my news, my way

Smile triggers

2009-02-24T08:18:00.005-06:00

I smile a lot, so it's hard to nail down six specific little or big things that make me smile all the time.

1. I smile whenever I run into someone, known or unknown. After a lifetime in Romania, where no one smiles on the street, smiling at people and saying hello has become second nature. Warm Louisiana people made me a better, more relaxed person.
2. I can't help but smile whenever I see dogs in cars, looking outside. They are the cutest passengers.
3. I smile when I talk on the phone with people I like or love.
4. I smile when I hug my beau. It's one of the most comforting things in my life.
5. I smile more during spring, my favorite season. The sun and the green make me gigglier by the day, although the responsibility of finishing the dissertation looms larger.
6. The silliness, colors and exuberance of Mardi Gras make me smile. This year marks my last festival in Louisiana. Happy Fat Tuesday!

The meme from Annamari goes on to Ionuka, Miss Sophie, Stingo, and The Arrow.

When every dog can make a difference

2009-01-21T09:11:00.004-06:00

As a kid growing up in communist Romania, I remember the scrap drives organized at school, when we competed to impress our "comrade teacher" with our collections of paper and newspapers, chestnuts, glass jars and other materials to be recycled.

While working on my disertation, which focuses among other things on the radio coverage of World War II, I learned that similar campaigns were conducted in the U.S. to preserve resources during the war effort - especially since Japanese conquests in Malaya and the Dutch Indies cut off access to natural supplies like rubber. The news coverage of such drives was not without candor, though. President Roosevelt urged Americans to turn in old tires, old rubber raincoats, old garden hose, rubber shoes, bathing caps, gloves, and so on at their local service stations.

Here's what CBS reported on June 15, 1942, among grimmer stories about the war in the world:

"A filling station in Des Moines, Iowa, reports having received the following objects in its collection campaign of scrap rubber: a basket of toy rubber tanks and trucks from a small boy; from a grown man - one rubber band; from a dog - several rubber bones."

This blog needs more lipstick

2008-12-21T11:35:00.004-06:00

My dissertation and research seem to have taken over my life, so I'm not sure if I can keep up with the responsibilities of blogging. I'm tempted to close it, but for some reason I still get a good number of visitors daily. Thank you. And apparently I haven't written enough about kittens, jewelry and blueberry pie, because a software that analyzes the gender of blogs thinks I'm a male. I might want to rectify that, so I'll keep this shop open for a while.

"We guess http://ralucacozma.blogspot.com is written by a man (51%); however, it's quite gender neutral."

The other day, a realtor whom I met not too long ago wrote to me thinking I was a man [he sent his best wishes to me and my wife (!?)], and even the school where I did my master's, and which I still attend, addressed me in a recent alumnus newsletter with Mr. Cozma. So yeah, I'll be writing about high heels and cozy fleece from now on.

Meet Katiusha

2008-11-04T16:49:00.003-06:00

...the newest member of my family. She moved in and decided she liked it. I like her too. Here she is jumping to catch the camera strap.

I've been Schmapped

2008-10-17T09:40:00.006-05:00

One of my photos (The World Trade Center from New Orleans) has been included in the newly released fifth edition of the Schmap New Orleans Guide, an interactive service for your desktop or iPhone, with integrated maps, guide, photo slideshows, reviews, and much more.

I like how it presents New Orleans: a good cup of the native stew, gumbo - a vibrant mix of European and African ingredients, with a pinch of something secret. After long simmering, the result is an experience warm, soulful and unique.

And here's a song I love.

Autumnal emotion

2008-10-09T16:49:00.002-05:00

It's finally cool in the mornings, albeit still hot during the day, and I suddenly realized it's October... I wish I could go to Romania, to celebrate my mom's birthday next week and the beautiful colors of my home town in the fall.

Eye candy

2008-10-03T09:35:00.009-05:00

Ever since I discovered Lola's blog, I became fascinated with her stories and talent. She creates jewelry from scratch -- molds the clay herself, colors and paints it with patience, and puts it together in the most adorable designs. I resisted a long time ordering anything, thinking I need to accomplish something major (such as finish the dissertation and get a job) to deserve the splurge. But when I realized that the temptation interfered with my ability to focus on work, I decided to put an end to the misery.

I mainly wanted bracelets, but I had to have a "Love is blind" necklace for the sheer genius of it. The message on it is painted in Braille, and I was happy to decipher a love poem written by Lola herself. For bracelets, I went for some of the already classic designs that I liked ("Vegetal Obsession" and "Gold Infinity"), but I also asked for a special design, giving only a few clues about what I wanted.

