The lanes at a busy downtown intersection have been re-marked for two right hand turns lanes in one direction. Wonderful. As if it wasn't dangerous enough for pedestrians crossing the street with one right hand turn lane as inattentive and aggressive drivers make the turn without looking. Now the chances are doubled that a pedestrian will be hit by a car.
At that same intersection, two of the corner sidewalks have been completely redesigned and replaced over the last several months. About a month after all the work was completed, sections of the concrete were torn up while some kind of work was done. Don't these people communicate so that all the work could have been done at once. I guess that would have been to easy.
That same street is also having a bike lane added. It's not the usual bike lane between the curb and traffic lane. But it's being marked so that cyclists have a dedicated lane right in the middle of a traffic lane - sharing the road with vehicular traffic.
All I can say about these changes is, let the carnage begin.
Friday, August 27, 2010
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Miscellania
Has it really been almost 3 months since I've had anything to say on this blog? Well, the drought is over.
Yesterday, I walked over to a favorite restaurant for some lunch. On the way back, I stopped by the City Creek Living office to say "Hi" to my former work mates. The permanent office manager has been hired. I guess that a twenty something girl in a tight dress and stilettos trumps a slightly overweight grandma. But what I want to know does she really have the whiz bang Excel skills that I lack?
In the week since I left full time employment, thanks to my live-in personal trainer, I'm up to 3 miles a day of trail walking. Could there really be some kind of athlete buried inside me?
In a local news article about the effect owners of Kindles and Nooks might be having on sales of actual books, a local bookstore owner managed to offend a segment of local readers who use an e-reader. In her opinion, we aren't "real readers". She even took it one step further by saying that there would always be a need for "controlling content" and "identifying which books everyone should be reading". Really? I can only hope that what showed up in the article wasn't really what was in her head and it just came out horribly wrong.
While out on the trail today, a local, former TV actress (Cat Woman in the original Batman series) passed me by. She was wearing black pants, a black long sleeve top, full make-up and hair all done. Dressed like that, I wondered if she was immune to breaking a sweat.
Yesterday, I walked over to a favorite restaurant for some lunch. On the way back, I stopped by the City Creek Living office to say "Hi" to my former work mates. The permanent office manager has been hired. I guess that a twenty something girl in a tight dress and stilettos trumps a slightly overweight grandma. But what I want to know does she really have the whiz bang Excel skills that I lack?
In the week since I left full time employment, thanks to my live-in personal trainer, I'm up to 3 miles a day of trail walking. Could there really be some kind of athlete buried inside me?
In a local news article about the effect owners of Kindles and Nooks might be having on sales of actual books, a local bookstore owner managed to offend a segment of local readers who use an e-reader. In her opinion, we aren't "real readers". She even took it one step further by saying that there would always be a need for "controlling content" and "identifying which books everyone should be reading". Really? I can only hope that what showed up in the article wasn't really what was in her head and it just came out horribly wrong.
While out on the trail today, a local, former TV actress (Cat Woman in the original Batman series) passed me by. She was wearing black pants, a black long sleeve top, full make-up and hair all done. Dressed like that, I wondered if she was immune to breaking a sweat.
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Evolution of a musician
The Musician and his girl friend....
Jazz Combo "Octets"....
Jazz Combo "Octets"....
He started listening to music before he was born. When I was pregnant with him, I would often sit down to the piano while his older sisters and brothers were in school and play. He heard classical, popular, and children's music. As a toddler, before he could actually sing, he'd lip sync to children's songs that he had heard many times. He always seemed to be making rhythm with something.
In the fifth grade, he was signed up for band. It was required that fifth graders had to play the clarinet for a year before moving on to another instrument. He set his sight on the trombone. Since the trombone was bigger than he was at the time, I told him he needed to think about another instrument. My reason being that his arms weren't long enough to play the trombone. That reason lost all credibility when at a middle school band concert he saw that one of the trombone players wasn't much bigger than he was. So we bought him a trombone.
