Moving To Philadelphia

a link to the photos for the week. This week Cynthia practices a bunch of "self care" (something she has learned to do in sobriety, to counteract her alcoholic tendency to completely self-destruct) and comes down with a cold during the process... though probably the cold is caused not by self care practices but instead by cardio class number two ("ripped abs") which pushes her outside her comfort zone and beyond her limits. Self care practices include a visit to the doctor, prompting a reenactment of a Saturday Night Live skit originally performed by Gilda Radner and Jane Curtin, on the subject of menstruation and its attendant horrors. The potentially magical benefits of IUDs are discovered and discussed. An "Ayurveda and the Art of Self Care" workshop reminds Cynthia of a particularly funny story from the funny story collection The Peterkin Papers, a children's book she recalls from childhood in which the voice of wisdom always came from - Cynthia is almost completely certain - "the lady from Philadelphia"!

a link to this week's photos!   The subtitle of this week is no more poetry, because No More Poetry is the title of the Song of the Week, inspired by and borrowing from a live concert at the Boot & Saddle by Jherek Bischoff and Mirah. Other incidents reported upon include a petting zoo at a May Fair and a taco-eating contest at a totally different though similarly outdoor May Fair (therefore a secondary subtitle is May Fair.) Cynthia learns the painful way (during a crosswalk "incident" that gives this week's podcast episode its actual primary super title) that traffic customs in Philadelphia are pretty much the opposite of traffic customs in New York City, and the resulting altercation with a total stranger leads to a crying jag. A more physical kind of Culture Shock is experienced when Cynthia attends a "cardio core barre" class using the app Class Pass: it is a rude awakening to the reality that she is definitely NOT qualified to attempt the Tough Mudder obstacle course coming up in Pennsylvania l

first, a link to this week's photos. This week several challenging, uncomfortable experiences are reviewed and salvaged for comedic potential plus any other use they might serve such as giving solace to those who've experienced similar discomforts, the primary one being STAGE FRIGHT experienced in a major league fashion by Cynthia at a "gala" performance. The spectrum of error is examined and a "clam" is differentiated from a "flub" (Cynthia and Jeff disagree on whether Cynthia's error at the gala qualifies as a "clam" or a "flub") The other uncomfortable experiences under discussion are working the polls on election day and the interesting though frustrating cast of misfit characters encountered there (from one, Cynthia learns about a potential backup career as a "medical actor" and from another, she learns that children in Philadelphia don't actually have to go to school but can instead be "un-schooled"); and attending Science Failures night at a historic building converted into a sports bar (where Cynthia

Dearly Beloved Artist Known as Prince is honored through remembrances, a medley of song fragments, and a song-of-the-week about life beyond the human realm, where presumably we all come from and will all end up eventually, one way or another. Imperfection within the human realm where we presently dwell is celebrated, and conversely striving impatiently for perfection is warned against. For example, the natural world fails to cooperate with the science festival, and Cynthia suffers a social-anxiety-induced minor emotional "shame spiral" meltdown during the car ride to Costco, a destination supplying all needs at bargain prices in preparation for this week's house warming party. New neighbors and old friends are encountered and gifts received at the house warming party, which goes better than expected, as does a trip to the DMV, where New York licenses are surrendered to friendly employees who joke and offer to re-take photos. And here's a link to some related photos!

This week the themes are social justice and an investigation of empathy (does it require shared experience?). Both topics were spurred by Cynthia’s visit to the Church of the Advocate in Northeastern Philadelphia, host of multiple major events during the Civil Rights movement and the women’s liberation movement of the 1960s and 70s (the first women Episcopal priests were ordained here in 1974), and home to controversial murals painted by Walter Edmonds (former owner of the home now occupied by Cynthia & Jeff) and Richard Watson. The murals were commissioned by the church to better represent the black experience, reflect the black congregation and community, and draw parallels between slavery described in the Bible and slavery suffered by African Americans. The joke of the week, in keeping with these themes, involves racial discrimination, a religious debate without words, and social justice, while managing to have a funny punchline. Also discussed are Cynthia’s inadvertent discovery

This week shout-outs and mad props are given to Deborah Hay, Jonathan Richman, Jerome Bel, Pina Bausch, Lou Reed, and Annie Wilson, all in relation to Meg Foley’s project Action is Primary, currently on view at the Icebox Project Space in North Philadelphia. Cynthia and Jeff attempt to describe what is so fascinating and inspiring about Foley’s work, and why by contrast “dancer face” is not so interesting. Also our first-ever hate mail is read aloud, and Cynthia in turn allows herself a brief tirade against cultural criticism in general. To balance out the negativity with humor, we present not one but two jokes of the week. Jeff’s visit to the West Philadelphia tool library is described, and Cynthia bravely attempts to apply Foley’s techniques to an improvised song, vaguely in honor of the audience. Photos related to this week's episode can be found on Cynthia's site here.....

