So many things, you guys!
Apr. 19th, 2012 10:31 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
rebcakeI've posted very little lately, and nothing remotely personal since Valentine's Day. So, lest you think I've disappeared or given up, here's what I've been up to:
1. Gallifrey One #23 Doctor Who Convention in February: Very exciting, in many senses of the word. First, our dilapidated minivan was stolen just before we left, containing the costumes McDiva was planning to take. She found it 10 days later on the way to school — while texting. (Who says they aren't paying attention?) The TARDIS dress was not inside, though most of her other things were. Woe.
However, I got to bask in the presence of Jane Espenson once more. I think she likes me! She signed the Buffy sticker on my cell phone to the visible envy of the other fangirls. Ha! Also, Mark Sheppard and Caitlin Blackwood are completely adorable, in very different ways. Guess which one is naughtiest? I was also impressed with the young British show directors who attended, Toby Haynes and Richard Senior. They were so smart and optimistic and enthusiastic! The other actors were a lot of fun, but I'll have to do a longer post to do them justice.
McDiva, not having a costume to wear in the Masquerade, was asked to model for a terrific young designer, Tara Reich. They won or tied for first place in all the Master Class categories — Best Workmanship and Best Presentation. Much celebration! Also, while there she was espied holding hands with a boy! A boy who fortunately seemed suitably impressed at his good fortune. But before that, she got her picture taken with Caitlin Blackwood (young Amelia Pond) while wearing the winning Idris/Doctor's Wife/TARDIS costume! I'm close to the subject, but I think they're amazing.
2. McDiva attends the School of the Arts (SOTA) which is roughly like the "Fame" school in NYC. When they put on a musical, expectations are high. The weekend after Gally, they debuted their production of The Producers, and it was, well, boffo! Really amazing. McDiva's job was to costume one lead character and to wrangle costumes for the "Springtime for Hitler" musical number, which is the most complex thing in the whole show — and the most wonderful. It was a tour de force of not only performance, but technical theatre as well. My job was to run the front of the house. Sometimes it seemed like my job was to tell confused audience members, "Yes, they ARE high school students. No ringers. Yes, they built the sets themselves. Yes, it's a public (government, to you Brits) school. Yes, they really are that good." A professional company immediately rented/bought ALL of the props, sets, set dressings, and accoutrements that would fit on their (smaller) stage.
3. Other recent cultural outings include the San Francisco Symphony (twice), the local Lamplighters doing Gilbert & Sullivan's The Gondoliers, the touring production of Spamalot, a Robert Burns Supper, an Australia Day party, a trip to Disneyland and California Adventure, multiple trips to various local museums for a wide variety of special exhibitions ranging from Maharajah at the Asian (thanks![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
thedeadlyhook!), the Venetians, the Cult of Beauty: the Victorian Avant Garde (twice), and the Jean Paul Gaultier retrospective (three times, so far).
4. Work is busy. Tax preparation was complicated. I still have to fill out the insurance claim from the car. theft. I have somehow been convinced to join the school's PTA board, resulting in lots of meetings. I don't like meetings, but I understand them, if that makes any sense. I'm pacing myself by only dealing with the emails twice a week.
5. I changed health insurance coverage, and my new providers are taking every reported ache as an indication that I need to have something extracted or inserted. "You don't really NEED your (your choice of "non-essential" organ here). Why not take it out before it causes you some real problems?" they ask. Which I can sort of see, I guess, but I am surgery averse, and convinced that "procedures", especially multiple procedures, will inevitably result in unintended consequences. I mean, I didn't even go to the hospital to give birth, as it seemed ridiculous to do so unless there was a problem. This attitude mystifies the medical personnel I'm dealing with, for some reason. ;-) After it took seven office visits to do everything surrounding a single root canal, I'm not eager to embark on anything more complicated. The root canal itself was mostly fine, but SEVEN OFFICE VISITS! It's just so...boring.
