Don't judge me until you've experienced it

As I've mentioned before (I think), I work at a mall.

Sometimes this is good, sometimes it is not.

I am learning that during the holidays, it is not good. Obvious reason #1 is the holiday hours. I will be here until 11 pm some nights. But I'll be fine as long as I'm fortified with some movies to watch when there are no customers. If you have any fabulous movie suggestions for me, please suggest away. We're way cool and have Netflix now so I can watch any movie I want, as long as I want it 2 days in the future.

Anyway, The reason working at the mall is not good, the reason I am learning and experiencing as we speak, is the music.

The mall plays music, which I think is fine. It's not too loud, but it's loud enough that I can hear it inside my little store. They play pretty ok stuff, and it's fine.

HOWEVER. To add some Christmas cheer to the mall, there has been a piano player established outside my store for the last week. The first time I came into work and realized this was happening, I thought, as you no doubt are thinking, "That will be so nice! Listening to pretty piano Christmas music at work."

But I was wrong, and so are you. Within the first hour I hated that piano. Already songs were repeating. And if all of them were good, nice Christmas songs, it might not be so bad. It would also be better if they turned off the radio playing through the mall while this man plays in our corner of it. But nope, you can always hear a little bit of a bass or some high-pitched singing, though the song is never identifiable.

Let's take a tour of some of the songs I've heard from the piano today and why I disliked them:

• When You Wish Upon a Star. It's a lovely song, I realize, but the whole reason to have a piano player right now is for Christmas music.

• Streets of Laredo. I'm sure it's not really, but I can't identify the true tune and that's what it sounds like to me.

• My Favorite Things. I don't know why it bothers me so much that people think it's a Christmas song, but it does. I too grew up wanting to be Liesel von Trapp, and I realize the appeal of that musical, but this song has nothing to do with Christmas.

• Santa Claus is Coming to Town. I don't dislike this song, by the one this guy is playing sounds like it was arranged by David Lanz.

• I Heard Him Come, which for some unexplainable reason transitioned into You Raise Me Up, that horrible Josh Groban song. I liked singing I Heard Him Come around the campfire at Girl's Camp, but for the holidays? No. And I don't like Josh Groban ever, not even at Girl's Camp.

• That other horrible Josh Groban song, the Christmas one. I don't know what it's called. But you know the one. And if you don't, tune into FM 100 or KOSY 106.5 and if you don't hear within 30 minutes let me know and I will give you a prize.

• God Rest Ye Merry Gentleman. Again, I like this song, but this one sounded like it was supposed to be in a scary movie

• The Phantom of the Opera Medley which cut off right when it got to the good part that it supposed to be on an organ. What?

I know I'm being unnecessarily negative about this, so to balance it, I'm going to make another list of things I'm thankful for.

Really I kept meaning to do some sort of Thanksgiving-y post and list things I was grateful for, but I was too busy lounging around on my break from work and school.

But here it is:

• The version the piano man plays of Bring a Torch, Jeanette, Isabella. I have no idea what that song means, but I know I like it.

• The beanbag that Teenwhiz made me for Christmas like 3 years ago. Our house is a litle bit chilly, so we toss that guy in the microwave every night before bed, then our feet fight with each other over it.

• The songs Winter Wonderland and Let It Snow. I love those guys.

• The warmest November and December I've ever had. We had a Fall this year!

• That my cute cousin/twin Jon is getting married to an adorable girl whose mom was a Bangerter. This is awesome because Jon's mom is a Robison. The Robison and Bangerter families grew up together at the edge of Grandview Hill many years ago. I have heard lots of stories from my own Robison mom involving Bangerters, and I'm so happy that the two fams have come together with them getting married.

• Extended family to play football with on Thanksgiving and laugh and talk with the day after.

• My cute Christopherson. I like that he makes up songs and sings them to me, I like that if he doesn't answer the phone by saying "Ay bay bay!" I'm a little puzzled, and I like it when he laughs at me when I tell him I woke up in the middle of the night and thought he was dead because he wasn't snoring and I couldn't hear him breathing.

• the nieniedialogues and cjanerun.

• "Swifty Wirthlin." I really love Elder Wirthlin (and who doesn't dig that nickname?), and I'm glad for him to be home again.

• The leaves we have in our front yard. It's DECEMBER! I still can't believe it hasn't snowed yet and it's this warm.

• The youtube user "janisjimmyjim," who put Roman Holiday on youtube in 12 parts, making my work day a lot better.

• My mama y papa. I'm pretty sure I'd be a homeless drunkard by now if not for them. (I've been close, let me assure you.)

• Linda and Angela. (My mother and sister-in-law.) They moved to Provo and it's awesome. Much easier to visit now that they're in the same state.

• My job at the RSC. I am already preparing myself for the necessary exit in April. I'm not excited, I assure you.

Well. Congratulations if you made it to the end of this guy. Apparently sitting by myself for 6 hours with very minimal contact made me a little talkative. And really hungry.