Saturday, Mar. 05, 2005 - 3:35 p.m.
Ready, Re-Set, Go!
Since my friend moved to Paris, I've discovered the restorative powers of a weekend mooching about there. I know Kylie said it let her feel like being 'Kylie again' but now I can confirm it makes Jennyj feel like 'being Jennyj again'. Then, last night I watched L0st In Translation again (I bought it in F0pp at about 9pm on a Friday night - the second time I've shopped at there that time and been served by the girl who looks like Pealy from L00k Around You; what conclusions she must draw about me...) and felt just as exhilerated as the first time round, and it was like a minor version of the Paris factor: a mini reset button, if you will.So I got to thinking about all the things in life that can act as a reset button, short of the ultimate reset of electric shock treatment. Or, indeed, entering a witness protection program. But you know what I mean - something that takes you out of yourself and reminds you of the things that you like about you and your life, and the things that are important. Like refocussing the lens and realising you'd been looking at everything a bit fuzzy before.
So here, in ascending order, is my Ready, Re-Set, Go! list; a handy cut out and keep guide for all situations.
Singing along to a favourite album that you know all the words too, very loudly - I was just doing this to the L1ttle Shop Of Horrors soundtrack. Really, I think musicals are the best thiing to do this to because the songs are designed to use all parts of your voice - slow bits, fast bits, minor keys, quiet bits, bellowy bits, all in one song. Grrrreat.
Watching your favourite re-set film - LiT being a good example as it's about having an experience or finding someone, when you're all off-centre and confrizzled, that can realert you to more important/better things.
Karaoke - see first point, but a bit more effort required to do it and possibly therefore more to be gained from it.
Weekend away - You don't even have to go far, but just do and experience completely different things from what you'd normally do with your weekend. Paris is only 3hours from London but so utterly different. And I like how on the Eurostar home you can continue to pretend to be French and see how long it takes for someone to twig. First time I went to visit my friend in Paris, on the metro to meet her I noted so many things down in my notebook that all amounted to, remember you can do so much more and be so much more than you do and are at home. Yeah ok, so I get home and am just the same ineffectual being I always am, but surely being reminded is better than not?
Discovering bonds with new people or new bonds with old friends - so you can't really induce this one, but I got this same fuzzy feeling once when U and I had gone to visit a friend who'd moved to Scotland. She and her boyfriend drove us around the highlands listening to old mixtapes, and music had never been a particular bond between us, but realising we had all had the same feelings for Mazzy Star at the same time in our youths, while the Scottish scenery whizzed past us, was very warming. We were all smiling quietly in our cocoon.
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So while I was just singing loudly along to a CD and cleaning my bathroom and getting jollied up about tonight, the sky turned grey and ominous and my friend sent a preliminary 'not sure if I can be bothered to go out tonight' text and I remember how easily these reset dreams are shattered. But I'm holding on. I have to leave the house today.