6. MiAmor is having a bit of a victory lap this year. It is a significant anniversary of the comic he and his brothers do, and they were asked to give a talk at California State University at Northridge last month, and are slated to be special guests at Comic-Con, the Alternative Press Expo, and have a retrospective of their work shown at the Cartoon Art Museum coming up. Google is also sniffing around for a personal appearance at their campus. He's also participating in the Latino Cartoonist Expo next month. Fun, but busy.
7. I'm supposedly working on fic. Heh. I have 3 or 4 things that I keep switching between/avoiding. We'll see if I meet a single deadline. It shouldn't affect my postings, but my paid DW account has expired, and I'm not able to renew at this time. So, how in the heck do they decide which of your icons to make "inactive"? And why can't you go through and decide for yourself? Huh? It doesn't seem all that user friendly to me. *grumble*
ETA: An anonymous sweetheart has renewed my paid DW account! Woo hoo! Thank you so much, kind someone! *hugs icons*
8. I was interviewed for the Legendary Women — Buffy Month, in my role as community co-mod for![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-community.gif)
fantas_magoria. It's up right before the one with my very good friend Jane Espenson! It's interesting to see a few of my thoughts laid out like that, but as McDiva noted: so many words! Whatever happened to my trademark brevity?
9. I stopped by the Mark Does Stuff Tour kick-off event at the local public library this evening. It was marginally entertaining. Not deep, but he's such a sweet little puppy that I couldn't help but be somewhat charmed.
10. I have thinky thoughts on The Hunger Games movie, and Cabin in the Woods, and the interesting places that they intersect. I just don't know when I will get them down. Tsk. The short version is that I liked 'em both!
1. Gallifrey One #23 Doctor Who Convention in February: Very exciting, in many senses of the word. First, our dilapidated minivan was stolen just before we left, containing the costumes McDiva was planning to take. She found it 10 days later on the way to school — while texting. (Who says they aren't paying attention?) The TARDIS dress was not inside, though most of her other things were. Woe.
However, I got to bask in the presence of Jane Espenson once more. I think she likes me! She signed the Buffy sticker on my cell phone to the visible envy of the other fangirls. Ha! Also, Mark Sheppard and Caitlin Blackwood are completely adorable, in very different ways. Guess which one is naughtiest? I was also impressed with the young British show directors who attended, Toby Haynes and Richard Senior. They were so smart and optimistic and enthusiastic! The other actors were a lot of fun, but I'll have to do a longer post to do them justice.
McDiva, not having a costume to wear in the Masquerade, was asked to model for a terrific young designer, Tara Reich. They won or tied for first place in all the Master Class categories — Best Workmanship and Best Presentation. Much celebration! Also, while there she was espied holding hands with a boy! A boy who fortunately seemed suitably impressed at his good fortune. But before that, she got her picture taken with Caitlin Blackwood (young Amelia Pond) while wearing the winning Idris/Doctor's Wife/TARDIS costume! I'm close to the subject, but I think they're amazing.
2. McDiva attends the School of the Arts (SOTA) which is roughly like the "Fame" school in NYC. When they put on a musical, expectations are high. The weekend after Gally, they debuted their production of The Producers, and it was, well, boffo! Really amazing. McDiva's job was to costume one lead character and to wrangle costumes for the "Springtime for Hitler" musical number, which is the most complex thing in the whole show — and the most wonderful. It was a tour de force of not only performance, but technical theatre as well. My job was to run the front of the house. Sometimes it seemed like my job was to tell confused audience members, "Yes, they ARE high school students. No ringers. Yes, they built the sets themselves. Yes, it's a public (government, to you Brits) school. Yes, they really are that good." A professional company immediately rented/bought ALL of the props, sets, set dressings, and accoutrements that would fit on their (smaller) stage.
3. Other recent cultural outings include the San Francisco Symphony (twice), the local Lamplighters doing Gilbert & Sullivan's The Gondoliers, the touring production of Spamalot, a Robert Burns Supper, an Australia Day party, a trip to Disneyland and California Adventure, multiple trips to various local museums for a wide variety of special exhibitions ranging from Maharajah at the Asian (thanks
thedeadlyhook!), the Venetians, the Cult of Beauty: the Victorian Avant Garde (twice), and the Jean Paul Gaultier retrospective (three times, so far). 4. Work is busy. Tax preparation was complicated. I still have to fill out the insurance claim from the car. theft. I have somehow been convinced to join the school's PTA board, resulting in lots of meetings. I don't like meetings, but I understand them, if that makes any sense. I'm pacing myself by only dealing with the emails twice a week.
