Archive for the 'family' Category
February 18th, 2010 -- Posted in family, san francisco, the city |
Ryan and I went to see Fiddler on the Roof on Broadway tour last night. I wanted to like it - I have fond memories of seeing it on-stage as a kid, and Harvey Fierstein is supposed to be incredible - but I was less than impressed. I found Fierstein’s performance to be disappointing - from his voice to the way he played his character - and I felt that what should have been complicated themes of persecution, tradition and a changing world were downplayed to the point that the overall focus of the musical was lost. Ryan postulated that the film was MUCH better and - although he enjoys going to the theatre - in general he feels that well-produced films are a better experience than well-produced plays.
Considering that in lieu of MTV, SNL, Nintendo and other 90’s pop culture tidbits, I was exposed to Jesus Christ Superstar, Godspell, The Wiz, Hairspray and the like, I naturally disagree with Ryan’s premise. I don’t think that plays are ALWAYS better than movies - I’ve never seen the movie Fiddler on the Roof, and I’m sure it probably is superior - but I, personally, will likely always choose a live, in-the-moment experience over a manufactured one.
My family’s library of Broadway soundtracks and the immense number of hours spent in the theatre growing up certainly contributes to this preference but it’s more than that ~ theatre is, well, a spiritual experience for me. It’s one of my favorite things about life - the feeling that you’re almost eavesdropping in on someone else’s life, someone else’s story. That they’re sharing something with you in a personal way. I’m not going to make the case that all theatre productions are meaningful and profound. I’m not going to say that Les Mis is the same caliber as Legally Blond, of course. They’re completely different ends of the spectrum but they both have the capability to engage with you in an intimate way, whether it be through the heartbreaking honesty of Jean Valjean or through the earnest hilarity of Elle Woods.
I still vividly remember the first time I saw Les Mis, over ten years ago. I was at the Pantages with my family, sitting in the second row. We were close enough to see the actors spit, to be even more thoroughly drawn into what I would already consider one of the, if not THE greatest musical. It was heart-wrenching, raw, and no movie could ever compare to that.
Not to mention that for me there’s something beyond the actual production itself - theater is the thing my family and I did (and still do) together, it’s the thing Ryan and I do together, it’s a thing I love doing with friends. I have fond, fond memories of laughing through the Scarlet Pimpernel with my parents, seeing 42nd street with my Grandma, being completely blindsided by the nudity in Spring Awakening when I saw it with my sister (ok, that one’s not as fond…), queuing up for the cheap seats to Chicago with a friend in London’s West End, attempting to surprise Ryan with Les Mis tickets. My life’s memories are punctuated by theater experiences, so I guess I’m a little bit biased.
I don’t mean to imply that theater (as in film and movies) can’t produce a spiritual experience or fond memories. I just know that I, personally would be far more inclined to pick theatre over theater. And since Ryan and I need a thing we do together, I guess I’ll stick with it. Lord knows we can’t agree on what movie to see …
November 13th, 2009 -- Posted in family |
i’ve been doing this thing on facebook where i list one thing i’m thankful for each day until thanksgiving. supposedly, it’s supposed to get harder as you go along, but i don’t see how that’s possible as i have SO much to be thankful for. today, i wanted to mention how thankful i am for my parents, but a simple statement like that just didn’t seem to cut it ~ nor could i fit all the things i want to thank them for in a facebook status update. i’m sure i can’t fit them all in a post, either ~ and i’ve mentioned many things about my life growing up which i’m grateful for already on my blog - but today i wanted to include a few more.
1. they taught me i could be anything, do anything, have anything i wanted. i don’t remember anything ever being too crazy, too ambitious too … whatever. if i had told them i wanted to own the biggest casino in Las Vegas, they would have said “go for it”. i always had (and still have) a strongly-held belief that i could accomplish what i set my mind to, thanks to the encouragement of my parents.
and they went beyond just telling me i could do something. when i played sports, i don’t think my mom ever missed a game (and my dad was always there if he was in town). when i was a cheerleader my mom learned the cheers. whether i was competing in piano guilds or pageants, they were driving me, practicing with me, giving me the tools i needed so i COULD actually accomplish anything. (and, looking back, i accomplished a lot for a kid!)
