Reading The Tea

Every now and then I need to take a break from dancing to remember that I love it, not just do it. This weekend I did lots of not dance.

I climbed my first 5.10b at Mission Cliffs! I followed it up with my least-favorite type of 5.10a — one where I have to get across an overhang. There’s something so satisfying about feeling out of energy and continuing to push through. I also realized just how similar the use of legs are in dancing and climbing — in both I ground into the wall/floor and use it to take my next step.

Sunday I went with a small group hiking at Muir Woods. We got a later start than expected, and ended up finishing the hike in the dark (The last couple of hours of the hike.). I wore hiking shoes that I hadn’t worn before. First one, then the other of my soles peeled off, leaving me with a thin under-sole. It did increase my ninja qualities, making me quieter for sneaking up on fellow hikers… We got to see tons of stars. Stars… living in big cities for as long as I have it’s easy to forget how beautiful, how bright, and how many they are. I like the feeling of insignificance. It’s oddly comforting. A really loud owl cheered us on for a while. Our adventure culminated in the discovery that the bridge we had to cross to get back to the car was washed out. We shimmied across the water on a fallen log.

I finished The Island of Dr. Moreau(The link is a PDF of the book!), part of a new SciFi kick I’m embarking on. Dr. Michael Drout is a marvelous professor who’s done several audio courses for the Modern Scholar series. Dustin and I have decided to read all of the books and listen to the lectures. Want to join us? The syllabus for “From Here to Infinity: An Exploration of Science Fiction Literature” is available for download, among other places, here. I skipped to lecture two to get going on the reading right away, and am going to circle back for the chapter one reading. Most informal book club ever.

Jookin’: The Rise of Social Dance Formations in African-American Culture by Katrina Hazzard-Gordon

My review

rating: 1 of 5 stars
Jookin’ featured shockingly poor organization, accompanied by shoddy writing that efficiently obscured meaning behind names and dates tossed out with abandon. Though ostensibly about social dance, the writing lacked movement. Hazzard-Gordon rarely got around to interpreting how the changing socio-cultural formations effected the physical movements. (For example: How did movements change to accommodate the smaller spaces of Rent Parties?) Though I slogged through it, I wouldn’t recommend anyone else bother.


View all my reviews.

The discovery of the quickly growing graphic novel section at the library fills my heart with the spring flowers that are being frozen by the unseasonable cold here. (Snow at the end of April? Here? Seems like a bad joke.) I read “12 Days” by June Kim and “Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic” by Alison Bechdel. Both revolve around a death. Alison Bechdel’s writing has sometimes been compared to David Sederis. I didn’t see it except that 1.) they both deal with autobiographical subject material 2.) they’re both gay. Is that really enough to always tie the two together. “Fun Home” reminded me more of Craig Thompson’s “Blankets.” I’d highly recommend both.
I’ve been watching the first season of Veronica Mars. What took me so long? I have a feeling that I’ll go through the DVDs for all three seasons too quickly. If you also have been remiss in watching it, go remedy that now. Why are you still reading this? Shoo and watch.

What makes me “me”? People often implicitly embrace a concept of true self, without shaking it out for inspection. How much can I decide who I am? Is it an open slate? I think that most of us can reject that — in whatever combination you wish to give them credit, we can all agree that your biological family and your upbringing do contribute to who you are. But what about who you can be? As adults, how much choice do we have, not only over our actions, but who we “are”? I think that often we revert back to a comfortable essentialist statements – “I’m not a creative person.” “I rub people the wrong way.” “I wish it was, but that’s just not me.” But how much is who we are in our conscious control?  Joining the frenzy of Potter-mania in preparation for the 7th book, I was struck in a new way by the Sorting Hat. It decided, without input from the individual, what house you belonged in — what your traits at that point most strongly pointed you to. However, Harry was also able to consciously influence where his future direction went — the hat wanted to put him in Slytherin, but he wanted to be in Gryffindor. He decided a personality direction. From what already him, he chose a path. As the books progress, he struggles with this point repeatedly, questioning the Sorting Hat about whether he really does belong. Has he violated some inherent identity, some destiny? The hat maintains that he would have done well in Slytherin, but later, Dumbledore points out that it’s the choices you make that make you who you are. Interesting view, from a world with prophesies and a “chosen one.” 

