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Marginalia: a blog

Comment as a sigh: over to you

Today’s 31 Day Comment Challenge asks that we turn the blog over to our readers. OK. I’m up for it. Here’s the task.

I’m a voice coach a lot of the time. When I’m working with a class of actors, I’ll often ask them to ‘drop in a breath and to sigh out how they feel’ right there and then. It helps them to contact their breath and feelings and to express that moment directly and effortlessly on a sigh. Acting basics see? I should acknowledge Kristin Linklater as the originator of this exercise which I learned many years ago.

So … I’d love you to comment today on exactly the same principle. In one sentence … because what we call a sentence is the expression of an idea on a breath … write me a comment on how you are feeling right now wherever you are about your own blogging. That’s it.

Alternatively, hit that Seesmic video button down there and send me some sighs filled with your ‘right there, right now’ at your desk. Don’t be shy … sigh!

PS This little exercise is also a great way to take a mini break from your work from time to time.

PPS Seesmic now integrates with Disqus. Good news this! See the related articles below.

Related articles

8 Comments
    • inpi
      May 16, 2008 at 1:26 PM /

      Kate,
      What a simple, yet intelligent mini break! I’ll try it at my School.
      I’m feeling quite cool with my blogging: it is being born from this Challenge, actually.
      The big issue is having free time to put in practice the “lessons’ tsunami” that is pouring in at high speed.
      And I still daren’t touch Seesmic.
      Ines

    • Ken Allan
      May 16, 2008 at 4:40 PM /

      Kia Ora Kate!

      Kristin Linklater visited my school in Wellington, some years back now, and I got a collection of Orkney Fiddle melodies from her. She had some amazing tales about her father, Eric.

      You see, she was producing a speech tape in the studios at The Correspondence School (where I work) and needed some fiddle background. The producer knew I played celtic fiddle so I was asked to do the bits in between – it was a lot of fun. Kristin is a lovley person.

      Here’s my sigh:

      Shafts of white sunshine through cool dewy mist,
      crystal-bright droplets the sunbeams had kissed,
      finches’ quiet chatter to greet every ray,
      a tui’s soft clatter to beckon the day.

    • Kate Foy
      May 16, 2008 at 5:18 PM /

      G’day Ken!
      thanks so much for your sigh. It made me sigh in return. Sounds like a delightful early morning moment somewhere in NZ. Nice to hear from you and the Linklater connection.

    • Kate Foy
      May 17, 2008 at 1:14 PM /

      Well today’s task in turning the blog over to commenters pretty much scared most off I’d say. It was a bit of an experiment in any case and somewhat off topic for the niche … e-learning. Sighing how you feel … in one sentence or via a video comment on whatever floated into your head right then … may have seemed a little fluffy, but it was adventurous, designed to relax the reader and provide a gentle nudge in the direction of the imagination. Ah well … next time maybe.

    • Bonnie K
      May 17, 2008 at 2:26 PM /

      Hi Kate,
      I’m back again and I’m all signed up on Seesmic but it’s late and I just can’t push the button below. I spent lots of time working with kids on the stage, so I can appreciate the invitation to sigh, but you will have to imagine…
      Ahhhhh, I am feeling one with my blog, enjoying the challenges, except for one…leaving a comment on a blog I can’t agree with…I read a long thread about Barack and McCain and I couldn’t share with them….I couldn’t….but I love my blog and I am very excited about the campaign to come…it will be healthy for America to look in the mirror, finally after all these wasted Bush year….sigh…..sigh….
      Bonnie

    • Christine Martell
      May 17, 2008 at 3:35 PM /

      Hey wait a minute Kate, it’s still May 16th here! You can’t remind me of being a voice coach and of seesmic in the same post. It’s over the top, then I have to worry about bad hair, no makeup, having nothing to say, AND sounding bad.

      My blog. Sitting taunting, asking me who am I?

    • Kate Foy
      May 17, 2008 at 4:27 PM /

      Opps and a Woof! {seesmic_video:{“url_thumbnail”:{“value”:”http://t.seesmic.com/thumbnail/6fXMHkfiub_th1.jpg”}”title”:{“value”:”Opps and a Woof! “}”videoUri”:{“value”:”http://www.seesmic.com/video/VEKHz43xzj”}}}

    • Kate Foy
      May 17, 2008 at 4:39 PM /

      Bonnie K I hear you Bonnie!

      Re the political blogs, I dived into one the other day and followed the threads. I thought passion kinda outweighed reason at times. Also there were unkind, at times savage personal comments … the sort of argumentum ad hominum no-no things we were taught weren’t fair in logical debate. Oh well. Mum used to warn me never to debate politics or religion. And of course, there’s nothing fair about politics. Sigh! Naturally I didn’t comment. 🙂

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