by Christine | Life, Observations
It all started with me running a handbag down to the woman who works with us at my day job every now and then. She walks with two canes, and her handbag is heavy – so one of us in the office always comes down and brings it to her before her ride picks her up.
I was on my way back into the office when my dear friend Kelie, whom I’ve known since before I had children, stopped me as she was driving out of the driveway (because she works in the same building).
“I owe you,” she said. “Let’s do something fun. I’m going to the ballet in February, you game?”
Okay, maybe she didn’t exactly say those words. But I heard “The Rite of Spring” and I was hooked. Plus, a symposium earlier in the day. We’d have a total Girl’s Day Out!
Now, you need to understand one thing to make this post make sense. Kelie is one of those people who is lovely, never says a bad word about anyone else, knows how to keep laughing, is never seen tipsy much less drunk, and has worked The Razzies for the last couple of decades (at least) and has no enemies, I swear. In other words, she’s a total enigma! So while I was getting ready on Saturday morning, the hubs was envious. “You’re spending a whole day with Kelie. That’s like going to Europe.”
And it was. I drove to her house – her directions mainly consisted of “head toward the Hollywood sign” (well, they were better than that actually) and as I drove up and up, passing tourists who were taking pictures of the sign, I felt more and more like I was going to Europe for real. I found her place, parked, and made my way down the steps to her guest cottage.
The steps down to Kelie’s guest house. Kind of scary, but also beautiful!
And from there the day just got better and better. It was wonderful to see her, even though I swear she looks the same as she did in 1985/86, though her hair is shorter today than it was. She drove us to the Music Center, which is a damned good thing as the freeway was jammed and she took us through side streets that I’d never been on before, and certainly never driven.
The Music Center concourse, downtown Los Angeles
The music center itself was magnificent. From its chandeliers to its fountains, it felt like wallowing in luxury. The Symposium was packed with information delivered by very erudite professors; they had slides, which helped. The Symposium was free, as was a lovely snackie section of fruit and cheese and crackers, soda, tea, coffee. But the most important thing is all the knowledge that was crammed into my head about the ballet we were going to see that night – The Rite of Spring, that caused such a riot in Paris in 1913, and that basically started the modern dance movement.
(This year, 2013, is the 100th anniversary of The Rite of Spring’s first performance, and the 25th anniversary of The Joffrey Ballet’s reconstruction of Nijinski’s original choreography. So seeing it on Saturday night made it doubly special.)
After the Symposium, we went to dinner at the Brasserie (because I lost the pamphlet that had given us further options) and we ate very well. Plus we got to know the ladies next to us, a mother-daughter combo who were also going to the ballet that night.
A painting of one of the costumes/dancers of The Rite of Spring
Finally, it was time for curtain. Two ballets happened prior to the Rite of Spring; these ballets brought out my inner Diva. No one really landed their double pirouettes, and footwork tended to be sloppy, but I forgave them. However, the number of double-jointed dancers astounded me. In my day, only two dancers could whack themselves in the ear with their knee as they were standing. On Saturday, it seemed like every third dancer had that ability. Annoying. It really did become annoying. Or maybe that’s just jealousy speaking.
(Which reminds me. Charlize Theron was sitting in the row in front of me, about ten seats to the left of where I was. She looked GORGEOUS – all cheekbones and sleek, very short red hair. Loved the shoes she wore, and the slim black pants and jacket. Just saying.)
By the time we got to The Rite of Spring, I was ready for something to keep me awake. And it did. Point and counterpoint, rhythm and anti-rhythm – the movements, so antithetical to “classical” ballet, were refreshing and were made so much more accessible to me by the symposium I had gone to earlier in the day. I wondered how many people were confused by what they were seeing, and I was grateful for the knowledge gained earlier.
The ballet was vibrantly colored, musically fascinating, and the dancing was mesmerizing. If I hadn’t had that previous introduction to Nijinski’s choreography and Stravinsky’s score, I would have been pretty grumpy about it. As it was, I floated on air.
Afterwards, Kelie and I headed upstairs to the retrospective…here’s a shot from there.
And of course, a shot of Kelie and I.
Christine and Kelie at the Music Center, Feb 2, 2013
I was gone all day on Saturday – missing my hubby and emails and notices from my classmates in the blogging class I’m taking with Kristen Lamb and all the tomfoolery that goes on with my Facebook friends. But I came away from that time spent with an old friend, feeling as though, indeed, I had spent the day in Europe.
I am a lucky, lucky woman.
~ Until the next time, cheers – and remember to drink responsibly! ~
Demon Soul, Blood Dreams and Demon Hunt are all available for the Kindle! Have you fallen into the Caine Brothers’ world yet?
by Christine | Life, Observations
I spent Sunday carrying my “big” camera – my Canon Rebel T1i – around with me when the hubs and I walked to the duck pond and back. Thank goodness for digital! All the fun of taking pictures and none of the pain of getting them printed if we don’t like them!
