My brother

:)  Sorry about my hiatus, but I have been pretty busy.  Busy counting down until my brother gets back from his MISSION!!

Before I met my husband, Ryan was my best friend.  I love him so much and I can't wait to see him.  He gets back on Thursday and then my whole family is coming up to see Jordan and I in Logan on Monday!!! Oh so many things have happened since he left.  A quick recap:

1) Met and started dating Jordan.
2) Blackbeard
3) Holly Jolly Christmas
4) Moved to NYC
5) Got engaged
6) Carousel in Massachusetts
7) Got Married
8) Forgotten Carols tour
9) Moved to Las Vegas
10) Moved to Logan for UFOC

That's a lot of moving and doing big life things!! I have been buried in scrapbooking for the last week trying to get it done before the fam gets in (btw WHY is scrapbooking paper so expensive?).  I should get b back to it actually.  But one last thing....

Ode to Fireworks

That's right.  It is FIREWORKS TIME!!!! I love fireworks.  I mean, what's not to love?  They are exciting and sparkly.  And I'm a girl, so, there ya go.

I have wonderful memories of fireworks.  When I was living on the east coast growing up, my parents would take my brother and I to see fireworks in a great big park and there was also an orchestra (a la Boston Pops) that played patriotic songs.  How fun is that?

Actually, its not just the fireworks.  I love the Fourth of July.  I love being American and I love our country.  I feel like its one of the few times in the year that most of the country is celebrating just the blessing of being here.  It's unifying, despite all the political crap that goes on most of the rest of the year.   And potato salad is a huge plus.

But back to fireworks.  They are just magical!!! Especially if you listen to music while you watch them.  Sometimes they explode in time with the music and that is RAD.  Actually, the first time I tried this, I was with my family visiting my grandparents in Casa Grande and it helped my bro and I bond.  I know that sounds super cheesy, but seeing as how we fought all growing up and now we are best friends, I give some credit to that year at the fireworks.

I've spent quite a few Independence Days in Casa Grande actually.  We used to get all the cousins together and sit in my Papa's pick-up truck and drink root-beer floats while watching them.  One year we actually went to the field and the fireworks were so close that pieces were falling all around us.  I got to take one home!  My mom almost had a heart attack worrying that we were going to get burnt to a crisp, but it was a 4th of July miracle I guess :)

One of the most memorable 4th's was when we went camping as a family.  It was raining and storming all day, and we were pretty bummed cause we knew that they wouldn't shoot fireworks in the rain.  But we drove around the tiny town at dark anyway, and THEY LIT THEM.  IN THE RAIN.  In a thunderstorm actually.  We all stayed in the car and saw the most amazing display of earth and heaven's fireworks.  Lighting and fireworks together. Truly incredible.

My love for fireworks doesn't just apply to the Fourth though.  I love them anywhere, anytime.  In fact, my brother was really surprised when I didn't shoot them off for my wedding, but we live in AZ, where personal explosive bullets of happiness are illegal.  Boo.  My favorite fireworks show is in Disneyland.  I cry every. single. time.  Its all so magical and fun and beautiful I can't help it.  It makes me feel like a kid again.  And what is wrong with that???

So, last year I had to miss the fireworks.  I was in Massachusetts doing "Carousel" and we had a show that night.  Yes, I could hear them interrupting the last scene of the show, but I didn't get to see any of the glory.  I was only a few hours from a personal goal of mine to see the Boston Pops Fourth of July Spectacular--and I was singing "You'll Never Walk Alone" instead.  But I did get to make my 4th of July Pie.

This year will be different though.  Tonight, the city of Logan is shooting off fireworks so that people can go to SLC for the big show tomorrow night I guess.  I am not gonna lie....I was really dissapointed to find out that Jordan couldn't make it to watch them with me cause of rehearsal.  I wanted to share this memory and tradition together for the first time.  But, there is always next year I suppose.  Plus, here in Utah, I can get my own.  (I'm too scared to shoot off real ones, but you better BELIEVE I already have a ton of sparklers).  So we can celebrate together a different time.  I did make myself an iPod playlist for this evening festivities and I might even get myself a root beer float.  Who knows? Maybe on Sunday we'll watch Pops Goes the Fourth.  I love me some Boston Pops...almost as much as a sparkly firework.  May the magic COMMENCE!!!!

Addendum

Follow-up:  Here is what a real Tony Awards number should look like:

Dear Tony Awards:

For those of you who don't know (but you probably do unless you are a total stranger who just fell across my blog randomly), I love musical theatre.  I grew up around it since my dad was an opera/musical theatre singer and I fell in love with it as I grew.  I got my bachelor's degree in Musical Theatre from ASU 2 years ago and have been lucky enough to basically make a living performing since (current employment at the Pita Pit aside).  I love music in almost all of its forms, but musical theatre is probably my favorite.  It incorporates acting, dancing, and singing in one glorious production and few things make me happier than a great showstopping number.


