Homecoming 2009

This year I was invited to sing at the Alumni Concert for ISU's Homecoming. This is the first time the Alumni have hosted a concert and I thought it was a good idea. I was told that there were several people who thought Homecoming should be more and a game, a bonfire and making out on the top of Red Hill. You read right, we have a lip orgy on Red Hill, we're basically Rome. This concert, and an art unveiling, made for a more classy homecoming than usual. In these situations, it's best to pic music that people will like. I tend to hate music that people like. So I tried to find common ground. I ended up doing a solo and a duet. The solo was 'Silent Noon' by Ralph Vaughn Williams. It is an art song, but one that most people can enjoy (I even got a standing ovation from a nice old lady who wasn't even my Grandma). The duet was a recycled song I did earlier with Allyson Johnson. It's catchy and everyone likes it.

I Heart Halloween

There are several things from my childhood that I never outgrew. Whenever I'm with little kids I make them play with legos or play doh because I want to play with legos and play doh, but need an excuse to make it socially acceptable.

The most prominent leftover from my younger years is my love of Halloween. Even now, I start thinking about it in early September. I love how everything is spooky and creepy. I love carving pumpkins, reading ghost stories and watching scary movies. I'm not much for dressing up, but every few years I come up with a good costume.

Halloween enjoyment was instilled in me by my Mom. Under her supervision, I began watching horror movies when I was 10. Some of my fondest Halloween memories are of helping her decorate the house, carving pumpkins, and decorating spooky cookies.

These are activities I still enjoy, but as an adult, I have a rather snooty and discriminating taste about how I enjoy them. One thing is for sure: I hate cutesy Halloween stuff. I think Halloween paraphernalia should either be genuinely creepy or vintage. I don't own cute little ghosts that carry trick-or-treat baskets. I don't have an 'adorable' ceramic tarantula with a smiley face that plays the Alfred Hitchcock theme when you press on its thorax (Sorry Mom, I don't want that when you die). The problem: snooty is hard to come by and expensive. Earlier this summer I was looking around on line and discovered old school fireplace screens. I had never seen them before, but they were awesome. Even though they cost way, way, way too much, I decided I was going to buy one. So I did.