Messy Monday And More

A damned difficult day. I had gotten all the prep work done--I thought--for Acting for Amateurs and went over at 10:30 to set up the gathering room. It was drizzling a bit--no, more like misty--in the morning and I was a little worried everybody (all six of them) wouldn't show up, but they did. After some preliminary remarks and reminders, I set them to doing the plays assigned. 

I was surprised they laughed so much, especially at When Cooks Confer. They really seemed to enjoy it, which was gratifying to me. As for the performances--well, Meryl isn't quaking in her boots, that's a cinch, but they were okay. They did seem to at least make a stab at faster delivery (often a big part of comedy) and facial expressions, so some progress was made. I had to play Ms. Paycheck in Help Wanted--Not! because of the person who bailed and that, full of puns, went over very big, too. They didn't really get into the pace of Tootie Looks At Real Estate, so it was somewhat lame, but fair. As for The Truth, The Embellished Truth, And Nothing Like The Truth, read on.

Dusty, who is president of BCNN, had earlier asked if I would do a "show" for the membership sometime in the fall and I've been hedging about it. It's a hell of a lot of work and frankly, I wasn't enthusiastic about it. But yesterday, she suggested that just The Truth, etc. could be done. Dusty herself was one of the two players in that and, to be honest, that doesn't seem to be her genre. Of course, I couldn't say that, but when she said she wouldn't reprise the role, I was more agreeable. I chose Rosa to be "Shelby Nameless," the woman and Susan, who wasn't bad, played Shelby's Alter Ego. 

So...I agree, but this won't be presented to the membership in the fall, it will be tomorrow at the monthly meeting! Luckily, Susan and Rosa could stay later and we ran over it twice. I gave them some more specific direction and I think they'll be okay. I'll introduce them and also, ask the other members to stand and be recognized.

I gave out the parts for next week--dramas this time--but I screwed up badly with one of them. This is a monologue--or not--that can be played either by one person or several, as the character progresses from six years old to seventies or eighties. I set it up so all the players were in it. Without elaborating on how my error, I didn't copy the scripts right, so will do have to do them over. I'll give them to the six in the group at the meeting tomorrow. Therefore, I had to copy them all over so they were all uniform. 

I started that right after lunch, got four done and AAGH!--the ink ran out again! That was the new cartlidge I had gotten on Sunday--all gone! I immediately put my coat on and took the 6 to Telephone Road, the 11 to Office Depot. Got the ink, then took the ll to the transit center, and the 21 home. Not only is this damn thing taking me hours and hours of planning and work, it's costing me real money. I've spent about 75 or 80 bucks on ink and paper, not to mention the wear and tear on my printer. Yeah, maybe not one of my better ideas to do this. HOWSOMEVER...auditions are coming up on Sunday for Fractured Actors' new season and you'd better believe I'll be there.

I did take time out to call my big brother, Larry; it was his ninety-first birthday. Here he is with his Helen at their daughter's wedding about thirty years ago:

AND THERE'S MORE IN MY LIFE:

I found this painting on Facebook and am mesmerized by it. There's a strong sense of foreboding and doom in it. Why does she keep baking bread? She has already made rolls and a large loaf, but she makes still more. And the storm coming? It seems lightning has already set the tree on fire. Why do the men keep at their duties in the field? Is the cat sounding a warning? Or is it a harbinger of dread things to come? And that fly on the cloth covering the rising dough, is it carrying disease? And if it is, does she care?

And the look on her face.  The look on her face. 

Sunday

Whew, what a day. I had every intention of getting my Acting For Amateurs paperwork done early. That included printed a lot of scripts, plus planning and writing the agenda, and so on. Simple, huh? Well, not if your printer runs out of ink straightaway--AAGH! I have some ordered, but it's being shipped and isn't here yet. Okay, I went on line, ordered the ink from Office Depot, paid with a credit card, and planned to pick it up after breakfast--simple number two, huh?

HA! I was just about to take off when Diane texted me. She was getting her hair cut right in the Von's shopping center across the street, and did I want to meet for lunch? Well, sure, and we were going to bring our own and eat outside. However, it was drizzly, so she suggested we eat at Burger King, which, incidentally, is directly next door to Mcdonald's. Fine by me, but I don't eat fast food, so I packed my sandwich and beer and joined her in a booth. We had our usual good time talking and when we parted, Diane asked if I wanted to go to the psychic where she was headed--only twenty dollars for a reading. Oh, good grief, it is to laugh--no, sweetie, you go ahead. 

It was after that that I took two buses to Office Depot, picked up my ink, then deviated to The Market and bought three more solar lights (my newest craze--I'll get over it). Took the 11 and 10 home and by that time, it was three o'clock and--I hadn't done any of the prep work for today--DOUBLE AAGH!   

