We're so lucky....

BarackObama
Originally uploaded by Alta Marie

Seriously, aren't we?

It was so funny and charming and wonderful when he told his girls that they'd finally get a new puppy. I felt like *I* was getting a puppy. I guess that's what's so great about this campaign/election-- Mr. O is very empathetic and it's easy enough to empathize with him. His joy is ours now! how ridiculously lucky.

So I'm sure that we all have election stories to share-- here's mine.
I spent the evening with some wonderful friends from college and I fed my nervousness. :) I ate and ate until the election was called at the end of the night. It was so great to be in NYC for this election, it was really electric. I'm sure that there was tons of great energy elsewhere too, a big day for everyone!

I left at 10:30, so sleepy from the early voting wake-up call, and deciding that if I didn't go then, I'd probably be there all night (happily! but, exhaustedly....) When I got out of the subway, I heard screaming outside of the station, and literally within minutes people completely flooded the streets. Traffic had stopped, and people were beeping their horns and running out of buildings, I heard on someone's blaring car radio that "John McCain had just called to concede the election"

It was so exciting!! people were all over the place just screaming with joy-- I went inside, but spent a while out on the landing listening to the screaming and honking and fireworks-- I held up the phone so Drake could hear it. Things were much more tame in Florida...

Everywhere I've gone today I've overheard bits of conversation ..."and when he took Florida, I had to pinch myself"... "I know I *acted* nervous about it yesterday, but I knew he'd win"....

It's so wonderful and inspiring to see the change in people's attitude in just one day. It really does feel like anything is possible.

I think I want a puppy too.

I voted. Now where's my sticker.

It ain't easy...
Originally uploaded by Alta Marie

I woke up at 6am and walked myself to the "Swingin' 60's Center" (I am not joking. That was my polling location).

I lived in Louisiana during the last presidential election in 2004, and that was the first time that I voted in an actual voting booth. Before that it was absentee ballots for me. The voting booth in Brooklyn was so old!! It involved levers and switches. I felt like somehow I was not voting, but actually controlling the New York City Transit System.

There were many great things about the Swingin' 60's Center. First, it was run by many wonderful Brooklyn retirees who were old enough to say things like "now seal that up yourself, because otherwise we could change your vote. That's tempting, but I don't want to do that!"

Also there were two ladies looking for my name in the big book of registered voters. After they found it, one of them (who must have done this before) said "Now, in a case like that, if we hadn't found it, you would maybe look under 'Alma' since her name is unusual." That tickled me.

It was a perfect morning. Except that my favorite coffee place Gimme! Coffee was not open! What the heck!? Aren't coffee shops supposed to be open at 6am? what's the point of coffee.

Also, they didn't have the "I voted today!" sticker. Is it wrong that I wanted one? Someone else asked about them, thank goodness, because I would have felt like a two year old. Maybe I wouldn't have wanted it so badly, but that a cabbie yelled "Don't forget to vote!!" at me on my way to the polling center. I want to proclaim that I've done my civic duty, so that people don't yell at me. And I want to do it with a sticker.

OK! Last one, I swear!

Pratyush
Originally uploaded by Alta Marie

(I can only blog one photo at a time with my current methodology...)

An artist and his work

An artist and his work
Originally uploaded by Alta Marie

One more.

Prabha's house!

Prabha cooking
Originally uploaded by Alta Marie

I went out to New Jersey this weekend to visit my friend Prabha and her family. We had so much fun! Her son Pratyush is 4 years old and is the cutest child. (see below and above) We read books, we made scarves (ha ha) we played soccer, we went shopping, AND! Prabha and Praveen fed me millions of tasty things.

The picture is of Pakora which is batter dipped vegetables (green tomatoes! :) Isn't that the best pan you've ever seen? I am very enthusiastic about that pan. It is deeper than a wok and perfect in every way. Prabha said that I could get one in Little India. On this trip we drove through, but Pratyush was sleeping, so we drove a little further to do some shopping.

I wanted to go trick-or-treating, but Pratyush wouldn't let me, because it was already November and I didn't have a costume, so we painted instead. It was a whole lot of fun. Their home was so beautiful and colorful, and not at all beige.

Prabha said that she tried to make all the food as un-Indian as possible, which made me laugh. I told her that I had been drinking milk and having thoughts of curry all day. Can't wait to go back for another visit (next time with Drake!)

Speaking of Drake, I'll ask him to cover his ears for tomorrow's entry in which I tell about the rapper I met on the PATH train. (I'm trying to come up with a pseudonym to use for him... I don't want screw up his google results with my blog about knitting and opera )

I can't help it! People talk to me all the time. I think it's because of my overbite. I always look like I'm smiling...

Pratyush

Pratyush
Originally uploaded by Alta Marie

Could he possibly be ANY cuter?? Drake asked me if he was a "professional." He really could be, Prabha. If you want to surrender his childhood to the modeling industry... :)

Seriously.

Has God been sending me really exceptional street musicians on audition days on purpose?

Brick Theater Clown Festival
Originally uploaded by Alta Marie

When I'm on my way to an audition I generally don't want to be. I never want to be on the way. I'd rather be there just doing it. It's the on the way that gets me.

On the way I start to think about "mapping" my arias technically and dramatically, I try to give myself 3 vital check points in each where I will not cry or get carried away but will instead think of technical things like "placement" or "registers" or all of those other nice technical words that singers are wont to use....

Anyway, this morning I rushed into the subway late and tied in knots wondering if I should have brought the hairspray, since Tribeca is very windy... and there was a man singing spanish songs with a guitar in my stop. He had the most beautiful voice I've heard in a while. Not trained, but just a beautiful high tenor, so sweet. He was just sitting there singing quietly. No one asked him to, no one gave him permission to, no one paid him to, he was just offering it.

Is this starting to sound like a homily? I feel like some times priests/ministers have a book of touching anecdotes that they use.. And I feel like I just wrote one... sorry. BUT it was true! I was so moved! I seriously just stood there and cried and thought what has this come to in my life?? I am ridiculously obsessed with producing this "product" and it's ruining everything that I love about performing.

The funny thing is that this is not the first time I've realized it. I realized it when 3 drummers rode with me to my last audition too, and they got all in everyone's faces and they were like "there are alot of y'all who leave your soul at the door every morning and it's killing you! don't leave it at the door! Take it with you where you go! Don't let this City steal your soul, ladies and gentlemen...." (again, preachy.... but true!) They walked up and down the aisle looking everyone in the eye, and it didn't feel contrived. Of course it might have felt contrived if I were not TOTALLY smelling what they were stepping in, as it were.

So are they always there, and I only notice them when I'm on my way to an audition? I'm starting to think that maybe I ought to take note.
Or that I ought to bring my opera karaoke to the subway and enjoy my job....
On my way to another audition...