for 5 more minutes we're 6!

I told Carolyn after seeing the movie tonight that it seemed like "a hip student's study guide for a history class."

I was close!

"SIX" started out in late 2016 because Toby Marlow, a senior at the time, was selected by Cambridge University Musical Theatre Society to create a show to premiere at the 2017 Fringe Festival in Edinburgh.

I'm guessing it was along the lines of a doctoral thesis.

Lucy Moss was also on the project, and she researched the concept by watching Lucy Worsley's "Six Wives" on BBC.

Toby Marlow researched by reading Antonia Fraser's "The Six Wives of Henry VII".

Together, they livened things up with Beyonce's 2011 video concert album, "Live At Roseland: Elements Of 4".  

They were off and running after that!

The six wives of the Tudor king were envisioned as pop divas, with each having her own unique song, and the entire one-hour show was a contest between them to determine who had it hardest under the man.

Such fun!!!

After its debut at Fringe, it opened on London's West End in 2019 at the Arts Theatre, where it ran until the pandemic shut it down.

"SIX: The Musical LIVE!" was the filmed performance in 2022 at the Vaudeville Theatre, featuring all six of the original cast from those 2019 shows, who have been singing and dancing this music at that location since September of 2021.

What a marvelous sextet they are, too!!!

 

Natalie Paris as Jane Seymour
Aimie Atkinson as Katherine Howard
Jarnéia Richard-Noel as Catherine of Aragon 
Millie O'Connell as Anne Boleyn 
Alexia McIntosh as Anne of Cleves
Maiya Quansah-Breed as Catherine Parr
 

The women describe themselves in song as "divorced, beheaded, died, divorced, beheaded, survived", which is an odd way of looking at one's life.

Then again, isn't that how history differentiates them? 

I found it humorous that Henry VIII had three wives named 'Catherine' and two named 'Anne'; perhaps he had a problem remembering names in the throes of passion?

Hahahaha!

I also found it interesting that hand-held microphones were used instead of the ubiquitous Lavalier mics which are more common now.

Might that have been a nod to the women taking charge of the power taken from them by having a firm grasp on that penile prop?

Marlow and Moss didn't point to that rationale, but Freud would differ.

Now, how about a bit of fun?

It's been a while since I had one of my movie-time matching games, and this historical musical lends itself well to such a thing.

Plus, as I've done a lot of research on this myself, a game would be an entertaining way to pass on that knowledge! 

For those who choose to play, the names of the wives - listed in order of marriage to that king - are used multiple times, of course.

However, bear in mind that each letter has only one correct numerical answer.

I've posted their photos and marriage dates to serve as clues.

Enjoy!!! 

 

The Wives:

 

1. Catherine of Aragon

 

2. Anne Boleyn

 

3. Jane Seymour

 

4. Anne of Cleves

 

5. Catherine Howard

 

6. Catherine Parr

 

 

Their historical data:

 

a) She was lady in waiting to Catherine of Aragon. 

 

b) She was the first cousin of Anne Boleyn and the lady in waiting to Anne of Cleves.

 

c) She was the one married to him for 24 years, but is called the Dowager Princess of Wales.

 

d) She was the only one to give him a son, Edward VI. 

 

e) She was 31 and on her third marriage when she wed him.

 

f) He is buried beside her at St. George's Chapel, Windsor Castle.

 

g) She was the 30-year-old mother of Mary I (aka 'Bloody Mary').

 

h) She became the 30-year-old stepmom to his three children when they wed.

 

i) She wed him when he was only 18 years old, after first marrying his brother.

 

j) She was 24 years old when she wed him for his shortest marriage.

 

k) She was his youngest wife, at only 17 years old, but didn't live to see 20. 

 

l) She was known as "The King's Beloved Sister" and outlived him by a decade.

 

m) After his death, she wed the love of her life, then died a year later giving birth to his son.

 

n) She was the 24-year-old mother of Elizabeth I, but died within three years. 

 

o) She is the only one to have received a Queen's funeral.

 

--------------------------------

What?

Already looking for the answers?

I'll post those later, I promise.

Meanwhile, why not click a few links and see if that helps?

(smile!) 

burger at bingo in a booth!

"Say what? You ate a hamburger tonight???"

 

I did!

It was the day's special, and it sounded so good that I took a chance.

