Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

Regular blog postings begin on DECEMBER 26, Monday.

She Loves Me at the Mary Godfrey Playhouse

The Cheyenne Little Theatre Players have two venues - the Atlas Theatre on Lincolnway, and the Mary Godfrey Playhouse on Pershing.

I attended the opening night, and was disappointed in that the theatre was only about a third full.

I've never seen She Loves Me before on stage but I had seen the 1978 TV version starring Robin Ellis as Georg, David Kernan as Kodaly, and Gemma Craven as Amalia Balash.

I've mislaid my program, but Linnae Walkley-Sims plays Amalia Balash and Richard Hirsch plays Georg.

The acting ability of the actors varies - but they're all serviceable. And all of their voices are excellent. The actor who played Kodaly suffered because of course no one can compare with David Kernan! But he was smug and delivered his lines with relish.

Media about this production:

Cheyenne Little Theatre Players: "She Loves Me"
http://www.wyomingnews.com/articles/2011/12/11/entertainment/02ent%20120911.txt


published a week before the show opened

Cheyenne city councilors approve $5.4 million land sale to Menards home improvement chain

From the Republic (Columbus, Indiana): Cheyenne city councilors approve $5.4 million land sale to Menards home improvement chain

CHEYENNE, Wyo. — Cheyenne city councilors have approved selling land to the Menards home improvement chain.

The council voted 7-3 Monday night to approve the $5.4 million deal.

The Wyoming Tribune Eagle (http://bit.ly/uzxSMK ) reported that the money will pay for improvements in the city's parks and recreation system.

Menards plans to build a store on the 24-acre plot this spring and expects to provide 200 jobs.

City Council president Mark Rinne (RIN'-ee) opposed the deal because he said the price was based on an old appraisal and because the city didn't widely advertise the sale.

Councilors who backed the sale said the city doesn't need any more parks in the area

Councilwoman Georgia Broyles said not selling the land would send a message that the city isn't business-friendly.

Holiday parade in Cheyenne today, 5 pm

I hadn't been intending to go... but now that there's snow on the ground I'm definitely not going to go.

Rehearsals have begun for She Loves Me at the Cheyenne Little Theater - the play will be at the Mary Godfrey playhouse rather than at the Atlas Theatre.

First performance Dec 9.

I have volunteered and will be a raffle ticket seller on Dec 9.

She Loves Me begins December 9

The Cheyenne Little Theatre is putting on She Loves Me as their "holiday musical" -- known to some of us as a Christmas musical!

I've never seen this on stage but, way back in 1978, I did see a version of it on PBS that I'm quite fond of. Starred Robin Ellis as Georg, Gemma Craven as Amali, Peter Sallis (of Last of the Summer Wine face) as Ladislav, and David Kernan as Kodaly.

It will be very interesting to see who they cast as Kodaly. He's the "villain of the piece" and was my favorite character in this BBC version.

Set in a 1930’s Hungarian Parfumerie, this classic love story tells of Georg and Amalia, coworkers who unwittingly meet through a Lonely Hearts column. As they write anonymous love letters to each other, at work they constantly fight, not knowing they are each other’s pen pals. Events come to a head on Christmas Eve, when all becomes revealed and love triumphs in this sweet, enduring musical.

Rather than the Atlas Theatre, this staging will be in the Mary Godfrey Playhouse, which I believe is inside a school....

2706 E Pershing Blvd,
Cheyenne, WY 82001
Phone: (307) 638-6543

December 9 & 10, 15 - 17 2011 @ 7:30pm [Friday and Sat; Thur, Fri and Sat]
December 11 & 18, 2011 @ 2:00pm [Sunday]

2 days left to see the Mousetrap

The Mousetrap, a production put on by the Cheyenne Little Theatre, staged at the Atlas Theatre, is having its last two performances, tonight at 7.30 pm , tomorrow at 2 pm.

Tickets for adults $22.

The show is a lot of fun. Yes, the actors are amateurs, but good amateurs. and it is a lot of fun to see them strutting their stuff on stage.

Indeed, had I managed to score a free ticket - they had a "caption this photo" contest - I'd be going to see it again on Sunday.

Half of the fun of going to see a live play is to see and hear the reaction of the audience around you. Do they laugh in the same places you do? Or in different places than you do? And so on.

I had a somewhat embarrassing experience, many years ago. I was in the balcony at some theater in Minneapolis....and an actor on stage did some bit of business that I thought was absolutely hilarious. So I laughed out loud. And I have a very loud laugh.

....and I was the only one who laughed.

So for the rest of that act the actor on stage seemed to be looking up into the crowd rather frequently, trying to figure out, apparently, the lone figure in that patch of 500 or so folks who'd thought what he'd done had been funny.

