This weekend for me was one of labor. The Frantals had me over to help build some shelves. It seemed like it would have been easier going if we had some different drivers, but all-in-all, I would call it a success. The larger two of the four units we had planned are up and functioning. The shelves are damned sturdy in construction and should last them a good long while.
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Carousel was a weird show for me. It allowed me to show some dramatic range and really concentrate on what my voice does in song, but the theme was difficult to grasp properly and the audience’s tended to walk away a little bewildered, so not a lot of praise was heaped on the actors.
But playing Billy Bigelow was a genuine acting challenge. Sure, he has bravado and swagger and that’s easy enough for me. But he also isn’t a villain. In the end, the audience needs to believe in his redemption, despite his mistakes and lack of repentance.
For me, Billy would have turned it around, given time, but his foolish get-rich-quick mugging led to his death and he did not have the time to grow that he would have needed. I tried to bring that across, and what little change occurs in him definitely is encompassed by the Soliloquy, an eight-minute, range-threatening powerhouse of a solo.
This article talks about how Frank Sinatra learned and loved probably the best song in the show.
It rained last night. I haven’t been able to properly enjoy these storms, knowing that they officially qualify as a disaster, rather than simply in the minds of those who don’t appreciate precipitation. The effect has not been wonderful on my sinuses, either, so make sure you put that in your documentation (and smoke it), FEMA.
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This morning I ordered $700 of computer parts to put together a hackintosh. I feel a little buyer’s remorse as I will need some of that money for my future training and vacationing, but considering how long my previous machine lasted, if nothing else, I’ll have a good gaming rig for future fun times.
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Last night, I received some RAM I had ordered to speed up my old Frankenstein PC. On Tuesdays, some friends of mine who have been spread out across the country have been playing City of Heroes as an excuse to drink beer and shoot the shit online. My computer has been notably slower than the others, so I thought a little more RAM would be a cheap boost to the experience, particularly since it seemed to be Skype that was causing the issues.
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Last night, I dreamed that my friend, the choreographer and dancer Garrett, was in Iraq and for some reason I had gone to visit him. He was being his usual congenial self as he showed me around the base, which was shelled continually while we toured. Then, as he was loading the civilians — me included — into a large transport helicopter, his demeanor broke.
He was suddenly as terrified as I had been as the walls shook around us. He looked at me with the face of a child and said “I don’t want to be here, Chris. I wish I could go home.” Then, he immediately straightened up, nodded solemnly at me and waved as the helicopter lifted me away.
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This weekend, I meant to finish my work on a Fight Scene Database for the Society of American Fight Directors. I plugged away at it in PHP for hours on Saturday, but I learned little and progressed less, though not for lack of trying. I did get some functions working, but not as many as I wanted. I sound like my girlfriend; I suppose I can now sympathize.
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I called in yesterday and spent most of the day just being lazy. I did not attempt any projects. I did not work out. I took care of very little business. A part of me was glad of that, but I did feel twinges of guilt throughout the day. Then I went and played some board games with some former co-workers, now friends. Too often the subject turns to our former place of employment, which sadly did not do right by many of us. But the bitching ended in a quiet catharsis.
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I would never complain about this, but it’s very strange that lately jobs have been falling at my feet. A colleague of mine in a couple of shows now, Jackie, made mention of this at one point. She was mildly irritated and said something along the lines of “People just throw work at you.” I denied it at the time, but what in-roads I have made have evidently paid off (though without the “paid” part thus far.)
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I have not yet received my “economic stimulus” from the government, but I am assured by a surprisingly lithe IRS web site that it should be issued by the end of this week. I am one of the lucky people who gets the full amount of stimulus. Shiver in your seething jealousy, lesser citizens!
My personal political contribution to our failing economic state will be — predictably, unless you’re atlking about me — to put it in the bank. I have several things happening in August and September that are going to cost painful amounts of money. Rather than try to use the money I know I won’t be able to save, I intend instead to put money I don’t want or deserve toward that end.
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