A song for the deaf.

Anyone who knows me knows that music therapy is the perfect career for me. They also know that it abducts me from real life and makes it impossible for me to function throughout the year, which I think is going to be totally worth it in the end. So basically I'm putting the blame on music therapy for my hiatus. 

Sorrynotsorry.

I've always liked to think music is magical, and music therapy allows me to continue that belief in a socially acceptable way. This semester I've been working with children who are deaf and hard of hearing -- I know, it doesn't make any sense, and that's why it makes sense. Music is so much more than I could have ever dreamed in my wild magical dreams. It is so magical that it helped me connect and communicate with children who can't even hear me. It showed me that unicorns and Hogwarts must be real, because music can do the impossible.

As Dumbledore once said, "music, a magic beyond all we do here."

Can you hear the people sing?

I'm not gonna lie, I'm one of those stereotypical musical theater nerds who grew up singing all the soprano solos for Les Miserables and dreamed of one day being able to sit in the front row while listening to real live singers belt those beautiful lyrics and tug my heart strings with those unbelievable chords. Not to mention that Jean Valjean is the musical man of my dreams, and Javert is the musical man of my nightmares. Not enough imagery for ya? Well here are some pictures of my amazing night seeing Les Mis with my wonderful family...before my camera died.

That last one is supposed to show the rest of our family...and that was the best I could do before my camera took it's last breath.

But on a serious note, Les Mis was the bomb dot com. I wanted to go every single night after that to watch it again. I'd probably rank it as my 6th best experience of my life, and I cried at least 53 times, but who's counting?

Highlight of my night: Kendall expressing confusion until I related the characters to Hugh Jackman and Russell Crowe. Of course as soon as I related it to a movie a received a huge "OH!" and he was immediately interested. Instead of calling them their stage names, he continued to call them Hugh and Russell through the whole musical. I love my movie nerd of a husband.

Let me call you sweetheart.

One of the reasons I've been so busy this semester is because I started my pre-clinicals for my music therapy degree. In our first semester of pre-clinicals, we work with one other therapy student and are usually assigned to work in a nursing home. I was assigned to work with my friend Lauren, and we are working in a nursing home with stroke patients and mild dementia. It has seriously been one of the best experiences of my life. From day one, the staff at the nursing home expressed the difference that we were already making with the clients. They are so cute and such a joy to work with, I seriously am so sad that we only have one session left!

This is one of their favorite songs that we do in the session.

Usually we ask them to think of significant other, or family member, while listening to this song and then we all share after the song is over.

I figured I'd give you guys a little taste of what I do!

Let Me Call You Sweetheart from Brittany Lewis on Vimeo.

Now it's your turn to share. :)

I'll wear my pearls.

Lately I've been obsessed with playing my guitar.

It probably stemmed from be starting my guitar class at ASU, which is easy peasy lemon squeezy.

So! My guitar teacher gives me harder material to work on.

Which in turn makes me want to play more.

Which in turn makes me want to learn new songs!

Plus, I think it's been way too long since I've posted one of these.

Enjoy.

If I Die Young from Brittany Lewis on Vimeo.

Free latte for you..

I don't even like coffee!

Taylor The Latte Boy from Brittany Lewis on Vimeo.

Thank you, Jeremy Tyra for searching through your archives to find me this gem of a video!

Notes on the Vid:

- This was my senior year, at my church talent show. Yes, we won.

- Excuse the fact that I cannot act, and pretend I can. Because we all know I'm the best actor there is!

- My accompanist didn't actually play the accompaniment.. He played the "fakebook" version of the song, meaning that he only played chords and not what was actually written. Which is why it sounds weird sometimes. Or I just can't sing, that works too.

- At 4:00, my priest actually gave me a latte that he made while I was singing. Ha!
- When Paul looks to the side, he's looking at me, awkwardly standing there taking his mean comments!

- Paul is way better than me.

The end!

She'd be better off shoveling snow.

-Richard Strauss, about me.

Just kidding. He didn't even know me. And you probably don't even know who he is. Unless you are currently studying for the music history exam, just like me!

But, seeing as I'm writing this, and you're reading it, that means that we are no longer studying.

Good, because music history is just about the worst class ever invented.

So I did something fun instead!

The Bolder Thing to Do from Brittany Lewis on Vimeo.

Notes on this video:

1. I look absolutely disgusting because my water heater in the apartment broke (ha!) so I couldn't take a shower this morning before class. Get over it.

2. The thumbnail makes me look like a sad puppy dog. I'll get over that some day.

3. That weird yelp at 0:34 is my roommate, not my dog. Literally smh (shook my head).

4. If I did daily outfits, this one would be one of the cutest, if I do say so myself.

5. When you mess up at the end of a video but don't have enough time to take away from studying to make another 3 minute and 37 second video, play it off like that's how it is supposed to be. Not that I did that, or anything.

Roomie and I are off to get coffee for studying. I don't even like coffee.

Happy studying, my little procrastinators!

I never talk during music

-- at least, during good music.

I was definitely musical girl today, as I am most days. But I thought that today, since I had a wonderfulslowrelaxing day, I would show you (instead of having you blindly trust me!) how musical I am! Not to say I am good by any means (heaven forbid!), but just how much I enjoy singing and playing.

Stuck Like Glue from Brittany Lewis on Vimeo.

I have been singing since I could talk, and I've been playing guitar since I was 13. I love it! And it's absolutely perfect for the job I want to go into -- music therapy. What could be better than playing music all day to help people feel better?

Oh yeah, nothing.

As for the rest of my day, I had ear-training (bleck!) this morning, then voice lessons where I learned an awesome jazz song called Summertime by George Gershwin and got my British on with a song called The sun whose rays by Gilbert and Sullivan, then I came home and curled up in a blanket and read The Picture of Dorian Gray.

I know what you're thinking -- "BRITTANY! It was darn-tootin hot outside today! How could you curl up in a blanket?!>@(#!"

Riddle me this: It was hot outside, but freezing cold in my apartment. Like, 65 degrees. Fahrenheit. Without the air conditioning running. Conundrum!

After that, I paid some bills (double bleck!), then went to Buffalo with my Jake. Afterwards, though we really wanted Yodipity, we settled for yogurtini. Luckily they had my favorite flavor with my favorite topping, so I didn't cry too much.

The rest of my night will consist of an abundance of music theory homework that has piled up from me having a horrible migraine for over a week (triple bleck!). I'm pretty sure that the definition for migraine is music theory. Look it up.

What did you all do on this random Tuesday? :)

If one hears bad music, it is one's duty to drown it out in conversation.

*All quotes from Oscar Wilde's The Picture of Dorian Gray.