And it was good, too!!!

Wagyu beef, topped with chili and pickled jalapenos - wow!!!

That was some kind of tasty, let me tell ya.

Sandy had one, too, but she usually gets burgers.

She opted to skip the jalapenos, but those served as a tasty counterpoint to the chili, so I'm glad I choose to the burger as listed.

 

"I really can't believe you ate a burger at a burger joint."

 

In truth, Midtown Sports Grill is more than that.

They have spaghetti specials and other stuff, too.

In fact, their pork chops are pretty good.

 

"I'll take your word for that, dearie. So, who all was there for Music Bingo?"

 

It was our usual trio, plus Elissa this time, and in our usual booth!

That's three booths away from the Bingo Jockey's table, just in case you're curious or plan to drop in some time.

That "90's Mix #3" was our first game and I was just one away from a win!

The second game was "60's & 70's Mix #1", and all I needed was Eddie Cochran's "Summertime Blues" for a win there.

Then, for the 4th game, "Michael Jackson Mix', I was just one off from getting the $50 gift card!!!

All I needed was "Remember The Time".

Sounds appropriate, like it might be a joke, doesn't it?

 

"Yes, it does! A joke from the Universe for your birthday while you were out with friends, singing and dancing in your seats!"

 

Hahahaha!

Yes, that just may be right.

My blue-sky Penny texted me with a bunch of photos of flowers, so I got to share those with the others and tell them about her horticulturist husband.

This Gallardia Spintop, complete with bees, was our favorite!

Guess what the color is?

Mariachi Red!!!

That reminded me of one of my favorite "Will Trent" episodes.

Titled "Mariachi Shelly's Frankenstein", it was crammed full of puns inspired by two things: the Mariachi band trapped at the police station during a blackout and the book report that Ormwood had been helping his kid write about the 1818 book.

"We have to be strong and MARIACHI on."

"Jesus, MARIACHI, and Joseph!"

 

"Hahahaha!!! Oh, yes, I loved that one! Very serious moments, but interspersed with moments of puns as three of the guys struggled to get a generator up the stairs. I wish I could remember more of them, as they were delightful!"

 

That's for real!

And here's a bit of fun that was starting just as I got home.

"The Quiz With Balls" was having a swimsuit edition, with lifeguards taking on a bunch of beauty queens.

Those guys may be a bit young for a purple panther like me, but I can still enjoy the view!

 

"Incredible!!! What great fun! And how did the lifeguards fare?"

 

That guy in the middle, wearing the glasses?

That's Reigh, who had a delicious sense of humor and good smarts.

He graduated with a mechanical engineering degree!!!

He was the last man standing and he made it to the third question in his bid against the Golden Balls for the $100,000.

He chose "Famous Scientists", getting right the first two.

The third question was "Which one was an oarsman at Oxford?"

I give him credit for knowing it had to be an Englishman...

but he was too young to have ever thought of Stephen Hawking as being capable of such a thing.

Into the water he went!

 

"Ah, yes, the misconception that a disabled person was always so."

 

Indeed.

Still, it certainly was a nice dessert after my dinner with the girls!

(smile!)

pan pizza, et alia

thanks, papa john's and aarp!

I've rediscovered a new favorite: pan pizza!

The moment I picked up the pizza box, I knew there was something inside - such delicious mass!

Why did it draw me out on a cold day?

I had ten bucks from AARP Reward points, $2 in Papa Dough, and the special knocked off another 4 dollars.

I paid $2.56 for pepperoni and banana peppers on a pie that's been lunch and dinner, plus breakfast tomorrow.

My favorite food for three meals - life is good!

(smile!)  

thanks, SBHF37 and City of Savannah!

The Savannah Black Heritage Festival isn't over just yet, but I won't be making it to any other events by Saturday.

I should have been paying more attention as February began.

As it was, I caught three of the events: the one about literature at The Learning Center of Senior Citizens, Inc.; the one about history at our HBC, Savannah State University; and the one about music held at the Savannah Jewish Educational Alliance.

Every event of the SBHF37 was free and open to the public, courtesy of the City and various sponsors.

Most of the events were held midtown Savannah, making sure locals were present and the parking was abundant.

I'll pay more attention to scheduling next year!

(smile!) 

thanks, comcast!

