Song of the Rainy Evening

Began my morning with work. This time, other than shelving a few items around 9, I was outside with the carts almost the entire day. I did have some help later on, when it got really busy, but I was mostly alone. It was hot and humid, but a nice breeze helped. I was hoping to pick something up after work, but they didn't have it. I did get another box of Kashi granola bars off the clearance rack, though, this one Cashew Coconut Macaroon.

After I got in, I made blueberry pancakes for lunch. I didn't have the time this morning to make them for breakfast! They came out perfectly cooked and just sweet enough. Listened to the original cast of Carousel while I ate. This fairly dark Rogers and Hammerstein musical from 1948 takes us to New England, where carousel barker Billy (John Raitt) is courting mill worker Julie Jordan (Jan Clayton). They marry, as do Julie's friend Carrie Pipperidge (Jean Darling) and her fisherman beau Mr. Snow. On learning he's going to be a father, Billy turns to crime to make money for the baby. He dies during a robbery, leaving Julie alone with their daughter Louise. He asks for one day to return and make things right, even if he has to steal a star to do it.

John Raitt became a star on Broadway as Billy, and it's easy to hear why in "If I Loved You," "The Highest Judge of All," and his outstanding "Soliloquy." ("Soliloquy" features a passage that was cut shortly before opening; I believe this is the only recording of of those lines.) Jean Darling is adorable as Carrie, especially in "When the Children are Asleep." "You'll Never Walk Alone" is also quite stirring. There's a song missing ("Geraniums In the Winder") and a few ballets, but if you love Rogers and Hammerstein, you'll probably still want to hear this.

I ran into Rose at work when I was doing carts. She said she was taking the kids over to Dad and Jodie's house to celebrate the pool being open. I grabbed my bike and rode over there to check it out. The pool was, indeed, open, but Rose wasn't there. Dad and Jodie were sitting in their usual chairs in the living room, watching a horror movie. There were a few people in the pool, but they weren't Rose. I just said "hi" to Dad and Jodie and moved on.

Went to CVS next, but they didn't have what I was looking for, either. I wasn't there for very long. Even as I emerged, dark clouds were rapidly gathering over the horizon, and rumbles of thunder could be heard. I raced home as fast as I could make my bike go.

I was dead tired from my early morning and opted to take a nap after I got in. When I awoke around 5, the sun had reappeared. My porch was still dry. It would seem that the rumbles had been a false alarm. I tried working on writing for an hour, but I didn't get much further than a few paragraphs.

Broke for dinner at quarter of 7. Had leftovers while listening to The Desert Song. I picked up the British Angel studio cast recording because it has two rarely-recorded comedy numbers that are usually dropped from this score today, the spoof of sexual mores "It" and the randy "One Good Boy Gone Wrong," along with "Song of the Brass Key" for the mistress of The Red Shadow, the mysterious leader of the Riffs in North Africa. June Bronhill makes an especially feisty Margot, and Bruce Forsyth is having a ball singing the two comic songs.

Incidentally, we did finally get a storm. As I was just starting to set up the Wii, I heard a noisy crash. The rain was coming down in torrents, with wind lashing and thunder booming. It subsided shortly after. To my knowledge, it hasn't done anything since.

Finished the night with more Lego Pirates of the Caribbean. The game glitched yet again, but this time, it got stuck in the opening cut scene before I could get far. Thankfully, there were no more glitches after that. I got through "London Town" fairly quickly, other than the one part that required you to jump from carriage to carriage. I just couldn't figure out how to get to the second-to-last carriage! Had a much easier time with the next round as I gathered up crew members to help deal with Bluebeard, then joined the guitar-wielding pirate Scrum to rescue the poor missionary who was a captive on the main deck.