An unbiased review of Taylor Swift as Eponine

Here is the main song of the character she would play:

Here is Taylor singing one of her songs live:

Unless she has been really holding back in attempts to sound more commercial, I just do not think her voice can do this part justice. She has a lovely voice and writes great songs, but her depth and range is not quite up to par with a classic broadway role like Eponine. And if she is in fact of capable of singing such parts, why have you been hiding your talents Taylor? If your voice truly is strong enough to do the role of Eponine justice, why are you limiting yourself to country/pop songs?

Anyways, I have been musing about these things lately and I really feel the need to vent because I love Les Miserables (proof here! plus I have seen it on the West End 3 times). It is my favorite musical and the book is wonderful. I have been hoping for a film adaptation of the musical for quite some time, and I believe those brave enough to attempt to make the movie need to cast only those capable of doing the part well.

***I have been sitting on this post for awhile. I think my heart was too distraught at the thought of a poor version of this movie. I have an update here. I certainly hope this is true because this girl can certainly do Eponine justice seeing as she has played the role both on Broadway and in the 25th anniversary concert. This certain put my mind at ease, and I am now once again looking forward to seeing this film.

Downburst

My friend Katie Robison wrote a book. It is ridiculous good! As in, you don't want to put it down. It's exciting, suspenseful, unpredictable, a little violent, and a little romantic all rolled into one.

You can own it for your very own on:

Barnes&Noble: here

Amazon: here

You can also search for it on iTunes.

And read more about Katie here.

Read a review written by a friend here.

And the Amazon reviews here.

And all of my blog readers out there who know me, you KNOW that I give good book recommendations. So, read it, love it! Don't make me force you.

And if you don't have a Kindle or Nook, no excuses. You can download the Kindle app onto your computer for...FREEEE!

Kindle for PC.
Kindle for Mac.

A Mormon Primer

for those of you completely freaked out by Mormon magic underwear with visions of cults dancing through your head, here is a healthy helping of truth and reason to chew on:

Mormon garments explained here.

Mormon temples explained here.

Are Mormon's Christians? The simple answer, yes! But for more go here, here, or here.
I especially like this paragraph from the Washington Post article by a non-Mormon writer:

But for Mormons, these belief differences have nothing to do with whether or not they are Christian in the true meaning of the word. Mormons believe in the Jesus of the Bible, the same that was born at Bethlehem, grew up in Nazareth, preached His gospel in Galilee and Judea, healed the sick, raised the dead, and finally offered Himself as a sinless ransom for the sins of the world. They believe that Jesus Christ was literally resurrected, that He lives today, and that He is the only name under heaven by which mankind can be saved. This is the Jesus whose name is depicted on the front of every Mormon place of worship. This is the Jesus in whose name every Mormon prays and every sermon is preached. This is the Jesus whose body and blood are commemorated in weekly worship services by Latter-day Saints from Nigeria to New Zealand, from Michigan to Mongolia. For Latter-day Saints who try to live their lives as they believe Jesus taught, assertions that they aren’t Christian are as bewildering as they are wounding.

The Book of Mormon explained here , here (obviously this site is a little biased since it is written by a Mormon not officially representing the Church, but everything is cited and referenced), and for some first hand experience go here.

Polygamy explained here and here. 

Our views on the Bible explained here and here.

Mormon tithing here and here.

Organization of the church here.

A general, unbiased overview of the church here.

And for a church sponsored site that will answer your questions go here.

Anywho, I have just been really frustrated with all the false statements flying around out there (thank you (not) Maureen Down). Opinion or not, I question your journalistic integrity simply by the numerous slanted facts in this piece. For instance why would your only source for an article about a Mormon be a non-Mormon who wrote an obviously biased book about Mormons? Why?

Thank you Anderson Cooper! for real!

And please keep in mind the no religious test portion of the Constitution as you consider who you want to vote for. This is not a plug for Mitt Romney so much as a call for some more objectiveness when considering the candidates. Do not base your decision based solely on religion because people, that is not the issue here. There are many more important things facing our country than quibbling over points of religious dogma.

* I have tried to include a variety of sources--with plenty of non-biased sources. I hope this helps address many of the misconceptions around Mormonism. If you still have questions or I forgot to address an important point let me know, and I will add on to this article.

American Politics

I will admit I have never ever thought of myself as a Republican, and I have usually aligned myself with the Democratic party. However, today I have decided to make a declaration that I no longer choose to align myself with a political party. As a matter of fact, isn't it just the most ridiculous thing to expect that every single political idea I believe in can be represented in just one of only two party choices?

