The New Lost Holiday

Halloween is through!

The stores are alive with the sound of........Christmas!

Get your picture taken with Santa!  Set out your Christmas decorations!  Light up you house!  Start shopping for the out-of-towners!  Attend the Christmas tree  lighting ceremonies!  Set up your own tree!  Watch the Christmas parade!

And do it all....

Before Thanksgiving.

Commercially, not all the chatter is about Christmas.  Well, not directly, at any rate.  There are plenty of rumblings and advertisings and promotions about the new, dominant November Holiday...Black Friday!

I  don't know. Who can blame retailers?  How do you make a lot of money off of people being thankful?  Oh, sure, some groceries are sold, some plates and table decorations.  But nobody rushes out and buys a new computer or TV just for Thanksgiving.  Kids don't open dozens of toys.  So where is the cash incentive?

Many individual families still cherish Thanksgiving get togethers.  Travel seems to be more limited than before, as more and more jobs offer less and less vacation.  And many don't have the money for extensive travel, especially when you have to devote so many resources to Christmas.

I have not had Thanksgiving with my Michigan family in a very long time.  Both my mother and father have passed, leaving my sister and her family, who, because of the infrequency of our visits, have developed their own family and traditions.  She has a daughter and son, and now three grandchildren (compared to my zero). 

In past years, we have invited friends, particularly from church. who may not be able to have Thanksgiving with their own family.  This year, I am very fortunate to have my son, Doug, and his wonderful girlfriend, the charming Paige, coming to visit us over Thanksgiving.  I miss being able to have my oldest son, Greg, with us, but he lives in California, and his ability to visit is rare.

As someone raised in Michigan, I am a devout Detroit Lions fan.  The Lions always have a game on Thanksgiving.  The Lions have never really shined in oh, about 60 plus years, so most often, I get two turkeys on Thanksgiving.  But this year will be different! (I hope)


Thanksgiving still exists.  Gratitude and the open table are still celebrated by many.  But in the general culture?  In the shared media world we have immersed our self in?  It has all but disappeared, lost in the great rush towards more commercially promising holidays.


But don't let it get you down.  Reach out to your family.  Reach out to the lonely.  Reach out to those in need.  Make it a celebration of love, thankfulness and brotherhood.

The media?  We don't need no stinking media!

Searching the Stacks

Bookstores are rapidly disappearing.  Those that survive are increasing their display of other merchandise.  Games, apparel, greeting cards, writing supplies, toys, etc., are becoming almost more prominent than the books themselves.

If you are fortunate enough to stumble across a new author you like, good luck finding any more by that writer.  Unless the author is one of a handful of favorites, you're not likely to find any follow-up titles.  The depth of collection is no longer a bookstore concern. 

You might be able to request a book, and they may be able to order it for you, depending on the quality of the bookstore.  Whether someone wants to go through that, or just order the book from Amazon, is an open question.

The same holds true for many public libraries.  Their shelf space is being reduced, as their budgets are cut, and more and more users are coming for other things, particularly computers with internet access.  But you can request books that are not there, and you may be able to get the title, using the inter-library borrowing system.

But the reduction in access to books, especially the joy of browsing, may be even more widespread than I first thought.

My son, Benjamin, is a junior in high school, and we have begun touring different college campuses.  It's early, but we wanted to give him plenty of time and information to consider his options.  One of those we toured recently gave me quite a shock.

It was a pleasant campus, big but contained in one area.  If Benjamin went there, he could easily walk or bike to wherever he wanted to go. We took a walking tour with a student guide, and she was friendly, informative and humorous.

The highlight of the tour was the university library.  It was a big, modern building, and was four stories high.  Compared to the library at the first college we toured, it looked impressive.  Our guide took us in the building.  We stayed in the lobby, but I could see much of the first floor from where we were.  All I saw was a very large study area for students.  I looked up through the clear glass window of the second floor.  What I saw were more study spaces.

I'm usually quiet and shy during these tours, but I had to ask her, "Where are the books?"  She told me there were a lot of books on the second through fourth floors and that, if you requested a book at the library desk, that a robot would help find it and bring it to you.  I think she thought I would be impressed that the school was modern and fancy enough that a robot could do that.  I was not.  I was horrified.

"Do you mean there are book stacks that a student cannot browse themselves?" I asked.  She answered that there were areas the students could not browse, but there was a small section of books that they could look at if they wanted to.

This blew my mind.  My favorite part of going to college was wandering the labyrinth of bookshelves at the huge University of Michigan library.  I had no plan.  I had no purpose, other than to wander through history, our world and other worlds, and see what surprises I could run into.  The whole idea that students may not be able to do this any more left me shattered. 

After the trip, I tried to explain to several people my feelings about this.  I basically got dismissed as being old-fashioned and out of touch with the way the world works now.