I would often have to help him with homework. I'd get a little frustrated with him when he couldn't seem to focus at times or retain what he was studying. He finally told me that he always had music in his head and it got in the way of focusing on the normal school stuff. At teacher conferences, I was told more than once that he needed to try and stop tapping his pencil or pens all the time. But that was next to impossible for him since he was tapping out the rhythm to the music in his head.
His older brother, like most young teenage boys, wanted a guitar. He was going to have a band and be this great guitarist. That adolescent dream didn't really stick with his older brother. But seeing the guitar not being used much, this son picked it up while still in middle school and taught himself how to play. Somewhere along the line, he also took piano lessons.
While still in elementary school, the fifth grade class did a short musical play about jazz music. He had the role of the kid learning about jazz from Thelonious Monk. He also performed with a song/dance entertaining group during those years.
He moved through middle school band playing the trombone. The guitar was played when ever he had the time. The small private high school that he attended had a small jazz band. He transitioned from playing the standard middle school band fare to jazz. He was hooked. It was in high school that he took on his first trombone student. The jazz band instructor also had him go to the middle school to help with middle school band. It was his music that helped him make a mark in high school. Besides playing in the jazz band, he was in the small A Cappella chorus and performed in the school musicals. He lettered in music several times over. In fact, because he had so many music credits, he wasn't required to fulfill a couple of credits of P.E.
In the fifth grade, he was signed up for band. It was required that fifth graders had to play the clarinet for a year before moving on to another instrument. He set his sight on the trombone. Since the trombone was bigger than he was at the time, I told him he needed to think about another instrument. My reason being that his arms weren't long enough to play the trombone. That reason lost all credibility when at a middle school band concert he saw that one of the trombone players wasn't much bigger than he was. So we bought him a trombone.
I would often have to help him with homework. I'd get a little frustrated with him when he couldn't seem to focus at times or retain what he was studying. He finally told me that he always had music in his head and it got in the way of focusing on the normal school stuff. At teacher conferences, I was told more than once that he needed to try and stop tapping his pencil or pens all the time. But that was next to impossible for him since he was tapping out the rhythm to the music in his head.
His older brother, like most young teenage boys, wanted a guitar. He was going to have a band and be this great guitarist. That adolescent dream didn't really stick with his older brother. But seeing the guitar not being used much, this son picked it up while still in middle school and taught himself how to play. Somewhere along the line, he also took piano lessons.
While still in elementary school, the fifth grade class did a short musical play about jazz music. He had the role of the kid learning about jazz from Thelonious Monk. He also performed with a song/dance entertaining group during those years.
He moved through middle school band playing the trombone. The guitar was played when ever he had the time. The small private high school that he attended had a small jazz band. He transitioned from playing the standard middle school band fare to jazz. He was hooked. It was in high school that he took on his first trombone student. The jazz band instructor also had him go to the middle school to help with middle school band. It was his music that helped him make a mark in high school. Besides playing in the jazz band, he was in the small A Cappella chorus and performed in the school musicals. He lettered in music several times over. In fact, because he had so many music credits, he wasn't required to fulfill a couple of credits of P.E.
When he graduated, he was awarded the Tony Larimar Award for outstanding student in the Performing Arts. During a summer break, we sent him to a week long guitar program in Los Angeles where he honed his guitar playing skills. Christmas and birthday presents for him generally had something to do with music - a simple recording system, a recorder, a music stand, a trombone stand, a guitar stand, his first acoustic guitar.
When he told us that he wanted to go into Music Education in college, his Dad and I supported his decision while wondering if he would always be a poor musician. But he was adament and pressed forward. The music education program was demanding and time consuming. There were hours of required proficiency classes on all types of instruments - wind, brass, and string. There was required participation in ensembles along with the required instruction on his declared instrument, the trombone. Often it seemed that the class time was never ending and graduation was in the distant future. When asked about a time frame for graduation, the response was usually "in four or five semesters - maybe.".
