Jeopardy and USC

I've really been getting into Jeopardy lately. Mostly because they almost always have some sort of music category. I'm really good with Opera and Composer categories, but not so much with Musical Theatre. Once they had a Bach category and I got all but one right!

So anyway, the other day there was this clue: "In the historic 2007 game USC's 35 home game winning streak was ended by this team"...."WHAT IS STANFORD!" I yelled. Yes, I knew the answer, but I was also THERE! I was so proud to have witnessed a Jeopardy clue! As I think about that game, though, my memories aren't so sweet...the Burzlaff boys don't respond so well to a USC loss. Jess and I always pray for USC wins for OUR sake.

Actually, I'm staring to like college football. I think the reason I was never interested was b/c I never knew how the game was played (Matt and Steve, wasn't that your job as an older brother??). Patrick has been teaching me, slowly but surely, for the past year, and I'm finally catching on. And I've discovered that even if you aren't in love with football, it's still fun to go to a game and have a hot-dog wrapped in bacon and covered with onions and peppers...*drool*

We went to another USC game a few wknds ago. This time it was better b/c they WON and afterwards I got my first glimpse of Pasadena...we had dinner there as a whole "potential Burzlaff family". Awww...

In other news, this wknd marks the end of my Bakersfield blitz...I've been going up there every wknd for the past 4 weeks (church stuff, USC game, Patrick's bday), which has been fun, but it will be nice to spend some time in Ventura again. Patrick and I are hoping the weather will be nice (70s?) so we can have a picnic at the beach!

I miss Iowa

I miss Iowa.

It's true! It's not that I'm seeing my family any less than I did before (well, I am, but only slightly)...it's just being aware of all the miles between us that impacts me. And not only that, but IOWA. IOWA is so far away.

Last weekend I was at Bakersfield and had a little cry fest because when I look outside I do not see changing leaves, frost, and fields. When I go to the store I do not see A&E, Mrs. Grimes chili beans, and that one brand of bread that I really like but can't think of right now.

One of the highlights of my week is when I wake up on Saturday morning and sit down to breakfast at the Burzlaffs...the Iowa game is always on TV.

I don't regret coming here though...if I hadn't I'd always want to go away. I'm here now so I can later be perfectly content in Iowa.

I'll be back.

Dimples According to Patrick

"You know how you got your dimples? When you were born, God sent an angel to bless you. So when she got done blessing you, she went back to heaven, but on her way she left her footprints on your face. God sent a stupid angel."

Today...

...I experienced my first earthquake! It lasted approx. 1/2 of a second. Funnnnn!

Life with an Ocean View

I've been waiting to make this post for a long time b/c I wanted to make sure I said everything I wanted to say, but I've kept putting it off and off and off and I just want to write, so here it is!

A day of my life in Ventura:

6:10 alarm goes off
7:15 I have snoozed until now, and I finally get up :)
8:00 arrive at work with goodies that I may or may not have baked the night before. turn on computer, and start work. The booking dept has been here since 7am. Chantal is a recruiter and also arrives at 7. Marco, the talent department head, will come in at 9. I am the only American citizen in my department! Chantal is from Holland, and Marco is from Italy. My trainer, Omar, who is now on tour is from Puerto Rico. Ashley, the sponsorship coordinator, is from Canada. Oh wait! Tim is technically in my dept, and he's from PA. I guess I do have company!
10:00 MAIL ARRIVES!!!! Auditions? Recommendations??
10:30-12 there may or may not be mtgs.
12:00 Go home for lunch. I will either have PBJ or last night's leftovers.
1:00 Back to work, calling all over the world and taking people's money.
4:00 Chantal leaves for the day, leaving me and Marco. Marco will probably say do something weird like refer to my state as a "country" and I will make fun of him.
5:00 Officially off work, but I stay to use the computer b/c I don't have one.
5:30-6 leave the office somewhere in there, maybe stopping at "Vons" to get groceries, or Target just because I can and I'm not used to it yet. When I to these places I see seaguls in the parking lots and pass a lot of halloween stores...did you know that California is like, WAY into Halloween?!? It's weird... This is also the time I use to call family members before it's too late.
7:00 at home to eat dinner (probably something chicken) and watch Jeopardy
7:30 - 9:30 bake something or clean something or watch something or call someone.
9:30 talk to patrick and go to bed.

If it's the wknd I will drive to Bakersfield or await Patrick's arrival. I like going to Bakersfield better b/c we get to do stuff that costs money like go to a USC game and watch them lose at home for the first time in 6 yrs, like last wknd. We also get to eat very well, esp last wknd because Patrick's brother Paul, the chef, was in town and cooked for us. When Patrick comes to Ventura it is significantly less exciting because we have no money to do things (ha!) and I lack a community of friends down here, so it's hard to be social. But we do get to cook and go to the beach, which is lots of fun. I'm going to try to establish the habit of going to B&N to do wedding planning when he's here.

