Sisters, sisters...

The nuns in this show have come together remarkably well and have made this production a lot more fun. We've also been a supportive bunch; one of our sisters lost a grandparent while we were in rehearsal and had to miss a few rehearsals to go to the funeral. Various of us have been late because of work or family things that had to be taken care of, or missed rehearsals for illness. The late or absent nun always got a "how are you? are you OK?" when she arrived. Last night, two of our number were quite late; one because of a work emergency, the other because she had spent the day with friends in from out of town to attend a memorial service for a close friend of all of them. Each arrived frazzled and upset and immediately was surrounded by a flock of mother hens, offering hugs and "Hey, it's a rehearsal, not a performance. You'll be fine."

It's also been fun to see how our Maria and von Trapp kids have bonded. Our Maria really does mother them, they get along like siblings, our Liesl also mothers the rest of the kids - I think it's contributed a lot to how well they do on stage that they get along so well off stage.

These friendships sometimes continue, if only on a back burner, long after a show has closed. For example, the Albert Peterson to my Mae Peterson in Bye Bye Birdie over a year ago still calls me Mamma when we see each other.

This sort of thing puts the "community" in community theater. It doesn't happen with every cast, but I've seen it happen often enough that it not only doesn't surprise me, but I probably secretly hope for another such experience with each new cast.

Busy week

Of course it's a busy week - it's Tech Week! In addition to daily rehearsals since Saturday, I also managed to squeeze in an audition Sunday night for a production of The Merry Widow. Requested one of the embassy wives or Njegus (they're casting it as a mezzo, not the usual baritone); wasn't called back and haven't heard anything, so I'm guessing that means I'll be in the chorus.

Doing very little tech week sewing for this show. All I have to do is adjust the fastening for my nun's collar and sew myself a new coif because the one I was issued is too short to stay tucked into the wimple. I bought a pattern & fabric yesterday, so today I sew. That means I'll only get one rehearsal with it before Sound of Music opens tomorrow night, but that shouldn't be a problem. My other costume prep is similarly minimal - starch the wimple in hopes of getting it to lie flat and press the habit & scapular.

Had one little "incident" last night. Two of us nuns are responsible for setting and striking the table for the scenes on the von Trapp terrace (Baroness von Schraeder, Max and the Capt). Last night we were striking it after the first terrace scene and had a few difficulties: no one was holding back the curtain leg we needed to get past, people were standing in the space the table needed to go into, and a huge "wall" was much too close. I learned of the wall's position the hard way, when we swung the table to avoid hitting people and my hand (the dominant one, natch!) suddenly ended up between the table and the corner of the "wall". Ouch! Tonight I'm posting a sign asking people to leave the table space clear.

Don't give 'em any ideas!

If you've flown recently, or even priced fares, you can relate. I just hope this doesn't give the airlines any ideas...

Um, yeah, it's been a while, hasn't it?

Lots of little things conspiring against me lately - TW installed the newest version of Internet Explorer on our computer, which promptly wreaked all kindsa havoc. The computer is mostly working again, but some things still work either s-l-o-w-l-y or not at all, and that only after TW spent 2 or 3 days trying various fixes.

Last weekend a cousin (well, actually, a parental cousin, but never mind) was in town because she had written 3 piano vignettes for a program in a series for the Lincoln bicentennial. We went to the program Saturday night, then met her for brunch on Sunday and had a nice, long visit - just great!

With Opening Night fast approaching, we started running full acts a week or so ago and did our first full run Wednesday night. Monday night we loaded the set into the theater, today was the Sitzprobe (first run-through w/ orchestra), tomorrow is our first rehearsal on the set, Monday will be our first full dress rehearsal, and we open this coming Friday.

TW's car has been headed for a new transmission for a while now, but this past week it started leaking fluids. He'd been hoping to get another 6 months to a year out of it, but after learning that even a rebuilt transmission would cost almost as much as the car is worth, he decided to bite the bullet and replace it now. He spent a few nights researching cars on line, following up on what he'd learned when I was going through this exercise. Last night we did some carshopping and he ended up buying himself a nice, new Matrix.

