Links - Contemporary Inspirations - Dialogue

https://www.artsy.net/article/artsy-editorial-16-emerging-artists-to-watch-in-2016

https://www.artsy.net/artist/sophia-al-maria

https://www.artsy.net/artist/melike-kara

https://www.artsy.net/artist/kapwani-kiwanga

https://www.artsy.net/artist/pia-camil-1

https://www.artsy.net/1-54-london-2015

https://www.artsy.net/article/the-art-genome-project-artsy-1-54-a-thematic-guide-to-london

EOY 2015

CHICANO BATMAN

PRAGUE ZOUK

KIZOMBA ISTANBUL Tickets

ROMA

RALEIGH, NC
M.C. ESCHER Exhibit Slideshow
LEONARDO DAVINCI

Lotus Soma Paix

SOMA MEXICO - Summer 2016 Program

Tuition is $3,600 USD for the eight-week program, which does not cover accommodations, per diem or transportation.

Tuition can be paid in three installments:

I.   $500 due May 2, 2016 (non-refundable)
II.  $1,550 due June 6, 2016
III. $1,550 due July 4, 2016

$6,000 USD is a reasonable total budget approximation for your eight-week stay in Mexico City (including program tuition, housing, food, recreation, and transportation).

Participants find their own temporary housing, with the assistance of SOMA. This process begins upon acceptance into the program.

SOMA
Calle 13 #25, Col. San Pedro de los Pinos, 03800 Ciudad de México 
+52 55 5277 4947 / info@somamexico.org

Future Opportunities to Look Into...

Panoply. A Guide to HAPPY

Wild Nothing - nocturne 


http://www.transitionsabroad.com/listings/work/shortterm/worldwide.shtml

www.interexchange.org

http://www.iena.org/?site=work-abroad

http://www.transitionsabroad.com/listings/work/shortterm/australasia.shtml

http://www.allianceabroad.com/work-in-australia/work-australia/

http://jobs.goabroad.com/search/australia/jobs-abroad-1

http://jobs.goabroad.com/search/chile/jobs-abroad-1

http://www.worldteach.org/site/c.buLRIbNOIbJ2G/b.8526401/k.6403/Chile_Program_Profile.htm

http://www.travelingmyself.com/2013/09/06/interesting-facts-about-chile/

Fall NYC Trip - October 15-18, 2015

I spent the weekend visiting my friend from Montgomery Scholars days out in New York City. She is currently studying at Columbia University. It was wonderful to reconnect with her and spend some time escaping my own reality.

Times Square - GROTESK Installation - Juxtapoz Magazine: Banksy "Dismaland"

MOMA
Picasso Sculpture exhibit
Walid

Central Park - Alice in Wonderland sculpture

Guggenheim
MET

New York Historical Society
Comics in Gotham


Harlem Public - Peanut Butter Burger

New York Botanical Garden
Frida Khalo Art. Garden. Life.

Family Dinner, Sunset by the water walking Maya.

Fall for Zouk 2015 - Saturday Social and performances.

The Best Free Stop Motion animation software experiment

http://www.clayanimator.com/english/stop_motion_animator.html



http://monkeyjam.org/



http://www.dragonframe.com/



I want to link my sequential images to make a short video. I am curious about the effect of the slight shifts in frame and proportion.

Bali, Indonesia

Bali, Indonesia

Tejo Amed Homestay

Amed Beach - Snorkling
Underwater Temple

Bright Fish and coral reef.

http://www.scubadivebali.com/dive-sites-bali/north-east-coast/

Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

in.cube8r
Michael Laderman Jewelry

RTW: Jules Verne 2015 Complete.

