Heather Lucier Stanley

A rare dusting of snow

Periodically, I am going to write a blog in Spanish because learning Spanish is part of my midlife journey. The blogs will be elementary at first. Eventually, I’ll be able to write more intermediate and advanced blogs in Spanish. This excites me!

I may not have perfect grammar now, but I will eventually have better grammar. I wrote this assignment mostly from memory. Since the professor only requires six sentences, I did not write too many more! Baby steps.

For my Spanish speaking friends and family, enjoy:

Mi diario-Mi casa

Mi casa es grande. Hay ocho cuartos y tres baños. En la cocina, el comedor, y dos salones, las paredes son amarillas. En la cocina, hay una mesa y cuatro sillas donde estudio español. En el comedor, hay otra mesa y cuatro sillas y mi piano. Toco el piano con frecuencia. En el salón cerca del comedor, hay dos sillones marrones, una televisión, dos estantes marrones, y dos mesitas. También, la televisión está sobre una mesa. En otro salón, hay un sofá grande y una televisión. Mi lugar favorito en mi casa es mi cama. Me gusta dormir bien por la noche.

Sunset at Lake Travis

Recently, a friend asked how it is returning to school and if it is easier or harder.

My response: “It’s different. I am spending a lot more time studying.”

This is my 4th time in school.

1) I studied – of my own choosing, after meeting core requirements – Creative Writing and Literature, Psychology, Art History, French and Spanish as an undergraduate at The University of Michigan. I received my Bachelor’s in Creative Writing and Literature in 1992.

2) I studied Business and Accounting at The University of Texas at San Antonio. I consciously decided not to get another bachelor’s degree – more core requirements? No! – and focused on taking all the required classes to sit for the Certified Public Accountant (CPA) exam.

In the mid-90s to sit for the CPA exam in Texas, a person needed a bachelor’s degree in any subject, 30 hours of accounting and 21 hours of business. In addition, a Texas CPA candidate needed at least a year of work experience in public accounting or industry under a CPA. I have been a Certified Public Accountant for 12 years and will continue to renew my license every year.

3) I studied computer information systems at The University of Phoenix and received my Master’s Degree in Information Systems in 2008.

4) In the summer 2011, I will start studying to be a Counselor Intern (CI) and I have already started relearning Spanish to help both English and Spanish speakers in Texas who need and seek out addictions counseling.

How do my studying experiences compare and contrast to one other at The University of Michigan, The University of Texas-San Antonio and The University of Phoenix?

I did not study a lot as an undergraduate at The University of Michigan. I partied. I can honestly say, I did not have the maturity to be a student at 18 years old. I am happy, however, that I picked a major for which I had some natural talent and I graduated.

In my early to mid-20s, when I started studying at The University of Texas – San Antonio, I had matured as a student. I studied a lot and seriously. I got asked to be in the business honor society, Beta Alpha Psi, and all the top accounting firms started recruiting me to be a part of their team.

I got one B for having an 89 average and the professor who gave it to me explained it this way, “It will benefit you in the recruiting process.” I know what he meant, but he explained it in terms of A, B, and C students: “A students stay in academia, B students get recruited and C students are the deal makers.” So in other words, I did not look like such a straight arrow – one B made me seem like I had more personality and got out a little! One B, changing perception? Whatever. He just wanted to give me a B.

In my mid-30s, I decided to get a Master’s Degree in Information Systems because (1) I thought I might like to teach at a junior college or online, and (2) my company was paying for 66% of it. I chose The University of Phoenix because I traveled 35% for my career.

I believe I got one B in this scenario too. Another student and myself paired up in several classes and carried the other students in our group work situations, but we wanted the As and the other students did not. They may have gotten As anyway, but I did not care if I helped them out. However, my teammate got a little bitchy – to put it nicely. I could understand his point and empathized with him, but I explained my reasoning to him as: I like to give people the benefit of the doubt until a pattern of behavior develops over continued interaction with the person. Therefore, if a student slacked in 1 class, I gave him the benefit of the doubt. If he slacked in 2 classes, I started to see a pattern of behavior. Ultimately, my teammate focused on ratting out the person who slacked in the 2 classes that we all had together. I chose not to rat out anybody, but because my teammate insisted on it, I tried to persuade him to be more selective in who he ratted out. That is the Champion Idealist coming out.

How is my 4th time in school going to shake out?