Since that time I've always kept my teeth clenched while I watch a play so I don't laugh quite so loudly...

In any event, plenty of chills, thrills and laughs in the Mousetrap. Go see it!

Cheyenne Little Theatre's Performance of The Mousetrap

The Cheyenne Little Theatre is putting on a production of the Mousetrap for 7 days, Nov 11, 12, and 13th, Nov 17, 18, 19, and 20. (So Friday through Sunday, with an extra, half-price performance on Thursday the 17th.)

My sister and I went to see it on Saturday the 12th.

We had some trepidation going in; we are both theatre goers of long-standing and have seen plays in Minneapolis's Theatreland, including the Guthrie; London's West End, Stratford-Upon Avon (not that that's saying much - I much preferred the Guthrie Theatre's version of Richard II to that at Stratford's, for example, but I digress), and so we were concerned about the quality of the acting. Cheyenne is a town of about 60,000 people (compared to 400,000 in Minneapolis/St. Paul, 7 million in London, etc)) so of course it has a much smaller pool of actors to draw from.

But we were pleasantly surprised. The actors, while amateurs, were very professional, very good. While some of the English accents were better than others, they were all serviceable (heckuva lot better than Kevin Costner's non-existent one in Robin Hood, for example).

I was awash in nostalgia the entire performance. The Mousetrap is the first play I ever saw, way, way back when I was 14 years old, in the West End of London, and I have seen it many times since, Many, many times. Performances put on by both professional and amateur companies. But it had been about 10 years since the last time I'd seen it, so I was amused to realize that I still knew every line of dialog.

The Atlas Theatre "is what it is," as the saying goes. The main floor has hard, stand alone chairs around tables, and the chairs weren't that comfortable. My sister and I were right up against the edge of the stage, which was great in one sense as my eyes aren't what they used to be, but in another sense was extremely hard on the neck as we had to keep looking upwards to watch the action.

The Cast
Molly Ralston - Freya Butterfield
Giles Ralson - Rory Mack
Christopher Wren - Chris Arneson
Mrs. Boyle - Carol Serelson
Major Metcalf - Dale Williams
Miss Casewell - Shelley Russell
Mr. Paravacini - Jon Jelinek
Detective-Sergeant Trotter - Justin Batson
The Director - Keith Neville (brought in from England!)

Don't Bring Your Computer to Office Depot!

The Office Depot on Dell Range says they fix computers now.

My dad brought his in. The only thing wrong with it was his DVD player no longer worked.

After a week he got it back. The DVD player works...but the rest of his computer had been wiped. It was back to "the way it was when he first bought it."

Now, there are times when a computer guy has to wipe your hard drive, if things are just way too corrupted, but what they do is make a mirror copy of the hard drive - all your files, all your applications, etc., and then they put that back on your computer!

Now, my dad has Carbonite so presumably he can just restore everything he had... but it just seems very fishy to me that such a simple task turned into such a major operation. And even that would have been okay if he still had his files on his computer!

[Edited - apparently they had intended to make a backup of everything to restore his computer, but my dad said no. He's got Carbonite and wanted to try that out.]

I use a guy who lives in Casper. Yes its a 2 and half hour drive there, and a 2 and a half hour drive back, but the guy lets me sit there and watch while he works on my computer, and he's taught me a lot,and he doesn't charge an arm and a leg (so I can afford the cost of gas!)

On travel til Wednesday

I'm visiting elderly relatives in Box Elder, SD who do not have internet.

Will try to sneak out now and again to an internet cafe to post, but more than likely will not be posting until Wedneday.

It's always something

Got to go to Box Elder for 4 days... will resume - or rather start! - a regular posting schedule when I get back.!

Restaurant, Sandwich: Subway and Bagelmaker

1821 Dell Range Blvd
To its left is Tokyo Bowl, and to Tokyo Bowl's left is Barnes & Noble.

The same person owns both the Subway and the Bagelmaker, so workers there are trained in how to make both subway sandwiches and bagel sandwiches.

Subway has delicious sandwiches, heated or unheated. 4 types of bread, gazillions of toppings.

Bagel Maker has slightly fewer toppings, on a variety of bagel types. They had no chicken breast sandwiches, however, which annoyed me. I settled for a Breckinridge - roast beef, provolone cheese, mushrooms and sweet onions. Microwaved.

If you like sandwiches with freshly made ingredients, with more choices then you get at Jimmie Johns, this is the place for you.

