"Good morning."
*pulling back curtain corner, looking at gray sky* "Anna, it's so gross outside."
"Eh."
*sitting up, actually looking outside* "Anna, Anna, it's not gross, it's snow."
That's how this morning began. Awake at 7:45 for class, up at 7:46 for snow. Priorities, right?
Today is our first snow day v Praze ("in Prague" - I had my language class today. More on that later.) and it's fantastic. We've all had our fingers crossed for snow. Yesterday it rained all afternoon, which is just mean when it's in the thirties outside. Today we awoke to a nice layer of white fluff outside our windows at Domov (the pension). Now it's 14:48, and it's been steadily descending all afternoon. This is good. This is quite good indeed.
First class today was studio. We've all got our different studios from 9-12 on Tuesdays. Costume studio meets on the second floor of the Institute. This morning was rough, no lies. I've had studios almost every semester at State, so I'm used to the sketching and designing process that accompanies the beginning of new projects. I'm generally pretty good at it. But I've never done costuming before, and this is turning out to be much farther outside my comfort zone than I expected.
Our teachers began looking at our sketches yesterday and making suggestions, giving direction. Yesterday, I was told everything I'd sketched wasn't "costume" enough and that I wasn't thinking extravagantly enough, that I wasn't utilizing the shapes in the flower. So I made a bunch of new sketches last night after class ended. Today our teachers came around twice. The first time they told me my new designs were too detailed and that I was using the wrong parts of the flower, that I should focus on the overall shape rather than the specific sections I'd chosen because my new sketches didn't "embody the character" of the flower. Okay, fair, I understand that part about the character, but going from "not enough" to "too detailed" was kind of frustrating. They suggested doing a basic silhouette and then considering how to add to it. So I sat and brainstormed and wrote key words and key themes and grabbed some fabric swatches and got new paper and started fresh. The second time they came around I had three new concepts and an updated inspiration board and a new approach to the designs. Simple silhouette, new design aspects that (I thought) mimicked the flower, new ideas to guide fabric selection and feel, etc. They liked my brainstorm list. They didn't like anything else. They told me, as nicely as possible, to throw away everything and start clean. Literally, "take those drawings out, get new papers, and start with brand new." I've literally never been told that before, aside from yesterday and this morning when they basically said the same thing. It sucks.
They keep saying "costume" and I keep thinking ballerina (my flower is tiny and white, and I can think of a million tutu and dress designs that would be perfect), but that's not costume enough. I've been trying to avoid doing something runway-esque, with ridiculous additions and things branching off from everywhere - I hate that kind of fashion. I've never been interested in runway because I've never wanted to make something that the general public sees and laughs at. But I think this class is going to require it...
So that was the start this morning. It got to 12:15 and I was hating life and then realized I'd left my phone at Domov. My Czech class wasn't until 13:00, so I decided to go back and get it. I got down into the Mustek station and did quick math and realized I'd be cutting it really close. I also realized I'd have to skip food. I like food. More than my phone. So I walked back out of the station and ended up camping out in Costa Coffee (again). I ordered and then went around the corner to wait for my drink and "unique lemon" (lemon poppyseed) muffin. The lady who made it asked in English if I'd like cocoa sprinkled on the top. When I said "prosim," she added it and then began telling me things in Czech. I have no idea what she said, but she was motioning to the drink and the muffin, so I just smiled and said "dekuji" and she said "prosim" and everything appeared to be in order. So that made me feel a little better about life. I really do enjoy being mistaken for local.
The upstairs of Costa is just comfy - nice music, nice decor. I grabbed a tiny table that had four chairs (around which four college kids would definitely not fit - I was thankful it was only me) and just sat in the warm and the familiar for almost a half hour, drinking my mocha and eating my muffin and flipping through the paper and watching the snow fall. It was awesome. Hunter (a State guy who's getting ready to go to Sharjah but has been spending a week with us) walked in when I was on my last sip. I was spacing out pretty hard. I'm pretty sure he stood there for a decent number of seconds before I spaced in and said hey. He picked his own table and I finished up and got my coat on and then went to say bye. He let me complain to him about my morning. Then he reminded me that it was snowing: "it's supposed to be magical." Fair point, Hunter. I confessed that the snow was helping.
It really must be magical, because everything's gotten better since then. When I was walking back to the Institute I passed the street market. There was an old man standing under an umbrella, holding his hand out and watching as the snowflakes settled onto it. We made eye contact and I couldn't help but smile. He actually smiled back. I'm pretty sure we shared a moment of mutual snow love (the returned smile and the active interest in snow make me suspicious that he was not Czech...). I made it into my language class a minute late but was still not the last person in. Our teacher is absolutely hilarious. She's Czech and her husband is American and she's been to the States, so she actually understands where the American and Czech cultures differ and can give good advice accordingly. It's going to be a great semester in her class.
So now I'm back in studio. I should be working on sketches, but the motivation to do so diminishes slightly every time I remember how much they haven't liked what I've come up with. Ugh. Wish me luck.
But hey, at least it's still snowing.
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