Friday, January 19, 2007

A Night at the Opera… sort of…

The same man who shot a seventeen point buck this season also loves the musical Phantom of the Opera, and thus, I love him!

A touring production of the show is at Toledo’s Stranahan Theatre, so this year to celebrate the holidays I got him tickets, and he got me the fabulous coat below which I wore to the show!













We had a wonderful night out. The funny part was though, I couldn’t “turn off” the theatre student in me. Throughout the performance, my mind was critiquing everything, as if I had to go home and write a paper about it!

To my disappointment, however, the theatre wasn’t full and radio promos are now offering discount tickets. This is in stark contrast to the brimming audience I experienced while singing the National Anthem at last weekends Monster Truck show for FOX Toledo.

It boggles my mind why cultural and worthwhile events like the arts and scholarship pageants struggle to secure an audience, while other events…. I don’t know how to say it nicely, but you know what I mean…

I'm beginning to wonder if maybe Miss America would be better off as the stupid Super Bowl Half-time Show. I guess ratings will tell! Ten days and counting...

3 comments:

  1. I usually greatly enjoy reading your pageant blog. Although I completely understand that this is your forum to use at your discretion, I was wondering if you may consider taking the picture of the dead deer off of your blog. I am an animal lover and do not agree with hunting. Although I also understand that there are many out there who will rationalize hunting as uses for affordable food (although hunting usually costs around $1000 for the average hunter over a season) and helping keep down the deer population (yet the natural selection of winter does this), I do not agree and find the photo extremely disturbing.

    Again, I understand that this is your forum. I do enjoy reading it usually but think you may not have considered others when posting this upsetting photo.

    Thank you.

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  2. I understand this is a serious matter, but I can’t help but laugh and sigh with frustration, in light of the other “issues” I have had recently with photos I posted of Melanie! I appreciate your readership and don’t want to lose it, and I very much appreciate that you voiced your opinion to me in this ideal, mature fashion.

    However, I’m leaving the picture for three reasons.
    #1. While I was trying to prove a point that people can be extremely diverse, more than anything it was for my boyfriend, just like he has a big ‘ol pageant headshot of me hanging in his office for the entire dealership to see. It’s something he’s extremely proud of, and though I don’t entirely “get it,” I’m happy for him and he really appreciated that I shared it.

    #2. I think everyone is a little too used to the way this blog was when I was a contestant…lol… I didn’t think it would be all that different, but I’m sharing more opinions and like you said, this is my forum to use at my discretion. I guess that probably applies more to the issue with Melanie’s send-off party photos, but in my mind it’s seeming similar. Especially considering I never had any problems with the content of my other two blogs.

    #3. I too am a huge animal lover and when I was a little girl I used take my grandpa’s hunting trips very hard, I wouldn’t wear leather, etc… But I have learned that, believe it or not, the hunters I know love and respect animals and nature even more than I do. Like I said, I don’t get it, but Loren is perfectly content to sit in the freezing woods enjoying it’s beauty, even if he never sees a deer. He only takes a shot if he knows its good, as to be human and not injure a deer. In terms of thinning out the population, it is necessary; there is a farmer begging Loren to come back, to help save his crops! Finally, not to disrespect your opinion, but the picture is not all that gory, especially if you don’t click and enlarge it.

    *sigh* I didn’t expect to write a dissertation with my morning coffee… but it just sort of came out…. I’m sorry if the picture is upsetting to you and I can not stress enough how I respect that you left me a comment. It’ll probably eat me up for a few days that someone is upset with me/my blog, and I’ll question my decision over and over… lol… but my instinct is that it’s staying. Sorry.

    ~Abby

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  3. I feel the need to respond to this comment on behalf of all ethical hunters in the world. I am the gentleman in photo and also an animal lover. I do not have to rationalize hunting in any way, however there are many who benefit from proper conservation efforts including the deer population itself.
    Before continuing, the simple fact that Abby put this photo on her blog, knowing that she is not big on hunting herself, made me feel even more special than she already does every day. Thanks Ab!
    I, like many big game hunters, spend a lot of time in the woods admiring a beauty that many never truly get the opportunity to appreciate. By that I mean seeing wildlife in a natural setting doing things as if noone were there watching, because they are unaware of my presence.
    I assure you, I spend many days just watching, however, I was in the right place at the right time when this beautiful specimin walked by. He was approx. a 5 1/2 yr old buck, mind you deer in the wild typically don't live much beyond that, but regardless deer numbers are at an all time high and without proper conservation efforts many will, as you mentioned, die from starvation over the winter months due to lack of food. I don't know about you, but I would choose a quick death over a long drawn out one any day. Beyond that, the damage to farmers crops is unbelieveable.
    I could debate the issue at length, but rather I accept your right not to like what I do and in the same vane I think you should do the same. The world would be a much better place if people would spend half as much time worrying about themselves as they do everyone else.
    And for the record, I haven't spent much more than $1000 in the 8 yrs I've been hunting, but would gladly spend that and more to experience the things I have in my time "hunting".

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