Boxing Day? Already?

We spend all that time stressing and planning and getting ready for Christmas and then it is over!  Hope all of you had a lovely festive time and are on the road to recovery today.  I had a real Boxing Day experience this morning.  I wonder if you know that Boxing Day was the day that well off people gave "boxes" or gifts to the people who served them over the course of the year, like the milkman or the butcher or the garbage man or the gardener.  Goodness, we don't even have milkmen any more (at least that I know of) and I imagine very few of us have our own butcher or gardener either.

Anyhow, I had taken Daisy out early (her digestive clock still wants a walk at 5:30 a.m. to "answer the call of nature") and came home, made coffee and sprawled out on the couch to read (Songs for the Cold of Heart by Eric Dupont -- just a wonderful, rich read -- I highly recommend it) when I heard the unmistakable sound of the recycling truck lumbering down the street.   I looked out and what to my wandering eyes should appear, but a gigantic vehicle (and no tiny reindeer)!  Oh no, I hadn't put out the bins!  I threw on my new Christmas slippers and ran out with my recycling!  The man was very pleasant and helped me move out the bins (for our sixplex we have three recycling bins, one compost bin and one for glass) and explained that "yes, Virginia, we do recycling on Boxing Day"!  (So many Xmas references here - how many can you count?)  I said, "I should give you a box of treats for helping me out all year!"  I'm not sure if he understood my reference to Boxing Day, but he laughed anyway (humouring an old woman, perhaps) and hopped into his truck and off into the day he went.

This evening we are going to my sister-in-law's for a "leftover" dinner. (Everyone brings leftovers from their Christmas dinner.)  I made my famous sweet potato dish (everyone loves it) and will also bring leftover gingerbread and shortbread (made my me) and we will likely have a few laughs and uncomfortable moments and perhaps even some arguments and then the boys and I will wish everyone "happy holidays" and come home.  As long as we don't have to talk about Donald Trump, I'll be happy.

I took a quiz in the Guardian this morning on how much I know about Donald Trump and I scored 11/12!  The verdict from the Guardian is that I know too much about him and should wean myself from my excessive interest.  I couldn't agree more!  There's a New Year's resolution for me.

Thank you to all of you for a great 2018 and for the nice cards and presents and kind thoughts and warm wishes and for trying to do your best always.  I hope you have a nice holiday from school and that you get outside in the weather and get rosy cheeks and deep breaths of fresh air and that you eat lots of good food and laugh and read a book you can't put down (the aforementioned Songs for the Cold of Heart is like that) and that you greet 2019 with optimism and positivity!

I hear those sleigh bells jingling!

We're nearly at the holidays!

A Block -- No journals today as you did your journal on Monday.  Make sure you keep bringing contributions for the canned food drive.  Think how hard it would be to be hungry at this time of year.

B Block -- We have about a month left in this class!  (Time flies while you're having fun.)  Writers and directors -- can you give me your script for the panto asap?  You can give me one for the two of you, or you can each write your own version -- whichever you like.  After we come back from the holidays, you should have an original script (10 pages or less) in the works (which you could finish in the first week back).

Theatre production --  You guys are expected to "produce" the panto.  Find costumes, make props, do the lighting and sound.  You should have your jobs listed in your journal.  Get a copy of your group's script and make sure you set it up to run light and sound with it.  We will have a dress rehearsal of the final product on Wednesday and then an extravaganza on Thursday!

Actors -- Who are you playing in the panto?  What will you do?  What does your character want?  What obstacles does the character face?  How will you create a believable character?  What challenges are you facing as an actor?  How can you overcome these challenges?

As I said for theatre production, I want to see the final panto on Thursday!  Dress rehearsal on Wednesday!  Shall I invite some classes to come and enjoy them?

C Block --  Whose Shakespeare scene impressed you the most?  Explain why.

What are the rules of theatre sports?

Canned food drive!

A Block -- Don't forget to bring your donation for the canned food drive tomorrow!  We did very well today, but we want to make sure we help as many people as we can with our donations at this cold and dark time of year!  Let the sun shine in!

Closing night

Journal for Friday, December 7

Grade 8:

Comment on "Pride and Prejudice".  Describe one of the performances, the set, the costumes, the music, and anything else that stood out for you.

If you were in the play, write about your experience.

If you didn't see the play, write about a play that you've seen.

Grade 9/10

You were assigned your topic yesterday.

Senior Drama

What have you accomplished so far in your British pantomime?  Have you ever seen one?  If you have, what was it like?  If you have not, describe a funny performance you've seen.

Pride and Prejudice

Grade 8's!

Remember, we are going to see the school play on Wednesday at 1 (you will need to eat your lunch quickly before you come in the theatre).  The tickets are only $5 and go to a good cause -- the Drama Club uses the money they earn from one play to pay for the next play and there are many benefits to having a lively drama club at your school (plays help people understand and empathize with other people, they make us think about our place in the world, they help us walk in someone else's shoes, they inspire us and make us laugh and cry and hope).  Bring your money before Wednesday if possible.  Remember, if it is a financial hardship for you, I understand perfectly and just want you to be able to see the play, but if you can pay, please do as it is extremely helpful to the Club to use the proceeds from ticket sales to pay for paint and costumes and lumber and props (which we all get to use later!)

If you are not in my A or D Block class, ask your teacher to check with me to see if you can come with your class.  We are almost full, so time is of the essence!

Green Friday

It's green because I painted the green on the set for "Pride and Prejudice" just now!  And it is VERY green.

Journals for the week:

Drama 9/10:  Write about the commedia play you liked the best (not your own).  Comment on one performance you liked (name the character and the actor who played it).  Include comments on the costumes (were they like commedia del'arte characters?), the plot (did it include love and money?   did it end happily?), a lazzi that you thought was funny, physical comedy and the commentary on current events.

Senior Drama:  What fairy tale (or traditional story) would make a good British panto?  Where would you set it?  What song(s) could you adapt to fit the story?  Write one joke that would fit in the story (try to make it an original joke).

Actors:  What character would you play?  Write about what you would do.
Directors:  What issue would you explore?  Why is it important?  How could you make it funny?
Production:  What would one of the character's look like?  (hair, makeup, costume, etc.)

Drama 8:  Are you good at working in a group?  On a scale of 1 - 5 (with 1 being not good at all and 5 being excellent), where would you rate yourself?  What makes you a good teammate?  How could you improve?  Are you a good leader?  Explain why.  Write about a time when you worked in a group and tell what you learned from the experience.

Pride and Prejudice

Just a note that "Pride and Prejudice" will be opening on December 4, not November 27!  There are so many things going on at Steveston-London these days that we thought it was best to push things off for a week, and we are glad we did, because we have lots of rehearsing and painting and sewing to do before we'd ready to put on a great show.

Our first performance will be December 4 at 7.  Then we will do two matinees on December 5 and 6 at 1 p.m.  In addition to those shows, we will be performing on December 5, 6, and 7 at 7 p.m.   Tickets for students are $5 and for adults $10!  It's a great deal for the chance to see the classic story of the Bennett sisters' hunt for husbands.  Will Jane find her heart's content at Netherfield with Mr. Bingley?  Will Mr. Darcy get his comeuppance?  Will Lydia and Kitty find true love?  Will Elizabeth give in to Mr. Wickham's charm?  Will Mr. Collins please Lady Catherine de Bourgh?  For the answers to these questions and for a fun and romantic evening, don't miss the show!

Journals for Friday, November 16

Grade 8's:

What should Ms. Kosar know about you?  Include any past drama experience (or lack of experience), whether you have stage fright or not, whether you've performed or done drama in elementary school and anything else you think will help me get to know you.

Senior Drama:

Use the word "inchoate" in a journal entry!  Be imaginative!  Bonus marks if you can refer to something in drama with the word.

Drama 9/10:

We had the high danger drill in Drama on Wednesday.  Write about a drama class which finds itself in a Yellow alert situation and then advances to a Red alert.  Make it about a page long.  Three pages is too long.

Journal day!

Grade 8's:  Remember to compose your 2 minute show and tell speech!

Your journal:  What was the prompt for your myth?  How did you propose that the event or the phenomena happened?  Write a brief scene (as if it was a play) about how your group worked together.  Include at least one line for each person in the group.

Grade 9/10's:  What is your current event for your comedy dell'arte play?   What do you know about it?  How will it fit into your play?  What is your lazzi?

