Oaxaca City, Mexico

Last week I told a colleague, "I wanna work from home. I wanna work from the office.  I want all the options, all the time -- I want it all!" Four* consecutive sentences that begin with "I want" is my version of crazy. And right now, everyone is going c.r.a.z.y. Times are "unprecedented" they say, aka crazy. But the three and a half year old roommate I live with is the least craziest person I know -- and most of what he says begins with "I want". More often than not though, his wants are legitimate needs so someone always helps him.

I've always wanted to be an artist. And I don't mean an artist who makes pretty little paintings, I mean an Artist. Like O'Keefe because she was the only female artist I knew that had posters as big and wide and everywhere like Picasso and Van Gogh. For the usual woe is me reasons (i.e., family, culture, patriarchy, capitalism, earth, the big bang), I kept my want hidden and ended up making pretty little things on the side, even though what I really wanted was to be an Artist.

So this little roommate of mine makes me wonder: If I rephrased my wants into needs, would I help myself more? Would someone help me? Would it all work out?? Of all the places I've been drawn to in the world because of art, Oaxaca City is the only place that made me realize that some of our wants** are actually needs.

If I can find a costume made out of electrostatic non-woven polypropylene fiber, consider it paid.