Maps generated by the Great Circle Mapper - copyright © Karl L. Swartz

Notes for the Rainbow Gathering via Chrissy 5/29/2015

RAINBOW GATHERING - Northern Michigan, Back Country Camping

Uptown =- Kids Village
Camp near Kids Village

FOOD
Eat breakfast at Kids Village, dinner at Main Circle
Avoid kitchen drama
Bring personal snacks: (10 apples, 10 oranges, 10 mangoes)
Bring Food to donate (BULK): Bananas, Fresh fruits & veggies, Rice, Oatmeal, Potatoes
Hot sauce & seasoning
BLISSWARE: bowl, cup, utensils
Trash bags
Zus Zus
MAGIC HAT - $ to buy food for the community

Water bottle to refill & gallon jugs

WATER
Live water - cleaning only
Triple filtered water - drink supply

CARRY YOUR WEIGHT - Pack Light

Chrissy's Backpack: Osprey Aura G5

Mummy Sleeping Bag
FLASHLIGHT - try the Coleman Companion Flashlight/Lantern found at Target
Tarp
Tapestries
Chair
Pillow
Comforter
Warm Clothes
Shoes, barefoot?
(rope, carpet)
SHARE A TENT! Keep Warm

TOILET PAPER
SANITIZER

*** Joke -Toke- Smoke ***
BE PREPARED - Memorize a Joke

*** Random Pocket Trade ***

*** Trade Circle ***

Bring cool things to trade

DON'T FORGET ABOUT LAW ENFORCEMENT!
OBEY ALL TRAFFIC LAWS
HIDE EVERYTHING

6 UP/7 UP

Don't be a Drainbow.

Around the World 2015 - Logistics?

KENYA & TANZANIA - GoAheadTours ... yep.

SOUTH AFRICA
Johannesburg

Pretoria

Durban

Cape Town

Drakensburg


INDONESIA - Bali - Ubud - Sacred Circularities Retreat.... Ananda Cottages

Sierra
Ana Isabel
Jon
Ron

AUSTRALIA
Sydney
Cairns
Melbourne

Helen
Benoy
CS Community

Pre-flight Brain Dump - 20 june 2015

I am utterly exhausted and my struggles are hardly compared to anyone else. I've been shrugging so much off and I'm just really tired of saying everything is good. It's true: Everything is good. It's a fact. I shouldn't have to spend so much energy to remind myself. I need to take a break and be still. Even when I'm still, the world will keep spinning. Even if I am not there. It will all keep going. Thank you so much for thinking of me. You are so awesome! Whatever you do this weekend, enjoy yourself. Be happy and be free



I will have my own art room next year.

There is always so much to learn. I didn't plan on becoming an advanced dancer but I think it goes without saying. It is something that feel very natural for me.

I LOVE DANCE! I always have, ever since I have been a child. My issue, is that I lack discipline. I've always been on my own, doing my own thing. I want to say that I don't understand consistency and seeking/asking for help. I am free and enjoy the music as it pleases me. Friday night I was desperate for some merengue in my life. I haven't had a really great merengue dance so of course I jumped when Semba started.

Thank you for noticing the changes in my body, I don't pay much attention to it and often feel oblivious to many things. Strength is one area where I feel that I am particularly lacking. I have always felt weak - I am never aware of what I eat. I don't exercise. I get frustrated.

*** Priorities. Setting priorities. The excuse that may prevent me is whether I set that as an ultimate goal. I have so many. I scatter myself and stretch myself thin and forget to take care of myself sometimes. I forget that I can't do everything. I do remember that I can do all the things that I decide to do. So things get packed and layered until I decide to disappear and hibernate for a while. Until I return again. Tides, waves, cycles.

GOOD NEWS! I was hired to be the full-time art teacher at one of my schools for the incoming school year. I will finally have my own art room and be at only one school Mon-Fri instead of traveling between multiple schools, between classrooms, un/loading my art cart, riding elevators, working out of my car and home. I WILL HAVE MY OWN ART ROOM. lol it hasn't really hit me yet. I have been sharing the news with people in hopes that the more I say it, the more real it will feel. I am looking forward to moving all my work stuff out of my living room and letting go of the space that it clouded in my person life. I will have more consistency in my work life so that will be one less area in complete chaos.

