Sunday 07/09/2023

At 10 I warmed up the auditorium so Edie Eddy (yes, real name) could rehearse for her Sunday at Home talk next week. She went on a cruise from Norway through the islands above Scotland. The cruise line had a photographer along on all the day trips, and gave passengers a DVD, 40 minutes of video of their activities. She is going to talk over it and narrate her trip. She practiced a bit. It’ll be ok, I guess.

At 1:30 seven of us gathered at the usual spot. “At the coke machine” is the meeting point for car-pooling to either basketball or the theater. In this case, we were going to see Falsettos at the Pear. This is a musical from the 80s, with a theme of love in the time of the AIDS crisis. Remember that? How for a decade, there was a quiet slaughter of many young creative gay people? Now AIDS is survivable, but in the 80s or 90s it was a death sentence. This play was a Broadway hit in that era.

The play is all music, no spoken lines. The actors were almost all excellent, well all had excellent voices. Three or four were really good at acting, too, reacting and conveying emotion with body and gesture. It was a bit long for my taste, but not a wasted day.

Saturday 07/08/2023

I did pretty much nothing all day, except that at 10am I went down to the auditorium and chased a bug in our system and found it. For the last couple of zoom events, the audio from zoom participants has not been audible in the auditorium. If a zoom participant is unmuted, they can talk and other zoom participants can hear them, but their voice should also be heard in the auditorium and isn’t.

After 45 minutes of trying stuff and almost ready to give up, I happened to think of a setting… never mind the details but there was a simple software setting that was set wrong. Very satisfying to have resolved this problem.

At 6 I drove over to Mitchell Park to listen to an outdoor concert by Caravan, a Santana tribute group. They were pretty good. There was a big crowd, easily several hundred people spread out on a large grass lawn. Unfortunately our cool summer weather continues; the air temp was 62 and there was a brisk breeze. (Very much like Candlestick park back when we used to put on 3 layers of sweaters to watch a Giants game, in the 1980s.) So after 40 minutes I was shivering despite a sweater and came home.

Friday 07/07/2023

In the morning I took care of a bunch of little things. Bills, processed a video for the AV group, other stuff. Then met with David T, to get an education on the Heritage Circle and its operations. Bottom line, I and they have no real leverage over what staff does with a project like our AV upgrade that has been stalled out for months. The HC grants money to do a thing, but then it becomes one more capital project on the staff’s list of capital improvements. The staff decides where to rank it in the priority list, and has full discretion over the execution. He did suggest that in one particular matter, I should talk directly to CEO Rhonda.

At 2 I headed down to the museum to listen to Scott as he tried out his new docent tour. It and he are going to be good with a little practice.

Back at the shop, it was time for pizza. This was the second day in the week that the dining room was to be closed for dinner. On Tuesday it was for the holiday. Today it was because of a long-delayed staff appreciation party. The sixth floor had voted not to have a second sack supper picnic, but to order in pizza instead. So we met for pizza on the 11th floor.

I left that party early-ish at 6:40 to go over to Stanford for a concert. This was one of two concerts I had bought a ticket for in the Stanford summer Jazz Festival. It was a concert of the songs of Bert Bacharach (who only just died this year, age 93). The singer was Jackie Ryan, very personable, big alto voice. She was backed by Akira Tana, a Palo Alto native and a well-known jazz drummer, and three musicians from Osaka: Atsuko Hashimoto on organ, her husband on guitar, Hideki Kawamura. This group was very solid, especially Atsuko Hashimoto who ripped off several really exciting and dramatic solos during the evening. In any case, how can you go wrong with Say a Little Prayer, What’s it all About Alfie, Close to You, and of course finishing with Do You Know the Way to San Jose.

Thursday 07/06/2023

Tidied the apartment, then drove to the CHM warehouse on Yosemite ave in Milpitas. There I had my first exposure to ERMA. (ERMA was covered by the local NBC outlet, video which includes some shots of the loading dock at Yosemite.) Toni and I cataloged three pieces of ERMA today.

