(Note: YouTube links were to various all-day streaming videos sequentially, not separate videos of all the activities.)

This morning I watched the Empire State Maker Faire. Started out at 9 a.m. watching yet another video about making a puppet, because clearly I like that sort of thing. The guy talked about the different kind of puppets and how many people it takes to run some of them. AND THEN HE PULLED OUT.... "This is what Baby Yoda would look like if he was like a Muppet." To be honest, not the cutest, but pretty realistic...just grumpy looking. I always like a Baby Yoda with a wee bit of a baby smile. After that, he got to sewing a puppet together. I'd like to think that after all the puppet making videos I've watched this year, if I ever wanted to get myself some fun fur fabric and sew one together, I could manage it. (Though sewing or knitting/crocheting with fur is a pain in the arse. Sewing it's just messy and with yarn it's even worse trying to see what you are doing.) I like how he says you can customize the pattern from monkey to rabbit and whatnot. I do like his rabbit.

I also watched "Magic Wheelchair," because who doesn't love https://www.magicwheelchair.org/ wheelchair costuming? I always go by one of those booths if I see one at a Maker Faire. So, that's fun. They said they have managed to do 8 "reveals" this year despite the virus, so that's very nice. They talked about skinning games, modifying games, or creating your own games.

I spent a lot of time on the home crafting channel watching videos on origami and felting. I sadly wish the origami girls talked a bit...more loudly, less muffled, off camera, I guess? I'm not totally sure if I could replicate it, but it ended up being a cute little doll in a holder with a tea light. Next was the needlefelting, "Woolbuddy." He made a pumpkin. Then there was a video on zinemaking, something I always think is cute and I'm surprised that the idea has still continued since the 90's? She actually said that zines might have started around the Revolutionary War and then were going on during the 1930's/40's. I seriously would not have figured this before the 90's, so go figure. I like zines and took a class in this years ago (same kinda thing in this video, the 8 page tiny magazine format), but I can never think of anyone who'd actually WANT one of the things. Maybe Cameron would be into it....? I have no idea what I'd do though. I liked this girl's "zine TV" idea, that was fun. And finally, I watched "Modifying Boardgames," about how to modify boardgames to "make them more engaging."

They had categories of games: Random games: Candyland, Chutes and Ladders, Sorry, Bingo Strategy: Connect 4, Clue, Chess, Checkers Word: Scrabble, Boggle Creative: Charades, Pictionary, Balderdash, Scattergories, Dixit Mix of random and strategy: Monopoly, Yahtzee, Uno. (Note: these are two DOCTORS who work in education and they had several of these misspelled or the wrong word written out....sigh. Later: "Oh, THERE I spelled it correctly.")

How to modify games: * Change the mechanism * Shorten or change the objective * Explore the possibilities the game pieces offer * Add an element related to what you want to practice * Create a home version of a favorite game and mix it up.

I am numb to the Lawn Guys now.

Sacramento Storytellers Guild meeting: "Spooky Stories" theme. I feel too lazy to write down the details since it'll go up on YouTube tomorrow or whatever. My favorite was Mark telling a story about a pet deer in a mountain town that hung around and was adorable. Then a bunch of guys were in the bar bitching that they couldn't find any deer.... I had the camera on (FINE) but had the mute on, since between Lawn Guys and the neighbor's dog and the phone calls, screw it, and it's not like I need to say or do anything in this anyway. Toward the end, I noticed that whoever is running the thing was trying to get me to unmute. Again and again. Seriously, I'm thinking of just stopping going. YOU DO NOT GET TO DICTATE ME FROM THERE. YOU CAN'T MAKE ME. STOP TRYING. THIS IS NOT OKAY. Seriously, I do not want to perform the role of Happy Smiley Audience Jennifer. Leave me be. Y'all don't need me to talk, bug off.

Another review of the Robin Hood show from a family friend my mom sent it to: "Jennifer is soooo comfortable and relaxed and knowledgeable in this... You can tell she really enjoys and is very good at this gooooooo Jennifer"

I went outside for a bit to run lines. Reggie came out and we chatted for about fifteen minutes. Anyway, he gave me shit for not letting my mom pee and not hugging my mom, even though he has only elbow bumped his mom once since January and hasn't hugged his himself. Reggie is a bit of a hypocrite, albeit an amiable one. Also he was all, "I was trying not to drink beer, but they showed all these beer ads in college football...." Uh-HUH. He wanted to come closer with a mask on, I told him no. He at least respected that. Sometimes I am unsure how these conversations are going....

