Her first opera.

Early this week, just a few days before I went to Texas, a friend posted about the Opera Arlington performances of "Carmen", for which he'd designed the lighting.  So we did a quick rearrangement of our plans so that I could see it, accompanied by a friend who had never seen opera before.  The production was updated to the 1920's and instead of bullfighters, they had soccer (futbol) stars, in part as a tribute to the upcoming FIFA World Cup events.  While the set was minimal and the costumes sometimes sketchy, the voices were amazing and I was very glad we had the opportunity to attend.

The next day we did a double header of "Laura" (with fun guessing the murderer among all the red herrings) and "Home, I'm Darling" which had a cute set and nice costumes but an unsatisfactory script and direction.  Well, it was a rare dud in our many weekends of seeing shows.

I got to see friends and do some catching-up with people.  I also finished a baby blanket, with just a very few feet of the pink yarn left, just barely winning at what is called "yarn chicken":

Exceeded.

Again this year I participated in the Knit 4 Food A Thon, raising funds for four organizations that fight food insecurity.  Because there was a community garage/tag/yard sale that day, I decided to sell some of my stash of yarns and other crafting supplies and donate the funds to the cause.

Overall goal was to raise more than last year - mission accomplished!

On Friday evening, of course, I watched the Artemis II splashdown.  It was a nice break from setup for the sale on Saturday.  For my part of the sale, I raised about $100, plus the sale of a crafting workbench.  I shared the funds with others on my team, donating a portion of the proceeds to anybody who had not met their goal.

Today I saw "Churchill", a one-man show and fascinating two hours.  I definitely recommend it.  In a brief post-show chat, the performer/writer mentioned a related show, "Churchill & Roosevelt: The Christmas That Saved The World!" will be in performance in Phoenix next year.  I looked up the theater he mentioned, and the run will overlap our Spring Training trip!

Now they can be shown.

Almost every year since it began (when I was living in Dallas and attending the shows was easier) I've gone to see "The Beulaville Baptist Book Club Presents the Bur-Less-Q Nutcracker".  It's fun and silly and the male lead does everything from en pointe ballet to tap to handing out pickles to the audience.

A few years ago a friend I took decided that she'd enjoyed herself so much that she wanted to give thank-you gifts to the cast and crew, so she made everybody a facecloth.  (She actually made several more than were needed, so people could choose.)  I decided to make some fun soaps to give them also.

We've continued the tradition (one year I found some solid lotion bar kits and made those, but haven't had enough of the compound since) every year, and when I wasn't sure I'd get back for the production I left the soaps with my friend on an earlier trip.  It's fun and the cast and crew seem to love them.

This year, I finally decided to make a very fiddly design with a mould I was tempted to buy a few years ago.  They came out well, but I promised to keep the photo secret until after they were distributed:

In addition to the gingerbread people - of course scented with
"Gingerbread Cookie" - I made snowflakes of "Fresh Snow" and
little gold-speckled crowns (three designs) in "Woodland Elves".

I also found a kit to make a knitted pickle for the male lead (who also writes and choreographs the show - and yes, everything gets freshened each year, just like traditional Christmas shows often are), and will post a picture of it when I return home as I will finish it whilst traveling.

In addition to the knitted pickle - which he LOVED - I gave
him the lollipops, since there are some running jokes about
both lollipops and pickles.  Turns out he'd heard of these but
not found any.  I said they could sell these as concessions.

Update on the knitting shown in my last post:  I finished the scarf yesterday and am leaving it here, as I usually donate scarves to Warm Up, America! at DFW Fiber Fest.  The hat is at home; it was close to being finished when I left and I didn't want to do the last bits while traveling.  I'll finish once I return home and then wash and pack the hats and ship the box.

Typically American Measurement

There are jokes and memes going around about how Americans will use anything as a unit of measurement to avoid the metric system.  My friend Trish and I joked about it and decided to display her Great Big Squishy Scarfie Thing against their Grand Caravan:

Current length, on Colour #21 of 25, is about 2/3 of a Grand Caravan.  I've knitted on it twice (somehow, not this trip!), once when I was there for "AIDA" and once at Maryland Sheep & Wool.

I did some knitting of my own, a scarf of Bernat Blanket that I left in Dallas to donate to Warm Up, America! at DFW Fiber Fest next month, and three hats; four if you count the one I knit on a friend's machine so I could try it:

The green one with brick stitch at top left will go to the local
guild's Hundred Hats Challenge collection; the other three are
destined for a different charitable project.

