House/Puppy Sitting and Updates

As of July 16th, the Hubby and I are on House/Puppy Sitting Duty for our Friends Alex and Michelle while they are in France. It's a nice change from being at my in-laws for the past 5 months due to mold issues in our home. It's definitely different than being over there where my Mother in Law is almost always home taking care of our Nephew. I find myself being alone once in a while, just me and the dogs... and it's kind of nice. Reminds me of when we used to be in our own place.

Our friends' bed sure is comfy, though... that is one thing I really must say I look forward to. We have a queen bed of our own, and have been sleeping in a full since February... so upgrading to a super soft KING bed is definitely fantastic. I have been sleeping sooooooo well, I can't even begin to elaborate, for no words would be enough... I really do love our current sleeping arrangement!

On another note, I officially started my own personal Business with Mary Kay last week, and have my first Pampering Session tonight with a couple of my cousins. Should be fun! I need the practice... Honestly, I have to say that I love the Mary Kay products... they have changes so much since the last time I remember trying them, and honestly, the new face of Mary Kay kicks all the skin care competition out of the water... not to mention that their products really are good! So many women in America SWEAR by them! And all of those women have beautiful skin... It is NEVER too late, nor too EARLY, to start an anti-aging regimen. They even have a ling for Teenagers AND for men! It's fantastic. If you want more info, you can go ahead and e-mail me at mruiz@marykay.com! I would be glad to set up a pampering session for you and 3 friends (did I mention you get a free gift if you do??) or maybe a pedicure party?? ;) Martinis and Makeovers? Whatever tickles your fancy!! Can you tell I'm excited?? Not to mention I have this huge goal to do 30 faces in 30 d

ays!!! It's going to be a lot of work, but I know I will do it!

So I had an audition this past weekend in St. Augustine with First Coast Opera. Looked like a very promising one... but we shall see! Apparently, if I get hired, I'll be in St. Augustine the last 3 weeks in October... It will all depend on what the offer is, but I think I should be cool with that ;) I also have an audition on August 28th in Naples, Fl. I'll be heading up there with a good friend of mine, Miguel Llerena. Should be fun!

Until next time!

Happy Blogging! :)

"Die Zauberflöte" & Opera Resources

So for the past month, or so, I have been working with the Riuniti Opera and the Alhambra Orchestra (once again) on a Production of Die Zauberflöte. This is, officially, my 3rd time performing the role of the "Queen of the Night" in Mozart's fantastically funny yet "deep" creation. Click here for more info about this Opera from Wikipedia.

Finally, today, is the first (of two) performance of thi

s show. We will be performing a short version of the Opera at the University of Miami's Gusman Hall for a bunch of kids at Music Camps. It's going to be fun, and honestly (most of all) it'll be good to see our hard work pay off!

Sunday is the second, and final, performance. We will be performaning at Temple Beth Am in Pinecrest, and yes, this will be the full show (with the exception of a cut or two). If you are my Facebook friend, you can see that I posted some info directly onto my page... if you're not my FB friend, you can go ahead and add me! My FB badge is on the right column ;)

I wanted to add the following...

Nowadays, being an Opera singer has gotten SO much easier than it was for the great singers of the past... we have all sorts of online and technological resources... it's just crazy how things have evolved! For example, on iTunes, if you visit the iTunes store and search for "Opera" in

the Podcast section, you can find all s

orts of goodies! For example, there are FREE (yes, I said FREE) podcasts from such companies as the Washington National Opera in D.C. and Seattle Opera. There is the "premieropera's podcast" which features greats from the past as well as today! The possibilities are endless! Check out this screen shot of the iTunes store featuring some of the endless options:

This is, really, only the beginning... there are sites like YAP Tracker, Aria-Database and so much more (but we'll got into all of that some other time)! ;) It truly makes our lives so much easier! Just think... no more sitting in the libr

ary for hours looking through those old, moldy, translation books... just look it up! Most of the time, you'll find what you're looking for ;)

Happy Blogging!

Help Support a Wonderful Cause

If you are feeling generous... please consider sponsoring my friend's classroom.

She is an Elementary School Teacher who needs a class library, and is trying to get an overhead projector as well. These items are necessary in helping the children do well on the FCAT, which has become a really big deal in the state of Florida...

Please click here and helo make a difference by Adopting a Classroom.

Happy Blogging! :)

Lucky

I realize, more and more everyday, how lucky I am to have been blessed with my talent to sing, and have a real career, not just a job. I know it seems a bit frivolous, singing for a living, but honestly, why not? I love what I do... and it is not as easy as it seems. Nothing worth having is easy to come by... and that is why I work harder and harder everyday to get where I need to be.

So many people go day in day out through their lives waking up driving to some place, faking it all day just to

get a paycheck, and then going home to repeat it the next day... Even though my career choice hasn't always been easy, I truly love what I do... I love being part of something like the Opera world.

I am also so happy to have found someone like my Husband who supports me beyond anything. I cannot even count how many times I have been ready to give up my voice lessons and singing because it was getting too hard or too expensive... but he has never allowed me to do give up! He knows how important it is to have a dream and make it a reality... especially since almost 2 years ago, he and his friend started a business with nothing... no loans, no advice, no help... just a few contacts and through the use of their computers and phones (and our 2nd bedroom). Now, they have their own warehouse with their own inventory, and are doing pretty well for themselves! I am so proud of them...

If you have a dream, don't be stupid and follow it! Do what you have to do to make it a reality... don't get caught up in junk and stupidities... reach for your dreams, no matter how far fetched they may seem... and never, NEVER, let anyone weigh you down!

Happy Blogging! :)

Nice Quote...

I saw this on a FB friend's page from a Quote Generator, and had to share... enjoy!

"What most people need to learn in life is how to love people and use things instead of using people and loving things. (Anonymous)"

Happy Blogging! :)

Our Big Fat Cuban 4th of July

Have you ever had a day or time when you felt you were part of a movie? I definitely did this 4th of July, spending it with friends at the Beach... It was fun and truly interesting ;)

We started planning towards going to the Keys this weekend to celebrate the 4th... but ended up just heading to our Friend's condo in the Ramada Marco Polo. He has a really nice studio apartment on the beach. We arrived before 10 in the morning to avoid parking issues. We brought up the food, and coolers stuffed with beers and sodas, and got settled before heading down to the beach. The water was nice, not too hot, not too cold, and the Sun was out most of the time (My Hubby and I have the tans to prove it). We definitely had to take advantage, because the bad weather was definitely coming, and could not be avoided. We were out there a while, catching some rays, and swimming around, before finally packing up just in time to seek shelter from the big storm that was coming. We got upstairs, showered and had some dinner, followed by a game of Beer Pong (my first time playing!) and then some fireworks, courtesy of Alex, Jose and Adrian. They were great! All and all, a great day...

Still, I couldn't help but notice how several moments in the day strangely resembled the hilarious movie, "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" (one of my favorite movies of all time)... from Jose's Mom and his girlfriend's parents bringing "Boliche" and Turkey to the beach, to cramming about 18 people into a small studio apartment, to how loud we were all together... It was so funny! Jose's mom even reminded me of the Mother in the movie... telling people when to shower, how to prepare the food, and when to eat... it was a trip! We had a great time, and I definitely spent the day laughing, which is always good ;)

Of course it's always nice to celebrate something so important as the Independence of our GREAT country! It is because of this that we are able to speak our minds, and even write on our own blogs! No one can tell us what, or what not, to say or how to dress... and aside from laws which help our society function, we are FREE! Gotta love America!

I hope you all had a wonderful weekend with Family & Friends!

Happy Blogging! :)