Nothing Special

But a Good Birthday Anyhow

It rained most of yesterday, so I never did ride. The Boys were quite content about that and just kind of hung out around the barn, staying dry for a change. I made myself some tacos and relaxed for the evening.

No biggie as I am going out to dinner with my friends Shelley and George another day to celebrate. Shelley and I share the same birth year and our birthdays are just about a month apart, so we will go out and have a good time together.

I did receive some nice phone calls, some nice Internet greetings, and lots of "Happy Birthdays" from my students at school. The best greeting was a card one of my classes got and all of them signed it. It was a Peanuts gang card, completely suited to them and I was really moved by their taking the time and effort to remember me that way.

I showed "The Lorax" in all my classes to recognize Earth Day and held a drawing in each class to give out a prize to one lucky student who had answered all the trivia questions about me correctly. All told, there were only about 12 students who had all the right answers. They all, however, listened pretty intently as I explained about how public the Internet was and how they all needed to be cautious and prudent about what they write on forums, chats, and, of course, sites like Facebook. I have a feeling a lot of them did some second guessing about the kinds of things they "say" on the Web. So, that lesson was a good one too.

Had some shopping to do after school today and choir practice as well, so once again, The Boys had the night off. I guess as long as school is in session, riding will be off and on. And things are only going to get busier as my play is going to be presented again for five performances soon. I have some press releases to write and a little "tweaking" of the script along with upcoming rehearsals.

Speaking of the play, apparently it stirred up quite a controversy at the publising company I submitted it to. A group of editors there were very moved by it, but the chief editor felt the play had to be toned down for their clientle. I would be fine with that, but the general consensus is that it would significantly change the play. On that, I am not keen. I know the play is very powerful and now I have confirmation from the editors who read it. However, it is not suitable for their company. Today the editor who contacte me agreed that it was better for me to try to sell it elsewhere and even gave me a good lead. She also said, "It's hard to let go of a chance to publish this work." Wow!

I think I do need the right publisher--one who is ready, willing and able to take on a painful drama that tells it like it is without sugar coating. There is no overt violence in the play, but the circumstances--deaths from teenage driving accidents--are not pretty. In case you weren't here when I discussed this before, the story focuses on a TV reporter's exploration of a stretch of roadway strewn with roadside memorials to traffic victims. Throughout the play, the ghosts of the victims tell their stories as still living people visit their memorials. The ghosts are caught in the day of their deaths and while we can hear their voices, the living cannot. The stories of their lives and dreams, along with their tragic deaths make for some truly touching moments.

The idea of the play was to get teenagers to think about safe driving without preaching to them. It confronts them with the consequences without making any judgments and no lectures. I am going to be very interested to see how the new audiences react. The first performance was before a select group. This time, students from schools all around the area will be there. And we are going to offer two evening performances for the general public.

It is going to be an exciting couple of weeks.