Friday, February 16, 2001
Sometime in the past week, i can't remember when, i ate chinese food at a restaurant and got a fortune cookie. Now normally i read it and pocket it so that at some later date it will fall in my sight with it's little happy message just when i'm fumbling for change or some other mindless rummaging. This week's fortune caught me off guard though. I'm not sure what to do with it. Along with a list of lucky numbers and "learn chinese: You-piao" the message read:
Don't forget, you are always
on our minds.
What? Alway's on who's minds? What kinda fortune is that? I feel like i should be looking over my shoulder or something. Maybe i'm now getting messages from the other side like John Edwards (okay i think i've watched too much Sci-Fi channel this week). Or maybe someone was feeling a little rummy one day in the fortune writing department.
Ahh, the weekend at last. My brain is mush!~w
wendi's 11:41 PM ravings
Thursday, February 15, 2001
Well the students at Northfield High pulled it off. There were missing words, mixed up words and other minor flubs that come with a first performance, but the audience cheered for them through it all. I think the star of the day was Cam, the only person to perform twice in the show. He and Tyler opened the show with a funny little poem by M.T. Buckley. Lines got crossed, but the audience couldn't tell that they had reversed the lines they rehearsed. Then later he held his other group together performing Tupac's And Tomorrow when courage and lines started to slip. No one in the audience would ever have guessed he was the one backstage panicking over whether he could remember his lines since he helped everyone else when they were stuck. Annie sparkled as the only solo performer. Her nervousness backstage transformed to grace on the stage and a flawless performance. Nick and Austin struggled all week with their lines in a scene from Shakespeare's Romeo & Juliet, but they had fun with themselves and the audience when their tongues tripped over words and the essence of the scene remained intact. The list goes on and on, but in all cases I feel that these students really put forth all of their hearts and minds to make this week something special for us. Easy? No, not by a long shot. Tears were shed and frustrations aired, but all of the trials were passed to make poetry the word of the day. Perhaps if it had been easy the appreciation would be less. I just hope each of them knows how much ciro and i were touched by the work they did.
Now i'm exhausted, but tomorrow we perform ourselves in New Hampshire for middle school students and will try to pass on just a little more of what we have to give.~w
wendi's 11:22 PM ravings
Wednesday, February 14, 2001
The day was full of roses and teddy bears and red mylar heart shaped balloons at the high school today. I ate a chocolate cupcake from the bake sale in honor of the occasion, but no red touched my day. Perhaps that's good, no blood spilt, no flash of anger behind my eyes. Instead it was a watery day of washing up rough spots in poetry. The snow seems to have stopped after dumping more inches on us this evening. Part of me wishes for delays and a long morning snooze, but the work must be done and shortening tomorrow will only increase the pressure and tension. The students have been sorted into ready and not ready, and we know who needs the help and work, it will just take some time before taking the stage in the afternoon. My mind is overflowing with schedules and planning and hope. The hardest part is the concentration and listening to let the day flow through me rather than battling against it.
Sci-fi is a funky channel. As i write this, a fellow named John Edwards is sharing with people messages from family and friends who have "crossed over." Interestingly enough, unlike many "oohs" and "ahhs" and tears of happiness as gallery members get messages from loved ones, there was a couple completely baffled and disappointed by their private session with him. They had no idea what the messages he was giving them were referring to. I found it interesting that the show displays apparent failed messages as well as the accurate ones. Oh well, i guess it's just proof that even psychics can miss the mark somedays (or maybe the readees just didn't know about what someone they knew was up to). It seems like it would take a whole lot of energy to deliver the kind of information he's sharing with these people. Considering how much trouble i've had listening to and understanding what people are saying to me lately, i can't imagine i'd get any messages from "beyond the veil" right. I have enough trouble interpreting my own dreams somedays.
Tomorrow i hope for an open heart, a quick mind, receptive ears, a soft tongue, and clear eyes to watch these students at Northfield HS shine like the stars i know they can be.~w
wendi's 11:46 PM ravings
Wheee! BlogFinder is a fun new toy.
Day two of our residency ran much smoother. I got to play today and be a bit more creative. One whole class is working on Shakespeare and it makes me quiver with delight. It's such fun chewy language to play with in your mouth. We were also invited over to dinner this evening with a couple of the teachers and their husbands for a lovely meal of ravioli. It was very fun and relaxing chatting with them outside of the school setting about the students, writing and life in general. Yeah! I was social!
In the market for a University? Vermont College in Montpelier is being put on the market by Norwich University. The cost? A mere $21 million. Hey, it's cheaper than a sports franchise. Who buys universities? "Not i," said the cat.
The forcast for our weekend drive is snow, snow, snow. Fortunately we have 3 days to get to Milwakee, so we're planning on making it in small daytime pieces to avoid nasty icy after-dark driving. We're getting cautious in our old age. We've had enough trouble with cars already this year and don't feel like pushing our luck.
Whisper wind of winter near
the streets are sleek black glass.
Slow we wander to wend our way
snaking steadily as the hours pass.
Worn we watch the world wave by
slipping surely past the snow,
wishing we were warm and dry
since still there are many miles to go.
Here's hoping for a bright and playful tomorrow free of stumbling blocks.~w
wendi's 12:37 AM ravings
Monday, February 12, 2001
I just watched part of the Westminster Kennel Club dog show. The "elite" of the dog world competing for the top prize. Many of the dogs looked just plain goofy, but maybe that's because it was the "toy" and "non-sporting" breeds that we were watching. I wanted to see a good ol' St Bernard. When i was little my parents raised and showed Saint Bernard dogs. I always figured if you want a dog you should get a big dog. If you want something that'll fit in your purse, get a cat.
