It’s been a long time. All of this feels rusty; I feel like I’ve lost what little ability I had to craft sentences. So many thoughts clutter my mind that I’ve realized that I need to write, to organize some of this internal, maddening dialogue. So even though I feel like I should just keep a lot of this bottled up (most of you, much less the world in general, probably don’t care), I don’t think I can without my thoughts eventually crippling me. This will be lumbering and perambulatory despite my best intentions.
Where to begin? Let’s catch up since the last post, which was way back in May(!). There were many times this year when I told myself that I should just shut this website down, but here I am again. I guess it’s been quite an interesting year, mostly by my own design, but I do see my queue lightening up, with a semblance of a break after all the activities in September. Maybe I’ll have a relatively quiet end of the year after all the birthday bashes.
The BANDW show earlier in May I thought was the most challenging, and I can’t help but feel that my partner slipping was at least partially my fault. Although the floor was a bit inconsistent as well. BANDW was also the most intimidating because everyone else performing is for real. But I definitely learned a lot and enjoyed the experience.
The WB spring show went really well, I thought. It’s always an inspiring and humbling experience to see both the girls and the fellow adult dancers in action. Such an honor and so proud of everyone. Makes me think I should do Nutcracker this year, even though it’s kind of a long drive every Saturday for rehearsals. I really do miss Saturday rehearsals, though, odd as it sounds.
The there was the PDA show in June. Given that I only had like 6 weeks to learn the choreography, I’m so happy that I didn’t forget anything. I have no idea if I looked good or not, but I felt like it came together. Many people dislike the greater flash and bang of competition schools, but there’s some equally real talent among the guys and girls there, too. And I’m equally awed and inspired by this group of dancers as well.
Somewhere in that blur of a performance schedule, I moved to foggy San Francisco. With the performances and other trips, I’ve not really had too many weekends to enjoy and explore the city, so my sentiment about this move has been mixed at best. The additional two hours of commute each workday has really worn me down, and I don’t think I’m really cut out for city life. That being said, this neighborhood is really quite nice, and it’s also nice to be able to more frequently catch up with friends living up here (although at the cost of less frequently catching up with friends in the south bay).
The big birthday came and went. I was planning a big birthday bash, but things turned out much more modest: dinner and karaoke with some good friends on Saturday, and then a mini concert and housewarming party. I could have wished the weather to be a little better, but overall, it was great to see a whole bunch of friends.
Then the week of July 4th was spent at dance camp. If you told me that I’d spend a week’s vacation to just take classes and dance in a weird suburb of Portland, I’d have thought you’re crazy. It seemed like a strange and ridiculous dream to sell: a ballet summer intensive for adults. Yet, somehow it works. It was definitely a physically tiring experience, but the most surprising thing was how refreshing it was to not have to spend a full day at work before dancing. The mental exhaustion from work really does carry over to those evening classes.
Of course, the best thing was meeting people as crazy as me. People crazy enough to take a week off work to just dance, who are as passionate about ballet despite most of us having no professional aspirations. It’s been a fun summer of dancing, and I’m certainly glad that I had it to balance out the rest of my life.
The past month has been spent in equal parts trying to prepare for and dreading the upcoming John Muir Trail hike. At some point earlier this year, this sounded like a fantastic idea. But now that it’s coming up in a few days, the thought of having to hike 220 miles is filling me with quite a bit of apprehension. And considering how much the Sykes hot springs hike we did a few weekends ago still has my ankle in bad shape, I’m beginning (a little too late) to question my physical readiness, in addition to my mental readiness. At the very least, after the umpteenth trip to REI and thousands of dollars spent, I think I’m about set on the gear front. The fun part (shopping) is over; time to get serious.
One day, I’ll try to understand why I willingly go on such grueling vacations. So many friends are in Hawaii right now, I feel a little jealous.