January, in short

Our new ornament.

We rang in the new year with our wonderful friends.





The frangelico champagne cocktails--my new favorite drink--were a big hit.

The rest of the month was pretty quiet. After December, I had no energy to hang out or to take pictures.

Every year, Rod's work have their Christmas party after the holidays. This year they had it at Vonnie's house, which is conveniently located just a few blocks from ours. It was fun getting to visit with everyone. Emily's little boy, Liam, took a liking to me. I let him open my white elephant gifts, which turned out to be party rat finger lights. What are party rats finger lights you may ask? Well, they are little rat-shaped lights that attach to the ends of your fingers that are ideal for night blogging or going to raves. Needless to say, these gems immediately became Liam's party rats finger lights. After the party, we came home and watched Seven Pounds.

The next was a book club double header, with book club at Kim's on Tuesday for both David Sedaris's Holidays on Ice and Push by Sapphire. The first book was disturbing. The Santaland Diaries, the first short story in the book, was entertaining but the next few stories, especially the uncomfortable holiday letter about drowning babies in the washing machine, were just sick. That put such a bad taste in my mouth that I cannot recommend this book. Push was not any more uplifting. Although the way it was written (as an illiterate person learning to write would spell) was clever, the subject matter was so uncomfortable and hopeless. I'm sure that is what the author intended. It is about an overweight, illiterate, black girl, Precious, growing up in Harlem. She lives with her physically, emotionally, and sexually abusive shut-in mother who makes her eat to keep her fat. Precious gets thrown out of regular high school when she gets pregnant (for the second time) by her father. The graphic description of the abuse was revolting. It makes me sad to think that some people actually grow up under those circumstances. If you have a weak stomach, I suggest the movie.

Saturday night was my other (original) book club at Tricia's house in Heber. Her son, D., is beyond adorable. He had a little bit of stranger danger, but once I snuck him some chocolate cake, he was all smiles. So cute! The book for that night was Andre Agassi's novel Open. I was hooked from the beginning despite the fact that it was non-fiction. Usually when I read, I read to escape. Non-fiction is not generally conducive to escape. But the Pulitzer-prize winning ghost writer describes Agassi's innermost thoughts so beautifully it is impossible not to get sucked in.

The night before, we celebrated Cheryl's birthday with a wine and sushi tasting at Trolley Square. The wine and sushi were both incredible--it's hard to go wrong with that combination--but not entirely filling. So . . . on the way home, we tried drive through sushi. I know what you're thinking, "Is that safe?" But it wasn't bad. The restaurant is owned by the former owner of Ichiban. It wasn't the best sushi I've ever had, but good enough to fill a craving.

Sunday night, we went over to Inga's house to play with Gabe and their new pet.
The next two weeks, the last two weeks in January, was one of those weeks that reminded me just how much I love living here. On Tuesday, I went to the PTC with my friends to see Touch(ed). Every year, the PTC chooses one relatively new, cutting edge play by an up and coming playwright. Touch(ed) is about a woman dealing with her sister's mental illness, struggling between wanting to suppress her suicidal tendencies, but also wanting to stop being her sister's keeper. The Imogen Heap soundtrack alone made this play worth a viewing, but it also posed some interesting questions about our society's tendency to over-medicate and how we deal with mental illness.

Friday, we went to the Beer Hive to celebrate Clem's birthday with dark beer and Mini's finger-licking good cupcakes. Afterwards, we went to Citrus Grill with Jon and Allison for dinner.
The next Friday, I played hookey from work for Parr's annual Snow Pack Inspection Day. It was not only my first time at Snow Basin, but (sadly) my first ski day of the season. vIt was a gorgeous day and a gorgeous resort. But my legs were burning by midday though so Rita and I headed back to sit in the plush lodge early for drinks.

Saturday, I started the day with a Sundance film in Park City. The movie itself was a bit predictable, but it starred Chase Crawford as White Mike, a drug dealer to the spoiled rich teens. In Rod's words, it was a darker, edgier Gossip Girl. I have always thought Chase Crawford was a hottie, but it was really sweet of him to get up early to come to the screening. Apparently most of the other actors, including 50 Cent, were too hung over from the previous night's after party.



Later that same night, I went with Nici and Ry-Ry to Sundance, the actual Sundance, not just the film festival. Before the movie we ate at The Tree Room . . . insert Homer (Simpson)-like drooling here . . . . Their three course tasting menu was to die for. The pepper steak alone made me wish I had a second stomach. I actually ate myself sick. While I was drooling all over myself, Robert Redford sat down at the table next to us.

The film was 8: The Mormon Proposition, an eye-opening film about the Mormon church's role in proposition 8 and the appalling way it has reacted to homosexuality in general. I spent half the movie bawling and the other half being so filled with rage I wanted to put my fist through a wall. I have a hard time reconciling the family-centered church I grew up in (but am no longer a member of) with the hateful church that wants so badly to prevent people who love each other from being together, or worse, who support exiling children from their families. The homelessness (not to mention suicide) problem among homosexual youth in Utah is sickening. Whatever happened to "judge not" or we allow others "to worship how, where, or what they may"? I don't understand the bigotry or the hypocrisy. It was not that long ago that the Mormon's were being persecuted for their marital practices. I know that not everyone in the church believes the same way and there are a lot of good people in it, but it makes me really sad to see all the inexplicable hatred from the church leadership and some of its members.