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Monday, October 6th, 2008
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12:58 pm - I want to be like youuuuu
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I haven't done a meme in a long time, so forgive me this one.
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Post a picture in my comments of what you think describes me when you think about what/who I am.
Give no written explanation though. Just an image.
(Optional) Copy and paste into your own journal and see what others think about you in pictures!
current mood:  tired
current music: A Darker Shade of Pagan 9/14/08
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(7 comments | comment on this)
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| Thursday, October 2nd, 2008
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1:59 pm - They went to their maker impeccably shaved
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Last night KayLee and I went to see the touring production of Sweeney Todd at the IU Auditorium. I haven't been to a musical in forever, particularly not one that wasn't a local production. This was the John Doyle revival, in which, as with Doyle's production of Company, the actors served as orchestra, playing all the instrumental parts as well as singing all the roles. It's an interesting idea, and certainly provides some challenging constraints for the cast and director to work around. If nothing else, ya gotta give the performers props for having good chops and giving doubly exposed performances (it made for a pretty stark chamber sound, almost entirely one-on-a-part except for the two cellos.) And it makes thrifty sense for a touring production, as there's only 10 performers total, and no orchestral pit to deal with. Still, it didn't really work for me either musically or dramatically. Maybe I've been to too many operas at the MAC in recent years, but I missed the lush sound of a full pit orchestra and a larger chorus. (I'm also not used to hearing singers through microphones, but that's more a difference between the two genres than a factor of this production in particular.) Mostly why it didn't work for me, though, was because it severely limited the interaction between characters and rendered the whole company quite static; the ones who weren't singing were playing instruments at any given moment, so they weren't able to do much acting, and for the most part, the director had the singers singing directly at the audience rather than to each other, so even in the midst of sung conversations, there was little dynamic action occurring. In Act I, I was getting kind of bored until Mrs. Lovett finally recognized Sweeney; she provided much-needed extroversion and engagement, and she and Sweeney were, for the most part, the only two characters that actually interacted with each other. (Though the other pairings-- Judge Turpin and the Beadle, Anthony and Joanna, Mrs. Lovett and Toby-- did to a far lesser extent.)
There was only one set, and it was well used, but I would have liked a little more change. The costumes were sort of blah, nondescript 20th century of no particular decade, which was disappointing, as I was hoping for some tattered Victorian goodness. In general, I think that one goes to operas and musicals for spectacle (otherwise, why not just stay home and listen to the cd?), and this didn't really deliver that.
Things I did like: Pirelli was played by a woman, which worked interestingly, mostly because she had a really good flare for the over-the-top gestures and politesse of the street mountebank. Also, each time Sweeney murdered someone, that character was outfitted in a blood-stained white lab coat; since all the players remained onstage as instrumentalists and chorus members even after their characters were killed, this worked well to tell people apart and as a gory reminder of Sweeney's actions.
In other news:
The grant I was working on for IN Harmony ended, so I'm back to just one job again, which means whoah do I need to get cracking on exam prep.
I'm going to Connecticut this weekend for my cousin's wedding. It will be good to see family, but I'm really bummed to be missing Lotus Fest.
current mood:  hungry
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| Tuesday, September 30th, 2008
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10:45 am - Take one sheep; stick in pot; add color
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So in addition to cutting off my hair and knitting a lot this weekend, I also spent some of Saturday playing in the kitchen with wool and dye. I had a couple of skeins of white handspun merino, plus another big ball of white wool roving, so I decided to go that extra few feet down the rabbit hole and start experimenting with color.
For the most part, I opted to use Wilton's cake coloring gels, as they come in lots of pretty colors, there are plenty of online tutorials on how to dye yarn with them, and I could do it in my kitchen in my cooking pots without poisoning myself. I did do a small experiment with some Sennelier silk dyes leftover from the first ill-fated attempt to make pysanky at a grove meeting a year and a half ago; these are water-based liquid dyes for hand-painting silk, and are supposed to be heat-set with an iron. They're pretty old, and I wasn't sure how well they'd work on wool, but I had a small skein of handspun I was willing to experiment on.
