Ramblings (April 29, 2021)

What to say. I am definitely feeling pandemic fatigue. While I certainly am privileged to be in a low-risk household, be able to work from home, have a stable and comfortable income, and have access to a vaccine (I got my first Pfizer shot yesterday), living through a pandemic isn't terribly enjoyable. I am doing my best to follow the government mandated guidelines and thus do not have the interactions, distractions, and stimulation that, even as the introvert that I am, turns out I appreciate. Anyway, nothing to be done about it. Just doing my part and hoping that things will evolve for the better.

I am not so motivated to be active, which kind of sucks. It's gone in waves (like a lot of things). There were a couple stints of regular activity, including youtube videos and scheduled exercise routines. Since I've moved back into my own place, I haven't felt keen on doing anything and haven't forced myself to do it (which just might be the only way to ensure that something happens at this point). I tried to do a couple longer walks and regular trips to the grocery store is another way I get out and walk. I even did a little bit of stairs in my building (a little limited though given that we only have access to certain floors in our building). For a couple weeks, I've gone for (a) bike ride(s) on the weekend. I often hope that once I'm out and about, I feel better and am glad that I got going, but it doesn't always end up that way (which is tough, because then there really isn't that payoff that you hope to get). I like moving and I think I've always been relatively active, so this feels different. Admittedly, a lot of my activities have been scheduled (e.g., classes) so there's some accountability or added incentive in terms of the cost and commitment, but I still would have thought that any activities would feel good. So it's a little disappointing that I'm not getting the (endorphin) kick that I would have expected. I suppose there will always be things in life that you don't necessarily enjoy, but you still (need to) do them.

I have been thinking about that recently. How much in my life will I need to take action? Do something that I don't particularly feel like doing. Take risks (or what feel like risks to me). Push myself out of my comfort zone. I've been reflecting on that because I feel that up to recently, things have been going ok. I'm sure in my life thus far, I'd done things all of the above. But I am currently at a place in my life that I'm not loving life as much as I used to. So, (in adult life) does the balance change in terms of the amount of 'the stuff above' that you need to do to maintain the same 'love of life'? While life wouldn't always be a cake-walk and nothing's perfect, I'm having a hard time figuring out whether I need to (force myself to) step up more (than I want to), or that there's something else in my current like that I can change that will make the difference that I'm hoping for.

I'm going to change the topic now.

I've been passing the time by watching TV shows (and then often falling down the youtube rabbit hole to watch featurettes, cast interviews, and panels). In addition to whatever shows that I've kind of been keeping up with whenever they're available to be streamed on TV provider's websites (e.g., Grey's Anatomy, Law and Order SVU, Big Brother, Survivor), I had started watching Fresh off the Boat (even before the pandemic started and was just waiting on the final season), Cheer, The Good Place, Chef's Table - Volume 1, Never Have I Ever, Schitt's Creek, Black-ish (although now I just have to wait), Mixed-ish (again, just have to wait), Grown-ish (although, it's my least favourite of the 'ish' world and I'm not sure I will continue with it), Kim's Convenience, and most recently, Superstore. There might have been others that I can't seem to remember anymore. Anyway, I need to find a new show. I had watched some full-length films towards the beginning of the pandemic, but I'm finding the length of them to be too much of a mental commitment for me right now. That doesn't mean that I haven't watched 3-5 episodes of shows back to back though. Somehow the shorter burst are just easier for me to take in right now. I also found that I was more interested in watching films that were comedies or generally, lighter content. Seems the same for my TV shows.

After watching the trailer for Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, which I'm kind of excited to watch that when it comes out (#representationmatters - but more about that later), I was thinking that I could go through the Marvel Comic Universe films from the beginning in preparation. I've only watched 3 or 4 films from the list so I'm clearly not big follower/fan, but I think it might be a fun activity. I like action films, I like big blockbusters, watching them in relatively close succession might be fun to try to look for Easter Eggs or make whatever rudimentary connections I can not really knowing much about anything. I'm not sure that I will watch all of the films, but got recommendations from friends who know and might instead work my way through their curated list. We'll see how it goes.