I want to hoop. I want to learn circus arts. Aerial dance, trapeze, stilts... I want to make my own clothes. I want to be in control of my creative practice. I tend to get distracted by small things or just ultimately decide to runaway and leave things for a while. I want to return to kickboxing. I really enjoyed that.

** My current priorities have been travel, that is what I have been focusing on for the past few years and it has become my excuse for not maintaining a regiment. I figure I will leave - I forget that I will return. Savings for travel is where my time and funds have gone towards. I figure I will work towards my goals once I return, I guess.

As you may have known, I helped Ezri with his classes earlier this year. I gave that up after I injured my wrist and began feeling very stressed.

Initially, I was a little doubtful because I have taken dance classes but I feel like I never fully caught onto the teaching aspect. Dancing is fun and natural for me. I felt like I really needed to study. I felt like I didn't know how to instruct someone else how to dance. I know I can, I have lol. But dancing is difficult to articulate. People are so different and have so many different backgrounds. I never learned how to dance by counting. Choreography has always been a challenge. Routines? The complexity of leading and following.

It was a great experience. I learned to value great teachers. I am thankful for all the teachers in my life.

It was stressful driving to different places after work. It was great practice. Earning extra money was nice. I felt like I wasn't contributing as much. I can be a little thick/slow to catch on sometimes. This is personal reflection/ I KNOW THE OUTSIDERS VIEW IS A DIFFERENT TRUTH.

Typing this, I am remembering my first year of teaching at school and the same (and different) challenges. It could be something I overcome. I am not in the habit of asking for help and I don't devote the time to practice.

What really became my excuse for taking a break from teaching was: 1) I couldn't commit to being there every time - Parking tickets, commute, gas, mileage, time 2) Energy - I worked and I had many deadlines coming up - SCHOOL ART SHOWS to INSTALL, I had 3 this Spring. 3) Travel - my departure date is here. I'll be leaving anyways for 7 weeks. I have so much work still left to do on my travel plans

4) Safety

- Unclear explanations, high expectations and much frustration. It is difficult to pass on knowledge that is so natural. It is part of who you are but it is important to understand and remember that for new dancers, they weren't ingrained with the same cultural knowledge of body movement and rhythm.

They may not know what you mean or what you expect. If you just tell someone to do something without showing them, you can't expect them to do it perfectly.

Those 4 reasons may become my excuses: Commitment, Energy, Travel, and Safety.

Scatter-brained. I'll be back in August. Enjoy this updated past written brain dump. My mind is mush and I will make airplanes and airports my happy places. Life is good. The time is now. Be present. Let go. Live. 

Super Mario Bros.Party

Snake, Frogs, Mosquito Larvae, Squirrels. Sleeping in the sun. Walking over fallen tree trunks. Crossing over water. Fish swimming.

I spent this week in hibernation. This weekend was filled with deep appreciation to the people in our lives that really care about us and only wish us well. I may have cried all day and struggled all week but I laughed all last night.

Thank you to kind people who put their hands on us on encourage us to be happy. I have no idea what is happening with my appetite. I haven't been sleeping much and I haven't been able to really appreciate eating. I have so much to do and I am afraid of the horizon. The sunsets and the moon rises. Moving across their paths. A new day begins as the sun shines light upon the Earth.

I had too many sweets last night. It was a joyous celebration. I am thankful of having such wonderful friends. I spent the night with my festival family. We enjoyed an awesome Super Mario themed birthday party. The snack labels where the best! We finished the night with a screening of the Super Mario Bros. (1993). It was ridiculous!

Seting Goals 4/13/15

inifinity - in-if-in-it-y - || in-finite || in-finity

Alright, so I still listen to music. I love music. I love dance. Rhythm and movement. Flow. Ebb. Surge.

UPDATES:
- I got a brand new shiny card
- Being super responsible about finances...?
- Taxes submitted!
- Begin completing job applications
    - Finish portfolio
    - Sort Lesson Plans
    - EMERGENCY SUB BINDER!

Plans, Valuable, Experienced. I know the rooms. I have advice. I have keys.