At the college level, we enjoyed many concerts .... Jazz II ensemble, Symphonic Band, Wind Ensemble, Big Band, Jazz I ensemble and Jazz combos. It was fun to see him move up through the ranks of the music program and perform with increasingly talented musicians. In his spare time, he put together, "Patterstats", with fellow musician friends. He wrote music for "Patterstats", and played gigs at local venues and recorded two "Patterstats" CDs.
Last night, he had a final performance for the school year with his jazz combo. It was composed of eight musicians, drummer, upright bass, guitar, piano, sax, trumpet and 2 trombones. The
opening number had him switching to the drums so that the drummer could play the Vibes. The last number in the set was arranged by him featuring the trombones. His Dad and I were blown away. I had never heard him play like he did last night. The arrangement was exciting and left us wanting more. At the end of the set, his Dad said, "He's no longer a student. He's a musician.".
When he told us that he wanted to go into Music Education in college, his Dad and I supported his decision while wondering if he would always be a poor musician. But he was adament and pressed forward. The music education program was demanding and time consuming. There were hours of required proficiency classes on all types of instruments - wind, brass, and string. There was required participation in ensembles along with the required instruction on his declared instrument, the trombone. Often it seemed that the class time was never ending and graduation was in the distant future. When asked about a time frame for graduation, the response was usually "in four or five semesters - maybe.".
At the college level, we enjoyed many concerts .... Jazz II ensemble, Symphonic Band, Wind Ensemble, Big Band, Jazz I ensemble and Jazz combos. It was fun to see him move up through the ranks of the music program and perform with increasingly talented musicians. In his spare time, he put together, "Patterstats", with fellow musician friends. He wrote music for "Patterstats", and played gigs at local venues and recorded two "Patterstats" CDs.
Last night, he had a final performance for the school year with his jazz combo. It was composed of eight musicians, drummer, upright bass, guitar, piano, sax, trumpet and 2 trombones. The
opening number had him switching to the drums so that the drummer could play the Vibes. The last number in the set was arranged by him featuring the trombones. His Dad and I were blown away. I had never heard him play like he did last night. The arrangement was exciting and left us wanting more. At the end of the set, his Dad said, "He's no longer a student. He's a musician.".
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
Not quite what I had planned
If you had asked me years ago what I thought I would be doing after all the kids were grown and self sufficient, I probably would have said doing a lot of traveling with the husband, pursuing hobbies that had been set aside or spending time with my grandkids. I'm pretty sure that I would not have said "Working a full time job". But that's where I find myself....working full time.
I've spent the last five years as an on-call employee for the LDS Church. Eventhough I've worked in many different departments, I never gave much thought to working full time. For the past month, I've been working in the sales center for City Creek Living. The gal who was in the position left to have a baby and will not be returning. Yesterday, my temporary assignment became a permanent, full time job.
So now, I'm the Office Manager for City Creek Living. I took the position because this is a great work environment, with lovely surroundings and it has the benefits of church employment without the stuffiness. It's exciting to be in the middle of the major redevelopment project in downtown Salt Lake... kind of an insider.
And you know, it's a great ego booster to have a job offered to you when you are old enough to be on social security, and not have to go through the nerve wracking interview process. However, I'm pretty sure that my boss thinks I'm about 10 years younger than I am. (Thanks, Mom, for the great youthful genetics.) I'm not going to do anything to change his perception either!
So, if you are in downtown Salt Lake, come on by the office and see my new daytime digs
I've spent the last five years as an on-call employee for the LDS Church. Eventhough I've worked in many different departments, I never gave much thought to working full time. For the past month, I've been working in the sales center for City Creek Living. The gal who was in the position left to have a baby and will not be returning. Yesterday, my temporary assignment became a permanent, full time job.
So now, I'm the Office Manager for City Creek Living. I took the position because this is a great work environment, with lovely surroundings and it has the benefits of church employment without the stuffiness. It's exciting to be in the middle of the major redevelopment project in downtown Salt Lake... kind of an insider.
