You can dance if you want to...

I've seen many Nutcrackers in my time and still love the story! I love Clara's battle with the Rat King, I love the Spanish dance and the Russian dance..oh and the Chinese...oh oh and the Arabian! The whole second act is amazing, and so is the first. The Snowflakes are always beautiful, and even if they aren't the music is stunning. I even love the Fantasia versions, who couldn't love the little mushrooms or be entranced by the angel fish.

Each production is different and offers a new take on a timeless classic with endless fantastic interpretations. This is traditionally the biggest show of the season gets the most financial and creative attention. Each production reflects the talents and focus of each company, so no two Nutcrackers will ever be the same making it fun to see over and over again. The choreography of the Texas Ballet is incredible, the Austin Ballet is...awful actually, and the Denver Ballet is hilarious.

This was the funniest version I have ever seen. The mice were hilarious, the Russians were amusing, and the highlight was the Chinese dragon that had every kid in the audience laughing.

Alex liked it too!

Now for the harsh part, their focus on comedy was apparent. Clearly this was meant as a family event. However, I do not think that kid-friendly conflicts with challenging choreography. The Spanish dance was forgettable, as was the Marzipan. Dances that are traditionally duets were trios, and the additional dancer was never beneficial. The Sugar Plum Fairy and the Cavalier were disappointing at best. Actually no, the were even more awful then their terrible choreography. They first had a two minute dance, then the Fairy danced for a minute, then the Cavalier, and the two of them again. I was surprised by the Cavalier's sloppy performance since his bio boasted his training with the Kirov Ballet Academy. The only greater waste of time was the female dancer in the Russian trio who was literally wearing heels and did no dancing whatsoever. And yet the greatest annoyance was this, they called him the Mouse King! He is the Rat King, has always been, will always be, can only ever be The Rat King. Having been a mouse with rats and a rat king, I have a big ole soft spot for these guys. And despite this terrible faux-pas, it is because of them that I can wholeheartedly recommend this show.

I would absolutely recommend this as a family outing. The mice/rat are hilarious! The Dragon was fun! This is a great first ballet for anyone, and a perfect first experience for any kid to be introduced one of the most beautiful art forms.  

Also they had a photographer available to take Christmas photos, so that was fun.

The eyes of Texas are upon your debt: Collegiate Cost Analysis

Today I read and reposted an article entitled, 'Don't Even Get Me Started Mythical Bootstraps Student' that proposed it was not possible, or at least extremely implausible, for a student without familial support to graduate from college debt free. The article was challenged on having too high of expected tuition and board, the author used the one in their city (University of Washington in Seattle). The author also concluded that anyone that graduated ten years ago could not relate because the numbers had changed too greatly- this was also challenged. So, I decided to do my own research.

I wanted to find out for myself the numbers behind today’s higher education landscape. So, I have pulled information for both flagship and satellite schools in both metropolitans and small towns. I have focused on one state to eliminate the policy differences between states, and I chose Texas because it is the greatest of all the states. University of Texas at Austin will represent a flagship university in a metropolitan; Texas A&M at College Station represents a flagship university in a small town; University of Texas at Dallas represents a satellite in a metropolitan; and Stephen F. Austin (SFA) represents a small university in the middle of nowhere.

I expected UT-Austin and UT-Dallas to have higher living costs, A&M and SFA to have higher transportation cost, and for tuition to be highest at UT-Austin and A&M because these are the larger universities. All of these numbers are from CollegeBoard.

	UT-Austin	A&M	UTD	SFA
Tuition & Fees	$9,794	$8,424	$11,168	$7,344
Books	$874	$1,340	$1,200	$1,107
Room and Board	$10,422	$8,200	$8,364	$8,186
Transport	$1,200	$500	$1,400	$2,800
Personal Expenses	$2,424	$2,262	$1,936	$1,729
Total	$24,714	$20,726	$24,068	$21,166

The most and least expensive schools are the two flagship schools. There may be wiggle room in the bottom three categories, but CollegeBoard has more time, resources, and man power to do that research so I’ll let it slide.

I'll also note that UT-Austin and A&M have significantly more opportunities for their students with a tie of 108 majors. SFA offers a respectable 70 majors, however has no engineering department. UT-Dallas comes in at fourth with 43 majors, however has no civil or chemical engineering despite generally being seen as an "engineering school." 