More is revealed about local politics and culture through interactions with neighbors and ward leaders. Meanwhile, a portrait of the late Walter Edmonds (the fascinating former owner of the house now occupied by Ms. Hopkins and Mr. Sugg) continues to assemble itself in literary fashion, emerging through a collection of anecdotes passed along by friends and family members, as well as objects accidentally discovered in the house. References are made to Moby Dick, Jersey Boys, a poem titled “When I am an Old Woman I Shall Wear Purple”, and James Turrell (whose outdoor sculpture at the Walker Art Center inspires this week’s song "Frame the Sky.") Last but not least, the inaugural “joke of the week” is unveiled, and a previous week’s visit to Le Cat Café in Brewerytown is described. Here is a link to some photos we've uploaded can be seen on Ms. Hopkins' website. For those who are interested in reading the whole of the poem referenced, here it is:  When I Am Old.

Welcome guest Kate Abercrombie from the Fabric Workshop and Museum, with whom many issues are discussed, including: the history of the fabric workshop, its passionate founder Marion Boulton “Kippy” Stroud, some onerous tasks (involving hog testicles) Kate has performed in service to the museum, Cynthia’s recent exhibit of memorial quilts at the museum, Kate’s own artistic work, an upcoming exhibit at the Wheaton Museum of American Glass (featuring archeological finds un-earthed during ongoing digs to expand I-95) in which a work of Kate’s will be on display, the related site Digging I-95, the joys and fears involved in creating art, other fascinating museums such as the folk museum in Colonial Williamsburg and the Museum of the Living Torah in Brooklyn, and local Philadelphia lingo such as “jawn” and “case-quarter.” The song of the week is a sort of punk rock experimental song in honor of Kippy (founder of the Fabric Workshop and Museum) and her unbri

Week #4 is the inaugural special guest episode of Moving to Philadelphia, featuring the man behind the woman, the king of drag queens Martha Graham Cracker! A song is sung in honor of her, and her alter ego Dito Van Reigersberg reveals her origins, her inspirations (with special mention given to Joey Arias), some of her tricks, and a few secret weapons up her sleeves, while declining Cynthia’s suggestion for Martha to run for president. In addition, Dito gives a Cliff Notes version of his instructions on cabaret performance, and Dito and Cynthia fantasize about a possible drag choir. The mysteries of Philadelphia trolley token purchases are also discussed, as well as the initially shocking water bill encountered by first-time homeowners Cynthia and Jeff. Martha Graham (a pioneer of modern dance) is also honored during this podcast, in particular an inspirational quote of hers that can be found, along with images of Martha Graham Cracker herself in concert, and lyrics to the song-of-the-week Martha Graha

Welcome home to husband extraordinaire Jeff Sugg, master of improving sonic fidelity on this week’s podcast, in which Jeff & Cynthia encounter pros and cons of home ownership while exploring their new neighborhood of West Philadelphia (specifically Squirrel Hill or Cedar Park, depending upon whom you ask or what map you consult): a land of minuscule libraries, transgender peoples, unabashed folk music, and a wide variety of ethnic foods. Jeff and Cynthia additionally report on an outing into Center City, to visit the Philadelphia Flower Show, which inspires this week’s song Flower Show, wherein Cynthia describes a desire to be more like a flower in a flower show than an actor in a play. Latin names of flowers are used in this song, as are singing bowls from the wilds of Kentucky (the only accompaniment) and a phrase borrowed from a Danish student named Ingeborg. The flower show outing also resulted in a hand-crafted flower headpiece, featuring a small plastic figurine of a man drilling a hole,

This podcast is in the shape of Cynthia’s first week in Philadelphia: mildly traumatic, a bit long and unwieldy, wild, improvised, untidy, and perhaps meaningless. Cynthia and her cats react to the disorientation of a large house in disrepair (and under ongoing construction) using the survival instinct of playing dead or going limp. Yet negative mental chatter is vanquished by trauma therapy and audiobook recording, as well as long exploratory bike rides unveiling the treasures Philadelphia has to offer, such as old fashioned architecture, outdoor murals, and train whistles. Inspired by a vocal resonance workshop, Cynthia attempts to manifest her own imitation of a train whistle, from the inside out. Here is a link to some images referred to and inspired by this week's episode.   

Why is Cynthia Hopkins moving to Philadelphia after 20 year in Brooklyn? Well, it’s a long story, involving a catastrophic fire (possibly telepathically manifested…?) that destroyed a drafty, noisy, extremely cluttered apartment in Williamsburg, preempting a potentially inevitable ejection due to the increasingly rapid gentrification of all neighborhoods in Brooklyn via the transformation of all manner of buildings into luxury condos and high-end men’s clothing stores - including most of the places Hopkins had previously lived and worked in - and landing Hopkins temporarily in the outskirts of Crown Heights, the land of storefront churches and friendly neighbors… And yet, though the move to Philadelphia seems prescribed by the very forces of nature, and is ultimately the result of multiple strokes of good fortune (including the catastrophic fire, in spite of its traumatic effects) Hopkins finds herself in the grips of a vast, unnameable homesickness, which she covers up with a song o