Category: Curmudgeon Chronicles

I didn’t know about the happy ending on my horizon. But this was queued up on a cassette tape a couple of years before when my very young sons got off in a car pool line at a Montessori School we could not afford but their Mother insisted on. So we entertained, at volume, the young lady escorting the kids from car to school.

It was the stuff we do to distract ourselves from the stuff we don’t want to face. And before our group sing along ( same company car and cassette player) with John Prine on visitation weekends during I-71 transits. The line from “Please Don’t Bury Me” that ends in “Kiss my Ass Goodbye” was a crowd favorite!

Been at my current address for nearly 11 years. Today, on my post chore and before dinner walk, I saw two Blue Bird pairs. And I mean Blue.

25 years in North Carolina and it was a first. Had no camera so made no photographs. Nor did I have an oxymoronically named “Smartphone” to hijack my attention.

My step became lighter and more agile. It is, I think, simply a matter of looking about. To see what’s there.

WCPE broadcasts Opera from The Met on Saturday afternoon and recorded Opera on Thursday evenings.

So Thursday nights, when I finished teaching photography at Page-Walker and got all my gear hauled out, it was my radio accompaniment driving home.

Understood not a word. Tonight, Orphée et Euridice. Which is different from Taylor Swift tonight at La Defense.

Sorta.

That, I’ve discovered, is the head & heart time tolerance budget of a cathartic, decluttering of a life. Or maybe it’s just mine.

Exit strategies are not, an American perspective. But necessary.

Luckier than most my age, health and money wise. No show stoppers and no need to be cooking squirrels under a bridge.

So yesterday, two hours of deciding what’s going and disassembly. Today, two hours of deciding and loading my pickup for a trip to the 4,000 PSI compactor at my nearest Wake County Convenience Center.

We’ll do it again tomorrow, Habitat Donations and a Metal Recycling Center.

And for awhile yet. And so it goes.

The annotation on the back of this photograph is wrong. I was in Grade 3.

Spent Grade 4, in a “Public School”, after begging my parents. My Dad had a modest paycheck, which explains the home haircut, ill fitting hand me down coat. Losing Catholic School Tuition was a probably a big help with weekly groceries. The askew, clip on bow tie is my fault

Public School was relief from, as Paul Simon sang, “Pledging Allegiance to The Wall”.

More importantly, it was freedom from Sister Mary Edward and her varnished yardstick, liberally applied to my open palms after being caught in the sin of defending myself from a play ground bully.

I’m a rough old cob, nine years Submarine Navy, father of two Marines who said I was the meanest father on the block. Been divorced and widowed.

Some memories don’t fade.

In the dozen years that I had the privilege to be the photographer for the Cary Ballet Conservatory, I was keenly aware and worked hard to keep the young people at arm’s length. “Hi” and a wave in the lobby was it, unless I knew Mom & Dad. And with them.

I would give up body parts, before I knowingly harmed a child.

So today, “Stormy Daniels” aka Stephanie Cliffords testified in NYC. And I read about her being abused by a man. When she was nine years old. Nine!

And I cannot get that out of my head or heart.

I’d have taught the perp an entirely new, Biblical level, of “Smote”.

I told a neighbor today that I’ve still got a broke heart. And then drove my pickup to a county convenience center, to dump an old office desk and chair. And bought beer on the way home. Dinner, soon. And so it goes.

I’ve been entertaining a lady who works as a cashier at a local warehouse club. The difference in our ages, color and gender are disappeared by foolishness!

1. What fruit will Romeo and Juliet refuse? Can’t Elope.
2. What makes me want to throw up? The dart board on my ceiling!
3. His name was going to be Gerald, but the Donkey stepped on Mary’s foot and she yelled “Jesus!”

E-Mail today, advising me on my next Saturday attendance at a performance of the Cary Ballet Company .

I wrote here before about my ticket purchase adventure – about the venue and modern, pop culture. So forewarned, I was thinking about a zombie nation staring at their phones, when every light turns green and there is a lag and explains the measurable rise in traffic accidents.

I get to skip “Will Call”, as I have a venue printed ticket and no phone. Except for the one in my truck’s console, switched off but available to call AAA. Or Duke Energy when power is out. Or Spectrum, when no Internet.

And I’m greatly relieved to be immune from Ticket Fraudsters. Except Ticketmaster, when a $45 ticket is $69 at Checkout with a sales pitch for $7 more dollars to guarantee it’s legit. It would embarrass a carny huckster.

And I wonder why I am required to have an oxymoronically named “SmartPhone”, keep it paid for and charged and kept track of. Why?

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Important Ticket Notice: Ticketmaster is Martin Marietta Center’s only official online ticketing service. Tickets purchased from websites other than MartinMariettaCenter.com or Ticketmaster.com may be stolen or counterfeit and often carry service charges that greatly inflate the overall price of your ticket(s). When purchasing tickets online you should only purchase from websites you can trust: MartinMariettaCenter.com and Ticketmaster.com.

Where to Buy Tickets

• Visit our Event Calendar for a full list of events. To purchase tickets click on the icon of two tickets located on the right side of the screen. 
• Tickets are primarily sold online through Ticketmaster. Tickets are also sold in person at the Martin Marietta Center Box Office. When purchasing at our Box Office you will not be subject to any online fees. Ticket prices are subject to change based on demand.
• To enable a contactless experience, we’ve gone cashless! Our venue box office* and concession areas will now only accept credit, debit, or mobile pay. *Please note, this policy may vary for resident company events.

Box Office Location

• Our Box Office is located at 2 E South St. Raleigh, NC 27601 and directly in front of Raleigh Memorial Auditorium. 

Hours of Operation

• Our current hours of operation are Monday through Friday, 10:00AM – 2:00PM.
  • *Red Hat Amphitheater show tickets can also be purchased at our box office (excluding Wide Open Bluegrass, Band Together, and Hopscotch).  We do not sell tickets for Coastal Credit Union Music Park or other Live Nation venues.

Will Call Tickets

• Will call Tickets can be picked up one hour prior to the scheduled performance up until the show starts.

SafeTix

• Ticketmaster SafeTix are encrypted mobile tickets built with leading-edge technology, developed with you in mind, and come standard with powerful fraud and counterfeit protection.
• SafeTix™ are powered by a new and unique barcode that automatically refreshes every few seconds so it cannot be stolen or copied, keeping your tickets safe and secure.
• If you bought tickets for family, a friend, or a group, we made it easier than ever to safely send tickets to anyone. In just a few taps you can text or email your tickets to anyone attending the event with you.
• Your phone is your ticket. Print-at-home tickets and screenshots of tickets will not be accepted. Use the steps below to access your tickets.