Restaurant, Japanese: Tokyo Bowl

Tokyo Bowl
1829 Dell Range Boulevard
Cheyenne, WY 82009-4900
(307) 632-2127

The Tokyo Bowl is sandwiched between Barnes & Noble on one side, and a combination Subway/Bagelmaker restaurant on the other, on the right hand side of Dell Range Blvd.

It is open from 9 am to 9 pm.

The restaurant features authentic Japanese cuisine. The wait staff were very nice, very solicitous.

The food was delivered on a sizzling hot metal plate placed on top of a wooden serving tray.

The cost of the food was a bit expensive - about twice what you'd pay in a Chinese restaurant. But you're not going to find a majority of this food in any other restaurant in Cheyenne.

Indeed, I have to confess that there wasn't much on the menu that I would eat. 98% of it is seafood made in the traditional Japanese manner - eel, octopus, etc., as well as sushi and sashimi, of course - all cooked fresh to order.

There was some kind of beef, and chicken teriyaki, which I had.

The chicken teriyaki came with carrots, asparagus spears and other types of green stuff, with chicken white meat cut into peices on top of a bed of lettuce, drenched in teriyaki sauce.

The taste of the teriyaki sauce wasn't quite what I was used to, but once I got used to it it was pretty good. The meal came with either soup or salad. I had the salad, which had some kind of ginger dressing on it.

Over all I was quite pleased, and I think anyone looking for authentic Japanese, and who likes seafood, will like this also.

Jimmy Johns Gourmet Sandwiches

Jimmy John's Gourmet Sandwiches, 110 E. Lincoln Way
"Freeky Fast! Freaky Good"

Went to Jimmy John's Gourmet Sandwich shop today (photo to be added tomorrow.)

The shop is on the very edge of the downtown buisness district, and they deliver.

Ambiance - lousy. They were playing rock and roll rather than rap, so that was ok. Unfortunately the rock and roll was just too damn loud. I could only stand about 5 minutes of it before I took the rest of my sandwich and left to sit in my car to finish it.

It's like a Subway shop, but you don't get to choose all of your fixings. Any sandwich you order comes only with specific things, anything extra costs extra.

So I ordered a Turkey Tom - without the tomato, but with cheese. They charged me 50 cents for the cheese, but no discount for not getting a tomato!

No choices of breads - or at least, I wasn't asked to give a choice. THat's what makes Subway so good, they've got 5 or 6 different kinds of breads, 5 or 6 different kinds of sauces, and they have chicken breast.

Having said that, the sandwich was very good. The white bread bun/hoagy roll (whatever the technical term is) seemed freshly baked and had a slightly crisp crust and soft interior, lots of turkey (although sliced thin, not an actual cut piece of turkey - but then I dont' think any sandwich shop has that) lettuce, and mayonaise. (Would have been better with black olive...but that's a Subway thing.)

Anyway, overall I'd give the Jimmy Johns Gourmet Sandwich a 7 out of 10, with Subway being a 10 out of 10. Subway has a lot more variety, and a much quieter store in which to eat.

8" sub sanwiches (only meat listed, I don't mention the veggies they give ya)
Pepe - smoked ham
Big John - medium rare roast beef
Totally Tuna - tuna
Turkey Tom - turkey
Vito - genua salami
Vegetarian
JJBLT - bacon, lettuce, tomato

Club sandwiches (only meat listed, I don't mention the veggies they give ya)
smoked ham
Billy club - roast beef
genua salami, ham
Hunter's club - roast beef
Country clubb - turkey and ham
Beach club - turkey
Bootlegger club - Roast beef, turkey breast
Club Tuna
Club Lulu - turkey, bacon, lettuce, tomato
Ultimate porker - ham, bacom

August Events at the Laramie County Library

Monday the 8th
Noon music from Keith "Boxcar" Blaney
4 pm - LEGO challenge for grades 4 -6

Tuesday the 9th
5.30: How to break into the country music business

Wednesday the 10th
2pm: Computer training: the internet

Thursday the 11th
5.30: Reaching Out [coping with loss] (Adults)
6pm: Bad Art night: adults and teens

Saturday the 13th
10 AM: Tai Ci
10:15 AM: Computer training: Emailing

Monday the 15th
Noon: Noon Music, Bobby Phillipps

Tuesday the 16th
7pm: Tuesday night book club

Wednesday the 17th
2pm: Computer Training: GEt help

Saturday the 20th
10:15 am: Computer Training: Microsoft Word

Wednesay the 24th
2 pm: Computer training: Powerpoint

Friday the 26th
6 pm: Retirement celebration for Mary Meyer, Library Foundation director

Saturday the 27th
10:15: Computer training: Excel

Monday the 29th
6:30pm: Art flicks, 1981 (Adults)

Wednesday the 31st
2 pm: Computer training: using a mouse

28 July 2011, Kevin Costner appearing at Cheyenne Frontier Days

Darius Rucker with Kevin Costner (yes, that Kevin Costner) & Modern West will be appearing at Cheyenne Frontier Days at 8 pm on Thursday, July 28, in Frontier Park Arena.