This time I was there to see her son in "HAMLET", portraying several characters, primarily Rosencrantz:

This wasn't the only play I saw this weekend, though.  On Friday I went to the Allen Contemporary Theater to see two friends in what turned out to be a spectacular production:

I've recommended it to people, and they report the shows are
selling out before they can get tickets.  Kudos to ACT!

And then this went into a black hole, instead of getting published.  I thought I'd hit the "Publish" button!

Since then, I finished another two hats for the collection, and half a scarf for WUA:

Ooops, the top one is a repeat from the previous photo.
Both hats are AlwaysBeKind yarn.  Scarf is a Caron Chunky Cake.

I've planned some projects (probably too many to get done before DFW Fiber Fest), and finished my Berie Shawl of the "Sunset Skies" yarn:

When I saw how much is left, I decided not to frog back and add another garter row in the center, and there isn't enough remaining for a border, so the shawl is as it is (and fits me well) and the last bit of yarn will go into a hat or something.  Yes, I have the ends to run in, but that's just a few minutes of work.  I love how it feels, very soft and cuddly.

Cool Licks for Hot Days.

Not of the frozen treat variety, but the musical variety, while the temperatures are triple-digiting:

Too Darn Hot  (Cole Porter)

Summer in the City  (Lovin' Spoonful)

Summertime from "Porgy and Bess", and Joplin's version.

I planned to post more songs, but it's hot and I didn't.  😁   Also, I went to Dallas for some plays, and back again.  It's also really hot there - but surprisingly, not as hot as the east coast is suffering.

"Slave Letters" at MBS Productions

"Cry Havoc" at Lakeside Community Theater

"Curtains", a musical, at Allen Contemporary Theater

And of course, masks with quotes and facts:

  

  

RadioVizion!

A good friend who isn't able to tread the boards (as theater people say) as much as he would like is in a play, so of course I had to go, even though I've just returned home from overseas.  So on Friday I flew to Dallas, worked a bit, then joined my host friends at their usual Friday night supper location.  They walk in and aren't given menus; I was but pretty much know my preferences: Mediterranean salad and a side of gyro.  They give me enough that half comes home (with our fourth flatbread) for a future meal.

Saturday started out usual for me:  yoga class and Torah study, both online.  Then a quick check-in before my friend and I started refreshing our browsers until the "REGISTER HERE" button appeared on the DFW Fiber Fest website.  It went smoothly for me this year and I have a good slate of classes.  Plus nine persons registered for the class I am teaching on Sunday!  And likely there will be more before September.

After that it was brunch at another of our usual locations, then stopped at a local resale shop to see whether I could get some crockpots for my class (no, but I did find two very large colanders) before going to see my friend's play at the matinee.  The Bath House Cultural Center always has art exhibits:

The play is done in the style of a radio show, with the audience in the role of - audience!

It was a lot of fun and very funny and I am very glad I went to see it.  Afterwards a quick stop back at the resale shop because I'd forgotten to look for towels (I found three), and the Red Truck Café for the weekly prime rib special:

Afterwards, my friend and I went to a Joann's to see what we could stock up on before it closes.  Since a storm that had been brewing finally arrived, we joked about needing to take shelter on the way home in the store.    Then it was a quiet evening, and an early flight home.

These are the masks from my trip:

Bonkers.

I really wanted to see the Plague Mask Players' production of "Alice" but how to accomplish it with the holiday and my upcoming vacation?  The only answer was to daytrip.

I'd looked into Southwest flights, but the last one out on Saturday is at 3:00pm, not an option with a 2:00pm matinee, and I didn't want to spend my whole next-to-last weekend before vacation traveling, especially as we have plants to get into dirt.  My parents were hosting a dinner party on Friday, so I couldn't go then.  Thursday?  No, the Saturday matinee would work if I flew American.  So I did.

Storms in the morning delayed my flight, but luckily I had a good cushion and the pilots made up some time, so I had a couple hours to fill before curtain.  I decided to go to the big Half Price Books and took the "Children of Time" trilogy that my Science Fiction Book Club had read.  I knew I couldn't get what I paid for them, but also that they are popular and might bring a decent enough price.

After checking the books into the buy area, I wandered a bit to see if there was a book or two I'd buy with the proceeds, especially as I have one of the discount coupons from their calendar in my wallet.  (Spoiler: I ended up not buying anything, and realized after I left that I should have given the coupon to somebody with a pile of books in their arms.)  Then, as I wandered, I noticed people with yarn:

Linus blanket - we all agreed some child will
love receiving it.  The gentleman is quite fast.

