Well, the holidays are officially over, life has returned to normal, and I am once again subbing pretty much every day at VHHS. (I am also registered at Mountain Brook, but Vestavia keeps me occupied most of the time.)
Rehersals are underway for GUYS AND DOLLS, which I am directing. The show opens in March, so we have plenty of time to make it perfect. The cast is particularly strong, and we have local celebrity Jeh Jeh Pruitt (of "Good Day Alabama" tv fame) in the role of Sky. Jeh Jeh is a great guy, and it'll be fun working with him. He's also quite talented, and will be wonderful in the role. Leah Luker is opposite him as Sarah Brown, and Mike Bridges & Valerie Lemmons are Nathan and Adelaide. These are all "A-list" Bham performers, so I'm looking forward to a good production. I am particualrly happy to have Ron Wilson with us as Arvide. Ron and I have been good friends for 15 years, and he has always been a sort of "second dad" to me. It'll be fun to work together again.
Not much else going on. The Democrats continue to hold a slim majority in Congress, so I have hopes that gas prices will stay remotely affordable in days to come. I watched Dubya's speech last week with disgust. Not only was he arguably drunk (or just slurring worse than usual) he actually proposed an escalation in Iraq which bears a striking resemblance to the failed efforts in Vietnam. Oh well, I'm sure he never bothered to learn about that "unpleasantness."
A few of my readers have suggested that I may be too harsh on GWB. Personally, I don't think I say half as much as I could. I'm sorry, but when a smug, semi-illiterate, heartless smartass is in the Oval Office, I think criticism is in order. I will grant that he was smart enough to select an even worse VP, so he'll be safe from impeachment. (Dubya may be an uncaring moron, but that beats a malevolent not-so-dumb nazi. "President Cheney" just has a scary sound to it...)
I am still supporting Hillary at this point, but she seems to be collecting a rather formidable group of challengers. Obama is one to watch, as is Edwards. I think Kerry is a good guy, and would have made a good president, but his chances seem slim right now. Time will tell...
On the other side of the aisle, it looks as if the GOP nomination is pretty much McCain's for the taking, unless he really screws up. There are rumors that Alabama Gov Bob Riley is on the short list for VP candidates if McCain gets the nomination. Riley hasn't screwed anything up too badly in his first term in Montgomery, but I still don't want him for VP. Anyone 100 years old with a jet-black pompadour is immediately suspect, in my opinion. Reagan was the last man alive who could pull off that look.
I am watching (well, listening to) a movie about Spanish family life for the third time today, and I have 3 more to go. It's about as thrilling as it sounds.
FLT3
Tuesday, January 16, 2007
Thursday, January 04, 2007
Just in case you ever wondered what they were...
Here are the lyrics to "Rule, Britannia." I am very bored at work today.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rule_Britannia
FLT3
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rule_Britannia
FLT3
Wednesday, January 03, 2007
Fighting The Blahs
Ah, January...that lifeless month which brings all the joys and excitement of...(cue crickets chirping.)
The past couple of days have been glum. I don't start back to work subbing until tomorrow (Vestavia High School) and the past week or so has been uneventful to say the least. I spent New Year's Eve with the flu, which was no fun. Now that I seem to be crawling out from under the weather, I am left facing the bleak landscape of the first two months of the year.
Ever since I was a child, I have hated the first 59 days of the year. January is utterly without merit, and would be best slept through. February is (with apologies to the poet) the cruelest month. The thrill of Valentine's Day is gone after middle school...if you have someone special in your life, it's a pain in the ass to come up with a fun and original gift, and more often than not your expectations fall flat. If you don't have a significant other, it's just a depressing reminder of your solitude. Not to mention that by February's end, I am almost ready to scream with ennui. Slate-grey skies and 5:00pm sunsets will do that to you.
Add all of these factors together and toss in some post-holiday blues and a natural tendency towards depression, and there you have my mental state. I have an almost constant feeling of being just inches away from crying, but the "cleansing freshet of tears" (of which Ferrol Sams wrote so descriptively) never quite makes it to the surface. No matter where I am or what I am doing, it just seems sad. Not screaming-with-grief, wringing-hands-and-rending-garments sad...just a low-grade glum.
Luckily, I am about to go into rehearsal for Guys And Dolls (which I am directing) which will help. I am also making a plunge into opera with a chorus part in Opera Birmingham's La Cenerentola (Cinderella.) Although it seems miles and miles away, there is also the glowing beacon of EASTER which shines in the distance. I love Easter...it's by far my favorite holiday. All the warmth and the green, blooming, renewed feeling in the air never fails to bring me out of the doldrums. I need only hear the first few notes of "Welcome, Happy Morning" and all is right with the world. It'll be here soon...until then, I'll just look out the window and pretend I'm in England. It helps. :-)
FLT3
The past couple of days have been glum. I don't start back to work subbing until tomorrow (Vestavia High School) and the past week or so has been uneventful to say the least. I spent New Year's Eve with the flu, which was no fun. Now that I seem to be crawling out from under the weather, I am left facing the bleak landscape of the first two months of the year.
Ever since I was a child, I have hated the first 59 days of the year. January is utterly without merit, and would be best slept through. February is (with apologies to the poet) the cruelest month. The thrill of Valentine's Day is gone after middle school...if you have someone special in your life, it's a pain in the ass to come up with a fun and original gift, and more often than not your expectations fall flat. If you don't have a significant other, it's just a depressing reminder of your solitude. Not to mention that by February's end, I am almost ready to scream with ennui. Slate-grey skies and 5:00pm sunsets will do that to you.
Add all of these factors together and toss in some post-holiday blues and a natural tendency towards depression, and there you have my mental state. I have an almost constant feeling of being just inches away from crying, but the "cleansing freshet of tears" (of which Ferrol Sams wrote so descriptively) never quite makes it to the surface. No matter where I am or what I am doing, it just seems sad. Not screaming-with-grief, wringing-hands-and-rending-garments sad...just a low-grade glum.
Luckily, I am about to go into rehearsal for Guys And Dolls (which I am directing) which will help. I am also making a plunge into opera with a chorus part in Opera Birmingham's La Cenerentola (Cinderella.) Although it seems miles and miles away, there is also the glowing beacon of EASTER which shines in the distance. I love Easter...it's by far my favorite holiday. All the warmth and the green, blooming, renewed feeling in the air never fails to bring me out of the doldrums. I need only hear the first few notes of "Welcome, Happy Morning" and all is right with the world. It'll be here soon...until then, I'll just look out the window and pretend I'm in England. It helps. :-)
FLT3
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
