Day 870 -Sunday Catch Up

Today I got back to the business of rehearsing my show “Born Again in Berkeley“. I haven’t performed it since April 30th! Too much time has passed.

After rehearsing, I updated my script, my sound cues, and was thinking about mopping the bathroom and kitchen floors for good measure, when my friend texted me and wanted to hang out. So I didn’t mop the floor- but got in the shower instead. But then she was running late, so I was still able to mop the floor. It was a win-win.

She picked me up and as I got into her car she said, “Too bad it’s a cloudy day or I would have suggested we go for a ferry ride.” Of course, I let her know that a cloudy day on a ferry sounded pretty good to me and that I don’t do well in the afternoon sun. But she had a point that the view of SF from the ferry is much better on a sunny day.

We got some pizza and headed over to the lake. And then, whaddya know, the sun came out…

We ate, we chatted, and we looked for oversized baggy cargo pants for her on Amazon. Then we walked past a drum circle, the street vendors, and landed at this historical building:

The Bellevue-Staten Building, built in 1929. They don’t make ’em like they used to. Isn’t it grand?

Same Building Circa 1930

We headed back to her car, she dropped me off, and I poured myself a cold one: a can of Peet’s Iced Coffee. Later on, I zoomed with some other friends, and we got caught up on our lives. It was the quintessential Sunday.

Sunday, July 31, 2022:

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Day 869 – Rough Draft

I had my solo performance class today. I think I am going to take my time with this new story and not try to perform it for the class performance in August. I think I will do an excerpt of “Born Again in Berkeley” instead.

I have been enjoying the messy writing process so much that I am not ready to edit or “clean it up” yet. I pretty much vomit on the page every week and see where it takes me. Although today, after class, I had my reoccurring epiphany that I always seem to forget until I get to this stage of the game: I have to memorize my writing so I can perform it, and then rewrite it. Seriously, it’s not until I am off book, moving around in my body, that I realize where the changes need to be made. I guess I better start memorizing this very rough draft of a story, only to change it later.

Speaking of memorizing, starting tomorrow, I need to rehearse “Born Again in Berkeley” every day until my next show on Sunday, August 7th in Novato. Time to get it back into my bones! I also need to update my script, find my sound cue list, and send out an email. Much to do!

And now, back to watching another episode of “Stranger Things“. Last night I noticed the obligatory “Trapper Keeper” prop inside the girl’s locker, but where was the Pee Chee folder? It’s not the 80’s without a Pee Chee folder, just sayin.

Saturday, July 30, 2022:

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Day 868 -That Time of the Month

The sun barely came out today, which suits me just fine. I am enjoying this “no sky July” as the weatherman puts it. We have been having a rather mild summer here in Oakland, while others have had fires, and now,………..floods.

It’s so weird how we are part of the same country, yet worlds apart.

This morning I officially checked out of the “Hotel Cat Sit”. I scooped the litterbox one last time, refilled their food and water bowls, and high tailed it out of there, back to my home sweet home. I will be sleeping in my own bed for the first time in 10 days I think, and I am tired.

I didn’t realize how tired I was until I got settled in. Yesterday turned out to be a rather stressful day at the office and today I felt hungover. I wasn’t very productive besides answering some work emails and doing two loads of laundry. I didn’t even go on my walk. I was so tired that I ordered delivery via Door Dash because I have no food in my apartment and didn’t have the energy to shop. And then I realized when I filled out my timesheet for work- I hadn’t taken any time off this month. I know that might seem like not a big deal, but before menopause, I took at least one day a month off, ha ha. And I needed that day to recharge. Looks like I am going to have to continue to have my “that time of the month” day off, even if it’s not a sick day. Well, it sort of is- how about a sick day for my emotional well-being?

I was so tired today that I didn’t take any pictures. And now I am wondering what I should watch tonight. Stranger Things or Downton Abbey or something new? Decisions…..decisions.

