Tuesday, April 29, 2014

At the End of the Tour

Well, this season's high school tour is over.  Can't say I will miss it, although it was nice having an excuse to not think/obsess about the building.  I think what I will remember most about this tour is the mornings -- they were quite wonderful.  Usually I would arrive at the school a little bit before the truck and I would find the people that we needed to find, and figure out the best place for the truck to go, and then wait.  And one particular day it was just a beautiful day and as I sat on a stone bench outside and waited I felt very connected to the world around me, as cheesy as that sounds.  And then this morning, I was tired and it was overcast, and as I drove through the city and watched people walking around and crossing the street, I had a very strong "none of this is real and everything is a dream" sensation and it felt kind of beautiful and moving.  Anyway, I like moments like that.

Sam had his second birthday on Saturday.  It was great.  He understood that it was a special day for him (it really helped that Jeannie went out on Friday night and picked up some decorations so that when he woke up on Saturday he walked through streamers going into the living room -- he knew right away that something pretty cool was up) and he enjoyed getting presents, and he just really seemed to enjoy himself, playing with his new toys and eating cupcakes.  He's been pretty cute lately, although last night at bedtime he had a major freak the fuck out.  But then again tonight he was perfect.

Tomorrow my aunt and uncle are coming for a visit and we're going to go to dinner.  Hopefully it'll be uneventful.

What else?  My b-hole has felt funny lately.  And not funny ha-ha.

Friday, April 18, 2014

Lost Time

How has over a week gone by since I last wrote?  Time has its foot squarely on the accelerator. 

Jeannie's mom is here visiting, which is nice.  I've got two days off with no rehearsals, which is nice.  Me and the ladyfriend are gonna go see a movie tomorrow night, which should be nice.  

The weeks lately have consisted of solving one or two problems and then realizing 4 or 5 things that are going to be potential problems.  So it feels like I'm moving slowly forward around a racetrack that is getting gradually longer and longer. 

What else? 

Starting a high school tour of R&J next week. 

Not much else.  Sorry. 

Thursday, April 10, 2014

Conduit

Lots going on right now.  Let's bullet-point it!


  • Work on the building continues.  50 days left in the renovation process.  Thoughts of conduit have taken over every hour of my life.  Still some shit to get ironed out, but things are going mostly well.
  • The Jeanners and I had a surprise lunch date last week and it was the highlight of my 2014 so far.  First of all, we never get to go on dates.  Second of all, this one was unexpected.  Third of all, it was during the day.  And best of all, it was at a kick-ass, mostly Chinese, buffet.  It all adds up to a winner.
  • I got weirdly sick on Sunday night.  Violently ill for about 20 minutes, and then pretty much OK, just a little dehydrated and diarrhetic.  Probable food poisoning from delicious, yet slightly sketchy, delivery Indian food.  
  • Yesterday I drove to Secaucus, NJ, to look at the seats that are going into the theatre and make sure they were being manufactured to be the way we want them.  Then I turned around and drove back.  It would've been much more enjoyable if the people I had been going to see hadn't told me I needed to be there by 11, and then when I got there, people back at the building called and asked if I could come back to be at a meeting there by 2:30.  So I had pretty much exactly 3 hours to get there and 3 hours to get home.  And it's right around a 3 hour trip.  
  • I had a strong desire to go to a happy hour this afternoon.  So far, I've been resisting.  
  • Sam has been cute.  Talking up a storm.  Developing personality.  A lot of fun.  I've been in rehearsals for a high school tour of R&J and I haven't gotten to hang with him enough this week.  
  • Check this shit out:

Tuesday, April 01, 2014

Tuesdays

Today has been a Tuesday spent, thus far, like many other Tuesdays of the last few months:  the dude and I head down to the harbor to look around. 

First stop, the 10,000 lb granite ball outside of the 'Ripley's Odditorium' that is suspended on 1/8" of water and spins around.  The dude loves to watch it spin, and loves to watch the bubbly water go down the drain.  He usually says of this, "Big....ball.....turning...."

Next up, we walk down to the Science Center and check out the big boats, life rings, and any trucks along the way.  Also we are on the lookout for any tugboats and rowboats.  When we get to the Science Center, we touch the sculpture-ish things outside and then turn around.  On the walk back, we have a good view of the skyline so we look at tall buildings and also any steam that might be coming out of some of the buildings.  Also helicopters, birds, and airplanes. 

We pass by the giant ball again, so we have to stop and touch it again, and usually by this time the odditorium's front garage-door type door is open and they are blasting the three tunes that they play on repeat:  Katy Perry's 'California Girls,' Maroon 5's 'Moves Like Jagger,' and a third one that I don't know.  He stops in and dances for a little while, also checks out the large robotic T-Rex made out of found objects. 

Then we head over to the B&N, passing by the 9/11 memorial that he always wants to touch but that I never let him touch, the exterior of the aquarium - where they have some outdoor speakers that always, and I mean ALWAYS, seem to be playing the exact same lick of piano and soprano sax music as we walk by, and the boats that look like dragons, which when we pass them he says he's going to eat the dragons and thinks he's being very funny. 

Once we get to the B&N, Sam looks for a tall security guard who is there sometimes and who Sam calls 'Sir.'  We go upstairs and look at the fish in the aquarium and then head to the cafe, where we share a chocolate chip cookie.  Then we head over to the trains in the kids department.  The dude plays with trains and reluctantly shares the trains if there are other kids there.  This is usually a spot where I get to check my phone and see if I've gotten any e-mails yet. 

Then we leave B&N and head back to the car, passing by a bunch of this shit again, and of course we have to stop in and say goodbye to the big granite ball and dance inside the odditorium for just a minute.  Back to the car, drive home, have lunch, change diaper , put on PJ pants, read a book, and take a nap.  Which is where he is right now.  And I am procrastinating doing some work. 

That's our Tuesday mornings.  Time to do some work!