yippee-ki-bang bang bang!!!

Yeehaw!!!

What better way to end the month than a Western musical?

Especially one with lots of shoot-em-up action!!!

I won't spoil the fun by naming names, but the body count adds up, with two dead in Act 1 and another in Act 2.

Plus there are a few stray shots along the way!

 

Thankfully, there's a Columbo-style detective named 'Frank Cioffi' - performed fabulously by Carson Brown - who's on his best game during these two nights with the actors of "Robbin' Hood", a little musical with Broadway dreams.

Scored by 'Georgia' (Megan Borges) and 'Aaron' (Naomi Antoine), once-wed but no longer, the show gets panned by local critic 'Daryl Grady' (Ben Tatom) of the Boston Globe, dashing their hopes of finally making it to the bight lights of New York City.  

Did I say panned?

He hated all of it except one part: that of the lead's understudy, 'Niki' (Genevieve Perry), who he spurned when she thanked him for that favorable review.

The cop, however, really took a shine to her and they have two wonderful numbers, the real-time "Coffee Shop Nights", and the fantasy dance scene, "A Tough Act To Follow" - loved those!

Oh, I just realized I never said this musical's name!

That would be "Curtains: School Edition", a modern musical that first graced the boards of Broadway in 2007.

And guess who originated the role of the cop?

None other than David Hyde Pierce!!!

Oh, yes, that's right: the little brother of TV's 'Frasier Crane'. 

Honestly, I think Carson Brown did a superb job as the Boston cop!

Kudos to all for nailing this show in a scant two weeks of rehearsals!!!

I'll be looking forward to seeing these 9th to 12th graders in future productions at the Savannah Children's Theatre this coming season!!! 

Special kudos to Carmen Titus, Katie Grace Lanier, Reagan Barnard, Ella Nixon, and B Cela.

I know I've seen y'all before and so looking forward to more!

grit and hot chocolate

Those are two separate things, by the way.

It's not like I had any grit in my hot chocolate, right?

That would be nasty!

I certainly don't want to cast any aspersions on the maker of the basis of my hot cocoa, as they have a superb product for that drink.

 

All I need is a cup of Silk Dark Chocolate Almond Milk, heated to the perfect degree of sipping warmth, and it's totally satisfying!

That's what I told my first niece when I sent her this photo a moment ago.

Knowing I would be texting her, I specially chose this 'Superhero Miyah' mug, a happy memory of a warm day with her and the littlest girl.

Yes, thoughts of that July day always bring a smile!

(smile!)

What else had I done that brought a smile?

I found a movie on GRIT TV that I'd never seen and, as a bonus, one that starred two men I find quite attractive.

It's a Western, of course, from 1984, so I was surprised that I'd missed seeing "Draw!" on television.

Then I remembered: I didn't have a TV in my little 1-bedroom apartment in the Imperial Beach area of San Diego! 

Hahahaha!

Kirk Douglas was playing cards in Bell City and ran afoul of a man who lost a lot of money to him, leading to a gunfight with several shot and the sheriff dead.

Oops!

The townspeople hire a former gunslinger, James Coburn, to take on the cardshark, but there's a problem: that gunslinger is a drunkard now.

Plus, the cardshark is holed up with the woman who came to his rescue when he was shot by the sheriff, so what to do with her?

I very much enjoyed the movie!!!

So many comedic moments, as well as romantic turns!!!

I'm sure Daddy would have loved this movie.

I'll have to ask Bonnie about it sometime.

I'm sure they would have watched it together. 

(smile!)

first time

A week ago tonight, I stood on a new beach, in the moonlight, under fireworks... being kissed for the first time. Incredibly romantic, especially for a first-time kiss!

This is not to say I was kissed for the first time ever. I'm fifty years old and I've been married twice, so I have certainly been kissed a time or two. Truth to tell, I'm a big fan of kisses, in all their myriad forms. Quick little brushes of the lips before rushing off to work. Butterfly-light kisses on the face, neck, hands. Migraine-crushing pressure point kisses along the eyebrows and on the temple. And let's not forget those "...long, slow, deep, soft, wet kisses that last three days", as Crash Durham lovingly described.

But, a first kiss is a wondrous thing, a marvel to anticipate and to behold. As Mae West once opined, "A man's kiss is his signature." That bawdy, self-assured 1940's film and radio star, a long-time favorite of mine, could be relied upon to know whereof she spoke. I have certainly found truth in her words. First kisses are like snowflakes, each unique and never to be repeated. Every man puts his own mark on a first kiss, with no two doing it quite the same way. The lip texture and taste, the strength behind the caress of the lips, the duration of that first overture and the quickness of the next. Every man has a unique kiss, one to be taken on its own merits, to be savored and enjoyed, in the moment and later in the memory of that moment.

Oh, yes, first kisses are the ones full of promise, harbingers of the possibilities of future encounters, the delights to come. My singing bird and I shared a first kiss on the beach, in the moonlight, under fireworks... and I smile as I remember.