Hats On

I was walking through the Waterloo train station (early!) Thursday morning, and was struck* by 1) the number of people milling around, and 2) the disproportionate amount of top hats/tails and fascinators/heels I was seeing. I couldn't imagine what was happening - was there ANOTHER Royal Wedding I didn't know about? Was it a dress-up flash mob? Surely it couldn't be some horse-racing thing... it was pouring rain out, and didn't people who dressed like this have Rolls-Royces to take them to things like that?

Apparently people who dress like this are also environmentally conscious (or cannot afford the car-in-the-city fees after paying for the hats) - or perhaps they just really like to flock to their horse races.

Hooray for the Royal Ascot!

Just, y'know... WOW.

Maybe my favorite hat EVER.

*Not LITERALLY struck. Between the crazy hats and the heels, eyes and/or toes could have been lost.

Just a Minute, Hair

Dear Hairstylists of the World:

When I walk into your salon, it is with the expectation that I will walk out looking different. Not "suddenly supermodel" different, because if I didn't have a grasp on reality I would be cutting my own hair with garden shears, but a new look that is other than the one I am sporting. I suppose there are some who go in for a "trim" meaning "maintenance" in the sense of "keep my hair looking like it did three weeks ago", but that is not me. It's just hair. It grows (or you buy more). I'm not precious about it, and I expect that you will believe and listen to me when I tell you things like "layers", "texture", "movement", and "I've had it all different lengths, so I'm not worried about going shorter or looking a little funky. In fact, that would be great". These seem to me to be words that fit into your vocabularies. Also, when you ask me questions it would be helpful if you would listen to the answers, as that would save me quite a bit of frustration later when you've "styled" my hair in ways that don't suit. If I say one side seems/looks a little longer than the other side, please do something about it - you can pull on it all you like, but I'm the one who lives with it and looks at it every day, and if I say it looks longer than it does. A little obnoxious, perhaps - but I'm the one who's an expert on my hair. You've known me for five minutes and will forget my face and head as soon as I leave, so kindly pay attention in the meantime.

Your tip and my return business rely on it.

Think about it -

Me

HAHAHAHAHA....  but true.

P.S. I wonder if there are YouTube tutorials on how to cut your own hair...  I bet there are. You can find anything on YouTube. And I could use the tip.

Email's Not for Skimming

Communication is a funny thing.

Some say that this electronic era makes it difficult to connect with people, because things like texts and emails don't allow for tone-of-voice or body language. It's a compelling argument.

I think, though, that people make it hard to connect with people.

Case in point:
   I emailed the Associated Press to ask for information about licensing an image we wanted to use for a show, and I sent it from my school account to make sure it was official (it's a .uk address). After I signed my name I also listed out the full name of the school, and added a comma London. The response I got (in a fairly timely manner, so the AP has that going for it) stated that they couldn't give out information until they knew the location of the licensee, when they would forward the email to the correct office.

   I was a little befuddled. I looked back through my email - and yes, I included both the facts that the show was through my school and the name of the school comma London. As I scrolled down further I discovered that emails sent from my school have footers attached to them, which include terms like "London", "England", and "Wales", just in case you were unsure which side of the globe to point at.

   It seems to me that, particularly in a business setting, it's a good idea to ACTUALLY READ THE EMAIL all the way through before asking a question that is answered in that original email. It could be just me, though.

Case 2:
   In setting up a meeting with a tutor we went back and forth on days and times, and finally settled on Wednesday at 4:30. I responded again with "Where? In the school? Or at the Hampstead?" (a next-door theatre where the lobby is a cafe where people often meet.) His answer - "In the lobby."

   Now see, that's a tricky one, answering a question where the 'conclusion' applies to both suggestions... Keeps things exciting, I suppose.

* * * * *

Apropos of nothing, I'd like us all to pull out our best American Redneck voices and chorus along:

One of These Things...

It's finally happened.

The day I knew would come has arrived. (And in all reality, it's not in any way about me.)

Still -

Every last one of my siblings now has a child.

My youngest brother's wife gave birth right around one A.M., and the baby's a very pretty (if slightly overcooked*) little girl. I'll get to see her in about a month.

So, congratulations!

(That makes 6, 4, 3, 2, and 1 - the 6 and the 4 are finished, but the last three are still potentially 'and counting'. I'm going to be trying for 2 Masters' degrees - maybe I should go for five to fill out the sequence!)

Also, I'd better start bringing in some big bucks - how else am I going to be able to afford to spoil all 16 of my brothers' and sister's kids?

I shall now have a celebratory chocolate milkshake in baby Bostyn's honor. She is a Baxter, after all.

(And I have a bottle of real Hershey's syrup. How providential!)




* By which I mean, she was nearly a week late - and this after her parents were told the initial due date was probably inaccurate and the baby would most likely arrive sometime in May. That kid really hunkered down!

Sibling Revelry

In which we shall see: bragging about incredible people, that I happen to be related to.

* * * * *

I've actually been thinking about this post for a while now, and it's a little bit tricky to know how to approach the topic. How does one go about saying "Hey, guess what? Those people that spent most of our respective early lives tormenting me grew up to be pretty amazing, all across the board!"?

Oh. I guess that's how.

