rain — Page 16

Storms (of Different Varieties)

May 19, 2017 at 8:16 am by Claudia

This is a Martha Washington geranium that I purchased the other day. I repotted it and placed it on the bench on the Funky Patio.

Last night, we had a rip-roaring thunder storm with high winds. I was reading in bed and the wind kept hitting the windows in the bedroom, so I got up to see what was going on. Opening the window nearly knocked me over! So, I guess it wasn’t much of a surprise when I went outside this morning and saw the geranium and another plant on the ground. The wind was too much. So there I was, in my pajamas, no garden gloves on, shoveling potting soil from the ground back into the pot. I’ll have to add some more later. Then I checked out the porch and the calibrachoa had tipped over as well, but it had remained on the table, so that wasn’t so bad.

Yikes. I’m just glad there wasn’t more damage. No tree branches down, thank goodness.

The grass is very wet, so I may have to table mowing until tomorrow.

The fight against the ‘glamping’ developer continues. My neighbor went to a Planning Board meeting the other day and she was alarmed by how gung-ho they seemed to be about the project. Last night I went to the zoning board meeting (we’re appealing a decision to classify it as a lodge and trying to get it classified as a camp – because that’s what it really is. As one guy said, no one is going to stay there in the winter.) We were instructed at the last meeting to send any letters in support of our plea to the zoning board, with a deadline of May 12th. So, when the head of the board read just three letters last night, our hands shot up. It turns out many, many of us sent letters that they never saw because of a glitch in the email address. The town’s website has an email address listed that the zoning board is apparently not using anymore.

Don’t get me started.

So, we’re resending our letters/emails, which have a time stamp, of course, proving that we sent them by the deadline, and the meeting adjourned early and the next time we meet will be next month. As it was extremely hot in the room (no a/c) I was quite happy to leave.

I figure the more delays, the better.

Then there’s the story about a possible coaching job that I was in negotiations for. My day rate was okayed, I asked to see the script before I made the final decision, and then I found out (the next day) that while the person I was in contact with was sending me the email saying they’d agreed to the rate, they hired someone else because of a ‘time crunch’ they had never once mentioned to me.

I was not happy and I let them know that. Completely unprofessional. It wasn’t a big job, in fact, it was only a couple of days, so it’s okay in the long run, but it certainly has given me pause. I don’t think I’d welcome any future offers from this company. And I’ve worked with them before. (And no, it wasn’t Hartford Stage. Never!)

Happy Friday.

Adventures in Torrential Rain: Sump Pump Edition

April 7, 2017 at 9:12 am by Claudia

Egg cups for Friday. The angry looking chick on the left was a gift from my mom. Two beautiful transferware egg cups on the left and right. The egg cup with the feet is Walking Ware from England. A beautiful blue ironstone egg cup in the middle – old and very heavy. An egg cup from Prague – a gift from my husband, along with the handprinted egg (also from Prague.) The bear egg cup was a recent gift from my dear friend Lynne and Sean. And the wood and porcelain egg cup was a gift from my Mom. The painting is by my friend Christie Repasy.

Yesterday’s “adventure” – We had torrential rains yesterday, as did a lot of the country. Endless, most of the day, and at times, accompanied by thunder and lightning. Late in the afternoon, while listening to something on the radio, I realized I was hearing something loud. It was the sump pump, which wasn’t stopping after pumping water out of our 1891 basement (entered from the outside, and sort of spooky).

So, I grabbed my rain slicker, put on my muck boots and braved the outside. I moved the stones that hold the tarp down (which covers the old wooden door) and I carefully went down the stairs and sure enough, it was the sump pump. I got it to stop. Then I stayed down there for quite a while to see if it would reengage and stop on its own. It did. There was a lot of water in the basement.

Back up the steps. Closed the door. Put the tarp back over the door. Went inside. Took off boots. Happened to look through the kitchen window and realized that water was flooding the street from the section of culvert that is just to the left of our driveway. Amazingly, a big sofa cushion that I had seen way down the street (apparently fell off someone’s car) earlier in the day, was now being sucked into the culvert drain and the water had nowhere to go but the street. It was way too big to actually move through that pipe, so it just stayed there, blocking the path of the water.

Back into my slicker and boots. I walked down the driveway, figured out where I needed to stand to reach the cushion, and, in the midst of rush hour traffic, grabbed the cushion. The suction was so strong that I could hardly move it, but after several tugs, I managed to pull it away from the culvert. It was so heavy and so wet that I had to drag it to the side of the mailbox, where it still is. (Not only is it big and awkward, it’s ugly.)