( Stormy weather )
( Crazed Parrot; or, How Not to Handpaint )
( Coppertop )
current mood: hungry
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(24 comments | comment on this)
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| Monday, September 29th, 2008
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8:18 pm - Stargazer
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OH MY GOD YOU GUYS I MADE A SWEATER!!!!111!ELEVEN
( See? )
current mood: tired
current music: Sweet Honey in the Rock-- Oughta Be a Woman
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(24 comments | comment on this)
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| Thursday, September 25th, 2008
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1:55 pm - Domesticity is underrated
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I have the best lunch ever today, probably because I actually made time to cook last night and then bothered to pack it in advance. Cream of mushroom soup (heavy on the veggies and light on the cream-- this is not at all like the stuff out of a can that you put in your casseroles), romaine-parsley-mint salad with feta, pecans, and pomegranate seeds (plus red wine vinaigrette), carrot sticks, and a double chocolate cookie. Okay, that last one I bought at the food stand in the library lobby, but what can I say? It's like crack.
( Soup recipe )
Two nights ago, I finished two-plying my white merino handspun. While it does have a, um, variety of thicknesses and levels of twist to it, it looks a lot better overall than I expected. Even with all the variation, it seems to average out to an Aran weight. I skeined it up, soaked it in hot water, and hung it up to set the twist. It's a pretty big skein-- I didn't keep track of the yardage when I was wrapping it up, but I'd guess that it might be over 100 yards. I also have a ~23-yard mini-skein that I left as singles, because it was the earliest, thickest section I did, back when I was a complete n00B and could only spin bulky yarn. I set the twist on that last night too, and while it's definitely overspun, it too looks nicer than expected. I think I'm going to try some dyeing this weekend, probably with Wilton's cake colorings.
I also learned yesterday about how to check for balance when plying yarn. (This means, as I understand, checking to make sure that the amount of twist in the original single is equal to the amount of twist in the opposite direction in the ply. A balanced yarn won't twist up on itself if you fold it up, and it won't bias when you knit with it.) Neat. I'm massively overplying the pink wool that I'm Navajo-plying, but I pretty much knew that already.
( pics )
current mood:  full
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(18 comments | comment on this)
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| Tuesday, September 23rd, 2008
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4:33 pm
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12:08 pm - Help a knitta out
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My knitting group friend Fee (![[info]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) the_crumb_fairy) and her husband B received some bad news recently: B was diagnosed with a tumor in his colon. They're still dealing with this news, seeking second opinions, and trying to figure out what comes next. In the meantime, however, Fee's opened up an Etsy shop to try to raise some money for the piles of medical bills that await them. She's selling some of her own handknits, some original knitting patterns, handmade jewelry, and some of her original artwork (mostly pastels and watercolors, some knitting related.) She just started putting items up yesterday, so I'm sure the store will grow over the next few months, but what's there now is a fine start. Please go take a look, pass the word on, and buy her stuff!
Saibh.Riot: Arts, Knits, and Adornments
http://saibhriot.etsy.com
current mood:  headachey
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| Monday, September 22nd, 2008
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11:55 am - Because it's Monday, and I love you
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Here, have a kitty photo:
This is from about a month ago. Schmendrick had been playing with one of his catnip cherries on the couch (unusual-- usually he prefers the floor for that.) I guess he tuckered himself out, because next thing I knew, he was stretched out on his back asleep with the toy still in his mouth. O.M.G. He woke up when I went diving for the camera, though, but I still managed to catch him in position before he made his escape from the camera.
current mood:  cold
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10:49 am - Shorter days, longer nights
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Busy weekend. The grove had our fall equinox rite, which went very well. The weather was a little warmer than I'd have liked, but better sunny and a little too warm than the alternative. I did a lot of cooking for revels-- I made dolmades, feta-dill beer bread, and even attempted campfire cakes, though they didn't work quite as well as I'd hoped. (Preparing them in the dark may have been part of that.) I'm really hoping I didn't get more poison ivy; there's a lot of it at the site we used, and I was wearing sandals because I decided to choose fashion over practicality wrt my ritual garb. The poison ivy rash I've had on my ankle for the past 5 weeks is finally almost dried up, and I really don't want to go through all that again. Also, I kind of set my hair on fire. Good thing I was planning to get it cut this week...
