164th Friday Blog Roundup
Jeanne Claude, Christo’s wife, died this week. She was only 74. They were still working on the same project I heard them speaking about back in 1995–fabric panels over a river in Colorado.
I broke up with my boyfriend at the time over Christo and Jeanne Claude. There had been a limited number of tickets given out to art students to meet them at a reception after the talk and I got one of these tickets. My boyfriend at the time was in Mexico and we had a standing weekly phone call date because there was only one telephone in the town. He would stand in the general store at the designated time and I would call and butcher my way through two minutes of speaking Spanish with the store owner. There was no other way to reach him–the phone was an hour walk from where he lived and no one was going to fetch him for me.
The talk started late, which pushed the reception late, which meant that I had to leave before the end of the talk to get back to my apartment in time. I cried the entire walk home, so incredibly frustrated because I wanted to meet them so badly. At the designated time, I made the phone call and spoke to the store owner. Except, as it sometimes happened, my boyfriend wasn’t there because he was hanging out with some friends. The reason is that he cared only about himself because he was a self-centered little shit with a heart the size of a rancid sesame seed. Not that I’m still bitter or anything.
Maybe 45 minutes later, I got a collect call from him telling me to try him again at the store, but missing meeting Christo and Jeanne Claude was the straw that broke the camel’s back. We broke up that night over the phone and again and again for the next 10 months. I am not the best person with break-ups.
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I told Magpie how much the ChickieNob loves Gillian Murphy and Angel Corella and she was able to get her three stills from a performance of Swan Lake. I brought the envelope to school when I went to pick her up. I wish I had filmed the look on her face when she first saw the pictures. It was as if she had found a fairy in her cereal box. Her mouth dropped open and time stood still, and then her whole face exploded with happiness and she ran through the hallway shrieking, “this is Gillian Murrrrrrrrrrrphyyyyyyyyy!”
It is pretty cool to see someone find their passion and it has only gotten more intense as the months have passed. When she is not listening to the music from classical ballets or looking at old ballet programs or sitting at the kitchen table drawing scenes from various ballets, she is either dancing in the living room or in front of the mirror upstairs or at the ballet studio.
Prince Siegfried learning of Odile’s deception from Swan Lake (from L to R: a pensive Prince Siegfried, an enormous-eyed Odile, a chipper-looking Von Rothbart, and an inexplicably-happy Queen)
Alessandra Ferri and Angel Corella dancing Romeo and Juliet and defying gravity with a far-left lean.
The ballet slippers this week were because the ChickieNob told her teacher that her happiest time is when we’re dancing in the living room. Yes, I do pretend ballet in my overalls. And I’ll never film this because we went to a ballet studio with my shoes this week and when I saw myself gallumpfing in the mirror, I realized that it simply doesn’t make a lovely visual. I did not inherit gracefulness. But we have fun calling out the story to each over the music.
And because the ChickieNob gets to direct, poor Wolvog is always stuck playing random townsperson #7.
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The Weekly What If: what if you could only eat one genre of food for the rest of your life, what would it be? As in, Japanese, Thai, El Salvadorian, Ethiopian, bar food, carnival food, vegan organic. How specific could you make your choice while still giving yourself options within the genre?
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And now, the blogs…
I Never Thought It Made Sense Anyway has a post this week about an off-handed comment that was made that affected her greatly. It’s impossible to write about this brief piece without revealing the words and the impact they had on her, but needless to say, it’s a post that packs a punch.
Project Progeny has an incredibly moving post about how her body grieved after she stopped nursing. The whole post is gorgeous, but this part in particular made me hold my breath: “And, even more absurdly, the moment begins to feel holy. It’s perfectly quiet, and I am alone. My mind and spirit become quiet, and there is only the release of the pain and pressure of stagnant milk in my breasts. It feels like my breast is crying tears of milk into the warm water.” You need to read this whole post about the body.
