1. I saw an advertisement on the T only last week that Cirque du Soleil was in town, and bought a ticket for the last show. So today I went to see “Ovo” – a story set in the world of insects. The juggling ants, trampoline jumping crickets, etc. were very impressive. Circus doesn’t need real animals to be entertaining and astonishing. I have been a huge fan of Cirque du Soleil since I first went to the show “O” in Las Vegas last Christmas. A few days later I also went to the “Kà” performance. I really love that all shows tell a story and the acrobatic parts are specially tailored.

2. On Thursday my friend and I went to a political discussion at the German Consulate. Since parliamentary elections are coming up, it was highly interesting to also get to know the U.S. American perspective on the elections. Two political scientists presented their views: The German elections are actually quite boring for the U.S. since the result is more or less clear. As long as the governing party doesn’t change, the political course won’t change – so there isn’t anything for other countries to pay attention to. According to the two scientists, it won’t matter for the rest of the world if the AfD (Alternative for Germany, a right-wing populist party) will be elected into parliament since it definitely won’t be part of the government, i.e. it can’t bring about a lot of damage. This view felt quite comforting for me. By the way, I have already cast my vote and sent my postal vote forms back to Germany.

3. After we left the Consulate, my friend and I managed to get stuck in an elevator, which was a first for both of us. We first pressed all buttons, but nothing worked, not even the emergency call. Eventually – and that was probably only a minute or two later – somebody answered the call, but couldn’t hear us. At the same time, the elevator clunked into life and took us to a basement. A place that I believe would be perfect to shoot a horror movie. It was all empty, and there were only white walls and stairways. Later on we’d also see some of the renovation works in the mall (the German Consulate in Boston is in an office tower on top of a shopping mall). So, somehow we had ended up in a workers’ entrance/basement, which I hope I’ll never have to enter again. Since we didn’t want to get back into the elevator, we bravely walked through those corridors until we finally ended up on the street.

4. On Friday evening I went to Salman Rushdie’s reading here in Cambridge. His latest novel, “The Golden House”, has just been published. Rushdie did not only read from it, but also discussed it in a talk with a literature professor. They also touched upon the writing process, Rushdie’s life in different countries and cultures, and current politics. I found Rushdie very funny and entertaining. At the end he signed his novel for everyone – since the novel was included in the ticket price. Now I only need a little more time to read it because it sounds exciting: When powerful real-estate tycoon Nero Golden immigrates to the States under mysterious circumstances, he and his three adult children assume new identities, taking ‘Roman’ names, and move into a grand mansion in downtown Manhattan. Arriving shortly after the inauguration of Barack Obama, he and his sons, each extraordinary in his own right, quickly establish themselves at the apex of New York society. The story of the powerful Golden family is told from the point of view of their Manhattanite neighbour and confidant, René, an aspiring filmmaker who finds in the Goldens the perfect subject. René chronicles the undoing of the house of Golden: the high life of money, of art and fashion, a sibling quarrel, an unexpected metamorphosis, the arrival of a beautiful woman, betrayal and murder, and far away, in their abandoned homeland, some decent intelligence work.
   

5. Recently, I have attended a lot of photo shoots in Boston. The Instagram community here is so big that there is at least one event almost every weekend. I first went to a Portraitmeet about one year ago. Especially now that I have my new camera, it is even more fun shooting. But I also enjoy meeting the same people again and again. It is great to share the same hobby. Yesterday, for example, a new graffiti art area was opened under the I-93 in the middle of the city. The instameet organized by IgersBoston took place even before the opening party. It was cool to see the artists putting the final touches to their large art works, while we were already crouching on the ground to take photos. Since I take so many pictures these days, I now also have two Instagram accounts: janavar_net is my lifestyle one, on jana.var you can see the results from all those photo meets.

|Watched| Sex and the City
|Read| The Architect’s Apprentice, Momo, New York Times
|Listened to| Marteria
|Done| walked through Boston’s South End and shot photos together with friends on Labor Day, worked, went to a talk at the German Consulate, got stuck in one of their elevators, went to Salman Rushdie’s reading, attended an instameet on Saturday, went to Cirque du Soleil “Ovo”
|Eaten| pasta, bagels, Mexican food
|Drunk| water, coffee, herbal tea, cider
|Thought| It is great to be part of the huge Boston Instagram community.
|Been happy| that I did so many things besides work
|Laughed| every time Canavar chases his bouncing ball
|Desired| I’d really like to have a closer look at the Essie Fall collection, but I already have sooooo many nail polishes
|Bought| two books
|Clicked| this beautiful downloadable September background; I love marzipan – which you can hardly find in the U.S. and if it is always expensive – but this recipe looks simple enough to me

© janavar

Merken

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