"Something's Afoot"

"...and the butler didn't do it!"

That was a very funny line at the beginning of the play we saw last night. It came when the butler had been murdered by exploding stairs while announcing dinner. VERY funny!

Tom and I took our friend Sylvia with us to Town Theater in Columbia last night, to see "Something's Afoot." I was immediately impressed by the set which was very elaborate and beautifully executed. It really was gorgeous to look at, and as the play unfolded, the intricacies were amazing. We had a good time.

Our next visit there will be to see "Damn Yankees."

Happy Birthday, Jim!

My sister Cathy's husband Jim celebrates his birthday today...well, technically they are celebrating Sunday, but the actual date is today. Many happy returns, Jim!

All over

"The Canterbury Tales" and the ACES Annual Easter Egg Hunt are both finished for 2008...thank goodness! I enjoyed participating in both events, but they do get worrisome just beforehand.

The Egg Hunt was successful in a way, but very unsuccessful in getting lots of participants. The weather played a big role in that problem--it was the day that something like 26 tornadoes touched down in the state. We had not named a rain date, so we went ahead with the hunt--and had beautiful weather the whole time. We had about ten kids, I think (compared to about forty last year), and those kids cleaned up! Since there is no way of knowing how many kids will show (we have asked for R.S.V.P.'s in the past and get one or two respondents and thirty show up) we went ahead and hid all six hundred eggs. Our eggs had either candy, Chuck E. Cheese tokens, silly putty or slips of paper to redeem for larger prizes inside. There was also a Commander's egg, provided by the Commander of course, with her own gifts for the finder inside. The Easter Bunny arrived along with Sparky the Fire Dog on a fire truck (no sirens, although I thought we had asked for them) and they got the show on the road, so to speak. A couple of our little ones were frightened by the big characters--one so much that he refused to hunt for eggs! His little brother hunted for him, though. So, in doing the math, you know we averaged about sixty eggs per child. Like I said, they cleaned up! The kids who were there had a great time, and I think the grown-up helpers did, too. After the kids emptied their eggs (to be recycled for next year) and claimed their prizes, the Commander went around making everyone guess how many jellybeans were in the jar. The one who guessed closest without going over won the contents of the jar. Our two closest guesses were by....wait for it... the Easter Bunny and Sparky! So I arranged with the Commander to have the Bunny accept the jar and then present it to the youngest child present. This was one of the children who was frightened of the Bunny--but he was very slow and gentle in the way he presented the jar, and kept a picnic table between himself and the child. Once the child had the jar, he hesitantly high-fived the Bunny. Too cute. A few minutes after that, the fire fighters gave tours of their truck and equipment, allowing the kids to sound the siren and the horn as well as climb on the vehicles. They seemed to love it. So it was a good in spite of the low turnout.

"The Canterbury Tales" final production was a Sunday matinée for an almost-full house. This theater actively discourages pranks of any kind as being 'not professional,' so not much happened along those lines, except for the two teenaged girls lifting their Medieval length skirts about thigh-high while standing as close to the performers onstage as possible without being seen by the audience in an attempt to distract the teenaged boys onstage. They have done similar the entire run, but I haven't said anything because I was aware the actors can't really see anything in the wings while they are onstage. So the girls are not real shy about it around me--but this time they turned around, and who was standing next to me but Tom! Both sets of hands went to their cheeks in embarrassment, they giggled and turned away. When it was time to go get some some props and take them onstage, on girl kept her head WAY down so she wouldn't have to look at Tom, the other avoided his eyes. The whole thing was highly amusing, as all WE saw was the backs of their knees! I guess it was good it was the last show, so they can have some time to get over their embarrassment before the next show.

After the final performance is the Cast Party, where gag gifts are presented after the food. Some of the gifts are really imaginative and all are funny. It was a laugh to watch. Tom and I started striking the set that evening, and have reset for the next show and begun the painting. We have to get done as quickly as we can as we will be unavailable for at least two full weeks (and four weekends) of the time before the next show which goes up the beginning of May. Luckily, it is a simple set. The next show is called "Girl's Night Out" and consists of a one-act play and a number of poems, monologues, songs and other presentations about women, by women. Should be an interesting event.

Happy Saint Patrick's Day!

An Irish Blessing~

May you be in heaven half an hour before the devil knows you're dead!

Coffee with the next door neighbor

That's what I did this morning--Italian coffee with the lady next door and her two-year-old son. I took some of the oatmeal cookies I made yesterday for the Egg Hunt. She is a military spouse, and although she has some friends, she is lonely and seeking companionship. She is young, of course, and missing her family. She tells me that in Italy, one lives with one's parents until one marries and lives with one's spouse. She misses her parents a lot. She says Americans are much more independent. Some of us, I guess, but not all.

We made plans for lunch next week. She wants to make me a Sardinian pasta dish. We are also going to take Hayden, her son, to Swan Lake sometime soon. She has heard of it but has not been there, yet.

I am off to do some Egg Hunt preparations.

Have a good weekend, y'all!

Thursday morning

Couldn't sleep, so was out of bed before sunlight...no idea why sleep is elusive.

