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Well folks…the four wisdom teeth are outta my head. I’m sore but okay. Unfortunately, I was pretty cognizant through the procedure and felt only one of the teeth be cut down and extracted – but 1 is not bad. I actually saw them once they were out of my head, and they were LARGE. Ewwww. Special thanks also to Amy (a good and dear friend), for transporting me to and from the procedure…she is an angel in this world. I’m still biting on the gauze and still bloody – but I’m hoping that it will all have been for good. Thanks for all the love and well wishes.
On a side note, Jim is away tonight doing a “sleep study”. So we’re both working at taking care of ourselves. That, my good people – is a good thing indeed!
Lobster!
The tickets for the sublime Eddie Izzard have arrived as we are going to see him with dearest friends at the Ryman! I’m so excited…it will be amazing to see him perform live!
I knew this would be the result. Penn Gillette…the louder, more outspoken half of Penn and Teller was voted off of Dancing with the Stars. Gotta love him though…2 dances with magic tricks, voodoo dolls and so on…I knew that the majority of the DTWS viewership would feel uncomfortable with the 6 foot 5 inch fabulousness that is Penn. Ah well…you can take the Penn outta’ the ballroom, but here’s hoping his wife Emily will reap the benefits of his new training and hell, the 50 pounds he’s lost make him look younger! We’re proud of ya’ Penn!
Well, after 5 days of aching, my trip to the dentist made my decision clear. Wisdom teeth are so called because you’re finally full of wisdom when you decide it’s time for them to be yanked. On Friday, all four are getting yanked from my mouth. Can’t say I’m looking forward to it – but I’m fed up with the pain. So, what can you do? It’s all good – just keep me in your thoughts! (No love to the four teeth that are getting their eviction notice).
Well today was a rainy day in NYC, which isn’t bad unless you know the proper umbrella etiquette when walking with hundreds of other people. We had a delightful day overall, sitting in a lot of warm coffee shops and chatting with the hubby and my Dad. A couple of huge highlights were:
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-Getting to see the finished pieces from Project Runway’s Hershey inspired show (seen above). Truthfully, the craftsmanship was wonderful, and the most impressive ones were Jillian’s Twizzler dress (which you can’t see in the above picture – but trust me, it held up really well), and Chris’ strapless number. Delish, in more ways than one!
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-Getting to see the revival of my favorite musical of all times…all times…Sunday in the Park with George (review in 2 Cents Worth).
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-Spending a day with my husband and my father…2 men representing my past and my future. Any time spent with them in the present is cherished.
So, I have no complaints! So, far the trip has been wonderful. More later!
In a few words, I cried…and it was good.
For anyone who knows me well, you know that this musical is my favorite of all time – and for a musical lover – that’s saying something. So, blessedly my father and husband were willing to sit through the revival of this wonderful musical. Now, I pretty much know the 1984 version by heart and I was suspect that anyone could out-do Pitankin and Peters (leads of the original); and while they were not outshown…the two leads in the revival Evans and Russell gave these familiar characters more LIFE.
First of all, they handled the scenic needs of this performance with exciting new advancements in projection. The landscape of La Grande Jatte’ was literally sketched before our eyes, then painted. The dogs in the park (once still life), were alive in animated form. The set design was masterful. The performances are, however, what won my heart.
There’s a scene where Dot (the female lead), is trying to get George to wake up and realize that she’s leaving for real – trying to get him to connect. I felt the ache and the longing in this production. I felt the struggle of connection…and the actors gave these characters more soul for me. Less expectation, more delivered.
If you love art and complexity of human connection – check this performance out or look up the 1984 version. It’s a pretty cerebral musical, so be forewarned…oh, and best score of the night – I am now the proud owner of a signed libretto by Stephen Sondheim himself…yea!!!!
Not the four-legged Easton! We arrived in my (Anna’s) hometown safe and sound late last night and have enjoyed taking today to recoup after a lot of driving. We got the obligatory green (dyed) bagels, and had the traditional meal of Chinese food for lunch – Irish to the core ain’t I? Ha. The best part was seeing Jenn a day earlier than expected after stopping off at the Easton Library. I must say, Jenn is doing astonishingly wonderful things at that library, I’ve never seen one so bustling with happy people. I wonder if she hired them? I mean, people were researching, reading, magazine perusing, on the microfilm readers, and more…it was surreal but wonderful! I miss my small town, which isn’t so small anymore.
In a few words…I wanna go!
While at the NASM, we took in a viewing of the IMAX movie Space Station 3D narrated by Tom Cruise (giggle). Being inspired by the Air & Space displays, I wanted to get as close to a sense of being in SPACE that I could so this movie I thought would get me there fastest. Essentially, it was a chronicle of the building and maintenance of the International Space Station. It was fascinating. You got to see the weightless work, the eating and sleeping in zero gravity and the good work that the astronauts are doing 250 miles above the earth. As an educational film, I would highly recommend it. If you’re fascinated by space travel and exploration, I recommend it. The only thing it may leave you with is a strong desire to eventually go there yourself. I truly wonder, if during my lifetime space travel will be more widely available? Who knows? However, I do hope – if I can never get to space that my child is able to…how truly expansive to consider.
Vacation day 2…we woke on Sunday morning and checked out of our hotel at noon. Thankfully, they let us keep our car in the garage and check our luggage into the bellman’s area so we could do some sightseeing. We walked everywhere we went today which we decided would be the National Air & Space Museum and the National Botanical Gardens. The weather was typical March – a little nip in the air and a nice strong wind at times – but sunny and reminding us that Spring is RIGHT AROUND THE CORNER.