Today was the start of our residency and it was a bit rocky. We expected from what we'd been told that everyone would come in with poems that they would be ready to work on with us. Instead we spent a lot of time trying to convince students that the poem they picked would work and they shouldn't spend the whole class looking for a new one. Or, in a few cases, trying to help them quickly find a poem so they wouldn't be a whole day behind the rest of the class. Well, some of them are a day behind now anyway. Others have leapt in and are well on their way to being ready for Thursday's show. The thing that sucks most for us is that we spent more time dealing with "problems" than actually helping students work on their poems. Arrrgh! Ciro and i spent a good part of the evening feeling ooogly and hashing out what the next step will be for each group. Tomorrow we have a clear plan of attack though, since now we know just where everybody is in the preparation process. I hope we get to play more tomorrow.
My saving grace internet wise this week is bluelight.com which allows me free internet access in Montpelier since my regular ISP doesn't have a local number here. Hurrah! Only problem is the nagging ad bar. It will save me bucks though the rest of the week and keep me from going buggy. I also stopped by Bear Pond Books today, a cool little local book store. You know, the kind where the sent of books hits you when you open the door and the wood floors creak under your feet encouraging you to move slowly and carefully past all the books. I love bookstores! Especially the kind that don't have everything, but the good stuff is always in easy reach. There's something about finding the right book at the right time. Sure i could get anything i want right now at Amazon.com or by finding a Borders megastore, but there's something special about finding a book when the choices are limited by chance or shelving priority. I picked up three more Discworld novels by Terry Pratchett. The next in line that he wrote after the three i just finished. See, lucky that of the 24 books in the series they had the next three in the order i'm reading them and only 2 others from further down the line to tempt me for later. They're like candy for my brain. Fast, funny, and silly i find them a good way to relax after a day of digging through poetry. As for getting out and about? I don't plan to do much of it until the temperature at least gets above 20F here. This morning when we left for the school our car told us it was -8F outside and i think i saw it get as warm as 18F mid-day when the sun was out. Brrrrrrr! I was not meant for weather this cold. I'm from that temperate climate where 32F is plenty cold enough. Even though the houses are really cute here and the town seems funky and fun, i don't think i'll be moving here in the near future. If i'm lucky Wisconsin next week might be warmer, but i'm not going to hold my breath.~w
wendi's 11:42 PM ravings
Sunday, February 11, 2001
I'm up in the land of snow and no local internet access numbers or cellular service. So, i'm stuck being nickled and dimed if i want to stay in touch with people.
I read more of Beruit to Jerusalem as we drove up here today. It got me thinking. If i'd grown up an Israeli i would have learned that the Palestinians were trying to steal my home and didn't think i had a right to live in the place i had grown up. If i'd grown up a Palistinian i would have learned that the Israelis were oppressors whose army would tear down my kite if it had the wrong colors and later would react to my youthful cultural pride by punishing me for the clothes i wore. Okay, maybe that's inaccurate or falls a bit short of the mark, but it led me back to America. How different would it be from growing up white in America and frustrated that affirmative action could pass me over for a job i was qualified for? Or growing up black and frustrated that i could at anytime be pulled over and harassed for a DWB (driving while black)? Again, this may be inaccurate and i'm over simplifying. Closer to home i might believe that because i am a woman there are men out there who will never treat me as intelligent and listen to my opinion but only see me as a sex object, but the men of my generation may feel like women have a tendency to "male bash" without looking beyond sex to understand them as individuals. The causes of the fear and frustration and mistrust that lead to aggression are different, but the results are hues of the same color. We often are cultured to believe that because of who we are, there are those out there who wish to prevent us from fully attaining our potential. The question is whether we choose to spend our lives fighting the oppressor or dodging the obstacles to reach our dreams and goals despite adversity. Sound simple? It's probably not. All i can say it that i personally plan to choose my battles carefully, if i battle at all. They take to much energy and distract me from caring for myself and the people around me. Revenge is a bitter reward.
Tomorrow we perform for high school students here in Northfield, Vermont. It's the first time i've ever done a show in Vermont. Whoo hoo a new state to add to my list! Then, over the next few days we'll help these students prepare a show of their own. Goody goody, someone else gets to do the performing! ~w
wendi's 10:50 PM ravings
I touch based briefly with Gabrielle in Seattle today while puttering around online and discovered that she has the beginnings of her new site up and running with video! Go girl go!
I wandered over to orosbouros to discover a little link to a nifty scottish band. That reminded me of how much fun i had a couple of summer's ago when Mackeel played at Jack of the Wood in Asheville. A very bouncy fun time.
Today the wind has been trying to blow down my hotel window. It's very blustery out there, i'm glad i'm in here watching it. I think if i went outside it would either knock me down or freeze me. It's not the kind warm wind of spring breezing out there. The sun sparkled, like sun will do, on the snow, but otherwise the landscape was bleak with dirty snow and barren trees. Night fell early and hard, it's obvious we're heading further north. Our schedule says we won't be warm again until the end of March. So today i took a day of rest and slept 14 hours and read a good book. Well, i've almost finished it. When i tuck myself back into a cozy bed, it will be finished before i fall asleep.~w
wendi's 2:30 AM ravings
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