The upshot was that I wasn't finished until 6:00,* after which I made myself scrambled eggs and (plant-based) sausage for dinner, then jumped in the shower and resolved to better keep my nose to the grindstone in the future. (How long will that last? Anybody's guess.)

* One of the most time-consuming items is trying to get equitable casting for those in the group. I think I got pretty close, but it was difficult. 

Sunday #1

 Okay, I looked him up and here he is:

Timothy G. Nutt

• U of A
 
• Honors College
 
• Faculty
 
• Faculty Awards
 
• Timothy G. Nutt

Timothy G. Nutt, manuscripts and rare books librarian and assistant head of the special collections department of the University Libraries. Nutt has published extensively on the subject of Arkansas history and also writes, directs and acts in history reenactments for the Washington County Historical Society.

Saturday

Ran over to Von's to get bread and cookies for lunch with Jim. Just served turkey breast and tomato sandwiches, along with applesauce and crystal pickles, both of which I had in the freezer. He came, as usual at 12:30, we had lunch, then sat on the couch. To keep the conversation going, I asked where he went to grammar school: St. Anne of the Sunset in San Francisco. I looked it up on my phone and we had some reasonably okay time looking at the website, pictures, and so on. It's so hard to hit on anything he'll actually discuss, but this was okay. Significantly, I think, he has never been back to his hometown since he left for college; he has no interest in it. He left about 3:30, I cleaned up, then went over to Suzanne's for our little social session at 5:00.

Had a nice time. As usual, Vickie and I brought our own drinks and Suanne had popcorn and apple slices out. After we ate and chatted, we viewed Suzanne's pictures of her Seattle and British Columbia trip. We broke up at 6:30 and, being stuffed from both lunch and Suzanne's, I skipped dinner; just had some nibbles while I watched my one hour of Netflix at 8:30.

I'm going to devote today to preparing for Acting for Amateurs tomorrow. Damn, my printer is already out of black ink--I ordered some, but it didn't come yet and I'll have to go over to Office Depot today to buy it.  

                                                                   😀😀😀😀😀😀

I was so pleased to get this email yesterday from Tim Nutt, of Little Rock College:

Hi Ms. Molloy—

 

I apologize for the delay in contacting you. Unfortunately, I was mistaken about the Little Rock College records. I assumed we had them because we have the records of the Seminary that was associated with the College, beginning in 1911. However, I haven’t given up on searching for the records. I will be back in touch when I have done a little more investigating. 

I’m determined to solve this mystery. 

Tim Nutt

 

Timothy G. Nutt, C.A.

Archivist

Diocese of Little Rock

(501) 664-0340, ext. 411

Of course, I wrote him back immediately with thanks; I'm hoping he'll come up with some more information about my Dad when he was teaching and getting his masters degree there. Hmm...I'm not sure what C.A. means; could he be a priest? 

Friday, Noreen, Two V.s, And Three Jims

Sharon called about 6:00 to say she wasn't going to T.O.PS.--had a bad night and she sounded terrible. Julie picked me up; it turned out there were six of us and the meeting--if you can use so formal a description--was okay. At home, I "turtled" (remained the same) at 128.8, but at T.O.P.S, gained a bit, to 130.9. Home, had breakfast, then just had time to change clothes and take off.

Hopped the bus to town and met Noreen at 12:30 at Paradise Pantry. We sat outside--sun was shining, happily--and both had my favorite grilled turkey and pesto sandwich. (You can order a half sandwich and next time, I will, as these are very large and I had to take half home.) N. drank a blanc e blanc (or something) white wine, I, a Purple Rain IPA. We talked and talked, natch, for two hours, then said goodbye. After I got home, I must have done something, but I can't remember what. 

A funny coincidence: I hadn't spoken to Jim Downes for six or more months, but came across the following the other day:

                                        

By my calculations, this was written and received sometime in the fities, either shortly before or after Pat and I were married in 1958. I resolved to call Jim and mention it, but didn't have a chance: to my real surprise, out of the blue, he called me yesterday. Neither he nor I could remember the circumstances, but he remarked that his late wife was from Minnesota, so he may have been with her. We talked for a bit--same old Jim--and will presumably keep in touch.

As for Jim C., I called him and he'll be over for lunch today. I half wish I had asked him for tomorrow, as I have Suzanne's little get together/social session/happy hour at 5:00, but guess I'll manage. On Sunday, I want to concentrate on working up an agenda for Acting for Amateurs. PMed Vera to tell her I won't be there for lunch with Soaring Spirits on Monday. 

