Micah's Turning 29! (And Hosting a Fundraiser to Celebrate!)

It's My Birthday!
(almost...)

(Cue the shameless self-promotion!)

Photo by Julia Seymour

On March 3, I will turn 29 years old. Wahoo! In celebration of the last year of my twenties, I'm hosting a fundraiser for Greenbrier Valley Theatre, the not-for-profit professional theatre where I work in West Virginia.

With Hannah & Courtney in rehearsal for The Night Thoreau Spent in Jail
at Greenbrier Valley Theatre (2013).

If you think theatre is an awesome way to spend time with friends, engage with important social issues and classic literary works, and learn to connect better with the world around us, this is your chance to help make sure that high-quality theatrical opportunities keep happening in southern West Virginia. Plus, you're helping me reach my fundraising goals!

The Goal: $2,900.00

The Launch: February 3, 2015*

The Deadline: March 3, 2015

(a.k.a. my birthday!)

Here's how you can help:

Step 1: Visit my fundraising page at crowdrise.com.

Step 2: Click the DONATE button.

Step 3: Follow the instructions.

Step 4: Revel in the knowledge that you're making awesome happen in southern West Virginia and also that my birthday is more spectacular because of YOU!

Photo by Lovely Rita, Photographer

This is the dance I will do if you donate to my birthday campaign.

Frequently Asked Questions**

Why did I pick Crowdrise?
They have snarky and hilarious customer service with emails that incorporate words like egregious and besmirchment. Also, they apologize profusely for grammar gaffes, and that amuses me.

Isn't this kind of self-serving?
Yes. But it's my birthday so I hope you'll indulge me.

What if you don't reach your goal?
Greenbrier Valley Theatre gets to keep all of the funds that are donated (minus fees), whether we reach the goal or not!

What if you DO reach your goal?
I'll have the best 29th birthday I could ever have imagined and celebrate the success with a delicious dessert from one of our local eateries. (Okay, I'll do that anyway...)

Do I get anything for donating?
My eternal gratitude and a handwritten thank you note. Optional theatre-related perks are available to donors who give $250 or more. If you want to know about those, give me a call at the theatre (304.645.3838 ext. 110) and I'll tell you all about them. Additional surprises TBD?

How does the theatre get the money?
All donations on Crowdrise will be processed through Network for Good and distributed directly to Greenbrier Valley Theatre. I won't ever see your credit card information. Neither will anyone else at the theatre.

How will the theatre spend my money?
All proceeds from my birthday fundraiser on Crowdrise go toward Greenbrier Valley Theatre's 2015 Annual Campaign and will help underwrite general operating and production expenses so that we can do things like this!

What if I don't want to donate online, but I still want to participate?
You can send a check to:

Greenbrier Valley Theatre
Attn: Micah's Birthday Campaign

P.O. Box 494
Lewisburg, WV 24901

You can also call me at the office and donate by phone using your credit or debit card: 304.645.3838 ext. 110.

Anything else?
Ask me in the comments.

*Technically, the campaign went live on January 23, but active promotion began Feb. 3.
**Okay, so no one has actually asked these questions, but just in case anyone was wondering...

Reading in 2015: A Brief History of Time

In yet another deviation from the reading list, the second new-to-me book of 2015 was Stephen Hawking's A Brief History of Time. (Have you seen The Theory of Everything yet? No? You should. Eddie Redmayne and Felicity Jones turn in striking and moving performances as Stephen and Jane Hawking.)

I don't have a lot to see about A Brief History of Time because I'm fairly certain I didn't understand most of it beyond a general comprehension of the words on the page. Still, I don't know if I'll ever be able to watch Doctor Who again without contemplating the feasibility of time travel. However, Hawking writes in an accessible style, and although I found the science intimidating, I still enjoyed the book on the whole and might take another crack at it next year.

Up next: Not sure. Maybe The Time Machine by H.G. Wells.

Why I Keep Arguing with You about Disney Princess Waistlines

Last year, denizens of the Internet debated how "realistic" the waistlines of Disney princesses are. From the "unrealistic" side: Such unreasonable depictions of human bodies send dangerous messages to young girls. From the "realistic" side: People with waists that narrow are uncommon but not impossible, especially because they're wearing corsets.

I saw both sides in my social media feed and, when possible, I joined the discussion. For the record, I'm on the side of reasonable proportions and healthy body image always. I think their waists are unnatural.

First, some privilege-checking. I have a 26.5" waist. I am not a classic hourglass. I am flat-chested and thin-ish, but there are parts of my body that I would change if I could. At the same time, as a small, pretty person, I am very well represented in popular media. When I watch movies and television shows intended for my demographic, I see myself.