Tickets are $38, $45 or $58 and are available at:

www.cfdrodeo.com
Cheyenne Frontier days ticket office: 800-227-6336 or 307-778-7222.

Kevin Costner & Modern West have made two records:
Untold Tuths, 2008
Turn It On, 2010

Costner formed Modern West at the suggestion of his wife Christine. He got in touch with an old friend, musician John Coinman (a native of New Mexico who lives with his family in Arizona).

Their first group was Roving Boy, but they formed Modern West in 2005. The band includes Costner, Coinman, Blair Forward, drummer Larry Cobb, and guitarist and producer Teddy Morgan.

Where to sit for 4th of July fireworks in Cheyenne next year

I went to the 4th of July fireworks last night with my mother. The fireworks were held in Pioneer Park and there was entertainment before hand: Tops in Blue (an Air Force band). Since it would be crowded and my mom can't walk far and gets tired easily, we decided to park away from the park, but somewhere with a good view of the fireworks.

We ended up parking on the corner of Warren and 7th Avenue, in the parking lot for the Warren Federal Credit Union. (Warren is a one way street going north). Just after the credit union comes the post office and airport on the right hand side (east) and the road heads west where it splits off into Yellowstone and Dell Range Blvd.

Anyway, we joined about 50 or so people there - not all in one place but in lawn chairs in parking lots and stuff at the four corners of the intersection (of Warren and 8th street).

The fireworks started ten minutes late, but then they were worth it. Lots of beautiful fireworks going off all at once. Behind me was a couple with their two little kids who were ooohing and ahing and were quite impressed, so that added to the enjoyment.

After the fireworks were over I went out the exit on 7th street which crossed over to Central - the one way road heading south that runs across a bridge and turns into Greeley Highway.

Cheyenne Grizzles

I went to my first Cheyenne Grizzles baseball game last night. They started playing in June, and will play throughout July.

http://www.cheyennegrizzlies.com/

The first inning didn't start out to well...3 runs for the other team thanks to a couple of errors. And there were a few errors in subsequent innings. Still, the players knew what they were doing, there were double plays, etc, and if you like to see a lot of offense, the Cheyenne Grizzly games are for you!

Cheyenne Grizzlies go for Back top Back Championships in this 7th season!

The players are college students:
MCBL Eligible Players
Players eligible for the MCBL are students of junior and senior colleges who have eligibility remaining in accordance with NCAA regulations. It is not permissible for high school students or non-NCAA students (i.e., former college players), nor
players who are under current professional contract in the sport of baseball, to
participate in the MCBL.

In order to participate in the MCBL, a student-athlete must receive written
permission from his college or university.

Player Sources The Cheyenne Grizzlies team manager and coaches will recruit talented, eligible
college players from around the country to make up their team’s roster. The
Grizzlies staff will use the same model as current collegiate summer league teams:
recruit players from top college baseball programs and conferences, augmented by
the best available local college players (keeping to our roots, we will be actively pursuing players from colleges in regional conferences, such as the Big 12, Mountain West, Western Athletic, and the Rocky Mountain Athletic).

10/10/10: Gas averaged $2.84 a gallon

I've been cleaning my "catch all" room and found a receipt for October 10, 2010, when I'd stopped in at a Loves Gas Station in Boise City, Oklahoma. This was when I was driving my mother from Hampton Roads to Cheyenne Wyoming via Burleson Texas (where she has relatives.)

I filled her up with 9.447 gallons, at $2.84 a gallon. Total cost, $26.91.

Gas today, here in Cheyenne, is $3.48. So that 9.447 gallons today cost me: $32.87.

Well...only six dollars more.

But, I've recently returned from a trip to Warroad, MN, and this $3.48 here in Cheyenne has been the cheapest it's been. Most places were about $3.60, and in Warroad, it was $3.87.

So let's look at $3.60 for 9.447 gallons: $34.01. So, $8 more to fill my tank up halfway (I never let my gas tank get much below the halfway mark) today than eight months ago. Or $16 more to fill it up completely.

And when you're travelling cross-country, that adds up - as I dont' need to tell you! My car averages 34 miles to the gallon, which is pretty good. Those poor mobile homes that get 6 miles to the gallon...God knows how those folks can afford to go anywhere these days...

