Don — Page 61

The Commute

November 19, 2018 at 11:25 am by Claudia

About traveling back and forth from our cottage to Manhattan:

As is often the case when traveling back and forth to Manhattan, the actual event you are there for takes about two hours but the time spent on the road and killing time before and after the event takes about 10 hours. Some days it can be very tiring, as was the case yesterday.

We left home at 12:15 to catch the 1:00 bus into the city because Don wanted to make sure he was there in time to find the music hall and grab some dinner before he performed. We got there around 3:30 and grabbed a Via, which is like Uber, to take us down to the Lower East Side. Unfortunately, we were sharing with three other people who were being dropped off and the trip was endless! And the driver was playing rap music. We vowed to take a taxi on the way back.

Once we were dropped off, we found the music hall, walked around the neighborhood (it was cold and windy) and found a Thai restaurant. Don had to be at the venue by 6:00 for a sound check but we got there at 5:30 because we had nowhere else to go, and the performance was at 7. It ended at 8. We grabbed a cab this time, got to Port Authority in time for a 9 pm bus, and pulled into our driveway at 11 pm.

See what I mean?

Traveling back and forth means calculating the time involved, making sure that you allow enough time for late buses, potential traffic jams, and travel within Manhattan. We often kill time once we’re there. The trip home involves the same thing – can you make the next bus in time, do you have to kill time for an hour at the dreaded Port Authority, what time will you get home (usually later than you had planned.) And we’re no different from millions of other commuters. When I complain, I have to remember that there are people who live in this area that do this every day.

I have to do it all over again tomorrow. Some days it’s fairly effortless. Others? A slog. Both of us felt that yesterday was more of a slog.

But, the actual performance was wonderful. Really great.

Here we are, on the bus heading into the city.

I made Don take this. He doesn’t like trying to take selfies.

The Rockwood Music Hall, which has three stages. They not only provide a venue for performers, but are also known for their live recording skills, which is what happened last night. A live recording was made of the performance.

Around the surrounding neighborhood:

The famous Russ and Daughters, which has been in the same location since around 1914. It was packed. We peeked in the door and saw lots of fresh fish and baked goods and oysters, etc. I had heard about this place, but this was the first time I’d seen it. Love the neon sign.

I forgot to take a picture of Don performing! (He did a great job.) But here is our dear friend Rema Webb singing her heart out. Rema played opposite Don in Escape to Margaritaville (I call her his other wife) and we miss her so much. Hearing her glorious voice raised in song made us very happy. Rema is going to be on an upcoming Murphy Brown, by the way, and we learned from her that our friend Andre Ward – also in Margaritaville – has become a regular on the show! I think he plays a stage manager on the set. He came in for a couple of episodes and they liked him so much that they made him a regular. It couldn’t happen to a more talented guy. We haven’t been watching the show, but you can be sure we’re going to play catch up this week.

The young man playing the fiddle is the author and composer of this project, called Johnny and the Devil’s Box. It’s a bluegrass musical. Boy, is he talented! The music was wonderful, very powerful. I do hope that this project takes off for him, that he gets investors and, eventually, producers, and that it goes to Broadway, which is, of course, his dream. I haven’t read the script, neither has Don, but the music is beautiful. We’re pulling for him. Don was very honored to be a part of it.

And now we’re back home. Tomorrow, I head back in for an Anastasia rehearsal.

Happy Monday.

A Favorite Appears

November 18, 2018 at 9:48 am by Claudia

Look who was at the birdbath this morning. Our very own lonesome dove! Don pointed him out to me. I had just been wondering if the doves were still around and I got my answer. I can’t tell you how happy this made me. He drank quite a bit of water and stayed perched on the rim for about 5 minutes.

I still feel like crap, especially first thing in the morning. But I have to get it together because we’re going into the city this afternoon. Don is singing in a concert version of a new bluegrass musical called Johnny and the Devil’s Box. It’s still in development and this concert is being done to get a good recording of the score. It’s at 7 pm at the Rockwood Music Hall which is on the Lower East Side. Should be fun. Don plays a character called Pappy and has one song.

I’ve taken to calling him Pappy.

We’re taking the bus because we don’t want to be bothered with driving. So it will be a long day. And I have to go back into the city on Tuesday for a run-through of Anastasia.

Great new series on Netflix alert: There’s a new series called The Kominsky Method, starring Michael Douglas and Alan Arkin. It premiered on Friday and we’ve already watched all 8 episodes (wish they’d done more!). It’s really good. I like both actors, but I’m a big fan of Alan Arkin. He never makes a false move. Such an incredibly gifted actor. It’s funny and sad and lovely.

In the midst of the snow, and they were covered in snow the other day, the pansies are still blooming.

The nighttime lows are going into the teens later this week, so I don’t know how much longer they’ll be around. But it’s a blessing to see this splash of color on my porch right about now.

I love pansies.

Happy Sunday.

Have We Got Gravel!

October 2, 2018 at 9:49 am by Claudia

What a day yesterday!

Once the gravel was delivered and there were four huge piles of it on the driveway, we looked at each other and gulped. We started in with our shovels and outlined the parking area and we worked hard, but it soon became evident that, though we still think we’re about thirty, we’re not. So Don called a guy who had been recommended to us and he said he’d come by between 2 and 3.

We came in the house and took a break for a couple of hours but, as it was a day where we were stuck at the cottage (our cars were parked across the street at our neighbors and we had to wait for Emilio) we went back out and did some more shoveling. Finally, Emilio arrived and he and Don worked for about 3 hours. By that time, my back was complaining, as was my right hand, so I came inside. Emilio was great and we tipped him generously. He saved our butts.

Because of the uphill nature of our driveway, along with the catalpa tree right next to it, it is impossible for large trucks to get in there and slowly release the gravel as they would on a standard flat driveway. The truck driver could only back up to the top of the driveway and release a big pile of gravel and then slowly drive down, releasing a few more piles. He mentioned something about the downward slope and the danger of the truck tipping over. Yikes!

That means we have to do the work. The last time we did this was about 12 or 13 years ago, not long after we moved in. We were younger then! Hopefully, we won’t have to do it again for a long time.

We also couldn’t afford to have someone roll it down, so we have to tamp it down ourselves, partly by driving up and down repeatedly and also by good, old-fashioned stomping (courtesy of me.) It’s never simple around here.

As you can see, we’ve redefined the parking area. It’s much more like it was when we first moved in, maybe even a bit bigger, but time and erosion wore away the gravel and grass grew and it became much less defined. We also covered the area near to the corral where there were ruts and built up the side nearest the big garden bed so that we have better water drainage in the winter. Fingers crossed.

Don was very achy at the end of the day (he did way too much, but he said he couldn’t let Emilio do everything by himself.) I was actually a bit worried about him. But he’s much better this morning and aside from cleaning out the gutters one more time before we leave, that’s the last of the physical labor. Oh, and I have to mow the front lawn towards the end of the week. I mowed the back forty and the corral over the weekend.

All day long we kept saying, “A week from today we’ll be in Paris!”

The rose as it looked yesterday. So beautiful!

Our big maple and its yellow leaves. It is full-on Autumn here and leaves are everywhere. I wanted to get the gravel done now before a freeze hit, causing the catalpa to dump all of its giant leaves on the driveway, which would have been a major hassle.

I was on a roll yesterday. Even with all the work on the driveway, I cleaned both bathrooms and did two loads of laundry!

Today: things around the house that need to be attended to, lists, and rest.

Happy Tuesday.

The Commute

A Favorite Appears

Have We Got Gravel!

Lambs Like to Party

A Note

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