Soo...summer's not done yet, but it's winding to a close. Somehow it seemed shorter this year. But I'm anxious for it to end - the weather is so hot, and I'm actually missing being in class. I don't know what I'm going to do when I graduate and won't have classes anymore!

Brandon was finally able to buy the HDTV he was saving up for. It's 42 inches of pure awesomeness. Tomorrow we're having a party with a Disney movie marathon - Brandon's calling it "D-Day". :D

I'm working on getting my application materials together to join the Daughters of the American Revolution.  The DAR is a society for women who are blood descendants of patriots who fought in the American Revolution. My great-aunt Lena and her daughter were both members, so most of the genealogy (going back to the 1770's) is already done for me. I just have to get birth, marriage, and death certificates (as applicable) for myself, my father, and my grandfather, who was Aunt Lena's brother. Then I can attach those to a copy of Aunt Lena's DAR application (from way back when, they're indexed by the DAR) and I can be a member :)

The DAR is a very exclusive organization. In fact, I've sat on doing my application for years because I was uncomfortable for how exclusive the organization is. My own mother can't join because she doesn't have the bloodline - mine comes through my father and my father's father. But the bloodline is there, so I may as well join. It's something not everyone can do.

Next weekend Brandon is taking me up to Salt Lake and he's going to introduce me to all his friends that he had growing up and all the places he knows (The Pie and Gravity Hill are on the list). I'm looking forward to it. I've only been to Salt Lake twice before and both times it was December and absolutely frozen. There's no snow up there now so it should be much more pleasant than my 2 brief visits before.

I've gotten connected with a group called the Homeless Animal Rescue Team (HART) of Utah. They rescue dogs from animal shelters so that they don't get put down and then help find them "forever homes" to live in. They need a grant writer - and as a Professional and Technical Writing major at Dixie State, I have taken a grant writing course and I can write grants.

So I called them up today and they were SO HAPPY that I can write grants for them! They're waiting on their 501(c)(3) determination letter from the IRS (a letter that says they're a non-profit organization, like a charity, and that donations to them are tax-deductible) and as soon as they get it they'll call me and I'll get to work. It'll be awesome to swing some grants for them, because grant writers generally get 10% of the grant award. So if I get them, for example, a $5000 grant, I'd get $500 of it for doing the paperwork and getting them the money. That would help me a lot!

A reason grant-writing income would help me a lot is because I'm not sure if I'm going to be able to keep working at Wendy's. I had an MRI done on my ankle (after my health insurance took 3 weeks to approve it) and I'm developing arthritis from my injury back in January. That explains the pain. I can walk and stuff...but standing up for over 4 hours at a time really hurts. So I don't know. I'm working on exercising my ankle before going back to work and trying to build up some muscle, but I don't deal with high amounts of pain well. I'm looking for other ways to generate income right now.

I did an interview this week to be a big sister with Big Brothers Big Sisters of Utah. It'll take some time before I hear back since they also have to run a criminal background check on every volunteer. I've also encouraged my boyfriend to go volunteer because the waiting list of little brothers is THREE TIMES as long as the waiting list for little sisters in St. George. I'm also going to donate all my old clothing and towels to them. Big Brothers Big Sisters accepts donations of any kind of cloth, torn or stained or whatever, because they sell it by the pound up north. They've made thousands upon thousands of dollars doing that. They also accept small housewares. They've got donation boxes all over St. George, too -  and all donations are tax-deductible, of course.

So...that's what I'm up to. Staying relatively busy, even without work. Life is good!

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Just writing a quick post in between concert choir and musical theatre classes...our choir concert is Friday and Dr. Peterson is really pushing us hard. We're going to do well - but rehearsal has me absolutely exhausted!! Performing is so rewarding but it can be sooooo tiring. :(

I am totally getting food after this class...food will help me so much. :p If I don't get food after this class, I'm going to fall over!

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So today was the National Association of Teachers of Singing competition at SUU. Eleven singers (and one accompanist) went to represent Dixie. I only did the musical theatre category and I got some really constructive remarks from the judges :)

How it works is you bring three songs to competition and you sing two of them.



This is The Flagmaker, 1775 from Songs For A New World, and my first song (the one I got to choose).



This is The Light in the Piazza, from The Light in the Piazza, and my second song (the one the judges chose from the remaining two songs I brought). The other song I brought was I Miss the Mountains from Next to Normal.