Maybe.  That doesn't stop me from thinking we've lost something special.  Something you can't get from an e-reader, or an online store, or a robot.  Searching the stacks, being driven by a sense of intellectual curiosity, discovering a hidden gem that changes your life or way of thinking; this seems special and unique to me.

I'm going to miss it.  Finally, a change in our culture that makes me feel old, and kind of depressed.  I regret that my son may have either have none or only limited opportunities to search the stacks.

There are still a few places left, a few used bookstores that are big enough to get lost in, some larger public libraries that have not yet limited shelf access.  I'm going to continue to go on quests to find them and cherish them.

As long as there still stacks to search, I will be there.

Fairless Monday Musings

Yeah, I knew the Fair was last Week.

And, yeah, I did not go.

I dropped Benjamin off last year to work a booth in conjunction with assistance provided by the Student Ambassadors.  That's the only time I've been there since Benjamin was about three.

I don't want to go full bore "Am I only the one who's never watched Game of Thrones?" on your backside, but I just have little interest in going to the Fair.  This is just a personal thing, and not a reflection on the many that do go.

I have more socially introspective moods, and after the intensity of acting in The Model Apartment, and the involvement in the Writer's Awards, I just wanted some non-social time.  The idea of plunging into huge fair crowds, and spending a lot of money for rides that I don't want to ride, or food that I don't want to eat, I just couldn't bring myself to do it, even to volunteer to help at the Okefenokee Heritage Center booth.

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I am falling way behind in the NaNWriMo project.  But maybe when I get some work hours in, and have more time at the back half of the month, I can write more on it.  We'll see.  Check out the chapter parts on The Strait Line if you get a chance.  It's called The Extra Credit Club.

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Saw Thor Ragnarok.  It was a fun movie, with a fast moving plot and great character interaction.  Some were saying that it was the best Movie movie yet, and although very good, I don't qite see that.

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Still living in the Trump Moronocracy (Yes, Grammarly, I know that's not a word, nut I really don't care - DEAL!).  At this point, if you continue to support him, than it's saying more about you than him.  And I would love to ask my friends who are former Alabama residents what they think of Roy Moore, but based on the past politics, I'm kind of scared to find out.

Until next time,

T. M. Strait

Reader's Paradise

I love books.  I love their smell and feel.  I love to read them and treasure them and be surrounded by them.  When I dream, I dream of being in the middle of endless rows of bookshelves, shelves so high that you need a ladder to access them all.

I've tried Kindle, the modern e-readers that allow to carry an infinite number of books in the palm in your hand.  I've tried them, and I've failed.  Cold electronic type cannot compete with cracking open a spine of a book. turning to whatever page you want, cozying down into a comfortable chair with it, coffee cup steaming, ready to be transported to another world and place.

Not only do I love books, I really love bookstores.  A quality bookstore, new or used, where I can easily lose a day.  The more spread-out, the more maze-like,  the more jumbled, the better.  Sadly, these type of bookstores are slowly disappearing, especially from small towns.  The last used bookstore in my home area closed up several years ago.

I understand the nature of American capitalism.  I understand when sales and interest decline, they cannot be sustained.  But I sure do miss them.  I made a comment once about how this area can't sustain one decent bookstore, but we have dozens of auto parts stores.  It's odd to me, as I have no interest in auto part stores, unless my battery dies and I need one quick, but I was quickly told by friends how necessary they all were, and I shouldn't be complaining.  And they were right.  If there wasn't enough business for so many stores, market competition would drive some of them out of business.

So, yeah, I understand the business reasons.  That doesn't stop me from missing it, and wishing we could have one.  I used to get itchy if I couldn't go to a bookstore or comic shop (now even harder to find than bookstores) at least once a week.  Now, everything's online, which is just not the same experience at all.

If only you could go someplace and get the same experiences and feeling that you could from a good bookstore!

Thankfully, there is.

It's called the public library.  

There are shelves of books to get lost in.  They often have book sales in which you can fill your own shelves.  They often have cushy chairs, and nooks where you can read and escape.  

They have friendly librarians who can help you find what you're looking, or help you discover the perfect book you didn't even know was there.  They can help you find books that aren't at the library, and often arrange to bring it in so you can borrow it.

They have book clubs, and people with like interests meeting.  They have story reading time for children, and summer activities, and guest authors, and access to things beyond books - including the Internet, films, music, and audio.

No, it's not a perfect substitute.  I wish they would serve coffee and refreshments (some libraries have experimented with this, to mixed results).  It would be swell as a source to buy new books you were interested in, perhaps a lend and buy program.  And it would be nice if the depths of in-library book offerings would be stronger and a little more diverse.

These changes may come in time.  Meanwhile, if you are me, and jonesing for a bookstore visit. let this be a serviceable substitute.

And who knows?  The more of us who visit, the more of us who borrow, participate, and buy, the more interesting and stronger our public libraries will become?

Well, I've convinced myself.  That's where I'm going - the public library!  See you there!

