Taste the Rainbow

.... the muted colored rainbow of mucous that I've been producing.

If you aren't into gross postings about health issues, stop reading and go here instead.

Those of you who are mature adults, parents, nurses, or med students should be just fine.

The past few days I've had the pleasure of strep throat, lung congestion, a bleeding nose and a plethora of shades of mucous. I won't even talk about the side effects of antibiotics but I will say that losing those two pounds sure feels nice!

How. Fun.

Before this all happened I was spending most of the previous week in the Intensive Care Unit with my Grandmother who may or may not, depending on which doctor you speak to, need a tracheotomy. Currently her breathing is being assisted by a tube, we will know more in a few days if not sooner. This whole experience has been a whirlwind involving about 20 doctors and 300 nurses. OK, not really that many but it sure feels like it.

2013 has not been my year. Did I mention that I lost my father-in-law and I discovered how phenomenally crazy both of my biological parents really are?

BUT.

I'm amazed at the strength and grace I've managed to pull out of myself - minus the mini-breakdown in the Salt Lake City Airport - through the things we've gone though this year. Yes I will give myself a pat on the back for that.

There's something about making it to the other side of 30 that has changed me greatly. Things are no longer handled with tears or freak outs (though my husband might disagree), as they once were. And instead of trying to fight against the waves I now feel like I'm weightless, in the middle of the ocean... surrounded by tiny little seahorses.


XO,

Amanda

For Rush Fans

First, a little bit of self-depreciation here. I don't think myself a very good writer and I'm going to have a hard time expressing into words what I'm thinking and feeling; and as I write this a 12 pound Chiweenie is demanding that he be allowed to sit on my lap while my husband snores loudly in bed, I've had about four hours of sleep since coming home last night and I am completely running on fumes. 

Last night Socks and I went to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (RRHOF) Induction at the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles to see Rush finally get inducted many years after becoming eligible to be voted in. Now, I am a bit late on the Rush scene, when I first moved in with Socks he attempted to play "The Trees" for me from the "Hemispheres" album and my reaction to the song and the language that proceeded out of my mouth regarding the song let my then-boyfriend know that I would most likely not become a Rush fan anytime soon. I just didn't get it. But then a few years later he asked me to give them another chance and kept me away from songs about trees and played "The Spirit of Radio", and the rest, of course, is history. And for the record, I now indeed, love listening to "The Trees". I have never in my life felt such love or affection for a band, never expected to and still sometimes feel kind of silly when I realize that at 30 years of age I probably have more love and affection for this band than a 16-year-old Bieber fan has for that annoying troll of a boy.

I fell in love with Rush years after so many fans had petitioned, protested, and angrily demanded - in a nice Canadian way - that Rush be inducted into the hall and last night those fans were finally vindicated when our heroes stood up on stage to receive their honor. Personally I could have cared less about seeing Rush in the RRHOF because the whole institution is a bit of a joke, and I don't know if the band cared all that much, but their family members did, and my friends who are Rush fans did. So when they opened up the ballot for the first time and allowed fans to vote, I went and did my part, putting in a vote everyday until it was announced that Rush would finally be inducted. 

The brilliance of Rush lies not only in who they are but who they are not. They were the last band to be inducted and to perform so for over three hours fans were treated to speech after speech by artists and producers with such a bloated sense of self-importance regarding what they have done for the world, artists that were obviously high out of their minds or mentally "special" - I'm pointing to you, Flava Flav. There were a few highlights of the show, Tom Petty and Jackson Browne performing with Randy Newman, Carole King playing piano and singing after producer Lou Adler's induction, Jennifer Hudson singing Donna Summer songs and confirming to us that Weight Watchers does indeed, take full advantage of Photoshop (but that's another blog), and Usher performing tribute to Michael Jackson though trying a bit too hard to be just like Mike. 

And finally, after the lovely ladies of Heart performed and were inducted it was our turn and confirmed to me again, why those three guys are so worth loving. Neil and Geddy spoke first, accepted their awards, and then it was Alex's turn, and well...

A nice, lovely Canadian way of cutting through the bullcrap that we've all faced to get to this moment. 

Well done, boys. 

XO

Sequoia.

WARNING: Amateur Photography Ahead! 

If you still feel it is safe to proceed. I present to you pictures of my last little getaway trip to Pine Mountain Club and Sequoia, California. 

Hwy. 33, outside of Ojai, CA.

The more I explore my home state, the more in awe of it I become. Once one turns down the music and looks around at the scenery it becomes blatantly obvious how breathtaking and diverse the state is.

