Road Trip

Today, we're gettin' the hell outta Dodge. That's right, it's Road Trip Time.

We're heading down to Bend to spend some time with friends, get away from the everyday reality/life/crap, and just try and relax. Chris and I haven't taken a road trip in a shockingly long time, though I have taken many with other girlfriends over the years. I am looking forward to taking one with my best friend starting this afternoon. :)

This will be the first road trip for our dogs, however! We would always have Chris' Mom doggie-sit for us when we went anyplace, and that not being an option for this trip, it's an opportunity to give them an adventure and see how they do. It will be 6+ hours in the car each way, plus staying in a strange house, with two other dogs to boot. I am confident Loki will be the gem he always is--he is St. Loki, I swear. But Gretchen...she is a Bitch. And fancies herself Alpha much of the time. So going to another house with another Alpha Bitch...let's just say she may spend much of her day in a crate and on a leash. Which is fine by me. She could use a little extra socialization and humbling. ;)

It's also nice to think that we will have them with us when we go to bed at night. That is always one of the hardest things when we travel. When the action of the day is through, and we're crawling into bed, we almost without fail make some comments about how we wish our dogs were there to cuddle. It's just not "good night" without our fingers running through black fur and scritching pink bellies, and receiving the requisite puppy kisses. So having that on this trip is a joy.

So what's on the agenda for the weekend? Eating, drinking, hot tubbing, laughing, dog-cuddling, sleeping, repeat.

A little something every day...

In the past year, I have been taking some workshops in book writing, as I have a couple books in my head waiting to get out. And one of the top things I run into everywhere I go is "Start a blog, write something EVERY day." Which inspires me to ponder, as I am sure anyone faced with this challenge rightfully would, "What the hell am I going to write about every day that anyone is going to want to read?" I do a pretty good job on a bi-monthly writing regimen, and have even been known to write some gems weekly for a stretch. But daily?!

So I suppose this is a word of warning to my regular readers: things might be a bit mundane at times, trite, brief, and even meaningless...but you will see me writing every day* regardless of whether any sort of inspiration has struck yours truly.

Luckily, my blog is already set up to be easily filtered by topic. So if you come here just to read about dance, or just about costume and make-up tips, or something of that nature, you can click on one of the links at the top of the page and see if there is anything new tagged with those topics. But if you're a glutton for punishment, and just want to read whatever drivel happens to turn up on the front page, you're in luck! There will be a lot more drivel!

I have even created a tag for it. When I am not writing about anything in particular, I will tag it "daily drivel". There. All set, eh?

*There will be days when I will not be near a computer for whatever reason, and we can just give me a pass those days, shall we?

I'm not fine...but I will be!

My friend Arya has a wonderful blog that I pop over to read now and again. Today, I caught up on a past post where she mused about the word "fine". What struck me was this portion of it:

"Fred: "Oh, hello, Alma. I haven't seen you in so long. How are you?"

Alma: "Hi Fred. I'm fine. How 'bout yourself?"

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Does the above greeting sound familiar? Have you been Fred or Alma - either on the receiving or giving end of a "fine"?
...
The truly sad thing about the overused "fine" is that it is usually a lie. A flat-out lie (just read the links above to read various definitions). Usually, everything about the person saying they're fine tells us otherwise. Alma looks disheveled. Her skin is waxy and her eyes have dark rings. She seems to sag, as if drained. And yet, when asked by a friend how she's doing, she tells him "fine". She could simply say, "Oh, Fred. I'm having a tough time right now. I appreciate you asking how I'm doing, but I don't feel like talking about it." She could be honest without going into details, "I'm not well, but I'll be okay." Somehow we, as a culture, have all become "fine" even when we're not."

My thoughts after the jump...

You don't love the dance...

I came across an article I remember reading before (and maybe even posted here, not sure and didn't have time to search), and thought it was timely and interesting to read. From Aziza Sa'id's blog

Today my students were teachers, Belly Dancing and Yoga. The first of today’s Big Questions is one of my favorites… Why Do You Do What You Do? Dance? Yoga?

And people gave some real truths in answer: Because it’s fun; Because in it I find acceptance, of myself and others; Because I feel beautiful; Because I feel at peace; Because it is a way to create and express myself; Because I feel healthier; Because I feel better in and about my body when I do.

Because I love it.

And here’s where I need to say… No. You don’t. You do not love yoga, or dance.

Making Money Off of Dance = Less Love?

Sometimes I feel a little upset when people imply that because I dance as my vocation, that somehow I don't do it for the love of it. My personal take on it is that I love it SO MUCH that I rearranged my entire life, gave up a sizable income I used to make in more lucrative jobs, and passionately commit my energies to being a more knowledgeable dancer, a better teacher, and a professional and polished performer. That isn't to say that those who don't follow my same path don't love it as much as I do--the stars aligned such that I could devote my life to it as I do--but conversely it doesn't mean I only do this for the money or for what it "gets" me.


So I think it is unfair for either side to accuse the other of lack of love driving their decisions in what is or is not appropriate to be termed bellydance. But I strongly believe that lack of experience, a lack of empathy, and/or a dose of ignorance can combine to create a dancer who is unable to appreciate why people fight so hard to define bellydance, tribal bellydance, etc; and why these same dancers eschew the idea of boundaries and responsibilities which the name "bellydancer" encompasses.