Well, dear readers, here it is, Friday, and the weekend is upon us. Yesterday was a day of packing. Packing, packing, packing (that is three packings). They packed CDs, they packed books, they packed DVDs, the packed dishes, they packed pots and pans and also pans and pots. And now there are boxes and boxes everywhere I look. I finally got the new water heater and I can shower and do laundry, so that’s very nice. I’m told the house will be tented come Monday, which means I won’t be able to get back in until Wednesday, when the last of the work to be done begins in earnest. That’s the day I’ve tentatively slated to move everything to whichever house I’ll be living in. On Monday and Tuesday, I shall be at the Renaissance Hotel in the heart of Hollywood. My friend’s daughter works there and she’s getting me a great deal on a spiffy room. That will actually be rather pleasant and I shall, of course, be writing these here notes on location. It will be quite a hectic week next week, but I’m ready for it. And that is where things stand at the moment. Isn’t that exciting? Isn’t that just too too?
We had a very strange show last night – the cast was excellent and the pace was excellent but we only had about thirty people in the audience and I think they were afraid to actually laugh out loud. A few of the hammer-them-over-the-head jokes got them, but even the Oklahoma number didn’t get them to guffaw and if that doesn’t get them you can imagine how quiet they were. That said, listening to them after the show all you heard was, “That was hilarious, it was so funny.” Who knew? I’m told that many shows in LA suffered in attendance last night – why? Apparently because of “must see TV” whatever the hell that is. It was the beginning of the new season for several shows and I guess that means people must stay home – these people apparently know nothing of VCRs and TIVO units. We have a better house tomorrow and we’re already in pretty decent shape for Saturday night, so that’s good. We had some speaker issues last night, in that they removed the new speakers and put back the repaired old ones. Only they didn’t hook up one of them right and we had to scramble to get it to work before show time. But an even bigger problem and one we’ll be addressing with them tomorrow is that they didn’t tell us this was happening. It screwed up all our sound levels – it was like starting from scratch because these are totally different speakers and all our levels were too loud for these speakers and the EQ on the mics was too bass-oriented (which the other speakers needed). So, now a couple of cast members have to come in early tomorrow night and we have to go through the crap of having to reset all our levels. On top of that, our sound man informed us Sunday is his last show. I really don’t respond well to such amateurism, this last minute nonsense, but he’s a college boy and college takes precedent. We now have to find a replacement who can learn the show this weekend and do it for the last two weeks. This is what I hate about waiver theater, this amateur stuff that one has to deal with, and if we end up moving the show or coming back to the Hudson in November, we will have professionals in all the crew positions (we’ve budgeted for it). I’ve just been around too long to deal with amateurs – I just want people to do their jobs and do them well, so I don’t ever have to worry about things like this. End of mini-rant.
Well, why don’t we all click on the Unseemly Button below whilst I think about hot water and how lovely it is to have it again.
Also, let’s keep sending our very own Mr. Grant Geissman excellent vibes and xylophones as his big day at the Emmy Awards comes up. We must will him to win, for he will be so happy that he will prance about like a madcap fern in heat. Have you ever seen a madcap fern in heat? I have. Fern Goldstein. It was frightening. I think I’ll go back to thinking about hot water and how I love it. Also, I’ll be going to Mr. Geissman’s home environment shortly to enter my final corrections.
Have I mentioned that it is Friday? Perhaps I, too, will prance about like a madcap fern in heat. Afterwards, I shall take a gloriously glorious hot shower.
Now wait just a darned minute – whilst we’re prancing about let us put on our pointy party hats and our colored tights and pantaloons, let us partake of cheese slices and ham chunks, let us dance the Hora or the charleston, because today is the birthday of our very own dear reader Donna. So, let’s give a big haineshisway.com birthday cheer, shall we? On the count of three: One, two, three – HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO OUR VERY OWN DEAR READER DONNA!!! We’ve had a lot of birthdays this month, haven’t we? And the month is young, which is more than I can say.
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must go to Mr. Grant Geissman’s home environment, I must drive in my automobile, I must go to the gym, I must prance about like a madcap fern in heat whilst thinking about hot water. Today’s topic of discussion: It’s Friday – what is currently in your CD player and your DVD/video player? I’ll start – CD, the Joel Grey albums on DRG (courtesy of Columbia), the Sammy Davis, Jr. As Long as She Needs Me album (courtesy of Reprise), and a David Raksin compilation made personally by Mr. Raksin (two CDs worth of his glorious music). DVD, next up I Vitelloni by Fellini. Your turn. Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst we prance about like madcap ferns in heat. All together now – one, two, three.