Tag Archives: Roxy

All Roxy But Mostly Tired

Are you ready for All Roxy All The Time?  Because we have three — that’s right, a mere THREE rehearsals before opening night on Friday.  How can I help but obsess?

For anybody just tuning in or for anybody who REALLY doesn’t pay attention when they read (like the way a lot of you listen when I talk) (you know who you are), Roxy is the play being presented by Herkimer County Historical Society at Ilion Little Theatre.  I’m in it, and I have written several blog posts about it.

Actually, I spent a good deal of my time at work today NOT thinking about Roxy.  I was instead thinking about how hot and uncomfortable I was.  Unofficial end of summer, my ass! (I used that as the first sentence of a blog post once; let’s just say I’m quoting myself.)  However, to kvetch about the weather is tiresome.  I am comfortable now and enjoying the sounds of a thunderstorm.

I spent my lunch time going over my lines again.  I pretty much know them, but it is a mistake to become complacent about these things.  My only fear is that the hot weather of the last few days as boiled, steamed and fried my brain to less than its normal level of usefulness (admittedly low).  For example, I’m looking back over this blog post and it reads to me a bit… disjointed.  I feel it is not as entertaining as one would like.

Then again, it is Tired Tuesday.  And since it was doing double duty as Monday (since I was one of the fortunate people who had a three day weekend),  I have even more reason to be tired.  I must hit publish and try to catch a second wind before rehearsal.  Tune in tomorrow, when Mohawk Valley Girl says, “I had hoped NOT to have Wuss-out Wednesday, BUT…”

 

Fashion and Philosophy at Linda’s

One of my stops during my brief bout of ambition on Saturday was at Linda’s Consignment Shop in Herkimer, NY.   I thought I would use today’s post to give her a shout-out.

I love consignment shops in general, because you never know what you will find.  Saturday I was hoping to find shoes and handkerchiefs.  If you read my Scattered Saturday post you may remember that the shoes I had planned to wear for Roxy (that play I WILL keep mentioning) are no longer wearable.  I had not mentioned handkerchiefs, but my character carries one.  I have handkerchiefs of my own (so much better than tissues if you have a tendency to leave them in your pockets when doing laundry), but sometimes you can find the old fashioned ones with lace edges.

I found neither shoes not hankies at Linda’s, but the visit was enjoyable nonetheless.  Linda’s has a wide variety of items.  It was fun to browse.  I was fortunate, too, because Linda herself was behind the counter.  We chatted about all kinds of things, but I did take away two rather profound thoughts that I will share.

First, we must not wait for the proper occasion to wear our fabulous clothes but make our own occasions.  I already do this to a point, taking care with my ensemble whether going to rehearsal or to Crazy Otto’s to grab a bite.  I may take things a step further with gloves, hats and other accessories.

The other thought is we must love our bodies as they are.  I know this is not a new thought, but it does bear repeating.  Linda said it when I mentioned how I would buy some new things after I lost that last five pounds (or was it ten? I fluctuate).  She waxed eloquent about loving the body you are in, and I believe she is right.  I intend to continue striving towards my weight-loss goals, but I will concentrate more on the health aspect of the endeavor and less on the, “I’m such an ugly tub” side of it.

I did make one purchase, a very sweet hat.  It will come in handy next year, when I plan to participate in a St. Baldrick’s Day event and get my head shaved to raise money to fight cancer.  It was on sale.  Score!

Linda’s Consignment Shop has two locations, 152 Main St., Herkimer, and 27 Main St., Fort Plain, phone number 518-844-3051.  You can also find her on Facebook.

 

What I Did with my Oomph

OK, OK, time to do the blog post.  I don’t know what it is about me on Saturdays.  I have no ambition to do ANYTHING!  I had a minimal amount of oomph this morning, though, so I will write a Scattered Saturday post telling what I did to use it up.

I knew I wanted to write a couple of postcards and walk them to the post office, as I usually do on a Saturday morning, but I had also started a letter to a friend I wanted to mail.  For one reason, in the letter I mentioned a fabulous party Steven and I are planning for October, and I am hoping this friend will attend.  I have been writing the letter on breaks at work, rather than working on my novel or better blog posts. Don’t judge.

I thought the letter was nearly done. Imagine my chagrin, therefore, on pulling out the letter and discovering that the fourth page only had part of one sentence written on it.  I can’t send out a letter with the last page most blank!  What a waste of a stamp!  What a disappointment for the recipient who thinks it’s a four-page letter and it’s only a three-page-and-one-half-sentence letter!  I finished the letter then wrote only two postcards.  Time was passing and I had several errands I was hoping to run.

