Monday, August 2, 2010
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
I dream of Barbara
I had quite the dream last night. I dreamed that I was asked by a little man who was a has been singer, to stand in for Barbara Streisand as his other lead vocalist. "I need you to stand in for Barbara, your the perfect fit!" he said. So, the humongous stadium started filling in, and that is when I broke a sweat. "I don't know any of the songs, and there is no way I can sing like Barbara Streisand!" I told someone. "Why did you agree to this?" the person asked. "UGHHH I have no idea." I said. I started brainstorming how I might free style on stage, be interpretive, perhaps take the focus off being an impostor, by some sort of creative dance? the stadium was completely filled, and I was wishing I would just disappear. Then there was a false fire alarm, and everyone started filing out of the concert, and I was saved from standing in. "I love Barbara Streisand, but thank goodness, I can leave!" I thought to myself.
One persons East Bank is another persons Esplanade.
The other day I took the teenagers I mentor for a walk on the Eslpanade. It was so frustrating at first, because we could not find the pathway for the life of us. So close, there we were on Water Street with no way to the water. Then I spotted a man on a bike waiting at a stop sign, so We very slowly pulled the Big White van behind him, and I yelled out "Hey, do you know how to get to the Esplanade?"
"Er, isn't that on the other side of the river? no... I have no idea." he said to me, kind of scratching his head, while trying to balance his bike. I had gotten him at this awkward stage of half on bike half off, and had suspended him there with my big white van and questions. "No, it's on the East side, East Bank Esplanade..." I explained. His eyes lit up, and he bounced back on his bike, "OH! the East Bank! that's where I am going!" My Co Worker started slowly following behind the biker, after he told us where to go. "One persons East Bank is another persons Esplanade!" I said to her, and we both started laughing so hard. "Hey, guys you are going to creep him out, BIG WHITE VAN ya know?!" the kids yelled from the back seat. "You are so right!" I said.
At the Esplanade (not East Bank), Shari was not pleased. "I hate it here, it sucks here, SO BORED!" but then luck struck us! "Hey look down here Dexter!" she said, overlooking huge rocks on the bank of the Willamette. "It's a dead thing! what is it?! look at its long torso, and its arms!" I looked and it was a corpse of a mystery animal. Yellowing skin on a twirly skeleton. "It looks like an alien, do you see its eyes?" I asked her. "Yeah! do you think its an alien? its so gross!" Shari said, obviously excited by the strange change in the days events. "Well, it could be!" I said, aware that I shouldn't be encouraging belief in UFO's or life on Mars. "Hey!" Shari called to the other two in our group. "Come look at the DEAD THING!"
We then all took pleasure in a breezy walk down the Esplanade. The dead thing seemed to have put us all in a far more pleasant mood. Shari then looked off the other side of the bridge and exclaimed loudly "An animal! Dex what is it?!" I was now the expert, after identifying the dead thing as an extra terrestrial. "Oh my god! it's a river rat! a Nutria!" I shuddered. "Ewww rats get that big!?" the kids wanted to know. My Co worker calmly corrected... "No, look, I cant believe it, but it's a Beaver." Sure enough, there it was a Beaver! an adorable chubby little Beaver.
We all fell in love with it. It pulled a black berry vine off a bush, and swam up shore with it, as we followed it down the bridge. It then propped its cute little body up on drift wood, and ate the whole thing. Shari was so excited, not wanting anyone to miss this once in a lifetime event, so she started yelling at the passerby, "BEAVER! BEAVERRRR!" I admired her exuberance, but encouraged her to just enjoy our moment, as most passerby were not seeming so enthusiastic. When 'BEAVER!' didn't work, she resorted to "HUGE BEAVER! HUUUUGGGGEEE BEAVER!" flailing her arms in the air so much, it looked like she was going to levitate. I understand this feeling. The beaver was kind of a joy of a magic moment. I know when you just don't like the idea of someone missing out on life. Sometimes I want to to yell at people "SUNSET!" or "BLUE SKY, ROSE BUSH, GENTLE RUSTLE in the trees!" scream out the perfect cocktail of events in my mind. "Wait, that boy is a teenager like me, he would understand!" She said looking down the pathway at a young boy, just trotting along. I tried to discourage her from yelling "Huge Beaver!" at him, and instead explain: "Hey, there is a real life beaver over here, if you want to see him!" "Oh, wait never mind, he has on head phones." she said, returning with me to view our new friend swimming with his pancake tail.
A couple people did join us, we were all equally excited, like we were in a secret beaver club, as people passed by, unaware. A young guy and his girlfriend stood next to me and he yelled out "That's a sweet beaver!" i couldn't help my smirking face.
The Beaver begun to swim down the river bank, parallel to the bridge, and my co worker had to get home soon, so it was kismet, that we got to follow along for a while, still getting to view our new buddy. Shari and I lagged a little behind, trying to walk at Mr. Beavers pace. He swam a long. And he really did seem to be following me and Shari! "He's following us! I love him! don't you want to take him home with us?" she wanted to know. Call me crazy-- crazy beaver lady, but the Beaver kept looking up at us, paddling faster, trying to keep up with our human legs. "I really think he is following us!" I couldn't help but say. "NO, he IS following us!" Shari corrected. I love moments like this. I dropped all filters, and said to her "You know what? there is a reason that things like Harry Potter, aren't that far fetched."
