Elgan speaks
...and her words thunder across the land

Happy Father�s Day!

Sunday, Jun. 20, 2004
7:09 a.m.
Click back one for my interactive Diaryland question if you haven�t read it already.

The tapenade turned out fine. I ended up gathering a bunch of naturalized marjoram or oregano from the garden and threw it into the food processor with half the olives, several cloves of garlic, some pine nuts, some dried basil, a little bit of dried parsley (would have used fresh, but didn�t have any), some parmesan cheese and LOTS of olive oil. When that was completely smooth I added the rest of the olives and processed them until they were just a little chunky. It�s delicious. It made two 500 gm. containers� full, so I froze one, and left the other one in the fridge for immediate consumption. I added a few spoonfuls to last night�s spaghetti sauce, with great results.

Years ago, when I first planted a herb garden, I put both marjoram and oregano in it. They are very closely related. After flowering and reseeding, they took over the back yard, and I am not certain anymore which is the dominant vegetation.

I also took Buddy Boy and his friend to see Half a Sixpence, a co-production between the drama and music departments. Two of my present students were in it and a former one as well, so I felt I had to support them. The story itself is a rags-to-riches-back-to-rags affair, but unlike Great Expectations, (I was reminded of it because the lead [my former student] also played Pip in that show a couple of years ago) it has a happy ending. A young man (Arthur Kipps) working in a draper�s shop is in love with Anne, the sister of one of his colleagues who works as a domestic servant. They pledge their troth with a token, a sixpence that young Artie has managed to saw in half. Artie suddenly comes into a fortune and starts hanging out with the upper-class crowd, promptly falling in love with and becoming engaged to the sister of his financial adviser. When his new set tries to change him (correct his pronunciation, his dress, etc.) he decides he�s had enough, goes back to Anne (who almost doesn�t take him back) and marries her. Then they discover that his financial adviser had been speculating with his fortune and lost every last farthing. So the young couple rent and open up a book shop, do well enough to show a profit after a year, and even have a baby. The show ends in this upbeat way.

I had a good time, in spite of the headache that has been plaguing me for days now. There was one scene with umbrellas that was very pretty. The actors sang and danced, and the choreography was pretty good. I chatted with the music director briefly afterward, and we both commented on his great pit band, all music students (one has just recently gaduated) and the department accompanist. Unfortunately the piano was out of tune, which you only really noticed when it was playing alone. The proceeds went to the geriatric institute, so it was a good time had for a good cause.

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