That's another thing about Ventura...I'm in awe of all the stuff that's here. No longer do I have to go out of town to get something or go somewhere. Everything I want to get or see or do is right HERE!

...except family, snow, and choral music.

boys will be boys

Pictured is Patrick and I on our recent excursion to space, helping Buzz Lightyear defeat archnemesis Zurg (Zorg?). Patrick beat me by thousands of points, then begged througout the day to go back to the ride so he could beat his score. What?!? No! We're at DISNEYLAND! There are OTHER THINGS to see! Ha! Oh wait...I can't post that picture. BOO!! Sorry...

So, Disneyland was amazing. It wasn't too crowded in the morning/afternoon thanks to school being back in session. Lines weren't more than 15 minutes for a long time, but when it started getting dark the park was exploding with people, probably b/c of the fireworks and light shows.

The fireworks were, by far, the best part of the whole day. Musical accompaniment featured such favorites as the Indiana Jones theme, the Star Wars theme, When You Wish Upon a Star, the Mainstreet Electrical Parade theme, and some cheezy song they wrote that said "wishes" every other word (which, consequently, was set to a minor 3rd...a musical paradox of sorts). Anyway, any fireworks show that makes good use of John Williams is #1 on my list!

Other favorites included: Space Mountain! Woohoo!!, Pirates of the Carribbean, now updated with Johnny Depp look-alikes that are SCARY REAL, pineapple whip in the Tiki (tiki tiki tiki tiki) Room, the PARADE!, having the barbershop quartet sing "Happy Bday" to me, and re-living moments from last time I went in third grade, like when I got lost and decided to stay right next to the Sword in the Stone, sitting on Matt and Steve's shoulders for the parade, making fun of Amanda b/c she was more scared of things than I was, avoiding the Jungle Cruise, and singing into Snow White's wishing well, mimicking her whiney little voice.

It really IS the happiest place on earth!!!!

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year!

Happy Birthday to me (almost). What happens when you're 22? Nothing? Not so! Your age is perfectly symetrical for the first time in 11 years! I'm pretty sure this is going to be the BEST birthday EVER...except for when I was 5 and I got my Willow bowl and spoon set with the pack of lifesavers attached to it. Not sure how I remember that so clearly...but...

...like I was saying, BEST bday EVER coming up tomorrow! I'm driving to Bakersfield where Patches has promised "surprises" of Burzlaff proportions. Then on Sat it's off to the HAPPIEST PLACE ON EARTH where there is going to be an incredible FIREWORKS show set to MUSIC!! Deb?!?! Can I get an "AMEN!?!?"

Then Sunday I'll be having a joint bday celebration with Jess, who celebrated her 24th yesterday...waaaaaay excited to welcome Jess and Chris back from their European adventure!

Patrick always makes fun of me for turning my birthday into a week-long celebration, but I this year I'm pretty sure HE'S the one doing all the hyping. Thanks baby. ;)

Paige Protector

I am pleased to announce that there is a man that has vowed to be my BFF, Husband, and, yes, PROTECTOR for the rest of our lives. YAY I'M GETTING MAAAAAARRIED! Patrick Burzlaff asked me to marry him on July 30 and I said YES YES YES.

He was very cute about the whole thing, and creative, which he had to be since I knew it was coming. Patrick had just attended his brother's wedding in CA, picked up the ring on his way back from the airport, and proposed less than 24 hrs later. I guess he was in the wedding spirit.

We cooked dinner and took a walk around Luther, following a little game he had conjured up involving clues, roses, and our favorite places on campus. This all led us back to my place at Baker, where the was a card that said the sweetest things imaginable, including "will you marry me?" uh...yes.

So yes, the youngest Brant is finally to be married. No more holidays where mom makes all of the "families" stand together so she can take a picture (uh...aren't we all ONE family? COME ON!!), no more blank spots on the marriage wall (good thing I'm getting married...THAT would have been awkward...) It's actually funny b/c my family was expecting that I would get married soon(ish?) but Patrick's was all, "WHAT? Don't you need at least 5 years worth of steady income first?!" Whatev. We'll be poor and happy.

In other news, I've moved to Ventura and am typing from my very own desk. But, seeing as I have this thing where I can only dedicate one topic to each post, I'll do the whole new job thing later. Promise!

Velkommen!

