Crackin' Nuts

I got a new Eleh: Homage shirt in the mail yesterday to replace the one that was too small! I'd noticed when I re-ordered that I got the wrong size the first time because of a glitch on the website. On the item page, no matter what size you have selected, after you "add to cart" it shows up in the cart as a small! So there was that, but also the first time I ordered I never actually paid attention to what it said in my cart or when I reviewed my order or in all the several emails that listed out my order details and let me know it was a small all those times. So that was on me. Anyway, happy to pay it forward to someone in Illinois with a lovely Eleh shirt. While getting it the second time, I also added a few cds to tag along with it: Pauline Oliveros + Connie Crothers: Live at The Stone, Cluster & Farnbauer: Live in Vienna 1980, Eleh: For Moussavi Atrium, and Eleh: Snoweight. For a bit in the afternoon, I did some small grocery errands. Then at night Mary Beth and I went to the Orpheum to see The Nutcracker. It was Ballet Memphis with the Memphis Symphony Orchestra. I like Tchaikovsky's music so it was nice to see it live. One of the very first cds I got was Tchaikovsky's The Nutcracker so I listened to it a whole bunch when I was younger but then got rid of it also a very long time ago. I'm pretty sure my cd wasn't the whole thing, though. Anyway, the orchestra was in the pit but I guess the tympani couldn't fit down there because they were the one instrument outside and they were on the floor between the stage and the first row of seats over to the side, so I got to see the tympani! It was a nice production and the stage design was pretty cool, they did some neat things with perspective and I'm always wowed whenever a new act comes on and they blast the fog machine so when the curtain rises all the fog's there and retains the shape of the curtain for a good long few seconds before drifting down into the pit. I was kinda thinking how the plot structure of The Nutcracker is kind of funny. So there's this big dramatic conflict with the rats and that's very early on and then there's the tension and battle and then resolution and then it's over and then the main characters are just like "now that's over, let's just sit down and watch candy dance for an hour!" But hey, I guess the best parts (dance- and music-wise) are those candy dances so I guess it works!? (Though one of the good and famous music pieces is in the earlier part, but for the most part, yeah, it's the candy dances.) Uh, okay I guess that's all I have to say about The fuckin' Nutcracker for now! Oh no, one more funny thing. A bit towards the end of the first act, we smelled some potsmoke which was kind of funny 'cuz who smokes up during The fuckin' Nutcracker? Anyway!