The Reports of my Death have been greatly Exaggerated!

She's baaack!  Finally.  This delay we can blame on technology.  Apparently Blogspot, in trying to keep its 27 year old programmers busy, tweeked the site.  An unexpected consequence was that one could no longer upload pictures to a blog.  Of course, none of these sites has a telephone number so one can call and say, You stupid fools, fix your site!  Someone managed to get through to them, however, because the problem seems to be solved.  Well, we will see!

Where were we?  Oh yes, New Years day, and friend Carol and I were invited to a 70th birthday party for Joanne, thrown by Husband Craig - yes, the very same one who was driving around on Christmas day with a carving knife, waiting for a turkey to carve (see previous post...).  Craig and Joanne spend two months here in a lovely mobile home park somewhat to the East of Palm Springs.  Anyway, the party was great - a bunch of people from Salt Spring Island, British Columbia also escaping the rain, and some of whom we knew.

And a good time was had by all - after Joanne got over the candles which wouldn't extinguish!

And on the ground, the road runner made a new years' appearance.....

.......and I took Carol downtown to see Lucille Ball, who hasn't changed a bit in all these years.....

.

...and to have dinner at Las Casuelas, a downtown Mexican restaurant, a bit touristy, but fun nonetheless.

Carol is a great guest, always up for anything, and I think she enjoyed her stay!

I even had a chance to see friends Robin and Grant before I had to leave Palm Springs.  I drove out to see them in La Quinta (rumour has it that it was formerly a stagecoach stop, but I like my story better - it is the fifth town going east from Palm Springs).  Robin and I did our shopping thing (most of you know that I am not really a shopper, but robin brings it out in me), and then the three of us went out to their favourite watering hole, Stuft Pizza.

I must say I agree with them - the food is great and the drinks are strong - and cheap cheap cheap!  So, once again, a good time was had by all!

But now, it was time to leave Palm Springs for the cold, cold north.  And Vancouver did feel very, very cold to me.  I don't think there was a day in the last three weeks when I haven't had my boots on and the fireplace roaring.  There were a few cold, clear days, but mostly, just wet - the reason why I have a place in Palm Springs to begin with.

But I came to Vancouver to work - to pay for my very expensive and ever growing bucket list - so work I did, every day since I came back on January 7. 

I did get to visit friend Pellham in the hospital the day after his knee replacement...

Looks happy, doesn't he, between Donna to look after him and the morphine!

And before you start feeling too sorry for me, though, I did build in some play time.  I had bridge with the boys three times.  I went to the National Theater Live in HD (Simulcasts of the live performances from London) with friends Heather and Jack (The Magistrate with John Lithgow, and we left at intermission.  It was very well done, but it was a farce, and we all decided we hate farce), with whom I shared dinner and lots of talk before hand.  I saw Maria Stuarda, the Donizetti opera live in HD from the Met (now that wassublime!), also with Jack and Heather.  I found time to sneak out and see a few movies, L'Amour and Late Quartet, both wonderful, adult movies, but sufficiently depressing for me to want to go home and slit my wrists (which I obviously haven't done, don't everybody get their knickers in a knot).  I went out to dinner with friend Lesley (who is about to become a grandmother of twins) and Lori (a realtor who hasn't been able to sell a house since August, that is how badly the Vancouver housing market has died)

 And I went to the theater as well, to see Barefoot in the Park.  A friend of mine directed, and he did a wonderful job, with actorsd, costumes, sets, etc. but couldn't do anything about the fact that it is a really silly, silly play.

Not to mention all the lunches with colleagues, taking advantage, of course, of all the great Chinese, Indian, Japanese, and Vietnamese food that I don't eat in Palm Springs.

And finally, I went down to Seattle last weekend, to see friend Mariah (although she will be with me in Palm Springs in just 10 days) and friend Arlene, with whom I spent a lovely day and a half, going on two lovely walks, having a lovely belated 70th birthday dinner for her at Nell's (a great restaurant near Green Lake, lovely food and atmosphere but not pretentious, just perfect!), and theater - a play called The Understudy, in a small, neighborhood theater of the sort that they have in Seattle, very well done - what theater should be, something to think about and talk about aterwards.
And here I am on the home stretch in Vancouver, finishing up the last of my files, the last of my bridge evenings, the last of my dinners with friends, and on the way to Palm Springs by way of San Francisco on Thursday.  Once again, stay tuned.  And I will be better about taking pictures regularly and posting too.  And I will try to keep you up with the reading list too - it has been extensive.

But not now....
Finally, 

Happy New Year

Yes, we made it to another new year, but lots happened before that.

Back to Mexico.  The concert was wonderful!

Everyone was there, even Santa Clause.....

not to mention Gerardo, Bobby's anxious partner....

But it all went off without a hitch (well, not quite without a hitch, the printed programs never arrived, but hey...

Even Arnaldo, Drag Chanteusse, made a guest appearance!  (Trust me, the pictures don't do her justice!)  The hall was packed (about 850 people), with a good mix of Mexicans and ex-pats, gays and straights, young and old.  And who can resist a great choir doing Christmas carols, in whatever language??  The guys got a standing ovation, and at least among friends and family, there wasn't a dry eye in the house!

