.symphony and summer.

As only a true blogging geek can, I was thinking about how to link these two sets of photos together when the obvious answer came to me: symphony of music and of light. For the sake of the blog, we must return to the titles of years past. And let's face it - "celebration of light" isn't a very good name anyway.

.symphony in the park.

Two weekends ago, the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra did a free show in Deer Lake park. So we trudged out there, complete with cooler full of drinks, dinner, brie and red pepper jelly. No, we didn't mess around. This year, we roped in a few others: Lana, Brenda, Rick, Shaun, Jon and Katie. Heck, even my parents joined our blanket. It was the place to be. As always it was a wonderful event: listening to beautiful music as you stare up at that beautiful sky. It's hard to get any better than that.

.the symphony of light.

As it turns out, these weeks are getting quite busy as I try to finish off my course, plan for Europe, and attend weddings. I had this sudden fear I wouldn't be able to attend any of the fireworks. But Stef and Heather came through for me. Here's the thing: I just love the fireworks. I know its a hassle getting down there, finding a parking space, taking on the crowds and all of that. But when I am sitting there, experiencing the solidarity of the crowd all around me, I am taken in. All of the silly "fireworks madness" seems worth it - at least to me. I feel like a little kid, resisting every urge to yell "ooo" and "ahhh" as they go off in the sky. This time, we sat on Kits beach, thereby avoiding the downtown madness. It was a great call, we were many feet away from fellow sweaty bodies (I don't want that much solidarity). Not one, but two of our fellow fireworks attenders had radios out for clear reception. We ate candy, Heather took pictures with the new SLR, and life was good.

In all honesty, I think this post was just for myself, to proove that I am actually finding time to do fun things in the midst of my mental summer. But hey, at least I had pictures right?

.true story.

i am sitting on matt's back porch.

through the trees i can hear a barbershop quartet.

no, it's not a radio, it's real men. i can hear them talking.

they are sitting on a porch rehearsing.

there is also some sort of harmonica (a tuning device?)

and their harmony is amazing.

they are singing "in the still of the night".

they are telling me they love me.

i couldn't be happier.

this is one of those summer moments you couldn't create if you tried.

i imagine they look like this:

except maybe with those amazing striped vest and hats. but i guess you don't wear those during rehearsal....

"reviews are usually well received"....

So I realized that I go to a lot of movies. This may be a bad thing, but I am alright with it. I don't really like that facebook thing that rates them. I decided I would do it the "old fashioned" way on the ol' blogger. For your reading pleasure, a few reviews of drastically different films. So don't accuse me of being too "artsy" or too "hollywood".

.License to Wed.

I have very little to say about this movie except this:


Do NOT go see it. It is a waste of time and money - even if you like Robin (which I do). The acting is horrible, the plot line is weak and the characters are implausible. If you must see it, rent it.


.Paris Je t'aime.


"Through the neighborhoods of Paris, love is veiled, revealed, imitated, sucked dry, reinvented and awakened"


One Friday night, I found the preview for this movie, and I had to see it right then. So we drove downtown to Fifth Avenue (which I also just love, everything is so well done at that theatre). The film is comprised of 18 vignettes created by world renowned directors and writers. They have only one common thread: Paris, the city of Love. It was a truly refreshing change of pace. Some were funny, others were heartbreaking or strange. The list of actors is crazy. In every short, you are surprised by the people on screen. Some are in English and some are in French with subtitles. Basically, they are just moments of humanity. You get up from your seat at the end and feel like you have just witnessed something very real. I don't think its for everyone, but I really loved it. Just do me a favor and go watch the preview, its a work of art in and of itself.


.Live Free or Die Hard.

I am going to go ahead and say that I liked it. About two weeks ago, I didn't know anything about these movies. Then one night, Die Hard 2 was on. It's a total cop movie, but in all the best ways. Basically, Bruce Willis would have died 12 times if it were real. This one was a "technological" plot. So there was lots of talk about the "server" and the "main frame". Sort of an advanced version of Sandra's Bullock's hit "The Net" - only 10 years later. haha. But seriously, I liked it. If you enjoy Bruce, and the Die Hard movies, I reccomend it.

found on postsecret.....

and the legend lives on......

(check out the original post, there are some funny responses)

......

Apparently people like Brenda exist out there, but I still maintain that she has become a lower mainland legend.

