"Not Ready for Prime Time" is ready for prime time

 

Tonight, I went to a limited engagement show called "Not Ready for Prime Time".  This play was much better than I expected, and well worth watching if you're in NYC for its limited run.  

But first....

This would be my last chance to go out as Marian until next Tuesday night.  So, I decided to wear a sweatshirt dress over leggings and an old faux leather jacket to keep me warm, and trek into NYC to see this off-Broadway play. The cheap seats usually cost $38.  But on day of performance, "Rush" seats are available for $18.  At this price, it was worth taking a last minute gamble on seeing the play.  So, off to the city I went, and I arrived at Grand Central Terminal (GCT) at 6:45 pm.

I didn't have much time to waste, as GCT is at 42nd street and 4th (Park) Avenue, while the theater is located on 52nd street between 10th and 11th avenues.  For those not familiar with New York City,  the tone has to travel 1/2 mile North and 3/4 mile west from Grand Central to the theater.  This wouldn't be so bad, save that the closest subway station to the theater is 1/2 mile away.  One way or another, I'd be doing a lot of walking to make it to the theater on time to see the play. Having arrived 10 minutes early, I was seated in the front row, almost at dead center.  This gave me a perfect view, with one exception - part of the stage extended 3 rows into the seating area.  When performers entered this area, I couldn't turn enough to see them speak.  But this was a minor flaw for these seats. 

When I sat down before the play started, the band was playing instrumental songs from the mid-1970's.  It was nice to hear Billy Preston's "Nothing from Nothing" performed before show started, as it was a fitting intro to the story of the  Not Ready for Prime Time Players.  (Preston was a musical guest on Saturday Night Live's (SNL) first show.) And then the show began....

"Not Ready for Prime Time" focuses on the history of the show from the hiring of the original cast to the mass departure of this cast after the show's 5th season.  It documents the rise of Chevy Chase as the star of the show, his departure, the career growth of the remaining crew after Chase's departure, along with the tensions between the Not Ready for Prime Time players during their 5 years on the show.  What was a nice touch was that the show touched on the death of John Belushi, followed by the death of Gilda Radner. And this paragraph can not do this show justice.  But is does show how the first 5 chaotic years of SNL set the stage for the next 45+ years that the show would be on the air.

A little over 2 hours after I arrived, the show ended with the entire cast dancing to "Ackroyd" and "Belushi" reenacting the "Blues Brothers" routine and their performance of "Soul Man".  It was a fitting way to end the show - with some joyous music, and the memories of how great things were (at times) during the formative years of Saturday Night Live.  

But now I had a problem - I had to make it back to Grand Central, as well as finding a rest room to relieve myself.  I couldn't find the 50th street subway station I used on the way to the theater.  (Not all NYC subway station entrances are easy to find.)  So, I had to walk the 1/2 mile to the Times Square subway station to get to Grand Central.  And thankfully, I made it to Grand Central in time to prevent an unfortunate accident. (If I was in male mode, I'd never have made it to that rest room on time.)  Yet, I had another issue - I had only 5 minutes to make my train.  Missing it would cost me over an hour in my return home.  Luckily, once you make it to the platform, they always give people a fair chance to get onto the train before the doors close, and the train leaves the station.

Once back in my car, I drove home, and was entering my door at 11:45 pm.   It was a long day, but worth all of the headaches to enjoy the show.

A magnificent and glorious shutdown - may it last for a few more months.

 

As I write this, we are a little over two weeks into the federal government shutdown, and people are hurting. A food pantry has been set up just outside of West Point (the Army's service academy) to serve the needs of military families who are doing without pay.  Other "Essential Workers" such as Air Traffic Controllers are taking sick leave to work jobs in the "Gig Economy" to pay for necessities.  In short, the Democrats in the Senate are successfully using their only tool left in the political tool chest to protect Obamacare subsidies for the poor and middle class in America.

The GOP is wrongfully claiming that the Democrats are demanding healthcare (and other benefits) for people illegally in this country.  They are lying, as they do not want to anger the Orange Snowflake by making things right for the American public.  They only serve to benefit the "Billionaire Bandit class" (not to be confused with "Vanilla Billionaires") who see the average person as only a disposable tool to be used in increasing their wealth among their class.  The "Vanilla Billionaire" (and there are many of them) doesn't see the average person as a tool.  They see these people worthy of government services and want to make sure that these people have no reason to rebel against our capitalist system which allows the wealthy to enjoy their wealth. 

