i'm on a (swan) boat!

Ah, the day after a downtown Halloween... means a twisted ankle and sore muscles! Which were made only more sore by paddling the swan boat today on the lake with the boy. Just more inspiration that I need to really, really focus on getting back in shape. I mean, it's a paddle boat! This isn't about being attractive; it's about being strong and healthy, and I feel like I am no longer either. So what did I do about it? I bought a membership to a yoga studio and a membership to a dance studio I used to go to, and I am about to roll out my yoga mat RIGHT NOW!!!! Lol, Maybe do some merengue as I make soup and apple cake tonight from scratch to BURN THOSE KCALORIES! :) And I'm going to be daring... I'm going to take a photo of my progress, one photo every week until I reach my goal of total fitness. :) That way, the proof is in the proverbial pudding, as it were. I know I can do it- I just have to stay motivated and give myself a goal! Behold: the face of positivity!

The Goal:

lose 5 fat lbs. by 12/25/12, improve cardio endurance, achieve total body toning, increase balance and flexibility, be able to do a pull-up unassisted by 1/1/13.

 

 

so sweet it gives me cavities

I want a bumper sticker that says "I can't, I have rehearsal". Lol I feel like that's my life. :) We're getting ready to open the show in a few weeks, and the gala is a week from Friday! The semester is almost out, which puts me SO CLOSE to freedom! In the meantime, I will continue to do grossly sweet things with the boyfriend like carving pumpkins we picked out together. Lol

Wine while we use knives? Sure!

RJ's ass pumpkin. Lol

Lover's dia de los muertos jack-o-lantern on right, my Dalí jack-o-lantern on left.

it's a beautiful life:

Lover wins mad points for leaving these at my door today. :)

que magnífico.

baby steps in leaps and bounds

So exciting... omgomgomg... I'm receiving letters from CAHSA to apply for graduation for the Spring semester. I want so badly to graduate by the Spring so that I can leave as soon as the semester is out if I wish. Ideally, it would be "hurry, give me my diploma, I have to catch the next flight". How amazing will it be to have the option to leave at a moment's notice... to sell my car, rent a truck, haul my junk, and start my new life... but I am leaping over my own thoughts in bounds. What matters now are the next several steps:

step 1) do my hw, pass
step 2) don't fuck up
step 3) plan nothing, but be prepared for anything
step 4) appreciate the time I have with the people I have here and love while I am here with them; take nothing for granted,
and...

step 5) do not be afraid. Go bravely into the world and make my dreams my reality.

priority number one: it's not blogging

So so close... I'm doing well in my classes this semester, but every day, I think about the exit critique I have yet to start. I've only got a few more weeks to put this off before it's due. I'm anxious about it, so I continue to push it to the bottom of my priority list. "I'll do it later". I've been doing the same with one of the German pieces I'm singing because I'm nervous about learning the language. But the song is due off book, right now, and I'm going to have to sing it. So, that means biting the bullet and just getting it done. Doing the hard work, making mistakes, improving, and getting it right. And just like with the music, sooner or later, I'm going to have to face my paper. My degree depends on this paper being done, and done well. So, this week is about looking at my priorities and reorganizing the list... dun dun dun...

the way i see it

you had to be there.

Perspectives

naked eye

happiness comes back through an open door.

Life is good again. I breathe again. I smile at the sunset. I kiss sweet lips. I hold soft hands. I sing lyrical melodies. I sleep in yellow sheets and wake up to flowers by the bed. I guess I am happy. Yes, I am happy again.

that Mozart was a fox.

I cannot get enough of Die Zauberflöte! I am signing several pieces from the opera in the autumn gala, including this Papageno Papagena duet, so I've been sleeping/eating/breathing/dreaming Mozart for the past two weeks. Lol, enjoy these versions of the duet that I really love, as well as a Swedish version of Introduction No. 1!

I just love this one all around. :)

 
Look at these gorgeous costumes!


 Just lovely! The German is pretty, too, but I love that they say "nay". Lol

set the world on fire

Acceptions and Expectations

This month has been challenging. I've got a lot on my plate, and getting it all done (and done well) has stretched my limits, in a good way. I'm euphoric with the knowledge that it's almost over. All of it is almost done. It's like when I ran the half marathon last year- the hardest part of the whole race was the last mile... seeing the finish line hurts so much more than imagining what it will look like. I can see the finish line, and the exhaustion has set in. But I am going to finish. And like at the end of any race, you cross that finish line, look back and say "how in the fuck did I do that?" It's going to be glorious.

I celebrated Pride this weekend with my friends! My sister came to town with some of her friends for the festivities, and it was wonderful. I loved seeing so much diversity and love in one city at one time. I cannot abide ignorance and unloving personalities, of which there was virtually none at the festival. It was brilliant. Just colors and smiles and peace. We need more of this every day.

Romantically, the past several weeks have been very fruitful for me. I have been seeing a really great guy, and I'm pleased by where things are heading. It's nice to be seeing someone who cares about me and sees me for who I am. And he is serious about me doing well in school, which is perhaps due to the fact that he's a smarty pants doctor. Lol Anyway, I look forward to the future, for whatever it holds.

I cannot say where I am right now. It's a good place, I think. A place of growth, a place requiring patience and positivity. Spiritual endurance. It's going to be a challenge, and it's going to change me.

I accept.