(I suppose "tormenting me" is probably overstating a little. And, to be honest, I may have done a little tormenting myself. I don't really count the psychological conditioning as 'torment', as it's in everyone's best interest to do what I say, but my siblings might have the very small, odd, not-normal story of me occasionally picking on them. Maybe.)

I made her a 'cartoon doll'
ages ago. It really does look
just like her.

Seriously, though, my siblings turned out to be fantastic people. Who knew? Here in the UK you get an even bigger "WHA?!?" response than in the States when you say you're one of six kids, but I do appreciate the fact that I've got plenty to brag about with each of them. My sister, for example, is fabulously organized and productively creative - everything she does not only IS good but also looks good, and she's always figuring out ways to sell her hobbies. I think I got her interested in jewelry design (or we got going about the same time, anyway) and she has completely outstripped me (it's a good thing). Her pieces are beautiful and trendy and so well done - we all love wearing anything she's made. She commits herself completely to whatever needs doing - her church callings happen 100%, she backs her husband and kids in everything they do; currently, she's becoming a total expert on Scouting as her oldest son (at 12 and-a-half) has decided to accomplish every. single. merit badge. (I won't even get started on how awesome all of her kids are.) She doesn't back down from her goals, and doesn't let other people's insecurities and hesitations slow her down (which I love). She KILLED in the family weight-loss competition (won!), and has maintained ever since... just last month she (and her husband) produced their third-annual Half-Marathon event, with double the number of participants from the year before (and they do it for fun and tradition, not for profit). Plus, she is an amazing  friend and can always be counted on to help and serve whenever needed. AND she knows how to have fun! Can I be my sister when I grow up, please?

I have four brothers, and at some point each of my sisters-in-law has told me how lucky they are to have gotten a Baxter guy. It's true. They are all terrific husbands and fathers (the youngest brother is THISCLOSE to getting started on that 'fatherhood' thing. MINUTES away). They are all smart, hardworking, funny, musical, dedicated to their families and to the Gospel, and they all (obviously) have fantastic taste in women. (Well, one woman each - they'd all probably say no other women exist.) They all served missions - two learned Spanish, and the other two might also say that they served in foreign-language areas (California and England), and they're all Eagle Scouts. Three of the four play with the Army (National Guard) Band, and the other keeps all of our computers running and current (I don't know if you realize just how much money he saves all of us. And yes, he takes outside-the-family jobs, too, if you're looking for a computer guy!). They are educated, positive, forward-thinking men who work to better not only their families' lives, but also to better their neighborhoods and communities. They have smart, funny, happy children who know that no matter their challenges (and there are challenges, too) they can always count on their dad. There's an engineer, corporate head of I.T., accountant, and phone rep (who just got promoted to his own store and has totally hooked up the family) - we've got all the necessaries covered - as well as a family band (they may not play together often, but they will for Mom!). And play they do - nobody plays harder than my brothers. We get a little competitive, but it's definitely in good fun. These are good men...

... and I've got embarrassing stories about each of them. Heh. Hehehehhhhhh.

That's right, Mom and Dad - you're responsible for all this.
(Good job.)

 Recently, it's been coming back to me over and over - I'm very lucky to belong to this particular group of people. I've said for most of my life that we are 'abnormally normal', and it's true - my parents and siblings are the best friends and neighbors you could ever have, the kind of people you want living next door and working for you and being your boss and teaching your kids. You want your kids to be friends with their kids. These are the people that you want to spend time with, because you know from the start that your life will be better for the association.

And let me assure you, there's no need to worry - I promise (as the picture shows) I'm the only one who bites.

Stuff

I'm not sure how much more evidence I can take.

Seriously, though, the Angel Gabriel with the accordion was my favorite.

I just saw a funny, beautifully acted, incredibly well-crafted show that had been devised by marvelously talented, creative performers, and... nothing. I just didn't get it. I got the jokes, appreciated the clever twists, marveled at the ingenious staging, and I have no idea why they were doing what they were doing. I understood the basic story. I can't see why they produced it the way they did. I can't get my head around even possible interpretations for some of the movement patterns and music. Other people on my course saw the same show and loved it ("best bit of theatre I've seen in London!" "worth every penny!" etc...) but I didn't. I enjoyed it. Because I could make no real sense out of it, however, I did not love it.

I still have no desire to make experimental theatre, and it looks like that's not changing anytime soon.

* * * * *

This week, it's 6:40. No joke.

* * * * *

Walking down the street just now, I saw a well-dressed middle-aged Asian man coming up the (ugh, fine!) footpath with his coral-orange Polo shirt pulled out of his slacks and folded up around his pecs so that his stomach was bare. Just strolling up the street in dress shoes in Hampstead (not Soho!) sunning his midsection. People are so weird.

* * * * *

I AM excited about charting out a way to do Sophocles' Antigone with only three actors (since that's all the Greeks would have used, plus the Chorus). Apparently, when I say I'm more interested in 'traditional' theatre, I mean HARDCORE 'tradtional' theatre.

* * * * *

I, too, am looking for sense in the
BBC's programming. No luck.

I'm going to go build a website, apply for another MA program, prepare to teach a new song to the Primary, give myself a pedicure, and (soonishly) watch Doctor Who. Yep, it's Saturday!

On Being Wrong

Kathryn Schulz, TED Talk

Being wrong just means something else happened instead.