Salmon Fishing with Ewan

Jackson had a job interview at Zilker Park this morning at 9:00, so I figured this would be the perfect way to kill the proverbial two birds with one stone.  I dropped him off about 8:45 and continued on to the same pedestrian bridge where Banks and I started from yesterday, though Banks did not come along this time.  I walked my five while Jackson interviewed, and then he walked the 3/4 mile to where my car was parked.  This was probably the last cool morning of the spring.  I actually wore a light jacket, at least in the beginning, and I would say about a third of the hundreds of other walkers/runners at that hour were similarly attired.

Tonight I'm going with my friend Roger to see Ewan McGregor in "Salmon Fishing in the Yemen." Until a few years ago, I liked Ewan, but did not have strong feelings for him one way or the other.  That is, until I saw him in a stage production of "Guys and Dolls in London."  And heard him sing "I've Never Been in Love Before." Oh My God.  Maybe because live theater is so much more intimate than the big screen, or because you know relatively few are seeing a performance compared with the millions who watch movies, you feel a special connection with the actors.  Lynn and I had treated ourselves to a London trip on our birthday (I HAVE mentioned we're twins, right?), and had gotten it in our heads that we wanted to see Mama Mia.  Our concierge could not score tickets to that, but did find us a couple for Guys and Dolls.  Huh?  That 50s musical about a bunch of New York gamblers?  Who wanted to see that?  So we went in with absolutely no expectations, and were blown away.  Ewan has a sweet, beautiful voice, and if his dancing is not quite Broadway calibur, it's close.  What a blast it was to sit with this sophisticated London audience hooting and hollering at this old-fashioned show about a renegade gambler who finds his way back to his churchgoing roots through the love of a feisty and independent missionary.

We've all heard the word "show stopper," but this was my first experience with it.  After the rousing "Sit Down, You're Rocking the Boat," the actors had to stand there for several minutes, poised to deliver their next lines, while the crowd refused to stop shouting and clapping and stomping their feet.  Pure magic.

I'm getting better, but I'm not to the point where I can take on nursery duty tomorrow.  I'll miss the babies, but it will be nice to be able to sleep in and read the paper for a change.