"Good night" turned out a lovely bracelet, which I wore right out of the package. It's unique, and until you get one yourself, I'm the only one in this world enjoying its beauty.

The beads and colors and textures are so lovely you could eat them. Take a look at Lola's catalog for more amazing designs. They make you feel special.

Golf in perspective

2008-10-01T17:20:00.006-05:00

On my way to school, I drive/ride/walk past a golf course, where, regardless of weather conditions (fog, rain, heat) and time of day or week, several people are moving around in their white tiny carts, with their white tiny caps, striking white tiny balls. Some of the balls end up in the grass near the road, for passersby to collect if bored. It's amazing how carefree these people always seem.

I guess they would be more uptight if they had to play in 1940 London, during WWII. While transcribing a CBS radio news story by Edward Murrow, here's what I came across:

"A golf club near London, where I used to play occasionally before the war came, now has a new set of rules designed to meet German interference with the game. The first rule says that during gunfire, or while bombs are falling, players may take cover without penalty for ceasing play. And there’s another rule which states that a player whose stroke is affected by the simultaneous explosion of a bomb or a shell or by machine gun fire may play another ball from the same place – penalty, one stroke."

December 28, 1940

It's only fair.

I like... (part I)

2008-10-01T12:16:00.004-05:00

I promised Leah I would do this over the weekend, but then life happened. I take advantage of my lunch break to finally share with you that I like...

The sun on a crisp day
Trees, flowers, grass and green in general
Dark chocolate
Hot tea on cold days
Dogs, cats, cows and horses
Travelling and camping
Short trips to the seaside
Historical sites
Waking up in a tent and stepping out on wet grass
Long walks with ice-cream or milk shakes or smoothies
To reward myself with a Java Chip frappucino when I accomplish something
Antiquity stores
Old wooden suitcases
Woven baskets
Hand-made jewelry
Stories
The 1930s
Toys and games
To talk to simple people in villages, buses, stores
To smile and be smiled at
To listen
To wink at children and see what they do in return
To do my own nails; it's relaxing
To get up to date with the news and blogs every morning over a cup of Lavazza coffee and a bowl of raisin-and-nuts oatmeal. I eat the same thing every day, regardless (when I travel, I take my oatmeal with me). It gives me the energy I need for the gym or for a busy morning.
Chicken shawerma and sushi-induced comas
The first meal with my family when I visit home
Motorcycle trips on Saturdays
To watch movies with T.
Old movies
The smell of leather jackets
The smell of new books
Stationery and office supplies
Fall and winter clothes
Boots
Scarves
Woven shirts
The taste of snow
Grapes and cherries
Seasonings and spices
Intricate houses with a story
The first and last day of school
Office hours
Handwritten letters and postcards
To measure my time in songs (it takes me two songs to wait for the bus, three songs to get to school; I work out on the Stair Master for five songs, and so on).
Men who look good in red (and Santa too)
and much more

I don't like:

That my sight is getting weaker every year
To get small scratches or bruises
The smell of New Orleans after Mardi Gras or of campus after major football games
That I turn red when I'm nervous
That I cry easily
To talk a lot
To sleep alone
Flip-flops
Gossip
Crime TV shows
Bad-hair days
To get haircuts
To be rushed
To be late or to wait for someone who is late
To be told what to do
The train alarm sound
Noise in general
Polluted air and my hair absorbing it
Animal prints on clothing
People who take themselves too seriously
When people don't do fun things with us because they can't wake up early in the morning
Whiners
Roaches and ants in the kitchen

Ionuka, Ana, Anais, Lola -- how about yourselves? What do you like and dislike?

Win a link

2008-09-24T09:42:00.002-05:00

Here's a contest where your creativity and writing skills might get you something. And I mean facebook-status-kind-of-writing skills. No need to write a novel.

Good luck!

