pink bandanna and change!

"What was the change, dear? Wasn't this a Music Bingo night?"

Yes, yes, it was, as in past tense. Apparently, the folk running the bingo had not obtained rights to play those song snippets, so they had to immediately cease. Drats. Elissa and her son, Isaac, had been told the sad tale upon their arrival at Midtown Sports Grill. So, after Marcia and I came in, we all voted to have dinner somewhere else!

"Hey, I bet I can guess where! You're at Chili's, aren't you? I'd recognize those ultra-thin tortilla chips any time!"

You're absolutely correct, my dear! Their "3 For Me" deal, and the promise of lemonade, was the winning element for Marcia. Me, too! I upped my game from the last time and had the Shrimp Cajun Alfredo - I knew I'd have leftovers from that! Marcia gave me half her fries, too. And we had tons of chips and salsa, between the one that came with my meal and her freebie from their loyalty club.

"Good deal! And you wore a pink handkerchief??"

Nope, that was from my luncheon with Kathy Mayin earlier today! My burger box was clad in that hot pink bandanna! That's the gimmick at Bandanna Burger: everyone goes home with a bandanna. And I know I called it a 'burger box', but that wasn't a beef patty in there. Nope! I ordered "The Con Artist", which was one of those new plant-based 'burgers'. It shared space on the bun with pineapple, pickles, tomato, lettuce, and onion, and was quite hearty and very tasty. Next time, though, I think I'll try their black bean patty and see how I like it. Kathy just ordered sweet potato fries. Originally, we were going to share each other's food, as this was our first time at this restaurant.

"Originally? The plans changed?"

Yeah. She decided the burger looked too messy for her, but she was still going to share the fries... up to the point where she ate the last one! I only got two of them!

"Hahahaha!"

Yes, we both laughed about that! Honestly, it was a nice place to hang out, with all those brightly colored squares of cloth all over. It reminded me of Sweet Potatoes, and how much I enjoyed that bright place on rainy days like today. We'll both have to come here again!

no Earl, no Elf, no Doctor Pomatter

I had wondered how "Waitress: The Musical" would be used for this first God On Broadway sermon, as it deals with a lot of issues concerning marriage,  mothers and daughters, coping with stress, and pregnancy.

I even used a Comcast reward a week ago to make sure all the songs were fresh in mind!

After all, the filmed musical came out in 2023 and there have been a lot of other musicals since that one.

I had hoped to be at Asbury Memorial in person, but my hip is just not that ready for that kind of action early in the day, so I watched on Facebook.

 

That worked in my favor, as I could take screenshots!

Michelle Meese has the lead role of 'Jenna' and here she is in the first scene.

She was so perfect in the Sara Bareilles role!!!

The show at AsbMemCh began as did the musical, with "What's Inside".

 

That led directly into "Opening Up", with Tom Lewis as 'Cal', the diner cook and manager; Carmen as 'Becky'; and her daughter, Alex, as 'Dawn'.

So far, so good, and right in keeping with the story.

And isn't that scrim for "Joe's Pie Diner" just fabulous???

Nice to have members of the choir filling the tables as diners, too!

 

Then we have the scene with 'Joe', played by Bob Townsend, who was ideal in that role of the crotchety old man who owns the place. 

He's got worlds of experience and he catches on that 'Jenna' is pregnant.

She hasn't shared that information around, but he's had a close call or two in his younger years with lovers who got knocked up, so he knows "the look".

There follows a break for the announcements, birthday greetings, and the other regular church stuff for an Asbury Sunday.

 

When the GOB musical returns, it's just 'Jenna' on the stage, obviously pregnant.

She goes into the "Dear Baby" soliloquy, explaining how the crib was obtained and why she will not be in the pie contest.

Then she sings "She Used To Be Mine", about the younger self she once was.

Very beautifully done!

And that was the last scene from "Waitress: The Musical".

Period.

Reverend Billy Hester launched into his sermon, talking of his marriage to Cheri and their frequent counseling sessions they undergo; a story in the Bible from Luke 13:10-17 about a woman who had lived in pain for twenty years and came to Jesus for healing on the Sabbath, causing both of them to catch flak from others; and changes we go through as we age.

 

He segued from that to telling us of hearing "She Used To Be Mine" sung as a duet between a man and woman and how that changed the song.

That's when Michelle and her husband, Matthew, came to the stage and performed the song for us.

It was nice, no doubt about it, but...

that wasn't in the original story.

In fact, a lot that had been very much part of the original musical was completely absent from the version we had today.

Nothing about 'Earl', the husband 'Jenna' married young, who was abusive like her father had been...

nothing about the extramarital affairs between 'Cal' and 'Becky', or 'Jenna' and her OBGYN doc, 'Dr. Pomatter'...

nothing about the love story that springs up between 'Dawn' - the "Turtle" - and 'Ogie' - the "Elf" - who met online...

and certainly none of the imaginative pies that are created continuously by 'Jenna' in response to life's curves.

I'm glad I know the whole story...

but I'm kinda sorta glad I stayed home for this one.

The down side is I missed all the home-baked pies in Holliday Hall after.

fairy unicorn princess in midway!

Not even the nearly-constant rain could dampen spirits at Susie King Taylor Freedom Park in Midway, Georgia, this afternoon!

Just look at that smile on the face of the birthday girl!

Chloe and her friend, Leela, had taken a break from the playground to do a bit of coloring.

Both girls were rain-soaked, but neither cared!

This was a party!!!

I almost took crayons in hand to color, but I went to chat with others instead.

When I returned, Michael and Alyssa had taken my place!  

I know the saying: You move it, you lose it!

I still sat down and talked with them for a while, though I never got around to coloring.

In the background are Melinda and Christina, both wearing pink as though they had coordinated that.

I doubt it! 

And just what was my first niece fiddling with back there on the table?

That was no ordinary table, it was a nachos bar and I made sure to get a nice helping of most of it!!!

Underneath all that nacho cheese, ground beef, black beans, jalapenos, and salsa is actually a bed of tortilla discs.

It was totally fantabulous!!!

In fact, I was so into that Mexican treat that I almost missed the singing of "Happy Birthday"! 

I saw that Matt was lighting the candles and I tried to hurry and get my camera pulled up and ready...

but the snap just missed Chloe blowing out those eight little flames!

At least Aunt Chelsea was right there with cousin Annaleigh, and so was Grammy and Christina!

Anthony's mom, Tonia, was in her wheelchair and had a great view! 

Then it was time for cake and ice cream!

Silly me, I forgot my lactaid, but I still had a piece of that tall cake! 

I liked the puffy unicorn plate - isn't that cute?

And the cake was so very good that I even ate most of the icing - I did!

Then it was time to open presents, of course!

And was that a familiar face on the woman in the white T-shirt?

Sure enough, it was Kaleigh Cobb, down from Charleston with her fiance, Mac!

I'd spoken with them and Michael while I ate my nachos and it was very nice to get to know more about both of them.

They'll be going to the Savannah Bananas game tonight, if the rain lets up.

Back to the opening of the presents! 

Specifically, the opening of the Minions bag of goodies from me!!!

Here, Chloe paused to read the card.

Why?

Because her Grammy said so, that's why!

(smile!)

Next, she pulled out the book, which I had not even shrouded in tissue paper.

Nope! 

"Creature DIScomforts"!!!

What's this???

A book she'll never see anywhere else, full of beasts and words she's never seen before!

I just -LOVE- this expression on her face!!! 

(smile!!!)

Finally, she reached for the last item...

and it was in wrapping paper!

Oh, joy!

"I love to tear off the paper, " she said!

I'm so glad I remembered she liked that.

When she revealed the little fancy suitcase of art supplies, she held it up high - there were even unicorns on the outer design!!!

Grammy will let her open it later - no need to lose any of the pieces inside!

What a great party!

Later this month, it'll be their turn.

Leila and Alyssa will be 12.

Can that possibly be right???

Yes, yes, it can be and yes it is.

They are so different from each other!

Leila even commented that she wished she could have her own birthday party, but when you're a twin, that doesn't happen until you're grown and on your own. 

As for me, I have been wearing my yellow unicorn tiara ever since I first put it on at the party!

Isn't it gorgeous?!

And now I have two tiaras!!!

And see that little pink unicorn ponytail holder at the end of my braid?

That was in the 'treat bag' that all the kids - even me! - were given by my first niece!

She always spoils me by making sure I get one of those, too.

Muchas gracias, mi cara!

lead dog for mfg on a rainy night in georgia

Game time had finally arrived and we five were ready for it!

It wasn't even 6 PM yet and our table was set up and decorated with giveaway treats: keychains, lens cloths, buttons, and stress-relief hearts!

That's me, the lead dog of this event, standing on the left with my thumb up!

With me on the back row were Felicia Shuman, Carolyn Barnett, and Debra Johnson, while Lillian Sykes and Connie Cooper were in their seats, tablets at the ready to check in those coming for the movie.

