Red Nose

Busiest Weekend Ever

I have been tossed about by a veritable social whirlwind the last few days. Where to begin? How about Saturday?

Joe and I picked up the lovely and talented Deb Siobhan and tootled off down to the Renaissance Festival. We saw many wonderful sights -- including the shows -- while we were there, including this satyr-ical fellow that we spotted while we waited in the medieval ATM line.

We decided that he was not an employee of the Festival because he was busily smoking a cigarette and staggering a little. True, he was on stilts, but I think there were other contributing factors. Anyway, we drank medieval mead and cider and beer, I ate a medieval corned beef and cheese sandwich, and Joe bought some medieval plastic devil horns. And a good time was had by all!

Saturday night we (less Deb) we headed down to another good people-watching venue -- Verizon Center for the Caps game versus the Ottawa Senators. It was great, of course, and the Caps won their fourth straight. Then home, bed, up, and off to my sister's house to go to the tailgating extravaganza that is the Redskins game.

Take a good look at this picture, because it is not often that you will see my darling beer-snob husband drinking a Bud Lite. Any port in a storm, however, especially since the Redskins lost.

Ah well. We went out to TGI Friday's for a sorrows-drowning dinner, then parted ways with my sister and brother-in-law and headed home to relax and watch Boardwalk Empire.

Then sleep, for Monday would come way too soon.

Sleightly Amazing

Joe showed me this rather wonderful video tonight. It combines two of my most favorite things: sleight of hand magic and Sting's music. Sit back, relax, and prepare to be amazed.

Dada Is?

Saturday night we got together with our great good friends to go downtown to partake of one of the offerings of the Capital Fringe Festival, a show called MANIFESTO! Why this one, out of all of the odd, avant-garde, interesting fare at the Fringe? Well, my pal Linda has known Mark Jaster, one of the actors and creators of the play, since about forever. It was a natural choice.

We met up at Ben's Chili Bowl for a light supper of half smokes covered in cheese and chili (and my arteries hardened again just writing that). So good; so so good. And ridiculously cheap -- now's that's a winning combination in my book.

Anyhow, my pal Bill brought along another friend he met through his journalistic circles, a delightful woman named Laura Jones, who just happens to have an exhibit of photographs at a local gallery. She took them in 1968, during the Poor Peoples' Campaign led by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. It was such a pleasure to meet her. (Hi Laura!)

After supper we headed over to the Source Theater for MANIFESTO!

I must admit that I didn't know what to expect. I was a little afraid it was be too odd and weird -- yeah, I know, this comes from an ex-clown. But I have grown skeptical of the cutting edge; I've cut myself on it a couple of times.

I needn't have worried. The show was great -- laugh-out loud funny, odd, frenetic, absurd, wonderful, and fast. It's set in a surrealistic cafe, populated by a snooty waiter, a snootier hostess, a new waitress, a sort of bartender and sound-effects man, and two visionaries who have opposing political views and are hot for each other.

And Dada, the inspiration for the show -- that early 20th century cultural movement that is undefinable. Or is it?