Monday, November 17, 2008

Intermission: A bit of randomness

A while back, my blog buddy Beweaver, tagged me to write six random things about myself. I need a break from heroic community (nobody said being a hero doesn't mean we can't sit and have some hot chocolate, right?), and after doing a Sanskrit immersion weekend for my yoga teacher training, my brain is pretty fried.

A little narcissism should fix that right up!

1. I'm a huge opera queen. My husband long ago realized that my listening to the Metropolitan Opera Broadcast on Saturday afternoons was a super gay version of the straight man's football game. "Coach, are you blind?" and "Come on! Carry the ball!" turns into "You call that a trill?" and "I've heard elderly church choirs tighter than that!" As a side note, I'm a major Maria Callas fan and have been since my teens. In my opinion, she is the go-to for operatic interpretation and inspiration, although in today's day and age, Renee Fleming (whom I just saw in "Lucrezia Borgia" at Washington National Opera) is the best thing on record. She's amazing, and onstage, she's spellbinding.

2. I hate Jell-O. I think it's just vile, and even worse are those freak-ass Jell-O molds with all kinds of shit in them. As if Jell-O weren't bad enough on its own, people have to put those crappy "Mandarin" oranges in them?




3. When I was a kid, I used to put on my headphones, stumble around on the lawn like a drunk and lipsynch "The Ladies Who Lunch" from Stephen Sondheim's "Company." And yes, this was the front lawn.



4. I've never done any drugs, including pot. It somehow never came up, although I did turn down coke once.

5. Despite being able to whip up some mean tarts (French and Italian), bake a layered lemon cake filled with my own lemon curd filling, make puff pastry, and other assorted desserts, I am absolutely powerless in the face of a good chocolate chip cookie. I'll happily eat an entire batch and love every minute of it.



6. I adore makeup. I think a little glamour enhancement is a wonderful thing, and if there wasn't the threat of getting my ass kicked, I'd probably wear it everyday. Ideally, a little eyeliner, mascara, lip gloss (which I do anyway) and glitter (which is also not uncommon in my daily life). Did you know that the ancient queer priestesses of Cybele, the Galli, mixed flecks of gold into their face paint? Ancient world precendent for the holy uses of glitter!!!

There are some rules with this random post game, but I'm going to bend them a bit. Instead of tagging six other people, I'm just throwing it out there that anyone who reads this and has a blog can write their own version of this on their blog: write six random things about yourself and link to the person you got the idea from. (Oh, no, I ended the sentence with preposition - eeeeeeek!)

Have a great week everyone! I'm moving to a new apartment on Friday, so I'll return to heroic community stuff next week.


(The first photo is of Callas from a 1958 production of "La Traviata" at Covent Garden; the photographer is unknown. The second photo is of Elaine Stritch, who was on the original cast recording of "Company" and sang "The Ladies Who Lunch," getting her Tony Award; it was taken by Suzanne Plunkett of the AP. The third photo is, of course, "Sesame Street's" Cookie Monster. I had a big stuffed toy of him when I was little that I used to lay my head on at night. I don't know who took the photo; it's all over the place.)

7 comments:

Amy Cavanaugh said...

OF COURSE you hate Jell-O. To me the sickest thing is when people incorporate it into cake. So gross.

Beverly said...

Oh Greg, you are definitely a bohemian soul aren't you? I too am a huge opera nut since going to the San Francisco Opera as a kid. I absolutely adore Andrea Bocelli (I love his voice and he's hot!), and although I have to disagree with your opinion about Jell-O I have to say I feel the same way about flaked coconut. You can't chew it basically just floats down your throat, it's disgusting. And I have to completely agree with you regarding glitter. I don't wear a lot of makeup but I do apply a sprinkle of "fairy dust" every morning as I start the day. It always makes me feel magical no matter what.

Anonymous said...

I *love* mandarin oranges. In cherry jello. *snicker* Can't help, it was the way I was raised. And jello hot while still a liquid is THE best thing on a sore throat. Seriously.

Great list!

Beverly said...

Hawaii is the true meaning of Paradise and I too would love to live there. I can't afford it and don't get to visit very often, which is why I've been so homesick lately. The people are so warm and friendly, everyone is ohana, and the land and water are the most beautiful in the world.

RodinAZ said...

Greg,

I was pleasantly surprised to stumble across your blog. It has been so long! This is Rod, your friend and roommate from ASU. I was glad that I knew most everything about this post. Opera, I still do not get or I should say still do not fully appreciate, but whenever I hear of it, I automatically think of you. From your blog, I can see that much has happenned over the years. Congrats on your marriage, you look beautiful together.

I really would like to reconnect with you and learn more about what is going on with you. Contact me if this is something you would like to do. My blog page is:http://rod-az.blogspot.com
Until then, much love, Rod.

Anonymous said...

Loved learning more about you!

I am not a big jello person..it always make me think of sickness. I can eat it with whipped cream on top though. Even whipped cream cannot help jello though!!! :O

Anonymous said...

I meant to say..cannot help LIME jello!! :O