Once there was a snowman

It is almost March. Could it be possible that it is almost Spring? Today I can see bigger patches of grass than snow in our front yard. And some green tips of the lilies are showing through the mud. My earlier-blooming bulbs are still under 2 feet of snow, but if it keeps melting at this rate we'll be able to see them by the weekend! But that thought is almost too good to be true. What if I could work in the yard again? Dig in the dirt? I feel almost blissful. But I'm a bit nervous that it's just Spring Fever and that I should not get my hopes up this high in February. Who are we kidding? This is Utah. It almost definitely will snow some in March. Even June has a slight chance for snow. But I am no meteorologist. Just an optimist! And I'm going to go ahead and plan as if Spring were right around the corner!

Just Like Buddy Holly

Lanny teaches the boys how to rock out while
Aunt Michelle appreciates the talent of her nephews.

Uncle Chris show off his "serious skills" on the guitar.
Cade sings "Move Along" by All-American Rejects flawlessly.

Aunt Carlie sings "Buddy Holly" by Weezer just like a pro.

So Cade has finally shown evidence of our game craziness other than just the title of our blog. I thought I'd share a bit more. This is going to not quite jive with my touchy-feely tribute to music and musicians everywhere from a few days back, but Rock Band is the best game ever invented. It's right up there with hide and seek in its classic fun and broad appeal. And I, the only one in my little family who is not addicted to gaming in general, am very much addicted to this particular game. I love playing guitar, and the karaoke mic is great too. You know when you're driving the kids to karate and everyone in the car knows the lyrics well enough to sing along to Radiohead at top volume, "I'm a creep. I'm a weirdo. What the heck (we edit that one a bit) am I doing here? I wish I was special..." that something is up. That something is Rock Band.

One great thing about it, aside from the self-depricating lyrics, (which we sing rather tongue-in-cheek--we know we're special) is that we always play it together. Lanny and I play it at night after the kids are in bed. Our band is working towards earning a million fans. We're almost half way there. I had to ditch medium difficulty guitar and go for hard bass. I'm not that great yet, but I usually don't get booed off stage. Which works for me. When we play with the kids, Cade sings because he is great at it when we pick songs he knows, plus he catches on pretty quick to the ones he doesn't know if they have a good melody. Luke plays easy bass guitar, I play medium guitar, and Lanny plays some wicked drums, man. He always plays either hard or even expert. It'll knock your socks off. We have so much fun rocking it up together! Even if it is pre-made music, and we're just trying to get most of the notes to come through on the recording. It's pretty fun, I have to say. We all love it.

When Lanny said he got the game as a Christmas gift for me, I was not that thrilled. More like a Christmas gift for yourself, I thought. But I had to eat my words, because I really do have so much fun with it. Yay--finally a video game I can play with the boys and not fall asleep. I get a lot of flack for yawning along to Mario Galaxy lullabies. (Why does the music in that game have to be so snoozy?) And my husband is fulfilled a bit that some portion of what he has devoted his life's work to is appreciated by me. Even if it is not a game he invented. (He is a game designer, and a good one too. He especially makes amazing-looking special effects including explosions, lasers, waterfalls, warps, etc.) So I'm a little bit off the hook finally that I don't have to try too hard to appreciate this game.

A little shameless plug, here: if you are a gamer-type at all, you'll be sure to enjoy his latest release, "Undertow" an XBox Live downloadable arcade. It's great for online play, especially, and won lots of awards including "Downloadable Game of the Year" from Official XBox Magazine, and "Editor's Choice" from several other websites and mags including IGN. If you have XBox Live, try it out! Also watch for "Empire," another downloadable arcade for XBox to come out this summer. And Lanny's company got the rights to make a "Battle Room" game from Orson Scott Card's "Ender's Game." We're really excited about that project, too, which will get underway soon.

That's it for Gamers Central, over and out.

Zelda

Zelda

Four Swords

I'd love if we had four gameboys instead of just two, because it would be fun if our whole family could play. In my whole life I have just been wanting to play four player. This game is fun because you can help each other get maidens, or you can fight each other. I actually like the fighting better, but only on certain ones. One of my favorite parts of the game is when you get to use the Roc's Feather to jump real high, especially if you get it on a level 2 so you can double jump. Me and Luke have never got it on a 3, but I'm thinking it would either double jump high with an attack, or triple jump. Another fun part is when you get the fire rod on level 2. It is so awesome! Well, on 1 it just shoots a piece of fire out, but on 2 it puts out a gold block and you can go far away and press the same button to shoot it. It shoots a piece of fire out of all four sides! And that's the awesome part!

