Speaking of which, I'm still not in a Christmasy mood, even though its now less than 2 weeks away. I think the problem is all the warning signs that we get in the UK (United Kingdom for Grandpa's benefit) that you become accustom to don't happen here; the radio isn't flooded with cheesy hits from the 70's, TV (Television for Grandpa's benefit) doesn't constantly tell you about the special listings coming up and there is no BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation for Grandpa's benefit) Christmas ident. No Sports Personality of the Year, no X-Factor winner for Christmas number one hype, nothing. I'm not saying I enjoy any of these, I'm merely saying they're the tell-tale signs that you learn to tolerate, and without them it still feels like November. How can American live without the "excitement" of the run up to the announcement of the new Christmas number 1?
I took the liberty today of going to a Fred Meyers, which sells food, clothes, electronics, toys, home goods and DIY equipment (Do It Yourself for Grandpa's benefit). Its basically ASDA (American Stamp Dealers Association for Grandpa's benefit; just kidding!) on steroids, or the bigger, louder, "better" American version. But it felt tackier, if that's possible; it had that cheap feel, and even smell, about it. Also, the food was supersized; the smallest carton of milk you could buy was a gallon. Though given the range of things on sale its useful to know its there, particularly if I break anything in the apartment; lets just say I found the matching range.
To try and aid my Christmas mood I went to see the Nutcracker this evening; well that was a waste of $60. I hold this particular work of Tchaik in very high regard, and didn't like what I heard. Not only was the orchestra completely undersized for a 19th century work, but they were always on the edge of being out of control. I can't really say much for the dancers, I'm not that knowledgeable about it, but the choreographer killed the traditional Prussian setting by Americanising it. The dances were in the wrong order, the Russian dance was performed by American Indians and 5 of the characters were missed out entirely. Whilst they might say they "adapted" the story, they changed it so much that the ending didn't actually make sense.
Though I did like the use of 20 young children in the production. Not only did they look absolutely terrified throughout as though they would whipped if they put a foot wrong, but they were constantly been thrown around by the older dancers. A great introduction to a professional ballet company.
The 1 plus side of this evening was I saw that Seattle Opera are doing the Barber of Seville in January, and I managed to get a ticket for $25. For that price, I won't feel out of pocket if its poor.
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