Merry... what? Here's a gift

Happy whatever. I’m not much of a Christmas fan, but I do love the new year spirit, so Happy New Year!
In lieu of cards, I’m sending music. Here are some tracks that have been important to me on my journey…

1. Hang Tan, Toubab Krewe-
Before traveling to Tampa/St Petersburg for the HoopGirl Level 1 teacher training, I purchased tickets to see the Bird Street Players and Toubab Krewe. So after a day of hoop fun with my fellow Florida hoopers, I traipsed downtown for dinner and a show… and, after the first song, there was a HUGE power failure in the venue, and about an hour with no music whatsoever. Eventually, Toubab Krewe did play, but by then I could only stay for a few songs…this was one of them.

2. On Children, Sweet Honey in the Rock
I love Sweet Honey in the Rock, and on the first day of the AERO Conference, watching a photo slideshow to open the event, I heard THIS SONG: the lyrics come from The Prophet by Khalil Gibran. I downloaded it and to carry with me, but I didn’t even need to: the quote from which the song was written FOLLOWED ME ANYWAY! I read it in the opening pages of Summerhill as I flew from the Hip Hop and Spoken Word Teachers Institute in Madison, WI to West Palm Beach….and Marc Bamuthi Joseph read it aloud in the writing workshop he led to prepare poets for the ‘protestival’: Hear From the Children Left Behind at Brave New Voices in Washington, DC.

3. Daydreaming, Lupe Fiasco featuring Jill Scott
This track was on HEAVY rotation during Brave New Voices in Washington, DC, and later at the Individual World Poetry Slam in Charlotte. I also used this track in the lesson plan I developed on Corporations for The Hip Hop and Spoken Word Teacher’s Institute.

4. Passin’ Me By, Pharcyde
I got to see Pharcyde perform at Rock the Bells just outside Boston MA. Also, a favorite track at poetry events… and featured on the playlist at that Halloween party Isaac brought me to in Albany.

5. Rising Down, the Roots featuring Mos Def and Styles P
This track followed me from a writing exercise in Madison to a cafe in Vancouver. It directly inserted itself into a long and intense conversation I had with the svelte Ms Spelt (Angus Agair), longtime friend, and former Vancouver slam organizer.

6. Banana Pancakes, Jack Johnson
I sang this in a big singing circle led by the Korean students and teachers on the very late last night of the International Democratic Education Conference in Vancouver.

7. $20 for Boban, Balkan Beat Box
This is the song I bumped while waiting for Christy to pick me up from the BART station in Berkley, the day I went to Burning Man. Later, I got to see them live in LA with Sal, Grey, and of course Jamon! Really fun show, but no pictures.

8. Karma, Black Eyed Peas
So its 3am in Black Rock City and Stacey, Talya (her friend), Talya’s guy (who’s name I forgot) and I are wandering around near 7:30 and I hear THIS SONG coming from a towering black lit bar near 7:30 and D and INSIST WE GO THERE. There, I met and spent a long time with the master builder of the bar, an adorable blond Taurus named Goatt.

9. Tenement Yard, Jacob Miller
For some reason I had this song stuck in my head while helping my mom move from Tucson, AZ to Gainesville, FL.

10. She’s Royal, Tarrus Riley
I spent A LONG TIME with this track: in Tucson, packing up my mom’s house; in Gainesville enjoying Jamaican food with Veronica, and waltzing through Palm Beach County with Clare during my jury duty trip.

11. Sea Lion Woman, Feist
Thank you Megan for adding this to the playlist for the Yoga With Beats class you taught that chill November evening in NYC!

12. Ethiopia Tikdem, Cedric Brooks & the Light of Saba
Walking home from yoga on VERY COLD NOVEMBER NIGHTS in Albany, NY, this track always made me smile and dance.

13. Kitten Pig, Pentaphobe
A great moment from the Bellydance Superstars show in Albany, NY. American tribal fusion style bellydance rocks.

14. Hey World (Remote Control Version), Michael Franti & Spearhead
I picked up this album in Tucson, and picked up the tour in Albany. Little did I know that Solillaquists of Sound were on the tour ALSO! WHAT A GREAT SHOW! After I danced my way out of the venue and down the street, about a half a mile down the street, I realized I was lost and had to back track downtown to find my way back to Tom and Nancy’s house.

15. One Love, Sara Tavares
From my trip to San Francisco, and the HoopGirl Level 2 teacher training.

16.“I Want To Do This All Day”, an audio documentary on educational alternatives that I HIGHLY RECOMMEND. Buy it from the AERO bookstore online! www.educationrevolution.org

Individual World Poetry Slam, presented by Slam Charlotte, Charlotte NC December 10-13

All hooped out, I packed my new pink suitcase after a another hurried trip to the laundrymat and RAN to the BART station to catch my flight. Somewhere in that run, I dropped my beloved red velour hoodie... farewell, red hoodie. I'll see you in my dreams!

