06/15/2006: "Surprises"

music: James Blunt
mood: Young

Had a wonderful Sunday last week. A surprise really. Went up to Santa Cruz to see my friend Kyle in a play. initially I was unpsyched to see this play. Midsummer nights dream is not my favorite. I've seen it often and done wrong, I am generally unimpressed with it and besides Romeo and Juliet it is my least favorite Shakespeare. Despite my feeling toward the play, Kyle ( Who I was in the Mousetrap with about 3 years ago) was playing Bottom, a good role for him, and he has trekked down to SAnta Clara and Mountain View to see my last two shows so I more than owed him.

The drive down with the top of the Jeep off was invigorating. Almost as invigorating as the hour of gardening I had done prior to departing. I was awake and very much in need of a mini adventure and jeep was a great start. The Mountains and trees are almost as therapeutic as the air and the ocean. I found the little theatre in plenty of time and got a seat in the back.

It was amazing. It was almost as if I had never seen an actor UNDERSTAND this play before. With the exception of two characters I don't know if I have ever seen an ensemble of actors so committed to their text and choices. It was great. I was very impressed. I was grinning from ear to ear. Such a solid production with fantastic but simple technical effects. So creative. It was just really enjoyable. Kyle was fantastic, and I hadn't ever seen him really stun me before, but he did. And I was so pleased I got to see this. It would have been so easy for me to blow off but I was glad I didn't. I met him after the show and we grabbed dinner at The Crepe Place, which I had never been to. A wonderful converted natural wood house witha cute garden in the back and lots of Glass. Great food, huge helpings and reminded me of the Creperie called Le Muersault that my family used to go in Palo Alto for special occasions. At 7pm I wasn't ready to leave and so we walked down the street to a new age bookstore to check out treasures.

There were lots of cool things including a BEAUTIFUL and Bizzarre gothic children's book called Frog Bone Rat Belly, which I read outloud in it's entirity. Kyle was very patient as I got through it. My niece would love this one. Very silly. At least I thought so. After that ( and I made a treasure purchase of cocnut scented inscenese, cause I could) we walked down to the beach. I got my toes wet, yeah, and we imitated the karate kid. I'm not sure why. I think....becuase we could. Then after the sun fully set, and high tide was REALLY high, and the seagull irritated that two humans were disrupting their beach we headed to the Arcade which was STILL OPEN, at 9pm on a SUNDAY. Why can't San Jose do that? I had been on the boardwalk but never been in the arcade and was shocked to discover that for only $5 you could play 18 holes of indoor Pirate themed minature golf. Get out. How cool was that. So we did. Only took us about 40 minutes to go all the way through and though I was perterbed to lose by 6 whole strokes I made up for it where it counted. On the last hole if you make a hole in one you get a free game. Kyle did not. I did. Won my money back. Boo yah.

And becuase I was feeling so stress free,and having a really enjoyable time, we went to get ice cream. Again, 10pm on a Sunday and there is a real ice cream parlor open. Love that. And in case you were wondering I had Coffee Almond Fudge. Yuh-Mee. Content to the Brim I headed back home, bundled up and bleesed with 45 minutes of the best radio luck ever. I hit no animals on 17, bonus, and got to star gaze at the stop lights. I think what was so great was the fact that it was an extrodinarily spontaneous day and I got to do things that made me feel...young...not that I feel to terribly old, just that I think no one else wants to be a spaz. There's a difference between acting like a kid (innocent) and acting immature, and I think I tend to relate to the more innocent fun these days. Ice cream, minigolf, barefoot beach combing and let's not forget Frog Belly Rat Bone, all felt silly and light and it was a great chance.

So here's to more fun, and spontaneous surprises. Here's to letting your inner child run around a bit.