the good, the bad, the sad....

Last Sunday was a big day... my new nephew Brodie got to meet his super strong mama and proud daddy, one of my heros, George Carlin, died, and I broke my wrist.

So everyone has seen pictures or has met baby Brodie, and we can all enjoy Carlin in books and DVDs, so I'll just update on the large lump of plaster and steel I have lug around.... I think my arm is in there somewhere...

OK... I broke my left radius just above the wrist. In order to make sure the bones heal as straight as possible and to make sure I don't lose any mobility or strength, the doc did a procedure known as trans-ulnar percutaneous pinning... thin steel pins were drilled through my ulna and into the radius in order to fix the bones in place. The pins will stick out of my arm about a half inch, but I can't see them right now because of the HUGE HEAVY dressing. It is in pieces (so it can be opened and the pins checked and cleaned) but the panels are thick plaster wrapped and wrapped from elbow to knuckle. I'll keep this hard cast on for three weeks and they will x-ray again next week... and then 10 days after that. After three weeks, the cast will go away and I'll get a lighter "pin guard" type brace to wear for another 6-7 weeks, but I'll be able to take that one off on my own.

Is it painful? Ummmm yeah. Once the nerve block anesthesia wore off last night, I considered pounding my head against the wall in order to lose consciousness... but the oxycodone finally kicked in and i slept like the dead. Now I'm trying not to go crazy.... I don't like being inactive. In addition to the arm pain, my shoulder aches from whatever they did to me in surgery, and I've got a huge bruise in my armpit from where they had to dig for the nerve. fun fun fun.

I've got movies, a book, and good drugs.

Hey, it could have been worse... it could have been an ankle or my right hand!

After Opening Release

When I'm costuming, the final week or so leading up to opening means my house explodes in a confusion of clothing, fabric, and straight pins. I usually end up spending opening weekend cleaning.... not my favorite task. But it's nice because for the next couple weeks all I have to do is repair and run the wash.

We start auditions this week for our 08-09 season... and this week is full. History of the Devil on Tuesday, Lt. of Inishmore (with Irish Dialect) on Saturday, and Blackbird (stream of consciousness dialogue) on Sunday. I'm planning a "mental health" day for sometime next week to recover.

But I did plenty of entertainment hunting this weekend.... here are my reviews (for what it's worth).

Music:

Live in New York- Jonatha Brooke.
Why isn't this woman more known? I mean seriously. Her rock/folk sound is complemented by lyrics that border on poetry.

The Eraser- Thom Yorke
Lead Singer for Radiohead, this album is more melodious than what is normally done with the band (although I'm a big fan of Radiohead). For anyone who has seen the film The Prestige, the song that plays during the credits (Analyse) is on this album. Quite funky and nice.

Movies:
I like to call this weekend angry Australian actor weekend.... or a salute to Russell Crowe.

Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World.
Amazing. I love epic "period" films.... this one is on a boat. Very cool.

L.A. Confidential
One of my favorite movies of all time. Great acting, gritty, dirty and exciting. Kevin Spacey is slick, and that old guy from Babe plays a wonderful bad guy. Nice.

3:10 to Yuma
This flick is billed as a western.... and it is, but it is more than that. Christian Bale plays a poor rancher who agrees to help escort a charming, charismatic outlaw to prison for the money. Crowe as the outlaw is the bad guy, right? Not so much. This film seems to be more about integrity and honor than "shoot 'em up." This one has left me thinking. I like that. And the acting is absolutely incredible. Intense and subtle. I stayed up way too late watching this one.

Books....

I'm re-reading scripts right now... so nothing new.

Wow... I really need to get a social life!