Unbroken Blossoms

I can actually count on one hand the number of times I have seen live theatre in our eleven years in SoCal.  It's not like we ever really went in Chicago, either.  If we remove improv and comedy sports style shows, then I'm probably at no more than a dozen stage productions of plays and musicals in my adult life.  It's never been my thing.

But there are exceptions to be made.  Our friend Ron had a leading role in a production in DTLA at East West Players,

and by gosh, we were going to show up and enjoy seeing him perform.  And so we did.  Sunday, late afternoon, we had second row seats for Unbroken Blossoms.

I encourage you to read more about the play at that link.  It was illuminating to see what I took to be as a speculative history that centered Asian-American contributions to early Hollywood and the toll it took on some.  It was also a little uncomfortable - and that's fine.  I don't need to be coddled as I am confronted with actors who are inhabiting characters whose racism, micro and macro, was particular to the era and probably not too far off even today.

After the show, there was a Q&A with the cast of Jury Duty, who had shown up to support their friend and castmate, Ron.  We got some pictures outside and chatted with Carrie

and Carrie's mom, and then we scooted off to dinner at Redbird,

not too far a walk away.  A blueberry-themed cocktail for me,

and then we all shared their cheese gougeres (I think that's what they were),

rolls with date butter,

green salad with avocado and bacon, burrata with plums,

and a trio of pastas. 

A lovely meal at a place we don't think to get to enough.

All in all, an excellent outing to DTLA.  Above all, we're really proud of Ron for what he is accomplishing.

Party!

Gosh, it's been a long time.  So very long.  I think the last time we had a party that wasn't a dinner party was, oh, August of 2019.  We did a wine tasting, the weather was terribly warm, and it was a fun time.  Add last night to the (meager) list of our parties.  A cold April night, wine and cocktails.  We had a fun time.

I have to say, all the work that Van did on the planters really paid off.  And all the work that Conrad and I did on swapping out artwork and tidying did as well.  The condo looked great.  I set up a nice spread of things to nibble on, and we were ready for guests to arrive at 7.

I didn't take many photos during the party.  For one thing, I was stationed at the bar I had set up in the kitchen,

making cocktails. 

And - much to my surprise - folks wanted cocktails, not wine.  So be it.  But there were people who came over we hadn't seen in so long, like Carrie and Ron. 

Almost 5 years!  Too long.  So good to see them.  So I caught a few photos, like of Jennifer

and Erik,

but not many more.  I was just too busy enjoying the talking with friends.

What a late night, though.  Clean up was done by one, but I was too wired to go to sleep.  I think I was in bed at 2 AM, and awake again at 7:30.  Oh yes, a Sunday morning nap was needed.

I joked with Van earlier today that I have now become a dinner party person.  Yes, cooking for folks is exhausting, but unlike last night, at least I get to sit down!

40 40 40

Oh, the jokes have flown this weekend, speculating on what was on the minds of certain parents some time around June 1970. 4 teammates all turning 40 this month? Oddly, delightfully coincidental. And a little tough for them. Kenn opted for a quiet celebration with his partner Cliff and a few friends, but the other three were forced to arrange their celebrations so as not to conflict one with another. In short, it made for a fun but busy weekend for many of us.

Romel was up first on Friday. A party at the home he shares with his partner Carl. Conrad, I am happy to report, made it on to an earlier flight back from work in Boston, and he was able to join me at Romel and Carl's after all. We snacked and sipped and chatted with a number of teammates and a few non-teammates. A very nice time to kick off the weekend.

Last night was Ron's turn. Daniel came over for dinner at our place, then the three of us headed downtown to Blue Frog where it turned out karaoke was the order of the night. Fun to watch, and all credit to Ron who turned in a great performance before Daniel, Conrad, and I left. More teammates to chat with, of course, and a bonus of mini chocolate cupcakes with a peanut butter frosting. Yum!













Today, then, and more than just food and beverage. Oh no, Liz had more in mind: a swim workout. It says something about our team that there were over two-dozen of us crammed into three lanes. Even better, some old faces showed up: Dominic at the pool and Amber at Rocks Lincoln Park afterward.






It was fun, and the swim certainly justified the large pieces of cake we all dug into (plus beer and other food!).

All in all, it makes me want to be more creative when in the future I celebrate a landmark occasion. Sadly, though, Conrad just won't be swayed into having karaoke at our wedding reception this fall...

rehearsal dinner

It's been two weeks now since Brad and Tina were married, and I still haven't written up the whole weekend?

