Going "Off The Grid"

Sometimes I think of myself as a city girl disguised as a small-town girl. While it's not something I'm necessarily proud of, I love cities so much, that when I plan a trip somewhere an urban center is always where I want to go. Seldom do I consider going to the beach or the mountains or on a cruise. While I know I'll need to eventually expand my horizons a bit, it's pretty much all about the city for me.  I don’t know, maybe living in Maine my whole life has made me take rustic beauty for granted, although maybe that’s too harsh, because whenever I go away somewhere I am always happy to return. Relieved in a way.


But this weekend, for the first time in my adult life, I am taking a weekend getaway not to the city, but to the woods. There will be a cabin, a boat, a potbellied stove, and (thankfully) indoor plumbing, and no Internet or access to cellphones -- for an entire 48-plus hours. This, I must say, is one of the most exciting things about the trip, not because I dislike the Internet or cellphones (obviously.) But for the first time in God knows how long, I’ll be disconnected from the constant, ho-hum whir of technology for more than eight hours, and that will be pretty nice, I think, maybe even necessary.

During my getaway, I expect to take in at least one moose siting, as well as lots of other wildlife, and likely lots of blackflies. I’ve armed myself with some indulgent reads (Candace Bushnell, anyone?), my Canon G-11, and bug dope, and beyond that, I don’t think I’ll need much else. Maybe some snacks. You gotta have snacks . . . although I hear the home-cooked meals provided morning, noon, and night are pretty special.

Ultimately, my trip to the woods will be a nice exercise in just being for a couple days. Because there’s something a bit compelling, albeit a bit foreign, about the practice of being these days, don’t you think?

Nude v. Naked

I didn’t watch the MTV Movie Awards on Sunday night, but I wished I had, #1, because Jason Sudeikis was hosting (seriously – how can you not have a crush on the guy?) and #2, because of Reese Witherspoon’s acceptance speech in which she said:

                      

I know it's cool to be bad, I get it ... but it's also possible to make it in Hollywood without a reality show.  When I came up in this business, you made a sex tape and you were embarrassed and hid it under your bed and like if you took naked pictures of yourself on your cell phone, you hide your face!

For those of you living under a rock, and haven’t heard about or seen actress Blake Lively’s nude photos, this was clearly in response to that, as well as to the reality TV darlings – the Kim Kardashians and Paris Hiltons that we love to hate but can’t seem to get enough of. (This is what the media does to us, friends.)

Anyway, watching the clip of Reese’s speech made me reflect on the theme of women dumbing themselves down or slutting themselves up in an effort to try to be noticed or recognized – on the major scale to become famous or on a minor scale to get attention from the opposite sex. This is not a feminist issue, might I add, but a self-valuing issue. Why should anyone feel the need to reduce one’s self to just a naked body? Granted, it’s the oldest trick in the book, although if you think about it, everyone’s got a little T&A . . .

But it’s what you do with that T&A that counts. A little T&A used in the right place at the right time, as an accompaniment to smart and interesting, is undoubtedly sexy, the opposite of slutty, the opposite of naked. (Well, at least I think so. Some feminists may disagree.) T&A used at the wrong time, on the other hand, in the wrong place, without any provision of talent or smarts, is just boring. It is. 

For full disclosure, I admit I did take a peek at Blake Lively’s pics, and she looked like any girl with a good body. I’m not sure why I was surprised by this – maybe because she’s a celebrity – but it nonetheless made me recall this thing I learned in Art History class my freshman year in college, that is the notion of Nude v. Naked. Nude is sexy and intentional; it’s art. Naked, on the other hand, is self-conscious and exposed; barren. In a sense, Naked represents the Paris Hiltons and the Kim Kardashians of our society. (I leave Blake Lively off the list because she is a girl with some redeemable value who cheapened herself by making a really dumb mistake – there’s still hope for her.) But as for the Parises and Kims, they may not always be naked, but for now that’s what they are – caught in that strange place in society, where they are both a source of entertainment for their shameless exposedness and a laughing stock, for their lack of demonstrable talent and foolish plugs for every product possible.

I’m glad Reese Witherspoon spoke her mind on Sunday night, because it’s sound bites like that which resonate to a society which isn’t always willing to confront the rippling effect of a little T&A at the wrong time and place.

The Journey or The Destination?

This morning I woke up at my usual Saturday time -- at around 6:20.  Yes, I know, I'm crazy.  Instead of getting up like I normally do, I went to the bathroom and returned to bed where I fell back to sleep until 7:40. Believe it or not, that’s “sleeping in” for me. Later on, while on my walk on this beautiful day with such perfect air I cannot even describe, I felt myself grumbling about all the things I had to do before I could start enjoying my weekend – finish my workout, shower, wash my hair, shave, blowdry my hair. (I will not bore you with the rest.) Only then did it occur to me as I was showering that this is something I need to work on. It’s always about the finish line, the destination, the end, for me.

In some ways it’s good to be goal-oriented, because shit often doesn’t get done any other way, and I can build and master a list as efficiently as the next one, but on the other hand, it is all too easy to miss life’s precious moments that way. Rushing through life isn’t such a good thing, even if it's in an effort to get to the sweet stuff. In fact, it isn’t ever a good thing. So, as I was showering this morning, for the first time, I took my time going through the motions. And by the time I was all dressed and ready to face the day, I realized that I had been lollygagging for the better part of an hour and a half. It was relaxing, even. It felt good.

I had always heard others recall Ralph Waldo Emerson’s quote, “Life is a journey not a destination,” but I must be a certain phase in my life where I’m realizing the power and necessity of the statement. Oh, well.  Better late than never, right?

