Steph started a Meme over on The Incurable Insomniac, where you print screen of your desktop and show it on your blog. Here's mine.
It's a page from Mozart's thematic catalog which includes the first seven bars from the overture to Le Nozze di Figaro.
I have been chosen to be interviewed by Steph , The Incurable Insomniac. I will answer the following five questions and then I will invite, you, my readers to be interviewed as well.
1. You now have three blogs. Which one do you enjoy most, and why?
This is a really difficult question to answer because I enjoy all three of my blogs for different reasons.
I created my political blog last month because I realized that the number of politically oriented posts on this blog were starting to outnumber my other posts and I was afraid that I would alienate my readers who really aren't into politics as much as I am. Okie Sings the Blues was born out of my love for history and politics and keeps me challenged in those areas because I am constantly having to research the web for current events and news articles to post.
I created A Window to My Soul a couple of weeks ago as a place mostly for personal reflection and introspection. It's literally what the title says it is--a window to my soul.
However, if I must declare a favorite, I still have to say that Life in Shades of F-major is my favorite one because it's the one that expresses my passions. I enjoy sharing the things I've learned and/or discovered about music, life, people, places, and things, here. I'm a teacher at heart and this blog serves as an online classroom of sorts.
2. What has been the greatest (i.e. best) surprise you've experienced via blogging in the past year?
Almost a year ago I started a series of posts entitled, "The World's Most Beautiful Music" where once every week or two I feature a piece that I believe to be some of the world's most beautiful music. In June I featured Howard Goodall's lovely choral setting of the 23rd Psalm, which was composed for the opening of the BBC sitcom, The Vicar of Dibley, several years ago. I was thrilled when the composer, Howard Goodall, himself, posted a comment on my entry thanking me for featuring his piece and inviting me to listen to some of his other works. That event served to remind me how the web has made the world a much smaller, and friendlier place.
3. What would constitute the perfect day for you, if money, time, and place were no object?
Wow! Tough question. There are SO MANY options! The place would be Vienna. I would be with Steph. We would wake, not too early, and have a relaxing breakfast in our hotel and then we'd go out on a walking tour of all of our favorite sites in the old city--the Figarohaus, the Graben, St. Stephan's, the Hoffburg. We'd lunch at a sidewalk cafe and then do a little shopping on the Graben. At 3:00 we'd duck into a favorite coffee house for jouse and then return to the hotel for a little nap. Then we would dress for an evening performance of Le Nozze di Figaro at the Staatsoper, and then to a nearby restaurant for a late dinner afterwards.
4. How do you come up with ideas to write about on your blogs?
As I explained in question #1, I am a teacher at heart. I love sharing my passions for music, life, art, etc. I've discovered a wealth of resources on YouTube, and much of my inspiration, especially for my different post series come from there. My first series, as I explained earlier, was "The World's Most Beautiful Music". That one became so popular that I decided to create several others--"So I'm a Sucker for Baritones" featuring my favorite baritones both living and deceased, "The Music of Black America", (in honor of President-elect Obama), "Gender Bending Through the Ages", and now my newest series, "The Sopranos". All of these express my passion for music, film, culture, history, the theater, and the arts in general.
5. Before blogging, what, if any, was your main mode of personal expression?
Oh, music, most certainly. I have a musical soul. I express myself best and relate to the world most effectively through music. That's why I've dedicated so much of my blog to it. Music is who and what I am.
To be interviewed:
1. Leave me a comment saying, "Interview me."
2. I will respond by emailing you five questions. I get to pick the questions.
3. You will update your blog with the answers to the questions.
4. You will include this explanation and an offer to interview someone else in the same post.
5. When others comment asking to be interviewed, you will ask them five questions.
I found this over on Aurel's Laurels and thought it would be fun. Post it on your blog if you'd like. The things I've done are italicized.
1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community.
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo's David
41. Sung kareoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London "Guard")
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a lawsuit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee
100. Read an entire book in one day
101. Seen more than 5 movies in one day
102. Spent a night in jail
103. Ridden a unicycle
104. Slept on the floor
105. Passed out drunk
106. Cheated a railway company
107. Lied about my age
108. Been South of the Equator
109. Been baptized
110. Been to Japan
You've just been Rick Roll'd!
Now I am!*
*Go here to make yourself famous, too! Thanks Willow!
I found this meme over at Steph's blog. It's really fun and is a great way to give out some interesting info about oneself.
My uncle once: said that I was his prettiest and favorite niece and wanted me to marry my cousin who was his adopted son. Would that have made him my Uncle-Dad?
Never in my life: have I been more loved than I am now.
When I was five: I wanted to marry Mozart.
High school was: was a mixed bag of confusion, self-discovery, and good times.
I will never forget: August 29th, 2005--the day Steph and I boarded the plane for Vienna to be filmed for Mozartballs. That was also the day that hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast.
Once I met: Rosemary Clooney backstage after a Maysville Community Theater, (Maysville, Kentucky), performance of Cole Porter's Anything Goes in which I played Hope Harcourt. She was home for the week visiting family and was good friends with our show's director. She came backstage specifically to meet me, and said, "You were great kid! You've got some talent!"
There’s this girl I know: who makes me laugh every time I see her!
Once at a bar: I did the chicken dance with a bunch of my crazy friends!
By noon: I'm ready to take a break and get some lunch!
Last night: I stayed up late and watched Twelve Angry Men on the OETA Movie Club.
If I only had: the time and money to go everywhere in the world I want to go!
Next time I go to church: I would like for it to be Christmas Eve mass at St. Stephen's in Vienna.
What worries me most: is the fascist direction in which our nation has turned over the last many years.
What I miss most about the 1980s is: not much.
If I were a character in Shakespeare, I’d be: Beatrice in Much Ado About Nothing.
A better name for me would be: There is no better name for me. Mine fits me perfectly.
I have a hard time understanding: racism.
If I ever go back to school: it will be to get a master's degree in Western History.
You know I like you if: I engage you in long conversation.
Take my advice, never: marry a preacher.
My ideal breakfast is: Eggs Benedict with fresh fruit and Mimosas served in bed.
If you visit my hometown I suggest you: don't come on an OSU home football game day.
Why won’t people: just learn to live and let live?
The world could do without: fundamentalist religion of any kind.
My favorite blonds are: me, Ellen DeGeneres, and Glen Close.
If I do anything well, it’s: making people feel that they are loved.
And by the way: I really like Mozart.
Steph tagged me so here it is. In this particular meme, you have to go to your 4th picture file and choose the 4th picture and post it on your blog and tell about it. Kind of a "show-and-tell" thing. So here goes...
This is a London playbill featuring a portrait of Anna "Nancy" Storace from May 15th, 1797. Nancy was a very famous singer/actress of the late 18th century from London. When she was only 17 years old she was hired by the Emperor of Austria, (Emperor Joseph II), as the prima buffa of his newly formed Italian Opera Company and in 1786 became Mozart's original Susanna in his opera, Le Nozze di Figaro, (The Marriage of Figaro), as well as a dear friend and colleague of Mozart's. It is believed by some of the greatest Mozart historians, namely the late Alfred Einstein, that Mozart was in love with her.
Nancy is one of my obsessions, as I did my master's thesis on her life and career, as well as her relationship with Mozart. Nancy's birthday is October 27th, which is this coming Monday. The following clip is the duetto Sull'aria, featuring the Contessa and Susanna from Le Nozze di Figaro.
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| Lynette Erwin |
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