Monday, January 23, 2006

Kilts, Stomachs, Cowboy Hats

A wonderfully cultured weekend!

My aunt took Margo and I to a concert on Friday night. Two British bands: a Welsh army marching band (the Black Guard) and a Scottish drum and pipe (as in bagpipe) band. We had front-row seats, which were really fun. Cool uniforms, orderly marching, fantastic drumstick-twirling technique. It's funny how a uniform on its own can look utterly silly, but get 4 or 5 of them together and suddenly they look great.

Friday's performance was lots of masculine, military pomp and circumstance. Saturday's performance was the exact opposite. My sister and I went to the historic Lincoln Theater on U St. to see Eve Ensler in The Good Body. Ensler is the woman who wrote The Vagina Monologues, and this piece felt like a good sequel. She talks about women's relationships to their bodies: in particular, her hatred of her stomach. My favorite part was the conversation with a Masai woman who loves her body because of what it allows her to do. I think I liked it because I identified with it; I love my body the most when I'm playing frisbee or dancing. Overall, a great show. Uplifting. She didn't make you feel guilty about hating part of your body - just about every woman does. But watching her obsess makes you realize how silly it is, and it's really not a much of a leap to apply that to oneself. From the Masai woman: "Is this tree ugly just because it does not look like that one?"

On Sunday, my sister and I returned to the masculine with Brokeback Mountain. I loved it. It's sad, of course, but beautiful. I don't go to the movies all that often, so I'm glad I got to see this one.


Other good stuff this weekend...
It was really nice spending so much time with my sister.

I got to talk to Scott on Saturday and Sunday mornings. Wonderful.

Aaron hosted brunch in honor of his in-town friends. Monkey break, mango, mimosas... lovley.

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