(no subject)

[deckardcanine]

I had another case, this time mild and fleeting, of frivolous guilt. You see, I went on vacation and watched a Broadway comedy musical. Know who else did? But my guilt was fairly silly because I'm not in a position of power, and I already gave money to the relief effort.

I felt guiltier for having an inordinate amount of junk food over the weekend. By my standards. Yes, I want to avoid getting thinner, but this is not the way.

Like the junk food, the NYC visit was a mixed bag. On the minus side, FAO Schwartz for the time being was completely out of Legos, video games, and worthwhile trivia games. The Guggenheim museum also had little to see, due to construction, tho realistically we didn't have time to see much more than we did. The travelling -- seemingly more than usual as my folks kept re-checking maps -- made me very tired and a bit bossy when we turned in after 1:30 AM two nights in a row, and I had volunteered for first the couch and then a quillow on the floor. Finally, I should never agree to attend something I don't like so that I can learn to like it, because that doesn't work. I'm talking about the U.S. Open, which we attended for 3 hours before deciding that the current match was going to take too long. (Our host and friend Paul proceeded to watch a single match that lasted 4.5 hours! The crowd gave a standing ovation before the end, just for stamina.)

Now the plus side. In addition to Paul, we got to visit a family of friends, including one I hadn't seen in 10 years, and we lunched with several of our own out-of-state relatives on the way back. The Guggenheim introduced me to Vasily Kandinsky, a rather spellbinding abstract painter. FAO Schwartz no longer has that clock that plays "Welcome to My World of Toys" all day, so the employees probably have more fun now. My sister Sarah, who is majoring in biology, bought an entire collection of stuffed giant microbes. (She said "Catch!" as she threw the common cold at us.) It was also nice just having Sarah's New Zealand friend Chris with us for another perspective.

And then there was the musical, Hairspray. About five years ago, influenced in part by my Baltimorean dad, I saw the John Waters film featuring Ricki Lake and Sonny Bono among others. Its rating of 6.7 on IMDb is about right. I found it only sporadically amusing, and I can barely remember it now. In fact, I can hardly remember there being an actor in drag (Divine) at all.

But there was no forgetting the one in this show. We were lucky: the two guys playing the Turnblad parents were doing their last performance before moving on. At the same time, they didn't quite steal the show. There were great lines and numbers all over. The costumes and sets were outrageous. The dancing was nifty too; I just don't normally pay it much attention. The ending is absurdly happy, but hey, Broadway's almost monopolized by wackiness now, right? And I forgive the lack of a Bawlamer accent, because enunciation can't be spared on stage. Now if only we'd gotten seats where the sound didn't get faint from time to time.

Oh yeah. In honor of the actor of Edna Turnblad going on to "Celebrity Fit Club," the writers bought the whole theater donuts. Just to compound my guilt, you know.

Comments

Movie quote:

[-fairest.livejournal.com]

"My whole life is one last fling after another!" - Rhonda, Muriel's Wedding

Try not to feel guilty about having some fun. I only wish I could have gone away this weekend. I work weekends, but I had Monday off. We took the kids swimming -- there are four pools in our complex, and the one in my "backyard" has been closed all summer, as has the one across the street. We had to involve the car to tote the kids & gear up to a pool at the other end of the complex! I was so pleased at how clean and sparkly the pool was on the third day of a holiday weekend!

The quality of life in this complex has gone up and down over our three years here. Being apartments, neighbors do come & go quickly. Sometimes that's a good thing! A few months ago, there was a scary bout of criminal types around, but they have moved on. Mind you, we don't let our guard down, but we're not hearing gunfire anymore!!
I realize how bad that makes my place sound, but it's usually rather normal -- the most unusual thing this week was a huge jar of pickles left on the sidewalk (shrug).

Two summers ago, I had an encounter with a particularly awful woman here: I was taking my two oldest kids (then ages 5 & 4) to the pool in my backyard. Well, this woman and her friend had a large group of kids in the pool. They were EATING IN THE WATER!! I took my kids in, not realizing how bad it was: broken plastic drink cups on the floor of the pool, popsicle sticks & wrappers in the water, breadcrusts floating. When I stepped on a cup in the pool, I decided to take the kids to the pool across the street. Just then, the woman served her kids more popsicles in the jacuzzi. I stopped in my apartment to call security.

On our way home later, the woman acosted me in the street, shouting vulgarities. "They're just kids!" She yelled. I bit my tongue because my kids were with me and I didn't want the trashy woman to escalate. Gee, I thought, I have three "just kids" and we don't swim in a trash can. Who's the grown up? WHo's in charge? Who was SERVING food in the pool??

Happily, I have never seen her again.

Well, my Eldest wants the computer....see ya :)

liking the unlikable

[billis.livejournal.com]

On getting to like things you don't like- I'm in agreement with you, it may not always be possible to learn to like stuff you don't naturally enjoy. However, an opportunity to go to the US Open shouldn't be passed up, because even if you don't enjoy it much, it's something that's enjoyed by much of society and it's considered a privilege to be there in person. Opportunities' rarity doesn't override the unpleasantness you experience, but it's worth it to learn what other people enjoy, and understand the function it has in others' lives. You could understand yourself a bit better, as you may notice what exactly turns you off about it.

Re: liking the unlikable

[deckardcanine.livejournal.com]

I'm not convinced. I say the rarity of the opportunity is all the more reason to give the ticket to someone else. This wasn't my first trip to the U.S. Open, and I came away with very little new understanding.

It may be possible to learn to enjoy anything, but simple repetition of the experience isn't a reliable method.

Re: liking the unlikable

[billis.livejournal.com]

I didn't suppose you'd been before, I don't even know anyone who ever has. But that might have something to do with a lack of tennis fanatics in my circle, and being on the opposite side of the country.

Re: liking the unlikable

[deckardcanine.livejournal.com]

Heh, I understand.