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So this is my first year actually watching So You Think You Dance....well, kinda. I often can't watch it on the time it's on t.v. so I watch clips afterwards on YouTube. But I stay up to date on what's going on!! Anyways, I've been watching this one performance over and over again since Wednesday so I thought I'd post it (and my two other favorite pieces of the season) for anyone who didn't see it. It's hip hop danced to Leona Lewis' Bleeding Love. The choreographers are Napolean and Tabitha who have been introducing this type of lyrical hip hop to the dancing scene. It's awesome and, for me, adds a lot of emotional depth to this genre of dance that I didn't personally connect with much. Also, I think it's interesting how they aren't limiting hip hop choreography to specific hip hop music.
So my favorite parts of this dance are the slight roll at 20 sec, their walk and slide thing at 27 sec (plus her pull through under his arms right after), when he goes down her arm and sniffs her hair :) at 55 sec, and of course her isolations at 1:18. Haha, yea...that's it. :)
The couple dancing is Chelsie Hightower and Mark Kanemura. I think they are definitely my favorite couple and would be regardless of the connection that Chelsie is from Orem, attended UVSC for a year, a member of the Church, or if my friend didn't know her sister. Sometimes people like someone simply for those kinds of reason but I am completely honest when I say they'd be my favorite if she was a random from Timbucktoo.
Their first performance is also one of my favorites. It's a contemporary piece choreographed by Mia Michaels.
And finally another lyrical hip hop piece by the same choreographers danced to Jordin Sparks, No Air. This couple is Joshua and Katee. These two hip hop pieces have some similar ideas and themes but both are very cool.
June 27, 2008
June 22, 2008
dancing toes
Today was a good day and I actually feel really good about where I am right now. I came home this evening thinking, "I'm happy" so that's always a good thing. :)
This morning I ventured back to Salt Lake City for another all day of dance workshops at the dance studio. Today I took Brazilian, Salsa, African. Hip Hop, and Jazz. Quite fun but I am nowhere near where I used to be. I really really want to take classes again but I'm not sure where to do it. I love this studio that holds these workshops because they do it like most big city places do it where you can get a punch card and attend that many classes for whatever ones and whenever you want. ...As compared to registering for a specific class and paying monthly tuition or something. I'm actually reaalllly tempted to get a card at this place and go up once a week for a jazz class on Thursday nights or African on Saturdays. I'm not sure. Let me know what you think of this idea. I've tried looking at places down here in Utah county but haven't found anything good that actually offers adult classes that aren't for teenybopper middle schoolers. Maybe there's something but I just don't know about it...I'm searching though.
Anyways...early on today (I think during the Salsa class) I bruised the bottoms of my big toes. It actually really hurts! I
mean, I AM walking on them all day right? So...uh, pictures. I know
you wanted to see :) They don't look as big or as painful in the pictures but you can see those big red dots can't you?? Right??
All in all, it was really fun and I'm glad I went. I still really really like the guy jazz teacher...there's just something about him. Yes, he is a male dancer....and has the stereotypical air that goes along with it. But, there's just something about him. Maybe that's why they hired him...to get girls like me to take his class.
After I got home, I went swimming at my complex's pool with Grace. Then showered and went to campus to do some freelance work I'm supposed to have finished over the weekend. Then talked to Marisa who...YES! is going to go to the Eric Hutchinson and Marie Digby concert with me next week!!!! And then, once I got sick of editing, I went and hung out with Marisa..And then I came home. Wow, it actually seems like a nice balance of work and play...although I probably played a bit more than worked. But it was good....even though my toes hurt!
