Tell you all my secrets

The un-eaten version

Friday was the Crooked Toad Tavern cast party up at Lise's house. When I say up I mean UP! The place is so far up in the hills it is practically off the map and they have the best view I have ever seen.

The highlight of the party, hands down, was the special cake Frank and Kamala brought to commemorate his first year as a pirate. Frank played the ship surgeon, a graduate of the Royal Academy of Scottish Proctology. So they brought an ass-shaped cake. An ass- shaped which Frank got to cut by plunging two fingers into the appropriate spot. The appropriate spot was, of course, filled with chocolate mousse.

Saturday looked like it was going to be just another grey, slow day house managing the Northern Lights show right up until the moment a drag queen in a bubble gum pink power suit and curly blonde wig pulled up to the bricks between Town Square and the building and began broadcasting at high volume. Turned out the PrideFest Parade was going right down 6th ave. instead of happening on the Park Strip so the lobbies had front row seats.

Usually I'm a jinx when I work the Northern Lights show. There is never a 9am show if I open and always a 9pm show if I close, so we always end up twiddling our thumbs for the first hour or so and we never get to leave early. It's very unusual for daytime attendance on my shift to break 100. So, for all these reasons, I invited the ATY Ladies to come have an orientation meeting with me while I was working.

Between the Pride Parade, the World Cup Game at the bar across the streets, cruise ships being in town and plain old karma, I was *slammed* from Noon on. The ladies sat there for a couple hours and chatted while I dropped in on the conversation whenever I could.

I was so busy I didn't even get a chance to eat, so I was in no shape for the Brr-lesque class on twirling and developing a persona. I wish I had gone. It sounded like it was stellar. They even had a guy show up for the tassel twirling part.

Once I got myself fed and we relaxed for a while, Frank and Kamala invited us to a birthday gathering for one of their friends, so we went to Mountain View and roastes marshmallows and weenies (me in that order!) while all the hospital co-workers snarked about things like how many culture samples come from ass sores.

Sunday we went to the nursery with Dad too see what plants were left on their $.50 sale. A lot of broccoli and brussel sprouts, believe it or not. We got our garden unpacked and then went to our friend Vicki's Garden Party even though it was raining. Hats were mandatory, gloves optional. I wore the hippie hat one of the actresses at Fairbanks Shakespeare Theatre knitted for me. monkofsilence stole the day by wearing a Viking Helmet.

Mommie and Eddie had just arrived back in town, so we went over to their house for a visit. They were already settled back in and cooking for their house sitters, so we joined them for dinner.

While we were at the Garden Party we got a call from Rodney. His Dad has been battling cancer and he passed away on Sunday. If you are so inclined and have the time, please keep Rodney's family in your thoughts.

I worked the early show at the Center this morning. There is a huge Solstice event going on downtown, so there was a lot of lobby traffic.

lonelydumptruck had callbacks for Seafarer and thought he did well. He didn't read the part he really wants that much, but I guess all the parts are great.

We met up at Penny's to get new pillows. I know, the exciting lives we lead! I got a pain-free neck pillow for $30, and that was half-off. That thing better make Diet Coke for me in the morning too. There was a street vendor selling Pountine which lonelydumptruck has read about but neither of us have tried. Fries, gravy and cheese curds for the win. Really.

We're going to head over to Rodney's in a few, then maybe to alaskaguy's for their Solstice party and/or to hear Rogues and Wenches with Crooked Toad friends.

We survived the Fair with only a little more sunburn and significantly less sleep than was needed.

All of the shows went great. There was drama, but a lot of highlights too. I got the Bear's picture with Jesus, for example.

Every year I steal the teddy bear from the Fools and Assassins' Guild and I take him around to all of the different courts, guilds and merchants. I collect trinkets from each, like a necklace, pins or clothes, and I dress up the Bear so people can see all of the places he has been and I have a little story to tell them. Our friend Andy came along with me on my afternoon run and he got pictures of the Bear posing with the Green Baron and his family and one with a patron who came dressed as Jesus Christ. There is also video of the Bear being wenched.