We arrived at the NASM and I was immediately transported back to my childhood. The museum has a smell (not a bad smell), that is I guess at this point is it’s signature scent. It was the same scent from when I was a child and immediately took me back in time. You know, when I was a kid this was my favorite of the Smithsonian Museums. There is something about flight and SPACE that truly captures my imagination. Looking at all the different exhibits though made me remember my great grandmother who died in 1999 at the age of 103. She truly believed that we never went to space and that the government did a wonderful job of creating this in a movie studio. While there are enough conspiracy theorists out there who’d agree, my Baba Kadash (slovak for grandmother), thought this because she had grown up seeing horse/carriage and trains as the first modes of transportation. For her, 100 years saw HUGE leaps in technology and transportation, and I can imagine for a woman who was illiterate that space travel seemed like too far of a leap.
Still…the concept that we can do this still can inspire awe in anyone.
One cool thing about the NASM right now is that they have an exhibit of the most popular Smithsonian American History/National Treasure items since that museum is under renovation. So, we actually got to see things like:
- Lincoln’s actual stove-pipe hat,
- an actual Kermit the Frog,
- the real Wizard of Oz ruby slippers that Judy Garland wore,
- George Washington’s uniform,
- Ben Franklin’s walking stick,
- Susan B. Anthony’s Gavel,
- the actual counter and chairs from the famous protest during the Civil Rights Movement,
- one of Prince’s guitars,
- Carrie Bradshaw’s actual laptop computer,
- Seinfeld’s Puffy Shirt,
and more and more and more…we’ll post pictures as soon as we can.
We looked at all the museum offerings and saw the IMAX film Space Station 3-D. Funny thing is that it was narrated by Tom Cruise…which makes sense since he’s part alien (no the chairs were not Emeters and we weren’t met by Auditors when we left the theatre). If you’re interested, a full review is in the 2 Cents Worth section.
We then went to the National Botanical Gardens…how lush! If anything inspires someone to consider hiring a landscaper, that is one of them. The trip has been wonderful so far, if not a bit melancholy. I had hoped to show these things to the kiddo and had greatly looked forward to seeing all of this through new eyes…alas, life is what happens when you’re busy making other plans.
After Jim took his 30th picture of the Capitol Building, we walked back to the hotel, checked out and began our journey to Easton, Pennsylvania. 4 Hours later and a stop at Houlihan’s in Plymouth Meeting, PA for dinner [if you ever get to a Houlihan’s I highly recommend the stuffed chicken breast - it’s a favorite from my past], we arrived at my childhood home. It’s good to be home. We talked to my Dad and Dolores for 2 1/2 hours before turning in for the night. Part of me still expects to see my Mom when I pull into the driveway. I do miss her so. Nonetheless…we’re here, safe and sound. We miss our puppies and kitties and now my pillow that Jim left at the Hotel! All is well and we have a loose plan for the week including a trip to NYC and a broadway show, and a potential jaunt to Philadelphia…we shall see where the days take us.
We’ll keep you posted!
In just a few words…Mabeth by Teller & Posner is…BLOODY good. Jim and I finally got to see the Teller/Posner conceived, directed and staged production of Shakespeare’s Macbeth. Going into this, we knew it was a limited run, fairly exclusive to get tickets to, heralded as the bloodiest Macbeth possibly ever, complete with illusions designed by the master magician Teller. Well…my good people…it was a revelation.
First of all, Jim and I were most impressed with the theatre at the Folger Shakespeare Library. It was so designed to feel like you were in the Globe Theater itself. It was so intimate that you felt immersed in the story of power-lust, weird-sisters, impatience, blood-letting, madness and karmic retribution. Ah…Teller and Aaron Posner got it just right. The staging, set design, sound design, illusions, and casting were done with a meticulous precision that I admired. Teller has said in interviews that he imagined staging this Shakespeare masterpiece since he was 12 years old…what time to imagine. How lucky to have the backing to produce what you dream.
Now for a non-linear approach to why I loved this production. Let me just say that the use of live sound design was stunning. Odd and otherworldly…and surprising. The lighting and set design was not overpowering but honest and well thought out. The illusions were beautifully created to make you feel the madness unfolding. I always thought that the descent into mental chaos by Macbeth and his Lady was obvious in words, but to actually be able to SEE the mental breakdown of these two characters was intense and spectacular. The acting was masterful, and allowed you to feel the horror of those witness to the downfall of the kingdom, and the decreasing sense of reality plaguing the lead and his significant other. The three sisters are mesmerizing and grotesque. There is a lot of blood too…and it suits this production well. To be honest, I’m not going to go into a ton of detail because I don’t want to spoil this for anyone willing to take the drive to see it…but I must say…BRAVO.
I can only hope, that when the run is over – that Teller would consider filming this for anyone unable to journey to see it and frankly, I don’t want to “displace the mirth” any further by letting too much out. I will list a series of links soon to other reviews and articles on this production too…stay tuned.
Okay, so it sounds more elaborate than it really is right? This is our little slice of internet nonsense, which basically is our on-going effort to keep our friends and family up-to-date on our lives, our love and our continuing pursuit of pomegranates. In this modern age of movement, we’ve realized that distance is not an excuse to not keep everyone posted, so please - stop by anytime - in person or internet-ly and know that you are all never far from our thoughts.
