And Fringe Begins!

I shed most of the germs just in time for Fringe to start tonight.  The Village was hopping and I had a fun time 'directing traffic' for the Performers Parade.  I tried to have fun with it with some fancy arm circling and pointing the way.  Directing actors in a parade is kind of like herding cats, but probably more fun!

I then did a bit of a recon of the site and then proceeded to the line up for my first Fringe show, Fiorello!, at the Varscona.  I had a lovely chat with another solo theatre goer in the line and sat with her for the show. Line chats are an important part of Fringing particularly if you go on your own.  I am always fascinated by the openness of people in Fringe line-ups to talk to complete strangers.  It's kind of cool.

The show was fun.  Clearly a scaled down version since they had to squeeze a full-length musical into a more reasonable fringe running time, but the cast of 6 did a good job populating early 20th Century New York.  I was not familiar with the show prior to, but found the music fun and clever and everyone onstage was up to the challenge.  I enjoyed the tightness of the harmony when there were multiple singers and thought they all did a good job playing multiple parts.  Kendra O'Connor, Sheldon Elter and Kirstin Piehl stood out for me vocally and Kristi Hansen's comedic timing was spot-on, but it was a pretty even show all around. Lots of fun and a great way to kick off the festival for me.

The only sand in my shorts with the evening was discovering the dramatic price increase on parking.  I usually park in the lot that the Farmer's Market manages next to Catalyst Theatre.  It has been $5 for the last few years (at least the last 5) and I was floored to discover an increase to $8 as I pulled in.  It was clear from the guy taking money that I was not the first unhappy customer with regards to this news.  It means a dramatic increase in costs for me as I often have to park twice per day at the Fringe because I leave to get the kids and then return for more shows.  That will mean an extra $6 per day for parking.  That will also cut into my 'show-going' budget. It might be justified if the Market actually did something with the lot to justify the cost increase, but they don't.  It's unpaved, unguarded - basically the Fringe is a Cash Cow for them and now they are really making it look like an even bigger money grab. I am totally not impressed with this development.  It sucks and I am terribly, terribly disappointed, AND it will likely mean a few less shows for me this week. It really makes me regret the purchases I have made at the Farmer's Market this year.  Please don't write in with suggestions to bus - I can't - I have to have the vehicle to pick the kids up from camp.  Until the public transportation infrastructure in the city improves dramatically or my kids are older, I am stuck driving. I wouldn't have minded a 1$ increase - but $3 is a 60% jump with no discernible reason for the increase other than a money grab. The Fringe brings in a tremendous amount of foot traffic to the Strathcona area and it's spirit is about getting $ to the artists performing.  I might otherwise spend those dollars on a show or busker or on those new snazzy 50/50 tickets... now I don't have that money to do so.   My plan is to always pay with a $20 (never the correct change) and be surly - I might even snarl if they have the nerve to ask for exact change... that's about the only recourse I have right now...

Dreading the Grey Cup Crazy...

Okay, so tomorrow I am supposed to take both my children to drama class at the Foote Theatre School in the Citadel Theatre. It's not to bad, but I have one in at 9 a.m. and the other at 2 p.m. so we go for one, come home, and go back for the second. However, tomorrow is the Grey Cup Celebration stuff which is being held downtown. We got a couple of calls - one yesterday for Gibson and one today for Oliver about this issue. My response was "Oh $%!t". Because basically the parking will be horrible, AND you can only enter the building via the Foote Theatre doors, AND several streets will be blocked off. I don't know how close I can get. I don't know if I will be walking for 2 blocks, or 3, or 4 or 10 blocks for that matter (with 2 kids in tow). I don't know what it will cost. I don't know how many moronic drivers will be out there on the roads. It will probably be better for Gibson's class at 9 a.m. but Oliver's is at 2 p.m. until 4 p.m. which will be NOT FUN. I also have to get out of there fast afterwards because of what I have going on that evening and that sounds impossible. I have thought about the LRT but then I will lose all sorts of time I do not have and ironically have to drive further just to use it.

So you say: maybe you should just skip this week? That's my first impulse. I hate traffic. I hate crowds. I hate parking challenges. I hate experiencing all those things with kids. When you add all those things up I will no doubt be snapping at the kids (they unfortunately get the worst of my stressful days). However, it is the second last class and because they present something the next week so they are encouraged strongly to be there. I am going to try to do it, but I do not promise fortitude in this if I encounter too much stress. I would feel better if there was some plan from the school to help us with it, but it was really just notice and nothing more than bad news. No plan. Just information. Sucky.

Parking Lot Rage

Deep Breath....

So I just got back from the bank. The bank is at Westmount Mall which happens to have the stupidest parking lot right now because of the construction. It's tight. I know that. I park further away from the door than I'd like because I need to find a spot with enough room to get Gibson in and out. Fine. I do that. Then, after we are done our business in the Mall we return to find a different car parked on the driver's side (also the side that Gibson goes in) that is parked much closer than the previous vehicle was. The driver and a couple of his friends are standing on the far side of the car smoking and chatting. I unload my groceries into the trunk and open the back door to get Gibson in. It's tight. There is no way I can get him in without my door touching the car. It would have been physically impossible. As it was it was hard to do. I am fuming because this happens all the time and it is my number one pet peeve. Once I couldn't even open my door more than an inch and I had to put Gibson in Ollie's seat (not the right kind for his age), climb over the console to get into the driver's seat (not pretty when you are my size) and drive to another parking stall so I could get Gib in the right seat. THEN, the guy comes over and says "Can you stop touching my car with your door, Ma'am?" WTF! I lost it and shrieked "I HAVE TO GET MY KID IN!". He sensed my potential for totally losing it and backed off. I buckled up Gibson and then slammed the car door and yelled at him. "YOU PARKED AFTER ME! NEXT TIME DON'T WEDGE THE DRIVER NEXT TO YOU IN!" And then I got in my car and slammed the door and drove off fuming, probably an unsafe driver for about 30 seconds as I fumed.

I am not proud... but part of me really wanted to slap him and then call up his mother and slap her for raising an idiot...