Well, dear readers, I am filled with the old ennui and frankly I’m tired of the old ennui and am looking for the new ennui. Better yet, maybe the old and new ennui can take a hike and we can all be ennui-less for the next few years. I much prefer Anouilh to ennui. In any case, I’m tired of the old ennui and I’m fighting vainly the old ennui and one of these days I will kick ennui in the ASS from here to eternity and hell and back. In other news, I just had a few chunks of cantaloupe. In other news, one of the actors in one of the one-act plays we’re doing didn’t show up the other day. Didn’t call, didn’t text, didn’t e-mail – just didn’t show up. Same thing yesterday. Today on Facebook everyone at the theater learned that he died in his sleep the other day. I’m not sure he was much over fifty. It was shocking. I’d just been joking with him the other day and he’d sent me a funny text. Two years ago, I directed his one-act play when we did this outdoors. A very nice guy. To be filed in the “you never know” department. In other news, I came home from our run-through/final dress rehearsal to find the galley from the design folks. It looks pretty terrific but has a couple of major things that have to be fixed before I give it the final once-over. The page numbers aren’t right and there are a couple of other issues that are global things and easy to fix. I’ve already sent them those things so hopefully they’ll get me an adjusted copy back and then I can give it the final proofing, after which it goes to the publisher. I really like the new font we’re using for this one – Baskerville – which is used on quite a few famous books. It’s very clean, easy to read, and is pleasing to the eyeballs. The run-through of our show was fine and got lots of laughs. We were told to stay through the end of the show, but there was really no reason to do so. After the run-through, I did a quick Ralph’s run-through and got four twelve-packs of Diet Coke for the price of two, less than five bucks, which is a great deal. I would normally have gotten two Diet Cokes and two caffeine free Diet Cokes, but someone had bought all of the latter – another case of copycat shopping. Irritating. I noticed on the way home that the cheapest gas station near me is up to six dollars a gallon. Earlier in the day I did something I’ve never done before – I wrote Governor Newsom an e-mail. It was nice but strong and all about the gouging that he’s allowing to go on. It’s not summer anymore, so that’s no longer an excuse. In fact, there IS no excuse. He has to threaten the oil companies for gouging and once he does and says he’s going to launch an investigation the prices would drop by a dollar instantly. Dianne Feinstein used to do that regularly and that’s what always happened, instant drop because they don’t want to be investigated. Will he do anything about it? Doubtful, which is why I would never vote for him again. Will his “staff” even read it? Doubtful, but I felt compelled to write it. I don’t believe any of these United States of America has gas prices anywhere near ours.
Yesterday wasn’t much of a day mostly because I slept in and didn’t get up until three-thirty. I didn’t get to sleep until five, but that’s still over ten hours of sleep and I think I really needed it. Once up, I answered e-mails, had one of those small Marco’s pepperoni pizza things, which was very good, then I relaxed until it was time to mosey on over to the theater to see our run-through. The rest you know and here we are, fighting vainly the old ennui.
Today, I’ll try to be up by eleven at the latest, I’ll pray for a modern major miracle, I’ll do whatever needs doing, I’ll do a little work on the project with David Wechter, I’ll eat, but mostly I’ll try to relax and get ready for what will be a very busy week.
The rest of the week is previews, opening, meetings and meals, the final proofing of the designed book, hopefully getting blurb two, more casting for 70, Girls, 70, and trying to survive the hopefully survivable.
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, try to be up by eleven, do whatever needs doing, pray for a modern major miracle, do a little work, eat, relax, continue vainly fighting the old ennui. Today’s topic of discussion: From yesterday’s notes – what are your favorite performances of Mr. Richard Dreyfuss and Miss Marsha Mason? Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst I hit the road to dreamland, where I shall be vainly fighting the old and new ennui.