I even met my husband in a musical called Blackbeard.  We freakishly got cast opposite each other as characters who were engaged and that got the ball rolling. Now we are married for EVER and I couldn't be happier about it.


About a year and a half ago I moved to New York City to chase the Broadway dream.  I won't go into all my adventures there (another blog for another time perhaps), and although I left to chase other dreams (named Jordan), I still like to keep in touch with all my friends back there and root for them as they try to tackle the big bad city.


The Tony Awards---the "Oscars" of Broadway- were this last Sunday.  I had a few friends who were in shows that were nominated and one that was even performing.  I grabbed some grub and settled in to watch.  What I saw could only be described as a monstrosity.


And so I compose this letter:


Dear Tony Awards:


WHAT HAS HAPPENED TO YOU? WHAT HAS HAPPENED TO BROADWAY??!!  I know that by the end of this blog I will come across as a musical theatre snob and probably a jerk, but just know these two things: 1) According to sports talk radio host Jim Rome, everyone is a snob about something.  Whether its "I only eat organic" or "I only fly first class" or  "I have to have complete darkness whilst I sleep," EVERYONE has a thing...or two.  2) I happen to be on a roll about this awards show, and I can be dramatic and I tend to use hyperbole in order to get a point across, so there ya go.  I don't want to be a traitor to my craft or a "bitter betty," but I feel that something needs to be said.


As a friend of mine posted on facebook..."Is this the Tony's or the Grammy's?"  It should be easy to tell.  But on Sunday, my mind was reeling trying to figure out why on this earth Green Day was the opening act.  And why ANYONE would let the lead singer try to crawl out of his drunken/wasted/ completely high stupor to present anything.  This is not a rock concert.


But maybe that is what broadway is now.  I mean, it seems that in a noble effort to revive the American public's interest in musicals, Broadway producers have pored through decades of pop/rock music, looking for an artist whose canon of music they can somehow slap together into a "musical."  Now, the jukebox musical has its place.  I think that probably 1 in 7 of these types of musicals/revues really shine and will be around for awhile.  Examples: Jersey Boys, Smokey Joe's Cafe, even Movin' Out.  Now, to be fair, I have not seen any of the musicals that were up for Best Musical this year.  I can't give an educated opinion about the show itself.  But that's not what a blog is for is it?  This is a rant, people, not a NY Times review.


All night long, the only thing I saw that showcased Broadway talent adequately was Matthew Morrison's "All I Need is the Girl."  A lot of people got their panties in a twist because he is on Glee, a TV show--not a broadway show.  Fair enough---but given the fact the the drivel we had to watch for two hours before he showed up was actually ON BROADWAY, the Tony's needed some real entertainment value.  Morrison was a broadway star before Glee even happened, so it didn't bother me--and I was grateful for the reprieve.  How sad, though, that they had to resort to calling a veteran to sing a song from a show that isn't even nominated for anything to breathe life back into the show.


Now, please don't for a minute think that I am knocking the talent of the people onstage.  As one who has been to all those auditions, I know that those people are good.  They work hard, and I'd like to think that most of them can sing.  I'm just saying that the material that they are given to put onstage is crap.  I was impressed by NOTHING that any of the new shows performed- and that was their one chance to do the "big number" from the show-- or at least a number that would make me spend $80 bucks on a ticket.  


Yep.  EIGHTY DOLLARS.  At least.  Now, there are student rush....but tickets are expensive. And quite frankly, I can go see an Elvis impersonator (ahem...Million Dollar Quartet) for free on the street in Vegas.


I am just tired of producers of pop/rock albums looking to make yet another buck by slamming a bunch of songs together, trying to add a storyline (probably something anti-establishment or angst-ridden), and calling it a musical.  If I want to headbang, I'll go see Muse in concert (who are amazing by the way).  Keep the punk rock in the stadiums and the show tunes on Broadway, please.  


As for the plays, I actually have no problem with "Hollywood" actors coming to the stage.  In fact, I respect it.  Denzel is good.  Why shouldn't he win a Tony for his performance?  I do think that it makes it harder for us no-names to get a job because even if we are good actors, our names won't put butts in the seats like Catherine Zeta-Jones will.  But, alas, what can be done?


The technical problems were, yet again, abundant.  Get it together guys.


Maybe I'm old-fashioned.  But maybe I just want to see new work come to broadway that isn't already have-created by using existing music.  