Listening to Kendrick Lamar
https://www.threadless.com/product/4413/Peace_Naturalis


UNIVERSITY OF THE PACIFIC

Travel Study: Developing a Curriculum for Academic Enrichment

http://www.pacific.edu/Academics/Professional-and-Continuing-Education/Courses-for-Teachers/Curriculum-Enrichment/Travel-Study.html

Fee: $79 per unit
Course Code: PEDU 9200

DOMINICAN UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA
EDUX 9925 - INNOVATIVE CURRICULUM DESIGN
http://dominicancaonline.com/DominicanCAOnline-EDUX-9925-Innovative-Curriculum-Design.php
2 Credits/Units ($250) • 3 Credits /Units ($375) • 4 Credits /Units ($495) 
5 Credits /Units ($595) • 6 Credits /Units ($695)

EASTER AWAKENING

Rise. Shine.

I need to complete many things.
http://www.sacredcircularities.com/scbali-2015-travel-form-for-participants.html


I am being fluid. Following the current, letting it take me. Letting go.

Purchase flights,

Melbourne Street Art
http://www.melbournestreettours.com/

Crystal Cascades ( ~ Cairns, Australia)
http://www.cairnsattractions.com.au/explore/getting-back-to-nature/crystal-cascades.423.html

4.3-4.15 Carrboro, NC & Richmond, VA

SPRING BREAK!!!

I feel like I have graduated and I am now applying to enter the realms of travel experts. I am a novice. Now I feel like I need to master photography. THINK. PLAN. EXECUTE. ADJUST. REPEAT.

April 2nd, 2014 :: Shell Talk 033: Travel Hacking 101 :: How to Fly Around the World for Free :: Austin & Ningwei

Save. Update. Document. Count. Repeat.
SPRING BREAK HAS BEGUN. LIFE HAPPENS.

Share. I had time to share with others. Social interactions will be stressful.

This evening, I was able to attend a Shell Talk at the University of Maryland. It felt weird to walk across campus and see the current community. Remembering I was there, sitting in those chairs and walking those paths only so many years before. That was my life. I never paid much attention. I was always running and doing something. Life Happened.

I got to reconnect with the friend who taught me how to drive. He helped me practice and learn how to drive when I was stuck in a difficult situation. Now he is helping me learn how to fly. We met and discussed his previous path. How did he get to where he is at now? How can I do that?

I want to travel freely through out the world. Everything seems so easy. Is it true? Is it fair? How does this work? How can I stay ahead? Am I supposed to stay ahead?

Austin & Ningwei are two awesome guys. I am excited for their future. Tonight, they shared how they were able to travel around the world. I wonder if they work together when planning thier travel.  It seems that they both may have different approaches. They discussed how to use credit cards to earn mileage points and basically travel for free.

In addition they showed us how to push the rewards further by using stopovers and open jaws in the trip to make the most of the distance travel. It was mind blowingly insane! I wished I had heard this 6 months ago.

Signed up for United Mileage Plus, CHASE Sapphire Preffered. etc...

https://500px.com/austinh

http://thepointsguy.com/
http://travelisfree.com/
http://www.theflightdeal.com/

Life Begins Tomorrow

AUSTRALIA is huge!

I want to road trip around the continent/country.

I want to go to Tasmania and Madagascar... I am insane.

Anyways...

25 - 26 July :: Open House Melbourne
http://www.openhousemelbourne.org/

30 July - 2 August :: Cairns Indigenous Art Fair 2015
http://ciaf.com.au/

Great Barrier Reef
http://www.australia.com/en/places/great-barrier-reef.html


VISAS REQUIRED

ETA or  eVisitor
http://www.immi.gov.au/Pages/Welcome.aspx

Australian Centre for the Moving Image (Melbourne) DAVID BOWIE IS.
https://www.acmi.net.au//bowie

Singing Guru

I want to have legs that can carry my weight. I want arms that can hold me up. I want to breathe at the highest heights. I want to fly.

I've been there before. I done this. I can do anything. Thought of my good friend Gu today.

