Well, I'm set to be in the Tuckerton show on April 26. Met with others last night, many of whom will sing. As far as I know now, only Frank D. and I will "recite"--he's going to do something by John Masefield. Seems to me Mansfield is kind of a pokey, not first rank, poet, but I'll keep my mouth shut.
Ordinary, low-key day otherwise. Am looking forward to the caregivers' gathering today in Bayville (about 35 minutes from here). However, it's run by the N.J. Dept. on Aging, so I have little expectation that it will be anything interesting, let alone useful. From my earlier experiences, they seem to be one of those government agencies that offer a lot of soulful advice ("Be sure to make time for yourself," "It's important to so this, that, and the other thing," and so on and cliche-ly on), and little practical help. Whaddya mean, I'm a cynic?!
Wider: Chris Floyd's latest piece on his blog, "Empire Burlesque," calmly, succinctly, and perfectly outlines the ways our government continues its imperialism and gets the electorate to believe its wars are legit. This is so well written, I don't want to quote or paraphrase, except to mention the gem he uses to remark that, in order to interpret the aims and purposes of the ruling class, we must act as our own Kremlinologists. What a phrase! What an intellect! The essay is called "Darkness Renewed: Terror As A Tool Of Empire." See it on http://www.chris-floyd.com/

Enjoyed lunch with Mary Ann. We just went to reliable ol' Dynasty Diner for Caesar salad and a Coors Light. After, stopped at B & B for produce, then Acme, and finally to her house to sample her caramelized onion soup. I didn't realize I was gone so long, but it was almost 4:00 before I got home.
Earlier, I had assembled my costume for the rehearsal (audition) tonight. It looks pretty good; after borrowing no fewer than five shawls, I've decided to go with my fringed "throw." It's grey and a little ratty, similar to what Maurya, my character, would wear, I think.
Got a welcome phone call from Jack B., who said he was sorry he hadn't stopped in lately. It seems he's yet another old smoker who's been diagnosed with emphysema and now must use oxygen when sleeping. I think he's a bit shaken up over it, but I tried to put it in perspective. He''' probably have more stamina now and feel better generally.
Wider: I wish this were an April Fool's Day joke, but no such luck: Regardless of our insistence on believing what we want to believe, it's now crystal clear that O. is anything but the anti-war president. From "Neoconservatism: The Return," by Justin Raimondo on Anti-War. Com:
"The brain-dead Obamaites are shamelessly eager to grant their Glorious Leader a pass, no matter what he does. So far, there is not a peep out of Obama’s liberal supporters, except a few voices raised at the Nation, even as the president mounts a major escalation of the Long War. Not only that, but his supporters are rallying around their commander in chief, now that we’re fighting the "right" war in the "right" way. "
But the entire essay must be read. Raimondo calls it as it lays and is anybody listening? Doesn't seem so, least of all the oblivious dems.

Back in my usual routine, I'm doing fine. Mostly just unpacked and did domestic chores yesterday. Stopped at Acme and ran into Marge and Fred. Made Pat a delicious dinner--I modestly declare--of pot roast, potatoes au gratin, baked apple, and pudding, of which he ate every morsel. Had lentil stew and yams myself.
Have a date to go to lunch with Mary Ann Van O. today and tomorrow evening is the rehearsal/audition for the Seaport show. Thursday, I go to Brick for a caregiver workshop, so I'm looking forward to a number of interesting events. I'm glad I'm still able to attend them.
Wider: Here's a succinct and relevant comment on our present disastrous state of affairs from somebody who uses "Writerman" as his name on Truthdig.Com:
"What is the American healthcare system really for? It isn’t primarily, as of today, designed to benefit the sick, as much as provide a massive subsidy or transfer of wealth, from ordinary Americans to the shareholders of insurance companies and pharmaceutical firms. After they get their cut, what’s left goes into patient care...In a way it’s comparable to the massively bloated military budget, what’s that for? It’s not there to defend the United States, because, after all, the United States has no real enemies anymore; the military budget, all one and half thousand billion of it, is, once again, a hidden subsidy and transfer of wealth from the taxpayer, the state, to the private sector.
This is a way of seeing through the ‘paradox’ of why on earth do we waste so much money on these things; because the waste doesn’t matter, it’s built into the system, it’s the reason behind the apparent madness..."
Straight to the heart of what ails us, it seems to me. Hope "Writerman" comments more.