Today TW stopped first at the bank to move some money around to cover the check we wrote last night for the down payment, then to the dealership to sell them his Saturn, and from there he went to the cabin to drain the pipes (they've had overnight freezes out there at least 3 nights out of the past 4 or 5) and check on a few other things. His first drive in his new car and with his new cruise control.

zzzzzzz

Won't be long now... My back started spasming right after dinner, to the point where I realized even Rx-strength motrin wasn't gonna do it. I broke down and took a muscle relaxant, called to say I wouldn't be at rehearsal tonight after all because the pill would knock me out. "My brain is going, Dave; I can feel it, Dave..."

Too many apples?

No, but getting close. The peck of Jonagold apples my sister & I bought 2 weeks ago have gotten too soft to bake (one cake only used 4 apples), so they're now simmering in my 8-qt soup pot - applesauce in the making.

I stopped at the same orchard Saturday on my way to the cabin. The Yorks are in now, so I picked up 1/2 a peck. Yesterday TW and I went to a local apple butter festival, where one of the apple vendors actually had Jonathans! They used to be common as Romes or Macintosh and always came into season just in time for my birthday, but the past few years I've been unable to find any at all, so I bought 1/2 peck of them.

For those of you keeping track, that's one peck of apples bought in a single weekend, when I hadn't finished the first peck. Two pecks = 1/2 bushel, in case you were wondering; methinks I overbought just a bit. So yesterday I borrowed a pie plate from our cabin neighbors and returned it w/ a pie in it; that took care of half the Yorks. Today when we got home, I first cut up the Jonagolds for applesauce, then the rest of the Yorks for a pie. Not only does the house smell wonderful, but because we've got the doors & windows open (turned out to be another gorgeous day), we're sharing the olfactory wealth with the neighbors.

That still leaves the Jonathans, but because we've already started snacking on them, I imagine I'll only need to bake once or twice more to finish them off.

Worth every penny!

TW was saying the other night that we'd "lost money" on the cabin because what we'd have made on a sale since all the work we had done on it wasn't as much as what we'd've made if we hadn't done anything but upgrade the kitchen (which desperately needed it!) and replace the roof. But he readily agreed with me when I pointed out that we were enjoying the cabin and not exactly planning to sell anytime soon.

Then this morning he called from out there (I'll join him after rehearsal today), talking 20 words to the dozen about how gorgeous it is, he'd already taken a long walk and seen 15 or 20 deer, including a young buck, he'd opened up all the blinds and had the sun pouring in... On and on and on. I mentioned bringing stuff out to make an apple pie; "No, I don't want you working out here; just come and relax and enjoy." (He, on the other hand, was about to start sanding the deck some more. He does enjoy working on the place.)

His enthusiasm was enough to make me wish I could skip rehearsal. It was so good to hear him so upbeat, since work has been getting him down lately.

No, the cabin is not an investment property, unless you stretch the definition to include investing in one's own mental health. A shrink might be cheaper (we've spent a lot on repairs and improvements since we bought the place), but this will last more than 50 minutes a week.

How to make your house smell wonderful

Baked an apple cake after dinner tonight. Only used 4 Jonagolds, but they were big - nearly softball-sized! The recipe only calls for cinnamon, but I added dashes of nutmeg, clove, allspice, even a sprinkle of ginger. The house smells so good now!

Some of this will go across the street to our neighbor, whose birthday is tomorrow and who loves this particular cake, even though it's not frosted. TW joked as usual about keeping the whole cake for himself, but it's all in good fun. Depending on how the weekend goes, though, I may well end up making either another cake or an apple pie. (I bought a lot of apples last weekend when my sister & I stopped by the family-run orchard near the cabin. I gotta use 'em up before they go bad.)

It's a wonder I don't rattle.

Just when I thought I was over my cold, the cough started reasserting itself last week; not just refusing to go away, but getting worse. The after-hours doc diagnosed bronchitis, so now I'm on both anti-inflammatory steroids and an antibiotic so I don't pick up any secondary infections.

