Well, dear readers, we are, of course, in the throes of the holiday season and particularly the throes of Hanukkah for our Jewish dear readers. We celebrated Hanukkah only sporadically in our house when I was growing up – I remember only a handful of times lighting the menorah or spinning a dreidel or whatever. We always had a Christmas tree and that’s where the presents went. Anyway, it’s the holiday season and I truly hope some nice things happens soon because we all need some nice things to happen soon before we all commit Harry Carey or Hara Kiri or what have you. So, let me begin these here notes with the one nice thing from yesterday – no, no needed modern major miracles showed up, but I was taken for a nice belated birthday dinner to the Smoke House by Barry and Cindy Pearl. They picked me up at five and we moseyed on over to the restaurant, where several interesting things were revealed. The first interesting thing was that it was jammed – at five-fifteen. That’s always the time I go and at most there are maybe three or four booths with people dining. So, maybe it was all Jews celebrating Hanukkah or just the holiday season, but almost every booth in every room was filled with happy diners. Interesting thing two was a mystery being solved. Cindy asked me if I’d gotten the present they sent me. I immediately asked if it was from Amazon and she said it was. I told her that I’d received two packages from Amazon – one that I ordered, and one unknown and they were supposed to get back to me with who sent it the next day, which they never did – and that they’d both been stolen and that Amazon had already replaced my package. She knew that I would have called and said thank you the second I got it. So, at the table she got a refund on what they’d sent and reordered it – she’ll get it at her place of business, then they’ll give it to me. So, mystery solved. Cindy and I ordered the filet mignon – can’t remember what her sides were. Mine was double veggies. And I had Bearnaise sauce, too. Barry ordered the beef stroganoff and a wedge salad, and he and Cindy split a shrimp cocktail – I had my own shrimp cocktail. I didn’t have the clam chowder or dessert. I did have a couple of pieces of garlic cheese bread, and it was a very good batch. Steak was great, veggies were fine. By the time we finished, every table and booth was taken. We were there around two hours. Then they drove me home. From there, we must go back to the beginning of the day.
I got six hours of sleep again, got up, answered e-mails, and I’d completely forgotten about the dinner and had ordered the tri-salad from Paty’s – well not tri – two scoops of turkey salad and separately I ordered a scoop of egg salad, and a side of biscuits and gravy. I would not have ordered any of it had I remembered the dinner. Anyway, I sorted it all out. I ate the two biscuits and gravy and a bit of the turkey salad. And dinner was under five hundred calories. Then I did a few things on the computer, then began watching a motion picture via the Firestick and our DGA link to view screeners. This time I chose something that just showed up – Song Sung Blue, based on a documentary about a Neil Diamond cover band. It stars Hugh Jackman and Kate Hudson, the latter making a film comeback that’s pretty substantial and I wouldn’t be surprised if she got nominated for it. Both she and Jackman turn in winning performances and there’s also excellent work from Jim Belushi, Fisher Stevens, and others. The first half I thought was really excellent. At the exact halfway point, the film has an event that then changes everything, and we get fairly mawkish from there to the end. It almost reminded me of The Five Pennies, where that film takes a turn that changes everything. I still enjoyed the movie quite a bit despite its flaws – yes, it’s based on a true story that became a documentary, but I’m guessing liberties were taken with it. But after that Die for Me dreck, it was nice to see something done well and the music aspect of it is great and so are the two leads.
Then came dinner, then came Bronson, then came notes. It was 11:55 when I wrote the above but I kept dozing off and typing a lot of things that looked like this: eeeeeeeeeeeevmmmmmmmkelrjjjjjjjjjjjjj. While I did find that content riveting, I went and sat in the comfy armchair and went out like a light for an hour. So, best to wrap up these here notes.
Today, I’ll be up when I’m up, I’ll do whatever needs doing, I’ll eat the Paty’s turkey and egg salad scoops from yesterday for food, I’ll rest, and then we’re back for the first of two rehearsals before we break for two weeks. The plan was a rough run-through but one of our actors may be too sick to come in – if that’s the case, I may ask the author to wait, or he can see everything but the scenes that actor is in. Our costume designer can at least see the musical numbers, which is where most of his work is going. Then I’ll come home.
Tomorrow is more of the same and we’ll just run what we can run. Thursday, I have to see the neurologist, and then I’m almost off, save for the vocal session on Saturday, which should only take three hours.
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, be up when I’m up, do whatever needs doing, eat the scoops from yesterday for food, rest, rehearse, and come home. Today’s topic of discussion: What will you be doing for the holidays? Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst I hit the road to dreamland, hoping that throes of the holiday season turn happy sooner than later.