I finally looked back on 2009 with a smile . . .

All the cast getting ready before the show. Yeah. We're pretty damn cool.

Julie Olson and I. I'm obsessed with this girl. She's crazy and funny and fun and a lot like me only more great.

Me dancing with Chris Clark's super cute daughter Phoebe. And don't worry that really IS my costume. 1980's reporter--fan freaking tabulous.

I'll be honest, it was a rough year. I mean there were a lot of good things too, but . . . um . . . wow. I kicked it off with CHESS the musical at Utah Valley University directed by Dave Tinney. Leads included Kari Rymer as main girl that has pretty ballads, Darick Pead as cocky American chess player we all hate, Collin Thomas as sweet yet quiet and pretty awesome Russian chess player, Jake Suazo as Russian hitman we love, Kyle Hess as confusing American agent type role that no one really cares about, Jyllian Petrie as sad and sweet Russian girl (wife to the Russian chess player that essentially betrays her, but we still kind of really love him even though we feel bad for him) Highlights of the whole experience: Singing "Nobody's on Nobody's Side" in an awesome power vignette as an entire cast thing, becoming friends with Rebecca-crap-last-name? (the black one who's sweet and quiet), becoming friends with Julie Olson (for real besties), being closer to Rebecca Cain (I don't care what anyone says; she's a sweetheart), getting to know Dan Garner (who is such a cool human!) and being stage managed by Cyndy Stephenson. I also got to know Kayleigh Robinson lots better and I do love her. Also, Jeremy Minagro was definitely a mega-crush for me. Oh yeah, Lisa Russo was also a little mini-lead but who even cares. It was funny because Nicholas Grossaint and I weren't friends in that show and totally talk about it all the time. It was funny. Meg Rush was in it too and we all know how much I love her; it was a rocky time for us, but we got over it.

2009 cont.

Ellen Young and I--my roomie from 07-08 year at this super cute Fakesgiving party I basically organized in Fall 2008. We had our issues but she is a really good human. She's a cutie. This picture just kind of represents CAL all in all to me. Fin.

Bre and I REALLY aren't awesome at taking photos with each other--really the only semi-cute photo that exists of us (with Jacob Christian Bunker who lived across the hall) and I'm wearing her shirt. She would let me borrow her clothes ALL the time which was really really sweet.

Creepy same-shirt-color-double-boob photo (which I look really gross in) but I LOVE Valerie Fuller.

When I lived with Stephanie Rogers, BreAnna Powell, and Valerie Fuller we did this cute quote on fridge thing which turned out to be really hard to clean off but was so worth it because it was cute! We were WAY cute! I got put on the fridge a lot because I'm WAY funny. :)

Margaret Huntington (lifelong bestie), me Kayla Rowley (Margaret's childhood bestie and a REALLY good human)

Keep in mind I'm trying to remember fun deets but you are TOTALLY getting the abridged version. I guess that's what I do to myself when I only really TRULY journal like once a year. Also in January Margaret's awesome best friend from California Kayla Rowley (she got married, her maiden escapes me) lived with Margaret Huntington for a bit and she's a GIANT sweetheart. But, Utah just wasn't where she needed to be so she was out pretty quick. I get it--she then got engaged. Bigger calling. During the Fall of 2008, ps I lived with an adorable girl named Stephanie Rogers who got engaged while I was living with her and married in the Spring of 2009. She's in pics too. My other roomies were BreAnna Powell and Valerie Fuller. Valerie being a sweetie and BreAnna being my favorite human EVER. Stephanie was replaced with a girl named Jessica Colyar who was okay enough but mostly just a hoochie granola girl that smelled bad. I feel a little bad though because we didn't exact welcome her with open arms. But she's doing fine. Bre is from Price and Val is from Indiana. I love them. Bre loves screamer music and Val loves Christmas and has trouble with being irresponsible. She kind of had to move back home unexpectedly because she failed like EVERY class but she really is a good girl. Bre and I had a hard time going to church, but she is a wonderful human. And also all this--I finished the Center for the Advancement of Leadership program at UVU--CAL!!! In hindsight, it really was super good. A little bitter toward the end due to silly issues, but all in all . . . very good things.

2009 part III

Erin Crabtree and me. We're REALLY cute.

Meg and my awesome day at the beach--we came from the temple so we were wearing dresses and nothing could have been more perfect.

Margaret, Alex Paulos, Meg, and me at Penny Royal

When we took that trip and stopped at Vegas--Alex somehow procured this rad, primary colors picture of us at Tiffany's. His best contribution to the trip, in my opinion. Okay, not fair! But still, I didn't know him super well! haha

We had a really fun and awesome park day in early Spring when it was still pretty cold at my idea. We played croquet and stuff. We're rad.