June 15, 2008
just some quick thoughts
I don't know what to say because I don't know what I think. Or maybe...maybe I just don't want to admit or openly recognize what I think. It just takes some figuring out for me. I never officially posted that I accepted the job in Lindon, Utah and have once again made my way across the country and settled into dear old Provo...I'm getting used to it and still hoping it ends up being the right choice. (And in this context the "right" choice is a choice I remain happy with and that contributes to good things further on. ) I hate decisions. I really really really REALLY do. Most of all I hate that I never know if my decision is a good one, or in some cases, the right one. It drives me crazy. I don't really care most of the time--I just want whatever it is to be a good one that works out and helps me be happy. That's the hardest part.
June 9, 2008
another note....
Today my brother and I were driving back after having dinner at Five Guys and what do we hear on the popular radio station 99.5?? Forever the Sickest Kids's Woah Oh.
My brother was like, "Oh, I like this song, who sings it?" I thought about it and the song was really familiar but I couldn't match the song with any of the popular groups you hear on the radio....and all of the sudden was like....is this Forever the Sickest Kids??? Yep, the chorus came on and I was right. Kinda crazy...I found it like a month before we heard it on the radio. I guess we'll see if it becomes played more.
For future reference....I will be posting links and music by my brother's band Shamrock 19 at some point. As of today, I told him their stuff isn't quite up to par with what I look for (there's me getting all serious) but maybe they'll be ready by next year. Watch out, they are awesome. :)
My brother was like, "Oh, I like this song, who sings it?" I thought about it and the song was really familiar but I couldn't match the song with any of the popular groups you hear on the radio....and all of the sudden was like....is this Forever the Sickest Kids??? Yep, the chorus came on and I was right. Kinda crazy...I found it like a month before we heard it on the radio. I guess we'll see if it becomes played more.
For future reference....I will be posting links and music by my brother's band Shamrock 19 at some point. As of today, I told him their stuff isn't quite up to par with what I look for (there's me getting all serious) but maybe they'll be ready by next year. Watch out, they are awesome. :)
More songs of the summer
OK, I'm just getting started, I know, but this has been one of my favorite years of summer songness yet. Nothing against any of the other years but I have had so much fun finding new and undiscovered artists on my own...and then really really liking them. It's just really fun finding things you like because YOU LIKE THEM....not because you know them based on how frequently you hear them on the radio as they simply becomes something you like by familiarity.
For those of you who have been involved in Summer Songs before, you know how crazy I get about them. So I apologize ahead of time. But I do like sharing what I find so here are a couple new things about things I've found....
I posted before about the band Making April. Well, apparently they will be putting out a new cd in August and as a sort of promotional effort, they are giving away downloads of their past cd. I have Roses and Butterflies and These are the Nights featured in my sidebar, and there are a few others of their songs that I really like. So you can visit their myspace page and/or just go to pure volume to download their music for free. They aren't currently allowed to give away These are the Nights.
Also, here is the first shout out and mention of Todd Carey. I haven't gone through all of his music yet but I do like Watching Waiting and I Ain't Got Love. He is doing or participating in this cool Green purchase thing where he is offering his music at a "pay what you feel" price. It also encourages people to simply download (who doesn't these days) the music rather than buying a cd with all the packaging and materials that go with it. You can pay anything from $0 t0 $10 and download his entire album. I believe for purchases over $5, a portion goes to the Go Green initiative.
I like that this year I really have found some artists before they are getting much exposure. For example, Newton Faulker just recently made his first appearance on television on the Jay Leno show singing his new single, Dream Catch Me.
For those of you who have been involved in Summer Songs before, you know how crazy I get about them. So I apologize ahead of time. But I do like sharing what I find so here are a couple new things about things I've found....
I posted before about the band Making April. Well, apparently they will be putting out a new cd in August and as a sort of promotional effort, they are giving away downloads of their past cd. I have Roses and Butterflies and These are the Nights featured in my sidebar, and there are a few others of their songs that I really like. So you can visit their myspace page and/or just go to pure volume to download their music for free. They aren't currently allowed to give away These are the Nights.
