2 for 1 interview!
Jan. 28th, 2004 06:05 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
jadegirlThe first, from ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
godblossom (and yes, I know I've done the interview cycle before, but it has always been interesting, at least to me.)
1. What are you finding enchanting at the moment?
My spinning wheel, for one. One its own it's a beautiful object, totally functional art, and an amazing piece of craftsmanship. My work on it is steadily improving, and once I get a better prepared fiber (this batch is a bit tetchy to work with, lots of little nubs that won't twist, but have to be pulled out) I should be flying along. The motion of it is soothing, perfect for the days when nothing I do turns out right, I just put on some music and go. St. Catherine is also quite enchanting, I wish I could show you a larger picture. It's my first sweater, and while it requires a lot of concentration, something so beautiful and complex coming from the movement of my hands is rather breathtaking. I feel quite good that it's the work of my hands that captures me, that's something that'll never be taken from me.
2. Why on earth would a good southern girl like yerself move "Up North"?
My mother's people however, they're all southerners, and a lot of the ways in which I was raised reflect that. I hve to say though that a lot of the philosophy and manners of the south are nearly indistinguishable from the Quaker manners and philosophy I've been exposed to, they just come from different foundations.
3. When did you realize war wasn't the answer?
I'm not a pacifist...I think. I will turn violent to defend myself or my loved ones, but that's a different question. Perhaps it would be better stated as I realized war is hardly ever the answer...I was exposed to that idea fairly young- I wasn't ten when my father had me read Johnny Get Your Gun, I was 13 when I read Peter Maas' scathing examination of the Balkan conflict, Love Thy Neighbor, and dozens of other books I can't recall. If my father taught me anything, it was this - Watch. Be silent, and watch. Listen. Take in all the information you can, come to your own judgement, never trust anyone elses. Taking that to heart, I watch, and I see lust for gain driving those in power, and lust for numbness driving most of the rest of America. We are, as a nation too emotionally immature to make the right choices, much of the time, it seems. Hmm. This seems like not much of an answer....
4. What's your favorite pair of shoes?
Sir says not, but really, I have tens pairs! Currently, my favorites are my new boots - knee high lace-ups with a sculpted four inch heel. I really, really want a pair of Victorian boots, but these were the closest I could get.
5. You have one phone call. Who do you call?
Oh, that's easy - Sir. He would need to know where I was, and could likely get me whatever I needed, or pass on any messages. He's useful like that.:)
Next round, fromdanaewhispering
1. Is there a book that you feel is a biography of your emotional life? And what book is it?
There are two many to choose from....Jane Eyre, for starters. I've always strongly identified with her mindset and approach to the world, and with the small similarities in situation, that book held me up through some dark times. The Onion Girl, by Charles de Lint is another one, although that's a much more recent publication. On a good day, I'm Jilly. On a bad day, her sister. More obscurely, a novel called The Interior Life by Katherine Blake. It was the first time I was ever exposed to the idea that living to a certain extent in ones own imagination is something that 'other people' did too, rather than a secret I was always slightly ashamed of.
2. What is the truest example of compassion you have ever witnessed?
For my entire life until just recently, she's been a geriatric nurse. My father asked her why, back in the beginning, worrying that the 'turnaround' in her patients would wear her down. She said;"My job is to give them a comfortable and peaceful death. If I can do that, I'm happy." And she did, for long hours at low pay for many, many years. It took an enourmous toll on her body, as she's never been a robust woman, but she kept doing it until her body was too run down to cope, without a single word of complaint, ever.
3. Do you view your service to your Sir as a calling? Such as a spiritual calling?
Most certainly. I can't possibly imagine myself not in service to someone, my other life plans should my service with Sir end strongly resemble a hermitage, even. Service is how I relate to the world around me, and without that basis for relation, I think I would be most happy in a cloistered life. Some people frown on the idea of service in this sense as a calling, seeming to feel that his ability to care for himself negates it, as if the only service that can have any spiritual dimension must be for those that can not serve themselves. I don't understand that, really. It's not a calling because of the other, it's a calling to *me*. The 'what' of what I do doesn't really matter, it's the how and why that makes it what it is.
4. Do you have a comfort food that you like to eat when you need comforting? And what is it?
Around the winter holidays it's the Eastern European cookies and cakes, with a spiced tea, or the rare satsuma, something I can only rarely find, and love dearly. In the rest of winter it's peasant food, usually Italian because it reminds me of childhood, and my legion of Italian 'grandmothers' would would bring huge bowls of the most wonderful things to my house when they saw the ambulance come and take me away, an all too common thing when I was growing up. By the time I got home from the ER for whatever it was that time, the kitchen table was groaning under the weight. In summer it's 'water ice', not like the solid, sweet things they sell here, but the light cups of crushed ice mixed with fruit and juice from the stand around the corner from the house I was born in.
Really though, any food is comfort food if it's well made and flavorful. Food as a sensual experience is very important to me. Oh! There used to be a Tibetan resturant on Houston street...Now *that* was comfort food! A mix of Indian and Chinese in flavor, and oh, so, so, very good. I miss that place.:(
5. What's your favorite part of your body? Choose 6 adjectives to describe it.
I don't know. I really don't. I've been going through a bad phase in how I feel about my physical appearance. A recent bout of acne left some angry red scars on my face, I need a haircut because of my dead ends, and my hair simply refuses to grow to the length I want, and while most of my body is nicely toned, I'm looking in the mirror and hearing that insidious little voice..."You'll look so much better when....." I've tried and tried, but I just can't answer this. Ah, it gives me something to work towards.
You know the drill- and I will pelt you with questions. Feel free to pelt me with them, too.
godblossom (and yes, I know I've done the interview cycle before, but it has always been interesting, at least to me.)1. What are you finding enchanting at the moment?
My spinning wheel, for one. One its own it's a beautiful object, totally functional art, and an amazing piece of craftsmanship. My work on it is steadily improving, and once I get a better prepared fiber (this batch is a bit tetchy to work with, lots of little nubs that won't twist, but have to be pulled out) I should be flying along. The motion of it is soothing, perfect for the days when nothing I do turns out right, I just put on some music and go. St. Catherine is also quite enchanting, I wish I could show you a larger picture. It's my first sweater, and while it requires a lot of concentration, something so beautiful and complex coming from the movement of my hands is rather breathtaking. I feel quite good that it's the work of my hands that captures me, that's something that'll never be taken from me.
2. Why on earth would a good southern girl like yerself move "Up North"?
My mother's people however, they're all southerners, and a lot of the ways in which I was raised reflect that. I hve to say though that a lot of the philosophy and manners of the south are nearly indistinguishable from the Quaker manners and philosophy I've been exposed to, they just come from different foundations.
3. When did you realize war wasn't the answer?
I'm not a pacifist...I think. I will turn violent to defend myself or my loved ones, but that's a different question. Perhaps it would be better stated as I realized war is hardly ever the answer...I was exposed to that idea fairly young- I wasn't ten when my father had me read Johnny Get Your Gun, I was 13 when I read Peter Maas' scathing examination of the Balkan conflict, Love Thy Neighbor, and dozens of other books I can't recall. If my father taught me anything, it was this - Watch. Be silent, and watch. Listen. Take in all the information you can, come to your own judgement, never trust anyone elses. Taking that to heart, I watch, and I see lust for gain driving those in power, and lust for numbness driving most of the rest of America. We are, as a nation too emotionally immature to make the right choices, much of the time, it seems. Hmm. This seems like not much of an answer....
4. What's your favorite pair of shoes?
Sir says not, but really, I have tens pairs! Currently, my favorites are my new boots - knee high lace-ups with a sculpted four inch heel. I really, really want a pair of Victorian boots, but these were the closest I could get.
5. You have one phone call. Who do you call?
Oh, that's easy - Sir. He would need to know where I was, and could likely get me whatever I needed, or pass on any messages. He's useful like that.:)
Next round, from
danaewhispering1. Is there a book that you feel is a biography of your emotional life? And what book is it?
There are two many to choose from....Jane Eyre, for starters. I've always strongly identified with her mindset and approach to the world, and with the small similarities in situation, that book held me up through some dark times. The Onion Girl, by Charles de Lint is another one, although that's a much more recent publication. On a good day, I'm Jilly. On a bad day, her sister. More obscurely, a novel called The Interior Life by Katherine Blake. It was the first time I was ever exposed to the idea that living to a certain extent in ones own imagination is something that 'other people' did too, rather than a secret I was always slightly ashamed of.
2. What is the truest example of compassion you have ever witnessed?
For my entire life until just recently, she's been a geriatric nurse. My father asked her why, back in the beginning, worrying that the 'turnaround' in her patients would wear her down. She said;"My job is to give them a comfortable and peaceful death. If I can do that, I'm happy." And she did, for long hours at low pay for many, many years. It took an enourmous toll on her body, as she's never been a robust woman, but she kept doing it until her body was too run down to cope, without a single word of complaint, ever.
3. Do you view your service to your Sir as a calling? Such as a spiritual calling?
Most certainly. I can't possibly imagine myself not in service to someone, my other life plans should my service with Sir end strongly resemble a hermitage, even. Service is how I relate to the world around me, and without that basis for relation, I think I would be most happy in a cloistered life. Some people frown on the idea of service in this sense as a calling, seeming to feel that his ability to care for himself negates it, as if the only service that can have any spiritual dimension must be for those that can not serve themselves. I don't understand that, really. It's not a calling because of the other, it's a calling to *me*. The 'what' of what I do doesn't really matter, it's the how and why that makes it what it is.
