So I Should Be an Acrobat?

Dear Simone–

The answer to the question in this post's title is no. No, absolutely not. It's okay. Sit down and be quiet now. There's a good dear. This weekend was one spent in a frenzy of various physical activities. But first, I have one major piece of news.

I quit my job. That's right. Zumba instructing is no more. It wasn't as bad as I was expecting–my boss was extremely understanding and even gave me a name and a number to help in my efforts to find a replacement as soon as possible. The girl taking over for me is thrilled. The first two sentences of her email in reply to my request were written in EXCITED CAPS!!! so I feel really good about the switch. I might still throw in a couple hours as a sub for some of the instructors if anyone needs a cardio class covered and if I'm not too busy, but that will come as it comes. Relief is all that I feel now.

Friday got easier after that. My sister and I got together for our now-normal pie date. This time the game was pear-and-spice custard pie. We tried a new way of dealing with our lack of pie-pan: instead of making a square pie like we did last time, we used a muffin pan to make tartlettes. It was a good move–they baked beautifully and came out in these nice, portable single portions. I have recently discovered cloves as a favorite spice–I want to put cloves in everything. It's gorgeous on the tongue in a pie. Apparently while we were watching a movie post-dinner-and-pie I dozed off started to babble in my sleep ("I think the pirate-planet lady deserves a planet. Because she learned their language. I'm NOT asleep."). Sleepy-Hanna can be extremely unreasonable, especially when logical people like my sister suggest that Sleepy-Hanna is not, perhaps, at her most lucid.

At 11:30, three of my friends (Ben, Duncan and Luke) came to Kate's house to take me and Kate to the Eno River Rope Swing by moonlight. For once we had the swing all to ourselves. Chilly night air, clear moonlight over the trees, and much yelping through the air cut off by splashes into the deep river below. On the way back we tried to find a drive-through that would be open at 1:29 in the morning. Where Wendy's failed, McDonald's came through.

The next morning started off with tea and pastries, followed by Ben and Duncan's 10:20 arrival to whisk me (only me this time) off to the Haw River Rope Swing. Relative to ourselves, all three of us get more daring each time we go there. I spent a long time lying through this water-dipping tire swing that hangs right beside the real rope swings, letting the almost-unnoticeable current spin me and swirl my hair, letting the sun close my eyes, letting the water block sound from my ears, letting the electric blue dragonflies that were out and about settle on my knees, elbows, wrists and nose.

We went to this soda shop in Pittsboro (Ben's hometown). I had a birthday-cake ice cream float in Sprite. It was like being three again. This one little boy watched avidly as Duncan and I made idiots of ourselves slurping up the overflowing fizz from the saucer that the drink was served on with straws.

After a little frisbee-throwing at Ben's old high school, we drove up to Raleigh to spend two hours at the gymnastics space used by the N.C. State Parkour team for their training. So many padded surfaces, and a lot more turning upside down in the air than I realized I was capable of. The swinging and the flipping kind of have me ready to give up education and shoot to become a stunt double or an acrobat or something. It was fabulous. Unfortunately the sleep that had been missed the night before caught up with Duncan and me, so we left about a half hour before the gym closed. We will return though, I hope.

Sunday morning I was sore as FRICK. And yet. So I hauled myself out of bed to meet up with the Orienteering Team for a sprint at Bond Park in Cary. It was my first time orienteering, but I didn't do so poorly. Running through the wilderness with only a compass and a map is probably one of the greatest ideas that anyone has ever had–it gives you purpose enough to slither through briars and dart off-trail for the promise of a slightly faster route. My legs are scraped to hell, but I had a blast.

And then dance class. Simone, it is like nothing I've ever. That simple. Everyone's bodies were so different that what I'm used to seeing in dance classes, so much more real. And everyone was so talented. There was a difference–so much more physicality, so much more weight and power in conjunction with this natural fluidity that just doesn't exist in ballet. The class was super chill. Sadly I'm only going to be able to make it to the weekly class–I have actual academic commitments at both of the supplementary class times. :P But god if I'm not excited. The emotion of returning, this strange, deep kind of (happiness?) actually caused me to sink to my knees at one point on my meandering route home. I missed dance more than I realized.

Wandering dorm to dorm on the way back, snagging a hug from South Campus, walking in through George's open door, showing off my room to Aneesh and Han from 3rd Joyner. Here and there.

Today is University Day. I'm still not sure what that commemorates. The founding of our school...? I should make it my mission to find out. Or maybe that could wait until next year.

Something awesome. Courtesy of Monsieur.

That's about it for the time being. I hope you're well, babe, but more than most I wish that you would notice that I'm posting these again. I miss being in touch with you.

Yours to the end,
Blue