Mockingbird Hill Cottage

Life in our little cottage in the country

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Friday

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Said goodbye for another year to the Christmas tree yesterday. This one had a good run  – all the way to January 18th. But it was time and as Don is now focused on the move to NYC, he was fine with it.

I did loads of laundry yesterday in an effort to clean everything Don might want to pack.

I also ate my fair share of chocolate chip cookies, which seem to be at their tastiest at the exact time I should be eating a healthy breakfast.

We had dinner with Rick and Doug last night. They’ve just moved their furniture into their NYC pied-à-terre, which is a studio apartment. Now they’re back here and we’re about to move Don’s stuff into our  pied-à-terre. Turns out the apartments are about 10 blocks apart. As always seems to be the case with me in the winter, I did not look forward into trucking to a neighboring town in the cold weather, but once we got there, the conversation was stimulating and fun and I felt much better for going.

Today is about packing things up, recycling, running last minute errands and generally preparing for the trip into the city tomorrow morning.

I can’t wait to choose some plants for Don’s apartment. Easy care, of course. I’ve been itching to buy some more plants but it’s been so cold here I didn’t want to shock a plant by moving it from a warm building to the freezing outdoors. This weekend will be warmer, both here and in the city, so we should be able to find something for him.

The apartment is furnished and from what we could see in the photos, it’s furnished rather nicely. Don will take along a few things to add to the ambience, but I think we will just add plants this weekend and see what happens as we get used to the space.

Let’s hope our government doesn’t shut down at the end of the day. Since it is controlled by Republicans, all this twaddle about it being up to the Democrats is ridiculous. They have the power. I’m convinced man-child wants it to shut down for the drama of it and as an effort to deflect from the increasingly damning facts about his administration and their ties to Russia, before and after the election.

I’ll refrain from dwelling on payoffs to porn stars.

Happy Friday.

It’s About to Happen

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The view outside of the kitchen window this morning; to be specific, the window over the sink. It’s awfully pretty, but don’t let that fool you. We got at least 8 inches of snow, maybe even more. It was a PIA to shovel and snowblow. PIA = Pain in the ass.

It’s not that I don’t appreciate the beauty of snow, or know how important it is for our well and the water table. I do. And if we had a short suburban driveway that was flat, it wouldn’t be so hard to handle. But we have a driveway that goes uphill and a largish parking area at the top.

Anyway. It is what it is.

I’m in a bit of a melancholic mood this morning because the enormity of what is about to happen in our lives has really hit me. Don is going to be moving into NYC for an indefinite period of time. We’ve just been through a great year, yes, but a year where we apart for close to 7 months. And we’re heading into another challenging year. Yes, it will be better because I can get into the city and, once the show’s open, Don can get home for 24 – 36 hours each week. Nevertheless, seeing each other on a consistent daily basis will not be happening. This is not helped, of course, by my worries about handling everything this winter.

I know all the positives, believe me. And I’m grateful for them. Separations because of work have been a big part of our married life. We know how to handle them. But they’re usually for a month or two months. We have no guarantees about the length of the show’s run; Broadway is a crap shoot. But we’re hoping for a long run.

Sigh. You don’t have to cheer me up, just humor me. And no, I can’t stay with him indefinitely. It’s winter in the Hudson Valley and I have to make sure the pipes don’t freeze and be here to shovel snow so I can move the cars in and out and so delivery services like our heating oil and propane have access to the driveway and I have plants to water. I wouldn’t trust anyone else to know the quirks of our house.

We’ll be fine. We know it’s a great adventure and 98% of the time we look at it that way. It’s just that it’s finally happening.

We needed them like a hole in the head, but it snowed for over half the day yesterday and I needed something to do. I’m going to pack up most of the cookies and take them to Don’s apartment.

Since we lost a day and a half to snow, we’re going to drive in on Saturday morning rather than Friday morning. Don wants this whole move to be as stress-free as possible and I don’t blame him. We’ll pack the car, drive to NYC and his building, double park, unload everything, and Don will drive to a parking facility. Then we’ll move everything in. I’ll hang around for a few days and then I’ll drive back Monday or Tuesday, depending on the weather. He starts rehearsals on Monday.

And I’m taking the Christmas tree down today. January 18th – that’s a record.

Happy Thursday.

 

Potpourri on Monday

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• In terms of blog photos, I alway feel limited at this time of year. I can’t run out to the garden and take lots of flower photos. I’m not traveling at the moment and the landscape around me is rather bleak. So I do what a lot of bloggers do and focus on the inside of the house.

But you’ve seen a lot of this before. Nevertheless, I remind myself that some newer readers haven’t and the idea is to find a new angle, a new take. Sometimes I’m successful. Sometimes I’m not.

The challenges of blogging every day.

• It’s Monday, it’s a holiday (drat! no mail!) and it’s friggin’ cold! Next Monday, Don will be back in rehearsals for Escape to Margaritaville. Our plan at the moment, once we find out when he can move into the apartment, is for me to accompany him and spend a few days there as we make his/our (he insists I call it ‘our’) apartment a home. That will be fun! I think I can be there at least 3 or 4 days until I have to return home to deal with snow and the subsequent shoveling required.

Hello, sweet Monty!

• Two big events are coming up in February. On February 16th, the Broadway Cast Album of Escape to Margaritaville  will be released. Oh my goodness! And on February 17th, I’ll be celebrating TEN years of blogging. What??? How can that be?

And Don will start previews in February at the Marquis Theater on Broadway.

So I was wrong. That makes three  big events.

• Real life here at the cottage. Two ukuleles. Pillows askew, laptop, headphones, sweatshirt draped on the sofa. I am documenting it because soon all of this stuff will be in Manhattan.

Sob.

Actually, I’ll miss him a lot, but I know he’s only a bus ride away and when it’s hard for him to get home – actors only get one day off – I’ll try to get into the city. Weather permitting, of course; it’s winter on the East Coast with snow and ice a distinct possibility on any given day.

• I managed to get my car out of the ice in which the two front tires were encased. First, I tried chopping the ice with our ice chopper. But every time I tried to do the old “put it in drive, then reverse, drive, then reverse” to get it out, nothing happened except the smell of burning rubber. Then I remembered that my dear father had covered the floor of the trunk with indoor outdoor rugs from Target, so I grabbed them, put them behind the tires, and I backed the car out. Smooth as silk. Of course, I then had to bring the rugs in and wash them. They’re still drying.

But I’m out. So I think I’ll run an errand or two today – just to do  something.

• We watched Dunkirk  last night, which wasn’t one of our screeners, but was available on pay-per-view. Since The Darkest Hour  takes place at that time, with Churchill trying to find a way to rescue over 300,000 British soldiers stranded at Dunkirk, we thought Dunkirk  would be the perfect companion piece. Both were released in 2017. Dunkirk  is really wonderful. I was so tense during the movie – even knowing how successful it ended up being – and that’s a tribute to the direction, acting and screenplay. Beautifully shot. Beautifully conceived. Loved it.

Happy Monday.

 

 

Lambs Like to Party

Lambs Like to Party

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