Birthday Celebration #2: Los Angeles

Even though I had just seen my sister in DC for my own birthday (read that blog post here), we continued the celebration when I visited her in Los Angeles last week. Clearly my MO is to live it up, and we definitely did! These were the best parts of the trip:

Netflix is a Joke. Fest

I learned about this show a couple months ago by seeing a tweet from Jim Gaffigan. As soon as I saw that post, I KNEW I had to buy tickets. I couldn't miss this show! Last Thursday, my sister and I went to the Hollywood Bowl for the performance. I was impressed by how organized everything was: the shuttle bus to and from the venue, the kiosks at every food stand to speed up orders (although you can bring in your own food, which is really nice and rarer these days), and any lines went by pretty quickly. The Bowl was built in 1922, so it's been an institution for a long time, having hosted Billie Holiday, the Beatles, and now these great comedians!

The opening act was a jazz band called Endea Owens and the Cookout. They sounded pretty good (Endea plays the double bass, which I love), and the back-up singers were riffing, which was cool. I felt bad for them because no one was paying any attention to them, but I understand the comedians needed somebody to (attempt to) warm up the crowd. And at least they can say they've performed at the Hollywood Bowl!

After the music ended, the four comedians came on stage: Gaffigan, Sebastian Maniscalco, Nate Bargatze, and Jerry Seinfeld. They did a ruse with pulling numbers from a hat deciding the order they'd perform in, but it went just as I suspected: Bargatze, Maniscalco, Gaffigan, and then Seinfeld. I had seen Maniscalco years ago,* and I've seen Gaffigan at least five times, so I was most excited to see the two acts that I had never seen live before. Bargatze actually might have been my favorite since I wasn't familiar with any of his material, but his jokes about his lack of education cracked me up. Here's a clip:

Maniscalco was next, and while I enjoyed the jokes about taking his family to the Universal theme park, his physical comedy always makes me feel awkward (making yourself look ugly makes me cringe, not laugh). And Gaffigan's set was identical to when I saw him this March in Savannah (although still funny, especially when his jokes about having children, which only solidify my decision not to have any). And while I understand Seinfeld has a schtick, his negativity really wasn't that funny. He talked a lot about hating everything and his enjoyment of complaining. Huh? But I did appreciate his messaging about people being too obsessed with their phones and being so consumed by technology that they miss out on real life experiences.

I thought it was great to see so many big-name comedians in one night, and at such a cool outdoor venue! My only regret is that we were not prepared for the cooler weather once the sun went down. We each had a light jacket on, but I would have been so happy to have a windbreaker for my lap, a blazer on, and a fake fur coat (i.e. what I wore to see Stevie Nicks and Billy Joel in M&T Bank Stadium in February; read that blog post here). Brrr!

Nature Walks

On the day I arrived, we took a walk around Lake Balboa, which was such a good idea after sitting on a plane for more than five hours. It was a beautiful sunny day, and we saw many different ducks and geese, and even Canada geese goslings (just like on my nature walk the other day; read about that here). The ones in the photo were a little older, but we saw another pair of geese in the water with SEVENTEEN babies! That's crazy!

On the second day, we took a hike in the morning at Westridge-Canyonback Wilderness Park. There was a six-mile loop option, but we decided to do the shorter path, which was still a good 90-minute walk. We heard so many birds (although I didn't realize you have to download the bird lists in the Merlin app before you want to use it, so that was useless), and lots of pretty flowers! Definitely worth the dust aaaaaaaaall over my black sneakers ;)

Here are some of the pretty flowers we saw:

This is a sticky monkey-flower. Who knew there was such a thing?

Google Lens says this is a Gazania, which is actually native to Africa.

This is an arroyo lupine. It looks a lot like the ones in New Hampshire, but much shorter.

Work Outs

Taylor is SUCH a good instructor! I was so impressed. She kicked our butts!

Ok, it might seem strange to list exercising as a highlight of a vacation, but we did two really fun workouts! My sister teaches at Row House, so it was so cool taking her class (especially since she took one of my Pure Barre classes in October). I am used to using a rower at Orangetheory, but doing a workout that is primarily rowing was a whole new test of fitness. I was sweating so much, and my legs felt like jelly afterward. Whew!

