Happy Birthday, Mom!

Brianna G.

April 23, 2011 - 4:35 PM

This weekend I my family visited Eugene in order to celebrate my mom's birthday and to watch my sister's track meet. It's always a lot of fun having family in Eugene; for one, I don't get home enough and it's also nice to show my family what I'm up to and like to do at school. My mom had big plans for her birthday as well- the whole family was going to see Wicked at the Hult Center! I'm pretty impressed that she even got my dad on board as theater isn't really his thing. But her and I love it, and my three other sisters are fans as well.

My parents and youngest sister Kaila came into Eugene in the afternoon, and we headed straight to the Oregon Relays to watch another one of my sisters compete. Missy, a high school junior, pole vaults and we were all very excited to watch her in Eugene again this year. It was a pretty big deal for her and teammates to get to compete in Hayward Field as well, alongside the college teams that compete in the Oregon Relays. Plus, it was gorgeous and warm day, so all of Eugene was out and about.

Missy sailed through her first couple of heights, and struggled with her first two jumps at 9'6'' just skimming the bar with her first and second jumps. Her third jump at 9'6'' cleared the bar with room to spare. This was a six inch improvement over her jump at the Oregon Relays, so we were all excited for her! Unfortunately, her jumps at 10' weren't as clean, but we were all pretty happy with her height.

As soon as Missy was finished jumping, we headed straight to Agate Alley for a quick birthday dinner before we headed off to see Wicked. It was busy, but we got a table quick enough and enjoyed a delicious meal on the porch, enjoying the beautiful day. Agate Alley is one of my favorite restaurants, so it was great getting to share their menu with my family.

After a pretty quick meal, we headed straight over to the Hult Center and sat down just in time for the play to begin. I had actually seen the play once before in high school, and I was really excited to see it again. None of the other members of my family had ever seen the play before, but we were all familiar with the story. My mom is an especially big fan of theater, so this was a perfect way to spend her birthday. For those of you unfamiliar with the storyline, the play is centered on the ‘Evil Witch of the West' from the story The Wizard of Oz. It explains her side of the story, painting a drastically different picture. There is also a novel out there that the play is based on if you're interested in hearing more but don't have a chance to see the play.

The performance was, as expected, amazing. I really enjoy the music set to the play, and I think I even liked it better the second time. The set and costumes were also a lot of fun- some aspects were very elaborate. The cast was great, and you could feel the energy they carried throughout the play, which I find to be one of my favorite aspects of live performances.
I had never been to the Hult Center before, and was pleasantly surprised with it. I wasn't sure what to expect, having gone to plays in many types of theaters. It's a really neat building; I particularly enjoyed the architecture of the interior of the theater. And even though we didn't have front row seats, the sound and view was great!

My family also got to experience Studio Ones amazing Eggs Benedict in the morning, and Eugene's Saturday Market. We bought a whole bunch of delicious looking vegetables and some plants for my mom's garden at home. Missy also put some of those very popular hair feathers in. It was an absolutely beautiful day in Eugene, and I was so happy to get to spend some of it outside enjoying the sunshine with the family.