For the Love of Books

    When I was living in Oxford, England, the most humbling event was when I was allowed to use the Bodleian Library for the first time.  The weight of the knowledge and imagination contained within the rooms of that special place was awe inspiring.  We had to take an oath in order to use the reading rooms. : "I hereby undertake not to remove from the Library, or to mark, deface, or injure in any way, any volume, document, or other object belonging to it or in its custody; not to bring into the Library or kindle therein any fire or flame, and not to smoke in the Library; and I promise to obey all rules of the Library.”
    I long to get back there to study once again.  It is glorious.  

Follow this link to see a bit of the inside of the library - as well as some other amazing book places I long to haunt!

Over extended and under paid!

   I am in the home stretch for the show.  As You Like It goes into technical rehearsals this week.  Still so much to do.  Today, between Girl Scout meetings, shopping for GS meeting, and doing all the family things I have been not doing this week because I was in the theatre, I am building a suit in purple chevron wool, for a character who, with the fat suit I already made, has a chest of 52" and a somewhat larger waist.
   I spent the past two days in the theatre painting - the floor had to be done so the lighting designer had some idea of the amount of bounce light he would be dealing with - the value of the floor is very important when designing for an arena theatre.  I had students in for a few hours on Friday, and they were pretty helpful, but I did have to spend some time correcting their mistakes.  Little things which, with time and experience, they would have seen as  incorrect, but which take a while to correct.  I wanted the rock steps to look like they were made out of granite, so they had been based grey, and I asked them to gently and lightly sponge some colours on.  When they were done I had something resembling a cheetah's fur.   My own fault, as I did not do it with them, but I assumed it was so simple that they could do it without supervision.  NEVER ASSUME!
   So yesterday, with an audio book playing, I feather dusted and sprayed 6 different colours over the floor's base colour - I think that is done.  I tempered the pattern on the stone steps. I played with texture on the trees. Now all I have to do is finish the tree texture and grade the top into darkness - tricky since this theatre has no catwalks and all must be done with extension ladders propped against the lighting grid. I have to get the vines hung, the rocks touched up, the branches and stones for the floor in place, and finish all the costumes.  The garments that were pulled are in good shape, but the gowns, suits, and strongman outfit that are being built are in various stages of unfinished.   A long week ahead? Oh yes.  Now off the computer and back to work.

only God can make a tree

   This has been running through my head for the past few weeks.  "Only God can make a tree" but I have had to design two and ask my scene shop to create them. 
     To backtrack, I am designing the costumes and the scenery for the production of  As You Like it at the college where I am employed.  The challenge in doing this in the first half of a semester is that the costume construction class students are still learning how to sew, so the majority of the cutting, and stitching will fall to me.  They are getting great at the alterations - hems and closures - but the major construction will depend on the workstudy girls and me.  This would not be bad, but by designing the set as well, I feel I am not able to spend enough time in either the scene shop or the costume shop. 
     That being said, my Technical Director, and Asst. Tech. Director are a dream to work with.  Not one of us had ever made a three dimensional tree (did I mention this is for an arena setting - audience on all sides?) and therefore we'd certainly never made two of them.  Drawing them was a trick - trying to add dimensions a bit time consuming, and ultimately when I gave them to the shop, I told them - I want the essence of this drawing.  So they were able to take my  drawings and create some pretty amazing  trees.  Here are a few shots with the beginnings of paint on them - there is a lot of detail paint yet to come.


the touchdown tree!

Tree with wrap around root - it gives Celia a lovely seat nestled into the tree

We are still working on the leaves and a few branches of them will hang out of the grid to represent all the foliage that is so high above we do not see it past the lighting instruments.   There is a swing which they rigged fro the grid, several other smaller scenic elements, but best of all, growing flowers.  Normally this is not a big deal, but we have no trap room in this theatre, and the director wanted them to grow out of the top of a short wall (sort of like a small window box).  Our TD raised an eyebrow and looked dubious,  our ATD just frowned a bit, and then they did it. 
    The leaves are another fun aspect - the play starts in late winter - thus no visible leaves, then spring arrives (the flowers grow!)  and the leaves need to appear.  I mocked up a leaf from

screen wire and the Tech Director - who is also the lighting designer for the show is now  making cool things happen with light. (The screen wire acts similar to scrim, so this seemed a logical solution.)  I am very excited to see it completed.

