28 Hours in Happy Valley and Not Crazy Yet

It makes sense if you read to the end.

I arrived in The Beehive State last night and spent the night in the drought-stricken community of Lehi.  It was fun while it lasted, but I'm now at least spending my nights in a slightly more comfortable and less parched community roughly twenty minutes in driving time from Lehi. It's a bit creepy, as I've never spent the night in a house or condo by myself. Spending the night alone in my dorm room is as close as I've come, and even that wasn't totally easy for me.

I still have the option of sleeping at the music producer's home in Lehi,  but I prefer being slightly spooked  to feeling guilty about taking a shower.  My pseudouncle has a sister whose family lives just around the corner from the condo where I'm staying. She told me if anything really scares me I can call at any hour and her husband will walk me over to her place, where I can sleep in one of an extra bed in one of her little girls' rooms.  I doubt that I'll be so desperate, but it's nice to have the option. The condo where i'm staying has a pretty good alarm system. I don't really think the boogeyman is outside waiting to get me, but it's easy to imagine things when one is not accustomed to being alone at night.

I worked from 9:00 a.m. until about 5:00. The producer thought it would take longer, but I sightread with ease, and nothing needs to be memorized; I merely need to be familiar with the music. The producer is thinking now that we may finish everything tomorrow if we work a slightly longer day and  my voice holds out. That will give me an entire day by myself in another state to do exactly as I please, which is quite cool even if the state is Utah.  I'll also have until about 4:00 on Thursday, at which time I'll head to the airport.

What does a person do in Utah when he or she has already done most of the touristy things. I think I'll check out a few safe hiking trails in the canyons or maybe around Sundance. I'm not going anywhere by myself where mountain lions are likely to be found.  I'm also considering driving north and checking out the little town in Idaho where Napoleon Dynamite was filmed.  There's nice scenery in northern Utah to check out as well/. I also hear Utah State University, in Logan, often has the hurdles out on its track, and it might be fun to hurdle. Anyway, I have t finish tomorrow to be able to have all of Wednesday to myself.

I'm meeting my grandmother on Thursday to have lunch with her. She has a driver at her disposal, so she offered to come here so I would not have to go to Salt Lake City, which was very nice of her. My grandfather knows nothing about our meeting. He couldn't stop her from meeting with me, but he would throw a temper tantrum. There's no good reason for her to have to watch and listen to it.

I'm not my grandmother's favorite grandchild, but she does like me, and she refers to me as her most talented grandchild. That's akin  to being called the cleanest pig in a mud hole, but still it's nice of her to acknowledge it. Those of her children who are musical (my dad, my Uncle Michael, my Aunt Cristelle, and to a lesser degree, my Uncle Steve) inherited it from her and from her side of the family. My grandfather can't even sing "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star" or "Frere Jacques" in such a manner that the tune or the rhythm can be recognized. my grandmother also appreciates my gymnastic/diving and hurdling skill. She was something of an athlete -- at least as much as girls were allowed to be -- in her day.