Packing has begun!  elinder was kind enough to provide a mighty stash of boxes on Friday, including several 'banker's boxes' with lids & handles that are great for books.  Most of my theatre/Shakespeare stash lives inside a few "barrister" bookcases with glass doors, so I thought I'd tackle those first...our new landpeoples are allowing us to move some things in early, so I'd love to be able to handle the antiques myself. 

On one of the shelves was a red velvet bag with a drawstring at the top, which at one point contained my favorite payday from a theatre gig.  In 2002, aerie_queen & mistoffo did a production of A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM.  I was a groupie/roadie, helping to assemble & tear down the set in various parks around the Twin Cities.  We had good fun & stayed in touch.  A couple years later I played two characters in Walking Shadow's 2004 Fringe show called THE LIVES OF THE MOST NOTORIOUS HIGHWAYMEN.  One character was an uppity stockjobber named Samuel Heath.  The other was a cunning, nasty brute named Quilt Arnold.  In the spirit of Quilt's lifestyle of pilfering & plundering, mistoffoaino & Mr. Pisa paid me in character - small bills, coins, a bit of lace, necklaces inside a red velvet bag (and yes, the bills & coin added up to the amount agreed upon in my contract, thankyouverymuch). 



It was a truly touching gesture that holds a special place not only in my theatrical history but among the evidence of my friendships.  2002 to 2009?  My, how it flies.

Fall color comes to Northeast Minneapolis:

In 2002, I did my first show in Minnesota: The Wizard Of Oz.  It was for Paul Bunyan Playhouse in Bemidji.  I had a blast!  Being the Tin Man was a sweaty ball o' fun.

One of the special things about opening night was having it attended by Clarence Swensen and his wife Myrna.  Clarence played a Munchkin soldier in the 1939 film.  He was a really sweet guy, and was very gracious with the cast & all the audience members who wanted to get pictures and chat.  I happily bought an autographed film still from him.

He died Wednesday at the age of 91, and his funeral was today.  I found a nice article about him.

Here's a shot of Ben Chadwick (The Lion) and I with Myrna & Clarence Swensen....

I'm reminded today that the first verse of our national anthem ends with a question:

"O say does that star-spangled banner yet wave over the land of the free and the home of the brave?"

Do what you can in your own way to make sure the answer to that question isn't "Hmm...not sure" or "Who cares?" or "Not my problem" or "It used to be, so it probably still is."

The answer must be "Yes."

I'm lifting some text & a couple pictures from my friend Jake's blog.  He & his family are slowly getting settled in Kampala, Uganda, and had a chance to travel into the uplands for a wedding.  I think Jake helped officiate a part of it.  Through Skype & good ol' fashioned email, we've been able to keep in contact pretty well thus far.  Only the 9-hour time difference (ahead of us) can be prohibitive.  "Hey, let's call Gillards!  Oh...it's 3 AM in Kampala."

( Here comes the bride... )

Fat kids found to have arteries of 45-year-olds (AP)

45-year-olds chase fat kids to retrieve arteries.  45-year-olds succeed even without their arteries cuz fat kids are slow.

World War I ended 90 years ago - 11/11/1918




Lt. Douglas Smith
43rd Battalion, Canadian Infantry
Manitoba Regiment
Born 10/22/1897 in Leeds, England
Died 8/28/1918 in Vis-En-Artois, France



Pvt. John Joseph Scanlan
8th Battalion, Canadian Infantry
Manitoba Regiment
Born 1/23/1875 in Cork, Ireland
Died 9/8/1916 in Vimy, France



Douglas was the elder brother of my Papa's father, and John was the father of my Papa's mother (both on my Mom's side). 

My Nana's brother Edwin fought with the US Army during the Pacific campaign in WWII.  Papa's sister Nora was in the Army as a WAC officer.  My Papa and 2 of his 3 brothers served in the US Navy, as did my Dad's brother Tim.  Chief Warrant Officer 4 Timothy Paul Prusak was a highly decorated SeAL, and his son, my cousin Thomas, is on a nuclear sub.  My Dad's dad Leonard was an MP in the US Army during WWII.

Remembrance Day, Armistice Day.

Veteran's Day.

I took a short walk on a beautiful, unusually warm November morning to cast my vote.  I was voter #404 at my polling place at 10:25 AM in NE Minneapolis.



aerie_queen  was #707 at around 3:30.

