I started the morning with a walk round my garden. Fall turns so many things even more beautiful!
I took a moment in my crazy day to go pick up the new masks I ordered for the theatre and then do a trip through the booth checking things out and asking questions of the electrician. Tomorrow is the day that Ben starts reconnecting the equipment at the theatre, ready for the church and the show. Exciting times!
I really am so impossibly tired that I can barely blog…
I do want to express that I am fully aware that I am a jealous person. It is weird to be a cheerleader and a green monster at the same time. my eldest said she wanted to hang out and I was waiting for that to be possible as her husband is hunting and then I see posts of her out in Kimberley for dinner with her sister whom she sees every day. I was disappointed and in the same breath, I was so tired that I was glad to have a night off. It is a complicated feeling.
Roller frickin’ coaster again today. I awoke to remember Mark was here. Got on the treadmill then took a careful shower as I can’t find my new amazing shower curtain yet, Then it was quick goodbyes and off to the office I went. The problem was I had had a glance at my email and I saw that I had a client leaving to go back to the Firm I used to work for who are their current accountants. I was actually ok in the long run and they did give me a months notice as per our contract. I only wish I knew exactly why. Not the, you are being polite and kind reason, but the, who threw me under a bridge reason. It sat with me, a simple obsession. Once again I carefully chose my response, filed their remittances and got ready to do the last month of entry. Then I checked in on my UK Besties and all the love. It is Linda’s birthday and they are frolicking in the Yorkshire area. No rain kept them down. How could I let anything get me down, I am Marnée, the gatherer of friends, the one who loves with abandon and would do anything to see her friends smile. They smiled today and all is right with my world. My day was insanely multitastic and in the middle of a GST review/audit with CRA, a client from another town stopped in with his paperwork and news. He is on his way to Alberta to see about purchasing another business, a plan to expand his already booming business and just when I had a wee gap in my capacity, he asked about online payroll and remittances and set me up to access his bank so I could do it all for him, taking some of the load off. To have that kind of trust from a man who went through a nasty divorce, who lost a good deal to a woman he trusted, and yet gave me full access to his finances… that is worth gold. I am filled with gratitude and honoured by his trust in me. And that, my friends, made up for all things earlier. It seemed to be a reason for all that happened, as a matter of fact.
There was much flurry of email, text and calls re volunteer things but so many good results. I have deadlines now for getting back into the theatre and all will be met.
After work there was much joy as I picked up my neighbour, Tracey and headed to meet family at the special Bucks game. I had seen the tickets available right away and jumped on them to grab 3/4 of a row 9 rows up from the ice, between the benches for the Bucks vs Canadas National Women’s Hockey Team. This exhibition game was intended to keep the ladies practiced before the ‘real’ game. I had no idea their birthdates ranged from 1985 to 2001, so much fepower! They got their butts kicked by our Bucks but it was so much fun and they seemed to keep a good head about them, It may have helped that everyone was loudly cheering for them and sidebar cheering for the Bucks. My fave moment was honestly when they all threw down their gear and fixed their hair into ponies before the group photo.
Unfortunately, during the second intermission, I stood and stepped sideways to go up to the loo but suddenly I had excruciating pain in my right hip. I could barely walk up. I spent the third period watching from the mezzanine level. As soon as I got home, I ran my first bath, took a couple gabapentin and watched an episode of YOU. It was a good soak and I hauled myself out with gratitude that I could stand. I had a hard time deciding what my bevie of choice was though….
One of the biggest highlights of my day was getting a spontaneous, comforting hug from my friend Keon just before the women caught a goal as the clock ticked down.
I got up with full intention of having a bath and getting on with my day but decided to have a shower instead and head in early. I got so much done just focusing past the tired and achy. I even forgot to bring my lunch so worked on through and got more done than expected of me. One of my clients was shocked to have so much of his September reporting already. I suppose some of it could have been because Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, What’s App and who knows what else, all went dark! It was eerie, and I was concerned as I was in communication for payments with two people via messenger. I was fully done and I mean DONE with focusing by the time it was time to go get my friend from the airport. We headed straight to Mr Mikes to enjoy our gift card from the last meal. Once we were stuffed, we had a quick stop at Home Depot to get a shower curtain rod. Then it was home to kick back and play Little Big Planet for a few hours. Following that was The Voice. It is fun to discuss the voices with someone!