Back home, I had an hour break then went to the auditorium to set up for tonight’s event: a presentation of The Addams Family musical, by a group of high school students. The organization is called G.I.F.T. (Giving Individuals Fabulous Theatre), a 10 year old local organization of youthful thespians who bring performances to senior and youth facilities.

Two of them had stopped by on Sunday (4.213) to check out the facilities. Today at 5:45 the group of ten arrived, 8 actors, director, stage manager, all under the age of 18 but as assured and well-organized as if they’d been at it for decades. I had all eight of our wireless mics and other tech stuff warmed up and ready. But their tech guy sat down and worked out our sound and lights in 20 minutes. Meanwhile the cast rehearsed a couple of scenes, then they took half an hour to eat pizza, and at 7:30 they hit the stage singing and dancing and acting. The crowd loved them, they got lots of applause, and a good time was had by all.

Wednesday 07/05/2023

Facing an open day and thinking about what to do with it, when at 8:30am I got an email from Jesse the front desk guy at CHM, asking if they couldn’t please find some docents for a group of 30 students in a SJ State summer program. Well heck why not. So at 11 I was down at the museum in my red shirt. They were a nice group. I got half of the 30, of home about ten stuck close by and listened to my spiel.

That was about it for the day. In the evening I attended a lecture by a retired economics professor on the California economy. Which he has a lot of faith in, despite recent problems.

Tuesday 07/04/2023

Did the gym machines for the first time in a couple of weeks? and definitely feel it.

Prior to the writers group at 10:45 I wanted to write something. The cue was “My Country” but Connie said, take it where you want to. I kind of felt like maybe a poem? So I started writing a poem that kept getting stranger as it went. It was really a discovery process over half an hour, finding words that fit together and each led to something else. I’ll put it at the end.

Staff marketing person Ofelia had asked if I would host a couple who were interested in CH for lunch, as Ofelia had to leave. OK, sure. So I hustled down to the lobby at 12 and met with Bill and Jane and we shared a table that Ofelia had reserved. Nice people, easy to get along with. Today’s lunch was special; the dining staff was running a BBQ on the patio. You went outside and picked up your choice of foods and brought it into the dining room. The spread looked good, but unfortunately I picked the ribs and they hadn’t been cooked long enough. The meat was done but clung to the bone and was chewy. So I mostly ate cornbread and baked beans.

I piddled away the afternoon and took a short walk and then it was time for a 6th floor picnic. As usual on holidays we picked up sack suppers after lunch. By arrangement those who wanted, met in the floor dining room for a group picnic. There’s going to be another such day on Friday, because the dining room is being used that evening for a (well deserved) staff appreciation dinner. We’ve decided that rather than a sack picnic we’ll order in pizzas that day.

At 7:30 it will be time for the TGIF and fireworks party on the 11th floor. This TGIF is being sponsored by the “23rd floor” — the combined residents of the 2nd and 3rd floors, which have fewer apartments than the other floors. There will be rootbeer floats I am told. After sundown, people will stand on the roof and watch the fireworks from nearby cities. Since we had that very close-by fireworks show from Stanford a couple of nights ago, I’m not sure I will stay up there for that.

---

Country considered as Brownian Motion

Oh, where is my country?
Surely not where I was birthed?
But then, all birth is random,
juxtaposing genes to mix
and do whate’er the flux
of place and daily happenstance
decree. Country is just context,
jar, enclosure for a stochastic
boil, all reflecting and deflecting,
momentum zero in the end.

Monday 07/03/2023

Started the day with a shortish walk of a mile plus, and with coffee and a pastry for breakfast. Then it was back to work, to run and record a First Monday Book Talk. The speaker was newish neighbor Susan, most of whose career was spent as a teacher at College of San Mateo. Besides teaching, she did research into the life of an author I had never heard of, Michel Tournier (me-shell turn-yay), publishing several scholarly papers and eventually writing a book on his career.

