Murder in Green Meadows!

Masks for Halloween

Performance | Thu, 10/07/2010 - 9:29 pm | Read 187 | Commented 0 | Emailed 0

By Adam Stewart

Last October, Magenta staged a superb production of Frederick Knott’s classic, Wait Until Dark. This year they’re producing something in a similar vein: an intense thriller of sex, deceit and murder set in the cozy suburbs, Douglas Post’s Murder in Green Meadows, directed by Jaynie Roberts. But whereas Dark depicted the horror of external intrusion, Meadows reflects the terror under everyday facades.
For the cast, Roberts turns to reliable stalwarts of Magenta and Vancouver theater. Dave Roberts and Lynn Greene play Thomas and Joan Devereaux, something of a typical suburban couple. Thomas is a home designer and has, in effect, created the neighborhood they’ve just moved into. They are welcomed by a pair of neighbors, Carolyn and Jeff Symons (Dorinda Toner and Glenn Chipman). But when Thomas finds out Joan has been having an affair with Jeff, he suggests a dramatic course to save their marriage.
Like any good thriller, Green Meadows takes what should be our comfort zone (in this case, a loving partner in a suburban home) and turns it into something to be terrified of. Roberts plays a social misfit, someone who is uncomfortable around other people and who likes complete control of his life, up to and especially Joan. Dressed in khakis and a polo shirt, and sporting short hair and thick-framed glasses, he looks like a prototypical nerd: something that doesn’t exactly strike terror into the heart. It’s all the more shocking, then, when he shows his true self in bursts of rage and brutality.
The rest of the cast is routinely strong. Chipman stutters and stumbles as the hapless sucker caught in the middle of everything, but, in this story, it’s the women who really make up the meat. There’s a theme about the directions that women can take, and Greene is especially good as the tragic Joan, who probably had been a dreamer but ended up taking the wrong path somewhere along the way. When confronted by her overbearing husband, her good housewife front crumbles to soft speech, glazed eyes and quivering lips. Ultimately, her loyal and sultry masks are stripped away and she’s reduced to being something she probably always was: a woman dependent on someone to tell her what to do.
Both Greene and Toner are adorned in bright make-up that are like masks over their discontent. Toner is smarmy and jovial as Carolyn, who’s not so subtle about her boredom. After the turning point in the middle of the play, she shows herself to be as self-reliant and sneaky – in almost a villainous sort of way – as her neighbors.
The story of Murder in Green Meadows isn’t terribly complicated, nor especially clever, but the underlying theme (what lies behind the mask, if you will) is what makes it fascinating and an often disturbing suburban thriller. Magenta and its bevy of fine actors flesh it out and leave us this Halloween season to consider what lurks within our beloveds’ closets . . . or our own.
Murder in Green Meadows runs through October 16, and for those looking for more supernatural thrills, fear not: there will be zombies on Main Street this Halloween. For more information, visit www.magentatheater.com.

crock-pot apple-sauce

Oooohhh yum . . . I LOVE this time of year - when Joe's Farm brings in its APPLES from the orchards.   I stopped and picked up some MacIntosh apples a few days ago.  These (imho) are the BEST baking and cooking apples.  Not mealy, not too sweet.


Here is what I threw in the crockpot this morning:

12 MacIntosh apples, peeled and cored
3 Tbsps lemon juice
1 dash allspice
2 teas cinnamon
1/2 cup packed brown sugar (I dont like my apple-sauce too sweet but if you want more sugar by all means!)

Cook on low 6-8 hrs.  Use a potato masher to mush to desired consistency.  YUM!!!

Our HSP Story (part Four)

So we were home from the hospital full of optimism, prescription meds and lots of 'you'll be fine' assurances.  Thaniel was a on a pretty strict regimen of rest, meds, rest, meds, sleep, meds, rest . . . you get the idea!

At this point Nathaniel could still not put weight on any of his joints and the Prednisone was making him giddy, hungry and cranky.  I spent a lot of my time distracting him, feeding him and carrying him about.  We had been home just 3-4 days when one night as I was tucking him into bed and noticed he felt quite warm.  'Don't worry about (from the sage husband) his body is just fighting this thing.' Little did we know the fight was far from over!