Capital MMA
TSNY
Yoga on York
Roda

STAR avec TOO MANY ZOOZ

Impending Doom

Spring. Renewal. Warmth. Flowers. Seasons change. Renergize.

Between hibernation and setting things into motion. Working on cleaning my space. So much energy... Loving it. Yesterday I spent the entire day listening to a mix I recorded on CD. I hesitate to call it a mixtape because its not a tape. What do we call them nowadays? Playlist. 

Teenage Angst circa 2005. 

Reconnected with friends and rediscovered the enormous amount of food that you get Chipotle. Burrito food baby. Always amazed by the capacity to consume and fit all that into your body. 

Discovered Rasberry Cheesecake Gelato from Simply Enjoy. Its so good, I need to walk away. I still prefer Mango Gelato over anything else. It pairs nicely with the Cocout Gelato. You can make a float with soda water and its really yummy. 

Extra long weekend due to impending doom. It is going to snow all day today. Accumulation.

-

Dusted and moved some furniture. Getting rid of some things. Getting a better idea of what I want and figuring out how I would like it designed. All the answers are there. 

Dawn of the Red Box

With the impending doom of fairly light snow days and ice storms I have rediscovered the magic of Red Boxes. I appreciate the offers and half price rental promotions. It gives me an excuse to rent those really terible movies that I would not have seen in theaters. I love movies! Seriously, I may not be the most qualified connoisseur but I ike looking for connections. I love the design and the elements. The way music helps tell the story.



I am about to take on LEFT BEHIND. Nicolas Cage stars as Rayford Steele. Based on a series that I read when I was in high school. I read up to Book 8: The Mark. My first boyfriend would pass me the books as he finished them from his sister-in-law. I would pick them up from thrift stores and read the tribulations that the characted faced in the end times. I am curious to see how the film will depict all the action in the books.



Lucy. Sin City 2. Get On Up. Monument Men. . Men, Women. Children. (Dawn of the Planet of the Apes)



Croods. Magic School Bus. Mr. Peabody and Sherman.



I should focus on getting some work done too. I am thankful.



I'll see many more films on all the flights this summer. I also realized that I will be travelling to the other side of the world during thier more temperate season. What does that mean? Temperate?

of, relating to, or denoting a region or climate characterized by mild temperatures.

synonyms:

mild, clement, benign, gentle, balmy "temperate climates"

No worries.

Boooook!!!!! Sketchbooook!

Misplaced. What am I doing with my life?

Blessings

I lost my phone. It got replaced. I still need sleep.

I don't want to do anything. Bored but I don't want to go out. I don't want to see anyone, be social. I would rather be in a different city or running up a mountain. I feel restless.

-Plan with Carien
-Plan with Sierra, Ana, Jon ...
-Plan with Helen, Benoy, aussies...
-Set official itinerary dates
- Buy Tickets
- Contact EF GoAheadTours regarding costs w/(o) flights
- Pay off EF GoAheadTours account balance
- Get vacinated/Immunizations
- Research visa policies
- Watch debt grow.

My mom is 62 and loves animals, wildlife, and nature. I'm sure she would be excited to see some city landmarks but might be happier to see flora and fauna. She is amazing! Sensitive diet but in pretty good health with high blood pressure.

I'm an art teacher and equally in love with flora & fauna as well as cultural capitals. I'd like to learn more about the features of Australia and its history. I could even stop of north from Bali possibly and then meet my mom in Sydney or Melbourne. It'll be the first time she's traveling on her own in a really long time so I would like to meet her upon her arrival.

I'll have my own party at home. Rest. Sleep now in the fire. Bulls on parade. Ashes in the fall.

$$$ or AFRICA

Blissfully reflecting in the absence of communication. I am alive. I lost my phone - again -

I don't mind. It was another adventure. Last weekend I hosted a traveler through Couchsurfing. They were in town for a meeting/conference of some sort. I was really proud because we both spent most of the time communicating in spanish. Not exactly our primary language. He was staying at the Harrington Hotel in DC. Came from Turkey. I met up with him and gave him a brief night tour of the city, monuments, and social areas for him to return to during his free time in the city.

