Memorial Day Weekend, Day One
May. 27th, 2017 08:30 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
coffeeteaandmeWow. That was quite the day! I don't remember when I have entered into a three-day performance weekend more biologically disadvantaged. A serious cold that reset in the middle of the week was taking me into my second weekend singing with throat issues. It was actually pretty interesting-- started out singing okay, as long as I kept it low, then as we went more and more notes would become unavailable but I didn't know till I tried them out. It was like playing a piano where the keys kept unexpectedly falling off.
I can illustrate the coeval problems with a small one-act play in which all of the characters are my internal organs. Or my phone.
PHONE: Time to get up!
BRAIN: OK, guys, time to get up. Wow, nose, what have you been doing? And why am I so muzzy? I feel like I need to be brushed! Better get some cold meds...
NOSE: I need to throw up.
THROAT: Uuuuuugh sooore....
LUNGS: *honk* *honk* *honk*
UTERUS: Woohoo, party in the Kremlin!
BRAIN: *sigh* fine, add Ibuprofen to the list of meds...holy cow do I need coffee...
PHONE: Now I will turn myself off and on again!
first set
GI TRACT: Everything needs to leave.
BRAIN: OK, right after this set.
GI TRACT: Nope. Now.
BRAIN: *sigh* OK.
PHONE: Now I will turn myself off and on again!
2 hours later
GI TRACT: Everything needs to leave.
BRAIN: OK, just finish this set-- umm, this song?
GI TRACT: Nope. Now.
BRAIN: You know, we have a lot of time when we're not on stage to do this, why wasn't this important before?
2 hours later
GI TRACT: Everything needs to leave.
BRAIN: SERIOUSLY GI WHAT THE FUCK THIS IS 7 MINUTE GUEST SPOT IN A FRIENDS SHOW, WE DON'T *DO* THIS TO EACH OTHER!!!!
GI TRACT: Nope. Right now.
PHONE: Now I will turn myself off and on again! And on, and off, and on--gee this is fun....
The weather was also not being the bright spot in our collective outdoor lives that it has been. I am deeply grateful that it has been so pleasant these past 7 weekends, but man, going directly from 75 degree weekends to 95 (with 80% humidity) can be quite the adjustment. Fortunately I spent part of the time I was supposed to be recuperating this week in a spa with my friends, putting my body through extremes of temperatures more like 130-185 degrees, with occasional dips in a 60 degree pool or a 50 degree room. I'm sure it had nothing to do with the cold deciding it deserved an encore. (a stubborn part of me regrets nothing-- I was reluctant, but it turns out a day at a spa with your girls is like gold).
It being the last weekend there was also extra work to be done, as we are trying out a new act on the director and we needed to rehearse with out two friends in the quartet with us. By late afternoon I was actually getting into the swing of things (amazing how fast you can adjust to pouring sweat and brisk walking, playing and drumming. Still, people several times asked me if I was ok-- maybe I didn't look as well as I thought I did...? the fans are really sweet, one bought me a super spicy Mary from the bar.)
For a day that started out with my spirits pretty low, it actually ended up being pretty nice. By the time we got to unveiling our act at the end-of-day Pub Sing, I was completely unable to sing and our song choices were moved to accommodate, but they were good songs. We did pretty well, all things considered, and my harmony line was mostly low enough for me still to sing. People seemed to like what we did, and the director had some great suggestions later on. I hung in and played music during the rest of the pub sing as well, but it felt weird not to add the toasts and laughs and ad-libs that I usually do.
At last it was time to close. When we get to the end of the show our host always calls out the names of all the performers for applause, and someone always says his name afterwards so he gets a cheer as well. I waited for someone else to say it,(sometimes we fight over who gets to) but the moment stretched out, and no one did, so I squeaked out "And J--H--!" all by myself, and everyone laughed. They apparently wanted me to say it.:))
I came straight home baked some biscuits for T-'s place, and proceeded to stay home and write this instead of going out at all. C-- is on stage tonight at the Junque doing a crazy Irish storyteller character but I don't even want to laugh. nothing else tonight, and maybe just maybe we'll have this licked by morning.
