| Feb. 6th, 2008 06:03 pm poking my head out my cave... ok - its been over a year since Ive posted to this space and I figure it`s time to update everyone what`s happened in 2007. My primary intention is to be in touch and share some major changes that have happened in my life over the past year and give you a sense of where I`m at right in regards to a transition coming up in May. I really want to include those interested in my decisions so thanks to those of you who already have been in touch. My compass currently points towards Tokyo where my heart is :)
First things first, I notice I fall out of communication in this space because of a commitment I have to not write frequently to the masses and for lack of a better term `getting it right` - wanting to come across as well-spoken or intelligent. well - it kind of backfires when I am looking for a place to share with trusted friends & family and quite frankly, I get lost in my thoughts! I`ve discovered people in my life over the past year who are willing to listen to me for my greatness and I am very thankful for that. I particularly want to thank Edward for this - it`s been quite an adventure being with him, I tell ya! He brings some crazy improvisational energy, he doesn`t give up and is always there making shit happen in Thailand! I am very thankful for his stand I practice yoga regularly every week and giving it a shot these first 3 months of the year - I really got yoga as a meditation last night for sure - the effort it took to put my life down and just be with my body!
2007 was a year of success bringing Dance Chalat in all new directions and also a year I fumbled trying to raise funds for the project - I realized fundraising wasn`t where my heart was - my love for the project will always be to empower others to develop our programs using technology in a collaborative, team-oriented way around the world. I walked the steps of directing Dance Labs and found it to be fun but a wee bit stressful. I`ve taken a break from leading the project full-time for what amounts to about 6 months now and admitting it for the first time. I will spare more details in a share in our ![[info]](http://stat.livejournal.com/img/community.gif) dancelabs community blog. I do want to take a moment now to thank all the volunteers who made things move & shake this past year - it really was amazing to actually have experiments in yoga, business, and schools happen in such a short period of time. I also want to thank all of you for your continued interest - Dance Labs continues to be alive out there in ways I never expected - it just shows up!
A colleague of mine asked me over dinner this past week and apparently many of you dont know Morn & I broke up back in March. Morn is now happily married to Dylan living in Krabi. Yes, it was a tough transition for me in the beginning but at the end of the day, we realize out of declaring our friendship, we are able to become closer than ever before - so much so that we can really feel it. It is really great to know we will continue to be friends for life and supportive of each other`s partners.
There are two people who came into my life from the states that woke me up to ecovillages and our climate crisis - interestingly enough - they`ve taken two completely different slants! Stephen shares about ecovillages and cities from the standpoint of art & zen and Stuart Scott shares Al Gore`s presentation - I am very thankful both have come into my life and it is wonderful to see the connection between my passion for dance and the role art plays in being the backbone for building community. I am really left inspired by what the city of Curitaba has accomplished in Brazil - do watch the documentary if you get a chance!
So I`d like to tell ya a bit more about Mayumi. Who Mayumi is for me is magic - she has an uncanny ability to be straight and honest about her feelings and move on - she lets go of things - FAST! So fast it causes disbelief at first! She encourages me to open up, be myself, and get out of my cave and this is not something I expected. She`s a partner who is always there and ready to play - I am forever thankful for having met her!
Mayumi and I met on facebook towards the end of August. we shared an affinity for great food and she is the first person I`ve been so brutally straight about my intentions and in retrospect couldn`t have been happier I did so! We dated online for about 4 months, she powerfully chose to come visit me in Thailand for a month, and I did not expect to go to Tokyo for new years not only to see her but also pay my respects to her parents. I was committed to cleaning up any miscommunication and uncertainty that showed as a result of us meeting online. It felt really great to take this kind of responsibility over our relationship and it was indeed fulfilling to connect with her family face-to-face - she has great parents!
Mayumi did wave her magic wand and did manage to find a job in Thailand while she was here and that was pretty amazing. She`s created a new relationship with her family as a result of our relationship and I respect her choice not to take the job she got in Thailand to be with her family, her culture, and build herself up in Japan. I`m really not a fan of long-distance relationships (I am a dancer, I dont think it takes much to get this part of it!) so we`ve taken this on for the short-term. I am looking to move to Tokyo in May and this is where I`ve done some serious thought-crunching for the past two weeks to get straight on both what I see for myself back in California (at the request of my parents) and get straight on the future I see in Thailand now that I`ve been here for 4 years. I intend to get straight about my next steps in Thailand and how I intend to keep in touch by end of this week. As I was born in America, it isn`t very hard to see how I can go back to California, share my experience living in Thailand, and go from there. I got a glimpse of Tokyo over new years, it perks my interest til no tomorrow, and it is interesting to read up on their culture and inquire as to where I can make a difference. I do know one area that I clearly seek to make a difference - it is in the area of innovation (see Why Apple isn`t Japanese - I am a bonafide Apple nut btw!), an area that has languished over the past years and wouldn`t mind helping rekindle the fire - go Asians! :P
As I don`t intend to be posting to this blog very frequently, I want to take a moment to share 4 technologies that have given me a new freedom around communication over the past year:
- wiki - if you want to play - this is the technology for you! I consider this a participatory means of keeping in touch - everyone is invited to help me edit my wiki - I put new knowledge in it several times a week - life is my research - research is my life! If you want to start your own wiki (personal or organizational) please don`t hesitate to get in touch with me - this is not a passion that will die!
- facebook - one world - thats pretty much it. I appreciate that almost every walk of life has shown up in this space someway somehow - it is a powerful way for me to communicate with the diverse community I have created - thank you for all of you who have accepted my invitations to be in this community. If you want to read more about my thoughts around facebook and all the research that has gone into my decision, look no further: http://chinarut.wikispaces.com/Facebook if research bores you, then just get your ass in facebook and have fun!
- email - ok - this has been around for what amounts to 17 years for me so it`s a matter of being clear with everyone how I use it these days. now that most of my chatter (personal and business) has moved to facebook, most of my email tends to be `action-oriented` - things that require follow-up and mailing lists. Fortunately I don`t have a business relationship with all of you (that would drive me insane) so I can handle my inbox these days which is a godsend! that said, Google Mail has been kind to me :) I prefer you reach out to me on facebook if in doubt.
- google docs - now that I`m official about jumping into the `say no to email` bandwagon - this is another outlet that`s been good to me. I just *love* creating documents with people - I think its a way to organize our ideas and create something *together* - there is a bit of magic that happens when you can simultaneously work on the same document together - at a distance. My latest find in this paradigm is mind42.com - i intend to explore it further (first map) and always looking for people who are willing to evaluate cutting edge technologies with me!
so those are 4 cornerstones of keeping in touch online and last but not least, let`s not forget the good ole phone (funny how we don`t necessarily relate to it as technology these days) - one of the big things that have happened over the past year is I now have a new freedom around using the phone and it feels great. If you do call - I may not have your number in my address book so please leave me vmail if you would like me to call you back!
life is a bit of a trip right now (not like it ever wasn`t) and I`ve done my best not to drown you in details so if there is anything else you are curious about or what me to share - you`ve got 2 paths - you can just pick my brain and ask questions or motivate yourself to dive into my wiki! :)
I`ve really got an art opening to run to (yes, I am running around more often than I`d like to be - thank god I moved downtown!) - ta ta for now and love you all!
ps. for those who want to know what my timelines are - I plan to checkin with my family next monday (11th) and it is looking like at this point, I will make a final decision as to where I will be in May by the 25th. I have a bookmark on a farewell party the evening of May 3rd - more details later!Current Location: Bangkok, Thailand
Current Mood: open
Current Music: 1963 - New Order, Substance
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