Blast From the Past! Babes in Toyland, 1990, Or, In Other Words, Realizing My Dad Wasn't As Old As I Thought He Was . . .

Today I spent some time going through folders in my file cabinet, organizing, when I stumbled upon this photo of my Dad, brother Michael and I.  We were posing for a photo for Babes in Toyland, a musical we three were in at Porterville College in 1990.  I was between the third and fourth grade.

Then I did the math . . .

If this was 1990, then my Dad was 34 years old in this photo!!!

34!!!!

That's how old I am now!!

Ah man!!

And I freaked out a little, or a lot.

It's just weird.

I don't feel nearly as old as my Dad seemed when I was eight.

This was the very first community theater I had ever been in.  My brother's first as well.  My Dad did a school play or two when he was at Buena High School, really need to get more information on that, but I don't think he had done community theater.  Anyhoo!  Ah man . . .

I remember so much about this experience.  A flier was passed around at school, which is how I found out.  My Dad took us to the audition, signed us up, and we left.  I didn't even get to audition, didn't really know what that was about, but when we left I saw kids getting up to sing solos and I wanted to stay and sing.  My Dad wanted to get out of there and not deal with the hassle, I guess.  Assuming.  So I got cast as a French Doll.  Because there weren't a lot of boys my brother got to be one of the Piper children.  In short, more scenes.

Back stage, in the long hallway, there were a whole lot of chairs.  Most of the time we were asked to sit quietly on the chairs as we waited for our scenes.  Since I weren't in many I spent a lot of time in that hallway, and somehow I got to avoid sitting in those seats.  I spent a lot of time in the makeup room with the adults trying on wigs.

Fun times.

The next year my Dad and I did Show Boat.  And for that, oddly enough, my fondest memory was going to the cafeteria on campus and getting pieces of Red Vines for a nickle or two.

Reflecting on Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dream coat: Middle School Memories

Over the weekend I saw a production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dream Coat at the Hale Center Theater in Orem UT.  It was fantastic, and unfortunately we saw it on the very last day of performance, so we can't go see it again.  The choreography, costumes, singing, and fun floor were top notch.

And it took me back to my middle school days at Pioneer Middle School (PMS . . . ) in Porterville.  We had a drama club that met after school, and it was so popular you had to audition to be in it.  My eighth grade year we performed Joseph, and I was one of four narrators.  For a production put on by 7th-8th graders it was pretty good.  And boy did we have fun.  So much fun.  It was a blast.

But it was strange watching the show last Saturday.  I used to have every song completely memorized, but I honestly don't think I've heard the music in well over a decade.  The songs familiar and new somehow.  The humor and one liners fresh.  It was strange realizing how much I'd forgotten!  Kinda makes me feel old :P

Martinelli's, Utah, California, and New Years

Happy 2016!!  Can you believe we've been in 2016 for a week now?  I keep writing 2015 instead of 2016, so a part of me is still trapped in the past.

Last week, while perusing around Costco for New Years stuff, I stumbled upon this giant crate of Martinelli's sparkling Cider.  I don't think I've seen this much Martinelli in one place, and my first thought was, "Only in Utah."  This drink is definitely the special occasion drink of choice around these parts.

And then memories of visiting Costco many times in Visalia and Oxnard CA came to mind.  Since moving to Utah over a decade ago, and adjusting to life in this new state--and it is an adjustment, even though I'm LDS aka Mormon--I seem now to always forget Costco has wine aisles in other states.  They don't here.  You can't by wine or alcohol at all, and at typical grocery stores it's nearly the same.  The alcohol is found in the soda section.

The same startled remembrance would also happen all those times I would shop at Albertsons and Vons in Ventura while visiting my grandpa before he sold his home.  (Man, I'm kinda going through withdrawals.  I miss those visits.  Totally took it all for granted.)  But it was always weird walking around California grocery stores and coming upon the wine section.  The things we forget.

You know what's weird!!!???  This Summer I will have lived in Utah for 15 years.  It doesn't seem possible.  I lived in Porterville for 14 years, Kindergarten through my first year at College (PC & COS), and before then Southern California, totaling 19 years in the state.

So Happy New Years everyone!

I hope you haven't given up on any New Years Resolutions.  I'm only just starting mine.  Last night Highland dance stated again, and I have three classes next week.  And this weekend I'm revamping my "diet," and I put the quotations around diet because I need a way of life, not a temporary system.  So this weekend I'm going to clean out the fridge, evaluate the extended pantry, look through cookbooks, and go grocery shopping.  It will be quite the project, but it will be good.

Here's to a great year!  It will be interesting.

What's Your Revolutionary War Experience?

I've heard my Sister-in-law talk about the "You Choose" books, the type of book where you pick your own adventure.  She loves them, admitting that when she was younger she always managed to die.  I've always been curious, but not curious enough to buy a book to try out.

Then late last week, while visiting Costco, I found a set of You Choose books featuring the American Revolution, Civil War, and two different WWII.