Also, here is the first shout out and mention of Todd Carey. I haven't gone through all of his music yet but I do like Watching Waiting and I Ain't Got Love. He is doing or participating in this cool Green purchase thing where he is offering his music at a "pay what you feel" price. It also encourages people to simply download (who doesn't these days) the music rather than buying a cd with all the packaging and materials that go with it. You can pay anything from $0 t0 $10 and download his entire album. I believe for purchases over $5, a portion goes to the Go Green initiative.
I like that this year I really have found some artists before they are getting much exposure. For example, Newton Faulker just recently made his first appearance on television on the Jay Leno show singing his new single, Dream Catch Me.
flying around
This weekend I got to go down to Florida (for the first time since I moved from there) for Jenna Rhames' wedding. Now that I type this I am reminded of my wish that I wished for YEARS after I moved....to go to Florida with all my friends and a million bucks. Okay, so we did
n't quite have a million bucks but there was a big group of my friends (Grace, Brienne, Ryan, Clark, Joey, Kirk, Jordan, Adam, and of course Jenna and Josh) and it was quite fun! We got to stay in amazing houses, play and canoe in a lake...or some type of body of water, go to the Island of Adventure amusement park, attend our friend's wedding, and have all kinds of fun in between. So I guess this is my long time wish coming true. :)
First of all, before I forget, I have to comment about Southwest. I will fly three flights with them in the past month and I'm starting to like them. The seating took some getting used to but it's nice to be able to pick your seat (I like getting a window as close to the front as possible so I can make a quick departure from the plane!) Since a couple of these flights have been (or will be) me moving across the country, or transferring my stuff across the country, I LOVE that Southwest still allows you to check two bags and then to check a third, it only costs $25 bucks. That's awesome compared to most other airlines right now. I admit my flight down to Florida was kinda rough. But that was mostly because the expected two hour trip turned out to be a 7-hour wait at the airport and not LEAVING the airport until three hours after I was supposed to ARRIVE. But it was all good. I actually had a fun time just listening to my ipod, or more specifically, my Summer Songs songs for 2008, specifically Gone in the Morning by Newton Faulkner. Something about that song just puts me in a way relaxed, go with the flow kind of mood. The perfect Summer Songs song just gets better the more you listen to it, so this was a great testing period. Anywaaaays, the main reason I wanted to mention Southwest is because there was a very interesting dynamic on the flight, maybe specifically related to a particular male flight attendant. It was the first time the attendants were actually attempting to be entertaining....I mean, they had the whole cabin laughing most of the time. I wasn't paying a whole lot of attention to specifics because it was early and I was slipping in and out of sleep but I caught a few snipits.
While explaning where the "laboratories" were located the guy says, "And for any of you who graduated from the University of Florida, "laboratory" is just a big word for bathroom."
And of course the song he sang while we were pulling into our gate, sung to the tune of the Barney song:
Anyways, it was really kinda funny throughout the whole trip and it kinda reminds me of some of purposes of my old job at Build-a-Bear workshop, where they really try to make an ordinary experience something fun and memorable. Wouldn't it be kinda interesting to see something like that applied to the airline world. To make an ordinary experience something fun and actually entertaining. Like holding auditions for the flight attendants and making the whole experience like a big amusement park ride. Of course, I am torn about the idea because sometimes I do like just entering the plane and having my peace and quiet to sleep and do whatever else. But I definitely think there would be a consumer interest in the idea and could maybe help eliminate some of the dissatisfaction with airlines right now....or was that just me?