Are people hurting?  Yes!  Yet, many of us participated in the "No Kings" protests being held around the USA.  What is the GOP message about these protests?  It is that these protests are "Anti American."  Hmmm....  If we didn't protest against unjust laws 250 years ago, we'd still be flying the Union Jack over our land.  And the GOP is saying that all protest against their authoritarian ways is wrong.  As George Takei said about William Shatner in a celebrity roast (and as I'd say to the snowflake), "He can go F*** himself and the horse he came in on. (And in that roast, Shatner did ride in on a horse.)  Although I was unable to attend a "No Kings" march in October, I hope to do so the next time one is called.  Constant pressure from all sides is needed to make the GOP crack.

At this time, the Speaker of the House, Mike Johnson, is keeping the house out of session, so that he doesn't have to swear in a new Congresswoman from Arizona.  Why, you might ask?  Well, when she is officially in congress, she'll be the 218th vote to release the Epstein Files.  We know that the Snowflake's name is mentioned many times in those files, and we know that this is the one area that MAGA demands answers from the GOP - which are not being given.  Maybe the Democratic party should alter its message slightly and "officially" focus on the other names in these files, saying that they want to expose the names of the pedophiles in the "Donor Class".  Of course, the Snowflake would figure predominantly in what is revealed, but this would make it easier for GOP congressmen to abandon support for the snowflake.

Without the House being session, there is no hope for any compromise between Senate Democrats and the GOP.  So, I expect that this will be a very long (maybe record breaking) shutdown, as saying no to the GOP is the only leverage they have left, and would be foolish to give up before they had an iron clad commitment from the GOP that Democrats' needs will be met. And when the GOP cracks, watch the snowflake have a temper tantrum the likes you've never seen him have before.  I can't wait for this to happen!

It was nice to take out my leather jacket again.

 

I'll always wish I could look like the female version of my face in the picture above.  She looks happy and secure in herself.  No matter how much I try, I can never snap my fingers and be the cisgender female version of who I could have been if I were born with two X chromosomes. At least, if I can improve my health by losing some weight, I could get some facial feminization surgery and make my face look more like an older version of the woman above.

- - - - - -

Today, I did nothing for most of the day, even though I got dressed early in the afternoon.  I originally thought that I might go into NYC and see an Off-Broadway play.  But I didn't want to get moving early enough to do so.  Instead, I decided to leave the house around dinner time and looked in my closet for something warm to wear - and found a leather jacket I haven't worn in years.  So, I put it on and went out the door.

My first stop was at Mickey D's for a couple of burgers, and then to BJ's to walk around.  $42 later, I was loading my car and driving home.  On the way home, I returned the call from our co-op's president, and we discussed some things that needed to be done. And all too soon, I was home, stripping off my stockings, my dress, my bra, and everything that a woman would find uncomfortable after a day at work. (This, even though I haven't had a job in years.)

Once comfortable, I signed some papers for the co-op, then put some ribs in the slow cooker for tomorrow's dinner.  (I may bring some cooked ribs to RQS's place this weekend if I'm in the mood to do so.)  And finally, I was able to rest for the night.

And now back to my regularly scheduled ranting and raging

 

As much as I am an out and about transgender person, I can go back to stealth mode if I need to do so.  Yet, I am upset because the Orange Snowflake won't be happy until the last one of us is gone from "HIS" America.

I try to keep my calm, as to give into anger, as it will distract me from staying calm in the face of danger. For example, I could rage at the world and accomplish nothing.  Or, I can do things such as participating in protest marches, notifying people when I see ICE come into my neighborhood, and do other non-violent things to foul up the snowflake's evil plans.  I choose resistance in the same way as followers of Martin Luther King Jr. did.  His henchmen are most afraid of being seen for what they are: Malignant Bullies who want to turn America into Nazi Germany.  (When was the last time you saw the snowflake cast a good light on anyone not an Aryan male?  Never.)

Tonight, I had a conversation with TCL.  When I said that I'm going for second citizenship (and associated passport) as a way to have an exit route if things go sour in the USA.  I said that if I am forced to leave the USA, I'll marry RQS and take her with me.  I'd be poor, but I'd be free.  TCL thinks that I'd be able to take my money with me.  I reminded her of the early days of the Nazi regime: They allowed Jews to leave, but they didn't allow the Jews to take their money with them as they left.  It's amazing that a woman with a history degree didn't know about that.  I guess that our collective memory about the Nazi era has faded too much for most Americans to recognize the scope and severity of today's dangers.