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September 18th, 2009 -- Posted in family, military |
this is a little late for a 9/11 post, i realize, but i got fired up by something i saw recently. in regards to a 9/11 related admonition by a friend on facebook to “never forget” a comment was made that too many people had forgotten, including those who wanted to close gitmo.
i do not wish this post to be a delineation of why i support closing gitmo or how i feel about torture. i’ve already explained all that here and elsewhere. i do wish to point out how absurd and offensive this conclusion is in general, and to me specifically. in general, it shouldn’t take much common sense to determine that remembering and mourning 9/11 is not mutually exclusive with wanting to shut down a detainment camp.
perhaps it shouldn’t, but it upsets me GREATLY that someone would infer that a political and/or humanitarian stance would remove any and all sympathy, empathy, pain and suffering in regards to that tragic day.
perhaps i shouldn’t, but i take it personally. 9/11 hit close to home for me, in a sense. i don’t mean to put myself on the same par at all with 9/11 survivors or people who lost friends and family - i’m not at all trying to equate my experience with theirs. but it was none the less traumatic for me in a way it probably wasn’t for many people: my dad was deployed when we engaged in operation iraqi freedom. he was sent to saudi arabia to help command the satellite/space aspects and operations of the war, so he wasn’t on the front lines and in terms of war it was probably the safest place he could be. but i was 18, away from family at college, and i was scared. we didn’t know when he was coming home and there was that frightening nagging thought that none of us wanted to articulate: “what if he’s NOT coming home.” i remember that thought. i remember scrounging through magazines and newspapers looking for references to my dad’s base and his operations. i remember getting emails from him - and hoping i would continue to get them.
i remember all that - even now my hands are shaky, my heart is beating fast - i will NEVER forget. to say that i ever could, simply because of a political position i’ve decided to hold, makes me angry. it reduces the fright and the memories to nothing, based simply on partisanship. it infuriates me that my dad’s - and my family’s - sacrifice and uncertainty during those times could be so easily written off.
to say that i have forgotten just because i support closing a prison is completely unfair - and completely inaccurate.
July 31st, 2009 -- Posted in family |
my bailey-roo shared 13 amazing years with us. she saw and experienced more in her life than many humans will. she was as much a part of our military family as anyone else, proving herself a faithful companion as she shared the back seat with us on cross-country trips, adjusted to the snow of colorado, the fog of the central coast, the expansive army base in LA, the stairs in the McMansion in fairfax, the jetting around the country to be with various family members, and even moving to tokyo and back. when she was born on the little farm in la junta, colorado, where we got her, i’m sure she never imagined she’d have such adventures! though, really, neither did we!
even after joce and i had moved out, every time we’d come to visit we’d be greeted with her trademark seal bark as she fell all over herself to show her excitement at our homecoming. we all know dogs teach us about what’s really important in life, and bailey did an amazing job of helping put our lives in perspective. and she will continue to.
our sandwiches are safe now, but i’d just as soon feed her every one i ever made and have her stick around a while longer. in my animal-loving mind, i believe st. francis will be throwing open the gates of heaven to welcome her, and leading her to baxter - another dog i had to say goodbye to - where they can eat sandwiches, run, seal-bark and play until we can all be together again.
July 16th, 2009 -- Posted in career, family, military, religion, san francisco, the city |
church is like the gym for me. some people have probably heard my analogy, but here it is:
i get up every morning and go to the gym, 7 am, like clockwork. it’s not a choice for me, it’s not something i evaluate, it’s just something i do. it’s something i’ve always done basically my entire life, and i don’t really think about it. i don’t know how to do anything else from 7 to 8am. i don’t particularly enjoy it - i don’t wake up in the morning thinking, “oh boy, i’m so excited to get up and work out.” like i said - i don’t think about it at all. i show up at the gym and i work the hell out of myself. i don’t have a blast while i’m there, but i don’t hate it. then, after i leave, i’m glad i went - i feel like i did something good for myself and that i made a good decision. and if i don’t go (yes, there have been a handful of times over the course of my life where i’ve **gasp** skipped the gym!) i feel like crap. overall i see the benefits it has in my life and therefore it’s not a habit i’m going to part with.
this is pretty much the perfect description for how i view church. i don’t go every day or anything, but it’s a weekly habit that’s been ingrained in me since the dawn of time as i know it. i don’t really enjoy it, but i’m not miserable - and after i go, i’m glad i went … though - like the gym - that’s mostly because if i don’t go, i feel guilty.
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