n't quite have a million bucks but there was a big group of my friends (Grace, Brienne, Ryan, Clark, Joey, Kirk, Jordan, Adam, and of course Jenna and Josh) and it was quite fun! We got to stay in amazing houses, play and canoe in a lake...or some type of body of water, go to the Island of Adventure amusement park, attend our friend's wedding, and have all kinds of fun in between. So I guess this is my long time wish coming true. :)First of all, before I forget, I have to comment about Southwest. I will fly three flights with them in the past month and I'm starting to like them. The seating took some getting used to but it's nice to be able to pick your seat (I like getting a window as close to the front as possible so I can make a quick departure from the plane!) Since a couple of these flights have been (or will be) me moving across the country, or transferring my stuff across the country, I LOVE that Southwest still allows you to check two bags and then to check a third, it only costs $25 bucks. That's awesome compared to most other airlines right now. I admit my flight down to Florida was kinda rough. But that was mostly because the expected two hour trip turned out to be a 7-hour wait at the airport and not LEAVING the airport until three hours after I was supposed to ARRIVE. But it was all good. I actually had a fun time just listening to my ipod, or more specifically, my Summer Songs songs for 2008, specifically Gone in the Morning by Newton Faulkner. Something about that song just puts me in a way relaxed, go with the flow kind of mood. The perfect Summer Songs song just gets better the more you listen to it, so this was a great testing period. Anywaaaays, the main reason I wanted to mention Southwest is because there was a very interesting dynamic on the flight, maybe specifically related to a particular male flight attendant. It was the first time the attendants were actually attempting to be entertaining....I mean, they had the whole cabin laughing most of the time. I wasn't paying a whole lot of attention to specifics because it was early and I was slipping in and out of sleep but I caught a few snipits.
While explaning where the "laboratories" were located the guy says, "And for any of you who graduated from the University of Florida, "laboratory" is just a big word for bathroom."
And of course the song he sang while we were pulling into our gate, sung to the tune of the Barney song:
We love you You love us We are faster than the bus We hoped you enjoyed our hospitality If you marry one of us, you can Fly for Free
Anyways, it was really kinda funny throughout the whole trip and it kinda reminds me of some of purposes of my old job at Build-a-Bear workshop, where they really try to make an ordinary experience something fun and memorable. Wouldn't it be kinda interesting to see something like that applied to the airline world. To make an ordinary experience something fun and actually entertaining. Like holding auditions for the flight attendants and making the whole experience like a big amusement park ride. Of course, I am torn about the idea because sometimes I do like just entering the plane and having my peace and quiet to sleep and do whatever else. But I definitely think there would be a consumer interest in the idea and could maybe help eliminate some of the dissatisfaction with airlines right now....or was that just me?
Here are some pictures from my trip. I don't have many from the amusement park cuz those are all on Grace's camera. Jenna's wedding theme was "happily ever after."
June 2, 2008
Twlight and so on
OK first off, I've posted a lot of new songs for Summer Songs and there's a lot that I think I really like. So if you have some time, listen and tell me what you think...what you like, what's not so great, etc.
Next off....In the midst of not having a whole lot to do while I am waiting for things to hopefully work together soon, I stumbled onto my mother's copies of the Twilight series and one day while I was in need of something to read on a long drive, I grabbed Twilight. Since then, I have almost read all three books again. Yes again, I've already read the first two twice (now 3), and Eclipse once (now 2). (This isn't something I planned, I don't usually read these types of books over and over again.) Anyways, my return to the world of Bella, Edward, and Jacob has actually kinda made me excited for 1) the release of Breaking Dawn in August, 2) the release of Twilight the movie in December and 3) the release of Midnight Sun who knows when.
For those who don't know (but maybe hopefully have read Twilight), Midnight Sun reverses the role of Edward's "power" and offers the reader a glimpse into Edward's mind and perspective of the same plot of Twilight. Now this isn't something I really noticed at first, but apparently most people really don't understand Edward and what he went through and so Stephenie Meyer started writing this as a character development exercise and realized it would be interesting to fans and is going to finish and publish the whole thing. Meanwhile, she has posted the first chapter of the book on her Web site. I've actually thought about reading this for a while, but I was never really at a computer unless I was at work for the longest time so I just barely got a chance to read it.
Now when I first read the books, I can't say that I was too much of a fan. Sure, I liked them and they were enjoyable, but I didn't feel the thrill or obsession like many people I know. I think they have now just grown on me. But I think that this first chapter of Midnight Sun is by far my favorite thing of anything of the Twilight series. It's kinda sad that it's only the first chapter but I can deal.
