Sunday, February 11, 2018

Sunday, February 11, 2018

Tonight's picture was taken in August of 2005. Mattie was three years old and getting ready to have an adventure in Legoland, located in San Diego, CA. Mattie LOVED Legos. They may have been his favorite toy, if you consider them a toy. Legoland is truly an amazing theme park that is geared for children (and adults) of all ages. Everything is there from amazing Lego sculptures to rides. Rides Mattie LOVED!!! He was all about movement and adventure. 


Quote of the day: We gain strength, and courage, and confidence by each experience in which we really stop to look fear in the face... we must do that which we think we cannot. ~ Eleanor Roosevelt

My parents and I went to see a drama at a community theater today entitled, A Walk in the Woods. The story focuses on a relationship between two arms negotiators—in this version, a Russian male and American female—and what happens when they step out of the war room and into the woods. A Walk in the Woods was produced in 1988, played on Broadway, and Time magazine called it one of the best dramas to hit the stage that year.

The play is suggested by a real-life incident, which occurred in 1982. Negotiators Paul H. Nitze and Yuli A. Kvitsinsky left the official Geneva sessions for an unofficial "walk in the woods" and achieved a breakthrough, soon rejected by their Governments. While watching this play, I had a feeling it was based on a true story. Unfortunately the play's program did not reveal this fact, but to me the candor and insights seemed too realistic. 

The play is about two hours long and there are ONLY two actors that fill the stage. That can be a hard play to watch, but in this case, both actors were fantastic, brought their characters to life for us, and in the end made us think. It isn't an uplifting play, on the contrary it is very cynical. But then again, it was about politics, and I would have to say no matter what side of the aisle one follows these days, the average American is left wondering and upset. 

In a nutshell, this play gives us insights in a year's long diplomatic effort between two negotiators, trying to develop an armament agreement between two super powers. One negotiator has been doing his job for decades and the other is new to her job. She is more of an idealist and believes that their efforts of negotiation will impact the decisions the US and Russia make regarding a treaty. As the play enfolds, she realizes, with the insights of her Russian counterpart, that to some extent the efforts they are making have really been just for show, because the powers that be have no intention of ever signing any sort of treaty. 

As an observer it is clear that the diplomats are very cognizant of the press and make certain decisions that will influence what the media reports about their meetings. Very reminiscent of our current political climate. In addition, this play leaves you feeling dejected because you see how powerless these individuals were despite their best efforts and at the same time you see the inner workings and politics of governmental leadership. Besides the political angle of this play, the other focus was the development of a working friendship between the diplomats. Their personalities were like night and day, or better yet like the Odd Couple. Just like the famous Neil Simon comedy with Felix and Oscar, a great deal can be learned from a person who is our exact opposite. Being a relationship person, I loved watching that dynamic unfold between the characters and it made the play very memorable. 

After the play, we went out to dinner at the Smoke House. This restaurant is a legend in Burbank. I used to go to this restaurant with my parents and grandmother when I was in high school. I can't say that four generations of my family dined here, as we never introduced Mattie to this restaurant. He was too small at the time, and he wouldn't have liked it then.