5. I changed health insurance coverage, and my new providers are taking every reported ache as an indication that I need to have something extracted or inserted. "You don't really NEED your (your choice of "non-essential" organ here). Why not take it out before it causes you some real problems?" they ask. Which I can sort of see, I guess, but I am surgery averse, and convinced that "procedures", especially multiple procedures, will inevitably result in unintended consequences. I mean, I didn't even go to the hospital to give birth, as it seemed ridiculous to do so unless there was a problem. This attitude mystifies the medical personnel I'm dealing with, for some reason. ;-) After it took seven office visits to do everything surrounding a single root canal, I'm not eager to embark on anything more complicated. The root canal itself was mostly fine, but SEVEN OFFICE VISITS! It's just so...boring.
6. MiAmor is having a bit of a victory lap this year. It is a significant anniversary of the comic he and his brothers do, and they were asked to give a talk at California State University at Northridge last month, and are slated to be special guests at Comic-Con, the Alternative Press Expo, and have a retrospective of their work shown at the Cartoon Art Museum coming up. Google is also sniffing around for a personal appearance at their campus. He's also participating in the Latino Cartoonist Expo next month. Fun, but busy.
7. I'm supposedly working on fic. Heh. I have 3 or 4 things that I keep switching between/avoiding. We'll see if I meet a single deadline. It shouldn't affect my postings, but my paid DW account has expired, and I'm not able to renew at this time. So, how in the heck do they decide which of your icons to make "inactive"? And why can't you go through and decide for yourself? Huh? It doesn't seem all that user friendly to me. *grumble*
ETA: An anonymous sweetheart has renewed my paid DW account! Woo hoo! Thank you so much, kind someone! *hugs icons*
8. I was interviewed for the Legendary Women — Buffy Month, in my role as community co-mod for
fantas_magoria. It's up right before the one with my very good friend Jane Espenson! It's interesting to see a few of my thoughts laid out like that, but as McDiva noted: so many words! Whatever happened to my trademark brevity?9. I stopped by the Mark Does Stuff Tour kick-off event at the local public library this evening. It was marginally entertaining. Not deep, but he's such a sweet little puppy that I couldn't help but be somewhat charmed.
10. I have thinky thoughts on The Hunger Games movie, and Cabin in the Woods, and the interesting places that they intersect. I just don't know when I will get them down. Tsk. The short version is that I liked 'em both!
no subject
Date: 2012-04-20 02:39 pm (UTC)I'm impressed by McDiva's school production! I came from a school with a great arts program, but no one ever mistook us for professionals, lol (although we did send one or two alums to Broadway).
Re: DW icons, I think they go by how many times you've used them and deactivate the least-used ones first.
no subject
Date: 2012-04-20 08:34 pm (UTC)The school is pretty special, but they ought to be good since the kids work on their specialty for at least 2 hours a day, and the productions are in addition to that. Work, work, work! Today she's on a field trip to Lucas' ILM facility. Pretty sweet!
ETA: Some sweetheart has renewed my paid account! Woo hoo! *hugs icons*
no subject
Date: 2012-04-21 01:15 am (UTC)Wow - how cool is that school?
You have such a busy life. And such an interesting one.
no subject
Date: 2012-04-21 05:35 pm (UTC)Things are definitely hopping. Sometimes I worry I am over-involved with McDiva's life, but she seems okay with it mostly — as long as I let her do her thing and don't make her stand around while I talk about school business with other boring grownups! Still, we manage to have fun. I got a lot of brownie points for the Disneyland trip, during which she was allowed to bring a friend and we met up with the The Hand-Holding Boy. The three of them held hands for two days straight, McDiva in the middle. So cute!