10 years (approximately) later

 Hello there everyone.

I have NO idea if anyone of you will see this, but I thought it would be fun to revisit the blog today. I found the letter I wrote to my future self 10 years ago, as a post for this very blog. The letter was dated 4/26/2011.

Updates about me: 

I largely lived up to my 17-year-old self’s expectations… I still make music, still enjoy nerdy stuff, and I’m still pretty happy and optimistic. A LOT of life has happened since I was 17, and looking back at some of my old blog posts… I feel like I owe you all an apology for being very insufferable about college and music. I guess I was just a very excited little nerd!

I have lived in California for these last 10 years, but in just a week I’ll be moving back to Colorado. This is a big moment of transition for me, so it seems oddly appropriate that I am reflecting a bit on the past. I feel excited about the move, but nervous as well. I am a different person now, but I am returning to the place where I last lived as a kid. It’s strange.

On another note, I’m married now. It’s been 4 pretty great years with a partner who supports me, challenges me, and loves me more than I probably deserve. 

I enjoyed my time in college writing music, and I went on to grad school afterwards to become a teacher.  For the past 4 years I have been teaching K-8 music and band in California, and I will be doing the same this fall after I move.

It’s wild to think about how much the world has changed in the last 10 or so years. Many things have changed for the better, many for the worse, and some things, it turns out, have always been very very bad. I’m continuing to learn, and (as I put it at 17), doing my best to decrease World Suck. 

I hope you all are well, wherever life has taken you. On the off chance that you read this, I’d love to hear your updates as well. 

DFTBA,

Emily

London!

I am not a fan of airports! Or airplanes! Especially when you're stuck on one for 8+ hours! But I'm in London now!!!! I'm super excited to start school in a week and a bit, but also super nervous! It'll be okay though right? As long as I remember what side of the road cars drive on so I don't get run over I think I'll be good! I'm really jet lagged though so I should probably go sleep.... I'll try to write more next week!

DFTBA,

-Kim

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaand back.

Hey guys,

So I'm back. It's a little surreal, a little odd, a little different than I remember. But it's really, really, really good. I'm incredibly excited to be back with my friends, living in a new dorm (MUCH closer to the music building!), ready for a new year. Bring it on!

Needless to say, my posting may become irregular after this. :)

DFTBA,
Emily

GAH!

Jeepers creepers is it Thursday??? When did that happen???

So, um, yeah, nothing has changed in the last week, I'm still living in the threatre. We only have three shows left! And they're selling out fast, which is crazy! Earlier this week we started getting reviews on us published and they were all really good, 4 or 5 stars! I'm so proud to be a part of this show and I'm proud of the talent and dedication of my fellow crew, cast, and band. It's been a wonderful experience and I'll be sad to say goodbye to it in a few days.

For now though I really need to sleep. Sorry this was so short! I'll try to write more next week when I will either be in London or very annoyed with UK Border Agency (they still haven't approved my visa and I'm kind of stressing out...)!

Don't forget to be awesome!

-Kim

ONE WEEK

Hi guys,

So, yeah. One week. Seven days until I get on an airplane at 6am and fly back to California.

Since the anticipation has been killing me, I think it might be good for me to take a little time to think about what I'm grateful for here in Colorado. Here are three things that have made this summer bearable.

1. Time. The truth is, school is stressful-- we all know that. After the intensity of two semesters of the heaviest workload I've ever had, it's been really good to have the time to decompress. Read stuff I want to read. Have the peace of mind to actually write some music. Reconnect with some old friends. Spend days just doing nothing. Sure, doing nothing can become really boring, but sometimes it can be healthy too.

2. My Family. Now that I've been able to spend a lot of time away from my family, testing out my sense of identity on my own, I've been able to see how much they've influenced who I am. And you know what? I really love my family. Like, I really love them. And I'm more grateful for them now than I ever have been.

3. My Summer Job. Although having a generic (and rather unimportant) desk job over the summer got extremely boring at times, it was also a really good experience. It gave me a reason to get up in the morning. It put some money in my pocket-- I mean, uh, savings account. *cough* I got great work experience with database software and data entry. Best of all, my co-workers and supervisors were all very nice and patient with me (which is more than can be said for previous jobs I've had).

So I guess what I'm saying is, I know I've been griping about missing California, but the truth is there's a lot of good stuff here at home too.

For instance, today my dad and I drove up to Aspen to hear the dress rehearsal for the final performance of the Aspen Music Festival. Did you know that Mahler's 8th symphony is about 1.5 hours long? I do now. I also now know that the drive from Denver to Aspen has some of the most stunningly beautiful views in Colorado.

In conclusion, DFTBA.

Emily

P.S. My next post will be written from CALIFORNIA!!!!

Theatre Life

Hi there, sorry it's been a while.

It's Fringe time here in Edmonton so things are a little bonkers. By which I mean I pretty much eat, sleep, and live at the theatre. Well maybe not sleep, I don't have time to sleep while I'm there, but I definitely eat, live, and work there.

As tiring and stressful as it is I love doing theatre. It's such a collaborative process, actors, designers, technicians, directors, musicians, writers, composers, and everyone else, all coming together to create something beautiful. I'm proud of the work we've all done and made some really good friends along the way. I'll be sad when the show is over but that's how theatre goes, you come together through rehearsals and once the last show is done everyone heads their separate ways.

For now though we have 13 performances ahead of us. With opening night tonight, we can start sharing our art and the story of Spring Awakening with each audience member who comes through our doors.

DFTBA,

-Kim

I'm a horrible, horrible person

SOOOO hi,

Let's get this out the way, I'm horrible. I started out two months ago trying to get everyone to get onto the blog again and then I bolted.
Apologies for doing so, but it has been hectic busy round here.

I had an entire post half written about the opening ceremonies, however I've scrapped that.
Instead I'm keeping it short and sweet.

For as long as I remember the Olympics has been a big part of my life; granted I've only ever fully watched four Olympiads from start to finish that I can remember. Sydney 2000, Athens 2004, Beijing 2008 and London 2012.
My earliest memory of the Olympics (and my favourite) is of the Sydney 2000 games. It was hot. Stupidly hot, I'm pretty sure it was a heatwave. My Mum and I sat in the living room on the floor with lots of fans on and the curtains drawn. On the t.v the closing ceremonies was on. A single man, I can't for the life of me remember who he was, sat and sung 'kookaburra sits in the old gum tree' with his guitar. It was a mesmerising moment, he was alone in the centre of the stage, the entire place was dark and there was a single tree just next to him.

From the London games, I really hope the slogan follows through. 'Inspire a Generation'. I'm a big believer in the power and help of sports and hopefully the aftermath of the games brings about a change in the ways sports in held in schools in this area.

Hope you are all having a good time, and hopefully you'll be hearing from me on a more regular basis.

DTFBA

(P.S sorry to whoever's day I have nicked)

x