The agony of uncertainty

2008-09-08T09:37:00.009-05:00

School has restarted today, although electricity and some facilities are not completely restored. The traffic is a mess, with many lights still not working across town. LSU sustained $40M in damages after Gustav. The fall break is cancelled, and Saturday classes were also implemented to make up for the lost days. You can imagine the enthusiasm. And now, another hurricane is knocking at the door, while people are still working on recovering and are depleted of patience and resources. Many haven't lost their sense of humor, though. Here's a funny list that's been circulating a lot since Schmustav cornered us:

Top 10 Reasons Hurricane Season is Like Christmas

10. Decorating the house (boarding up windows)

9. Dragging out boxes that haven't been used since last season (camping gear, flashlights)

8. Last minute shopping in crowded stores

7. Regular TV shows pre-empted for "specials"

6. Family coming to stay with you

5. Family and friends from out-of-state calling

4. Buying food you don't normally buy ... and in large quantities

3. Days off from work

2. Candles

And the number one reason Hurricane Season is like Christmas...

1. At some point you know you're going to have a tree in your house!

Update: Ike might spare us after all. Fingers crossed.

One of the frustrating things for the locals was that national media did not cover the sufferance and frustration in Baton Rouge at all. They kept mentioning the survival of New Orleans, which really had it easy under Gustav. We may not have had the dramatic number of casualties and the sensational images of flooding, but the heat, the power outages, the holes in the roofs, the mildew in the walls, and the harrowing sight of the beautiful trees fallen like soldiers made people suffer just as much. That's why I was grateful The New York Times finally acknowledged the story yesterday.

Candids

2008-09-04T09:06:00.005-05:00

The basketball arena on campus functioned as a shelter for evacuees with special-needs before and after Gustav. We volunteered to help move around the patients, help them register and set up their beds, carry their luggage and oxygen tanks, feed them, bring them water and coffee, give them showers, keep them company, give them comfort, help change their diapers. I haven't seen so much helplessness in my entire life. I have a new-found respect and awe for the volunteer doctors and nurses, who kept sharp, positive, smiling and caring after working several shifts to tend for the 200+ patients. The air did get heavy at times in the dome-shaped building. Here are some photos to help you get a feel of the atmosphere there.

*

A lady in her sixties was the caregiver for her chronically ill mother, who was sleeping on a bed next to her, with an oxygen tube coming out of her nose. When the mother did not need her attention, the daughter kept ordering some old photos in a shoe box. They were color and black-and-white photos of Elvis.

*

I helped a lady from South Louisiana give a shower to her wheelchair-confined mother. We spent about an hour together, and at the end she kept asking for my number to later invite me over at her place as a way to thank me. I said that she was welcomed and that she didn't have to do anything about it. After about an hour, I see her running to me with a smile on her face: "Come! I found another Romanian here!" I thought she meant my boyfriend, who was also a volunteer. "No, this one is a patient!" Thus I got to meet Nicolae, a 54-year-old who fled Romania in 1979. Oh, the stories he had to share about his adventures through Serbia, Austria and Italy on his way to New Orleans! I hope his postponed heart and kidney surgeries will go well, so that he can rejoin his family in Arad and Beiuş.

*

A lady with blond died hair and beautifully done nails came to the shelter all alone and had nobody to talk to. She was very alert and was obviously in better shape than most patients. She refused to lay on the folding bed and stuck to her wheel chair, which allowed her to carefully observe everybody. Volunteers rotated shifts to keep her company. She's actually in one of the photos in the Reveille story, with her back to the camera, in a navy-stripe shirt, talking to a volunteer. I brought her a cup of cofee and took one for myself too before I sat next to her.
"I'm surprised you drink coffee," she said to me all of sudden after our conversation about her home and community.
"Why?"
"It will stunt your growth."
"Um... I'm 28."
"What?!!? Good God!"

I guess everybody saw me as a kid around there, although I was one of the few graduate student volunteers (and I'm 1.70m tall).

Another one bites the dust

2008-09-02T14:01:00.004-05:00

The storm is behind us now, although it continues to rain quite heavily. Baton Rouge received the hardest blow from a hurricane in its recent history (Gustav packed a stronger punch than Betsy or Katrina), but that translates into property damage rather than fatalities. More than 500 houses had trees fallen on top of them, and a couple of old people died in one.

We are fine. We are on campus right now, where power has been partially restored and efforts are under way to clear up the roads. We don't have power at our place for more than 24 hours now, and we don't expect to get it back soon. We don't have cell phone coverage either. We've been following the news on a battery-operated portable FM radio. 100% of the East Baton Rouge parish (where we live) suffered power outages, that's how strong the winds were. A tornado hit two blocks away from us, causing major damage to roofs, trees and building structures. A tree in front of our house broke in two, but the fallen limb did not touch our condo nor our car. The motorcycles withstood the winds pretty well too, although they were near a fence that was blown away (but in the opposite direction, luckily).