Friday July 29, 2022:

Day 867 -Stranger Things

Tonight is my last night with the cat folk:

Make what you will of that body language.

I am ready to be home again. All my stuff contained in one place, easily accessible, and not in suitcases or Trader Joes bags. Also, I miss my Roku. Speaking of Roku….

I started watching “Stranger Things” last night. It takes place in 1983 and it got most of the details right, but there’s a scene where some high schoolers shot gun a beer and I don’t remember anybody shot gunning beer until 1985 because of this movie:

But I could be wrong.

But what I am not wrong about is the song they chose to end the second episode with:

The Bangles’ cover of Simon & Garfunkel’s “Hazy Shade of Winter” – which was released in 1987.

Get it right Stranger Things– you are messing with my memories. I have to ding you.

An entertaining show so far, but they need to hire me as a 1980s pop culture consultant.

I love that Winona Ryder and Matthew Modine are in it though- excellent casting.

Thursday, July 28, 2022:

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Day 866 – Creative Stuff

Today I realized my next two performances of my solo show “Born Again in Berkeley” are coming up fast!

Sunday, August 7th – @ The Quest Novato, 10am church service – get tickets here

Saturday, August 20th– @ The Journey Center, 7pm – get tickets here

I am adding in three more minutes of material to this show that I had to cut for fringe festivals. Running time is approximately 63 minutes.

I am also tinkering with my new website. I know I have a couple of broken links in there somewhere, but here’s the gist:

https://theresadonahoe.com/

I wish I didn’t have a day job. I wish I could just concentrate on creative stuff. Speaking of creative stuff, I got some more writing done today for my new story. I am really having fun with it. It’s partly about being a SF Bay Area native and how the times have changed since my great grandparents lived here.

I have two more nights cat sitting in Berkeley. I will miss these cats that only semi-warmed up to me. Oh well, maybe next time!

Wednesday, July 27, 2022:

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Day 865 – Keeping it Light

Today in Covid news….

Actually, this was yesterday’s news, but I didn’t hear about it until today. I also got an email from our headquarters at work saying that our Fresno office had a Covid outbreak as well. *sigh* I don’t ever want to hear the term “outbreak” or “quarantine” or “pandemic” again. I could never work in a hospital or write a science fiction novel. This is all too much some days. Perhaps that’s why I choose to “keep it light” in the forefront of my life while in the background our world burns – literally.

Speaking of keeping it light….

FOUND IT!

I finally finished the multi-cache today after work. Look at the size of that thing. I took a “travel bug” from it. I have never understood what “travel bugs” are, but apparently, they are geocache swag that travels from cache to cache. You can register them online and track their whereabouts. I rarely find caches big enough to drop them off in though. We’ll see. But if my travel bug travels more than I do, I will be very jealous.

The sky looked so cozy tonight right before sunset and it drizzled a little in Berkeley! You know you’re in a drought when you get excited about drizzle.

Tuesday, July 26, 2022:

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Day 864 – Scenic Avenue

There’s a wildfire by Yosemite whose winds are supposed to blow our way tomorrow.

Crazy.

I was back in the office today when I got an email alert of a new multi-stage geocache in the Piedmont hills. Aw, my old stomping grounds during Shelter in Place. This neighborhood was my go-to for pandemic sunset pictures in early 2020. I had to attempt it after work, but it was broken up into many stages, and I knew I would be fighting the light.

Stage 1 Cache

Look at that thing. It’s a “creature cache” that was hooked to a tree branch. Very creative! I signed the log and pondered the clue of the next location. I actually didn’t understand the clue, but I know this area so well that I just figured it out.