Because Comcast includes ME TV, Antenna TV, and seven PBS/GPB/SCE channels in my Basic TV subscription, I had a wealth of recorded shows to watch on this cold day.

The second of those channels provided me with "Just Shoot Me!", a show at takes place at "Blush" Magazone.

David Spade is the assistant to George Segal, who also has his daughter, Laura San Giacomo, on the staff, as he tries to make up for being an absentee father in her childhood and marrying her best friend.

Mostly, though, I like the spice added by Enrico Colantoni and Wendie Malick, and all the puns on the magazine cover!

Puns!!!

I get a lot of puns from "Toon In With Me", too, which is from that first free channel.

This time, Bill is pondering getting a part-time job, so he considers milkman (my Daddy did that!), pin boy at bowling alley, costermonger, knocker-upper, gong farmer, town crier, and even pony express!   

He even premiered two cartoons that were new to his show: "Ten Pin Terrors" and "Saddle Silly", both 7-minute oldies!

Toonie reminded him that his job as 'classic cartoon curator" takes all his time. (smile!)

Then, there's that plethora of educational channels to keep me informed and stimulated. 

The "Dream Of Italy" series must have been timed to prime folks for the Winter Olympics.

I just watched, "Andrea Bocelli's Tuscany", s3e1, which brought memories of vineyards in Livorno in 2002, as well as time in Siena and Florence and Pompeii on the trip with future nurses in 2012.

Here's the funny part, though.

I'd just recently seen similar footage, including inside the home of the Italian tenor, in a movie, "Solo Mio"!!!

Timing truly is everything!

Right time, right place! 

(smile!) 

shift cable and hallmark film festival!

If I had not been home waiting for the shift cable to be replaced in my Saturn, I very will might have missed a gift from Comcast: a free week of Hallmark+ movies.

As the Universe would have it, I was home, though, and slowed down enough to notice that gift when it began on Monday.

Hallelujah!

Right time, right place.

Moreover, I had four instances scattered throughout these dozen movies when I knew that I was exactly where I needed to be.

Shall we take a gander?

Yes, let's... but don't be expecting a bunch of Christmas movies.

I wanted a bit of variety... and I certainly got plenty of that! 

(smile!)

I've listed the movies in the order I watched them. 

 

"3 Bed, 2 Bath, 1 Ghost" (2023)
Anna: Julie Gonzalo
Elliot: Chris McNally
Ruby Baker (1923 ghost): Madeleine Arthur

Anna is tasked with selling the Baker estate, but finds Ruby still haunting it, even though she's been dead 100 years - can Anna's ex-fiance Elliott help?

----------------------------------

"Adventures In Love And Birding" (2025)
Celeste: Rachel Boston
John: Andrew Walker
w kid (her teen daughter)

Celeste agrees to be 'fake date' with John for bird contest,
not realizing its for several weeks - lol!

Loved all the bird puns in this one!

The photo is of the bird-of-paradise flowers he sent her.

Right place, right time, for me.

------------------------------------
"Fourth Down And Love" (2023)
Erin: Pascale Hutton
Mike: Ryan Paevey

w kids (her tween daughter, plus his tween niece)
 

Divorced Erin ends up helping out for her daughter's flag football team - 

so does pro player Mike, her college sweetie, for his niece, while he's on

the injured list with his team.

Lots of good football action!

----------------------------

"Nelly Knows Mysteries: A Fatal Engagement" (2024)
Nelly: Pascale Hutton
Mickey: Kavan Smith

Advice columnist Nelly steps in on detective Mickey's case 
since the dead man was her friend's fiancee.

She's a lot like the lead character in "Elsbeth", though not as colorful.

In the photo, she's playing with a hula dancer in the PI's office.

Have I mentioned that the tow truck driver had one on his dash?

Well, he did.

Right place, right time, for me.

-----------------------------
"Mystery Island: Winner Takes All" (2025)
Amelia: Elizabeth Henstridge
Jason: Charlie Weber

Detective Jason is paired with crime psychologist Amelia
to craft mystery for 8 contenders, but plan is waylaid
by real murder.

Good movie!

------------------------------------
"Catch Of The Day" (2025)
Sophie: Emilir Ullerup
Cam: Michael Rady (reminded me of Paul Rudd)

Chef Sophie returns to hometown to help her sister revive the
family restaurant - runs into her highschool beau, Cam,
the very first day - LOL!