I'm in the second half of Eclipse now so I've kinda noticed that the special edition of Eclipse has just recently come out and with it came the first chapter of Breaking Dawn. Since I now seem to be far too invested in this little book series, I just might have to stop by a bookstore for 15 min or so to read this in a corner of the shop. Part of the chapter is available on EW.com so we know that *SPOILER* Bella is engaged. I actually don't really remember the end of Eclipse so I don't know if that is a surprise or not. (Oh gosh, I'm turning into one of those fanatic, obsessed entertainment bloggers)
Anyways, another reason that has probably kept me reading the series this time is t
hat I'm getting used to the character images of the actors playing the parts in the movie. For those who haven't seen the trailer or the cast photos...see here or scroll down on here. I didn't really like Bella and I really couldn't picture this guy as Edward. But I'm getting used to it and it kinda helps reading the story and automatically having their pictures in my head. I'm actually now more fond of the Edward actor than the Bella actress. Oh I just found a clip from this Sunday where MTV showed about a min of one of the endish scenes in the ballet studio....
Yep, it's official. I think I'm turning into a Twilight nerd.
Next off....In the midst of not having a whole lot to do while I am waiting for things to hopefully work together soon, I stumbled onto my mother's copies of the Twilight series and one day while I was in need of something to read on a long drive, I grabbed Twilight. Since then, I have almost read all three books again. Yes again, I've already read the first two twice (now 3), and Eclipse once (now 2). (This isn't something I planned, I don't usually read these types of books over and over again.) Anyways, my return to the world of Bella, Edward, and Jacob has actually kinda made me excited for 1) the release of Breaking Dawn in August, 2) the release of Twilight the movie in December and 3) the release of Midnight Sun who knows when.
For those who don't know (but maybe hopefully have read Twilight), Midnight Sun reverses the role of Edward's "power" and offers the reader a glimpse into Edward's mind and perspective of the same plot of Twilight. Now this isn't something I really noticed at first, but apparently most people really don't understand Edward and what he went through and so Stephenie Meyer started writing this as a character development exercise and realized it would be interesting to fans and is going to finish and publish the whole thing. Meanwhile, she has posted the first chapter of the book on her Web site. I've actually thought about reading this for a while, but I was never really at a computer unless I was at work for the longest time so I just barely got a chance to read it.Now when I first read the books, I can't say that I was too much of a fan. Sure, I liked them and they were enjoyable, but I didn't feel the thrill or obsession like many people I know. I think they have now just grown on me. But I think that this first chapter of Midnight Sun is by far my favorite thing of anything of the Twilight series. It's kinda sad that it's only the first chapter but I can deal.
I'm in the second half of Eclipse now so I've kinda noticed that the special edition of Eclipse has just recently come out and with it came the first chapter of Breaking Dawn. Since I now seem to be far too invested in this little book series, I just might have to stop by a bookstore for 15 min or so to read this in a corner of the shop. Part of the chapter is available on EW.com so we know that *SPOILER* Bella is engaged. I actually don't really remember the end of Eclipse so I don't know if that is a surprise or not. (Oh gosh, I'm turning into one of those fanatic, obsessed entertainment bloggers)
Anyways, another reason that has probably kept me reading the series this time is t
hat I'm getting used to the character images of the actors playing the parts in the movie. For those who haven't seen the trailer or the cast photos...see here or scroll down on here. I didn't really like Bella and I really couldn't picture this guy as Edward. But I'm getting used to it and it kinda helps reading the story and automatically having their pictures in my head. I'm actually now more fond of the Edward actor than the Bella actress. Oh I just found a clip from this Sunday where MTV showed about a min of one of the endish scenes in the ballet studio....Yep, it's official. I think I'm turning into a Twilight nerd.
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