Jake was finding it may not be possible for him to come up next weekend as he has brake problems. I told him I would help him pay for now to get him up here. He made an appointment for Thursday, so fingers are crossed.
I was excited to get notice that I made Superhost for Airbnb!
730 came way too early. I rushed off to work to use the loo, brush my teeth and wash my face before getting home to meet Scott. I think it was only a two trip to Home Depot day, although I have lost track over the last three days. I am bone weary. We got it done, even though the tub was a lot of fittings to get it installed. As each thing was installed my vision began to emerge. There are still a few small things to take care of and I am awaiting the wallpaper I ordered. I also have decided to not use the curtain rail I ordered. I was so thrilled as each thing was installed, from the floor up, like pieces of a great puzzle. At the end of the day we toasted with a fine scotch.
I also took the time to clean up the yard, start cleaning out some flower beds and winterize my kayak. I also sold the leftover peel and stick tiles and my old vanity on the Cranbrook Bid Wars page.
I really am so grateful to have had Scott working on this project. He was great at the job and listened when I had an idea.
Omg, I was so excited to get going this morning that I headed off to the office to use the loo, brush my teeth and wash my face before grabbing coffee and donuts for Scott and I and getting back to the house before he arrived. My first reaction was Brrrr and Awe. There was thick frost and a gorgeous skyline.
We worked well today but I don’t feel we made the same progress as there were issues at every turn. There are two factors against us… a 1980 manufactured home and a 1980 manufactured home renovated along the way by the previous owner…
We were always just ready to move on to the big ticket items when we would discover small annoying problems that would send me back to Home Depot where the staff are about to call out NORM! When I walk in the door. It turns out that we finally found the mystery drips and the reason for all the water out the side of the place. There was a reason the grace was always greener!!!
I really appreciate Scott, I only wish we had gotten along further so both of us could have tomorrow off. I am not happy to have to set an alarm on a Sunday morning.
AND I am tired of going to the office or Home Depot to use the loo during the day. I will fess up to popping a squat in the yard come sundown for the last two days. Tomorrow, it all must be reinstalled!!!
I am finding it odd that I get overwhelmed when I share that I don’t have cancer. I think it is because there was so much fear that I was not acknowledging that I am caught off guard by tears and relief when I share with my closest people. I didn’t want to worry people and I know not all of them read this and that I may not have been as clear as I could have been that I was terrified. I will continue to let the tears flow as necessary and get on with living my best life. God, that is so trite but true!!
Gosh, the world is good when a friend shows up on time, coffee in hand for both of you and the back of his truck full of tools. I made a plan with Scott to pay him to work on my bathroom renovation and he stayed committed to it. He was great, worked hard and was a great problem solver when it came to the crazy we found under my shower once it was ripped out. I was so confident in him that I left to go to work for a few hours to run payrolls etc. I returned to so much done, I was doing a happy dance. I was the runner for parts and as always, it takes at least three trips to the Hardware store when one is doing plumbing. There were 4 layers of flooring! The shower had been installed over a big hole that went out to the crawl space without even vapour barrier, never mind insulation. By 5 it was time to call it a day. Unfortunately one leak hadn’t been solved so tomorrow that will be the first line of attack and for now, no water. I ordered a gorgeous wallpaper from Wayfair again. It won’t be here for a few weeks but it will match everything so well. On one of my runs to Home Depot I found my perfect vanity that is narrower than the current one and will allow more room for the toilet in its new position. It was about 300 more than I intended to spend but I think it is gorgeous. When I got out to the parking lot I couldn’t help but take a picture of the truck a couple spaces over. It was so Cranbrook.
I had every intention to stay at Raes tonight after the Bucks game but I felt too bad about Missy who had been outside all day and was sure to be hungry. Golly, it was such a good game. The stick handling was reminiscent of the Ducks in the early 2000s, they took a lot of hits but didn’t retaliate in a negative way. The Wenatchee Wild got a few major penalties for head shots!! It was so strange that there was an American team playing here. Not used to that. It was a big upgrade that this year that we have a screen with a telecast and replays. The commercials I could do without though but I am glad they are finding a revenue stream. The loudness of the horrible music I could definitely give a thumbs down to. I hope that gets leveled out. Hey we won!!!