Yesterday was mellow; I slept in till 12:30 (I'd gotten home from the woods around 3:30 am), then had some breakfast and went to my knitting group. Stayed there a little longer than planned due to the large and sudden thunderstorm that rolled in, drenched everything, and rolled out again. However, I only have about an inch and a half left to knit on my sweater! Yay! I'm also making progress on plying the white merino that I spun on my first drop spindle; it's definitely a "homespun" yarn, varying a lot between thick and thin, but I'm pleased with it. I can't wait to dye it. When I got home from knit group, I baked some honey wheat beer bread, a mini-cake using the leftover batter from the campfire cakes, and made what may be my last batch of hummingbird nectar for the season.
This morning, I was awakened at 8 am by jackhammers. I don't know what was going on, but when I left to go to work, I saw that it was coming from the building next to mine, where they were doing something to the sidewalks.
Chapel Perilous is tonight. Wyldfyre is performing. You will dance, and be awed.
current mood:  awake
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(6 comments | comment on this)
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| Friday, September 19th, 2008
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3:40 pm - Dark Carnival
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I'm tired today. I don't think this is so much because of having a gig last night, as I was home and in my pjs by 10:30, but more because we've been preparing for this gig for a long time, and now it's the post-show letdown.
ETA: The IDS article, including a fabulous photo of Grace spinning fire poi, is online here!
As hecubuscathead already wrote, elements of this gig were seriously clusterfucky, but other parts of it were awesome. Downside: the theater had no power, kind of small turnout, there was no good surface for us to dance on (the packed gravel road was our best option), the tent we were supposed to be performing beneath was not so much a big top as a small canopy, there didn't seem to be much clear direction from the higher-up organizers about getting things started on time or keeping the flow going, one of the acts just didn't show up at all, we were dancing in the dark, and the host of the evening announced us under the name of an entirely different dance troupe. Upside: mischiefmydear was a doll about communicating with us and trying to accommodate our needs, the sound system was good, there was some electric light to illuminate our set, our set went really well (aside from me doing something dumb in the middle of my own choreography), the audience loved us and was great.
For me, the biggest accomplishment of this gig wasn't so much the performance itself, but that we developed a solid 30-minute performance set that has stretched our abilities/imaginations and taken us to a new performance level-- one that we can keep using in whole or in part, and that hopefully we'll be able to perform on an actual stage at some point. Dark Side has focused mainly on ATS since dreadful_red moved away, and that's not a bad thing, to be sure; it's established the synergy between all of us, particularly when we brought in Alice and Grace last year, and allowed us to really solidify our group energy and improvisation abilities. But we're also a fusion troupe, and I've been itching for a while to get back to other types of fusion, and the possibilities that choreography allows. I've also been wanting to have some more prepared solos and small ensemble pieces in addition to our group numbers, and have been wanting all of us to push our boundaries and extend ourselves as artists. I think that the creation of this set accomplished that, and I'm really eager to keep working with it and see how it firms up and focuses in the future.
