Red-Handed Jill

Bo - THREE BUCKS??? Was this at some fancy theatre or something? When I was a kid a double feature plus cartoon cost 75 cents (and we're about the same age.) And a fairly large bag of candy cost a quarter. But you had to smuggle it in, since they DID NOT like you bringing in your own snacks. Until the 70's, some theatres had folks who patted you down to look for contraband incoming snacks. I remember being teased by a cashier upon paying for a candy bar that it would cost me a quarter. And recoiling in horror - at the time they were a nickel and the thought of paying twenty-five cents for just one candy bar was unthinkable...

Heck - I remember when flying, it was a big deal to be almost a mile and a half up and San Francisco to Montreal took two flights and two days. And flight attendants - excuse me, stewardesses - came by with silver trays with fancy candies on them. Nowadays, passenger planes fly at 37,000 feet up and you're lucky if you get tossed a packet of pretzels to go with the glass of water that you had to pay $2 for.

One of the big birthdays... Hope you're celebrating it in true pyratical fashion!

Actually, I sent an email to the director of the VNA (Visiting Nurses Association.) I figure it's a pretty safe bet that I was not the only person to have ever gotten the "harpy treatment" from those two so I figured that perhaps someone higher up should remind them that they are representatives of a compassionate care association and should not show the VNA in such a bad light. Typically, I am amused when people act that bizarrely but their reaction was so far out of reality I felt compelled to do something. And considering who they represented I thought someone should know and curb that sort of behavior before it creates any real ill will towards the VNA.

They are apparently very aware of these issues. I think they truly don't like having visitors to the area. The traffic is a nightmare and rather than perhaps investing in some decent mass transit they'd rather take the short view and discourage any traffic from visitors. Most of their problems are self-created but they won't do anything about them because they are too entrenched in the old way of doing things to change. Also, there's a bit of "I don't care if how they handle this in that new-fangled West is better - WE'RE too good to use those ideas" sensibility. So they aren't going to change, even if it makes things easier for them. And it really was only those two harpies who were nasty. The other folks I encountered were terrific. One thing they could do that would really help is teach locals how to merge. No one knows how to freakin' merge in that area - c'mon, it's not rocket science, people!

I had a rather ludicrous encounter during my trip to the Boston area. On my second day of teaching, on the way to the class I stopped at a local Dunkin Donuts for a flatbread sandwich. Rather than deal with the wacky traffic on this main street I figured I'd park across the street in the empty shopping center lot (none of the stores had opened yet, so it wasn't as if my ten-minute use of one parking space was doing any harm...) I made the mistake of parking in a section that apparently was the sole property of the Visiting Nurse Association. A couple of women were unlocking the door to the office when I parked my car. As soon as I got out, they opened the door and yelled, "are you a member of VNA?" Puzzled, I said no I wasn't. Then they screeched at me, "They'll tow you! They'll TOW you!!" With the amount of venom with which these two women said this, one would think that I had been desecrating their building rather than having mistakenly parked in their section of a large parking lot. I was really taken aback by this over-reaction to the situation. And I wondered who's this mysterious "they" - I knew better, that these two women would make sure my car was towed, but they were too cowardly to say so. For a split section I played with the idea of appealing to the better angels of their nature but on further reflection realised that there weren't any and it would be a futile attempt. These women work at an organization that supports compassionate care nurses. And yet, their reaction to an honest mistake went way beyond what the situation merited. Half of me was amused but after my previous adventures in the Boston area I really did not need to be screeched at by a couple of harpies.