Stage 2 Cache

A bird feeder cache! How cute is that? There was a lever at the bottom where I was able to pull open and get the log so I could sign it. Then I read the clue of the next location, and it literally described this lamp post that had photo bombed all my sunset pictures from 2020:

View From Scenic Avenue

This tiny thing was on the lamp post:

Stage 3 Cache

Then that’s where my trail grew cold. I could not interpret the hint of the final location of the final cache and at that point, the sun had set, so I had to skedaddle. Tune in tomorrow to see if I reach the grand finale. I know, my life is just so exciting. I keep reading Instagram posts of people traveling all over the world and I just think, “how much disposable income do they have?“

I would love to travel more, but if I can’t, at least I get to live in a scenic part of the world that has amazing weather. I am so grateful for that.

Monday, July 25, 2022:

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Day 863 -Sunday in the Park

Today was a Berkeley day, as I stayed on this side of town. I did my morning walk in West Berkeley:

Then I met up with a friend in the afternoon to catch the SF Mime Troupe show at Live Oak Park, and no, it’s not an actual group of mimes, but an outdoor political theater group:

It was very economically written as they had to cover numerous topics that have been happening over the last two years. And even though it preaches to the choir, I still found it entertaining with one actor, Andre Amarotico, being a particular stand-out as the “capitalist villain.” He has incredible stage presence. I was also impressed with the sound system because doing outdoor theatre can be tricky, tech-wise, but I was able to hear the actors very clearly.

It was a little too hot for me though out in the afternoon sun, so I had to escape to the shade:

My view while lying on a blanket under a tree as the band played on…

And of course, this park had one hidden geocache in it:

FOUND IT

After the show we grabbed an iced coffee and took a stroll through the Berkeley Rose Garden and then headed back over to my friend’s place for a meal. The clouds were rolling in as I sat on my friend’s deck cooling off. I will forever be grateful for God’s natural air conditioning:

Sunday, July 24, 2022:

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Day 862 -Saturday Sloth

It felt glorious to be able to sleep in today. I really needed it as I slothed through my day.

I could feel my brain recharging as I moved at a leisurely pace. And then I started getting some ideas for my latest story, so I jotted those down. They say we get inspiration when our minds are at rest, which explains why sometimes people get ideas while doing routine things like driving or taking a walk. It opens up the creative portal inside our brain.

After writing, I rehearsed my other show since I have three upcoming performance dates. I was just running my lines without the blocking and noticed I was under my normal time by many minutes. To the point where I thought maybe I had dropped some lines, but when I checked my script, I hadn’t forgotten anything. Rehearsing without an audience always run faster because I don’t pause for reactions.

Even though I had gone to the farmer’s market, wrote, rehearsed, and did laundry, I still felt like a sloth and that is just ridiculous. I don’t want to put pressure on myself to always be productive. It’s perfectly okay to do nothing. ln fact, I love doing nothing- I wish I did nothing more.

On Facebook I asked people for a “Time Travel” movie suggestion since I have become obsessed with this theme lately. I was rewatching “Kate and Leopold” for the hundredth time when someone suggested:

THE LAKEHOUSE

I was kinda going along with it, but it was pretty predictable, and I found the ending a little confusing because if they are always two years apart, wouldn’t they be two years apart at the very end? Meh. Next!

I didn’t take hardly any pictures today. I was inside watching time-travel movies. I’m a sloth, remember?

Saturday, July 23, 2022:

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Day 861 – Aquatic Park

This morning I woke up to this:

Don’t Hate Me Because I’m Beautiful

Who wore it best? I vote for the cat.

Today after work I decided to look for a geocache in a park I had never really been to before.

I have lived in the Bay Area my whole life and have driven past this park many times (you can see it from the freeway). But I have never really had a reason to visit it. Until now.

FOUND IT

Actually, the one on the right was found outside a donut shop. No, I did not partake. I have been eating like crap lately because I haven’t been home, so I keep eating “on the run.”

I went for a walk from Aquatic Park to the edge of the Bay via the Pedestrian Bridge, which I have also never walked on.

It was another lovely day in the Bay. I know people love to hate on us but look at how Karl the Fog protects us from a heatwave!

I am so looking forward to sleeping in tomorrow. Good night.

Friday, July 22, 2022:

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