the magic of music

i have two things i want to discuss first: my desire to dance, and my stirrings to strum (like those alliterations?)

My Desire to Dance

So i started zumba a little while ago—granted i haven’t gone in like a month, but i did START :) Anyway, so i started zumba and this magic began to well up inside me. i can’t explain it. i’ve never been a dancer. well that’s not entirely true. i danced ballet as a little kid and took a couple months of Irish step, but in neither case was i ever good enough to call myself a “dancer.”

Understand that for me, calling yourself something, like a runner or surfer or teacher implies that you ARE it. it is possible to run and not be a runner, to surf and not be a surfer, to teach and not be a teacher. see what i mean? so when i say i have never been a dancer, i mean i have never been a dancer.

Zumba, like Irish step dance, watered the teeny tiny seed i call dance. today, while driving home, Jake played a song. it was swing. my feet itched to tap and my hips wanted to sway (but of course swaying is hard in a car). we came home and Jake tried (for the bazillionth time, i might add) to teach me some swing steps. Now my body may have this little seed, but i think the one reason i never became a dancer was my complete lack of coordination. i’ve decided i’m going to try zumba-ing in the comfort of my own home. starting tomorrow. …well, i’ll try to start tomorrow. i’m not making any promises ;)

My Stirrings to Strum

So, as many of you know, we’ll be going to Korea to teach English for a year (or so). We’re pretty excited. one thing i’m pretty stoked about is learning to play the banjo. that’s right. i’m going to leave my guitar at Jake’s dad’s (or somewhere similar) and buy a banjo while we’re in Korea (and learn to play it). And this is going to be the first song i learn on it :)

i love this song ;)

a week :/

so seven days of pills and drops should get my ear back in working order. Here's the sitch:
my inner ear is clogged with water & bacteria (ew and OW) and my outer ear is red and swollen; so, best as i can figure anyway, i've got drops for the outer ear and antibiotics (pills) for the inner ear. Mostly, i just want my ear to stop hurting. Do you know how loud breathing is? and I can HEAR myself walk, not like my footsteps, noo, i mean like the actual impact of foot on ground. i CANNOT teach like this. i feel miserable and i can barely talk above a whisper because i can hear myself, and not only is it really annoying, but it makes it hard to think. i can't speak in my teacher-voice :(

pain, pain, go away....and don't come back...at least not as an ear infection...

misery is an earache :(

no amount of chocolate can help suppress the misery i am feeling with this darn ear. all of the sudden this morning, i felt pressure in my ear, now this wasn’t the first time i’ve felt it. the other times it went away. well, now it’s gotten worse. it hurts like a toothache. it hurts when i smile, laugh, yawn. it’s sensitive to loud sounds and movement. any ideas on what to do??

blagh.