A day of service

A couple of Sundays ago, I guess it was the 25th of November I got to go and help some of the Sandy victims clean up their houses. It was a good day. It was unbelievable to see the neighborhood. There was sand everywhere that had been washed up, like piles and piles of sand. It was like a beach in the middle of a neighborhood. We spent a few hours helping a lady clean her house and her yard. There was debris everywhere. In her bushes there was a clear line of where the water hit. There was trash and insulation stuck all through her bushes that had been washed up by the water. It was a good experience.  Latter-day Saints and other volunteer groups spent literally thousands of hours serving those who were hit by the storm. It is great to see a community come together at such a time of crisis.

New Bathroom Ceiling!

Ever since I have lived here we have had a leaky bathroom ceiling, trouble with the pipes above us. Every once in a while it leaks, no big deal except it was getting worse and worse until it was a little stream of water coming from the ceiling. After several calls to the super we finally got our message across and they came and fixed it! We love it! It is so nice to not have to worry about putting the bucket down or wondering if that mouse will be out and about. I can't believe how beautiful our new ceiling is. I have included a before and after shot for you to compare!

Christmas is here!

It is Christmas time here in the city! Although there is no snow yet, there are a few other indicators. The tree at Rockefeller Center where I work went up on Nov. 29th. It isn't as big as I thought it would be but it is beautiful! It is tall just not as full as I expected. The skating rink is full of skaters. Rockefeller Center is crowded with people and the shopping is good! Tourists are everywhere, taking pictures of everything. There are times when we struggle to get out of our shop because there is just a mass of people outside. This picture was taken on Nov 30th I think.

As I was walking to acting class in Greenwich Village a few weeks ago I was surprised to see this man selling Christmas trees. Yep! Even in this concrete jungle vendors find a tiny street corner to sell real Christmas trees. It smelled lovely.

Then the other day I was walking some where and I look up and see this huge billboard advertising mormon.org. It was really cool. It was neat to see the billboards in such a prominent place. They are located at 7th Ave and 50th St, just north of Times Square, maybe that is still Times Square. It is a beautiful ad. I didn't get the picture on the left that said "Christmas is family" or the picture around the corner that says "Christmas is worship". Here is the one picture I did take. The ad on the left says "Christmas is..." and then is shows those three pictures.

The Nutcracker and other birthday fun!

Last Wednesday was my birthday! I had a great time eating lunch with my roommates. Brenda and I met Karen down in Tribeca, near her work. We ate at this great cafe. We also saw the fire station where they filmed the first Ghostbusters movie. It was very cool. Later that day we all met up at Lincoln Center for a little ballet magic. We saw NYC Ballet perform "The Nutcracker". It was amazing! The dancing was fabulous. I am not sure why the costume designer chose a light peach color for many of the leotards because it almost matched the skin color of many of the girls. It was very odd, not a choice I would have made but whatever. The music was beautiful. I think I enjoyed that just as much if not more than the dancing. We sat very high up on the side or ring as they call it. We could lean over and see into the orchestra pit. It was very neat!

Our view!

After the ballet we came home and ate dinner. Brenda made me a yummy cake! My roommates even sang to me! It was beautiful!

Before baking

After. Yummy!

I also got to talk on the phone with my parents, my sister-in-law, Emily and my sister Mari! It was great talking with them. Plus my niece and nephews called to sing my happy birthday! I missed the call but made them call again. I have a lovely message and I got a live performance. I love them both! I also received some cards and great messages on Facebook. Thanks everyone for making my birthday special!

Rockettes Review!

 Last Thursday night my roommates and a friend all went to see the Rockettes show at Radio City. It was fabulous! I loved the dancing and singing. There was an even a 3D film with Santa in it! My favorite number had the Rockettes on a tour bus. They wore this cute little white coat with a hat. They sat on both levels of the bus and danced as the bus turned around the stage. They was a projection on the scrim that made it look like the Rockettes were driving through the streets of NYC. It was great! Then of course they shed their cute white coats for festive red and green dresses and got off of the bus to finish their dancing. I was happy to see that they ended the show with a beautiful Nativity scene. It was really beautiful!

Here we are waiting in line to get in.

A friend of mine at work hooked us up with his friend at the concession stands. They gave us free popcorn, cotton candy and drinks. These cute hats we have on were attached to the cotton candy.

Messiah

A couple of Sundays ago my roommates and I went to see "The Messiah". We saw this great deal on tickets and just had to go. Of course later I learned that there are all of these free places to see it. But hey, we saw a great performance! I must say I think it is the first time I have listened to the whole thing from beginning to end. It was beautiful! I was tired. At times I felt myself being lulled to sleep by the heavenly music. But besides nodding off I couldn't help but wonder if those people in the audience were religious people. Did they know what they were singing about? Did the soloists? Did the chorus? Did they realize that Jesus is the Messiah? He is the Messiah! This is why we sing, not just because it is a great work of music but because it's true. The Messiah has come and we are saved from death and hell! Is there anything more glorious to sing about? I don't think so. I am so grateful for my testimony. It is one of, if not, my most prized possession. I know Jesus is my Savior, the Savior and Redeemer of the World and that makes me want to shout "Hallelujah"! I know He lives. I know I am a member of His Church! Is there a greater blessing? I am so grateful for this!

A bad picture of the chorus. The orchestra was gone because it was intermission.

"Once" Review

I am still not caught up on all the entries I have missed these last few weeks. This morning before work I will attempt to write a couple of reviews. We have been to several shows the last few weeks. T

After three attempts or maybe it was four we finally got tickets to "Once". We sat in line for three hours, getting there at 7am or something like that, but it paid off this time because we were third in line. It was cold that morning. We both had several layers on. We brought books to read while we waited. I however could not sit still when it was so cold so I ventured to a nearby souvenir shop and cafe to get hot chocolate. Finally 10am came and we got our tickets, box seats.

Here is Brenda all bundled up. We sat on newspaper and used it as a blanket. It is quite warm.

The show was fabulous. It is set in an Irish pub and before the show audience members were on the set getting drinks while the cast was singing, dancing, and playing some kind of Irish music. It was really fun. Once intermission came around they did it again, turned the set into a real bar with audience members mingling about.

There were only about ten cast members and they all played instruments. They were the orchestra too. When they weren't in the scene they were sitting on the sides of the stage playing. There were violins, a banjo, a cello, drums, guitars, and a piano. It was very cool. The music was very good, definitely one I would like to own someday. 

The story follows a girl that helps a boy pursue his dream of making music. She gives him the push that he needs to take the chance and do what he loves to do. It also follows their relationship which I will not comment on as it will spoil the end for you. It was a really good show thought and I can see why it won best musical. It was definitely a new, unique musical. There were a couple of times that cast members would do some modern dancing to accompany a character's song. I really enjoyed that. It fit the character of the play. I give it two thumbs up. Go and see it. You won't regret it!