----------------------------------------
"The Real West" (2024)
Rebecca: Kimberly Sustad
Jake West: Lucas Bryant
w kids (her two sons, 1 in 12th grade)

Tenure-track professor Rebecca takes the family on vacation with her mom
and sister - but who's that hottie, Jake, in the hat shop?

And why did her sister get to him first?

----------------------------------------
"Pie To Die For: A Hannah Swenson Mystery" (2025)
Hannah: Alison Sweeney
detective Chad: Victor Webster

Hannah's delivery of banana cream pies to town star finds the
star strangled and on the floor.

Enter hunky former Marine Chad to help the sheriff,
and her and her sis and mom, solve the case.

------------------------------------------
"Crashing Through The Snow" (2021)
Maggie: Amy Acker
Sam: Warren Christie
w kids (her two non-teen daughters)

When the ex invites their two girls to spend Christmas in Aspen
with him, Maggie ends up invited along by his girlfriend - oops.
Good thing that woman has a hot brother, Sam, in town crashing

the family get-together!
 
---------------------------------
"For Love & Honey" (2024)
Eva: Margaret Clunie
Austen: Andrew W. Walker

Ah, Malta! I was there in 2002 and was thrilled to see it again!

Right place, right time, for me! 

Its very name means 'honey sweet', as is this tale of a beekeeper, Eva, 

called to aid Austen the archaeologist in his quest to solve the riddle of 

found art that features - you guessed it - bees!
 
-------------------------------
"What The Deaf Man Heard" (1997)
Sammy at 10yo: Frankie Muniz 
Sammy: Matthew Modine
Helen, his mom: Bernadette Peters
Norm, bus depot mgr: Tom Skerritt
Lucille, bus depot waitress: Judith Ivey
Archibald the rubbish man: James Earl Jones
Tallasse, Sammy's love interest: Anne Bobby

Little Sammy gets left on the bus by mom, who told 
him, "not one more word" - so he plays deaf and mute when
bus pulls into last station - ends up living there 20 years,
tended by Norm and Lucille - now he's 30 and witness to
church robbery - what to do?
Loved the list of names I knew in this one!

--------------------------------

"The Love Letter" (1998)
Scott (present time): Campbell Scott
Elizabeth (in 1863): Jennifer Jason Leigh

Time travel romance, a la "The Lake House"! Scott finds an 1863 letter 

never mailed in the antique desk and decides to answer it.

Next thing you know he has a penpal named Elizabeth and they fall 

in love, kinda sorta.

All set during the Civil War - and viewed after the GOB sermon today.

Right time, right place, for me!

The photo is of her lover, Col. Denby, in the battle at Gettysburg.

Wow -
perfect end to this film festival!

do you have a reservation, part three

Thorpe: We need rooms tonight.

Resort clerk: I'm sorry, you need a reservation.

Thorpe: Excuse me?

Resort clerk: A reservation?

Thorpe: Really.

Resort clerk: A reser... oh, I didn't mean it like that. I mean you need to reser- book before you get here because we're all full. That's what I meant.

Thorpe: You know what I heard? You told me and my friends that we need to go back to the reservation.

Resort clerk: Oh, no...

Thorpe: Do you have any idea what I can do to you on Yelp? You might want to get your boss out here. Or, you could take another look.

Resort clerk: I will take another look!

--------------------------------------------

Hahahaha!!!

That scene is one of the reasons I so love "Cold Pursuit"!

The entire exchange between 'Thorpe' (Raoul Trujillo) and the 'Resort clerk' (Loretta Walsh) lasts less than sixty seconds, but it cracks me us every time!

I do so love a good pun, and that one really works!

I'm so glad I used my Comcast $1 Movie Night Reward to see this movie again today - and it must be a premium for Lionsgate, as they only allow a 24-hour rental of it.

Most sites allow at least 48 hours, with Disney giving 72 hours per rental.

That's all right, though - I watched "Cold Pursuit" twice today!

I love the music in it - I love the way they count up the dead for you - I love the placid worker Liam Neeson plays - and I even love that all those snow scenes have a cool and refreshing effect on me!