We got the best of the day for photography – amazing clouds, amazing birds, and no rain. That came later, while we were at Lowe’s for seeds and plywood…but the photos of the rainbow I tried were just meh. Ephemeral mist just wouldn’t behave.
First up is a particularly devout mourning dove. They are remarkably tame (at least, around me) and won’t fly away unless you startle them.
A mourning dove, paying respects to Buddha.
Next up is a hawk’s nest. It’s high in the trees by the duck pond and the golf course near my house. Yesterday on our walk, the hawk was sitting there, and – wait for it – cheeping. At least it sounded like cheeping. Nothing mean or scary, like you might think a hawk would sound like.
The hawk’s nest, high in a tree by the duck pond.
Lastly, this is the bird feeder in our back yard. This morning, around 5:30 as I was puttering around on the internet, I heard a lot of songbird cheeping and twittering. Once the sun came up, I snapped this photo of a brave lad who didn’t leave when I stepped out on the patio. The only time our yard isn’t full of birds now is when a local hawk (maybe the same one that owns the nest, above?) swoops down through our yard, barely missing our heads. For some reason, all the small birdies go hide for ten minutes or so after that.
Our back yard bird feeder. At breakfast this morning, a squirrel trying to get at the seed almost fell off the top of the feeder.
Thanks for stopping by. What do you tend to take photos of these days?
~ I love your comments. Let’s chat! ~
Demon Soul, Blood Dreams and Demon Hunt are all available for the Kindle! Have you fallen into the Caine Brothers’ world yet?
by Christine | Life, Observations
I’m so thrilled that I’m carrying a camera with me everywhere. I had the great good fortune to speak at the monthly Orange County Chapter of RWA last week. Here’s me with the WANA folks that came. I was so happy to see them! From left to right – Jenny Hansen, me, Tameri Etherton, Kate Wood, Bethany Lopez, and Debra Kristi, all of whom are kick-ass writers and bloggers, so please go check them out. We have Kristen Lamb and the We Are Not Alone group in common, so it was doubly nice to see them in person.
The WANA gang at OCC RWA 1-12-13.
As you may know, we here in So Cal have been bitching whining upset about the cold temps we’ve been going through. A couple of weeks ago there was ice – not only all over my poor basil, killing it dead, but even in the streets. Here’s a photo of the partially-frozen gutter water. Hey, to a San Diegan, this is way cool stuff.
Ice in the gutter outside my office, about 9am.
The other day I tried to explain to someone my unreasoning hatred of palm trees. I couldn’t convince this guy from Ohio that palm trees are pretty dang useless. I mean, they don’t provide lots of shade from the sun, and they don’t give us anything to eat. And when they’re planted with a pine tree of some sort between, it causes a synapse interrupt for me. As in, these trees do not compute. (Don’t talk to me about date palms. Would you eat dates from a palm tree grown in Los Angeles? Yeah. Didn’t think so.)
Do the palm trees look out of place, or is it just me?
I guess there’s no changing the whole palm-tree thing now. I’m just a few decades too late. Are there trees planted in your neighborhood that just don’t go together? I’d love to know!
That’s it for today. Thanks for stopping by! On Writer Wednesday, Marian Lanouette will be here with her latest release, so we hope to see you then.
~ Until the next time, cheers – and remember to drink responsibly! ~
Demon Soul, Blood Dreams and Demon Hunt are all available for the Kindle! Have you fallen into the Caine Brothers’ world yet?
by Christine | Observations
So, I was filling my gas tank the other day. And I saw this cool thing for adults to stretch while they’re bored, filling their tank. Which I didn’t take a picture of. But as I walked around, stretching, the other side of the advert caught my eye. Take a look.
Hysterical. And very interesting! But it’s up so high, I’d have to lift any kid into bugs way up over my head so s/he could see. The thought is nice, though…just FYI, there were six more bugs on this that I couldn’t get into the photo.
~ Until the next time, cheers – and remember to drink responsibly! ~
Demon Soul, Blood Dreams and Demon Hunt are all available for the Kindle! Have you fallen into the Caine Brothers’ world yet?
by Christine | Life, Observations
At two separate times, I’ve gone up to Tehachapi to spend time with my brother and both times found something I hadn’t been looking for, but very much needed – a sense of peace.
My brother Greg works as a freelance Computer Technician, because he’s that smart. A couple of guys he knew were wondering about social media, and if they should/HOW they should use it to promote their books. After mentioning my name a gazillion times as an example of how it should be done (my brother is a sweet guy, and doesn’t know any other authors, lol), he suggested – and they agreed – that I should come up and talk with them, and answer their multitudinous questions about social media and writers. (But this post isn’t about that.)
Me and my brother, Greg, at the Cesar Chavez Center, Tehachapi
The only catch? The date was set for Friday, December 14, at 2pm – right in the middle of my workday. But I did manage to get the day off and around 10am that morning, drove on up north.
