WE'RE BACK FROM VISITING THE WIZARD...

We actually came back on Wednesday!

I finally have enough energy to report our venture to the northern city for the long awaited 3 Act Festival!

I journeyed up there with Pebbles & BamBam and the trip was made even more exciting with at least 2" of snow on the road! We had left with plenty time to take it slowly...so we did. There was no wildlife to be seen anywhere!

The excitment came when we were nearing the city limits! The truck that was pulling the trailer, with our set in, it suddenly hit a bump and started the trailer to rock and sway! Thankfully "Cowboy" kept things under control! Visions of "hard work" laying all over the ditch became my newest nightmare...not to mention the possibility of injury to the two guys in the truck! Luck was with us after all cause we arrived with that being the only incident!

Unloading took a short time as did the set up...all had arrived safely without any damages. It pays to carry tools...everybody knows that if your prepared for trouble - trouble never happens? We even managed to have a successful rehearsal!

The hosting club even provided us with a tasty lunch. They even let us use some of the food for our play...which was both very nice.

We accomplished so much that we all had time to do our seperate things.

I spent my time relaxing?

Managing all of the stage stuff [set placement, curtains, props & food] totally exhausted me, so I wanted my extra time to be spent resting...mostly so that I could party longer that night.

Seems fate still had some things in store for me....

I wanted to take advantage of the pool and hot tub, at the hotel. But it so happened that there was a dance festival being held this weekend, so both facilities were packed with noisy kids! The ones of us that had windows [we had a horrible skylight...no window] in their rooms, opened up to the pool, they had to listen to the noise! What was worse...?

I couldn't relax so I decided that I needed something to read to help me out. This meant going outside to a convience store across the way.

I got lost trying to get out of the building!

I don't like elevators at the best of times and the one that they had, made me nervous with all of it's noises! Deciding to use the stairs I went down too many floors and ended up in the basement. Seems that the area I landed up in was accessed by the outer doors to the rooms. I couldn't even find the entrance to the lobby! They had a hallway that was seperated by a wall and I went up and down it a few times before I figured out that it was not a seperate hallway...why it was built that way was beyond my comprehension? I figured that I must have wandered into the new addition? The door I did find, led me to the back parking lot! With my luck still holding, I went the wrong way and had to back track and ended up walking around the whole hotel! Something that should have taken a few minutes ended up being 20 minutes later!

I did have another embarassing moment...I forgot to make note of the room number as I left to pick up that something to read! Thankfully no one was around to watch me swiping my keycard at all of the rooms that I thought might be the right one. I did manage to find the right one and didn't have to go down to the lobby to admit my stupidity!

I finally did get some rest! Seems the searching for the book made me tired because I barely read it!

I did have more problems with my keycard while I was staying there!

Finally it was time for our performance!

It went smoothly except for a drop in the lines. I should have been there to catch it with a prompt but I had gotten myself into a mess with not taking my insulin on time. I had been running around seeing to everything and forgot how stress affects my sugar levels. I was crashing sugar wise and this slowed down my thought process, thus breaking my routine. Normally the area that they were in never had any problems so I wasn't prepared for it. It was becoming more difficult for me to move quickly from one set to another. This makes it one more reason why I shouldn't be doing this anymore. Especially not by myself!

Other than that the audience sounded like they enjoyed it!

Finally it was over and all that was left was the take down! I must say that it took hardly any time at all.

Sadly a sugar crash puts me into a mental funk that's hard to get out of and thought processing after one never improves without sleep.

But it was time to party!

It was nice to have an applause as one enters the green room. It's kind of a tradition that they do that honors the performing group that night. We got to eat right away...seeing as they wait for us on that also.

Our town is known for it's ability to party and we didn't disapoint them! Wilma had been at the first two green rooms and said that they had been boring! Our group likes to dance [me included] and dance we did! Sadly, [at 1:30am] I had to go to my room and left the younger ones to continue with their wild antics!

