The Bubbles Strike Back!

The town train-depot-turned-tourist-information-center. (Which IS open 24 hours a day...PHEW.)

I don't even know how to report today. First of all, know that it was a 3-show-day. And when those days happiness, craziness ensues.

Here sits a large portion of our cast and crew. Just chillin' - not REALLY ready for what is about to hit us!

So our craziness today gave me a complete flash-back to our St. Louis stint...when the bubbles from the bubble machine made the stage uber-slippery. Folks, it happened again today - and I'm here to tell you that IT WAS NOT PRETTY - AND PROBABLY THE FUNNIEST THING THAT HAS HAPPENED TO US YET. The real challenge is explaining it.
First show...school performance...all is going as normal. Bubbles fall...I push Eric around the stage on the ladder and then I get ready to lift him OFF the ladder, and I notice the floor is slick and I says to myself, 'Matt...the floor is slick...don't fall AGAIN.' So I get the towel, I wipe where I have to stand and hold Eric, and we got through it and NO ONE fell. YET.
So I run the ladder off stage, I come back on to move my set piece, and from behind the set I hear a thump that sounded TWICE as serious as my St. Louis fall. You heard me - TWICE as serious. I peek around the set piece, and there is Jackie...pretty much CENTER STAGE, sprawled out on all fours, butt to the audience...scrambling to get up. In defense of Jackie, it was SERIOUSLY the most slick I've felt the stage. But that being said, UNFAIR JACKIE...we had to continue on with the show. We pulled it together, we finished the show - but everytime I looked at Jackie, I laughed during the rest of the first show.
Fast forward to our second show, when our stage manager, Elisa, says that take care of the BUBBLE problems, during the scene, she is going to have Puppetmaster Chris come out on stage with a mop and cross the stage to clean it up. We all FIRMLY agree it's a great idea and celebrate the genius mind of Elisa. And then the show starts...clips along well...and we get to the part where I turn to take the ladder off, and I see Puppetmaster Chris coming on with the mop. He mops past the first clump of bubbles, but instead of mopping it up, it spread it out - so a split second later, as P-Chris steps in the bubble juice he just mopped, I see his feet slide out from under him, he goes down on a knee with the broom and slides INTO the set piece that is behind him. Well, forget it at this point. The fat kid with the ladder is GONE! So I push the ladder off, come back on, laughing, to move the set piece I move, (notice P-Chris makes it off the other side of the stage), and see that Chris (Mike Teavee) is moving his piece in to meet mine. AND THEN - I hear another sud-induced THUD...and realize that Chris (Teavee) has slid into the set and gone down. (Later we realize he actually hurt his foot pretty badly...but still...it was all part of the ZANINESS of the day!) At now there is NO WAY I can function. Jackie and I have to do the squirrel puppets at this point, and we basically stood VERY still behind the set, not moving AT ALL, because we were RIGHT on top of the slickery-doo mess that took so many victims before it. If you are keeping score of falls this tour, we now stand at 1-bubble related fall to each of the following: Matt, Eric, Jackie, P-Chris and Chris. The bubbles are waiting for Andrew, Jen and Tara...beware.
Well, there is no real event that happened the rest of the day that could even come CLOSE to touching these. It was unbelieveable - and on the way back to the hotel, as we were all talking and HOWLING about what had happened, I summed it up as "...the 3 total minutes today when the entire universe conspired against us." Our last show was pretty boring compared to the first 2...and we were all very happy to have it as boring as possible.
Tomorrow we pack it all in and head out of Grand Rapids - heading South for the Saint Cloud/St Josephs area...and another 3-show-day on Friday. I can only IMAGINE what we will have to report then!
I can't believe I get paid to have this much fun!
Gussy


So here is the JUDY GARLAND BIRTHPLACE, as the sign says. I put the black and white of the house because it looks like...you know...a storms a brewin'...very fitting, I thought.


So Tara, Eric and I all waited...and knocked...and waited some more for any of the family to come home...but they never did.


So yeah...the big mystery is WHO stole the ORIGINAL Ruby Slippers? And Eric and I caught the culprit...and found them in her purse.
Tara - you could've just ASKED wardrobe...or knitted some for yourself.



I think this is where we emphasize the "OH MY!" - and excuse the "LIONS AND TIGERS AND BEARS!" (And look - it even almost lined up! GENIUS!)



So we drove by and I saw this sign: RELAXACISE! And I was entertained. So I went back...and made a photo opportunity out of it...and thought that if this was part of the fitness craze, this sounded like the one for me! RELAX-acise? Yes please! I felt 20 lbs lighter after relaxing for this picture. BUT THEN - I came home and researched it...and IT'S REAL! (this place didn't have a door...truth.) SO - to learn a little bit more, by all means click HERE.


And in the true tradition of Minnesota, I've found 2 more signs that DELIGHTED me. L: Um...seriously...who advertises the lowest legal ANYTHING? R: AAaaaaaah, WHEELCHAIRS PLUS! Evidently, they are promising wheelchairs and SO much more. Sadly, they were closed. Jen celebrates the WHEELCHAIR trend that she set in Madison is quickly spreading.



L: Andrew and I show off our new HATS we bought at the HYSTERICALLY tiny mall in town. (10 stores...tops...and most of them had flannel or pincones in the windows...) R: Tara talks me into modeling her most recent creation: the WACKY SCARF! It really goes with my eyes. I know...I'm pretty hot.


This is the view looking out my hotel room window.

These 2 pictures will receive NO explanation here...but they are intended for the entertainment of my parents and my siblings, Tim, Jerem, Mindy and Scott. UM... so seriously...do you think Zim was working on this stuff in private? And did he HAVE to call it Crack Creme?