Once again, it's Friday!

Senior Drama

Okay, time to put up or shut up (an old saying -- I don't want you to shut up, of course).  We've done all sorts of things to get into the Space/Alien thing.  Now, how will we provide an audience with a scary experience for Hallowe'en?  Think of the dance drama, improv and scripted scenes we've looked at.  Include anything you think will work.

Drama 9/10

Describe a funny character you find entertaining.  It can be a stand-up comedian, a tv or movie character, even a cartoon character.  What does the character look like?  What does it do that is funny?



This is Woody Allen playing one of my favourite movie characters, Miles Monroe, in "Sleeper" from 1973.  The movie was written and directed by Woody Allen, and stars Diane Keaton and Woody himself.

Drama 8

Write a review of one of the fairy tale mimes.  Give it a catchy title (example -- "Glass Slipper Shatters Expectations").  Comment on the plot, one actor's (any gender) performance, costumes, staging, the music and the best moment in the play.

To boldly go where no one has gone before!

We're entering the situation many of you fear!  Journal writing!  Do not despair . . . you have until Wednesday (since we have a long weekend) to complete your assignment!

Grade 8's:  What fairy tale have you chosen?  How did you choose a cast (who plays which role)?  What is the climax of the story?  Why did you choose that point of the plot?  Are you making good progress?  (Explain using examples.)  Who is leading the group?  Is anyone causing the group difficulty?  Explain.

Make sure you find music for your group's performance, which will actually be on Wednesday rather than Tuesday, since we get Monday off.

Grade 9's:  What is the funniest movie/tv show/play you've ever seen? (Give me the name of the show and either the director or the lead actor or the writer.)  Summarize the plot.  Describe one scene or funny bit in detail.   Explain why it was funny.  Don't say you don't know why.  Try to figure it out.

Senior Drama:
Everyone:  Which scary scene was the scariest?  Explain why you think so.
Theatre Production:  What people wear on stage or in films isn't random (or it shouldn't be).  The colour, cut and style of a costume says a lot about the character's personality.  Obviously, the time and place they live is also very important.  Choose one of the following characters and draw a sketch of what they would wear:
a)  a young woman living in the countryside in 1820 England -- she is lively and intelligent and not afraid to stand out in a crowd
b)  a bold, amoral young man in 1820 England -- he doesn't have much money and what money he does have, he spends quickly -- he is always on the lookout for people he can take advantage of
c)  the captain of a space ship in 2235 -- he wears a uniform of some sort.  He is comfortable in his uniform, but he always remembers that everyone on the ship is depending on him and so he doesn't appear "relaxed" but rather vigilant
d)  the alien life form that takes over the ship -- use your imagination

Use colour!

Directors:  Write a brief (1 or 2 pages) scene based on one of the following situations:
a) the 1st mate of the space ship greets the new crew members and welcomes them on the voyage to Betelgeuse in the Kalixicon nebula
b) one of the crew members has a meltdown during a crisis on the ship
c)  the ship must be evacuated after all life support begins to mysteriously shut down
d)  two crew members believe that the captain has been possessed by an alien being

Actors:
Actors are told to "play the opposites".  That gives depth to performances.  What it means is that you
need to think of more than one thing going on inside your character at one time.  Here's an example:  you love your parents, but you become enraged because they won't let you go to a special party that you really want to attend.  You feel like you HATE them because they don't understand you.  You know that you love them, but you don't feel it.
Choose a character from one of the situations described above and write about the conflict the character would be dealing with.  How would you present these "opposites" on stage?

Independent studies:  Choose one of the above journals!

EVERYONE!  Be sure to think about what you have to be thankful for this weekend.  Gratitude is good for the soul.

Two Truths and A Lie

Directors/Scriptwriters:

This isn't your journal but I want to get you thinking about this idea for your next writing project.

The play is called "Two Truths and a Lie".  It begins like this.

Two actors face the audience.  The stage is bare.  They speak to the audience.

Actors (in unison):  One thing I do know is that he/she/they (either one, not all) asked me to a movie.

As soon as they say the line together, they turn and look at each other and hold the look for at least 10 seconds.  What happens then?

Hey, the gang's all here!

Journal day!

Grade 8's:  This week's journal is about group work.  How would you rate yourself as a group member -- on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being terrific and 1 being uncooperative, where do you stand?  Explain your answer.  What skills do you have that make you a good group member?  How can you improve?  Are you a good leader?  Explain why or why not.  Write about a time you worked in a group and tell what you learned.

Grade 9/10:  What story has your group chosen to explore your current issue?  How does your metaphor shed light on the issue?  What makes an audience take a performance seriously?  What makes a performance comic?

Senior Drama:  What do you find scary?  How could you turn it into a play?  What genre do you think we should choose for our October 31 presentation?  Try to explain how we can involve the audience.  Lots of movies make use of "jump scares" which is basically a surprise.  What can provide a more long lasting sense of unease or fear?

The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune

This week's journal is about metaphor, which is such an important aspect of the theatre.  On stage, everything means something.  Everything is significant.  Most of you have heard me say that if there is a chair centerstage in your play, I will be looking at it and wondering what it means.  If no one sits in it, then I am all the more mesmerized by it.

Drama 9/10:  Here is a quote I used from an earlier blog.  William Styron, a great American novelist, wrote it, referring to his battle with depression:

Everyone must keep up the struggle, for it is always likely that you will win the battle and nearly a certainty you will win the war.

Okay, first question is simply -- what metaphor is he using?  We all face struggles in our lives -- what's one of yours?   One of mine is trying to set a good example for my sons.  What sort of metaphor could you use to shed some light on your struggle?  I might use a mask -- because sometimes, I feel one way but because of my desire to set a good example, I pretend that I feel a different way (so if I feel road rage and my sons are in the car, I act more patient than I feel).  Explain your metaphor.  Here's my explanation -- sometimes, I feel like I'm wearing a mask.  I don't want my sons to see the real me, because sometimes, I don't think "the real me" will be a positive example for them.  So if I feel frightened, I try to act confident and strong, and if I am angry, I try to remain calm and collected.  I wonder sometimes, if it would be better just to let myself go, but then I think my sons would worry.  But maybe it's good if they worry a bit.  That's human, isn't it?

Acting 11/12:  You are part of a crew on a spacecraft which is taking pilgrims from Earth to a new planet (because we wrecked the one we were on).  Which character would you choose to play:
1)  the highly intelligent, strong-willed and sophisticated captain of the ship
2)  the android who yearns to be human
3)  the ship's doctor, who is extremely emotional
4)  the only member of a lost civilization who is carrying all its culture in its head, so that it can continue on the new planet
5)  the evil alien life-force who has infiltrated the humans on the ship
6)  the ship's spiritual leader

Why do you choose the character you have chosen?  Write a brief monologue (5 to 10 lines) in which your character explains their feelings about the voyage.

Theatre Production:

As a group, measure the proscenium opening, the depth of the stage, the length of the stairwells and the large step set on stage left and then individually make a scaled drawing of the theatre.

Directing and Scriptwriting:

Choose a cast from the actors in the class for your "1st day of school" play.  Explain why you choose the actors you do.

Independent Studies:

You've both suggested that you'd like to work on lighting (and I would like you to include sound) for the "haunted house project".  Choose one of these two ideas:  Clowns or Aliens.  How might you be able to create an interactive experience for an audience based on one of these ideas?  (A page might be long enough to explain your idea.)

In Women's Hands

I saw "Lysistrata" on Friday night at Bard of the Beach and it was terrific.  It was first performed in 411 BC and was written by Aristophanes, who is the only comedic playwright whose work survives from that time period.  It was written as a reaction to the ongoing wars between Athens and Sparta, and tells the story of a group of women (from all the city states in Greece) who decide to "withhold their favours" from their husbands (if you know what I mean) in order to convince the men to stop the endless war.  It is VERY funny and VERY rude.

I have seen it a number of times (once at the beautiful theatre in Epidaurus in Greece -- what an experience that was) and I was in a staged reading of it years ago when these readings were held as a protest against the Iraq War.

