Just back from New York, Having seen five productions I am predicting this is the year of Billy Elliot the new Elton John Musical steamrolling it’s way to win the Tony as Best Musical of 2009.
A huge hit in the UK and Austraila, BE has finally reached US soil after four years of nightly sell-outs. The production is playing The Imperial and is selling into January of next year. I had bought my ticket weeks prior for the closet seat I could get up in the first mezzazine. The show, the store hooks you from the first number ‘ The stars look down ‘ and doesn’t let go until the bittersweet end two and half hours later. Hopefully, most readers have seen the film Billy Elliot. Sir Elton saw the film at Cannes and was so moved he secured rights the next day. He has turned out a mostly powerful score to complete the tale of a young man who rises out of a poor upbringing who eventually becomes a member of The London Ballet. The musical closely follows the film. And for good reason the movie’s director also directs this production. Stephen Daldry directs with a gentle and yet fierce hand. Set against the year long miner’s strike in England in the mid eighties, Billy unseen starts taking ballet lessons unknown to his family unit. As he progresses, situations deteriorate in his small hometown. The strike has divided the town between union steadfast supporters and those who must cross the line to feed their families. Billy escapes to the civic center’s all girl ballet class. His salty, chain smoking, teacher Mrs. Wilkinson, sees in Billy a blossoming talent shooting from his thin frame.
Guiding Billy from beyond is the spirit of his deceased mother. He comes to realize although she died when he was very young, she is watching him experience the pain of adolesence. At home his striking father and older brother offer no encouragement. Billy’s dotting grandmother drinks her way through hazy memories of her marriage to “bastard ” of a husband. Billy’s best friend is still enrolled in boxing lessons at the gym. Secretly in love with his friend, Michael, dresses in his sister’s clothes and tells Billy to sport in the song ‘ Expressing Yourself “. This is one of the few numbers that has glitz and bright lighting and huge costumes. It comes at the right time and sends the audience in a clapping frenzy. The show quickly returns to it’s dark roots. The clever staging swiftly takes us to the bitter cold of the strking miners proclaiming ” Solidarity Forever.”, to Billy’s bedroom which is he quickly outgrowing. Huge hydraulics spiral sets from deep below the stage to eye level of the balconey. And the sound design, another sure Tony winner is incredible. At times the crushing crescendo blows you to the back of your seat. And it is futile to resist. What makes this show such a success is the highly dramatic storyline. Told in quick succession, the show has the audience laughing and the wiping away tears in minutes.
It is a perfectly packaged show that relates to the human spirit in all of us. There are characters that most audiences will relate to.
One caveat I must mention however. Billy Elliot has three boys playing the lead. Each one is so different from the other. Keys have to be changed and certain dance segments are suited to their individual talents. Because of the demads of the role ( he is in almost every scene ) they rotate the role. It is not announced until right before curtain who is going on. So a ticket buyer has no idea who they will see perform. Problem. I saw weakest, youngest actor dance Billy. He was a terrible singer and worse actor. Granted this show is about dancing, so I forgive a little. But he must carry the piece, and despite heavy miking, the Billy I saw gave great diservice to the score.
Ofcourse it is all up to interpertation, and I met some New Yorker’s who thought the lad I saw was the best of three.
By the end of the show, you have been put a thrilling night of theatre. Look for Billy to take the Tony and tour to a city near you in the next two years. Although top ticket price has climbed to 150$, if you are in New York try and score a ticket to the hottest show in town.
Billy Elliot will fill you with a feeling of electricity.

Learn how to flirt at Potsdam University, just south of Berlin! This course is designed for masters level Information Technology engineers and 440 students are enrolled.

…learn how to write flirtatious text messages and emails, impress people at parties and cope with rejection.

As I started reading this article, I became indignant. I mean some of the sexiest people I know are computer geeks! I even know for a Germanophile computer geek that has had ladies fighting over him more than once. Its no fair that computer geeks are always depicted as lonely outcasts, unlucky at love and socially inept. I found the emphasis on texting and emails surprising. A lot of geeks are quite adept at flirting outrageously in online gaming, message boards, not to mention email. Back in my Everquest days, I played a male character to prevent getting hit on all the time!

Like all stereotypes, there is some truth to computer geeks struggling socially. But I find this more often to be true for in-person interactions, not online. I have had the joy and pleasure of meeting geeks in person after knowing them for years online. Without exception, each in-person meeting was fraught with anxious nerves and a few awkward moments, but years of shared experiences prevailed. I have to admit that I cracked up when I saw the computer den of a 6′2 guy who always played a dwarf online. It was a classic geek paradise set up in a dark basement. A recliner in front of a computer screen and TV. A mini fridge next to the chair and junk food EVERYWHERE. I saw his computer den but not the dwarf, he backed out and left me chatting with grandpa.

Reading the article further, they say how Philip von Senftleben’s course will cover

…body language, public-speaking, stress management and presentation skills.

Many universities offer job seeking skills in addition to subject matter. Everyone needs an edge in this economy. To succeed in the workforce, it is important to be able to interact socially with superiors, co-workers, customers etc. Business skills was a required course for my web development certificate and focused on resume development and business communication. It wasn’t just designed for us computer geeks. It was required for all certificate students. It certainly didn’t teach us how to flirt. But, then again that course never made it in the news either. Trying to teach those poor geeks how to flirt, now that is news.

Well maybe it is news for some, the uninformed. I know better and so do the people at ThinkGeek.com who sell this shirt!