The after party, held at Daquiri Dick's, was a class act!

And here comes the part where I made an unabashed plug.  Bobby (or Maestro Bruneau, as he shall henceforth be known) worked amazingly hard for eight months to pull this off:  he created the first gay men's chorus in Latin America, trained over 40 men who had no tradition of blending voices, many of whom had never sung on stage before, found a locale, arranged for musicians and sets, and pulled it all together.  I was proud to be a part of it, and I hope you will consider supporting these guys as well.  As in every arts organization, money is a constant problem, and no music director relishes the job of going around with a begging bowl.

So I will do it for him.  Check out the Puerto Vallarta Men's Chorus at www.pvmenschorus.org.  If you like what you see, consider making a contribution.  $500 will get you into the Conductor's Circle with me, but $5. will help.  They are attached to Pay Pal, and you can make a donation on the website.  In any event, get on their mailing list, and think about going down to PV for their Viva Mexico! concert in the spring.

Okay, enough with the (unpaid) advertising!

The day after the concert, after clearing out the hall and returning the tuxes, we relaxed with brunch and a walk on the Malecon

...and the afternoon at Bobby's house

...and particularly the rooftop pool..

I stayed at Bobby's overnight, and after a final brunch the next day, we said our goodbye's at the airport!

Honestly, but for wanting to support Bobby, I would not have gone - it was too hard being there without Davey (who, as a musician himself, would have been so proud of Bobby's accomplishment!) - but I am so glad I went!!  My friends are my family (you, my readers are, of course, among them), and one does things for friends.....

And I was no sooner back in Palm Springs (having landed in L.A., picked up my car, and driven for two and a half hours because, after all, noone but a raving idiot tries to drive out of LA on Friday night the weekend before Christmas!) when friend Peter from San Francisco arrived (as in, I got home at 8:30 P.M. and he arrived at 1:00 A.M. the following morning.

Peter is a good friend, and an easy guest, and it was great to have him here fore the festivities.

Like the Christmas Eve party given by friends Pete and Greg at out clubhouse, attended by the usual cast of characters...

there's Peter...

...as differentiated from Pete, our host...

...and Greg, on the right, doing his hosting duties

By this time friend Carol, from Salt Spring Island, B.C. (far right) has also arrived, and is able to join the festivities, and, as usual, a good time was had by all.

Missing from the photos - and the parties - are friends Art and Wally, who are felled by this awful cold/flu thing, that, truth be known, I have also been suffering from off and on since before Phoenix.  I never let a cold get in the way of a good party, but Artie especially loves Christmas, and I am sorry to see him miss it this year.

But, life goes on, as does Christmas dinner for 22 at my place the next day...

(Sorry, had to get one more picture of the juke box, which played (good) christmas music for five hours!)

And, talk about a Christmas miracle, friend Craig (also from Salt Spring, who, with his partner Joanne, is down here every year) just happened to have an electric carving knife in his car, and, miracle of miracles, knew how to use it!  Thanks, Craig!

And just had to get a picture of neighbor Michael's prize-winning Christmas lights to finish off the holiday.

My turkey got rave reviews again this year (thank you to Walmart, and your most excellent $$10.00 electric roaster )and yes, I managed to get away with doing Christmas dinner without a functioning oven, but then, I had a lot of help!!!        

Peter left the day after Christmas, and the days to the end of the year were spent in usual Palm Springs fashion - eating, playing bridge, and generally being lazy, aided by the fact that I still felt crummy, and not much in the mood for doing anything.  Luckily, Carol is pretty good at fending for herself.  She drover her (Smart) car down, so give her a map, some tourist instructions, and a few free passes, and she is good to go.  I have been a terrible hostess, really - it is hard to be "on" when you feel shitty (and I am a horrible sick person), so kudos to Carol for not letting it stop her.                                 

You might have noticed that missing from things to do in Palm Springs was sitting by the pool.  In actual fact, it was a little cold for all of that.  Of course, it is not cold in any real sense of the word - half of the guests ate Christmas dinner outside, after all, but it it cold for here, and not really pool weather, although I am contemplating doing the hot tub tommorow, as the weather seems  to have turned                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               

Which brings us to New Years Eve.  It has not been my habit to go out for New Years recently.  When David was alive, I always joined the table for the "band widows" who sat together while the band (Swing Shift, a swing band, although you might have guessed that) played.  (David always put his trombone on his chair and danced the last dance with me, though).  New Year's eve is nice here, though.  The party is at the Club House, just down the hill, so I can wander down, have a (or several) drink with my friends, and, having watched the ball drop in New York and wished all my friends a happy new year, wander home to bed.                                                                                                                                          

And so it came to pass this year as well.  I wish you all a very, very happy new year, filled with health and happiness, family and friends, and all the adventure you would like to fill your life.  I hope to see and/or hear from you all in the new year.  Final word:  Carpe diem.