Monthly Archives: December 2008
Creating a residency in real life
So here I am, back again in my original little studio at the Banff Centre, for the final week of this 4-week (spread out over the past six months or so) residency.
Ah me, the times I’ve had here. Writing. Drinking tea. Playing piano. Procrastinating and cursing the fact they have internet in these damn places. Ah yes, there’ve been high times, low times and everything in between.
One thing I’ve realised though, is how damn undisciplined I am in everyday life and how badly I need to remedy that. I mean, sure, so I can come here to this little reclusive studio, pretend to be the hermit artiste that I’ve always fantasised about and churn out new material like I’ve got a stomach flu of words, but really…what the heck is stopping me from doing just that every day of my life? Do I really need a freaking studio at an arts centre to whip me into shape?
Apparently, dear friends, I do. But I’m determined not to lose my commitment to writing upon leaving this little nest this time around. I mean, obviously having the time, space and hands-tied issues sorted out, plus a creatively inspiring environment to work in, as I have at my disposal this week, is massively helpful in terms of fuelling the writing/rehearsal process. But I think the bottom line is that I need to find a way to simulate this kind of environment at home. And you know what I think that means?
Sacrificing sleep.
AIAIAIIAIAIAIAIAIA!
But it must be done. I must force myself to get up an hour earlier every day, so that I might have some of this residency-like time to create before the kidlets unleash their attack on yet another day. I must do it. Because as much as I might hate missing some zeds, at the end of my life, I somehow doubt I’ll be sitting on my bed-pan wishing I’d gotten a few more winks instead of creating. Either that or I’ll have lost my mind and just be grateful that I have a bed-pan.
Anyhoo, here’s hopin!
Jen. xx
Banff Centre Residency – the final leg
So in a nutshell, we are LOVING our new pad. Heavens above, I am so insanely nesting right now I might well start laying eggs. Oh snap. I’m even – please, take a seat if you’re that way inclined – ingesting ridiculous numbers of home-making magazines, PHOTOCOPYING the activities and then ACTUALLY DOING THEM. I know. Pass the hockey mask and lock me up for life.
But on the plus side of all this ridiculousness, our place is looking pretty damn hot methinks, in fact I’ve never felt so happy in a home before. So yay for that. Now all I need is some baby gear, but ha, that can wait til I’ve finished my mosaic mirror frame!
In other, more comedy related news, I’ve got the final jaunt of the Banff Centre Residency coming up straight after Christmas – we ended up changing the dates for various reasons that are way too boring and logistical and un-glitzy to go into here, but that’s the way things are. So expect lots of ‘this is me procrastinating from actually working on my art!’ posts during that week. Unless of course, over hte Christmas season you have, you know, one of those things, what are they called? Oh yeah, ‘lives’.
Then New Years’ Eve I’ve been booked with Yuk Yuk’s to do a gig in Red Deer. I’m not even sure where it is but it sounds cold. As it has been here. Today started off at minus thirty. Minus thirty. Yep, see? I’m not even going to comment on that as I believe I don’t need to. Minus thirty.
Oh yeah, and check out the belly on me. That thing you see before you still has nine solid weeks of baking time, mind. Again, no further comment.
I’m going to wrap this post up with my pearl of wisdom for the day:
Damn I love hot chocolate.
Onstage Birth: here’s hoping.
Okay, okay, so Canada’s political scene might be in crisis right now, but that’s nothing, NOTHING, I tell you, compared to the nuttiness that’s been going on in this family of late.
Moving, unpacking, fighting the conflicting urges to hug and kill everybody at the same time thanks to ever-burgeoning pregnancy hormones…oh yeah, and we got a dog.
NUTS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
So yes, apologies for the massive space between entries. It does feel so good to be missed – I never thought I would have the opportunity in this lifetime to empathise with a semicolon, which I myself miss (or is that, mis-use?) on regular occasion, but there you have it. Life is an unpredictable wonder.
Forgive also the random ramblings of incoherence. Again, I plead pregnancy. On which note, I’m hoping to keep on rocking out onstage with Loose Moose for all of January and perhaps even beyond. The point is I want to keep on going til the baby pops his/her head, arms, feet and other hopefully-present appendages. Better still, I hope it happens onstage – it would be such a fabulous moment for my memoirs, not to mention brilliant publicity for the theatre. Oh yes, improvised birth…ain’t nothin’ like it.
So for now, adieu and pass the gas.
