The night I met Idina Menzel!

After months of anticipation, June 26th had finally arrived! Grabbing my suitcase and my picture of Idina as Elphaba, I headed out the door. After a two-hour drive, I saw the theater that she was performing at. Towards the entrance was a huge banner with Idina's face on it. Boy, was I ever excited to see that!

The doors of the theater opened and I got a little souvenir; a shirt that displayed Idina's picture and name on the front and her tour stops on the back. The theater was huge! I also found it ironic that the seats were upholstered in green material. I chatted with two ladies sitting next to me who claimed that they were dying from excitement. I was too, but I was trying to keep my cool.

The orchestra came out on stage and took their place. I was starting to shake from the excitement. As the music started to play, a spotlight hit the curtain behind the orchestra and there was Idina's profile. OMG! She's right there!!! She started to sing "Somewhere over the rainbow, way up high..." and the crowd was completely hushed; the music faded and she disappeared. From behind the curtain, she quickly walked towards the front of the stage and the crowd went wild. She waved and started the song "The Wizard and I".

As she progressed through every song, she stopped every now-and-then to tell a story to the crowd or tell them a little bit about the song. Her laughter was contagious. She was honest, almost too honest, but it was funny none-the-less.

After each song, there was a slight pause. No talking, no singing, no music. To me, it was slightly deafening, and something inside me was boiling to the surface. After finishing a song, she leaned on her microphone stand, looked down at the floor, and something inside me exploded. I cupped my hands and with all the power that I could muster up I yelled "WE LOVE YOU IDINA!!!" The  crowd cheered and clapped and the girl next to me said, "Nice job!" Then it hit me. I was embarrassed beyond words. I cannot believe that that just came out of me! As a flush of heat swept from my toes to my head, I laughed to hide my embarrassment. Idina heard me and responded, "I love you too, but I don't really know you." Idina Menzel acknowledged my existence!

Closing the show, she took her ear piece out and put the microphone behind her back and sang "For Good" a capella. She left the stage and the crowd cheered her into an encore. She came out and started to sing "Something has changed within me...". I dropped into my seat, leaned forward and cried as I mouthed the words to the song while she sang. Never would I have thought that I would hear her sing that song live!

Heading to the stage door when the show was over, we met up with a group that was also waiting to meet her. We waited and waited and waited, hoping that she wouldn't be in the dressing room all night. Then, bad news came. A security guard told us that she was not going to come out unless we all left. My heart dropped. This was very sad news. We all left the loading dock area and headed to a sidewalk in front of the theater. Lots of people left, but we still waited, hoping to at least see her. Debating on whether we should stay or go, we heard Idina's bus start up and drive towards us. Then, it stopped. What's going on? A security guard approached us and told us to make two single-file lines. YYAAAYYY!!! I was about to jump out of my skin!! Idina emerged from the bus all tangled in her sweater. I didn't recognize her at first because I thought she was a lot taller. But, when she approached the crowd of fans, my hands started shaking. Was it excitement? Was it nerves? Was it the power of Idina herself?

My signed picture and my ticket
from the concert!

She made her way through the crowd rather quickly and I was the last in line. As she grabbed the picture I was holding and started to sign, I told her, "I was the one who screamed, 'WE LOVE YOU IDINA!'" "Oh really? That was you?" she laughed. I smiled and I shook my head. She headed back to her bus and turned around to thank everyone. Wow! What a sweetheart!

Adrenaline had engulfed me. I was shaking, smiling and hugging Brittany, my new friend who was just excited as I was. We posed for a picture that radiated our hyper-ness. Walking to the car I turned to my new friends and said, "You know what this means?? BLOG POST!!!!"

And that, my dear readers, is the story of the night I met Idina Menzel!

'Tis grand that Grand Ole Opry!

Last Wednesday, I had the opportunity to tour the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, Tennessee. It was not in the plans to go, but happened to end up in front of the building and decided to go on a tour.

Surrounded by gorgeous scenery and giant guitars, the Opry is a little difficult to spot. Once I walked up towards the front, I was wowed by the size of it. I never knew it was that big.

When the giant wooden doors opened, the lobby was was wide open and lighted in an assortment of colors. I had my ticket scanned and was handed a "backstage pass" which hung around my neck, making me feel important. Before you could go in to start the tour, there was a photographer there and her assistant was handing guitars to every guest in the line right before they posed in front of a backdrop that looked just like the Opry stage. I didn't want to pose for a picture, but was finally talked into it.

As we sat in the lobby and waited for our tour guide to take us into the theater, a short little documentary, hosted by Blake Shelton, told us how the Grand Ole Opry came to be. It wound through stories of the many famous people who have graced the stage and have become icons in the country music world.

Our guide then led us into the theater. Through back rooms we followed the leader in a maze of sets and props. Stopping by one of the back door, our guide told us that this is where the stars of country music enter the building. I looked out the door to see a small path leading to a parking lot. "It's nothing grand. You don't see any limos or anything like that. It's very casual." she told us. This, I thought, was awesome! Here these people have fame, and yet they drive up in their own cars and walk into the building like it's a grocery store. She then pointed to a line by the door that showed just how deep the water was during the flood. This was amazing. I never thought the floods were that bad.