Aaaahhhh... just what I needed after an hour of mowing the back yard and bagging all the cuttings so they don't mulch the Digitaria sanguinalis.

That's the worldwide weed better known as crabgrass around here, though it's called Polish millet over in Europe.

Those Y-shaped shoots waving in the air are called inflorescences and they are edible, black seeds and all, and are a source of protein. 

So, there's a little science about that hardy source of aggravation. 

Maybe I'll try harvesting them sometime.

The ones I cut today are almost waist-high on me. 

I'm so glad to have a battery-operated lawn mower.

By the time the Ryobi conks out, I'm more than ready to stop.

dragon of juneteenth

"Wait, let me guess! Okay, today is June 19th, so I take it that you're marking that date in US history from exactly 160 years ago. So far, so good?"

Most exactly!

"Alrighty then! And that other part of the title refers to the movie you saw today with Michael and the twins!"

Oh, so close, but nope! Yes, I was supposed to see "How To Train Your Dragon" in Big-D with them today, courtesy of the two free reward tickets from Comcast. Alas, that didn't happen. Sure, it still showed up on my A*List that I went to that dance, but I missed it. AMC even gave me Bonus Reward points for those tickets from the Fandango site.

"Well, that's a good thing, but I'm confused. Why didn't you go to the movie with them?"

My little Saturn wouldn't start. Not even a click when I turned the key. Not even a click when Kevin Sullivan - my neighbor - attached his jump box. Not even a click when I popped the clutch to start it while rolling down the driveway to the street. Nothing.

"Oh, honey, I am so sorry to hear that."

Yeah, me, too. I did have a nice chat with that young man from Minnesota who drove the tow truck. No charge to me, as AllState covered the fee from Field Maintenance Company. I had my girl towed to Firestone of Skidaway, of course. They weren't able to do the repair, but Patricia didn't charge me and Aaron disconnected the wires to the running lights. It wasn't that those lights were the culprit for draining the battery. Nope. The problem is with the multi-function switch. I've been referred to the electrical folks at Dixie Motors and The Car Doctor for the actual repair, if and when the part can actually be located. They told me, though, that it isn't just older cars that have parts that are hard to find these days.

"You didn't notice any problems with the car before this morning?"

Well, last night, when I returned from dinner, I couldn't get the headlights to turn off. You're gonna laugh about this. I had taken the key out of the ignition before I noticed that there was still light in front of the car. I even waited a moment to see if they would turn off! Hahaha! But they didn't. Even with the light switch off and the key out of the car. So I put the key back in and cranked the car... no problem. I turned on the lights and then turned them off with the switch, then turned off the car and removed the key. That seemed to have worked, so I just passed it off as 'one of those weird things'. You know? Intermittent problems were always the worst to solve when I was a CTM in the Navy. The guy at Firestone, though, assured me that this is not intermittent. It's here to stay and the multifunction switch needs to be replaced.

"I see. But let me get this right. You weren't charged anything today? Not for the tow or the hour-long diagnostic and labor at the car place?"

That's correct. Christina suggested it might have been because I recently had new tires put on her car. I really don't know.

"Oh, you've talked to her? Like, heard her voice?"

Yes, I called her to see how things were going between her and Michael. She told me on Monday that he was mad at her, but she didn't know why. Apparently, they worked things out - she was at his house this afternoon, making dinner together!

"That's wonderful! She had been so worried about him. He had texted her to say for her to 'leave him alone, no more dinners at his place, she had lied to him and he had almost gone to jail about it'."

Yes, very odd, and apparently all over now. In fact, she knew he and the girls were to see the dragon movie with me and he'd even invited her to come along! I do wish she had sent me a text that all was well with them. Oh, well, it is what it is.

"Yes, it is. Naught for you to do 'bout that. She has a lot of people to try to placate - him, Kaleigh, Heather, Chelsea, her mom, you, and now Anthony, too - and she's doing the best she can. So, let it go. Why don't you tell me about your trio of dances this week?"

It's not a trio, but a quartet now for my AMC A*List, remember? AMC can't seem to keep them in the proper order, though, so I must be twirling from one genre to another too quickly for them! First was "The Materialists", which looked like a romcom in the previews, but certainly was not. Pedro Pascal was just so misused in that "business of love" piece. Next was the one on Monday with Christina. 

