I've been feeling overwhelmed myself, but coping better this morning. I'm leaving for New York in a few hours, for the event at the Listening Room, then a few days with my parents in CT, which should be very quiet -- just resting and writing. I come back Monday and teach my first graduate fiction class at Roosevelt. I think that one thing I'm going to do to alleviate stress is not go to Alex's wedding in the Bay Area next weekend; I'm just hitting my travel limits, and I have another wedding out there soon and a trip to Salt Lake in two weeks. Hopefully Alex will forgive me.
Last night's class went well, I think; at least we had lively discussion for the whole 2.5 hours, so that's good. I had fun. Driving to and from Schaumburg was not fun; traffic made it take an hour (instead of half an hour) going in, and coming home was stressful. Since the accident, driving at high speeds makes my pulse race; I'm just so aware of how quickly I could lose control of the car, and everything could go kerflooey. I may try taking the train/shuttle next week, even though it takes even longer; at least it won't be stressful, and I can read on the train segment. Three hours of the day in transit, though. I don't know.
Anyway, I should go do a few last bits of paperwork, have breakfast, water the plants, pack. If you're in New York, do come out for the event tonight! I don't know if we'll have a crowd, and since what I really want to do at the moment is stay home with my covers pulled over my head, I'll be particularly disappointed if we're playing to an empty house. It really should be a fun event; I'm excited about the opportunity to collaborate with two other Sri Lankans. I knew Marian when she was just a little girl, knee-high to a grasshopper. It's great to think of some of those Sri Lankan kids growing up to become artists!
September 9 - New York, The Listening Room @ Caffe Vivaldi at 32 Jones St. (off Bleecker St. near Seventh Ave.), 7:30 p.m., suggested donation $5.Marian Yalini Thambynaygam and Varuni Tiruchelvam incorporate theater, spoken word, song, dance, and music to dynamically explore issues within the Sri Lankan Tamil community -- war, detention, the tsunami, etc. -- using gender and sexuality as a lens. The journey they take us on is rife with profound questioning, moments of loss, and a resurgence of hope and love. Thambynayaygam and Tiruchelvam collaborate with Mohanraj to create a powerful performance to the text of Bodies in Motion.