piano Musings and other random thoughts

new town, new decade, new hair

2009-03-26T12:58:00.000-07:00

So the countdown is on for my move to Branson. I leave Sunday April 5th, preferably at a decent time. I already know that is not likely, but I will continue to think it might be. I also turn 30 tomorrow, which will be very fun. But right up there with both of these exciting events is my new hair. I have wanted to try long hair for a very long time. In fact, in another life, I'm actually a cosmetologist and esthetician. I could spend hoooours in the various beauty supply stores. Don't get me wrong, I don't on a regular basis or anything, *but* I could. So when my current stylist mentioned that she was going to do extensions for her upcoming wedding I was alllll over that. She filled me in on how it worked and said she could definitely do them in my hair. With that, I give you my fun new hair:

No more lady parts for Lola

2008-09-15T20:21:00.000-07:00

Now I don't want to be one of those moms who only talks about their chil....I mean dog. But I'm still adjusting to the all consuming aspect of thinking about another being besides myself, so you'll have to bear with me for awhile. As we speak, Miss Lola is at the vet recovering from the removal of her lady parts. Knowing that I can't bathe or groom her for at least 2 weeks, it was bath time Sunday night. You'll notice she looks kinda mad at me below. While I was there dropping her off, I asked the vet tech if this would cut down on the amount she humps things, legs, other dogs, etc, and she said, "well it depends. If its a dominance thing, then probably no."

Well of course its a dominance thing. I somehow ended up with the dog who wants to control the world. Why else would girlie dogs do it? Its not anatomically correct, so it can't be instinct. We had a playdate with 2 other dog friends on Saturday (yes, my main goal in life now is to exhaust my dog) and most of our time was spent pulling Lola off of her friends.

hahahaha

Escape Artist

2008-09-11T13:53:00.000-07:00

pretty self explanatory.

graduation from puppy kindergarten

2008-08-29T19:20:00.000-07:00

I don't know how it happened, but despite my most firm determination to have the most well behaved puppy in the world, I somehow have quite possibly the naughtiest, sassiest dog in the world. I keep hearing these stories of people who love the challenge of a strong willed dog. Who are these people, and why do they feel this way?! Lola and I just finished the 8 week puppy class at Pet Smart. Lola knows every command. Every one. Smart as a whip and when she feels like it, obeys like she's supposed to. And she has been socialized almost daily with other dogs and people since she was 8 weeks 4 days (Oh yes, I know to the day). And yet why is it that every dog in the neighborhood is mild mannered and polite and I have the tornado of the townhouse complex?

Our trainer said to me, "Oh I love dogs with attitude. Lola is hilarious." Well I told Sarah she was welcome to come live here, because Lola worships the ground she walks on. Lola sits at Sarah's feet the entire class and gazes adoringly up at her while she talks. Sarah says she has that effect on all dogs because she's the fun treat lady, but no other dogs hang on her every word like Lola.

She is 5 months. 5 months. Just 5 months, Whitney. It will get better.

baby Lola

2008-08-26T12:42:00.000-07:00

I didn't even have the motivation to go find a camera when when she first came home, so all her "baby pictures" are with my cell phone. woops. :o) No mother awards there, huh.

Introducing Lola

2008-08-25T11:40:00.000-07:00

This is Lola. Lola is my new cockapoo (cocker spaniel/poodle) baby. She is now 5 months. I have actually had Lola for 3 months now, and probably should have introduced ages ago, but frankly, I was a little worried about my ability to handle a puppy. And actually, I was pretty much right. I'd also like to take a quick moment for a psa and say I do not recommend bringing home an 8 week puppy. Anything older than 8 weeks. ANYTHING.

But anyway, its time to show her off a little. This is after her 1st haircut, hee hee. Couldn't resist taking pics with BOWS in her hair.

with her octopus

not chewing on the toys, but on the box that *holds* the toys.

