We were thrilled several weeks ago when we discovered that Says You was going to be recording in San Francisco for broadcast later. It was the first time the radio show had come to SF and even though we had just gone to two days of tapings (4 shows) in Los Angeles, we couldn't pass up the chance to see it on home turf.
We didn't realize how much "home turf" it was going to be until we checked the web site for ordering tickets and found out that they were going to be at the Presentation Theatre, home of The Lamplighters for some 25 years! Says You and Presentation Theatre too! It was too much happiness.
We debated about whether we wanted to go to all three tapings ($40 per ticket each), but decided it's only money and we knew we'd have a good time, so we bought tickets for all three days.
Then the difficulties with Walt's mother came up. We figured he'd be back here in time to go to the show, but as the need for him to stay with her grew, we realized he was just going to have to miss it. I asked a couple of people here in town who I knew would enjoy the show if they wanted to go with me, but nobody was free to go. My friend Will Connelly (from the Lamplighters) said he had heard the show a couple of times and thought he liked it and that he could go with me on Saturday. Char said she'd like to come with me on Sunday.
So I went to the show on Friday alone. It was OK because I had my audio book and was looking forward to getting back into it. I allowed 3 hrs to get to SF for the 8 p.m. taping (it's normally an hour and a half drive, but I knew there would be Friday night traffic). Traffic was horrendous (it took an hour just to get to the bridge toll plaza alone) but I figured I was doing OK time-wise because it was still only 7:15. I could easily get out to Pres, find a place to park and get to the show before it started.
As I got to Pres, however, I had this ominous feeling because there was nobody "milling about" in front. I drove around for awhile and finally found a spot that I could just barely squeeze into and pulled out my e-ticket. That's when I found out it started at 7, not 8. as all the LA tapings have done. Sigh. I had missed the first 20 minutes, but I took a chair and put it in the back of the theatre and watched from there. That actually turned out to be a good thing because at intermission, when I went to my "real" seat, I discovered that it was by the radiator, which was blazing hot. I just went back and sat in the chair for the rest of the show.
I had so much emotion watching Says You on that stage I knew so well, sitting in the seats I had been sitting in for years and years. (Though the typical Says You audience DEFINITELY looks different than your typical Gilbert & Sullivan audience!)
My friend and favorite panelist, Tony Kahn was not there because he is currently undergoing chemotherapy, but his absence gave me the opportunity to finally see the very funny Murray Horwitz (a former Ringling Bros. clown!--I knew Mary would want to know that) who periodically fills in when one or another of the panelists is not able to be there for a taping.
Horwitz with Panelist Francine Achbar
I even got brave after the show and introduced myself to panelists Arnie Riesman and his wife Paula Lyons, with whom I have had several e-mail exchanges. They were underwhelmed, I'm sure.
I got home from the taping around midnight and sat up until 1:30 writing a journal entry and didn't get to sleep until sometime after 2. Then I got up at 5:30, thinking Phil and Lester might get here around 6 (they actually arrived at 7:15, which, as it turned out, was plenty of time to get to the San Francisco airport and get the dog booked into United baggage).
I hadn't had breakfast yet, so I drove along the beach to the Seal Rock Inn, one of my favorite breakfast places, and had "the perfect" eggs benedict. I was seated by a window and the gentle breeze blew in on me and I could kinda sorta even look at the ocean as I sat there.
(it's there--trust me, it's there!)
In the meantime I called Will about the show and the fact that it was 7 p.m., not 8. He was singing a concert at the SF Yacht Club in the afternoon, but had thought he could get out to Pres in time for the show, but with the change of time, he now wasn't sure. Just in case he didn't make it, he suggested we meet for dinner at 4 at the yacht club.
I still had time to kill, so I decided to take a walk through Sutro Park, across the street from the restaurant and, if you walk far enough into it, overlooking the beach. I had never been in that park before. Well...I decided I've been reading too many Michael Connelly books. There was a guy standing out in front of the garage at the restaurant. When I crossed the street to take my daily picture, of me in front of one of the park's lions...
...I looked and he was now across the street just a few feet in front of me. I didn't think anything of it until I walked farther into the park and turned around and saw him now between me and the lion. I had just been listening to a book about abductions from lonely places and I just didn't feel comfortable since there were so few people around. A woman was coming toward me with her dog and I waited until she got closer and then kind of walked out of the park with her. The man had disappeared. I decided to drive to the Marina and get away from possible predators at the beach.
Well it was a beautiful weather day in the city and everybody in town was out. I literally drove around for two hours (my parking angel had apparently taken a hike) trying to find a parking place anywhere in the vicinity of the yacht club and finally left Will a message that I'd given up and was heading back to Pres.
I drove out to Pres and sat in the car for about 4 hours listening to my current audio book (and actually finishing it).
I finally called Will around 3:45 to make sure he had received my previous message (he had not) and he said he wasn't feeling well anyway and might not come to the show after all.
Serendipitously, there was a woman at the theatre who had come to the show with some friends. The show was sold out and she didn't have a ticket, but was hoping she could get one at the door, so I gave her Will's ticket and then left a message for him that he could now just go home. In one of those "small world" coincidences, a friend of the woman who needed a ticket was also a friend of the guy who had made our the publication of our first Lamplighter history a possibility back all those many years ago!
I had almost no money and after the show had to choose between going home across the Bay Bridge, where I would have a toll to pay eventually, and NOT getting any coffee to keep me awake, or going home across the Golden Gate Bridge, a slightly longer trip, but where I would NOT have a toll to pay, and would thus have enough money to buy an iced Mocha to keep me awake. I took the latter option which would have worked out well if Highway 37, the road that crosses from San Rafael to Vallejo, had been opened, but it was closed for repairs and so I was routed way to hell and gone through Napa. I know the route well, but in the dark I couldn't see landmarks and so it was difficult to know exactly where I was at any time. And it was considerably longer than the straight-through Highway 37 would have been.
By the time I got to I-80, I was really very sleepy and fought sleep all the way along. I was now out of money, so couldn't buy another coffee. I finally got off on the side road before the main Davis exit just because I wasn't feeling safe on the freeway any more. I almost made it home without incident, but apparently fell asleep 3 blocks from home and nearly ran into a light post, though woke up with a start in time to jam on the brakes. I did, however, jump the curb. The shock of that was enough to keep me going the last 3 blocks.
I was so sleepy by the time I hit the front door that I actually went to sleep without writing a journal entry. Now THAT's sleepy!!!
Sunday morning I turned around, got on the freeway and drove back to San Francisco yet again, for the third day of taping. But that day had a nice unexpected twist to it, so I think I'll save that for its own entry, tomorrow or the next day.
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