I had also found out a few weeks ago that a new Pure Barre studio was coming to Encino, which is not far from where my sister lives. Although the studio isn't quite open yet, they offered a free outdoor class in Encino Park. I could predict which moves we would do since we didn't have the barre, but it was still a great workout: I was getting my shake on! After class there was also a rep from Harvest Bar offering acai bowl samples, and Stretchlab was there giving 15-minute assisted stretches, so those were some added bonuses. And Taylor ended up deciding to join so she could get their Founders rate!

Two fitness instructor sisters. How cool is that?!

The Fall Guy at Alamo Drafthouse

I had only seen a movie poster for The Fall Guy, so I really didn't know what it was about. But my sister wanted me to experience the Alamo Drafthouse, which is one of those movie theaters that offers actual meals and alcohol and has the big, cozy chairs that recline. It was kind of nice having real food at a theater instead of just candy or popcorn, but it is a little tricky to eat a salad in the dark! The movie itself was better than I expected (I thought it might be kinda dumb). I especially enjoyed the chemistry between Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt, and it was pretty cool seeing so many stunts (my sister described the movie as a "love letter" to stuntmen). And the movie just opened last weekend, so that was fun seeing it opening weekend.

Dodgers vs. Braves Baseball Game

I hadn't seen a baseball game yet this season (except for a spring training game in Sarasota in March), and since I'd never been to Dodger Stadium, we thought it might be fun to see a game. We went right after the movie, since we were already in the same part of town. We took some photos with larger-than-life bobbleheads and then found our seats, which were between home plate and third base (pretty good!). We also got to see Shohei Ohtani play, whom we saw in Anaheim in 2021 (see that blog post here); he hit a home run each time we saw him! I will admit that we missed a third of the game waiting in line for Korean fried chicken; I ended up leaving the line and getting a fried peanut butter-jelly-banana sandwich (delicious!). But we got to see the home team win, so that's always good!

Just another great trip out to L.A. to see my sister! We always have so much fun together. She's coming back east in June for my mini-wedding, so looking forward to seeing her then!

*Read more blog posts from a few other comedy shows I've seen:

• 2015 Oddball Comedy Festival
• 2018 Jim Gaffigan at the MGM at National Harbor

River Walk at Great Falls

 

Two nature girls enjoying the Great Outdoors!

Last week I met up with my friend Melanie Choukas-Bradley, a naturalist and author whom I’ve known for probably ten years now. I met her when I worked for The Nature Conservancy; she was taping an audio tour for TNC at Sugarloaf Mountain (which is now one of my favorite hikes in the DMV). Since then, I have gone on walks with her (including forest bathing!) in Rock Creek Park for Rock Creek Conservancy, congressman Jamie Raskin, the Women of Dartmouth in DC, and just the two of us on our own*.

Most recently, she took me along the river walk at Great Falls on the Maryland side, which I had never done before (even though I have visited the national park many times). It is a shaded walk along the Potomac River, which was perfect for a scorching day. We immediately started IDing birds we saw or heard. Some were easy, like a great blue heron or a Canada goose. But we used the Merlin app to determine bird songs; we heard a warbling vireo, and with the help of the app we were able to see a Baltimore oriole! Even though they are Maryland’s state bird, you really don’t see them too often, so that was really special. Their song is very melodic, almost like a wood thrush’s. And even with their bright orange foliage, they are still tricky to see up in the trees!

New word of the day: inosculation

Speaking of trees, we saw some HUGE trees along our walk, particularly sycamores, reaching tall for the sky with their white branches. They easily were over 100 years old, probably even more than 200 years old. I don’t think the two of us could have wrapped our arms around one to have our fingers touch! We also saw two trees of different species that had essentially fused together and are now sharing a common vein. This is called inosculation, and it was fascinating to see their branches intertwine (and I’m sure underground their roots do, too). I was excited to use some of my own ID knowledge that she had originally taught me, pointing out pawpaws, iron wood, and white oaks. We continued our identification with several flowering plants, some of which had a sweet odor that was lovely to take in. Some were tiny, like blue phlox, but others were small trees, like a fringe tree and black locust (you can actually eat the flowers of the latter, which is related to the pea family). Even though I am sure I had seen those plants before, I never knew what they were called. We have such a fascinating natural world around us, and it’s fun to try to understand and know it even while living in a modern, rat-race ecosystem.

Tiger swallowtail butterflies are some of my favorites, and they are easy to identify!