Mike video PMed me in the evening while walking and we exchanged the usual family news. Vivian is going to be touring Europe for six weeks, first in the U.K. where she'll visit friends, then Germany, France, Spain, and more. She's 19 and I'm always amazed at the life style she--and her 14-year-old sister, who will take a class trip to Malaysia next week--follow as if it's perfectly normal and natural. Their grandmother considered a trip to Philadelphia exciting and as for New York City, it was the epitome of exotic travel. Hey, lucky them. 💕

The other Jim was my father, James Daniel Byrne. Yesterday was the seventy-third anniversary (6/2/50) of his death by accident, which changed our lives forever. This is the picture of him--on our porch on Rosborough Avene--I put on Facebook:

Thursday

Virtuous me, I spent almost the entire day filing, calling OTC with my order for this quarter, reading over Joan's book, and handling other stuff I had neglected too long. Before I started those chores, I got out my trusty Chop Wizard and chopped three pounds of onions; put some in the freezer and the others in the fridge for the stir-fry I made later.

I did have some pleasant interludes; Suzanne showed me some of her pics of her Canada trip and--this was very enjoyable--we met our new neighbor (will live over Suzanne).  He seems a very nice guy, out-going and friendly.  Name is Mike, wife is Lisa, he's from upstate New York; I guess he's about in his early fifties. He said he has a five-year contract with an avocado company and asked us if we liked avocados--hey, this is going to be the neighbor from heaven!

Suzanne invited Vickie and me for one of our social sessions on Saturday at 5:00; looking forward to it. As for my invitation to Jim to attend the affair at The Townehomes next Thursday, he said he couldn't make it--not sure why. I emailed Diane, asked her, and yes sir, she wants to go--good.

After my labors, I called Muckie and we had a good long talk. It was great to hear the cancer hasn't progressed--may even has shrunk slightly--and she's as upbeat as ever. We hashed over--of course--old times at HS High, the good, the bad, and the ludicrous. 

In reading over Joan's book, I noted she wrote that my father was the only one in his family of eight who had attended college. I was pretty sure that wasn't the case, so I called my cousin, Marifran, and she confirmed that yes, her Dad and my uncle had also been an engineer and had graduated from college. We then had a long talk about--what else?--our shared heritage, the good, the bad, and the--hmm, I don't want to go there.

My patio last night; I'm enchanted with the solar lights; think I'll add some more. Notice the bird seed and water--I love to see the little birdies at my place. 

Tuesday

Just as I finished breakfast, Suzanne stopped in, having gotten back from Canada late on Tuesday night. She said he and Sister Beatrice had a wonderful time, Victoria is beautiful, and she also had a chance to spend time with her family in Seattle. Soon, she'll have Vickie and me over for a social session and to see her pictures.

I had been having problems with my electric blanket and after following the trouble-shooting advice in the book, called the company. I was told to unplug both ends, replug, and so on, and the blanket now works fine. To my surprise, the rep I spoke to then asked my name, I told her, asked her's, and she said it was Betty, same as my twin sister, which she thought a remarkable coincidence. She then proceeded to tell me her life story for twenty-five minutes! Born the eighth of ten kids on a farm, no indoor plumbing until she was five, her mother insisted on continuing to take the (birth control) pill until she was 60, her father cut his hand with a saw, but wouldn't go to the doctor, put grease and duct tape on it, and ETC., ETC., ETC...there was much more. I know some people would have been angry, but I was amused and even somewhat titillated. Anyway, the blanket works, I had plenty of time, so I enjoyed it. 

Walked to The Market for onions, strawberries (yes, more strawberries--I already had two pounds), crackers, and a few other things. It was noon when I got home and I had time only to spread a piece of bread with hummus, gobble it down, and brush and floss before I left to bus to Dr. Babbitt's for my teeth cleaning. That was a horrible ordeal, of course, but there's no sign of further damage, and I was relieved about that. Walked back to the transit center/mall and stopped at Whole Foods for some cream sherry. 

Home, I sliced and chopped about two pounds of the strawberries. Not sure what I'll do with them yet, but may try making sherbet. 

I had gotten an invitation from The Townhomes independent living to see The Poseidon Adventure next Friday evening, preceded by cocktails and appetizers. Sure, I'd love to go. Emailed Jim to see if he wanted to, but he wrote back that he couldn't make it. I'll either ask Diane or go by myself, I guess. The rest of my older friends live on the other side of town and I don't think they'd want to drive back and forth that late. As for my younger friends--don't know if they'd be interested. 

Speaking of--Cheryl, who takes me to T.O.P.S. called while I was going home to say she wasn't going tomorrow. She's still in Colorado, will be home today, but fell and hurt her knee. She already has leg problems (wears braces on both) from an accident about thirty years ago, and she sure didn't need a fall. I'll text Lora or Julie to see if one will pick me up.  

Auditions are coming up for Fractured Actors, starting on June 11. Yes, I'll be there, but I wish I had sent Shannon another script or two of my own. Speaking of--I've reserved today to address a number of put-off chores, including firming up the agenda for A. for A. coming up on Monday.   

Note to myself: Ordered from Canon both color and black XL ink cartilages for the printer; total $60.33.

Can't resist adding another of Sean Gleason's wonderful pictures of my home town: