drag show

last night, i went to my first drag show. it was fun but a little disappointing. i expected it to be more talent-based. the show we went to featured each of the drag queen lip-syncing to a song, some contemporary, some classic. some of the audience, mostly drunk, went to the stage to tip each drag queen; it cheapened the show. i'd much prefer a place where they would charge an entry fee and the drag queens actually sang. one of the drag queens stood out as an exceptional lip-syncer. not only did she stick to her performance when she accepted tips and mouthed 'thank you' to each of the tippers (there were some who kind of let their performance lag when they took tips), she had the best make-up and costumes.

nonetheless, i was impressed with all the dancing that was attempted on 4-inch heels. needless to say, i was shamed that as an actual woman, i wouldn't even be able to walk in a straight line wearing the shoes they wore.

so the next drag show i attend must have real singing in addition to the dancing on super-high heels.

high fidelity

this past sunday night, b and i saw high fidelity, broadway musical based on the movie which was based on the nick hornby book of the same title. not that i walked out singing the songs but it was highly entertaining. the lyrics were incredibly well written, and the cast was so energetic. it made me feel old. the musical makes the characters a bit younger than they are in the book so instead of the early/mid-30s as in the book, the characters were more in their mid/late-20s in the musical. maybe the dancing and singing made them seem younger. and i think the actors were younger than their characters too. but regardless, it made me feel old, mainly because i started to think, "i used to have energy and drive like them. now i don't." what sucks is that i still haven't figured out my life.

as for my new schedule, not that i've been following it meticulously but consciously making the effort to not turn to the internet for every little thing that pops in my head has made a difference today. i'm not going to list what i've done, but i feel quite productive.

also, i'm on day 2 of the master cleanse/lemonade diet. it's so hard smelling food and not being able to eat it. i'm still cooking, mainly for b, because i can't imagine not having food as a part of my life. i love it too much. at least someone should enjoy it. i'm already making a mental list of foods i want the day this ends. i miss food.

coast of utopia

a couple of nights ago, b and i saw the first part of coast of utopia, the new tom stoppard trilogy. since it was opening night, we dressed up for it. just a little. it's something fun to do but only once in a while. as we were walking into the theatre, we passed by martha stewart! we saw other people who looked familiar, but we weren't sure who they were exactly. the play was brilliant - the philosophical jargon might've been over my head but i felt the same as when i would read something brilliant - there's a certain gravity and grace to it. the opening sequence of a piece of fabric billowing on the stage floor to imitate ocean waves and then sucked through a hole, leading to the first act, was breathtaking. the actors were all phenomenal. on our way to the after-party, tom stoppard actually walked with us, or rather with sarah ruhl, the writer of the play b is working on, the clean house. i saw the run of it, which had some problems in terms of performance since it was still in the working stages, but it was still fantastic. basically, we were walking in the presence of two geniuses. it was quite exhilarating and definitely humbling. it's nice to feel humble.

opera

b and i saw madame butterfly at the met opera last night. it was my first opera, and i loved the experience. b was only able to get standing tickets which put us about as far from the stage as possible. our standing spaces were really tight so everyone had to crowd up to their little monitors with the translations. then, about halfway through the 1st act, i almost passed out. i'm not sure if it was the crowding or if i had been a little dehydrated. i had to sit down for a while before standing back up to watch the rest of the 1st act.

during the intermission, b and i were just standing in our spots, waiting for the show to come back on. a couple came up to us and offered us their tickets. they had seats, not very far from where we were standing but seats nonetheless. i couldn't believe our luck. i wasn't sure if i would've been able to stand through the rest of the performance. they were from out of town, and one of them weren't feeling well. they were so kind in the way they approached us that i knew immediately that they weren't new yorkers. they were too chatty to be new yorkers. no offense because new yorkers can be extremely kind as well. a man standing just one person away from me on the train fainted this morning. thankfully, he came around quickly. everyone offered suggestions to let him rest and get air. a woman offered him her (unopened) bottle of water. but new yorkers won't stay around to chat. they're all in a hurry to get somewhere. these visitors took the time to ask us where we were from and talked. a new yorker would've kindly offered us the tickets and said good night.

the opera itself was stunning. the story is about as messed up as it can possibly get, loaded with social/cultural/gender complexities. the singing was incredible. the costumes were so beautiful, even from where we sat. the set was minimalist but very creative in the way the space was used. the direction was very clever. it was overall genius. i definitely want to take advantage of the cheap tickets that the new general manager has started to entice more patrons.

last box

yay! unpacked my last box yesterday. i'm quite proud of myself that it's the box with my work stuff. here's the order i unpacked everything - kitchen, living room (books, cds, dvds, etc.), bedroom, and work - the order i consciously and subsconsciously prioritize my life. i have a problem of letting work take over my life. it's much easier to keep it under control right now, being unemployed, and it feels really nice to focus on taking care of myself for my wellbeing instead of other people for money. for the past couple of weeks of settling in nyc, i've been spending my days working on straightening up the apartment and doing all the chores. my sister is currently the employed member of the household so i see it as a fair deal. i think i've pretty much settled in.

last week, b and i saw the history boys. it's my first broadway play. i've seen musicals but not plays in the city. really enjoyed it even though we only got standing tickets - we stood at numbered spots at the back of the theatre for the entire show. but the play was worth it - thought-provoking story, and a cast full of cute british guys didn't hurt. looking forward to seeing more good plays - motivation to get a job soon.