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You are here: Home / Archives for On The Road

Chicago

November 11, 2017 at 10:08 am by Claudia

After a horrendous day of travel – if you want more details, they’re on my Instagram posts – I arrived in Chicago 3 hours later than planned, on about 3 hours sleep. After an expensive cab ride to the apartment building in which Don is staying, I settled in and waited for him to arrive home from the theater at around 10:30.

Today is much better. I caught up on sleep and we’re drinking coffee together on the sofa and I am now feeling excited about this stay in Chicago. Tonight, I get to see much loved members of my extended family. My niece will be there with her husband and kids, my nephew will be there with his wife and children (these are my late brother’s children) and my sister will be there with her entire family. Huzzah! We’re all having dinner together tonight at a restaurant that happens to be 2 blocks from our apartment. On the same street. Go figure.

Tomorrow, when some of the guys are attending a football game, we will get to spend some more time with Mere and Little Z. I can’t wait to see that boy. And my sister, of course!

The view from our apartment on the 19th floor. It snowed here yesterday and it’s COLD. It’s also cold back home. Winter is here, though not officially.

Don’s tired, as they are back to rehearsing during the day and performing at night. This musical is a work in progress, so the writers and director are always making adjustments, adding new scenes, cutting lines, adding lines – that sort of thing. The same thing happens with any new play or musical. This theater is much smaller than the theaters in Houston and New Orleans, and there is very little space in the wings, so the actors are trying to figure out how to maneuver their entrances and exits (Don had to crawl over some set piece in order to make an entrance last night.)

Anyway, I’m here. My sister will be here later today. Don is here. And family is here. It’s all good.

Happy Saturday.

 

Filed Under: family, On The Road 24 Comments

Getting Ready

November 9, 2017 at 9:05 am by Claudia

Well, that’s it. We had a hard freeze last night. I walked around the property yesterday afternoon to say goodbye to everything that was still in bloom. I even teared up a bit last night talking about it to Don. I’m grateful it lasted this long, but for me, it’s never an easy transition.

Thanks for all your tips, but the reality is I’d rather go with dryer soil than overwatering at this point. It’s dormancy time and most plants would much rather be dry than too wet. So I’ll water the ones that need watering and I think everything will be fine. Since many of my plants are newish and I haven’t had a long time observing them, I would rather err on the side of caution.

Today will be about last minute stuff. I really don’t like all the travel prep or packing. And I’m not looking forward to the long day of travel I’ll have tomorrow, but I’ll be in Chicago by the late afternoon. Then I can collapse in the apartment and wait for Don to arrive. I have a feeling he’ll be in rehearsal in the afternoon.

I really am a homebody, you know.

I will be busy in Chicago, spending time with Don, my family members that live there, and my best friend, Laural. And sightseeing, of course. I’ve spent a lot of time in Chicago over the years but it’s been a while since I’ve had the chance for an extended stay. I know the time will end up flying by. I know a lot more about Chicago than Don does and since he’s been busy rehearsing and hasn’t had time to see anything yet, I want to share my favorite places with him.

I won’t post tomorrow as I have to get up very, very early to catch the bus to NYC. See you on Saturday.

Filed Under: On The Road 34 Comments

The Garden District

October 26, 2017 at 8:00 am by Claudia

I’ll keep the words to a minimum because this is a picture heavy post. I’m sharing some of the houses that caught my eye in the Garden District.

One of the larger homes. Beautiful.

Most houses are decorated for Halloween.

Interesting roof ornament, don’t you think?

These details make my heart beat faster. So lovely.

I’m especially drawn to the smaller houses.

Just stop. Look at this place! Could it be any more charming? Blue ceiling. Gorgeous front door. And I’m particularly taken by the shutters that are in sections, allowing light in at the top yet still providing privacy. Or, in this case, shutting the top section and opening the lower sections of the shutters.

Sidewalks are brick.

Trees are large and the roots often pull up portions of the sidewalks. Walking requires constant vigilance!

This one’s for sale. Any takers? The doors – though you can’t tell from this photo – are gorgeous.

These shutters are opened/closed in interesting combinations.

These are opened at the top.

Oh my heavens.

Check out that ceiling. Isn’t this house adorable?

I love this one. The houses that tend to be narrow usually extend far back as this one does.

See? It goes way back and has a private garden behind the brick wall.

The blue shutters, the wreaths, and the white rockers. Sigh.

There are so many more but I had to stop. The streets are tree lined and charming. I ran into several dog walkers and had some lovely chats as I wended my way through the Garden District.

Now I’m off to look at real estate prices. Because wouldn’t you be curious, as well?

Happy Thursday.

 

 

Filed Under: New Orleans, On The Road 32 Comments

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Welcome!

Welcome!

I live in a little cottage in the country with my husband. It's a sweet place, sheltered by old trees and surrounded by gardens. The inside is full of the things we love. I love to write, I love my camera, I love creating, I love gardening. My decorating style is eclectic; full of vintage and a bit of whimsy.

I've worked in the theater for more years than I can count. I'm currently a voice, speech, dialect and text coach freelancing on Broadway, off Broadway, and in regional theater.

Thanks for stopping by.

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Scout & Riley. Riley left us in 2012. Scout left us in February 2016. Dearest babies. Dearest friends.

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