Hello again… and 2015 Goals

Uh oh… it's been way too long since I've posted. I have lots of reasons, but really, only one or two are acceptable:

• I stopped running for over a month after developing posterior tibial tendonitis and the beginnings of plantar fasciitis;
• I auditioned for an improv team and was not accepted - cue disappointment and self-doubt;
• I became an aunt;
• I moved in with my boyfriend;
• And I got engaged!

As you can imagine, from July and onward, life has been pretty hectic. 2014 was a big year for me and 2015 promises to be at least as big. 

I came up with a few goals for 2015 which will hopefully keep me from losing myself in wedding planning. Here they are:

1. Complete one knit or crocheted project each month: I have recently rediscovered my love of knitting and crocheting and I don't want to lose it again. Knitting is not definitely like riding a bike – after 2 years of no knitting, I completely forgot how to make the simplest of stitches and had to relearn nearly everything. But it is so calming and so gratifying to create something with your hands.

   

   I made a dogbot! (Pattern from Crobots: 20 Amigurumi Robots to Make)

2. Run a marathon: I really wanted to do this in 2014, but ankle injuries kept me from running at all during July and August. After some PT, I am ready to tackle this goal, although I am honestly very nervous about hurting myself again. More on this when I decide on which races to run (so far I'm thinking the Zooma Annapolis Half Marathon and the Marine Corps Marathon).
3. Have zero goals for improv: I'm at a point with improv where I just want to have fun and not stress about it. I'll still try to push myself and play with new people, but that is it. I've got too many other things to stress about!
4. Blog at least three times a week: Clearly I let this blog go and I am committed to never letting that happen again. Be prepared for some pretty crappy posts because I am blogging no matter how little I have to say! And… uhh… I'll start this goal next week…

I think these goals are pretty doable! How about you – any 2015 goals?

Weekly Improv Challenge: Listening

As I mentioned early in the life of this blog, I try to give myself goals for each improv class. I keep it simple – initiate at least 3 scenes, for example. Setting goals helps me to be mentally prepared before class and gives me a framework to think about my performance after.

My goal for this class was to listen to my scene partner(s). In improv this means basically the same thing as it does in life – focus on what the person in front of you is saying and don't get lost in your own thoughts, planning what you're going to say next. Have you had a conversation with someone you know isn't really listening? They're thinking about how they can one-up you, or say the most comforting thing, or provide the best advice. They end up missing your point because they're so caught up in their contribution. Inside and outside of improv, there is always room for improvement when it comes to listening to each other.

Monday's improv class was so much fun. In the previous class we had focused on finding the game of the scene – which basically means finding what's funny or strange in a scene and using it to find even funnier or strange ideas. In this class we further focused on finding the game and practiced more scene work. We did a short form game where we interviewed an audience member (in this case, a fellow classmate) about a day in their life, starting from when they first wake up. We did these in 3 groups and each run was amazing. Personally I felt it was easier to do these scenes because I knew what scene came next and I knew details about each character.

But back to listening! My focus on listening made it easier to get out of my head. I wasn't trying to direct the scene where I thought it should go, which lately I think I might be doing. I listened and reacted to my partner's suggestions. For example, in one scene we had an angry, elitist teacher and three students. As one of the students, I wasn't sure what to do or if I should do anything. The teacher was ranting about how students don't appreciate history and we are all cheats and so on. I decided to raise my hand and ask if the info from these rants would be on the final. He said, yes, everything he was saying was important. I stuck with my decision to make this a game and raised my hand two more times as his rants became more ridiculous. I think listening helped me to get the rhythm of the scene and I was able to repeat minor details of his rant when asking if they would be on the final. 

All in all, I feel pretty great about improv these days. I'm getting better, feeling more relaxed, and finally having fun. No more stressing out.

My Improv Weekly Challenge: New Characters

I've decided that each week I will give myself a challenge for improv class – something that is hard for me and will help me become a better improviser.
This week I challenged myself to:

1. Initiate at least 3 scenes
2. Create one new character (with a different voice!)
3. Add a physical component to a scene.

Basically these challenges stemmed from feedback I got from my last improv teacher. He was totally right – I'm afraid to make bold moves, including initiating scenes and adding depth to characters.
So, how did I do?

1. Initiate at least 3 scenes

I get a pass on this one because we did not work on scenes this week. This class was about high and low status of characters (Are you the powerful boss or lowly, company pawn?), so we did exercises focused on establishing who was high/low status and how did their behavior show their status.
A big pat on my shoulder though for volunteering to do some of the exercises rather than quietly stare at my shoes until I am called. Man, I can be pathetic, but I think I was less pathetic during this class!

2. Create one new character (with a different voice!)

During this class I realized I tend to do characters who are "low status" – maybe they are just people pleasers, but they don't seem to be calling the shots usually. We did two person scenes at the end of class and the suggested location was "prison yard." I really regret not watching "Orange is the New Black" because I have zero concept about what happens in a prison yard or really, what a prison yard is. I decided to bring the "higher status" inmate, who demanded favors or gifts in exchange for protection. I made my voice lower than usual and in general tried to present myself with more confidence. I'm not sure if any of this worked or if lowering my voice counts as a different voice. Honestly, I didn't like this scene very much and wish I had chosen to do something more positive – like an inmate who is so excited about spending time with their best friend inmate in the prison yard. 

3. Add a physical component to a scene

I did this a few times, so I'm proud of that. In one scene I was in a community garden with my mother and boyfriend and the teacher instructed each of us to act like we are the lowest status of the group. Basically, we acted like a group of uncertain and insecure losers, which was very fun. As for the physical components, we all kept working in the garden as we spoke, which the instructor and classmates said made the scene seem natural. I broke out of my shell a bit about trying to rub ointment on my "boyfriend's" hands because he was getting a rash. (In the real world outside of improv, I am not a touchy-feely person, so it's even harder for me to get "physical" with my classmates since I probably wouldn't touch people in real life either. Geez, improv sure makes you realize all the strange hang-ups you have…) During this scene, I also ran off to cry about how "everything dies!" and rolled myself up in a ball. That got a good laugh and was a bit out of my comfort zone.

What I learned

Recognize your role, inside and outside of improv. Even low-status individuals can have a big impact on a conversation.
If you never fail, you won't learn or grow. This is applicable to so many aspects of life. You can play it safe and do what you're always done, which you know will bring you success. Stay in a job you are good at, but bored with. Run 3 miles, 3 times a week, at the same pace and never push yourself beyond that. But what if we took more risks? Applied for that promotion or asked for more challenging work? Signed up for a 5k or 10k or half marathon? Even if you fail, you still earn valuable knowledge by taking the chance.