Well, dear readers, here I am high in the sky writing these here notes, as is my wont when I’m high in the sky. I am on the line, too, playing on the Internet. And the gal next to me is quiet and that’s lovely after the snorer I had on the first flight. So far the day has been very nice. I was up at nine, showered and packed by ten, and then we had our work session until about one. I’m very pleased with all the work we’ve done on the upcoming album. I was very picky about the song selection and it’s really paid off, and we had a lot of fun creating the arrangements, and several of them are, I think, really going to be liked by singers and will probably be used. One I’m especially pleased we’re doing is my arrangement of Where or When, a song I have always loved and have always wanted to record with Guy Haines. I have tried different ways of doing the song for a decade and none of it was pleasing or interesting enough to me to actually and finally record it. Then about eight months ago I found it. I was just sitting at the piano like Dino and so much fish and it came to me, practically fully formed. It’s always amazing when you get that gift out of nowhere. I began playing it the way I was suddenly thinking it should be and it worked like a dream and is completely unique – no one has EVER done the song this way. So, I was going to put it on the Guy Haines album, which we’re still trying to get done, but I played it for Sandy and she loved it, and so did Lanny, so I let it go to her. And every time we played through it over the last two days I was just tickled pink and I know Lanny will do a wonderful orchestration of it.
And the rest of the songs are just wonderful – no weird crap in there at all, just great songs, songs that aren’t overdone, and songs that are really good for Sandy. We also talked more about her Ira Gershwin cabaret for August – I’ll definitely be back in DC for that, so hoping some dear readers can get there to see it.
After we finished it was earlier than planned so we went to a deli Sandy likes. I always worry about delis, but this one wasn’t bad at all. Not up there with the best of them, but a good five on a scale of ten. So you have some frame of reference, the only ten I would give would be to Langer’s in LA. Nate ‘n’ Al’s would get an eight. Jerry’s would get a four and Art’s would get s two – that would specifically cover pastrami and latkes. The latkes at this deli were actually very good, but not shaped like latkes normally are. And the pastrami, while not brilliant, was lean and flavorful. And their pickles were excellent, too. I hadn’t intended to eat lunch at all, but I can’t resist a pastrami sandwich in a new deli.
Then we dropped Lanny at his train, and Sandy drove me to the airport. The first class line was very short and the security person checking the ID and ticket was the first one I’ve ever had who was actually friendly and didn’t look like they wanted to eat the head of a chicken. I got through security in a trice or faster than a trice, which would be a what? Twice? Lice? Then I went to the Admiral’s Club where I sat like so much fish and did some work on the computer, which was accompanied by two of the most obnoxious eaters EVER. I had one on each side of me so it was stereophonic crunching and munching and noisy mouth stuff. It used to be that the only food in the club was rolls and buns and stuff like that – now they serve full course meals.
Then I moseyed on over to the gate, we boarded soon thereafter (yes, I was first on the plane), and took off shortly thereafter. We did have a little drizzle around lunchtime but it was long gone by the time we took off. And that brings us current and I shall resume these here notes once I am home sweet home.
Ah, home sweet home. Before I even unpacked I was out the door doing a two-and-a-half mile jog due to extreme food guilt. My legs are still sore, but using the muscles I normally use for jogging, rather than the ones that were used on the treadmill, was a good thing. Then Juliana Hansen came by and picked up some CDs and the new book. And then I spent the rest of the evening catching up on stuff and printing out all the orders that had come in since Monday.
Today, I shall hopefully awaken after a good night’s beauty sleep, then I’ll jog, then I’ll eat something light but amusing, hopefully I’ll pick up some packages, then relax until it’s time to go see Next to Normal at Musical Theatre West – I’m going with Mr. Barry Pearl and our Adriana Hofstetter audio book gal is in the show.
Tomorrow I would just like to relax all day but I think something is going on or I have something to see. Saturday is free, and Sunday I’m attending a birthday partay.
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, do a jog, eat, hopefully pick up some packages, relax, and then see a show. Today’s topic of discussion: Since I enjoyed the postings yesterday about your first Sondheim experiences, let’s continue down that road, shall we – what was your very first Kander and Ebb show – audio, seeing a production – just tell us everything about how you discovered the joys of John and Fred. Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst I hit the road to dreamland, happy to be back home sweet home and happy to sleep in my own bed sweet bed.