The nice thing was that the green room was held in the same hotel where we were staying so one could "walk" back to their room. Our rooms just so happen to be a long ways away! Guess what...my keycard wouldn't work in the door [yes, I had the right room!] and I had to traipse all the way back to the lobby to get them to program me another one. I was really tired after what felt like a 2 mile walk!

My roomates straggled in at 4 in the am. Hang overs were to be expected at 9:30 am when we went for our adjudication.

I had gotten up early [as usual] and had already eaten breakfast [slowly] waiting for some signs of life from the others? The group that were to perform that day had already left. Going up to the room to do my wake-up call found me struggling to use the "now hated" keycard! No such luck! Had to pound on the door to get some response.

I was more than happy to had over my useless keycards...I guess they're not made for my "magnetic" personality!

Our adjudication was great! The adjudicator had nice words for my set and remarked on my use of "spinning" sets. She used a more technical term but damned if I remember what it was. Poor Pebbles had to do her lines while running back and forth...it was some kind of teaching thing? Poor girl looked like she was ready to retch! The adjudication went on for 2 hours...but it was time well spent. We have some new ideas to try for our town performances!

Finally home time!

I came home to more cat puke on my rug...my poor Suki can't handle being away from me for so long...

All we have left to do is go back on Saturday to see the last performance and the awards...hopefully we did well?

As for home...I only have to read that play 5 more times! 2 practices and 3 performances. It won't be too soon for me!!!

WE'RE OFF TO SEE THE WIZARD...?

Actually we're off to perform for the wizard?

We will be taking off at 8:20 am this morning and head up to the town way up north from us, for the long-awaited 3 act festival.

Practice last night was so-so and with Wilma not being there, my daughter PoD, stood in for her. She did pretty good for someone who has never read the script and only saw it performed once. It's pretty hard to read lines and go through the other actor's motions. The poor girl had told me in the beginning that she didn't want to do anything play wise but did end up helping me [no surprise] anyways. She helped with the building of the sets and also did some of the set painting. Thanks kiddo! I don't know where your mother would be without you?

We had to pack the sets/props up after practice...while it snowed out! Yup! As usual it just had to start snowing! I think it would have been too much of a shock if it hadn't! It did managed to dump at least 2" of the white stuff on us! Hopefully that's all the befalls us! It's pretty disappointing after all of the stuff had almost melted away!

My cat, Suki, wasn't too happy to see the suitcase come out this morning. I put it off as long as it was possible so it wouldn't stress her out too much? I'll only be gone one and a half days but that should be enough to stress her out lots, as it doesn't take much to do it. PoD did promise to check on her and hopefully give her a few reassuring hugs for me.

So wish us well and hopefully we'll be able to get our act together for tonight?

HAPPY EASTER

I guess it was time to update the old blog or those of you out there, will think I went the way of the others. Seems more and more are falling by the wayside. I may not blog very often and might seem boring to those who do check in, but I can't see me ever stopping....but my Alzheimer's might think differently?

The best thing I like about easter is the chocolate [that's a word that diabetic people shouldn't utter] and hot cross buns. Too bad sweets help make a person feel better...at least they do to me.

I miss the fun I used to have with my kids at this time of year and how we used to color eggs. It was a messy job but fun to watch how creative they could be. My most favorite job was hiding the treats. Rule was...``those that were not found belonged to the Easter Bunny. As the kids got older the treats became harder and harder to find ;)

My son was supposed to have this weekend off but hasn`t shown up as yet and I fear that he might have had to work. Will be calling him later to see whats up. Normally my daughter has easter dinner at her place but seeing as I have borrowed 4 of her chairs for our play her Dad decided to host it at his. Just as long as I don`t have to do it I don`t care who does it.

Monday we`re supposed to have a play practice then pack up the stuff to travel northward to the festival. I want to make sure that all is packed properly so that all of my hard work doesn`t go to waste...by haste!