I arrived in Charlotte... AND COULD NOT GET TO SLEEP. Seriously. I felt exposed, vulnerable...I just couldn't settle down and relax. For the whole week, even after yoga, bedtime hovered between 4am and 6am.

In a way, I was better for it! IWPS didn't have any scheduled events in the morning, anyway- the good stuff was at night.

So yeah. I flew to Charlotte to volunteer as a Bout Manager for the Individual World Poetry Slam. I managed bouts when Charlotte hosted IWPS a few years ago and LOVED it. There is a different flavor of camaraderie at IWPS that only exists among long-time friends at the National Poetry Slam, and I really enjoy the sense that, even though it is an individual competition, the poets are all in it...together? Weird, but that's the feeling I get.

It has been 2 long years since I participated in an major poetry slam in any capacity. I felt so welcomed upon returning! And anytime I get the chance to see such HIGH QUALITY ART is an honest blessing. I am SO blessed.

I met some poets that I now adore: Esme Vaandragan, Laura Yes Yes, Cheryl Maddalena, Tara Hardy, Jason Mcbeth, Christopher Johnson, 6is9, One Truth, Colin...and had the good fortune to see some old and not-so-old friends (and not so friends) perform their guts out: Blair, Bluz, Alex Charalambidies, Lizz Straight (to the 7th power!), Cuban, Stacie Boshma, Billy Tuggle, Jadon, Joshua Bennet, Ed Mabry, Be Young, Curtis, Karen Finnyfrock, Pilote le Hot, Joaquin, Buddy Wakefield...

For the first time ever I participated in the Improv Slam. Gutsy and fun as hell.
I also had the mixed fortune to manage a bout that included perhaps the most unusual protest EVER.

So, this poet named fatalprose gets up to perform his last poem for the preliminary bouts. We are in the McGlohan Theater of Blumenthal Performing Arts Spirit Square, and it is that second day of IWPS... he gets on stage, and proceeds to perform a poem relating to his life, his girlfriend... ending with the words: "Marry me. Marry me." and I think to myself "WOW that was really heartfelt." And then I go back to doing math, or something. I hear a ROAR from the crowd and immediately stand up to see that fatalprose has lept off the stage to ACTUALLY PROPOSE TO HIS GIRLFRIEND IN THE FRONT ROW...AND SHE SAYS YES! Of course, he's literally still engaging the audience now, right? AND he has a ring?!?! THAT'S A PROP! Buddy Wakefield, who was watching this bout, comes over to the scoring table to indicate, "Hey, that was a rule violation," specifically referring to the TIME KEEPING: we had stopped keeping time after he stopped speaking on the mic, which was incorrect. As long as he was engaging the audience, the clock should keep rolling. So, now what? Well, at the conclusion of the bout fatalprose came over to the table AND PROTESTED HIMSELF. Seriously. It was bananas.

God bless the hosts I worked with: Bob Whoopeecat Stevenson, Brother Said, Cuban... and Mike Mcgee. Ok, so Mike McGee is a genius and hilarious. His hosting of the final round is one reason I plan on buying the DVD of this event. The hardest part about keeping time and score during finals was the abdominal squeezing I had to do in order to not wet my pants during the first two rotations. After I had a chance for a bathroom break, though, it was great!

In an ironic twist of fate, Mike McGee (IWPS champ by virtue of a time penalty on the same stage a few years back) officially awarded the championship trophy to Joaquin Zihuatenejo- the same poet who lost to Mike on that time penalty in 2006. Watching him best the field (which was verily incredible) was an awesome rite.

The competition was amazing, night after night of poet tag was amazing... lack of sleep makes you say things like "amazing" over and over again. Big up to the SlamCharlotte CREW: Inkera and Jina and Q, for real. Thanks for a kick ass time.

Some pics:

San Francisco, December 2-8, part 2: HoopGirl Level 2 Training

So, all of that playing in the city was a vacation. The real work began at 9am when my new friend Anne and I walked to catch the bus to Divisidero St. on the first day of HoopGirl Level 2 Teacher Training.

The HoopGirl Level 1 Training I attended in June in Tampa had been amazing, and I expected to one day sign up for Level 2... then in October I read in a HoopGirl e-newsletter that I could sign up for Level 2 & 3 at a discount, and spots were dwindling. What the hell, I thought. It can only serve me in the long run, even if I'm not teaching hoopdance classes RIGHT NOW.

The Level 2 Training is AMAZING! In all honesty, it was one of the most inspiring, exhausting, exhilarating workshops I've ever enjoyed. There are elements of the Level 2 training that I wish were STANDARD MANDATES for ALL SCHOOL TEACHERS EVERYWHERE. For a hint, check out the Institute of HeartMath.

AND THE HOOPING WAS AWESOME, but very physically demanding.

Anne Dellinger is a yoga teacher and devoted practitioner, who had already scoped out the yoga studio NEXT DOOR to our training facility... we stepped in quickly on the morning of the first day and scored free passes for a class that night. Yesssss!!!! We really needed it.