 

Kayak Kelly Gassed in the Swamplands

Kayak Kelly Gassed in the Swamplands

Gliding through the swamplands

Paddling past the blackened sands

Kayak Kelly weaves through its trees

And the pitcher plants that tease

Teases its prey; the abundant bugs

Who cannot resist its odorous slugs

Kayak Kelly passes a cypress laden way

And notes the swaying loblolly-bay

In the distance; was that a deer?

Or maybe it was a black bear to fear?

What just splashed and slithered into the wet?

It was an alligator or snake he bet

Up ahead a spider was webbed

Between two sweet bays pegged

The spider was small as it hung up

Only the size of a Chihuahua pup

As Kayak Kelly forged on

The foggy gas rolled upon

Covering the waters the color of tea

Soon there was nothing he could see

When it rolled away he saw a sight

A possum was on a stump alight

And near a gator with an appetite

But the possum did not look in flight

It couldn’t be, but they appeared to be

In conversation so deep and earnestly

Kayak Kelly looked with a squint and a scrunch

Didn’t the gator know that possum was lunch?

Kayak Kelly got out his notebook

He wanted to record this odd look

So he could cherish later when

He had left the swampy glen

Then the fog cleared out away

And the creatures’ visages did not stay

The swamp was back to the way it was

Gator and possum off to some other Oz

Kayak ended his swamp travail

Headed home via the watery trail

Finished the picture while fresh in mind

His treasured, gassy, swampy find

His thoughts were a mighty swirl

Of a friendship that could never whirl

Kayak Kelly put it on his boat as a personal logo

An inquisitive gator and a possum he named Pogo

The Model Apartment is Closed

That is a picture of me with my favorite young thespian, Emily Beck, who once again impressed everyone with meeting every challenge she was faced with, and becoming better and better with every play she is in.  Our original production was scheduled for mid-October when our lead quit two days before opening, and it looked like we were done for, until Emily stepped in and quickly learned a whole passel of lines, and we rescheduled for the first weekend in November.  I can only hope that other theater groups, especially WACT, paid attention to what this extraordinary talent can do!  She can bring it any day of the week, including WEDNESDAY!

This is the only picture I could dig up this morning, but I would love to post more pictures of other cast members, especially my good friend and frequent stage wife, Julianna Lacefield.  It was wonderful to perform side by side with her, and I think we made a perfect elderly Jewish couple.  Her accent and mannerisms were spot on, and our natural acting chemistry shone through.  As our set builder and husband of the Director, Lamar Deal,  said, we came across like real people, not actors.

I also want to note stage newcomer, Kylar Austin, who was very good as my stage daughter Debby's boyfriend.  Kylar has a real future in theater, and I can't wait to see him in other productions!

As in any successful play, it takes many talented people behind the scenes to put on a top notch show, and we had that in spades.  Our Director, Barbara Griffin, worked hard at pulling out the best of us, and helping us negotiate challenges that may have killed off weaker productions.  Warren Wilson was a devoted assistant who saw us through many tough evenings of rehearsal, and conducted the light and sound board like a maestro.  Lamar Deal provided an outstanding set, props, and moral support.  Jody Rollins wrote and recorded an amazing original score for the show.  Samantha and David Bruchie stepped in and provided vital backup in set and prop preparation.  Our stage mothers, Kimberly Back and Glenda Powers, were constantly there to support the production and our young cast members.  We had a great videographer, Nathan, who came and recorded the show every night.

I want to thank those theater patrons who came out to the show.  We bested our crowd numbers for the second run of Anne Frank, and those that came were very appreciative.

Honestly, numbers are down for all local productions, except for the musicals.  It's very discouraging that so many are no longer considering local theater a part of their lives. 

But we struggle on because it's in our very blood.  When I'm preparing for a production, all I can think of is the intensive memorization, and the many nights of rehearsal.  Then I get onstage and all that evaporates.  I experience the magic as my character fills me, and I feel the energy-giving pulse of the audience, and I remember why I struggle through it all.


To paraphrase my character Max:

"I'm telling ya, these theater experiences; TOPS!"

Competition Hits The Strait Line!

I love The Strait Line!

And based on increasing page views, so do many of you!

But I'm going to have a lot of time competition, especially over the next week.

I've got the play, last dress rehearsal tonight, and then three straight evening performances.  That's The Model Apartment, this Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights at 8 PM at the Okefenokee Heritage Center's Studio.

I've got Waygreen Saturday morning, and The Writer's Guild Awards Sunday afternoon.

I am trying to front-load my working hours so that I can have more time with the family later in the month.

And...I'm going to try to do the NaNoWriMo project (50,000 words of a novel in one month).  That may cut into my The Strait Line more than anything else.  I might post parts of the novel.  I might not.  Hard to say.

For those asking about History of the Trap Vol. 2, I hope to begin on that in earnest in December.  Which may cut The Strait Line time that month.

Who knew being a writer might take me away from writing???

Anyway, I will do my best.

Try to be patient with me.  

The Strait Line will soldier on!