Bad Peter! Bad Peter! Bad Peter!

Well, let's ease back into it with a simple bunch of photos from the rehearsal dinner. In fact, this was essentially a full-on reception, but that's fine with the many of us there. Good - and plentiful - food at a restaurant in Niles. Wine flowing like water. People to meet and familiar faces. We were tucked in one corner of the dinner along with other Smelts in attendance:

Kyle, with Derek.

Carrie (Ron was there too!).

Ruben, with Elizabeth (and Carrie in this shot - where the heck is Ron in all the photos??).

Fun evening, definitely, plus it gave us all a chance to chat with Tina and Brad on the eve of their wedding. We're very grateful to Brad's parents for providing us all with such a delightful meal.

And finally, are we not one fine looking couple?

Smelts anniversary

Reaching back almost two weeks here, but I've got a quietish evening wherein I do not care to do housework. Conrad will be home in about 8 hours - I hope he can sleep on the flight. Me? I'll blog a bit, read a bit, and head to bed.

Two Sundays ago the Smelts had their annual Thanksgiving banquet. This year has been the 20th anniversary of the swim team, so the night had a special feel. It certainly was reflected in the food. I missed last year's potluck, so this was my first team potluck since 2000 - intervening years we dined at Ann Sather instead.

This year we secured a bigger space at the Center on Halsted, and a good crowd turned up. Nice to see some older faces we haven't seen in a while, too. Liz did her usual fabulous job of coaches' awards to the swimmers (Tim wasn't there to get his team MVP award - a shame since I think he deserves a lot of credit for his fast swimming and for his deep sense of team spirit). The team bestowed on the five of us coaches some generous thank you gifts as well - I'm always floored by the generosity, and I promise that I will have IMMENSE fun spending the gift cards!

For almost two-dozen of us, the evening continued across the street at Kit Kat Lounge and Supper Club. $5 martinis - YAY! Nope, I didn't get up at 4:45 the next morning for a swim, I must admit.

The Smelts are so vital to our social life - did you know that Conrad and I met on the swim team? I'm sorry he missed the meal, but I'm ever so glad that we have all our friends on the team.

The banquet:

Ron and Carrie - a wonderful couple, and Carrie is one of the fastest swimmers in her age group in the country.

Tina, of Tina and Brad. Soon to be a former teammate, alas, but we hope to see her in NZ next year.

Brian, another soon to be former teammate. At least we'll have Vancouver. Fast guy, great technique.

Adam, another coach, a very fast swimmer, and reportedly a great massage therapist. Great guy - hey, we share a birthday, so how could it be otherwise?

Heidi - wow, I've frontloaded all the kick-ass swimmers. Do not race this woman at a long distance or in open water. She will take you down. Also a super teammate and our new registrar/treasurer.

Just a small peek at the abundance of food that night.

Hilary. One of Conrad's lane mates, and one of three women in lane one who are an absolute pleasure to coach. So good, they got an award for it!

Doug, a former team president and one of the few friends I have here in the US who actually kind of keeps track of what's going on in Canada. Great guy, and a bloody fast sprinter.

Presentations by two of the coaches: Liz, in the hat (Conrad and I love her to bits, and her husband is my totally excellent dentist, in case you need a recommendation), and Chris (Saturday mornings, and loved by EVERYONE - I can't stress that enough), in white on the right.

Long time Smelt Paul, cutting the cake. Oh, so much cake!

People begin digging in to the cakes.

Jeremy, Lisa, and Carrie discuss dessert, I think. Lisa, by the way, ran her first marathon this year. I'm so proud of her, what an accomplishment.

Stuart, another coach, mugging for the camera.

Romel - super Smelts party host - and Carrie.

John, our little twinkie (and I say that with affection). Also an award winner that night, but a joking award given for his penchant for taking breaks and not quite finishing a set let alone a full practice.


Kit Kat:

With Daniel - he's such good company even if he inexplicably does not like chocolate.

Max (the new co-president), Scot (who works harder than most anyone in the pool to improve his speed, endurance, and technique), and Jani (who I don't know well, alas, but she gave good advice on martinis that night!).

Daniel and me

Some of the group.

Adam and Jeremy, Adam's roommate (former roommate?) and someone I don't see often enough because we swim different nights.

Brian, again.