Die Rheingold (The Rhine Gold)

Today I went to see Richard Wagner’s Das Rheingold as a movie theater broadcast in The Metropolitan Opera‘s Live in HD Series.  It was awesome!  It was directed by Robert Lepage and conducted by Maestro James Levine.  This is the second show I have seen in the broadcast series, the first being Carmen during the 2009-2010 Encore season in August.

What attracted me to today’s performance was my interest in learning the story of Wagner’s Der Ring des Nibelungen tetrology.  And, it seems that the Met is going to complete the cycle in its upcoming performance seasons.

Perhaps even more intriguing is the technical talent that went into making today’s Ring stage performance a success.  ”The Machine” that was built just for the Ring cycle productions, a 45 ton apparatus with independently moving planks hovering above the stage, was amazing.  It was a beautiful backdrop and canopy for the staged lights and added a wonderful twist of creativity to the stage space.

This production of Das Rheingold – the music, the voices, the dialogue, the stage sets – really came together to create an enchanting work of art.  The next opera in Wagner’s series, Die Walkure, airs in May 2011.  I will definitely be there!

relaxing.

We’ve had a busy last few days at our house.

Early on Friday morning Mike and I hopped on a plane to visit with my best friend and her husband in Washington, DC to celebrate the impending birth of their daughter in December. They had a co-ed baby shower at my favorite restaurant in DC and we had a blast! This was the first co-ed shower I’d been too, loved the idea, but one of the younger, posher attendees told me these sorts of things happen all the time. Who knew?

We came back into Denver late on Sunday night which meant not much sleep before heading back into work for either of us. Late on Monday morning Mike got a call from his oldest son’s school saying the boy was feeling quite ill and needed to be picked up. Four hours and a doctor’s appointment later we were told that he has contracted the H1N1 virus.  Whoa.

Despite exhibiting the other characteristic symptoms for this flu (sore throat, body aches, cough and congestion, vomiting is typically not associated) he did not spike the characteristically high (104F +) fever. His fever stayed under 100F and we are glad for that.  He seemed generally content, even if uncomfortable. Had the fever been worse I fear  the stress on his system and our sanity would have been overwhelming.

When I went into work this morning I found out that several of my co-workers’ children have contracted the virus recently and therefore many of them have been at home caring for them.  Apparently this virus has been whipping through the schools out here like a new fashion fad.  What is slightly comforting about that is I have heard repeatedly that there is no cause for serious concern. Yes, this strain of the flu is novel and alarming, but healthy individuals are at low risk and recovering well. Fortunately, we are healthy individuals.

After a day at home with his dad resting and playing video games to his little heart’s content, my stepson is recovering nicely.  He appears to have missed what could have been a much more severe case.  I am home now, too, sitting on our couch eating the delicious dinner Mike made, sipping chamomile tea and watching Fawlty Towers. I’m glad for it.

Saturday Funnies

A Softer World

Spending the day out with friends today and catching up with my latest addiction, the Metamor City podcast by Chris Lester.

Just a *teeny* plug: I began listening almost a year ago, Life got busy, and I stopped for a while.  Now that I’ve returned to the podcast I anticipate hearing the next chapter of the story more and more.  The writing is extremely engaging, imaginative and prolific.  I’ve been listening to them in 3-4 episode blocks (while driving, at work or just working arond the house) and I’m ready for more of the good stuff.  Kudos to Chris Lester (and his amazing cast of voice actors) for developing such a delightful experience…even if I am on a year’s delay

Love in the Time of Cholera

I’m sick again, and honestly, I feel sick and tired of being sick and tired

I think being on the road for the last month and being around lots of other sick people are to blame. I am also a bit of a workaholic, and when deadlines and overwhelming commitments loom (as they tend to do during the holidays) I put my health last.  I struggle to keep a regular diet and get regular sleep and exercise. I must be more diligent about it, starting now.

The biggest bummer (for me) is that someone I have been seeing for the last couple of months and I have repeatedly made plans to go on a weekend away…there are so many things we enjoy doing together…but then I have gotten sick, or the holiday schedule has gotten in the way. This weekend is another example…despite plans we made to spend the weekend together having fun, I am instead home sick clutching a box of tissues and my “favorite” cold medicine. So *not* romantic. I am convinced, though, that he sees these little “setbacks” as opportunities to prove his affection, since he has quite enthusiastically expressed his delight in spending the weekend taking care of me, instead (A little secret: I think he kind of likes it when I don’t feel well because then he gets the chance to pamper me a bit and be the hero, and a girl like me appreciates when someone *else* swoops in to save the day every now and again ).

I am off to the store to find vitamins and other healthy stuff. I am going to kick this cold’s butt!

Colorful

Cam and I went to Cave of the Winds in Manitou Springs last weekend.  It was awesome.  The photos I took while inside the caves turned out pretty awful, but the surrounding (above ground) landscape offered a few choice pics.

Cam really enjoys caving, and learning what he knew about cave geology was an added bonus to the experience.  Hopefully we will visit others sooner rather than later.

Ahhh, the weekend.

The sky is a crisp shade of pale blue, and I am happy to see the sun today.