Chugwater

Well, the weather in Cheyenne was finally getting bearable - in the sense that it would now be possible to go out and do some serious exploring and photo taking to share at this delightful blog...

But...there's always something...

My mom had long wanted to go up to Warroad, Minnesota to visit her old (in every sense of the word) school friend. My dad didn't want to go, so I got tapped to do it. (My mom can't drive anymore, is stone deaf, and walks - if you can call it that - with a cane.)

So a 3 day trip here, 3 days here, and 3 days back.

Then I'll be able to get serious about this blog.

For now, here's two photos of a rest area sign near Chugwater, talking about the cool rock formations there. (Well, they don't talk about what those formations are, just that they're there...) Hopefully on the way back I can stop and take photos.

Brochures

Time to get this party started.

I went to the Wyoming Tourist Information Stop today, and picked up a heckuva lot of brochures.

(Interestingly, the one brochure I wanted, on Curt Gowdy State Park, I couldn't find. Both the clerks were busy with people so I couldn't ask them. Well, there are other places to find brochures.)

I'll be visiting each of these places during the course of the summer and writing about them:

Rockpile Museum, Gillette, Wyoming
Dude Ranchers Educational Trust & Heritage Center, Cody, Wyoming
The Lincoln Monument (between Cheyenne and Laramie)
Vedauwoo (rock formations)
About Vedauwoo
The Old Lincoln Highway Tour
Cheyenne Frontier Days (115th Annual, July 22-31, 2011)
Yellowstone National Park Lodges: Dining and Shopping Guide
Yellowstone National Park: Your Complete guide to the Parks
Buffalo Bill Dam Visitor Center, Cody, Wyoming
Explore Wyoming State Parks & Historic Sites: 2010-2011 Visitor's Guide
Wyoming Off-Road Recreation Vehicle Program
Wyomong Campground Association: Your Resource for Private Campgrounds in Wyoming
US Highway 26: Old Yellowstone Highway
Casper College Tate Geological Museum
National Historic TRaild Interpretive Center, Casper, Wyoming
Douglas, Wyoming: Home of the Jackelope
Fort Caspar, Casper Wyoming (note the two diffrent spellings are correct)
Wyoming Pioneer Memorial Museum, Douglas, Wyoming
Douglas & Glenrock, Wyoming: Trails & Rails to the West
Martin's Cove and Willie/Sixth Crossing and Rock Creek Hollow
There's a lot of Wild Left in Wyomh: Service Directory
Winf River Indian Reservation
Explore the land of SAcajawea: Sef guided tor
Where the Wagon ruts cross the Rockies: Vacation Guide
Pony Express National Historic TRail
California National Historic TRail
Oregon National Historic trail
Wyoming State Museum, Cheyenne, Wyoming
Old West Museum, Frontier Park, Cheyenne
Cheyenne Museums and Trolly Passport
Cheyenne Depot Magazine
Tracking Trains in Cheyenne
Terry Bison Ranch, CheyenneCowgirls of the West Museum and Gift Shoft
These Boots are made for Talking: Cheyenne Boots Audio Tour
Wyoming Hunting & Fishing Heritage Expo, Sept 8-10, 2011
Wyoming Adventure Miniature Golf, Cheyenne
National Museum of Wildlife ArtJackson Hole, Wyoming
A Guide to Old Trail Town and Museum of the Old West, Cody, Wyoming
Eco Tours: Hidden Treasure ChartersCody, Wyoming

This weekend: Depot Days

If you live anywhere near Cheyenne, Wyoming, head there for Depot Days this weekend.

Hosted by the Cheyenne Depot Museum and Sherman Hill Model Railroad Club.

Features tours of the Union Pacific Steam Shop with opportunities to see steam locomotives Nos 844 and 3985, as well as the Car 57 project, a restoration effort of an old Pullman railroad car built in 1887.

Also features a railroad art show, vendors and model train displays.

Open from 9 am to 5 pm. Final tours our 4 pm on Sat, 3 pm on Sunday.

http://cheyennedepotmuseum.org

Clubs and Hobbies in Cheyenne

On Saturday, the Cheyenne Library hosted a Clubs and Hobbies day. There were about 30 clubs there, and I took photos of most of them...

To start with, I'm just going to share some photos of classic cars that were parked out in the parking lot.

Later on tonight I'll start sharing photos of the clubs, as well as their contact details.

Most of the cars are shown from 3 views - left, center, right.

Fire Stations in Cheyenne

Below are four photos of Fire Station Number One in Cheyenne.
The station, with its mosaic, is located at: 716 W 19th ST Cheyenne 82001

19 April, 2011: Gas in Cheyenne at $3.49

If you drive around the outskirts of Cheyenne, you'll be able to find gas - regular gas - for $3.49. The premium grades and diesel are of course higher.