My name's Larry. Nine years ago, I began work at the New York Stock Exchange with hopes that one day my dream would come true. I've always wanted my picture to be famous.

When I was a boy and the President came to St. Agatha Elementary, I was 2 kids away from being in the background of that iconic shot of Reagan flanked by gradeschoolers saying the Pledge of Allegiance. Whenever I'm near a celebrity, I'm the person whose face the bodyguard's hand always blocks. I worked as an extra in a commercial once...you can see the side of my head for 3 seconds!

During every slight downturn of the stock market, I make a point of looking frustrated, desperate, or worried when I'm on the Exchange. I look dazed and let handfuls of crumpled ticker-tape fall to the floor as I shamble forward, eyes looking to the heavens for comfort. Or I'll shield my eyes with the "L" that's formed by my outstretched perpendicular index finger & thumb on my left hand, right hand on my hip, head pointed toward my desk. I even stuck both hands in my back pockets, hunched my shoulders forward, and puffed my cheeks out like a blowfish exhaling a piteous, heart-wrenching sigh. I held that pose for at least 5 minutes. I give 'em good stuff. But did that pants from AP take MY picture?

No.

When the index dropped 6% last week, photographers instead take shots of my friend Sarah leaning back in her chair, eyebrows arched. That doesn't look like she's reacting to her financial prospects being ruined! She seems like someone only told her that 'Two and a Half Men' got renewed for another season. So what? A couple weeks ago when the market dropped 700 points in one day, some phojerkrapher from Newsweek got a picture of my boss leaning forward, bending at the waist with his hands on his knees looking at the ground. The wind knocked out of him by an economic sucker-punch? Not so much. He was looking for his contact lens.

Finally, FINALLY on Yahoo! I see a sight I've longed for. I was working extra hard today glowering at my computer in market-induced pain as the shutters fired.

( My moment in the warm, bright sun of Fame: )

I'm not a big politico, but this article on Yahoo! is worth reading.  Of special note is the sinister (& I don't use that word lightly or in a joking manner) ending quoted here:

Reporters weren't permitted to wander around inside Coachman Park in Clearwater to talk to Palin's audience, the St. Petersburg Times reported.

When reporters tried to leave the designated press area and head to where the crowd was seated, an escort would dart out, confront him or her and say, "Can I help you?" and turn the person around, Times staff writer Eileen Schulte wrote on the paper's Web site. When one reporter asked an escort, who would not give her name, why the press wasn't allowed to mingle, she said that in the past, negative things had been written, Schulte reported.

I gave my whiskers a final trim tonight in preparation for our final Shakespeare's Land Of The Dead performance tomorrow.  

It's been a joy indeed pretending to be Richard Burbage.

EDITED 11:04 PM - Final performances!  We got the encore slot, so back-to-back shows at 7 & 8:30!

Tonight at approximately 9:28 pm CT, I saw a firefly.  It shined its light 4 times as it flew east-southeast along our house toward the backyard.

This is maybe only the 4th or 5th one I've seen since moving to MN in 2001.  When I was in Bemidji for PBP in 2003, I was hoping to see gangs of them.  I saw 2.  In MI there are areas where one would see swarms of probably thousands...sparkling clouds of them that made you think you were pulled into a faerie-ring for a dance.

Is it the spraying for mosquitos in MN that has killed most of the fireflies around here?

Tonight I helped out at a promo video shoot for Walking Shadow's Fringe show, Shakespeare's Land Of The Dead.  It was good fun getting all done up in zombie gear and taking a bite out of

mistoffo.  I kept the makeup on for the drive home, and I'm sure I turned the heads of a few bicyclists.  Rehearsals are going well...it'll be here before we know it!





"Sir, I am wretched."
                           -Burbage

A time for thinking fondly of snow-people that have long since melted, and remembering loved ones separated by miles or mortality.

Celebrating the birth of someone I've never met but look forward to meeting.

Wife, child, wine & song.

Loving the sight of trees that look like they've been dipped in powdered sugar and set upright again.

Watching "A Charlie Brown Christmas" for the bazillionth time at my daughter's request, not mine; echoes of my own childhood play on the floor beside me.

Yeah, it's cold. But at least we can dress for this weather. In Summer there are only so many clothes you can legally shed...