The Engagement

This past weekend I traveled to Idaho to shoot engagement pictures for my nephew and his fiance.  This was my first opportunity to meet her and I have to say that they are a great match.

There is something almost magical when you are with people that are newly in love.  It is fascinating to watch the way they interact.  I think it is this way in most new relationships--there is an extra level of attention and energy that surrounds people.  I love this stage in a relationship.  I wish them all the happiness in the world.

In Transit

Today I will be spending 10 hours driving more than 650 miles to return home.  I spent the last three days visiting, laughing and hanging out with some of my family.  The purpose of the trip was an engagement photo session--but I was happy to drive 20 hours over the long weekend to see my family.

Road trips can be fun, but when you're alone they are difficult.  I settled into a routine on the drive up and will follow it on the return trip....book on c.d. for an hour, French lesson for 30 minutes (perfect example of me always trying to continue my skill development), listen to music for 30 minutes, repeat. 

The author of the book I'm listening to is very good at doing differnent voices and I have spent a considerable time paying attention to his craft of voice-over work.  I think one day it would be fun to record a full novel.

I hope that you enjoy Memorial Day and I would love to give a shout-out to my neice and her husband as well as my cousin who are all members of the U.S. military and let them know how much I appreciate their service to our country. In honor of today, I thought I would share one of my favorite photos.  Taken in 2009 while on a trip to Washington, D.C. with my friend Sarah.

In Love with a 'Phantom'

I have been a massive fan of The Phantom of the Opera since elementary school and one of my all time favorite novels is Phantom by Susan Kay.

Wednesday evening I went to see a taping of Love Never Dies, Andrew Lloyd Weber's sequel to The Phantom. I didn't know much about the story, other than knowing that the production had been a failure when it opened in London. I must say I loved the production. The show was performed by an Australian cast and shot in Melbourne. Ben Lewis, who plays the Phantom hasa stunning voice and he brought a ton of emotion to his performance. The show did not have the same grandeur as the original, but it was a satisfying continuation of the story.

If you are a fan of the story, I would recommend checking out this addition.

If I Only Had a Brain

“There is no expedient to which a man will resort to avoid the real labor of thinking.”
-Sir Joshua Reynolds

When I listen to the radio, watch the news or even talk to my students I am ever aware of Sir Joshua Reynold's quote.  As someone who has a tendency to overthink and analyze practically everything, I am often baffled with the lack of thinking by those around me.

One of my favorite songs from The Wizard of Oz has always been If I Only Had A Brain. Near the end of the song the Scarecrow sings:

I would not be just a nuffin'
My head all full of stuffin'
My heart all full of pain
I would dance and be merry
Life would be a ding-a-derry
If I only had a brain

I think the Scarecrow was right that a lot of life's pains come from not thinking through our words or our actions.  How many of your regrets could have been avoided if you'd only used your brain?  For me, I would say most of them!

Scaffolding Skills with Reach and Reciprocity

My bucket list is so long and it seems to grow daily--as a result I am often very scattered with my approach to projects and the learning of new skills.

Last week it was French, two weeks ago it was voice-overs, the month before...you get the picture. If you've been following this blog for any length of time you should see a pattern of me trying all sorts of random things. This is great because the variety keeps me interested, but because I haven't spent enough time refining my new skills they aren't fully integrated into my life yet. Don't worry I am still learning French and working on voice-overs.

In his book Smart World: Breakthrough Creativity And the New Science of Ideas
, Richard Ogle relates that it is important when learning something new to start with core knowledge in a particular field and then venture out to learn something within that same sphere. The key is to come back and reintegrate the new info with what you already know and then venture out again, continuing this process [reach and reciprocity]. Ogle contends that with too much reciprocity you will wind up in a rut and too much reach your efforts are scattershot and fruitless (the later is what is currently plaguing me).

As the school year is quickly approaching its conclusion, I will begin my summer vacation. My goal during this time is to work on this reach and reciprocity. Building some of the new skills I have gained since January and really trying to make a better connection.