So back in real life, how much do you decide who you are? What’s important in making you who you are? Is it your social group identity? Is it your values? Your beliefs? Your actions? Can you have multiple social identities and still be true to your “self”? 

Is available July 21, 2007. So you all know what I’ll be doing that day!

Today it smells like it’s cold outside, and warm inside. It’s probably just the heaters getting going, but it makes me feel like tea and soup and knitting and blankets and holiday cookies and curling up in my blue chair with a book.

I’m currently reading a SlipStream Anthology:

It has many short stories that flirt with borders between literary, sci-fi and fantasy subgenres. A conversation from a blog post where several writers debate the definition of “SlipStream,” and whether it’s a necessary term is interspersed.

My friend Adam, known to some as “Fair Coz,” has opened a lovely bookstore in Fort Greene/Park Slope. For all you bibliophiles, I highly recommend that you check it out. When you walk in, you’re instantly immersed in books, with loose categorizations and intriguing possibilities — the perfect place for finding books that you desperately need, you just didn’t know it yet. The first time I was there I went home with a lovely full-color Pilobolus Alphabet book. Another time I met an antique how-to book on baseball. Having never developed an understanding of the classic american sport, it almost seduced me, but that time I held strong, and took a couple of novels home with me instead. If you’re ever at a loss, Adam or the lovely Emily are there to guide you through your book-finding adventure. I urge all to go to the Grand Opening Celebration this Sunday. (Though the store has been open since June, this is the celebration.) I’ve heard rumors of refreshments available, and many local authors are giving readings.

Schedule of Readings/Performances

12:00 – 1:00 : Rick Pernod, Andrea Baker, Bronwen Tate

1:00 – 2:00 : Jenn Guitart, Tisa Bryant, Lynn Xu

2:00 – 3:00 : Christopher Myers, Erika Howsare, Jackie Delamatre

3:00 – 4:00 : Will Hubbard, Jess DeCourcy Hinds, Amber West

4:00 – 5:00 : Eve Packer, Holly Tavel, Fred Schmalz

5:00 – 6:00 : Mac Wellman, Erin Courtney, Jonathan Ceniceroz

6:00 – 7:00 : Anika Haynes, Gareth Lee, Brenda Iijima

7:00 – 8:00 : Luisa Guigliano, Jennifer Hayashida, Christopher Stackhouse

8:00 – 9:00 : Bonnie Emerick, Amy King, Adam Tobin

Adam’s Books 718.789.1534

456 Bergen St. 11217 (between 5th Ave. & Flatbush)

Julie Taylor’s autobiographical, lyric look at the experience of violence, both public and personal, explored through tango. It’s effective and affecting. Though it was a bit hard for me in the beginning to get into her style, by the end the book had absorbed me.

Whenever I’m performing obsessive searches for tango-related books, I get really irritated when tango is used in the title, but the book has nothing even remotely to do with the dance or the music. I was relieved, then, when this one did. It’s rather trashy chick-lit, but the descriptions of dance and the dance world are interesting. Living in the NY area, one gets to experience the warm fuzzies of recognition when Palmer mentions gossip about classes at this studio, or milongas at that one. It’s a sherbert book — sweet, sticky, enjoyable, but not really filling.

Everyone, and I do mean everyone, must read Autiobiography of Red. I discovered this marvelous book thanks to Bronwen. Anne Carson weaves together a beautiful poem-novel, full of implausible things that one somehow finds oneself saying, “Of course. The boy has wings. Well, naturally.” I don’t think that I’ll ever be able to think of Heracles and Geryon the same way.

Speaking of books influenced by Greek mythology, I finally read The Thief, a novel people have been telling me for years that I must read. It was a thoroughly enjoyable book — great for late grade school especially. It had a great blend of adventure, mythology and plot twists. I felt at times that the characters weren’t quite consistent, but then — when are people really? I’m really looking forward to reading the second book in the series by Megan Whalen Turner.

If both these books get you in the mood to do some research into ancient Greece, check out The Art and Culture of Early Greece. The author, Jeffrey Hurwit, was one of the most memorable profs I took a class from. He took the subject that I was, to be honest, expecting to be a bit dry, and wove amazing stories. He told us about controversies in authenticity and date, and presented conflicting opinions by leading experts. Once in a while he’d slip in “and this piece was restored by me.”