Spring cleaning

As some of you might have noticed - those who don’t just read my blog through feeds in any case - I have changed my whole blog look. I have done a complete 180 from the brooding and in-your-face black design to a cleaner, in-your-face white one. I like it. it’s clean, streamlined, and serves as a reminder to myself to clean out my closet already and perhaps also tackle rearranging the spare room, while I’m at it.

In related news, I got my bike tuned up and had the old knobby mountain tires replaced by sleek, lightly knobby city tires. I can now be seen gleefully speeding around the city on said new tires.

Teach

I have been avoiding doing a certain thing for some time, and that thing is teaching. Specifically, teaching dance. I have had a couple of soft offers at a couple of studios who have expressed interest but I have yet to jump at the chance. Why is this? I ask myself. What am I waiting for?

Somehow, I have both assumed that I’m not “educator material” and that I am still not qualified enough for such a herculaean undertaking as imparting an art form to another person. This might sound ridiculous to some, since I’m coming up on having 30 years (count ‘em) of dance experience under my belt. Thirty! If I’m not bloody qualified enough by now, I should just give up the whole thing as is.

I do know a great deal in the field, but I also know just how much more I don’t know and that list is a dauntingly huge one, thus the feelings of unqualification. That being said, I see a lot of much less qualified people teaching and having their own schools.

The few times I have taught, I realize that I might actually be quite good at it. I am happy to impart knowledge, I am able to make myself understood by students the way I want them to understand, and people seem to like receiving teachings from me. I suspect I’d also be good with kids because I know every dirty little sneaky, slacker, wing-it, cheating maneuver in the book when it comes to being a student. I was a pro at making it look like I had practiced when I very clearly had not. Drove my teacher nuts.

Now on the flipside, I find it is quite amazing that the moment you stand up there commanding the authority of an imparter of knowledge people are quite ready to give you that authority. And with great authority comes great responsibility, as we all know. I think that from this point on, if I do not teach, I am being selfish and irresponsible to the art. So honestly, here’s to now being fully open to opportunities in teaching dance. Let’s do this.

Inspirational Trek

Heheh.

(Yes, yes, I’ll be blogging about my recent trip, photos, yoga, surfing, dance and additional realizations upon my return).

Retro-vacation

So I’m off to Costa Rica on a yoga retreat for a week. I plan to take up surfing, hike in the jungle in search of monkeys, get browner in the sun, as well as come back lithe and ripped. :) The only bits of technology I will take with me will be my ipod and my cellphone, both unlikely to be turned on once I get there. But the real kicker is that I will not be taking my digital camera. That’s right, kids. Instead I will be kickin’ it old-school with my trusty, totally manual Olympus. I’ve already bought some rolls of film, so there is no going back. I hope to return with several amazing photos and not the usual hundreds of digital photos that I always mean to sift through and organize “later”.

See you all when I get back, I’m off to sand, sea and sun. And monkeys. :)

Overheard at a crappy steakhouse

I was at the restaurant Vargas(s) this evening with a friend; we had a morbid curiosity to try it out once and for all, having been taunted numerously by their obnoxious signage on the corner of Réné-Lévesque and University.

While there, we tolerated a rather noisy quatuor of businessman types over at the next table. I glanced over at them at one point realizing one of the guys was someone I had gone to high school with. The waitress passed by, uttered a few words to them, to which the loudmouth drawled, “She’s deep AND profound, I like that in a woman!”

Ah, I thought, I see that neither his crassness nor intelligence level had budged an iota since grade 11. He had, however, aged rather badly.

Right Where I Am

There has been a topic that has been simmering for a while both in my head and in my blog’s drafts folder. I have been feeling the need to express something about home-ness and my tussles with such a concept.

When I was in Toronto last November, I had the chance to drive out with my dad to go and see the new hindu temple out in Etobicoke. The city had had a good snowfall so the vision I was met with was truly unique.

The BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir, as it is called, was a strange oasis in the middle of an industrial wasteland encircled by concrete arms of highways on overpasses, its Indian spires rising out of the snow like something out of Valhalla. It truly did take my breath away; I never thought to catch a glimpse of anything like this outside of Asia.

Nothing short of the sort of temples one would find in India itself, the mandir was a formidable temple complex with main prayer halls, smaller shrines and peaceful courtyards. Not to mention, fully staffed with priests or swamis. This architectural feat was built using no metal (not even nails), only imported marble, limestone and wood. The carvings were commissioned from India and shipped over to be assembled on site.

Zura O’Ranty

Ah, the festivities. :)

Much enjoyment was had yet again during the St. Patrick’s Parade Day on Sunday. Once again, starting with a breakfast at Hurley’s, and a slow beer-filled day, friends and foes happily stormed the streets of downtown Montreal and its charming Irish pubs.

The Mayor of Montreal and Jack Layton (avec shelalagh) of the NDP party himself showed up to wave to the eager (read: drunken) crowds along Ste. Catherine street.

Good day, it was. Ended with a satisfying Korean bbq at the very delicious Maison Bulgogi with friends (many of whom were bloggers) and a short, happy stumble home.

Eclipse

Nothing like a lunar eclipse. :)

Some Guy

So again, I was sitting at my favourite little cafe enjoying a post-yoga and pre-dance rehearsal lunch. An older gentleman was sitting quietly next to me, eating in peace. A friend of mine walked in with his companion and came up to me to chat. “You do know who you’re sitting next to, right?” he said under his breath. No, I didn’t, but he had something about him I couldn’t quite pinpoint… My friend left, after scrawling on a piece of paper I offered him:

“Guy Carbonneau, coach for Les Canadiens”

Oh, neat. But by that time, he had already left. :)

What’s in a Name…

So it seems that the name I allegedly coined as a pseudonym for my new employer already exists and is also in Montreal. I can’t think of a replacement name for “Nucom”, so I’ve opened this up to the blogosphere. I need a fitting company name that says “corporate but fun!” as well as “slick and hip!”

The forum is open, let’s hear what your suggestions are.