theliminalstage
- Location
- Miami Beach, Florida, USA
- Birthday
- October 08
- Bio
- The daughter of a Greek father and a Minnesotan mother, Eleni Gage has always been obsessed with cultural rituals and traditions. So it was an obvious decision for her to study Folklore and Mythology in college (although said parents hoped she’d choose something more practical…like English).
Now a freelance writer and editor whose travel articles have appeared on the covers of Travel+Leisure, T, Budget Travel, and Town&Country Travel, Eleni has also contributed to Real Simple, Martha Stewart Weddings, the New York Times, Parade, and The American Scholar, and held staff positions at Allure, Elle, InStyle and People magazines.
She is the author of the travel memoir North of Ithaka, which describes the year she spent living in a Greek mountain village overseeing the rebuilding of her grandparents house, and the upcoming Other Waters, which will be released by St. Martin’s Press in winter, 2011. Her first novel, Other Waters details the life of Maya Das, an Indian-American psychiatrist who thinks that her family has been cursed, as she strives to build one identity between two cultures.
Eleni now lives in Miami Beach with her husband, a Nicaraguan coffee trader. She picked her wedding date a year before meeting him, with the help of an Indian astrologer who told her she’d marry a “soft-hearted businessman” on 10.10.10. This accurate prediction is one of the many events in Eleni’s life that have confirmed her belief that Folklore and Mythology, with its focus on ritual, tradition, and divination, is by far the most useful major she could have chosen.
MY RECENT POSTS
- "Brown" and Out in Beverly
Hills
May 03, 2012 01:46PM - Same Same, But Different
February 08, 2012 11:49AM - Motherhood's Greatest Hits
February 01, 2012 10:55AM - Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
January 24, 2012 02:21PM - Splitting Hairs
January 17, 2012 10:50AM
MY RECENT COMMENTS
- “Thanks, ladies! Happy
Dragon right back
atcha!”
February 01, 2012 10:56AM - “Hey! I just saw your
comments--thanks for reading!
FusunA,
Amalía is
prett…”
January 24, 2012 02:23PM - “Alex, I was drowning in
kin work and only just now
read this
comment. Thank you
f…”
January 11, 2012 09:44AM - “Thanks for the comments
and fear not; I'm always
wearing an
evil eye talisman
so…”
January 11, 2012 09:42AM - “Myriad, I'm glad you
liked it! Thanks for
commenting.
E”
January 11, 2012 09:41AM
Theliminalstage's Links
"Brown" and Out in Beverly Hills
Why is this man smiling?
Ashton Kutcher—what were you thinking, dude?
I know it's hard to stay grounded when you're constantly surrounded by celebrities and security. But what part of you thought it would be a good idea to put on "brownface" and play a creepy would-be… Read full post »
Same Same, But Different
Almost exactly 10 years ago I had a cyst removed from my
right ovary. It was discovered during my annual gynecologic exam,
which I had scheduled early because I was about to move to Greece
to oversee the rebuilding of my grandparents' house, which had
fallen into ruin after the Greek/… Read full post »
Motherhood's Greatest Hits
Bird's Eye View of AmalíaA couple of months ago a young male friend asked me, "How has motherhood changed you?"
I thought about it but I couldn't quite put into words how everything had changed, and yet, thankfully, I still felt like myself. But I wanted to give him… Read full post »
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
Logo from waterdragon.com
F. Scott Fitzgerald famously said "There are no second acts in American lives." But I suspect that's because he didn't know much about Chinese New Year. Personally, I never miss a chance to celebrate it because for me, the lunar new year, which … Read full post »
Splitting Hairs
They
say marriage is about compromise. My daughter is wearing ours on
her head.
In Nicaragua, where my husband’s from, it’s customary to shave babies’ heads on the theory that their hair will grow in longer, lusher, and healthier.
In New York, where I’m from, it’s… Read full post »
Diving for Blessings
Angela Wylie's photo of Theophany in Australia from theage.com.au
I love Miami Beach, but I yearn for New York. Let's keep in mind that my people invented nostalgia. (The word comes from the ancient Greek nostos (homecoming) and algia (pain, think neuralgia or fibromyalgia). Given the… Read full post »
Luck Be A Lentil, Tonight
My husband and I were already asleep by midnight this
New Year's Eve. I like to think that's not because we're insanely
boring but because our baby has been teething, so when she sleeps,
we sleep. We did go to dinner, though, beforehand, at
an Italian
restaurant where the outdoor sea/… Read full post »
Away, in a Manger
Manger
scene in the church of San FranciscoSome people are social conservatives; I'm a seasonal conservative. I insist that my family strictly adhere to every holiday observance, from putting the angel on the tree on Christmas Eve before attending the Christmas pageant at church, to stuffing… Read full post »
The Ghost of Christmas Cards Past
I'm sure by now you've all heard about the mayor of San Juan, Puerto Rico's questionable Christmas card. And if not, and this is the first time you're seeing it, you're welcome. In an attempt to support the city's wildl… Read full post »
Nice Work if You Kin Get It
Image taken from Primal Blueprint ExplorerThere may be a job shortage of epic proportions going on, but as the holiday season slouches towards us, it's clear that there's no shortage of kin work. "Kin work" is the term anthropologists use to describe the "conception, maintenance, and ritual… Read full post »
Nice Work if You Kin Get It
Image taken from Primal Blueprint ExplorerThere may be a job shortage of epic proportions going on, but as the holiday season slouches towards us, it's clear that there's no shortage of kin work. "Kin work" is the term anthropologists use to describe the "conception, maintenance, and ritual… Read full post »
What's in a Name?