It's amazing that the mainstream news media isn't covering the violence being used by the snowflake's henchmen to terrorize people.  But then, these are people who thrive on "access" and are afraid to cooperate with each other to take down a threat to their industry.  The Fourth Estate was neutered by the Nazis, why doesn't it see that the same tactics are being used against it in America 90 years later?  Luckily, we still have independent news reporting on the internet, something which they don't yet know how to control.  (Russia and China have developed effective controls on their independent reporters, yet there are still some leaks - all wrapped in metaphors and coded language.  For example, don't talk about "Winnie the Pooh" in China, as that will get you in trouble for its connection to Chairman Xi.)  

Why am I still in America?  I still have hope that the authoritarian tide can be held back.  Yet, it feels more and more like a losing task every day, as people are giving up hope.  When/if I do, I'll be gone.

Happy Halloween!

 

Happy Halloween!

- - - - - -

You wouldn't want me to forget the cross-dressers'  annual holiday, would you?  Given that I already dress as a woman, it might be appropriate for me to dress as a male this one day of the year.  What do you think?  And what better a costume than David S. Pumpkins!

See you tomorrow!

 

A legal holiday, just when we need it.

 

Due to the Nor'easter that came to the NYC area, RQS stayed an extra night over the weekend with the idea of going home after the 3-day weekend was over.  This was another chance for us to cuddle and relax. But it was an excuse to do virtually nothing for the end of the weekend.

- - - - - -

On Saturday, we bulked up on refrigerator food to last us the weekend.  So, we were eating various tasty goodies each night, including Wagyu burgers one night.  I had foodstuffs in the cabinet just in case we lost power during the storm.  (Luckily, we didn't lose power, and the refrigerator stayed cold.)  Neither of us had much energy, and I surfed the internet a bit.  While surfing, I stumbled onto a message that concerned me - it appeared that an ex-girlfriend of 28 years ago had recently passed away.  I wasn't going to try and get more information - I've been out of this woman's life for years, and I think her husband would be upset if I did any more than just send my condolences.

Now, that got me to thinking of some of my other friends, and I've outlasted so many of them.  It's strange to see one's peers die (or otherwise drop out of contact for health reasons) while one is still tolerably healthy.  For example, WDS is no longer reachable in Florida, DCD is no longer contactable in Connecticut or New York, as he no longer has a cell phone and has stage 4 cancer, and Joanie (a former workmate) is unreachable.  

Years ago, someone set up a site called "if I die" which would contact a person on a regular basis, and email a selected contact if the first person did not respond.  Given how loosely people are connected these days, it would make sense for a person to pay a one-time fee for this kind of service.  Yes, there would likely be some false positives.  But it would be nice to know if someone has passed from the scene - even if one was unable to go to a funeral for that person.

- - - - - -

I spoke with my brother over the weekend, and his marriage is effectively over.  I can't help but feel sad for him.  But all of us have our crosses to bear.  It's just that some crosses weight more than others.  Let's hope his load is lightened soon.

A dreary day to get a dress hemmed and go furniture shopping

 

One of the errands we needed to take care of today was getting RQS's dresses hemmed for our next cruise  So, when we finally got dressed, our first stop was the local cleaners.  It's hard to believe that tailoring for the dresses cost much more than the dresses themselves. But that's the price one pays when one gets dresses from thrift shops (even upscale ones).

We got to talking, and RQS mentioned that we should go looking at furniture for her apartment.  Specifically, she wanted to replace her living room loveseat with a reclining loveseat.  I thought to visit Bob's Discount Furniture in Yonkers for this.  So we drove to Yonkers and we looked at the only loveseat that fit her needs.  Since we weren't buying, we thanked the salesman and proceeded home.

I thought of going to another furniture store one the way home, and made one mistake - it moved to the former location of another furniture store.  After entering the parking lot, we found out that the store had moved (I should have remembered this from other trips to lower county), and decided to do some food shopping at Whole Foods so that I could get "free parking" in the lot.  $54 later, I had a validated parking ticket that saved me $3.  A great way to "Save", huh"

On the way home from Whole Foods, I called my brother and he opened up about his life.  His marriage is over in all but name, and he wants to get on with his life.  I feel sorry for him, but given his wife's alcoholism, he needs to take proactive measures to save his own life.  Thankfully, my relationship with RQS is infinitely more nourishing.