Bagmomma has a post that I love, a twist on the more common posts written when an infertile man or woman needs to go to a baby-focused life-cycle event. The post is about her brother and SIL and she writes, “Thank you for your unwavering support and always holding out your hand to me. It has not been easy to be related to me. I have far too much baggage, and most sane people would have given up on me by now.” It’s a beautiful post that made me see the world in a different way.
Lastly, Life Family and the Pursuit of Family has a post about sex. You know how you always think the grass is greener somewhere else? Well this is the post that you need to read to remind yourself that everyone experiencing infertility has a parched, brown lawn and the difference is merely this parched, brown lawn over here or that parched, brown lawn over there. It is a brutally honest post, one that took enormous guts to write. I have a feeling many will understand when she writes: “Any other night that would have been fine. Any other night that might have dinged my pride a little, but nothing more. Last night, though, more than my pride was on the line. Last night, our future was on the line. Last night, it was the equivalent of saying he didn’t love me.”
The roundup to the Roundup: rest in peace, Jeanne Claude. The ChickieNob is grooving on ballet. The Weekly What If. And lots of great blog posts to read.
23 comments
If I had to choose, I’d probably go with Italian (or maybe the more all-encompassing Mediterranean, because then I could have gyros!). It’s possible that I could live without mashed or baked potatoes, I suppose, and there’s always gnocchi.
Although, carnival food does sound intriguing…
Oooo I never thought of the all-encompassing Mediterranean cuisine!! I think I will have to go with the pp on this one!! You can have just about anything from steak to pasta!! And Gelato!! Oh man now I’m hungry for a Lemon Ice…
Mexico-boy was also stupid. What could amigos y Coronas possibly have over la seniorita bonitisima?
Ditto, Mediterranean. That would add in Arabic and Morroccan to Greek and Italian. How’s that for being specific?
Poor Wolvog. Maybe if he works on his plies he can move up to #4.
Tacos. There is so much variation within just this one item, it truly is the food you could eat forever. Well, at least I could. Mmmmmm – TACOS! 🙂
I love hearing about ChickieNob’s ballet love. I grew up attending the ballet at the Kennedy Center, and loved to dance. I love to hear of another young girl enjoying that beautiful art too.
Italian/Mediterranean, definitely. Unfortunately, I seem to have developed an allergy/sensitivity to tomatos 🙁 but since we’re talking theoretically… ; )
For me, it would have to be Italian. But I am married to an Italian, and he thinks that is the only way to cook and eat. He says the only other cuisine up to par is Japanese, and I admit I would miss Japanese, but I would be perfectly happy to eat Italian food for the rest of my life. Which is a good thing, because that’s pretty much my future anyway!
I DO like the mediterranean idea, though.
Well, I already eat vegan organic, so I guess I’ll stick with that (but of course it does let me eat Japanese, Thai, El Salvadorian, Ethiopian, bar food, carnival food, and pretty much anything else I set my mind & kitchen to, so it’s not really a limitation. 🙂
I love the ChickieNob’s drawings. That’s a very wry smile she’s given the queen.
Sad about Christo’s wife 🙁 Fascinating artists.
Japanese, hands down. I did it for two weeks while on vacay there last month, and I could do it for life. I’d just need to balance out all the fish with a bit more beef or chicken now and then, but otherwise, it’s amazing. I still miss the peanut butter I had over there.
Let’s see… My food choice is pretty dependant on the other fantasy conditions. If this going straight up on taste and suddenly all food is equally healthy (no negative health implications from diet) and accessible (raw vegan Japanese food being equally accessible and cheap as, say, a Big Mac), then my answer is going to be signifcantly different than if all real world rules still apply.
