There were some very good actors, especially the fellow who plays Willard, Ren's sort of slow friend. You could tell he was having a lot of fun with the role.

The girl who played Ariel, the bad-girl preacher's daughter, was perfect for her role as well. She had that look about her of being sweet-looking, but you could tell there was some devil inside.

I also found out from the person I was sitting next to that the girl who played Ariel and the boy who played Ren are an item in real life, so it probably made it easier for them to express their feelings through their characters.

One thing I wish some of the singers had done was watched Rex Harrison in Dr. Doolittle or My Fair Lady. He didn't sing - he recited his song, but he got his point across. A few of the people last night were having trouble hitting the high notes. I think if they had been allowed to recite their lines, they could have spent more effort on the getting the emotion out and less on trying to hit a difficult (for them) note.

I was also blown away by three of the female singers. They did a song called Somebody's Eyes, about how you're always being watched in a small town, and they were incredible. Each of them had a somewhat different voice, but their harmonies were incredible. That, by the way, is a pretty scary song if you listen to it - and accurate.

I was up for a while when I got home, singing Footloose to myself, which means I had a good reason for not getting much sleep last night.

I'm also going to be writing a review, because they're performing again next week, after the next paper comes out. One thing I learned during my years in Kamloops is that you have to tailor your reviews to the level of the performers. In Kamloops, we had a professional theatre group, Western Canada Theatre. Their plays were almost always excellent, so I didn't feel bad if I had to note some technical flaws or one person's failure to project.

We also had a couple of semi-professional groups and some amateur groups, as well as the high school plays. As you got down the list, you became more forgiving, taking into account the limited technical budget and expertise available as well as the less experienced performers.

So, since this is the first time I'll be doing a review since I left Kamloops, it could be interesting.

By the way, I am getting a few hours of sleep a night now, but still nowhere close to eight hours. I'm thinking I will probably go to the walk-in clinic next week if it doesn't clear up.

I am thinking about trying an old technique of mine called ram-your-head-into-the-wall-a-few-times, but the problem is your damage deposit tends to go away rather quickly, even if the headaches don't.

Took part in a fantasy baseball draft Saturday morning, and came out of it thinking I must have missed something in the rules. The league says you have to start two catchers, so I drafted Joe Mauer (Minn) early to make sure I got a good one, since it's a pretty short list of good players this year.

Then, about six rounds later, I realized Victor Martinez (Cleve) was still on the board, so I ended up with the catchers ranked first and second in the pre-draft list.

Or maybe it was all just a dream and I'm going to wake up in a shower somewhere.

I will take the advice of some people here in the office and on-line and go for a good walk tonight (assuming it's stopped snowing by then), and see if that helps.

One thing I was able to do last night before I tried going to bed was finish Paths Not Taken, the Nightside book by Simon R. Green. Great buildup to a rather short and sharp climax. The next book is apparently out, so I'll keep an eye open for it the next time I'm in Prince George.

I am thinking about buying a gift card from Coles in Prince George, because that would allow me to order books online from Indigo-Chapters.

Otherwise, yesterday was a fairly quiet day for me. A few phone calls, a couple of people dropping in to chat with the new guy and some pictures at a pair of elementary-school basketball games. Today, more phone calls, a couple of art show openings tonight, then walk and go to bed (and hopefully to sleep).

Tomorrow starts early with an online baseball draft, then some pictures of a Footloose rehearsal, budget meetings with the district council and a meeting between the local MLA and some cattlemen from the area. Good news is that one is at a restaurant, so I will be able to get lunch for a change.

 

One of the suspicions I was starting to have was that there was a noise of some kind, perhaps a train going by, that woke me up at that time.

I can now say with some degree of confidence that theory is wrong. I know, because I was awake all night for some reason.

So, I read a few more chapters of Paths Not Taken, Simon R. Green's latest Nightside book. I would read a chapter, laugh a bit, get a bit frightened, get something to eat or a glass of juice, then read some more.

I also managed to catch up pretty well on what was happening in the Olympics, find out that nobody seems to know why Isiah Thomas traded for Steve Francis, and decide I needed to go backup one level in coats before coming to work, since the termperature had dropped a few degrees from yesterday.

So, with no sleep, I figure I should be good here at work until about 3 p.m., at which point I will become a blithering idiot.

My co-workers probably won't be able to tell the difference.