The next morning I got Hannah off to school and carried the boy down to the couch as had been our pattern for the past few days.  He was hungry but almost immediately after eating brought everything right back up.   Now being from the school of 'non-panicking' parenting I carried him back upstairs cleaned him up and put him in the bathroom.  He vomited a few more times and I could see he was thoroughly wiped out.  I tucked him into bed and re-viewed the HSP information.  Call the doctor it warned.  So I put in a call to Kaiser.

The advise nurse had NO IDEA what HSP was.  And since a majority of the kids who have it manage to escape complications - she really had no idea how to help.  "Its on the list of 'call the doctor for advise immediately' symptoms", I re-explained. She promised to send a message to our doctor and marked it urgent.  I called Eric and told him "I dont like this - I don't feel good about this at all. Come home".

About this time I heard a feeble 'Mom!?' from upstairs.  I went back to check on the boy-child and he was vomiting again.  "I need the bathroom 'he told me, pale and shaky.  A'nd Mom - I really messed the bed".  "Not to worry" I replied, thinking he meant the vomit.  I gathered him up and carried him to the bathroom - where I placed one end on the toilet and gave the other end a big bowl.  He was now 'emitting' from both ends. It was violent and scary. Poor baby!  Not wanting to stand there and watch I headed back to his bedroom to clean up the mess.


And here is where is went downhill very quickly.  I pulled back the blanket on his bed to find his sheets soaked in blood.  I ran back to check on him and his violent diarrhoea was blood!

I dialed the doctors office again - 'PLEASE HELP - I really, really need the doctor to call me back right now - I am scared'.  About this time Eric came home so up stairs I went again.  Thaniel was in a LOT of pain, complaining about his 'tummy'  and begging to be allowed back into bed. 


About then, the doctor's office finally called (2 full hours after my initial call). "Mrs. Toner? This is Dr. M's nurse - she told me to call you and tell you exactly this - hang up the phone, dial 911 and ask them to take him to Dorenbecher.  It sounds like a bowel intussusception  and it can be fatal."  THAT IS WHAT I WAITED TWO HOURS TO HEAR!!!???

Eric took the phone from me and dialed 911.  He quickly explained the situation and our doctors instructions.  They refused to take us to Dorenbecher.  'You live a mile from SWMC, we can take you there if you like' - they told him.  Forget that! Eric hung up.  We wrapped Thaniel up in a blanket, grabbed a bowl and raced him up the street to SWMC.

The staff very quickly assessed him and the doctor let us know that if he needed emergency surgery he should be a Dorenbecher (grrrr) He ordered the ambulance, and they got an IV started.  It was challenging because with the HSP all his blood vessels were breaking down and he bled out quite a bit just trying to get the line in.  The doctors and nurses were quick efficient and calm.  They also made no bones about how serious the situation was.  We were sent via ambulance from SWMC to Dorenbecher at a code 3 (lights and sirens all the way)

Here are some photos of him being loaded up into the ambulance, smiling at the lights and sirens and being unloaded on the other end.

making your own Tortillas

When we first moved to the States I had a nice mexican neighbor who taught me how to do these.  they are EASY but take time. And you need to be prepared to have flour all over the place - because making these can be MESSY.  I have altered the original recipe to suit my family's tastes and to include healthier whole wheat flour.  This recipe makes a lot of tortillas - so you can HALF this if you choose - though I find they keep well in the fridge for a couple of days.

Simple Flour Tortillas
2 cups white flour
2 cups wheat flour
1&1/2 teas salt
2 teas baking powder
1/3 cup vegetable shortening

1-1&1/4 cup Hot water
(extra flour for rolling)

Mix all dry ingredients and then crumble in shortening with a fork.  Add hot water a little at a time until dough becomes soft and pliable.  Knead a couple of times and then break  into 1-2 inch balls (depending on how large you want your tortillas).  Dust tops and bottoms with flour and then roll out as thin as you can make them with your rolling pin.