"So, a drama, then a horror flick. Gotcha."

On Tuesday, after mowing part of the front yard, bagging the cuttings this time instead of leaving them for mulch, I needed to cool off, so to the cinema I went. 

"You must have your time line confused. You went to the theater in the morning."

Nope. That wasn't to the AMC, but to the NCG. I wasn't able to mow until the day had cooled down, so I had to wait until almost 8 PM to break out the Ryobi. That meant going to the 9:30 PM screening of "Karate Kid: Legends". Very nice movie it was! I always like Jackie Chan, but I always think he looks more than 4 years older than me. I guess 71 would look older on anyone who's been as rode hard as he's been! Ralph Macchio is looking older, too, which is to be expected. He's right between Smitty and Ronnie in age.

"Everyone gets older, that's what they do. Get older or die, those are the options. But, yeah, I know the mental images are forever one age."

Right, until you see them again in the present. That's life!

"So it is! So, for your quartet, you had drama, horror, sports theme, and fantasy scifi. Did I get that line-up straight?"

Yes, you did, and you three in a little pun, too! Thanks for that!

"Any time, dearie! I know how much you love those!" 

earth day spring fling with a smiley face!

When Laura had asked if I would be at Jalapenos tonight, I'd told her I would not.

This was the 25th Annual Savannah Earth Day celebration and I had promised myself that I would be in Daffin Park for it!

Inside my butterfly tote bag I had five pairs of eyeglasses that had been in drawers, waiting to be rescued.

 

Forsight was thrilled to take them from me!!!

They'll use the frames for making new glasses for someone who can't afford frames.

In return, they gave me that snazzy lens-cleaning cloth!

Winner for all!

Next I stopped to chat at a table that had a game to play.

An aluminum beverage cup was perched over the edge of a board, then flipped.

If the cup landed back on the board, you got to keep it!

I couldn't get the knack of it, but Savannah To-Go Cup let me have one anyway!

At other vendors along the way, I'd stop and talk for while.

Wilderness Southeast, where Yvette was working the table.

Caretta Research Project, which I remembered from my days in the STERI project at Jenkins High.

The Dolphin Project, which I've wanted to be part of since I was 40.

The Tybee Marine Science Center, source of these sea turtle cards!

The City of Savannah had the most tables with free swag.

One was the source for a fabulous blank journal with ruled pages.

Another had an emergency disaster guide as well as a flashlight, batteries included.

A third had 2025 calendars loaded with helpful info.

And the fourth introduced SAV / Z, with neon-green vests for cyclists.

I picked up two of those.

As a rule, I would take two of most items, especially coloring books, like this one from Keep Savannah Beautiful.

Clean Harbors also had very nice activity books for kids.

Several places had single-page coloring or activity sheets for children, so I made sure to grab four every time I came across those.

After all, I have a vacation trip at the end of May and it will be good to have those as a surprise for the little blondes!

I spent a lot of time at two tables.

A communications graduate student and I had a 15-minute talk about his thesis of promoting conversations about recycling.

I had another lengthy talk with Savannah Riverkeeper, who aren't from here, but Augusta.

They gave me a new Happy Robot pin to go along with the square one I've had ever since the 2016 Savannah Film Festival. 

I received that white pin at the Q&A with Porkchop Zimmerman after "Happy", the documentary about his mission to make people smile.

They told me that I was the only person all day who knew anything about those pins.

That made me smile!

(smile!)

After nearly two hours there at Daffin Park, it was time to head east.

Never Been Any Reason to return to Tybee Post Theatre until the girlie show, right?

(Those last two links are just me having some musical pun fun!)

Beau Blush and Scarlett Siren of Coastal Cabaret were throwing a Spring Fling, ABCD style - aerial, burlesque, cabaret, drag!

Besides being greeted with a big bear hug by Wesley Pridgen, this show was just what I needed to get my motor all revved up!

Beau Blush, true to her name, put rosy cheeks on all the fellows with her opening burlesque routine to "Ain't No Sunshine" - just mesmerizing, she was.

Wow!

She was back in the second act, this time looking more like Rosie the Riveter as she danced with the aerial Luna ring in perfect timing with "Human".

Wow!

My third most favorite dance was the burlesque by Arabica Blacque to "When You're Good To Mama", the song Queen Latifah sang in "Chicago".

