Still alive!

And I swore my next post was going to be about my trip to New York... which was more than TWO MONTHS AGO. Jeebus. I can't believe it's been that long, and at the same time, it feels like it's been ages since I was there.

I swear, there's more to come on that later. (Makes it sound like I have great tales to tell. I don't really, but it was a faaaabulous trip.)

I've just been very busy, and have now been presented with a most daunting project. It's hula-related, of course.

Our big ho'ike (recital) is a little more than two months away. This is a big deal in our halau, as it marks the end of our beginners' class; it's a graduation of sorts. It's also the first time we'll be dancing for people aside from ourselves. That alone is cause for some angst.

And for the ho'ike, we have to make the costume we'll wear for the kahiko (ancient hula) portion of the program. Not only are we to actually sew the thing, but we are also to print some sort of design on the pa'u (skirt). It has to be something deeply meaningful to us, must be Hawaiian in origin, and come from nature (flora, fauna, etc).

It's not the concept of the design that worries me; I already know what I want to do. It's the actual execution of the design and the sewing that's freaking me out. I don't sew. Well, I can sew buttons on to clothing and fix ripped seams and such, but sewing a garment from scratch? Hahahahahaha. And creating some kind of design myself? HAHAHAHA.

What I'm saying is that I'm craft-impaired. And the point of this is to pour our own mana (spirit) into the costume, so that it really represents us, and is a part of us. But I'll need so much help doing that, it's pathetic.

So if you're wondering where I am in the long silent periods here, visualize me searching the web for large rubber stamps that will help me with my design, and imposing on my friends who have real talent to accomplish this task, which, for me, will be harder than any dance or chant we've learned.