Altogether, a good time today...I hoped to have gotten mention or placed in my category, but musical theatre *was* the largest category and one that combined all levels (from college freshman to graduate student, men and women). But one of the Dixie students got an honorable mention in the musical theatre category!

Then tonight a whole bunch of us went to a friend's place and we had a Star Wars marathon. Well, Episodes I and II at least, back to back....hopefully it's to be continued. :D

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I'm finally not sick anymore! And my ankle is doing much, much better, though it is still stiff.

The semester is getting into full swing. I'm constantly rehearsing my competition songs for NATS, which is on the 13th. I've pretty much put life after that on hold...I can think about things past that day after I've competed.

Sorry for the short update, but I'm tired...I have class at 9 am tomorrow so I need to go to bed :(

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It's strange - it seems my ankle is recovering faster than my respiratory tract, and I haven't even started physical therapy yet :p

These OTC pills seem to be helping alleviate the symptoms, though. The pharmacist at Target, right by DSC, is awesome :D

I'm having a hard time thinking of things to write about for my creative writing class. I'm tired of writing about events in my life - besides, I've written about all the good ones already. I'm reading in the textbook about what makes a good story and stuff, but I just can't think of anything that will fit in all those parameters!

I'll ask some questions in class tomorrow...I'm sure I'll find some enlightenment there.

The National Association of Teachers of Singing competition (this year, held at Southern Utah University in Cedar City) is approaching *fast.* I have so much practice to do and I haven't been able to do it because of the sickness. But with these pills the pharmacist recommended...I think I'll be okay. I've chosen some very difficult repertoire but it should be good - provided that I am physically able to practice beforehand and actually sing at the competition itself.

And I need to practice now, while I can, but my roommate is on the phone :(

It'll all be fine, sleep will make it all good.

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So today I was going down the stairs at school, stepped on my foot/ankle WAY wrong, and fell down the last few stairs onto the ground. I knew I could not get back on my left foot. I felt something was very wrong.

Everyone was really nice. Lots of people were around. A couple of guys picked me up and put me on a bench, and Dr. Crenshaw, one of my professors, walked by and called campus security. We don't have a health office with a nurse or anything at DSC, but the head of campus security is an EMT. So he came and wrapped my ankle up really well with an ice pack and everything. Dr. Crenshaw and the campus security kept asking me if I wanted an ambulance, but I thought that would be ridiculous...I knew I needed to go to the emergency room, but an ambulance is way expensive and I knew I wasn't going to die or anything.

In fact, my tolerance for pain surprised me (in a good way). I get migraine headaches, and I've been forcing myself to just continue whatever I'm doing through the pain without pain meds unless I absolutely need them. Don't get me wrong, my ankle hurt like heck earlier (and still hurts now) but I didn't scream or cry or use profane language or anything.

So I called my boyfriend and he and one of his friends came and picked me up. Campus security had Brandon actually drive on the sidewalk and back up to like 3 feet from the doors of the building. So Brandon and his friend Josh carried me to the car and took me to the emergency room.

At the ER they did an x-ray and determined my ankle is not broken. However, it is sprained very, very badly and the ligaments are torn. I was sent home with crutches, a splint-sock thing, and narcotic pain medication (which I have not needed). I've been instructed to baby my ankle for the next few days, and will be getting physical therapy.

Thank goodness I have health coverage, or this whole thing would have bankrupted me.

The injured ankle is my left ankle, which means I can still drive, but I am very, very unstable on my crutches. I've never had the best balance - in fact, I'm a bit of a klutz - but I'll do my best. I hope I don't fall again, but maybe if I do I'll get the wheelchair I asked for :p

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So it's the first day of the spring semester tomorrow. I'm excited :D I have classes I like with people I like and altogether it should be really good.

Spent a couple days last week in Vegas (separately). First on Wednesday me and Brandon went to see Penn and Teller at the Rio. Then yesterday me and Brandon and Stefani and Richard went to Vegas for Stefani to get a new tattoo (covering up an old one she doesn't like anymore) and another piercing. Then we went shopping. Much, much, much fun.

I need to take a shower and get to bed...eeee, excited :D

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Almost done with Christmas music performances, at least - finals are next week!

Today we had two Vocal Jazz Project performances. One was a luncheon in the Gardner Ballroom at DSC, and one was an evening performance at a country club.

When we got to the country club, they didn't have a piano or keyboard for us. Somebody made a phone call and a girl showed up with a keyboard...like a child's keyboard. It was one of those like 66-key models and every time you pressed a white key it lit up with a pink light.