We took the tow path back to the visitors center, and on the way we saw lots of butterflies (tiger swallowtails and zebra swallowtails) as well as some Canada geese goslings! So fun! We wanted to continue on a little longer, so we walked down to the boardwalk-like path to see the rushing waters of Great Falls. Even though I’ve seen them many times, the falls always take my breath away. It was amazing that along the earlier walk, the river was nearly still and mostly quiet except for the birds; at the falls, the raging water is so loud, and it’s only a little farther downstream! We even saw a kayaker and some people rafting, so they were having a very close encounter with the falls! It still amazes me that something so wild is located just outside Washington, D.C.

Melanie commented on how confident the babies are. They know they're safe with geese as parents!

During our time together, Melanie and I talked about everything! I told her about my recent birthday party/bridal shower (read that blog post here), she showed me a cute video of her baby granddaughter, and we discussed books (we’re Jane Austen fans), politics (we’re feminists), and travel (she also leads walks for the Smithsonian Associates in the Badlands! Can this lady get any cooler?!). I always say she’s who I want to be when I grow up, and we already have so much in common, so I feel like I’m already partway there. We both have a connection to Dartmouth College, we’re lifelong learners, we both love nature and being outside, and we always focus on the positive. She is so joyful to be around, and her inner sunshine is infectious. She has WAY more knowledge about plants and the history of the region, but she has taught me many things that I have passed down to my other friends (I’m the go-to plant ID person in my friend group, and now they do “ear cupping” on their own hikes and nature walks.). I also don’t think I could ever write as many books as she has (I feel like every time I see her she’s working on a new one), but I dabble in writing with this blog, and we both enjoy writing poetry (well, I used to write poems, and she started during the pandemic; some of hers have even been published!). We’re sisters from different generations! As I continue to grow and become the woman I want to be (I’m only 35; hopefully there are a lot more years left for self-improvement!), I will definitely keep Melanie in the back of my mind as someone to emulate, my backyard hero.

*Read other posts I've written about walks with Melanie:

• 2017
• 2018
• 2019

My 35th Birthday Celebration

I celebrated my 35th birthday last Saturday! But I wasn't just celebrating that: I was also celebrating my upcoming nuptials! Since I am not doing a big, traditional wedding, instead I wanted to host a joint birthday party-bridal shower to celebrate with all the important women in my life. And I didn't just celebrate the one day: this was nearly a week of festivities!

Here were the highlights:

Spending lots of time with my mom

My mom flew in last Tuesday, and once she picked me up from work, we had days to spend with each other! I love mommy-daughter time, and ever since my parents sold their home in Maryland, I don't get to see her as often (now it's only every few months instead of at least once a month). She straight up said she wanted to do anything that week that I wanted to do, and we lived it up! We went to Woodhouse Spa, she did Orangetheory with me, we packed the fun in!

My mom and I made matching rings at Kendra Scott's Color Bar.

And we got pedicures at Tips to Toes. Such pampering!

Last Thursday we saw the Sydney Dance Company at the Kennedy Center. Read that blog post here.

My sister arrived last Friday, and right after lunch we went to the National Arboretum to see the azaleas.

Steve was there Friday night when I got a chocolate piñata from Uncle Julio's. So yummy!

The Birthday Bridal Brunch "BBB" Party

Saturday was the main event! But of course I had to start my day with an awesome workout:

Nothing like an Orangetheory Fitness birthday burn with my favorite coach, Christine!

While my mom, sister, and aunt set up the event space (we rented the outdoor patio area at Circa at Foggy Bottom), my friend and I picked up the cakes (yes, multiple cakes!) from Henry's Sweet Retreat and headed to the venue ourselves. Upon arrival, I saw so many balloons and lots of smiling faces! I reconnected with people from past jobs, friends who traveled hundreds of miles, and old and new friends alike. I felt SO much love in the room! It almost felt like a real wedding, because there are some people I barely got to talk to! So many friends, too little time!

I worked with these two women at my first "real job" at The Nature Conservancy!

My mom was so excited about the BBB balloons!

Cynthia and I met our freshman year at Dartmouth and have stayed friends ever since!

A little Dartmouth group! Mostly Thetas, but also a '90!

These are colleagues from AU. I'm so glad we've stayed friends.

All the Eastern Shore girls together!

The Bachelorette Party

This was not a cliché bachelorette party with lots of drinking, with strangers buying us shots and male strippers giving us lap dances. But a sub-group from the brunch did go out to Jack Rose Dining Saloon for drinks (and dancing, since there was a DJ). I had never been to this bar before, but I loved it! We were up on the rooftop, which was enclosed (so not cold) and was cutely decorated in a cherry blossom theme. 

