It's been a busy couple of days. Tuesdays and Wednesdays are always nuts at our house. I work later than normal both of those days and that combined with Parker's pre-school, play rehearsals for Maryn, YW for Maryn and Avery, and Scouts for me make it seem like we just spend those days running. So Thursdays always seem nice and light to me. Having my students workshop instead of me having to lecture makes it seem like a spa day for me. Just sitting here and typing a blog is a rare luxury for me. I'm thoroughly enjoying it.
Next week is Thanksgiving, and we're all looking forward to that. We'll spend it with Suzy's family in the Detroit area. Dinner at Jeff and Amy's, maybe an evening movie somewhere, and then the next day, the girls will all go to their beloved Braeden, Cole, and Addie's house and Suzy and I will go over to Grand Rapids for an early anniversary trip. We'll stay at a nice hotel, go see a show, eat some good food, and just generally be childless for about 36 hours. I anticipate it being a good time.
I've been reading a biography of Jim Henson for the last couple of weeks and really enjoying it. He's kind of a hero of mine, and his work with the Muppets and movies like The Dark Crystal are huge parts of my childhood. The older I get, the more interested I become in things like the guy who created the Muppets rather than the Muppets themselves, you know? I have always thought of reading biographies as such an old guy kind of thing to do. Like watching nature documentaries on PBS or movies about World War II. Slowly, I find myself becoming that guy. And it's okay (he tells himself as he breathes into a paper bag).
Anyway, Henson was a fascinating guy - driven and ambitious but quiet and almost pathologically motivated to avoid conflict. He never set out to be a puppeteer, much less the most successful and influential puppeteer of the 20th century. He wanted wanted to be in television and to direct films, but he had these strong avant garde, hippie-ish tendencies where his work was concerned. It's ironic because a lot of the projects he pursued that were like that, were kind of miserable failures. It was when he combined his whacked-out, absurdist tendencies with the more mainstream medium of fuzzy puppets that really brilliant, beautiful things happened.
I am always interested in reading about people who are the best at what they do. I think there's something really interesting about genius. I notice some interesting similarities between Frank Lloyd Wright, Stan Lee, Jim Henson, Tiger Woods, Michael Jordan, etc. They're not all necessarily good, positive traits - but definitely similar. (Crazy focus, devoted to the point of utter selfishness, deep curiosity about their field, etc.) I find it endlessly interesting to think about how a person becomes the very best at what they do. I haven't finished the Henson biography, but I hope to soon. I 'll let you know how it ends.