I remember when she was making it during our grade 12 year, and I would come over. It was meant to be a big secret so suddenly the whole house would "mobilize" to hide it away when I came upstairs. It seemed pretty sketchy, like an illegal drug operation or something. But oh no, in true Brenda style, a dress like no other, proving she was still outside the norm.

This one goes out to you Brenda- my soon to be travel buddy. You are one of a kind.

.the long weekend.

.granville island.

.a random sea tormented teddy bear on the dock.

.a play called 'suds'.

.cheap student tickets.

.gelato.

.fresh brewed loose leaf tea.

=

happiness.

where have i been?

.novacom golf tourney.

Somehow, for some reason I was asked to participate in Novacom's first annual golf tournament. So I bought a glove. I played 18 holes on a PGA course and it was amazing. Where I lacked in golfing ability, I made up for in language. haha. That golf exam treated me right. I knew what they were talking about even if I didnt know how to hit the ball. In any case, the boys were nice to me and we had a great day busting around in the carts. The weird MJ glove pic? I don't know, it just happened.

......

.megan howie bachlorette.

You would think there would be a picture of Megan in her own bachlorette photos, but it appears that I don't have one. Sad. I am sure we can all see one soon on facebook. First we hit a pinata's head off at the Howie's. Watching grown women swing a bat at a pinata - now thats a good time. After, we went to a place downtown called the "Kino" cafe. There was Flamenco dancing and beautiful Spanish music. One of those places that doesnt look like much but lights up when filled with music, people and culture. It was nice to see a caveat of cultural life in the middle of the city. That and we had Sangria with some great girls, a good night was had.

Another one bites the dust....

I have done it. I have initated Lavonne into the blogging world. You can all thank me later. I played around with it a little and put a pretty sweet picture on there. I figured I better take credit for it, because my travel blog is going to look EXACTLY the same. Perhaps even a similar name...

So my dear friend Lavonne is heading off to Europe for 2 months - so what better time to blog right? We will be meeting up at the end of her journey, and the beggining of mine. Such good times ahead.

www.eurolavonne.blogspot.com

Geocaching and George...

So I was going to post on Thursday, and it was going to be amazing. I was going to talk about my eventful Thursday night, and Rachel was going to be shocked and say "on a Thursday?!?". And then, I forgot to post....

Now, I am going to tell of my adventures anyway. On Thursday night, I was sitting around, trying to avoid my homework, looking for something to do. I left my house at 8:00, and by the time the evening was through I had: gone for coffee with Laura, gone geocaching with Shaun Gaynor and visited Lavonne.

Oh yes, you might have picked up on the italics there. I went geocaching. Now, if you don't know the MacDonalds, you might be wondering "What is geocaching?". Its this international game that is monitored online. People sign up, and use their GPS unit to find co-ordinates. At this co-ordinates is a little box, filled with.....nothing. Well sort of. Everyone who finds the "cache" records their name inside. It's strange and wonderful all at the same time. It's sort of a "thrill of the hunt" type of scenario. On Thursday night, Shaun and I climbed up tree roots, hopped a fence and discovered our treasure - a film canister. I know, it sounds quite odd, but it's actually great times.

And now, its Sunday and truth be told, the weekend hasn't provided too much more entertainment. Yesterday, we moved my brother from "Denim" to a beautiful house in Langley. Sadly, it was raining, so it made for a pretty wet day for some. On Friday, Matt and I did get a chance to see Ocean's 13. Of course, I was already on board because it was an excuse to watch George for two hours straight. But the boys actually redeemed themselves from Ocean's 12. I heard that they made it simply for this purpose. Even so, it was well executed. The cast was on their game pulling sly maneouvers and just being charming. This is truly George at his best, in his suit grinning with those beautiful eye wrinkles. Umm..sorry random George tangent there. Truly though, I do recommend the movie, for more than just George. If you liked the first, you will like this.

Soooo true....

(http://xkcd.com/c77.html)

Just replace "live-journal" with blogger there, or even facebook and you've got me. On more than one occasion, during the actual event I have said "this is going to be great for the blog".

Seriously.

Even now, as I anticipate my upcoming Europe trip, I am thinking about the great posts that will come. That my friends is ridicolous. Yet, I am still a blog lover. I just can't help myself. People are writing about their lives, and that is amazing. Just saying, some days we have to realize how silly we are. Or at least I do.