SO excited to have my sister there with me!

My friends being silly in their unicorn horns. So cute! (Also, not sure what the blue light is!)

Sunday Funday

On Sunday my mom and fellow Theta Athena headed home, so my sister and I had more time to spend with each other. We took a yoga class with Beth A Wolfe on the rooftop of the International Spy Museum (I've also done goat yoga and kangaroo yoga with Beth, and she did a cool one at the National Building Museum, too.). We then met up with my other aunt and Mommom for brunch (my aunt's birthday is only three days after mine, and my sister's is May 9, so we were celebrating all those occasions!). 

Yoga and sound bath was fun, but it was chilly under the cover!

Three generations sharing a champagne toast at Alta Strada!

The amusement and excitement doesn't stop there! Next up I'll be in Los Angeles to continue the birthday celebration with my sister. We're going to see a comedy show, a Dodgers game, and maybe sneak in a Derby party or film screening. Whatever we do, we are going to have a blast, so stay tuned for that blog post next week!

Recipe: Apple-Honey Bundt Cake

My cake looks more like a huge apple fritter donut.

I had some apples that were getting a little wrinkly/soft, as well as a bunch of individually packaged Smuckers honey. I wanted to bake something with those ingredients, and I came across this recipe from the Food Network. I hadn't used my bundt cake tin in a while, so I thought I'd try this one out. 

Ingredients

For the Cake:

• 1 cup vegetable oil, plus more for the pan
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1.5 teaspoons ground cardamom
• 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 cup honey (any kind)
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 3 apples (about 1 1/4 pounds), peeled and shredded
• 1/4 cup warm water

For the Glaze:

• 2 cups confectioners' sugar
• 3 tablespoons honey (any kind)
• 2 to 3 tablespoons water

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350˚F. Brush a 12- cup nonstick bundt pan with vegetable oil. Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cardamom, allspice and nutmeg in a large bowl.
2. Combine 3/4 cup honey, the granulated sugar, vegetable oil and eggs in another large bowl; beat with a mixer on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Stir in the vanilla. Reduce the mixer speed to low and beat in the flour mixture until just combined. Fold in the apples. Scrape the batter into the bundt pan. Bake until golden and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 50-55 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, stir together the remaining 1/4 cup honey and the warm water in a small bowl. Remove the cake from the oven and brush with half of the honey mixture. Let the cake cool 20 minutes in the pan, then turn out the cake onto a rack. Brush the top of the cake with the remaining honey mixture and let cool completely.
4. To make the glaze, whisk the confectioners' sugar, honey and 2 tablespoons water in a medium bowl until smooth. Add up to 1 tablespoon more water, if necessary, to thin out the glaze. Transfer the cake to a platter and drizzle with the glaze, letting it drip down the sides. 

As per my usual, I did not make all the parts. I didn't bother with the glaze, and I didn't brush extra honey on the outside of the cake. Instead, I poured honey on my individual slice to make it a little moister (I also had pre-made icing that I could heat up and drizzle on the cake if I wanted to.). The texture of this "cake" is really more like bread, like a spice bread. I don't think this had to do with the fact that I totally skipped the granulated sugar (I didn't have any); perhaps my baking powder or baking soda is kinda old. And while I skipped some things, I added some things, too. I folded in chopped walnuts, which is not mentioned in the recipe, but I liked adding a little crunch. And I used lemon flavored olive oil instead of regular (although I really couldn't taste the lemon). 

My piece of cake smothered in honey

My main question about the recipe is this: Where does the quarter cup of warm water come in? I see the water used in the glaze, but nowhere is it mentioned in the cake directions. I did think that the batter seemed pretty thick, and maybe that's why. So to the author of this recipe: you missed a step. BUT I still think this came out okay! It seems like a nice dessert for a group, especially perhaps during Rosh Hashanah. 

Sydney Dance Company: "Impermanence"

Last night my mom and I went to see the Sydney Dance Company at the Kennedy Center. She knows I love going to the ballet, and since we are celebrating my birthday this week, we thought this would be a great way to celebrate. I had never seen this dance company before (which features dancers mostly from Australia and New Zealand, which surprised me, since so many companies are very global), and even though it was more modern dance than ballet, I was still excited to see the performance. 

