland. A lot has changed last year. Went to Ireland, got a job (still working at that job, too), strengthened friendships and rediscovered how amazing some of my friends are, got some health problems but fortunately it's been under control the last few months.
This year I have some goals that I want to reach. Some to share are: Go on at least one trip out of the country. Take up calligraphy. Learn to play the bodhrán (the Irish drum, I got one for Christmas).
Tonight the Parental Units and I watched The Lost Valentine. It has Betty White, Jennifer Love Hewitt and Sean Faris. It's a good movie, I really enjoyed it. If you don't get at least misty eyed during that movie, you have no heart.
On the dancing front; I got pretty amazing news at dance this last week. Riverdance is coming end of March-April 1&2. Basically the whole studio is going on the 1st. My teacher knows A Lot of people, and has a connection, and arranged for a lead from Riverdance to come to our studio and do a workshop with us the day before we all go to the show. I am SO excited! It's basically going to be the best weekend ever. Riverdance workshop one day, and then going to the show the next. I can hardly wait until April 1&2. We are also getting ready for the Celtic Celebration show coming up in March. Starting this week I am going to the studio twice a week for 6 weeks to get ready. I was able to get it worked out with work that I can get off two hours early on Thursday night so I can go to rehearsal.
So, there's this guy doing something pretty cool. He's going to have a new experience every day for a year. It reminds me of The Buried Life in fact, I heard about the Time Hack from The Buried Life. I'll put a link to The Time Hack on my link column to the right.
My favorite band, The Script, put out a new album this month. I've been waiting for it since they released it in the UK and Ireland back in September. It's amazing. These lads are incredible. They write everything, what I love most, is their songs are inspired by everyday conversations they have with people in their lives. Someone will say something and lyrics pop into their heads and poof-they have a new song. Love it. I find their lyrics to be super powerful, and wholeheartedly relate-able. Take a gander at them if you haven't yet.