In addition to the brain fog from the pandemic, I have brain fog from attending to race, equity, identity (and whatever other words fit - I'm still working on my vocabulary). Though it's been building for a couple years now (I mean, realistically, it's probably been brewing for my entire life, but the past 6 years saw some intense acceleration), this year (I follow the academic calendar, not the Gregorian calendar), I've had the time and space to engage with these issues more explicitly and meaningfully. Some times are really great (a weak word, but I'm not sure what would make the most sense here - again, I'm still working on my vocabulary and identifying emotions), other times have been quite difficult and overwhelming. As a result of life and world events, I'm getting an extra influx of ____ (media, attention, resources, etc.). It's a work in progress. But through that, I've consciously realized that (here's the connection to the above) #representationmatters (to me), so am keen to find ____ (TV shows, films, media, etc.) to engage with that will fill that need. And I am now conscious of why I got excited about the animated film Mulan and Michelle Kwan back in the day. And more recently, when jumping on the Raptor bandwagon, getting particularly excited when Jeremy Lin got on the court (I know I missed Linsanity). So yeah, I'm excited for Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings. 

And even looking at my list of TV shows that I've recently taken up indicates that I'm _____ (craving? interested in? excited for?) options with people of colour. And I'm always connecting more dots. When going through the full catalogue to create my short-list of films to watch at festivals, films about identity seemed to come up. I remember the first time that it came up as a key word when I was going through my short list and didn't quite understand what it meant and was perplexed as to why it seemed to be a pattern for me. But it does make sense. Turns out, I've been grappling with my identity for well, I guess it would have to be my lifetime (consciously or not, and actively or not). And if I think back and reflect on my life, it really has been a common thread. One of the last times that I spoke with a therapist, she had commented on this theme. In particular, she spoke about my tension of being a first generation Canadian, and daughter of East Asian immigrants. So race and gender of course factor into my experience and my journey to clarify my identity and place in the world.

I think I'll stop there.

Still here

I know I keep saying that, and I know I keep promising (more frequent) updates and even to go back to ones that I never got around doing. I think most of all, my trip to China in 2013.
But I wonder why I haven't gotten around to maintaining this blog a little bit better (as if I need another thing to ponder and think about it from this angle and that angle). Maybe I'm just living my life and not making it a priority to share it with others?
I mean, I am doing many things that in the moment or shortly thereafter I think, "Oh, I should blog about that." (Or maybe it's just getting at a deeper issue of wishing I could have shared the experience with someone else?). But that life continued on and I don't/didn't blog.
I am still taking pictures here and there, albeit less of them than when I did my last big relocation (to CH...although, maybe moving back to Toronto should have counted as the last big relocation...because the CH adventures were pretty epic and I felt that I needed to document them all via photograph). So I have a bunch of pictures, just sitting on my camera...not even on this blog.

But ok, since I'm typing right now, here are a couple quick things that I'll ramble off of the top of my head as things that I had wanted to blog about:
- Musical swings in Promenade des Artistes
- How EVERYONE floods the city once the weather changes...the vibe of the city is so different!
- Terrase, not patio...and people love them here
- Growing herbs is fun (FYI, I've got basil, rosemary, and cilantro...I also have some lavender which I desperately hope I can get to spread and take over all of my balconies or something)
- Bring on all of the festivals!!!
- St. Viateur has Rosemary and Sea Salt Bagels but Fairmount is just generally better.
- Hmmmm (So, I visit the Toronto Star website every day...but I'm wondering if I should make the switch. It would be a pretty big deal. I mean, I should probably just do both - along with all of the other websites I visit - the one I would instinctively visit first probably says something)
- Grey's Anatomy is done. I wasn't sure when the season final was going to be and after I watch it, I didn't realize is was the final episode. I mean, in terms of the fact that I didn't feel like it was you're typical, "Let's finish off all the story lines" finale or whatever. I mean, I liked it, but it wasn't like, "Boom, we're done." It did leave on a positive note, which I liked. (Two-second-later-edit: Errr, so it's not done. Why did I think it was done? I probably mis-remembered that it's just that Patrick Dempsey was leaving the show.)
- Similarly, I really like the The Mindy Project. Glad to hear that it's going to continue on Canadian TV (and hopefully the network's website).
- Went to Ottawa for a day today for something work related (I'm sitting on a train right now - seems to be a regular blogging time for me)...had a Beavertail (I think it was my first!)...walked along the Canal...saw Ontario license plates...just did my thing...and generally felt pretty great. I wonder if I should consider doing day trips more often?

