I decided to run back to the library, which in the end was a good choice, since I was able to drop off a very large and heavy book. Also, in the book sale cart there was a very nice copy of Szabo's The Door (NYRB Classics) for $1. I was worried about missing my appointment, but I think I got there right on time. I was there to hear some feedback from one of the other writers in Toronto Cold Reads. She basically thought some scenes should be compressed or combined, and also didn't think a couple of the characters stood out. I thought most of her criticisms were good, though she really didn't get the point of The Pitch, and I may not make quite as radical changes to that as she suggested. Anyway, her main advice was that I was rushing too fast into doing a full production and that I should settle for table reads and perhaps a staged reading. This was not easy to take (and at least part of my interest is to get production experience for other projects), but perhaps it is the wisest course. I'm going to talk to a few other actors and get their views, but I am leaning in that direction. (If nothing else, it will cost much less and will actually require less time in rehearsals, so there is that to be said for it.)
I then set off for Fabricland, since they were having a sale. I found the right kind of elastic, so I should be able to finish my son's pajamas this week. I bought a few Christmas prints to supplement the left-overs from my daughter's quilt, plus bought some interesting patterns that could be used as borders or for a quilt with more of a fall feel. This is what they look like after washing.
As a side note, I showed them to my daughter later on and she got a bit jealous, even though her quilt will be done long before any of the other ones, so I agreed to rework the pattern a bit and add in a few pluses of foxes and polar bears. Fortunately, I hadn't gotten completely done with the cutting and sewing. As of today, I have cut nearly all the pieces for the first six rows and sewn 3 and a bit of the 4th row. My current plan is to get the first 6 rows assembled and then start sewing them length-wise. I should be able to get to that by Canada Day. I'm excited but a bit nervous at this undertaking.
I waited quite a while for a Dufferin bus to come by (that I could actually get on), but I finally made it to Dufferin and Queen. I was planning on looking up a few of the galleries in the Scotiabank Photography event, but 1) most events had closed a few weeks back and 2) the map was appallingly bad. I got so frustrated the third or fourth time that a gallery wasn't even on the right side of the street (and Gallery 401 was about 10 km out of place on the map!) that I chucked it in the garbage. I ended up seeing a small gallery in Parkdale and then Gallery 401 and that was about it.
I did like the exhibits in Gallery 401 (and thought briefly about buying a painting with the money I "saved" by not spending it on producing theatre or buying U2 tickets from scalpers). Then I grabbed lunch and went to see Guardians of the Galaxy #2. It was pretty good, though not quite as good as the first in my view. But it ran so long (and all the ads up front didn't help). I was expecting to get done by 5:30, but I didn't get out and to the subway until 6:25!
At this point, I wanted to get to a TCR writers' event, but it started at 7. That meant I had to go directly there, rather than dropping stuff off at home. I made it just a bit after 7, but they decided to hold off even longer, hoping that more women would show up to read the parts. They didn't actually get going until 7:30. Because I had so much stuff with me, I had to go home before heading back out to Lee's Palace, so I had to split at 8:30. That was unfortunate.
Anyway, I hustled and made it to Lee's Palace just after 10. The band I had come to see (Fujahtive) hadn't taken the stage. As it turns out my neighbour is in the band, and quite a few people from the block turned up (10 or so). They played from 10:30 to midnight, and I left after that, even though there was one more reggae band playing after them.
I didn't sleep in that long on Sunday, perhaps because I had a very disturbing dream that I worked in an office that basically looked like a concrete parking garage with all these weird angles. I was complaining about the rain (and the fact that some homeless person was camping out in the cubicle next to mine) but really the problem was going to be getting through the winter. I was definitely off my game, making all these mistakes in a presentation to the region-wide boss and I remember thinking that I was going to have to make another career/location move. A lot of anxieties competing with each other in that dream...
I dawdled just a bit and got caught in the rain on the way home with the groceries, but it wasn't all that bad. Eventually the rain cleared up, and I even managed to mow.
What was even better from a morale perspective is that I went to the Planet Fitness that just opened up in the mall. While I visited gyms in Vancouver, I basically only ever went to swim. I don't think I have gone regularly to a gym since the YMCA in Chicago. It's definitely been too long. I tried to take it easy, since there is nothing more discouraging than straining one's muscles when getting started. But it felt good to be working out on the machines. If only this place had a swimming pool or whirlpool it would be perfect. I'll just have to make it over to the Regents Park Aquatic Centre more often. It actually takes a lot of organization to start going to the gym, but I now have workout attire, new shoes, a new lock and even a new soap dish (since the showers are a bit spartan). I really don't have any more excuses, and I will make a strong effort to go 2-3 times/week, especially since it has been raining so much this June. Last week I only managed to ride my bike to work once, and this week doesn't look much better. There is no point imagining I will ever be thin again (my lifestyle and genes are no help), but I can at least improve my cardio condition and lose some of the extra weight. That is within my reach.
No comments:
Post a Comment