More Eggs. First on toast. Later to gather.

"Think Egg" (by meppol of Deviantart.com)

It amused me looking back at my latest entry that I not only wrote, but also supplied photographs of, eggs.  I must have really wanted to blog that night.  Or else I was just under a sort of eggspell.

It was eggs again this morning.  Poached, in the wonderful wee egg poacher my Sister gave me, and then dropped over some wonderful toast, and then gobbled up very wolfishly by me!

Then it was eggs of a different sort that kept me up last night until three in the morning.  Brain eggs.  Idea eggs.  Eggs sort of being laid, and then being rejected or being stored away for secret safekeeping where none of the thought-predators can get at them.  And I think it’s important to say that nothing has hatched, yet; but, a queer turn-of-events these past few weeks has sort of caused me to collide with what might be a way to get the theatre functioning again. 

Neil {He played Renfield when I directed Dracula some years ago, when Discovery Theatre Lab was much more active} keeps calling or emailing every few months, wondering when I’m going to do more theatre.  I’d sort of not had any option but to put him off a bit, and then I finally just wrote to him a week or so ago and said sorry mate, can’t do anything.  The process of writing him such a letter, to finally respond to all of his comments and questions on Myspace and so on, may have been more of a let down for me than for him.  Whenever I write “No, I’m not doing any theatre just now,” there’s something in my brain that spasms very subtly and says “hang on, why aren’t you?” 

Well, the short answer is that there’s more than a wee bit of gardening to do, so to speak, as far as the general health and infrastructure of Discovery Theatre Lab before it will be possible to produce any really successful theatre. 

A few eggs did plop down into my brain from eggland last night, however, we’re still a ways out.  One of the first important decisions to make, is whether it would be best to fix the Lab, or abandon it and start a new company? 

Sadly, at this point, Discovery Theatre Lab, is a program that has a varied history, sometimes a good, sometimes very very negative reputation depending upon who you talk to.  At the moment sits defunct.  Now, is it best to say: “yes, I realize nothing was perfect, but we have done some good work too,” and work to repare the broken ties?  Or should I let go of that, let it lie, and start a whole new company with a whole new name and build new relationships? 

I’m inclined to bugger on, fix what needs to be fixed, and take responsibility for this now half-sunk ship I started almost ten years ago.  Part of that may be a more internal desire I feel to sort of redeem myself as well.  If I let The Lab just lay where it lies, it would mean not righting what was done wrong in the past.

If I continue with The Lab, it really will need to evolve into a pheonix and climb out of its ashes, a new creature.  That’s what I sort of keep having my attention redirected to recently. 

First with writing to Neil.
Second with seeing a license plate that said “KBO”.  (I asked the driver, “what does the license plate stand for?”, and he confirmed it was the reference to Churchill, keep buggering on!) 
Thirdly, with the recent anniversary of Shakespeare’s birth and death day.  Most recently, or significantly with the few the gathering eggs last night. 

I may do nothing whatsoever.  I may be too tired and too sort of ‘afraid’, by this point to really return to doing theatre.  But my mind really does keep being picked up and put down in a nest of theatre thoughts, so, I may not be able to ignore that. 

Whatever happens will be announced here, of course, and as I said earlier, if I do get up off my couch and start working again, it will be many months before any plays are actually being produced. 

    ©  Jeffrey Puukka, 2009

. . . . .

The incredible, edible egg

Almost ready! (Testing the kitchen in our new pad.)

 We’re settling rather nicely into the new flat, and I’ve been enjoying making the first few concoctions in the new kitchen.  I was hoping for a Gas cook-top, instead of another electric set-up.  However, you get what you get, for what you can afford, I suppose.The first official dinner in the apartment was actually breakfast.  I, myself, am an enormous egg-lover.  And, this time of year, when the sun is starting to shine, but not scorch, I find myself craving breakfasts and brunches quite frequently!  (On that note, there’s a nearby cafe which serves brunch on weekends, I’ll need to pop in there when I can and scope it out.)  So, a breakfasty dinner it was, in the form of a Bacon and Crimini Frittata.  Oh, the many ways to scramble eggs.  Frittata is slightly akin to quiche, but–in my kitchen, at any rate–without the custard.  More like a large, unfolded omelette.  It was easy to toss together, and finished off quite nicely,  between the bacon, and  egg, mushrooms, and some red pepper and cilantro scattered here and there.  I knew I would like it, I love cilantro and bacon and criminies.  What made me happy, though, was that my Beloved one enjoyed it too!  She enjoyed it so much, in fact, that we ended up eating it again two days after. 

Bacon and Crimini Frittata, with homestyle potatoes.

Both times, it came out lovely, and beautiful.  (I only wish I had a better camera, so that it actually looked beautiful.)