Getting groceries

I was going to go to dance class this morning, but took too long getting ready and decided to abandon that plan. I'm a little annoyed at myself for causing myself to miss class (because it's an awesome class), but the day I've had instead was quite nice.

After realizing that I hadn't been to the market for awhile, I went, and it was lovely (of course). As usual, I took my time looking at everything. I slowed my pace down (I'm realizing that I need to do this more often). I mean, I actively slowed my walking. Slowed my movements and just took my time.

So, it's maple syrup season!
I've decided that the next time I go to the market, I'll get a tire sur neige. I did have a little sample of syrup though. So yummy.
Anyway, lots of people were buying cans of syrup. I don't think I eat pancakes often enough to buy a can. And people were buying multiple cans at a time! Also, cans seem awkward. Do they siphon the syrup into another vessel? I'll need to figure that part of it out.

Some words for you:
Panais - parsnip
Navet - turnip

I got what I needed for lunch and my dinner (which will also be lunch for the week) and headed off to the next grocery stop.

There is an Asian grocery store near the market that I went in once before. When I had gone the last time, it was comforting. Kind of like when I go to Joe Fresh and the Loblaws Superstore nearby. I know it's a little weird, but it's true. There's something reassuring about them. Familiarity, I suppose. (I'll be writing a post about identity and belonging soon.)
I was hoping to find daikon (of course, I would never call it this myself, but I've learned of this name - thanks, Top Chef - and it writes better than my attempt at pin yin) for some soup and figured that this would be my best bet. I could obviously have gone to Chinatown, but it's out of the way for me (in fact, I haven't been since I first arrived, and that was just to walk through it). I've heard that there's an Asian grocery store west of me in a multicultural neighbourhood (that people tend to mention when I talk about things I miss about Toronto - and the comment always seems strange to me), but I haven't gone out there yet either.
Anyway, I'm in the Asian grocery store near the market, taking my time, walking up and down the aisles. I'm looking at the different people, and listening to the different languages. I'm also reading the signs for the different produce...all written in French. I wondered to myself whether or not the writing was correct. In similar shops in Toronto, sometimes the English isn't correct. Spelling mistakes are not uncommon. I wonder if any of the French words in this store as spelled incorrectly. Unfortunately, I am not skilled enough to know.
I found my daikon, and proceeded to check out.

So, when I'm out and about, I try to speak French as often as possible. I appreciate the opportunity to practice it and think it's the right approach to living here. (Again, more about that in a future post.)
Mind you, yesterday when I was shopping, since the salesperson started speaking to me in English and it was a store that when walking around I hear multiple salespeople speaking to each other in English and with a customer base that for the most part may not be Francophone, I responded and conversed in English. I mean, my French isn't horrible, but I'm definitely am not as comfortable and cannot fully express myself and articulate all of my thoughts in French in an eloquent manner. It was nice to just have a 'break' and speak English too. (Seriously, more to come in another post.)
So, I'm in an Asian grocery store. I'm hearing a lot of different Asian languages. I'm not skilled enough to look at someone and guess what part of Asian their from, but when I was at the checkout, I decided to speak Chinese. I mean, it was only a "hello" and "thank you", but the cashier responded in the same language.

It was nice.

Grey's FTW!

Oh man, Grey's Anatomy is so good. I can't believe that 8 years ago, I was guffawing at the show.
And the fact that the superman pose showed up in last night's episode...interesting. There have now been a couple instances where I've been reminded me of this TED talk.

It's a new dawn, it's a new day...