We're all wearing brand-new AARP volunteer t-shirts except for Carolyn; that's because she wasn't part of my team, she was just there to see the movie.

(Thanks, Emily, for snapping this great photo!)

 

The movie was "Practical Magic 2" and I made sure all four on my team knew that they would be released to watch the movie from its start.

Remember, I already saw the film a couple of weeks ago for that very purpose.

I also assured them that it wasn't necessary to have seen the first movie.

That's because the makers realized that a lapse of 28 years would make it difficult for anyone to recall all the important points from that one.

That's why they did a recap at the start of this second film, to catch folks up.

 

So, there we were, stationed just outside the arcade.

Debra Johnson was the lobby usher, to help attendees find our check-in table.

Here are Lillian Sykes and Connie Cooper, practicing by checking us in!

I had learned how to do that from Gabrielle Richardson after the meeting yesterday, when she gave me a lesson on the use of the tablet and on CVent, the software program that is used for tracking attendance.

This morning, I made sure both tablets were fully charged, then I set them up to both open on CVent.

At AMC, I showed Lillian and Connie how to log in to the program, then I walked them through the use of the program.

They caught on pretty quickly and soon we were all checked in!

That meant we were ready to start interacting with attendees!

 

That was a little slow at first, as the steady rain and darkening skies delayed arrivals to the cinema on this Friday night.

Shortly after 6:30, though, we started having a steady stream of attendees.

That included one of my 'Lunch Lady' friends (Jackie Frant), another of our fellow AARP-GA volunteers (Sheila Bell), and my first niece with her family of four!

Plus, Debra Johnson was good at steering other folks to our table for the free MFG ticket to the movie!

That led to a new experience for all of us: how to register a new attendee who was not on our master list.

Lillian Sykes was the first to encounter that issue and when she called me over, I was at first daunted.

Did we truly have to fill out all those fields on two pages of registration?

Nope, we did not, I determined!

As I showed her, all we needed was their name and their email, then we could press the blue button to bypass all that other stuff - good!

Just a few minutes later, I showed Connie how to work the system, too.

I think we had at least four people that registered tonight!!!

 

That was good, as our numbers were a little lower than hoped.

Of the grand total of 127 registrants for the "Movies For Grownups" event, we had 63 that actually came.

When I checked for a pattern for those who did not show, I saw that the majority were couples.

Most likely they were deterred not only by the rainy weather, but also by AARP's warning that the event was overbooked and they might not get a seat.

That heavy-handed approach might be fine for larger cities, but it's not going to work here in Savannah.

People will come only if they know they will get in.

I'll have to be sure to let Gabrielle Richardson know that.

 

And did all go as planned tonight, on this inaugural volunteer event?

I'd like to say it did, but that was not the case.

I took that photo of the hallway outside Screening Room #5 at 7:42 PM.

The movie still had not started.

We had delayed the start from 7 PM to 7:15, to allow for those slogging through the rainy traffic to arrive safely.

I had apprised the attendees of the delay and the reason... and they clapped!

Very nice!

But the projector did not start up at 7:15 and it took a few minutes for the word to pass along to Chris, the manager on duty.

He'd gone up to the projector and attempted to restart it, even calling AMC Headquarters to get their tech to help.

Twenty minutes ticked by, then the projector started, but only the sound worked, not the video, so work continued.

By that time, the truly elderly in the audience were concerned about the time; it was already a late movie for them, and now it was going to interfere with their bedtime.

They had gone to the lobby and I'd met up with them, trying to be reassuring, trying to get word from Chris on his progress, but finding out his walkie-talkie was having issues.

Seriously.

So, one of the AMC clerks went upstairs to get Chris so we could stave off a growing number of unhappy attendees, now clamoring for refunds for the money spent on snacks and drinks.

Seriously.

By 8:10, things were calmer.

The movie was on and those who came for it were staying in their seats.

There was an orderly line of people wearing the red AARP armbands that marked them as legitimate attendees, eligible for the movie passes - and food & drink vouchers - that Chris was distributing from behind the counter, along with his apologies for the delay.

Trey, the manager I'd first spoken to about this weeks ago, had come from the grocery store, as he was off-duty when Chris called him for assistance.

Trey and I spoke for some time, with me filling him in and assuring him that Chris had taken all the right steps and had been very helpful for the AARP event.

In turn, Trey assured me that Tom - the other manager I've known for years - would be in at 9 PM for the closing shift.