I hate the fact that I still have to attend practice just because some people couldn`t get their crap together! Being stage manager and prompter has been the most challenging ever! Hopefully the bad dress rehearsal has shaken some of them up and made them get serious! I have never spent soooo much time running back and forth trying to prompt all that need it. I even made up cue boards so that they would know when they had to go on and what they must do, but do you think that anyone uses them...no! I have been very ``anal retentive`` in my job and I guess that I shouldn`t expect that of others...but I do!

Oh well....Tuesday, I plan on trying to ignore all that`s bugging me and think only of the time spent away from my depressing situation at work. The lack of scenery on the way up there should help.

On a lighter note: All of you out there have a special Happy Easter and hope the bunny drops lots off to you!

Here`s a cute poem that I came across and thought I send it out to you...

Hard to believe that it's the middle of March right now! I must wish all of my loyal fans a happy and lucky day! No history lessons here...look it up yourselves ;)

This month has been a crazy time for me and I am completely exhausted from all of the play crap! Yesterday the set finally left my building and it's now where it belongs...on stage! Props are all finished and there's nothing left for me to do but herd the cats [stage managing]. I would really like to thank Wilma for stepping in and helping me with the "blackout" sequence near the end of the play. I personally think that it should have been the director's job to direct that part and not left for me to do! May the lucky of the Irish be shinning on you girl!

Things haven't been going to well with the play? Some actors still don't know their lines and dress rehearsal is Thursday. Prompting has been a real chore! This play has had it's problems...one actress got a new job and had to quit. The replacement hasn't had the same length of time to learn her lines completely yet, but is managing. One hides her script on the set and can't seem to read it properly? The date for the festival didn't give us much time to practice, yet some decided to take a weeks vacation? The light/sound guy had to miss the whole month of Feb and should be showing up now to practice his part, but has gone missing? The director is doing that job while still giving directions [they should be done by now]. This is one play I wished I'd stayed out of! I guess I'm getting too old for these kind of problems? It's time for me to retire completely!

There's been good and bad going on at my shop right now. The bad part is I am barely making it...my main support hasn't been doing much, so the income isn't in coming...just minor stuff from the town's people. The good part was...it gave me LOTS of time to work on the DONATION stuff. I've had to tightening the belt soooo much that I'm starting to feel skinny [not]! Seems the "Year of the Rat" is truly going the way that was predicted for me...[slow times a work] when the money [that's supposed to arrive] does come in, will have to go towards paying outstanding bills [it will be spent right away]! Like I was told by a commenter..."be thankful that I have a cracker to have crap on"! So those who see me grinning...know that I am "just bearing it"...cause I do have a cracker to crap on! Here's hoping that's ALL of the crap that befalls me! Having great children helping me out during these hard times, makes me even more thankful... for they ARE TRULY my "pot of gold" at the end of this rainbow!

THIS IS FOR THEM [& Wilma too]...
The shop is still decorated for St. Patrick's Day and normally I change it up for Easter but this year the Easter stuff will stay right in it's box. It's too soon for me to want to do anything decor wise in the shop and seeing as it's mostly for my benefit [no customers to see it]...it's just too much work for this tired old body! Besides...I still have Grad decorations to work on!!!

Maybe I'll find a bunny hiding in the shamrocks?SO....I'm going to get dressed in my green colored clothes and go looking for that rainbow...do they have rainbows with snow?

Just MAYBE the "Luck of the Irish" will shine on me......SOON?

A FLASH FROM THE PAST...

Been finding it pretty hard trying to keep my blog going, whilst slaving at the designing/building/painting our stage set and props! While I am doing this stuff my mind never stops...

Suddenly "a flash from my past" reminded me that I had designed and drew my first stage set in grade 4 [9 yrs old]. It was a Xmas skit about Santa and 3 Dwarfs named Hardrock, Coco and Joe. The set was Santa's sleigh and his reindeers. It was also the first time that I even performed! I played "Joe". Our whole class had to audition for the parts.

I just had to look it up and believe it or not...there it was. The info on it said that it was written in 1951.

I was even able to find the video version of it...http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NT5Ohgl7eTM

I guess the old Alzheimer's isn't as bad as I thought it was!