Smyth family photos 2015

My family had professional photos done by Xan's Eye Photography. It's the first time we've taken family photos outdoors, and I think they turned out great! Here are some of my favorites (in no particular order):

And one of our talented and darling photographer, cousin Xan. Thanks, Aaron, for thinking to get one!

A day in the life of a writer/actor

As a publicity stunt, Midvale Arts Council invited some of their production workers and actors to do a "Day in the Life" feature on Midvale Arts' Instagram and Twitter accounts. I volunteered to give it a whirl about halfway through the run, and I had a good time with it, too. They even trusted me with the Midvale Arts' designated phone and taught me how to post to Twitter (learning new things every day)!

All of the photos included these hashtags: #macnoisesoff #midvalearts #noisesoff #instatakeover #utahtheatre #midvale #utah #poppyspics @miss_dizzy

Wednesday, March 4, 2015

Photo 1

"Good morning! I'm Megan and I play Poppy in Noises Off. I'm taking over Midvale Arts' Instagram today and I'm excited to see what happens and to hear from you!

Photo 2

"Lunch with my darling dad. Can't ask for a better way to break up a work day!"

Photo 3

"By day, I'm a technical writer at a software company. I write the documentation and online help for our product. I'm not a software expert, so I like to say that if an English major like me can understand the steps and use the software based on my descriptions then anyone can!"

Photo 4

"Getting ready for the show and must give a shout out to our faithful and hard-working stage manager, DeeDee, and stagehands Matthew and Ethan. This show would be more more difficult without them! Plus, they are really nice people!"

Photo 5

"Poppy carries a clipboard for most of Act I and II. Here is a peek at her checklist (and some of my notes)."

Photo 6

"The play's the thing and the audience is laughing! Here is a glimpse of my view from off and onstage. Hope you can catch one of our last three performances :)"

A few photos that didn't make the cut, and regular-sized versions of those in the photo grid:

The phone case MacKenzie/Brooke loaned me to use onstage. Obviously, Poppy would be a fan of Doctor Who!

The stage crew all on their phones during Act I.

"I'm glued to a ruddy tax demand!"

My view from backstage through the "broken" window pane.

Poppy's desk in Act II. Note the package of saltines on the left, and the M&Ms tin on the right...

Brooke's meditations.

"Which one are you? Squire, Squire, Hackam, or Dudley?"
(I had enough free time during Act III that I sometimes snuck to the back of the audience to watch.)

Photo 7

"After the show, I ate pancakes at Denny's with some friends before heading home. Now it's time for bed so I can do it all again tomorrow. Thank you for sharing my day with me. Hope to see you at Noises Off this weekend!"

My Favorite Things

Let us be grateful to the people who make us happy; they are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom.

- Marcel Proust

What is a girl to do when folks around her are getting married and having babies, and not only does she not have those things, but they aren't likely to happen any time soon?

She could choose to feel sorry for herself.

Or she could find a way to celebrate the life she has now.

This time, I chose the latter.

Using Shutterfly, I put together a book with photos of people, places, and things that cheer me up (including some really flattering photos of myself -- natch). There are two pages dedicated to chocolate in various forms, and one with nothing but shoes :)

I figure that when I'm feeling sorry for myself, I can open up the book and remind myself that my life is darn good! After all, even when I am married and have kids, there will be times of sameness and sadness and desire, and I will have to find joy in the every day, anyway. That's what this book is about: the big and little things that are special to me right now.

Even better, I'm treating the photo book like a yearbook and asking my friends and family to write in it. I love the idea of reading notes from the people who mean the most to me, and having snatches of their handwriting to make it a little more tangible and personal.

Is the title "My Favorite Things" a little cliché? Yes. Do I care? Nope. It's accurate and timely considering I just finished The Sound of Music!

I had a great time putting it together. Now I must find excuses to see my friends and get this book signed!

Who wants to hang out?

Making the most of January

I spent a lot of January reconnecting with friends after the holidays, and starting rehearsals for the Sound of Music. I didn't take very many photos, though. Here's what I did take:

New Year's Day with the family

I love my mom's holiday dishes!

 Playing the Smyth Family game we gave to Mom for Christmas a few years ago

Dinner at Blue Lemon with some girl friends from my ward

I'm so glad you could come, Sylinda!

Saw my brilliant friend Brandon as Ellard in The Foreigner at Hale Centre Theatre

 Pie and the game of Life with Nichole and Brandon and their significant others later in the week

Nichole's "pie bird" is a hoot!

I was a movie star with a modest home, and had two sets of twins:
Milo and Eliza, and Sutton and Grace.
I would have won if everybody else hadn't sued me so many times!
(I was the only one with any money for awhile, so I guess I can't blame them.)

 Found this across the street from the Bountiful Temple

The Doctor wasn't there, unfortunately.

Someday I need to go back with someone so I can get a photo of myself with it!

I was heart attacked by Lindsey, the G-child, Breezy and Zonks

I liked it so much, I put all of the hearts on the back of my door so I could leave it for awhile!

Rehearsals for The Sound of Music

For some reason, most of my weekday rehearsals didn't start until 8pm
so I had to find ways to fill my time between work and rehearsal without
going home first, such as writing in my journal at Barnes & Noble.

My part may be small, but I get to sing a lot of difficult, fun, gorgeous music -- hooray!

The Von Trapps sing "So Long, Farewell" during the first Act II run-through.
They are adorable!

Oddly enough (well, maybe it isn't when a show is so close to opening), I already have plans for just about every day in February. I'm full up in the evenings and all day almost every Saturday, so if you invite me somewhere and I say I can't, I'm sorry. I would really like to see you but I really don't have time (unless maybe you'd consider going out to lunch). Not even on Sundays which everyone suddenly wants to default to lately -- I try to reserve that day for church and family. I'll do my best to make it up to you in March!

Happy February!