I’m going to have fun with it. I love to learn. I’ll study hard because I want to know as much as I can about social work. The days of being the immature student are long gone! 18-22 years old is a lot different from 24-28 years old. And 24-28 years old is a lot different from 36-38 years old. When I am 50, I’ll reflect on 40, and my 40s, and understand my personal growth even more!

We are here to learn in so many ways. The same life lessons can be taught in different contexts: raising a family, moving up the career leader, studying to be an expert at something new, etc. There is no one way to learn what we need to learn. There is no better way. There are preferred ways for each of us, however. I enjoy being a student.

I have taken piano lessons off and on for several years and have never progressed past Beginner-Intermediate for various reasons. For many years, work travel took priority. Also I could never find a teacher who I truly liked.

Clavier-Werke, where I currently take piano lessons, has a top notch program. The school teaches music theory and conducts master classes and public recitals in the fall and spring every year.

The master class is a private recital in front of one’s peers before playing in front of the public. I am enjoying the fall and spring master classes, but I do not want to play in front of the public at the moment. I played once in front of the public at 32 or 33 years old (in front of Alan even!) and I learned from it, so I will never say it will never happen again. Right now, I am content playing for myself and my peers who happen to be elementary school children.

I have a lot of respect for the elementary school children who have the discipline to practice piano to play it well. Perhaps, through mom and dad’s influence or coaxing, but I am still impressed. Moms and dads have a lot of power. The best thing, of course, is for a child to choose an activity using his/her own free will.

My mother used to perform at piano for money when she was younger and I had access to a piano. I recall begging my parents if I could take piano lessons in elementary school when my best friend starting taking them from a woman in our neighborhood.

In the 4th grade, I remember that my best friend and I made learning piano a social occasion by each taking turns playing the same and only song we knew, Scott Joplin’s The Entertainer. Concurrently, I had been developing a major interest in sports from my athletic father and I had dropped piano almost as quickly as I had started it. I did not take up piano again until my mid-20s when I could afford my own upright.

I feel fortunate that I am not working right now because I have the time to learn how to play piano better. Playing piano is relaxing and challenging. For example, Fiesta Espana will take me approximately one month to memorize and learn how to play well.

There is no rhyme or reason to the songs that I LOVE – as far as I know. I do not yet have the repertoire or the experience to figure out if a commonality exists for each song that I LOVE that makes it different from the ones that I do not enjoy playing.

I love House of the Rising Sun. I feel that I love it because it is a soothing song. So gentle to play. My fingers dance like a fine waltz, but it is not a waltz. Now, when I go to the teacher, she may say that I need to play the song differently, but that is OK.

I love the week I have alone to interpret the music as I please, but I do appreciate how the teacher keeps me on course to becoming a better pianist. I know I only have a few months with this teacher because she is graduating and I will miss her. I am already grieving with the thought of losing such a good teacher and fear the process of finding another teacher who suits my Idealistic personality. But I know that as long as I describe really well what I need in a new teacher, I will get it, if one is out there!

As I read more and more about personality type, other than my own, pianists – like athletes – tend to be Artisans, not Idealists. Whereas precision to Artisans is so important, my happiness does not come from playing precisely, but from just playing good enough to enjoy the song. My current teacher understands this about me. I have had other piano teachers who have wanted me to be the perfect pianist and I don’t want to be the perfect pianist.

Another thing about Idealists is that they do not view success the same way as Artisans, Guardians, or Rationals. Too complex to describe here, but really simply:

Miss Idealist, does a song make you happy?
Yes

So what do you do?
Keep playing it.

Miss Idealist, does a song make you sad?
Yes
Or more realistically, I tell the teacher I do not like the song and if she feels that I have learned the certain technique good enough, she will not have me play it the following week. However, if I still need practice to be good enough at the technique -and it is not going to be covered in another song – I must play the song again one more week.

So what do you do?
Stop playing it.

This short discussion could carry over to anything for an Idealist: relationships, careers, etc. And that, my friend, is quite a long discussion.

Beauty Bar

It takes an amazing amount of effort to keep white jeans unstained when out in the Austin nightlife! But what is life without an adventure?

