all that's past is prologue...

I really need to get more exercise. Running from client to client, eating in the car on the way, and sitting in front of the computer all day is taking its toll. So this week I started the 100 Push Ups project. We won't even discuss how dismal my "initial test" was, but I'm giving it a try. In the meantime, I'm also trying to suss getting out and getting a little exercise every day. Tonight's pilates-esque class was foiled by the necessity of purchasing a new vacuum cleaner, but I did get a quick walk in. Walks are a great way to get out with Beatrix and maybe the dog, get a little bit of a work-out, and enjoy the end of the "summer" we've been having. So, if you'd like to get out on a walk (likely with a lively toddler in tow), let me know!

As those local to this blog know, summer in Minnesota has been a bit...un-summerlike this year. As in, not really very warm. This has made Patrick happy, but left me feeling cheated. So I was happy to get this summer weekend off on the right foot with warm weather, and by mailing my summer mix cd to my cd group. Because I am old, it's heavy on the 80s, but I think it says "summer" exactly right: Too Darn Hot Erasure Things Can Only Get Better Howard Jones I Love You Goodbye Thomas Dolby Tainted Love Soft Cell Sweet Dreams (Are Made Of This) Eurythmics I Would Die 4 U Prince Only You Yaz Life During Wartime Talking Heads Doors Of Your Heart English Beat China Gir l David Bowie Body Talk The Wallets A Change Would Do You Good Sheryl Crow La La Love You Pixies Seasons Of The Hurricane Juliet Turner Summer Dress Shawn Colvin Ice Cream Sarah McLachlan Summer's Cauldron XTC Vaquin...

A few weeks ago, I went to the first Arts Learning Exchange session sponsored by Arts Midwest. I meant to post on it earlier, but I've been thinking over it and distilling it a lot. The speech was by the always amazing Ben Cameron, former head of TCG and now with the Doris Duke Foundation. Ben is a force to be reckoned with, and every time I hear him speak I am inspired to action and nearly brought to tears. He is eloquent, well-read, brilliant, and passionate. He is what I aspire to in arts leadership. Ben began the speech with some really dire news about the future of the arts, complete with scarey statistics about audience erosion, worries about the inherent dis-functionality of the 501c3 model, and declines in giving that herald a true financial crisis that is likely to last for several more years. Even more frightening is the sense of a crisis of urgency and relevance that the arts and culture as a whole currently finds itself in. What values do we offer the community? ...