Our pianist, Justin, is an astoundingly talented musician. His performances can be awe-inspiring. So when he was given a keyboard that wasn't long enough, without a sustain pedal, with keys that *lit up pink!!* when he played them...looking back now, several hours later, it was very funny. I'm just glad I wasn't the pianist tonight. I might have cried!

But that's why I sing. I have my instrument with me wherever I go. :)

By the way, the performance went swimmingly and the audience loved us.

According to Dr. Briggs and other people on vocal jazz, my gospel solo is getting better and better. Today, after the country club performance, Al actually told me it was better without the microphone in a room that size (I really belt it out when I don't have to worry about blowing out expensive speakers).

Thursday, I sang my gospel solo in rehearsal. When I was done, Nolan said "Somebody get some chips!" Dr. Briggs was like "...what?" and Nolan continued: "'Cause Tracie's soul is saucy!"

That made me feel good :D

Hopefully I should have some video of Vocal Jazz and Chamber Singers up here soon! The winter choral concert is at DSC tomorrow at 7:30 pm (wait, it's past midnight now, so the concert is actually today...well, Friday, December 11). And then at 9:00 am on Saturday the choir bus leaves for Temple Square in Salt Lake City :D

I've got some friends I'm meeting up with in SLC between performances on Saturday. They're going to watch us sing too! I'm way excited. Unfortunately we can't take photos or recordings of the performances due to copyright regulations...hopefully I'll get some pictures when we're not actually performing. It is going to be so, so cold up there...I think I'll wear leggings under my skirt.

Today was the last day of class for History and Structure of the English Language. (yes, I am an English major, remember?) We broke up into study groups and got our work done quickly. Then we just stayed there in our groups and talked about life and finals and what we think of various authors and poets...when Professor Jantzen realized we weren't working anymore, he reminded us we had permission to leave class early - but we didn't. We're 4-year English majors - we like to just sit and talk about life, school, and literature :)

My dad has to go to California the first week of January to do some consultant work for a friend of his who owns a company. Dad asked me if I want to come along. It'd be nice to see all my friends I went to high school with - well, at least those who are still in the area - but I am so tired right now that I don't know what I'll want to do by January.

I do keep up with a lot of my old friends on facebook. My first boyfriend David, from back in 9th grade, is in medical school at UCLA now - guess I should have kept him, eh? ;) My best friend through high school, Mandie, is an architect at a firm in Rancho Cucamonga. She graduated from Cal Poly Pomona a couple years ago. Heather is in law school. Vinnie works on the cast of the TV show NUMB3RS in Burbank (he got a degree in film at Cal State Fullerton). And after Kristina got a degree in biochemistry at Notre Dame, she went back to California and became a model.

It's kind of strange, looking back at what my friends and I were like in high school and where we are now. I mean, not everyone I graduated with has a great life - there's quite a few single mothers, various people who never went to college, a lot who dropped out of the community college I got my Associate's Degree from.

And yeah...I graduated high school in 2003 and I'm still an undergrad now. But I did change my major halfway through my junior year, after I transferred to Cal State Long Beach. Then I moved out of state. That set me back a lot.

I've been thinking about it all lately...my journey through high school in California, getting my AA three years later, transferring to Cal State, changing my major, dropping out, moving to Nevada, getting accepted to University of Nevada at Las Vegas...and somehow ending up at Dixie State College in St. George, Utah, a place I never thought I'd live, a place I didn't even know existed.

The whole journey has been so chaotic.

But you know what?

I'd never take any of it back.

Dixie State College - the school itself, the English and music programs, the professors and peers I've met, everything - has changed my life irreversibly. For the better. I'm not just learning how to be a professional/technical writer, not just learning how to perform and sing more effectively...I've learned and am continuing to learn life lessons that will serve me well for the rest of my life - lessons that are serving me even now.

I could have stayed at Cal State Long Beach. I could have gone to University of Nevada at Las Vegas. But all I would have gotten there was a degree. I mean, getting a bachelor's degree - that's why I'm in college, of course.

But at DSC I've learned so much more than the material taught in my classes. I'm going to leave DSC with a Bachelor of Science in hand - but that won't be all. I'll carry what I've learned about life, carry the kindness of my professors, carry the shared experiences with my peers in my heart for the rest of my life.

My father has always told me: "An education is something no one can ever take away from you."

I know that when he's said that he's just been talking about achieving academic degrees.

But now I see a depth to his words that even he is probably still unaware of.