The Tortilla Factory on Greely Highway

My brother and I went to the Tortilla Factory on Greely Highway, and we were not impressed.

The buildling is not a purpose built restaurant. It's some concrete building turned into a restaurant. You enter from the back, and there you've got some tables set out on a thin brown carpet. There's some Mexican -style paintings on the walls, but the walls are definiately made of concrete blocks.

The kitchen has no door, so if you're sitting near enough, you can see right inside to watch your meal being cooked, if you want.

My brother thought the prices were reasonable, I thought they were pretty high considerng we weren't paying for any ambiance.

I had some kind of chicken...and unfortunately I can't remember the name. $10 and I found it inedible. My brother had chile relleno, and my brother is a connosieur of chile relleno. This chile relleno was like nothing he'd ever had before. He had a couple of bites and that was it. $20 for both meals, and that was with water to drink. (They sell no beer there - that was fine with me! I think they had sangria, though...)

In other words, we thought the food was horrible.

Now, to give the restaurant its due, we arrived at about 5.15, and there were a few people in there. As we sat and waited for our food, and as we ate, etc., people kept coming in and sitting down. It's apparently a pretty popular place.

So I guess there's no accounting for taste!

Wyoming Welcome Center on Highway 25: The Greeting and the Gift

Road down to the Wyoming Visitor Center. First line must be an old, "vintage" sign

And just in case you're not sure, a new sign


Wyoming Wildlife


The Visitor Center - will get a better photo on Monday.

If you drive North/South on Highway 25, it runs quite close to Cheyenne, as most highways do, of course. If you take Exit 269A, only a couple of miles from the Lincolnway Exit which gets you into downtown Cheyenne, there is a Wyoming Welcome Center there.

Now...I'm publishing this post on a Saturday, and the information I have to impart is not complete. I went there today, Saturday, and the place was closed. The sign on the door said only, Closed. So I don't know if its just closed for the weekend, or closed for the Winter season. (The door had no Open and Closing hours sign, which you thought would have been a good thing to have.)

So today, I'll just post a few photos, and Monday, I'll let you know just what its opening hours are.

Various attempts to take artistic compositions of The Greeting and the Gift sculpture. Even though the day was overcast, the camera didn't seem to take very good pictures, as if they were sunstruck.

The Greeting and the Gift Sculpture
A mountain man gives greeting - holding his hand over the top of his musket to signify it's harmless. The Native American offers a peace pipe.

Bowfire at Taco John's Event Center Tonight

While Cats is sold out, there are still tickets available for tonight's performance of Bowfire. Starts at 7.30, but of course as for any event you should be there at least 20 minutes early to get to your seat.

I'm not much in to classical violin music myself, but in addition to Classical they do other kinds, as see below.

Here's some info on it from WIkipedia.
Bowfire is a Canadian musical show featuring multiple violins, established in June 2000 by violinist and composer Lenny Solomon. They perform an eclectic mix of classical music, jazz, bluegrass music, celtic music, rock music, and world music.

In addition to the group's nine violinists/fiddlers, Bowfire also features Toronto-based erhu performer George Gao. One of the group's most popular compositions is "Fiddler in the Hood." They also perform covers of well known tunes such as Led Zeppelin's "Kashmir."

Formed in June 2000, Bowfire made its debut performance the following month at Expo 2000 in Hannover, Germany. Audience response was wildly enthusiastic, and the group was subsequently invited to perform on the Governor-General's Awards telecast, the Canadian equivalent of the United States' Kennedy Center Honors.

The ensemble made its American debut in a series of performances during the summer of 2001 in New York City, and embarked on their first U.S. tour during the 2002-2003 season. In December 2003 Bowfire made its Asian debut with performances in Taiwan. Bowfire has enjoyed many highly successful touring seasons since then and is currently touring North America, with over 100 performance dates scheduled.

http://www.bowfire.com/

Best Laid Plans of Mice and Men Gang Oft Agley....

Address: 148 Oak Street, just off College. It's a one way cul de sac, with a restaurant and some art stores, as well as this gallery.

Colorado Coalition of Artists

Colorado Coalition of Artists

Colorado Coalition of Artists

My sister and I drove down to Fort Collins this morning. Our purpose was to see the art exhibit that 2 of the people from my scrabble club had at the Colorado Coalition of Artists. What I didn't know was that the gallery was only open from Thursday to Saturday. (Or if I did know, I'd forgotten.)

