Well, dear readers, it was another long and winding day yesterday, but a perfectly pleasant one at that. But then it’s always perfectly pleasant when one is in the company of two smart women. Two Smart Women – that’s the title of my next novel. My first smart woman was our very own dear reader Jeanne – we had lunch at Louise’s and it was a very interesting lunch. Our very own dear reader Jeanne is somewhat of a knowledgeable person about something called the stock market. I am intrigued by the stock market but have never purchased a stock. My father left my brother and I a stock or two and for all I know we might still even own them, but I’d have no idea where that stuff would be. The one time I even thought that a stock would be interesting is when I found out that eBay was going public. Those shares were seventeen bucks each and that was the year I’d sold The Faculty and it was raining money. Had I taken 25K and bought eBay I would be a millionaire today. That stock, in just a few short weeks, went from seventeen dollars to over four hundred dollars. Would I have held onto it that long is anyone’s guess? I know people who have not worked for thirty years because they own mutual funds and live on that. Killings have been made, and, more recently, fortunes have been lost. It’s too volatile for the likes of me, nor do I want to become obsessed with it, as it seems you must to play the market. But I’m interested and I may, in the next few months, buy a stock or two just to see what happens. Nothing big, and certainly only enough that I wouldn’t care if I lost it or not. We shall see. My second smart woman is the singer I’ve been meeting with. I really have a good feeling about this gal and we’ve decided to work together and to create from scratch a whole new act for her. We’re just in the beginning stages which, for me, is a lot of fun – it’s where the creative juices start flowing freely as you try to figure out the point and the structure and then find the songs that will service those. We’ve already come up with a few fun ideas and we’ve set a date in February that is our goal for premiering whatever it is we create. For that meeting, we were at the Daily Grill. I’d had a Louise’s original salad for lunch and for dinner I had a shrimp and crab Louis made special for me (it’s not on the menu). It was just what the doctor ordered and once again I had to admonish the doctor for his blatant ripping off of my ordering habits. It was a long dinner meeting and then I finally came home and sat on my couch like so much fish.
Last night, I watched the latest episode of Mad Men, which was mostly very good. The little girl playing Sally has really got the January Jones vibe down perfectly. Sally is a very weird character and I’m very curious to see where they’re taking her. The Joan/Roger track doesn’t interest me that much, although both actors are very good. And there was a really interesting plot turn involving Don’s older lady secretary that was very surprising. I also started watching a motion picture on Blu and Ray entitled Here We Go Round The Mulberry Bush, a Brit swingin’ sixties comedy about a horny young man (weren’t they all) and all the birds he fancies. The film is directed by Clive Donner, who also directed the wild and wacky What’s New, Pussycat? I’ll finish it this very evening.
Well, why don’t we all click on the Unseemly Button below because I have to go to the postal office very early to find out what a slip of paper they left me means (it makes no sense on any level – some Kritzerland package we supposedly shipped requires an additional $44 in postage – only we never shipped anything that would have that kind of postage due. A mystery waiting to be solved.
Today, after my visit to the postal office to solve the mystery, I shall be going to my engineer’s to meet the composer and lyricist of the musical whose cast album we’ll be releasing. We’re not really going to work on the rough mixes, but rather we’re going to discuss the nature of the sound and what we can do to help a rather drab recording. I have several ideas. Then I’ll work with the engineer on a couple of very specific things – the sound of the piano, which I don’t like right now, and the reverb, which, for this particular show, is a little too much. After that, I’ll do some errands and whatnot and hopefully pick up a package or three.
Tomorrow, the helper will be here to do some shipping and we’ll discuss her watching the house whilst I’m away. Then I got to the Monica of Santa to shoot some interview for the book. Wednesday my plan is to do almost nothing – just pack and relax. Thursday, I have to get up at 4:30 in the morning to get ready for the trip to New York, New York, the city that never sleeps. Please keep sending your excellent vibes and xylophones for excellent weather for my entire trip.
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, go to the post office to solve a mystery, go to my engineer’s to solve some sound issues, go to the mail place, eat something light and fun, jog, and send off the packaging for the new Kritzerland release for approval. Today’s topic of discussion: Have you ever played the stock market or the mutual funds market and, if so, what were your biggest scores and your biggest losers, and was/is it fun? Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst I hit the road to dreamland after a stimulating day and evening with Two Smart Women.