Day Twenty-One: I can't believe that I...

ever thought white eyeliner was a fashion forward decision.

In eighth grade, all the girls at my school started wearing white eyeliner. In an effort to be cool, I too bought some and started lining my eyes with a 1/4" line of white iridescent pencil. Worst. Look. Ever. Someone should have shaken me as hard as possible and told me what a terrible fashion statement I was making. Ugh. Thank goodness there are virtually no photos of that time in my life and that it was a short-lived phase. 

At least I wasn't alone in my poor taste.

Day Twenty: Things in life that sustain me emotionally.

1. Music

(singing/playing included)

          

2.My husband. Everpresent and understanding. A pillar in my life.

3. My parents. There since day one, and they'll always be there.

4. A good cry. Yes, it's true. Nothing makes me feel better.

5. My friends

 

Day Nineteen: The first time I...

stepped onstage, I knew I could never really stop doing the one thing that made me feel like I had pleased so many and that I was totally at home. I was 5 years old, and I was the Second Little Piggie in the Three Piggie Opera. I had never felt the kind of rush I felt when I was on stage, and I still feel that every time I step in front of an audience. It is impossible to duplicate and I've found nothing that makes me feel so alive. Since then I've done a variety of shows including:

Peter Pan

The Music Man

The Wizard of Oz

The Nutcracker Musical

Annie

Guys and Dolls

Never Too Late

Voices of the Y Generation

Kimberly Akimbo

I've also begun costuming and working behind the scenes a bit too, which has presented a whole new challenge. I will never stop- I wouldn't be whole without it.

"oink, oink, diggity dear, the three piggie opera you're now going to hear..."

Day Eighteen: If I could choose a different time period to live in it would be...

This is a tough one for me because I'm such a history nerd. I think for me it's a tie between Greece anytime during the height of their empire and France in the mid 1800's. 

For about 500 years BC, the Greeks were doing things that no one had ever imagined. They invented so many concepts and practices and devices that we still use some form of (or all of) to this day. Scholars were making prolific and important statements, inventors were creating life-changing devices, and artists were making some of the most revolutionary works the world had (and has) ever seen. What a time- oh! to have been able to play witness to such an incredible movement.

In 1800's France, the Bohemians were just surfacing (go see La Boheme by Giacomo Puccini if you want to learn more) and starting to make big, big changes. There was this very "devil may care" attitude among many young Parisians, and Bohemian writers and artists and musicians were also doing important things. But mostly, I just think it was a blast to be alive.

Day Seventeen: Why should I forgive?

In most cases the question is really why shouldn't I forgive? What purpose does holding a
grudge really serve? It just makes you jaded and resentful, and really doesn't fix any problem. 


Unless someone has does something to truly and deliberately hurt or wrong you in some way, I really see no benefit for either party in not forgiving. Mistakes are made, and in order to move on people must be forgiven.

Day Sixteen: What is the first thing that pops into my head when I think of my father?

Music. Well, contemporary music anyway. My grandpa turned me on to musicals and barbershop, but my dad was the encyclopaedia when it came to popular (and not so popular) music. He was the first one to introduce me to The Beatles, The Clash, David Bowie, The Ramones, and even Queens of the Stone Age. Now that I'm an adult, we are now constantly trading new music suggestions and listening to all the music he introduced me to as a child. I so love that we have such a close bond (in many ways), but music is what always brings us together.

Day Fifteen: Sisters

Hmmmm, sisters...

This topic means something different to me than most people, as I have no biological sisters. 

When I started college, I was the only one from my high school within about 50 miles. I knew no one, and I didn't get into the dorms right away and was renting a room from some people who were, ahem, unique. I never fancied myself as one to join a sorority, but I found out that the Panhellenic sororities were recruiting and decided to check it out. After going through recruitment, I knew that my life would never be the same if I joined Zeta Tau Alpha. I had never felt so welcomed by so many in my entire life. After I joined and learned the creed (below), I knew that I had made the right decision. One of my pledge sisters was my matron of honor at my wedding and is my dearest friend, and my big sister and I have a wonderful relationship (maybe because we are both only children). Sisterhood has a different and special meaning for me, and I am forever grateful to each ZTA for making me understand what it meant to have sisters.