The Center Seat

Last weekend I discovered that one of my dreadlocks is shaped like the "crooked road" in Joe vs. the Volcano. Even my dreads are film geeks. I wonder if any of the other ones have a favorite film...

This January has brought two momentous occasions... well, they're momentous to me, anyway.

1. On January 4, I turned thirty.
2. And today, January 15, this blog o' mine turns one year old.

So 2008 was a pretty amazing year for me. I'm hearing a lot of people talk about how 2008 was one of the worst years ever (usually they're talking about the economy, the war, politics, what have you), but I think it was one of the best of my life. And I owe much of it to this blog, and to all of you.

It all started with a conversation in Diamonds Coffee Shoppe in Northeast Minneapolis. Dad (there he is on the left...handsome, huh?) and I were having one of those Meaningful Talks... this one was about where exactly my life was headed. I'd been divorced for about a year, and everyone knows how life-changing a divorce is. But for me, it was more than that: it was self-changing. After I had gone through the anger, and the depression, and the self-pity (believe me, there was plenty of that), I stepped back and looked at myself. I realized I was not the person I wanted to be, and only I had the power to change that. So how exactly does a person go about a full overhaul--a head-to-toe reinvention?

The thing that Dad said to me that was so powerful was that he had become successful when he had found something he was passionate about and then just pursued a career in that field. I honestly had a bit of a Juno moment (remember Mac McGuff? "Heating and cooling.") Dad's passion is life insurance, retirement plans... financial shizz. *Snore* Oh, sorry. And mine--as we all know--is the world of film. I have no idea why I never thought about writing on this subject... but I can say that ever since I started, it's changed my life. I dived headlong into this passion, and guess what? I'm happy! Will this ever lead to a full-blown career? I don't know. But I hope so. I've gone to college for journalism, psychology, special education... none of that has really lit my fire. But for the first time in my life, I have a vocational dream, and I feel like this blog has started me on that path.

Of course there were other things that changed. I had to take a frank look at a lot of things, including politics. (Can y'all believe I used to be a staunch Republican?) There were crises of faith--how can I love my gay friends, advocate for them, and still hold true to what the Bible says?* I grew close to a new group of friends, and moved away from others. And for some reason I decided to get crazy-ass hair (the dreads are totally sick now, by the way... check me out on the right). All these crazy changes have added up to this: if I look at the "me" from twelve months ago, she's barely recognizable. And that's ok. Because I'm So. Freaking. Happy.**

So what's up for 2009? Well...

I'm going to keep it up.
I'm going to stay true to myself.
I'm going to try to blog more frequently.
I'm going to try to do my job (my real job, the one I get paid for) better.
I'm going to be a better person.
And I'm finally going to show you my face.



*The answer is really quite easy. But that's a whole other blog post, on a whole other blog. Buy me a beer sometime, and we'll chat.
**I hear Kevin Kline from French Kiss in my head "When people tell me they are happy, my ass begins to twitch." But I don't care. That's how freaking happy I am. :-D ...Click here for the rest of this tasty post.

Isn't it crazy how life can suck one minute and then be amazing the next?

I had a crappy day yesterday. All kinds of things (budget woes, hair woes, work woes, dating woes) were dragging me down. But in the space of 24 hours...

I'm just so frickin' happy to be alive today:

• As of last night, I'm officially in a bonafide, albeit fledgling, exclusive romantic relationship (I'm sure you'll read more about Nathaniel in future posts).
• As of this morning, work is getting under control.
• As of five minutes ago, I was overwhelmed by some spontaneous raves about this here blog from a respected colleague.

The budget woes and hair woes are still right here looking at me... they're just not so woeful. It's amazing how when a few things go well, all the other stuff doesn't seem so bad.

Hey blogosphere,

I got your note. I miss you, too... sorry I've been out of touch for so long.

It wasn't you, it was me... really. I was swamped at work, and then I was violently ill, and then I had about four wildly busy days piled on top of one another. Anyway, I hope we're still ok.

In the last couple weeks I've:

• Caught Prince Caspian--twice. Yes, yes, I'll tell you how it was. (preview: KICKASS!!!)
• Had the perfect Minnesota day. I'll tell you about that too, if I get a chance. No promises, OK?
• Got caught up at work... finally.
• Ate at Mickey's again.
• Saw all three Indiana Jones movies. Belated, I know, but I got to them before the biggie this weekend.
• Reconnected with a gaggle of high school classmates. (I wonder if I'll like them any better twelve years later? Stranger things have happened.)
• Spent some quality time with Zoe the putty tat. She's a freak, but I'm utterly devoted to her.
• Figured out an amazing new recipe for homemade parmesan chicken tenders.
• Saw Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová in concert. (Mini-review: he's hysterically funny, she's gorgeously ordinary, and together they're sublime.)
• Watched The Office... the entire American series, from the pilot up through Thursday's episode.
• Continued to rock my dreads.
• Fell further in love with Metro Transit. And The Current. And MNSpeak. And my amazing city.
• Missed a blogathon that I was really looking forward to. (I am so sorry, Marilyn.)

So, there you have it. I've been living my real life, at your expense. I've been a very, very bad blogger. You still love me, though, right?

Your (mostly) faithful friend,

Nayana ...Click here for the rest of this tasty post.

I drove to Madison last weekend to spend Easter with Dad and Stepmommy. I was nervous about their acceptance of my new hair. It was cool, though. They have a rad new pad.

Ugh. You people are difficult. (I'm talking to you, Karl Hungus!) But I hope you know I say that with the utmost love.

OK, OK, I'll breach my policy of net anonymity.... just this once.

This was taken with a cell phone in my bathroom yesterday morning.

They're very new... still need to mature. One friend suggested I try corporal punishment. But I love them, love them, love them! (My officemates still aren't too sure.)

...Click here for the rest of this tasty post.

I have dreadies. They are utterly boss. Yay me.

1. I'm officially done with the Oscars for the season. If someone else wants to discuss it, cool, but I will not be making any more Oscar posts.
   
2. I haven't quit making my daily McDonald's breakfast run. I figure, what the heck? Plus, they're giving the burritos away for free this Thursday and Friday.
   
3. Greg and I killed a bottle of Jacob's Creek Sparkling Rosé last night. It sucked. So we switched to Yellow Tail Pinot G. It didn't suck.
   
4. Today was "hat day" at work. I love hat day. I wore a Park City, UT trucker cap with pigtails. I want to go to Sundance someday. Anyone want to cart me along?
   
5. Captain Crash and I are going to finish watching In the Valley of Elah tonight. Also received from Netflix: Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room.
   
6. I'm getting mixed thoughts from coworkers and friends... but I'll put this to you. I am contemplating dreadlocks. I feel like there's a lot of "edge" inside me that doesn't express itself in my personal style. Does that make any sense? I think I'm definitely going to do it.
   
7. I saw Spiderwick Chronicles last Wednesday and was underwhelmed. I intend to do a full post on it in the near future.
   

Well, there you go. I couldn't muster up a full-on, well-thought-out post, so I just thought I'd catch you up on some of the myriad thoughts bouncing around in my noodle.