February was a month of theatre and little time for anything else. In August of 2013 when my play was selected to tour Alberta I had no idea the timing would converge with so many other things. Life is funny that way, isn't it?
     Our Alberta tour of Never Let the Crew See You Cry was a wonderful experience in spite of it starting off poorly. We were run off the highway an hour out of town heading to our first show! Thanks to some deft driving by Alex who was taking the first shift, the car that ran us off the road did not hit us PLUS he also got us into the ditch without rolling and out of the ditch without external help. Although shook up, we made it to our first gig and put on a terrific show. Our visits to Daysland, Camrose, Fort McMurray, Edson, and Spruce Grove gave us a bunch of great memories and wonderful, warm audiences to enjoy my mom's story.
     What did I learn from touring and being in close quarters with other people for days and nights on end? Keep your sense of humour, manage your expectations, be nimble, play more cards, participate in goofy magic tricks, don't eat a big buffet before a show, Bawlf, and above all laugh laugh laugh!
     We continued our rehearsals for Spring Alibi in Australia and did as much promotion as we could from a distance. We leave soon and open on March 05. We are so excited to bring our particular brand of humour down under. Our thanks to so many who made it possible so far.
     As we were doing all of this, the amazing Sue Huff launched Book of Hope: Stories of love, courage, and recovery from families who have battled eating disorders. This is a warm and honest book and if you know someone who is familiar to this battle, you'll want to share it. You can get it at Amazon http://www.amazon.ca/Book-Hope-Recovery-Families-Disorders/dp/0994000103
or wait until Sue is back from the Adelaide Fringe and contact her directly.

     In preparation for my trip down under I dug out the little stuffed koala I was given when my half brother was flying for Qantas Airlines in the 1960s. Joe also sent me a huge story book about a naughty little koala named Blinky Bill by Dorothy Wall (a 1963 imprint of a 1939 book). I have fond memories of the book on my shelf, so I decided to read it before my trip.
     How best to put this? Ummmm...it doesn't really stand the test of time. In fact, Blinky Bill is not just a naughty koala, he's a jerk! There are so many things wrong with this book! There's stuff about what's ok for boys to do versus (not) ok for girls. There are racial slurs and violence. Of course, nature is violent, but I didn't think it was fair that just when we were getting to know Mr. Mouse -- SNAP! -- and a meticulous illustration of a very flat, dead Mr. Mouse in a mouse trap. And when Blinky Bill's dad got shot three times while resting in the tree, I had nightmares. On and on these stories went until I was an emotional wreck.
     When I got to the part about the Mayor and Council of Pelicans having a meeting I thought I could glean something work related (they were talking about in camera meetings!). However, the up shot was that women weren't allowed, the community was starving, the Councillors were stealing all the good fish, and when the Widows stormed the meeting demanding a feeding ground, they got banished to the weeds.
     In hindsight, I don't think my mom ever read me these stories. The book just lived on my shelf. I know I looked at the illustrations, but I saw cute marsupials in outfits, not flat mice, dead birds, and snakes being torn apart by army ants. I've had quite enough of Blinky Bill for awhile and truly hope I meet some nice koalas on my adventures. Outfits are optional.

     I recently got my hands on a really cool chart from the Green Anglicans. Religion aside, I thought you'd enjoy the Carbon Fast they are recommending for Lent (40 days of sacrifice).

     It is an awesome 40 day calendar of small changes any person can make to reduce your carbon footprint (e.g., Meat-free Mondays, Tune Up Your Car, Recharge Your Batteries, Buy Local, Clean With Care, etc.). Go ahead and print this off for your office or family -- it is full of great ideas.

     It also ties in nicely with World Plumbing Day on March 11. Clean water is not a luxury and plumbing plays an important role in the health and safety of modern society.
 

/lmwe  

Kelly McClung, Sandra & Harry Fast, Helena Hill, Bob Kinasewich,

Paul Manuel, Jenny & Adesh Narine, Hector & Louisa Pothier,

Randal A. Shopik Professional Corporation, Judy & Leland Stelck, Wanda Stephens