Then I went back to lines....and a neighbor a few apartments down from me went outside and started coughing, so I went back in. Sigh. So much for outside time. The problem with that is that even in "my own space," in a quiet neighborhood without hardly anyone else around, there are still people causing a bit of trouble.

I can now say that I have exercised for 9 hours this week and rehearsed lines for all of it, covering all of my lines/scenes 4 times apiece. Do I have them memorized? I dunno....well, I didn't have to look at them TOO much during rehearsal, at least.

I had my first Charlotte's Web rehearsal all week, which is kind of odd. The schedule was mostly rehearsing Zuckerman farm/all animal scenes earlier this week, so we did the first few scenes that I am in today for 2 hours and then a third hour had everyone to run all the scenes from the week.

Regarding staging: "It can look like we’re on a set and like our whole bodies can be there,” and we can make the animals look small and people be big....One tech guy apparently said he had an idea about Charlotte's head (I'm guessing he means the actress's head) being the body...and then he sent a picture and it was all, no, this is terrifying.

I asked if they were using OBS-- the fancy software certain shows are using-- and he said yes. Hoooooo boy, that's hardcore stuff that so far I have not done (though seen it at SF Shakes, Zoom Theatre, and Catalyst Theatre of late). Are they going to ship green screens to our houses? How much moving are we going to do? They talked about somehow doing the pig chase by at least having most of the actors shaking their cameras/laptops. I'm wondering how I'm supposed to scrub my son's face here...? He wanted us to try to walk in and out, which, I dunno. I feel like when I do that, either my face is too far away to see it well, or let's face it, Y'ALL ARE GETTING CLOSEUPS OF MY BOOBS IN A CHILDREN'S SHOW if I am constantly getting up and down from a chair (you see the face, you see the boobs...or neither....).

Quotes and notes: "My laptop is on a stand. It has one job." -Sean

"I think 2 hours is pretty much for 12 pages." -Sean

Jack is absolutely making hay with drawling out "marmalade drippings."

There are three "chorus" members throughout the show that narrate, play minor characters at the fair, etc. They have now added a fourth one--Brennon, who I suspect is our littlest kid--as a "little brother" character and shuffled him around some lines tonight.

They have mostly decided that the concept behind the chorus is that they are Charlotte's descendants, talking to either Fern or Wilbur's descendants (it's a little vague on how descendant-y this will be). "Wilbur probably tells them that bedtime story a few times a week." Sean: "I know that spiders don't live that long, but we are also in a fictional universe where animals hang out and talk to each other."

We had a conversation about how my character just straight up is pretty honest about what Dad's gonna do with that axe, no talk of sending Wilbur to some other farm upstate or whatever. Sean said he went to a farm once and was told they were eating peaches. "No, we're not, we're eating bacon." No, you're eating Peaches the pig....

We had some fun rehearsing the scene where Fern and I beg John to let Wilbur live. "When Jennifer and Illy gang up on you, it's all over." -Sean

They also rehearsed Fern brainstorming names for Wilbur and Wilbur having to make a series of "noooooo...." faces (god, that's hard to keep variety in) until she gets to the W names. It was pretty cute.

Sean literally sits on his hands to not interrupt.

Later we had some character discussion: Sean said that "what you actually are is the MEMORY of these characters, we remember them ideally or as character types, but play it as a character.

Sean on Avery: “I’m sure he’ll be beating up Henry Fussy when he breaks fern’s heart." The kid playing Avery, Jett, on the character: "He's Deadpool if he was like Spider-Man," and "he's normally why funny things happen."

Sean likes to comment on the darkness of people's rooms: “How does it feel to live in a terrarium, Riley?” “It feels great, I love it.”

“You all are ridiculous. I love that.” Sean

Wilbur does a good job of imitating the goose.

Mac: I have a bunch of dogs. Sean: “Yeah, you’re definitely in a puppy puddle.”

Oh, and tonight I was going to watch DMTC's streaming presentation of "Young Frankenstein," but not only is it not running, there is only one article online saying it got canceled, and DMTC does NOT mention said cancellation on their Facebook page, and has wiped all information about the show from their website. WTF happened?!?!? Did virus force them to cancel? Did something else bad happen? Inquiring minds are not finding enough information about this on the Internet. Oh, wait, I just went to go read my email from the last few days and they had more of a cancellation notice on the actor mailing list for the area: they had planned to do the show live action, then wanted to do virtual rights and asked the royalty company about it, were told to go ahead and rehearse while that was being worked out....and then the rights holders said no. What the heck?! That is quite shitty.

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