With that out of the way, this is why I will keep engaging with this argument even though it gets my hackles up and makes me feel angry and uncomfortable every single time:

• Giving the heroines of the most commonly told stories of childhood one body shape is dangerous. Little girls probably won't say that in so many words, but they'll internalize it, and the multi-billion-dollar beauty industry will reinforce that ideal so that when they grow up into young women, they'll be thoroughly steeped in the idea that to succeed, they have to look a certain way. Regardless of what that look is, it is unrealistic to make all of the "winners" look the same because in real life, they don't.

• A corset does not magically make your waist the size of your neck. I'd have to tighten a corset fourteen inches to make my waist the size of my neck. 14 inches! Even when I pull the measuring tape super tight and squeeze in, I can only get my waist down to 22.5". To be fair, I haven't been training my waist for decades so maybe that's a part of why. Or maybe not. According to the Daily Mail in 2012, burlesque artist Dita von Teese attributed her 22-inch waist to 22 years of wearing corsets, and even she can only squish down to 16.5 inches. That's still 4 inches bigger than my neck! Yes, I understand it is utterly ridiculous to compare my neck to Dita von Teese's corseted waist . . . Oh, wait. That's exactly the point.

• Your disapproval of the word "unrealistic" does not invalidate the argument. Personally, I think the word "unnatural" better describes the proportions of most of the princesses. A corseted waist is not natural; it is manipulated. When such a waist is combined with the generous busts with which many of the princesses are endowed, the resulting figure is indeed unrealistic for the vast majority of women, particularly if they want to maintain their health. In any case, if your concern is more with the word "unrealistic" than it is with the broader argument, change that word to one that is more appealing to you and move on.

• "Historical accuracy" is not a good enough reason. If it's a historical argument (i.e. "Women at that time would have worn corsets."), let's push it one further and give them less-than-perfect teeth and blemished skin and hands calloused from all that housecleaning (I'm looking at you, Cinderella.). I won't accept the "historical accuracy" argument when so much else is deliberately retouched for appeal.

• It's a fairy tale kingdom, whether or not it's reminiscent of the golden days of yore. Who says that the women in wherever it was once upon a time wore corsets anyway? Maybe the beauty standard in fairy land then was broader, and maybe the women decided they were okay with not cinching their waists. Would that be so terrible?

Part of me can't believe we're even still talking about this, but recently, I witnessed a rather vitriolic exchange between two teenagers on Facebook (a curvy gal and a rail-thin guy) so I guess we're not quite through picking apart whether or not Disney princesses have realistic waists. I've rambled on a bit long here and haven't even gotten to the part where cartoon villains often have physical characteristics that are off-putting or absurd or don't conform with modern beauty standards. If that's not just as problematic as this waistline situation, I don't know what is.

Those are my two cents, and I'll just leave them right here.

What do you think? Should we even be worried about how narrow or broad a cartoon's waist is?

Reading in 2015: Boy, Snow, Bird by Helen Oyeyemi

Unsurprisingly, I deviated from the reading list pretty much immediately thanks to the intriguing cover of Helen Oyeyemi's novel Boy, Snow, Bird.

Intrigued by references to the classic tale of Snow White (mirrors, wicked stepmothers) and drawn in sufficiently by the jacket synopsis, I picked up the novel at the library Friday and finished it just this afternoon. Oyeyemi develops very distinct voices for Boy and Bird, who narrate sections by turn, but Snow remains rather an enigma, known only through her few letters to Bird and through others' (mainly Boy's) observations of her. Perhaps this is purposeful, but as a reader, I wanted to know more about Snow, as much as I wanted to know Boy and Bird.

Unfortunately, loose ends abound, from the mystery of the mirrors to the man who raised Boy. The novel meanders through the workaday events of the characters' lives, making a dramatic reveal right toward the end but then just . . . stopping. I arrived at the end of the novel without any real grasp of what had happened, and maybe that's more a reflection of me as a reader than of the novel itself, but I wanted more.

The exploration of race weaves through the narrative, jumping now to the forefront but then receding in favor of other topics, as happens in reality as well, I suppose. Why, though, place such emphasis on the racial tension faced by the book's central characters only to abandon it for a last-minute, shoddily told conflict involving Boy's father and having nothing to do with race but yes, still involving mirrors and the truths and lies they tell us?

All in all, the novel had great promise but failed to deliver. However, Oyeyemi uses great skill in speaking through distinct character voices with well-paced style. I will likely read another of her books. I've heard good things about Mr. Fox, and I think the library has a copy. For now, a diversion in the form of Christina Rossetti's "Goblin Market."

The Books I'm Reading in 2015

Every year, I tell myself, "Under no circumstances are you to acquire more books until you have finished the hundreds that lie around unread on the shelves in your living room!" Every year, I ignore that order, and lo and behold . . . more books! I have no idea how this happens. Okay, I do have some clue. It has to do with paperbackswap, free books, and the local library book sale. These are all dangerous avenues to increasing the library.