Wow!

My favorite number of the two burlesque routines by Scarlett Siren was her second one, performed with a Luna Lollipop - very smooth.

Trixie Noir used the Triangle Swing for her one aerial and was quite lovely and lithe and liquid in what was her premiere on stage.

Donna Matrix, the bellydancer, had two outings, once with a very large snake, then with two swords, all performed with constant hip undulations - very good!

The drag was handled by Nubia Rose, putting forth her inner Beyonce.

As for the cabaret number, that came at the show's finale, featuring Nubia Rose and the three Hoedown Honeys with a ribald song that was most def not PC - but sure was fun!

Oh, then there's the emcee, on stage between numbers in a smoking jacket, but still recognizable as the young man I'd first seen ten years earlier on an October evening with Carolyn.

Yes, it was Jack NTha Cox, in the flesh, which he was revealing for tips by show's end!

Nice to see that he's rocking more of a dad-bod these days!

My guess is that's the reason for the smiley face in the sky tonight.

Lots of sexy burlesque strips...

a naughty bit of cabaret...

fabulous fun in the evening sun...

and everyone comfortable in their bodies!

How wonderful to have had all this entertainment

for less than 25 bucks

as Venus and Saturn kept company

with the moon's crooked smile!

(smile!)

sushi in the morning, skyelite at night!

 

Yesterday was the 23rd, which means my SNAP had life to it again!

Yesterday was also Wednesday, which meant $5 sushi at Publix!

It's been a little while, so I treated myself to two trays.

The spicy tuna roll was dinner last night...

letting me have the crunchy California roll to start my day!

(smile!)

Then I popped into fb to wish happy birthdays to friends - real ones, not just the casual acquaintances that the social media site calls "friends".

While there, I caught this from Patrick Young, down in JAX.

He was looking out his kitchen window and found himself looking right at a deer in his yard...

but, he wasn't.

Upon closer inspection, it was just a dead bush with Spanish moss on it.

As I told him, perception is everything!

He wanted to see a deer... and so he did.

(smile!)

Next was a visit to Sherry Giddens page.

She can be counted on to have a giggle or two posted, and most are puns.

Take this one, with two Star Trek peeps.

The captain says, "A lady asked me if I would help her get a job as a professional Scrabble player."

As Lt. Ryker waited, Picard added, "I put in a good word for her."

Hahahaha!!!

Absolutely beautiful!

(smile!)

Then it was time to go work on the yard.

I chose the side yard by the Sullivans, as I knew the spiderwort had straggled all over that area.

I also had dead sticker vines and thorny things to pick up, plus more sticker vines and thorny things to pull off the side of the house.

I'd thought one of those big paper bags would be too much, but I took one out there anyway... and found that I'd filled it within 90 minutes.

Even with me continually tamping it down, it filled and is ready for the curb.

See, that's perception on my part: "oh, that isn't so overgrown." 

Indeed it was.

There's some kinda sorta dandelion that's sprouted up and it grows up to three feet tall, with at least thirty buds to send spores flying.

Yikes!

Fortunately, those plants are very easy to uproot, but, as they have nice leaves on their thick stalk, they hide in the azaleas very well.

Every time I thought I'd pulled up the last one, I'd see another, lurking in the bushes.

Good thing I had a protein-rich breakfast!

However, clad in long sleeves, long pants, and gloves, I was ready to get out of the sun and into a tall, cold, glass of water!

Instead, I poured two of those into me after I ditched the clothes.

Ah, much better.

(smile!)

Time to cruise over to Savannah Arts Academy for a free jazz concert!

Woohoo!!!

 

The first half was performed by the regular jazz band.

Their program had been arranged chronologically from 1933 to 1963.

"Stompin' At The Savoy" got the blood flowing, then "Bernie's Tune" challenged the saxophone players to get their long solos done.

"All The Way", the Frank Sinatra song, let the trumpets shine!

How about those trombones?

Well, their turn came with 1963's "Doxy" - and it was good!

I liked that it reminded me of "Baby Let Your Hair Hang Down"!

Time to "Take Five" after that while Skyelite Jazz Band took the stage.

(There's a little jazz joke from me to you, dear reader!)

