Books and Circuses

This weekend was the National Book Fest and I got there at ten so I could see Daniel Nayeri. 

I got to the room a bit early and so saw the tail end of Lauren Tarshis's interview, including the audience portion where a kid asked, "Which book were you least excited to write and which book was your editor least excited about?" This was a standout question. Applause young child. Tarshis said that sometimes she would be very excited about something and her editor would say hmm, let's come back to that. But for her part, she found the more research she did for something, the more she would find interesting things, and then she would get excited. 

Nayeri was on a panel with Caroline Brewer with moderator Monica Valentine. They talked about working with illustrators, and crafting stories, and how folktales have always been a mix of people entertaining but also sending a subtle message. 

Then I went up to the ballroom for Kate McKinnon who was in conversation with Amna Nawaz. McKinnon thanked us all for being there and not at the car race. She also talked about being introverted and weird but also dramatic, and how her parents had really supported that.

Great kid questions continued as one kid asked, "What do you do about a block?" The answer was to set small goals to try to climb away from the self doubt that might be holding you back. And another kid asked what do you do for self care? Gardening was the answer. 

After lunch, I went to see Traci Chee and Gabi Burton in conversation with Ashley Dickerson. They talked about reflecting on power. And the things characters might not know they can take or even wish for. 

Then Randy Ribay and Liselle Sambury were in converywith Destinee Hodge. They talked about using fiction to talk about bits of history. 

Then Roshani Chokshi and I.V. Marie in conversation with Ofelia Montelongo and they tallked about how sometimes the self insert character isn't the strongest one, it's the one who wants to know when they'll get fed. 

 And then Jennifer Lynn Barnes was in conversation with Sarah Y. Kim. She said being a writer means being able to buy pretty notebooks. And that she uses her notebooks for brainstorming, and making lists of the things she loves, along with the things her research has told her make successful stories and figures out ways to combine them. 

It was all so much fun. Keep an eye out on Library of Congress's page for videos of the sessions.

Then I won tickets to Circus Vasquez and dragged a friend out to see it with me. Seeing a circus as an old(er) person is amazing because now you're like, oh I hope that move doesn't come back to haunt her later. I hope that thing isn't hurting their teeth. But there was singing, dancing, hula hooping, balancing, tight rope walking, spinning through the air, flipping and other amazing feats of skill and talent.  It was a fun time. 

The Crime Chicken and the Crime Egg

I'm well aware that some of the takes about DC being a crime ridden den of iniquity are bait. But DC is currently in an overlapping state of people claiming that things are out of control, and therefore shampoo in the drug store has to be locked up. And therefore we need a teen curfew, and to restrict teens shopping in supermarkets. And therefore we need armed National Guard to patrol the streets and hang out in metro stations.

Never mind that crime stats indicate crime is overall going down. Never mind that shampoo is not locked up at the grocery store. One of the drug stores I frequent has a security guard, and everything on the lower level (which you can only access by stairs or a very slow elevator) is locked up, except the antihistamines. The drug store two blocks over locks up the antihistamines. Since I shop off antihistamines a lot, I go to the one where I don't have to ring the bell and wait for an employee who is always grumpy they have to do this, to unlock for me. 

But anyway, the stores are saying they have to do this because of the crime. Not because it gives them clearer data on people's buying decisions, since they can track the shelf opening and closing. Not because they can do things like lock some things up at one store and others and another and compare and contrast. 

People used to like to point out the story about the one drug store near the hockey arena that got robbed four times. Except, it turns out that was an inside job. 

So my point is this is a chicken and egg situation. They are all claiming the crime came first. But really, they are just doing what they want to, and blaming the need for it on crime. And here's the other thing, my friends who live in states that are not DC. You might think this can't happen where you are. And I'm going to point you to Minnesota and Mississippi where it already is. 

The Sounds are Different

I was up this past weekend visiting family in Connecticut. Small towns and other suburbs are always interesting because everything is so close together that things should be walkable, but the sidewalks disappear so clearly they don't really expect you to walk. 

But I noticed when at my relative's house that the trains sound different. I can't quite come up with how to describe it but it's almost squeakier.

Some people suggested it might be the Acela, but I remember when the Acela started, and it isn't that. I've heard the Acela many times. (Also that particular stretch of Connecticut rail is between two level crossings, so they can't really go that fast, express train or not.) 

The horn sounded the same to me, and someone else not local agreed with me that it sounded different. It didn't sound different to me when I was up there two years ago, so the change would be super recent. 

If you happen to have a theory, I'd be thrilled to hear it. 

But my actual point is that revisiting things, places, and people is a little like this. Some things are just the same. Some things have changed. Some things are familiar but different. And all of this is why we revisit things. To see which category they fall into. And also because we enjoy these people, places, and things. 

In "Maybe Happy Ending" they sing that "a trip should not end like it began" which I have always loved. 

May you revisit something new this week, even if it is a fave taco place. 

Rain Delay

I went to take in some tennis as part of the DC tennis tournament last weekend. I had originally meant to buy a ticket for one session this weekend but forgot and it sold out so I opted for a quiet weekend. As it turned out, there was a lot of shuffling Sunday because there was rain predicted, and even with only three finals left to go, they needed to get through them and the awards ceremonies, and get everyone packed up and away. 

The day before they announced they would open doors earlier and try running the men's doubles final and the women's singles at overlapping times, to essentially increase the chance they could get through both without pushing the men's too late. 

I often joke that real sports continue on in the rain, but hard courts are slippy enough without rain. Plus in summer, rain often also means thunder and lightening, so really everyone should shelter. 

The thing about the rain delay is, they can't just peek out and be like, it stopped, let's go. They have to take off the rain cover, check all the equipment, sometimes bring out dryers and vacuums to get the court back into play shape. 

And of course the players might have hopped in the shower or opted for another wait around activity that requires sometime to get redressed and court ready.

And sometimes the storm doesn't pass as quickly as expected. 

Some days are like that too. Something pops up and blocks or delays the plan you had and you have to say, okay, maybe I'll just hang on the couch today. Get some reading done. Plan to do all the things another day. 

Hadestown: The Musical

I saw the live capture of "Hadestown: The Musical" Sunday during what was initially going to be a 5 day run in theaters. It has now been extended.  Since I reviewed the live show, I'm just going to make a list of things I like and didn't here. 

Love: Eva Noblezada, Patrick Page (on a ruptured achilles, shout out to the costume designer for that sparkly leg brace), Amber Gray, Andre De Shields, Reeve Carney, and the West End Fates. Also the workers and band were all great. 

Dislike: A few of the photography/editing choices I was less a fan of. Overall, you can see what you need to see. But some moments where they zoom in, you lose the things the rest of the cast is doing. 

Love: Being able to see it again, you catch so many little things. It is a delight. 

Love: Also, there are a few great photography choices, including panning to the audience in key moments. There's one bit where Persephone scoffs at the audience and the audience reacting to that was delightful. 

Love: a pro shot. Is it as good as seeing it live? No. Is it cheaper and simpler if you live somewhere that is not one of the few places currently running a live performance right now? Absolutely. Will it help you decide if "Hadestown" is your jam? Absolutely. Can you go in knowing nothing about the show? Yes. (I would maybe recommend skimming the wiki summary of the Orpheus and Eurydice story. But you do you.)

I'm not sure this is a dislike, so much as an I want even more. I would love a live capture of the original London cast. I know that's greedy.