So we walked a little ways to some kind of court that had three circular granite sculptures - to me they were a waste of space, but then I've always preferred representational art work. The library had been converted into an art museum, and we went in to see the last day of the Ansel Adams photograph exhibit. (I took photos of the first floor art, but was not allowed to take photos of the Adams photos - more on this museum tomorrow.)

On an adjacent building was a mural, and I took a photo of that. And there was a cat on a tree - not a lynx but some kind of large cat, but no plaque to explain what it was.

Will have to do research to give the appropriate attribution to all the buildings, and those also will be shared in future posts.


Mural on the building adjacent to the former library/Art Musuem

Ansel Adams exhibit

Save the day: 18-20 Mar: Home and Garden Show

Driving in to town today, I heard an advertisement for a Home & Garden Expo to take place at the Taco John's Event Center from 18-20 March, 2011. Admission is free.

Fri. 11:00 a.m. - 7:00 p.m.,
Sat. 9:00 a.m. - 7:00 p.m.,
Sun. 11:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m

So I come home and try to find a webpage for it. It would make sense, wouldn't it, for this event to have a webpage, telling everyone what vendors would be there and so on?

Well, there is no website. I found a few sites that list the bare minimum of the show - no more than what I've got above...but nothing else.

Talk about a wasted opportunity!

What exactly is a Home and Garden show, eh? Are they going to have demonstrations of gardening equipment? Home equipment? Are big name vendors going to be there? Will there be a booklet advertising all these vendors, and can it be acquired even if one doesn't go to the show?

A website would say...should say...but this event doesn't have one.

Job News: Oil jobs flow into area

Wyoming News.com: Oil jobs flow into area
The industry has at least 49 job openings in Laramie County and more may be on the way as the Niobrara oil play develops.

By Josh Mitchell
jmitchell@wyomingnews.com

CHEYENNE -- Unemployed workers in this area may strike oil soon.

Recently, there has been an increase in the number of oil industry jobs available in southeast Wyoming.

There are 49 job openings in the Laramie County oil fields, according to the Wyoming Department of Workforce Services.

Those jobs include truck drivers, laborers and heavy equipment operators, said Andrea Hixon, director of the local Workforce Center.

Tim Holliman of Cheyenne was at the Workforce Center on Tuesday looking on the computer for jobs in the oil and gas industry. He is doing odd jobs to make a living now but is trying to find some steady work.

With the jobs available in the oil field, he is optimistic he will find something soon.

Murray Lou Rex said she also is looking for a job in the oil field or the wind energy industry. She said she would consider working as a truck driver but would have to obtain her commercial driver's license.

A single mom, Rex said she has always been interested in the mining industry.

"I'm really thrilled that these types of income opportunities are coming to Cheyenne," she said.

She said job seekers in Cheyenne must be open to gaining new job skills if they want positions in the oil and gas industry.

In the past three months, Workforce Services has connected 28 people in Laramie County with oil and gas industry jobs. There could be more, however, because not all companies provide Workforce Services with information on job placements.

Anadarko Petroleum spokesman Brian Cain said, "We are optimistic that as the (oil) play develops, additional employment opportunities will follow."

However, Cain said his company is still in the early stages of the Niobrara oil play, and it is premature to speculate on potential job creation.

"As we continue to evaluate the play and potentially increase the number of rigs operating there in 2011, there will be opportunities, particularly for service providers ..."

Cain added that it is Anadarko's practice to hire locally when possible.

Hixon said she has seen some of her clients who have been out of work for extended periods finally land jobs because of the oil and gas industry.

And she thinks things are only going to get better.

"I think it will continue to increase," she said.

Joan Evans, director of the Wyoming Department of Workforce Services, agreed this is good news.

"This is an exciting time in southeast Wyoming because in the past couple of years, we've seen our job postings remain stagnant or be drastically down from years past," Evans said.

Evans said job seekers should not be discouraged if they do not have the necessary job skills. She encourages them to visit local Workforce Services centers to see if they qualify for training assistance and education.

The state's unemployment rate is 6.3 percent, and Laramie County's is 8.2 percent.

Hixon said there have been many people coming into her office looking for jobs in the industry.

Recently, Hixon's office had a job fair for an energy company, Legend Excavating, and 35 interviews were conducted. Other energy companies also have expressed interest in holding job fairs, she said.

She added that unemployed workers from other states are calling her office, asking when jobs may become available.

"I just think it's going to explode," Hixon said.

Cheyenne LEADS CEO Randy Bruns said it is too early to tell what the impact of the oil play will be on the local employment scene. LEADS is the economic development corporation for Cheyenne and Laramie County.

If local workers want the jobs, they will have to acquire the specialized skills that are needed, Bruns noted, adding it is good that Laramie County Community College is here to provide job training.