It's that time of year again in Decorah! This weekend was the 41st Annual Nordic Fest: a festival at which Decorah celebrates it's Scandinavian heritage with music, dancing, traditional food, arts, and crafts. This event draws basically three crowds of people: a generally older population of people wishing to celebrate their heritage, about 50% of the Luther College population (students and recent grads) and actual Scandinavians that FLY IN for some AmerScandi fun.

Last year I was the housing coordinator for Nordic Fest, so it was a bit tainted for me by all the hard work, but this year I was able to relax and enjoy the festivities. My personal favorite moments of the wknd:

• Live music and dancing at Sabor Latino
• Diving contest at the pool (i won!)
• Grilling out at Greg Peterson's house (Luther's college organist)
• Nordic/Swedish dancers
  
• Free lemonade at La Rana
• NOT going to Roscoes
  
• The best fireworks I've ever seen from the lookout point at Dunning Springs!
• Church this AM at First Lutheran with Rachel and Brittney
  

The best part of the wknd, of course, was seeing people that I'm not going to see again for a really long time. Ironically, this was also the worst part.

San Buenaventura (Ventura)

Translation: City of Good Fortune, and rated one of the United States' top 5 "most livable small towns". This is where I'm going to be living in a little less than 1 month. Seeing as I've never been to Ventura before, I thought I'd do a bit of research. My findings, compared with my hometown, are summarized below.

Population

• Ventura: about 104,000
• Marshalltown: about 27,000

Median Household Income in 2005

• Ventura: about 58,000
• Marshalltown: about 39,000

Median Gross Rent

• Ventura: $1,094
  
• Marshalltown: $464
  

Registered Sex Offenders

• Ventura: 0
• Marshalltown: 68

Average Daily High Temperature in January

• Ventura: 68
• Marshalltown: 28
  

Average Annual Snowfall

• Ventura: 0 inches
• Marshalltown: 31 inches

There are so many people that say they've always dreamed of living by the ocean. I've never been one of those people, but here I am, moving to an apartment on Preble Ave just 5 minutes away from the Pacific.

Yeah, it'll be nice...but that doesn't make up for the lack of snow during Christmas.

Bala-la-la-laika

Scheduled for occupancy at Baker Village for July 8-14 is the Balalaika and Domra Association of America. "Balalaika", I have learned, is the name for Russian folk music as well as an actual type of instrument used in Russian folk ensembles. Usually Baker is scarcely populated, which is nice since I live here, but for the past week it's been alive with music, christmas lights, cell-phone conversations in foreign tongues, and some guy that likes to read outside in the sun like I do.

Today I joined the BDAA Russian Liturgical Choir, led by Tim and Sandra Peter--2 of the 3 choral conductors at Luther. They've been practicing all week so Patrick, Kelley, and I are latecomers. The Peters' seemed grateful for our contributions, though, especially since most of the choir is better at playing triangle-shaped instruments and wearing funny clothes.

Singing in a choir again was like therapy for my soul. Especially since we were singing Rachmaninoff's Bogoroditsye Devo, Raduisya. There are some pieces that go straight into you and turn everything you thought was complicated into one humble little ball. This is one of them. I can't think about choir too much yet, or, more specifically, the fact that it's over. I've put it in a drawer, so to speak. It has come out of the drawer only once...only to go right back in. Someday I'll deal with it. Or not. Better to just live vicariously through Patrick, who will be involved in choir for the rest of his life.

But back to the choir...we, of course, don't sound as good as the Robert Shaw Festival Singers, and it doesn't help that I've never sung in Russian-ever-but it's the thought that counts. The BDAA Russian Liturgical Choir will be making it's debut (and final performance) tomorrow night at 7pm in the CFL. Tickets are $10, which means no one is going to come.

While the Russians are kind of quirky and have block parties and jam sessions every night, they are still WAY more enjoyable to have around than the wrestling camps that throw their sheets, pillows, and cans of pop out the windows. Maybe the Russians will invite me to their block party tonight. I would totally invite the girl from Oslo 1 that lives all alone to come jam with me.

Day Off!

I'm at work ALL THE TIME. Well, not all day, but certainly every day. Since events usually come in on weekends that means I'm working during them. However, although I worked for 1.5 hrs today, I would consider this a day off. I LOVE DAYS OFF! Here's how I spent it:

• Slept in till 9:30!
• Started a new book: Inventing the Abbots by Sue Miller
• Took a bubblebath
• Watched 2 episodes of "Alfred Hitchcock Presents"
• Browsed foodnetwork.com, then remembered I bought a cookbook at a garage sale
• Found recipe for muffins in said cookbook. Bought muffin tin, milk, eggs, and one orange to make cranberry almond muffins with orange zest!
• Burned CDs: one of my recital for Grandpa, and one of John Williams' American Journey to listen to as I...journey across America! (note to Deb: this music is reminiscent of Disney World)
• Shared a special/holy moment with Patrick and Vanessa at the office. It was 7:07:07 on 7/7/07, the 7th day of the week, and there just happened to be 7 people in the office.
  