And you know, it's a great ego booster to have a job offered to you when you are old enough to be on social security, and not have to go through the nerve wracking interview process. However, I'm pretty sure that my boss thinks I'm about 10 years younger than I am. (Thanks, Mom, for the great youthful genetics.) I'm not going to do anything to change his perception either!
So, if you are in downtown Salt Lake, come on by the office and see my new daytime digs
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
This and That
I'm sure that Mother Nature just loves lulling us Utahns into a state of complacency. With the high 40s/low 50s daytime temps and spring bulbs starting to show, we will be shocked when the inevitable monster snowstorm or two hit some time before REAL spring arrives.
The husband asked me a random question the other evening. "Why do women like manicures and pedicures?". I've been getting manicures and pedicures for years and he is just now wondering why I do it?
The place where I'm working is like being in an upscale living room. There's a fireplace with a big screen TV above it. From that TV, hundreds of movies on Blue Ray can be accessed...mainly to entertain children who may come in with their parents and get bored listening to all the stuff about buying a condo. But, I wonder if on a slow day here in the sales center, if it would be OK to bring up a movie and settle down to watch it with a bowl of popcorn and a Diet Coke? What do you think?
I'm so glad to have DVR on my television at home. That way, I can watch the Olympics, Survivor and the Amazing Race at the same time. But I'm wondering why these two popular reality shows began their new season at the same time the Winter Olympics started.
It was fun last night to have my son and his girlfriend join the husband and me to watch the prime time Olympics. Since we had recorded it, they came over after other evening activities and hung around until 11:30 PM. They even shared their Sour Patch Kids with us.
The husband spent about a hour and a half on Sunday morning making a me a Valentine's card. It was truly priceless. I spent about an hour and a half making him a cherry pie for Valentine's day. It was delicious.
Finally, I'm wondering why it was colder outside on my lunch hour than it was when I was walking to work today. The sun is out and the temps are suppose to be in the very high 40s. What's with that?
The husband asked me a random question the other evening. "Why do women like manicures and pedicures?". I've been getting manicures and pedicures for years and he is just now wondering why I do it?
The place where I'm working is like being in an upscale living room. There's a fireplace with a big screen TV above it. From that TV, hundreds of movies on Blue Ray can be accessed...mainly to entertain children who may come in with their parents and get bored listening to all the stuff about buying a condo. But, I wonder if on a slow day here in the sales center, if it would be OK to bring up a movie and settle down to watch it with a bowl of popcorn and a Diet Coke? What do you think?
I'm so glad to have DVR on my television at home. That way, I can watch the Olympics, Survivor and the Amazing Race at the same time. But I'm wondering why these two popular reality shows began their new season at the same time the Winter Olympics started.
It was fun last night to have my son and his girlfriend join the husband and me to watch the prime time Olympics. Since we had recorded it, they came over after other evening activities and hung around until 11:30 PM. They even shared their Sour Patch Kids with us.
The husband spent about a hour and a half on Sunday morning making a me a Valentine's card. It was truly priceless. I spent about an hour and a half making him a cherry pie for Valentine's day. It was delicious.
Finally, I'm wondering why it was colder outside on my lunch hour than it was when I was walking to work today. The sun is out and the temps are suppose to be in the very high 40s. What's with that?
Friday, January 29, 2010
Are they really that stupid?
Sen. Edward's mistress is now demanding that a private tape of her and the good senator be returned. I used to be surprised when so called private tapes, emails or texts involving the rich and famous in compromising, elicit situations surfaced. Not anymore. In fact, it can almost be guaranteed that someone, somewhere will leak tapes, emails or texts to the press when the celebs' tawdry behavior is made public, or the tapes, emails or texts are the reason behavior comes to light in the first place.
