Brotherhood of Man

It was still cloudy and cool when I got up this morning. Cheered up the gloomy morning with French Toast for breakfast and my original cast album for How to Succeed In Business Without Really Trying. J.Pierpont Finch (Robert Morse) is determined to climb the corporate ladder the easy way - by buttering up every boss he comes across. He starts off as a window washer who graduates to the mail room, run by long-time mail clerk Mr. Twimble (Sammy Smith), and gradually works his way up until he's the head of the company and has won the admiration of secretary Rosemary (Bonnie Scott).

This spoof of corporate culture was such a huge success in 1961, it won the Pulitzer. It's had two revivals, one in 1995 with Matthew Broderick, the most recent in 2010 with Daniel Ratcliffe, that were almost as popular. Some of the attitudes, especially towards the secretaries, are extremely dated today, though others (such as Bud Frump's nepotism and all the brown-nosing) remain spot-on. My favorite number is the adorable "Been a Long Day," with Rosemary's best friend Smitty (Claudette Sutherland) hilariously explaining just what Finch and her best pal are thinking at the end of the work day. The finale "Brotherhood of Man," as Finch covers a screw-up by singing a rousing revival number to bring together all the vice-presidents, is also fun.

If you like other corporate spoofs such as The Office TV shows or Office Space, you may be willing to believe in Finch, too. (Also look for a delightfully sitcom-esque film version with Morse in his original role and Michelle Lee as Rosemary.)

Worked on writing for a little while after breakfast. Leia tries to jump in the tank after her sweetheart, but Vader grabs her back. When she yells at him for hurting Hank, he hits her with a major bombshell. He's her older brother Adam, and he doesn't like her dating a former drug runner. She's shocked momentarily...then angry as hell. She doesn't revere her brother's memory the way Luke does. She finally tells him that he's no brother of hers before storming downstairs.

Broke around 1 for lunch and another musical. Anne of Green Gables: The Musical was originally a Canadian TV program before debuting on the stage in Canada, then London's West End, in 1965. Though this adaptation of the first half of the book did well enough in England, it was too corny for New York in this era and didn't get further than Off-Broadway. While not great, it's not bad, either. My favorite numbers are the first-act finale "Ice Cream," "Wonderin'" as Gilbert Blythe starts to admit his attraction to Anne, Anne and Diana's sweet "Kindred Spirts," and Matthew's touching title song as he realizes Anne is growing up...and away from Green Gables.

Work was almost as much of a pain as yesterday. On one hand, the clouds that had persisted all morning cleared up by around 4:30, leaving behind a sunny, breezy day. It was very busy when I came in, but this time, the crowds didn't stick around. They called me in twice to do carts. The first time, my register froze. The second time, I stayed for five minutes. Neither time was really all that necessary. Thankfully, I had more help today outside, giving me the chance to gather tons of baskets and round up trash. (I really wish the dentist's office and Rent-a-Center on the other side of the building would start collecting their own trash. The cart I was using to haul the heavy bags locked when I tried to bring it all the way around the building. I had to drag it to the other side, then switch carts.)

Rose called me shortly before break, inviting me over to Dad and Jodie's for an early Labor Day dinner. I went straight home, changed, hit the bathroom, then rode over to their house. By the time I got there, it was quarter of 7. Craig was rocking baby Finley. The mothers were dragging the remaining kids out of the pool. I had a burger, franks and beans, and macaroni and cheese for dinner while the kids dried off. Rose, Dad, and Jodie started talking schools while I was finishing. Bored, I followed Craig, Khai, and some of the other neighborhood moms down the steep hill behind Dad's house to the recently rebuilt deck. Chatted with some of the moms about Star Wars and their jobs while the kids checked out the local wildlife and admired a beautiful pink and gold sunset.

(Oh, and Dad and Jodie had their party today because they'll be closing the pool tomorrow. They're going on vacation later in the week. Not to mention, most of the kids have school the day after tomorrow. And while it's supposed to get hot again on Tuesday, the weather's largely been too cold for swimming for weeks now.)