This was a lovely version (with the same cast as "Timon of Athens") -- it was full of energy and hilarity -- and I always sit in the audience and wonder what Aristophanes himself would think about his play being performed so far away and so long after he wrote it.  We don't know much about him although there is some thought that his first play ("The Banqueteers") was produced when he was only 18.  His plays make fun of well known people of his day (Socrates, Euripedes) and contain toilet humour and political satire and, like all great comedians, also make you think about serious issues and can be poignant and moving (but only in brief doses, because most of it is absolutely belly-laugh inducing).

The premise of this production is that there are plans to develop Vanier Park into a container terminal (Vanier Park is where Bard on the Beach is performed) and the cast of what is supposed to be a female Hamlet decides to perform Lysistrata at the last minute, because it is about a woman who "takes arms against a sea of troubles" (Lysistrata) rather than a man who can't make up his mind (Hamlet).  For that reason, everything is supposed to be very last minute, so people are still running around and painting the stage when the curtain goes up.  The costumes were really creative, with pop can tops as armour and broom brushes as the soldiers' helmets (it gave me all sorts of great ideas for theatre production).  As I said, this was the same cast who performed "Timon of Athens" which I didn't love, but this really seemed to be something they relished -- especially good, in my opinion, were Ming Hudson, Michelle Ford and most terrific of all, Quelemia Sparrow.  But it was all great and I loved every minute of it.

"Bard on the Beach" is almost over for the year, but if you want to see some theatre that isn't too expensive, it is Fringe Festival time.  The Fringe Festival is a theatre festival where anything can happen.  The acting companies pay for the venue and are chosen on a "first come, first served" basis, so you get some great stuff and some "passion projects" (people who want to present their play and perhaps have never done so before -- maybe like an 18 year old Aristophanes!).  You can get a guide online or at coffee shops all over the place and you can buy tickets at the door and they are very cheap and you get to see a show and it might be great or it might be shocking or it might be just awful, but it's all great fun and very instructive.  It takes place on Granville Island over the next two weeks.

Acting 11 AND 12 - I FORGOT YOUR JOURNAL

Actors:  We should be able to recognize what we're good at and what we struggle with.  What would be a huge challenge for you character-wise?  Think of a character that would present you, as an actor, with difficulties and think about how you would overcome those challenges.

Welcome to High School

Journals for the first week of school:

Grade 8:

What should I know about you?

Grade 9/10:

What are you expecting to get out of Drama?  What do you think will be challenging?  What do you think you will find easy?  What are your responsibilities in this class?  Is there anything I should know about you?

Senior Drama:

Independent Studies:  List at least three things you'd like to do this semester, and tell me why they would be good for you.

Directing and Script Development:
Write a brief (less than 2 pages, I mean it) scene about a kid starting school.  Give the characters names.

Theatre Production:

Our first big project will be the Hallowe'en "haunted house".  Think about (and write about) what theme we could use and how you use and how you would transform the theatre.  Sketches are good.

Mens Rea

(I originally took a picture from the New York Times to post here, but I read some stuff about "fair use" of copyrighted material and although I thought I was in the clear, I still didn't want to infringe on a photographer's right to earn money from her work, so I decided not to include the photo -- if you want to see it, take a look at the New York Times' article written by Charles Blow called "Search Your Souls (What's Left of Them), Republicans" and you'll see the photo I reference here.)

This is a great picture -- from the New York Times -- it's of Mitch McConnell (the leader of the Republicans in the Senate) -- I'm not sure where he is but it is very dramatic, with half of his face obscured as he tries to decide what to do about the latest Trumpian scandal.  I have tried my best to avoid Trump in my blog, because he seems to be everywhere else, but I find this whole latest drama to be intensely dramatic, with Michael Cohen, Trump's "fixer" confessing to the New York state prosecutor's office about the campaign finance crimes he has committed under the direction of "a candidate for federal office".  It is really Shakespearean, with people being stabbed in the back and a leader with endless amounts of hubris (who gave himself an A+ today for the job he's doing -- who gives themselves an A+?) and the guy who said not long ago that he would "take a bullet" for his boss and then the silent Paul Manafort (I don't know if he was silent in court, but I don't think he testified for himself, because the defence didn't call any witnesses) like Iago in the wings (but perhaps, not like Iago, because Trump calls him a brave man who is stoically taking it rather than "flipping" like Michael Cohen).  And then there's little Jeff Sessions who is the worm who finally turned; after months of taking it, he has finally found some self respect and tells us that he is doing a good job (maybe not A+, but good, maybe a B) in the face of Trump's criticisms.

Anyway, I'm not a good enough writer to do it justice, but I wish I was because it would make a great play.  There are so many good characters here - Steve Bannon, what an interesting character he is, all rumpled and red-faced, but imagining himself to be some intellectual powerhouse (and I'm not disputing that he's smart, however repellent he might also be), Jared Kushner, the weasel (who also rarely speaks -- very Becket-like to have these guys who don't really communicate) and Sarah Huckabee Sanders (whyever would she keep the Huckabee?  it just sounds so much like a joke -- that could be some of your comic relief) and Stephen Miller -- oh, what a great role if you got to play him!  He doesn't seem to be good at making eye contact and I remember way back when he was having his confrontation with the reporter, Jim Acosta, about immigration and the Statue of Liberty and he kept saying "Jim" over and over, while Jim went off on him -- that's a great scene.

Anyway, I wondered about whether I could use this photo on my blog.  (You can probably see I am trying to use pictures here now, since I've finally figured out how.)  I looked up the rules about using photographs that are copyrighted and it says that "fair use" means I can use a photo on a limited basis for the purpose of teaching or commenting on the news or things of that sort.  I hope that's correct.  I certainly don't want to use someone's work and not give them credit for it.  I looked up this photo and it is not a New York Times photographer, but rather a Reuters photographer (Reuters is an international news agency and it seems like lots of other news outlets use their material) and the photographer's name is Toya Sarno Jordan.  Anyway, I have no "mens rea" (criminal intent) in my use of the photo, no matter how many other people carry nefarious intents in their hearts (I just finished a Michael Connolly novel about these lawyers trying to impugn Harry Bosch's character as a police officer; the book was called Two Kinds of Truth and if you like mysteries, it was quite an entertaining one.)

I have that great title from the Drama game that I want to use for a play I will write sometime soon -- "Two Truths and a Lie" -- but it's just sitting in my head right now and I have got to sit down and start writing if I ever want it to come to fruition.

Smoke Screen

 .
We have the worst air quality in the world, according to the CBC.  I just looked again to check that and I don't see the part that says it's the worst in the world (hard to imagine that it's worse than pictures I've seen of the air quality in New Delhi), but it's not good.  Look at the picture!

It's apparently just the worst in our way of measuring the worst.  It's pretty bad anyway, though, no matter how you describe it.  I am supposed to have an outdoor aquafit class tonight -- should I go?  I'm pretty old and maybe it's not a good idea for me to breathe in all this smoke as enthusiastically as I breathe at aquafit.

It's all part of that scary scenario of climate change.  The forests are hot and dry because our climate is changing and so these huge events, like 600 wildfires burning throughout BC and record heat waves everywhere and "superstorms" are part of our future.  Yet we seem so incapable of doing anything about it.  Where's the international will to tackle this thing?  Can't we see that it is an emergency?  I know lots of people fret about jobs and if we do anything to address climate change, then people will lose their jobs and the economy will tank, but if we can't live anywhere on the planet, then it won't matter if we have jobs or an economy.

What can we do to change this direction we're heading in?  Well, I guess it feels like a tiny drop in a very large bucket, but I think we need to take transit and not drive our cars so much.  We have all heard the mantra about "reduce, reuse and recycle" and I think we're pretty good about recycling, but the first one on the list is "reduce".  Don't use so much stuff.  Stuff isn't going to make you happy.  Cliche alert!  The best things in life aren't things.  Instead of seeking solace by buying another t-shirt or pair of pants or SHOES, make something out of what you already have (reuse!).  Go to the thrift store instead of buying something new.  (It is Thrift Store Week this week, in case you didn't know.)

And the final thing (and perhaps the most effective) is to get involved somehow.  Write a letter or an email to your member of parliament demanding that they do something about Canada's role in warming up the planet.  Join a group or volunteer with an initiative that tries to wrestle this awful scourge to the ground.  Spread the word to your friends and family to think about climate change and try to do something about it.  It can't hurt.