My delurking day didn't really introduce any new people, but the ones I *did* get comments from left wonderfully uplifting messages so I am happy.

Tonight begins our second weekend of performance of "The Canterbury Tales." Tom has been at the theater the past three nights, making improvements on the booth. He has to go in early tonight to clean up and prepare for the show. He is going to let me know if he will pick up dinner on the way or if he wants me to bring it when I come.

Saturday is our Annual Children's Easter Egg Hunt, sponsored by our Spouse's Group. The eggs are stuffed, the bunny costume is waiting, we have painted posters with holes cut in them to make cutesy pictures as souvenirs, make up for face-painting, even Sparky the Fire Dog is going to stop by and supplies have been purchased...we just need to see if donations cover refreshments or not, and I have to finish filling a jar with jelly beans so the kids can guess how many are in there. Fun stuff. We are just praying it doesn't rain.

500th post!

Do you know what that means? It means it is de-lurking day! There are just a few of you who visit regularly who have never posted a comment, even to just say 'hello.' Today's the day! Please, click on 'Comments' at the bottom of the post and leave a greeting. Feel free to tell me who you are and how you came to my blog.

I had an MRI on Friday...

and the results came in as "normal." So now my Primary Care Manager is sending me to a neurologist to investigate the headache I have had for months, now. Tons o' fun, I tell ya. Especially dealing with the Military Healthcare System. Last week, I saw my PCM and she referred me to three different doctors for three different problems (neurologist, dermatologist and oral surgeon, in case you were wondering). When the referrals were printed out, one of the office workers noticed my address was listed as my daughter's address! She didn't actually know it was my daughter's address, she just knew it was in another state--which meant the letters of referral would go there, instead of to me at home. All I can think that might have caused this was, back in October, when I was at Jen's and waiting for T.J. to come home from the desert I had my thyroid medication refilled at the local Army Base. Totally legal. But they asked me for a local address, so I gave them Jen's. However, just last month I received two referrals here at home, so the address change was made recently. I cannot figure out why, if that is where the change came from, it took almost five months! I had to make several phone calls and listen to numerous telephone menu selections and other recordings to get it corrected, but it is supposed to be corrected, now. No one can tell me where that new address came from, though, and how to prevent it from happening in future.

In other news, preparations for the Easter Egg Hunt are in full swing and coming along nicely. Tomorrow we are holding as 'egg-stuffing event' in hopes of getting most, if not all, of the plastic eggs ready to hide on Saturday. I have ben researching face-painting patterns and helpful hints, we have to pick up the Bunny Costume...I think we still a volunteer bunny, too--and we need to work on refreshments. But that is all easy stuff. We're in the homestretch and I foresee a fun event for all concerned.

Tom has been keeping busy doing renovation work at the theater. He is actually renovating the renovation...the work done in recent years was not done by 'theater' people, so were are finding lots of little problems that are very annoying--like the 'house lights' in the theater hang lower than the stage lights. Two problems with that--the stage lights hit the house light fixtures and cause shadows onstage and the view of the stage from the booth is obstructed by the low-hanging fixtures. Also, when climbing the ladder into the booth, one must be careful not to hit one's head on the big pipe at the top. Tom discovered the pipe is not used for anything, so he removed it. No more concussions! (We didn't really concuss ourselves, but it was annoying to have to duck under that pipe!) There are some other things, too, and Tom is trying to make the space a more efficent place to work, and all the theater folks seem to appreciate his efforts.

Up and running

"The Canterbury Tales" that is...

We have been doing dress rehearsals and performances every day this week. The director decided the kids needed so many because of the numberous props and costume additions that go with the show. Tom's mother stopped in on Monday and decided to stay until Wednesday's 'Friends and Family Dress Rehearsal' that we do at this theatre--the final dress rehearsal is in front of a friendlly audience. She enjoyed it, telling me she really enjoyed the teenaged boy who plays a rooster. He does do a very good job with it--they all do. He has six 'wives' and all the little girls playing hens ham it up very nicely.

The performances have been going very well...only a few glitches, like when the lighter wouldn't light for The Alchemist. The actor ad libbed fairly well, and I got ready to send another actor on with a match...but the lighter worked and the flame and smoke were spectacular. Another time, an actor tripped over a woman's leg in the aisle (there is lots of action up and down the aisles, and she had her leg sticking out). He was not happy. But I think he is over it now.

Tomorrow is a matinée--we have to be there by 2:00. I hope everyone remembers to 'Spring forward'!

Happy Birthday, Gary!

Hope it is a happy one.

Happy Birthday, Linda!

Happy Birthday, Bill!

We've been written up in the local paper....

See the story here.

Still working on the set, but almost done....

The fireplace, close up. Didn't John do a terrific job?

From stage right.

From stage left

Copying Erin....

At her suggestion, I might add....putting up my posts for the same day for each year I have written the blog.

