Coming Home

All is right with the world-- Charles was released from the hospital yesterday, Deb is coming home to me on Monday. What a crazy week it's been.

It all makes me so happy that I'm going to ignore the fact that Hyde pooped in the house yesterday.

Bad Dog!

Why do dogs look so frickin' cute when they're all guilty about doing something bad?

Hyde has been missing Deb something fierce. He's moping about the house, staring at the door and generally being just a sad sack of shit because she's gone.

I decided to give him some extra attention yesterday, to make up for Deb's absence. I had plans to catch the matinee of A Streetcar Named Desire, but somehow I just couldn't muster getting dressed and going into work if I didn't have to. (I'll see it when we close, I promise!) So I stayed around the house, tidied up a bit, took Hyde on a bunch of walks and played his favorite game, find the kibble under the cup.

Then we snuggled on the couch together while I read a book that Laura lent me and he blissfully snoozed for a couple of hours. Sounds heavenly, right? I got up to take a shower, leaving him still asleep on the couch.

When I got out of the shower I found him in his bed, surrounded by a completely ripped up book. He had that cute guilty look on his face, but I was not amused. I was totally into that book! And it wasn't even mine-- now I have to buy Laura a new book! Not to mention the fact that he'd chewed up the end of the book-- he could have at least had the courtesy to eat the part I'd already read!

Argh, I was fuming. I ignored his pleas for attention for an hour or so, and that seemed to get the message across: he was a VERY BAD BOY. He curled up in a sad little ball and followed me around with those puppy dog eyes until I decided it was enough and gave him a little love.

Not too much, though.

God, I can't wait for Deb to come back.

Meanwhile, and perhaps because of the stress of Deb being gone, his poo is all kinds of bad again. The vet suggested trying a high-fiber prescription food as opposed to the hyper allergenic prescription food he's on now. Plus a parasite medicine. If this doesn't work, we may have to get an expensive biopsy to determine whether or not he has IBS and colitis. We're keeping our fingers crossed. It's just too much fun to be dealing with this by myself, I can tell you that...

I've never met a dog who was so much trouble and yet at the same time so wonderful. Being a doggie parent is a weird and wonderful thing.

On a Roll

A casserole, that is. OMG, I LOVE PUNS!

I spent today being blissfully domestic-- I walked the dog, I tidied the house and most importantly, I cooked.

In light of my recent obsession with casseroles (with the cookbook Casserole Crazy to be specific) and my recent awesome birthday gift from Weas, I went a little hog-wild today.

And naturally, I documented the whole thing. God, I'm weird.

I made the Broccoli Cheese and Rice in my gorgeous new casserole stoneware from Portugal, the aformentioned birthday present. Gorgeous, right? And DELICIOUS!


I also made Potato and Cauliflower Gratin, on the right.

Yay for a fully stocked fridge!

Boo to all the dishes casserole cooking creates!

Images of 30

I had an amazing, transformative birthday. It wasn't at all what I had planned, but somehow it was just perfect.


It started with the amazing news that Chuck was out of the woods and slowly improving. He's still on the ventilator, but he really turned the corner and is making progress every day. Deb is flying back to Philadelphia on Monday.

We've been keeping each other updated with pictures, and this one has to be my favorite:



It was a birthday of cupcakes-- Melissa surprised me with these beauties on Sunday night before my party, and Alison baked me some delicious chocolate cupcakes with peppermint frosting on Monday night.


And my party on Sunday night was super-fun: Sugar Mom's was practically deserted, and we rocked the joint with pool games, corn dogs and whiskey shots.


Yesterday was my actual birthday. I didn't have any real plans, so I decided to take myself out. I had a lovely lunch by myself at Beau Monde and then spontaneously decided to go ahead and do this:
So although of course our best laid plans didn't exactly pan out, I am extremely grateful to have had an absolutely wonderful birthday. My friends, both here in Philly and long distance, blessed me with gifts and phone calls and lots of love. My family blessed me in an unexpected and somehow very adult way.

And my baby is safe and sound, taking care of her family and sending me lots of love from Texas.

30 has already been such a confidence booster for me. I'm looking forward to the rest of the decade.

Update

Early this morning I put my baby on a plane to San Antonio. Her brother is still on the ventilator, not "out of the woods" yet.

I'm so glad that things fell into place so quickly-- Alison jumped right into Deb's track on Streetcar and I'm holding down the homestead in her absence. She needs to be with her family right now.

All of my thoughts are with Chuck, his new daughter Janessa, Deb's sister Sheree and of course Deb herself.

Before leaving, Deb insisted that I not cancel my birthday plans. So I will be at Sugar Mom's tonight, rocking my new slutty dress, and missing my baby something fierce. Hope to see you there.

Get well soon, Charles.

Pray

Deb's little brother is in the ICU now. He had a severe asthma attack yesterday and is now on a ventilator.

Please keep him in your thoughts and prayers.