Zelda
and the minish cap

Music Makes Me Happy

Last night my good husband took me to a Sara Bareilles concert. This is because I told him that this would be the perfect Valentine's date and it was my turn to choose, and no, we're not going to an action flick for Valentine's, even if it has been a while since we saw a movie. (In all fairness, though, the last movie we saw was "Juno" which does not qualify as a guy movie in any respect. So, just so you know, he is a good husband more than once a year....)

For any uniformed readers out there, Sara Bareilles sings "Love Song" which is her first big hit, but is not a love song at all. About a month or so ago, I couldn't get the song out of my head, so I decided to get online and download it so I could sing more than the two lines of it that I knew so far. As I perused her website, I noticed that she was coming in concert to Provo, Utah, which was in itself too good to be true, being only ten minutes away. But even better than that, to a little tiny venue called "Velour" which would surely provide the intimate live music setting that would be perfect for a romantic evening out. And tickets were cheap. And I had already fallen in love with her music. So, what more could you want? We had to go.

So this aforementioned tiny venue somehow has defied all fire code laws by having an extra emergency exit or something, because it was standing room only, and packed to the hilt. Mostly with college girls, then young couples, and a dappling of older marrieds who, like us, were probably there because the wife convinced the husband it was her turn to choose what would constitute a romantic date night. I'm not saying which group we fit into--I'm hoping no one can tell yet. Anyway, the point is, it was a small space, but lots of people and lots of energy.

Sara was great. She has an amazing voice--so in control and easy to listen to. I totally soaked it up. I enjoyed every minute, even if I was worried about tapping my toe for fear I would step on someone else's. (Not really, we just all tapped and swayed in unison, so it worked out fine.) She is fun, too. She has an easy conversational manner with the crowd, and is humbly grateful for an audience who loves her. And love her we did. Isn't there just something awesome about immersing yourself in a live music experience? Listening to audio files is great. I love cleaning the kitchen to Coldplay or Beatles, or running to Destiny's Child's "Survivor" and All-American Rejects' "Move Along." But being there while the music is being made--there is something about participating in the creation of a beautiful thing, even if that participation is as simple as being present to listen. And I have to say it is also great to be that up close and personal with the musician. Stadium concerts are fine, but this was the perfect setting for her kind of bluesy, soulful music.

Speaking of participating in making music, it takes me back to my days of school choir and band. You probably won't believe it when I say this, but in seventh grade I was a member of an actually not bad band. We had a great teacher, Mr. Bowring. We practiced hard and were competitive both amongst ourselves for chair positions, as well as with other schools. I can still remember sitting on stage during a concert at the high school. I can't remember for sure the song we were playing, but the magic was there as we all came together on a crescendo towards the climax of the song. The timpani came in on a roll, then a symbol crash--wow! I felt chills. It was the first time I felt that kind of thrill, being a part of one synergetic whole. I moved soon afterwards, to schools where band programs were no longer thrilling, but I got to be a part of some quite good choirs, including a multi-school honor choir which was also a great experience.

I also love playing piano, and find that it is one of my best creative and therapeutic outlets. It is such a great way to relax and reconnect with my whole self, instead of the fragmented pieces I sometimes become. Nothing else can mellow me out and lift my mood the way playing piano can.

Isn't music amazing? I think it is wonderful. It is obvious why there are musical instruments and vocal singing in every culture. To me, music is the ultimate form of self-expression. Everyone loves music in some form or another. There is no more powerful way of communicating emotion. It can give cathartic release to sadness; it can give voice to prayerful praise; it can race with joy and triumph; it can calm fears and send babes into peaceful slumber. It can unite families, congregations, audiences, even nations. Music is a blessing from heaven. And I am thankful. Do I hear an amen? :)

One other cool thing about music is that it is all about sharing. And not just sharing time or talents, but sharing a part of oneself. It is a vulnerable spot to put yourself in, singing or playing for an audience, however large or small. I am really glad there are musicians who are willing to risk it. Sure, they may end up with fame and fortune, but there is a better chance that they will not. And when it becomes about the money, the music is no longer so magical. To be inspiring, it has to be heartfelt. Sara Bareilles' motto is, "I do it for love." It is apparent that she really does. So do musicians, music educators, music therapists, seventh grade band members, high school choirs, and even second grade piano students the world over. So keep making music, people! Let's all do it for love.