Aye - inside our heads is still mysterious territory, physiologically speaking. I'm in the Boston area - about thirty miles northwest, actually, although there IS no such concept as east or west in the Boston area. So speaking in Bostonian, I'm thirty miles north of Boston. I just got back from a four-hour fool's errand to attempt to go to the Salem Maritime Museum. Four hours as in I was on the road all that time gnashing my teeth. Since I have navigated successfully through some really difficult areas over the years in my travels, I figured I'd be able to do this, but no dice. I kept thinking the county planners must absolutely LOATHE having visitors to the area. Whoever designed the roads and highways in and around Boston must have been on serious hallucinogens - or was a real sadist. I kept overhearing horror stories from fellow travelers about what a nightmare the area was to navigate in and can confirm they are true. I talked to a few residents and they said the same thing - even if you've lived here for years it's remarkably easy to get lost. And most locals just know their own area - perhaps their town and two neighboring towns but that's it. Learning how to get around further than that is too difficult. Very few of the roads are marked except on the very start and very end and to make matters worse, every few blocks, the name of the road changes. But because there aren't any street signs, you just have to take it on faith that the street you are on is the right one because you think you might have taken the correct way on those last three forks that weren't on the map... Did you know there are no highways that go east or west in the Boston area? They ALL go north and south - even the ones that go east and west. So you have to make your best guess whether that highway that is in reality headed east will be north or south - toss a coin. Also, very few of the exits actually indicate what the exit will actually go to. It will say one thing but when you take the exit you won't actually be where the exit indicated. When you ask a local, they'll say, "no you have to take __________ exit." And you're wondering - why doesn't the Salem exit actually go to Salem? (The Salem exit takes you to Beverly, not to Salem. And to confuse matters, a few exits before the Salem exit is a Salem Street exit - it doesn't go to Salem either.) Can you tell I've had a rough afternoon? At any rate, as soon as I'm done teaching I'm wiping this place from the soles of my shoes and getting the hell away from here. I told Jack to put a bullet in my head if I ever got an attack of the stupids and suggested we come here.

^ Tentative plans will be taking part in a big halloween party. < The theme will be a twisted carnival. I'm planning on being a rather tattered mermaid (as in closer to fiji mermaid... heh.) V Pass the question.

It's vacillating around thisaway, but mostly warm. However, I'll be in Boston next week to teach a class and I've been told to expect thunderstorms.

Har har - there was a sizeable gap that was more than large enough to shoot through. Ransom - this year at Ojai!

^ I'd volunteer for my favourite causes (donate to them as well) and in my spare time go sailing (of course!) < Just bought a new Thinkpad. Yippee! V Any plans for Autumn?

Yes, that's me firing a Hawken. Ransom, you should remember this - you were firing a pistol at the time...

Just got Patt's. Pretty cool idea! Hope you don't mind if I stitch an embroidered device onto one of the inner folds of the canvas.

Mine went out today!

Happy birthday!!! Hope it's a good one!

Definitely try it! Until yesterday I didn't think it was possible to be exhilarated and relaxed at the same time. I was wrong.

Last night was Ladies' Night, so we got a discount - $30 for two sessions. This place was featured in a Mythbusters episode. I think there's only two of these kind of places (at least open to the public) on the West Coast - one near San Francisco and one in the Seattle area. The group ahead of us had a team of skydivers and they were practicing their maneuvers. It was amazing to watch them!

Did my usual plethora of things at work and then went indoor skydiving! iFly SF Bay It was a blast and a half. If any of you come out thisaway you HAVE to try it.

No pity, but will send good thoughts your way, Blackfoot. And no laryngitis but I had to ice my back and right wrist. I feel fine now, though - and surprised that it took so little time to recover. Lady B - why is your father visiting you? As an adult you do have permission to say NO to him, BTW. The first time is tough, but it gets easier as time goes on.

Glad to hear all is well down South!

That's how it was done before. Mine will go out this week as well.

Wow - those look terrific, Ransom!

I just talked to someone attached to the San Diego Maritime Museum (and who is currently sailing the Rose) on Saturday and he said they are well underway towards restoring the Rose back to her original state. I was on it about a year ago, before they started restoring her and could see the changes made to it to prep it for the movie. Apparently, most of the changes were safety issues, so the restoration folks are working hard at getting her seaworthy again so that they can invite the public on board for sails. So it's highly unlikely they will be using this particular ship for a M&C sequel.

Exhausted! I spent both days this weekend performing at the Festival of Sail in San Francisco. Jack and I were hired as wandering musicians, which meant that we played from 10:00 am to 6:00 pm. We took a few breaks (including one for lunch) but out of eight hours, we played for six and a half. Have you ever sang and played a bodhran - with a heavy tipper, mind you - for six and a half hours? Two days in a row? But we had a great time. Folks were singing along and dancing jigs and taking our pictures. As in constantly. I'm used to having my picture taken when working at a pirate event - there are probably thousands of pictures of me in other peoples' albums (or CD's.) But this weekend beat every event I've ever done in terms of picture taking. As in hundreds a day - and that's just the ones we know about, where folks asked us if they could take our picture.

Oi - have I missed the festivities or am I still early yet? Hope you have a GREAT birthday Mad Jack!