I got a badly needed haircut today. I then came home and watched the Olympics, which turned out to be all things that I like: show jumping, track cycling and men's gymnastics. They also showed two heats of the men's 5,000 meter race, which I would have liked better if they had shown them from start to finish instead of cutting to commercials halfway through each race. I'm sure they only showed the jumping because Bruce Springsteen & Patti Scialfa's daughter was competing, but it was still nice to see it.

And the weather is nice (72°!), if a little hazy from wildfire smoke. I am enjoying it because it's supposed to go back into the 90s for the weekend.

https://www.lct.org/shows/flying-over-sunset/

I'd had an eye on this since some months before the pandemic (it was originally scheduled to begin previews on the day Broadway shut down), and now that it's coming back I'm getting intrigued again.

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL4AmIsikAB7HIESPKBDf95NqSUdzptiSK

I am listening to an interview Sondheim had with Rick Pender, a Cincinnati media person, in 2006. They are talking a lot about Company because the interview coincided with a production of that show in Cincinnati. It's interesting, but I suppose it doesn't reveal anything revolutionary. He does discuss Bounce (as it's called at the time of the interview, and he said at Chicago, it was about 80% there, and at Washington, it was about 85% there. As of the recording of the interview, he thought it was 90% there. ("Inching up.")

In 2006, when asked what the future holds for him, he said "I'm fishing around for new things."

_____________

I am also burning an archive DVD for the fourth time, because the files keep changing. God forbid I should archive a file with a missing comma. (I'm just grumbling there because the reason we had to change the files so many times was to add Oxford commas all over the place. I listened to the Vampire Weekend song "Oxford Comma" this afternoon, and it helped with my mood.

Quote from: KathyB on Jul 31, 2021, 08:45 amDoes anyone know if this is the kind of book I'd enjoy on Kindle, or if it's the kind where I'd be kicking myself if I didn't spring for the hardback edition?

Having a mild dead-tree fetish myself, I will likely get the hardback (if someone doesn't give it to me for my upcoming birthday).  But I don't know whether the book might be just as easily enjoyed on Kindle.  It's said to contain photos, and some scans of SJS's original longhand lyrics-in-progress -- but assuming those are all included in the Kindle version too, I don't know whether the format would make any difference, pro or con.  (If viewed on a device that allows zooming-in, e.g. to read marginal scrawls on those legal-pad lyric sheets; and IF -- big if -- these pics are high-res enough to make zooming-in actually effective -- then might the Kindle version actually be better than the paper one?).

I noticed on the Facebook FTC group that Town Hall and the Strand are livestreaming a book-launch celebration tomorrow evening.  Sondheim and Lapine will be conversing, with Patinkin and Peters as guests and Christine Baranski moderating.

http://thetownhall.org/event/putting-it-together-an-evening-with-james-lapine-and-stephen-sondheim

$25 for the livestream -- live only, apparently, at 7pm ET/4pm PT tomorrow (Tue Aug 3); no plans for streaming on-demand after the fact are mentioned;
OR $45 for the livestream plus a (hard)copy of the book, including domestic shipping.

Happy August!!!

You cannot see attachments on this board.

Today is much, much cooler, which feels wonderful. I don't even have the A/C on today.

A friend and I went lunch at Sushi Katsu for all-you-can-eat sushi for $17. It was delicious, but the place had no atmosphere at all--just a loud room with loud music playing and a bunch of tables close together. Maybe it's to get people in and out faster. They were very busy, and I was supposed to check in on their online waiting line, but I never could get it to work (it kept giving me an error message), so the people in front of us took pity on us and told the people inside that we were having trouble with it, and so they cleared a table for us.

Now my challenge is to find some sushi place that has a good happy hour and good atmosphere. There used to be one in the arts district, but apparently they've closed.

Does anyone know if this is the kind of book I'd enjoy on Kindle, or if it's the kind where I'd be kicking myself if I didn't spring for the hardback edition?

Another NYT review, this one by Alan Cumming, who bifurcates humanity into "artists" and "scientists" (by his lights, Sondheim is the latter, Lapine the former) and prefers Sunday's first act to its second:

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/07/28/books/review/putting-it-together-james-lapine.html

With friends like this...  Kidding (sorta); while I'm not sure I'd recommend giving up his day job for a new career in criticism, Cummings's thoughts-in-passing on "the many masturbatory galas honoring Sondheim I have attended -- and occasionally performed in -- over the years" are entertaining and perceptive.

(And he does like the book).

Stop me if you've heard this before:
1. It's hot.
2. There was way too much volleyball on TV yesterday.
3. It's really hot.
4. I had another pair of underwear eaten.

I think this is a signal that I need to get out and do something. 

Tomorrow I'll be able to post about all-you-can-eat sushi, and it's also supposed to cool down a little, but today I'm in a rut.

We had a flight divert to our station due to the bad weather in Newark.  I stayed and got a few hours of overtime.  Now it is time for bed.  ::snooze::