Dry Bones Dance

It's been a while, and yet I still don't have much to say

I haven't blogged in a bit, and someone asked me today where I've been. I haven't been anywhere, really. I'm just in a non-verbal phase at the moment, processing some very heavy stuff which I don't feel inclined to share even with most of my friends. And I think it's also time for my annual Official Pre-Birthday Funk, which usually encompasses the month or so before my birthday.

In addition, I am keenly aware that my life is not all that interesting. I had a friend visiting me from out of town, we had dim sum, and went to the beach and the DooDah Parade. (The DooDah Parade is Pasadena's anti-Rose Parade. They accept pretty much anyone who wants to be in it, and Reverend Billy was the Grand Marshall. His appearance was a bit anti-climactic, but the Disco Drill Team was highly entertaining, as was the barbecue team that catapulted baked potatoes into the crown. It would have been a great photo opportunity, but I forgot my camera.) I took my Little Sister on an outing to Griffith Observatory yesterday, and somehow got lost getting there, which is something that happens most of the time when I think I know how to get somewhere, but really don't. Fortunately, she found this highly entertaining.

One of the highlights of my week was a meeting of the Youth Development and Violence Prevention committee at City Hall. The meeting itself was dangerously close to being an exercise in utterly meaningless bureaucracy, so that gives you a sense of how exciting my life is in general.

I have deep thoughts floating around in my head somewhere, but lack the energy to dig them out right now. All that is a long way of saying I haven't gone anywhere, and I'll show up here whenever I'm feeling more chatty.

Utterly frivolous post about television

I have recently become addicted to Lost. I know that this does not exactly make me a trendsetter, but I have just finished Season 1, and will be embarking on Season 2 in the near future. (And do NOT, under any circumstances, tell me anything that happens in seasons two or three. I want to be surprised.)

No doubt this is a sign that I have too much time on my hands, but it's a hard week, and I'm in the mood for something escapist. So, here are my questions for you to discuss amongst yourselves in the comments section:

1. What is the one thing you would miss most if you were stranded on a tropical island? (And it has to be a thing. We'll all just assume that you would miss your family/significant other/children/friends.) I would miss my house and coffee.

2. What useful skill would you bring to the table? I am sadly ill-equipped in the hunting/fishing/building electronic gizmos from spare parts/general wilderness survival category. However, given the fact that the Lost characters seem to have a penchant for beating the crap out of each other almost every week, I feel I could be useful in the area of non-violent conflict resolution. Also, I am good at creating meaningful, non-sectarian rituals for those occasions when somebody dies, is saved from a polar bear/mysterious monster/crazy French lady/the Others, or sets out to sea on a homemade raft.

3. Who is the one person you would most want to be stranded on said tropical island with you and why? (Other than children/significant other.) It can be for practical or personal reasons.

4. Have you ever sat on a plane, looked our the window, and wondered how and if you would survive if it went down right then? Or is that just me?

Kenya News

I haven't written anything about what's happening in Kenya, because I have nothing intelligent to add to the conversation, really. I have been following what's happening a bit, and if you want to hear about Kenya from Kenyans, Kenya Unlimited is a great place to go to hear from scads of Kenyan bloggers. Lynn at Noli Irritare Leones does a good job of linking to African news as well.

Save me a seat on the bandwagon

I find myself in an unfamiliar scenario. I'm an independent who has voted Green the past few elections. (Brownie points to anyone who can name the Green Party Presidential candidate in 2004. Hint: It's not Ralph Nader. Extra super duper brownie points if you can name the Green Party gubernatorial candidate for California in the last election.) I still believe that we need a viable third party rather desperately in this country, and I still don't like the Democrats much, but this time around, I'm going to vote for someone who might actually...WIN. I'm finding this disconcerting.

I've been leaning his direction for a while, but I've decided to overcome my "They're all just Republicrats controlled by corporations" bias. It's true that the leading Democratic candidates don't have wildly different policy positions, but I've decided to commit to voting to Obama anyway. Hell, maybe I'll even get a bumper sticker.

New Year's Resolution: Don't make any resolutions

I'm rather relieved that the holidays are finally over. It's not that I'm against celebration - although I tend to be rather bad at it. It's more that it seems to take extra effort during the holiday season to accept where I am and who I am right now, with everything screaming about all the stuff I should be giving or receiving, all the emphasis on family, and with all the churches throwing in extra helpings of the baby Jesus.

I think I did reasonably well this year at accepting that the best I can do is the best I can do. I did not send out Christmas cards, and I did not give out gifts I made myself. I went to a Christmas Eve service, but it annoyed me, so I left early and went over to a friend's house to watch Love Actually again. I even had a very non-eco-friendly artificial tree. All of that is okay. Sometimes I was in a funk, and sometimes I wasn't. I didn't feel particularly generous or spiritual or loving, and that is okay too.

So it is in that spirit of self-acceptance that I am NOT making any new year's resolutions.