Further on in the tour, she led us to a huge open stage that seemed rather dark. This is where they film different videos. I looked up to see that there are chairs up above for an audience if the filming called for one. I tried to think back on any videos that I have seen that may have been filmed there. And before I knew it, she was leading us into another lobby with a a large wooden desk in the corner. "This is where our stars check in before a show." Oh, what I'd give to work at that desk. How cool would that be?! Another TV stole our attention as Blake Shelton explained how things worked in this area. He told of the mailboxes behind us that belonged to different members of the Opry where they received their fan mail. I peeked over my shoulder hoping that I could see which box belonged to which singer, but couldn't make out any names.

On the way towards the stage, I saw the famous wall covered in gold plates bearing the names of both past and present members of the Opry. Searching for certain names, I walked on in a long hallway leading to all the different dressing rooms with different themes. Through the hallway of dressing rooms we went. There we stopped in a big open room that had couches, stools, and a coffee machine. This is where the singers hang out and chill before a show. Oh my word! This is so cool!!!!

With a few short steps, I was standing on the stage staring at all the empty seats. I tried to picture what it would look like with a full house and I felt a slight tingle go up my spine. How amazing is this?

Our guide offered the middle of the stage to anyone who wanted to sing. As my hand started to go up, my brain forced it down. That was my chance and I blew it! As I started to mentally kick myself, she told everyone to come around and stand on the big circle. With my toes touching a piece of stage that many have during their fame, I felt a sense of pride. My name will never be up with theirs in the history books, but I had the opportunity to be part of this famed stage.

We stood in the circle and sang, "You are my Sunshine" in about three different keys. Trying to at least sound ok, I looked up again and tried to picture an audience and how their faces would look right now if they could hear us butchering this song. I couldn't help but smile.

Walking to the very back row of the theater, our guide asked us if we had any questions. I leaned over to my mom and whispered "I am so going to write a blog post about this!"

Building a Writing Desk: NOT for dummies!

Friends, followers, readers who I've never met, I had quite the experience this weekend. Setting out with determination, I overcame my frustration and utter confusion. Needless to say that it was worth it!

These past couple of weeks, I came to the conclusion that what I needed to help me along with my writing. But what? There must be something out there that would help me along. *Thinks hard* AHA! A writing desk! A writing desk in a quiet realms of my room! That MUST be what I need!

Scathering up every bit of money that I had, I set out on a shopping spree (mostly online). I came across hundreds that caught my eye, but none of them would ever fit in my room. So, I kept looking...

and looking...

and looking.

Alas! There I was at Wal-Mart. I found exactly what I needed! It was a little on the pricey side, but I knew that I would certainly get my money's worth out of it. A sense of pride came over me. You know, that kind of pride that engulfs you when you buy something new that you've been saving up for.

After placing it on the floor in my room, I toted my mom's little pink tool set.

"Ok. Let's do this!" I told myself.

Now, I am a very independant person. When I don't understand something, I do my best to figure it out before the thought of asking someone to help even crosses my mind. I have never put together anything like this before. But, I knew that I would appreciate it even more if I put it together with my own two hands.

Opening the directions, I saw what looked like heiroglyphics. Wow! Ok! Ummm...I had no clue what I was doing, so I tried to place the pieces in a certain order which helped. Ok, piece Q and R are screwed into piece S with a LL screw. (AAAHHHHH!! Confused already!!!) After about twenty minutes, I had the top part of desk done and it looked pretty good!

Then, I hit a road block of ignorance. So, I asked my mom for help and she got me back on track. We worked for about three hours and I had realized that I had put an important piece on backwards. The clock was past mid-night and I was feeling a bit discouraged. Then, HARK! My determination flaired again! I plugged away at it for about another half-hour, and behold, there it was! My writing desk, in all its glory stood as a tower beacon of my (and my mom's) success! That glowing sense of pride came over my again as I ran my hand over its smooth surface.

"Let the major writing begin!" I thought to myself!

What have I learned from this experience? Read directions carefully, ask for help if you need it and building a writing desk is definately NOT for dummies!


BEHOLD!!! The finished product!! (I placed Mickey on the top as a means for inspiration!)

Oh, the memories!

They say that the human mind has unimaginable capabilities that are far beyond the inventions made by mankind. It's incredible on every level to be able to dig up the most unimportant details and dust them off to put on a shelf of memory.

I think I have mastered this art. In the process of writing my memoir, my mind floods with places and faces from the past. It's like a breath of fresh air. In most cases, I am sure to keep a notebook close by to ensure that I will have the opportunity to write down even the tiniest details. Are they important? Not necessarily. But they do bring a smile to my face!

Now, I do have a confession to make: I have not been as faithful to my memoir as I should be. My nose tends to stick itself in a book and forget the world. I have been a little more organized though. When I started to write, I tried to start from the very beginning and slowly work my way towards the end. This method did not work for me. Instead, I grabbed a three subject notebook and started to write about several different things that had nothing to do with the other. I figured that if I could jump all over the place, it would be easier to blend all the stories into each other to form a book.

I have another confession to make: I have been looking into self-publishing my book. *GASP* No way!
YES WAY!!! Now, notice that I said that I've only been looking into it and nothing is set in stone. If, by any miracle, it should get published, it won't be in the near future. And, if in the far future, my book would be worthy of being distributed and put on bookshelves across the US, I will be able to cross "publish a book" off my bucket list!

I will be posting more updates in the near future!