Well, dear readers, warning – short notes ahead due to arising early and the doctor’s appointment. Short notes is only appropriate since yesterday the shortness of breath was the worst it’s been – all day. Interestingly, somewhere around eight it got better – usually it’s the other way around. The last of Rubbra’s symphonies, number eleven, is playing and it’s very short in length, namely fifteen minutes. It may well be the most beautiful of all of them. I did watch some YouTube stuff, including two episodes of a 1966 show I’d never heard of called The Felony Squad, starring Howard Duff, Ben Alexander, and Dennis Cole. It’s not a great show but it was all shot in LA, although the directors never really give us a clew as to where we are. In episode two, I’m pretty sure we’re on Pico (it was a Fox show) and I’m pretty sure a scene outside a bowling alley is Picwood Bowl. I did get nine hours of good sleep, got up, answered some e-mails, and ordered a Chinese chicken salad from Stanley’s – that was very good – couldn’t quite finish it. Then I just had to not do much due to the breathing issues. I listed another three items, tried to have a telephonic conversation with dear reader Jeanne, but she had to do the talking as I couldn’t due to the breathing issues. All pills were taken, had a snack after The Felony Squad, and now playing is an album that I absolutely loved as a kid – Cal Tjader on vibes – almost the entirety of side one of the red stereo vinyl was a long medley from Porgy and Bess that I was obsessed with – but I bought the album because it had That’s All on it. This was the album that made me fall in love with vibes. And right now – That’s All is playing. I think that covers everything from yesterday, although I keep forgetting to mention something I discovered the other day. In Kritzerland, Benjamin takes a music appreciation class where he discovers the wonderful world of classical music, just as I did. I was pretty sure I had the teacher’s name right – Mr. Williamson – but there was no way of really checking back then, although I tried. But I searched that name on newspapers.com along with Louis Pasteur Junior High and voila, there he was. I was close with the name but no cigar. His name was Mr. Willumsen. That was a fun discovery. I can still find not a single thing about my favorite teacher, Mrs. Wallett – except one mention in the early 1950s in an article about her husband – IF it’s the same person. You’d think there’d be something.
Today, I’ll be up by nine-thirty and out the door around ten-thirty and hope there’s no bad traffic. I’ll have my appointment at noon and hope we can suss out the problems I’m having. After that, I’ll probably just come right home, maybe stop at the mail place, maybe stop at Gelson’s – we’ll see how I’m feeling. Then we really have to finalize casting and get me an assistant director so we can make a schedule and that’s probably what this entire week will be about.
The rest of the week will be about that, and I truly hope we can tame this breath thing once and for all. Thankfully, it’s really calmed down in the last two hours. Thus endeth the short notes that were short and dare I say it, breathless.
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, be up by nine-thirty and out the door around ten-thirty and hope for no bad traffic, I must have my noon appointment, I’ll come back to the Valley, maybe stop at the mail place, maybe do a Gelson’s run, eat, and then try to figure out the casting thing. Today’s topic of discussion: Who was your favorite teacher and why? Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst I hit the road to dreamland, having a happy listening experience with Mr. Tjader and his good vibes and we all could use some of those.