First Monday Book Talks are where an author, preferably but not necessarily a CH resident, talks about their book. Susan rocked it; she gave an enthusiastic and interesting half-hour biography of Tournier and his major works and got a big hand. Gigi, who is the producer of this series of talks, had a large table for 6 for lunch. Pleasant chatting.

Then off for three hours at FOPAL, processing 7 boxes of books and tidying up my shelves for the sale which is next weekend.

Sunday 07/02/2023

After watering the plants I decided to have a bit of a walk. The temperature has finally moved into summer, with a predicted 85, but it was pleasant out. I walked to the California avenue market. Had a bottle of juice, bought a pound of Blenheim apricots, and took a Lyft home.

At 4 I met with Jerry to discuss what to do about the auditorium upgrade bid. He still thinks the side-monitors, which were deleted from the original grant request by CH staff, were in fact important, but in any case, the role of the Heritage Circle, which bestows the grants, needs to be clarified to staff people. I set up a meeting with David T (one of the many Davids around here) but couldn’t make it any sooner than Friday.

At 5 I joined Marcia who is bringing in a local G.I.F.T. group. These are mostly teens who put on plays in any location (“We are used to performing in people’s back yards”). They are going to perform here on this Thursday. Today we met with two of them, Juan and Julie, to go over the sound and light possibilities of our stage. I was very impressed with these two. Julie must be, I don’t know, 17? and has the assurance and knowledge of a 30-something stage veteran, as well as an excellent singing voice, as she demonstrated while testing the microphones. I’m sure the show will be fun to see, even though they will have just an hour for a run-through before performing in this location new to them.

Saturday 07/01/2023

Lazed around until time to go to lead the noon tour at CHM. As often happens, the 2pm tour had been canceled for lack of a docent. As often happens I thought about being a hero and sticking around to do another tour. As usual, I decide Nahh.

Something I read online pointed me to a movie, Bob Dylan: the other side of the mirror, a documentary made up of all Dylan’s appearances at the Newport Folk Festival in 1963, 64 and 65. No commentary, just performance video. Turns out, it’s on Amazon Prime for $3.99. What the heck, so I showed it to myself. Good stuff.

That, plus an episode of Mr. Bean, brought me to 9:45, which is when there was to be fireworks from Stanford Stadium, following a MLS game. So up to the 11th floor and out on the roof. It was a nice fireworks show, and closer than the nearest ones will be on Tuesday. The onshore breeze made nice patterns from the smoke, too.

Friday 06/30/2023

I went for the standard walk, first time in a week. Then I had not much to do until 2pm, but I filled some of the time writing a report to my AV team on my meeting with Tom and Gerald.

At 2pm I joined Ian and Gigi and Susan in the auditorium to help Susan practice for her First Monday book talk. It’s going to be quite interesting. Ian had signed up to do the AV but Susan and Gigi want it video recorded, which Ian hasn’t done, so we will work together on it.

When the book talk people cleared out, Bert came in, wanting to practice a zoom event. Bert has lots of ideas and likes to experiment. So instead of working my carefully planned checklist he wanted to plunge in and do things other ways. Eventually we got the results.

I met with Patty for supper a deux so we could talk over the state of the auditorium upgrade. Patty is part of the Heritage Circle committee that approved that grant a year ago. She gave me a new perspective on the situation. Basically reminding me that the HC approved the grant proposal, not a specific sum of money as a budget cap but a specific list of items to be accomplished. So I should make sure that we know what we want and have a plan to get it. She is frustrated with two other approved grants, where the staff have overruled and basically sidelined the resident committees that proposed the work, doing it staff’s way instead, and leaving the people who thought it up and argued for it, with their noses rather out of joint.

One case of that which rather shocks me is the approved grant for electric car chargers. The three person committee that planned and pushed that grant includes a guy whose resume includes a seat on the California High Speed Rail commission (not to mention many years at the IMF approving transit loans to national governments). To bypass his advice seems rather feckless.