"Yeah, he is like the talking Beaver in Narnia, I keep feeling like he's going to talk to us." Shari agreed.
In the van we all obeyed my co workers no talking or music rule. "I am just very easily distracted, so I need complete silence when I drive." She always reminds us. However, Shari started to whine with no words. It actually didn't annoy me, but made me chuckle out loud. "Whining counts as noise..." I told her. "When my kids were small, I called that 'sleepy dream time song,' My Co Worker said lovingly. "That is a very nice way of putting it." I said to her. "Yes it is," she smiled, and we all returned to a moment of silence.
"Er, isn't that on the other side of the river? no... I have no idea." he said to me, kind of scratching his head, while trying to balance his bike. I had gotten him at this awkward stage of half on bike half off, and had suspended him there with my big white van and questions. "No, it's on the East side, East Bank Esplanade..." I explained. His eyes lit up, and he bounced back on his bike, "OH! the East Bank! that's where I am going!" My Co Worker started slowly following behind the biker, after he told us where to go. "One persons East Bank is another persons Esplanade!" I said to her, and we both started laughing so hard. "Hey, guys you are going to creep him out, BIG WHITE VAN ya know?!" the kids yelled from the back seat. "You are so right!" I said.
At the Esplanade (not East Bank), Shari was not pleased. "I hate it here, it sucks here, SO BORED!" but then luck struck us! "Hey look down here Dexter!" she said, overlooking huge rocks on the bank of the Willamette. "It's a dead thing! what is it?! look at its long torso, and its arms!" I looked and it was a corpse of a mystery animal. Yellowing skin on a twirly skeleton. "It looks like an alien, do you see its eyes?" I asked her. "Yeah! do you think its an alien? its so gross!" Shari said, obviously excited by the strange change in the days events. "Well, it could be!" I said, aware that I shouldn't be encouraging belief in UFO's or life on Mars. "Hey!" Shari called to the other two in our group. "Come look at the DEAD THING!"
We then all took pleasure in a breezy walk down the Esplanade. The dead thing seemed to have put us all in a far more pleasant mood. Shari then looked off the other side of the bridge and exclaimed loudly "An animal! Dex what is it?!" I was now the expert, after identifying the dead thing as an extra terrestrial. "Oh my god! it's a river rat! a Nutria!" I shuddered. "Ewww rats get that big!?" the kids wanted to know. My Co worker calmly corrected... "No, look, I cant believe it, but it's a Beaver." Sure enough, there it was a Beaver! an adorable chubby little Beaver.
We all fell in love with it. It pulled a black berry vine off a bush, and swam up shore with it, as we followed it down the bridge. It then propped its cute little body up on drift wood, and ate the whole thing. Shari was so excited, not wanting anyone to miss this once in a lifetime event, so she started yelling at the passerby, "BEAVER! BEAVERRRR!" I admired her exuberance, but encouraged her to just enjoy our moment, as most passerby were not seeming so enthusiastic. When 'BEAVER!' didn't work, she resorted to "HUGE BEAVER! HUUUUGGGGEEE BEAVER!" flailing her arms in the air so much, it looked like she was going to levitate. I understand this feeling. The beaver was kind of a joy of a magic moment. I know when you just don't like the idea of someone missing out on life. Sometimes I want to to yell at people "SUNSET!" or "BLUE SKY, ROSE BUSH, GENTLE RUSTLE in the trees!" scream out the perfect cocktail of events in my mind. "Wait, that boy is a teenager like me, he would understand!" She said looking down the pathway at a young boy, just trotting along. I tried to discourage her from yelling "Huge Beaver!" at him, and instead explain: "Hey, there is a real life beaver over here, if you want to see him!" "Oh, wait never mind, he has on head phones." she said, returning with me to view our new friend swimming with his pancake tail.
A couple people did join us, we were all equally excited, like we were in a secret beaver club, as people passed by, unaware. A young guy and his girlfriend stood next to me and he yelled out "That's a sweet beaver!" i couldn't help my smirking face.
The Beaver begun to swim down the river bank, parallel to the bridge, and my co worker had to get home soon, so it was kismet, that we got to follow along for a while, still getting to view our new buddy. Shari and I lagged a little behind, trying to walk at Mr. Beavers pace. He swam a long. And he really did seem to be following me and Shari! "He's following us! I love him! don't you want to take him home with us?" she wanted to know. Call me crazy-- crazy beaver lady, but the Beaver kept looking up at us, paddling faster, trying to keep up with our human legs. "I really think he is following us!" I couldn't help but say. "NO, he IS following us!" Shari corrected. I love moments like this. I dropped all filters, and said to her "You know what? there is a reason that things like Harry Potter, aren't that far fetched."
"Yeah, he is like the talking Beaver in Narnia, I keep feeling like he's going to talk to us." Shari agreed.
In the van we all obeyed my co workers no talking or music rule. "I am just very easily distracted, so I need complete silence when I drive." She always reminds us. However, Shari started to whine with no words. It actually didn't annoy me, but made me chuckle out loud. "Whining counts as noise..." I told her. "When my kids were small, I called that 'sleepy dream time song,' My Co Worker said lovingly. "That is a very nice way of putting it." I said to her. "Yes it is," she smiled, and we all returned to a moment of silence.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)