giveaway
so one of my awesome guam friends is doing a giveaway..... some pretty fantastic items from this side of the globe...... table runner & place settings from hong kong, homemade journal from thailand (really beautiful) & of course an i heart guam t-shirt! so go over there & leave her a comment, follow her blog (it's a pretty great one) & maybe you'll win!! click here & good luck!
so guam-y
ok, imagine laying in bed, deep in sleep & then feeling your husband wake up, so you wake up & you both stare dumbfounded down the hallway at 2am...... the lights are on & they weren't on when we went to sleep. so your husband gets that anxious feeling, while you're still half in sleep, babbling for him to go turn them off. then you realize "oh, yeah, this isn't supposed to happen" & then get anxious feelings for your husband as he stealthy-ly sneaks down the hallway on guard for an intruder. and you start to think, "do i sleep walk?", "does my husband sleepwalk?"...... then you get the "all's clear" from the hubs & get out of bed to help turn out the 2 lights that are on in the hallway & the dinning room entrance. well, as you're living in guam in base housing, turning off these lights is a bit more difficult than one would think. because the power has gone out. in the entire house. you don't see the glaring numbers from the alarm clock & you feel the hot air & think "oh yeah, this happens in guam.... a lot"...... "but why are those two lights on & why don't any of these switches turn them off?" so you stumble back to the bedroom, lights still on (really no switches would turn them off) & decide to open a window, shut the bedroom door & try to go back to sleep, sans hot covers..... then you wake in the morning to a house powered back on & two random lights back off & wonder if this was a dream or just a typical guam evening when the power goes out.
more downward dogs, less developés
it's so funny the way things develop. about a year ago i was ballet-ing at least 6 days a week & not able to really cross-train (most days too exhausted to even cook dinner). & was in pain more often than i'd like..... i was in great ballet-fighting shape, but i really craved balance for my body (& for my spirit). doing the same very precise, somewhat unnatural movements everyday really wears on the body. tight hip flexors, tight IT band, sore everywhere, continuous knee clicking & jamming....... everyday.
not even a block from the dance studio is a yoga studio & i would look out the window while we were at barre wishing i could skip class & go take yoga (& i'll admit just as many days i also wanted to escape to go enjoy sweet potato fries & a cold glass of chardonnay at the fabulous big city restaurant right across the street) but anyway, i really craved balance. and now the table has flipped..... i now take yoga class about 2 times a week, (with a body conditioning, abs & buns & zumba class thrown in as well) & find myself at the barre a mere once a week. (plus i eat all the sweet potato fries i want...... & chocolate mousse napoleons, carbonaras, pringles, chicken pot pies...... a random assortment of edibles, but it is what i've been eating the past few days) my body feels great, i'm still a bit heavier (could it be those napoleons?) than i was when i was dancing, but i feel more in balance, a less abusive owner of my body.
when i'm in ballet class (saturdays for 2.5 hours- long class & a bit of rehearsing phrases at the end of class) i still feel good, like a dancer, but i am not as "on" as i used to be. the developés are a bit low, no more triple pirouettes & my balances are ok on the left, non existent on the right..... but i feel ok with that. i don't have any reason to push my body, i don't have anywhere i have to "be" dance wise, it's more just about me, in class, doing what i can & i kinda like that. i do miss the theater (my company back in florida is performing coppelia this week), the rehearsals, the accomplishments, the pain & sacrifice..... but i've been through that. i did promise the studio here that i would perform a solo for a demo they're doing at the mall in april. so i have that goal & the rehearsals (more like run through it once & it's ok, so i'm done), to work on. but the performance is gonna be on concrete (will need 2 weeks of yoga to counter the pain from dancing on that) & i'm just doing some waltz turns, chaines & boureés & i don't think anyone expects a lot more than that.
it's a weird thing here, i keep waiting for something to develop...... i know about the demo at the mall & the guam ballet is doing a production of sirena (guam story of a mermaid) in august which they've talked about me being a part of. they say i might be able to teach a class, but nothing is set yet. i guess coming from a place where my roles as teacher & performer were so developed & i had a contract (that makes it all so much more clear) & a pay check (also makes things so much better) & then to here where it took forever just to find a class to take. i suppose it's normal to be trying to get my foot in the door & figuring out where i fit in. i need more patience. i hear my mom singing her patience song in my head ("p, a, t.... i, e, n..... c, e spells patience") which i can laugh about now, but when you're 5 & throwing a tantrum, or maybe even having a 16 year old tantrum, it's not nearly as funny. love ya mom!