I love that October is Machu Picchu! Also love that my sunflower keeps trying.
Today is the first official National Day for Truth and Reconciliation in Canada. Most of us were working at the GroundFloor as we are not federally regulated. It is not an official statutory holiday in BC. The space itself was shut down so I am glad my clients that showed up were able to text to be let in. There was a big part of me that didn’t want to work at all, that wanted to go to the walks, to sit in contemplation of all the wrongs those before me and those currently are forcing upon our First Nation Peoples. I needed to meet my obligations and I feel that a good part of my day was spent in contemplation. I sat in the memory of my friend in Bella Bella. She has since passed away but I learned so much from her about the atrocities of Residential School. She was a part of the ‘60s scoop and her stories of her early life, she usually tried to keep light. There came a time though when payments were being made to survivors and I knew that the amount was based on how many things happened and of what variety. Her payment was large and it was at that point that I realized how truly horrific her early life had been. She told me, now well into her 50s, that she still slept with the lights on as she and her husband were both afraid of the things that happened in the dark. I cried hearing her stories. I had no idea, I had not been taught the significance. I think along the way I related the schools to orphanages, that only good was happening. I should have been taught the truth. Now I must reconcile my upbringing with the atrocities thrust upon these families in the same era I was growing up in. There is nothing I can do, but listen. There is nothing I can do, but acknowledge. There is nothing I can do, but ensure it never happens again. I will always honour my friends by recognizing the terrible wrongs done to them, the systemic racism, the generational damage and the need to be heard, accepted and loved.
It is so odd to face my own privilege. I am Caucasian. I grew up in a very multicultural area. My Dr was a black man. I had no idea that was a rarity. My Dad’s company employees were first generation Canadians from India. I had no idea that was something special or different, we all just socialized together and I loved the delicious food and exotic clothing. My closest friends were Japanese, Chinese, Indian and European. I had no idea how blessed I was. I think I may have grown into my racism as I moved into a very white world of Theatre school, born again Christianity and ultimately, Small Town BC. I make no good excuse for forgetting my roots. I know ultimately that I love regardless of colour but I see it. It is still different from me. I will continue to celebrate that and hope I do no harm. I will continue to ensure others do no harm as well.
This is a ramble of a blog but there is just so much to unravel. After work I had something to eat and went to Shield Women where I struggled to breathe. I worry it was because I ate too late so I will be more careful next week. I bought my own gloves and signed up for a month.
My task when I got home was to strip the bathroom in anticipation of ripping out the shower tomorrow morning with Scott and finally getting on with the renovation!
It doesn’t help that I feel judged every time I open my cupboard
Because tomorrow is National Day for Truth and Reconciliation my schedule is thrown off. I had to email all my payroll clients to let them decide if it they were going to recognize and pay it as a Statutory holiday. It is a federally recognized one but not in BC so most of my clients are not obligated. There was a lot of confusion and bottom line is that although the space I work in is closed, I will need to go in to do payroll. I did put a message on my email that I will not be answering immediately but will be monitoring for the next 5 days.
I worked the morning again at mostly volunteer. That was ok as at one point I was able to read an email to a person in power and have him swear (which is unusual) and tell me that he does feel I am being set up to fail but he has my back and appreciates the vision I have. He will support it fully. There is a window of time to accomplish things unless you sign up for the long game. I do not feel that that is my purpose. I am not here to play a long game but rather make a difference and move on. I desire to make the best changes while I am at it.
On a different note, I met with the electrician to confirm the final stages at the theatre today. I am so grateful for the cheerful, talented persons I make connection with. I know they appreciate that I speak the same language mostly due to my years as a contractor. We laugh and plan and make the best choices.
This afternoon, I skipped out. I even set an out of office message for the first time on my personal and work email. I said I would respond in a pinch which I did once.
