Squirrels Make Noises

For the first time ever, I'm blogging in someone's backyard. It's before 8 a.m., and everyone in the house is male and asleep, so here I sit, tapping into the unsecured wireless network. And I have made the discovery that that sound--the one that sounds like a cat/creaky bellows--is actually coming from a squirrel. No idea that squirrels made "mwa-a-a-A-a-a-a" sounds, but now I know gray ones do when they're trying to intimidate black ones. Take that, Jane Goodall.

Squirrels have NOTHING to do with Books, unless you're talking about the odd, I-don't-get-it story of Squirrel Nutkin by Beatrix Potter.

Onward.

Had my first California book party last night, with friends I hadn't seen in years, in some cases. Very, very fun. I forgot my camera and the bottles of wine for the hostess, so you'll just have to take my word for it.

Anyhow, I was telling one woman how we had caught MACBETH on our stopover in Ashland and really enjoyed it, but that we felt guilty for leaving the kids with a complete stranger off the Oregon Shakespeare Festival website. With the result that we decided we would take the kids to the play next summer. We've chosen HENRY IV, PART ONE because it'll be in the outdoor theater and have things kids know and love, like nagging parents, the annoying kid always held up to you as an example, fat jokes, potty humor, and sword fights.

This friend responded that her mom had taken her to Ashland at age 5(!) to see JULIUS CAESAR, of all things. To prepare for it, her mom went over the whole play and acted it out with toy animals. Brutus was a giraffe. She remembers the whole experience like it was yesterday. This is a fabulous idea! I can't wait to go home and get started on HENRY IV, maybe using the kids' Pokemon figures. Or, better yet, Bionicles and my youngest's Disney princesses.

Anyone remember the first Shakespeare play they ever saw? My experience probably wasn't unique--it would have to be freshman year of high school when they rolled the Franco Zeffirelli ROMEO AND JULIET video. In that age of huge perms, there was much snickering and scorn over Juliet's stick-straight, parted-in-the-middle hair, but we all know who had the last laugh.