Category: To Occupy my Time

Independence Day 2024

I’m on the mend from Covid, but still out of commission. Matt has also come down with some fatigue-based sickness that is not Covid. Here’s what we did.

Waited around for the excessive heat to kick in.

Played 10 Days in the USA.

Watched a an American Playhouse production of The Great American Fourth of July and Other Disasters.

It was written by Jean Shepard, author of A Christmas Story, and so the characters are familiar. It’s an older Ralphie.

The production values are so-so, and it could use a restoration (or an official home on YouTube) but it made us laugh hard twice, so it was a good use of our time.

I like to watch Hamilton on the Fourth, but had just watched it when Sara was here. So I watched La La Land instead.

It Turns Out That I am Not Immune

Having made it more than four years without experiencing Covid-19, I thought perhaps I was one of those people with natural immunity. But I wasn’t feeling well the previous day, and though I managed to make deviled eggs and go out to eat, I just kept feeling worse and worse.

So I tested Sunday morning. As I have done before, I set the test aside to wait the ten minutes for the test to do its work. But at about the three minute mark, I walked by and that second line caught my eye.

I totally had Covid.

Aside from not feeling well (Sunday was the worst day with fever and chills and absolutely no energy), I was bummed that I had made super spreader deviled eggs and hauled myself to a restaurant. I should have tested on Saturday. Then I could have at least eaten the deviled eggs myself.

I suspect square dancing at the Reser was my contamination point. Bummer.

Rosetown Ramblers Dance at the Reser

The Reser Center for the Arts hosted Friends of Dorothy: A Queer Cabaret, and the Rosetown Ramblers got to square dance as part of the performance. It was Matt’s birthday, so I made cupcakes and we sang Happy Birthday after we practiced our routines.

In the Green Room, Matt poses in front of one of the dressing rooms.

Here’s the show list:

It was fun to hang out backstage. I think the last time I had that experience was the 1989 recital for the Kathy Lee School of Dance. I got to see drag queens in various stages of undress.

However, it’s entirely possible that hanging out in the Green Room might have had a consequence. More on that later.

A Good Round at the Movie Quiz

The first round of the movie quiz tonight made me feel very smart. Mark, the quizmaster, played the beginning of 10 movie musicals and we had to identify them. The first one was Annie, so I knew I was going to do well.

The ninth one was super tricky. It was from On the Town, which I’ve seen. But it starts with one guy singing and he doesn’t show up again for the rest of the film. Actually, it’s the guy standing above Gene Kelly in that thumbnail. Check out his part:

I’m curious how many teams got that one.

Things went downhill from there, but it’s always nice to have a start strong.

7611 finds on June 16, 2024

This postcard was a very fun find.

It shows Matt being polite to my aunt very early in our relationship when he was invited for the first time to Greek Easter. The p.s. was incredibly hilarious, given his view of the house decoration now.

Also, he confused the address part of the postcard, making for post office additions. Or perhaps only had half a card’s worth of message.

Sara found the number one thing I was looking for.

When the big reunion of my grandmother’s family happened in 1986, all of the original siblings got a booklet listing birthdates of all the siblings and their children. The last I remembered seeing it was in the hall cupboard, but we went through that without finding it. Sara discovered it somewhere in the corner of the basement with all the books.

What I didn’t remember was that there was a fun poem to go with it.

You can see that the document was typed. It’s possible that my Aunt Pat may have done some of the typing.

Here’s the list of the original 15 and their parents. Following this page is a page for each of the siblings’ marriages and children.

I am very excited about this find. It’s nice to have everything in one place.

Checking out Ole Bolle with Sara

You will recall that my mother and I visited the Ole Bolle last September. Sara and I visited so she could see the marvel.

There was a private event at Nordic Northwest, but it didn’t specify that the private event was by the troll, so we headed over. The event appeared to be a wedding not far from the troll, but it hadn’t started yet, so we scurried by.

Sara compares foot size.

I take a picture of his face. He’s a bit more weathered than last year, as is expected.

Sara posing with Ole Bolle.

At the table in the cabin was some white wine and an envelope. I wondered if the envelope might hold the marriage license. We scurried away. Though another group was headed to the troll as we were leaving, so we weren’t the only ones taking a chance that day.

Good Food on this Day

Whatever could this amount of butter be needed for?

Did you guess cinnamon rolls? You were correct.

Kinnamons has a bevy of cinnamon roll choices.

We didn’t sample any. We were looking for tea and a place to rest our feet as our walkabout the previous day had worn us out.

After the tea refreshed us, we checked out the shops on Alberta Street before heading to Urdaneta for dinner.

The tapas were delicious, and we ate a ton.

Hollywood Babylon at the Hollywood Theatre

Sara and I took in the pre-Code film Jewel Robbery, which was part of the Hollywood Babylon series. Before the film, this helpful graphic was displayed.

You can see the picture includes all of the “shalt nots.”

We counted quite a few shalt-nots in our movie. Jewel Robbery was fun, though a very brief 68 minutes that has me wishing the tickets were slightly discounted.

Somewhere in our travels, I came across this much appreciated sign in a gender neutral bathroom.

I’m completely for gender neutral bathrooms, especially when the bathroom has just one toilet and one sink. However, my experience has been that it’s quite common to walk in and have to kick the seat down. Drives me crazy.

Bliss House Museum

Sara has come to visit and we are headed to the Bliss House Museum.

Here it is peeking above the shrubbery.

And here we are at the gate. The museum is Betsy Warren’s private collection of thousands of women’s clothing and accessories from the 1920s to the 1980s.

First off, the brides’ room. It included this fantastic over-the-top wedding dress that appeared at the Bins (Goodwill’s last-chance stop before items head to the trash.) It’s an incredible dress, and I’m guessing something didn’t go well with the marriage for it to be discarded as it was. The curator is hoping to eventually find out more about this dress.

Upstairs, I enjoyed this busty item of furniture.

A favorite dress. The info card reads: Suzy Perette (1950s) Wasn’t the name of anyone, but the name of a dress manufacturing company that made affordable versions of Parisian designs in the 1950s.

Two more great black dresses. The one on the right is Cheryle Kaye and is from the 1980s. The one on the left is Carlyle, based in Illinois from the 1950s.

I liked this display of gloves, hats, and purses.

All three of these dresses are quite fun! The strawberry one would be especially fun for a summer party.

Both Sara and I were surprised that the bubble skirt was popular before the 80s, but there were a few dresses on display that proved that to be true, like this one.

We posed in front of the swimming costumes.

And in a mirror.

This was a fun tour, and if you like fashion, it’s well worth your time to make reservations.