Our first private party

2008-04-28T10:17:00.000-07:00

So on Monday March 31st, Roxi and I drove up to Jewell, Iowa, the lovely hometown of Megan and Taylor. We were going to play at the Jewell Country Club Saturday April 5th, and this was our first party where we had to bring in and set up all our equipment. Because of that, we decided to meet the Monday prior to do a test run. This first picture is from the front seat of my car towards the back. We managed to pack my beautiful little Yaris FULL of equipment. Go Yaris.

Here is Megan and Taylor's practice area. Its actually a garage, but they have it all set up with equipment and furniture, which makes it a cool little practice hangout.

And here is one of the pictures we took of the wires. It took so long to figure it out we needed clear documentation, ha.

pics from March

2008-04-28T10:08:00.000-07:00

Dane, Tim and me:

This one's funny enough I felt it was worth posting. Keely, Lacey and Chelsea:

Emerson Drive concert

2008-03-28T13:50:00.000-07:00

I look a little tired here because I was at the end of a nasty nasty bug. But it was so worth seeing these guys. A) They're beautiful, B) They're amazing, C) we got to stand backstage thanks to Keely's friend. And had we not left after the concert, we could have hung out with them afterwards in their bus with Keely's friends. Talk about kicking ourselves!!!

Thursdays with Oliver

2008-02-28T09:18:00.000-08:00

Thursdays are the highlight of my week these days, because Oliver comes to Ankeny and spends the day with me. I wasn't going to get him this week because my mom is not teaching (and therefore did not need my babysitting services); however, she was feeling generous and decided to send him in anyway with my dad to surprise me. The below picture says it all I think.

SATC the movie

2008-02-27T10:06:00.000-08:00

ahhh my guilty, guilty pleasure.....

hee hee

2008-02-27T07:40:00.000-08:00

DOG DIARY

8:00 am - Dog food! My favorite thing!

9:30 am - A car ride! My favorite thing!

9:40 am - A walk in the park! My favorite thing!

10:30 am - Got rubbed and petted! My favorite thing!

12:00 pm - Lunch! My favorite thing!

1:00 pm - Played in the yard! My favorite thing!

3:00 pm - Wagged my tail! My favorite thing!

5:00 pm - Milk bones! My favorite thing!

7:00 pm - Got to play ball! My favorite thing!

8:00 pm - Wow! Watched TV with my people! My favorite thing!

11:00 pm - Sleeping on the bed! My favorite thing!

CAT DIARY

Day 983 of my captivity.

My captors continue to taunt me with bizarre little dangling objects. They dine lavishly on fresh meat, while the other inmates and I are fed hash or some sort of dry nuggets. Although I make my contempt for the rations perfectly clear, I nevertheless must eat something in order to keep up my strength. The only thing that keeps me going is my dream of escape. In an attempt to disgust them, I once again vomit on the carpet. Today I decapitated a mouse and dropped its headless body at their feet. I had hoped this would strike fear into their hearts, since it clearly demonstrates what I am capable of. However, they merely made condescending comments about what a "good little hunter" I am. Bastards! There was some sort of assembly of their accomplices tonight. I was placed in solitary confinement for the duration of the event. However, I could hear the noises and smell the food. I overheard that my confinement was due to the power of "allergies." I must learn what this means, and how to use it to my advantage. Today I was almost successful in an attempt to assassinate one of my tormentors by weaving around his feet as he was walking. I must try this again tomorrow -- but at the top of the stairs. I am convinced that the other prisoners here are flunkies and snitches. The dog receives special privileges. He is regularly released - and seems to be more than willing to return. He is obviously retarded. The bird has got to be an informant. I observe him communicate with the guards regularly. I am certain that he reports my every move. My captors have arranged protective custody for him in an elevated cell, so he is safe.

For now...

Our first weekend at the bistro

2008-01-20T10:11:00.000-08:00

Whew! We made it. And we are done with firsts for awhile, so I will turn my blogging attention to something else now. :o) All in all though it was an absolute ball. Here are some pics from Saturday night.

