Oh my gosh, this is so much goodness wrapped in a yummy flour tortilla of hilarious, villainous fun!

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Had a great meeting with Vince Mountain, who is designing the set for our next production at Williamston Theatre, Leaving Iowa. Vince and I have worked on this show together before, so it’s fun to attack it a few years later in a different space. (Come to think of it, it’s been four years, so we’re both probably in very different spaces as artists than we were then, also… it’ll be interesting to see how the show differs from that perspective.)

Vince has been inspired by some of artist Richard Diebenkorn’s work, and brought it in to show me. I agree completely, Diebenkorn’s work has a nice feel for this show. One of the descriptions I read of his style is “abstract landscapes”, and I like it quite a bit! We won’t, of course, use a piece of his, but the style and feel are wonderful!

This is a piece of his titled Ocean Park No. 67.

This is a link to some of his other works.

My kids have been “up-north”* with Grandpa and Grandma all week, and are returning tomorrow. It’s been a quiet week at home, but a little too quiet – I’ve missed them! They’ve all had a blast though, and I’m really grateful for the relationship my kids have with my parents.

Jeanne and I have taken the time to do a little work around the house, we’re putting in a new kitchen floor, and next week we’re having new carpeting put into the living room and hallway! (We don’t have much carpeting in our house, it’s mostly hardwood, but what’s there has been there…well, I think since the 1970’s?! Well past time for a change!) So, spending a little money we can barely afford, but I think it’s worth it to feel good about where we live!

In an effort to get healthier, we’ve been doing a lot of grilling of good-for-you foods, like fish and vegetables, and only eating lean meats, and BOY has it been fun! I’ve done more grilling already this season then the last 3 or 4 years put together! So many great recipes, yum!

* For you non-Michiganians, this is a term used in Michigan all the time. It basically means when you head to the northern part of the Lower Peninsula, or any part of the Upper Peninsula, to relax and vacation. “Up north” often includes being in the woods, and/or near a river or lake!

Okay, a question for anyone out there:

What do you think of when you think of car trips that you took as a kid?

The next show I’m directing is Leaving Iowa, a great show about a guy who has to figure out where to leave his fathers ashes. As he drives around the Midwest, he also flashes-back to some of the family vacations they took when he was a kid. So, although I’ve directed this play before (I love it), I’m looking for ideas and thoughts on the kinds of things that people think of when you think back to driving around on car trips/summer vacations that you took when you were young? OR the trips you take now, as a parent, with your own kids!

No comment is too silly, too out there, too personal, too obvious or too obscure!

Thanks!!

So Opening Night of Talley’s Folly went wonderfully! The actors got a standing ovation, and the audience kept clapping after they’d left until they came out to take a second bow! That was a nice surprise. 🙂 I’m really, really happy with the work that the entire company has done on this production.

And we’re thankful for a splendid review, the first one out, from D.A. Blackburn of Encore Michigan.

One of his nicer comments:
Over the last two seasons, Williamston Theatre has proven time and again that good theater can come out of small towns. They’ve also shown that, with experience, a theater can improve the quality of its programming with each and every production. Williamston’s final offering of the 2007-2008 season, Lanford Wilson’s Talley’s Folly, opens on the heels of the company’s most ambitious offering to date, but true to form, the work sets a high benchmark for shows to come.

The entire review can be found here!

Before the question, though, to those of you who celebrate it:

Happy Independence Day! 🙂

Have a wonderful, safe weekend, and grill well!

Speaking of which – the question:

Anybody got any good grill recipes and/or techniques for grilling vegetables?! I need some ideas for this weekend! 🙂

EDITED to add: Found a great recipe for Grilled Garlic and Basil Eggplant!