We opened with my fusion choreography to the Dresden Dolls' "Coin Operated Boy." It's definitely the most theatrical piece we've ever done, and also the most densely packed in terms of movements and details. I'd originally intended it as primarily tribal fusion/dark cabaret, but it ended up also having elements of ATS, West African dance, swing dance, modern dance, and more than a smidgen of Vaudevillian comedy to it. I think it's probably the best work I've done as a choreographer, and I'm really proud of my troupemates for working their butts off in this last month to learn it, and for putting up with some of my more insane ideas. After this, Grace came out with her solo, spinning fire poi to "Been Caught Stealing" by Jane's Addiction. I love watching Grace dance, and I can't wait to see how she develops further as a fire artist. She already has the same instinctual sense of phrasing and ability to dance as she spins that captivate me in Wyldfyre's performances, but she also has her own spunky, funky style that's very different from, though just as enjoyable as, Wyldfyre's strong and sinuous presence. hecubuscathead and Alice teamed up for a slow duet as conjoined twins to a Sufi piece by Mercan Dede that sounds like an old field recording. The conjoined twin concept was my suggestion, but Heather and Alice really took it and ran with it in ways that I could never have imagined. They played it for moments of theater and humor as sideshow characters, but also worked with different ways of moving through space while connected to each other that created moments of startling grace and beauty. It made me think a lot of some of dreadful_red's thesis work, as well as contact improv dance and the Rakadu Gypsies' format of contact improv bellydance. I did a flamenco-fusion solo to "El Tango de Roxanne" from the Moulin Rouge soundtrack, and I'm pretty happy with it as a piece, though the gravel we performed on last night made for uncertain footing on a lot of my fast flamenco spins and pivots. We closed with an ATS improv piece to "Adir Adirim" by Balkan Beat Box, which was just fun and bouncy and circusy... I think it says a lot of where we've come as a group that 5+ minutes of fast tribal improv is now our "easy" piece to do at the end of the set when we're all tired. ;)
After our set, Gabi from Indy was slotted to do fire. I know her as a bellydancer, and a fine one at that, but hadn't known she performed with fire. She told me it's a relatively new thing. She also brought along the lovely Celeste from Black Rose Caravan, who's one of my favorite dancers/people from Indy. They took turns bellydancing solo for the first half of their set, then Gabi did a piece with fire fingers and another with fire staff. She did a good job, but I was pretty pooped by then and my attention span was waning. I got a second to talk to them both after their set, and then I went home.
I took a bunch of pictures before we went on, while it was still light. Our costumes were faboo, if I do say so myself (though we're all in coverups here, so you can't see too much of them), and the other wandering performers were fantastic.
( Beware all ye who enter here )
Those are the best pics, but the full set is here, if you wish to see more.
current mood: impatient
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(10 comments | comment on this)
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| Wednesday, September 17th, 2008
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12:05 pm - Dark Carnival and ATS bellydance classes
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This is just a reminder that Dark Side Tribal will be performing tomorrow at the Dark Carnival Film Festival at the Starlite Drive-In south of town. The event starts at 6 pm. We'll be performing at about 7:30 pm. This is our most epic set to date, and we're really excited about it-- lots of surprises, a little humor, and plenty of sideshow pizazz! Passes to this night only are a steal at $6; passes for the full festival are only $25 ($19 for students).
Besides us, there will also be punk performance art by Seamstress Scavengers, horror hip hop by the Dead Skankz, and fire dancing by Gabi from Indianapolis, as well as a number of strolling performers. The live acts, of course, are merely the prelude to the films for the evening: Shut-Eye Hotel and Unearthed.
Also, my ATS bellydance classes start up again next week, on Thursday the 25th. Level I is at 7:30, Level II is at 8:30. See this post for more details.
current mood:  triumphant
current music: Coin Operated Boy in my head
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| Friday, September 12th, 2008
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3:11 pm - Bits and bobs
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I didn't have to go to the Archives today because I'd already hit my hours for the week yesterday, due to a staff meeting and a lengthy scanning fieldtrip earlier in the week that kept me working longer than usual. I should have still gotten up early to Do Stuff, but instead I slept in, dozing through the sound and scent of the rain that finally arrived.
( Cut for horrifying dream of animal death )
I am finally done writing choreographies! (Okay, I have yet to actually write down my solo, which I should do so that I can remember it beyond next week, but I'm done creating it.) DST did a dress rehearsal last night at the studio, with costumes and mirrors and video and everything, and I'm really pleased with how everything's coming. I'm glad that my troupemates are so hardcore and have worked so hard to learn this nutty piece that I created for them (in under a month, no less), and I'm really excited about the other solos and duets that they've developed on for Dark Carnival next week. I think it may well be the most epic set not involving nathan_fhtagn and the Ghosts Project that we've ever done. We get to unveil some of it (the group choreo and my flamenco-fusion solo) this weekend at sahirazedare's Blue Lotus show in IL, which will be fun. I'm really looking forward to seeing Sahira, haflagirl, Carenza, and others again.
