Marching Band!!

Go Utes!

First game of the season. Utah vs. Northern Colorado.

41 - 0

Totally awesome game! Our team played pretty well. .....except for the two missed kicks. ha. But I had tons of fun and even got a few pictures for documenting purposes. We (the band) did pretty well marching for the first performance of the season. And I'm excited because we will just keep getting better and better. It's going to be a fun season. I can tell. Look out USU! Here we come! :)

" I'm Feeling, Good " (that's a song)

Let's see, there are a few things I really want to focus on this school year and set some personal goals. I always think about goals that I have (or could have, or should have), but I do much better with them when I tell someone what I plan to do. So I figure, if I tell the world-wide-web... then I will be sure to keep with my goals because I'll know everyone is expecting me to. (Whether or not anyone actually is expecting anything is beside the point..)
So here goes.

1. I want to keep school work at school to save time for personal study at home.
2. I will forever be working on daily scripture study.
3. Keep up with homework. No getting behind or piled up.
4. Motivate myself through the whole semester. I know I'm feeling good and hopeful now. I just need to keep it that way.
5. Trust God.

Well, that's what it comes down to. I'm sure if I sat here for another hour I could have a really good (and a lot longer) list. But I feel content with the five I have right now. No need to overwhelm myself too quickly.

But I really do love the feeling at the beginning of a school year. I feel so motivated and determined and all ready to hit the ground running. It's a good feeling. The problem is, when it gets later in the semester and I don't feel like doing anything. So my list of goals is hopefully going to help me. We'll see what happens.

This is Why I Want to Teach Music

This morning I went with Spencer, Aaron, Tim and Ryan to see Music and the Spoken Word at the Conference Center. It was the first time I had seen anything in the Conference Center. And it was incredible! I loved it! The music was so amazing. I can't believe how great the acoustics were with the choir and orchestra. (music nerd moment) It was way cool! Recordings of the choir and orchestra are good, but nothing beats being there and experiencing it in person.



My favorite piece was the organ solo that as played. It was phenomenal! The sound was everywhere! It was so cool. And the organist was way good. I have no idea how they can play that fast with so many different lines and harmonies going on. But the sound of it definitely made it my favorite.


The story that was told was talking about how teachers have the ability to affect generations. It was a really cute little story. But the whole thing just reminded me of why I want to teach music. One, because music is very powerful. Two, because I want to help and positively affect people. So you put the two together and guess what you get. The secret to (my) life :)

First Day of Classes (round 2 for me)

Well look at that. Another first day down... and I have survived. (Although... I almost didn't because I couldn't see that car coming on the other side of the parked car when I was crossing the crosswalk..... Good thing their brakes worked.) I like being a sophomore better than being a freshmen (duh!) because I already feel like I know everything (about campus) and I'm not so worried about what I'm doing or how I'm going to get there.

Classes went pretty well. I'm only taking music classes this semester. No general classes at all this semester. Strictly music classes for me. I basically never leave David Gardner Hall. I did get a gianourmous locker this year though, so I won't have to use everyone else's. :) I got all my books ($$totally ridiculous!$$), started filling out my paper for private lessons, made it through the day.... even started on homework. I think we're off to a good start thus far.

My favorite thing is Marching Band class after we have had band camp. Because it feels like class is just getting going when Brian says "Ok, one more run of that and we'll be done." And we're all left there thinking. What?! Seriously??? AWESOME :)  so it definitely feels like that fastest part of the day.

The only downer is the homework that is already started. I'm actually blogging right now only because my Music History textbook was putting me to sleep. So I had to change activities. Other than that, I'm almost done :) It was a pretty good day in all, and I'm ready for tomorrow too.

Back to School :)

Band camp has started and is now underway :) I have been having lots of fun with it. And today Andrew Cortes gave me a great compliment today. It was pretty cool. I've been having lots of fun being on the leadership team. It's kind of a lot of work, but I think it's worth it.

So after band camp tonight, I decided to use the bananas that are going bad.... and what better way to find some use for them than... Pinterest!! :) So here is the recipe that I'm trying out, right now, as I type. It's in the oven.

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Banana-Banana-Bread/Detail.aspx

Ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup butter
• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 2 1/3 cups mashed overripe bananas

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease a 9x5 inch loaf pan.
2. In a large bowl, combine flour, baking soda and salt. In a separate bowl, cream together butter and brown sugar. Stir in eggs and mashed bananas until well blended. Stir banana mixture into flour mixture; stir just to moisten. Pour batter into prepared loaf pan.
3. Bake in preheated oven for 60 to 65 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into center of the loaf comes out clean. Let bread cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack.

So here's to hoping that it turns out tasty. Aaron said the dough tastes good, so I'm not too worried. It is Aaron approved.