Thanks,
Kaitlynn

Doesn't this make you smile??

warning: this blog may turn into me posting my favorite dances from So You Think You Can Dance and why.  Here is Lauren Froderman's final audition before making it into the top 10.  It pretty much sums up how my husband makes me feel inside...enjoy.

lauren @ Yahoo! Video

The Tale of the Toxic Taters

So I consider myself to be a pretty good baker, and a decent cook.  I can make a few things REALLY well for dinner, and I'm getting better since I've been trying new recipes from   www.cookinglight.com.  BTW, their herbed chicken parmesan made my husband fall in love with me all over again.  


Anyway, the problem with me is that it usually takes me screwing a recipe up at least once before I get it right.  Apparently I have a problem reading recipes.  For instance, a few months ago, I was making these delicious maple date bars cause my hubby and I were going through a serious "I love dates more than ice cream" phase, and I misread ONE word on the recipe.  It actually says
 "Beat sugar and Butter at medium speed" after the first step.  I read it as 
"Beat IN sugar and butter at medium speed."
To all of you cooks out there, that tiny two-letter word makes a BIG difference.  The bars turned out delicious anyway, but the consistency was all wrong (truthfully, Jordan want me to make them "wrong" every time--out of pride I have to do it right at least once though).


Or the time that I made two pumpkin pies the night before our first Thanksgiving without pumpkin pie spice, had a nervous breakdown, and my man went and got me more pie stuff so I could make two more the right way.

I have had my share of successes though.  This last Easter Sunday was a complete triumph (jordan's word I swear).  

And, for dessert we had chocolate parfaits.  I've already mentioned Jord's love for chicken parm, and we also thoroughly enjoy chocolate chip cookies on occasion. 


A few nights ago, though, I was having one of those days and was, shall we say, craving a little comfort food.  So I had my heart set on pork chops with mashed potatoes.  I LOVE mashed potatoes.  So, I got myself going on dinner, so that Jord could eat before rehearsal.  I am still working on getting all the food that I make ready at the same time, so, of course, I had to put the pork chops and gravy in the microwave to keep warm while the potatoes finished boiling.  After I drained them, I remembered that I only had one mixing bowl in the apartment, and that it was currently being used to house Jordan's award winning salsa.  Hmm.  What to do?


I decided to just mix them with a hand mixer in the pot I cooked them in.  No problem.  I got it done and served up, and just as Jordan was about to take a big fatty bite, I noticed some suspicious pepper flecks in our creamy taters.  Wait a second...  I didn't pepper these....


Yep.  The hand mixer had scraped the teflon from the pan into my food, making them poisonous.  WHY??!!!!  Luckily, neither of us ate any.  But, I was totally distraught.  I started crying like I had cancer of the puppy and felt like I really couldn't do anything right.  It seems over the top now, but, it really was devastating.  After calming down a little, my amazing husband took me out for some frozen yogurt and suggested that we watch Clueless.


Its okay.  You can be jealous.  :)

Why do we do this to ourselves?

If you asked me in high school what kind of music I listened to, I would have said "A little of everything...except rap and country."  I haven't changed much, but I find myself liking certain country artists more and more.  My husband is a Garth Brooks fan, and I like many of his songs.  I became a Rascal Flatts fan in college and went to their concert for my 21st birthday.  I consider myself a "crossover country" fan--I would never "favorite" a country station on my radio, but every now and then I just need a twang in my day, okay ya'll?

My question today is this:  why are so many country songs so sad?  I mean, really people.  Aside from the typical infidelity songs...which span every musical genre I think....I really believe that country music holds the record for the most heartwrenching songs about cancer, unexpected death, suicide, or any other tragic event.  Any sane person would rebel against this depressing stuff.  I consider myself to be a happy person...but every so often, "Sara Beth" will come up on  my shuffle and, instead of saying "No thanks, I'm having a great day," I listen.  And I let myself get sucked in to this manipulative heart-string pulling song and end up crying on my way to the gym.  Seriously?

Again I ask...Why do we do this to ourselves?  For that matter, why do I intentionally opt to watch movies repeatedly that I know will reduce me to nothing more than a sniveling ball of kleenex and snot.. (Up! anyone?)  My mother absolutely refuses to watch anything that is remotely sad.  I used to mock her for this, but ever since I got married, I have become more and more like her.  I'll still watch those movies, but I am more disturbed by them.  Somehow, the unfortunate death of a computer-animated elderly woman and her widower's fantastical and touching journey to their dream vacation locale finds its way into my mind as something that will ABSOLUTELY HAPPEN TO JORDAN AND I.  I am so afraid to be apart from my husband that I immediately take whatever I am reading, watching, or listening to way too personally and start worrying about it.  I am hoping that this will calm down with time.  We'll see.

Anyway, I leave you with a favorite quote from one of my favorite shows...Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Xander- "That's okay. I don't wanna go. Just gonna go home, lie down, and listen to country music. The music of pain."


Well said my friend, well said.