Musings on Dance, Food, Geek Stuff
So it came to me yesterday at Quaker Meeting for Worship something that I’ve been spinning around in my head for awhile: the tension between our desire for community and for individuality. I realized the many places that manifests for me, particularly in my spiritual practice and my dancing. Pews vs Meditating Alone I was…
Lately the numbers on my Instagram reels have just tanked. And if I can be honest, it doesn’t feel great. I assume there is some algorithm shenanigans going on. Which is fine, it’s their platform — that’s how they make their money. I’m more interested in unpacking how all of this feels as an online…
This weekend I did something I’ve been wanting to do for a very long time: hosted a silent Quaker Meeting for Worship in my home for my non-Quaker friends. It was a small group of just five of us, which was the right number because I would have been nervous hosting a larger gathering. Also…
I’ve been thinking about Reddit and how many folks use it to be the friend that they don’t have in their lives. There have been many times in my life when I was curious or excited about some activity but didn’t know how to start. Tap dance, playing the harmonica, writing science fiction are ones…
Home Cooking november 1994 I lay awake under a heavy veilOf mosquito nettingThat defends my sweet American bloodFrom the thirsty insects of my homeland.The early morning lightSteps softly into this upper roomOf my grandmother’s home,Gently warming the slumberingCousins, aunts, and unclesThat lie on the floor all about me. It has been a hard weekThis first…
“I have spent many days stringing and unstringing my instrumentwhile the song I came to sing remains unsung.” ― Rabindranath Tagore
There is no such thing as a “safe space” — We exist in the real world. We all carry scars and have caused wounds. This space seeks to turn down the volume of the world outside, and amplify voices that have to fight to be heard elsewhere, This space will not be perfect. It will…
The year was 2003. I was in my thirties, trying to figure out the next step in my career. The obvious way to do that was to move to Geneva, Switzlerland. You know, like everybody does. Even at the time, I didn’t feel super confident in the move. I loved living in New York City…
My mom had a rich and successful life. A high achieving student in Manila, she graduated from medical school with high marks. She moved to America in her 20s, worked as a doctor in several states, then settled down in the SF Bay Area. She traveled all over the world, from Hong Kong to Paris…
Salman Rushdie wrote this remarkable essay just days after 9/11 in 2001. I think of it often. Particularly this line: The fundamentalist believes that we believe in nothing. In his world-view, he has his absolute certainties, while we are sunk in sybaritic indulgences. To prove him wrong, we must first know that he is wrong….