This was actually the U.S. premiere of this show, and I think the first time this dance company came to the Kennedy Center, too! They were working on Impermanence in 2020, and then the pandemic shut everything down. So now they are finally able to do the international tour four years later.

Rafael Bonachela, choreographer of this piece and the artistic director of the company, says the main message of the performance is that life is "fleeting and vulnerable," and we should "hold dear what we have and make the most of every moment." I live by this kind of stuff! This is why I always stay so busy: we only have so much time on this earth, and I want to do so many things before time runs out. This show focuses on the "ephemeral nature [and] impermanence of human life," which I think everyone can relate to.

One of the coolest parts of the show is that all of the music, composed by Bryce Dessner, is performed by a string quartet on stage. Watching them was almost as cool as watching the dancing! My mom and I both love the cello, and we really enjoyed the music. One song eerily reminded me of This Bitter Earth; I saw a ballet piece choreographed by Christopher Wheeldon to that song, and it has always stuck with me. The last part of Impermanence did also feature the song Another World by the singer Anohni, which threw me off a little bit since everything else was strictly instrumental. But all in all I liked the music, which had a wide range from low and slow to very energetic.

The dancing was the same way. In the first part, called "Before," the dancers were walking around the stage slow-motion, both forward and backward, and occasionally (gracefully) fell on the floor and then got back up. But when the music got faster, the dancers' movements did, too. The moves were "balletic," fluid, and quite athletic as well (sometimes it looked like they were even doing crunches and bridges on the floor). I really enjoyed when the stage was full of dancers moving in sync with one another. There was also one part that reminded me of contact improv, with the dancers touching each other and ending up in a "cuddle puddle" on the floor. And of course there were quintessential modern dance moves that were included, mostly writhing on the floor and flexed feet (i.e. two things that are the opposite of classic ballet). The solo at the end was probably the most modern, with the male dancer rubbing his face and moving his body in a disjointed way. It was probably my least favorite part, so perhaps not the best way to complete the show. But maybe the distress in his movements represented the regret of not living life to the fullest?

Along with the music coming from only four instruments, the set and costumes were minimal as well. The set was a white floor with a white screen, but the screen did change color throughout the performance; sometimes half the screen would be in color, sometimes all of it, and at times it looked like snow was falling, like little sparkles on the screen. The costumes, designed by Aleisa Jelbart, were made from fabric of all muted earth tones and consisted of tops and what essentially were underwear. This allowed for you to really see the muscular definition of the dancers' bodies, which added to the athletic feel of the performance. The dancers also wore socks instead of shoes, and occasionally their feet would make squeaky noises, which was a little distracting. While I do love the tutus and frills of a classic ballet, I appreciated the minimalism of this show, too. 

If I ever have the chance to see this dance company again, I definitely would! I thought they did a great job of combining modern dance and ballet, and the graceful, fluid nature of (most of) the show was really beautiful.

There are only two more shows left at the Kennedy Center for tonight and tomorrow, so get your tickets now!

Here's a preview:

2024 Passover Seders

This was the first year I am not celebrating Passover with my grandmother. She passed away almost a year ago, and the last time I visited her, we had a mini-Seder at her apartment, and she was thrilled that my dad and I could be there with her.

In her honor, I wanted to make sure I attended a community Seder this year, and I actually ended up going to two! The first was a few weeks ago, so a little early, but it still had the same sentiment, even if it wasn't actually head during the true week of Passover.

The first Seder I went to was held at the Capital Jewish Museum, which is still pretty new. This event focused a lot on social justice. There were fifteen partner groups who helped with the event! Each one had a table, and a representative from each group read part of the one-of-a-kind haggadah. This was a modern twist on an ancient tradition, but I really enjoyed it. We talked about protecting the environment, standing up for our LGBTQ+ neighbors, and remembering that there is still much suffering in today's world, just as the Israelites suffered in Egypt. There was a lot of singing (as usual), but also a lot of clapping, and sometimes I felt like I was a kid at summer camp (and not in a good way). But that was probably the only part of the evening I didn't like. I came to the event on my own, but all the people at my table were very nice, and the food was delicious! There was actually food on the table when we arrived, so we had snacks to tide us over while we waited for the main meal. I especially enjoyed the flourless chocolate cake, which was actually a chocolate mousse cake, which is even better! The slice was huge, and I loved every bite of it. I have attended a couple of events at the Museum, and I thought this one was very well done.

