End o' Week Musings

It's Friday already?! It can't be, I've still got a ton of things to do!!

Last Friday was "Royal Wedding Day." I wore my tiara to work to celebrate the occasion, as did some of the other ladies in my department. We're either the cool kids or the nerds lol! In the evening, I met my friends Carin and Tom at Maggie's Pub in Santa Fe Springs for dinner. They came dressed to the nines, as if they were attending the actual wedding.

Carin wore a classic pink sequined gown and a fluffy cloud-like feathery white hat. She finished her look with sparkling jewels created by her father and set by her favorite jeweler. Tom had a black tux and crisp white shirt, along with a jaunty red sash. His ensemble was completed by a properly strewn assemblage of assorted "medals," which consisted of a key ring fob, a whale tail pendant and other interesting pieces.

For our photo op, Carin and I managed to convince Tom to don an extra tiara that was given to me on my arrival at the pub.

We toasted the wedding with $1 glasses of wine and dined on traditional fare. I enjoyed a bowl of clam chowder and half of a banger sandwich- yum!

I was out the door early on Saturday to the 34.5th Occasional Pasadena Doo Dah Parade. For the big day, I had decided to repurpose, recycle, reuse and wore the curtains from last year's float. I wandered the route before the parade with former queens Erica and Kavita to talk to the crowd- we had a good time and when we got back to our starting point, we were invited to ride on a jitney.

A jitney is a trolley car on wheels. It even had cords so you could ring its bells. We went up and down the street and were pelted with marshmallows and tortillas-- the crowd was definitely ready for the parade!

During the parade I served as a commentator for a live Webcast. It is being edited, but should be replaying soon at http://www.doodahlive.com/

One of the most interesting things to happen to me on Doo Dah Day occurred when I went back to my car for something. I noticed a tall, fuzzy purple moose with a pine tree air freshner dangling from his antlers (OK, how can you miss that?!) who seemed to be in distress. I asked him if he needed help and he told me he couldn't cross the street because he couldn't see very well.

First off, that answers the question as to why moose, deer and their relatives get hit by cars. And secondly, it concerns me that the moose drove himself to the parade. I would think just getting in the car with those big antlers would be a hassle, but shouldn't he be wearing glasses?

OK, back to my tale... I took the moose by his silver pot mitt hoof and gently led him across the street. After our safe arrival on the other side, he gave me a big hug and thanked me. I just wonder about the drivers, unaware of the parade, who spotted me in a curtain leading a purple moose across the street-- what do you think they thought?! And I wish I had a photo of the moment.

If anyone knows Mr. Purple Moose, please give him my regards and ask him to drop me a line and let me know what he's up to... just nosy, you know!


After the parade, I quickly made the party rounds and left, as my friends Fred and Joyce were getting married at the Renaissance Faire. I had just enough time to get home, clean up and change as much as possible into my regal attire. In the Faire parking lot, I finished dressing into my Doo Dah Queen gown and was ready to make my appearance.

The wedding was lovely- Joyce was beautiful and Fred looked dashing in their Ren outfits. There was live music provided by their friends and a short, but very sweet service.

In the evening I went out to the Doubletree in Monrovia for Bogfest, the annual Poxy Boggards concert. I stayed a couple of hours, but I was really tired, so I headed home well before things ended.

Sunday was more Ren Faire, followed by dinner with my mom.

On Tuesday, I interviewed guitarist David Rogers, who is coming to the Fret House in Covina. In the evening, I went with Mike Davis to review Kings Row, a new gastropub in Pasadena. I'll only tell you that we were impressed, you'll have to watch for our story at http://www.sgvn.com/ and http://www.pasadenascene.com/

Wednesday I helped jury the upcoming "Cultural Mosaic" exhibit at the Folk Tree, which celebrates Pasadena's 125th anniversary. It was a tough job, as the art was so varied and interesting and all quite good, but we managed to narrow it down by how well it fitted with the theme of Pasadena.

I ended my day at Maggie's Pub again for "cheap bastard night," the evening you get a free buffet with your drinks. We had a full booth with Tom, Carin, Terri, Byron and me.

Thursday I interviewed John Easdale of Dramarama for a story to preview their show at T. Boyle's Tavern in Pasadena May 21. He was a hoot, as John said he felt honored to be interviewed by a Queen. He's a great guy, with a good sense of humor, a devotion to his family and just an overall joy that he's been able to do all the things he has.

My teacher gave us a brain and body workout in hula last night too, as we went over several of our old dances and working on firming up our new choreography. I love the challenges!!

This weekend I'm back at Faire. My friend Byron might bring my mum out on Mother's Day. I won't have a lot of time to hang out with them, but hopefully we can meet up for dinner. We'll see what else unfolds for the week.

In rotation this week: Terrible Things, Meat Loaf, Silverstein and King Crimson.

Photos we got 'em: Carin and Tom at Maggie's Pub on royal wedding day, Jessica, Kady and I showing off our Prince bling at the concert the other week, a way-too-cute pup from the Web and a sepia-toned photo of Ad Hoc Consort in action (that's me with the sword) by Renaissance Faire photographer Joe Foley- I love this photo because it looks like it could have been taken back in the 1500s... if they had cameras then!

Thought o' the week: Forge ahead. I've been a little down this week, as my back has been acting up again. I spoke with my doctor this morning and we are going to meet to discuss my options and what should be the next step to trying to beat the pain. I asked her about my dancing and exercise and my doctor said that she felt it was the best thing I could do for my back.

OK, so now I am supposed to push through any pain and keep moving. I am also supposed to limit taking anything to reduce the pain. Anyhow, this got me to thinking about how other things in our life can be painful or unpleasant, but rather than shying from them or ignoring them, we gain much more by working through them.

My father used to say there are no problems, only solutions and I think he's right. The only caution I would give, is to think out the best ways to approach and deal with an issue. Don't be in a hurry to flail through it, as you may come out the other side worse off. And no matter what obstacles you may face in life, there is always a path to success, you just have to persevere. Forge ahead into the new week and

Keep on rockin'

Mickie