kdc dance for hope

i haven't danced on-stage since i was 12 years old. i destroyed everything around my ankles and calves in an eighth grade phys ed class, and the injury took a good 8-10 years to heal. i did some dance classes at UBC when i could fit them into my schedule, but other than that, it seemed that all dance classes geared at adults were downtown, be it vancouver or seattle. i found kirkland dance center last spring by pure happenstance when i was trying to look up ballroom dancing at the local rec center for our wedding prep, and i was so excited. and it's literally a five minute drive from my house. while most women try and hit the gym to lose a few pounds before their wedding, i was just happy to re-embrace something i'd done so long ago (that, and i've maintained the same weight since i was sixteen). i went to the doctor the other day and i suprised even myself with my response to their question "how many times a week do you exercise?" - five to six. thanks to my awesome boss, i'm able to dance 10 hours a week if i want to.

i was involved in two numbers for KDC's Dance For Hope III this evening. ticket sales went to the "Feed Our Children" charity, which provides local children with a meal a day that their families cannot afford.

the first three photos feature smooth criminal, beat it (i'm looking super cute in a beret), and thriller (i have a blue swewater) from jacqueline's five-part michael jackson medley.





amy choreographed a lyrical piece to a cover of imagine by avril lavigne. i'm at the back in the brown.


jerri had a fantastic vision in selecting these costumes for her beautiful ballet number. i came to class on sunday for the first time and learned this piece in about 15 minutes, but was unable to make the rehearsals so thought it was better that i'd sit it out.


special thanks to jason, cassie, jenna, lorinda, and my parents for coming! and andrew, too, for all the photos.

trash the dress

Shootin' at the Slough - TTD // Vancouver from StillMotion
for anyone that hasn't seen my trash the dress, here it is.

my parents came to visit this evening with news that a seventh foot has been found at finn slough where had we finished off a long day with the amazing talent at still motion this summer.

i had scouted out finn slough on the internet and was intent on braving the growdy water there for the amazing backdrop, since neither the ocean nor glacier-cold waterfalls really interested me. after time spent in china town and an area near the train depot, we all went for fish and cihps in steveston. when we got to the slough at the end of the day, it was low tide, and i mean low - and a part of me was disappointed because i thought there wouldn't be any water shots.

the upside, though, was seeing that the slough had a really clean sandy bottom. no scary rocks, no seaweed, no debris, just sand. (i am deathly afraid of coral and unknown underwater substances). we took most of our photos downstream where there was enough water under a bridge for ducks to swim in, and when it came time for me to do this amazing photograph without scrunching up my face as the droplets came down on me, i realized the water was rising, and fast.

while we did get in the water in the end, i almost wished we could have run across the sandy floor because i know my feet could have kicked up some awesome mud onto my bustle.


speaking of ducks, andrew and i love ducks. we call them quacks and often happen upon large groups of them in the wee hours of the night at places like swimming pools and small coves around stanley park.


i had been only somewhat hesitant about splashing the water up only for it to come down on my face because it had a razor thin marbel-ly layer of oil; it wasn't until we were in the car driving back that i realized the full magnitude of the ducks' presence. i had spent my first summer after graduation in the okanagan with mom after mom after mom approaching me because their children were itchy from swimming in the lake with its duck feces. i had a brief moment of fear when i realized that i did not want to spend what short days i had allotted for my honeymoon with parasites that were not contracted from an exotic country. perhaps shooting a trash the dress the day before your honeymoon isn't the best idea. luckily, we were both unharmed.


another interesting thing about this article is that it's written by the same journalist that interviewed me for a trash the dress article last year. i'm thinking it's probably time to follow up with her.

marty

annapurna cafe

a gal from work recommended annapurna as one of her favorite restaurants in capitol hill, and now that laurie has moved across the 520 into indie/emo/gay-land, we decided to check it out. andrew's order of himalayan curry with lamb was fantastic. my go-to dish - mutter paneer seemed more yogurt/tomato-based than laden with fatty, fatty ghee. next stop in the area capitol hill, viktoriya's favorite greek place, Byzantion. as a side note, i found urbanspoon.com so no longer do i have to grasp at straws at where to eat in bellevue, or any other city for that matter, because there really are more options than just p.f. chang's.

my favorite image from today

faux overcast

look ma, no photoshop