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[bk]

Well, you've read the notes, the notes shook, rattled and rolled, and now it is time for you to post until the shake, rattle and roll cows come home.

[bk]

And the word of the day is: DESUETUDE!

[George]

Topic of the Day:  I've only been through a couple of earthquakes and a really bad ice storm.  The ice storm was kind of cool.  Trees frozen solid, covered in a layer of ice.  It was beautiful and dangerous at the same time.  Some of the trees broke and brought down the power lines.  I think that that was the longest that I was without power...five days, I think.

[George]

And now, to bed.  I need to get to work early today so that I can leave for lunch early today.  I'm meeting a friend that I haven't seen in a couple of years (we used to work together until her "position was eliminated").  Her birthday was a few days ago, so I'll treat her.

Good night, BK and guests.

[Ben]

Morning all.

That is all.

[Ben]

Re: wifi, there must be some kind of combo device (i.e. a modem/router) or some kind of newer, highly sophisticated modem that I haven't hear about because you can't have a wifi signal in your place of residence without a router, which distributes the Internet signal so it can be picked up by devices with a wireless card or wireless device. A modem connects one device to the Internet but it's hard-wired to a computer and the modem doesn't create and/or distribute a wifi signal. That being said, there are apartment complexes and other facilities that promote "free wifi" and you can get it without a modem and/or router. Your laptop or desktop must have a wireless card attached or built in so it can pick up that signal.

You can also usually nowadays, get wifi at a hotel when you're traveling. That signal, whether in a complex (such as a friend's unit here in New York) or in a hotel, is using a router (in the case of a large facility a strong router or many routers) to distribute the signal to all corners of the facility.

When we got our high speed internet (DSL) from Verizon in 2008 I specifically asked for a modem/router because we have a desktop and a laptop. The laptop has a wireless card installed and that's how we get on-line with the LT, using the wireless signal generated by the modem/router.

[Ben]

{{{Larry, so sorry to hear about your bathroom!}}}

[Michael]

good morning to all

[Michael]

tod

Montreal: Had an earthquake once and of course snow and ice storms

Boca: Hurricanes. Two since I move hear. (I went away for one of them)

[Ben]

A caveat to all my postings about wifi. Yes, you can have wifi without having a router (or even a modem) but that means, as Dan M said a few days ago, depending on the unknowing kindness of strangers. Some wifi signals can be strong or very strong and they "bleed" out of the originating space and can be picked up by devices around the area. That's why, when you go to sign in at a public wifi location you may see a list of available networks, not just the network in the facility (Panera, Starbucks, etc.) you're using. If a network is not secured (i.e. password protected) anyone can use the signal. It's how my in-laws used the Internet until they broke down and got real Internet service. They (I actually) attached a wireless card to the old PC in the basement and put that device near the window and it picked up a non password protected signal. Sometimes it worked well but often it didn't. If the weather was bad or other people (besides the in-laws) were piggy-backing on the signal it became weak or non-usable.

So, as I wrap up this lecture, I repeat, the way to get a reliable and usable wifi signal is to have a modem with high speed internet service and a router which will send the signal through your house or apartment. Once you have the signal set up you password protect it so that others won't piggyback on your signal which can cause things as benign as signal degradation to an all-out takeover of your computer via virus and/or malware distribution .

This will not be on the test at the end of the semester 

[Michael]

Last night I went to see Karen Olivo.

Boy oh Boy. Mr. BRUCE KIMMEL hould work with her. I partially forgive her for being a last minute replacement, but she has no idea how to do a cabaret show.

She has a beautiful singing voice but.....

1) Her patter in between songs went on and on and on
2) There were tons of hums, has, you knows and many more crutch words (as we say in Toastmasters)
3) She would drink water before and after (and sometimes during) each song
4) Stood center stage and never moved from that spot. Although she started singing offstage and entered from upstage that was a nice touch,.
5) Never introduced her musical director once during act one. I have never seen a performer not do that before.
6) Just walked off the stage at the end of act one without telling the audience this is where the intermission is. Never seen that before either.
7)Told the audience she doesn't do encores because she thinks they are phony. (They are and the other singers I have seen make jokes about them) But did one last song.
8..) Never did a proper thank you.
9) Has no idea has to use her hands/arms.
10) plays with her (Beautiful) hair.

People left at intermission mainly from what I was told was because of her endless talking between songs.
Some people behind me gave her a standing ovation. I do not think it was deserved.

She has one more show tonight and I hope the producer talks to her and she revises this show and shortens her patter and removes the ah ums etc as they are really annoying. Move around the stage a little more and stop drinking all that water!!

If she is going to do more shows she needs someone to work with and have a clicker or a bell handing to use every time she utters a "crutch" word. She would be amazed how much she says.

[Michael]

A side note.
She has given up performing in musical theater because during West Side Story she broke her foot and damage her tendons as well. She did fall in love and moved to Madison Wisconsin. She also has basically given up acting as well.

[Michael]

A very quick resolution to DR  Dan M and Elmore's bathroom problems.

Especially Larry who has nothing but problems with the people who have lived above him

[elmore3003]

Good morning, all! I will most likely be E&T until this mess is cleaned up. I am going back to bed and staying there as long as possible. At some point when i'm up to it, i will wander through the bathroom rubble and retrieve what's salvageable.  It turns out that very little of the ceiling above the bathtub fell, but the sink and toilet are buried.  I hope I can find my razor.