We have: Andy, Keely and Dane:

Tim and me,

Lacey, Tim and me involved in what looks to be a rather odd conversation.

looking for laptop recommendations

2008-01-15T07:20:00.000-08:00

So if I may, I will continue my computer saga for a bit longer. Last Friday I picked up an almost fully functioning laptop. They restored all of my information and reinstalled any lost programs. They did notice that my optical drive (I think that's the part that reads CDs or DVD's) was acting fussy, but they had successfully used it to reinstall stuff so it should be okay. Got home, spent some time on my laptop, all was good. Tried to import a CD into itunes and was not able to get it to work, so I started wondering if I now needed to get a stupid new optical drive. Well, there is one way to get around a simple repair like that. And that is to create the need for a bigger repair. Which is what I did the very. next. morning, when the laptop crashed to the floor (hard, laminate floor) from a high bar stool. Needless to say, it doesn't work at all now.

Oh and my tivo broke too. So they're sending me (i.e. I am paying for) a new one. WHAT are the chances?!?!?

pics from Thursday night

2008-01-10T23:57:00.000-08:00

so here we are before our first night as a trio:

sis and me:

Roxi and Megan:

deep in thought apparently:

the leaning tower of Whitney, along with Dane and Lacey:

the news is in....

2008-01-08T20:16:00.001-08:00

and it's not good. For anyone who is feeling sympathy to spare, send it my way would ya. Found out that I need a new hard drive and operating system on the laptop. Less than 2 years old. 2 years!!! I decided to bite the bullet and have it repaired though because the cost is less than a new laptop, and according to the computer doctor, it will run better than new. And they were able to recover 16 gigs worth of files. No way of telling which files of course. That's helpful. Makes me think of some sort of twisted game show. Guess which files I still have and which are lost forever?!? In other news, I forgot my camera Thursday and am waiting for some pics, but all in all, the evening was a success. This week all 3 of us will be there, so that should be fun too.

And while I have your attention, I have another thing on my mind. What is with the Weight Watchers Carrot Cake deals worth 1 point?! I was feeling especially carb binge-y the other day and was wandering the pastry section of Target. Came away with a big plastic tub of gingerbread cookies and then started feeling guilty so I picked up a Weight Watchers dessert right next to it. I love how they have them next to each other. Who wants a Weight Watchers dessert when 4 rows of real desserts are right there? Well me obviously because I did come away with some carrot cake. Now I don't do Weight Watchers, but crimeny....of course they're one point. They're one bite. So I had 4 or 5 points worth of carrot cake tonight. I lost track somewhere after 3.

hmmm

2008-01-03T13:33:00.000-08:00

So I bought a flash drive for the first time ever, in an attempt to start thinking about backing up my laptop. First time I'd *ever* intended to back up. Seriously, I was so proud. Anyway, so get this.... later that day, I got a suspicious message saying I had an infected file. Then the next morning, I got a message about having a corrupt user profile or something, and I could not log on. Could that be any more ironic?!? And do you think I had backed up before that happened? Of course not, I was too busy shopping online. So my laptop is at the computer doctor now and I am just waiting for the diagnosis. sigh. In other news, it is the start of Thursdays nights with 'the ladyfingers', and Megan and I are gearing up for our show tonight! Roxi is out of town, so its just the 2 of us for this show. Will be back with an update after its over. I've been singing all the live long day, so I am now being silent and drinking my 'throat coat' tea. (best stuff ever)

Otherwise, I have attached some random pics of Megan's birthday, and the shot we may use for our promo poster.

Merry Christmas

2007-12-25T11:32:00.000-08:00

from our family to yours....
ha ha ha ha ha ha ha

Photo shoot

2007-12-19T10:44:00.000-08:00

So Roxi, Megan and I did a photo shoot yesterday for our dueling pianos show. Its hard for me to express in words how much I dislike organized picture taking sessions. Of any sort, really. Posing in awkward positions while trying to look natural....sigh. And I don't know about you, but it generally takes 20 or 30 for one to be ok. Having said that, I found out yesterday morning as we were getting ready to start, that Garret, who is our magici....I mean photographer, has PHOTOSHOP. I mean how great is this....??!?! Bags under the eyes? no problem. Arm squished against body therefore doubling in size? Let's just whittle that sucker down. Two chins? Flat hair? I mean the possibilities are so endlessly fun. I haven't seen any of the pics yet, but whichever one we decide on will be our new poster/advertisement. Here is one we took with my camera:

Dena's on the news!