My best guy friend showed up and I was able to give him a tour of my world. He dropped his car at my place and then we went for a long delicious meal at Mr. Mikes. I laugh easily in his presence and we have a punny banter back and forth that I miss when we are apart. He hasn’t been here since I had my house in 2017. I usually go visit him. I dropped him at the airport to go to his father’s funeral. Such a sad but not unexpected event. We parted, looking forward to seeing each other again soon. He had brought me a bottle of Crown Royal Vanilla, yes he knows me that well… so I came home and by 5 pm, was in my jams on the couch with a couple ounces over ice, watching my shows.
Finally I made my dinner although it is odd as I had one Hello Fresh Meal left, my order arrived and there were 4 instead of 3 meals included. I will call them to let them know. I also need the recipe for the extra meal.
I am glad to not have to set an alarm tomorrow and even more glad that Scott has arranged to show up at 8 am Friday morning to start the bathroom Reno with me!!
Awoke to bloodwork results already this morning. My Diabetes test placed me in the normal range which leaves me quite happy. I last had a test in early Feb of 2020, and after all the wine since then I am a point lower! Now I will try to put all my health items aside and just lean into all things good for me for the rest of the year.
I began that Change by working hard today to get a lot accomplished for my clients. I arranged to meet Ben at the theatre before the board meeting. In between I raced to make some nummy dinner. Way too many onions but tasty nonetheless.
The meeting with Ben was very productive and I believe we will meet my goal of having the theatre back together for Fresh Life Church to have their Thanksgiving service there. They have paid rent all the way through the Covid shut downs and the rebuild of the space. I want to thank them by having it ready for them. The following Friday, the Show will take over the stage and the tech. It is a tight schedule and exciting.
The Board meeting went well. I accepted the position of Treasurer again with the understanding I wish to train someone to take over after this year is over. I also am still the Tech Director and acknowledge that this is an unusual year for both positions. My desire to have masks made was approved. I am to order 25 for now and we are going to offer them for sale to members first. I look forward to ordering them tomorrow.
Got home to a great conversation with my friend. He is coming here tomorrow to leave his car and I will drive him to the airport. It will be a short visit but he is planning to come back for Thanksgiving. We shall hang out in jammies and play many games at that time.
I am very relaxed, hanging on the couch watching Survivor 41!! I have been watching it since the beginning. There was a great many years when Jake and I had taco Thursdays and watched together.
It was the usual Monday morning for me, getting chores done and going in later. This morning my guts were unhappy because once again I drank red wine last night with Sean and Diane. I was grateful she sent me home with some spaghetti sauce so I made some shell pasta to take to work and enjoy for lunch. I got to work sometime before 10, settled in to finish entering all my Treasurer business, wrote cheques etc before it was suddenly time to go to the Dr. Today was my appointment with the OB/GYN Dr. Rode. I had been told he had a poor bedside manner but that he was a very good surgeon. I admit to having severe stress stomach in anticipation. He came in and asked me a bunch of history and then told me to get ready to be examined. This is something I haven’t been used to in decades. I found great humour in the phallic symbol painting above the examining table. At one point my paper cover fell off and I said oops, he turned and said “oops, now it’s more like you are on a tanning bed”. He totally made me laugh. Once I got dressed again we had a good long talk as he in great detail explained what a cancerous cyst looks like vs a benign one. He also told me that although he feels it is 98% benign, there is always still a chance. I told him I am in the 2% club, that most of my life that is the percentile I have landed in. He looked me straight in the eye and said that if he got 98% on all his exams in his life he would be very satisfied. We have agreed to wait until January to have another ultrasound. If it has not grown by then I can make up my mind whether or not to go through the extensive surgery necessary to remove it. If it has grown then he will likely decide it should go right away. He went on to tell me all the potential risks. I do appreciate that he didn’t sugar coat it but he also made sure I was aware of all my options. I mentioned I would not have a GP after Dec 3 and he said I would be under his care going forward for this. I did come away very shell shocked as the risk list is long due to my previous history but also relieved in the same breath. I feel heard and cared for! Two things I was prepared not to experience.