For my second Seder, which was held on the real first night of Passover, I went to Washington Hebrew, where I have taken a couple of continuing education classes over the past few months (I highly recommend their "12 Jewish Questions" program!). Several tables were reserved specifically for their young professionals group called "2239," so I sat with a few friends and met some new people, too. But there were people of all ages there, and it was cute seeing the little kids search for the afikomen and sing the Four Questions. There was more singing throughout the evening, and the cantor Susan Bortnick has a beautiful voice (although at times I felt like she was making up her own melodies and was channeling her inner Aurora from Sleeping Beauty). We went through the haggadah pretty quickly, and then it was time to eat!

A few people at our table were gluten-free, so I had the chance to try the gluten-free matzah, and it was really good (probably because it's very salty and tastes like a regular cracker!). The catering staff forgot the salt water on the tables, but we dipped our parsley in wine instead (we had to drink four glasses anyway, right?). The horseradish was very spicy, just like my Grandma would have liked it! I always just take a little bit because I can't handle it, but my friend took a BIG dollop of horseradish, and she was crying it was so hot! The rest of the meal included chicken, roasted vegetables, and a side salad that came with a maple tahini dressing that we all thought was delicious. A tray of cookies constituted dessert, and the rainbow ones are my favorite. I will admit that I found a Ziplock bag and took MANY cookies home... But, they were just going to be thrown out, right? I was trying to help limit the food waste!

I am so glad I had the opportunity to enjoy these two Seders and to spend that time with friends and new neighbors alike. I am so thankful to be a part of the Jewish community in Washington, D.C. and to celebrate this special time of year with others when I can no longer do so with my grandmother.

2024 DC Environmental Film Festival

I think I have seen at least one film during the DC Environmental Film Festival (DCEFF) since I moved to the DC area 12 (!) years ago. I wasn't able to go to any of the in-person screenings this year, but I did watch several of the short films online. Here are some of my favorites:

Flora, Fauna, Funga

I loved this National Geographic film! It's about a Chilean mycologist, Guiliana Furci, studying, identifying, and finding new species of mushrooms. Her passion is infectious, and I myself have felt the wonder of seeing a mushroom or other kind of fungus and wishing I knew what kind it was. Fungi are an amazing part of our ecosystems, and yet they are usually overlooked and are rarely acknowledged. I like how this film brings them to the forefront, and of course any documentary that focuses on women in STEM is great in my book!

WILD HOPE: Return of the Manatees

I have always loved manatees, and I actually saw them for the first time in captivity last year (read that blog post here). This Nature on PBS documentary is about manatees in areas of Florida, such as Crystal River and Indian River Lagoon, and how their populations have been negatively affected by storms, which have brought saltwater and non-native plants into freshwater areas where they live; the manatees were starving because they didn't have the right vegetation to eat. Concerned citizens, as well as representatives from non-profits such as Sea & Shoreline and Zoo Tampa, have gotten together to help save the manatees and the ecosystems where they live. These animals are such gentle creatures, and I am so glad there are many people trying to look out for them!

Bare Existence: A Documentary About Polar Bears International

I knew this would be a sad film because it's about polar bears, and everyone knows how terribly affected they are by climate change. They are running out of sea ice, which is where they feed, and they are starving (there is some graphic footage). Polar Bears International is an organization doing research to help save polar bears. I was particularly enamored with Steven Amstrup, who is the chief scientist emeritus of the group. He has been studying bears for decades, and he is particularly passionate about saving polar bears. He even helped get them listed as "vulnerable" on the Endangered Species List! The non-profit does a lot of education around the plight of polar bears, and I really appreciate the work they are doing to spread the word on how important it is to save charismatic megafauna species like this.

Batsies

I myself like bats; I've never found them creepy or scary. So I resonated with the two women in this film who have dedicated their work to saving bats (and they get to do it together as best friends, no less!). Sarah Fritts and Sara Weaver met at Texas State University, and now they are both wildlife biologists at the school working to protect these cute, furry creatures. More women in STEM, woot! I was particularly surprised to learn how bats are negatively impacted by wind turbines, and these scientists are trying to find a way to use ultrasonic deterrents to keep bats away from the turbines using sounds that the bats don't like. Fascinating! I hope it works to help save these little animals. 