Continued my respite weekend by just doing what I wanted. After a leisurely breakfast (my usual; I'm back in the routine), I impulsively went to Rider, my place of employment for 27 years, as well as my alma mater. Drove around campus, but didn't get out of the car. I was astounded to see new residence halls going up--they look like high end townhouses, which I guess is what you need to attract students--and what with the other new buildings added since I retired, the place is very impressive.
I then drove back to our old house on Lower Ferry. Passed the kids' school and other former haunts. Went to the cemetery at Ewing Presbyterian where my dear friend of so many years, Elaine, is buried.
Okay, that was enough. I headed back. Stopped at B.J.'s at the huge "Hamilton Commons" to pick up a few items and made a few other stops.
Later, I alternated reading in A.'s quiet, peaceful house and driving around her neighborhood. Sounds boring, but it wasn't--it was exactly what I needed.
Packed up and went home. Got in about 5:30 to find everything under control (I never doubted that, as A. and M. were there). Was pleased to hear dear niece, Joan, had called. A. and M. stayed for another half hour or so, then we said goodbye. Talked to darling Ellen in the evening, had my good ol' wine and popcorn, and slept like a log.
The big news, though, is that buds are popping out all over and my new pansies are thriving. That yearly miracle alone is enough to raise my spirits and, combined with my fabulous respite weekend, makes me a new woman.
I'm back and life is good.
Wider: Lest anyone thinks I've mellowed (hell, no!) here's a snippet from John Caruso, in "The Distant Ocean":

The most frightening, or maybe informative, headline I saw last week: "Bank Execs Pleased With Tone Of Meeting With Obama."
This would be something like "Mafia Bosses Pleased With Tone Of Meeting With District Attorney" or "Vampires Pleased With Tone Of Meeting With Van Helsing." Except in those cases it would be a surprise.

As ever, right on,John.

Had the best, BEST time yesterday. J., J., J., J., and T. picked me up, as arranged, about noon and we took off for Atlantic City. The boys loved the aquarium, little T. running (he hardly ever walks) from one tank to the other, pointing excitedly and yelling "Wow!" or "Ga!" at every one. His favorite, though, was the "touch a stingray" part. (The stingers are removed from the creatures.) He wasn't so much interested in touching, as splashing in the water. He got pretty wet, but had a great time. After, at my suggestion, we drove down to Margate to see Lucy, the elephant. It was closed for the winter, but we saw the outside and I promised to take young J. back in the summer. He was also impressed by the casinos we drove past--I hadn't realized he hadn't been there before. We then checked out Longport, which often has pretty spectacular waves breaking on the rocks, but yesterday was calm.
By 4:30 or so we were all hungry. Big J. remembered passing a Japanese restaurant in Absecon and suggested we stop there. We did, and what a great choice. We ate hibachi style, marveling at all the flaring flames, knife-throwing, and fancy moves of the chef, operating right in front of us. When he squirted something from a squeeze bottle right into big J.'s mouth, I thought it was water, but he did the same with me, and I discovered it was saki! The food itself was just scrumptious. I had salmon and shared off with J. and J. some shrimp and chicken. The other J. had steak and that looked wonderful, too. The rice and vegetables were great, too. I ate every crumb, myself. (The chef, little squirt, kept calling me, "Grandma," but I'll assume that's a common term of respect for him.)
Because we had eaten early, we were home before 7:00, which was perfectly fine with me. I found ice cream in the freezer, had a bowl with butterscotch topping, and followed that with a few other goodies. I know I'll be back on the straight and narrow today, so am not worried about my pigging out. After watching some wonderfully stupid television, I went to bed and slept like a log. My respite weekend has been wonderful so far, rain or not, and I have another full day to enjoy. That old song keeps running through my head: "Lucky, lucky, lucky me...!"

Here I am at A.'s, starting my respite weekend--yay! Got up here about 6:15 and I'm not even going to let the fact that it's raining lower my spirits. The kids are coming at noon and even if we can't go to the park, it will be fun to see them whatever we do.
Greatly enjoyed "Plaza Suite" (I must be losing it--can't remember if you put the title of plays in quote marks or italics) last night. Went with the D.'s and sat with other SB friends, the L.'s, the H.'s, and the G.'s. Had never seen the movie (if it was a movie) or, naturally, the Broadway presentation. It was terrific.
Didn't get home until the ungodly hour of 10:30, just as A. pulled up. M. was already there and I had my wine and popcorn (and, yes, I brought some with me) while A. had White Zinfandel. Bed very late for me and I got up a bit after 5:00, but so what? I'll sleep well tonight, I'm sure.

Slow-pokey as ever yesterday. Went to Acme--whee!--and the library. Picked up a book of short stories I had requested and read a remarkable one called A Song For Lya. I had read about this on some blog or other and was entranced by it. It's science-fiction, a genre I used to enjoy, but haven't read for years. This was published in 1973 by George R.R. Martin. Must look him up.
Wider: Here's a heartening piece from Z Magazine, an on-line mag I've just discovered:
"The following item was sent from Istanbul. The maker of the shoes that an Iraqi journalist hurled at President George W. Bush has had to take on 100 extra staff to cope with a surge in demand for his footwear. 'Between the day of the incident and 1:00 PM today, we have received orders totaling 370,000 pairs,' Istanbul-based Serkan Turk, head of sales at Baydan Shoes, told AFP...Turk said orders had initially flooded in from Iraq, followed by other Middle East countries, and finally from the rest of the world, including orders for 19,000 pairs from the United States."
YAY!!