It's that time of year again: Shakespeare in the park. Miller Outdoor Theater does two plays every summer, (one comedy, one drama) and this year the pairing is "Two Gentlemen of Verona" and "Henry IV, Part 1".
Miller has a covered seating area, but you have to buy tickets for that. I usually sit on the hill, which is free. Just remember - lawn chairs on the left, blankets on the right and come early (at least an hour) to stake out your spot. Bring a book, a cooler full of drinks and relax. Patience will be rewarded with art.
Friday Fun Video
Falstaff's suggestion on what refreshments to bring to the play.
The Monday after a holiday weekend is always a bit of a let-down. Everyone is present in body, but it's going to take a couple of days before the mind gets back in gear.
So, to ease everyone into the week, a reminder that it is the simple pleasures that make life worth living.
It's Valentine's Day, and I could be snarky, or bitter, or above it all, but honestly, I like the holiday. So I don't have a sweetheart, so what? That doesn't mean I live a life devoid of love.
I think the problem is that people narrow the focus to romantic love, which is sad. Don't you love your parents, friends, kids, siblings and pets too? Be generous. Isn't that one of the best things about love? It's generosity? It's not like it's going to run out.
And if the commercialization turns you off, don't buy anything. Give the creativity muscles a workout and bake their favorite cookies, run their errands for them, rent a favorite movie and make popcorn for a cozy night in, or be really romantic and write, on paper, an honest-to-goodness love letter. Not a text, not a card, a love letter. It will last longer than the cookies and be treasured forever.
Or just take a moment to tell that person or persons that you care. That's all Valentine's Day is about anyway.
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In other news, did you see men's slope style skiing last night? I thought the boarders were impressive, but the skiers go up the jumps backwards! Insane! am I right?
Maggie Voisin
In sadder news Evgeni Plushenko withdrew last night. I don't blame him, anyone with eyes could see the man was in pain. So in tribute to a great athlete, a video of what's not his best performance, but probably one of his most memorable. And it's a great Tom Jones song. Happy Valentine's Day!
Sorry, for the short post, but I'm hosting Christmas dinner tomorrow and I'm going crazy trying to get things baked, sliced, swept, polished, vacuumed, and all around straightened up. I'll let you know how it went on Thursday.
In the meantime, I give you "Santa and his old lady" - a holiday classic from Cheech and Chong.
I have no idea why I'm at work today. Nothing productive is happening. Everyone is passing around Christmas cookies and emailing each other YouTube videos.
I need more vacation time.
Friday Fun Video
Since everyone's probably a little tired of Christmas carols by now, I offer a bracing shot of the Muppets. This clip features Rita Moreno, the only guest star to get the best of Animal.
Today (June 21st) is the solstice, the first official day of summer. Time to go indoors.
Houston (love it though I do) is not the place to be in summer. It's hot. It's humid. On really bad days, the air is such a warm wet presence you feel as if you need gills.
If I had the means, I would move somewhere cooler in summer. Somewhere like England, where the average high temperature in June is 65.5 degrees Fahrenheit. 65! we won't see 65 until December. Our average is 91, and today it's 93!
And all that warmth brings with it bugs. Lots of bugs. Great big bugs with scary red eyes.
Cicada - harmless, but really, really ugly
But at least cicadas don't bite. That makes them better than the mosquitoes. And boy do we have mosquitoes. Tip: Citronella candles are useless. Stay inside and wait for fall.
So sun, surf and sand? No, I will be spending the summer in the shade, drinking gallons of iced tea, reading mystery novels and waiting for the temperature to drop back into the upper 80's.
On my little jaunt to the hill country last week, I was playing with the radio stations and stumbled on a county station playing The Derailers, who have made my shortlist of favorite country bands. A band I would never have discovered, had I done what my brother keeps telling me to do and put all my music on an i-pod. "Then you can take you music with you wherever you go." In other words, I could stay in my cocoon of "things I know I like".
But I don't want to stay wrapped up in my own little world. It's why I travel, for the thrill of breaking routines and discovering new things; things I would never have discovered otherwise, like The Derailers.
“Why do you go away? So that you can come back. So that you can see the place you came from with new eyes and extra colors. And the people there see you differently, too. Coming back to where you started is not the same as never leaving.”
― Terry Pratchett
This is why I have a love/hate relationship with the Amazon. As you know, if you buy something on Amazon, the next time you log on, Amazon will recommend things based on what you purchased. So if you buy a murder mystery, your recommendations will be flooded with murder mysteries. In a way, this is good, it helps you find more things in a category. But it doesn't compare with going to a library or bookstore and roaming the stacks, where you just might find ANYTHING.
Maybe Amazon could have a "surprise me" button in the recommendations section. Push it and you would get completely random recommendations. It would be like playing roulette. They might even turn over more stock.
I appreciate routines. Routines are important. They center and ground people. They help us maintain the illusion of stability in a chaotic universe. But too much routine becomes a rut, and ruts close you off from new experiences. Which is a long winded way of saying that I'd rather deal with 5 stations full of static, that hold the possibility of something new, than an i-pod filled with music I've heard 30 times already, even if I love it.