It's a little crazy how stress manifests.
At the end of last week, I submitted something that I've been working on for the past little while. The thing that made me lock myself in my office (because I needed to bubble), skip meals (because I didn't feel like I had the time to walk down one flight of stairs to the microwave), consider taking a cab home (because it was 2am, and dark, and cold outside), and so much more. But I did it. I pushed myself, and I did it. I mean, who knows what will come of it, but I did it and it's a start.
And last weekend, another big project finished up. Something that again, I wasn't sure if I should take on. That pushed me to the brink. But it's done. And I was able to fly back before the flights started to get delayed and cancelled.
And when I went in to work on Monday morning, I was a different person.
It's crazy what stress does.
I took two days off this week. They were my "weekend" since I'm going to be away this weekend again and won't get time to rest. And it's done wonders. Having a day or two of rest a week is so important.
On my days off, I washed dishes. I went grocery shopping. I went to the mall. I walked outside and breathed.

This journey that I've been on this past little while has been more difficult than I had imagined. It's so cliche to say that I'm learning a lot about myself, but I am. I'm not sure how long it will take for me to adjust (personally and professionally) and sometimes I worry that I won't. I've been thinking a lot about what I want out of life, who I am, and what I value.

And life itself. Mortality. I'm coming to terms with the fact that as time goes on, well, people will not. And it'll be more and more prevalent. I feel like I know of more losses in the past little while than I have before. And I imagine they won't stop.

I've gotten a lot of advice from different people. Some of it has helped, and others have made me fret even more. I know I need to be patient, but on the other hand, I don't want to keep putting things of hold for another year, or three years, or five years. I'm ready to live. Now.

This seems like a somber post, and I apologize. This blog is interesting because it's an outlet. An outlet for random thoughts. An outlet to share my adventures. It's safe (which it probably isn't, because it's the internet). But it's been good at times to get things out. And by that, I mean out of me, not out for consumption. I know that there are a couple people who still read this blog from time to time, and although I think I started writing for others, I think it's benefited me even more. There's a post that I wrote a little while ago that I didn't end up posting. It's still saved, but I wasn't sure if I wanted it in the public domain. Is the act of writing cathartic enough? I'm not good at being vulnerable or showing, what I believe will be perceived as weakness. But I'm learning. I mean, some of these posts are my attempt to let go a little bit more, but it's still nice to keep the facade. The facade has its benefits.

Anyway, the point of this post is to say that I hope my roller coaster is back on an uphill climb. Last weekend, I bumped into a couple people I hadn't seen for awhile and it was great. It was nice to tell someone a little bit removed about how things are going. To get their take on things and for them to share similar experiences.

Today, I received some snail mail. And today, I went shopping - and bought things! And today, I watched Grey's Anatomy and reminisced on the first episode I watched - the one where there' s a bomb in someone's body and Meredith's got her hand on it and if she moves, it'll blow up. I remember sitting with a colleague and bunch of my students, crowded onto a bed in a hotel room in Tunisia, watching the show on a student's laptop. I remember laughing about how ridiculous the show was and my students and colleague shushing me because I was ruining the moment. It was a lovely memory from my lovely life.

The life that I continue to live. And today, I'm feeling good.

New York (August 4 - 9, 2013)

I'm having a little bit of New York withdrawl. Since moving back to Canada, New York has become my Paris of Europe. When I lived in Europe, I would go to Paris a couple times each year...just because it's awesome. I'm having serious Paris-withdrawl, but maybe it's just Europe-withdrawl in general. Hopefully I'll have a chance to go back for a visit soon...we'll see. Until then, New York usually works in a pinch but it's been over a year since I've been. Wow - that's even longer than I had originally thought! (Also, gosh, I live such a fortunate and awesome life.)

Anyway, here are some memories from my last trip there...
 

There's something about New York that just re-energizes me. It's not like I take a trip there and do nothing and it's relaxing by any means, but I happily fill my days. I had actually planned this trip because I there was a conference that I wanted to attend and I met with a colleague in the city to discuss a possible collaboration/project. I was feeling guilty about my trips to New York and not really being able to justify these frivolous trips (even if they were an actual much needed repose from a busy schedule), so combining 'work' and a vacation made it a lot easier to book.
Anyway, a trip to the Shake Shack to sit until the lights and enjoy a burger, fries, and frozen custard was definitely on the agenda.

