Many faces :) :(

As a dancer it's amazing how many different attitudes or faces we have to put on. Going from happy to sad to angry to flirty. My latest role was a statue in Romeo & Juliet, standing in the background with an expressionless face showing neither the joy of Romeo meeting Juliet or the sorrow of them killing themselves. Now, I have another face to put on...that of a slutty gypsy. We are learning an exert from Don Juan, which will be performed next season, to perform at the auction in 2 weeks and we all play gypsies. Don Juan has just been kicked out of his home for misbehaving and all the gypsy girls are ecstatic. It is a challenge sometimes to make that dramatic character change in a week but it is fun to see what you're capable of portraying and capable of pulling off. What's nice about either dancing or acting is it's all pretend, a job, it's what we do. So if I make it look real or any part for that matter I've succeeded. Whether I'm a sad willy from Giselle or a gypsy from Don Juan, I'll make the part look as real as I can...that's my job! :)    

Hello!! :)

Hey everyone! Sorry I haven't written in ages but I've been busy and have had a lot on my mind. I hope everyone had a great Valentines Day and is enjoying life. I just finished dancing in Romeo & Juliet in San Diego Ballet's Evening of Romance. It was very fun, despite the umpire style ballroom dresses us back-ground people wore. This was the first performance I've ever worn a mask and it was pretty cool. I take that back, it was pretty hot! If any of you theater people have worn masks you'll know, like I found out, that you get rather warm. It's rather annoying when sweat is dripping into your eyes and you can't wipe it off :P Well the directors were kind enough to give us a week to recoop after those 2 shows and tomorrow is our last day off. Now we'll be working on a Gala/Auction on March 3 at the La Jolla Country Club to raise funds for the company. Hope it works!! Onto other news, I only have 4 weeks till I graduate from college!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I'm very very very very excited, if you couldn't tell! :) I know some people think a year is a drop in the bucket as far as college goes but I'm ready for graduation. We also got a new batch of chicks and they're so cute! They aren't quite little fluff balls anymore but still...

The day they came home :)

Right after they were introduced to their new home

Keeping warm under the brooder

I live!!!

Everyone has probably come to the conclusion that I've fallen off the face of the earth...but I haven't!!!!!!! I promise I'll start updating again but this is just to let y'all know I'm still alive. See ya soon!!! :)

Life in the fast lane!

Well, my lovely summer is about over. Since coming back from Philadelphia I've been to Yosemite National Park, which was just a leisurely trip to take a jaunt up a rock, and then Mommy and I spent a wonderful few days at South Carlsbad beach. We were able to watch a beautiful sunset and take several rather long walks in the sand :) Now it's back to crunch time, not only with school but another very exciting thing that's happened to me. It's not a job, yet, but I'm dancing with the company at San Diego Ballet. So I'm not being paid to dance but it's kinda like I am because I don't have pay tuition for classes :D So I have 3 performances in October before we even think about Nutcracker. I will also be going on tour with the company and doing the Nutcracker in Montana over Thanksgiving weekend!!! To say the least, I'm ECSTATIC!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! This is what I've been working for and it feels so good to finally do it!! Ok, changing gears, back to school. My 3rd quarter of school starts this Thursday, Sept 22, and I'm going to be a busy girl. This quarter I have herbology(really excited about this one!), upper body kinesiology, deep tissue massage, neuromuscular massage and chair massage. So if anyone wants a massage, most likely I'll need practice hours! So if any of you are curious here's an example of my average day:

6am ~ get up and get ready for the day
8am ~ leave the house
9:30am ~ company class
11am ~ rehearsal
1pm ~ leave rehearsal and head to school
1:30pm ~ start school with a clear head
5:30pm ~ leave school with my brains fried
6:30pm ~ get home for dinner and study school and any dances I need to
10pm ~ try and go to bed

That is going to be my average week day, my weekends on the other hand:

6am ~ get up and get ready for dance
8am ~ leave the house
9:30am ~ company class
11am ~ rehearsal
5pm ~ leave to head home
6pm ~ arrive home for dinner then crash in bed, most likely

So that's pretty much going to be my life for at least the next 6 months. So if you don't see me for some time or you don't hear from me, don't worry I shouldn't be dead ;) Just keep trying and eventually I'll get back to you!

Half Dome vs. Grand Canyon

Okydoky, Half Dome was so much easier than Grand Canyon. I'm going to abbreviate so bare with me. GC was longer and we were going uphill at the end. HD was shorter and we went up to begin with. HD was steeper and harder in the fact that it was a climb most of the way and not a hike. But all in all GC took a bigger toll on me then HD did. The hardest part of HD were the cables and that was the hardest place mentally. I was telling my uncle it's not that you couldn't die in the GC but when you're standing on this big rock with nothing but your hands gripping the cables and keeping your footing keeping you from a fall to your death, in that perspective it was harder than GC. But hey, I'm alive and so is the rest of the group that went, so we're all good!! Here are some highlights of the trip :)

5 sandwiches, cheez-its, M&M's, peanut M&M's, chip's ahoy, apple, vanilla wafers, fig newtons, pita chips, trail mix, assorted chocolate bars...that consisted of our lunch for the hike!  

We left camp at this time and started the hike at 5:51am

Vernal Falls on the Mist trail

Nevada Falls farther up

4.5 miles left!!

Half Dome!

The cables leading up to the dome. The cables are the line on the left

View of Yosemite Valley from on top. That's Me and Jeffery, my cousin, out on that rock

Our group. We did it!!!

Half Dome here I come!!!

Well, our family should be leaving within the next few hours for Yosemite National Park to hike/climb Half Dome. Yes I know everyone who reads this is now going to say 'be careful and don't fall off!' I have no intention of falling off but I can't say it won't happen. But I can say that if I do take a speedy trip down that it won't be because I did something stupid. And when I get to the bottom, after it's all said and done, I'll be sure to let y'all know which was harder, Half Dome or Grand Canyon. I can't wait, haven't had a vacation in quite some time and I really need to get away before dance and school start to take over my life, like they haven't already! Well here's a look at what's on my agenda for Thursday!

These are the cables going up the face of Half Dome

Looking at Half Dome from Yosemite Valley

Pics of today!

There is no secret so close as that between a rider and his horse
~ Robert Smith Surtees

Walked out into the garage tonight and this little guy was chillin' out on the carpet.  Daddy tried to get him out with a wooden dowel but that wasn't working so I grabbed the broom and jointly we got him/it outside and pinned down until Mommy got the trash can and he/it slithered inside and we relocated him/it to a different part of the property.
We think it's a gopher snake. It's not a rattler or else it would be in our freezer by now.
No I'm not kidding!