Phone fell of my lap during navigation. Probably fell out of my car after parking on 18th St NW in Adams Morgan. Once again I don't blame anyone. It was my fault. I had a cool case. Screen-locked. Battery low. My life. I need to lose something and reset. Time to distance. Focus.

Made a playlist for this moment.$$$ or AFRICA Spotify Playlist

Lately most of my financial choices have been motivated by $$$ or AFRICA? Spend money on (thing/object/experience) OR go to Africa.

I still need to send out thank you cards. Working on it. Enter grades. Figure out how to give back art work. Organize.

Consider accreditation in New Media Arts, Interdisciplinary Arts, Media Archiving, Catalogue, Media Specialist  - learn advances in technology. Stop fighting and resisting change.


SNOW DAY to hibernate and focus. I'm going to do a lot of work and take a nap. I love sleep more than anything.

National Day Calendar

I think it would be fun to live my life following the National Day Calendar. Celebrating all these random days.

Today is...



http://nationaldaycalendar.com/calendar-at-a-glance/

I A - SNC - MFA-IA

So... I started researching Graduate Programs....

I earned a Masters in Education from the University of Maryland, College Park in 2011.

I have a Masters Education. I don't know if it Masters or Master's. Grammar was never my strength.

M.Ed. in Curriculum and Instruction - Cerfication in Art Education (PK-12).

Here is part of my teacher story. When I started my higher education journey, I did not know what I would become. I knew I loved art. I loved history. I loved studying about things from all around the world. I loved the stories and the glimpses into other cultures. Both through the lens of time and distance.

We all have patterns. Art is a way that individuals can capture and respond to specific inspirations. We document things. Photographs, recordings, notes, lists. Everything serves a purpose.

I was accepted into the Montgomery Scholars Honors Program at Montgomery College in Rockville, MD. The factor that led me into this program was the promise of full scholarship that included a summer of study abroad at the University of Cambridge. I have always been an opportunist and a dreamer. This promise fueled more dreams. I had no idea what to expect in the program. I don't think anyone really knows what to expect in their lives. I was introduced into an interdisciplinary program where history, literature, music, and philosophy where studied together from all around the world throughout time. Mind-blowing! Expansive. Intensive. Challenging.

In this program I was surrounded by some of the most interesting people I have ever known. We were thinkers. Each one an individual with our own skills and interests. Discussions were the best as we reflected upon important paradigm shifts in the past and made connections to our contemporary environments.

I am incredibly thankful for my experiences in the Montgomery Scholars Honors Program.

I wrote an interdisciplinary capstone research thesis - Preserving Identity: Indigenous Art in a Global World. I spent a year studying the art of the Australian Aboriginal tribes and how their traditions preserve thier cultural identity while potentially providing commercial income.

--- Now --- I have an opportunity to go to Australia.

In that last year at Montgomery College, I benefited from an internship at the Smithsonian Institution. I worked for the National Portrait Gallery in their Department of Education with the Docent and Internship Program Manager. This led to a paid position at the National Postal Museum, also in thier Department of Education. Both are centers for the preservation of history through the arts. Don't forget stamps are minature works of art!

I graduated from Montgomery College and transferred to the University of Maryland in 2008. I was free to focus on my passion for art history. I had completed most of my core classes and could spend the rest of my undergraduate career studying art. I knew I wanted a degree that was art related. I could work in a museum again.

I wandered into an art studio late one evening and bumped into a few other students. They were in the Art Education program. After talking to them about the program and attending an information session, I realized that their MCERT Program would grant me a Masters degree and Certification to teach Art (PK-12) in the state of Maryland within a year... if I started taking my professional courses during my undergraduate education. I did it. I graduated from the University of Maryland, College Park in 2010 with a Bachelors in Studio Art, minor in Art History.

Student Teaching in Howard County, MD. PRAXIS. Capstone thesis - part deux. Action Research.