Erin Crabtree deserves a good little moment too. She was a stagehand girl for Chess who handed me a recording device in a quick change moment I had at the first of the show and apparently my gratitude made an impression on her. I didn't really become her friend until she and Margaret became way close, but then she and I got way close and she is fantastic. She lived with Margaret during the summer and she's way rad. Also, she and Nicholas Grossaint had a mini-fling that changed her life and that's when he and I became friends. I love him. I think she's been finding herself this past year. Also, the Penny Royal existed in 2009! It was this swanky cute little place that had mismatched chairs and paisley wall paper--my hippie friends like Meg Rush and Margaret Huntington were infatuated. It closed due to weirdness and was going to be re-opened but then couldn't be. Shame. It was a COOL spot. Our joint of the summer, really. Meg, Margaret, this guy Alex Paulos and I also went on a trip to California for Margaret's sister's wedding which was good / bad / weird / awesome all at the same time. Mostly Meg and I had one fabulous day on the beach and that much probably made it worth it. Also, I'm in love with the Huntington family--her mom and dad are INCREDIBLE people. Alex Paulos existed in my life a little. He was a behavior theory guy that turned out to be kind of crazy but basically just brought Meyers-Briggs on steroids into their life. Whatev I don't know. I also hung out with Julie and Nick a lot during the summer. We would lay out and swim. OH! AND I totally spaced Pinnacle. A lot of my summer is kind of story-less and almost a blank gap in my mind because I worked at Pinnacle a LOT. Like, I became the shift-cover girl. I made a lot of money but I spent it all on sushi and itunes--not exaggeration. There were a handful of cool people, the only ones really note-worthy being Becca Housley, Heather Housley's little sister who is way cooler than Heather and Brandon Behrmann who is hysterical and a really awesome guy.

The BETTER part of the summer was working at the Fantasticks at Sundance. (In association with UVU) Becca Cain was the stage manager, (my boss--I ASMed) Casey Price was the other ASM / sound human (This is when we really became friends and I am OBSESSED with him), Nick Grossaint was the lead (Same story of true frienship blossoming at this time with him, Dave Tinney was the director (And we KNOW how rad he is!)

I'm just going to quickly sum up a few other things since I have been SERIOUSLY dragging my feet about this post and it's March of 2010 and I'm over it--ha!

August: Brandon Rodier passed away. He commit suicide. It was a very emotional and tolling experience for everyone. I worry about Linda still. It was in his funeral the gap that I realized is missing. Pretty damn big one. I was a lot more emotional than I knew I would be.

So . . . September: Charlotte's Web. Directed by Chris Clark, puppetry by Nat Reed, stage management by Kyle Hess, leading Jacob Porter (Wilbur), Jana Grass (Charlotte), Alex Barlow (My opposite--Gander), Margaret Huntington (Lamb), Jacob Squire (Sheep), Jake Van Wagoner (Templeton), Julie and Jake Suazo (Zuckermans), Ames Bell (Lurvy), Kelsey Kendall (Fern), Nick Grossaint (Avery), Daniel Anderson and Heather Murdock (Fern's parents--what's their name again?), Britney Wing Jessamyn Svenson and Julie Olsen (Chorus Girls), Javier Ybarra Bekah Wilbur and Sarah Mann (Puppeteers). Collin Thomas and some other cool guys were our band--blue grass style. I think that's everyone . . . hmm. . . Jaron Hermansen did lights. I was the Goose and let's face it, I was pretty damn good.

October . . . Auditions for Much Ado About Nothing directed by John Graham and auditions for Urinetown directed by Dave Tinney. Made Urinetown--what the what?! Yeah YEAH! Ma Josephine Strong, aka Bobby's mom and overall badass. Starred Chase Ramsey (Bobby), Kelly Coombs (Hope), Ames Bell (Officer Lockstock), Ashley Grant (Ms. Pennywise), Kelsey Kendall (Little Sally), Emily Bell (Becky Two Shoes), Jacob Squire (Hot Blades Harry), Philip Varney (Barrel), Julie Olsen (Soupy Sue), Nick Grossaint (Tiny Tom), Jason Jensen (Old Man Strong), Margaret Huntington (Ms. Millenium), Jordan Kramer (Did he have a name? But he did play simply my favorite human!), Chase Brown (Mr. Cladwell), Collin Thomas (McQueen), Jacob Porter (Fipp), Mike Shephard (Cool Guy), Jamie Gordon (Cool girl), Aubrey Warner (Cool girl)--we had a pretty big cast. I mean for a musical not really only twenty, but each character was so unique and awesome it felt like a million people on that stage. I love that. I LOVE it. It was way cool and fun. Sure hope I didn't forget anyone. Kyle Hess--stage manager, Jaron Hermansen--bad ASS lighting design (best I've seen ever at UVU), Jared Lewis--set design, Dove Grimm--costume design and she actually did pretty great. Uh . . . oh yeah. Ashley got way sick the last three nights, Emily Bell stepped into her place, Aubrey Warner stepped into Emily's place and I still did ridiculous and silly old age makeup.

Um . . . tech day of Urinetown Jake Porter professed love for me via letter. We lightly dated for three weeks, for real dated for three weeks. I broke his heart, now it's been two, and I think he's about to break mine. I may have made a mistake. Maybe not. I have no way of knowing--all I feel is that the whole scenario scared me shitless. What to do now. What to do.

Pics for the post above: just easier

U-town pics. Just easier a little is all. :) I get it. Maybe two of them are sideways. Well, maybe I'm not in the mood to figure out how to fix it. So maybe you just deal. BAM! ha