I’m feeling much better now. The laryngitis subsided over a week ago, but the sinuses took a while longer to clear up. I’m glad that’s finally on it’s way out, too. At the moment I’m watching The Associate on the television (I loved Whoopi in this role; Dianne Wiest is one of favorite actors, too), sipping on a fresh cup of Boulder Green Tea and pensively eying my yoga mat. My lower back could really do with a good stretch.

This last week has been full. For starters, while having my car serviced for brake repairs on Monday, I asked the mechanic to look into some trouble I experienced shifting from second to third gear (fingers crossed, right?). Very expectedly, but still unhappily, I ended up having to replace the transmission, too. That led to a reluctant, new relationship with RTD and a heart-wrenching breakup with a serious wad of cash. Then, later in the week, a bunch of urgent Board business cropped up out of the blue which meant keeping up with a ton of email conversations and even more time spent getting to know RTD (we are over, by the way – having failed to show up on more than one occasion, I decided RTD was too inconsiderate of my time – LOL). A fun thing I managed to accomplish this week, though, was to plan a weekly Friday “Earth Talk”/Game Day at my job during lunch. I enjoy gathering people together around a worthy cause, and this seemed like an interesting way to break up the work day. We had our first gathering yesterday and it was a lot of fun!

Happy Saturday!

Sleep came more easily before.

I’m in DC right now visiting my best friend and her husband and, after a very full day, I can’t sleep.  It’s after 2am ET on Saturday, and I’ve been awake since 5am MT Friday.  Grrr.

I slept like a ROCK on the plane ride here, though.  It was a turbulent flight and I love that–the rocking and bumps lull me to sleep.  Plus, I had my headphones on listening to one of my favorite bands, Creed, and “What If” was the last song I remember hearing.

I found out today that I didn’t get the research position in Denver I had been hoping for.  I was surprised and a little upset because I had been in contact with the group head all along, who re-assured me as soon as a week ago that I was a really strong candidate and filling the position was just a matter of time spent going through the bureaucratic process.  But instead, this morning I received an unsigned form-letter via email from the general HR office saying another applicant had been selected.  Again, I felt disappointed and slighted, especially since the notice didn’t come directly from my contact.  After talking to Cam, who was having a bear of a day back home, too, it turned out, and my friend here, I feel much less twisted over it now.  But I still can’t sleep.

Anyhow, at least now I know; not hearing either way was driving me mad.  Now I can move on and re-focus my search.  I made a couple of business contacts at a cocktail reception tonight, so we’ll see if they lead anywhere.

Having fun yet?

I can’t believe it’s December already, which means that next time I poke my head up it’ll be 2008

I walked in the December holiday parade this past weekend! It was SO much fun and lots of people in the community came out to show their support and have a good time. To make it even more exciting, my group marched behind a local Chinese drum group that showed off amazing drumming skills and a HUGE, colorful 20′ long paper dragon! SaaaWEET!

The temp outside actually got up to 65 degrees today! The sky was beautiful at sunset.

Yeah, it’s Saturday!

Hello! Life around here has been mostly busy, but mostly good. The interview I had for the research position went well, and I expect to hear news of an offer soon. It has also gotten out at my current job that I’m leaving, so there have been lots of folks coming up to ask when, what I’ll be doing next, etc. When I’ll be leaving depends mostly on how soon after the semester I can begin my new position. What I’ll be doing next is working for a year or two, then entering graduate school in the subsequent fall semester.

More recently, I’ve solicited the advice of several colleagues regarding research opportunities and future plans. Doing so has helped congeal several of the interests I’ve pursued throughout college and in my personal time. In my work and studies, I’ve gained experience in the biological and space sciences, engineering, public health, disaster relief and emergency management. I’ve also worked on projects that have ranged from building construction, to concept development to policy design. Yee-ha!

I’m looking forward to having more of a normal life when I write my last exam, receive my diploma and start a new, more relevant job.

And, Happy Birthday to my “little” brother, who called just after midnight this morning to say the festivities had already begun! Happy 20th, Bobbo, I luv ya!

It was just a Really Great Day.

Yesterday was my birthday and I had a perfect day. I wanted to keep it low key, so I did, and spent most of the morning receiving calls from family (which was wonderful), drinking tea and watching one of my favorite movies. Around noon Cam took me out for an early supper and that was fun too (even without Spinach & Artichoke dip ). We had a nice long walk around our neighborhood afterwards and the weather was absolutely gorgeous.

After that I headed out to sci fi club and hung out with friends for a couple hours eating warm caramel rolls while we watched the evening’s television line up. Yummm.

Even though I’ve been told I actually have a full week to celebrate my birthday, the week coming up is a busy one so unfortunately I can’t take that too seriously .

As a brief Life update: there have been some sad times recently as members of my extended family, who are very dear to me, have experienced several emergencies. My heart and attention have been with them. They have been and continue to be in my thoughts and prayers, and I am grateful as things seem to be improving. Also, I’ve been busy with career stuff. I made the decision last month to accept a position on the Board of Directors at the non-profit I’ve been active with for about a year and a half now. It was a very involved but gratifying decision, and it has rewarded me, even in the the short time since I made it. I also have a job interview for a research position in Denver tomorrow! Wish me luck and blessings. I will probably spend the remainder of this afternoon making final preparations for that.

That’s all for now; I will write more regular updates now that the “busyness” has subsided.

Peace!