I think it is quite ridiculous. There is absolutely no way that one of these two parties is completely wrong and the other is completely right. Unfortunately, this seems to be the opinion of many die hard party loyalists. It's like Sneetches on Beaches in Congress these days. Star bellies are better and all that jazz you know.

And on a similar closely related note--Can people just give Mitt Romney a break already?

Let's stop looking for the "Romney alternative" as people call it. Mitt Romney is a Mormon, and everyone needs to stop being freaked out by that fact. He is clearly the best Republic candidate so nominate him already and stop the division in the Republic party. When the only two bad things you can say about someone is that they flip flop on their views and they strapped a dog carrier with a dog in it to the car .  . . wait for it . . .

30 years ago. 

When you have to look back 30 years and that is the only bad thing you can find I would say that is a better record than almost anyone in politics could hope for (Newt Gingrich).

I love dogs and I agree that what Romney did was wrong, but are people just looking for an excuse not to like him? My guess is yes. People are uncomfortable with the thought of a Mormon in power. My opinion--if that's why you dislike Romney just be honest about it. It's bad enough that people in this country are still ignorant about Mormon beliefs...especially when there are multiple church sponsored resources online. But what is worse is the fact that these people won't admit that is their reason and try to look for some other reason for their dislike of Romney to pass off as a good reason to present publicly (because it would be rude to publicly announce you are anti-Mormon you know).

I still haven't decided who to vote for, but if the Republicans want a chance in the next election they need to present themselves as a united party . . . not a back-biting party a hair away from dividing into factions.

And can I just say Mauren Dowd is an anti-Mormon old bat.

End transmission of frustration.

Make it Mine

Hello friends! I did something exciting today. I have been wanting to do it for quite awhile and today I took the plunge.

I opened my own Etsy shop!

So please help me out by keeping your eyes and ears open for people in need of my rather extraordinary design skills!

Check it out here!

My shop is to sell my design work. Every item will be made to order and everything will be entirely custom. I will make each order to the specifications of customers so not pre-made templates here. I am open to designing invitations of all kids, posters, flyers, logos and any other print product needs someone may have.

Don't worry this is absolutely not a sales pitch. I just wanted to share my exciting new step with you all, and I will keep you posted on how it goes. It's pretty stiff competition on Etsy I have found out, but I am still hopeful that this might just work.

Cross those fingers for me please!

Bite the Bullet

Last night I finally bit the bullet and bought the bullet. I have been wanting to invest in Bang! for awhile now, and I finally did last night. And Spot it! too. Here are the leftovers from a fun game night last night:

By the way, if you are in Provo stop by Board Game Revolution (it's hiding behind the Barnes & Noble building and looks like a hole in the wall) if you are looking for board games. They do not have the biggest selection, but they have fair and reasonable prices i.e. they are cheaper than everywhere else!

Up the canyon

I have been quite burdened lately with the woes of job hunting. I know I've talked about this before, but after dedicating so much time and effort to my education and doing every extra thing I could to be more competitive, it is crushing to get told NO over and over and over. Employers saying they are very sorry and they were impressed with your qualifications is just not really any consolation for the awfulness of being told you were not good enough for them. It is crazy just how competitive the job market is right now. Some of the positions I have applied to in the past little while have less than a 10% acceptance rate (i.e. they have thousands of applicants for a small amount of spots). I will keep trying though because I know there is some business out there who will need just what I have to offer, and I can't wait to find them!

While my parents were here in December we drove up Provo Canyon. I admit that I have definitely not taken advantage of this beautiful place I live in nearly as much as I should. I had never even been by Sundance Resort until I went with my family and Tony a few weeks ago. As part of my new year goal (I say goal because it sounds more likely to be kept than a resolution which we all know are made to be broken) I want to take more time to appreciate the wonderful things in my life--and there are many. Just to name a few: I have a loving husband, a supportive family, friends who are better than anyone could ask for, an opportunity to go to a great school at a ridiculously good price, I have not one but two parttime jobs that I enjoy, and I only have four months left until I complete my graduate education.

If those aren't things to be grateful for then I don't know what is!

I am going to try to count my blessings instead of add up my disappointments and trials. I think the first list will always outweigh the latter as long as I take the time to remember them all!

Here are some pictures from a snowy trip up the canyon:

I know this is just a wooden floor, but it is an awesome wooden floor at Sundance. I love it!

Moose tracks (not the ice cream)

Happy 2012!