This weekend....

Apparently, the Trinity Human Kinetics department is onto something. For this one time in my life, they may have actually succeeded in promoting healthy living. Shaun Gaynor emailed out a list of hikes for this current year, and I called Matt to see if he wanted to go. I thought "hey, why not, I have the shoes and the shirt". This is how I decide if I can do things, based almost purely on apparel. Oh man.

So I spent my Sunday hiking up Cypress Mountain. The view was very rewarding, birds ate off all of our hands, and we ran down the mountain in snow. Literally - ran. I am not a "run down the mountain" type, but when its snow, it's good times. I can't say the same for the way up unfortunately. Snow makes it twice as hard to make every step without slipping. But alas - we got the joy on the way home.

.........
An eventful weekend all in all:

Friday
Dublin Crossing Pub with Brandon, Lindsay, Geoff and Lavonne. Go to that Pub -its amazing. Then after Dinner - WONDERLAND Outdoor Golf, you might think I am kidding, but I'm not.

Saturday
Breakfast with Heather Hastings
Packing with Lavonne
Closing Sbux with one man down (equals crazy times)

Sunday
Hike
Church

There you go, just what you always wanted, a detailed itinerary of my weekend. Oh wait, you never asked. haha. Oh well, you got it anyway. Isn't that what blogs are for? To show the eventful life we lead. Geez. The Camera is back, so photos are accompanying posts again. Hurrah!

And it turns out...

...that I have not lost my marbles!

Hurrah!

What was lost is now found. I'll tell you this much, to find out you were right all along, and that you are not crazy but actually quite sane...

....that is a beautiful thing.

Sublime...

I thought I would try...but the video in no way does it justice. I'm telling you.

A little late for this post I realize, and STILL not the wedding recap, I feel it might be much too late for that now. But there is still time for an Arcade Fire Recap. As I write this, I don’t even know how to fully express how amazing this show was. The last concert I went to (which was deliberately omitted here) was so mediocre, and was beginning to doubt the reasons for going to shows.

Then came the Arcade Fire.

The sound was bang on. It was in Deer Lake Park, so you didn’t have to sit in a stuffy arena. Instead, on a blanket waiting for the music, it felt like a fair (probably because Rebecca and I ate mini donuts, pizza and ice cream). But then, it was even better than the fair because the band was incredible. They just got every song. The pitch, the tone was perfect. I was taken in. It was one of those times where the music just comes alive at the performance. There were ten people on stage and they would randomly switch instruments. These were actual musicians my friends.

And as if the music, the venue and the perfect sunny day weren’t enough, I got more. There were so many great people there. And as we know, the people make it for me. I went with Rebecca- which was so fun, and we sat with the Spiros. Yes, multiple Spiros. This is the greatest part. Jay Spiro (Jamie’s cousin…did I just call her Jamie?) was in Rebecca’s wedding, so it actually made sense that we were all together. So there we were, Rebecca, Sharelle and five Spiros. About ten feet away were Lana, Rick, Melissa and Shaun. And then, just to top it all off, another CP showed up – Kristina Janzen. So, it was the best of both worlds – Capernwrayers and White Rockers. How can you beat that?

But man, just so incredible. This long post is well merited. I have been listening to them ever since. If you haven’t yet, go take a listen. It won’t be the same, but it will be good.

Real Life...

I'm telling you right now, this is not the much anticipated wedding recap. It's coming, but you demanded blogging, and these are todays thoughts:

Today marked the return to the "work world" for me. Canadian Geography finished, so I headed back to Novacom this morning with the throng of commuters. It was also the day after a long weekend. Also, at the end of the day, I had to write a relatively significant cheque. Although little, these things added to a day that needed to be redeemed. And then:

-A Beautiful White Rock Moment-

I was just saying today how I already missed my dear TWU friends. Specifically today, I was thinking of my friend Laura Van Dyke. We became friends this semester, having two classes together and talking "literary" things. For some reason recently, I have been looking at similar cars thinking it might be one of my TWU friends. Today, coming through the 32nd Avenue Diversion, and who did I see? Laura was turning the corner. What are the chances? Provindential I think.