& now after spending way too long on this post, i leave you with a photo of those infamous naploeons (which i made myself & felt such pride when a friend told me she thought they were from a restaurant) & some downward dog..... to maintain balance.
(photo from able bodied yoga)
rain on my parade
not that i'm having a parade.
anyway, today in guam it's a monsoon of rain & wind & not sure why (but always seems to be) when you least want or need it to rain it will. so here comes my vent..... we have a leaky valve stem on our tire & for the record, no big deal, but this is our 3rd tire issue in like 3 weeks. last week it was a nail in the tire & before that a leaky stem on another one of the tires. we managed to temporarily fix it with duck tape. thank goodness for duck tape (but could do without the 4 inches of rain in the road) & the car place can get me in at 1:30 today, so that's a relief.
next on the list.....
i hate admitting this but maybe instead of thinking i'm stupid some of you might actually pity me (probably for being stupid). but i lost my wedding ring this weekend. yep, horrible. i set it in my lap in the car to put lotion on (i do this all the time- everyday for the past 4 years) & when i forgot to put it back on my finger & got out of the car it went to the place where all lost things go. i didn't realize it was missing for a bit & i was hoping it was at home, but just in case searched all around the parked car. & nope it wasn't at home, wasn't in the parking lot (which is grass & gravel- you wouldn't expect it to be easy right) & wasn't in the car. i cried for at least 2 hours that night. & went back to the grass & gravel parking lot a day later & searched for 45 minutes.
and finally, we have our tax appointment today. most people are excited to turn in their taxes & await a nice refund check.... not us. because of my job i work with 1099s, independent employee contracts & taxes are not taken out of my checks. so i pay quarterly & usually end up owing extra (somewhere around $2,500) come april 15. so we'll soon find out how much more i have to pay the irs.
ok, but can't leave on a sour note. even though all these crappy things are happening, i have a few things to be thankful for..... duck tape, still having my engagement ring, & not working a full year last year (less money owed). & the rain. makes for a good cuddle under the blanket on the couch & watch movies afternoon. which is exactly what i'll do after all the appointments are over.
ritidian beach
last week i went to this beach with terrell & it was so beautiful. the atmosphere is so nice, it's like being on a secluded island. being surrounded by beautiful trees & butterflies (there were so many butterflies) & then walking down a little path to the vast open ocean was such a magical experience. we went on a thursday & we were almost the only people on the beach. i wanted to take jeff this past weekend & it was nice when we went (sunday) but it was so crowded...... not quite as magical. but still beautiful & we had a nice time.
terrell writes about the experience in a much more interesting way & includes some other photos here in her blog.
good to know....
path looking out at the ocean
one of many....
on a deserted island
coral collage
road at ritidian
kids singing
love this video.... PS22 sings lisztomania by phoenix. so sad that the arts are being cut out of schools.
a shout out
so a trio of us guam bloggers got together for coffee! been reading each others blogs for a bit & finally we all got together today. terrell & i have actually met before & already have a couple of nice beach days under our belts! but yay for new friends, guam friends, blog friends..... terrell & tessa, awesome ladies (click on their names to see their very cool blogs). it will be fun getting to know them more & share guamish experiences together!
an ocean & a sea, & perhaps a coconut tree
perhaps, i love that coy little anticipatory word. but yes perhaps a coconut tree will grow in my yard. today terrell & i went to the beach & i took home 2 coconuts. now, i'll backtrack a bit because if you're my friend on facebook, you've probably seen many a status update related to growing a coconut tree & that i've been wanting to grow a coconut tree for a while now but don't really know anything about growing coconut trees. i look at neighbor's yards & see random coconuts laying about, in the grass or on the patio. & i'll see over time that they start to sprout & then comes a smallish coconut tree. so it seems to be that if you have a coconut it will at some point naturally become a tree. so i'm gonna find out.
while we're at it..... what's the difference between an ocean & a sea? just a random thought i had while laying in bed tonight. yes, i got out of bed to blog about a coconut tree & my lack of 5th grade geography knowledge. sometimes my mind is so loud that it requires some sort of action to shut it up. thanks blog. & now goodnight!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
