I’d rather laugh than do crunches for my abs anyway.
in Thoughts and Feelings
as ballerina, basketball, basketball games, brother jonathan, caxias, chance, Cisne, danger, darndest, everything, first test, hearth, hearth and home, home, kidnapper, person, stranger, stranger danger, stranger stranger, tonight
Tonight I have laughter all stuck inside me. I am not sure how, exactly, it got in there, but it is trying its darndest to come out every chance it gets, because just about everything is cracking me up right now.
It might have started on the subway.
No, back up. It might have started before that–when I got my name in Capoeira.
I was all nervous, because I had to stand in front of a huge group of people and it’s times like that when I go back to my roots.
My roots being that I was very shy when I was little and would much rather be with an animal (providing it was not a spider. wait, are spiders considered animals?) than talk to a stranger. STRANGER DANGER! was ingrained into the very core of my being. I was sure that any person who so much as looked at me was a kidnapper, bent on luring me away from hearth and home with an alleged trophy of candy that would appear only if I went with him into his van.
I avoided vans, guys.
Oh, unless it was the one my parents’ carted all of us around in; the one that, upon first test driving it with my pop, me and my brother Jonathan were sure was big enough to hold basketball games in.
Oh, the things we dream of when we are kids. Why do our dreams get so complicated? Why do they have to involve messy things? Like other people, for instance? Stick to dreaming of vans big enough in which to play basketball. That’s totally do-able. And won’t break your heart if it doesn’t happen, at least.
But, I was laughing with everyone else as Mestre Caxias was trying to come up with a name for me. They kept nixing the obvious–whatever is portuguese for ‘ballerina’ and ‘flexible.’ And then they threw out Girrafe. Yep, that tall, gangly animal with horny type things on its head.
Please God, PLEASE, don’t let this name stick, I was thinking.
And then someone suggested Cisne.
Swan.
Perfect.
Mestre Caxias gave it his blessing and now I am Cisne (pronounced: Seeshnay…um, I think, anyway. I asked my friend Leo how to say it and he ended up saying something that sounded a little too much like ‘sneeze’ for my comfort. I was like, “really?” and he was like, “Don’t ask me; I speak Spanish, not Portuguese!” So, no it does not just sound like Sneeze.).
And everyone was laughing as I did a little curtsy, so I joined in. And it felt good.
Then I was reading David Sedaris on the subway on the way home, and it was hilarious. I couldn’t help it–I became that girl. The one who is laughing into her sleeve so hard that her whole body is shaking because of it. And it felt good.
And now I am living with dear friends of mine in the city, Betsy and Todd, and we had even more good laughs tonight. And that felt good.
I guess tonight just feels good and I just feel like laughing and I am gonna go with it, cause God knows, it doesn’t always happen round here.
if I were to teach yoga, I would definitely incorporate the hippo.
in Funny Stuff, Thoughts and Feelings
as blank stare, brother jonathan, church, class, dance class, drama camp, frog, gazelles, hippo, Yep
For the past two weeks, my brother Jonathan has been running a children’s drama camp at our church. But please be specific about it. It’s a drama camp, not a theater camp. Not at all.
Because when I asked my nephew Ollie how he was enjoying theater camp, he gave me a blank stare before asking, “What’s theater camp?”
And I was like, “Uh…it’s the camp you’ve been going to for almost two weeks now.”
And then he smiled as it dawned on him, “Do you mean drama camp?” he corrected me.
Yep, that’s what I meant, alright. Silly me.
But today I taught a dance class to all the kids. And they were hilarious. And enthusiastic. They yelled out things that I never would have thought of myself. Cause see, if you get any comparisons to animals at all while you are dancing, it is to the ones who are more graceful. You hope, anyway. Like gazelles. Or even panthers. But while we were doing a little walk in place during the warm-up, just rolling the hips from side to side slightly as we rolled through our feet, one kid yelled out, “Oh. A hippo.”
And I started to laugh because, well, a hippo. I had never thought this particular move looked anything like a hippo, but sure. A hippo.
And then we started doing some plies and the same kid yells out, “Oh. Now a frog.” And again, sure. A frog. Why not? Why the heck not a frog? Works for me, I suppose.
But I think my favorite quote was something Jonathan told me that one of the campers said to him right after my dance class. The boy walks up to him and confidently says, “Huh. I’d never done yoga before, but I have to say it was my favorite part of the camp!”