Share and Listen - "Representing Memphis"

As I wrote in my introduction a few posts ago, the theme of this blog is “everything beyond the box” which includes all that delicious stuff that I love so much.  In keeping with that general theme, I wanted to provide a little Share and Listen about my favorite song of the week – “Representing Memphis” (featuring Matt Berninger and the lovely Sharon Jones) -- off Booker T. Jones's new album, The Road From Memphis.  Actually, the entire album is incredible, so if you’re a soul junkie like me – or even if you’re not – I recommend picking it up.  Fun fact? It’s co-produced by my man Questlove, drummer of the (in my humble opinion) best hip hop group of all time, The Roots.   

In the past week since I’ve purchased the album I’ve listened to the song an embarrassing 35 or so times.  And that’s in the face of consciously trying not to over-listen to the track, even.  Instrumentally, the song builds and settles to a nice, warm, mid-tempo glow with the sweet backdrop of a B-3 played by Booker T.  The entire track is a lyrical devotion to Memphis, and while I have no personal affiliation to the city, it nonetheless gives me chills, over and over again.  The ultimate message the song conveys is the pride one feels for his city in the face of judgment, a theme which transcends to all aspects of life, I think.  Anyway, whatever words I lend to it will do it no justice.  Just listen here:

Gotcha Gadget to Goodbye Gadget

I love me some gadgets, I really do, but I have always been a bit behind the times when it came to cell phones.  Feeling a little out of touch, I decided to upgrade my basic flip phone to a smart phone with a data package.  (Yeah, yeah, I know. That is so 2009.) 

I admit that I couldn’t wait for the phone to arrive. To my dismay, though, when it finally did, and I got the thing up and running with all the snazzy apps shining bright from the phone’s display, I realized I wasn’t really into it, that having a fancy new phone with all that the Internet could offer on a pint-sized screen really wasn’t that exciting.  It wasn’t!  Not to mention that typing on a touch screen is the pits.  Why I didn't anticipate that this would be an annoyance is beyond me.

So I did what any normal person could do.  I cleared everything off of it – all the photos I had taken from it (I will miss that feature, I admit), unloaded Facebook, my email, all my contacts, and pulled out the SIM card only to slip it back into my sad, little, cracked BlackBerry Pearl flip phone.  I will say that to my surprise when I tucked the new phone into the box and shipped it off to my cell-phone carrier I had not a single feeling of regretful loss.  I may no longer have a hip new phone and constant contact with the digital universe, and you know what?  I’m okay with that, at least for now . . .  And for the moment, I won’t be pining for the $70 phone/text/data bundle bill, either.

Sometimes life is better on the slow track.  Sometimes.

Wanna be creative? Just pencil it in.

I think creativity is important.  Actually, I think creativity is vital.  But sometimes it is hard to find the time and the energy to be creative.  It is easier just to go through the motions of work and routine and to just let our creative dreams go by the wayside.  Tomorrow, I often say.  Next week.  When I have the energy, when I'm on vacation, when I win the lottery.  But the reality is that if we constantly have these excuses we will never pursue our creativity, and the dreams that we say are what's most important to us -- playing the piano, drawing, sculpting, writing, what have you, will go by the wayside.  Life is too short to not be doing the things that make us the most happy, don't you agree?

While I was on the treadmill this morning (I would've preferred to have walked outside but it's an unbelievably hot one today in Maine), I came upon a great little blurb on creativity in Whole Living magazine.  In it, Eric Maisel, Ph.D., provides three steps to creativity, which he says to achieve by doing the following:

1. Start be making a separate piece space where you can get your creative work done. 
2. Make sure you schedule the time so it becomes a real item on your schedule -- show up and be consistent.  Finally, enjoy the progression. 
3. Take mistakes and messes in stride -- the ups and downs are part of the process. 

I was so taken by this that I cut it out and posted on my fridge as a daily reminder to pencil in my creative time.  Many times I think of being creative as a luxury, as an indulgence that can only be partaken in once all my work and chores are complete.  To be honest -- I'm freaking sick of that attitude.  Maisel's advice is helpful because the only way to make sure it actually happens is to simply schedule it in and to just take it in stride, knowing that being creative is all about experimentation and exploration.  Now that's some advice I can get on board with.

So . . .

Let's just say that I am a big fan of blogs, especially those of the personal variety.  Some of my favorites are Pink of Perfection, Orangette, Delicious Musings, Fit Foodie Finds, in addition to a whole slew of others.  I've sporadically maintained the blog Pop Culture and Life for the past couple years, and while it’s been fun I think it’s time for it to go on sabbatical, at least for now -- although I'm sure if the mood strikes I will still post on occasion.  It was a nice escape while in grad school when most of my time was spent reading and writing about Shakespeare and Susan Sontag, but now that I’m back into the 9-5 grind I’m finding myself limited by a blog solely dedicated to pop culture, which I still love -- don't get me wrong . . .

but I’m at a point now that I want to be writing about anything and everything I wish, that is not limited by subject or genre or time.  So, I thought it was time to up and start a new one, which I’ve decided to call The Meaning of Lunch. I envision this blog to be about anything and everything I want it to be, with the overarching theme of “life beyond the box” – the box being the somewhat ho-hum routine that many of us have to subscribe to, with life being everything beyond that, you know, the real good stuff (i.e. the meat and cheese) -- which will include topics of interest at the given moment, and may include any of the following: current inspirations, interests, hobbies, experiences, and everything and anything else that's striking my fancy.  (Good Lord, that was a long-ass sentence.) So, thanks for visiting, and welcome to The Meaning of Lunch!