And now - shower, a judicious application of OTC drugs, a good book, and ahhhhh, rest for the night!
I can illustrate the coeval problems with a small one-act play in which all of the characters are my internal organs. Or my phone.
PHONE: Time to get up!
BRAIN: OK, guys, time to get up. Wow, nose, what have you been doing? And why am I so muzzy? I feel like I need to be brushed! Better get some cold meds...
NOSE: I need to throw up.
THROAT: Uuuuuugh sooore....
LUNGS: *honk* *honk* *honk*
UTERUS: Woohoo, party in the Kremlin!
BRAIN: *sigh* fine, add Ibuprofen to the list of meds...holy cow do I need coffee...
PHONE: Now I will turn myself off and on again!
first set
GI TRACT: Everything needs to leave.
BRAIN: OK, right after this set.
GI TRACT: Nope. Now.
BRAIN: *sigh* OK.
PHONE: Now I will turn myself off and on again!
2 hours later
GI TRACT: Everything needs to leave.
BRAIN: OK, just finish this set-- umm, this song?
GI TRACT: Nope. Now.
BRAIN: You know, we have a lot of time when we're not on stage to do this, why wasn't this important before?
2 hours later
GI TRACT: Everything needs to leave.
BRAIN: SERIOUSLY GI WHAT THE FUCK THIS IS 7 MINUTE GUEST SPOT IN A FRIENDS SHOW, WE DON'T *DO* THIS TO EACH OTHER!!!!
GI TRACT: Nope. Right now.
PHONE: Now I will turn myself off and on again! And on, and off, and on--gee this is fun....
The weather was also not being the bright spot in our collective outdoor lives that it has been. I am deeply grateful that it has been so pleasant these past 7 weekends, but man, going directly from 75 degree weekends to 95 (with 80% humidity) can be quite the adjustment. Fortunately I spent part of the time I was supposed to be recuperating this week in a spa with my friends, putting my body through extremes of temperatures more like 130-185 degrees, with occasional dips in a 60 degree pool or a 50 degree room. I'm sure it had nothing to do with the cold deciding it deserved an encore. (a stubborn part of me regrets nothing-- I was reluctant, but it turns out a day at a spa with your girls is like gold).
It being the last weekend there was also extra work to be done, as we are trying out a new act on the director and we needed to rehearse with out two friends in the quartet with us. By late afternoon I was actually getting into the swing of things (amazing how fast you can adjust to pouring sweat and brisk walking, playing and drumming. Still, people several times asked me if I was ok-- maybe I didn't look as well as I thought I did...? the fans are really sweet, one bought me a super spicy Mary from the bar.)
For a day that started out with my spirits pretty low, it actually ended up being pretty nice. By the time we got to unveiling our act at the end-of-day Pub Sing, I was completely unable to sing and our song choices were moved to accommodate, but they were good songs. We did pretty well, all things considered, and my harmony line was mostly low enough for me still to sing. People seemed to like what we did, and the director had some great suggestions later on. I hung in and played music during the rest of the pub sing as well, but it felt weird not to add the toasts and laughs and ad-libs that I usually do.
At last it was time to close. When we get to the end of the show our host always calls out the names of all the performers for applause, and someone always says his name afterwards so he gets a cheer as well. I waited for someone else to say it,(sometimes we fight over who gets to) but the moment stretched out, and no one did, so I squeaked out "And J--H--!" all by myself, and everyone laughed. They apparently wanted me to say it.:))
I came straight home baked some biscuits for T-'s place, and proceeded to stay home and write this instead of going out at all. C-- is on stage tonight at the Junque doing a crazy Irish storyteller character but I don't even want to laugh. nothing else tonight, and maybe just maybe we'll have this licked by morning.
And now - shower, a judicious application of OTC drugs, a good book, and ahhhhh, rest for the night!
