8.23.2013

thanks


Listen
with the night falling we are saying thank you
we are stopping on the bridge to bow from the railings
we are running out of the glass rooms
with our mouths full of food to look at the sky
and say thank you
we are standing by the water looking out
in different directions

back from a series of hospitals back from a mugging
after funerals we are saying thank you
after the news of the dead
whether or not we knew them we are saying thank you
in a culture up to its chin in shame
living in the stench it has chosen we are saying thank you

over telephones we are saying thank you
in doorways an in the backs of cars and in elevators
remembering wars and the police at the back door
and the beatings on stairs we are saying thank you
in the banks that use us we are saying thank you
with the crooks in office with the rich and fashionable
unchanged we go on saying thank you thank you

with the animals dying around us
our lost feelings we are saying thank you
with the forests falling faster than the minutes
of our lives we are saying thank you
with the words going out like the cells of a brain
with the cities growing over us like the earth
we are saying thank you faster and faster
with nobody listening we are saying thank you
and we are saying thank you and waving
dark though it is

- w.s. merwin 

image: waiting by vilhelm hammershoi via silent storyteller

8.06.2013

havana nights


tonight i went to a new zumba class. for starters, i've been taking zumba for probably about four years now, off and on, and with a few different instructors. it's so much fun and has definitely loosened up this ex-ballerina. latin dance + hip hop is basically always a win in my book. surprisingly, i'm actually rather good at zumba. one of my prouder moments was during a class a few years ago when a man next to me wearing tighter workout pants than i will ever own and a legit sweatband stopped what he was doing and said to me "girl, you're tall, but you sure can shake it." um, thank you? i'll take that as a compliment.

that said, i fearlessly walked in to tonight's class with all the confidence in the world. as a disclaimer, i'm not terribly confident at the gym in general. i don't like weight rooms or classes with words like "blast" or "turbo" in them. i don't ever want to incorporate a tire into my workout and i think there's a reason that "burpee" sounds like a noise you make right before you vomit. i don't pretend to be hardcore. but when it comes to zumba, i'm good to go. i don't usually have trouble keeping up.

but then there was this class.

with the latin instructor wearing flames printed up the sides of her pants. who kept shouting commands in spanish and was impossible to see. where 60% of the other women in the class were latin. with literal non-stop salsa music and faster moves than i've ever seen. with no breaks or tutorials or overviews. where i faced the front when everyone else faced back and vice-versa. where i had to resort to trying to emulate the lovely latino girl in front of me with the backless shirt and the remarkably impressive beyonce booty shake.

at the end of the class, i thought it would be a good idea to talk to the instructor. for the record, her makeup still looked perfect and she was barely sweaty. she was painfully pretty and spoke with a heavy spanish accent. here's how it went basically:

me: "hi, this is my first class and i really enjoyed it! i've taken zumba before, but this is a little faster-paced than i'm used to. how long does it usually take newcomers to catch up?"

señorita: "you never dance before? that's okay. you can't keep up, you just march."(demonstrates marching in place for my benefit)

me: "well, no, i've actually danced my whole life. and i never usually have trouble keeping up in zumba. this is just a lot faster and different than i'm used to. how many combinations do you have in rotation on a regular basis?"

señorita: "that's okay you just practice." (gives me a sad, sympathetic once-over) "wow... look at you. you sweaty."


muchas gracias.

image via @glamourouscitylights on tumblr

8.03.2013

high five


i was recently tagged by the lovely lacey (and by recently i mean like six months ago) to do a fun little "five things" post that's been floating around the bloggy world these days. ironically, this also happens to be my five-hundreth blog post. even though i haven't been very committed to the blog lately, i am so thankful for the role it has played and will play in chronicling my life and engaging my creativity. a five things post seems a fitting way to mark this milestone. making lists happens to be one of my favorite things, so let's get to it. five random things you may not know about me:


1. one of my other favorite things in life (besides lists) is taking weekend trips to new (and old) places. i love trying new restaurants, exploring local boutiques and galleries and wandering neighborhoods looking at houses. it doesn't have to be far away and i get just as excited about small towns as i do about the big ones. even when i don't particularly love a place, it's fun to experience the culture and find the things that make it unique. i'm not a big fan of doing tourist-y things when i travel, and i like to take my time and be spontaneous. schedules are for work days.

2. sometimes (a lot of times) i like to sing in my car and practice my kareoke debut. i've never actually sung karoke and that's probably better for everyone. if i did, however, i would probably like to sing 1. tim mcgraw by taylor swift 2. escapade by janet jackson  or, a duet with some unbeknowst kid rock stand-in to 3. picture by kid rock featuring sheryl crow. (and please don't judge me for numbers two and three. the heart wants what it wants.) this tidbit does not, however, mean that i am actually going to sing karaoke. okay then.


3. i really like books and magazines. i don't want to read them on a tablet. i want to hold them in my hands and turn their pages and underline things and fold down corners. sorry, iPad, but i just don't need or want your help with that.

4. i overanalyze everything. all the time. every waking moment, every single thing. sometimes i'd like to turn my brain off, please, and not think so much. it would probably definitely make my life a little less stressful.


5. when i grow up and have a family, i am so excited to make big, lazy breakfasts together on weekends. especially pancakes. i love breakfast and i love staying home in my pajamas and making it. it will be a lot more fun when i don't have to eat all the cinnamon rolls by myself. although i can't say i mind too much because cinnamon rolls are delicious.

1. tedbaker 2. budget travel 3. honey kennedy 4. victoria savannah