The books are AMAZING!  Sure, the writing level is Young Reader-ish, but the material gives you a feel of the times.  The pictures and maps are fantastic.

It's more fun to interact with history then read it through a text book.

With this being 4th of July week, I've been focusing on the Revolution book.  So far I've experienced the Boston Massacre through the eyes of John Hancock's maid, a British Soldier, and a 13 year old apprentice.  Fought on both sides of the battle of Bunker Hill, and both sides during the Revolution.

When we think of early America, we think, at least I do, that everyone must have been a Patriot.  But that's not the case at all.  There were a great many loyalist as well, and this book does a great job showing what it must have been like to live then, and why some people followed one path verses another.

For instance, I didn't know that after the war many loyalist fled to Canada and East Florida, a British colony.  When I played/read through as a loyalist, I choose East Florida, which, in a couple years was traded with Spain for the Bahama's, so I ended up living the rest of my days in the Bahamas.

These books are also really good at showing how a simple choice and action can drastically change our life.

Really interesting and fun.

In other news I'm getting over influenza!!  It suddenly attacked me Thursday, and by 10:00 pm that night I had a 104 fever!  I was feeling well enough last night to eat and watch street fireworks.  Unfortunately I wasn't able to help volunteer with the parade this year, it was a blast last year, but my Dad brought me back an American Freedom Festival Volunteer shirt, which I'm wearing now.

You want to know what else I'm doing now, besides writing this?  Watching the FIFA World Cup.  Argentina vs Belgium.  Argentina up one point!  I'm cheering them on.

Another random thought: Why do we need another Hercules movie this year?  Having to endure the first incarnation was bad enough.  (Just saw a commercial.)

Heh, and with all the randomness, none of my family warned my Grandpa what the 4th is like in Utah.  We have surrounding neighbors who love to buy the expensive aerials, and it's 2 + hours of bangs and whatnot.  Heh, so it'll be interesting to see  if he has anything to say about it! He's not in California anymore!!!

(There were a few years in Porterville where sparklers were made illegal.)

Half time is almost done!!  Back to the game :0)

I Can Be Biased Over Oranges . . .

Usually I just love eating fruit, not caring where it came from or if it's organic.  But when it comes to oranges I get excited.  What's sad is I can't even eat oranges for medical reasons, but seeing a box of oranges, and smelling them, makes me a little giddy.  It's the Central California gal in me, growing up in a city known for its orange agriculture.

Now, when my family picks out a box of oranges, I like to see where the oranges were grown.  Once, several years ago, the "from" stamp read "Porterville," which is my hometown.  Eating Porterville oranges in Utah was pretty epic.  The picture above is a box of oranges from Delano California, which is between Porterville and Bakersfield.

I'm sure the oranges from Southern California and Florida are perfectly nice, but the oranges from Central California are the best.

365 Day Photo challenge: Days 20 - 22. Remembering the Great Porterville Snow Fall of 1999

(Day 20 of the 365 day photo challenge) 

Starting January 22, 2012 we had a series of snow storms come through, which was actually a pleasant surprise.  I grew up in central California where all the orange trees grow, so just going below freezing was enough to freak the community out.  I heard that's how Porterville earned the "All American City" award, because one winter, when the trees were in danger of being destroyed by the cold, everyone got together to save them by pumping warm water and what not, and the crops were saved.  Nothing beats getting an orange straight from the tree.

 

(Day 21 of the 365 day photo challenge) 

I would fantasize how amazing it would be to have a snow day and for school to be canceled.  Every once in a while we would get snow flurries, but they would melt before hitting the ground.  Then January 25, 1999 something freaky happened.  Growing up LDS outside of Utah, I attended 6:30 a.m. seminary, but around 5:30 in the morning I got a call from my teacher saying class was canceled because it was snowing.  Snowing!?  Yeah, right, and I think I even laughed, because my teacher told me to look outside.  I did, swinging the door open, and gasping.  It was still dark, but there was at least half a foot of snow on the ground, and giant white snow flakes falling to the ground in glorious puffs. 

 

(Day 22 of the 365 day photo challenge) 

School was canceled, and I spent the day with my brother and friend Jeff, a neighbor, playing in snow fights and walking to other streets.  Everyone was out that day.  The whole city seemed to be at a stand still.  Here in Utah if there was snow like that, we wouldn't give it another thought, business would resume as normal.  But in California with braking tree branches taking out power lines and cars skidding everywhere causing accidents, most people seemed to stay home.  

It was such a novelty that the Weather Channel did a segment on it, featuring footage of the snow in Visalia.  

It's sad, reflecting, because I've forgotten that magic.  When it snows the first thing I think of is hoping the plow trucks are out and that the snow needs to be shoveled.  I hate driving in it.  These last few winters have been nasty and very wet.  But this year there hasn't really been much snow at all.  And so when we finally got a little, I couldn't help but be reminded how beautiful it is.

Have a great week!

Sarah