secret admirers are oppressive

Let's look at the facts:
I got home late last night and found two red roses in a glass on my desk. Attached to the roses was a note that simply said, "Sylvia - have a great day." The roses are from a rose bush not a store because store roses are bread not to have the tiny stickers and they were wet fromt eh recent rain.
conclusions to be drawn:
maybe Shelly, the RS president dropped them off because I just accepted the calling as her secretary. Maybe the rest of the roomies got some,too. Both of these were obliterated when I talked with Chelsea.
New facts:
while Alyssa was watching TV, someone frantically rang the doorbell. She answered it immediately and found the roses without the giver. No one else got roses.
conclusion she drew:
the giver must have jumped over our railing to hide under our landing so as not to be caught passing in front of our open window. This giver must therefore be male, becuase no girls we know would do something so drastic.

So, here's where it gets oppressive. I have no idea who did this. The wondering about what level this "admiration" will go to is worrisome. This person is probably in the ward, but I still can't even be sure that it's a guy. I know nothing for sure, therefore I have no idea what to expect.
If it is a guy, I have no indication that anyone is interested in me. Maybe he isn't. Maybe it's just a spred-the-love-around-the-ward thing. I have decided to go with this assumption since it seems to carry the least amount of weirdness.

Goodbye Ben

Yesterday, Laura and I went to Ben's going away party. He graduated last semester, and he is finally moving away. The party consisted of the usual snacks and lots of coca cola. We played several rounds of "I never" (alcohol was not used here, so the edge is lessened, but the fun never stops). Somehow I can never be the last one who has done the least. With a larger group Laura was finally gratified with not having to win every round as she had the few times we played before. We left around midnight with an eye to our beds. I was sure to hug Ben since I wasn't sure when I'd get to see him again.

As luck would have it, I saw Ben today. He invited me to go bowling at the campus lanes and we were joined by Luke and Shelby. I had a great time. I bowled my highest ever, 129. I know I need more practice but the company made the game better. After Shelby left for class and the boys played another round, we walked off campus to get caffeine. While acquiring our contraband we were poured on. The rain drenched our clothes and obliterated by middle-age make-up I had completed for intermediate make-up just a few hours before. Evidently the fact that I looked middle-aged was of less concern than the fact that I was wearing lipstick. As you may know, I barely wear the stuff and when I do I choose not to accentuate my smallish lips by giving them color. Maybe I should mix it up and wear lip stick more often. Later, I had to drag myself to calculus so I had to say goodbye again. I'll miss you Ben, wherever you are!

I then closed out my night with the requisite viewing of Scrubs and hours upon hours of write-ups for dramatic literature. Sam and I had a reading log party to complete the gargantuan assignment I swore I would never put off again. We'll see how long that will keep.

tech rehearsal, tarot cards and tatoos

September 20-26
This was Tech Week for Provo Fringe’s Ten Minute Play Festival. What time isn’t taken up by the rehearsal is dedicated to homework.
We performed Thursday to Saturday. The audiences were great. We had a good turn out and they were very responsive.

Venturing out to see Garden State repeatedly can be dangerous. I was rear-ended on the I-15 while driving out to Salt Lake before the show on Saturday. My car, MRF (pronounced Murph, short for Murphy - as named by his state commissioned license plate) sustained a blow to the bumper that separated his rear from his body ever so slightly and left red scars from his attacker. Luckily, we still made it to the showing on time and now MRF has battle scars he can brag about to the other cars in the cinema parking lot.

Sunday, we went to Salt Lake because Logan was called back for Plan-B, a semi-professional performance group. Laura and I helped him prepare his sides and waited as he did the round of the cattle call. We headed back to Logan’s for a cast party to celebrate the success of the Fringe show. After most people left, those of us who knew each other from Freespace stayed behind. We stayed behind until 4 am. The night was full of Tarot readings, tattoos (of red permanent marker), and reminiscent viewings of the first and only season of My So-Called Life which both Kevin and Logan have on DVD. I took Laura to her outrageously early job at the bakery which begins at 4:30am and somehow I fit in a bit of homework before crashing for the night.

rehearsl and more rehearsal

September 13-19
This week was mostly full of rehearsal for one thing or another. Classes are becoming normal for me, so there’s nothing really interesting there.
On Saturday I had my first rehearsal for Morag’s piece called “Because of This” that I had been asked to work on because someone dropped last minute. Sarah and I just ran the piece over and over with tiny adjustments made by Eric, the director, for about three hours.
Afterwards, we (the we) saw Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow. Jude Law carried the film because Gwyneth was giving so little. Giovanni Ribisi stole the show in all the scenes he featured in. I am excited to see his new film featured in the previews. The Computer Graphics were great. It was as if noir art had come to life.

A note of introduction

I spent the summer traversing England and Northern Italy. The travelogues from that time have been archived for easy reference.

