Eve was framed.
I overslept and am contemplating skipping my ballet class. On the factual basis that my calves are on the road to major injury. And on the personal basis of being drained and needing some catch-up time. This is OperationHealth. It comes down to the fact that I'd have to leave in ten minutes to make barre and my hair is not brushed, my bags are all jumbled and my coffee is fresh. And who wants to jump into Cecchiti barre after running in the cold? Not I.
I'm coming into something special, it seems that in examining the very minuteness of my life, my workings, my world over the past year I've managed to take a big step back and see how full a life can be. (And for all the bumps, bruises and empty bank accounts, decided I am so grateful to live this way).
Of interesting note in my life currently:
1 - Went for a job interview in Woodside this week. Walked in and they were ready to hire me on the spot. It was a teaching gig, developing the program's curriculum, etc. Good stuff. But they needed a time commitment I can't give due to, of course, that dangling bachelor's degree. Apparently I write a mean cover letter and apparently, I'm a worthwhile educator. I can say this simply because the brief interview came down to this: "Right now we have Alvin Ailey teaching and they're just about done here and we need someone to take over".
2 - I am working as a "guide" in Nancy Bannon's The Pod Project
(www.thepodproject.org). This is incredible on a number of levels for me. Most importantly, it's showing me that there is a strong community of artists here that I feel like I've been welcomed into, over and over again even, that do things because they need to be done. Because they should exist. Nancy's work is also making me feel much more secure in this "performance art" stuff. Mostly because, that label, that genre-title carries such harsh late70's/80's art-stigmas. But this isn't any of that. It's successful because everyone there is intent on the work but not on themselves. It's incredible to meet successful artists who don't hold themselves higher than other artists (let alone, you know, the entire human race). Nancy is pretty incredible. And Natalie Desch, with whom I took class last fall is involved and she, well, is my hero.
Last night was the first press performance, and though I've had the fun task of being on the look out for critics at shows, it was a completely different experience. The one-on-oneness of this is making my head run and leap like mad with ponderings on humanity, in general, and whatnot, but adding an entire group of people with notepads and cameras into this just really mixes it all up. I'm totally grateful for this, and so proud to be a part of it.
3 - My literature class is a grad-seminar, basically. With a nice mix of smart undergrads and graduate students, led by a professor I adore. We are reading the Bible and classical Greek works and basically, tracing the Western world's thought, aesthetic, linguistic history through themes in those works and how they've been weaved in and out of our history. The reading list is in-progress and ridiculous, from Dryden to Lacan to gender studies. It's really incredible, I'm really looking forward to getting some good writing out of this course. I'm also hoping that Professor Perskey adopts me as his grand-daughter. In an intellectual way.
4 - I have no real job. This is becoming an odd trend in my life. There are new postings in the past week, so I'll be responsible and do a round of resume/cover-letter emails this morning. Thus making my missing ballet class productive.
5 - I am in love. And am totally, completely blown away by all I'm learning, have learned. It's hard to find the words for it, my grateful heart.
6 - I am working towards collaboration with some visual artists here. This is going to be fun - looking at some performance/art work, some photography, painting ... really looking forward to seeing where these new contacts take me.
7 - I'm studying Anatomy.and.Kinesiology with Susan Hefner, a pupil of Irene Dowd. She's quite close to her actually. I appreciate the perspective of the work, and feel like this may lead me in the direction I need to go in for my own health. I'm hoping to take courses with Irene after the semester, or at least attend whatever workshops, seminars, etc are available. Susan runs a clinic I'm interested in too, so these could all be those missing elements. Hearing Susan say "This work will enable you to know yourself and become less at the mercy of medical institutions" made me quite happy. Grassroots anatomy, oh yes.
8 - Speaking of which, if you're a dancer-folk in New York, the Harkness Center is doing free injury prevention assessments at the NYU Hospital for Joint Diseases. 212-598-6022.
... I am at the point of believing that as of now, my life is completely in my hands. That, I can and will be fine, better than fine, and able to do what life asks of me, and get what I ask of it. In you know, those bigger, metaphysical, metaphorical ways. Self-help-booky as this is sounding, its important to say.
This Emily Dickinson poem has been with me recently:
Gratitude -- is not the mention
Of a Tenderness,
But its still appreciation
Out of Plumb of Speech.