Smoke gets in your eyes

We spent a week in Penticton and just got back.  It is VERY smoky there, but we went on with our holiday plans nevertheless.  You can't let thick smoke and an acrid stench stop you from having fun when you're on a vacation.  It was pretty bad with all the lovely views of the lake and the vineyards and the hills almost completely obscured.

We have developed a bit of a tradition in going to Penticton in the summer, so even this summer of having to have the roof repaired saw us making our way there.  We stay at the Best Western Hotel on Skaha Lake Road (no advertisement here, just that's where we always stay).  It is part of the fun.  It is an old fashioned kind of motel place, with a big grassy courtyard and the two story hotel surrounding it.  There is an outdoor pool (for someone like me who can't stand the idea of swimming indoors!) and an indoor pool and hot tub, a bunch of nice barbecues and picnic tables in the grass (and we cook there every night) and breakfast is included, so even if you have a teenager who never gets up before 1 p.m. in the summer, he drags himself into the breakfast room for a waffle at 9 o'clock.  In the evening, after we eat whatever we've barbecued, they show a movie outside -- sometimes it's a good movie (they showed "Finding Neverland" which was interesting) and sometimes it's a silly movie (like "Herbie Fully Loaded" which my son watched a bit of but wasn't able to remain focused on with the lure of the pool).

We always go to Loco Landing which is a little amusement park near Okanagan Lake.  We play mini-golf (I got a hole in one -- sheer fluke) and the adults (this time, my friend who is the mother of my son's friend) go on a wine tour while the boys frolic at the amusement park.  We have always drifted down the channel, but this year, my excellent swimmer son didn't want to go, so they went to this giant raft out in the lake which looked a bit like a huge bouncy castle -- it had a trampoline and a climbing wall and a jungle gym and a number of slides and looked like fun if you like that sort of thing.  (I am a complete physical coward, so I can't imagine wanting to do any of it, but I could see why the boys would want to.)

We spent time at the beach just lolling around and reading and splashing and swimming.  We ate and drank to our heart's desire.  It was a very pleasant and relaxing time.

On the last day, we went to see the National Geographic Photo Ark -- beautiful photos of a huge variety of animals from all over the world -- which was being shown at Liquidity Wines in Okanagan Falls.  The photos were inside the winery and also outside in the vineyard and they were gorgeous, and poignant, because they tell you what status the animal is in, like whether they are endangered or not, and of course, many animals are endangered, because of loss of habitat, climate change, overhunting, depletion of the resources that they depend on -- things that our species has caused.  When you look at the thick smoke outside your window, you can't help wondering what that does to the bats and birds and insects and frogs and all the creatures who can't get away from it.

If you're in the Okanagan, I would urge you to pop in to Liquidity Wines and see the photos.  They are very welcoming and it is a spectacular setting and the photos are great.  You could even buy a glass of wine or have lunch there to say thank you for having the exhibit for us to enjoy.

We're havin' a heat wave! A tropical heat wave! The temperature's risin' -- it isn't surprisin' . . . you really can't . . . can-can!

Whoa!  That Irving Berlin, huh?  He wrote well over 1,000 songs, and whenever you think of a show tune that is etched in your being, it's almost always his song.   Apparently, the wealthy father of the woman he wanted to marry objected to the wedding and disowned the woman when she went ahead and married him anyway.   Irving Berlin gave her the rights to the song "Always" to make up for it.  They were married for 60 something years and had a very happy life together and had four children and stayed in love until her death (and probably beyond that).

How are you dealing with the heat?  I have curtained off our kitchen which takes most of the noonday sun and we have the fans going, but I am loath to use an air conditioner because of climate change.  It is scary what we are doing to alter the world's climate and we don't seem to be able to stop.  We are lucky here in BC that it cools off at night.  My sister lives in Toronto and says it just stays unrelentingly hot the whole time.

Poor Daisy suffers in the heat.  We have our long walk in the early morning and then she spends the rest of the day panting.  We usually go to the creek in the late afternoon -- it is cooler and leafy and shady and she sits down in the water and lets it slosh over her.

We are having our roof replaced.  I pity the fellows up there pulling off shingles in the blazing heat.  Yesterday the hi-ab (I think that's what you call it -- a truck with a big crane on it) came and put the shingles and plywood on the roof.  It was quite amazing to see it done, and now the stuff seems to be stacked rather precariously on the peak of our roof.  I will be glad when it's all done.

Man's best friend

As many of you know, this is my girl, Daisy.  She is getting quite old now and if she didn't have all this silky golden hair, you'd see all sorts of warts (just like pictures of old witches and hags) and she has trouble on the stairs (and our house is all stairs, practically).  She is deaf, which actually helps her a lot, because when she could hear, she would go into these awful panic attacks where she would try to escape from the sound, but on the other hand, it used to be fun when she heard a siren because she would always get this other-worldly expression on her face and start to howl in answer to it.  She doesn't do that anymore, because she doesn't hear the sirens.  Or the coyotes who sometimes howl together in the evening in the forest behind our house.

She still loves going for a walk, although she can't walk as far as she used to.  She loves to sniff things out (especially if there's an old bone under a shrub or a piece of rotten sandwich in a thicket of grass).  She loves a good brushing and gobs of hair are always produced, even if you just brushed her fifteen minutes ago!  She loves food and when it's dinner time (or breakfast), she still acts like a puppy -- jumping up and wagging both her face and her tail.

She used to be quite nasty with other dogs, but now, in her old age, she looks daggers at them and will sometimes woof threateningly, but she certainly isn't willing to go the whole route and jump on them.  Quite a relief for me, her main dog walker.

She gets special food for an old dog and a salmon oil pill in the morning and then mobility pills (which she likes) three times a day.  Whenever she can, she'll go out into the back yard and lie in the hottest sun or crawl under the blackberry bushes and dig herself a hole -- she likes the peace and quiet and I think her old bones like the warmth.  I remember when my dad was getting old, he had trouble with his circulation and used to wear long underwear in weather that the rest of us put on shorts.

We love her so much and find such comfort in her presence in our house.

I just finished taking care of our neighbour's dog, Lily.  Lily is a young dog and very strong and lively.  (She is some sort of Lab cross.). She also likes to go on a walk and she is a passionate sniffer and stops every few feet to smell things that I can't even imagine.  When she sees another dog, she is very happy and wants to play, but oftentimes, the other dog is intimidated by Lily's size (very large) and energy (very high).  Lily loves her family so much and when they go away, she is very sad and sits for hours at the window watching for them to return.  She appreciates me taking care of her, but I am not her family and she misses them with her whole doggy heart.

Yesterday, they were supposed to be getting the late ferry, so I thought I should give her a good walk in the evening, so she would be tired and be able to relax while she waited, so we went out and had a long and pleasant walk in the evening.  When we turned onto our street, I could see the lights on in her house and the car parked in front.  "Lily!  They're home!" I said to her.  Lily didn't understand and kept sniffing things and lumbering along.  But when we got to their steps, she saw them and her heart leaped up and she raced up the stairs and then ran up and down through the whole house, just filled with joy.  A happy dog embodies the word "joy".  And that's why they can give it to us.

I would not wish any companion in the world but you. (The Tempest)

I just wanted to say that this would have been my 26th wedding anniversary.  My sweet, dear husband, Michael died in 2015, but he is still very much part of my life.  We had our ups and downs but we were both committed to our marriage and were good friends beyond being married.  Every day I think of him and miss him and count my blessings (see the previous blog post) that I met him and that we fell in love and got married and had our two terrific sons and spent many happy fulfilling years together.

Happy Anniversary, Mike!

Darkness Visible

“Everyone must keep up the struggle, for it is always likely that you will win the battle and nearly a certainty you will win the war. To all of you, sufferers and nonsufferers alike, I send my abiding love.”

I just read an article about William Styron, the author of many good books, like The Confessions of Nat Turner and Sophie's Choice.  He suffered with depression and wrote a book about his struggle called Darkness Visible (which I want to read now, having read the article).  In the 1990's, people thought we'd found the answer to depression, through drugs like Prozac, but unfortunately, Prozac and its compatriots don't work for everybody.  The article points out that the suicide rate is climbing alarmingly and suggests some reasons for it -- including climate change (!apparently, people are more likely to kill themselves when it is horribly hot) and the proliferation of guns.  It may also have something to do with the situation many people have noticed -- that we have less of a connection with our community and that we spend less time in and around the natural world -- I will suggest here that if you are feeling a bit low, go somewhere private and just put your full hand on a tree and leave it there for a minute or so.  I find that really helps me for some reason.