The wenches' song this year is called Dirty Girls and part of the chorus is 'We're smarter than you 'cause you're boys, and we're girls.' We rehearsed it with all of us around the mast but the directors decided it would play better if we were out in the audience Sunday.

During the middle show, a guy near the end of the Toad kept making eye contact with me, which is pretty much an open invitation to be messed with during the song. As I got closer, I realized he had his little daughter sitting on his shoulders. I couldn't resist.

When we got to the chorus I patting him on the back in sympathy on "'cause your boys," and put my arm around his daughter's shoulders on "and we're girls." I could hear her laughing all the way back to the mast.

Mosquito bites? Check.

Sunburn? Check.

Obsession with my own cleavage? Check.

Must be time for Fair!!!!

Thursday night I went to a bridal shower for a friend who is getting married at the Crooked Toad between weekends at the Fair while lonelydumptruck went to sandblast mugs. I almost didn't make it, though. Mapquest is not my friend.

The house was tucked back on a one-way street that was only accessible by going past it. There was a hint of this on the invitation, but not on Mapquest, so I dithered and took wrong turns and backtracked until I was ready to give up hope. Then someone I knew - who I knew knows the bride - drove by so I pulled out and started to follow her.

She hadn't seen me, just the car following her, so she was trying to fly casual and not let on that she was lost. She started making random turns trying to both shake me and look like she was going *somewhere* and I just kept tailing her until she finally pulled into a parking lot and realized who I was.

We had a good laugh and we compared notes and Mapquests until finally I suggested we just get on the main road and try again. This strategy actually worked and we were not the last ones there. We even beat the bride to the party!

I don't think I've been to a shower since I was a teen. I only knew 2 people there by name and face, but a couple people recognized me from Fair and a lot of them remembered me from Afterlife of the Mind so I was a bit of a minor celebrity. They kept asking where my leather pants were.

We played a couple silly games. My team won the toilet paper wedding dress contest. We had the groom's mother, who designs costumes, and one of my secret talents is that I make very nice tissue paper flowers. I suggested we add a bustle to the dress and decorate it with the crepe flowers I was making to disguise the fact that I'm incompetent at any other arts and crafts endeavor. The bustle is what the bride loved best. It was stiff competition. Team 1 braided a halter for their dress and team 3 had the 4-year-old guest as their model.

After the shower I met lonelydumptruck at Stinerosa Dos and we hung out and talked for a while. lonelydumptruck and Frank went downstairs to the studio to listen to something Frank was mixing and Kamala and I surfed around looking at websites for ideas for the September Brr-lesque show. The theme is Star Wars and at least one troop has already done it, so we were looking for their pictures and videos. There are some amazingly fun things out there. I can't wait!

We've got a full day planned out - $5 brunch at Bernie's (which gets you 2 eggs, two sausages, 2 strips of bacon and home fries. Yes, you should come), then Toad rehearsal, then Mother's Day at Mooses Tooth. Somewhere between or beyond all that I need to do laundry, wash off some of this glitter and update my Google calendar (since I can now use my phone as my planner instead of carrying 2 devices!). I also hope to enjoy some of this amazing sunshine. We'll be eating outside at Bernie's I'm sure!

lonelydumptruck and I taught a brief improv class to some of the kids in the media club at his sister's school yesterday. It's part of a community outreach program where he works. Everyone had a ball! Even his co-worker and the teacher joined in some of the games. Zod, I miss teaching kids!

After work we met one of his other co-workers for drinks at the Roadhouse and then lonelydumptruck went to work on the Toad show with Rodney and I took myself to see Shutter Island at the theatrepub. I really liked it a lot. I watch a lot of horror movies and thrillers, so when we got to the reveal I couldn't help thinking about other, similar movies but it held together well and I really enjoyed it.

There are 2 shows closing this weekend that I want to see but I may have to choose between them and just see one tonight. I just found out Broken Lizard is doing a show on Friday night and I've been kicking myself since October for missing the Seattle show.

