Heading for the Crash
Dunkirk NY – Still two more performances to go of Bohème, but already I can feel the post-show crash on its way. This was another gorgeous day in WNY, so my wife and I did what any normal couple might do on such a beautiful day – we went furniture shopping. We bought a new bed. Just about all our married life we have either slept on the floor or (giving in to age and the increasing difficulty of getting up off the floor) on sheets of plywood supported by cinder blocks. Our headboard I got from a colleague for $5 when we moved here 20 years ago. So on a pro-rated basis, the bed is actually pretty cheap. But the price of furniture simply staggers my imagination.
When I get busy doing a show I generally stop engaging in normal activities like food shopping, cleaning dishes, and the like. I tend to eat out more, get work done in my office, get to rehearsal, and sleep. It would not have been my first choice for a day off (first choice – a scooter ride out in the country), but it had to be done. I’ve put off helping the wife prepare for the arrival of our daughter and her boyfriend (is there a word for the person your daughter has been living with for 6 years but hasn’t married? “Boyfriend” seems inadequate, but son-in-law is not technically accurate), so I had to do the right thing today and move furniture around to prepare a guest room. I prefer to release that post-show stress by getting lost and alone somewhere.
I’ll be easing into a more peaceful routine over the next week, and then I have a week off for Thanksgiving break. Some of my discussions in acting classes have been interesting over the past few days. I’d like to post about those once the show closes. For tonight, more culture: seeing Fuddy Meers tonight (our current mainstage department show) and sneaking a peek back to the opera after that. -twl