So we roll down the windows at the light, and decide to go to Wendy's. I am sitting there eating a JBCB just thinking - "it doesn't get any better than this". We sat and talked until almost 10.00 pm about life, proffessors, books and silly things. These are the beautiful moments of summer...

Even the bleak "real world" life can be redeemed by random moments on the commute home. During our conversation, we decided that the only thing to do is find the beautiful moments in the day and live for them. So that was my "moment" today. Long story? Yes. Beautiful moment? You better believe it.

Join the Font Revolution....

I just love finding out that there are people as crazy as you. I got an email from Christy Childers today telling me about Helvetica's 50th birthday. You are thinking, "what is Helvetica?". Oh yes, its a font my friend. Here is my confession:

I love fonts.

I don't know why but a font can make or break something for me. You walk into a restaurant that appears nice and read the menu, and its a cheesy font, and I'm thinking "why bother".

So the font that gets me the most is Comic Sans. Every time I see it, I get agitated. Okay, a little extreme, but you get the point. The worst part is - people use it all the time. School posters, menus, letterhead, signage! You might not believe me, but you will notice it now (or not, because you aren't crazy like me). In any case, the BBC article mentioned that in Canada there is an "ban comic sans" coalition! There is a website that sells ani-comic sans stickers and memorabilia. There is even a flickr group with pictures of the font's flagrant misuses. The slogan: "putting the sans back in comic sans". Soo geeky, and sooo great.

A Series of Unfortunate Events....

.the cell phone.
You might have already heard this story from my "informative" email, but I lost my cell phone on Monday. Not only lost, but randomly "picked up" again. The thing was, I was convinced that I had just left it at home on my desk. I pick Brenda up, and she tells me that she phoned it three times, from different phones and some girl answered each time. The girl carried out a conversation with Brenda, saying it was her "friend's phone". Brenda said "Is your friend Sharelle?", which apparently confused her.

Then the kicker - I phone Matt to ask him about the last time I called him. He says..."well your phone called me ten minutes ago but it wasn't you". The girl called him and said: "Hi Matt...", then giggled and hung up. That seriously happened. Apart from the "lost phone" thing, it actually makes for a pretty funny/random story.

.the tooth.
On Friday night, we had a little girls night which involved dinner up on the Boathouse patio. Things were all well and good, I was eating my Coconut shrimp when I hear a "crack". I chipped my tooth on the fork! It's not a big chip, but its definitelythere. I feel a strange tingly sensation when I eat cold things now. I probably shouldn't have told this story because now people will be looking at my tooth. Actually, that would be pretty awkward.

.the shoes.
This story is actually pretty boring, so I will keep it simple. Aldo double-charged me for a pair of shoes. That isn't even the worst part. I convinced myself they were great, because they were just what I wanted: brown flats. They were on sale and I thought "walking around the house" a bit would break them in. Not so much. So alas, they are going back to the store. So, now I have a double-charge and a return. Lame-o.

Perhaps this post was too negative. To lighten the mood, I suggest you go read this excerpt from the new self-help sensation: The Secret. Its the funniest thing I have read in a while. It's hard to believe people actually believe this stuff. An excerpt:

"Let go of all those limiting thoughts. Food cannot cause you to put on weight, unless you think it can."

........

Really? That's phenomenal. I am going to eat a bowl of Ben & Jerry's right now, and I don't think it will have any fat in it. Oh I like this philosophy....

The Pseudo-Graduation...

my name in the program. and next to my name? you read for yourself. ohhh yeah.

Proffesor Pearson....such a character.

the family.

guess who showed up at grad? miss kiki tegs.

sarah and christie - my dear on campus friends that took me in and bought me food.

........

So here I sit, on Sunday night, posting graduation photos, only to wake up and drive to TWU tomorrows for a summer class. Not too pleased about that. But yes, this was grad weekend, and yes it was great times. On Friday, I went for pedicures with my mom and Lindsay. Then my mom and I went to the English Department Tea. This was probably one my favourite parts. My mom was standing around and talking to my proffessors. Picture yourself in that situation. It's crazy. My family took me out to dinner on Friday night, and then we went to the Baccalaureate service at TWU.

