Daily Archives: May 17, 2009

REAL Salt Lake

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I’m not a huge sports fan.  Actually, I hate sports unless I’m playing.  However, I don’t mind watching a game if I’m actually there, unless it’s football.  Over the years, I’ve been to a few college and professional sporting events.  I’ve had the chance to see the St. Louis Cardinals and the Utah Jazz play.  Both games were a lot of fun!

Real Salt Lake LogoAnyway, my brother’s sister-in-law Annette invited Corey and me to the REAL Salt Lake game on Saturday.  I thought the game was at the same time the Children’s Book Festival took place, so I wasn’t going to go.  When I realized the game was later, Corey tried to get me a ticket, but the others had already been bought and so there wasn’t any way to get seats together.  I was a little disappointed, but I decided to plan a nice evening by myself.  On his way to the game, however, Corey gave me a call and told me that someone had bailed at the last minute so I could come if I wanted to.

We arrived about 20 minutes into the game.  The RSL team was playing against the Kansas City Wizards.  The first goal of the game was scored in the first half by Kansas City.  The RSL fans weren’t too happy about the goal because the referee didn’t see that the Wizards were off sides, which would’ve reversed the goal.  The second goal was scored during the second half, also by Kansas City. That time, it was a legitimate goal so the fans bucked up and stopped booing shortly after the goal was made.  I thought the end of the game was the most exciting as the plays were a little faster and the players were a little more violent.  Also, with only 10 minutes left, the RSL team scored a goal, but it was reversed because the referee called off sides that time around.  The fans were very unhappy this time around and booed for a long time.  The final score was 2 – 0 with Kansas city as the victors.

This was the third or fourth RSL game I had been to.  My first experience was in one of the box seats, thanks to our friends Nate and Dayna.  Sitting in the box was a lot of fun as I thought it was kind of cool to feel VIP-ish. ;) The other two or three times have just been in regular seats, but this was the first game I’ve been to at the new Rio Tinto stadium.  Other than the seats being a little cramped, the stadium’s very nice; a lot nicer than Rice-Eccles stadium.

Corey and I had lots of fun.  Even though I have yet to see the RSL win a game, I do have lots of fun going because it’s something Corey likes to do and I like doing it with him.

After the Game (Together)

Nightmare Fun

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Last night, I had a very eventful dream, or I should say nightmare.  Today, I accompanied the choir in church for the first time and I think my subconscious was trying to deal with how nervous I was to do this!

I dreamed I had missed choir practice so I didn’t know about any of the last-minute changes the choir director decided to make. When I got to church, a couple of things happened all at once.  First, I realized my family was there because Aymee and Dave, my niece and her husband, decided to bless Sophie in our ward.  Second, the choir director told me he had decided to sing a different song, a much more difficult song.

After the initial shock of realizing I had to play not only in front of my ward, but in front of my family too (especially my brother-in-law who makes his living as a pianist) and the choir director telling me the song had changed, I told him it was impossible for me to play the new song with such short notice.  I have to practice and practice before I’m okay playing a song without accompanying let alone with accompanying! Reluctantly, he finally agreed to go back to the original song.

When I sat at the piano and opened the hymnbook, I couldn’t find the hymn I was supposed to play.  The hymn number was there, but it wasn’t the right song.  I searched page after page for the hymn and couldn’t find it.  I started to panic big time, but I had enough presence of mind to ask someone for their hymnbook.  The hymn was in the second book, but it wasn’t the right number so I was still a little anxious. Luckily, I started to relax a bit now that I had found the right hymn.

I played the introduction and all went very smoothly.  However, the instant the choir started to sing, a big gust of whatever rattled the pages of the hymnbook I was using.  I didn’t have the song memorized so I frantically started to search for the hymn.  After about a minute, the choir director started to yell at me.  I told him I couldn’t find the hymn, but he didn’t care.  He only cared that I had ruined the song.  At that point, I was so distraught that I ran out of the chapel crying. And, shortly after, I woke up feeling very anxious.

I told Corey about my nightmare.  He reassured me the choir wasn’t going to change the song and I would be able to find the hymn in the book I was using.  Thankfully, Corey was right.  With the help of a lot of prayer and some calming exercises, everything went well and I played as well as I could have. :?