five

hello, this one is just a little bit brilliant. this one made me get all cerebral and sentimental. welcome to memesville-- first stop is this peek at the much-loved experiences you wish you could have for the first time all over again (thank you ever so much, ticky tacky). (next up: a little something via the madness... but that's next week). mememememememememe. onto the meme.

five movies you wish you could see for the first time, again

1. amelie
2. bottlerocket
3. rize
4. shawshank redemption
5. in america

five novels you wish you could read for the first time, again

1. white oleander (janet fitch)
2. song of solomon (toni morrison)
3. slaves of new york (tama janowitz)
4. a tree grows in brooklyn (betty smith)
5. their eyes were watching God (zora neale hurston)

five places you wish you could visit for the first time, again

1. tokyo. and gifu and kyoto. because my 18 year-old self needs to be thrown into that kind of wonderful culture shock again.
2. italy (but of course). venice, florence, rome: more specifically, the moment we stepped off the train and caught sight of the grand canal. the blinding colors and the other-worldly quiet of the island of burano. the narrow streets of florence flooded with vespas and bicycles. sunflowers in tuscany. the fountains of rome and the lovely, earthy trastevere neighborhood.
3. new york city: all of it.
4. the american dance festival: to be immersed in that world again... really, I could cry just thinking about it.
5. the ocean: sounds, smells, the feeling of neverendingness. gimme gimme gimme, please.

five foods you wish you could taste for the first time, again

1. my grandma corrona's homemade bread, straight from the oven
2. fresh strawberries dipped in chocolate
3. hot beignets smothered in powdered sugar from cafe du monde (new orleans)
4. hot buttered corn-on-the-cob (cuban-style) from cafe habana (prince street, nyc)
5. real italian food: and by this I mean food eaten in the country of italy. sandwiches off the street, pastas and sauces, gelato, pastries, fruit and vegetables. because everything there tastes incredibly fresh and authentic and straight from the earth. everything melts in your mouth and commands you to slow down and enjoy it already.


five common experiences you wish you could have for the first time, again

1. kissing my husband. that first kiss-- and all those really good ones that follow that are still sweet and heavy with so much that you think you might just fly through the roof. or dissolve into a lovely pool of yes.
2. dancing. and I mean that kind of feeling you get when everything is working and you are just along for the ride. it happens in class when you get what's going on with the movement and your body follows suit and the other dancers can't take their eyes off of you because they see it. and they know what it feels like and are nodding silently, reverentially. it happens on stage during a performance (or just after) when the cotton mouth and urge to vomit leaves you and you relax and connect with the audience. and it also happens at 2 am at hole-in-the-wall joints when you think you are totally exhausted and unable to lift even your pinky toe but then they go and play michael jackson's 'wanna be startin somethin' or the p-funk or 'double dutch bus' or vintage prince and james brown and you find yourself breaking it down til four am. you stink and your clothes are probably ruined but you don't care. it's a high like no other.
3. running in the rain. I had a very spiritual experience with this once but won't go into it here. too deep.
4. going down the big BIG slide.
5. holding my babies in my arms for the first time. hearing their first deep-down belly laughs. feeling ezra wrap his little arms around me.

thank you for visiting. take a little piece of memesville home with you to share with the others. I swear they'll thank you for it.