One of my employers at the Drama Book Shop told me in 1980, whatever problems you have in your first NYC apartment will haunt you. She was so right! And some day I'll post all about my first apartment on West 94th, the neighbors above me, the ghosts, the bathroom leak, and the hit men,

[elmore3003]

Luckily, there are no hit men here, as far as I know.  Instead, we have had crack ho's, drug dealers, and a South American drug runner.

[ChasSmith]

Good morning, all.

Stunned at the extent of DR Elmore's St. Patrick's Day's HELL, and hoping for a quick resolution to the bathroom disaster.

Afraid to think what this chapter in the memoirs might be called.

[singdaw]

some day I'll post all about my first apartment on West 94th, the neighbors above me, the ghosts, the bathroom leak, and the hit men,

That memoir of yours is going to be SO juicy!!!       

[singdaw]

Thanks for the detailed cabaret report, DR Mike. One of the lovely side benefits of being a DR at HHW.

[singdaw]

TOD:

Fortunately, nothing too awful.
The 1973 ice storm in Connecticut was bad; the whole state was shut down for close to 2 weeks.
More recently, also in CT, a pre-Halloween freak storm cut off power in town for well over a week (however, I personally never lost power).
Several hurricanes on the East coast, but never catastrophic (in my area, at least - others suffered greatly).

[singdaw]

Thanks for the tech notes, DR Ben!

[singdaw]

So...  no DR had a Shamrock Shake yesterday?

[ChasSmith]

TOD

As a kid in Florida, a couple of pretty big hurricanes, with no personal damage to speak of.
In California, many "minor" earthquakes, and the biggest I experienced was the Whittier in 1987.  Also no personal damage to speak of.

All of the really major and destructive hurricanes, and all of the really major and destructive earthquakes, came before and after my years of living in those two places.

Here in Connecticut, my first big one was the "storm of the century" in March 1993.  No personal hardship or damage.  I was living in a nice place that was completely tended to by uber-competent and caring people, and my only job was to hole up and enjoy the incredible snowfall and cozy forced vacation.  As odd as this may sound, I now look back upon those few days as a sort of temporary return to the safe and trusting realm of childhood...with the benefit of appreciating it as an adult.

The President's Day Blizzard in February 2003 brought incredible snowfall, but again, no personal damage or hardship.

Finally, the Halloween Nor'easter in 2011, of which DR singdaw spoke, and Hurricane Sandy in 2012 -- both of which affected Yrs Truly in the way of power outages lasting, as I recall, two days for the former and three for the latter.  Those two hellish experiences, one year after another, seemed to make up for all the breaks I'd gotten up to now, and are the reasons I went to ridiculous expense to have this generator.

[FJL]

Hugs and vibes to Larry for a quick resolution to this problem!

[Druxy]

TOD:

Of course, I was in Los Angeles for the Northridge quake, which eventually forced me to move out of my condo for 2 1/2 months while it was being repaired.  (Thankfully, I had great earthquake insurance.)

But, the one I really remember was the major Seattle quake of 1948.  I don't recall the Richter scale number, but I do remember than our neighbor's chimney wound up in our front yard...and there were people killed in that one.

I was 7 years old, home sick from school that day, sitting on our living room sofa in my robe & pajamas, reading a Tom Mix comic book when it struck.

I wonder whatever happened to that comic book.

[FJL]

A side note.
She has given up performing in musical theater because during West Side Story she broke her foot and damage her tendons as well. She did fall in love and moved to Madison Wisconsin. She also has basically given up acting as well.

Mike, I'd assume she's given up doing extended runs of shows, because just last week, she was announced for TICK TICK BOOM at the Encores Off-Center Summer Series.

http://www.playbill.com/news/article/188554-Encores-Off-Center-Season-Will-Include-tick-tick-BOOM-Faust-Pump-Boys-and-Dinettes

[ChasSmith]

Had another of my famous kitchen-sink dreams encompassing several of my common themes.  Once fully awake, I was absolutely confounded at a couple of the main segments which seemed especially absurd.  All of the elements of the dream were based on various and sundry real life stages of my past, but the incredible combination of these elements can only mean one thing:  that I'm a genius ......... or INSANE.

[Kerry]

OD:  Other than getting stuck in a couple of horrific monsoons,  I guess the worst has been a couple of floods (as in 1 to 2 feet of water flowing through the house),  More of an expensive mess than real danger, but still......

[Kerry]

Had another of my famous kitchen-sink dreams encompassing several of my common themes.  Once fully awake, I was absolutely confounded at a couple of the main segments which seemed especially absurd.  All of the elements of the dream were based on various and sundry real life stages of my past, but the incredible combination of these elements can only mean one thing:  that I'm a genius ......... or INSANE.

Or both.

[FJL]

Here's the famous tabloid story of when Karen Olivo met Prince (the music star, not Hal Prince) at a Tonys party, when Prince shlepped to the party especially to meet her

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V0G--swh_qY

She has an interesting perspective on this in this discussion of the famous meeting.  Many other people would have been thrilled by such a reaction from Prince, but Karen is after all happily married, and one assumes for that reason she felt like Prince was looking at her like a "pork chop" as a result.

[FJL]

Mike - Did she tell the meeting Prince story in her show?