Now We Are 36

It's my birthday!

And it's oh, so unbelievably nice to be happy on my birthday.
 
 As a rule, I'm not fond of ages that are even-numbered.  Happily, while I wait for the gloriously prime-numbered 37, I can bide my time at 36 knowing that it's the result of 13 x 3.

And I celebrated in three parts.

Part 1:  Dinner with the Family

My parents came over for Brian's memorial Saturday.  We did a bit of shopping prior to the show where my mom spoiled me with clothes, then afterwards the family and I went out to dinner at Ted's.  The boys were squirmy, of course, but their buffalo burgers are tasty and the company was delightful.


Part 2: Shakespeare in the Parking Lot

It is not entirely a coincidence that when DCTC contacted me to see if I'd like to have a troupe of actors come to our school to perform a 45-minute version of "Romeo and Juliet" in our parking lot, I booked the show for my birthday.  You know, a bit of a Shakespearean treat for myself.

Six actors performed three times for all of the English and Drama classes 1st, 2nd, and 3rd hour.  It was bare-boned (albeit with a nice portable sound system!), gritty, fast-paced, and the kind of show I'm a sucker for.  I mean if I'm the type of theater-goer who eagerly and gleefully seeks out the chance to watch King Lear in a garden in the rain or The Alchemist in a flooded basement of an office building, of course I'm going to enjoy watching Tybalt die on the back of a pickup truck after a well-choreographed knife fight.

The Nurse and Juliet

The "Wherefore Art Thou, Romeo?" speech (note the windows to set the scene on the balcony)

Romeo and Juliet

It was windy and cold and the sun stayed hidden, but the rain waited until the very end of the last performance to show.  The students huddled in their shorts and hoodies (because of course) and under whatever blankets we teachers could scrounge up for them (my contributions included the emergency flannel blanket from my car, the Blanket Statement Rachel gave me a few years ago, the sheets I keep in my classroom for emergency togas/ghosts, and the red curtains I keep in my classroom for emergency fabric blood).  The actors, meanwhile, donned more and heavier layers with each performance.  We were frigid by the end, and Stuart, the poor stage manager working next to me, kept doing silent lunges and squats between sound cues to try to stay warm.  In our post-show discussion, I learned that my students had the same thought I did when Juliet died: at least by pulling Romeo's corpse up against her, she probably got a little warmth.

Like I said - I loved it.

The theatery day continued even in Mythology.  We started reading Zimmerman's Metamorphoses, and it's full of enough narration that we could do a bit more than just sit at desks and read.

That's Cyex, for example, on his ship sailing away from Alcyone with enthusiastic oarsmen at his feet.

It was a fun day at school.

At home, I was pleased to discover my new dress purchases had finally cleared customs and arrived.  I  tried them on, confirmed that one would definitely be my new Opera Dress...

then changed back into comfortable clothes for...

Part 3: Virgillio's with People I Love

Fara informed me about a week ago that I would be picked up for dinner around 6:30.  Not only do I get the pleasure of great company and good food, but I don't have to make any decisions or worry about pleasing everyone!  A marvelous gift.

Fara, Lisa, Tammy, Kristin, Rachel, and I enjoyed Italian food and good (and enthusiastic, particularly when talk turned to the local school board recall) conversation.  I adore these women, and it makes me happy to have so many of the people I love be together in the same place.

Rachel and Lisa had to take off after dinner to be responsible adults, but the rest of us went in search of frozen yogurt so we could hear details of Fara's recent presentation at Sunstone.  Kristin drove me home at the surprisingly reasonable hour of 9:45, and I tucked myself into bed with the satisfaction of a very happy birthday indeed.