4. Do you have a comfort food that you like to eat when you need comforting? And what is it?
Around the winter holidays it's the Eastern European cookies and cakes, with a spiced tea, or the rare satsuma, something I can only rarely find, and love dearly. In the rest of winter it's peasant food, usually Italian because it reminds me of childhood, and my legion of Italian 'grandmothers' would would bring huge bowls of the most wonderful things to my house when they saw the ambulance come and take me away, an all too common thing when I was growing up. By the time I got home from the ER for whatever it was that time, the kitchen table was groaning under the weight. In summer it's 'water ice', not like the solid, sweet things they sell here, but the light cups of crushed ice mixed with fruit and juice from the stand around the corner from the house I was born in.
Really though, any food is comfort food if it's well made and flavorful. Food as a sensual experience is very important to me. Oh! There used to be a Tibetan resturant on Houston street...Now *that* was comfort food! A mix of Indian and Chinese in flavor, and oh, so, so, very good. I miss that place.:(
5. What's your favorite part of your body? Choose 6 adjectives to describe it.
I don't know. I really don't. I've been going through a bad phase in how I feel about my physical appearance. A recent bout of acne left some angry red scars on my face, I need a haircut because of my dead ends, and my hair simply refuses to grow to the length I want, and while most of my body is nicely toned, I'm looking in the mirror and hearing that insidious little voice..."You'll look so much better when....." I've tried and tried, but I just can't answer this. Ah, it gives me something to work towards.
You know the drill- and I will pelt you with questions. Feel free to pelt me with them, too.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2004-01-28 04:01 pm (UTC)Re:
Date: 2004-01-29 07:43 am (UTC)2. How did you and your husband meet?
3. Once you finish your internship, what kind of practice do you want to have, and what attracts you to that? (private, in a hospital, etc.)
4. What's the first thing you think of to do when you need to unwind?
5.How did you discover Amma, and what led you to become a devotee?
no subject
Date: 2004-01-30 04:40 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-01-28 04:04 pm (UTC)Do they really not have those out your way? Dang. Mandarins and clementines are easier to get hold of, but only in the sense that the bins are a bit bigger.
Re:
Date: 2004-01-29 07:45 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-01-28 06:58 pm (UTC)I learned that last year and that is definitely a good answer ;)
no subject
Date: 2004-01-28 07:49 pm (UTC)Re:
Date: 2004-01-29 07:40 am (UTC)2. What makes a piece of music sacred?
3. You've talked about needing to allow your creativity more expression in your life. How are you going about doing that?
4. What did you like the best about England?
5. Why moose?:)
no subject
Date: 2004-01-28 08:12 pm (UTC)In May, i'm going to be facilitating a discussion group with the topic, "BDSM and Spirituality." What kinds of subjects or lead-in questions would you consider interesting in a discussion like this? Any suggestions for activities or exercises to get people thinking? (i am pretty sure i'd like to start with a guided meditation.) Finally, can you recommend any books related to this topic?
i have loved learning about your service and your life through your journal. You've dedicated much thought and care to this sort of thing. So of course i feel you are the perfect person to ask!
Re:
Date: 2004-01-29 07:54 am (UTC)I might ask what people thought of when looking at the idea of BDSM and spirituality...It's likely most of them will think of heavy-duty things, like bloodletting, flesh-hooking, and other sorts of heavy edgeplay. Asking them how one can combine the two on a gentler, more 'mundane' level could get things rolling nicely...moving the consideration beyond 'subspace' and 'topspace' and demonstrating that it's more reachable than the odd scene that goes particularly well. (showing my biases here, aren't I?!):)
From a more pagan perspective, concepts like primal dominance and primal submission might be worth examining, but you might want to ask my Sir more about that, as he's done more ritual examination of it than I have.
This seems like a very scattered response.:( Feel free to ask me more about anything here though!
no subject
Date: 2004-01-30 06:36 pm (UTC)I don't know where you grew up... but this soooo sounds like Esposito's Italian Ice in Philly right near where i used to live. The *best* water ice i have ever had in my life.
Re:
Date: 2004-01-30 07:42 pm (UTC)Re:
Date: 2004-01-30 11:58 pm (UTC)Re:
Date: 2004-01-31 07:38 am (UTC)Re:
Date: 2004-01-31 08:03 am (UTC)But i know hegerman St :) i used to have a friend who lived off of Wellington. He moved away about 2 years ago to Atlanta.
Its definitely a small world.
no subject
Date: 2004-02-01 08:02 pm (UTC)Re:
Date: 2004-02-02 08:08 am (UTC)1)What sorts of things put your creative drive in motion?
2) You're one of the only people I know who is interested in the harpsichord - what inspired this?
3)You strike me as a very spiritual person, but write very little about the nuts and bolts of it - could you describe who you are as a spiritual being?
4)What do you think you need to do in order to feel more at ease expressing yourself creatively?
5)What is a creative medium you've never tried, but want to work in? (i.e. clay, stone sculpture, glass, etc.)