These pictures of Sequoia do not adequately represent the landscape. In fact, I don't think any photographer, painter, or poet can truly capture it. You just have to be there, you have to stand next to one of the trees, drive on the little roads that twist on mountains bigger than your imagination, or drive up high enough to look down into the valleys where the Three Rivers run.

Rush girls always represent. 

Well, it's still California, so of course there was construction.

This is the General Sherman Tree and that little person to the left of his sign is my mother. I've been waiting to get my date with Gen. Sherman since I was in Kindergarten, when my teacher told me of him as if he were some mythical legend. As soon as I knew we were headed to Sequoia, he was the only thing I wanted to see. He is truly a majestic, refined, old gentleman.

Come Away With Me

October 16, 2012...

I married the handsome man on the left in Sedona, Arizona. He's holding our son, Carlos. 

On the right is the cake cutter that I had made especially for our wedding, it says "The measure of a life is a measure of love and respect, the way you live, the gifts you give."

It's from a Rush song called "The Garden". Rush was a huge part of our wedding because they are our all-time favorite band. The alchemical symbols around our cake are from the cover of the Clockwork Angels album, my garter had a small pin with the original band logo on it, and all the wedding party had pins with the Rush Starman logo. 

We kind of like obsessively love the band.

We like them so much we cancelled part of our honeymoon and rescheduled it a month after the wedding to catch their three Southern California shows, it was pure magic. 

My boyfriend Geddy Lee gave me a shirt, my other boyfriend Alex Lifeson gave me a pick, and my other other boyfriend Neil Peart gave us each a pair of sticks. We took a sign to the last show in San Diego and it was documented by John Arrowsmith, the bands pyrotechnic technician and sometime photographer. You can see us in action here. 

I had this special little hanger made for my dress. It says "10.16.12: Boo Bear and Socks". Pet names are always a good idea. 

Our handsome boy was instrumental in helping me get ready. He was also the best man and the ring bearer. He did a pretty good job of keeping things together. 

My shoes are 100% vegan and were custom made by Milk & Honey Shoes. I can't celebrate anything important in this life unless something is covered in glitter. The turquoise rosary  came from my husband's hometown in Dubuque, IA. Amy at Bliss Floral made our floral arrangements. I asked her for a bouquet with succulents and purple hydrangeas that also resembled an Arizona sunset. She pulled it off perfectly.

We felt the aliens were the perfect cake toppers, we are a little weird like that. To add to the weirdness we had a custom coffin ring box. The ruby and diamond ring is my promise ring, which I wore on my left hand. My coordinator Laura made sure to keep my big honkin' engagement ring safe on her finger, she kind of liked wearing it and who could blame her? 

Nearly three hours of hair and makeup. This is as good as it gets kids. 

Since we had to drive to our wedding location together, my soon-to-be husband got to see me beforehand.

I think we're kind of cute together.

The whole family.

As you can see, I was not very happy to become a wife. Not one bit.

I think we have a crush on each other. 

Socks is half-Greek, that's why he's so youthful and sexy and has fantastic skin. We decided to honor his Greek heritage through the use of stefanas (Greek wedding crowns) in our ceremony. I crowned him as the king of my life, he crowned me as his (drama) queen. It was very sweet. 

 And this is why you hire a good photographer kids.

We were married at Rachel's Knoll, a sacred space located in the Seven Canyons Golf Club. It was almost just how I dreamed of things when I was younger, just me, my husband, the dog, and a few others.

Perfect. 

If you would like to see more. There is a slideshow here that was made for us by our photographer. 

XO, 

Amanda & David

All photos by Katrina Wallace of Sedona Bride

Hair and makeup by Sedona Beauty Team

Wedding Coordination, Sanity Saving, and Ceremony by Heart of Sedona Weddings

Cake by Kick Ass Kakes, Phoenix, Az.

Ketchup

No, not the stuff you put on fries. It is time for us to catch up... again. 

It seems that's the story of my life, always running behind, procrastinating until the last minute. No wonder I was nearly 30 by the time I finally got around to getting married. Speaking of which, hopefully soon I will have some wedding pictures posted! I'm just waiting to get permission from our photographer to re-post some of the beautiful images she took. And by beautiful I mean those with the dog and the husband.

Anyway, so much has gone on these past few months. From losing my father-in-law, being re-baptized into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, and re-working my family relationships. Even if that means taking a break from somebody I am very close to because I realized that being around them was very unhealthy for me. David and I are fine, I am referring to my mother but I will have to get into that in another post. But yes, I am still here. I am still committed to getting this site up and running someday, just as I have been for the past oh... 5 years? But always remember, procrastinators are the leaders of tomorrow. 

XO, 

Amanda