For 15 years, I have been wearing a jacket embroidered with hearts on World AIDs Day. It started in 1993, when I was a HIV/AIDS Case Manager for Snohomish county. I wanted a very visible way to acknowledge how many hearts had stopped beating due to this disease.  I started sewing the hearts on the jacket, when my patients died, as a way to give tribute to their passing.  One day, one of my patients called me to his bedside and handed me a package gaily wrapped in tissue paper. Inside, was a beautiful beaded heart. He told me had gotten scared that there so many hearts on my jacket, that I would forget which one was his when his time came. He wanted to give me his heart before he died and make it unique so I would never forget him. David’s partner recognized his desperation to not be forgotten. He beaded a gold heart with a red ribbon on it as a tribute to David.

It has been 13 years, and the jacket is getting a bit frayed and faded. But, I still know exactly which heart represents David on my jacket.

The 20th anniversary of World AIDS Day is 12/1/08 and bloggers are asked to join in the efforts to educate, increase awareness,  to initiate conversation and action in terms of prevention, policy and treatment. Over the past 27 years, we have made great strides against this disease but there is so much more to be done. This is an excellent video from World Vision about how this HIV/AIDS has evolved over the last 27 years and where it stands today.

How has your life, heart and mind been changed by AIDS? Join us in promoting HIV/AIDS awareness by sharing your stories, thoughts, ideas and memories. A World AIDS Day Blog Carnival has been created to compile art and articles submitted by bloggers. If you would like to participate in the Bloggers Unite for World AIDS Day blog carnival, submit your entries to the blog carnival here. There are prizes available and although it is hoped that they will encourage more participation, the real goal of this initiative is to the get the word out in as many different ways as possible, and from many perspectives.

Please join us!

While attemping to watch the evening news, I was subjected to ELEVEN political ads.  One was shown twice in one commercial break, with an ad for her opponent in between. These people are running for Congress in a different district than the one that I live in. They are arguing over whether Darcy Burner’s computer science degree with a specialization in economics from Harvard  counts as a degree in economics or not. Don’t get me going on the vindictive ads that governor Gregoire and Rossi are running, but at least I had a say in that election. I have no say in that other congressional district. Yep I could change the channel but there are just as many ads on the other channels. I am frustrated because I want to watch the news, there is a lot going in my city, state, country and the world that are independent of the election that will thankfully be over tomorrow. 

I sent in my absentee ballot in last week. Shouldn’t I get a reprieve from the bickering, backstabbing and often ridiculous ads?!?!

I love to cook. I mean I REALLY love to cook! Last winter, I was able to make some modifications to my kitchen to make it easier to manage. One of the things that would make things easier is a good quality cook book holder. I need something sturdy that would hold the book up and keep the pages from flipping willy nilly. I was delighted when I found that Happy to Be Home was doing a giveaway on a gorgeous cookbook holder.

You can enter to win too (as long as I am the one that actually wins that beauty). You get one entry by typing a comment on the post at Happy to Be Home. You can enter a second time by posting about the contest in your own blog. Hence you know why I am letting you in on my secret desires!

I am in love. I found a new foodie site full of gorgeous images and delicious and diverse recipes. Later on, I will move the widget to the side bar but I want to make sure that you have a chance to browse through it here first. Think of it as a tantalizing tease.

Clara Meadmore of Britain is not the first centenarian to attest to the benefits of staying single. She is the first one that I am aware of that also swore off sex!
Born in 1903, Clara Meadmore decided at the age of 12 not to get married and for her that meant no sex.

“I imagine there is a lot of hassle involved and I have always been busy doing other things…”

I have to agree that sex can be a hassle. It can be confusing, messy and obsessive. But like most aspects of life it has a flip side. It can be pleasurable, exciting, invigorating, connecting, fun and a celebration. 105 years of virginity? No thanks, I prefer the hassles even if might cut my life expectancy to under a 100.

Our bail out dollars are hard at work, saving the economy! I am so glad that my tax dollars are helping the insurance industry executives relax away their cares with luxury spa treatments. AIG executives took a $440,000 retreat in a luxury spa. The House Government Oversight Committee showed copies of invoices showing that the AIG spent more than $23,000 on spa treatments and nearly $150,000 on banquets at the resort.I am sure that the executives that got their company in such a mess were under a lot of stress. I guess a $85 billion bail out wasn’t enough to alleviate those sore necks.

Since the news broke, our law breakers are up in arms. Rep. Paul Kanjorski, D-Pa. wrote a letter Thursday to Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, Kanjorksi complained about AIG’s $443,000 tab for the weeklong, late September stay at the St. Regis Monarch Bay resort and asked the Fed to take “immediate action to reclaim every penny” spent on the event.

In addition, the Federal Reserve agreed to provide an additional $ 37.8 billion credit line to AIG and its subsidiaries on Wednesday. I guess they need more money to cover their retreat costs.

AIG spokesman Joseph Norton said earlier this week that the California trip was a “recognition event” for independent insurance agents and their spouses, along with 10 AIG employees.

That is no excuse or rationale for that exorbitant spending. Have a pizza party at work or give them a plaque to recognize their sales. Obviously, they still aren’t selling enough insurance policies or the executives haven’t figured out how to manage the policies they do have. Yes, we had catastrophes world wide that are a blow to insurance companies. That means it is time to tighten belts, not loosen them after a huge extravagant meal!

In the Geek and Gaming world, FAIL can bring cries of frustration and a stream of colorful language. it isn’t just in the gaming world that we fail.  The Fail blog is an assortment of screenshots, images and videos that represent failure to communicate, to reason or in some cases use any common sense!
It may not be nice to laugh at the confusion of others but it is compelling some times! And it can be a fun way to de-stress for a minute or two as you browse the epic fail of mankind.

A little foresight can go a long way in effectively communicating with your customers with truth and integrity.
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