Tuesday, February 10

Right after breakfast, I hopped on the treadmill for 35 minutes and then did a resistance workout. As soon as I was ready for the day, I went to the dress shop to pick up the three outfits I'll be modeling at the Go Red Luncheon Thursday.



Mother came over after I got back home and joined us in watching the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show, which I had recorded on DVR last night. But, drat it, the channel I'd recorded only carried one hour of the program. After that, viewers were encouraged to go to a news channel to get the rest of the show. I didn't know that when I set the recorder. I don't remember the show being split up like that last year.



After lunch, I tried on the outfits I'll model, to get a feel for how long it'll take me to change between outfits. I hope someone will be in the dressing room to help the models get items off hangers, and then hang up the ones we take off. Otherwise, I'll personally just shed clothes and deposit them wherever until after the show, because there sure won't be time for neatness.



Tonight, I attended two meetings: one for visual arts at 5 p.m., and one for community theater at 7:30 p.m. It was cloudy when I left the house to go to the arts council meeting, but by the time I got to town, there came a frog strangling torrential rain. Fortunately, I had an umbrella with me, but I had to step up to my ankles into water rushing along the side of the street to get to the sidewalk.

An important item of business included encouraging arts members and others interested in the arts to contact members of Congress to urge them to support adding a provision for the National Endowment for the Arts in the proposed stimulus package.

Some argue that funding for the arts is wasteful, and that it would not create jobs or boost the economy. They consider it "fluff" money, going to such things as abstract-film festivals, unnecessary exhibits, etc. But the truth is that communities are enhanced by the arts, through things like museums and live theater, which tend to attract businesses, and thus draw tourism.

All sorts of folks work in the arts fields. I am one. As an artist-in-education, I have the opportunity to work part time in schools, teaching photography as an enhancement to physical science studies. It's a well-documented fact that students who are exposed to the arts become better students. Better students make better future citizens, who in turn will contribute to the betterment of society. An investment in the arts is not only an investment in the present, but it is an investment in the future.

Tomorrow, I will add my voice to the many who are sending E-mails to members of Congress through Americans for the Arts at: http://capwiz.com/artsusa/mailapp/ where there is a form letter, with sample talking points that can be used. Of course, individuals can construct their own, original letters, as well. I urge anyone interested in the arts to go online and send a positive E-mail today.

The meeting lasted about an hour, so I was home just after 6 p.m. to join Mother and Hubbie in a supper of pork chops, using a new recipe calling for onions, spices, and apple juice. These were served with baked potatoes and green beans.

At 7:30, I went to a community theater board meeting. The rain had stopped by the time I left the arts council meeting, but started back up again as I neared town for the community theater board meeting.

As is the case for everyone, the community theater is struggling with funding problems. So we spent the evening trying to come up with plans for fundraisers. It was about 9:30 p.m. before I got back home.



Interesting note: while entering Son's new cell phone number into Hubbie's cell phone address book yesterday, I discovered the new number is Sis's old number. Sis recently changed her number, but has not alerted everyone yet. When I told Son and Daughter-in-Law about this, Daughter-in-Law said that when she answered Son's phone a day or so ago, a nephew thought she was his mom (Sis), which made Daughter-in-Law think that Nephew was another nephew who now lives out of state, who might have miss-dialed.



Another cell phone story: some time ago, a family member lost his cell phone and searched everywhere without finding it. He decided to use his mother's cell phone to call his own phone to see if it rang somewhere in his house. He was surprised when it was answered by another family member, who was at a park , where the phone had obviously been dropped. What are the chances that a family member would find another family member's cell phone that way?