William Styron "came out" about his depression when it was not spoken of at all and he became an example to many of how to crawl out of that deep abyss but after a period of remission, it came back and he was concerned that if he told people or if he found himself unable to go on, other sufferers would feel hopeless and follow him down that grim path.  So he wrote an open letter just in case he killed himself and that paragraph is part of it.

My mother taught me many important lessons and one of them was to "count your blessings".  Nowadays, doctors and psychologists will suggest that you keep a gratitude journal, but years before that became a thing, Margaret Richardson (my mom) was doling out similar advice.  She had lived through difficult times -- the Great Depression (when she taught school in the middle of Saskatchewan's dust bowl in one room schoolhouses with desperately poor children in her class), the war, the death from cancer of both her parents, a difficult (my father was not easy to live with, as she often said -- but I don't think she was easy to live with either!) marriage, and then all the garden varieties of difficulties we all face.  But whenever my sister or I started getting down on ourselves, she would say that phrase, "count your blessings", and if we needed help, she could list blessings -- we lived in a beautiful, safe country -- one of the best places to live, we were healthy and smart, we had parents who loved us and opportunities open to us.  I can't ever feel sorry for myself for long -- my mother's voice always chimes in and says these things to me and it sustains me.  You might have noticed that I am trying to include pictures in my blog and so I am attaching a painting my mother made years ago.  I have her paintings all over the house -- she taught me to paint, too!  (I am not as good at it as she was.)

The Obstructed View - David Milne

Bright Curtains - David Milne

I went to see the show of David Milne's work at the Vancouver Art Gallery today.  I am a member of the gallery, and that's a good thing (thanks, Sis -- she gets me a membership for Xmas and what a great gift!) because I thought I didn't like David Milne, but it turns out that that thought was wrong!  I wouldn't have gone except I had to go downtown to get our passports renewed and thought, "oh well, I'm a member -- I'll just pop in and see what's going on".

It turns out I was all wrong about David Milne.  I thought it was all just splotches and dots and monotones, but look up above at this picture called "Bright Curtains".  Isn't it lovely?  He said this picture is "pretty much regular working out of the values problem, which, of course, goes way back".  By "values", he's referring to lightness and darkness, which fascinated him at this time.  It is a picture of his wife, Patsy, at a window and I love how she's looking down and the light is streaming behind her and then there are the block pictures on the wall next to the window and on the other side a roundish shape like a sconce or something.  I always associated David Milne with whites and greens and greys -- sort of washed out painting, but look at the rich blues and greens in this lovely piece.  Of course, he went through different ways of painting -- this is quite an early one -- and I think you can see the influence of Matisse with the window and the light.

There was another one of Patsy reading and she's bathed in light from a lantern but behind her is an ominous huge shadow -  it isn't pretty like this one, but it's quite impressive and powerful and apparently he painted it when he was living with Edvard Munch, so you can see what was going on there, too.

Patsy's figure in "Bright Curtains" foreshadows another interest he had in the obstructed view and the "dazzle spot".  In this case, Patsy is obstructing the view of the bright light, and the bright light is the dazzle spot.  In other pictures, he would put bright white trees (dazzling) in front of a scene of colour and depth, almost like you had to look past the dazzle to get at the meat of the matter.  I thought that might be interesting to try in the theatre.  You have a scene of something rather prosaic downstage, but upstage, you have something compelling -- see how long it takes for the audience to notice it!

He signed up to fight in World War 1 but by the time he got to Europe the fighting was over.  He said, "I was the first tourist, not the last soldier" and his pictures of ruined buildings in places like Ypres and the devastated countryside in France were really haunting.

This is a picture called "Neuville-Saint-Vaast from the Poppy Fields" and I think it should go along with  "Flanders Fields" when we think about the war and the devastated countryside and the hope that the poppies provide.  One of the things that is remarkable about his paintings of cities and towns devastated by war is that he shows people going about their business in the ruins of their town's most beautiful and remarkable buildings.

Of course, he lived in abject poverty for much of his life as many artists do, but I guess that doesn't mean that he didn't have a full life.  All of our lives are struggles and when you have this desire to explore the value of light and darkness, perhaps the struggle is worthwhile in a way that the rest of us "getting and spending" can learn from.  I believe that.

He spent a great deal of time alone and in nature.  He said he was compelled by the "mystery thing" beyond what is visible in nature.  If you've ever been deep in the forest or out on the open prairie or anywhere far away from the city, you've probably felt something like that.  When you put your hand wholly on a tree, you get this sense of a living thing that is connected to you, but very different from you at the same time.

I really enjoyed my time at the Art Gallery today.

Each Thing's a Thief (Timon of Athens)

We saw "Timon of Athens" last night at the Bard on the Beach.  It was performed on the small stage (the Howard family theatre is the name I think).  In the director's notes, the director (Meg Roe) says it's a difficult play and that it is difficult to pin down its themes.  That might be because it is a relatively obscure play but after having seen the show and talked about it with the boys, I'm not sure that I agree that it is difficult.  The story is basically this -- Timon is a well respected citizen of Athens.  She (in this production -- in the original, of course, everyone is a man!) gives elaborate parties and is ready and willing to help everyone in town, paying the bail for one friend, giving elaborate gifts to others and patronizing the arts.  Her servant, Flavius, tries to tell her that she is spending too much and that she is increasingly miring herself in debt, but she doesn't take it seriously until all her creditors come bearing their bills.  She goes to the people she helped for their help and they turn her away.  She is shocked and holds a dinner at which she serves her guests warm water.  The guests are dismayed and she abandons Athens and goes to live as a hermit in the country.  While digging in the dirt for roots to eat, she discovers gold and of course, people start to show up to be her friend again, but she doesn't trust them any more and the play ends tragically.

Firstly, my sons did not agree on their take on the play.  William really liked it and said it was the best show he'd seen at the Bard on the Beach (and he's seen lots).  He liked that it was one story, not the usually more complicated layers that we get with Shakespeare.  He liked how it was staged and the acting and the way the set worked.  Anthony didn't like it.  He disagreed with William that the simpler story was better (he likes the layers) and he thought that the tech was sloppy.  I agree that the actors were really good and I also agree that the tech was a problem.  The lights kept flickering but you couldn't be sure whether it was happening on purpose or was a mistake -- there is one part where she pulls the electrical cord out of the wall and the lights go out -- okay, I get that -- but the flickering before that seemed to happen without rhyme or reason.  The set change before the dinner (and really all of them) was really slow and there was no music at the beginning to make you think that it was significant that it was belaboured in that way.   Timon (Colleen Wheeler) was excellent and it was a real workout for her when she destroys her home and finds herself on a field of dirt.  Patti Allen played Sempronius (one of the friends) and she was fantastic -- she looked like a million bucks and you couldn't take your eyes off her.  At the end, Apemantius (Marci T. House) and Timon have a big confrontation and Apemantius (who is played by a black actor) yells, "beast!" at Timon and Timon yells back "slave!" at her and there was this terrific long moment where they just stared at each other -- that was the most memorable of the moments in the play.

Some of it was quite creative -- it starts with a big party and the guests all arrive and you hear snippets of the later dialogue (and they include the audience in this, but then they abandon the use of the audience which felt like a lost opportunity) but it's very fake and "society-party" and the ending was reminiscent of Godot with the two servants dealing with the aftermath.  I think that the theme is that the world of people ("society") can be toxic and if you depend too much on the opinion of others and sacrifice yourself to gaining their good impression, then you're lost.  I think you could have done something stronger in contrasting the world of society with the world of nature, where Timon seeks refuge.  In fact, a lot of this production felt like a loss of opportunity -- lots of great ideas, many of which did not come to fruition.  But still, worth seeing.

The play's the thing

I've been all drama'd up the last few days!

On Thursday, I saw "42nd Street" at TUTS (Theatre Under the Stars) at Stanley Park.  If you know me, you know I'm not a big fan of musicals, but once a year, my sister-in-law and I go to Stanley Park to see one of the two musicals they run over the summer.  The performances are always lots of fun and very energetic and it's good for a little drama teacher like myself to embrace all forms of theatre, even those to which I am not partial.