It is unlikely I will stop acquiring books. It is a thing that happens and has been happening since before I can remember and will continue happening. So rather than setting a goal about not having more books, I have opted for more specific reading goals. These goals are attached to definite numbers and titles so that I can work my way through the existing living room library.

The broad goal for 2015 is to read two new-to-me books each month. To that end, I have set aside these 24 titles to read:

The Mill for Grinding Old People Young - Glenn Patterson

Flowers for Algernon - Daniel Keyes

The Time Machine - H.G. Wells

Wuthering Heights - Emily Bronte

The Joy Luck Club - Amy Tan

Brideshead Revisited - Evelyn Waugh

Jacob's Room - Virginia Woolf

The Hours - Michael Cunningham

Up in the Air - Walter Kirn

My Brilliant Friend - Elena Ferrante

The Edible Woman - Margaret Atwood

Snow Flower & the Secret Fan - Lisa See

The Story of My Life - Helen Keller

Mennonite in a Little Black Dress - Rhoda Janzen

Then Again - Diane Keaton

Tim Tebow: Through My Eyes - Tim Tebow

The Audacity of Hope - Barack Obama

The Story of the Trapp Family Singers - Maria von Trapp

Anna and the King of Siam - Margaret Landon

This I Remember - Eleanor Roosevelt

Tammy Wynette: Tragic Country Queen - Jimmy McDonough

Grace of Monaco - Steven Englund

The Letters of Abelard & Heloise

Dreams in a Time of War - Ngugi wa Thiong'o

I'm also really excited about Amy Poehler's Yes, Please and B.J. Novak's The Book with No Pictures. I'll be picking up Novak's book at the library tomorrow!

What are you reading this year? Anything you're particularly excited about or have been waiting to read for ages? Tell me in the comments about the tales that await you in 2015.

Pep Talk

For everyone who needs to hear it . . . including me:

You.

Are.

Awesome.

You are awesome for all the ways you change the world every day just by being a part of it.

You are talented.

You are intelligent.

You are kind.

You are generous.

You are thoughtful.

You make a difference simply by being present.

You are important because you are.

Your awesomeness does not depend on my acknowledgment of it, but just in case you forgot or are having a hard time embracing the remarkable being that you are, I'm telling you. I hope you believe it.

You.

Are.

Awesome.

*******

Love, Micah

Are there 28 things I should do instead of getting engaged/married before I turn 28?

All the rage lately are these lists of "[Number] of Things to Do Instead of Getting Married at [Age, which is the same as Number]" or some variation thereon. At least two (three) of these posts emerged in response to this one. I'm not sure why some folks of my generation decry marriage as the end of life. (Maybe it's Timon's fault...) On the other hand, I'm not sure why others think life doesn't begin until you're in a stable, committed relationship. I don't hold to either of these ideas.

Coming up on 28, I've had a pretty good run so far. I won't regale you with a list of my accomplishments to date because, well, I'm not a high school student applying to college. (And who wants to read that anyway?) Neither will I deny that I haven't accomplished everything I hope to do in my lifetime, and I'm certainly not married yet. I hope marriage is a part of that lifetime sometime, but I'm not going to stop living now just because it's now a part of my life right now. (For the record, I also don't plan to stop living once I do marry, whenever (if) that happens.)

The blogs I mention read kind of like bucket lists at times, but this isn't one of those. For lack of a better term, these are some of my New Year's Resolutions. (A friend of mine resolved not to make any resolutions because this time of year isn't good for his resolve.) My list of resolutions includes a host of what I'll call "life fixes". (I don't have a better name for them right now. Do you have any ideas?) Instead of setting concrete goals, although I have those as well, I resolve to make choices and develop habits to improve my overall being.

*Connect more with the people in my life. Write monthly to the children I sponsor. Exchange letters with friends. Call my family more.

*Celebrate happiness. Last year, I had a happiness bucket for a hot minute. Now I have a happiness wall.
2.27 update: My sticky notes didn't stick to the wall. It's a happiness vase now. It's working:

Look at all that happiness in just two months!

*Be less critical when criticism is unasked or not constructive. This is particularly in relation to criticism from a distance, criticism of people I don't know, and criticism to make myself feel superior. (Hello, character flaw! Let's root you out!)

*Compliment others generously (and genuinely).

*Invest in people's lives. Ask how things are going. Follow up about projects, transitions, etc. Be present!

*Spend less time comparing my happiness/success with that of others.

Basically, it's all about being a decent, loving human being to myself and to the rest of humanity. If you're present in my life, I hope you'll hold me accountable. If we're not connected on a personal level, I hope you find something in this list worth applying to your own life. If you're inspired, I hope you'll connect through the comments and share your own "life fixes".

Whatever your marital status, age, or number of things to do,

here's to being present in 2014! I'm glad I'm here with you.

At 27, I went kayaking for the first time!
[with Sarah and Ryan (and also Mallory, who is taking the picture)]