I did it all. I even chaperoned a group of high school art students on a trip to Paris, France. I was dedicated. My research focused on creativity and idea generation by students through multi-sensory approaches that promoted exploration of texture. I loved it.

Though I had found a career path towards education, I wasn't quite ready to commit to the schedule of a public school teacher. I spent some time working with a non-profit that had nurtured my creativity when I was high school. Arts on the Block, is an organization that provides opportunities to talented and passionate youth in the area. Their workshops bring together youth from different backgrounds who share an interest in the arts. Through projects, field trips, and special guests, students are introduced to the reality of having a career in the arts. In my time with Arts on the Block, I was an Apprentice, Assistant to the Lead Teacher, Lead Teacher, and Program Manager. I gained so much experience working with Arts on the Block.

I had submitted my application to Montgomery County Public Schools in Maryland. I figured I had education experience through my positions at the Smithsonian Institution, Arts on the Block and through the professional training from the University of Maryland. Teaching for the county would be the next step.

Here I am in my third year of teaching art at the elementary level. I currently work in three schools and travel from classroom to classroom. I teach Art on the Cart. I see my students once weekly and bring them opportunities to question and explore through the arts, I love what I do.

I would like to have my own classroom one day but before I do, I want to travel/research/work/study abroad. I also want to earn a MFA... as crazy as that seems to me. It was one of my original goals when I was in high school. I am free.

I am starting to research Graduate Programs. The Low Residency MFA in Interdisciplinary Arts at Sierra Nevada College is appealing.

1.9-10.15 Philadelphia, PA - KizSemba Social

!dliw ...VXMM :: MMXV... wild!

A weekend of going with the flow. Adapting as plans changed and modified. Taking into consideration reality and possibility. I don't know what I am doing wiht my life but I am having fun. I am enjoying every single moment of it. I want to stay off the book of faces. It is so easy to get sucked into the abyss of everyone's manufactured virtual persona.

"Can I ask you a personal question?" 

I love going out and wandering. I am not a conversationalist - not really, I may seem like more of a joyful mute. Initially, I don't say much. I am sure that most of the people I met this weekend were enchanted by my dancing because I know I didn't speak much unless I already had an established relationship with them.

I love dancing! I love kizomba and semba. I love music. I just feel happy. 

This weekend, my friend organized a group of dancers to go up to Philadelphia to attend a KizSemba Social hosted by Art in Motion. we had a wonderful hostess who invited our group to spend the night in her home and enjoy a Haitian brunch the next morning. We danced all night and woke up to more dancing and good times.

Once brunch was over, We dropped off a friend at the Philadelphia Museum of Art. We ran over to see Rocky and ran up the stairs for a photo opportunity. We ran back down and back to the car. Today was not a day to visit the PMA it was almost 4pm. I love the PMA but I need more time to wander and explore its grand collection. I feel like I'm walking through an Art History textbook when I walk through their galleries.

I really was determined to go to the Philadelphia Academy of Fine Arts. There was a David Lynch exhibit that I really wanted to see, The Unified Field. I have seen his short artistic films and some stills but I had never seen his artwork. I wasn't particularly fond of his work but I understood it. I understood what influenced him and how he worked. The motifs were the same as his films. Alienation, off putting, strange, dark, violent... It wasn't pretty. Lot of sick figures... Eraserhead babies and bad relationships.

There was a wedding event being set up in PAFA as we were leaving. It was a gorgeous space. Their collection was interesting... A historical introduction to gallery practices with areas for contemporary installations.

We left and met my travel partner at the Reading Terminal Market before they closed for the evening. I ate a roast pork sandwich at DiNic's.

We drove to South Street to check out the exterior of Philadelphia's Magic Gardens and the surrounding mosaics. It was cold so we parted ways for the night and stopped by Pat's to pick a up a Cheesesteak on our way out of the city. I don't love meat but I feel like their french fries are the greatest! I can't remember if I've been to Gino's. Jimmy's on South Street was pretty good too.