whose line is it anyway?

tonight i went to an "intro to improv" workshop taught by a guy who sort of looked like this...

no joke.

i thought it would be terrifying and possibly awful, but it was actually totally fun and relaxing to be in an environment where, as lee put it, "silliness is supported."

we started off playing a bunch of games where there was a lot of switching things up and thinking on your feet and saying ridiculous things like "aaooooga!" (is that even a word that can be spelled?) miss angela and i were more familiar with these games than most of the other people in the class, thanks to our years of faithful family home evening attendance. (big booty, anyone?)

and then we did a scene-type activity with a partner where you riffed together off a word someone else from the class threw out, but everything you said had to be true. i was a little bit bummed i wasn't in the pair whose conversation strayed to placentas (so many good stories on that topic!), but my partner and i hashed it out over cyber-bullying, which i feel pretty good about (our conversation, not the bullying. to be clear).

it was really a blast to let loose and let go and not worry about looking good or being funny. and it was also interesting to think about what makes us laugh and why some things are funny and other aren't, and how that ability to just be out there and honest and without an agenda all the time could change the way we interact with eachother.

not to mention that a solid foundation in improvisational technique could only be a benefit in any awkward social situation. and i am bound to have many more of those before my life is through.

and, of course, dabbling in improvisational theater can only bring my closer to my television idol, liz lemon. i was hopingt to find the clip where she starts improvising to save jack's honor during the retreat to move forward but just ends up taking off her shirt. sadly, i couldn't find that one, but i did find this nifty little montage. listen carefully at the end for the most important thing liz lemon and i have in common.

(did you catch that? date with my cousin? check!)

a book by its cover

one time, my friend joel went on a rant about how people always say, "i am going to sushi," when in fact they are not "going to sushi," sushi being neither a verb nor a place, but rather going to eat sushi, and there is something about sushi that seems to invite this phenomenon when other food types do not. i mean, think about it. when is the last time you heard someone say, "i am going to lasagna." never, would be my guess.

so, it is with joel in mind that i tell you last night i went out for sushi with miss angela. it is important for you to understand that miss angela did not think she would like sushi. but then she tried it, and she did. and it is also important for you to understand that i did not think i would like miss angela. but then i tried her, and i did. i really did. (and don't worry, it's ok for me to put this on the internet because i already told her to her face. and that's my rule.)

to use angela's words themselves: "i don't look how i am."

indeed, you think you are getting one thing when in fact you are getting quite another, and i mean that in the best possible way.

(might i also add, goal #23, check.)

and so the old adage that we should not judge a book by its cover is proven (proved?) true once again. and once again i have been shamed for jumping too quickly to easy conclusions. the good news is, while i proved myself to be somewhat judgemental, i think i also proved myself willing to move past my first impressions. i discovered the error of my ways sooner rather than later, and that is is certainly a step in the right direction.

(and i will say here that i think it is in large part to goal #23, which i have always believed in, even when my dad said that making something unexpected a goal sort of takes the "unexpected" out of it. be that as it may, here we are.)

that said, though, i hope that i never have to write a post like this again.

though, on the other hand, there is something infinitely more exciting and fulfilling about finding a friend where you didn't think you would find one.

and, while i am just rambling on, i am going to go ahead and dump this can of worms right out. the fact of the matter is that we are all books with covers, and we are all judged by them to some extent, and while some of our covers might match out contents better than others, a cover can never tell the whole story.

por (a lame) ejemplo, i am consistently mistaken for a mac user, which i am not. what is that about? the shorter hair? the glasses? the clothes i wear? the fact that i reference "30 rock" approximately 1,000 times in a day? i have no idea.

like i said, lame example, but, i guess what i am getting at is, what happened to me and miss angela happens to all of us in some measure.

and that seems like a shame.

i guess one solution is to make our outsides match our insides better. but if that does not feel comfortable and self-honest, then it seems like a shame, too.

unfortunately, i have run out of any further insight on the topic, so i am just going to have to leave it there, but i turn the floor to you for any additional wisdom.

do we need to reconcile our covers to our books? (and why is that our covers don't always match our books in the first place?) or is there a way to avoid judging people on the outside at first? or is the solution to recognize that our first impressions could be wrong and get over them as quickly as possible? why do people say, "going to sushi" but not "going to" anything else? and seriously, are macs so much better?

et, voila!

happy new year, internet family, and happy new blog (for frances)!

what do you think of the new design? if you think it's awesome, you should tell my cousin, trevor, as it is all his handiwork. if you do not think it is awesome, i invite you to leave. right now.

personally, i am thrilled about this new blog (for frances) for the new year. what's that, you say? you'd like a little tour? i thought you'd never ask.

