Live and Let Di

Omigod You Guys!!!

Last night was Open House at my daughter's high school. My daughter gave me plenty of advanced warning, telling me as soon as she got in the car AFTER school yesterday!!! Apparently her Drama teacher had promised 15 extra credit points to the students whose parents showed up.

***Extraneous side note to those parents with teenage daughters: Isn't teaching Drama to teens redundant???***

My daughter's response when I said I would go was (looking me up and down in my knock-around jeans and purple turtleneck), "You're not going to wear THAT, are you?" So, I have come full circle from being influenced by girls in my high school to being influenced by my daughter in high school.

And then, the icing on the cake, "You're going to wear a bra, aren't you?" As my little act of rebellion, I wore a Victoria's Secret "Pink" bra that she would find utterly horrifying when sported by her 45 year old Mom. (I do hate when they use my picture for their ads!!!)

So I showered, carefully dressed and put on make-up to pass muster so I could leave to follow my daughter's schedule. In typical "me" fashion, I started out by excessively socializing in the hall outside the gym. I bounced into the first period class and grabbed the first seat-desk in the front. In second period I slouched to a desk toward the back. I showed up for third period late. Then I blew off fourth period because the portable classroom was too freakin' far away!

Whatever she is doing in school, the Drama seems to be working...just watch a couple minutes of this:

Click above to view "Omigod You Guys!" as performed by the Drama Queen Trio AKA my daughter and her friends.

Di

How could I forget???

How could I have forgotten cute, perky, bubbly, naive Karen Valentine, Miss Johnson of Room 222 fame? I did this whole Thursday Thirteen about Famous People I Have Seen/Met Up Close and I forgot to mention the ultimate celebrity encounter. Imagine the elevator door opening and seeing one of the cast of EVERY FRIDAY NIGHT OF YOUR ADOLESCENCE (Brady Bunch, Partridge Family, Room 222, Odd Couple, Love American Style...a classic line up that will never be equaled) walk on. No, it's not "Marcia, Marcia, Marcia" or even David Cassidy...it's Karen Valentine.

The setting, the St. Regis Hotel in Detroit. In addition to being the hotel of choice for actors performing at the adjacent Fisher Theater, is the home of my ALL-TIME FAVORITE TYPO!!! Yes, I am innately incapable of reading ANYTHING without editing. As I snuggled up in my jammies and contemplated the delights of room service breakfast the following morning, I couldn't help but notice this offering:

Fruit Composte

This burned on my brain the now inextricably intertwined images of this delightful fruit treat:

and this disgusting (but great for the environment) technique of recycling food and making mulch or fertilizer:                                                

But I digress. Yes, there I was in the elevator going to my room at the St. Regis on one of my rare business trips. I was toting a piece of luggage that was WAY too expensive for the minimal business travel I did...so I think I justified it by getting it for my road warrier husband. It looked kind of like this one:

So, onto the elevator steps the Karen Valentine. On Room 222, we all thought Liz (Denise Nicholas) was so cool with her unflappable style and subtle sexual chemistry with Mr. Dixon (Lloyd Haynes) but we all wanted to BE Alice Johnson (Karen Valentine) with her wide-eyed naivete and her tendency to be kind of goofy.

I digress AGAIN!!! OK, so she looks at me, looks at my bag and says, "Wow. I love your luggage."  Yeah...that was it. My exciting celebrity encounter. For one brief moment in time, a TV star (OK, former TV star) was admiring ME (or me by extension...my luggage).

Di

 

Tom Cruise Boycott

An innocent exchange of e-mails with Nicholas of A Gentleman's Domain, turned into a full-fledged rant on my part about my feelings about Tom Cruise.

I admit I drooled in the Top Gun days. I had respect in the Born on the Fourth of July days. I thought he sold out with that racing car movie. But his fate was sealed with me when he made his comments (obviously formed from his many years in medical school and private psychology practice) that Brooke Shields should not have taken anti-depressant medications when she was suffering from post-partum depression.

[Insert not included in original e-mail: If he had called Brooke and offered his support privately, like Tatum O'Neal apparently did with Brittany Spears, although of course the media got hold of it, that would have been a much different scenario. His public admonishment of Shields was uncalled for and inappropriate.]

I like celebrities whose work I admire (Meryl Streep, William Hurt, Joan Allen)...or rather, I like their work. If they happen to give something back to the community and the world at large (a la Audrey Hepburn and her selfless, un-publicity-motivated dedication to UNICEF) then more the better. But when they start thinking that their celebrity status gives them expertise on subjects on which they have no business commenting and the authority to judge others for their choices, I can't help but let that spill over into my feelings about them as artists.

I am torn now because I swore off Tom Cruise movies as a matter of principle (thus, I guess, conradicting myself and applying my personal opinions to him as an artist) and now there is a movie coming out called Lion for Lambs which, in addition to Tom Cruise, stars Meryl Streep, Robert Redford and Peter Berg...all of whose work I respect and enjoy. What ever to do!!!

Does Freedom of Speech apply to blog? Or am I going to have to defend myself, due of course to my incredibly large readership, in Tom Cruise libel suit funded by the deep pockets of Scientology?

Mystic Pizza Monday

I rarely just turn on the TV and flip, but tonight I did and I just couldn't resist when the LMN (Lifetime Movie Network - I know, it was new to me too) was showing Mystic Pizza. The 1988 movie marked some big hair, early career moments for Julia Roberts, Lili Taylor as Jojo, channeling her future Corey on Say Anything and Annabeth Gish being all earnest and sensitive like her future "Pudge" in Shag.

If you have any delusions that big hair, leggings and big shirts are a good look...rewatch Mystic Pizza.

So, my question for those fellow Mystic Pizza fans...and no going to IMDB...blogging is a game of honor...what future Oscar winner has about a half a line at the dinner table of Daisy's rich boyfriend's family? Hint: his Oscar was not for acting.

And just for the record...it's not fair...there is a local sports show called Sports Night...and I just saw it on the guide and for one hopeful moment I hoped that somehow one of the best, most underrated sitcoms of all time was sold into syndication.