I thought it might be nice to catch a movie under the stars, and of course New York had a couple options. the one that worked with my schedule and interests was Norma Rae, screened in Bryant Park. I didn't stay for the entire film, but enjoyed sitting out on the lovely evening, being among the masses and watching Sally Field do her thing. Naturally, many folks brought bevvies and snacks or packed a picnic dinner and I thought that it was nice that there was a the option of sitting on the grass or on the chairs. There were so many people there! And there were also people hanging out in the surrounding area just enjoying the evening. New York is such a lovely place. I'd be interested to know the ratio of tourists to locals in the area that night. How many tourists would be as zany as me and look up events like this to take in on their vacations? I mean, I'm sure there were people who just stumbled upon the event, but those who planned it into their evening, I wonder.
The next day, I walked by Bryant Park again and noticed that the field was cordoned off. Good on the NY parks folks to know that the grass would need a little bit of TLC and time to breathe after an eventful night.

Another event that was on my schedule was to attend a taping of America's Got Talent. I have to admit, I don't watch the show (and never have), but in my pre-trip research I was looking into tapings of TV shows that I could attend and given the time of year of my trip, the options were limited.
I figured it didn't really matter if I didn't follow the show regularly, because I was essentially attending a talent show and I would probably enjoy a talent show of any kind. I thought there would be some interesting banter from the judges and I'd be interested to know how my judgement of the acts compared to them. Also, the taping was at Radio City Music Hall, which is such a beautiful venue. And of course, it was fun to see the 'production' part of it all. To see how they tried to get the crowd going, taped bonus 'audience cheering and clapping' scenes, did strategic placement of specific audience members and handed out signs for audience members to hold so that they would be caught on camera.

Of course, I also attended a couple broadway shows. Taking a look at the most recent Tony winners, I decided that I would attend Kinky Boots and Pippin. Since it was pretty soon after the Tonys were handed out, I had the pleasure of watching those winners and nominees perform. Both shows were fantastic. Billy Porter and Andrea Martin, I have no idea how they compared to their fellow nominees and if there's some sort of criteria assessed to be given the award, but based on my own criteria, they definitely deserved the Tony. They were sooooooo awesome.

I've got the shakes

I'm not sure if my hands are shaky because I haven't eaten anything substantial in over 12 hours or because I just finished a pseudo-draft of my thesis.
I wish I had a Meredith so that I could have a much needed 30 second dance party.
(Current thesis page count: 412 - uh oh.)

Last skating video post for the day...

Yeah, so word on the street is that Kurt's going to reprise his Singing in the Rain program for his comeback competition. Awesome.

Still awesome

Need a break from whatever it is that you're doing? Watch either/both of these programs by Kurt Browning. Truly amazing.
Apparently he's going to be making a comeback as there's a Pro competition scheduled to happen where they've got some big names competing. Kurt's thrown his name into the ring and since I don't follow the Stars on Ice circuit, I don't really know what he's been up to. Not since the glory days when all of those shows of Champions on Ice, Stars on Ice, _____ on Ice, etc. and then all of those Pro competitions ruled the air waves have I really known what all of these pro skaters were doing, how active they are, and the calibre of their programs.
Anyway, these two programs are quite awesome, so I hope you enjoy them.

Holiday TV episodes

Since I don't have a TV, I'm a little bit behind on TV shows. I just watched the holiday episode of Community. Hilarious.

Reality TV everywhere!

I watched Secret Story last night. I used to catch it every so often when I lived in Europe. It's the French version of Big Brother and what sets it apart from the other versions of the show is that each member has a 'secret' and housemates are trying to figure out what each others secrets are.
When I get back to the city, I'll have to catch up on the current season of Big Brother US. I would also watch Big Brother UK (which was also rather amusing) back in my days in Europe and also more recently through the internet. I'm not sure that they're going to have anymore season of the show.
Anyway, reality TV is popular all over the world it seems. I wonder if this trend is here to stay?

Dance trends 2011

Seems as though all the cool kids on SYTYCD this season are doing penchées and tilts. 180 degrees or oversplits of course.
This is definite fodder for a drinking game.

