to do:

words to live by

so you think you can dance

SO i DON'T think I can dance. well, i can move around and look somewhat ok on a dance floor, but i certainly can't dance like the kids on this show. and yes, here is where i freely admit that i'm a bit of a SYTYCD junkie. i heart it. i'm ok with that.

i figure if i'm going to waste my time watching tv, at least i'm watching people with TRUE TALENT. i mean, they've got skills. and whats better than to watch a true dancing competition between people who are working extremely hard at something they're passionate about: dance.

this season started and i was a bit jaded by last season. i figured nothing could top last year. boy was i wrong. these dancers this year were absolutely incredible. and again, i cried. i cried almost every episode - usually when it was katie and joshua were dancing together. i mean, i'm passionate about things. and when i'm passionate, i go ALL out. so i can kind of relate. however, i can not relate at all to the passion these people have on the dance floor because simply, i can't dance like they can. they leave their hearts out there and it is brilliant. and it gets me every time. it makes me want to stand up and scream for them. it moves my heart and my soul. it stirs something deep inside me and gives me goosebumps. this is an artform straight from god. it is true, rich, real, and deep - an expression of their souls in the form of movement.
what i can't believe about this show is the short amount of time they spend learning the dance before they perform it. most of these people are trained only in one or two styles of dance, and then they have to pick out of a hat what styles they have to learn and then perform in like a day. the best part of this season, though, was the winner (joshua) was not trained at all. he was 19 and a straight hip hop dancer. you go, joshua. and when he danced with katie, the judges were right - it was like magic on that dance floor. those two together were connected in a way i will never fully know. not romantially but straight PASSIONately. they shared the same fervor for dance and it showed every single time.
completely radical.

olympics 08.08.08

i'm not into sports. never have been. never played them. don't have the attention span to watch them. however, when the olympics are on, i'm somehow glued to my tv set in anxious anticipation. i get all excited the days before, like it's about to be my birthday or something. i print out the schedule and circle the events i want to watch as if it were a list of sales i need to hit at the mall. and then, the opening ceremonies. YES! sweet! i turn them on and the blare throughout my home in all their triumphant glory.
so this year, of course i was a tad more excited because they fell on 08.08.08. how serendipitous! and of course, the chinese did it up in all their splendid grandeur. how fantastic were the details? how glorious were the colors? but seriously, how much more synchronized could they have been?!? amazing.
the banging drums, the perfect lines of thousands of people with NO marks on the ground, the lit up dancers, the performers graceful tai chi...it all made my heart flutter. and then - the games start. phelps lands his first gold with his first race of the games. and breaks a world record.
then i cry.
the men's gymnastics team performs and nail it.
i cry.
the synchronized divers float effortlessly through the air at warp-speed and land in the water perfectly at the same time with NO splash.
i cry.
i cry tears of overwhelming joy for these people. i cry tears of amazement at what humans can do.
i cry like those people are my relatives, like i was part of their training sessions, as if their winning somehow is directly related to some success in my life. kind of like when a guy gets upset when "his team" loses - as if he was actually on the team. as if he actually knows the players.
actually though, i cry because i'm sick and morbid sometimes. i'm actually scared that those girls' knees are gonna blow to smithereens when they land their double spinning triple back flip whatevers on the BALANCE BEAM. i cry because i'm afraid those chinese boys' shoulder muscles are gonna give way when they're holding themselves up on those fucking rings in the air.
and i cry because i could NEVER DO THAT. really, i just cry cause it's so damn awesome the things that us mere mortals can really do when we try, when we practice, when we persevere, when we set our minds to something. it's incredible.
the host city for the 2016 olympics is still being bid on but chicago is one of the candidates. hopefully they will be there and i can get my head out of my ass to plan a trip far enough in advance. i NEED to see some of this shit in person.
seriously.

desiderata and synchronicities...

i was at barnes and noble the other day and i came across this book titled "desiderata for baby lovers". i had to pick it up because i have heard of desiderata but had no idea what it was. i skimmed through it, interested, but of course like everything, my interest died and i set it back down; i got the drift.
then i checked out one of my friends' blogs, and i scrolled down to see the last weeks' posts, and what do i find? a post titled desiderata. hmmmmmmmmmmm. so of course i had to read it. and i read the whole thing.
synchronistic as this already is (running across the book last week, then seeing a friend's post about it?!), the last line in the third from the last phrase = one of my MOST favorite quotes: "And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should."
whoa.
so, here it is, for you to read, and for me to read to remind myself daily of some very important things...

Go placidly amid the noise and the haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence.

As far as possible, without surrender, be on good terms with all persons.

Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others, even to the dull and the ignorant; they too have their story.

Avoid loud and aggressive persons; they are vexatious to the spirit.

If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain or bitter, for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.

Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.

Keep interested in your own career, however humble; it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.

Exercise caution in your business affairs, for the world is full of trickery.

But let this not blind you to what virtue there is; many persons strive for high ideals, and everywhere life is full of heroism.

Be yourself.

Especially do not feign affection.

Neither be cynical about love, for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment, it is as perennial as the grass.

Take kindly the counsel of the years, gracefully surrendering the things of youth.

Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune.

But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings.

Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.

Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself.

You are a child of the universe no less than the trees and the stars; you have a right to be here. And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.

Therefore be at peace with God, whatever you conceive Him to be.

And whatever your labors and aspirations, in the noisy confusion of life, keep peace in your soul.

With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world.

Be cheerful.

Strive to be happy.