I did not know the story of "42nd Street" at all, nor was I sure what songs it contained, but you didn't need to know either to enjoy the production.  The script throws in all the cliches that you might expect -- a young idealistic girl from Allentown, Pennsylvania arrives in New York hoping to become a star.  The director is a hard-driving force to be reckoned with who forces the "kids" in the cast and the chorus line to work until they drop.  There is an older actress/diva who expects everyone to cater to her.  The show is being bankrolled by a Philistine capitalist who is in love with the diva.  The diva isn't a good dancer but has a dynamite voice and has an actor boyfriend unbeknownst to the Philistine.  They open out of town and the idealistic girl bumps into the diva and breaks Diva's ankle.  "Oh no, the show has to close and all the 'kids' will be unemployed . . .  unless . . . hm, where can we find a young woman who can sing and dance and act?  Hm."

"Hey, what about that girl from Allentown, Pennsylvania, who we just fired because she broke the diva's ankle?  Hey, Allentown, can you learn ten dances and songs and pages of dialogue by tomorrow?"  She does!  She saves the day!  She becomes a star!  Sorry if I ruined the ending, but you knew anyway, right?

So okay, very hokey plot, but the actors really sold it and I'm always so impressed with the dancing.  I have two young sons and out of all the teams and classes and friends they've had, only one of the kids in their connection learned to tap dance.  But there are all these young people on stage just tap dancing away.  And singing and acting and sporting colourful costumes and it's just great fun and I would recommend it highly.  The other show is "Cinderella" and I bet that's fun, too.

Last night I saw a double bill of "The Room" (which people call the "Citizen Kane of bad movies") and then "The Disaster Artist" which is a movie by James Franco which is about the making of "The Room".  "The Room" is truly terrible -- badly cast, badly written, nightmarishly directed, no continuity, stiffly performed, actually embarrassing to watch and as one of the people in "The Disaster Artist" says, "it's like the people involved have never actually seen a movie".  This guy named Tommy Wiseau, who is kind of mysterious -- no one knows where he comes from (he has a weird accent and claims to be from New Orleans) or how old he is or where he gets his money (he has a lot) wants to make this movie and he wants to be the hero in the movie and so he does actually make a movie based on his own script.

This friend of his who plays the second lead wrote a book about the process of making the movie and James Franco optioned the book and made "The Disaster Artist" in which JF plays Tommy Wiseau and his brother, Dave, plays the friend, Greg.  I really enjoyed "The Disaster Artist" and was very impressed by James Franco (as I always am -- he is an excellent actor and quite smart, I think).  It was funny and also rather poignant (the best comedies aren't just yuck-fest in my option.)

It was fun to watch both of them in one go, but I don't think you need to see "The Room" in order to enjoy "The Disaster Artist".  As I said, I found "The Room" pretty difficult to watch.  Some of it is really embarrassing to see -- it's just so terrible and you don't know quite what to make of it and people announce they have breast cancer or a drug problem and then nothing happens about the announcement and the romantic or passionate scenes are too long and quite gross and there are all these shots of San Francisco which have nothing to do with the plot and there is no reason to call it "The Room" (except that most scenes begin with a shot of the front door of Lisa and Johnny's apartment)  and poor Tommy Wiseau himself is so hard to understand with his accent and his tendency to laugh inappropriately and his strange appearance (his costumes and his actual physical appearance).  But it is a bit of a pop culture icon now, so I did sit through it.

Tomorrow night, we're going to Bard on the Beach to see "Timon of Athens".  It's a Shakespeare play I don't know at all (I think I read it years ago, but retained very little of its plot or anything else).  The production is set in a city "much like Vancouver" and Timon is being played by a woman, so we'll see  how that will work.  I'm looking forward to it.  More on this later.

Boy, is it hot!  I wish we could get some RAIN!  Everywhere you go you see birds all fanned out in the grass with their mouths open trying to cool off.  Why don't they go into the shade?

Trees and Bees

Above you will see two things I saw at the UBC Botanical Garden, which is a great place to visit, even if you aren't a botanist!  In this heat, there are lots of cool shady places to walk and in the Greenway, you can climb up into the forest canopy on this suspension apparatus (like a bridge -- I'm making it sound scarier than it seems, even though, with my fear of heights, I would not want to use it).  At points on the walkway, you are seven stories high and you can get up close and personal, just like loggers or people who want to prevent loggers from taking the big trees.  There is a meadow with endangered Garry Oaks and in the meadow is a beautiful sweet smelling tree (I believe it is a catalpa) and I walked over and stood under it and it was just abuzz with bees and so I did my best to photograph one busily doing her work.  There are so many blooms that the bees finish climbing into one and then just walk over to another; they don't have to fly.

There is an alpine garden with a giant maple tree shading things -- it has a beautiful white trunk, almost arbutus-like.  I believe it is called a paperback maple.  And there is a little greenhouse with cacti and succulents and a lovely physic garden with medicinal plants (also very popular with the bees) and a lovely flowered herbaceous border and just loveliness for all the senses (I even had an ice cream, so thankfully I didn't have to taste any of the hellebore,  which is poisonous!)

As I said, one of the reasons I went to the botanical gardens was to see the golden spruce descendant (or perhaps it's more of a clone, because it is growing from a cutting of the tree).  I went into the BC trees area, where the spruce was supposed to be growing.  It is lovely with a pond and all sorts of different grasses and trees.  I couldn't find the golden spruce, but I was enjoying the pond and the hemlocks and Douglas firs and Western red cedars when I overheard a couple who were looking for something and it seemed as if it was the golden spruce.  I didn't interrupt them, but I listened to a bit of their discussion, which helped me find the tree, too.  It doesn't stick out from the other trees.  It is very slow growing and so it doesn't make much of an impression.  It doesn't even seem that "golden".  Maybe the "goldenness" comes when it gets older.  (Like I'm approaching my "golden" years!). Anyway, it was nice to see the little tree bravely growing there and think about its amazing story.

Visiting the garden made me think a bit about Do Androids Dream of Mechanical Sheep?  Philip K. Dick postulated this world which we had destroyed with nuclear fallout, in which nothing grew and nothing natural lived.  As I said, the time period is basically ours and there I was in this beautiful garden with big trees and lots of birds and insects.  (In the novel, J. R. Isadore finds a spider and he's thrilled because there are almost no wild animals left.). Human beings can be so destructive -- we have destroyed the habitats of many animals and even insect populations are plummeting.  We could end up in a world like the one Dyck described if we aren't careful.  But then, other human beings, like the environmentalists who camp out way up in big trees to prevent them from being logged, or people like David Suzuki or John Muir or the members of Greenpeace or the World Wildlife Fund or the Nature Conservancy speak up for the natural world and wildlife and we are all better for it.

Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?

I just finished reading this book by Philip K. Dick (yes, that's his actual name).  The book is the "inspiration for [the movie} "Blade Runner", but I don't remember much from the original "Blade Runner" except the scenes of Harrison Ford's hovercar wending its way through all the electronic billboards.  I did see the new "Blade Runner 2049" and I liked it, but this book hasn't got much to do with that either.

Anyway, I really enjoyed the book.  It is also about a bounty hunter who tracks down and destroys androids.  Shockingly, it is set in 2021, which isn't long from now, and of course, we don't have androids or hover cars or things like that, but the book also still has us with telephone booths and technologies that have long since almost completely disappeared.

It is pretty exciting with his search and discovery of the androids {driven by his need for money and the idea that people in this time will spend vast amounts of money on live animals as pets, because there aren't very many animals left, thanks to the fallout from WWT (World War 3)}.  There are lots of great characters, like J. R. Isadore, a "chickenhead" -- they don't actually explain why he's a "chickenhead" and other people are "antheads", and Iran, Rick's girlfriend, and Luba Luft, the android opera singer.  And I liked how it suggested that one difference between us and the androids is their lack of empathy (I hope we have that) and that some people, because of their circumstances, lack empathy and that makes them more like androids than the tests are comfortable with.

I would recommend the book if you're looking for something good to read (which I'm sure you are).

I am going to the UBC Botanical Garden today.  I just finished a book about The Golden Spruce and apparently they have clippings from the tree at the garden and so I'm going to go and see.  On a hot day, some time spent in a beautiful garden seems like a good route to go.