The first challenge of parenthood.When I was a little girl someone asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up. So I sat down and made a list. High on it (below "shoe-shopper" but above bookstore clerk) was the following ambition: I wanted to be in charge… Read full post »
Earthquakes, Hurricanes, and Other Acts of God and Man
There's a Yiddish saying that when man plans, God
laughs. Apparently, when I plan, the laughter comes from my infant
daughter Amalía, who was due to arrive in this world on
August 19th, if not before, my doctors said, judging from her size.
When I heard that, I began making plans./… Read full post »
Sibling Revelry
Raksha Bandhan image from www.4to40.comAre you ready for Raksha Bandhan? It's August 13th this year.
I know, that's still a few days away. But if you're not Hindu, and this is your first Raksha Bandhan, you might need some time to prepare yourself to celebrate. The way I understand it,… Read full post »
Beauty from Birth
Baby girl with earrings, from
babyphotospictures.comAt our childbirth prep class on Sunday I bravely asked the visiting pediatrician the question my husband wanted answered, but was too shy to articulate: When is it appropriate to pierce the baby's ears?
We had already covered how soon a ba
… Read full post »Birth Control?
Christian
Louboutins from howtosprintinstilettos.comWhen my husband and I walked into the hospital-run birthing class last Sunday, carrying the yoga mat and two pillows we had been instructed to bring, there were lots of pregnant women in t-shirts and leggings. And then there was one pregnan… Read full post »
On Tiger Wives, Rabbit Babies, and Shrinking Violets
Smackdown! Deng in action. Photo from
tntmagazine.comMy parents are on vacation in Greece, so the multiple daily phone calls my mother and I codependently engage in have been replaced via email. Yesterday she emailed, "last night we went to dinner with two other couples and they all agreed
… Read full post »Oedipus Wrecks or Oh, How the Mighty Have Swollen
Alexandre Cabanel's Oedipus Separating from
JocastaAt almost nine months pregnant (I'm pushing 35 weeks), I've been thinking a lot about Oedipus. Not because I'm carrying a son whom we plan to abandon in the mountains shortly after birth in order to avoid a prophecy that he will kill
… Read full post »
On Wednesdays the City of Miami Beach screens a movie on
the wall of the Frank Gehry-designedNew World Symphony Building, and,
depending on what the flick is, my husband and I join hundreds of
other Miami Beach residents in the park opposite the building to
watch it. This Wednesday's had/
On Fallen Idols and Fashion Victims
My mom idolizes Jackie Kennedy. I assumed this was
because, as a journalist in the 60s and 70s, she wrote or edited
innumerable stories about Jackie's life, wardrobe, and shoe size
(which is surprisingly large, my mama, Joanie, tells me). On our
visits to New York she would point out the/… Read full post »
Have Ipod, Will Give Birth
"And how does hearing your awful labor story help me,
exactly" t-shirt from teewit.comAll the baby books, websites, and ads for childbirth prep classes that I read tend to harrumph, "Many expectant parents spend more time decorating the nursery than they do planning the birth!"
Well not us,
… Read full post »Math is Hard
That's a misquote of the elusive "Teen Talk Barbie," which was recalled by Mattel in 1991 after public outcry deemed her shallow drivel (which included "Party dresses are fun! Do you have a crush on anybody?") antifeminist and damaging to children. What Barbie actually said was not
… Read full post »
That Royal Wedding, July 29, 1981, Getty Images / Fox
Photos / Hulton Archive (borrowed from an about.com page on
Princess Diana's wedding photos).
This morning my mother apologized. It’s a rare occurrence, but what was even more remarkable was the topic about which she felt guilty. &ld
… Read full post »I Come in Peace–How I Learned to Stop Fearing Palm Sunday
An 1842 painting of Christ's entry into Jerusalem by
Hippolyte.Many parts of Lent are solemn, and some are downright sad; I once saw a woman crying so much during a Good Friday service on the island of Corfu that I whispered to my mother, "You should tell her
… Read full post »Of Mercury and Money
Vintage ad borrowed from
http://oldadvertising.blogspot.comOne would think that money matters, being mathematical, are purely practical, as opposed to emotional or mystical. But one would be wrong.
According to the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers, financial problems are the s
… Read full post »
Kerry Lauerman
Joan Walsh
Salon.com