The Return of Nóouhàh-Toka’na

This film is about the Swift Fox species and trying to reintroduce it to the Fort Belknap Indian Community in Montana. Just like the bison, these animals are important to Native American tribes (specifically the Aaniiih and Nakoda tribes), but the species was almost entirely lost due to predator control years ago. In the end of the film, it was cool to see how they could track the animals (and show how far each traveled!) as well as reinstate this missing piece of Native culture. I appreciated how many young people were involved in the project, too. And of course it's always encouraging to see a population start to improve and grow. The science and dedication is working!

Read my blog posts from previous festivals:

• 2021
• 2023

Interfusion Festival 2023

This past weekend was my SEVENTH time going to the Interfusion Festival! I was blown away the first time I went (scroll to the bottom to read about my experiences in previous years), and it's had me coming back ever since. The festival has certainly changed and evolved over time, but at its core, it's still about creating a community of openness, acceptance, vulnerability, positivity, and exploration. And who couldn't use more of that in their lives?

As usual, I took a variety of types of workshops and also tried to take classes with both instructors I didn't know and ones I already knew I really liked. Here are some of the stand-outs for me from this year's festival:

Soul & Skin: Authentic Relating in Dance

I didn't even know what "authentic relating" was until I discovered it at the festival a few years ago. It's about being your true self and expressing your truth to others. The leads of this workshop, Sara Ness and Geof Krum, were really fun and good at explaining and demonstrating the exercises. And they were creative, too! We introduced ourselves to other participants using the "Rock, Paper, Scissors, Consent" game, in which you only gave a more familiar greeting if the other person consents first. We played a "stick game" with a partner in which each person, using only one finger, pressed into the end of a pencil, and you had to hold enough tension on both ends to not drop the pencil as you walked around together in partnership. Who knew you could have that much fun with an unsharpened pencil! We also did a hand massage exercise with a partner, during which one of your hands was massaged and you used the other hand to "rate" the touch on a one-to-five scale. Someone said, "Giving feedback is a gift to the other person," and I thought that was so beautiful: offering feedback isn't criticism or rejection, but more of helping someone else understand who you are and what you desire. We then moved into groups of four and each person had a turn to be the center of attention, asking the others three to touch him/her "with the intention of BLANK." The intention of touch means just as much as the touch itself! I really liked this workshop and would definitely take it again!

Deeper: Conscious Intimacy Revealed

I had never done a workshop with the Blackins from Our Temple in the Trees before, but their work reminded me of previous workshops I've done before with Monique Darling and Peter Petersen from Everyday Tantra. For most of the workshop I was in a group with two young women who had never been to the Interfusion Festival before. While they may have had more sexual experiences than I have had (one seemed to know a lot about stripping...), they were not as comfortable outwardly speaking about their own sexual desires, which meant they weren't going deeper as the name of the class suggests. But I still enjoyed doing the exercises with them. In the first one we each had to express our (sexual) desires, and the other two people would ask what the roadblocks were to achieving those desires as well as offered potential solutions. In the second exercise, we each had a turn being the center of attention, and we would tell the other two how/where we wanted to be touched. They gave me SUCH a good scalp massage, and my body involuntarily shivered when the one with really long nails scratched my back. SUCH good tingles! I ended up doing a very similar exercise in a different class the next day, but this first time was more fun. I saw these girls throughout the weekend and had fun meeting up with them.

Rhythmic Seduction: The Art of Sensual Chair Dance

Of course I had heard of chair dancing and have seen it in movies (Flashdance, Striptease, Save the Last Dance), but I had never tried it myself. So I was curious to learn more, especially if it could spice things up at home! Gigi Holliday was the instructor, and while 9:00 a.m. may not have been the best time slot to try to memorize a dance routine, she pushed through and made it fun for all of us. She's a professional burlesque performer, so she knows what she's talking about! Her main lessons were "go slooooooow" and "point your damn toes!" I had such a good time, and I look forward to performing for my fiancé; I hope he likes it!

That's me in the rainbow leopard print shirt! Photo credit from the Interfusion Festival.

Qigong Movement and Meditation

Originally during this time slot I was going to take a class on lifts in dance, but when I watched the instructors demo what they were going to teach, I knew I was NOT prepared for that kind of acrobatics! So I quickly stepped out and made my way to Dante Baker's qigong workshop. Qigong is similar to Tai Chi or yoga in that it is a meditation practice with movement. Baker took us through several different movements, most of which are in time with your breath and can either be done from one spot or actually moving around a space. We started by hitting (sometimes punching?) our muscles to get them warmed up and to get the blood flowing (we focused a lot on the kidneys). Some of the movements were named after animals, like turtle, or dragon, which were fun, and a lot of them involved balance and keeping a soft bend in your knees to really help with fluid movements. I am not very good at static meditation (my mind always seems to wander), but with movement meditation like qigong, I find it's easier to focus on the present. I would love to find more opportunities to do qigong for sure!