It was a very pleasant walk to the post office, a beautiful day: not too hot yet, a little cloudy with a lovely breeze blowing.  I had considered not walking to the post office, because I wanted to get my running around (by that I’m afraid I mean errands; I’m still not back to running yet), but decided to not get what little exercise I had planned was not the best use of my time.  I continued on from the post office toward Main Street, thinking to make it a longer walk.  However, as I headed up Main Street the sun came out from behind the clouds and it started to get warmer.  I decided to compromise on a medium-length walk.

Then it was on to the errands! After gassing up my vehicle, my first stop was at Melfe’s Shoes in Ilion, NY (stand by for the obligatory Roxy reference).  I had found a pair of shoes that would work for my character in Roxy (that play I may have mentioned a few times).  It is a pair I have had for a number of years but never wore much.  The costume designer said they would be perfect.  It was fairly traumatic for me when the heel broke as I was taking them off after the first rehearsal I wore them at.

My own attempt at repair had failed, but I had great hopes of Melfe’s. You may have read about Melfe’s Shoes in this blog, as I go there once a year for my work shoes.  They are very helpful.  Today the young man was both helpful and kind as he explained to me how no repair was possible and that if they took my ten bucks to try I might possibly get two wears out of them but surely no more.

After Melfe’s I went to K-Mart, where I was able to find everything I wanted, including bobby pins for my hair for Roxy (ha ha, got two mentions of it in!) and allergy pills.  I got the kind I like to take every day but decided to wait on the kind that is good for sinus headache.  After all, I have not had a sinus headache in a long time (under the heading Should Have Seen That Coming, guess what I’m fighting as I type this).

My next two stops were to the Goodwill store and to Linda’s Consignments in Herkimer.  I mean to write a whole post about Linda’s, because I had a wonderful conversation with Linda and bought a marvelous hat.  Perhaps I could work on that tonight and thus avoid having Wrist to Forehead Sunday tomorrow.  In the meantime, I see I am over 600 words.  I don’t like to tax my readers’ patience and writing this has given me just a little bit more ambition.  Let’s see how far this dose of oomph takes me.

 

Exit, Stage Lame

You know, like how Snagglepuss used to say, “Exit, stage left!”  I always liked that line.

Of course it is Lame Post Friday.  Perhaps you hoped I would not have one, since yesterday’s post was, well, I guess a little lame, too.  Then again, that usually doesn’t stop me (ssSomebody, sstop me!) (like Jim Carrey in Mask, a movie I have only seen once, not all the way through) (have you just lost all respect for me?).

Where was I? Ah yes, trying to get my blog post published before I get ready for rehearsal for Roxy, the play being put on by Herkimer County Historical Society at Ilion Little Theatre (I thought it would be good to say that again).  It is one week before opening night.  They still have not gotten the gallows squared away, which I suppose should be good news for me, since I am playing the character who gets hanged.  Rehearsal may run late, but that is OK with me, because I don’t have to work tomorrow. Yay!

I have my contact lenses in, which I very rarely wear.  I get the one-day disposables for precisely that reason.  I get awesome distance vision with them.  Close up, not so much.  To see my computer properly I have on a pair of over-the-counter readers.  Full disclosure: I bought them because they were on sale and had rhinestones.  I don’t know what power they are.

I shall declare  this post sufficient for Lame Post Friday purposes.  I must go do my hair, look over my lines, and get ready to murder my husband with an ax, theatrically speaking, of course. Happy Friday, everyone.

 

Herkimer Hop

Instead of  Wuss-out Wednesday, how about a brief overview of Steven’s and my running around Sunday afternoon (before it became Wrist to Forehead Sunday).  We made several stops in our hometown of  Herkimer, NY, so we’ll call it a minor Mohawk Valley adventure.

We first went to Hummel’s Office Plus, because Steven wanted to purchase some small yellow envelopes  for a prop for that play we’re in (can’t help but mention Roxy, can I?).  He found what he wanted easily.  I took the opportunity to pick up a couple of the pens I currently like best (ballpoint with a find point, excellent for how small I like to write on post cards).

After a quick stop for gas and cash, we went to T & J’s Fruits and Vegetables, to get fixings for a salad for my lunch (yet another attempt on my part to lose that last 15 pounds) (to give you an idea of how well I’m doing on that, it was previously the last 10 pounds I was trying to lose).  I got romaine lettuce, tomatoes and sharp cheddar cheese.  I had other vegetables at home.  I did not put the cheese in the salad, but I just love sharp cheddar cheese.

