Catsu's Corner Archives August 2003 Back to HOME

August 29, 2003 -- It's a little like Christmas.

My mother-in-law moved yesterday. Packing her things, we labeled the boxes for ease in unpacking. It seemed pretty organized at the time, but, of course, the fun comes at the other end. "Now, why wouldn't the telephone wire be packed with the telephone?" "Oh, I put all the wires together in one box." There was no box labeled 'wires'. "Who labeled this box 'kitchen'? None of this stuff belongs in the kitchen." "I don't know, maybe the boxes got mixed up, there's one outside labeled 'patio' that seems to be all kitchen stuff." "Kimberly labeled this box by drawing a little picture on top, but I can't tell what it is." "Here's one labeled 'stuff', do you think the desk lamp would be in there?" "I'm running out to boxes to open and I can't find that lamp. This one says 'Easter, soap, spray', what do you think?" It was Easter decorations, soap, and a can of bug spray. "I knew it would be fun to unpack. It's a little like Christmas, you never know what you might find."

August 27, 2003 -- Keep those postcards coming.

Three new postcards from Julie in one day. Woohoo! We are tracking her progress across the country on her way to Rhode Island. It looks like she is having a wonderful trip and seeing many interesting things.

NOTE TO RAYMOND - What's going on? We would like to hear from you.

August 26, 2003 -- Fifteen, going on sixteen.

The young actress who plays Lizzie McGuire was on the Today Show this morning. She is a very cute fifteen year old girl who will turn sixteen next month. Talking about getting her driver's license, she said, "I think about it everyday. I feel like my life is passing me by without my license." This girl is on a regular T.V. show, has a movie out, has just finished a music CD, and is launching her own line of clothing this fall, but, alas, her life is passing her by. We should all be fifteen again.

August 25, 2003 -- There are racoons in the tree.

Last night Allie came racing into the house. A few minutes later, Toby was at the window, agitated and growling. Apparently that's cat talk for "there are racoons in the tree." This is the first we've seen of them in a while. They used to visit quite often. One night we even found two large racoons sitting right in our kitchen eating the cat food. They have no fear of us at all. In fact, they seemed a little annoyed when we suggested that they leave. These, last night, were four young ones, walking along the top of the fence and climbing around in the tree. They really are cute but I worry about the cats, especially the new little kittens. I don't know if racoons would attack a cat but I'm glad our yard is fairly secure now. We brought all the cats in, anyway, just to be on the safe side. I know the racoons could find a way through my netting if they really wanted to. They are smart, dexterous, and can be very persistant and determined. My brother had wire mesh covering his garden fish pond, but it wasn't enough to stop the racoons. They were able to pull the wire up and roll it back to get to the fish in the pond.

August 24, 2003 -- Autumn leaves must fall.

I can't believe summer is over. It went by way too fast. We didn't have near enough time to do all the things we wanted to and now it's time for school to begin again . . . and I'm feeling depressed. We took Raymond to Fullerton last wednesday so he would have time to get settled in the dorm before classes begin on monday. He has a room on the first floor of the new building this year with a window looking out on the parking lot and his suite mates seem very nice. The room is small but we were able to fit his things into it. He doesn't really need much space. As long as there is a desk and room for his computer he is pretty much set. The bed is just a bonus. Kimberly is busy getting things organized for school. Ever optimistic, she is quick to point out that there is a bright side to back-to-school, which is, of course, back-to-school shopping.

August 22, 2003 -- Just call me June Cleaver.

When I got up this morning my hair just fell perfectly into place. It's a good hair day! Of course this never happens if I am going somewhere or have something special to do. Today I have absolutely no plans except to clean the house. But I'll look fabulous. Perhaps I'll put on a dress and some pearls before I haul out the vacuum. I'll be just like June Cleaver.

August 21, 2003 -- Let's pretend we have a convertible.

Just as the weather gets hot, wouldn't you know my car air conditioner would break. It's an older car and would be too expensive to fix, soooo- no air conditioner. Of course, I drove for years without an air conditioner. In fact, I actually remember saying "We don't need an air conditioner, we can open the windows." It just shows how easily we become spoiled. When the kids were young I'd say, "Let's open all the windows and pretend we have a convertible." We'd drive around, the wind whipping our hair, shouting over the noise. Raymond still loves the wind, but it appears Kimberly has outgrown that joy. Driving home the other day, I could see her hair wildly blowing around her face through my rear view mirror. "CLOSE THE WINDOW," she yelled, "I feel like my eyelashes are coming off!" (And no, she does not wear false eyelashes.) I guess a convertible would not be the right choice of cars for Kimberly.

August 20, 2003 -- Zoo news.

Picketers outside the zoo were holding signs advocating that we free the Swazi elephant. I'm not sure what a Swazi elephant is, if it is a breed or the name of one specific elephant, but as Raymond pointed out, why specify the Swazi elephant, why not just free all elephants, or all animals, for that matter? Is this animal discrimination? Raymond says if anyone needs a little help in this heat it's probably the poor polar bears. Where are their picketers? My feeling is, just as I prefer hotels to camping, I think if I were an elephant I'd want to live in the zoo.

August 16, 2003 -- The value of a book.

