Me, Reflective?

The Emory Alumni Association people recommended me to the Emory Wheel as an alumni of interest who might want to say a few words about Emory in the special section for alumni weekend. They seem to think that I am worthy, which surprises me. However, I did submit a reflective essay to the Emory Wheel today, and maybe it will be published. Even if not, here's my 500-word ditty. Bon appetit, y'all! (Many thanks to my editor, Ben Temko, for correcting my grammatical snafoos ahead of time :-)

I had a hectic day today, not unlike most of my days, but in the midst of running around, talking on the radio, teaching singing, and singing at temple, one thing pervaded my thoughts—my 15^th college reunion. There’s much to celebrate, but it’s also a reminder that time is passing; a perfect opportunity to reflect on what those four years continue to mean to me, personally and professionally. Overwhelmingly, I am grateful to Emory, for all the challenges, triumphs, and failures that I endured and still cherish today, and how Emory taught me to examine, to feel, and to play.

I am grateful for the professors and classes that challenged me to think and to examine the world and my relationship to it in a deeper and more connected way. Even though I took History of Western Civilization in the midst of intense rehearsals for Godspell, Descartes and Kant still have managed to keep my mind pretty busy over the last 15-plus years with contemplations of existence. Even psychological statistics proved incredibly helpful in preparing me for the analysis of radio listening habits, a crucial skill for me at WABE. Without Dr. Nowicki’s seminar on relationships and Dr. Edwards’ seminar on love, I may never have known how to truly connect with my emotions. The Chinese are known for being stoic, and as extroverted as I am, I needed to know that to feel deeply is to recognize pain and reconcile with it in an honest way. When you can put this into practice, good things will come. I know that without this honest dialogue, I would never have found the love of my life and partner-in-crime, Ben Temko (Emory College ’92). I also know that without the emotional foundation that Emory gave to me, our marriage would not have survived two years of unsuccessful fertility treatments or the subsequent year of grieving. Through all the tears, we were not afraid to face our fears and despair with a healthy dose of laughter and play.

Yes, Emory also taught me to play and to enjoy life. A resident advisor taught me that downtime was as important as scholarly pursuits, and I followed her example by always being mindful of having fun. Playtime for me included spending time with friends, acting in Ad Hoc and Theatre Emory productions, and singing in choirs with Dr. Alfred Calabrese. Eventually, play time became my life’s pursuit, and I am now finishing my music dissertation from Indiana University Bloomington.

My years at Emory laid the foundation for how I have lived my live as an adult. I am grateful for how beautifully rich my life has become, for all of its ups and downs, and for how I’ve lived it as a thoughtful, feeling, and joyful person. My hat’s off to those who are just starting their journey to adulthood, and may you all take away with you the tools you’ll need to live the best life.

High Holy Days

I'm just hours away from the first of five Yom Kippur services that I will sing in the next two days, and I am dreading it for one reason only--the hideous substitute cantor that was hired for this year's services. He cannot sing nor read music. Reports are that he has had the music for at least two months, and he arrived knowing, at best, 35% of the notes. He doesn't even know the words to Kol nidre!!!!! He is simply an embarrassment to the temple and to the sacredness of these religious proceedings. Ben will be coming to one of the services tonight, mostly because I really want him to experience the cantor, a.k.a. disaster. The choir's last rehearsal with him was so excruciating that we all started to sing his notes for him, even the teenagers, who were much better than him, I might add. Oy.

It seems that lately I've had nothing but rants, and I will work hard to change that, I swear. On a good note, Ben and I are getting closer with our adoption paperwork. We'll post about that soon.

Aveda Sucks

A Capitalistic Rant:

Aveda discontinued my favorite hair goo, Light Elements Finishing Lotion. Goddamn it. I am a creature of habit and am covetous of hair products. It takes me forever to find something I truly like, so how dare they discontinue it! On top of that, they changed their reward program so that it is no longer appetizing for this bargain huntress. They were giving away a "starter kit" of trial sizes to each individual when they sign up, but now they're just going to offer double points on your first purchase. Fuckers. Mind you, this little change happened some time between June 30 and today, because when I tried to join on June 30 at the Aveda Institute after a haircut, the little emaciated check-out girl explained that they were out of these "starter kits" so I'd better go to another Aveda location. Well, I was short on time that day, so it took me 2 months to finally "get to another location." The reason given to me for this change when I went to the Aveda Store in Lenox today was that people were joining just to get the free stuff and not really purchasing anything. Well, they had not met me, had they. I am a drugstore beauty product girl, but when I found these products, I finally became a convert. Ben is even a convert now, so how dare they insult me. Loyal I have been for the past couple of years, at least. (I know that this is incredibly ego-centric, but I'm just foaming at the mouth a bit right now.) I hate the R & D that it takes to find a new beauty regiment. For god's sake I've been using the same Clinique face crap for well over 15 years now. Now I'm hunting down some of this "discontinued" hair goo on ebay. Hopefully I'll be the highest bidder (and still get it for a bargain price). Wish me luck. I'll know by this Friday.