We once again volunteered to help with the sick evacuees tomorrow morning. Classes are cancelled until Thursday. It's hot and steamy now, and it's been like this all night. Even on campus, the AC doesn't work. The town looks like after a war, with debris, branches, torn signs and dead signal lights, but a few businesses opened to sell ice and food (I guess they are running on generators). A curfew was ordered yesterday night from 8 p.m. until 6 a.m., to avoid accidents and looting. They might set a new one tonight, as very few streets and households had power restored.

All our friends that we managed to contact are fine. We are counting our blessings.

Gustav has made landfall in Louisiana

2008-09-01T08:37:00.005-05:00

Rains started yesterday evening, but hurricane winds and gusts are not expected until after noon today (in about three hours). Gustav has been downgraded to a category-2 hurricane, so we hope for the best and prepare for the worst. For Baton Rouge, this storm is expected to be inconvenient rather than dangerous, with fallen trees, some nuisance floods and power outages. In a town nearby, a tree fell on a car on a highway, and the driver was killed. We've been urged to stay indoors, and that's exactly what we plan to do.
We have prepared dry food, water, and other supplies in case we lose electricity. Here all appliances depend on power: the stove is electric, the water heater is electric, the AC is electric...
Between 6 p.m. Saturday until 6 a.m. Sunday, we volunteered and helped triaging and taking care of the sick people evacuating from New Orleans. Seeing their condition and the nurses' dedication put things into perspective for us, so we're not going to complain anymore. We're lucky to be healthy and mobile and have a roof above our heads. A few days without internet, hot coffee and warm showers are not going to kill us. Thank you for your good wishes, my friends. We'll do our best to stay safe and dry. See you at the other end of Gustav.

Agitated

2008-08-29T11:24:00.007-05:00

I'm trying to focus on my dissertation, research and job application agony, but who can do that with all this chaos around? School started this week, and with a record enrollment this semester, the arteries coming to campus are more clogged than ever. It's good to know, however, that in the just-released 2009 edition of U.S. News & World Report’s America’s Best Colleges, LSU is ranked in the first tier for “Best National Universities” for the first time. Our journalism school had already become one of the top ten doctoral programs in mass communication in the nation two years ago, so I'm feeling prouder as years go by.

Add to that zoom the first football game of the season tomorrow (The LSU Tigers are last year's champions), the threat of Tropical Storm Gustav bringing people in from New Orleans, the Labor Day weekend craziness, the Democratic convention (what's up with McCain's transparent and desperate appeal to the uterus, though?), and people running around getting supplies for a week all at the same time (some stations ran our of gas already, and most stores are out of water), and you get an idea of the tension, mixed with fear and anticipation, that most people feel around here. I started this blog exactly three years ago, during Katrina, and I clench my teeth hoping that Gustav will spare Louisiana and New Orleans this time around. Stay safe and dry.

Update:Classes have been already cancelled for Tuesday. LSU journalism students will remain on campus to cover the storm here.

A break from transcribing tapes

2008-08-20T11:05:00.003-05:00

Type your answer to the questions into a flickr search.
Using only the first page, pick an image.
Copy and paste each of the urls in the Mosaic Maker.

1. What is your first name?
2. What is your favorite food?
3. What high school did you go to?
4. What is your favorite color?
5. Who is your celebrity crush?
6. What is your favorite drink?
7. What is your dream vacation?
8. What is your favorite dessert?
9. What do you want to do when you grow up?
10. Who/ what do you love most in life?
11. Choose one word that describes you?
12. What is your Flickr name?

From stingo.

On matchmaking

2008-08-11T17:00:00.009-05:00

I'm back from a four-day trip to Chicago, where I attended the annual conference of the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication. This was my third visit to the Windy City and, although I stayed longer than on previous trips, I did not have time to explore any of the local attractions. Or does food count?

I presented two papers, attended three sessions (one on foreign correspondents and movies, one on television anchors' and reporters' credibility, and the other on covering race and ethnicity during disasters), and interviewed with 10 schools for prospective jobs. Somebody compared the job placement service at the conference with a "speed dating" service, and now I see why. Representatives of universities across the country interview fresh or anticipated PhDs that they perceive as good candidates for their advertised positions and try to charm and whisk them away. I met some great professors (and potential future colleagues) from some impressive programs.