2007-12-13T15:47:00.001-08:00

Anybody tivo the 7 am news on KCCI? (Because who doesn't tivo random hours of the news, right?) If so, pull that sucker up and fast forward to about 7:25 am, where you will see my mom and Marcus McIntosh having a little heart to heart by the fire. She is offering free music classes for ages birth to 4 with a toy donation for the children at Blank Children's hospital. AND if you didn't catch this snippet, she's going to do it again on the Channel 5 news, Monday 12/17 around 11:15 am. If I ever figure out where to find the video clips I will upload them here!

lumbar extender

2007-12-13T15:11:00.001-08:00

So I am not a flexible person. When I was in 5th grade and we had to do that blasted presidential fitness test of situps, pushups, the mile (gaahhh), flexibility, etc....I was the least, the LEAST flexible person in my gym class. I am not making that up. I could not even TOUCH the little silver thing, let along push it. For those of you who don't know where that little silver thing is, its probably mid to low shin. By the way, I know that's not normal. When I was 4, I told my mother she could not put me in dance and make me do the splits. I even did synchronized swimming for a year in high school, and after a year of consistent stretching, I was not even remotely close to the splits. I'd actually like to write to Dr. Oz via Oprah's website, because *someone* very special in my life accuses me of this being in my head. And I would like Dr Oz to validate the fact that perhaps I have extra ligaments in my back or legs, or some sort of little known congenital condition/deficiency. But anyway, I am here to let you all in on a little known (okay, not even remotely known) secret of back stretching. Its called the lumbar extender. And it is the bomb. When I put in a hard day's practice...... okay 2 hours of practice....fine.... 15 minutes..... nothing feels better than lying on this baby. Check it out at www.lumbarextender.com

office supply stores

2007-12-13T08:40:00.001-08:00

I love Staples. I just love it. I could wonder the aisles for hours. Much like Walgreens. But anyway, yesterday I went in with a list of very practical, needed items. (I've decided I need to work more with lists. That's what organized people do, right?) And yet, funny enough, I still came away with items not on the list. Not sold on the list concept as of yet. But, the good news is the new shredder I got will only be $10 after rebate. I mean, how do you beat that?! And the endless amusement I will get from using the shredder will be more than worth the $10. Also found a very knowledgable employee who walked me through the ins and outs of wireless printers. Did you know you can buy printers now that are wi-fi? yes, yes you can. This eliminates the need for a wireless printer router. Never mind the fact that you may have a perfectly capable working printer, and that the cheapest wireless printer is double the cost of the router (and of course they only go up in price). I'm realizing that the reason Staples promotes the easy button is because its so easy to spend money there.

doggie daycare

2007-12-06T11:31:00.001-08:00

This is Oliver:If you think Oliver is the cutest thing you've ever seen, well, you are right. He is a Goldendoodle, which is a mix of a Golden Retriever and Standard Poodle. And he is about the best thing ever. Oliver lives in Dexter now with his mom and dad (also my mom and dad, incidentally. Which makes me his sister). Every Thursday Oliver comes to Ankeny and goes to doggie daycare. Now I had heard of doggie daycare before, knew they were out there, but never really gave the idea much thought. Until, I head about Oliver's new daycare. He goes to The Bark Zone in Ankeny, run by Joey Courtney. After his first couple visits, I started hearing stories from my family about time outs, and nap time, and decided I needed to go see this for myself.

Um, it might be the funniest thing ever. They are just like naughty little kids. Inside there are 2 areas divided up by a fence. Joey keeps the dogs behind the fence as dogs get dropped off and picked up. Otherwise they roam free inside, as they play with toys or each other, or nap on cushions throughout the room. Outside they have another big area to play in, complete with some sort of playhouse thing. There is also the "timeout" room. When they are especially naughty they have to go into a kennel for 15 minutes so they can think about what they did. Then from 1-3 pm, Joey locks the front door, turns out the lights, puts out cushions and blankets, and they all rest.

outside:

the beautiful Paige back inside playin and lovin
this is Oliver being selfish and naughty as he tends to be with his toys:

The girls dueling piano debut!