right now, we are in my new and improved content space. you might not notice anything different right now, but this space is a lot wider, which means it can better accomodate the big and awesome picture collages i am going to learn how to put together before the end of this new decade.

now, if you'd care to direct your gaze up(stairs), you will see my smashing new banner. in the middle we have me (natch), a photo snapped by the ever-so-talented-and-lovely dallas graham. if you have any major life event coming up that requires photographing (like maybe a wedding or a wednesday afternoon) you should call him. right now.

on the right, we have a branch of japanese cherry blossoms, japan being one of the places closest to my heart, and cherry blossoms being one of the things in japan that i love the most. and, on the left, we have the venerable abraham lincoln, one of the more well-known former residents of my current home and, if i might add, not a bad-looking statue.

and that concludes our tour. there are still a few minor tweaks left (i'm looking at you, sidebar), and the identity of the blog as far as content and structure is still evolving a little in my brain, but i would say the blog (for frances) is off to a good start in 2010.

speaking of which, the year itself is off to a pretty good start, wouldn't you say? except for one thing. is it just me, or were we supposed to have flying cars by now?

so this is christmas

a very merry christmas eve to you, my dears!

i still basically can't believe that christmas is tomorrow (tomorrow? tomorrow!) and the rapidity with which it has snuck up on me this year makes me a little nervous that i am going to wake up tomorrow and be 90 years old.

in the meantime, in a few hours i am off to denver for many days of eating, sleeping, movie watching and other usual family revelry, this time not punctuated by frantically repacking my car, plotting a cross country road trip route or the general emotional instability that precedes a major life change. so yes, i am looking forward to it very much.

speaking of major life changes, it has now been two years since i started keeping this blog, and i think she deserves a change as well. so, we are going on a brief (don't panic) hiatus for a redesign, helmed by my ever-so-talented cousin, trevor, and a little quiet reflection about where we want to go and what we want to be in the year ahead. we'll see you again on january 4, the year of our lord two thousand and ten. (if you're dying for a fix before then (and i wouldn't blame you in the least) i'll be over at segullah on december 26th.)

until then, all my love and best wishes this holiday season.

hugs and kisses,
f

this tree is my tree, this tree is your tree

in just one of many examples of how these united states of america are a democracy for one and for all, i give you the national christmas tree.

yes, indeedy. a christmas tree for all of us! the main tree is surrounded by 50 smaller trees, one for each state of the union, and while the decorations aren't much to write home (or to the internet) about, the atmosphere and the view are worth the chilly trip.

plus, santa was there!



though, i am starting to doubt in his omnipotence. when mary told him she wanted a boyfriend for christmas, the response was a little lackluster. quoth santa: i'm just a toymaker.

frosty

on saturday morning it started to snow.

having been hardened by many a harsh utah winter, and having the benefit of public transportation, which meant i could go out in the snow without driving in it, i headed downtown to finish my christmas shopping. (because the last saturday before christmas is totally the perfect time to go to target.)

and then, because the weather didn't seem that bad, i went to see dana's new place in dupont circle.

by the time i headed home, around 4 in the afternoon, all bus service had been suspended, the metro wasn't running above ground, the underground trains were running excruciatingly slowly and the outside world looked like this.











it finally stopped dumping sometime in the wee hours of sunday morning. by then church had been cancelled and uncle bob and aunt joyce and i had watched one christmas movie, three episodes of "mash" and eaten a whole batch of chocolate chip coconut cookies.

the next morning, it took the three of us about an hour to dig out half of the driveway and a narrow, narrow path up the stairs to the front door. i didn't get dressed all day long, and by sunday afternoon work on monday had been cancelled. (unless you are the person in this house who has to keep debating healthcare reform.)

they say it's the worst storm in these parts since 2003. and while you are right if you remember that i hate snow more than just about anything there is, if it means no church and no work and a perfectly good excuse to do nothing at all, then i say, "let it snow!"

what healthcare reform and baked goods have in common

last night at dinner i interrupted a long and increasingly convoluted conversation about healthcare reform (is there any other kind?) to talk about the impending office christmas cookie exchange.

the office christmas cookie exchange, i explained, goes like this.

everyone who wants to participate bakes cookies.

everyone who baked cookies gets together to trade cookies.

everyone who baked cookies goes home with new, delicious cookies.

"oh," saith uncle bob. "sounds like a healthcare exchange."

but, i continued, i am pretty sure that the rules aren't actually going to be enforced and that everyone is going to come in and eat cookies, whether they baked them or not. so, some people bake, but all people eat.

"oh," saith uncle bob. "sounds like the public option."

rimshot, heyo!