Are the people involved really so full of themselves that they think they'll never get caught, or that the private tape, email or text will never become public? It's bad enough that senators, governors and athletes who appear to be committed family men fall from grace because of bad choices and behaviors. But to document that behavior is just stupid. I'm not condoning any of these men and their lack of morality and obvious duplicity. Rather, I'm appalled.
I guess they weren't just thinking clearly. Are they really that stupid?
Are the people involved really so full of themselves that they think they'll never get caught, or that the private tape, email or text will never become public? It's bad enough that senators, governors and athletes who appear to be committed family men fall from grace because of bad choices and behaviors. But to document that behavior is just stupid. I'm not condoning any of these men and their lack of morality and obvious duplicity. Rather, I'm appalled.
I guess they weren't just thinking clearly. Are they really that stupid?
Sunday, December 27, 2009
My one brilliant idea
Now that all the presents have been wrapped by the Moms out there and unwrapped by all the kids, I want to share with you, what one person that I know, labeled a brilliant idea.
This idea came out of desperation one Christmas Eve many years ago. My husband and I were up late furiously wrapping the kids' Christmas presents. Five kids and too many presents for each added up to alot of wrapping, name tags and bows. I thought to myself, "There's got to be a better way.". So out of necessity, I came up with an idea the next Christmas that has saved my sanity every Christmas since.
The next Christmas season, the first thing I bought was wrapping paper. One large roll for each child. Each roll was different and was picked out with each child in mind. It was a fun process. Then, when presents were purchased and brought home, I tried to find time to wrap them before bringing more into the house. Each child was paper coded. Thus no need for name tags and I eliminated bows and ribbon as well. I hid the presents, but they were wrapped. If kids found them, they'd have to unwrap them to see what was inside and, if they did, their naughty curiosity would have been discovered.
Since our Christmas morning tradition was to group each child's presents together, the Christmas Eve set up was easy. When the presents were hauled out from their hiding place, I knew which ones were for which kid without looking at each gift. It was a snap! My husband and I were in bed at a somewhat reasonable hour. As my kids out grew Santa, I used the left over wrapping paper for gifts going out of the house the next year.
My kids have told me that there were years when they found the wrapped Christmas presents. They told me they had fun trying to guess which presents were for which child.
Maybe this isn't my exclusive, brilliant idea. But if you dislike the late night present wrapping on Christmas Eve, try my idea next year. It works great if all your kids are in school....go shopping, bring the presents home and wrap them before the kids come home. They won't be the wiser.
I hope all had a great Christmas holiday with family and friends.
This idea came out of desperation one Christmas Eve many years ago. My husband and I were up late furiously wrapping the kids' Christmas presents. Five kids and too many presents for each added up to alot of wrapping, name tags and bows. I thought to myself, "There's got to be a better way.". So out of necessity, I came up with an idea the next Christmas that has saved my sanity every Christmas since.
The next Christmas season, the first thing I bought was wrapping paper. One large roll for each child. Each roll was different and was picked out with each child in mind. It was a fun process. Then, when presents were purchased and brought home, I tried to find time to wrap them before bringing more into the house. Each child was paper coded. Thus no need for name tags and I eliminated bows and ribbon as well. I hid the presents, but they were wrapped. If kids found them, they'd have to unwrap them to see what was inside and, if they did, their naughty curiosity would have been discovered.
Since our Christmas morning tradition was to group each child's presents together, the Christmas Eve set up was easy. When the presents were hauled out from their hiding place, I knew which ones were for which kid without looking at each gift. It was a snap! My husband and I were in bed at a somewhat reasonable hour. As my kids out grew Santa, I used the left over wrapping paper for gifts going out of the house the next year.
My kids have told me that there were years when they found the wrapped Christmas presents. They told me they had fun trying to guess which presents were for which child.
Maybe this isn't my exclusive, brilliant idea. But if you dislike the late night present wrapping on Christmas Eve, try my idea next year. It works great if all your kids are in school....go shopping, bring the presents home and wrap them before the kids come home. They won't be the wiser.
I hope all had a great Christmas holiday with family and friends.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)