I am just another tragic hero in a field of tragic heroes. As graduation nears, I am making plans to challenge the fates and survive in the arts. January will usher in full-time work free from school. My only responsibility will be to apply to grad schools for fall. I welcome a new pace.

I am in a place in my life where being single seems like the best plan. After a failed engagement and short, terminal relationships, I have found contentment being alone with a tight-knit group of friends.

a week of firsts

September 6-12
Monday was the fist and only three day weekend of the semester. I had my first rehearsal for Alchemist’s Apprentice which consisted of introductions and a few read-throughs. To bookend this rehearsal, we (the usual we) watched the fist and second volume of Kill Bill. I hadn’t seen then yet because I am not a fan of the intensely directorial style of Quentin Tarentino. I must admit, though, that his style was perfected in these films. What a trip.

Tuesday I rehearsed with my scene partner for out classical comedy scene. He is a little strange in an uncomfortable way, so rehearsal was arduous. I just have to keep the perspective that everything I do, especially those things that turn out badly, helps me to grow. I also turned in my graduation paperwork. Come December, I’m out of here.

Wednesday, I took my first pretest for calculus. Luckily, I can take it again so that my 60 will not count. To take the edge off of failure we got pizza and watched Waking Life.

Thursday was marked by two more firsts. I visited the math lab to get help for the test and it was my first day alone without Laura or Logan. Both contributed to the relaxation of the day.

Friday I took the 2nd pretest. I got a 78, so that’s a keeper. I got to see Kayela quickly before she headed back to LV. I can’t believe she will be gone for a year and a half in only a few days. Oh and a weird new first. A scruffy guy wearing an army t-shirt and dark sunglasses asked me for my number so that we could go out some time. He gave me a creepy vibe, so I declined the invitation. After relating the story to Laura and Logan we determined that I had just escaped a predator. Whew!

Saturday, we went to the Spiral Jetty in the Great Salt Lake. It’s a modern art piece built into the lake that has emerged recently due to drought. On the way there we picked up a woman and her daughter who were walking to the jetty after having their SUV flip because of the gravely terrain. It was a little weird, but we were happy to help. They ended up heading back with trooper who responded to the accident that the son, who stayed behind with the injured car, had called in. It’s amazing and everyone who visits Utah should check it out. The best time to see it is a sunset. It almost seemed like we were on another planet because we had to walk over the crusted salt to get to the jetty and further on to reach the lake. We immediately felt that we were in a scene from Garden State and had to re-enact the abyss screaming scene. Luckily there was a rusting, abandoned aqua-all-terrain vehicle to scream off of.

After church on Sunday, we had a Shutterfly party to exchange all our pictures from the summer.

Theatre of the Awkward

August 28th – September 5th

I almost felt like I was back in London with the amount of theater I got to see this week.
I drove up with Mom to move back in for the final semester. We wanted to see Midsummer Night’s Dream, but it was cancelled, so mom returned home that night on a bus. Monday was classes. We learned about Taming of the Shrew auditions which would be held on Thursday and Friday. Of course, there was pitifully little time to prepare. My favorite class is beginning social dance. The class has a great shy lack of confidence feeling. I was also hired to TA for 114. I can work ten hours a week which will help the repaying of the loan I took out for England. Tuesday was Religion, intermediate make-up and calculus. I have to prepare for a test in two weeks. I thought this would be a lot easier. I took calculus in high school, but evidently you can forget anything without practice. I just have to settle for a C in the class and work towards graduation. Wednesday we (includes the usual Laura and Logan) saw Moon over Buffalo at PTC, a local theatre that always puts on good shows. I also auditioned for Provo Fringe's ten minute play festival which has grown out of the remnants of the student theater group I helped start, Freespace. While I was gone for the summer, the group had personal and artistic differences that have shut Freespace down for the time being. Hopefully others can make it work again next semester. There is no limit to the necessity for student theater. I found out I was cast in Josh's piece called the "Alchemist's Apprentice."
Thursday we (not including Logan) saw Midsummer Night’s Dream at the Castle. It was awkward because Stephen, my ex, was in the show. He had recently moved back to the area. He is attending the state college while preparing to get into BYU. I tried to talk to him afterwards, but he ran away. He emailed me to know what I wanted, I explained, and he told me to forget about it. From what my friends in the cast are saying, he tells it that I broke his heart. Though I feel badly that he is hurting, I know that I made the right decision in breaking up with him.
Friday Laura and I auditioned for Taming. Saturday, neither of us was called back, so I headed to make-up training for Nathan the Wise. I am a make-up supervisor, so I have to help the actors with difficult designs. To feel better about ourselves, Laura and I watched one of the most beautiful shows ever made, Hero. We then met up with Logan and saw one of the most thought provokingly disturbing films, Dogville. I just can’t say enough good things about Nicole Kidman. Sunday was church.