The Haggard Herald

Guess who got her ears pierced for the first time. That's right! I did! 'Why now' you ask? Some of you may recall when I first wanted to pierce my ears I wasn't allowed to because I wasn't 12 years old (that's the Meyers minimum age for ear piercings, thanks to Alicia). By the time I was "old enough," soccer was way more appealing to me than having pierced ears. I had to choose one or the other and clearly soccer won out. After that I forgot about it... And then there were roommates. Two years ago my roommates convinced me that it was time I pierce my ears. At least three times since that day my ear-piercing plans have been foiled--until yesterday. I drove myself and my best friend Jamie Lee down to the mall. I walked in that pre-teen jewelry store, picked out the earrings I wanted, signed my name on the line, held my breath, and bat-a-bing bat-a-boom. Pierced ears. I was so good that I even got my sucker at the end. An orange one.

Hello, Thanks to Kimmy, I have pictures from our cross country drive. Here are some of my favorites. The first is of Kimmy at the temple lot in Far West. We also saw the temple lot in Independence which is across the street from the Community of Christ temple (formerly R-LDS). The next picture is of Dad and I at the Winter Quarters temple, followed by Kimmy and I standing in front of the statue and grave marker in the cemetery right next to the temple. It was a little drizzly while we were there. We were the only ones around. Next on the trip was Mount Rushmore and Custer State park (where we went exploring for rocks (per dad's request) and buffalo (per Kimmy's request)). Lastly, we hiked to several lakes in Rocky Mountain National Park and drove across the continental divide. Other notable events for which I do not have pictures include Dad making up a song about Kimmy and chipmunks, driving past a lot of corn and soy fields and cattle ranches, and stopping at Barnes ...

Here are a few more pictures from the last part of our trip.

One of my fun classes this semester is orchestra and it isn't just strings this time--I'm in the full orchestra and am very excited about it. We are playing one of my favorite classical pieces, Hoedown from Aaron Copland's Rodeo. We are also playing Saturday night Waltz from Rodeo, Night on Bare Mountain by Mussorgsky (you'll recognize it if you listen to it), and Prometheus Overture by Beethoven. Click here to listen to Hoedown . And as a side note, if you're looking for a good book to read, I recommend What to Listen for in Music by Aaron Copland. In the Introduction he writes, "Listening to music is a skill that is acquired through experience and learning. Knowledge enhances enjoyment." Chapter 3, The Creative Process, was what jumped out to me and caused me to buy it. Other chapters are about the elements of music, forms of music, contemporary music, movie music, and more. Great book. Great composer. Great orchestral selection by my conduct...