Pleasure Amid Pain

It's that time of year again, where once Halloween comes, times flies and the holiday season begins. And right now for me that means school is nearing the end...of the semester, that is. Let me not get ahead of myself. But I really cannot believe that I only have 3-4 weeks of school left. All I have left to do is write four final papers that are at least each 10 pages long. Sounds simple, right? Ha. I'm not sure how I am going to accomplish it, exactly, but somehow, some miracle will occur, and a month from now I will be home in Las Vegas with my family, enjoying Christmas time. Sigh. I am very much looking forward to that.

I failed to mention earlier this month that I went to the opera for my first time. It was pretty fantastic. It was an American-themed performance titled "American Voices" at the David H.

Koch theater at Lincoln Center. Various American performers, including one of my favorite singers, Rufus Wainwright, each performed one song.

The NYC Ballet also did a number, which was so beautiful. Before it had started, I was outside waiting for Abby to meet me and people-watched. Opera-goers are no joke. Most men were in black tie attire, women were wearing long, shimmering gowns with fur shawls. I was AT THE OPERA. Once inside, I was pretty happy with the seating for the 12-dollar ticket holders (i.e me and Abby). For the cheapest seats, they were not too shabby at all! The theater was beautiful.

We were on the fifth level, on the side (right of stage), and we could see down into the orchestra pit. It was really fascinating to watch the musicians play in addition to watching and listening to the singers. It was a really nice experience.

This post is to prove that despite my stressful state, I do still take time out to enjoy things. And tonight, I'm going here:

And then to see this:

At least my priorities are in order, right? Ha.