The ironic thing is that a friend & I sang for our parish's monthly healing mass this afternoon. He'd just spent 2 hours at his son's soccer game, inhaling allergens, so between his allergies and my cruddy lungs... Let's just say it's a good thing there were 2 of us, so one could keep things going while the other coughed or cleared a throat.

Dinner tonight? That chicken soup I made for my ailing hubby earlier today - lovely comfort food.

Escape artist

Just call that pup Houdini...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-3EyMPzMoo

"Jewish penicillin"

Poor TW's down with the cold I'm finally getting rid of and right now is at the worst part of it - head stuffed solid, coughing, and not sleeping well because of it. He eagerly took me up on my offer to make what he refers to as "Jewish penicillin" - chicken soup. Easy enough to do, as we still had most of a chicken left from dinner the other night, as well as the basics - celery, onion, carrots. When I asked whether he'd like rice, barley, or noodles in it as well, he said "Yes!" In other words, throw in a little of each. We'll see how that combination turns out, but at least it smells good.

Having fun already

I collected my sister from the airport yesterday afternoon and she immediately started catching me up on things in her family - much to tell! We fed her a nice dinner, using the fancy china, crystal & sterling, though we warned her that "after tonight, it's back to the everyday stuff." We regaled her with stories of our Williamsburg weekend, we laughed at the kid stories she told, and she & I stayed up to watch a movie while TW went to bed. (After all, he had to work today.) We only managed half the movie before sending our tired selves to bed, but we still have the rest of the movie to look forward to.

One of the things that will make this a lot of fun is that, like me, she likes to quote appropriate song lyrics, and since we know a lot of the same songs, well, pity my poor husband! :D

Right now we're enjoying the process of deciding what sightseeing is best for a completely overcast, threatening-rain day...

Beautiful day in the neighborhood

The weather was very close to perfect when we got home on Sunday so I decided it was high time we finally put the screen in the storm door, never mind that we'll want to put the glass back in another month or so. I'm so glad we did! We've had the windows open even during the day (with the window stops or "burglar buttons" in place, of course) and opened the front & back doors when we got home from work. It's been lovely, despite the car alarms, barking dogs and the rest. I can't do this in spring, so I'm that much more delighted when we can do it in late summer or in the autumn. I just hope some of this lovely weather sticks around for my sister's visit - she arrives tomorrow.

My "inner milliner" is happy

Couldn't resist; bought a shallow-crowned, wide-brimmed straw hat at Williamsburg when I found a shop that sold 'em untrimmed ($18.95, vice $45.95 and up for decorated ones) as well as a cap to go under it. As I told the cashier, I'm bound to be in some show or other for which it will come in handy.

Mom reminded me that it was her paternal grandmother who was the milliner; did the hats for the ladies in the wedding party when Mom's parents got married. I'm sure she'd approve, though I don't know whether she'd admire my restraint at not buying the untrimmed felt hat as well, or smile knowingly at my reasoning that "I'll buy it on our next visit."

More proof that I married a good one

We were in Williamsburg this weekend w/ my folks (who are there for a week in a time share). Saturday we went to Colonial Williamsburg and got a wheelchair for Dad, whose balance is still just iffy enough and whose leg is just unreliable enough that we didn't want to take any chances with the uneven surfaces and all the walking. Dad's new shoulder is still recovering and is still under doctor's orders not even to consider trying to wheel himself lest he tear something. My huge-hearted husband did the bulk of the chair pushing - if Mom tried to "get behind the wheel", TW would politely but firmly take over. He didn't get to see much as a result, and had to coax that chair over brick sidewalks and up and down hills (fortunately neither too long nor too steep). He did this with nary a word of complaint, though Mom did manage to get in some time "behind the wheel", and he didn't protest when I "drove" Dad from our last stop back to the shuttle. Poor guy - he slept long and well last night but is still tired today.

He & I will definitely be going back on our own sometime in the next year so he can actually go in and see all the exhibits he's interested in, not just one or two.

