I went to a dance with Jeannie last Saturday night. Other than the dances sponsored by the health club, where I took my dance lessons five years ago, this is the first dance I've attended since high school.
It was swing dance held in an airplane hangar containing vintage aircraft. It was Forties themed and lots of people showed up in vintage clothing and army or navy uniforms. It was fun just to dance with a live fourteen piece orchestra. I also enjoyed watching the couples who were really good at dancing. I couldn't believe how smooth people were when performing really complicated moves.
People always like to suggest that dancing is a lot like human relationships. I supposed it is. I got my foot stepped on, I forgot more moves than I remembered, we got out of rhythm, at least once I spun my partner a little too hard in the wrong direction, my partner tried to lead, I led poorly on occasion and I got too sweaty at least once. When it was good, for a microsecond it felt like two people moving as one. Yup, sounds vaguely like marriage to me. I wish I was good at it. I know ... practice, practice, practice.
People: May 2005 Archives
Lawrence Lessig is one of my hero's.
I was always impressed by his understanding of emerging technology and copyright, his ability to communicate complex legal issues, and his willingness to take up difficult legal fights, not to his contribution to the Creative Commons movement.
Today, when I read more about his personal story and the legal battle he is currently fighting, my estimation of him as an individual and a public figure grew exponentially.
Hat's off to you Larry, you are amazing.
P.S. I wrote this up last night and didn't publish it because I really felt a little uncomfortable about the subject. I don't know if it was the discomfort talking about sexual abuse in general or spreading someone else's story or what exactly. I realized after reading Julie's post, I was participating, perhaps accidentally, in a societal prohibition on talking about sexual abuse. From this article and from my vantage point in life, it seems that the societal prohibition on talking to trusted people about abuse is one of the root causes that allow the perpetuation of the abuse. So in defiance of the cultural ban, I pressed the "Publish" button.
Since I read "the girl least likely to", waxing rhapsodic about the wonders of chai, I decided to bump chai up on my priority list of things to try. (BTW, It is taking all of my considerable will power to not say "chai it, you'll like it.")
So I got the Organic Oregon Chai. I've had the occasional cup over the last week or so.
The verdict: I like the taste of it quite a bit, but it's too sweet for me by at least one order of magnitude. Unlike "the girl least likely to" I have a predilection for adult drinks like black coffee and unsweetened tea. I like the taste enough to consider trying the less sweet version, if only I can get through the syrupy carton I now have. I've tried diluting it with a lot of water or milk, but you reach a point of diminishing returns once you can't taste the spices in the chai any more.
Q. How do you like your coffee?
A. Black and bitter like life.
A. Black and bitter like life.
A blogging friend pointed me towards a speech given by Robert Putnam in Minneapolis at the Westminster Town Hall Forum, broadcast on MPR.
Some of the interesting facts he referenced.
- Joining one group cuts your odds of dying next year in half.
- In 1975 the average American went on 5 picnics, last year 2004, average American went on two picnics.
- Dinner parties off by 60% in the last 30 years.
- In 1975, people had friends come over 14 times per year, by 1999 that had dropped to just 7 times.
Aras has a blog!