Back at the office I enjoyed my lunch and kept working on volunteer books. I reached out to the subs to confirm time frames for getting everything working back at the theatre. Then it was time to celebrate Cindy’s birthday. I saw the cake was plain so I carved her name into it with a fork before she saw it. I will admit the chocolate butter cream icing was delicious.
I purely worked on the books and reports and finally got the budget entered and all reports uploaded for tomorrow nights meeting. I finished reading every one’s reports and then it was well after time to go home…. And I had not earned a single penny today. Sure I told myself, it doesn’t matter, you got lots off your plate. I can’t continue to do that though. Will have to make a plan to change time spent going forward. Tomorrow night we will decide as a board who will fill what positions and I must contemplate if I should continue as Treasurer or just train someone else in this last year of commitment. I got off work planning to meditate on that.
I stopped at Safeway for a few groceries as I am out of liquid for my smoothies in the morning. I picked up 4 litres of Almond milk. It was a good time to start grabbing Halloween Candy. I was stunned to see that there is now extra caffeine Coke! Upon my return to the car I saw there was an email from the Production Manager letting me know they were going a different way than I planned for part of the show. I can honestly say I am angry. I have put so much time and care into the big picture and like two years ago, am feeling undermined. That’s ok, it will be what it is and I will finish my commitment and move on. There are forces at play that conspired once again to make me the bad guy just because I see the big plan and try to do best by everyone. If one person had not dragged their heels for so long by not even responding to me, we would already have all the gear in hand, the training would be done and all would be well. I must keep biting my tongue but I see no reason to take the high road if it means being run over by a pack of hyenas. We shall see what tomorrow brings.
Once I got home I remembered to unload the cute table and chairs that Bill and Deanne don’t need at their house anymore. As I was beginning to make dinner , I called the one person who should understand and have no skin in the game. I explained that my instant reaction was to feel like I was being kissed on the mouth and fucked from behind by the same people. There was a raft of ‘thank you for all you are doing email only yesterday’ and then today these same people are cutting me out of the picture. I was right, he understood and supported me. And then let me know sadder news in his world. He took me right out of my head by helping him make a plan as well.
sawyer was the cutie patootiest kiddo. I heard little footsteps patter into my room and swung him up onto my bed. Google told me it was already 8:49! I was so happy he slept that long and was up setting him up with breakfast right away. I got dressed and settled in to play little big planet with him. We had fun and then it was time to leave. Just then I received a text from Duncan that he was running late. I decided to mow my lawn and begin setting up my Halloween inflatables, etc. Sawyer was very entranced with Lock, Shock and Barrel. He is also about the same size this year.
We arrived at the same time as Duncan and worked our behinds off until 4:30 or so, slowly removing cedar siding to use for the set for The Aliens. It was fun to work along with Duncan and learn more about him. Turns out he is born the same year as my son Jake! We had a stop for pizza and other than that just kept slogging. Deanne was pulling nails and later the international students took over which was awesome. We basically removed two sides of the building to a pile to be used for our show. I think it will look amazing. We also made a plan to have a first read-through social night,
My elbow was super pain filled by the time I left but I came home and had a shower before heading to the Campbells for dinner and crib. It was a great visit with much discussion about a universal income amount. I need to investigate that more because it just doesn’t compute to me. I was supposed to take away a bunch of records Sean doesn’t want to use as garden edging but we all forgot.
Tomorrow is my appointment with the Gynecologist Surgeon. I can’t pretend I am not nervous. It may have contributed to my lack of sleep the last couple nights.. I just want the pain to be under control.. or gone. Simple ask, right?
Up and at it to be at the Studio early to be sure all was good for the Set-Design Workshop. I can’t begin to explain what an amazing day it turned out to me. 11 of us had the privilege of being instructed in the made skill of all things set related by Gene Leveque. He even made us cute little gifts to take away as a souvenir. Afterward some of us walked over to the Heidout for bevies and snacks and a great further chat. To have spent the day among like minded friends learning to make models, to interpret the script into the setting for magic, to talk about all things not gossipy, was amazing!! When I asked Gene where he was before Winfield, he said he grew up in Kimberley. I asked how old he was and when he said 80, I mentioned that he may know my step-Mom as she was the same age. He said he did remember her, that they were in the same grade. Once again, that lovely small world experience!