No redemption

I watched "Sicario" tonight (not the sequel but the original).  It was very gripping, but my son said it was not "that violent" -- I would say it was extremely violent and disturbing.  The acting was terrific -- Benicio del Torro was just seething -- but poor Emily Blunt got the short end of the stick.  She's playing us and so she is out of the loop and confused for most of the movie, like we are, and spends a lot of time looking stunned and shocked and out of her depth, which is what she is supposed to do, but doesn't give an actor much satisfaction, I don't think.  It made me think that Mexico is a scarier place than I suggested in my last post.  I'm sure it's not all like the way they portray Juarez, but you certainly couldn't just sit back and let the movie wash over you -- you were tense the whole way through.

I was impressed with Denis Villeneuve's direction -- the scenes in the tunnel were so oppressive and the traffic jam at the border and the mass of people at the bus terminal gave you a very strong apocalyptic sense and Benicio del Torro squatting down and speaking softly to the migrants in Spanish and the scene in the bank and the use of the security camera.  The music reminded me of "Arrival".  He likes that kind of industrial groaning sound.

I read Coriolanus and Winter's Tale today.  I was thinking about Bard on the Beach's production of Winter's Tale and wondering again how you could make Hermione's statue more palatable.  I think the Bard production had a good idea with the theatricality of the show, but I don't think they went far enough.  Rickie said she saw a great production of Coriolanus at Stratford this year and I wanted to remind myself of it.  I have never seen it produced.  I thought you could do a lot with the two tribunes, but reading it made me feel like the ending comes up super fast.  You'd have to really choreograph something big for the attack scene, I think.

I'm sleepy.  I was up very early this morning even though my phone is not working properly and my alarm didn't go off.  Daisy likes to get up and about before 7!  She starts clunking around and I wake up and then I feel like it's my responsibility to take her out.  Once I get up, I'm fine.  And so good night.  Flights of angels sing thee to thy rest!

Should you trust a mysterious stranger?

My sons suggested to me that you might not want to take advantage of those tickets left by the mysterious stranger.  Perhaps the stranger has evil plans for you and is using the tickets to get control of you.  (This sounds like a good idea for a play.).  They thought they would like to go to Mexico, which would be interesting, I know.  I would like to see the Aztec pyramids and I think Mexico City would be really exciting, too.  Rickie and Carlos went several times and had a wonderful visit.  Still, I do think it would be viciously hot at this time of year.  (Of course, it's viciously hot here now.  Daisy is panting all day long.)

I think my choice of Dalvay-by-the-Sea is still what I would do.  I would pack a suitcase full of books and my sketch book and just relax on the beach and sit in the beautiful old-fashioned lounge and think about my favourite author, L.M. Montgomery, and how much she taught me about how to live my life.  (Find solace in the beauty of nature.  Strive to be a good person.  Art is important.)

Height of summer (or heat!)

Goodness, if I don't write in my blog more consistently, no one will read it.  (I wonder if anyone does in the summer, anyway, but I like to write so I will do it anyway and hope that I can be more consistent.)

Have you been getting outside and enjoying the unstructured time?  (I know that it isn't unstructured for those of you who have jobs or are doing school things.)  I find it difficult at first, to go from full on schoolwork to full on relax mode, but I think I am getting close at this point.

For the first week of the holidays, I went to Qualicum Beach on Vancouver Island.  I had never been there before, although I have been to Parksville several times and also Nanaimo which are quite close.  Qualicum Beach is a lovely town with lots of cute homes and little shops and the beach is terrific.  We stayed at a hotel right on the beach and the view was terrific (even though there was a noisy road in between our hotel and the water).  It seems like a place where people would go to retire, and I really liked it, but I don't think I could retire there.  Although their museum was quite good and it is very walkable and there were a couple of good restaurants, here's one thing I was challenged by -- (and you'll say it is a very minor thing, but nevertheless) there is a nice theatre on the Main Street and I was interested in whether there were any shows on while we were there.  There was a thing called "Bard to Broadway" or some name of that sort.  Okay, that's promising.  Then I looked at the shows and one was certainly Broadway -- "Chicago".  But there was no Bard to be had!  The other shows were "Baskerville" (about Sherlock Holmes) and "The Savannah Sipping Society", neither of which is remotely Shakespearean.  I don't think you should call something "Bard" unless you're committed to doing something Shakespearean.

We found a couple of nice coffee shops for breakfast and one morning, we were sitting at our breakfast table and noticed a film shoot going on.  It was for a tv show called "Chesapeake" (which I have never seen) and it was fun to watch the extras walk by the cute little house so many times and see the people setting up cameras and lighting equipment.  It reminded me how boring it is to be on a film set -- it all seems to take so long and nothing really seems to happen.  It's amazing that they ever get a finished product to show.

I went to the Port Moody Film Society's latest feature, which was "Maudie" starring Sally Hawkins (of "The Shape of Water" most recently) and Ethan Hawke.  I just loved it.  It was about this artist named Maud Lewis and her work and her life.  I was going to write "difficult life" because she faced many challenges -- she had rheumatoid arthritis which gave her an ungainly walk and later made it painful for her to paint.  Both her parents died when she was young and her brother sold the family home and left her with an aunt who wasn't very sympathetic to her.  She got a job working as a housemaid for a harsh man with whom she had to share a bed (they later married and seemed happy together, even though they were poor and struggling).  She had a baby out of wedlock and her aunt told her the baby died because it was so deformed, but it turned out that the baby was perfectly fine and her brother "sold it" for adoption.  (They don't really explain if he actually sold the baby.).  Anyway, the beauty of the story was that Maud didn't let the difficulties she faced stop her.  She didn't even really let them BE difficulties.  She accepted that things were challenging, and of course, they are for all of us, even if we don't have arthritis or have to face an unloving family or poverty.  Obviously, she had enormous challenges to bear but she found great joy in painting and in the beauty of the world around her and she lived a pretty happy life and I loved her and her husband and the actors and the movie.

I've been reading a lot (just finished The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt, which I recommend highly -- about a boy who also grows up in difficult circumstances -- he loses his mother in a mysterious terrorist attack -- and does let that awful event change him, and not for the better) and I have returned to the Aquafit classes at the pool (great for exercise and also fun because it's outside!). We are going out today to have our passport photos taken (we aren't going anywhere interesting because we have to have the roof replaced and that is going to cost a pretty penny), but it's important to have a valid passport, I think -- who knows?  Maybe some kind mysterious benefactor will send us a letter and say that there are tickets for us at the airport for anywhere in the world we'd like to go!  Where would you go?  I'm not sure.  There are lots of wonderful places in the world that I'd like to visit.  I was thinking of going to London this summer, but then I have already been there.  If it was a free ticket, maybe I would want to choose a more expensive place, but then, many of them would be very hot at this time of year.  Maybe a nice trip to Prince Edward Island!  There is this lovely hotel called "Dalvay-by-the Sea" near Cavendish and when I was there long ago, I thought it would be nice to stay there for a week or two, and just wander on the beach and see the L.M. Montgomery sights and eat lobster suppers and sit in the lounge at the hotel and have a drink and read.  I think I've decided so if you're a mysterious person who wants to send me on a trip, I'm ready to go!

Last journal!

Wow!  The school year is almost over!  It has flown by (although some days it does seem to crawl).  Here are your last journals of the 2017-2018 year.  (You're sad, I know, but you'll be able to write lots more in September.

Grade 8's (you will have to do this after the Aesop Fables performances and the show and tells.). Whose Aesop plays were the best?  Explain why.  Whose show and tell speech was the best?  Explain why.

Grade 9/10/11/12:  Describe in detail how the extended role play performance went.  Make sure to mention interactions you had with other people which Ms. Kosar might not know about.

If you are in Drama 9/10, who are you playing in the scenarios?  What is your character like?  How will you show its characteristics?

If you are in Theatre Production, you must hand in a set design for your sound and light show.  You must hand in a script for that show.  You will get a chance to plan some of it on Friday, June 15.  Be ready for that.

Show and Tell Instructions

Instructions for Show and Tell

Your speech should be 2 minutes long.  Practice what you want to say and time yourself to see if you have 2 minutes.  More is not better.  Brevity is the soul of wit.

Do not start your speech with "so".  It is a good idea to start your speech with something that will engage your audience -- a joke, a question, a quotation.