On Saturday, there was commencements. I absolutely loved watching the professors parade in their academic regalia. I was kind of sad, because I wasn't able to participate in the Humanities ceremony because of my current degree. So there weren't too many of my proffessors there. However - the speaker was Dr. Barbara Pell, whom I respect and admire beyond words. I felt truly honored to partipate in the ceremony. The joy of my academic life was manifest on the stage and all around me. That and I got the blue cord! That means something special (refer to 1st picture). All in all, a wonderful time. I felt truly celebrated and honored.

Confessions of a Trin-Keen....

It's official. I'm over the Top -

Lavonne is never going to speak to me again.

.........

I am lamenting graduation. Who laments graduation? Who is this sad to leave their school? Absolutely no one – except me. Oh how ridiculous I am. But truly, I feel a deep sadness. I just love it here. It’s so rare to find a place in your life like that. When you do, you just want to hold onto it. Not only will I love the memories, but I love it now, in the moment. That is truly a gift.

The more I think about it, I know I will be back. Actually, I will be backer sooner than I think. I am further considering Grad work which means I will need to update my degree to an English Major. I have sadly sacrificed my English Major in order to do PDP. I am going to graduate with General Studies, so I can get my Bachelor of Education (ugh..so complicating). All this to say -essentially this is a “Pseudo-Graduation” of sorts. We will celebrate the BA, but it’s certainly not the end. Don’t be shocked if you ask me what I am doing in fall and I say “Back at TWU”. I just can’t get enough…

I thought of a good metaphor. It’s like a relationship. If you really love something or someone, it is harder to let go. But wait! It goes further – the world around you tells you to move on, that you are “better” than this relationship. “Just let go” they say. But you are sitting there going “no, this is it, this is what I love, for better or for worse”. In this case, for worse may mean unfortunate student debt. Hehe.

........

There you go, I have truly gone off the deep end, using analogies to describe my ridiculous state. Perhaps one person reading this will understand me. The rest of you, please just refrain from making fun of me, and maybe come to a “Grad BBQ” if I organize one. We need to celebrate graduation and the end of the semester. Heck – maybe next year we can have another one when I graduate again! More reasons to party….

"A-Drewlo"

I wish I knew how to get cell-phone pictures onto my computer because I have the best picture EVER of today. I go over to the ol' TWUSA BBQ to get my yearbook, and I am looking for the right line to stand in, and then I see it:

A sign that says "A-Drewlo" in big letters.

Thats right, my name was the cut-off so it was written on the big signs for people to line up. Okay, so they weren't that big, and its only TWU, but c'mon! You would be excited if your name was on a sign! I was pretty excited and took a keener photo with the sign. The yearbook people thought I was ridicolous. Sad thing was- I didn't take a grad photo, so I wasn't really represented. My baby picture did make it though. Leave it to my mom to get me in the yearbook somehow....

Good Things...

Today was an expectedly wonderful day. I am currently housesitting for my brother which meant that waking up 20 minutes late today did not matter. I got to school in 8 minutes. Wonderful. Then, came the joys:

....Golf Carts....

Today I drove around a golf cart on Redwoods Golf Course, for a class! I know hard to believe right? This is one of my few solaces in my 7 class crazy busy semester. I "have" to take a human kinetics course - golf. Oh Trinity Western and the Liberal Arts Education. We got to class today and he told us we were taking carts out on the course. Have you driven one of these things? Its' fun times. We definitely "lost our way" at one point and ended up back at the clubhouse. Good times in golf class.

...Mars Hill...
I have always, always wanted to be published in the school newspaper. I promise, unlike other school papers, it is not lame at all. Its very hip, and usually the people writing it have witty comments and hipster things to say. Then I found out one of my English friends was going to be the Editor next year and she suggested I get an article in before graduation. She liked it, and I got published. It's certainly not my best work, but the paper also publishes online if you want to read it. Sneaked it in for the last issue of my graduation year. Hurrah!

....Dr. John Klassen...
Just to top the day off, I finished my history class today with one of my favourite proffessors Dr. John Klassen. This man is wonderful, and I always just want him to like me, because he is sooo brilliant, and also witty. He likes to talk about things as they are. I basically just think he is great. After class, he walked over to me and said "Sharelle, I loved your article in the Mars Hill, well done". True story! That seriously happened. This is beggining to sound like I think I am awesome, which I don't, I promise you, but this was a sincere moment of sheer joy. That was my greatest fear with the article, that profs would read it and laugh. But Klassen liked it, and that made my day.