It was SO nice to have Anne as a hoopdance training partner- our energies complemented each other REALLY WELL, and she is SO brilliant and interesting. I think it is time to cultivate gratitude for all the fantastic spirits/guides I've encountered on my adventure, starting with Anne... ok, back to the training.

Well, I really can't tell too much about it... it IS a proprietary thing, you know?
So, PICTURES! Thanks to Scott Kowalchyk for these awesome shots:

San Francisco, December 2-8, part 1

When I landed in San Francisco, I was full of excitement and awe, albeit a little sleepy. After all, this was my first visit to THE BAY, and really- who on earth by this time HASN'T bragged the ass off San Francisco? I changed my ticket to give myself three extra days in the city!

I took the BART to the UN Plaza,


and verily dragged my luggage 3 blocks to the Hosteling International site I found online a month earlier. This was my first clue that San Francisco would shake up my plans a bit: the left wheel on my adorable (but far too cheap to last) suitcase was busted. Plain and simple- I needed new luggage. Later, when I began to unpack, I noticed the second clue: my treasured bottle of rosewater (I love the stuff SO MUCH I only allow myself to use it on very special occasions) had opened and completely spilled out its contents into my bag. The only items soaked were my underwear and business cards.

Mystified, I immediately set about on laundry business. While washing my rose-infused undergarments, I took a quick walk around the block and found a printer who could quickly, cheaply print me a set of temporary cards. I capped off this thrilling escapade with a mad dash down to Union Square, in and out and in and out of store after store after store. I was grumpy, lonely, and desperate for a new suitcase. I priced until all the doors locked me out. Only then did I return to the corner where I had previously sought solace: a charming chap had set up shop playing downbeat breaks on buckets. His name was Chris, I bought his band's CD, and it rocks.

Day 2 was bound to be better than Day 1, for a number of reasons: more sleep, free breakfast, and a tour of murals in the Mission district of the city. I also had a chance to meet and bond with my roommates at the hostel (which was perfect, by the way).

Jackie, a British pyschologist on her own world tour, and Anina, a Swiss forest expert visiting the city 10 years after a foreign exchange stint first brought her to the bay area, were lovely, bright women and considerate roommates. After breakfast, we all split up and I went on the mural tour with a few other fun hostel folks, guided by a stylish recent resident of the Mission District who genuinely liked murals. Cool!

Here is a taste of what we found:












THEN I WENT TO THE PIRATE SHOP!


Actually, no: then I went to a bookstore, at random, en route to the Pirate Shop, where I found a flyer advertising a cheery night of entertainment featuring MY FRIEND: singer-songwriter Heather Normandale. Totally and utterly amazing, this world.



OK, THEN I WENT TO THE PIRATE SHOP!






826 Valencia houses a full-service pirate shop. Also, they are a fascinating literary and education center in the heart of the Mission district.


Started by Dave Eggers back in the day, 826 Valencia has more recently spawned literary workshop spaces in a few other metropolitan areas. I AM OBSESSED with 826 Valencia: I first learned of it back in 200? through my dedication to McSweeney's Internet Tendency, a loyalty spawned from the Backwards & Ugly haze of my unforgettable 3rd year at New College.

Seriously, this was a VACATION DESTINATION for me. I know, so weird.

Ok, after talking off the ear of the lovely Pirate Store Guy (Justin, below... which one?)

I whisked myself first to a thrift store (in hot pursuit of suitcase) and then to the hostel where I met up with Anina for dinner plans with SHELLY! Yay! Indian food in an Irish pub? Count us in! AND we got to take a cable car... I know they are a tourist trap but they are a CUTE tourist trap.


What a great day, but still no new luggage.

So... I wanted to go shopping in the Haight...and Day 3 I did.

After a Bikram class, sweaty and twitchy enough to remember WHY I DON'T LIKE BIKRAM ANYMORE, I was in and out of many stores looking for cute skirts. Finally, right before I gave in to hop aboard a bus and travel toward a lunchtime meeting at the waterfront with Jackie,


I walked into a flowery store wafting incense, and the only thing I could think to say was "OH! THIS is where all the skirts have been hiding!" The Thai women giggled and offered me tea. I bought 3 skirts. They are lovely.

After an early evening bike ride to THE BRIDGE,


I returned to Union Square determined to BUY A SUITCASE. HoopGirl Level 2 would begin the next morning, and I would no longer have free time to screw around looking for 'the perfect luggage'. It's pink, its got a warranty, I walked in and bought it. A bit pricey, but if I never have to replace it, its worth it!

On my return to the hostel I got to meet Anne Dellinger, fellow HoopGirl teacher. We had communicated by email and expected to travel to and from the HoopGirl sessions together. I did not know it then, but Anne was to become my most important human contact during the entire trip...

More to come in part 2... PEACE!