in which I use caps locks generously.
in Funny Stuff, Performance, Thoughts and Feelings
as deaf man, ELEVEN, family, friend joe, girl, gratitude, HEAR, HOW, humility, l train, landenberg, mail, package, post office, posture, time, uke, ukulele, Voice, way
Today was a gem.
And now I feel all shiny and gem-like because of it.
I got to go mail a package at the post office. And listen to a mostly-deaf man try to listen to a post office employee tell him how much it will cost to mail the package he was sending.
“Eleven dollars, sir,” she said.
“HOW MUCH?” the man asked.
“Eleven dollars, sir!” the girl repeated, this time louder.
“I CAN’T HEAR YOU!” shouted the man.
So the lady raised her voice even higher, “ELEVEN DOLLARS!”
“Well, you don’t have to sound so nervous,” said the man, having finally heard her. “And why is it so darn expensive?”
“I AM NOT NERVOUS,” said the lady, “I AM SIMPLY TRYING TO MAKE IT SO THAT YOU CAN HEAR ME, SO I HAVE TO RAISE MY VOICE. AND IT’S EXPENSIVE BECAUSE YOU WANT A PACKAGE TO GET TO CALIFORNIA BY CHRISTMAS. WHICH IS SUNDAY. AND WE’RE IN NEW YORK.”
It was quite a display, let me tell you.
And then, Shane and I played Brooklyn tonight. It was a blast. A lot of people came out–which never ceases to throw my heart into this posture of gratitude and humility.
And while waiting for the L train, there was a musician playing and singing and stuff. He spotted my ukulele at one point, and just said, “Come on, then. Play us a song.”
So I did. And people started gathering around and cheering and throwing dollars into the guy’s case (thinking it was mine). It was surreal. When I finished, the musician guy gave me a cd. “I can have it?” I asked. “For free?”
“Well, you earned me some money tonight,” he said, indicating his case. “So, it’s not really free now, is it?”
And then, once on the train, this kind guy I later found out is named Bryan, lent me his tuner after watching me try and try to tune my uke by ear. So then we got into a conversation. Actually, I got into a conversation with Bryan and his friend, Joe.
“Where are you from?” Bryan asks me.
“Pennsylvania.”
“What part of Pennsylvania,” says Joe, sounding interested now.
“Landenberg,” I say, quietly; ready to explain to him just where, exactly, Landenberg actually is.
“NOW WAY!” says Joe. “I grew up in Landenberg!”
“You did not!” I say. “There were only about five of us, and I was led to believe that most of them were my family.”
So then, as you can well imagine, we talked about both of our hometown. We talked about it lovingly. I told him he was family.
“You know where Elbow lane is?” Joe asks.
“Of course! Right down the road from my parents’ house.”
“I’m going there for Christmas…”
And so, in conclusion: The World is a very small town, actually, with a population of: everybody. People are kind and generous. And singing songs is just about the best way to while away an evening that I can think of.
a list.
in Funny Stuff, Performance, there are pictures here
as amish man, choice, convenience store, course, delicious subs, duck boots, good, leg warmers, lunch rush, package, plaid shirt, quiet voice, rehearsal, sort, stoltzfus, store, today, Trapper, Voice
Things that made today better.
Or interesting (which is generally better, anyway) are as follows:
- Trapper. He works at the Media Post Office and helped me mail a package today. At first I thought he just didn’t feel much like talking, but after interpreting his gestures and following his finger as he pointed to this and that, I finally realized that he is deaf. And then I wished I could sign. But I can’t, but I sure can smile, so I smiled at him a lot. And when I told my friends at the theater about Trapper, one of them sounded a little jealous. “Of course you would get helped by a deaf postal man named Trapper. You already have Mr. Stoltzfus, the Amish man. All the good stories happen to you.” And yes, I do have some stories, for sure–but I am not so sure I would classify them all as good.
- Laughing till I couldn’t breathe. These friends I am making in my cast–they are hilarious. We make up ridiculous scenarios all day long and then we talk about them in a dry, quiet voice (quiet, so as not to disturb whatever “work” is happening. It is a rehearsal, after all)–we talk about these scenarios like they’re real and we talk about them until one of us bursts out laughing (usually me).
- Wawa. It’s sort of like a convenience store, but so much better. You can buy delicious subs there. Oh, and bananas. Of which I’ve been eating a lot lately, since there’s a Wawa right behind the theater. And bananas are cheap and pre-wrapped and easy to eat, so they’ve been my fruit of choice. And today, there was a bunch of us from the cast there, ordering food. And it was the lunch rush, so we weren’t the only ones there. And there was music playing, you know, so we just had to dance, and I happened to look down and notice that I was wearing duck boots and tights and leg warmers and a plaid shirt– all while dancing in Wawa and holding a banana–and come on, guys, really: does life get much better?
- yoga. It’s still hard and some of it hurts, but there’s not much of value on this earth that doesn’t hurt at least some, I think. But anyway, I’ve been practicing yoga pretty consistently while here in PA and I love it and it’s so good for every part of me and yes, I still look at the clock sometimes, and yes, I still really dread doing the pigeon (cause that hurts like a mofo), but it’s good for me anyway, and I really try to nurture me; to coax me into good and healing places. Cause yep, that’s where I belong.
set and re-set and let’s do it all again.
in I Lift My Eyes Up, Thoughts and Feelings
as amazon, birdsall, choreography, day, highlighter, home, homework, idea, imperfections, kind, kindergarten teacher, nobody, package, pain, rehearsal, throwing a party, today, Valentine, valentine s day, way
When I was little and went to kindergarten, I was really disappointed over the lack of homework I had to do. I thought I’d finally be like my brothers and have to do homework, too. I knew they didn’t exactly love that club, but I loved any club that involved being more like them, so [...]
uh, that’s not the kind of baptism I meant, but okay. It’ll do.
in Funny Stuff, Loved Ones, video
as friend, God, grief, head, Jimmy, life, little gem, package, pouring water, rebound, rest of the night, water
Basically life gets funnier when I open my mouth. Well, that, and more embarrassing. Like tonight, when I was innocently referring to how my friend came over and showed up with a small bag of cookies, but ended up saying this: And then Jimmy showed up with his small package… But then I couldn’t even [...]
