Forbidden Broadway

In the little town of Birdsboro stands a little community theater run by a little theater company that calls itself  "The 1st Street Players".

Well.....today, Marty and I ventured into this venue as part of the audience of "Forbidden Broadway's Greatest Hits", and let me just say, the performance was far from little!

The production features parodies of famous songs from many of those musicals that we've all grown to love over the years.  I kind of liken it to the "weird Al" version of Musical Melodies.

This was our first time in this theater, and I enjoyed the intimacy of the cozy interior, and loved the fact that we had front row seats.  But there really isn't a bad seat in the place, as it has been cleverly constructed so that all can enjoy the performance from any angle.

And enjoy we did!  In fact, I can't remember when I laughed so hard.  So much so, that there were a few times when I had to actually cup my hands over my mouth for fear that I would be subject to scrutiny.  But, no worries, it seemed that nearly everyone in the audience was enjoying the humor behind the words as much as I.

When our niece, Amanda, appeared on stage, dressed as an adult version of Annie, dragging a microphone while smoking a cigarette (no worries....it wasn't real), I knew we were going to be in for quite a treat.

Shortly after, there was a hysterical trilogy of songs from Hello Dolly, and I must say, that the woman who played  Carol Channing nearly had me rolling on the floor with laughter.  Her performance was spot on! 

I'm just going to present some of the highlights from our day, and you might note that most include our extremely talented niece, but why not plug talent when you've got it show off?

There were several songs devoted to Les Miserables

some features from Mamma Mia

Rent....where Amanda showed just how strong she could belt out a tune,

Spam-A-Lot

Cats

and Hairspray.   Let's face it....how could you not love that costume?

The finale featured Amanda singing "What I Did for Laughs" to the tune of "What I did for Love" 

with backup from the entire company.

When the last song was done, it was obvious that the audience thoroughly enjoyed this performance from this extremely talented group.

And, you can tell by our faces that we were thrilled to have had the opportunity to attend!

Now, if you feel that you have been slighted and have missed out on the fun, no worries!

There are still two more performances this weekend:  Friday and Saturday, Aug 17th and 18th.

So if you are looking for something fun to do over the weekend,  you can thank me for steering you in this direction.  Believe me......you'll love it!

Remembering Those Who Served

I was driving home from an appointment today, when I turned on the radio, and heard the local radio celebrity broadcasting live from the Berks Military History Museum.

Within seconds, I was sucked into the excitement and I knew that there was no way that I could pass on making a quick detour to check out the place myself. 

Imagine my surprise to learn that it is less than 4 miles from my house!

It was certainly perfect timing on my part, as the radio event had just completed when I pulled into the parking lot behind the building.

Today was the one year anniversary of the museum opening, and I was eager at this point, to pop inside and take a peek.

The first thing that caught my eye was the photographic equipment on display.

Unfortunately, you are going to see a lot of the light fixtures reflecting in the glass, as most of the holdings were carefully displayed in viewing boxes.

I turned around, and right in front of me was memorabilia preserved from World War I. 

two operation maps, of which I photographed one,

and a man in uniform.

Through the doorway was a room devoted to women who served.

Other rooms were brimming with uniforms from various campaigns,

as well as all kinds of interesting and unusual items. 

There was a machine for making dog tags,

a cabinet filled with military prayer books throughout the years,

medals

money

and loads of various war time items.

And that was just the downstairs!

I then ventured up the stairs of this old historic building to see what treasures awaited.

Hanging from the ceiling was a replica of an actual B-29 that crashed in Saipan in May 1945.

The model airplane had been built to memorialize a Berks County native was flying on the ill-fated B-29 Superfortress. Much to my surprise, I soon found myself chatting with the sister of this casualty, and learned that he continues to be MIA.  She wore a button, displaying his wartime photo, upon her lapel.  After a brief conversation, I learned that she was very interested in attending the DPAA family meeting in September, but she had no way of getting there.  I offered to take her, as Marty and I had already planned on attending, and she readily accepted my offer.   She was a delightful woman and I can't help but think that our future adventure will be quite entertaining! 

But back to my tour: 

At least half of this upstairs room is adorned with a diorama that was painstakingly put together by the local volunteers.  It is devoted to the Battle of the Bulge.  Here you see Bastogne,

 as well as the Hurtgen Forest.

Two operating trains run through the display adding the finishing touch.

By this time, I realized that the museum was ready to close up for the day, so I headed outside for one last look.  That's when I realized that outside the front of the building stands a beam from the World Trade Center along with this engraved stone.

Never would I have dreamed that I would have stumbled upon such an amazing find so close to home.

If you live in the area, you should consider making a visit.  The open hours are limited:  Saturday from 11:00 am- 1:00  pm, so you really do need to plan ahead.  

Also, keep in mind, that the museum holding have all been donated, and they are more than happy to accept any items that you are willing to part with.

So, here's a shout out to those who have spent so much time and energy putting together this unique collection of military items.  

Great job!

Saturday Adventures

I walked down to the beach early to check out the sand fort that these two guys had built in order to watch the tide come in.

I ended up heading back to the house after about an hour because I wasn't in my suit and it was getting hot!  Turns out that I didn't miss much because the ocean was so calm that when high tide hit, it didn't even reach the creation!  So much for that plan!

What I did learn is that early morning gallivanting can be quite interesting. 

The distant water was smooth as glass.

Tons of little crabs were popping in and out of the sand

(Just for the record, it's not easy to capture a fast moving crab on the sand.....especially with the bright sun reflecting off my camera screen.)

And some birds hang out in the most interesting places. 

And to top it off, right when I was leaving, Marty caught a fish!

It was actually a good sized Mullet.

But it flopped out of his hands before I could get a good shot.  (I'm willing to bet that it didn't want to end up as bait.)  

On my way back to the house, I'm pretty sure I spotted Jillian Michaels doing body pump on the outside deck of a house.  (Ok, I'll admit the chances of that were pretty slim.....but this woman sure looked like her....and she was surely doing one heck of a sweaty workout!)

Two french bulldogs were on the loose, and one decided to run up to my ankles, look up at me,  and snarl.  How's that for a greeting?  I just smiled down, and the owner came and retrieved it.  Chloe was her name.   Hope she lightens up a bit.  

And  just when I got to the house a woman was standing in the middle of the street, looking confused.  I asked her if she needed something and she said that she had a dilemma.  She didn't know if she should take her walk, or drive into  Duck and get Duck  Donuts.  I mentioned that the line would probably be long, so she could make her order, get a number, and walk around the boardwalk on the sound until her number came up. Win-win for her!

She headed back to the house for the car!   Hopefully she won't be disappointed!

Our last day at the beach was delightful!  Perfect weather to enjoy, and calm waters as well.

This birdie spotted some goldfish snacks that accidentally ended up in the sand.  

He wasn't missing a golden opportunity!

And here you see the final clean up crew, returning from the beach for the last time this week.

Gramma G was in charge of baby control while the others were busy packing.  

Who can complain about that?

The PapPap G noses continued to entertain.

Nothing like a row of them looking up at you!

There was one last batch of cousin entertainment.

and a spectacular sunset to end the day.

We'll be out and on our way early in the morning!

Hope you enjoyed our adventures for the week.

You can bet that I sure did!