Fiber addiction has increased another level. Um. I've started spinning in public (hey, it's easier to do while waiting for the bus than knitting my sweater, which is big enough that it's now ungainly to haul around, plus it's easier to stop wherever I am with spinning than with knitting.) Yesterday, this garnered me some yelling from a passing car (had headphones on, though, and couldn't hear what was said), and a couple of interesting bus conversations with a nice young hippie boy and a surprisingly nice business school boy, both of whom wanted to know what I was doing. Hippie boy told me that he sometimes makes rope from grasses and other natural materials, and I showed him that what I was doing was pretty much exactly the same process, while business school boy inquired as to whether I'd considered selling what I make online. This duality amuses me. Also, I went to Goodwill the other night in search of a belt and ended up buying three sweaters just to recycle the yarn from them (soft white merino sportweight that I'll probably dye, a neon green angora/lambswool/nylon laceweight, and a bronze cotton/silk worsted.)
If I possessed the power to teleport, I would be attending the opening of Anachrotechnofetishism tonight. Alas, I have no such power, but any of you who are in/near the Seattle area should go check it out. It looks to be a downright amazing collection of steampunk art by different artists, including my dear carpe_jugulum (who also co-curated it) and dreadful_red. Though I can't be there in person, I'll at least be there in spirit-- and image (yea, go forth and buy me from Libby.)
current mood: busy
current music: Missy Elliott-- Get Ur Freak On
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| Wednesday, September 10th, 2008
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3:59 pm - GIP
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This post is nothing more than an excuse to use one of my new user icons, courtesy of xdawnfirex.
However, in the interest of providing some actual content, I went up to Sheep Street last Saturday with some of my fellow Ravelers, where I acquired a gorgeous new drop spindle (a lightweight Kundert top whorl with beautiful maple/cherry/walnut wood inlay.) It spins for freaking ever, which makes spinning fine singles effortless. We did go out to say hi to the sheep, but even at 80 degrees, it was still too hot for the rams, who stood around in the shade panting and unsociable, rather than running up to us for triscuits and scritches as they usually do.
On top of that (or really, because of it), I taught myself Tammy Rizzo's Navajo ply on the fly technique, which means that I'm plying as I spin. Thus, when I get to the end of my roving, voila! Finished yarn, just waiting to have the twist set. I'm pleased to find that even after plying, my handspun is varying between a light fingering (sock) weight and lace weight. I'm using some dark pink wool roving with streaks of blue and clumps of yellow in it, which I bought 9 million years ago to make felted dreads with. (I did make some very pretty dreads with it, but only a few, and I don't wear them much anymore, so I'd rather just spin the rest of the big ball of roving.) With the plying and everything, it's looking sort of tweedy, but nice.
Oh yeah. Who's the man? I am! ... the very curvy, uterus-containing man.
current mood:  thirsty
current music: A Darker Shade of Pagan 9/7/08
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| Friday, September 5th, 2008
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5:05 pm - Fall ATS classes with Dark Side Tribal + performance updates
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Back to school time also means back to bellydance time! In a few weeks, I'll be starting up a 10-week autumn session of American Tribal Style bellydance classes, so get your hips ready! Classes will still be on Thursday nights at the Dance Center, but we're starting an hour later this time. Level 1 will continue to focus on drilling fundamental movements, muscle articulations, introducing the standard ATS group formations, and working with zills, while Level 2 will address some extended aspects of tribal improv, including use of veils, an intro to kind and gentle floorwork, and conscious control of performance presence.
What: American Tribal Style Bellydance classes
When: Thursdays, Sept. 25 - Dec. 4 (no class on Thanksgiving, Nov. 27);
Level 1 - 7:30-8:25
Level 2 - 8:35-9:30
Where: The Dance Center, 223 S. Pete Ellis Drive on the east side of Bloomington (in the strip mall between PC Guru and Learning Treasures, behind the clockpost)
( Plus informal open jam night )
In other Dark Side Tribal news, here's where you can see us perform over the next few weeks:
Saturday, September 13: Blue Lotus workshops & show in Bloomington-Normal, IL, hosted by Sahira Zedare
Thursday, September 18: Dark Carnival Film Festival at the Starlite Drive-In Theater on Bloomington's south side. We'll be adding to the carnival atmosphere, delivering a dark and delicious set straight out of an antique midway sideshow, complete with clockwork curiosities, freakshow oddities, firespinning, femmes fatales, carnival barkers, and some good old dancing girl action.