From there we went to Family Dollar, where I found two water bottles suitable for bringing to work.   We ran into another cast member from Roxy (just can’t get away from that play, can I?).  Our last stop was at Valley Wine and Liquor, where we purchased a bottle of Pinot Grigio, because we thought we might like to enjoy a glass of wine on the deck, time permitting (it did).

It did not take long to run our errands, and soon we were home and I was working on my blog post and dithering about auditions for  Lunch Hour, which were to take place that evening.  We felt pleased with our little burst of productivity.  I feel a little pleased that I wrote a blog post about something other than not writing a proper blog post.

 

Maybe I Can Act Like I’m Not Tired

I can’t, I positively canNOT have a Tired Tuesday post today.  For one reason, I simply cannot be tired.  Oh, physically I certainly can.  I had insomnia last night and worked a 10-hour day today.  I could, in fact, be forgiven for being tired.

However, my day is not over.  I have rehearsal for Roxy in about an hour.  I believe I warned regular readers (oh how I love having regular readers) that this blog may become All Roxy All The Time.  Well, opening night is one week from Friday.  It may be time for that to happen.

Tonight we will run the show.  That is, we will begin at the beginning and go straight through to the end, I hope without stopping.  Well, maybe a pause at intermission for a potty break.  Even Bette Davis took the occasional potty break.  Joan Crawford probably did too, but I doubt she admitted it.  But why am I referencing movie stars?  Shouldn’t I say Sarah Siddons or somebody?  Oh, I am tired.

In other theatre news, auditions were held for Lunch Hour, Ilion Little Theatre Club’s first official production of the 2015-16 season (Roxy is being presented by the Herkimer County Historical Society at Ilion Little Theatre, just to clarify).  Lunch Hour is a romantic comedy about cheating spouses and what the cheatees do about it.  It’s cute.  Not nearly as serious as Roxy, and a MUCH smaller cast.  I’m stage manager.  I wonder if I’ll soon be making blog posts about how I’m so tired but I have rehearsal for Lunch Hour.  Oh dear.

Well, sorry to spend another blog post whining about my ills.  Perhaps I have time to make a cup of instant coffee before rehearsal.  Instant coffee has less caffeine than brewed, so perhaps if I drink that it will revive me for rehearsal but not set me up for another bout of insomnia.  If not, you’ll probably hear about it tomorrow on Wuss-Out Wednesday.  Hope your week is going swell.

 

Loves of a Theatre Junky

It’s another Wrist to Forehead Sunday, but I have a different source for my angst today.  I am waiting to go to auditions at Ilion Little Theatre  for Lunch Hour, a romantic comedy to be presented in November.  My angst is not from audition butterflies, because I have agreed to be stage manager.  My job is set.  My angst is is due to the onset of as huge case of  WHAT THE HELL AM I THINKING???

Of course the answer to that question is, I’m not.  I almost never am.  I am, it must be admitted, a theatre junky (my computer wants me to spell it “junkie,” but my dictionary says “junky” is also correct).  When somebody asks me to do any theatre thing, I jump at the chance.  They don’t even have to ask me, I often volunteer.  And by “volunteer,” I mean beg.  “Oh please, please, PLEASE let me be in your play!  I can work backstage!  I can make costumes!  I can work on the set!  I can do lights and sound!”  Full disclosure:  I may be a complete klutz and borderline useless at any of these jobs; it never stops me.

Actually, I have not had to beg since I got involved with Ilion Little Theatre.  They are a very welcoming group, not at all clique-y.  I feel very fortunate to be involved with such a fun group of such nice people.   However, it cannot be denied that doing plays takes a lot of time and energy.  Sometimes there is more drama  backstage than onstage, even with a fun group of nice people.

The other source of my hesitation to become involved in Lunch Hour is that I am still so filled with concern over RoxyRoxy, as regular readers know, is the play being presented by Herkimer County Historical Society at Ilion Little Theatre.  It is less than two weeks until opening night!  Yikes!  Will we pull it together in time? Will it be good?  Will I be good?  Oh well, probably, but one can’t help but have butterflies.

You know, I don’t know why I’m sitting here with my wrist to my forehead.  I LOVE the theatre!  It is wonderful to audition for a play and get a part.  It is fun to learn lines, go to rehearsal, develop a character and all that.  And when the audience applauds at the end, well, that’s pretty good too.  As an added bonus, I often get quite a number of blog posts out of it, as you may have noticed.  So Happy Sunday, everyone,  I’m off to auditions.