After getting back to my vehicle, I drove up to Bill and Deannes and she had kindly picked up my season tickets and Parking pass for the Bucks games. We walked down to the game and enjoyed a 3-1 Final against the Trail Smoke Eaters. It was fun to be there with the Fam and Sawyer talked me into a sleep over. By the time we walked back to the car and got home it was around 10, way past his bedtime. He went to bed easily thank goodness. He has also promised to climb into bed with me and watch TV if he’s up too early.
When I arrived at Bill and Deannes I saw that they are tearing down their garage/shed/playhouse in anticipation of the builders starting on the new one. I instantly asked Duncan, the Director of the show in February that I am producing, if he thought we could use the siding for our set and he was down with that so we made a plan to meet at 10:30 in the morning to begin stripping and denailing. It feels so synchronistic!
Got up with relative ease after last nights fun at RMMA. Could feel my rib cage a little and my right elbow let me know I had thrown a few good punches but other than that, pretty great!
It was a beautiful day for a bike ride but I knew my Willys parts order was being delivered today so had to take the car. It sure didn’t look like much for nearly a grand but leaf springs are integral and heavy so shipping was more than they were. I am trying to source them in Canada now that I know I need rear ones as well.
Saw sad news that a friend on Salt Spring passed suddenly. Patrick Kennedy was always good for a deep and sometimes odd conversation. It is sad he is gone.
I went to pick up my mask I’d ordered from the Cranbrook Bucks organization and stopped to see about getting some made for another group. The people at Initial Design are sure wonderful at their job and customer interaction.
After work I met Jenn, the production manager at The Studio to make sure everything was set up for the Set Deign workshop tomorrow. We need to be sure we could connect a laptop to the new 70” smart TV installed yesterday. I am so grateful to the Electrician for sparing a couple guys to make sure it happened. We finally got everything working and headed to The Firehall for a delicious meal and some serious discussions. It was good to sit as Tech Director and Production Manager making plans and finding where the holes in our policies are that need to be clarified. I can’t wait for the theatre to all be back together and ready for the show next month. The seats are nearly back in and that is one major step closer!!
I sent Ashlée, Rae and Roger there Christmas presents today as I have gotten us all tickets to two shows. Alex Cuba at the Royal Alexandra Hall in October and then Straight Outta Lockdown comedy show at key City Theatre in November. I couldn’t decide which one to pick so yay, we are going to both!
Now to get some sleep as tomorrow has the workshop all day and then the first official hockey game of the season!
I started my day at the office but left to go to the dentist not long after. I had a regular appointment for a cleaning and can not tell you how happy I was to have Corinne as my Hygienist. I have had, for some time now, a guy who literally creeps me out. He has something very sociopath about him. The other thing about Corinne is that as soon as I told her I have a hiatus hernia and having my head low for a time makes my vocal cords swell, she did the whole thing standing up. My chair was laid back with a slight tilt up and she just stood and did the cleaning. I have so much gratitude.
When I pulled back in to park at the office, I noticed a lovely dog running across the sky.
I had a nice quick visit with Stacey and she brought me her bread and butter pickles. I gave her a bottle of Pomegranate Berry wine so they can try it and then we agreed we would do a couple more batches together. I walked over and paid for that and BlackBerry Blast.
My order of Good Food arrived. I only ordered smoothies this time. Enough breakfasts for a while and they fit in my fridge freezer. When I got home I made the last of my Good Food from last week. I had never heard of Halloumi before and it turns out to be a type of goat/sheep cheese that grilled up beautifully. The whole mix of pasta and veg, and salad was so delicious. I just managed to get it cooked and eaten before heading to my class
Tonight was the night that I committed to going to Rocky Mountain Martial Arts for Shield Women class. I was allowed to attend once to see if I like it for free. Christie who’s fiancé, Joel runs the place agreed to come with me and we both kicked butt and took names. I was so happy to discover that I like it a lot. The hour went by quickly. We exercised, put on boxing gloves, learned knife moves, played tag with sticks and kick boxed. It was fun and tiring and I will probably hurt tomorrow but will be worth it. 58 is not too late to start something you have always wanted to try. I am proof.