Starting to add shadow colours



Adding small branches



So in case you were wondering why I have not been writing lately, this is my explaination.  Will post more photos as we get to the opening.

Knock, knock. Who's there? Nook. Nook who?

     I am a reader. I read  in bed. I read at the table. I  read in the bath tub.  I even read as I am brushing my teeth - really - why waste two good minutes.   I like books that are paper.  I like the smell, the weight, the feel of them in my hand.
     My son just got a Nook on loan from school for his English assignment.  I was intrigued.  It is relatively compact.  There are dozens of stories loaded onto it.  It looks pretty convenient, if the  conditions are right.  If there is electricity to charge it.  If you have no problems downloading the stories.  However, if I drop my book in the bathtub - yes, this happened once - I swear, and let it dry with napkins between the pages and it is  still readable.  It may have wavy pages, but it is still accessible.  If I drop a Nook in the tub...you see my point.
    So, like the woman in this article I will continue to be interested in the electronic format of books, but I will still haunt my local book shops, and Alibris.com, and spend more time than I have to spare reading library books. 

Playing in the Snow on a Winter's Day

   This is going to be a good winter.  The Almanac said so.  The snow is already proving it.  We had snow before Christmas.  The children were able to go sledding over their vacation (and we have the perfect sled run in our back yard).  More importantly, they actually want to go out in it to play.

He was ready to go in and did not want to smile!

    You may think that is not unusual, but I am finding the more technology takes over their lives, the more I have to cajole and sometime force my kids to go outside to play.  But yesterday was perfect.  Snow on the ground - a touch wet, so it was perfect for packing.  The sleds were fast. The fort was coming together,

 and the stream at the bottom of the ravine was running, making interesting shapes in the snow.

my son is the dark form to the right of the stream

 After church I made all three of my children go outside. 

 When they came in they were rosy-cheeked, 

smiling,

 tired and had enjoyed each other's company!  

Ah, the miracle of snow!

new beginnings

   This is a new year, and I may or may not be more consistent in the writing of this blog.  It gets thin or non-existent when life gets very busy, so I did very little once the holidays started. I hope yours went well - ours were busy, filled with family, saddened by the violence in Newtown, CT which is the town next door to where I grew up and where my family lives.  We said good-bye to some friends who died of natural causes, and got the great news that a younger cousin is engaged.
   We are starting the year with a few more rules in the house regarding electronics - the hand-held type especially.  I get very tired of looking at the top of my daughter's head as she  glues her eyes to her phone/iPod, or starts texting in the middle of a conversation she is verbally having with me.  My husband saw this article and edited it for our daughter.  I liked it a lot!
   Hoping you are enjoying a wonderful New Year's day - we are having a snowy, reading, relaxing kind of day before starting into the bustle of the 2013 obligations on our time.

Leaves before Sandy and blanket after

   The predictions were dire.  Clear everything out of the yard that could fly.  We obeyed the warnings, put by several gallons of drinking water, filled the tub for flushing, had canned foods, extra ice to keep the freezer/fridge cold when the power left us, and extra candles.  Now I am sending coats, blankets and hats and mittens to the  many who suffered all the things that were predicted for us that never happened.   We were lucky.  Our area got no more wind than an average summer storm, and very little rain.   Before the storm, we spent the weekend cleaning up - here is the result from the front yard alone:

With Four maples in the front yard alone, we get a few leaves!

Losing Mommy in the leaf pile

With Daddy.
below, watch Dad's entrance (but don't throw up, Mom is no cinematographer!)

  We are so grateful that we were spared, and that we are able to help friends and strangers who were hit so hard by the storm.  If you can spare any warm coats, boots, or money, please consider contacting your local red Cross to see how you can help.
Thanks.