Back inside. It wasn’t long before the damn sump pump got stuck once again. This happened at least four more times. I don’t know whether it’s starting to fail or if something was in the way that kept the float from dropping. I even walked around to the side of the house to see if the pipe was clogged. No. I unplugged it, but then thought the better of it as the rain had stopped and the amount of water headed toward the sump pump had greatly decreased.

I’ll have our oil guy, who is also a plumber, look at it.

Oy. What a day.

Don, this is why I need you here.

Happy Friday.

To Those Incapable of Shutting Off Their Cellphones: Don’t Go to the Theater

August 11, 2015 at 9:02 am by Claudia

We’re in the middle of a drenching, heavy rain. It’s been going on all night and this morning was one of those mornings when, despite it being 7:30, the darkness of the sky made it seem as if it was the middle of the night. We really need the rain. It’s been very dry here for quite a while. The rivers are down, plants are wilting, and there are brown patches in the grass. I’m not complaining, as I know what we’re temporarily going through is nothing like the drought out west. Nevertheless, it’s really good to see a steady and heavy rain.

My gardens thank you. And I thank you, as I get a break from hand watering everything.

8-11 zinnias

Have you been reading about Benedict Cumberbatch? He’s doing Hamlet in London – a sold-out run – and they’ve just started previews. He actually had to go outside and explain to theatergoers why they shouldn’t be texting, filming, and/or doing anything with their cell phones during the performance. And a few weeks back, Patti Lupone had to stop a performance to admonish an audience member about the same sort of thing. I applaud them for taking a stand. I am saddened that it’s become a pervasive issue in the theater. I hear about it all the time. I’ve witnessed it.

What have we come to? I cannot tell you how many times I have been watching a performance of a play I’m working on, only to see the glow coming from the screen of a cell phone, while audience members check their email or their text messages. I am ruthless about that sort of thing and I will get up from my seat, go down the aisle, and explain that actors can SEE that. They see the glow of a screen. They see any sort of light emanating from the audience. They find it distracting. And it’s RUDE. Hell, if I see it from my vantage point at the back of the house, of course the actors can see it. People think they’re artfully concealing the whole thing, but they’re not. Or, they simply don’t care because they are tethered to their cell phones and cannot stop.

If that is the case, I beg of you, don’t go to the theater. Don’t go to any live event where the performers are acting or singing or playing their hearts out for you. When you pull out your phone, even for a millisecond, you are disconnecting from the live experience. You are losing the thread. You are saying that your little life that is encapsulated in the tiny screen of your cell phone is more important than a once-in-a-lifetime theatrical performance. A performance, by the way, that you paid a hefty sum to see.

Oh, and by the way, don’t do it in a movie theater, either. Because, if I’m sitting there and can see it, I become distracted. I get angry. And then I have to ask you to turn off your phone. Or, better yet, get an usher to make the request. Edited to add: Please read Martha’s comment and her note of caution as to directly confronting someone, especially in what might be a dicey situation.

I know I’m speaking to the choir here, so the ‘you’ I mention is that ‘you’ that seems completely oblivious to the whole thing, the ‘you’ that is in his/her own little cellular world.

There is a huge and ever widening group of people who are addicted to their phones. It’s as if a cellphone has suddenly come to symbolize a full, rich life. A falsehood, to be sure, but one that a lot of people buy into.

I love the convenience of my smart phone and, being on the road rather frequently, I need it. So I am not one to rant about cellphones in general. I need one. But I am not tethered to it. I shut it off when I’m in rehearsal. I shut it off when I’m in a theater or a concert hall. Heck, half the time, I forget to turn it on when I’m not on the road.

What I’m really talking about is etiquette. There is a time and a place for checking your messages, for making a call, for taking pictures, or shooting a video. That place is not during a performance. It’s rude. It’s disrespectful. And in the case of video and photos, it’s illegal.

Okay. I am now stepping off the soapbox.

But, I have to tell you, this kind of thing can really set me off. And it seems to be getting worse all the time.

8-11 hollyhocks

The hollyhocks – check out the blossom to the left. What do you see?

8-11 hollyhocks & spider

If you answered a spider, you’re right. He’s been hanging around that flower for a couple of days.

Oh, and Don saw Henry/Henrietta yesterday. Sightings are rare these days, however.

Happy Tuesday.

ClaudiaSignature140X93

Storms (of Different Varieties)

Adventures in Torrential Rain: Sump Pump Edition

To Those Incapable of Shutting Off Their Cellphones: Don’t Go to the Theater

Lambs Like to Party

A Note

Archives