Kimberly went to see a Junior Theater performance today. They were also holding a used book sale outside the theater as a fund raiser. At the completion of their sale, the extra books, that had not sold, were just piled out with the trash. I can't believe they wouldn't donate them to the library book sale store or a thrift shop if they didn't want to keep them for their next sale. A few people passing by rummaged through the boxes and took a few of the books, but most were left. Remind me never to donate books to Junior Theater. They obviously don't appreciate them.

August 13, 2003 -- On with the show.

It is a week for musicals. Last saturday we saw "Singing in the Rain" at the Moonlight Amphitheater. This is such a cute show. I always forget how funny it is. Kirby Ward and his wife, Beverly, were playing the leads and Kirby's brother, Kelly, played the part of Cosmo. Kimberly especially wanted to see this show since she has taken a dance workshop from Kirby and Beverly and several of her friends from S.D.C. Dance Company were also in the show. Kirby and Beverly were very good in the roles. The choreography is well suited to Kirby's dancing style and the rain dance sequence was wonderful. It may be because it is an outdoor theater, but I'm sure they had more rain spashing around than when I've seen this number done before. Then Sunday we saw "The Sound of Music" at the Welk Theater. We almost didn't go to this show since we've seen it so many times, but I'm really glad we did because I think it was one of the best productions of "Sound of Music" that I've seen. They changed some of the sequencing of the scenes and songs so it moved along a little faster and more smoothly. The actress playing Maria was excellent. Playing the part with a youthful exuberance, a little differently than the other actresses I've seen, she brought a real freshness to the role. Next weekend we will be seeing "The Music Man". We did see this show not too long ago also, but it is one of my very favorite musicals so I'm sure we will enjoy seeing it again.

August 12, 2003 -- Extra wheels.

While driving home yesterday I passed a large flatbed truck. It was carrying three tall piles of plywood sheets and one small tricycle.

August 11, 2003 -- Match game.

We went to a show this past weekend and, as has happened before, there were already people sitting in our reserved seats. I just absolutely do not understand how someone is not able to find the correct seat. You have a number on your ticket. You have a number on the seat. Are they the same? How hard can this be? For years I thought ushers were just for show, a throw-back to those nostalgic days of formality. "Do you need help finding your seat?", they would ask, and I would think, "Of course not, I can read. They're numerical, right?" Yet, even as I stood directly in front of these misplaced persons, looking at my ticket and looking at them (in our seats), they were still totally clueless. So now I realize the purpose of the usher. It is someone who can smile and say, while showing no judgementalism at all, "Excuse me, I think you may be in the wrong seat. . . Ah, yes I see the problem, you should be in seat 86 and this is 92." "What? Huh? Oh my goodness. Seat 86, you say?" Geez! If the ticket says 86, what were they thinking when they sat down in seat 92? And what about the three other people in the group who are all in the wrong seats as well?

August 10, 2003 -- Gotta dance.

I was so sad to hear of the death of Gregory Hines today. He has been described as "the best tap dancer of his generation." Not only was he a very talented dancer, he was also a successful actor, a comedian, and seemed to be a very nice person, as well. Years ago I took Julie out to a local college where Gregory Hines was to give a lecture on tap dance. Julie was taking tap dancing at the time and was also working on a dance badge for Girl Scouts. Not having a baby sitter I also took Raymond, who was about six years old and was taking tiny tot tap lessons. The lecture was held in a small theater and had a relatively small audience of college students, probably all dance majors. Gregory Hines gave a short history of tap dancing, discussed and demonstrated some of the different styles of dance, and talked about his career as a tap dancer. He talked about the old time "hoofer contests", where dancers would try to outdo each other in tap combinations, and then asked if anyone would like to come up and dance with him. He was joined onstage by about a dozen college students, and, to my surprise, Raymond. Hines went down the line of students asking them each to show a step or combination. We saw various time step, shuffle, and wing combinations. He then came to Raymond. Raymond, undaunted by those who'd gone before him, proudly stepped forward. Widely swinging his right foot front, then back, he stomped it firmly back down in place, and repeated the step on the left foot. "Brush-brush, STEP, Brush-brush, STEP." Gregory Hines was so sweet. Telling the audience that everyone must start at the beginning, he praised Raymond for his efforts. He told him he was a fine dancer and to keep working at his lessons.

August 4, 2003 -- Is that a rock?

The Wild Animal Park has something new this summer called the "Living Garden." They have people dressed in nature costumes that camouflage into the background. Until they move, you would walk right past without noticing them. The evening we were there, we saw the rock man. He has an amazing costume. He completely blends in with the rocks around him. Slowly he begins to move, getting up and walking out of the garden toward the people watching. The audience moves way back in a semicircle around him, backing away even further as he moves forward. The same people who were eagerly trying to get as close as possible to the wild animals give the rock man plenty of room. Of course they know it is a person in a costume, but still, there is just something creepy about a walking rock. Click to view rock man larger.

August 2, 2003 -- I brake for balloons.

Driving back home I could see something colorful and low to the ground slowing moving across the street ahead. "What is that?", I asked. "Balloons," Kimberly said. Balloons? As we got closer I could see she was right. A bunch of Happy Birthday balloons, tied together on a weighted string slowly crossed the street directly in front of our car, (really more dragging then floating.) I suppose the people in the car behind me wondered why we were stopped in the middle of the street. Maybe I need a bumper sticker that says "I brake for balloons."

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