Les Mix. {Awkward and Awesome Thursday #5}

Awkward

• that moment every Monday when one of the two year olds you nanny asks "can we watch the acorn story?" and you realize she's talking about Richard Armitage reading 'The Lost Acorn'. ok, so it's adorable. . .but her mother is probably wondering WHO Richard is ("I want to hear Richard read Acorn!") and WHY her daughter has a sudden love for the name Stanley. 

{these videos, btw, are highly-awesome. and adorable. and i'll stop fangirling right now.}

• spending alllll day in the kitchen making homemade linguine. and washing and re-washing hundreds of dishes. and realizing that after all the work. . .all the labor of love and deliberate rolling and re-rolling of the pasta dough, making perfectly thin, perfectly delicate linguine. . .its gone, devoured, and utterly consumed within a few minutes.

{Salmone, Piselli, e Pasta, aka, Salmon, Peas, and Pasta. made by Yours Truly. photo by Anna}

• getting a phone call from a stranger. . .from my cell. and the confusion of "how" and "why" it fell out of my pocket, since i hadn't been outside that day. #storyofmylife
• 
  
• the "i-think-i'll-just-crawl-under-a-rock-now" feeling when you write a "who do you think you are?" note to a friend then realize they were joking the entire time. 

{yeah, my comment above? this is how i felt. *ahem* photo by a friend in MI  }

  

• typing on my new Kindle. and laughing at all the typos (curse you, automatic spell-check!) "Les Mix" is the all-new, Michaela-style "Les Miz". makes it that much more special. ;)

{via}

Awesome

• opened doors suddenly gaping through life's canvas; me up until Sunday. now I'm faced with this new job opportunity (outlined in jest above. it's really that bad, but it's also something i have to consider. if you think about it, please pray for wisdom!) 
• 
  
• when your mom randomly brings home a tray of sushi on snowy afternoons. 
• 
  
• fuzzy-rainbow-monkey socks. some things you just never outgrow. like newly opened-crayons and Strawberry Shortcake coloring books.

{pic by Anna}

• FINALLY getting my hair trimmed. it's been since July. . .and well, scraggly spaghetti-ends and i don't get along very well. it's back to it's usual length now--right below my shoulders, and i'm a much happier girl. 
• 
  
• getting all the details--flight, pick up, tickets, hotel, and whatnot, for the 2013 San Antonio Independent Christian Film Festival! Whooohooo I can hardly wait! so many of my Beyond the Mask friends will be there it's not even funny--annnddd if YOU are planning to attend, why don't you let me know in a comment? i'd love to meet you!
• 
  
• my new Kindle Fire HD. i never wanted any kind of portable computer, but now that my Kindle and i are well acquainted, i LOVE it. he needs a name though. any suggestions? 
• 
  
• evenings around the fireplace munching date-nut cookies and watching The Andy Griffith Show.
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• seeing the Lord work in my life and the lives of my friends; new friendships that inspire me in my Walk; vindication in area's of confusion; helping and praying for those around me. God Works in mysterious ways--and isn't it an adventure, watching Him Work? Praising my Jesus today for His providence and strange, merciful love for me.

{via}

thanks for letting me ramble--it's been awhile since i've written a good 'Awkward and Awesome' post. i'm currently writing a review of The Hobbit, so keep an eye out. that should be up next, if my Vlog doesn't make it first. in the meantime--what's been awkwardly-awesome in your life lately?

PS--I'd like to invite you to read my friend Audra's blog, My Sock Monkey Life. She is a beautiful young mom and very inspiring person. Please leave a comment, follow, or just pop in to say hello! :) 

"my heart will go on" // the bemoaning of a very old piano

I played THIS: the much mulled-over, much practiced, much re-practiced, [AND re-practiced] memorized, My Heart Will Go On - for a recent talent show. This is NOT the original video, since I'm not used to keyboards, and. . .I made a frightening face at one point that I can't seem to edit out. ;) Another attempt.

Forgive the sweat jacket. And note: my piano is about 100 years old or more and hasn't been tuned in 10 years. It sounds pretty decent, actually. ;) Also, several of the keys "stick," so I took the base up an octave. . .Oh, and for those who have asked, no, I do not play by ear. It's been several years, but I went to a Fine Arts School and Conservatory where I learned to read music and play classical piano. As you all know, my piano is my very greatest treasure, best friend, stress-eliminator. . .and My Heart Will Go On is a divine piece. Perfectly dramatic and soooo romantic. I hope you enjoy.*~ 

Currently I am eating a homemade cake-pop. Heaven. Yes, lots of healthy eating lately (but hey, only one cup of coffee today! :P ) I'm wearing my sloppiest-in-the-house-clothes while snatching bits of Mansfield Park. Wait now, don't fall over yet! It was all an accident, really. Michaela, reading a Jane Austen novel?  Mhm. What is a girl to do without good reading material? She grabs the closest thing in sight. . .in this case, Mansfield Park. And I LOVE it. So much in fact that I've asked a couple ppls for movie recommendations. :nervous laugh: What is the world coming too? o.O Never fear, I shall never stoop to reading P&P. I shall never stoop to liking Mr. Darcy. Because Mr. Thornton has stolen my heart. But that's a different topic. ;) 

ramblings of pianists and heroes. . .somehow they just go together.

