Samba Sister.

My friend Rendi, whom you may recognize from this post.  What a babe, huh?

Here's a funny little fact about my life.  Of all the rich, beautiful global cultures out there, there are two that have fascinated me my whole life: 20th century Brazil, and Victorian England.

Honestly.  Could you pick two more disparate entities?  It's like claiming your two favorite foods are Butterfinger Chocolate Cream Pie, and, celery.  Suffice it to say that modern Brazilians and the empirical British share little in common, except for their mutually healthy appreciation of headwear.  And yet, there it is: My bookshelf crammed with Wildes and Brontës, my lovingly scratched Brazilian music CD's, my college trips to London and Oxford, my date nights at Sao Paulo.

I'm not sure what the Brits would have to say about all that Brazilian skin, or what the latter would say about the former's boiled cooking, but in my heart, they are two perfect, loveable spheres.  As my Downton Abbey and Austin Samba School obsessions suggest, I long to inhabit both.

On Saturday night I got that opportunity, or at least for the Brazilian side of things.  We had our Carnaval show, and friends, can I admit something?  You are looking at a changed woman.  I am totally new to this form of dance, and while I always had a good time practicing for our show these past few months, I didn't have the hunger, exactly.  I thought, "this is nice because Ross and I can do it together" (he's one of the samba drummers), "it's a great workout," "I like the music," etc.  But Saturday CONVERTED me.  I don't know how to explain it, but I had my come to Jesus with samba.  I have hearts in my eyes.  I have a crush on it.  As I write this blog post, I literally just came home from a samba class.

Our show!  How crazy beautiful is everyone?  It was a Wizard of Oz theme, and you can kind of pick out the characters.  Well, the sexy samba interpretation of the characters, anyway.

Here is my little group and I doing our thang.  You can just make out my torso in the top one.  In the second, we are backstage jamming out.

Photos via the amazing Daniel Mora.

Bonus shot: Me and my mom!  My AWESOME mom, who came to come watch Ross and I perform.  Pardon the iPhone pic quality.

Both my mom and I come from British ancestral descent, but sometimes (and especially on nights like these), I think we may secretly be Brazilian girls trapped in Brits' bodies.

The Beefcake Party.

In other event-related news this week (see yesterday's Downton Abbey post), I am judging a contest right now for an extra special Austin business, The WonderCraft.

Have you ever seen The WonderCraft trailer tooling around town?  Do you know the story behind it?

Basically, this group of awesome women got together a few years ago and started teaching craft classes out of a shiny Airstream named Stella, which you can often find parked outside of your nearest children's birthday party or dive bar.  Their clientele is, refreshingly, widespread.  

The WonderCraft and I have partnered on lots of events together in the past, and the ladies that run it are some of my personal heroes.  Their business got so big that it's now a brick-and-mortar store on E. Cesar Chavez, but Stella still carries forth! 

All photos via Ultralicious Photography.

Recently, the ladies decided that Stella needed a man.  A crafty man, to join the biz, provide a male perspective on things, promote events, look good in tight appliqued cupcake t-shirts ... etc.  So they took applications, narrowed it down to seven, whom you can vote on now.  

The winner will be announced this Saturday at a party at The WonderCraft's shop, where there will be free beef and cake, Tito's, beer, music, and of course, abundant craft activities (which are even more fun with cocktails as everyone knows).  

I will be there with my crafty husband, and if you are in Austin, I hope you'll come too!

I submitted my judge's ballot over the weekend, and in my mind, there were TWO standout candidates.  Ok maybe three, but two who flat-out stole my heart.  Can you guess who they are?

This weekend: Carnaval Brasileiro!

All above images by: Merrick Ales Photography.

Right, so, remember when we were talking about our New Year's Words?  And how in 2011 I chose the word "openness?"  I was so successful at being open that I joined a samba dance troupe.  

The Austin Samba School is probably one of the coolest things I've ever done.  For one, it is enormous.  Our group is comprised of about 50 drummers and 50 dancers, so wherever we go, we are a small village. We did a Dia De Los Muertos show at Central Market last Fall (pics here) and just our group - not counting the actual audience -- filled the entire premises.  Have you ever seen a walking army of skeletons?  It's sexier than you think.  

Also.  If you couldn't tell by the 2011 Carnaval photos above, samba is -- how shall we say? -- flashy.  Headdresses!  Sequins!  Sparkly bras!  Our theme this year is The Wizard of Oz, and my little dance group is the yellow brick road.  "A road?  That's not sexy!" you think.  WRONG.  We are halter-top wearing, vertical hair feather donning, body glittering bricks.  So not just a road, you see -- a hot road.

Tickets are available here.

The creatures of this house.

It's quite domestic around here. 

Do you remember Claudia, Reader?  It's been a while since we really let her have her own post.  Here is a picture of the two of us from back in the day, Claudia totally loving and appreciating my affection.  She and I were at home the other day when a tiny bird flew into our house, and I could not believe it held still while I snapped its picture.  Look at it winking! 

Also.  Ross and I are still faithfully doing Greenling each week.  Now, 80% of the time we know what we have received, because Greenling always provides a helpful list -- with recipes! -- of our box's offerings.  But sometimes, even after we have consulted said list, one item is still a mystery.  Enter the potato ... thing, above.  Are you noticing the face I carved into it?  That is the expression a vegetable makes when it doesn't know what it is.  I asked Ross and our buddy Jason what I should do with it, and they suggest I cut it into slices.  Done. 

Finally, I just wanted to share the most delightful comment from an Eavesdroppper reader: Mary Miller, one of the authors I mentioned a couple of weeks ago.  She wrote me the kindest email, and inspired by Claudia, I thought I'd share part of it with you.  In her note, she described the things this blog makes her want to do ...

 

Lover, You Should've Come Over.

One thing I definitely do not post about enough on this blog is aerial silks, a.k.a. the love of my life.

It's hard to overstate how I feel about this hobby, a relatively new one.  I started one year ago, and it just changed my whole headspace.  Made me focus.  Hungry.  (Literally and figuratively.)  Made me listen to songs on the radio and think, "ooh!  That would be such a good silks song!" like I did yesterday morning with Jeff Buckley.  

Yesterday was a private class between me, two of my classmates, and our awe-inspiring teacher.

Isn't she just magical?

Here are some more shots of us.

Whee!

We actually started choreographing a piece to "Lover, You Should've Come Over," and I cannot wait to perform it.  Reader, have you ever heard that song?  Every so often, that tune creeps back into my ear, Jeff Buckley whispering softly about a love he just cannot have.  It gets so passionate and sad, a gorgeous howl of a song.


How the world misses you, Jeff Buckley.  Especially this girl.