I was afraid I would have to go through a third-degree interrogation, but the interviews (running from 20 minutes to an hour) were friendlier and more relaxed than anticipated, and the questions flowed naturally from both sides. It was an exhausting experience, but I felt good vibes from several schools. I think I found some good fits for my teaching and research interests, and the upcoming application process doesn't seem so daunting anymore.

My second presentation was scheduled during the last panel on the last day of the conference (at 3:15 p.m. on a beautiful Saturday), and we were afraid we would not have an audience. We were therefore surprised when 20 people or so showed up. It turned out that eight of them were the family of one of the presenters - what a better excuse to visit Chicago than that your daughter, wife, sister and aunt is presenting a paper? They cheered for her at the end of her research presentation like after a touchdown. The panelist's old father broke into tears when he commented at the end about how much he learned about the media from out presentations. That was an unusual and touching reaction - and quite a reward for our otherwise insider-for-insiders kind of work.

In my past life

2008-07-24T10:05:00.007-05:00

If I believed in reincarnation, I would think that I was a shepherd in a previous life. I indiscriminately love the outdoors - the mountains as much as the plains, and I adjust easily to any geography and climate. I live a somewhat solitary life, with only a few close peers, but I enjoy the occasional loud get-togethers that pull me out of my universe, with friends telling me about their sheep. I like cheese and wild berries, I love dogs, and I enjoy folk music. I need stories. I'd be happier in a small house than in a mansion. I'm slightly tempted to say I was a cowboy rather than a shepherd because I like to ride my Speedy Gonzales, but I feel that my childhood in Romania defined me more than my five years away. Or is it because my grandfather was a shepherd when he was young, and I grew up with the lambs and the wild stories of wolves, hard winters, and nomad life?

Of course, if I could choose, I would have been an American foreign correspondent in the 1930s.

Curbed enthusiasm

2008-07-22T13:40:00.008-05:00

I haven't sunburned my skin since the freshman year in college, when we decided to take a break from studying and go swimming in the mighty river of Arges, somewhere not far from Bucharest. I vividly remember the scorched grass that would bruise my feet when I walked on it on that hot (and dry) July weekend. The following nights I could not stand the touch of clothes on my back, that's how much it hurt. My diet consisted of yogurt to calm my skin and cherries to appease my stomach (and my sorrow). Sunscreen became a religion afterward.

Somehow I managed to bring back those painful memories this hot (and humid) July weekend. We took a boat from Gulfport in Mississippi state to the so-called Ship Island, some 20 miles into the Gulf of Mexico. A beautiful, small island. For the first time in my life I swam with (quite many) stingrays around. It was a bit chilling to see them a few feet away, but the water was too good to pass out and the fish were more scared of us than we were of them. We also enjoyed seeing dolphins and giant jelly fish swimming around the boat. When we didn't swim or lie down, we chased crabs to their holes on the beach. Very primal -- we needed the break. We also needed someone to remind our office-inhabiting selves that spending an entire day outdoors is a recipe for disaster if you don't take the right precautions. The cloudy, windy day threw us off, so we let the sunblock lotion dream of sunny days in its bottle. I had sunscreen only on my face (a habit I developed since I ride a motorcycle), so now I look like I have a tragic-theater mask on my face. My neck and ears are seriously burnt, as are my shoulders and my back.

We've already eyed another secluded island somewhere in Florida, but we'll have to give our skin some time to forget the recent trauma before we drag it back into the sun. I remembered the stories of people stranded on remote islands or castaway on floating pieces of wood in the ocean and wondered how they survived the sun. Or how come all the pretty actors in "Lost" are never sunburnt. I'm such a rookie, apparently.

Words and songs

2008-07-07T13:06:00.004-05:00

Via Drina, I discovered Wordle, a little toy that generates a random picture with words that describe your blog or website (word cloud). I like that songs, blueberries and research are standing out. And that for thirst there's water :)
I hear that many people get a cloud of prepositions and conjunctions. I guess I'm lucky.

As-tu déjà écouté

2008-07-04T17:59:00.009-05:00

From Lola, the talented dreamer, I received a musical tag:

“List seven songs you are into right now. It doesn't matter the genre, whether they have lyrics or even if they’re any good, but they must be songs you’re really enjoying this summer. Post these instructions in your blog along with your 7 songs. Then tag 7 other people to see what they’re listening to.”

Here are a few of the songs I play a lot lately:

As-tu déjà aimé - Grégoire Leprince-Ringuet
Moon River - Audrey Hepburn
Summertime - Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong
Sugar Sugar - The Archies
What's a woman - Vaya con Dios
Buildings and mountains - Republic Tigers
Tous les garçons et les filles - Françoise Hardy

And let it be music and summer on the blogs of Ionuka, Ruxi, Magda, Mara, Cristi, Luiza, and Jo.

