The Shackles Drop, the Real Works Begin

Waking early this morning my first thought was, "I retired yesterday?"

My answer to myself was "Yes."

Yesterday I left nearly 30 years of State service with as little fuss and fanfare as possible and I find myself FREE!

So, naturally no sooner had I fled downtown Sacramento, then felt the need to celebrate with a bit of nature. Went to Pioneer Park to see what the vernal pools are up to.


Pink Checkerblooms spill through the vernal pools

A cheery Yellow Brick Road of tiny yellow Goldfields

A shame you can't make out the Valley Tassels or purple Vetch

White Hyacinth are scattered around the meadows
Not quite as splashy as 2 years ago but I must say it's a pretty good show at any rate. Now! I'm up. I have my coffee, and I see what a crap state my house & yard are in after weeks of neglect. I think I know what my first retirement project is. Now. Where is the vacuum cleaner? Probably under that pile of junk I brought home from the office. Wills & Kate, you think YOU'RE having a big day? Think again!

[Right. Management throws in the towel on that one.]

For Your Easter Bunny Sunday Pleasure

Grand Afternoon for Ushering

Been quite a while since I ushered so I was tickled to be called in for the tiny Cosmopolitan Cabaret in downtown Sacramento for a matinee performance. The show was A Grand Night for Singing, an homage to the songs of Rogers and Hammerstein. Think of The King and I, Cinderella, South Pacific, The Sound of Music and other such classic musicals.

The Music Circus uses dozens of ushers per performance, but the Cosmo Caberet is so v. teeny, I was 50% of today's ushers. We seated the audience is mostly at small tables that each seat four. The rest of the audience was in rows and all guests could order and drinks and appetizers to enjoy during the show. Fairly big city venue for a little tomato town that aspires on in the vein hope of becoming a 'world class city'.

So the ushering was a breeze and I enjoyed hearing the familiar tunes. It was fun to find out how the various unrelated tunes were tied together with very-nearly-a-plot. That kept the five cast members from belting out songs every few minutes for no apparent reason. Nice job; terrific voices and oh yes, very nice work by Messers R & H.

Oh! And the song I found myself humming into the late hours of the day? From Cinderella! I mean really, Cinderella beat out South Pacific and Oklahoma. Not bad for a babe in rags. Hope this is only my first ushering gig for the year, and not the last.