Heat skillet or cast iron pan on med-high. Cook tortillas 1-2min per side (I flip mine when I see bubbles start to form) Be careful not to over-cook these as they can quickly become cracker-like when overdone.  Place them immediately into a clean kitchen towel if eating right away or into a large freezer bag for storage.  TIP - Placing these into a large freezer bag while still hot will keep them steamy and pliable!!

August 19th, 2010

15 years of marriage!

We got a PUPPY!!

I know, it seems random and odd - lol!

And he is actually a 14mth old ENORMOUS 60+lb Treeing Walker Coon-hound.  Not much of a puppy to the naked eye .  . .

he is a poorly behaved, full of mischief, chew on ANYTHING, get in trouble the minute you turn your back, steal food off the counter, bark UNENDINGLY at the kitties, steal your dirty socks, follow his nose rather than your comands, PUPPY.


BUT he is also loving, sweet, protective, kiss you when he wakes up, greets you at the door as if you set the moon, hide his nose when you are mad at him, lean on you for love, roll over to have his belly rubbed - big BABY.

oh, and his breed is approved for Autism spectrum kids.  And he LOVES Nathaniel and Hannah.  Is eager to please, smart and a big sweetheart.

Even Eric loves him . . . .

meet Sherlock!

Our HSP Story (part three)

So when we last left off  . . .

Nathaniel was a swollen, bruised and bloodied mess but resting on, antibiotics (for the Strep), anti-nauseates (to stop the vomiting) and Prednisone (to combat the bleeding in his stomach).

Slowly over the next several hours the doctors and nurses kept close watch on him.  They weaned him from the anti-nauseates and low and behold the vomiting had stopped.  Now to test it with food.  "HALF a popcicle", the Doctor said and we'll see what happens.  It stayed down!  A couple hours later - some jello.  That stayed down too!

The last vestige was for him to be able to "eliminate" on his own.  On his own was funny to me because his joints were so swollen and painful he need assistance getting from the bed to the toilet and because he was hooked up to an IV he also needed assistance moving that into the bathroom too.  But eventually we managed.

I have since said that this hospital stay would have been GREAT fodder for directing WIT which I had completed the previous summer.  For the first 12hrs of Thaniel's stay on the children's ward he was so fragile that they put him in isolation.  This meant no visitors and any Doctors and Nurses entering his room were required to be in gown, glove and mask before touching him.  Also his input and "output" were measured to ensure kidney function - I spent half my time quoting WIT - "time to measure this emesis" ha ha ha.

We spent time watching movies and letting Than sleep.  Taking pictures between (and during) rounds and waiting, waiting, waiting. Finally around supper time the next day  - everyone agreed he was stable enough to go home and REST.  We were instructed to keep him in bed as much as possible, watch closely for any further signs of bleeding and were given a prescription for anti-nauseates, something to coat his stomach since it was so irritated and raw and the steriod Prednisone.  He would also need to be checked by his family physician every 2-3 days.

My dear friend Suze was a Phenomenal help to us in those few days - she picked up Hannah and took her home to feed her and let her sleep over.  She enlisted the help of another good friend Amanda and they (with Hannah's help) came into our home and SCRUBBED the bathrooms, kitchen, living room, Nathaniel's bedroom - anywhere a germ could find my little guy - so that he would be coming home to a safe germ-free environment.  Suze brought me a change of clothes and a toothbrush, said she would sit with Nathaniel and ushered me into the hospital room's bathroom for a shower.  She brought Nathaniel games, books and her son to visit.  She was an angel.  A bossy, lovely, thoughtful angel.  MANY people offered to help and brought gifts of games and toys and food to us at this time - I cant even list everyone on here and I am so grateful to each of them - Suzanne though - did not ask what I needed she simply brought her best and gave it freely.

It was scary taking Nathaniel home in such a fragile state - I felt as if we should keep him in hospital longer.  Surely the doctors would take better care of him than I would?  I did not know if I was up to the task of caring for someone so sick - what if he became violently ill again?  The hospital staff assured us we were more than capable and that they would be there if we needed them.  We wrapped Thaniel up in far too many blankets, carefully loaded him in the car, drove slowly home and carried him in to the sofa.  My next thought - ok now what???