Turns out a group of the Dallas Hand Knitters Guild meets there on Saturdays.  I sat in an empty chair, and was greeted by the people who knew me, and chatted generally.  I worked on the Tour Eiffel shawl and decided I didn't like how it was coming out. It didn't match the photos and also looked quite messy, and I don't know whether it's a fault of the original pattern or the translation into English - yes, I checked for errata but they don't address it.  I realized I should have taken a couple photos before I frogged it, since you cannot quite see how it looks in last week's picture but I did and restarted.

I also admired the Lego® version of the store which is next to the community room doors:

The group ends at 1:00pm-ish which was perfect for me to get to the theatre on time, even after some wrap-up chatting and then parking snafus at the arts complex.

I really, really enjoyed the production, and it was definitely worth the time and cost to see it.  I wished I could go again, and sit on the other side and get that view.  Or just to see it again!

After a brief chat post-show it was time to get back to the airport for my return flight.  I had plenty of time to do a lap of the terminal to get in some steps before an uneventful flight home.

Knitting with a Bear.

Adventures happen when I decide to venture out for theater and knitting.

I have a friend, Trish, up in Baltimore, whom I have visited on occasions.  Her son is a talented performer, and having graduated from college in December, was in his first professional show this month.  It's the Elton John and Tim Rice version of "AIDA", and he played Radames, one of the leads.  The major roles were double-cast, so Steven was in only certain shows.

Back in October, when Trish announced that he had been cast, I said I'd come to a performance.  At the time I didn't realize they would overlap the opera last weekend and Passover this one.  So the only date that worked was Friday night.  Luckily, Baltimore is a quick flight, and I could get a room in a hotel near the airport, and a flight worked between my usual (and added) Friday meetings.

Weather was terrible, and it was Friday rush hour, so we ditched plans to go someplace else for the Cracker Barrel across from my hotel, then to the performance venue.  We had a slight wait for the doors to open, but that gave us a photo op.

Trish's favourite colour is purple, so I dressed accordingly.

The show was fantastic and I was really glad that I came.  Afterwards, a photo with Steven and the girl (a student) who played Aida, and also will go far in theater if she wishes.

Then Trish and her husband dropped me at my hotel, where I enjoyed a hot shower and a long sleep.  Next morning, I did my usual Saturday stuff and they picked me up at checkout to go to brunch.  Afterwards there was still time before my flight home, so we decamped for a nearby mall.  The first available van accessible parking spot was in front of Bass Pro Shops, and we thought we'd go through to the food court or some other sitting area, but it turns out they have a lovely one just inside the doors, and nobody minded us sitting and knitting for a couple of hours.

Trish has been knitting on the scarf/shawl for a while, and
asked if I would add a few stitches.

Poor bear, stuck forever in a store by the door.
He seems to be smiling a little, wearing the scarf.

I did some knitting of my own, another lengthwise garter stitch scarf for when I wanted something that didn't need attention, such as when we were waiting for food or at the show.  And I've been making progress on the Tour Eiffel Shawl, which may or may not be finished before I go to Paris next month.

It doesn't look like much although I'm on the 
fourth repeat of the main pattern.  Ball 1.

Yet more rerouting.

I made it to Dallas, and had adventures, and came home, but the return was re-routed due to storms.  At least I got to see the show I really wanted to see, and it was FANTASTIC.  Plus I saw a LOT of friends.

This included travels on Saturday to Fiberlady, where I dropped off the two Sleepy Kittens I knitted:

No yarn acquired, a good accomplishment!  Then to a local yarn group, which had been rescheduled from two weeks ago.  There was a "please take it box" and all I took is a mittens pattern.

I made good progress on the sweater, and started but left there a garter-stitch scarf that I will pick up and finish on a future trip:

It doesn't look like much - top-down raglan.

Before going, I'd finished four crocheted banners, making up patterns, and as you can see, two need a bit of blocking to be triangular instead of shell-shaped:

Sunday was return travel, and I had carefully scheduled so I would be at the airport (arriving a bit early for my flight) for my cinema class, then get on the plane.  Except that the flight was delayed.  And delayed.  And delayed.  And moved to another gate..........

At that point, I would miss the connection, so I spoke to a gate agent who reticketed me (and managed to get my checked bag to match!) which would get me home much later - but home!  So I got some gelato, and did some work, and one flight taken, worked a bit more on the long layover, second flight watched the playoff game, and finally got home quite late last night.

Masks (I didn't write on Friday's) from the trip:

Sunday's - Bessie Coleman.

Appropriate for "The Shakespeare Conspiracy"