 

Roxy Update

Rather than have Wuss-Out Wednesday, I shall provide a brief update on Roxy, the play being presented by the Herkimer County Historical Society at Ilion Little Theatre.  Full disclosure: as opening night gets closer this blog may become All Roxy All The Time.  For now we will content ourselves with an update.

For anyone who has missed my previous posts about the play, it is an original play, written by local author Jack Sherman, about a historical crime which happened right here in the Mohawk Valley.  In 1884 in the Town of Warren, Roxalana Druse killed her husband, Bill, with a gun and an ax.  She was later tried in the County Courthouse in Herkimer NY and hung in the 1834 Jail.

The story is set some 30 years after the murder.  Roxy’s son, George, all grown up now, is telling the story to his daughter, Florence.  It’s not like those old movies Steven likes to make fun of, where the whole thing is a big flashback.  Rather, the action switches back and forth between the past and present, with Florence asking questions and remarking on the events.  Sometimes within the past,  the action goes even further back; as a character testifies in court, the murder is re-enacted.

At our rehearsal last night things seemed to be going very well.  The transitions from present to past to re-enactment are getting smoother.  Characters are being developed.  It is beginning to feel like a play.

We have rehearsal again tonight and I fear I have not looked over my lines since yesterday.  I should perhaps hit publish and do that.  Roxy will be presented September 11, 12, 13, 18, 19 and 20, at 7 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, 2 p.m. Sundays, at Ilion Little Theatre, Remington Avenue, Ilion, NY. Tickets are $15 for adults, $10 for students.  For more information call 315-866-6413.

 

But I’m NOT a Method Actress!

I’m afraid this blog may become All Roxy All The Time sooner than one might expect.  Opening night is one month from tomorrow.  Plenty of time, you say?  Perhaps.  But it is difficult to concentrate on other things, especially on nights when we have rehearsal.  And anyways, I thought of something new to talk about.

Roxy, for anybody just tuning in, is a play written by local author Jack Sherman about Roxalana Druse, who murdered her husband and was later hung for it at Herkimer County Jail.  The play is being presented by Herkimer County Historical Society at Ilion Little Theatre.  I play Roxy.

The historical society is going to great lengths to make the play authentic.  They have biographical information on many of the characters.  We have two costume designers who are striving to make the costumes true to the time period.  And then there is the set…

Since Roxalana Druse was famously the last woman hung in New York State (James Greiner wrote a book about her called Last Woman Hanged: Roxalana Druse; good book, read it), one might expect to see a gallows in a play on the subject.  So the historical society got a gallows.  In fact, they got some folks at BOCES to build them a gallows just like the one used on the real Roxy.

These gallows were pretty interesting in and of themselves.  They were called the Galloping Gallows, because they could be taken apart and moved.  Herkimer County rented them for the occasion.  Additionally, this was not a traditional gallows, where the condemned fell through a trap door.  Instead, a weight was dropped, jerking the body upward.  Who thinks of these things?

I have to confess, I am feeling just a little bit nervous about this contraption.  I think it is a bit more realistic than is strictly necessary.  How do I know the guy playing the sheriff won’t get a little carried away with his part on opening night?  Do you suppose I should insist upon a stunt double?

 

Not Tired, Tasty

I just remembered that last Tuesday I noticed a rarely used category of Tasty Tuesday.  That was handy since I was sitting down to write about tonight’s supper.

Steven and I have rehearsal tonight for Roxy, the play we are in at Ilion Little Theatre (being presented by the Herkimer County Historical Society, in case anybody forgot or never knew).   One must have fuel to rehearse, of course, but one does not wish to be weighted down with too heavy a meal.  Additionally, while the temperatures have not been overly high today, the humidity has made things a little oppressive.

Luckily for me, Steven had a good idea.  Sunday I had made a yummy macaroni salad.  Today he went to the grocery store and purchased some deli meat and cheese.  His idea was to have not sandwiches but roll-ups.

The salad was one of my better efforts, if I do say so.  Medium shells, tomatoes, zucchini, red onion and radishes.  I only used mayonnaise for the dressing, but to add flavor I cut up some Horseradish and Garlic Pickles purchased at The Locavore in Frankfort, NY (just to add a little local, Mohawk Valley flair).  When I chopped up the tomatoes, I scraped all the seeds, juice and innards into the salad, so the whole thing is kind of pink.

I’m feeling exactly the right amount of full.  On to worrying about rehearsal!  I hope I know my lines.