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What to do this week-end: go to events, watch television

So, I’ve got a lot to do this week-end, on top of the regular stuff (laundry, grocery shopping, all the stuff I don’t have time to do during the week.)

Tonight is the play session of A Match Made in Austen at l’As des Jeux (the Game Buff). eta Make that was, because I’m finishing up this post having returned from the event. It was amazing. There were so many players that neither Caro nor I needed to play ourselves, we could simply explain and moderate and let the players make their own fun. They got over the timidity that comes from playing with a group of strangers pretty well, and everyone had a great time. Some players had suggestions as to how to improve the game, which is awesome because it means they are invested in it (we might even implant some of those ideas.) They also all promised to back us on the Kickstarter. (Perhaps you could do the same, if you have not already done so.)

Saturday is the inaugural Prose in the Park. As it is a new event, I have no idea what to expect, but the concept sounded really cool, and Renaissance committed to rent a table for the day, which I’ll be manning with my friend and co-Renaissance-author Caroline Fréchette. I only hope that it doesn’t rain, because the event is outside. Yes, we have a tent, but rain would decrease the traffic exponentially, and sitting at a table in the rain waiting for people who are unlikely to come because of said rain is a very unpleasant experience, even if one doe shave a tent. The weather app on my tablet does promise sunshine and a high of 20 degrees Celsius tomorrow, so let’s hope for that.

Saturday evening is the Belmont stakes, the last race of the Triple Crown. The Test of the Champions. I don’t always watch the Belmont. I only really get invested when there’s a chance that a horse will win the triple crown, meaning that the same horse wins both the Derby and the Preakness. This is what happened this year (good job American Pharaoh) and I think the horse really has a good shot at Belmont, so I am genuinely excited about this. And, doesn’t it just figures, I probably won’t even be able to watch it live. According to the Belmont website, the call to post is going to be at 6:49, so I might make it, depending on how long it takes to pack everything up and on the kind of traffic we hit on the way back to town. I made arrangements to record the race, just in case.

Sunday, on top of being the “get caught up before the week starts over again” day, is the Tony Awards. This one televised event actually puts me in a pickle. I am super invested in the Tonys this year. Of the plays I went to see in New York this Easter, two were new plays and potentially eligible to Tony Nominations. And they both got nominations: three for The Audience (Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Play for Helen Mirren, Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Play for Richard McCabe, Best Costume Design of a Play for Bob Crowley) and twelve for Fun Home (Best Musical, Best Book of a Musical for Lisa Kron, Best Original Score (Music and/or Lyrics) Written for the Theatre for Jeanine Tesori and Lisa Kron, Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical for Michael Cerveris, Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical for Beth Malone, Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Musical for Judy Khun, Sydney Lucas and Emily Skeggs, Best Scenic Design of a Musical for David Zinn, Best Lighting Design of a Musical for Ben Stanton, Best Direction of a Musical for Sam Gold, Best Orchestrations for John Clancy). And on top of that, it’s hosted by Kristen Chenoweth and Alan Cumming, who are two of my favorite performers.

The pickle, here, is that it’s a Sunday night. I have work on Monday, and this will likely last until eleven or so, much later then I usually go to sleep. I don’t want the experienced spoiled for me, especially not this year, but I know that if I don’t watch it live, it will inevitably be spoiled, because something like half the blogs I follow on Tumblr are musical blogs, and they are going to talk about the winners and GIF all the funny/touching moments. So I have no idea what I’m going to do. I may very well end up sleeping much too late and be a zombie on Monday.

(Maybe if I take a nap Sunday afternoon, and another nap Monday afternoon after work…)

Anyway, that’s my week-end. It’s a busy one, but there are worse kinds of week-ends to have.

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Posted by on June 5, 2015 in Uncategorized

 

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What to do this week-end: Watch the Kentucky Derby

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The most exiting two minutes in sports. The run for the roses. The first jewel of the Triple Crown. The Kentucky Derby is known by many names. I call it “The one sporting event I make a point to watch every year, because it’s the only one I care about.”

I first started watching the Derby in 2008. I don’t know what I was doing the other years, I’m not even sure why I started watching it. All I really remember is that the television was on NBC that afternoon, and I was in the dining room watching it, and there were celebrities on the screen talking about their picks for this horse race they paid a small fortune to come and watch. One of the celebrity, I think it was Jerry O’Connell, said that they was rooting for Eight Bells because having a filly in the Derby was (and still is) such a rare thing. That is what caught my attention. One girl against 19 boys? Count me in! You go, girl horse! So I watched the hours of footage and interviews and touching back-stories. I watched the race, where I favorite came in second place. I watched her fall down after the race was over, having broken both front ankles, and I heard the announcement that she had been euthanized. So… that was a memorable first experience.

I was a little anxious when I went to watch the next Derby, but I watched it anyway. I watched Calvin Borel win two Derbys in a row, and then lose the next one. I watched the rivalry between the scrappy underdog I’ll Have Another and grand favorite Bodemeister. I missed the 2013 Derby (I don’t remember why, maybe I was out of town, but that’s not a reason not to turn on the tv) but I went back on track last year, when “people’s horse”, California Chrome, took the race by 1 and 3/4 lenght. And I’m going to watch tomorrow.

Who do I pick to win? I don’t know! Every year I tell myself that I really should start following the racing world during the rest of the year, get more informed and make a more educated choice then “I like that horse’s name”, and every year May comes around and takes me by surprise. So I guess I’ll be looking out for the interviews, the expert opinion and the touching back-stories. So far, the names I like best are Frosted and Carpe Diem.

 
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Posted by on May 1, 2015 in Uncategorized

 

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What to do this weekend: watch the 1995 BBC version of Pride and Prejudice.

I’m keeping this short and sweet, because I didn’t think to plan ahead. This is my favorite version of Pride and Prejudice.  I think that, in many ways, it is the definitive version. I found the 2005 movie… let’s say “disappointing”. If you want a version that celebrates Jane Austen’s witty writing and the regency esthetic,  this is the one for you.

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I was so happy when I walked into a Blockbuster on my 20th birthday and saw this on sale. It makes me feel sad for the younger generation, who will never know that pleasure.

 
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Posted by on April 17, 2015 in Uncategorized

 

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