I found myself to be a little high maintenance this evening taking extra precautions and here are some tips if you are so daring to rock white jeans out at night at a bar:

1. Stay sober. It is definitely easier to predict situations and be proactive if you have all your wits about you.
2. Forgo the black ink stamp on your hand and ask your significant other to forgo the ink stamp.
3. Move away from the people dancing wildly about.
4. Stand at least one person away from the cigarette smoker.
5. Do not try to squeeze through people because you never know what you may be brushing up against.
6. Be wary of the people drinking cocktails that are not clear in color.
7. If you go to the food carts after being at the bar, stay away from the people who are eating.

So how did I do?

Great! My jeans are not stained and I had a blast talking, listening to music and dancing.

A good friend asked, “How is it being sober around a bunch of drunk people?”

1st answer: Ok
2nd answer: Entertaining
3rd answer: I had fun! That’s all that matters!

Any funny mishaps that could have been tragic?

When our group first got to the Beauty Bar we went inside the hot, steamy interior of the bar. I had been standing near a trio of grungy looking men. Because we had just arrived, I was not particularly familiar yet with the setting: I still needed to get my bearings. All of a sudden I smelled a fart. Then, one of the grungy men in the trio backed up into me and stepped on my lower back calve muscle. Footprint on my jeans? Nothing I could not brush off. Thank goodness.

A subtle nail color

OPI – Sweet Memories – I love the color!

I enjoy getting mani/pedis, especially before an event, like a friend’s 1st pool party of the spring season. Sweet Memories by OPI is a nice subtle color and I appreciate the time Teresa at Great Nails spent on my mani/pedi: I did not feel rushed at all.

My fingernails are clean and short for playing piano and my feet can be slipped confidently into some fun sandals for the pool party. Little things make me happy.

I am easily amused. I grew up with parents who emphasized having fun and being lighthearted. Sometimes, I’d look at them like they were crazy, Come on, grow up! I’d think to myself as they would embarrass me time after time with their antics.

I must say, now I get it. I had a blast on St. Patrick’s Day this year because I pulled out of my closet a green hat. I wore this hat downtown to The Strokes concert and hung out with Alan and a friend who brought along some of his friends. The hat was a hit.

Everybody loves a prop, if they are lighthearted. At one point, I became The Green Slash. I also snapped a photo of Alan in the hat with the almost full moon behind him at the concert.

Buy a hat or pull one out of your closet and have some fun with it. Life is too short to take yourself too seriously.

Last Sunday evening, Alan and I had just finished having dinner at South Congress Cafe and were walking North towards the Capital when we spotted a friend who lives in Dallas talking on his cell. Although Austin’s population is 790,390, according to the 2010 census, downtown Austin is truly small. One of my friends from New Jersey, who has lived in Philly, calls Austin her “starter city.” At any moment, we are likely to see somebody we know downtown doing the same thing that we are doing.

I make a mental note of things about the Spanish language that native Spanish speakers point out, especially when their opinions differ from the text.

In my Spanish textbook, one vocabulary section translates doctor as: el médico for a male doctor and la médica for a female doctor.

Last week at my part-time seasonal job, I happened to be saying out loud my Spanish vocabulary words for my upcoming vocabulary quiz. One of my co-workers and I were practicing together when another co-worker’s daughter came to the front desk to wait for her mother, another tax preparer. The mother and daughter are from Cuba. The daughter heard me practicing the words: el médico and la médica. After I said them, she told me: La médica no es correcta. Then, she suggested I say la doctora instead.

I told my Spanish teacher from Spain the story and asked her if she felt the same way. She said the same thing. I found this quite interesting. The Spanish textbook is incorrect and I am not surprised.

I know there are differences in how Spanish is spoken across all the Spanish speaking countries, so I always ask, “How do they say it in your [Spanish speaking] country?” when I understand that a different way of saying something may exist.

Does anybody know if la médica is used in any context/country?

Tina Sloan leading the way

Yesterday, I had an amazing experience at SXSW.

At the invitation of one of my friends, I ate lunch with Tina Sloan, an incredibly witty and charming actress who played Lillian Raines on The Guiding Light for 26 years before the show went off the air. After lunch, I saw a special SXSW showing of “Happy New Year,” in which she plays the mother of a war veteran who is seriously injured at war.

“Happy New Year” is an extremely moving and sad film about Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) suffered by veterans of war. I highly recommend it. “Happy New Year” is one of 8 movies at SXSW that is up for an award. The movie is seeking the “right distributor” to release it to the general public. I hope it makes it to you!