Fantasy world (all food is healthy & cheap & readily available): Well, now that I’ve cooked up a fantasy, I hate to to limit myself, but if I must, let’s go with Bakery Food! As in, bread, cake, icing, pies, icing, pastries, icing, meat pies and buttercream icing. Yes, I could live off of the baked goods. Happily, without complaint. This may or may not be why I went to culinary school and had a emphasis in pastry. mmmmm, pastry 🙂
Real World (not all food is created equal): I’d have to go Mediterranean. Lots of variety, most of it pretty healthy, with plenty of sweeter, breadier options to round out the bakery tooth.
Italian or Chinese? Italian or Chinese? Wait! What about breakfast foods? Is carbs a food style? I’m so hungry. Is Food a food style? What about that multi-ethnic buffet in Fairfield, CT? You should never have asked a food addict this question.
Also, your ex = assholish twerp.
Looks like pointe shoes are in your future. 🙂
I think I would go with Italian or breakfast/brunch foods. Or just sweets, because I love sweets – I have a sugar tooth the size of Mt. McKinley!
I could pobably live on Hungarian food for the rest of my life. And I am talking about historiy (pre-1920) Hungary, with Transylvania, Voyvodina, most of today’s Slovakia included. It would give me quite a variety, and most of it can be tweaked into being kashrut compliant.
re: not being good at break-ups.
Luckily, Josh is a keeper.
I second Anat!
Thanks so much for the link Mel – the mention here means a lot to me.
hmmmm…one genre, eh? That’s a hard one! I heart Chinese, but I also love pasta, garlic bread, carbs in general. *scratches head* I’m thinking probably Italian, because I think it might be healthier in the long run. Whole wheat pasta and such. Most of the Chinese food I like is less than healthy. x)
I’m mostly a lurker, but the ChickieNob’s ballet obession hit home with me. I am blessed with a 12yr old girl ballerina and a 16yr old boy dancer. They’ve been dancing for 7 years and it is our way of life. Ballet, Jazz, Tap, Lyrical, and Hip Hop, they do it all. They are super talented if I may say so. We have quite a few pair of pointe shoes that my daughter (I call her Chickie Noodle) has. A little banged up, but mostly she outgrew them before she killed them. If you think ChickieNob might like, I’d be happy to send her a pair to “dance” in. At 5yrs my Chickie Noodle was given a used pair by a teenager that had out outgrown them and she fell in love.
I’d be thrilled to encourage a future ballerina so let me know. 🙂
I’m thinking I would have to go with Vegetarian Organic because it is what I like and yet it can contain a variety of other types.
Sorry for the loss of someone you admired. It is always sad to see someone go that touched our lives in someway especially artistically.
I would be very general, and just say “Organic”. That way, I could eat every cuisine…so long as it was organically raised. That includes meats, cheeses, breads, grains, veggies, and fruits!
I love Christo’s work. My father went to see the Umbrellas in California…and brought home pictures. It was amazing. Since then, I have tried to follow his work.
The artist I am currently fascinated by is Andy Goldsworthy. His stuff takes my breath away!
Happy ICLW.
Way cool drawings.
I love those drawings.
And since I follow you on FB and Twitter… Get a pair of pointe shoes! Do it! Take a ballet lesson. Take it from someone who put her speedskates back on after a hiatus of FAR TOO LONG (oh and there was a purchase of far too much for a new pair when they broke).
Here is what I realized this [speedskating] is the one thing that lets me be myself- lets me be out there and not have to worry about anything- okay except for the huge ass and thighs that don’t fit in jeans. But I have never been so happy to be on the ice. Go read our speedskating blog it is about three chicks who returned to the ice.
Oh and Italian food all the way.
Stopping by for an ICLW visit…
No. 2: the unfair struggle (mfi, speedskating, nanowrimo)
Italian/Mediterranean.
I love those drawings. Totally awesome.
I’ve had this conversation in my head for a while (I’m not the only one that has hypothetical conversations with herself, right?). I could totally do pescetarian (fish, no other meat) Thai. I could eat Thai forever I think.
How wonderful that she has found something to be so passionate about. I love the drawings too. So sweet.