Hahahahahahahaha. I don’t know if I should break it to him that he’s actually still never done yoga.
But at least it was his favorite part.
And maybe now he can say that his two favorite yoga poses are The Hippo and The Frog.
oh, man.
in Funny Stuff, Performance, Thoughts and Feelings
as american idioms, brother jonathan, chicken, cut, Delaware, dress rehearsal, Esther, fancy footwork, head, Henry VIII, jonathan, king henry viii, Pat, rehearsal, Shane, Tim Gunn, week
One time I overheard my mom trying to use that old expression, “running around like a chicken with its head cut off.” And I know. It’s not the most poetic of our American idioms. But my mom failed to mention the chicken, and so she simply told someone that she was “running around with HER [...]
beach. sister. cards: these are a few of my favorite things.
in Loved Ones, photography, Thoughts and Feelings
as beach, brother jonathan, card, Delaware, delaware beaches, fantastic family, jarna, jenna, Jenna Veronica, jonathan, something, sun glasses, today, Vern, wind
I like cards a lot. Especially ones that are perfectly square, not necessarily rectangular. Though, I would never turn a rectangular card away. But there’s just something about the symmetry of a square that makes me happy. And then when you add some good words on top of a square card? Well, it’s real, REAL [...]
my brother and his banana. seriously.
in Funny Stuff, Loved Ones
as Alex, Andromeda, banana, brother jonathan, Christian, clash of the titans, course, cream, face, Gin, greek mythology, ice, ice cream sundaes, Io, Jess, Jim, Joe, jonathan, Perseus, perseus and andromeda
Oh man, where to start? So I saw a movie tonight, in the theater. It was me and some really cool guys. I actually crashed a guys’ night out I’m pretty sure, but I think my brother Jonathan feels sorry for me an awful lot, so I got an invite too. Anyway, we saw Clash [...]
the fresh start room.
in I Lift My Eyes Up, Thoughts and Feelings
as America, brother jonathan, dear god, Delaware, fresh start, God, honeymoon, jonathan, little trip, lot, question, reason america, start, Tiger
So my brother Jonathan has a new blog up and running. I just read his post about a first that he recently experienced. And um, it’s one heck of a first, I’ve got to say. Which reminds me of today. As if I really need a reminder. As if the email I got from outofyourlife.com [...]
and it’s the future who gets to know life’s secrets, I guess.
in Thoughts and Feelings
as april 1st, brother jonathan, Don, earth cause, God, gonna, husband, jonathan, least count, lot, showmance, something, way
You know, I’ve heard, If you weren’t married…But then the thought stopped there because, well, I was married and quite frankly wasn’t into exploring the whole arena of if anyway. But now it’s not if. Whoa. It’s. Not. If. And it kind of terrifies me, I guess. See, I liked the certainty of marriage. Took [...]
firsts: thestrals and snow shoveling.
in I Lift My Eyes Up, Loved Ones, photography, Thoughts and Feelings
as brother jonathan, caption, Christian, E. You, gortex gloves, Harry, Harry Potter, jonathan, kid gloves, Luna Lovegood, nube, part, snow, Thestrals, time
And here’s the part when I tell you that I shoveled snow for the very first time in my life this weekend and you gasp. And then you tell me that it’s about time I took off my kid gloves and replaced them with a pair of gortex gloves. Oh, and a shovel. But see–and [...]
sandy handed boys, owls who are not owls, and my own silly self
in Funny Stuff, Loved Ones, photography
as brother jonathan, drew, fingernails, humor, jenna, jonathan, judah, kind, man in my life, Might, Ollie, owl, owls, Percy, photographic proof, picture, pictures, sister jenna, summer, way
Summer time sand. In your hair. On your skin. Under your fingernails as you keep digging in. Might as well admit right now that Drew isn’t the only young man in my life. Might as well give you photographic proof. Cause here they are, Ollie, Eli, and Judah,managing to look cool despite holding their hands [...]
my new fringe
in Funny Stuff, Performance
as answer, brother jonathan, damage style, fingernail, humor, jonathan, kitchen, knife, lamb to the slaughter, M.C. Hammer, Minneapolis, night, theater/tour, tiny pair, Tuck, welcome dose
Every once in a great while I stumble upon some wisdom. And when that happens, I try to record it here. You know, for posterity. So when you get the urge to cut your own bangs, first ask yourself these simple questions: Is it 2 am? If so, it might be for the best to [...]