Their program ran the gamut from 1928 all the way to 1985, starting off with "Harlem Air Shaft", guaranteed to blow a skirt up!

(smile!)

That Duke Ellington really knew how to swing, didn't he?

But "Brass Machine", the toned-down version of Mark Taylor's "Scream Machine", written for the Army Blues Jazz Emsemble, has to be my favorite of the concert.

All five pieces of brass was up front and turned up!

And there was cowbell, lots and lots of cowbell!!!

As Christopher Walken said, "I need more cowbell" in my life!

(smile!)

Oh, then there was Kermit's song about "Bein' Green", played with trombone solos in all the right places... very nice.

So far, there had been no singers.

Then, surprise!!!

Truman Nash came up to do a bit of New Orleans' skat for the "Basin Street Blues" and to shake his moneymaker a little bit, too!

Yes, I sure did love that!!!

Living the "Lush Life" while on a "Caravan" is all well and good...

but to dance is the best!

(smile!)

 

I'm so blessed to be retired!

At this time of year when I was teaching, I would not have had such a day as this.

It's unfortunate that five young nurses lost their lives on April 22, 2015.

One of those young women had an uncle who was big in Georgia politics.

Her death was the motivation for the merger in 2017 between Armstrong State and Georgia Southern Universities, obliterating my alma mater by making it the "nursing epicenter" for the larger school.

Those changes are responsible for me retiring in May of 2018, as my teaching position was eliminated by the merger finalization.

i thank You, God, that I am in retirement and have the freedom to script my day as I like, free to attend the many cultural events in this town.

(smile!)Hallelujah!

something for my spirit...

 

That would be seeing "Snow White" again, as my third of the week at AMC, as this musical was on its way off the silver screen.

I'd started this dancing with the Indian fellows in "Good Bad Ugly", which was a lot of fun, especially with Ajith Kumar continually saying "God Bless U", punning on the acronym of the title.

His 53-year-old self has been in more than sixty Tollywood films and I can certainly understand the crowd appeal!

Yes, Shah Rukh Khan, the "King Khan" of Bollywood, is still my main man, but Ajith Kumar is mighty fun, too.

(smile!) 

That middle movie was another action-packed film, like the Kumar was, but there was absolutely no dancing in it.

Rami Malek was "The Amateur", a CIA desk jockey spurred into revenge against the man who pulled the trigger on his wife, and he didn't care who he took out along the way.

Laurence Fishburne got to work both sides of the coin, first as the one who trained the novice, then as the assassin sent to stop him.

'Twas really a good crime flick.

 

The previous two weeks, even with all the SMF36 shifts and other stuff, I still managed to fill five of the six dance slots on my A*list.

Last week I had "A Minecraft Movie" - a farcical piece with Jack Black and Jason Momoa that I might have enjoyed more if I knew anything about the 2011 game - followed by Jason Statham as "A Working Man" out for blood when his boss' daughter gets kidnapped.

Good, dependable, kick-ass flick that was!

Then I took a chance on "Hell Of A Summer", mostly because I like Finn Wolfhard - and, yes, that's got a lot to do with me just liking his name.

(smile!)

The movie was okay, but not quite as fun as "Ready Or Not" or "Heathers" had been.

I guess maybe I would have liked it more if one of the women had been the lead, but, like I said, it was okay.

The younger folks in the audience really liked it.

And that brings us to the first week in April.

 

I only managed to fill two A*List slots that busy time.

Don't believe that dance card, though, as it's wrong.

I really wanted to see "Locked", as it had Bill Skarsgaard inside a car as the only person on screen much of the time.

However, the screening room was on the fritz, so I transferred over for another dose of "Novocaine", as did the other viewers.

Then, for my double header, I watched "L2: Empuraan", aka "L2: E.M.P.U.R.A.A.N.", the second film of a trilogy that got waylaid by the coronavirus.

I guess this one would be termed Mollywood, as its language is Malayalam.

(smile!)

I haven't yet seen anyone use "Mollywood" yet, so I claim creation of it!!!

As for the movie, I think it would have been helpful to have seen "Lucifer", the first one, back in 2019, but possibly not.

There was a lot of political shenanigans, meaning there were many times when there were too many words on the screen to read.

Perhaps I should have treated it like opera and read up on the story and characters beforehand, but I didn't know to do that.

Ah, well!