Some more amazing omphalo-themed poetry here. (I just can't help myself:-)

So now, I think I'm suffering from chronic omphaloskepsis:

omphaloskepsis -- the practice, observed by some mystics, of contemplating their navel to generate religious visions.

Some say that the yogi is just an old fogey
As he sits and he stares past his chest.
He glares at his navel, though it doesn't seem stable,
But I guess that he knows what is best.

Vision religious, though perhaps not prodigious,
From the ones of nirvana are sent.
Well, I sat down and tried it, but I'm afraid I awried it,
For all I discovered was lint.

....written by Michael Sirois, sometime after
the birth of color tv, but before PC's

The Belly Button Chronicle...

Hey, that sounds like it would make a great name for a bellydance newsletter or something...but that's not the reason for this post. I bought myself an early birthday present today at Hot Rod on the South Side: a pierced navel. I promised myself that after losing so much weight, I would do something like that as an incentive to keep it off. Lost 33 lbs. so far.

Testing, 1, 2, 3...doing some crazy freaky styley things with my blog....

Scenes from Switzerland/Germany:

The Aachen Dom The throne of Charlemagne. The Cologne Cathedral The Roman Gate Luzern: The Lion Monument Bridge Mt. Pilatus: A view from the cable car going up Swiss farmstead with cows View from the top--the cogwheel train

The Longest Day

So, we (Khafif, et al) did not busk afterall. It might have been the longest day of the year, but it was cold and damp here in the 'Burgh. I think we've had a total of seven sunny days in three months, but hey, it's Pittsburgh. We ended up doing the other thing we do when it's not playing music and dancing--we watch movies. Usually with some theme in mind, for example, we were on a "sexploitation films of the 70s" kick for a while, but today I managed to convince half the group into watching a Japanimation film: Spirited Away. I thought it was quite good but I think the rest thought those who made it were on drugs. We also watched Monsoon Wedding and The Guru--which had us in stitches most of the time. I can't understand why it got mixed reviews, but I guess you have to be us to appreciate that sort of thing.

Attention Khafif Fans, this Weekend...

We are busking at the Three Rivers Arts Festival, Sat. June 21, 3-6 PM. This is the last day of the Arts fest so it's your last chance to check it out!

Mavi's Big Adventure

I'm slowly processing some of the photos I took on my travels. Here is my favorite one so far:

The lovely dancer beside me is Asmhan--she teaches and dances in the area of Zurich Switzerland.

Almost Famous...

While I was away, my troupe, Khafif had a spread published in a local mag, Pulp, and I missed out on it. However, I made up for it by appearing in another Pittsburgh who's who mag called Whirl! It's the issue with Christina Aguilara on the cover, now available at Barnes & Noble. Apparantly some photographer managed to capture Melissa and I posing at FLUX 9.

Quite an Adventure

It's not usual that I am gone from home so long. I think I could get used to it though, if it means I get to go someplace cool. I had quite an adventure. Will post pix eventually--promise. I just have to deal with some technical issues, like almost losing all the data from my laptop, which accidentally took a long drink of diet coke this week while I was at a conference in Orlando. Luckily, I had my presentation backed up. The show must go on, afterall. I like being a "speaker." I hope they let me do that again. I am getting my life back together after the near-meltdown. I moved my office today. Drumroll, please.......I got a window. I still have a lot of catching up to do, though.

This Weekend...

Already saw a great show at the Pittsburgh Three Rivers Arts Festival: Squonk Opera, with a guest appearance by Khafif's very own Narah. She was lovely. There was talk among the troupe about possibly busking at the Arts Fest tommorrow afternoon as well. Tomorrow evening, Zafira Dance Co. will be hosting another show worth checking out at the Kelly Strayhorn Theatre in East Liberty.

Greetings from Aachen, Germany...

My trip to Zurich was wonderful. I will post a detailed report with pictures when I have more time. To summarize, it was better than France. Zurich has the highest standard of living in the world, I think. It is a very modern well-ordered city with the feel of old Europe. The food was good, the people were nice, I went to see Luzern and the top of Mt. Pilatus, I saw some cows, I bought some chocolate. The train ride to Cologne was nice. I stopped in Cologne just long enought to walk around the cathedral which is a block from the train station. It was worth the stop. It is the most impressive old Medieval structure that I have ever seen. It is huge. I regret not having taken a guided tour, but I didnt want to stay long. I got on the train to Aachen and it was PURGATORY. People packed into the aisles and me with my huge suitcase. Luckily, a nice English-speaking business man saw my difficulty and told me when to get off the train (it was hard to tell) and pointed me in the right direction to my hotel, the Marschiertor. I felt better after a shower, and then I walked around the Dom here--it is also an amazing example of medieval architecture. Today, did the same thing pretty much, but on Sundays there is flea market set up all around the Dom and the Rathaus. So, there was plenty to see, just walking around. However, I think that I have seen it all now, and there is only work left for me to do and then home again.