2007-11-30T11:13:00.000-08:00

So Megan and I played our first dueling pianos show 11/23. It was just a tad more nerve wracking than I'd planned on, but the good news is, the first show is now under our belts and it can only get better from here!

The sound isn't great, but here is Megan and I playing Billy Joel's Movin' Out:

Simply Music headquarters

2007-11-29T17:56:00.001-08:00

So I walked into the SM headquarters Sunday after the conference and started drooling at all the materials. Student materials, teacher training, supplemental programs. It was ALL there. So note the devilish grin as I think I will be sneaky and slide a student home materials under my shirt.

Realizing I need some Christmas accompaniment programs, I then attempt to sneak some of those out.
Finally I thought, this is not nearly as efficient as it could be. Time to bring out the big guns:
**disclaimer** No materials were stolen or harmed in the taking of these pics. :o)

Simply Music trip 2007

2007-11-29T11:06:00.000-08:00

What an amazing, thought-provoking, learning experience this trip was. The passion and energy surrounding Simply Music is just incredible. Here is a brief synopsis of our trip. Tuesday we headed over to Omaha to meet with the teachers there and and then later spend some time in a couple of their studios. Omaha has such a neat group of teachers. Although they each have their own separate studios, they work very closely together. They have a fantastic website (www.omahapiano.com) and a very giving, caring way about them. Last year one of the teachers was in a major car accident, and the other Omaha teachers stepped in and taught all her classes for several months until she could teach again! Wednesday morning we headed to the airport and made our way to the Bay area in beautiful central California. Wednesday afternoon/evening we spent some time at a very large studio run by our friend Jy in Marin county. We did more of the same on Thursday morning and then Thursday afternoon visited our friend Tommy in Mill Valley. Tommy is actually a former advertising executive who found out about Simply Music when his daughter started taking lessons at Jy's studio. Amazed at what he saw, Tommy opened up his studio not too long afterwards. Friday we made our way up to Sacramento for the conference. We had tentatively planned on doing some more observing Friday, but I am here to tell you that the traffic in California is a force to be reckoned with. We kept hearing horror stories about Friday night traffic to Sacramento so we decided not to risk it. Saturday was our big day with Neil. If Cali traffic is a force to be reckoned with, Neil is even more so. He is an amazing man. Don't let the sweater vests and accented 'be sure to keep your playlist alive', fool you. :o) He is a visionary who is passionate about providing the opportunity for everyone, everywhere to have the option/ability to play the piano. And just to have music in their lives. Below are some pics from the week....

This is Tommy

this is Neil with my mom and me:

dinner:

the wonder that is GPS

2007-11-18T18:18:00.000-08:00

so I am pretty ok with directions. I enjoy a few minutes poking around on maps.google.com like anybody else. But oh my word I have now discovered the bliss that is traveling with a GPS. My mom and I just spent the past week trekking all over central California, and I can't even begin to imagine how we would have done it with out our girl Gladys Magellan here. Don't ask me why we named her Gladys. Hours and hours of travel along with hours and hours of sitting (ie way too much time to think) will do that to you. The thing is incredible. Not only does it get you *anywhere* you need to go, you can punch in 'Starbucks' and it tells you all the nearest locations from wherever you currently sit; "Mall" and you suddenly have a huge list of shopping options. I also feel like I learned some important parenting skills after dealing with her constant interruptions that were impossible to talk over. It was I imagine much like having a 4 year old child in the car. Except for it'd be a very helpful child telling us to 'stay on the current road' or that there was a 'left turn in 0.5 miles'.

the little things

2007-11-16T10:05:00.000-08:00

When you're on an airplane, is there anything more blessed than an aisle seat AND nobody next to you in the middle??? ahhh. This is a picture of the empty seat next to me. It made my day. Truly.