When the Sea return no Answer
By the Line and Lead
Proves it there's no Sea, or rather
A remoter Bed?
----------------------------------------
Life beckons!
I'm coming into something special, it seems that in examining the very minuteness of my life, my workings, my world over the past year I've managed to take a big step back and see how full a life can be. (And for all the bumps, bruises and empty bank accounts, decided I am so grateful to live this way).
Of interesting note in my life currently:
1 - Went for a job interview in Woodside this week. Walked in and they were ready to hire me on the spot. It was a teaching gig, developing the program's curriculum, etc. Good stuff. But they needed a time commitment I can't give due to, of course, that dangling bachelor's degree. Apparently I write a mean cover letter and apparently, I'm a worthwhile educator. I can say this simply because the brief interview came down to this: "Right now we have Alvin Ailey teaching and they're just about done here and we need someone to take over".
2 - I am working as a "guide" in Nancy Bannon's The Pod Project
(www.thepodproject.org). This is incredible on a number of levels for me. Most importantly, it's showing me that there is a strong community of artists here that I feel like I've been welcomed into, over and over again even, that do things because they need to be done. Because they should exist. Nancy's work is also making me feel much more secure in this "performance art" stuff. Mostly because, that label, that genre-title carries such harsh late70's/80's art-stigmas. But this isn't any of that. It's successful because everyone there is intent on the work but not on themselves. It's incredible to meet successful artists who don't hold themselves higher than other artists (let alone, you know, the entire human race). Nancy is pretty incredible. And Natalie Desch, with whom I took class last fall is involved and she, well, is my hero.
Last night was the first press performance, and though I've had the fun task of being on the look out for critics at shows, it was a completely different experience. The one-on-oneness of this is making my head run and leap like mad with ponderings on humanity, in general, and whatnot, but adding an entire group of people with notepads and cameras into this just really mixes it all up. I'm totally grateful for this, and so proud to be a part of it.
3 - My literature class is a grad-seminar, basically. With a nice mix of smart undergrads and graduate students, led by a professor I adore. We are reading the Bible and classical Greek works and basically, tracing the Western world's thought, aesthetic, linguistic history through themes in those works and how they've been weaved in and out of our history. The reading list is in-progress and ridiculous, from Dryden to Lacan to gender studies. It's really incredible, I'm really looking forward to getting some good writing out of this course. I'm also hoping that Professor Perskey adopts me as his grand-daughter. In an intellectual way.
4 - I have no real job. This is becoming an odd trend in my life. There are new postings in the past week, so I'll be responsible and do a round of resume/cover-letter emails this morning. Thus making my missing ballet class productive.
5 - I am in love. And am totally, completely blown away by all I'm learning, have learned. It's hard to find the words for it, my grateful heart.
6 - I am working towards collaboration with some visual artists here. This is going to be fun - looking at some performance/art work, some photography, painting ... really looking forward to seeing where these new contacts take me.
7 - I'm studying Anatomy.and.Kinesiology with Susan Hefner, a pupil of Irene Dowd. She's quite close to her actually. I appreciate the perspective of the work, and feel like this may lead me in the direction I need to go in for my own health. I'm hoping to take courses with Irene after the semester, or at least attend whatever workshops, seminars, etc are available. Susan runs a clinic I'm interested in too, so these could all be those missing elements. Hearing Susan say "This work will enable you to know yourself and become less at the mercy of medical institutions" made me quite happy. Grassroots anatomy, oh yes.
8 - Speaking of which, if you're a dancer-folk in New York, the Harkness Center is doing free injury prevention assessments at the NYU Hospital for Joint Diseases. 212-598-6022.
... I am at the point of believing that as of now, my life is completely in my hands. That, I can and will be fine, better than fine, and able to do what life asks of me, and get what I ask of it. In you know, those bigger, metaphysical, metaphorical ways. Self-help-booky as this is sounding, its important to say.
This Emily Dickinson poem has been with me recently:
Gratitude -- is not the mention
Of a Tenderness,
But its still appreciation
Out of Plumb of Speech.
When the Sea return no Answer
By the Line and Lead
Proves it there's no Sea, or rather
A remoter Bed?
----------------------------------------
Life beckons!