Do not end your speech with "yeah" (as in "so that's what I wanted to say about my carpentry project . . . yeah").  Think of how you can come to a conclusion.  "I learned that . . . "  "This was one of the most important moments of my life" . . .  "I will always remember . . . "

If you have an item that you cannot bring to school, a photograph is fine.

The item should inspire a story or ideas that can engage the audience.  For example, you bring your grandfather's medals from the Second World War.  You ask us to imagine an eighteen year old boy volunteering to serve in the army, describe a battle in which he took part, or the state he was in when he came back to Canada after the war.  You don't need to spend too much time describing the item itself.

The goal of this project is to demonstrate that you've made progress in public speaking.  That means you need to speak clearly and project your voice.  You need to appear to be confident.  You need to prepare a speech that does not use words and phrases inappropriately (phrases like "sort of" and words like "like").

If you are interested in what you have to say, we will also be interested.  You need to show that you are interested by speaking with expression, by making eye contact with the audience, and by taking care to prepare your speech.

Summer is a'coming!

Good morning, everyone!

Here are your journals for June 8!  (Make sure you catch up with missing journals before the end of the school year!  It's important!)

Grade 8's:   (1) Which Aesop Fables moral best applies to you?  Explain why.
(2)  What are you thinking of speaking about in the show and tell?  Explain why.

Grade 9/10/11/12:  How will you play your extended role play character?  What will you wear?  Which students seem to have a connection with you?  How do you think you can connect with them? What will your attitude be?  Give details!

Hark! Who lies in the second chamber?

That's a line from Macbeth, which the grade nines are using in their upcoming scenes.

Grade 8 journal:

Write a short scene in which you explore how your group is working on "The Creation of the World".   Make sure you include all the people in your group, to show how you are getting things done.

Grade 9 journal:

Choose one of the scenes you are preparing.  Write the scene in your own words.  Which character are you playing?  What does the character want?  How does the character try to get it?

Grade 10 journal:

Actors must always ask themselves what they want in a scene.  That gives the scene some momentum.  In the scene from Richard III, what does your character want?  How will you show that (not just through the lines)?  Think of some stage business that will help give us insight into your character and what you want.  Describe it (in detail).

Theatre Production journal:

Write about your concept for the sound and light show.  You should think of a theme, a piece of text (song, poem or short scene) and write about how you intend to explore it.

How am I doing?

Grade 9/10/Theatre Production 11/12:  You need to constantly evaluate your work if you want to improve.  Really think about what you are doing well and what you need to improve.  The following journal is an important part of your mark for your heritage play.

Firstly, comment on your heritage play (the whole performance).  What went well?  What needed improvement?  Whose performance was most effective?  Explain why.  What was good about your own performance?  How could you have improved?

What was the best scene?  Explain why.  What was the least effective scene?  Why?

Who was the person who did the most work?  What did they do?  What did you do?

This is the mark scale:  A+ (excellent -- seamless transitions and well organized set changes, believable performances that are moving, relatable and funny for the audience, consistency, clear and believable story line with clear references to historical and geographical situations,  appropriate costumes and props, evocative music and lighting); A (very good -- efficient and well organized transitions and set changes, believable performances which are relatable, settings that refer to historical or geographical context, consistency, clear and believable story line,  costumes and props, effective music and lighting), B (good - efficient transitions and set changes,  mostly believable performances, some historical and geographical references,  consistency, clear story, some costumes and props, music and lighting); C+ (satisfactory -- transitions that take less than 20 seconds each, some performances that are effective, changing settings which the audience can understand, voices that we can hear, a story that the audience can follow, attempt at costumes and props, music and lighting); C (below satisfactory - clumsy set changes and noise and talking during transitions, actors who stay in character but perhaps cannot be heard consistently, lack of attention to theatre basics, like cheating to the audience, a lack of props and costumes that makes the stories unbelievable, a storyline that is challenging for the audience to follow or understand, a lack of empathy for the characters or the situation -- for example, if you laugh in a tragic scene).  I usually pass you if you get up on stage and try to execute something, so that would earn you a C-.

Assign the whole group a mark.  If you were marking it individually, what marks would the other group members get?  Explain your marks, using the scale above.

Drama 8:

Write a short (one or two paragraphs) myth which explains one of the following natural phenomena:

(1)  what are the stars?
(2)  why do people have ten fingers and toes?
(3)  why do birds fly?
(4)  why don't snakes have legs?

If you like, you can write it as a play instead of a story.

“We must discover the power of love, the redemptive power of love,” Bishop Curry said, quoting Dr. King. “And when we do that, we will make of this old world, a new world.”

Welcome to a lovely long weekend!  We've been so busy in the Drama department these days that it is really nice to have a few days to unwind.  Congratulations to everyone who took part in the presentations for the students from Wakayama and also to the cast and crew of "Care and Respect: the Musical" which was performed for the Grade 7's on Fun Day.  I wonder what the students and staff from Wakayama thought of the heritage plays they saw!  We did hear from the Grade 7's, many of whom said "Care and Respect" was their favourite part of the day!

Grade 8's, don't forget you need music for your extended mime/tableau presentations on Tuesday.  You want to bring the music you think will work so you can practice with it before you perform on Wednesday.

Did any of you watch the Royal Wedding on Saturday morning?  I watched a bit, until my son came in and shamed me -- "why are you wasting your time watching two rich people get married?"  (He is clearly not a monarchist!)  I am not a big booster of the monarchy myself, but I do like Prince Harry, especially since he spoke so openly about his struggles with depression which started after he lost his mother.  There is still such a stigma attached to issues of mental and emotional health and it was probably quite hard for him to open that conversation but so worthwhile when so many people are struggling with it.

The title quote I used was spoken at the wedding by the Episcopal bishop who gave the sermon at the ceremony.  He had a very warm and engaging manner and I think his paean to love speaks to a broader need in the world than just the love that Harry and Meghan Markle feel for each other.  If we all tried to love each other and the living things with which we share the planet, I think we could see our way more clearly.  It is so easy to be closed off to the world and to ridicule and disrespect others and treat the water and air and earth as if they are receptacles for our garbage but that's a really dangerous approach that has gotten us into the pickle we're in now.  I hope we hear Bishop Curry and dedicate ourselves to care and respect for others and for our home (the earth, of course, not just our nice little houses) -- we'll be happier and healthier if we do!

With that said, let's have a pleasant weekend and especially enjoy that extra day of freedom (which is Victoria Day, thanks to the old, old queen!)

Happy Mother's Day

I hope you all do something nice for your moms today.  They do a lot for you!  My mom died about 15 years ago but she still sustains me to this day.  Whenever I start to feel sorry for myself, I can hear her cheerful voice telling me to count my blessings.  People suggest that one route out of depression is to keep a gratitude journal, and think about all the people who help you along the way and remember even the little things that you value in your life.  And there was my little mother encouraging me to do something like that long before the scientists and doctors had realized how helpful it was.

It is a lovely day and I woke up to a beautiful bouquet of orange and yellow and red flowers and some gifts as well which I won't open until my sons wake up.  (They're teenagers, so that will be in a while.)  I am going to go out in the backyard with my coffee and my book (American Gods by Neil Gaiman -- kind of a film noire magical realism, if you can imagine that) and then this afternoon, I'm going to the Circus at the PNE!

"R.E.D." closed on Friday night to a big and enthusiastic audience with lots of friends and family and "old kids" (great to see so many alumni stars of our little theatre in the crowd).  It was a great run and thanks to all of you who worked so hard and helped make it such a success.  If you are interested, we have one more project from the Drama Club that we must prepare and the timeline is really short -- Grade 7 Fun Day is on Thursday at about 1 in the afternoon.  If you are interested in helping out, come to the theatre at lunch on Monday.  A bunch of us brainstormed a short script we're calling "Care and Respect - the Musical" starring the children's tv host, Mr. Rogers, but there are lots of parts and lots of jobs to be done in a very short time . . . so we'll need all hands on deck for that.

Oh, I just heard a very sweet and gentle tweeting on my bird feeder and looked up and what did I see?  Two lovely grosbeaks feasting on sunflower seeds.  They are one of my favourite birds.  They are very pretty - orange breast with black and white wings and a black head, and a thick chunky beak (hence, the name).  They are the most polite birds on the feeder, not like the chickadees and the towhees who make a terrible mess.  They take one seed at a time and eat it and then select another one and do the same.  What a great sight for Mother's Day!