Before work I went to the theatre and showed the electrician exactly where I need the outlet for and the mounting of the 70 inch flatscreen. It turns out I need it for the workshop on set design we are hosting on Sunday. Everything is more challenging in a historical building. Lathe and plaster was not made to do wiring later so we have to surface mount most things and it is tricky to be sure it looks good.
After work Duncan came to my office and we called the 4 people who had auditioned having to unfortunately let one of them down. He has said he will be our Sound Designer though so that makes a great team. I set up a group on FB for our show and invited the three cast members, Duncan, the Director and the stage manager, Sandy. It will be a safe place for us all to communicate. When I posted the results of our casting in the Directors page for the season, the Production Manager, Jenn said she was more excited about them than the election ones. I have to agree. Now the work begins.
I popped home with my Hello Fresh order to get it in the fridge and then headed to the Theatre as we had arranged a work party to move all the tech gear to clear it out of the lobby. I was overwhelmed at first as there were strangers and I also couldn’t remember who it was that had a truck and at the beginning there was still a bunch of stuff in the way in the tech storage room. I wanted to be organized but the day got away and I was conscious there were renters in the studio right up until our start time. It is also hard to just direct people to do things but it really was the only way. Just going up the stairs made the pain kick in and then it was instant trouble breathing/swallowing. I worked hard to hide it from everyone and the job got done in 1hour as 10 of us showed up to get it done. Every piece of equipment was dusted and air sprayed before being moved. The lights are on the stage in a corner awaiting being hung and the booth is just awaiting the counters being installed by me as soon as possible so that the actual gear can be laid in place. It is an exciting stage, indeed. We are a month out from opening night for the first show of the season, Shape of a Girl. Tickets went on sale today which feels so strange when there aren’t even seats in the theatre!!! I wish I had thought to take a before picture tonight as the one I have from the original move showed the space half full but with all the extra items there was barely room to walk when we started!!
I wanted to ride my Motorcycle today as it was the last day of summer but it is already very cool in the mornings and the roads have a potential to be slick. There is also the problem with my Iliad Crest which explains the problem I have with reaching my leg to pull back my kickstand. It hurts to stretch that way and it gets me very frustrated and almost an anxiety attack that I am going to drop the bike.
It was a good day of taking care of lots of business and then it was off to the theatre for final auditions and casting. There was a whirlwind of things going on and good response to the callbacks. Duncan and Stephanie, the directors did a great job again and both shows were able to cast from the people who showed up. We are all really looking forward to letting everyone know tomorrow. It is incredible to experience the talent we have that are vulnerable enough to come out and do their thing. We all were especially amazed by one man who came off book for the show, he wants it that bad. I am always so happy to see someone get cast in their dream role.
Tomorrow will be another long day as there is a work party at 7 to get a bunch of the gear back in the tech booth and have the lights ready to be rehung.
All day today had an underlying giddiness, almost a mania. That in itself is not a bad thing but I also hope it is not the up before the down. I don’t think so as it was mostly that I was juggling so many things and getting so much done. It didn’t even matter that so much of it was for free again. Things are coming together rapidly for the theatre. I communicated with three supplier/contractors today, invited three more auditionnées to callbacks, arranged for the Big Screen TV to be installed in time for the workshop this weekend, and recruited help for the work party on Wednesday night.
On the entertain me side of things I received an email from the Bucks saying tickets were available to a game against the Canadian Women’s National Team on Oct 5th. I bought 8 seats for the family to go for $100 center ice behind the benches 9 rows up. It is going to be very exciting!! And then I went online and purchased tickets to what will be a very special intimate music event in the near future and plan to treat some people as early Christmas presents. The arts have often been my favourite gifts and now more than ever it is good to get out just for that.
I didn’t bother leaving the office before Part 2 of last weeks board meeting. I was glad we didn’t have to stop and switch to another meeting thanks to Maureen so I got home at a decent time. I just did a quick air fryer meal and watched Big Brother. It is a significant year as it is the first time in the history of the show that an African American will win. Sad that it still will come down to a man though as the cast was originally divided on colour lines without the non-blacks knowing and now the self named ‘Cookout’ is splitting, sadly, on gender lines. Go Asah Go!