I asked that Tom be present in Screening Room #5 as our MFG movie ended, to distribute movie passes to those who had stayed, and Trey told me he'd make sure of it.

And there Tom was, smiling and genial as he always is, offering his apologies for the projector issues as he placed passes into happy hands.

Success.

And Chloe had me up in front of the screen, dancing to the credits with her, and Christina even came up and joined us!

Yes, I'd call that a pretty successful first event.

I know the MFG event here on October 29th will run much smoother now that we've had this trial run.

Let's hope that leads to regular MFG events in Savannah.

happy bday8 to miss chlo!

Her birthday party is to be held on Saturday, and I am all set!

Remember, I bought her this "Super-Cute Kawaii Fun Activity Case" before we even went on the cruise.

Just the case looks fun!

And it goes so well with the theme of unicorns in this poster that my first niece made two weeks ago, doesn't it?

I pointed out the typo in her daughter's name, but, as she said, it's already gone out to everyone that way.

I decided to capitalize on that by also giving Chloe this book from my kickstarter days.

See, it's full of zany monsters with crazy names and poetry full of made-up words to describe them!

Plus, it's autographed, so that may well be part of Chloe's retirement fund some day.

Who knows?

That could happen!!!

(smile!)

another meeting with aarp, with a good showing

This was just the regular monthly meeting for the AARP-GA volunteers.

I was so glad to see three of my MFG team members - Lillian Sykes, Felicia Shuman, and Connie Cooper - in attendance! 

In addition to them and myself, the other volunteers in Savannah that were present were Wanda Lloyd, Carolyn Barnett, and Janet Cuttray.

Gabrielle changed up the format for this meeting.

No ice-breaker chat to loosen us up, no training video.

The focus was on the Estate Planning Workshop that's been in the works for three months, since early July.

Yes, the one which was to be coordinated with speakers from the Georgia Association of Black Women Attorneys.

To tell the truth, I had not followed up with any of the other volunteers about that, nor had I heard from any of them concerning it.

At our monthly meeting in August, there had been talk from Wanda Lloyd about it, but I honestly had not paid much attention.

My focus was on the MFG even that I was running for October!

However, I do recall that the Workshop was scheduled for October 21st and was to be a hybrid event, filmed live at the Armstrong Center and zoomed for national attendance.

What a huge event that would be for Savannah to host!!! 

However, at some time since that last meeting the deal with Georgia Southern University had collapsed, so the live portion at the Armstrong Center was cancelled.

Moreover, the event date was changed to Tuesday, October 20th, and the event itself was restructured as a four-hour ZOOM with different topics per hour.

Each speaker will be introduced by a volunteer, then they will talk for about 30 minutes before going into a Q & A with the audience. 

That's a pretty big change from the original vision.

That's also left money on the table that had destined for the rental of the Armstrong Center; now what to do with those funds?

I suggested we contact the lawyers and find out what nonprofit group they might suggest, one that would help folks in need of end of life documents.

Hopefully that will work out. 

Meanwhile, after the hour-long meeting was over, I had a private session with Gabrielle so she could train me on the use of CVent, the MFG software used for checking in attendees at our event tomorrow.

I'd already made sure she knew the box from her had arrived safely, as well as the package with the armbands, but the rolling cart had not.

I've now had fifteen minutes of instruction on the use of the tablet and the software, so I'm hoping to be ready to teach others tomorrow.

I was also able to get Felicia Shuman's email address from that software, as she did register as an attendee, so I'll contact her now.

The Cumming woman had not registered for the event, nor has she responded to any of Gabrielle's requests for contact information, so she's off my team.

Glad I have Connie Cooper as a back-up!

cleaned clothes, mowed front yard

I'm not saying I did both of those things, nosirreebob.

I did the laundry yesterday, including the bed linens.

With my right hip now having joined my right thigh in being aggravating, I just may have to ask for help doing that task next month.

If I can just get someone to get it from the house to the car, then from the car to the house, I can handle it.

Suds Laundromat has a cart I can wheel out to the car to load and offload my basket.

That helps a lot.

As for the front yard, my brother Smitty took care of that early this afternoon.

 

He had to borrow a friend's lawnmower, but he was out there pushing it.

His riding mower is down.

I texted him early this week, so he knew the situation must be bad.

I think he was a little shocked at just how bad it was.

He told me it looked like it hadn't been mowed since he last did it.

I confirmed that was true.

He was mowing my front and back yard while I was returning from the cruise. 

i thank You, God, that he still takes care of that for me.