Living in a Diving Bell by Choice

2008-07-02T09:18:00.007-05:00

I've stopped trying to convince people to give up smoking long time ago, when nobody in my family of heavy smokers seemed to respond to my messages of love and concern. My mom finally gave up the nasty habit four years ago, but for motives that resonated with her. She made up her mind one day, and beginning the following one she never touched or craved a cigarette again, even though people kept smoking around her and she had been a pack-a-day kind of smoker. I have utmost admiration for her strength. One thing I love about Louisiana is that none of the locals I know smoke. The only smokers around are Romanians, Russians and Turks. And I avoid them and feel insulted when they smoke in my presence. They don't see me poisoning their water, do they? Research on the LSU campus has found that the most persuassive incentive to stop smoking for college students is of cosmetic nature. Guys are afraid that girls won't kiss them anymore, and girls want white teeth and nice skin. But I don't think that they would ignore this anti-smoking video either:

I saw the above commercial yesterday in the preview section of the DVD with The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, a moving film that was itself a very powerful wake-up call. Highly recommended in a world where we waste our words and energy on so many insignificant things.

Summer meltdown

2008-06-26T16:11:00.007-05:00

I start teaching again this coming Monday, and because of that I tend to sabotage my other work. I keep saying to myself that I'll get more serious when I need to be at the office on a daily basis, so, instead of writing or doing research, this week I've been taking a book with me to the pool, thinking that I mix business with pleasure. But I hardly take any notes. And I hardly feel like blogging either. I think that posting about preparations for class, conferences and interviews is bound to keep you away as much as a non-updated blog. What I can brag about, however, is my fabulous friend Pavica, whose research got featured in a recent news report. Pavica is on her way to become a Facebook expert -- she conducted and published several studies on why and how people use and interact on Facebook. I also conducted research on social networking websites, but the political uses of MySpace by presidential candidates does not sound as fetching. Although it fetched us a surprising research award this summer, which I'm happy about.

I think all I need is a break, but it's too late for that now. How about you? How productive are your summers?

Another type of madeleine

2008-06-20T23:16:00.004-05:00

I tend to associate blueberries with thirst. Quenching of thirst, actually. We used to do a lot of mountaineering while in high school and college in Romania. With a backpack larger than me, I loved to get my neck and ears burnt, feel the tickle of sweat on my temples and neck, and share a bottle of water with several friends. Because of the effort, we were always thirsty and the water tended to get scarce after a few hours of climbing. So reaching a high plateau meant not only a bit of rest for our calves, but also shushing our thirst with blueberries. We could never get idle, as we had to reach the camping site before sunset, so we always enjoyed the wild berries on the run. The blueberries bushes were ankle-high, and with the backpack on our backs it was quite an art to snatch the fruits because bending too much risked getting us tilted over. But the tiny blueberries felt so tasty, so they were totally worth the effort. They often had drops of dew on them, which made them even more satisfying. Add the cold wind to that, which stuck our wet t-shirts to our bodies and cooled our hair, and the view from above the clouds, and you had perfection. The blueberries were the cherry on the cake. The mountain was the cake.
Although there's no such cake in Louisiana, with many regions being under sea level, it turns out that blueberries grow on.... American apple pie as well, so to speak. And as if to maintain the balance, they grow on tall bushes in well-maintained orchards, reminding me more of the cherry trees of my childhood. Here we take them in stride, no work involved, except for braving the heat (so the thirst is still there!), yet they're no less satisfying -- maybe because they're thrice as large as the wild ones back home.

Emotion in unexpected places

2008-06-13T12:20:00.007-05:00

When was the last time a hip-hop dance gave you chills? Katee & Joshua's routine in So You Think You Can Dance brought a lump in my throat, and I'm glad they've made to the next level. This show is the only TV sin I allow myself this summer. It's just so inspiring to me to see so much strength and grace, fire and emotion in one place. I wish I had even a fraction of those kids' talent. All the dancers in top 20 had good routines, but this couple really stood out for me this week, probably because I don't normally dig hip-hop and this was the surprise I needed to have a change of heart.

Later edit: Boy, I was so right about Katee and Joshua. You can throw anything at them, and they'll nail it. The following week they performed a Broadway routine. It's amazing how dance transforms the two of them.