Two Outstanding Posts

The Saipan blogs have produced two of my all-time favorite posts this past week.

The first is from Jeff Turbitt. His post on an unexpected death moved me to tears.

The second is by Bev, whose post has inspired me to participate in next year's XTERRA triathalon. It just needs to be scheduled so it's not during the Baha'i Fast in March. Didn't it used to be in April?

If you haven't read them, head over to their blogs and take a look at these two moving pieces.

Play Buffet

I saw the production last year, and it was quite entertaining. Here is Jeff Turbitt's article, taken from his blog, as usual, without permission.

By Jeffrey C. Turbitt

Last year the public jammed the American Memorial Park for the original theater production "In Transit," which united the disparate stories of several individuals "stuck in an airport" into a common theme. The public reaction was so positive that the company responsible for that production, the Voices of the Marianas, put together another incarnation of original theater on a similar theme. The new production is called The Play Buffet: A Little Something for Everyone's Taste, and it debuts Friday, March 7 at 7 p.m. in the American Memorial Park with followup performances March 8, 13 and 14.

The cast includes a list of veteran actors, including two drama educators in Harold Easton and Nahal Navidar, as well as high school students and general island gadflies such as Donald Cohen, Brad Ruszala, Elizabeth Henke, Susan Fishman, Richard Hamilton and others.

Like its precursor, the new play is a variety of original stories. “Some are taken from people's real lives, some from their imagination,” said producer and director Barbara Sher. "The idea is to have original theater in which people from different cultures, walks of life and ages can have an opportunity to tell their stories. In the show we have ten pieces that run the gamut from a Hollywood 40's type piece to very personal epiphanies. As I said, a little something for everyone. It's about life. That's why we called it the Play Buffet because life is a buffet, the good, the funny and the yucky. We hope to entertain, enlighten and delight our audience and perhaps inspire them to want to express their voice for the next show."

For Navidar, an accomplished actress with a degree in theater and English who has a piece about discovery of self and God in this play, theater is a means of expression. "Theater satisfies my soul. For the community and the world at large, theater is one of the most effective ways to make people question, and perhaps recognize, a piece of themselves in the characters and situations presented. Barbara Sher's passion for this project is contagious and I love working with her."

PTI Marketing Associate Brad Ruszala isn't a theater veteran exactly, but his interest in the craft became reignited when he played Patrick in "110 Flights" opposite Navidar last year. "I became interested in live theater as a senior in high school when I was cast in a musical. I've always wanted to participate in on-stage productions ever since. This play is special because it will give the audience an intimate view into the real lives of some of the performers. I was moved watching my friends and neighbors display their creativity in rehearsal. It'll definitely be a treat for everyone who comes to watch the show. It gives me the opportunity to get on stage and have a little fun acting out a part. It's a wonderful opportunity to enjoy another aspect of our culturally diverse community and the play offers another avenue to making new friends on Saipan."

Tickets are available for $5 from cast members, at the door or inquire via email at barbara.sher@gmail.com.

Year in Review 3: Fun and Friendship

Part and parcel of this transformation from being achievement oriented to just being present, has been my shift to pursue some things just for fun. Probably the biggest new pleasure for me this past year was playing on the co-ed soccer league. And our team very much fit my state of being. We all enjoyed learning the game, no one was too set on winning, and we just went out and had a good time. I hadn’t really been involved in a purely recreational sport since college. The co-ed league inspired me to try out for the men’s national team which in turn inspired me to get into better shape. Angelo and I took up running together a few mornings a week, and it’s been something that I’ve come to really look forward to. It’s a time to just run, like a kid (well, at least for the first 100 yards), and to socialize and solve the world’s problems. It’s been a great new friendship.

Blogging has been another source of new friendships. The blogging itself has been fun, but at times, it seems like a pain, and every time I feel the pressure of having to post something, I just sit back, and let the week go by, trying not to get anxious about the lack of posts. Boni, Jeff and Brad are friends that I’ve gotten to know through blogging, and although I hardly spend time with them, I enjoy their perspectives, and being in touch with their lives, radically different from my own. Any year with new friends is a great year.

I’ve also adopted a new set of criteria before engaging in new endeavors. I get a lot of requests from people to join their cause, or to pursue various business opportunities, and although I’m almost always tempted, I’ve been successfully sticking to the criteria that emerged during the year: Will this be fun, and will this simplify my life? If not, then I let it glide by. For 2008, one of my major goals is in a way a non-goal – to have fun. Woooohooooo!