From my experience of living in Austin near campus I can attest that rent has skyrocketed in a very short time. In the span of one year my friend’s 300 sq ft studio’s rent went from $400 to $700, while my 400 sq ft studio went from $550 to $900. Neither one us could afford to stay. So I tried to live in student housing in East Austin for $400 a month including bills. Turned out it wasn’t really student housing. My roommates include a forty-year old woman who frequently entertained young gentleman and a drug dealer. In my complex, which was near several just like it, there was one murder I knew about, several beatings, and daily drug deals.

In addition to having the lowest yearly cost, College Station also has the lowest unemployment rate, at just above 5% it is great, and it is significantly better than Dallas and Richardson, 8.6% and 7.1% respectively. Nacogdoches and Austin round out the unemployment rates at 6.5% and 6.3%- all lower than the national rate of 9.1%. So, if a student is hoping to find a job during college A&M is the best job environment. However, the data does not include the salary or educational requirements of the available jobs. So, those numbers may not be as bleak or as hopeful as they seem.

I saw a commenter detail how they had put them self through college ten years ago and would only allow the concession that some people don’t have her work ethic. Someone else said there would be some increased difficulty, but did not seem to think the increase was significant. So how much has tuition increased in the past ten years at UT Austin? Try 134%! In an article written in UT Austin’s campus paper ‘The Daily Texan’ Collin Eaton wrote the article entitled, ‘ U. Texas tuition rates increased 134% in last decade.’ To the point and easy to find when googling, “Texas tuition increase over past decade” thank you Mr. Easton. In 1999 tuition to UT-Austin was $4020, in 2010 incoming freshman paid $9418. From 1990 to 2003 the yearly increase was 13% and from 2003 to 2009 there was an 8% increase.

Then there’s community college. Room and board, books, and personal expenses would stay nearly the same, transportation would increase in most cases as a car would likely be necessary, but tuition would decrease. The national average tuition for a full-time student at a community college is $2713- a $4631 savings. But the question a student has to ask is, will attending community college affect my chances of being accepted into a 4-year university, and my research answers yes.

An entering freshman has a 47% chance of being accepted to UT-Austin compared to the 41% chance on a transfer student. UT-Dallas, however, has a 15% increased chanced from the 50% acceptance rate of freshman. At Texas A&M, the least expensive of the four, the school that ties for available majors, decreases from an acceptance rate of freshman at 69% to a 48% acceptance of transfer students.

New York Times reported that two-thirds of 2008 graduates left school with debt, a significant increase from the less than half of graduates in 1993. Of the students in debt in 2008, most had at least $24 000 in debt.

Location and college size does not make a difference among the four four-year universities, and attending a community college may make it difficult to be accepted to a four-year university to complete a degree. Lack of willpower, diligence, or work ethic is not enough to explain two thirds of students graduating in tens of thousands of dollars worth of debt. It is far more likely that the debt is due to the drastic increase in tuition over the past decade.   

Yeah, Eh, Nah: Lip Gloss

Yeah

Yes to Carrots

6.49, Target

I love this lip gloss! Its hydrating, pigmented, and long lasting. There are not too many colors, but they are all worth having...although I personally have only bought 'Playful Nude.'

Eh

Origins Liquid Lip Color

15, Origins Retail Stores

I actually really like this product and have used it for years. It has a minty, tingly feeling that is refreshing during a Texas summer. The pigmentation varies with the colors but is generally pretty good. My favorites are 'Soft Sizzle' and 'Prim and Copper.' However, it gets an 'Eh' because the price is ridiculous, especially with 'Yes to Carrots' lip gloss on the market. 

Nah

NYX

 source
5.49, Ulta

This lip gloss seems to have a cult following, people absolutely swear by this product and I do not know why. The pigmentation is decent for the thirty seconds you'll be willing to have this stickiness on your lips.

Now we come to bring thee honor...

Graduation season has come and gone, another year of young minds eager to learn from their own mistakes unleashed onto the world. My high school graduation was long, I didn't know most of the people, and I spent most of the time reading 'Dante's Inferno' which I had hidden under my robe.

The principal began the ceremony by letting us know that "As [he] was working out at the gym this morning, [he] thought of all of [us]...."