We had a fantastic brunch meeting for the Crooked Toad Tavern crew at the Three Barons Renaissance Fair. I love these guys so much. We always have our first meeting at a Mexican buffet downtown. I always laugh so hard it leaves me feeling bubbly for the rest of the day. I was sitting across from lonelydumptruck and scooterpbakes walked in, looked around and asked if I was coming. Twice.

We were out at Frank and Kamala's until after 3, so we came home from brunch and had a short nap. lonelydumptruck went off to a meeting with Ben and Rodney to start writing the Toad show after the nap and I went off to shadow a stage manager at a dance show.

I'm supposed to be training to become the resident stage manager for a dance academy in town but I've managed to have a conflict with every single show this season until now and I'm on deck to SM their next two shows. I'm really nervous since calling a dance show is completely different than calling a play. Or so I keep being told. I wouldn't know so far.

Going today was almost a waste of time, sadly. It was in one of the studios at their school, which I knew, and shadowing was sitting between the barre and a wall behind a teenager with a light board segregated from the stage by a black curtain. I was at least hoping to be behind the audience. But.

But.

While I was sitting in my chair, unable to see anything besides the center section of the audience and the dancers standing there, all coltish and nervous, ready to spring onto the stage, I saw a little girl go by who was obviously very ill. I imagine she was a cancer patient. She was small and worn-looking, with very, very thin very, very white hair and something implanted in her head. She was dressed exactly like all the other little girls in a white costume with wings. She passed my chair and I smiled at her, as I did to all the dancers. She alone smiled back. Then, right before she went on stage, she turned around and waved at me.

That moment made my entire day.

How can a weekend with so many canceled things still be so damn busy?

I worked a Late Nite Catechism matinee, then I was supposed to go shadow stage managing a dance show, but it was decided that I should wait and do the evening show tomorrow instead of tonight or tomorrow's matinee, so I went downtown to meet up with Dave, Krista, geolinguist and lonelydumptruck at Sub Zero.

geolinguist got tickets to the symphony from his work and was taking lonelydumptruck as his date since I had to work. The drinks and the conversation were so good they decided to go late, then just miss Act 1, then we just ended up staying until we realized the symphony crowd was arriving. We're going to head over to Frank and Kamala's now.

Tomorrow we have a Toad brunch to begin planning the Fair. I had rehearsal, but they decided to block Act 3, which I am not in, and I don't have to be at the ballet until 4:30 or so now. It will be good to have time to relax.

The 2009 3 Barons Faire has ended! It was a really great weekend, not as sunny or hot as last weekend, but I still added to my quota of sunburn for the summer. There was a bit of drama, of course. One of our guitarists thought he'd sprained his ankle during tech week, it turned out his foot was broken and he didn't think he'd be able to perform. The show-saving duo of Rodney and lonelydumptruck swooped into action and got our usual lead guitarist, who couldn't do the Faire this year, to agree to cover the weekend. Once things were settled, out guitarist announced he was clear to play. Doesn't it always happen that once you set up a back-up plan the original crisis is magically diverted?

lonelydumptruck and Rodney also got the idea that we should do an after-Faire show on Saturday as part of the cast part so people who never get to see our show because of fight or court shows could come over and see it. I think that was our best show of the entire weekend! There is nothing like playing to a friendly house.

Strike went very quickly. We were done by about 12:30, but ended up staying later to talk business and run an errand so we did get to bed until late. lonelydumptruck had today off to help finish things up and make sure things were stored away safely. I called in le tired this morning and didn't go in until noon.

I was supposed to watch the Rogues and Wenches show and give feedback on their staging but they couldn't get the theatre tonight. Instead I watched True Blood with lonelydumptruck and played some Sims. I have so many Sims at college right now I am going to need to chart to keep them all straight. Tomorrow we have family BBQ, one of Ila's sons is in town, then we are going to a joint 'We're not going to Valdez/Going Away party for kahteeyah'.

Thursday we are going to Valdez (although the folks throwing the party are not.) lonelydumptruck's play Bear Variations is being performed on Friday night as part of the Alaska Playwrights evening!! I am so excited for him I can barely stand it. He's even getting paid royalties!

That's about it, but keep your fingers crossed for a sekret project I'm hoping will come through? :)