Spotlight: Caroline Silver

Photo by DAVID GRUBBS/Gazette Staff

My dear friend Cal Silver is spending the year in Glendive, Montana through Americorp, as a volunteer to help bring the "farm to table" movement back to the state. At one time, Montana produced 70% of what its residents ate (talk about eating local!) and Cal's job is to work with farmers and the community to reinstate the movement, which will provide the residents with a healthier, more sustainable local food chain. Cal, a smart and savvy graduate of Barnard College, chose to literally get her hands dirty to make a difference in the Glendive community, and will probably see the results of her work extend far beyond that! I would say good for her for spending her time farming instead of blogging, but guess what, Cal's got a blog too! What can I say? She's a phenomenal woman. I guess that's why the Billings Gazette created this short video of her on the job, an inspiration to us all!

Kraftwerk

Sometimes, when I'm in a choreographic rut, it helps to shift my focus away from the body and work on something external. I discovered that I like to sculpt, and that playing with different textures and materials helps me imagine the artistic texture I want to create with the dance I am working on. I've been feeling particularly stuck for the past few weeks, so this week, I took some alone time, retreated to my parents house, and began my search for some fun things to play with. After digging up some scrap fabrics (including some strips of mink my mother tore from an old vintage stole) I let my hands take over and allowed my mind to wander. The process resulted in some interesting pieces of DIY jewelry, and best of all, a few images came to mind while I was working that are really going to help me make the next steps in my piece... literally! Above are some shots from my session, leave a comment for a chance to win one of my creations!

Not Above The Bucket

My brother Nick was digging around our house last time he was home, and found this picture, which he immediately made copies of and sent to me. It made me laugh out loud to see us crammed in those little buckets, but it also got me thinking about the role of the bucket bath in my life. I lived in India as a little girl, and my earliest memories of bathing look just like this picture. Even when I could no longer fit completely inside the bucket, nick and I learned to bathe ourselves by filling the bucket, lathering up, and using a scooping cup to pour water over our sudsy selves. When I moved to the states at 5 years old, the bucket became all but obsolete. I quickly grew accustomed to sitting in huge bathtubs filled with water, and soon enough learned the pleasures of a nice long shower.

Last summer, when I was couch-surfing in Bhalil, Morocco, I found myself face to face with the bucket once more. Irked that I didn’t make it to the Hammam in time for a “proper” bath, I washed my long hair in the bucket, growing more irritated every time I flipped my head over to pour water on the back of my neck. But then it occurred to me, “I grew up bathing in a bucket! When did I become such an arrogant bathing snob?” So I didn’t have a steady hot stream flowing down on me for ten to fifteen minutes (or sadly sometimes, even longer), I had a big bucket full of hot water, which was plenty to get me lathered and rinsed. I was ashamed at my own attitude towards the bucket bath, an activity in which I had once found immense joy. Thinking further on the matter, I was appalled when I thought of how much water I must use weekly in the bath or shower at home, without a second thought to how much energy it must take to heat it all.

Although my family in India have buckets in every bathroom, during my most recent trip (as well as most of my past visits) I opted for the western style shower… until there was a problem with the water heater and was forced back in to the bucket. This time though, I wasn’t so upset about it. Now, back in my Brooklyn apartment, the incessant shower pressure/temperature problems that my super hasn’t gotten around to fixing are enough to drive my roommates crazy and often keep them from bathing altogether. I guess it’s a blessing that I know how to bathe from the bucket, and I’m no longer above it.

Bicycle Child

A love of all things 'cycle related was instilled in me by my Grampa, an avid cyclist, ever since I was a babe. I would wait for him to come home from work, and when he walked through the door I'd shout, "Bampa bikela!" which was my way of telling him it was time for our evening ride. He'd hitch up the baby bike carriage to his bicycle, and ride around until I passed out in the back, which was usually only a matter of minutes. I might be too big to ride around in the carriage (bummer), but I still find riding my bike to be a seriously soothing activity, not to mention it's more efficient than walking, or even taking the bus! I love my old Junker (pictured top left w/kitty) but its really rusted to pieces and the brakes are starting feel dangerously ineffective, so I've been checking out some other options from Anthropologie. Though these are definitely out of my price range, these styles are so simple and pretty, and the foldable one would even fit in my little apartment!