I've grown so much at DSC. And I'm not done yet.

Right now? I'm tired. I've been performing every day, doing homework, going to all my classes, etc...and when I finish this I am going to fall into bed and sleep.

But despite my exhaustion, I am so incredibly excited. Not just for tomorrow and the day after - but for my next two semesters at Dixie as well. I've learned so much. I'm going to learn even more before I'm through.

- Tracie

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Tonight (or, rather, last night, as it's past midnight) the DSC music department held the last Student Vocal Recital of the Fall 2009 semester. I love having the opportunity to perform, especially solo, so recitals are really special to me.

I sang a song called I Miss the Mountains from the musical Next to Normal. I've got video up:



I hope that works!

I got some pictures afterward too.



Left to Right: Dr. Ken Peterson, the Director of Vocal Studies and my voice teacher, me, and Aaron, one of our music majors and an absolutely fabulous tenor.



The foyer of the Eccles Fine Arts building is gorgeous. I'm actually in the hanging on the left!



This is me and my friend Rita, who came to see me sing. Rita has all-but-officially adopted me as her granddaughter. I love her muchly! :D

Altogether, a great night. I've got another performance with the Chamber Singers today (Saturday), and then I'm singing at the service of Unity Church of Positive Living on Sunday morning. The DSC choral concert is on Friday, and then on Saturday we're going to go sing at Temple Square in Salt Lake City!

I really love how DSC supports the arts. Our musicals are always awesome, the art gallery is positively gorgeous, and the music program is really blossoming.

DSC was just recently accredited to award 4-year degrees in music. When the approval was finally announced, everyone was so excited. I'm not pursuing a music degree, personally, though I was a music education major at Cal State (before I transferred to DSC). But I'm still so happy that we got a music degree.

In the year and a half I've been here, the college has grown so much and continues to do so before my very eyes. And the fact that I can take such an active role in the music program, even though I'm an English major, is such a blessing in my life.

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So today, as I mentioned, we had a luncheon performance for the Chamber Singers and an evening performance with the Vocal Jazz Project.

Unfortunately, I got to the Chamber Singers performance barely on time and didn't have a lot of time to take pictures. But here's a good one:



That's Al with some lovely Chamber Singer ladies :D Al is totally awesome. He's one of our best basses!

Here's another shot from after the Vocal Jazz Project performance (at a faculty party of an elementary school in town):



Much fun was had by all, of course. :D

- Tracie

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Performances! Lots of them. Tomorrow, a performance with the Dixie State chamber singers at a luncheon on campus, then a Vocal Jazz Project performance in the evening at a school, I think? I'll find out tomorrow in class, lol.

I really don't like the Christmas season, generally, but I do like the opportunities to perform. There are more performance opportunities this time of year than any other. The only drawback is that our repertoire is almost entirely made up of Christmas songs. I guess you could call that an occupational hazard ;)

Friday at 7:30 I'm singing in the winter voice recital at DSC. I'm singing a song from the musical Next to Normal (it's still on Broadway and won a few Tony awards). The song is called "I Miss the Mountains." Today in my voice lesson my voice teacher, Ken, watched and listened to me sing it and was very very happy. He had "nothing to say" - which means, nothing needs to be fixed. Yay!

Then Saturday the chamber singers are singing at Pine Valley, which is a place I've never been before. I hear it's very pretty. And then on December 12 (the day after our winter choral concert at DSC), the chamber singers, concert choir, and women's choir are going up to Salt Lake City to sing at a place called Temple Square.

Temple Square, I'm told, is a really special place for members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I've never been to there, but I've heard that they decorate the area with lights at Christmas and that it's absolutely gorgeous. I'm looking forward to seeing it and singing at a new venue. Well, new to me, at least - I think that most of the people I'm singing with have been there before.

I'm still researching grad schools, of course. For a long time, my first choice has been University of Nevada, Reno, but University of New Mexico in Albuquerque is starting to look really appealing. They have a Master of Arts in English with a Rhetoric/Professional Writing emphasis. They also have a Creative Writing emphasis available, which is good.

I want to be - I will be - a best-selling author, but until I make it big, I need to be able to support myself. While I'd love to pursue one, a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing isn't exactly the sort of degree employers are looking for. So I'm looking to earn a professional writing-esque Master's so I can get a job - and fill out my grad school electives and such with creative writing courses.

Until then, I'm focused on graduating from DSC! Spring 2010, here I come :D

- Tracie

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