September in a nutshell
The last couple of weeks, anyway.
Went home to Ohio to see the Ohio Lyric Theatre performance of Little Shop of Horrors. It was great to be back. Everyone seemed really glad to see me, and I got to at least say "hi" to almost everyone. The production was great fun. I'd forgotten how much really fun music was in that show and how much of it I remembered. "Mack" (from Threepenny Opera) was the voice of Audrey II, and he did a fantabulous job. I told him after that if I hadn't known it was him, I wouldn't have known it was him. I also told him I would have loved to have been able to watch him behind the microphone, because that role is just so him.
My boss hasn't found a replacement for my position yet. I really want her to find a new assistant, but I don't want her to replace me. (I told someone here in Culpeper that, and they didn't get it. They thought I thought I'd be going back. No, it's more a metaphysical statement). When I walked into the office, everyone said Boss Lady could go home and I could work the show. Heh. The volunteers seemed really glad to see me, too.
It's weird. I don't feel like I've been gone from there very long, and I still feel like I'll be going back there someday. I know in my head that's not gonna happen, but in my heart, it's like I have two lives--one in Ohio that's waiting for me to return, and one in Virginia that's just marking time until I return to Ohio. But the life in Ohio is a phantom life; it doesn't really exist anymore.
The ride back to Ohio was and experience, and a frustrating one. Please be aware that Virginia has the most poorly marked roads and interstates I've ever encountered. And it's not just me. I, Geo, my dad, and my mom-in-law have all missed the same exit coming from both directions. Someone Geo worked with this weekend who is from Maryland also confirms that Virginia's signage sucks. As a result, we lost an hour of travel time on the way to Ohio, and we entered West Virginia through the back door, or as Geo called it, the moonshiner's route. The slalom up and down the mountains was quite . . . er . . . an adventure.
I took part in a dinnner theater murder mystery last weekend. I was a last minute addition to the cast, and I got one read-through with the director, one rehearsal, and one performance. No time for a run-through or anything. It was good to do a little bit of acting, but it also saddened me to be the outsider. Community theater is very cliquish (as all social groups can be), and these folks all knew each other. Being the outsider kinda worked for the role, because I was playing an outsider, but it was just kind of depressing because I miss the theater (both the physical venue and the people) back in Springfield.
And I miss my home church. That's all I can really say about that.
But just so you don't think I'm going to do nothing but whine here, I will say that I found a new job working at one of the downtown boutique-y type stores, an import store that has lots of neat stuff. And we have been blessed with a very nice house and beautiful views. And Geo loves it here. If it weren't for the people in Ohio, he could never go back and be perfectly happy. In fact, being back in Springfield made him really want to return to Culpeper.
Now I think I should go eat lunch.
Went home to Ohio to see the Ohio Lyric Theatre performance of Little Shop of Horrors. It was great to be back. Everyone seemed really glad to see me, and I got to at least say "hi" to almost everyone. The production was great fun. I'd forgotten how much really fun music was in that show and how much of it I remembered. "Mack" (from Threepenny Opera) was the voice of Audrey II, and he did a fantabulous job. I told him after that if I hadn't known it was him, I wouldn't have known it was him. I also told him I would have loved to have been able to watch him behind the microphone, because that role is just so him.
My boss hasn't found a replacement for my position yet. I really want her to find a new assistant, but I don't want her to replace me. (I told someone here in Culpeper that, and they didn't get it. They thought I thought I'd be going back. No, it's more a metaphysical statement). When I walked into the office, everyone said Boss Lady could go home and I could work the show. Heh. The volunteers seemed really glad to see me, too.
It's weird. I don't feel like I've been gone from there very long, and I still feel like I'll be going back there someday. I know in my head that's not gonna happen, but in my heart, it's like I have two lives--one in Ohio that's waiting for me to return, and one in Virginia that's just marking time until I return to Ohio. But the life in Ohio is a phantom life; it doesn't really exist anymore.
The ride back to Ohio was and experience, and a frustrating one. Please be aware that Virginia has the most poorly marked roads and interstates I've ever encountered. And it's not just me. I, Geo, my dad, and my mom-in-law have all missed the same exit coming from both directions. Someone Geo worked with this weekend who is from Maryland also confirms that Virginia's signage sucks. As a result, we lost an hour of travel time on the way to Ohio, and we entered West Virginia through the back door, or as Geo called it, the moonshiner's route. The slalom up and down the mountains was quite . . . er . . . an adventure.
I took part in a dinnner theater murder mystery last weekend. I was a last minute addition to the cast, and I got one read-through with the director, one rehearsal, and one performance. No time for a run-through or anything. It was good to do a little bit of acting, but it also saddened me to be the outsider. Community theater is very cliquish (as all social groups can be), and these folks all knew each other. Being the outsider kinda worked for the role, because I was playing an outsider, but it was just kind of depressing because I miss the theater (both the physical venue and the people) back in Springfield.
And I miss my home church. That's all I can really say about that.
But just so you don't think I'm going to do nothing but whine here, I will say that I found a new job working at one of the downtown boutique-y type stores, an import store that has lots of neat stuff. And we have been blessed with a very nice house and beautiful views. And Geo loves it here. If it weren't for the people in Ohio, he could never go back and be perfectly happy. In fact, being back in Springfield made him really want to return to Culpeper.
Now I think I should go eat lunch.