A good day...

Well, went on a new hike today but didn't bring my camera because I thought I was going to hike a mountain I already hiked -- changed my mind. Went crazy on that mountain -- instead of following the service roads I decided to follow the ski lift up what could basically be considered a cliff. Well, not really, but I was at one point crawling because it was too steep to stand up. Yay boots because somehow I maintained adequate friction and didn't slide. My knees were all scratched and bleeding from, get this, TEA roses! They grow wild here, they're really pretty, and they're spikey too.

Anyway - haven't hiked for maybe 3 weeks and it felt SOOO good. I'm going to hike again tomorrow. (I ate lots of pie and a pizza tonight, yikes!) Yeah - I made pie, and they turned out really well even though I forgot to put in the main thickening agent in both, (cornstarch or tapioca starch). BUT, who knows, maybe it's the altitude, they stuck together very well and all who ate it loved it, I was very happy. The baking experience was hilarious. I was rushing a little so that I wouldn't be baking until midnight and I was alone in a friend's studio using their oven and first the blueberry dripped (NOT on the tinfoil of course) and the whole apartment filled up with smoke. I realized what I never knew I learned - to fan the smoke alarm with a towel. It was so natural to grab the nearest towel and fan. Then I removed it to the bathroom. Cleaned up most of the blueberry gunk - then the strawberry rhubarb gunk smoked the place up again and - well, it was funny. I thought it was a disaster, but they turned out well. Except of course on the drive home when the blueberry leaked a POOL of sticky blueberry gunk in one of my back seats. Not looking forward to cleaning THAT up tomorrow, ugh!

But overall, it was an incredibly excellent day. Oh, and at the place that we all usually go Wednesday night because our friend DJ's there, I actually met an intelligent, friendly, polite ENGLISH gentleman. (Ooh you GOTTA love that accent!) He's from Cambridge. Anyway - just an acquaintance made in a club, but enjoyed it much. Talked politics even. And he wasn't all touchy and blah like any other guy that talks to you in a club. So anyway - I just get to drool over the accent - and well, that's about all I could do when I really couldn't understand what the heck he was saying. I don't care if it's the same basic language - it's hard to understand that accent! Anyway - sorry Linda and Ginger! His name wasn't Steve! It was Rob.

Okay - I'm wide awake (all that sugar in the pie perhaps?) and it's nearly 4am. I'll sleep until 8am, hike from 9 to 11, then go into work. (I finished some work tonight to take care of tomorrow morning).

Love to you all!!

Sara

Before - look at that ridiculous giggly smile - glad to know I can still look four years old.... :) Scroll down to see the after picture!

After! The bangs on the right fall down in front of my face but aren't in this picture, obviously. I like it when they fall though - it's kinda comforting... (is she talking about a HAIRCUT?! Comforting?! What on EARTH??)

Kronos Quartet concert - amazing!

I saw the most wonderful concert I've ever seen last night - in a very particular way. Incredibly beautiful, engaging, emotional (for me), and inspirational. By inspiration I mean inspiration to continue my career in the instrumental realm but with a very focused goal to record new music. As I'm writing this now, I'm thinking that THAT is the direction I want to head. Luckily, New World Symphony is the perfect place to begin that path. The performance was by the Kronos Quartet, a string quartet that focuses mostly on 'new music' and ethnic music, including lots of transcriptions of ethnic tunes. We heard pieces from Lebanon, Iceland, America, and, oh, well, a number of other places. Incredible concert. Really the pinnacle of my live music experience so far - and perhaps even a marker in my life for how it seems to be igniting my ambitions.

Gotta head to work now. Can't wait to get my hands on a recording of that.

Oh which reminds me, the first concert I recorded this week will be a CD you all might want - it's got Vivaldi's "Four Seasons" on it and sounds nice (yay!).

Sara

Quick hello

Well y'all, still having a very nice time. Already starting to look forward to Florida too, which will be absolutely crazy!

Did my first recording today and it felt SOO good. I was a little bummed about not feeling like I knew what I was doing etc., but it was just because I was doing so much archiving and other stuff that I forgot that I really do know what I'm doing and that I like recording...A LOT. Phew! It was Vivaldi's "Four Seasons," some Stravinsky, some Debussy, all with incredible artists including a famous violinist, Cho-Liang "Jimmy" Lin.

Okay - waaaaay past my bedtime. Enjoy the pictures below!!

Sara

Whatcha do after a hike like that, of course -- eat burgers!!!!!

Another view from the top...

Brian and I at the top - yes, after hiking 3,200ft. in 2.5 miles you do crazy, uncharacteristic things like take of your shirt and hike in your sports bra. At that point, I decided "screw it, I'm hot!" (meaning in temperature of course) was the right attitude. Spoken like a true mountain girl, eh?

From the top...

Brian on the left, Joe on the right, audio crew boys! This is at the lookout again...only 2 more miles and 2,700ft to go!

A quarter of the way up Aspen Mountain, there's a lookout over the city of Aspen...

People hangin' out at the 4th of July BBQ at the housing complex I'm staying in, called "Burlingame."

Miss Beth servin' up some watermelon at the Fourth of July BBQ. She's on the stage crew. 

Our musical entertainment for the 4th of July - these guys are actually really good. The one farthest from view is the head engineer and he spins at the clubs we go out to at night - good DJ, good engineer, good guy, but heaven's they all are here.