Fun with Obamicon

I've been having a little too much fun with Obamicon:



I think this one is my favorite so far:



Today was absolutely lovely-- 52 degrees! Deb and I took Hyde out for a long walk and enjoyed this brief respite from winter. Very brief-- temperatures are supposed to plunge again tomorrow.

It was pretty awesome to roll into work around 6pm too. No rehearsal, no meetings, just a very short (only 90 minutes!) show tonight. I'll be home by 9:30pm.

Warm weather, short show... I could get used to this!

Back to reality soon.

Spree

Today was an unexpectedly awesome day. Don't you just love it when that happens?

It's one thing to plan a fun day, but when one just springs on you, it's really delightful.

I began the morning with a pretty fierce hangover from the opening night celebrations of A Streetcar Named Desire, which debuted on our mainstage last night. Of course I didn't see the actual performance as I was working on my own show upstairs, but I sure did crash the afterparty. It was a smaller party than musical opening nights, and more intimate. I had a lot of fun and talked to a whole bunch of people that I haven't connected with in a long time. So the headache was worth it.

First on my agenda for the day was a therapy appointment, which although very necessary and helpful, aren't always the most fun. Today was different. We chatted about turning 30, and what that meant to me, and what my goals for this coming decade are. It was a lovely session, and I left the office feeling pretty great about my coming birthday.

I then finally connected with my mother on the phone-- we've been playing phone tag all week. It was great to catch up. Talking to my mom always makes me feel so much better, so much more grounded. She's the best. And I got a pre-birthday card from her in the mail today! (She's decided that since 30 is such a milestone, the celebration needs to begin a little earlier than normal. I couldn't agree with her more!)

After my chat with mom I treated myself to a cup of tea and a bagel at Joe's Coffee Bar, which I must recommend to everyone. Not only do they have that awesomely cozy coffee shop atmosphere that's slowly dying with the Starbucks-ing of America, but they are very socially conscious and environmentally aware. And all of the baristas are super-friendly.

My belly full, I decided to go dress shopping. I have two important occasions coming up-- my birthday and the Walnut's Bicentennial Gala.

I hit the jackpot: Old Navy is having a super half-off all clearance sale so I scored a cute shirt, a hoodie, a pair of jeans, a doggie sweater and a dog toy for $17!!!! Man, do I love bargain shopping. At Ross Dress For Less, I bought 4 dresses (including an AWESOMELY slutty dress that I am going to rock for my 30th birthday party) and 4 desperately needed bras. For $100. I think that's a pretty sweet deal.

After my shopping spree I hustled into work for the first production meeting of our third show this Studio season-- Honor and the River. Normally production meetings are pretty dry, but for some reason everyone was in a great mood today and we had a lot of fun dissecting the technical elements of the show. Of which there are many. There's a boat onstage. That's rigged to move up and down and "float" on the "water". It's going to be so cool!

And did I mention that our set designer, Robert Kramer, brought in Girl Scout cookies to the meeting? They went like hotcakes. I myself bought some Caramel delites (didn't they used to be called Samoas?) and some of those Peanut Butter Sandwiches. For, um, you know, Deb.

Tonight is our opening night for O Captain, My Captain. Another party, another excuse to wear a pretty dress and drink some bourbon.

And that's how my good day went! Hopefully there will be many more like it in the future-- it was a nice change from the daily grind.

President Barack Obama

I've spent the morning in front of CNN with Deb at my side, alternating between squeezing her hand and wiping away tears.

Truly a great moment in history. I can't wait to tell my children about this day.

Courtesy

This is audio of Patti Lupone stopping a performance of Gypsy to yell at someone taking photographs.

While, as a stage manager, I don't condone actors stopping performances, (I've had some very annoying experiences with this) as a theater professional, I think Ms. Lupone's speech is hilarious and right-on.

Although of course I must point out that someone was also illegally taking audio of the show, which is also annoying.

Too often theater-goers forget that they are indeed at a live performance, with living, breathing people working their asses off to entertain these unwashed masses.

It's nice that people get excited to see a performer. But it is just disrespectful to violate the theater's rules by taking photographs, video, audio, etc. Not to mention that the thing that makes a theater performance magical is the fact that it is live-- never to be seen or duplicated exactly again. Live performance is electric, unedited, unpredictable. Capturing it on film or video somehow cheapens that magic. Allows the performance to be dissected, analyzed and picked apart in a way it was never intended to be.

So audience members: turn off your cell phones. Leave your cameras at home. Sit back, shut up, and enjoy the magic of the moment.

Ms. Lupone, my hat is off to you. You are truly a grand diva who doesn't take any bullshit.

My thanks to Kirsten Burke for this video!

When Lilacs Last in Dooryard Bloomed

A shot from tech of our production of O Captain, My Captain: Whitman's Lincoln.

The set is INCREDIBLE. The whole Studio 3 theatre space has been transformed into a Victorian living room. (Thanks to the super-talented Glen Sears!)

Also I have literally 5 light cues and 10 sound cues.

I'm going to get a lot of crossing stitching done.