. . . . .

Yesterday was Easter, and we had the wee one’s over.  My Beloved one took charge of the kitchen, as she likes to do on holidays, since I enjoy cooking so much that I normally don’t let her in the kitchen.  She made a wonderful ham, along with yummy devil-icious eggs, mashed potatoes, and aparagus. 

We have plenty of left over ham.  My Sister bought me a wonderful egg poacher as a housewarming gift, and I am looking forward to using it this evening.  I tried it just for the sake of testing it out yesterday morning.  Now, tonight, I’m craving an oinking, hammy hash with poached eggs. 

Poached eggs = Wonderful! 
Egg poacher = Sheer effing brilliance!

© Jeffrey Puukka, 2009

All hands on deck!

I remember that on this day, one of these last years, (1st April, April fool’s day. . .) my beloved one woke me up in the morning and told me she was pregnant.  –  She stuck with it too.  A long conversation, through to the point where I said overwrought but supportive boyfriend things like, “This can be good, we can make this work!”  She then dropped the giggling “April Fool’s Day!!!!” bomb. 

I didn’t murder her, she’s still alive and well.  Moreover, for all intensive purposes it seems we are again, moving in together.  {Insert sighs of relief and exhaustion here.}  I say “seems”, yes, there are still a few chinkylinks to add to the chain before our heads are on the pillow.  However, we were given the keys earlier this afternoon, so, if “for all intensive purposes it seems”, it seems intensely, with some evidence. 

Those of you who know me a bit more personally, know that this apartment has been a long time coming…  And for the first time in my humble existence, I will not be living in Gresham, but bursting through the bubble and taking up residence in Portland. 

In some three months time, her eldest will be joining us.  Again, those of you who know Victoria and I more personally already know the story there.  If you’re not one of the lucky one’s who knows us more personally, well, I’m not going to go into it here and now, so it’s your loss, boo-hoo, have a cup of tea and walk it off.  Regardless, in some three months time, her eldest will be joining us, and we will be happy to receive him, for now, in this apartment, we have space to allow him to do his own thing, grow, flourish, and all that sort of thing that you want children to do.  Hopefully he’ll move fast to doing it, too!

During that three some months, however, it will be lovely to do things like cook meals with my old cooking equipment, make use my espresso maker, sleep in a bed instead of on the living room floor, hang pictures, take them down, hang them somewhere else.  I’m very keen to have those lovely nonsense arguments about how to decorate the place.  I can honestly say that yes, we both have good taste, it’s just that I consider my own a bit superior to her’s.  (Who doesn’t consider their own sense of taste superior?)  I want an orchid for the kitchen near the window.  Hopefully the cat won’t kill it.  (That’s a good question to pose to you, my unpopulated community of readers.  Have you cats and orchids?  Do your cast try to eat them?)  Yes, an orchid.  I want an orchid.  Orchids are such erotic flowers that even men can appreciate them.  I want an orchid.  We don’t have a balcony, and the windows don’t provide any lush unforgetable views I could write poetry about, so, I want an orchid.  

Apart from the excitement of discovering how my Beloved one and I can put our stamp on the place, I’m also very keen to get back to all of that spur-of-the-moment boyfriend/girlfriend business we’ve missed out on, what with sleeping in the living room of someone else’s house.  Even more blissful, I have concrete evidence she’s mad keen to get back to doing the same, so, lucky be we. 

It’s been quite rainy these past few days, hasn’t it?  Well perhaps not for you–you might be reading from your sun-tanning chair in the garden of Eden, for all I know.  However, here, where I live, in the Portland Metropolitan area, under the gray curtains of the Pacific Northwest, it has been!  I’ve noticed something that even I don’t understand about myself.  I carry my umbrella with me, as I walk out to work.  I like umbrellas, provided they’re not some god awful pink thing with flowers, I like ‘em, have a soft spot for their shape.  However, as I walk out and about, I never catch myself opening my umbrella up, and using it.  This, I think, is due to the fact that it’s windy, and it takes more effort than I’m willing to part with, to keep it poised against the breezes raping it.  Notice, I said, “it takes more energy than I’m willing to part with.”  –  That means, I honestly believe it takes less energy to do what I actually do:

Carry:

(a) briefcase containing laptop
(b) unopened full-size cane-shaped umbrella
(c) a full Starbucks’ cup of coffee
(d) a cigarette

Whilst:  (That’s “while at the same time”, for you non-anglophiles.)

(e) avoiding puddles because of holes in the soles of my shoes
(f) getting wet

Oh well, I suppose if we all walked around doing things that actually made sense, there’d be no reason for films, books, or music.   

Hold fast!

© Jeffrey Puukka, 2009