Dark Side Tribal now has a Facebook group as well! Come join us for event invitations and announcements.
And don't forget to check out our Etsy shop for beautiful costume pieces and luscious handmade soaps.
Lastly, we're hoping to have some exciting workshop news to announce soon. Stay tuned!
current mood: busy
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| Wednesday, September 3rd, 2008
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2:41 pm - Boy with a Coin
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I randomly stumbled across this music video last week, on the public access station of all places. It is now my new favorite music video-- not because I particularly like the song or even know who the band is, but because it quite inexplicably has some absolutely awesome flamenco dancing in it (no idea why, given that neither the song nor the guitar technique are at all flamenco-ey, but whatev.) I love the way the ensemble looks together, all long graceful lines and sinuous arms; and I love the animated graphics that seem to fly off the bata de cola soloist.
Iron and Wine, "Boy with a Coin"
current mood: busy
current music: Iron and Wine-- Boy with a Coin
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| Tuesday, September 2nd, 2008
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3:45 pm - My baby loves a bunch of authors (and radio people)
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Elizabeth Gilbert, the author of one of my favorite books ever, is speaking at the IU Auditorium next Monday, Sept. 8, at 7 pm. Her talk is sponsored by the IU School of Journalism and is free. I am so there.
I also noticed, as per this press release, that Nina Totenberg is speaking the following week. (It's a Tuesday night right before a Dark Side gig, though, so I can't go. Oh boo.) Wow! Rock on, IU Journalism organizer peoples.
current mood: hungry
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3:25 pm - One man.... In a world...
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Don LaFontaine, aka "that guy that does the voiceover on every movie trailer ever", died.
Hmm. He wasn't that old, either.
What will become of our movie trailers now?
current mood: surprised
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10:54 am - Treasured
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I was excited to discover today that one of Dark Side Tribal's Etsy goods is featured in a treasury by one of the members of the INCrowd street team! Hooray!
The treasury expires today at 12:50 pm, but if you want to go look, it's here.
Yay!
current mood:  pleased
current music: Passing Strange soundtrack
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| Thursday, August 28th, 2008
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12:35 pm - Unexpected fiber inheritance
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I got a good bit of crafting done while at Summerland-- am nearly done with my second sweater sleeve (one good sitdown at knit group on Sunday should take care of the rest), and I've been spinning up a storm. I'm nearly finished spinning up the white merino roving! I just sort of assumed it would always be with me, following me throughout life all soft and fluffy. But no.
Coincidentally, I was visited by the fiber fairy last night-- or rather I visited her and was bestowed with fibery wonders. Translation: I went over to watch Project Runway at crescentwench and T's place last night, and took my spinning with me to keep my hands busy; somehow this resulted in crescentwench deciding to give me something like 4 pounds of merino roving in various colors (more of the same white, some teal, some watermelon pink and some wine-colored) that she'd had sitting around, plus a couple of small packets of sparkly fibers to spin in with it. My mind boggles, while my obsessed spinner's heart flip-flops with glee.
Question for you spinners: when you're spinning together different kinds of fibers (like say, merino and mohair, or adding in sparkly bits), how do you combine them so that they're spun evenly? Do you comb them together? Leave them separate but hold them together and draft from both simultaneously? Perform secret alchemical incantations? What?
I think I'm gonna need more spindles. *gulp*
current mood: thankful
current music: Lightspeed Champion-- Everyone I Know is Listening to Crunk
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| Thursday, August 21st, 2008
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10:30 am - Journeying to Summerland
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Thanks everyone for your comments and condolences the other day. It meant a lot.
This has not, it seems, been a good week for family members, family friends, or pets. I hope this too will pass.
I'm heading off to Summerland (the ADF festival, not the pagan afterlife) this afternoon with KayLee, and we'll catch up with fellow grovies cedarravenna and Jay once we're there. I hope it will be a good weekend. I'm looking forward to seeing other ADFers and hopefully relaxing quite a bit. I come bearing cookies.
current mood:  stressed
current music: Pentaphobe-- Teltar apredum
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