Looking Ahead

I really thought the lead-up to my 30th birthday (13 days and counting...) would be filled with breathless anticipation, thrilling secrets and oh, I don't know... something really special.

You see, I'm really looking forward to turning 30. I mean, really. I feel like it's a big turning point for me. A nice transition from my chaotic 20's into a more secure, stable decade. It's going to be a good 10 years, I'm determined.

So it would stand to reason that the days leading up to my birthday would at least whisper at the promise of the longed-for decade, right?

Oh, so very wrong. These past few days have been as chaotic and confusing as my previous decade. I've been in a haze-- brought on by a nasty cold and and circumstances that revived those old demons of mine, self-doubt and anxiety.

But that all ends now. It's almost my birthday. And I'm almost 30. Which means, officially, that I'm almost a badass. It's true.

So in the next couple of weeks, I will:

1. Finally pluck my eyebrows (been putting this off for way too long)
2. Get my 30th birthday tattoo (No, Mom, sadly, I'm not kidding)
3. Have a FABULOUS birthday party (are you coming?)
4. Do something about my blonde roots coming in (I've got a box of Nice 'N Easy ready to go)
5. Continue doing the job that I love and am good at, ignoring all bullshit
6. Celebrate our new president's inauguration
7. Open this %$@#& show
8. Turn 30 surrounded by people I love!

I hope to have just as awesome of a birthday party as my one of my favorite gals of all time, Amanda McK, who recently celebrated a big milestone herself: 25!

So here's to good friends, cheap beer and a decade filled with promise. I'll see you there.

Does a Body Good

Hello hello!

I've been kinda... away. Things have been busy, stressful, contemplative...

Anyway, I'm trying to get back into the blogging. It makes me happy, and my New Year's resolution is to do things that make me happy.

Like yesterday-- Deb, Amanda and I saw the movie Milk. It made me happy, and sad, and inspired.



Go see it. One week from today we'll have a new president.

Things are already starting to look up.

On hangovers, the Mummers and public drunkeness

Whew! Rehearsals for O Captain are kinda kicking my ass these days! Anyway, I've been away for a while, my apologies.

As promised, here's a photo journey through the madness that was New Year's Day.



The parade kicked off early as the Mummers marched home from Broad Street:

Meanwhile, the party kicked off at our place. Notice the mellow vibe. We were all nursing some pretty fierce hangovers:


Hey look! It's the pink guys and their beer truck!


Dalice found a great spot to rest her weary head: the dog bed. Thankfully Hyde is a champion spooner and didn't mind sharing.


Meanwhile, Amanda McKenna took up residence in this chair. Did I mention that Amanda came to the party in her nightgown, with a bottle of moonshine? I'm not making this up, folks.


Dan Kazemi showed up later, and his arrival managed to inspire Amanda enough to get out of her chair and dance around on our deck with the HUGE pair of 2009 glasses Dan made out of cardboard (nice nighty, Amanda!):


We left the comfort of the apartment as the debauchery ramped up on 2 Street. Street vendors were on hand to help us part ways with our money:


And everyone was milling about, enjoying the Mummers and their street beers.


There were no trash cans on the street.


Jenn Rose rings in the New Year with a very special Mummers Strut of her own!


The evening wore down, and although the residents of 2 Street continued to party, Deb and I spent the last waking moments snuggling on the couch with our very bony lap dog:

I will be posting more often soon, I promise. A (very belated!) Happy New Year to everyone!

My New Year's Resolution

Generally I don't make New Year's Resolutions-- they're much too hard to keep. And then you feel guilty for backsliding... it's just not worth it.

But this year I made one, and it's one that I think I can keep. My resolution: to do more things that make me happy. Pretty easy, right? Well, I definitely haven't been doing this. I'm always so worried about making everyone else in my life happy that I often neglect myself.

I'm not talking about sweeping life changes here (although that might be nice too...), just a few little things that brighten up my day. I need to be silly again, to find the absurd little things that put a smile on my face.

To that end, I've made my first purchase, a cookbook devoted entirely to casseroles:



It's amazing. I literally want to start at the beginning of this book and cook every damn casserole in it. Check out Emily Farris' awesome website here. Also, is it wrong to state publicly that although I've never met Emily, I have somewhat of a friend crush on her? She just seems so awesome. And she makes casseroles! I think we would get along famously.

I also bought the score to Handel's Messiah. Call me a nerd, but I really do miss singing classical work, and since my job doesn't allow me the time to join a choir, I'm going to start my own. In my apartment. It's going to include me as Lead Soprano and Hyde and Betty as disinterested listeners. I've sung the Messiah before, and I'm hoping that I remember most of it.

I hope my neighbors have some heavy duty ear plugs handy, 'cause I can't wait to hit those high notes.


And on a different note, today both A Tuna Christmas and Hairspray close. I'm going to miss both of these casts a ton, but frankly, I'm really looking forward to a little (very little) break before we go into tech for O Captain.

Pictures of New Year's Day craziness coming soon, I promise.