I did get home to a piece of mail. It was odd with no to or from name but it didn’t occur to me right away what it was…
It has been an odd Election Day though. It seems a lot of money was spent and not much has changed… sigh.
I found myself checking weather around the province today just to show how varied our beautiful BC is. I lived in Bella Bella and visited Atlin. Both are close to the west but one is one the coast and one is further north inland. Quite the weather patterns for mid September.
When I went out to check on things after my guests left I saw that the deer had dragged good salad off my scrap pile. Brats.
As I was leaving to head on a mystery shop tour I saw a Neighbour a few doors down had put out a few free items and I knew instantly that I have enough material left from my patio set recover to make a cushion for this for around the fire place. Great hobo mom score!
I finally broke in the motor on my Tucson which is not bad for 7 weeks.
I stopped at Walmart to buy a wee gift for Danika and Emmy as they are at the end of my shop route. While I was there I spent everything I earned from my guests last night on the last of my Nightmare Before Christmas set for Halloween. I already have a Jack and Oogie Boogie. I think I will put them up on the first day of Fall.
What does the Fox say?
I finished my 4 shops and stopped to visit Emmy and her Mom. Her new room is lovely and the pillows I made match perfectly. I had such a good visit with her. She showed me every single detail of her new home, we played a seek and find game with her drawings and she made me laugh every time she stopped to accept a call on the paper cell phone she made. It seems 911 calls her to solve things as she is a super hero. The first call caught me off guard but she answered, “what? There were 17 that escaped last week, how can there be more? OK I am on my way” She liked the little pumpkins I brought her. They live in a very nice place and I am happy for their family. It is also great that her mom gives me and Jake easy access even if they are 163 Km away.
It does crack me up that they leave boot covers near the doors as it is all coal miners that live there.
I stopped at the Marcer’s on the way home to talk all things Jeep. I am still trying to decide whether to move the spare to the quarter panel where it belongs. If it had been a branded tailgate I would have for sure. Will have to think about it. Turns out I need rear leaf springs as well, sigh.
Dinner was tasty, I do like couscous. The servings are so huge that there is enough left for 2-3 more meals. I couldn’t eat all of one serving.
My dear friend Sarah who lives in Bella Bella and I played Patchwork online tonight. It took a while to get it figured out but once we did it was great. I look forward to many more evenings of that. It was a nice relaxing way to end my day.
I did not wake up too early, got a good long sleep after being up to the wee hours. I am definitely feeling shaky but got myself ready, and headed to the theatre for auditions for the next two shows. I am producing one of them and was the only producer available. It went very smooth, took 3 hours to audition 5 guys. It was amazing to see the two directors begin to draw things out of the gentlemen. I shed a few tears watching. The two shows in first half of 2022 are The Aliens which is very gritty and Tuesdays with Morrie, a well known story. I really feel solid that Duncan and Stephanie are going to do well. The Fisks dropped off a piano to use and I borrowed a guitar from Retro Music across the street. As it happened not a one of the auditions played the piano and only one played guitar and he had brought his own. It was a blessing to spend an afternoon watching people express themselves and be vulnerable. Our theatre is in good hands. I left the theatre to go to my office to scan and upload all the information and pictures as well as get ready for my mystery shops tomorrow. From there I popped home for a FaceTime with a dear friend. His parents have both been diagnosed with Cancer and they do not live near. My heart hurts for him. I hope to get to see him in a month though so that is a positive. Next was off to a HOCKEY GAME! The season ticket holders for the Cranbrook Bucks were invited to come to two inter squad games, one of which is tonight. Deanne walked down with the three younger boys and Ash met us there. It was a pretty tight game and it is sad to know half of them will likely be cut. I just felt calm to be there again, like something normal was happening again. I drove Deanne and the boys home and realized I had to take my kayak off as I am going to Elkford tomorrow. I have never done it alone and I managed with little problem. Didn’t even touch the car or the ground, leveled up!!! Pretty great day even with the sadness.
triumphgal 