Oh internet, dear internet

When I moved downtown, friends advised me to get the crazy-fast high-speed internet that the building that I was living in was privy to. I didn't listen to them. I ended up getting the cheaper route. I didn't care about the super high-speed internet. I was happy with the service that I got and I liked the extra pocket change. My friends thought I was crazy. to have given up such an opportunity.
Now that I'm in a different building, but still privy to the same crazy-fast internet, I still did the same price shopping before selecting whom I would give my business too, and ended up with said 'crazy-fast high-speed internet provider. I enjoy the service, but it doesn't seem mind-blowingly different from what I used to have.
I've just received a memo that my provider is jacking up the prices. To provide some context, typical price for high-speed internet in the area is ~$50/month. I'm getting it for a wee bit less. Also, there are only really two potential providers that I can use in my building.
So, as a loyal customer they will be upping my rate to $60/month. This is still for the crazy-fast high-speed internet. This change is because they have started a new series of plans. They didn't want to completely screw over existing customers, hence the (relatively?) minimal price increase. But, I could switch over to their new plan and get basic high-speed internet for a measly $38/month or even the medium high-speed internet for $50/month. New customers wanting the same crazy-fast high-speed internet that I current have will have to pay...wait for it...$100/month!
So, to switch, or not to switch. I wonder if I would even notice the difference? I don't download a lot of things on a regular basis, but I do enjoy streaming TV shows so that I can keep up-to-date on useless reality television (read: Survivor, Top Chef US/Masters/Canada, SYTYCD, Big Brother US and UK, Strictly Come Dancing, Project Runway, etc.) and other more substantial shows (read: Community, 30 Rock, Grey's Anatomy, etc.).
I tend to go on movie watching phases. If I feel like I need a dose of film, I'll watch a bunch in a row, but then I get tired of looking for online sources and forget about it for another month or two. I even have phases for TV shows. After a recent conversation with friends, I'm currently on a Top Gear trend. I know nothing about the cars, and I usually tune out when they talk about stuff under the 'bonnet', but it is a rather entertaining show. And nostalgic. I used to watch it in Europe all the time. At this rate, I'll end up watching EastEnders or something. There's a bunch of real-estate, SAS and bargain hunting/selling shows that I would try to catch as well. I digress.
Point is, times are changing, prices are on the rise and I need to decide if I'm going to make any moves in the my internet situation.

More Zermatt!

Another whole episode of the Amazing Race in Zermatt.
And a big doggie to meet them at the pit stop...Schön!

Nostalgisch

The folks from The Amazing Race were in Zermatt. While some of them were chowing down on fondue (not my fav), some were running around delivering luggage to hotels that I stayed at or had a drink in their lovely lounges.
I've realized that I like the vibe of those kinds of places over bars. Maybe I should just stick to those here in the city.
And now, back to the show.

P.S. Zermatt is amazing. I miss the little taxis. I miss the mountains. I miss the chalets. I miss the shops. I miss the skating rink. I even miss the Coop.

I'm already dreaming of all of the things that I'm going to do when I'm back in Europe this summer.

No. Way.

Grey's does not equal Glee.
To take a cue from the young-ins on facebook, dislike.

Go Glee!

At first I was watching Glee because I liked the singing and dancing, and then I enjoyed the guest appearances, but I have to admit that I'm really getting hooked. I really enjoy their ability to make fun things in the top-40 music world and even the show itself. I haven't hit the point where I'm appreciating the long-term storylines though. I'm purely enjoying each episode as a discrete entity. The way that they've packaged the episodes thematically is lovely. Keep it up, Glee.

