By day I am an EMT. And by night, an Opera Singer. Well, at least this was me yesterday. Two auditions in one day that are polar opposites always makes for an interesting day.
The EMT audition wanted me with no make-up, hair pulled back and an EMT style wardrobe. From there I had to transform into Maria Casello as best I could with dramatic eyes, pearls, hair up and an evening dress. I know what you’re thinking, but you don’t LOOK like her and you’re not even Greek! Or maybe you are thinking, Who the heck is Maria Casello?
If you don’t know, according to the internet (it must be true!) she was an opera singer and had an affair with Aristotle Onassis while they were each married to other people. After their divorces, I guess Maria thought Onassis would marry her, but he married Jackie instead. Oh no he didn’t!
But the interesting thing for me here is that I used to get told I looked like Jackie Kennedy a lot when my hair was shorter, and I was still living in Minnesota. So now I look like both Onassis’ ladies? Hmm… I guess that means if he ever met me, he would have wooed me too. Although, for me, he was a little too slick and his glasses a little to thick.
I had errands to run yesterday before and after my Maria Casello audition and while the rest of the world may have assumed this is just the way I dress while at the post office and grocery store, it felt like Halloween to me.
The holiday decorations went up this weekend. It was a good weekend to do it too as it was a downpour that evening making it cozy inside. In Los Angles? I KNOW! And appearantly it was THE weekend to do it since my neighbors on either side of me also put up their trees. Yes, I did put on holiday music and yes, I did get my bubble on with a bottle of sparkling apple cider.
I didn’t put all the holiday decorations out this year though. I don’t know why. I didn’t feel like it, I guess. The tree is up and garland for the fireplace and a few other things, but not much. I think this is how I’ll do it every year from now on. Simple and elegant. Less is more, right?
I didn’t take this photo, nor am I Jewish, but it’s circulating around the internet and I can’t help but wonder, did someone get fired over this?
We finally made dinner reservations at El Cid. It’s this place in Silver Lake on Sunset Blvd. that I’d heard about for years, but had never been. You pay a fixed rate for a 3 course meal and a Flamenco show. There was a deal on Groupon – 2 dinners for the price of 1 – so I bought, to finally bring my El Cid curiousity to a close.
Unfortuately it was disappointing. Maybe it was because I had high expectations? The anticipation of all those inquisitive years? But, I must add, we did have a great time some how in spite of the circumstances.
First, I had called ahead to make the reservation and inquired as to what time we should arrive and what time the show started. I was told “we open the doors at 6pm, start serving dinner at 6:30pm and the show starts at 8pm”.
We arrived at around 6:20pm to not only find the doors open, but a show and dinner already taking place. What? I thought you didn’t open your doors until 6pm? How is there already a dinner and show going on? I knew then, the evening may not be what I had expected.
We were told to wait outside in the courtyard and they would begin seating at 7:15pm. Ok, now that’s really uncool. You had said to arrive as early as 6pm and dinner would be served at 6:30pm, but now I have to sit outside until you’ll even begin seating at 7:15pm? Lame. Thankfully the weather was fine and the bar open, but still… lame.
When we were seated, Joe finagled us a private table in the upper balcony. Thank goodness. Otherwise, you have to share a table with 4 to 20 other people. Not really our cup of tea. Our waiter was great, but some how all the dinners were coming out late. Gee, I wonder why? Perhaps it’s because dinner was SUPPOSED to have started at 6:30, not 7:30? Our dinner didn’t even arrive until after the show.
And when it did arrive, we laughed. My chicken dinner was to be served with mashed potatoes and asparagus. I literally had ONE asparagus on my plate. One lonely, shriveled asparagus. We mentioned it to the waiter and he did bring out a small plate of asparagus, but really? We had to ask? And Joe’s dinner was missing his mashed potatoes. How is that possible? There are only five dinner choices and three of them come with mashed potatoes.
Strangely, like I said, we did have a great time. The show was cute and entertaining enough to hold our interest and we just chalked it up as one thing to put on our NOT TO DO AGAIN list.
El Cid translates to The Master. The Master of what? Disappointment? Chaos? Late Dinners? Unorganization? One Asparagus? Missing Potatoes?
Isn’t there already enough crap in the world? Crap as in stuff. Material things. I can’t stand it. But there’s no stopping it. More junk just keeps getting churned out day after day in hopes that you open your wallet.
Not long ago, if you wanted say, a picture of a cat, you were out of luck. Only a few people even owned a camera. You had to draw it, paint it, or sew it. Now, just imagine how many pictures of cats there are in the world. And how easily you could buy 100’s of them with just the click of your mouse. (Ha, cat and mouse.)
I recently went to the Goodwill, to donate a few bags of things I no longer need, then I went inside to poke around a bit. The loads and loads of crap in there is amazing. Especially all those nick nacks that have no use whatsoever. And not only were they never of any use to the person who once owned them, but they have no use to ANYONE else. Ever. Except to look at them. And dust them off.
Then I thought about all the money that was spent over the years, by all the people, on all this crap. And what GREAT things that money COULD have been used for, collectively, to help people if it had not been wasted on all this nothingness.
If only all useless crap in the world would go away. And all the money in the wolrd was distributed evenly and appropriately. If only.
