Closing Night Party at Pistol Pete's

As much as I do not really want to face it, the tour is almost over. Today is our last full day in Atlantic City, and we only have 2 more shows. Thankfully I have The Wizard of Oz lined up. I cannot imagine being one the company members facing unemployment. (Perhaps that is why I stayed in Nappanee for so long!) I have had a couple of moments that have brought the reality of closing to me. Giving away my laundry detergent at the laundromat was one, and having to ship home 50 pounds of stuff was certainly another! But perhaps the biggest slap of reality was our closing party Friday night. The party was at Pistol Pete's bar and restaurant. Pistol Pete's is a bit of a legendary place, and it happens to be less than a block from our hotel. The theme for our party was dress as another company member. I did not really make the effort, but since Nate and I have essentially the same glasses I passed myself off as Nate. Here are some of the highlights of the evening:

Merritt is going out on NETwork's Sweeney Todd tour. Guess which part!

Three reed players

This is Jason (Andrea's husband) who is also a reed player.
He came dressed as Max.

Joey seems confused about something

This was pretty late in the evening.

Look at the fatties!

Ashley dressed as JJ and Merritt as Dan Webber were the most true to life.

1 more day in Atlantic City.

New York one last time

So back on the 11th, I made my final trip up to New York. Brian's birthday was the previous Saturday so it worked out perfectly. I was able to help him extend his birthday festivities to a fifth day of celebration. (I need to take notes for my birthday next year!) Brian's goal is to get me caught up on all of the trendy fun restaurants in New York. Last time we went to Rice to Riches, and this time we went to Max Brenner's Chocolate Factory. I had the molten lava cake with raspberry sauce, and a white chocolate chai. (You know I am starting to notice a trend here. And I wonder why I did not lose any weight this summer!)

This New York trip was pretty chill. I did not see a show that night instead I chose to see Melissa and Emma. Well I saw Emma, but she was trying her hardest to not see me. I tend to have that effect on children! I did get to hang out with Katie, Tracy, and her husband Scott (all Round Barn alums). I had lunch with Eric and Brian the next day, and we all grabbed cupcakes right before I hopped on the bus back.

It has been nice to be so close to New York that I can take a trip in to see people, and not be crazy about seeing shows. Although I still love to see shows, and I have a feeling that my next New York trip will be a crazy theatre marathon. I still have the fever after all!

On a side note, Eric is in Atlantic City today to play for a "Jersey Boys" gig. The original guys from Jersey Boys have been doing concerts on the side and Eric plays for them. So I am going to meet up with Eric and his parents before the matinee today for lunch, and then they are going to come see The Wedding Singer. He was originally going to come last night, but I am relieved that he did not. Our closing night party was the night before, and given that there was an open bar the show was not our best effort last night!

2 more days in Atlantic City.

Saving the best for last

Okay so I cannot lie. I enjoy going to cheesy tourist traps (Corn Palace anyone?!). It just so happens that a few minutes south of the boardwalk is a 6 story one that is shaped like an elephant. Her name is Lucy and one can buy a ticket to climb up through her leg into her belly. There you can look out of her eyes and see the beach or look out her butt and see beach houses. One can also climb up more steps and stand on her back. If you look closely at the middle picture, you will notice that she has green and white toenails. Apparently those are the colors of Margate City.

3 more days in Atlantic City.

I do not know who this Rump guy is

but I would be willing to bet that he is an ass!

4 more days in Atlantic City.

The Aluminum Show or I Dream of Mylar

Two Saturdays ago, a group of us went to see The Aluminum Show. None of us had ever heard of it before, but Tommy had a friend in the cast. The show ended up being mostly fun. It is basically Blue Man Group done with flexible duct work and mylar. There were several moments in the show that looked like a Slinky come to life, and guess what they were selling in the lobby afterwards?

JJ being eaten by a Slinky

5 more days in Atlantic City.

I know, I know...

I said that I would write one post a day as a countdown, and I am behind. In my defense, the internet has been down at the hotel so I have been unable to do so. Until I get caught up, here is a tantalizing taste of what awaits.

Philadelphia

A trip to Philadelphia is one of the outings that I wanted to make sure to get in before leaving Atlantic City. Philadelphia is only about an hour from Atlantic City, and is easily accessible by train. The only other time I was in Philadelphia was on a Sunday back in college when Roger and I took a weekend trip to DC and Philadelphia to see shows. Everything was closed, and we really only had a couple of hours to walk around.

Sadly because of our Wedding Singer schedule, there were no shows that I was able to see at any of the theatres. So I decided to check and see if there was a home Phillies game on a Monday night. The only one during our 9 weeks was last night so Dan, Tami, and I hopped in the car yesterday, and headed to Philadelphia.

The historical district is pretty compact and is laid out a bit like the Mall in Washington DC. Dan wanted to go to the Mint so we passed on going in Independence Hall, The Constitution Center, or the Liberty Bell pavilion. I will be back in Philly in November so I plan on catching all of the tourist things then.