The Tehachapi Mountains rise out of the San Joaquin Valley on one side and Mojave on the other. The pass is at just under 4000 ft above sea level. Once I drove into the small town, the temperature gauge on my car read 38 degrees. The air was crisp and cold and perfect for December. The house was small and sweet and perfect for Tina, the lady that owns it. We putzed around, went to lunch, drove out to a ranch, and I had a three hour talk on writing and social media with two other writers (one has 4 books out and has been writing magazine articles for twenty years; the other is a screenwriter who has had several scripts produced and has just written a memoir about Hollywood). These guys were sharp, smart, funny as hell, and willing to listen to me, and I had a total blast. I hope to showcase both of them here on the blog in the future.
After we’d talked each other out and darkness had fallen, we said goodbye to new friends and drove to the Souza Family Vineyards, where I bought two bottles of their Primitivo Zinfandel (because I’m a sucker for Zinfandel!). The 2007 won a silver medal, the 2009 won a bronze medal, and the 2010 won a gold medal, all at the San Francisco Chronical Wine Competition. (I’m looking forward to showcasing the winery and the wines on a future Friday blog.) At the winery, we drank wine, looked over the wares at a craft fair there inside the winery, and chatted. Bob and Patty are really cool people.
Bob and Patty Souza, Proprietors of the Souza Family Vineyards
Afterwards, we went back to the cute little house, where Tina made dinner and I drank wine. (Seems like a fair trade!) Greg futzed with the new sound system he’d put in place in the house. We talked and laughed and when I went to sleep, I slept soundly, surrounded in peace.
The Keene Cafe – lots of railroad workers eat here. Terrific food!
In the morning, we went to the Keene Cafe for an enormous breakfast (that’s all I ate until 7pm that night – fanTAStic ham steak!), then went to see some sights. We visited the Cesar Chavez Center and saw his grave and wandered around the peaceful grounds.
The headstone for Cesar Chavez is between the Angel and the Pointsettia.
We drove up the side of a hill so we’d have a good view of the Tehachapi Loop, an engineering marvel by William Hood (“one of the 7 wonders of the railroad world”) built in 1874 – 1876, the train tracks that loop through 18 tunnels and 10 bridges; at one point, if the train is long enough, a train can loop itself three times. This line is part of the last and final link of the first railroad line connecting San Francisco to Los Angeles. The single track line is still in constant use today, 136 years after its completion.
Hopefully you can see three sections of train in this photo. If you google it, you’ll see better photos of the area…
But aside from the Loop, aside from Keene’s Cafe and the Cesar Chavez Center, aside from the flurry of snow that quickly melted and the frost that rimed the grass, the sense of peace was overwhelming. Part of it was the unconditional love that is so much a part of my brother; part of it was the crisp, cold air; part of it was me, without husband, sons, or responsibilities for a few hours.
It was lovely. A peace I desperately needed after hearing about the tragedy in Connecticut on my drive north. (After half an hour, I turned off the radio and kept it off.)
I had been worrying that this Christmas wouldn’t be the “best” Christmas, due to a shortage of funds and a new unwillingness to go into debt just to buy stuff. But after my time in Tehachapi, and after the events in Newtown, I am fine with a simpler Christmas. Blessed that everyone I know and love is well and alive. We aren’t traveling this holiday, and we don’t have guests, so I think perhaps the family will go on a journey of some sort. A photo safari, or local hiking, or a neighborhood we don’t get to very often (there are SO MANY of them in the Los Angeles area). Or maybe we’ll stay home and watch the first season of Game of Thrones.
Whatever we do, I shall do my best not to stress, and hold tightly to the peace I experienced in Tehachapi.
May you have many blessings, peace, and happy days, from my house to yours.
~ Until the next time, cheers – and remember to drink responsibly! ~
Demon Soul, Blood Dreams and Demon Hunt are all available for the Kindle! Have you fallen into the Caine Brothers’ world yet?
by Christine | Life, Observations
I’ve never been to a midnight movie opening. Ever. But tonight, I’m going to see Breaking Dawn Part 2 with a gal I met briefly at a friend’s opening night of a play, over a month ago. Yes, that’s right. I’m going to see a movie with a person I barely know.
Why? She asked, plus she said if I’d never been to a Twilight Saga midnight show, this would be my last chance. She said it’s fun – everyone’s reactions are over the top, and you get as much a kick out of the audience as the film.
So, even though I’m going to see BD2 tomorrow night with friends, I’m also going out to the ArcLight on Sepulveda to see the 12:20am show tonight. I’ll hole up in a coffee shop prior to and write my fingers off, but then – the movie. My first time in an ArcLight – we’ve got reserved seats (no waiting in line!).
My hubby told me to make sure my phone is charged, and to text him a couple of times so he knows I haven’t been abducted or anything, which I think is a hoot. But – I did recharge my phone!
I will say, this is way out of my comfort zone – and I’m determined to enjoy myself. See a midnight movie, meet new friends, have new experiences – what’s not to like?!
What have you done lately that’s been out of your comfort zone?
