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Tootsie Yr2: Tysons, VA and Thanksgiving
Nov. 28th, 2022 10:05 amTysons Corner is quite the nice place to spend a holiday.
It's a huge shopping area. Our hotel is right next to two large malls and many shops and restaurants.
Because of this--and because it's a holiday, and because we're about to have a layoff--I decided to allow myself to eat out extra this week.
But for Thanksgiving, the company is providing us a lovely Thanksgiving meal (and an open bar!).
To prepare for that and because it was very nice out, mid-50s, I took a walk to the theater.
The route was a bit wonky, taking me on a walking path through some undeveloped woods, which was actually really nice.
Haven't been among trees in too long.
Cardinals and sparrows were chirping socially in the bushes, squirrels rustling through the leaves. All that fall stuff.
Turns out the theater is inside a larger complex, so I didn't actually "see" it.
But I did see the metro station and got a feel for the walk.
And there's a Wegman's right next to the theater too!
Since they were open anyway I popped in. It wasn't too crazy, actually kind of light-to-normal foot traffic.
I got a seasonal Olipop, Apple Crisp, and that's all.
The walk back was less pleasant because I was hungry and it was almost entirely uphill.
But I logged four miles, which for me is about 260 calories and will cover two glasses of wine nicely :)
Back at the hotel, a small snack and put the National Dog Show on in the background while I wrote emails to friends and family until it was finally time for the Thanksgiving meal. It is so hard to wait, lol!
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Company Thanksgiving was a lot of fun!
The food was "standard" catered fare: premade turkey breast with gravy, mashed potatoes, stuffing, green beans, salad, rolls, and cranberry sauce. Dessert was apple or pumpkin pie (or in my case, both).
I had two glasses of wine, a rare treat for me :)
Ate moderately so I could have big hunks of pie.
At each table was a paintable plate with a cartoon turkey emblazoned with the words "Turkey Time".
I guess that was our group activity, lol.
The band was shockingly collaborative about it. We passed the plate around the table as we ate and talked and drank, each of us completing little parts before passing it on. Other tables had multiple collaborators as well, but I am pretty sure we're the only table where everyone participated. Working this way it took over an hour to complete, but complete it we did.
At the crew table, their mascot plush possum was festively dressed in a turkey costume (designed for a dog haha)
Crew also brought their huge blow-up Buc-ees mascot, which the band used for a photo op.
It was all going well until Clayton accidentally unplugged it with his foot and it started collapsing on my head.
A bit after that we took a full group photo, which didn't come out the clearest but was fun to do.
( Read more... )
Now it is Monday and we are flying to Akron, OH.
We are only there for two days, then I think we bus to Toledo, OH.
And THEN we have the month-long December layoff! And I get to see my Jameson!!
Other stuff:
At the airport there was this big armored car near our bus.
I found out later that these are made by Terradyne. Cool.
I've recently been elected "band representative", which just means any time there's an issue that impacts the whole band it's my job to look into it. The first issue that I was given to address was lighting in the pit, which in some theaters can be pretty poor or nonexistent during our scheduled setup times. I met with Troika management, and we decided on a good solution: these rechargeable lights, and two headlamps!
I'm happy to have contributed to a safer workplace for myself and my peers.
Our hotel this week does not offer free coffee, and I dislike making my own on the travel day because then I have to pack my kettle and Aeropress while they're damp. So I went to Wegman's for a canned coffee, and found this High Brew self-heating can!
Here's how it went: CLICK HERE to watch
It's a huge shopping area. Our hotel is right next to two large malls and many shops and restaurants.
Because of this--and because it's a holiday, and because we're about to have a layoff--I decided to allow myself to eat out extra this week.
But for Thanksgiving, the company is providing us a lovely Thanksgiving meal (and an open bar!).
To prepare for that and because it was very nice out, mid-50s, I took a walk to the theater.
The route was a bit wonky, taking me on a walking path through some undeveloped woods, which was actually really nice.
Haven't been among trees in too long.
Cardinals and sparrows were chirping socially in the bushes, squirrels rustling through the leaves. All that fall stuff.
Turns out the theater is inside a larger complex, so I didn't actually "see" it.
But I did see the metro station and got a feel for the walk.
And there's a Wegman's right next to the theater too!
Since they were open anyway I popped in. It wasn't too crazy, actually kind of light-to-normal foot traffic.
I got a seasonal Olipop, Apple Crisp, and that's all.
The walk back was less pleasant because I was hungry and it was almost entirely uphill.
But I logged four miles, which for me is about 260 calories and will cover two glasses of wine nicely :)
Back at the hotel, a small snack and put the National Dog Show on in the background while I wrote emails to friends and family until it was finally time for the Thanksgiving meal. It is so hard to wait, lol!
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Company Thanksgiving was a lot of fun!
The food was "standard" catered fare: premade turkey breast with gravy, mashed potatoes, stuffing, green beans, salad, rolls, and cranberry sauce. Dessert was apple or pumpkin pie (or in my case, both).
I had two glasses of wine, a rare treat for me :)
Ate moderately so I could have big hunks of pie.
At each table was a paintable plate with a cartoon turkey emblazoned with the words "Turkey Time".
I guess that was our group activity, lol.
The band was shockingly collaborative about it. We passed the plate around the table as we ate and talked and drank, each of us completing little parts before passing it on. Other tables had multiple collaborators as well, but I am pretty sure we're the only table where everyone participated. Working this way it took over an hour to complete, but complete it we did.
At the crew table, their mascot plush possum was festively dressed in a turkey costume (designed for a dog haha)
Crew also brought their huge blow-up Buc-ees mascot, which the band used for a photo op.
It was all going well until Clayton accidentally unplugged it with his foot and it started collapsing on my head.
A bit after that we took a full group photo, which didn't come out the clearest but was fun to do.
( Read more... )
Now it is Monday and we are flying to Akron, OH.
We are only there for two days, then I think we bus to Toledo, OH.
And THEN we have the month-long December layoff! And I get to see my Jameson!!
Other stuff:
At the airport there was this big armored car near our bus.
I found out later that these are made by Terradyne. Cool.
I've recently been elected "band representative", which just means any time there's an issue that impacts the whole band it's my job to look into it. The first issue that I was given to address was lighting in the pit, which in some theaters can be pretty poor or nonexistent during our scheduled setup times. I met with Troika management, and we decided on a good solution: these rechargeable lights, and two headlamps!
I'm happy to have contributed to a safer workplace for myself and my peers.
Our hotel this week does not offer free coffee, and I dislike making my own on the travel day because then I have to pack my kettle and Aeropress while they're damp. So I went to Wegman's for a canned coffee, and found this High Brew self-heating can!
Here's how it went: CLICK HERE to watch