Tami has a friend on the Spamalot tour which is currently in Philadelphia so we met up with her and she showed us around. One of the first places that we went was the Famous 4th Street Deli. I was not told what makes them famous, but I would hazard a guess it was the gigantic desserts. The above picture does not really do it justice. That slice of carrot cake was at least 2 inches thick, and I only made it about halfway through before I felt like I was going to die. The leftovers did make for a tasty midnight snack.

As they say, "When in Rome..."

This is my first time going to either of the two mints. I have to say it was a bit disappointing. I likened it to when you go to the zoo and the otters are asleep. Admittedly we got there 20 minutes before the tours stopped, but there was nothing happening on the production floor. Sweeping floors is not interesting. (The same thing happened to Dan and I at the Anheuser Busch plant in St. Louis, but at least we got free beer at the end of that tour!) There were a few displays of interesting coins, but that was about it. Thankfully the tour was free.

One of the activities that Tami's friend Angela had planned for us was to throw a penny on Benjamin Franklin's grave. I do not know what the significance of doing so is, but there is my penny.

The Phillies game was fun. Well actually I couldn't really have cared less about the game, but I got my nachos so all was right with the world. The Phillies were playing the LA Dodgers. The only player I recognized was Manny Rodriguez. I was proud of myself because I understood why everyone was booing him.

I was slightly obsessed with the Phillies Phanatic. If a team is going to have a mascot it should be a giant Muppet!

Okay so I did see a Liberty Bell. I have a feeling that this one is more interesting than the original. At least this one lights up and moves!

6 more days in Atlantic City.

The Newest Member of the Claus Clan

This is my newborn niece Tatum. She was born last Wednesday, and was a certain number of pounds and ounces. (I never remember these things. I am sure that Mom will fill in all of the details.) All that I know is I now get to shop for cute little baby clothes again!

Here she is with her sister Reagan and cousin Zachary.

7 more days in Atlantic City.

One Last Twist Of The Knife

Well at least it is not on the rocks

"You lookin' at me?"

"Oh my aching head...wait a minute"

8 more days in Atlantic City

Books

The following is a list of the books that I have read while on tour:

-Middlesex
-Among The Thugs
-Thunderstruck
-The Kite Runner
-Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers
-When You Are Engulfed in Flames
-The Year The Yankees Lost The Pennant
-Nashor Sculpture Center Handbook
-Michael Tolliver Lives
-The Code of the Woosters
-Jeeves and the Tie That Binds

The Wedding Singer has an average amount of reading time for a show, even in the 90 minute version. It took me a couple of weeks before I was comfortable reading during the show, but after that point there was no looking back. By far my favorite book of the bunch was Stiff. I also really enjoyed Middlesex and The Kite Runner.

I am not sure how much reading time there will be in The Wizard of Oz given all of the underscoring, but since we will be busing instead of flying I will actually have more time to read. So if anyone has good book suggestions, I would gladly take them.

9 more days in Atlantic City.

Could We Start Again Please?

As of today, we have 10 days left in Atlantic City (that's 12 more shows). I am going to try to post one entry a day as a countdown to the end of the tour. (Suddenly a They Might Be Giants song is going through my head!) I have a few activities that I have not yet reported on, and a have a couple of possible outings in the works. Hopefully I have enough material!

There's No Place Like Homepage

I was just informed of the existence of the website for the Wizard of Oz tour. It isn't populated with all of the information yet (like the cast), but it does list the tour schedule. Chances are the schedule will change before all is said and done, but it is nice to see something in print. Here is the link:

http://www.wizardofozontour.com/

And yes, I stole the title for this post from the website. It was too clever for me to resist.

Harrah's By Night

Because tonight's the night when I cross the line

I have an obsessive personality, and most people know that. One of my latest obsessions has been finding 80s accessories to wear in The Wedding Singer. I started with socks and then moved to wristbands. Now after spending my day off in New York, I have a new accessory: fat shoelaces. I debuted them tonight during the show, and I have to say that I might have gone too far. I am going to wait to pass judgement until I try the laces out with the hot pink socks.

Now if I can find that affordable calculator watch! (Note the tight rolls!)

La Playa

-Really in some ways it is unfair that I am spending the summer on the Jersey shore because there are others who enjoy going to the beach more than I do. (Scott, Tanya) I do not enjoy hot sunny weather, and sand is just messy. But on the other hand I have a rather unfortunate farmer tan. So I went to Kmart and bought an offensive beach towel (yes, High School Musical) and plenty of sunblock.

-I have discovered that I can make a day of taking the bus in from the hotel, finding something fun to do on the boardwalk, and spending a little time on the boardwalk beach. Afterwards I still have plenty of time to get to Harrah's for the show. Last week, I went to the Bodies exhibit and the beach, and this week I saw The Dark Knight IMAX and went to the beach. The only drawback is that I cannot take a shower before playing the show. Oh well nobody can see the sand in my hair!

Profound Photographic Pondering

Jitney (or Short Bus of Death)

Poor little thing, Pinched in, Nowhere to go, Caricature of a tree

(Anybody get the show reference, Anybody?)

It took me about a week to finally realize that Atlantic City inspired the property names in Monopoly. For instance, I walked down Park Place to the Broardwalk the other day.