Tonight...who knows? I think I might have to watch Citizen Kane before it's due on Monday. I'm kind of embarrassed that I haven't seen it. Actually, I watched the AFI top 100 movies while I was at home and was appalled at the number of them that I haven't seen! I have a problem with that list, by the way...where was "Forest Gump"?

Random Memory of the Day: My sister Elizabeth walking into my room at night, as I'm about to go to sleep: "Goodnight, Paige! Have a good sleep!" (as she comes to the side of the bed to hug me goodnight...) "Do you want me to sing you a lullaby?" (as she starts to stroke my hair she begins to sing sweetly...) "I'm coming out so you'd better get this party started..."

Express Yourself

I went shopping yesterday for professional looking clothes since, come this fall, I will be going to a place of business every day rather than class. No more rolling out of bed 10 minutes before Music History starts. Blast!

I think I did pretty well. I did not exceed my budgeted amount and got some wardrobe essentials:

1. Editor Pant in Black
2. Editor Pant in Brown
3. Essential Shirt in Sky Blue
4. Stretch Fitted Shirt in Classic White
5. High Heels in CUTE!

Patrick didn't buy anything, although he did look around at some sparkley things.

In other news, I've been researching my last name, "Brant", which turns out to mean "One who dwells on a farm that has been cleared by fire". Uh...ok... After reading this I was curious to learn what the origins of "Burzlaff" were, and found that it is actually two words: "Bohr" meaning "fighter", and "slav" meaning "fame". So, "Burzlaff" = "Famous Fighter".

And then I thought, if Burzlaff is so aggressive, maybe he's the one that set fire to my farm.

Memory

I don't remember things.

Like, you'd think with all the traveling I've done and how much I've cherished every moment of the touring life that I would remember more of it. For example, if someone asked me if I'd ever been to Palm Desert, CA, I would say no. But if you reminded me that not only did I perform a concert there, but also stayed with family friends that own a home there, I would remember. Vaguely.

I don't remember conversations, either. 9 times out of 10 I'll stop in the middle of a story and say, "Wait, have I told you this already?" And usually the 10th time the person will stop me and say that they've already heard whatever I'm saying. Twice.

Often times Patrick will say something and I'll be genuinely surprised: "really?" I'll say, only to hear, "Paige, I've told you that like 3 times." I'd give an example of this...but I can't remember any.

So, in an effort to improve my memory, Patrick purchased the game "Memory": Spiderman & Friends Edition! We play it every night and try to match Spiderman, Ironman, Captain America, Storm, and all the other all-stars. I'm sure my nephews would L-O-V-E it, but for me it's a mental workout. Often I will turn over a piece that I have JUST turned over during my last turn. What?? Why can't I remember where the Hulk is?? I'm getting better, though. Last night we tied.

Popsicles and Yo-Yo

I've never known so much about my sisters' daily lives.

I used to think that blogging was a glorified diary, and that all who posted must have been pretty self-absorbed to think that people would be interested in reading their every thought. As it turns out, when you live far away from the people that you love these things are a quick and easy (and hilarious) way to check in. So, seeing as I'm moving to California in 7 or so weeks, I thought I'd join the club.

In the weeks that are leading up to my own California Adventure I'm spending my time collecting names, generating lists, hunting down keys, counting dorm rooms, sending nasty emails to facilities, and managing a staff of 10 as Luther's Summer Housing Coordinator. Besides that I've been doing everything summer-y that I can think of, like eating popsicles (only $1 a box!), getting a public library card, going to the pool ($3 a visit...is a summer pass worth it? hmm....), learning flute (yes, that's summer-y), playing sand volleyball, going to Bible study, taking walks, and taking private golf lessons from 2007 US Open Winner Patrick Burzlaff.

I'm fortunate enough to have 3 of my best friends here for the summer, and now that we don't have classes eating up our time we're able to do things like lay on the floor in the CFA listening to Yo-Yo Ma playing Bach's cello suites until the SPO cops kick us out (it was the mean one this time, although he surprisingly wasn't as mean on this particular occasion...it was probably Yo-Yo that did the trick).

Basically I'm just trying to live my last 7 weeks in Iowa (for X number of years, anyway) to the fullest. And you can now read all about it, and on into the California Adventure. I'm not surprised by this, actually...I'm self-absorbed anyway.