Cooped Up

Okay. I'm home from India. No more excuses. No more excuses for not blogging, or not cleaning my room, or for not joining the Park Slope Food Coop. Oh wait, actually, I do have an excuse for that one. I HAVE been meaning to get over to the Food Coop, pay my $100.00 initiation fee, and enjoy first rate produce and groceries at a discounted rate, in addition to becoming a part of a community of greenies like me. Woo! And all this, JUST for working 2 hrs and 45 minutes a month! What a great idea. Yes, well, as the saying goes, apparently every rose has its thorn... or something- because I just read this detailed account of how one well meaning young woman flunked miserably out of the seemingly easy-pass food coop, and all of a sudden I'm having second thoughts. Who knew that if you have to miss your shift that you have to make it up with two shifts before the time of your next shift? I can see how the cycle could spiral out of control. What if I have an emergency rehearsal? What if my boss calls as I'm leaving the house for my shift? What if I JUST FORGET ONE DAY?!!??!? All this pondering to say, I'm just not sure I'm ready for that kind of commitment. I want to be. Just like I want to be a puppy owner, I am telling you I really want it. BUT, as my mother would say, this is a bigger decision than I may have originally thought, and so I think it's worthwhile to take my time in making it.

A Breath Of Fresh Air

(Those aren't clouds in the background, they're mountains!!!)

I know I’ve been a little bit delinquent with my posts, but you’ll have to forgive me, I’ve been in India! Oops, I forgot to tell you I was going. I came to visit my grandparents in the foothills of the Himalayas and then to take them on a short beach vacation to Goa.

It’s always really intense coming back here, and seeing my grandparents living alone in the mountains always makes me emotional. I decided to take a hike in the mountains this morning to clear my head—up to China Peak, an 8,500 foot ascent at the top of which you can supposedly see China!

What can I say? There really is nothing like mountain air to clear the mind. Especially when the air up here is such a huge contrast to the air down in the plains where the big cities are. The air quality in Delhi and Mumbai is so bad, on smoggy days I can hardly see my hand stretched out in front of me, and my eyes, nose and throat get intolerably dry and itchy. It felt great to spend a little time away from the teeming humanity that sometimes seems literally inescapable in India.

Sadly enough, even at 8,500 ft. there was still litter strewn across the mountainside (granted it was cleaner and cleaner towards the top). My disgust at the total disregard for nature was replaced by sympathy after some consideration… in a developing country like India, people are struggling just to have food and clean water, the environment is just not a realistic concern at that point. Even the USA, which is literally decades ahead of India in terms of development, is only just getting smart about the environment and beginning to implement change. My dad told me it would be pointless, but I filled several bags with trash and brought them down anyway- if anything for my own peace of mind.

The complexity of such a beautiful and culturally rich place is only intensified by the contrast brought by globalization. Like every country in such a transitional time, conditions are rough and the environment gets compromised for the sake of “progress”. Hopefully, in time, the balance between industrial progress and social progress here will even itself out. Let’s hope it does, because the natural beauty of this place is too important to waste.

Bon Autumn

Cafe Regular du Nord, Berkeley Pl
Originally uploaded by Arancia Project

I'm all moved in to my new Park Slope apartment. I love the new place, and the neighborhood is about as cute as they come (I'm already completely enamored with my corner coffee shop, Cafe Regular Du Nord, shown here).
In the few days that it took me to move and set up shop again though, it seems the seasons have abruptly changed. In my last post I was picnicking in Dumbo, and now, I'm wrapped in a blanket doing work on my living room floor, a makeshift office setup until I get the rest of my furniture in here. I've even got my cold weather music on. I may be jumping the gun listening to Bon Iver, a play on French words meaning "Good Winter", but his voice is so soothing and warm that I may just be able to take my blanket off after this song, which I am posting for the enjoyment of your chilly ears. Better yet, Bon Iver wrote the track for Dark Was The Night - a compilation album created by the Red Hot Organization to raise money and awareness for the fight against aids :