The Luck of the Utahn

Not all of my unemployed weeks are boring, and this one actually had a lot of unusual things going on.

On Tuesday, I went to see Phillip Phillips at the Depot in Salt Lake. Phillip Phillips, you might remember, was one of the winners of American Idol--nowhere near as good as Kelly or Carrie, but at least he hasn't faded into absolute obscurity: you have undoubtedly heard his early songs "Home" and "Gone Gone Gone." I actually have all three of his albums, but that doesn't mean I'm a superfan. See, I got his first album because I liked his radio singles, and I have this thing where if I get an artist's first album when they only have one album, then I will get all their subsequent albums. Mostly I find his music a bit boring, but it's OK. I had never been to the Depot before, and I thought it was a perfect venue for him. He's too mediocre for Vivint Arena, but his live singing and band were perfect for this smaller venue. He's just as good live as he is on his recordings. I liked the Depot because it wasn't too loud or cramped. I will definitely keep it on my radar to visit again if they have a band I like.

This was from the balcony, where the bar is. It was the first time I have ever had to use my ID to get in someplace.

On Thursday, I drove through the slushy weather to Manti, where I had an interview. (Don't worry, I have no intention of moving to Manti. Or maybe you want me gone--in that case, sorry, but I still have no intention of moving to Manti.) While I was there, I thought I would have fun in the quaint little town. I love that you can see its temple from anywhere in the town. I stopped in a fun little candy store on the town's Mayberry-like Main Street.

I also stopped in a little LDS bookstore. They had a surprisingly decent selection for such a little town, and I was surprised they even had the book with my name on it, which I doubt anyone will ever read. (I took pictures, but then I remembered there was a sign saying no photography, so I won't put them here.) They also had many used books for sale. I bought a copy of History of the Young Ladies' Mutual Improvement Association by Susa Young Gates, a source I checked for At the Pulpit. This copy was used in the Manti library. It still had the card in the back that they stamp. As I looked at the dates, I thought, "Oh, this hasn't been out of circulation for that long, since 2013 is pretty recent." But then I realized that the '13 was 1913, not 2013! I think it's cool I got this old book that people were getting from the library in Manti more than a hundred years ago. It was a decent way to spend eleven dollars. (It was one of those stores where you walk in and feel bad not buying anything.)

 Since I've already been in Sanpete County in the last six months, I wanted to go through Emery and Carbon Counties, but I didn't want to with the snow and rain. (My car's lane-departure and forward-collision sensors quit working because they were coated in slush.) But a lower priority bucket list item for me is to go to every county seat, so I decided to eat lunch in Nephi. Every little town has a burger joint, and at this time of year I like to see if they have mint shakes. I stopped in a place called Nebo Queen, and mint was not on the menu. But then I happened to notice a sign for shakes of the month, including the "Leprechaun"--a mint chocolate chip shake with Lucky Charms! It's the most creative March shake I have seen, and it was in the most random place.

I have a group of friends who have season tickets to the Utah Opera, and one of them couldn't go on Friday, so she offered her ticket to me. I figured I might as well take it and see if my opinion of opera is justified. I have always felt that nobody actually likes opera--they just say they do because it makes them sound sophisticated. It's like the Emperor's New Clothes--everyone is too embarrassed to say it's bad because they will sound stupid.

We saw two operas by Puccini, Pagliacci and Gianni Schicchi. My opinion has softened. I hate to admit it, but I did enjoy it. Not enough to consider myself a fan, but it was enjoyable while I was there. Here's my opinion now: operatic singing belongs in opera and nowhere else. The Mormon Tabernacle Choir has a lot of operatic guest stars, and they are terrible. BYU devotionals always began with soloists who sang somewhat operatically, and they were terrible. But opera is fine in opera.

I can remember every St. Patrick's Day going back to 1994, and Saturday was the only one I can remember where it snowed (in Utah, that is). Luckily, my coat and my umbrella just happen to be green. I like St. Patrick's Day because it's one of the first warm, sunny days of spring, but not this year. There's no reason I should like St. Patrick's Day: I'm not Catholic or Irish, and I detest drunkenness. But I do like it. I like wearing green from head to toe (I wore green shoes, socks, pants, belt, shirt, and glasses). I like eating corned beef, even though I don't usually like beef. I like seeing food colored green. I like imagining leprechauns and pots of gold. It's a strangely fun day.

Six years ago, I went to Salt Lake's St. Patrick's Day parade (that post was one of my more popular ones). I wanted to go last year as part of my holiday bucket lists, but it was on March 18, the day I move on to Easter. (I don't like the holiday enough to celebrate it when it's over, and I'm especially cynical about parades.) Since I missed out last year, I decided to go this year. I invited others, but nobody likes me and I went alone. It was OK. It was less interesting than I remember from the parades of 2012 and 1996. There were no green horses or dogs. No shamrocks painted on the road (just a green line). Most of the entries were politicians, Irish dance schools, churches, and Catholic schools. I had no idea there were so many Catholic schools in Utah. There were a few local celebrities: the morning show of Mix 105.1, and Mayor Jackie Biskupski. Wasatch Brewery had an entry, and I could hear some of the people on their truck commenting about my greenness, but I avoided eye contact because I don't condone them at all. They had some events afterwards at the Gallivan Center; I wanted to get some Irish stew, but it was cash only and the ATM was broken. (It's just as well--ten dollars was very steep for a plate of stew.)

According to Wikipedia, Lenten fasting gets a hiatus on St. Patrick's Day, so I didn't have to count calories. Two years ago, I first had an Asian avocado milkshake, and it's a new favorite tradition. It's a nice break from minty everything, and it doesn't even need food coloring to be green. (You might object to Asian drinks on an Irish holiday, but I don't think minty shakes are any more Irish.)

After attending an awkward performance by the LDS Air Force Cadet Choir from Colorado, I came home and watched the Disney Channel movie The Luck of the Irish, which came out in 2001 but I had never seen. I used to have a list of movies and TV episodes I would watch for every holiday, but I have mostly stopped that. But I found it interesting that the grandpa leprechaun was played by the same actor who played the leprechaun in a March episode of Bewitched thirty years earlier. Not that you care.