I must say - your comments on moi favorite {mostly literary} "heroes"  post (<-- click or look below,) have been tooo much fun! To all of those who agree with me: your taste is impeccable. Bravo. As for the others, I have a few tomatoes of my own to throw. ;) I'm thinking of writing a follow-up post, talking about a few more of moi favorite literary guys. But I don't want to BORE anyone either. . .riiiight.

Quickly, in answer to your comments (keep 'em coming!) Laurie IS epic, and *should* have died. Period. I don't see how Gilbert Blythe is a hero, just sayin'. ;) The Scarlet Pimpernel is one of the most incredible books I've ever read - and YES, I'm throughly convinced after finishing the novel that Percy is a majorly fantastical hero - one of the best, in fact. Though no one with ever top Renè. :sigh: I'm thinking up a way for all of you to "meet" him. Perhaps an excerpt from the revised draft? 

- also, keep watching for my HUGE Les Miz post.

While your all waiting (and continuing your amusing - I mean enjoyable commenting,) check out this video :

Whoa. Speaking of heroes - I think I've just found my piano-hero. Being a fanatical piano enthusiast (my piano is my dearest treasure. . .) this pianist is SO inspiring to me. Not that I can or ever will play even remotely as well. My, what talent - his performance literally takes my breath away. And to think the vid is nothing but a Yamaha commercial! o.O I  found out that he is a rather famous composer for Disney (which I do not endorse, but anyway,) etc. . . Pretty impressive. 

And to wrap up this post - lets just say that I am unbending in my dislike for Mr. Darcy. Ok, so the second time I watched Pride and Prejudice I became slightly, shall we say "fonder" of him? Yet its too difficult for me to really appreciate the stuffy, dull, uninteresting ways of *most* Regency "heroes" - Mr. Darcy in particular. 

Uh oh. I see another onslaught of tomatoes in the near distance. . . 

Look what's been driving my family crazy! Er...making ME crazily-happy! ;)

My new latest obsession - ask any of my family members...I play my piano *every* day, (nothing new there!) - but lately? Its been an almost constant thing! ;) Why you ask? Take a look at these amazing books...

:GASP:

Oooh my, its almost too much! Last week my parents ordered these treasures at our local music store as a late, late, late birthday present. (Long story there. lol ) They came in three days ago, and I've been playin' my ancient upright like mad ever since. Right now I'm working at "On My Own," from Les Miz, and "All I Ask of You," from The Phantom of the Opera.

Its so refreshing to get away from my Classical books. 

Not that I don't adore classical music, because I most definitely do. However! I was classically trained, so I've played almost nothing BUT classical pieces for years... 

The more "modern-pop-ish" style of these Broadway pieces are presenting somewhat of a fun challenge...its just a bit awkward playing a very "pronounced" harmony. Classical music is almost entirely about the melody, so on the piano the right hand works hard! Now I'm playing quite a few right-handed cords, which is interesting. I'm loving it! 

Now all I need is a "new" piano. I am praying that somehow that dream becomes a reality. Though I love my "baby," she is over 100 years old and showing her age. Lord willing I will be able to sell her SOON. 

- complete side-note: the books are filled with full-color photos!! 

*disclaimer* I'm not a POTO "phan" AT ALL, yet I love the music (though not necessarily the lyrics.)  Yum. 

My piano, my friend

~*~ one of my very favorite pastimes ~*~

{picture by Anna}

"Pianos are such noble instruments - they're either upright or grand."

~ Author Unknown

"A painter paints pictures on canvas. But musicians paint their pictures on silence."
~ Leopold Stokowski

"To play without passion is inexcusable!"

~ Ludwig van Beethoven

"One man gets nothing but discord out of a piano; another gets harmony. No one claims the piano is at fault."

~ Author Unknown

Without a piano I don't know how to stand, don't know what to do with my hands.
~ Norah Jones

"The piano is able to communicate the subtlest universal truths by means of wood, metal and vibrating air."

~ Kenneth Miller