The salutatorian mocking that great man by reminding us we were "world class mavs" (a phrase thrown at us at every morning announcements, football game, soccer game, and chess meet), and mentioning a local radio morning show because "they said they would give me 50 bucks if I did." And then our rather red and irritated principal got back up to wag his finger and tell him to "take this more seriously."

Some people, however, had pretty awesome speeches...and I have gathered my three favorites here. I would suggest to any principal or valedictorian to use a large projector and play one of these at their next event...you could even voice over whenever they mention the school name and get the computer class to photoshoot the school mascot and colors into the video. If nothing else steal the transcript outright and you too can be as brilliant as these three comedians.

Coming in at number 3 is Ellen Degeneres at Tulane.

Second, but not first, is Eugene Mirman at Lexington High School.

At least make it to 2:45 on this one...gold, comedic gold.

And always the greatest, at number 1 is Conan O'Brien at Dartmouth.

What's the deal with this Pop life?

A&W Root Beer and Cantaloupe have been my two favorite things since I was really little.

By the way, just so you're warned, root beer does not exist on the British Isles..there's only ginger beer. So when I traveled to Scotland, on a red-eye 6-hour train from London, I saw the most beautiful thing- an 'A&W' restaurant sign. I ran in my high heels, waited patiently in line, ordered my elixir, and was told "the root beer machine is broken." What?! What does that even mean? A root beer machine? I'll gladly mix the syrup and carbonated water myself. Alas, it would be many more months before I and my love would be reunited in holy thirst-quenching matrimony.

For now I can visit it at the store whenever I want. And visit only I shall because Alex and I have kicked the corn syrup habit. I'll have to post later about the details of why and how, but for a year now we have eaten Organic and Fair Trade. When we go out to eat we focus on going to Chipotle and Grazing Cow (an all grass feed beef burger joint in Plano).

In the interest of full disclosure we did learn that it was necessary to have a corn syrup item on occasion, because when we went out to eat with other people or out to dinner parties we got sick. Our bodies were not used to the processed foods anymore and rejected it. So after a few tummy aches we found a balance...Pineapple soda and Slurpees :)

Root beer, however, and the search for the one, true perfect blend has become my hobby for the past few months. I have not found it yet, but I can review a few that I have tried.

First up: Boylan

Overall, I like this one. It has a strong caramel undertone and after taste, so much so that I would predict if you did not like caramel you would not like this root beer. It is not too sweet, but I have found that cane sugar versions usually aren't.

World Market, Individually $1.99

Next: Thomas Kemper

The honey is apparent, so if you do not like honey, skip this one. However, if you enjoy honey in your tea or on a warm biscuit you will love this. In fact, I would suggest pairing this with a honey biscuit just to highlight the unique undertone.

Whole Foods, 4-Pack $4.99

Last: Oogave

Using Agave as a sweetener is the latest trend in the anti-corn syrup world, but after trying this I'll gladly sign an "Agave for Tequila Only" petition. To say it was awful is not enough, scarring, torturous, doubting my own sanity. Avoid. There are those who do not consume sugar, and for those people this may be their only option. To those people I say, drink water.

Whole Foods, 4-Pack $4.99

You can be my hero...

I met Stephan Pastis.

Comics are even more hilarious when read by the creator.

Signing my calendar on the "wonderful day we met"

Witty. Handsome. Creative. Dreamy.

I met my hero.

Relax, just do it..

Ways to fix a bad day:

1. Blast KC and the Sunshine band...at midnight or late afternoon, its never too soon
2. Put up the blinds and throw open/ slide up the windows, let the sunshine pour in!
3. Bake cookies..chocolate, chocolate-chip, chocolate-chip with oatmeal..so many options
4. Eat the products of #3, preferably with vanilla ice cream

5. Lie outside, like a starfish, in the grass
6. Put on make-up and put on a favorite outfit- sometimes a girl just needs to feel pretty.
7. Vintage day! listen to Frank on vinyl and watch a Jimmy Stewart film
8. Hot showers, also see: how to cure any ailment  (including toothaches)
9. Play with pets, watching Toby get so excited about me throwing a stick or Hugh and Fitz chase after string can make me smile in an instant
10. Cuddle, I prefer with my hubby, but Toby makes a good substitute

 This is how Alex found me after I found out about a terrible test grade.

....And if none of that works..have a margarita

..lots of margaritas