SYTYCD Canada Season 3

Apparently season 3 of So You Think You Can Dance Canada has started, although I really didn't know about it. I only thought to look into it because a friend had extra tickets to tonight's taping of the Top 22 Results Show.
So yeah, one of the things that I wanted to do in my lifetime is attend a taping of a TV show. I was a little skeptical of what a taping of this show would be like, but I was willing to go with it. I love dance, so it could be okay. The only problem is that I don't love the Canadian version of the show as much as the American one, and the host and a couple of the judges too. Blech. I also don't like feeling like I'm an old lady in a group of young-ins. Screaming girls do not sit well with me.
So we showed up at the allotted time to the studio, got in without a problem and were told to go to studio 7K. Turns out this studio is just a big holding room for all of us waiting for the show. There were some chairs set up in a front of a screen showing the Top 22 Performance Show, an area for the dancing interludes sponsored by some company (in this case, some 3D dance movie, I believe) and a coat/bag check. We had left all of our stuff in the car for safe-keeping and to reduce the hassle, and I'm sure glad we did.
I was also shocked at the demographic of tonight's audience. I had thought that the average age of the audience would be in the late teens or early 20s with a pretty small range between the max and min, but I was wrong. I saw those who could have been grandparents, and tykes around the age of 10. It was a mixed bag. There were less itty-bitty dresses than I thought (thank goodness) and FYI we were supposed to dress "jeans-chic" (whatever that means).
Anyway, we were told that posters were not allowed in tonight's taping, but we could create posters to go on the poster wall in the holding area (why?!?). We were then told that everyone with a ticket for a seat (in the bleachers) should gather in one area and then the rest would be standing in the mosh pit. We were not really into standing for the duration of the taping (we had no idea how long that would be), so we went back out to the entrance and asked if there were any seats left over. I knew of some girls who had been to a taping of a previous season and were very happy to be in the mosh pit. They were pleased to have been 'selected' to stand in front of the judges stand and were captured on TV during many shots. I guess if your goal in attending the taping is to get on TV, standing in the mosh pit is where you need to be. This, however, was not out goal, so seats were our preference. I just wanted to see the process and watch some good dancing. So most of the folks attending were very happy to be in the mosh pit. As we were waiting to find out whether or not there were extra seats available, e realized that the seats were pretty much reserved for wee tykes and chaperones (read: old people). In this case, I was happy to lumped into that category. I wanted to be comfortable for the duration of the show. Screw getting on camera. We lucked out and got comfy chairs for what ended up being a very speedy taping.
It was supposed to be a live taping, and maybe it was, but it just seemed so speedy. I guess when you're planted in front of the TV, time moves at a different pace, or so it seems. Everyone was talking at a normal paces during the taping, but the speed of the events that took place seemed speedy for some reason. I liked learning about when we were supposed to applaud and cheer, and watch the gentleman warming-up the crowd. I thought he did a pretty good job. I liked watching the different cameras do their thing and all of the people with their fancy headsets running around doing what they were supposed to do. I liked the hair and make-up people running around fixing up their charges. I liked seeing all of the isms that I detest about the host.
The dancing was quite nice, although there wasn't much of it. They look much better in person than I'm sure they come across on TV.
I suppose it was a fun experience. Not as exciting as I hoped it would be, but also not as annoying. I'd recommend it, but unless you're young and all you care about is getting on TV, I would recommend trying to get a seat for the big show.
It's always fun to see things live in person that you usually only see through your TV screen. The set was exactly what I imagined. The studio itself was a lot smaller than I thought it would be and the audience is also a lot smaller than it looks on TV. It's a strange, strange thing, this TV-land.

Executive decision

I really wanted to witness a riot. I wanted to see what one is like. Feel the emotion. Observe the movement. Hear the sounds.
I've finally decided that I'm going to let this one pass. There are some things that may be better not experienced.
It's fascinating how we're wired in that I, as a person who doesn't want to be a participant of a riot in any way shape or form, desperately wanted to be there.
I am following the action on-line.
And it's more interesting that I would have been more prone to going if someone else had asked me to join them as a spectator.
The mob mentality. Curiousity.
I can't help but think back the BBC educational series about kids growing up and the changes in their brain. How in the teenaged years there's a chemical imbalance that contributes to teens being more daring and making silly decisions.
I'm past that age, but the urge is still there.
Maybe I'll go later on when it's all over. See? I still come up with thoughts of wanting to get in there.
I should put a movie in and go offline.

Finally: 89!

SYTYCD with the all-stars

This season is hooooooooot! Bring it.