He also did a sound bath healing workshop that I really enjoyed. He can play so many different musical instruments and makes it such a relaxing atmosphere. Photo credit from the Interfusion Festival.

Conscious Communications: Let's Talk About Sex!

Thomas Daily II, or "Major Tom" as he likes to be called, is a great facilitator! During this session, he was funny and charismatic but also thoughtful and understanding. I thought this workshop was both educational and self-reflective, which I really appreciated.

He talked about how the sex education we receive in the US doesn't really cover the idea of pleasure; there is still a focus on guilt or shame around sex. Even the idea of talking about sex is still somewhat taboo, and he emphasized the importance of open communication, especially around desires and kinks. He used the acronym BDSM, but not in the way you think. Before having sex with someone, you should have the BDSM conversation: discuss Boundaries, Desires, Sexual health (i.e. how often are you tested for STIs, are you HIV positive, etc.), and Meaning (Is this just a one-night stand? Do we have real feelings for each other?). I thought that was clever and helpful. The group also discussed how, when someone tells you "no" to something you desire, you don't have to take it as rejection: if you had never asked the person, you'd get the same result (i.e. it didn't happen), or that person is just speaking their truth and honoring their own needs (and if they can honestly tell you "no," you can be more trusting of their "yes" later on for something else). Major Tom also brought up the Erotic Blueprints, which I was telling another participant about just a few minutes before then!

For the actual exercises we did, I enjoyed the focus on how sex and sexual desires is very much a gray area; there isn't a lot of black and white. We did a spectrum exercise in which we would all take a spot on a line where opposites were on either end (e.g. homosexual-heterosexual, dominant-submissive, kinky-vanilla, etc.). For another exercise, we paired up with another person, and as Major Tom would call out different kinks, you would talk to your partner about whether you would or would not do that thing and why (but in a positive way! No use to "yuck someone else's yum"). These exercises made me think of things in a different way, either things I had never considered or heard of before (I had never heard of the term "bi-sensual" before, but it's like bisexual without actual penetrative sex) or things that I may have thought of but I had never talked out loud about (like body worship, which I think is really cool but I've never tried it). I definitely give props to the people who were willing to openly tell the larger group about their desires, fears, etc. That's what makes the Interfusion Festival such a great place!

Read about my past experiences at the festival:

2023

2022

2020

• Friday
• Saturday
• Sunday
• Monday

2019

• Friday
• Saturday
• Sunday
• Monday

September 2017 (the only year they hosted the festival twice)

• The Good
• The Bad
• The Ugly

February 2017

• Interfusion Festival
• Foundations of Ecstasy
• Performances

Recipe: Bourbon Pecan Brie Bites

 

I made these over the Christmas holiday; sorry for the delay! My mom wanted to make these, but she was busy putting together other food items, so I offered to help make these. They were pretty easy!

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup brown sugar, packed
• 2 tbl. unsalted butter, melted
• 1 tbl. bourbon
• 1/4 cup roasted pecans, chopped
• 8 oz. round of brie
• 1.9 oz. package frozen mini fully baked phyllo shells (15 shells)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350° F.
2. Add all ingredients but the brie and phyllo shells to a small bowl and stir to combine.
3. Carefully remove the rind from the brie and discard the rind. Then, cut the brie into pieces, about 1/4 inch squares.
4. Place a cub of brie into each phyllo shell and top with 1/2 tsp. of the bourbon sugar nut mixture.
5. Place the full shells on a small baking sheet and bake for about 10 minutes or until the top is melted and bubbly.
6. Remove from oven and serve warm or at room temperature.

We didn't roast the pecans, but otherwise we pretty much stuck to the recipe. We actually made it twice, because the first time we definitely didn't use enough cheese (you can see in the photo that, once the cheese melted, the shells looked only halfway full). So the cheese cubes can definitely be bigger! But even in making this twice, we didn't go through the whole wheel of brie cheese. 

These were yummy: easy to make and easy to eat! So pop-able! I would definitely recommend these as party food.