Hitting the Reset Button

Wow, I haven’t written in so long and there is so much to write about. I’ve just been working, working, working my sparkly butt off (more than usual) the last few months and have not updated here at all. In addition to “Plain Jane to Pinup Queen: Pinup Workshop in a Book” that is officially available on September 30 (presales are available now!) I am working on two other book projects, one of which I expect to have available in late October or early November. No, I’m not telling you what it is yet, you’ll just have to wait for the announcement, but I am very excited about it. Aren’t I just a tease?

Venus Zinepublished a writeup about my Pinup Workshop in their fall issue. Venus Zine is absolutely my favorite alternative magazine, with lots of great writeups about the alternative music and arts scenes plus great DIY instructions and coverage. Pick up their fall issue now! You can read Joelle Caputa’s writeup of the pinup workshop here!

The Pinup Workshop Tour has also been keeping me super busy. I’ve done a ton of traveling this year, and it doesn’t look like it’s going to be slowing down going into next year either. Woo! I adore traveling, and not just the part where you’re hanging out in new and exciting places. I actually love the traveling part, the getting from Point A to Point B, on the train, the plane, and walking. It’s that in-between, on-the-way-somewhere-but-not-quite-there-yet limbo place that I like. It’s very relaxing. There’s nothing to do but sit there, read, and daydream. I get a lot of great ideas on planes, trains, walking, or even a few times on the back of a motor cycle. I get a lot of ideas in the shower or doing dishes too, but that’s a different story.

Of course, this is not as relaxing when taken to extremes. My Boston/New Haven trip turned into the Murphy’s Law trip from hell, and would have been miserable if the people in the workshops hadn’t been such dears. In particular, the ladies in New Haven were total dolls. That story is so great, I will write a seperate entry about it.

Right now, I am in New York, staying in Brooklyn with my friend Legs Malone, who is an absolute sweet heart – and an amazing burlesque performer! She is brilliant and beautiful and a wonderful hostess. She has had a few days off and a childhood friend in town as well, and it has been very cozy and wonderful hanging out. Other than the Pinup Workshop on Saturday, Randy and I didn’t schedule any work for this trip, and I am glad. It is so nice to be able to just relax and hang out with wonderful friends.

It has been so good, in fact, that I think it fulfilled my horoscope for me! From Free Will Astrology, which is absolutely the most delicious and witty horoscope anywhere:

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): My friend Joan was experiencing a cascade of
annoying physical symptoms — mediocre digestion, mild headaches,
chronic congestion in her ear, itchy skin. None was terrible, but together
they were a big distraction. After two trips to her regular acupuncturist,
there was little improvement. The acupuncturist decided it was time for
more drastic measures: He was going to try a dramatic treatment that
was akin to pushing a reset button on a machine. Success! Joan was freed
from the nagging ailments and experienced a thorough rejuvenation. I
suggest you seek out the equivalent treatment, Libra: Push the reset
button.

(BTW: I always read Libra and Scorpio because I am a Libra born on the Libra/Scorpio cusp with a Scorpio rising. However, I am only referring to the Libra horoscope in this instance. In case you wanted to know.)

I definitely feel like this trip has hit my reset button. I am more relaxed and invigorated than I have felt in a long time. Who says taking some time off right before big deadlines is a bad idea? It is sure working for me! I will write more later, after I have finished lounging for a bit…

I *heart* NY!

I have been traveling so much during weeekends lately that after this series I will no longer be teaching classes on Monday nights so I can travel that day instead.  After my last trip to NY in June, I flew home that Monday and taught a class a few hours later. I was so exhausted! I was dreading the start of class, wondering how I was going to pull it off when I was so beat. Then I heard a little voice from inside say, “Just have fun with it.” That helped so much. I have been repeating that to myself again and again ever since. It really makes a good mantra for me! Joy is contageous, so the best thing I can do in any situation, especially in class, is to have fun. And when it comes down to it, why do people choose to take a burlesque class rather than yoga or something more traditional if not to have more fun? So I bought a couple of energy drinks, downed them during the class, acted like my normal goofball self and no one seemed to notice that I was not feeling at all Bombshell-ish.

The trip to NY was wonderful. We did a private Pinup Shoot for a staffer at Venus Zine, my favorite alternative women’s magazine (you can usually find it in the music section on the news stands). Joelle Caputa is writing an article about her transformation for the Fall issue, which will be available September 1. I can’t wait to see it!

We also ran a larger group Pinup Workshop and Photoshoot while we were in town. People from both shoots were enthusiastic about attending another workshop soon. That’s the best feedback I could hope for!

I went to Coney Island for the first time to attend the Mermaid Parade. It was amazing! The costumes were truly inspiring. There were a lot of burlesquers in attendance as well. I recognized Darlinda Just Darlinda, Little Brooklyn, and Pookie Patootie. Unfortunately, I didn’t run into Molly Crabapple, but I saw pictures of her at the parade online afterwards. Randy and I went with Legs Malone, who was able to get us into the parade to help carry the Mermaid Ball banner, so we were able to participate rather than just watch from the crowded sidelines. To get an idea of how wonderful the costumes were, check out some of the photos from the parade! This guy got some great ones, and there are so many more!

Legs also performed at Pinchbottom Burlesque’s Indiana Jones spoof show that weekend, so we went after the parade. The show was wonderfully silly and well produced. I loved it! It was also very inspiring the way they wrote it up as a play and the burlesque acts helped advance the plot. Brilliant! I see why they get such good press. Lots of shows in San Francisco get produced with a very consistent theme, but I haven’t seen anything written into a storyline that coherently. The closest we’ve come to that in San Francisco has been the Cock-T’s show where they have a cheer competition with the Diamond Daggers. If you haven’t seen a Cock-T’s show, you should check them out!