More String Classes

It was over 100 degrees today, and it is still hot now. Thank goodness the three rooms I taught in today were air conditioned. Kindergarten at Vista, then beginning strings at Oakmont and Condit. Slow to start since not everyone came (3 of 10 at Oakmont - 7 of 14 at Condit), but I'm still tired, nonetheless! BUT, I am going to enjoy all my classes, I think, unless the real stinkers missed the first day....

And we're off!

First day of string classes this year. First day of teaching strings in one and a half years.

I'm tired!

Wasatch Mountains

Yesterday while Hal played 18 holes of golf, I went on a lovely scenic drive through the Wasatch Mountains with two of the golf widows. Fall colors are starting, and next week should be quite beautiful. We saw these Cascade Springs and then went to Sundance for lunch. More pictures at my Picasa Web Albums.

The High Life

The Stein Eriksen is probably the most deluxe place I'll ever stay. It's the kind of place that celebrities frequent, especially during the Sundance Film Festival. We've heard that Tom Hanks is here this weekend, although we've not seen him. We also heard that he was at the Riverhorse Cafe yesterday when our group was there.

The Riverhorse was also one of the best meals I've ever had - macademia nut encrusted Alaskan halibut.

Hal's playing golf today, and I'm taking a driving tour with friends, and then we head home tonight, back to the life of regular people.

Mountain Views

Park City

Life in Claremont is on the road in Park City, Utah. Hal is here reviewing proposals for the Petroleum Research Fund, and I am hanging out at the beautiful Stein Eriksen Lodge. Here are pictures from our room. The altitude here is 8600 feet, the mountain air is sweet and fresh, the sun is shining, and the Aspens are quaking. Ahhhh.....

Yummy!

Hershey's Pumpkin Kisses - melt in your mouth yummy!

Athenaeum Talk

Tonight I heard James Fallows speak at the CMC Athenaeum. His topic was "The 'Axis of Evil' and Beyond: U.S. Foreign Policy in a Complex and Dangerous World." He has been living in Beijing for the past year and began his presentation with a slide show of various things, including the horrendous smog we've heard about, and a few of the billion people who live ordinary, poor lives in China. He was engaging and funny, and made me think I should probably go out and get an Atlantic Monthly (which I haven't done in a long while).

Weddings, Memorials, and the Danes

My niece, Jenny, is getting married on New Year's Eve, and here is the announcement in her home town paper.

Here is the book I just finished, Pontoon, by Garrison Keillor. The story revolves around a "commitment ceremony", a sort-of memorial service, and ends up with some Danes and a pontoon boat on Lake Wobegon. The first book I read by Keillor did not live up to his live storytelling, so I hadn't read anything by him in a long time. I heard Keillor's voice in this novel and enjoyed it straight through.

The Station Agent

Well, I was poised to write a good review of The Station Agent since it has gotten great reviews. Hal and I watched it last night, and although it had great potential, the pacing was lacking. I don't mind if a movie moves slowly, especially if the characters are interesting. These characters were certainly interesting. The plot seemed to be headed somewhere, but it was fuzzy about exactly where, and then it ended.