I looked for posts on 3 March, and there weren't any in my first year, so I went with 4 March:

Saturday, March 04, 2006

Lily Grace + 2 days
I'd like to thank whatever gods were in charge of the Internet access here for waiting until after Lily's arrival to stop my ability to blog or check email. The computer simply stopped working and there wasn't a thing I could do about it. Jen and Jay were still at the hospital and had much more important things to worry about. I did suffer some withdrawal, but Jay fixed it within two hours (possibly less) of arriving home today and I am fine now, thank you.
Many, many thanks for the good wishes via comments and emails. Lily Grace is beautiful and we are blessed to have her as part of our family.
As I mentioned, Jay came home today, and he brought Jen and Lily Grace with him. Ryan was sleeping when they arrived, so he had a nice surprise when he got up from his nap. He had been a fine example of a big brother. He was greatly concerned when Lily cried, and he helped Mommy comfort her by gently rubbing Lily's back -- rubbing faster when she cried harder! So cute. At bedtime, Ryan was being disagreeable about staying in bed when Lily started to cry. Daddy told Ryan 'I have to go help Lily now.' Ryan said 'OK.' and that was that. He's asleep now. I think Lily is, too, and I hope Jen is able to get some sleep tonight as well. She is feeling a little stressed and she's exhausted, as is about normal for a new mother. More tomorrow, as I am sleepy myself. I'll even try to get some photos posted, if I am feeling dynamic!
posted by Joan S. at 10:32 PM 0 comments

Sunday, March 04, 2007

Bits 'n' Pieces

• I did it! It's only the fourth performance, and I managed to hit ALL my sound cues just right! Of course, I still have a problem getting the curtain pulled on time, but that is another story involving the lack of radioes and communication with my crew.....anyway, I am so pleased I finally managed to do the show properly. Next weekend, we have four more performances, and I am hoping to get them all right, too.
  
• I was a bit concerned when I got to the theater and realized I had left both my cell phone and my wallet home. I use the clock on the cell phone and my license is in the wallet. I borrowed Tom's phone and had no need for the license, so all was well. We did have a minor emergency during the intermission: as we were waiting for the crewmember to return and tell us the audience was back in their seats, one of the actors noticed that a picture hanging on the wall was not right. I had to remove my radio, rush across the stage as quietly as possible and fix it. I don't know who put it up, but it was there with a balled-up piece of tape stuck onto the screw head, I guess hoping the tape would be strong enough. It did not hold and the picture was wedged against the wall by the one below it. I didn't ask about it because by the time I got back, the entire set crew (both of them) was there watching what I was doing so whoever tried it knows it doesn't work.
  
• Last night, when we opened the curtain on Act II , where the set is all dressed up and pretty, there was a 'wow!' from someone in the audience. Sylvia, who opens the curtain says she hears a collective intake of breath every show at that point. But this afternoon? The audience actually applauded! How cool is that?
  
• Yesterday, the actor who played Andrew came to the theater limping. He had thrown out his knee while helping a friend move earlier in the day. He was in a lot of pain during his sword fight rehearsal. He needed first aid, so I got him some ice, Sylvia ran home and got an ice-pack, some Icy Hot ointment, and a heating pad, and Paige went to the store and bought an ACE bandage and more Icy Hot. Are we a helpful crew, or what? He handled the show pretty well, and I think only those of us who know how he usually behaves would have noticed.
  
• Today, we drew names among the cast and crew for 'gag gifts' at the Cast Party on the day of the final show. I want to try to find something that would be funny without being mean--I have a woman's name, and we can be so sensitive sometimes!
  
• It was still light out when we came out of the theater after the matinee today. It seemed so wrong, somehow! I actually cooked and am planning to cook again tomorrow. Tom won't know what to think.
  
• Tom has been trying to squeeze in as much work at home as possible. He was raking leaves yesterday, and today he pulled the wooden garden edging that the termite inspector suggested we remove and took it to the dump on his way to the theater. Tonight he is cleaning his garage, which was pretty deep in sawdust from his work for the theater.
  posted by Joan S. at 7:30 PM 0 comments

We got reviewed...
This came out before the first performance.We were reviewed afterward...Check it out here.
posted by Joan S. at 12:06 AM 1 comments

Happy Birthday, Lily!

Jen's little Sweet Pea is two years old today! It's hard to believe so much time has passed since out little angel joined us here on Earth. Lily is a joy and we are blessed to have her.

These two photos were taken when Lily was about 17 months old...we were on Family Vacation in Holden Beach, NC. Lily looks a little older now, and she has more hair! I call this one "Wan dat?" which was Lily's way of asking for something--in this case, my camera.

Isn't she a perfect sleeping angel? I'll bet after the first hour, Mommy didn't think so.

Vindication!

We are finishing up painting on the set of "The Canterbury Tales." People have been asking what is left to do, and when I mention 'shadows' they all indicate it is not necessary to paint the shadows between the beams of our Tudor-style Inn. Today, however, Liisa's daughters were to be busy until 5:00pm, so she stayed to help me paint--ane we ended by painting in those shadows. Tom had stepped out while we did it, and when he saw it, he said it really made a difference, it 'made it pop.' Liisa liked hearing that because she painted almost all the shadows, after I showed her how to use a straight stick to paint straight lines. Very cool.

Now, if I have time, I want to add highlights.....