lions, vikings, and extraterrestrials. . . oh dear

Success usually comes to those who are too busy to be looking for it.

- Henry David Thoreau

The last two weeks have been busy, to say the least.

Last weekend kicked off with a very fine, very funny production of Robin Hood, with my little sister playing the part of Lady Mariam. Yes, she takes after me on the stage =P

Then there was some lion dancing going on Saturday night, only to be followed by more lion dancing during all of last week. For those of you who haven't read the latest issue of LI Pulse (yes, shameless plug), every Chinese New Year, which kicked off this past Sunday, February 18th, my kung fu academy does a month-long schedule of lion dance performances at restaurants, schools, parties, etc.

It's a blast to watch, and it is to perform as well, but after four years at it, my crazed attempt to be at every show, every night, in rain or snow, day or night, starts to push me just a tad over the edge. So last week, with the magazine I work at in the middle of long days and nights of production (when 11 PM hits, my type-A personality, perfectionist proofreading skills start to lag in the efficiency department), my loyalties and amazing ability to multi-task without sleep were definitely put to the test.

Then there was the History Channel. Even if you’re not a history fanatic like me, there’s always something worth watching. Last weekend it was aliens, USOs (unidentified submerged objects, as opposed to the “unidentified swimming objects” that I once attributed to it), conspiracies, biblical UFO sightings, and encounters in ancient times. Last night on History International, it was the Vikings, Mongols, Goths, Huns. In between, you have your modern marvels, empires, lost worlds, man and machine, dragons, conquerors, discoveries, and your, ugh, pesky dogfights. Next weekend – The Dark Ages. Oh yeah.

Am I dork? Yes. . . to a point.

Of course, there were also four-hour classes consisting of John Ford and Luis Buñuel movies, the ever-disturbing look at Triumph of the Will, silent documentaries about the Spanish Civil War, drama-ridden railroads, and unnecessarily long conversations about falling goats and Buñuel's creative take on falling goats.

Then there was my own teaching to look at which began with teacher observations last week, a follow-up meeting on Friday, and more teaching on Sunday.

Did my week get busier? Of course!! Think along the lines of pole dancing and monkey bread. . . a 1950's American classic with appeal that I'm starting to think Williams-Sonoma might have tad exaggerated in their sales pitch. Seven hours is not a recipe - it's a job at a bakery.

Stay tuned. . .