Born in China

Ever since I saw the documentary Earth in 2007, I have been a huge fan of Disneynature and I have been looking forward to the latest entry in the series, Born in China, for quite a while.  I saw it yesterday which was quite appropriate for Earth Day.  This documentary takes us to some of the remotest parts of China to follow three animal families:  a snow leopard named Dawa and her two cubs, a golden snub-nosed monkey named Tao Tao, and a giant panda named Ya Ya and her baby Mei Mei.  The cinematography is absolutely incredible and I was most impressed with how much the mountains and plateaus of China resemble those of North America.  Whenever I think of China, I tend to think of crowded cities.  The documentary is narrated by John Krasinski and his commentary provides a narrative arc for all of the footage of the animals.  Dawa's story is all about survival.  Her territory is threatened by another snow leopard who challenges her in some thrilling scenes and I found her story to be the most compelling and affecting.  Tao Tao's story is about fitting in with his family after a new baby displaces him and it provides much of the comedy in the film, especially when the monkeys walk in the snow.  Ya Ya's story involves teaching her cub how to be independent and learning how to let go.  I really enjoyed this documentary and I was especially touched by how affectionate the animals are with their babies.  I highly recommend Born in China as a reminder of how spectacular our world is.

Note:  If you see this movie during its opening week (April 21-27), Disneynature will make a donation to the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) for every ticket.

I Will Miss Them

This week my current student body officers have been conducting the election for the 2017-2018 officers.  The students who are running for office are absolutely stellar and this has been the easiest election I've ever done.  No drama!  I have to admit that there was a moment when I wondered if I should stay on as the advisor because I know this group will be fun to work with.  But I have thought long and hard about the decision to give up all of my extracurricular activities and I know it is the right one.  I need time for the people and things that are important to me because, at the end of the day, what I do, while rewarding, is just a job and it shouldn't consume all of my time and energy.  I am really proud of what my officers have accomplished this year (go here and here) and I will definitely miss them but I am really looking forward to a year with less stress.

Note:  One of the things I had to consider very carefully in making this decision is the fact that I would make less money.  I came to the determination that my happiness was ultimately more important.  However, there is currently a huge teacher shortage in the state of Utah and the school district that I work for has decided to significantly increase teacher salaries in the hopes of attracting more candidates to fill all of the openings next year.  Even after giving up all of my extracurricular activities, I will still make more money next year because of this raise!

Throwback Thursday: Yellowstone with Sean and Tashena

Over Labor Day weekend in 2010, my family went on a camping trip to Yellowstone National Park.  It is one of my very favorite trips because I got to spend so much time with Sean and Tashena.  Marilyn and I stayed at a cabin at the KOA near the park while Kristine, Trent, and the kids had their camper at a site near us.  The kids spent a lot of time hanging out at the cabin with us and we loved it!

The weather was perfect and it was so much fun seeing all of the different geysers and pools.  We would get up really early to be out and about when the animals were most active.  Here are some of the pictures from around the park.

To Kill a Mockingbird at HCT

Last night I spent a lovely evening watching one of my all-time favorite novels, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, come to life on the Hale Centre Theatre stage. Jem (Matthew Rees) and Scout (Alyssa Buckner) learn that their father Atticus (Mitch Hall) is a hero when he defends an innocent black man named Tom Robinson (Alec Powell) against a charge of rape, even though he knows he will lose, simply because it is the right thing to do. They also learn not to judge people until they have seen things from their perspective through their interactions with Boo Radley (Justin Bruse) and Mrs. Dubose (Gayle Hayes). These themes have always had a powerful impact on me and they impacted me again as I watched this marvelous production. In fact, I left the theatre in tears. I was so impressed with the young actors in the cast, the aforementioned Rees and Buckner as well as Cooper Johnson as Dill, because they brought such innocence to their roles which was very refreshing to see. Powell just about broke my heart in his portrayal of Tom Robinson (every time I read the novel, I always hope that the verdict will be different) while Josh Richardson made my skin crawl as Bob Ewell. But it was Hall who really anchored this production with a quiet dignity as the iconic Atticus Finch. I was holding my breath during his summation speech during the trial and at the end of it the audience broke out into spontaneous applause because it was absolutely brilliant! As usual the set design is amazing. The juxtaposition of the flower-laden porches with the stark courthouse and jail does much to convey the racism just under the surface in the small town of Maycomb, Alabama. This adaptation, by Christopher Sergel, is quite faithful to the novel and I particularly liked having Miss Maudie (Betsy West) as the narrator. This story is not just a classic to be read in high school. It has a message that is timeless and this production is not to be missed! To Kill a Mockingbird runs at HCT until May 20 (go here for tickets and more information) but act quickly because most shows are sold out (with good reason).

Colossal

When Colossal was screened at the Sundance Film Festival this year I honestly didn't have any desire to see it.  A couple of things changed my mind.  First, I saw a preview last week which was very intriguing and, then, a few friends who saw at Sundance raved about it in advance of its wide release so I decided to take in a matinee yesterday.  Gloria (Anne Hathaway) is a young woman living in New York and, frankly, she is a complete mess.  She has been unemployed for over a year and, after staggering home from a night of drinking, her boyfriend (Dan Stevens) kicks her out of their apartment.  She is forced to move back into her childhood home, where she literally sleeps on an air mattress on the floor, and she reconnects with Oscar (Jason Sudeikis), a childhood friend.  She continues her destructive behavior by drinking every night with Oscar and his friends.  Clearly, she has a few inner demons but her demons manifest themselves as a giant lizard-like monster who terrorizes the people of Seoul, South Korea.  She is horrified when she realizes that she is responsible for the death of many innocent people and tries to discover a way to stop the monster.  As the story continues, Oscar's demons, which manifest themselves as a giant robot, are revealed and the two of them must resolve a conflict from childhood in an epic showdown.  I found this story to be highly original and entertaining, if a bit strange, and the ending was incredibly satisfying.  I usually like Anne Hathaway and I found her portrayal of Gloria to be sympathetic.  Conversely, I found Jason Sudeikis' Oscar to be quite disturbing; in fact, there were moments when I truly despised him.  Amid the bad behavior and the B-movie monsters, there is a really powerful message about bullying and I'm glad that I decided to see it.