Is fate picking on women?

My prayer list is loading up fast, and most of the new names are women: one friend's mother has breast cancer, another friend's mother has a brain tumor, a female friend is going thru some personally & professionally very trying times at the moment, another had gall bladder surgery last month (her 3rd surgery in as many years), and one up and died, leaving her husband a widower again (poor man has now buried 2 wives). Yes, she'd had serious health problems for years, but still...

Not that the men have it all that easy - a neighbor of ours at the cabin was diagnosed w/ Parkinson's in his early 40s, there's my friend who's a widower again, the friend whose mother has the brain tumor.

On the other hand, I learned last night that a Birdie alumnus, who's a struggling grad student (or is that redundant?), just landed an absolutely perfect job. The job is with a non-profit, making a difference in the educational lives of disadvantaged children. He'll be doing exactly what he wants to do with his PhD, but before he has the degree. Better, he can use the database he'll create as his dissertation. Best of all, he'll be getting a salary that is a better than living wage, with full health benefits and a retirement plan! This is a huge burden off his shoulders; I'm delighted he was able to land a dream job that pays 2 or 3 times what he expected to get.

Music - current and potential projects

Went to buy some music yesterday - 30 Songs for Voice & Piano by Faure, to work on in my voice lessons, plus an oratorio anthology and a big, fat book of Cole Porter songs. We had already decided that I'd get the Faure to find a French piece to work on, since that's a language I'm comfortable with, and I love Faure's music. I'll also take the oratorio book to my lesson this week to see if my teacher thinks there's something in there I'm ready to work on. The Cole Porter is just because I like that stuff and want to have the music handy, just in case. I was tempted to pick up some Irving Berlin or Rodgers & Hammerstein too, but figured I needed to leave something unbought. That will give me an excuse to make another trip, as well as making the purchases more manageable. After all, with each anthology running an average of $20, it's all too easy to run up a very big bill indeed.

Now I'm really looking forward to this week's lesson...

Housework; sigh

Spent the day doing the domestic diva thing, mostly laundry - seven loads, including the bedding off both beds (2 duvet covers and 1 blanket included), all the bath and dish towels, and even the tub mat, shower curtain and liner from one bathroom. Almost none of this stuff is folded yet, but at least it's all clean, not to mention that the shower curtain is ironed (it's cotton - I had to iron it) and back in place, clean sheets on our bed, clean towels in the bathroom, and so on. I also made a huge bowl of salad and "containerized" it for lunches for the next coupla days so we can have healthy lunches that don't cost money better spent on costumes or power tools. ;-)

I'm tired & achy from make so many trips down to the basement, but feeling virtuous. (Now to get all this laundry folded and off the sorting table, um, living room couch...)

G&S marathon

How was it? Exhausting but worth the sleep deprivation. Plenty of high points, starting with opening the weekend with a rousing chorus of "Hail, Poetry". All those voices - thrilling! And then, several wags following it with "Play ball!" :D Well, it is the de facto anthem of so very many G&S fans. ;-)

Got to hear some wonderful voices ("Sweet & Low", from Utopia, Ltd, was another high point), see some great cut-ups, sing Hail, Poetry as Ruth with a good-sized chorus behind me making the stage fairly vibrate, sing alongside some fun people, reconnect with some out-of-town friends and make new ones. Not enough time to visit with everyone I would have liked to, but at least we were in the same room for much of the weekend.

Singing Grand Duke was fun - our principals did us proud. I found it a bit boring sitting on the risers waiting for the chorus' next entrance, but of course that wouldn't be an issue with a staged production. Still not sure whether I'd want to do Duke again, but if I do, it had better be an edited version; that's one G&S that's ripe for some judicious pruning.

Electile dysfunction

Every 4 years I have this problem - I get so fed up w/ the bloviage, mud-slinging and obfuscation that I pretty much tune out all the campaigning until mid-October. So when a friend sent me this today, I just had to share it:

Electile Dysfunction: The inability to become aroused over any of the choices
for President put forth by either party during an election year.