State of the Erica

[chanaleh]

I got a second postcard from nacht_musik last night (from the Great MIT Wedding Invasion of Croatia, now concluded). The first one, which arrived last week from Zagreb, was of some illuminated Croatian medieval manuscript; this one was a montage including interior and exterior shots of the Dohany Synagogue in Budapest. I e-mailed Eric today to comment that he really knows his audience. ;-) My Jewish great-great-grandfather lived in Budapest. I shall have to go investigate my family history someday.

Europe has been on my mind lately -- partly from hearing about other people's travels, and partly, I suspect, from spending so much time projecting myself into medieval French and English castles. The traveling that's tugging at my mind, though, is something more to do with the trip I took to Germany (with a little Salzburg and Amsterdam thrown in) as a senior in high school, in the spring of 1989 (just a few months before the fall of the Berlin Wall, as it turned out). I suppose that's all I've actually seen of Europe -- the Continent, at least -- so it's the only experience that comes to mind; plus my German was not so rusty then as it is now, which probably helped me feel more at home. But now it's summer and I am dreaming of the Charlottenburger Schloss and the mountains of Salzburg and the streets of Munich.

Rehearsal for Lion five days a week means that I am too busy (and tired out from) fleshing out Eleanor's psychodrama to pay much attention to my own. This is, overall, a good thing, giving me something else I have to focus on from now to the end of July. Sort of a psychological vacation from myself.

Saturday afternoon a few of us went and watched the new Showtime version at ablock's, which was quite enjoyable and provided at least a little food for thought, performance-wise. When I got home Saturday night, it was barely 10:30pm; the night was still young... and I discovered that my pick-up-the-phone-get-someone-over-here-now reflex is still in strong working order. It's rare that that impulse even enters my conscious awareness, since I so often *have* company (or plans for company) already. Yes, I know, there are lots of you I could have called (and one or two of you I could have invited over) if I had truly felt the need. The point is that it was more an impulse to fill the void than anything else -- and that is exactly why I did not call anyone, and exactly why I also clamped down on the immediate follow-up impulse to go look for some ice cream in the freezer (memo to self: that is not the void you're trying to fill either). Instead, I got out the button maker (among other things, I got two new orders last week) and put a certain beloved mix tape on the stereo. Two hours later, I was both exhausted enough and comforted enough to go to bed.

I have gained a new appreciation this week for going to bed alone. Maybe it's the nice clean white sheets, and the enormous new comforter I got for Christmas, and the lavender spray I am remembering to use (jessruth!). Or maybe it's being in the middle of rereading wonderful books so I can't wait to get into bed for reading time (but can put them down whenever I'm ready because I've read them before). I am rereading Harry Potter yet again: I started with 3 just after seeing the movie, and now I'm almost done with 4. I didn't plan to bother rereading 1 and 2, but now that I am reminded how much allusion to 2 there is in 4, I have a certain renewed appreciation for it. I expect I'll be taking 5 on the plane to CA with me -- I often end up bringing these books as travel reading, I swear my mother must think I never read anything else!

Sunday morning I managed to clean house a bit, in preparation for having navrins over for brunch, both of which were also good things.

On Friday I will go spend a week at Mom's, which, although unlikely to assuage any real travel yearnings, is always restful: lots of sleep and sun and good food. This may be the first time I take her up on her advice and actually pack dirty clothes so I can wash them when I get there, just because I have no time to do much laundry either before or after. (I'll still be on e-mail, though, so never fear.)

I'll get back late Thursday night, but I took that Friday off work as well, so I'll have a whole bonus day of vacation from my vacation. The prospect of this fills me with delight: whatever shall I do? Even if it's grocery shopping and more laundry... what a luxury!

Note that Honorable Menschen's next performance is shortly after I get back: Sunday evening, June 27th, at the BCCA in Coolidge Corner. This has been a public service announcement.

And now, off to see Shrek 2 with kalessin.

Comments

an extroverts vs introverts moment

[marmota.livejournal.com]

and I discovered that my pick-up-the-phone-get-someone-over-here- now reflex is still in strong working order

*snerk*

Wow. Just wow. Not only do I not have one of those, what I do have is a ack-how-do-I-politely-get-these-people-out-of-my-house-so-I-can-relax reflex!

Comparitively Sociologically yours,

&e

Re: an extroverts vs introverts moment

[chanaleh.livejournal.com]

I think you may possibly have failed to construe what I meant.

:-)

Re: an extroverts vs introverts moment

[marmota.livejournal.com]

Oh, you meant a 'booty call'?

*ducks*

Re: an extroverts vs introverts moment

[darlene-ford.livejournal.com]

It's healthy that you are learning to comfort yourself...

We are so different!

[goljerp]

... rereading wonderful books [...] I can't wait to get into bed for reading time (but can put them down whenever I'm ready because I've read them before).

This is not something I can do reliably with fiction that I like. There have been a few occasions where I've stopped re-reading a book because I'm tired, but usually that doesn't happen until hours after I wanted to go to bed. Hm, not to disparage Homer, but I was able to (usually) stop reading the Iliad when I was reading it before bed, but that's an exception.

This may be the first time I take her up on her advice and actually pack dirty clothes so I can wash them when I get there

Starting in college, I got in the habit of packing at least some dirty clothing when going to my parents' house. Part of it is that I hate doing laundry, so always put it off until the last possible moment. I was going to say something about not having a washer/drier at hand, but I don't think my behavior changed the year I was living in a house with a washer/drier in the basement...

[dphilli1.livejournal.com]

when/where does Lion go up?

[chanaleh.livejournal.com]

I never answered this, did I? It'll be July 30 and 31 only, in the basement of one of the churches on College Ave outside Davis (the United Methodist on the corner of Chapel St. I believe). Times TBA.