Wyoming Word Gamers Club - Every Wednesday

Here's a plug for my Scrabble Club (aka the Wyoming Word Gamers Club) that meets every Wednesday in the Cheyenne Library.

6.30 pm, usually in the Sage Meeting room.

It's a lot of fun, so if you like to play Scrabble, be there or be square.

Check out the website at http://volcanoseven.com/WyomingWordGamersClub/

Snow, Snow Go Away!

I haven't accomplished much for my webzine: The Cheyenne Connecting Point lately.

THe last three days there's been snow everywhere, but it's mostly all gone now.

I have three Restaurant Reviews from my reviewer, The High Plains Driftin' Gourmet, but I haven't had time to upload them yet.

So much to do, so little time!

Carl's Jr.

View 1 of Carl's Jr. in Cheyenne, WY

View 2 of Carl's Jr. in Cheyenne, WY

Located on the corner of Warren Avenue and Lincolnway. (As you come across the bridge on Highway 85, it changes in to a one way road, Warren, and goes through the town (changing in to Yellowstone a little further along), before you hook up with Highway 85 again on the other side.

I stopped in a couple of days ago and had 3 hand-battered chicken tenders. I had wanted their Asian Sweet and Sour sauce, but they were out of it...though it was only about 5 pm. Indeed, they were out of most of their sauces. I assume that they hand-make all their sauces - I got honey mustard in little plastic cups, rather than in the pre-packaged sauce tiny bucket type things that McDonalds offerse, for example.

I took a photo of their poster for the Chicken Tenders - it's a tie in with the recently released Green Hornet movie.







Carl's From Wikipedia
Carl's Jr. is an American fast-food restaurant chain located in the Southern, Western, and Southwestern United States. It is also in the process of expanding into Canada, Mexico, Malaysia, Singapore, Russia, Vietnam, and China.

It was founded in 1941 by Carl N. Karcher, and is owned by CKE Restaurants, Inc. Carl Karcher's business was jumpstarted with the opening of his first restaurant, Carl’s Drive-In Barbeque. As this grew wildly successful, he decided to open up smaller chains of Carl's. In 1954, he changed the name to Carl's Jr. and the fast-food chain took off. Combined with its sibling restaurant chain Hardee's, Carl's Jr. is the #4 US fast food burger chain in size after McDonald's (31,000+ locations), Burger King (11,500+ locations) and Wendy's (6,700+ locations).

HistoryCarl Karcher got his start in the food industry in 1941 by owning several food stands in Los Angeles, California, most notably on the corner of Florence and Central in South L.A. By 1945, Karcher owned a stand-alone restaurant in Anaheim, California called Carl's Drive-In Barbecue. In 1956, Karcher opened the first two Carl's Jr. restaurants in Anaheim, California and Brea, California; so named because they were a smaller version of his drive-in restaurant. The restaurant chain was characterized by its fast service and its logo, the bright yellow five-pointed Happy Star. CKE's other chain, Hardee's, now shares this logo, after a post-merge rebranding.

A Carl's Jr. in Rancho Cordova, CaliforniaIn 1981, with 300 restaurants in operation, Carl Karcher Enterprises became a publicly held company. In 1988, Carl and his family were accused of insider trading by the Securities and Exchange Commission. They had sold large quantities of stock before the price dropped. Carl agreed to a settlement with the SEC and paid more than half a million dollars in fines.

The late 1980s and 1990s brought trouble early-on and success later. Carl's Jr. chains had struggled to gain success in Arizona and Texas, perhaps diminishing hopes of expansion to other states, though later states like Nevada, Oregon and Washington proved successful. During the 1990s Karcher and the Board of Directors began clashing over marketing and business practices, including the chain's attempt at dual branding with such chains as The Green Burrito, which led to Karcher's ousting as Chief Executive Officer in 1993. Soon after, the Board of Directors took a new approach by cutting the menu, lowering prices, and introducing a new marketing campaign which targeted younger urban and suburban males. During this time, commercials for Carl's Jr. featured an animated caricature of Carl Karcher and the chain's mascot, Happy Star.

During the mid-1990s, Carl's Jr. unveiled its "If it doesn't get all over the place, it doesn't belong in your face" campaign which featured younger people eating Carl's Jr.'s burgers with ketchup and juice dripping from the burger and onto clothes and other areas. Among its famous figures, NBA great Dennis Rodman was also featured in a famous ad in which one of his tattoos is seen eating a burger. Karcher admitted he was heartbroken by the new campaign which contrasted starkly with his conservative views.

Carl's Jr. quickly expanded, and currently has more than 1,000 locations in 13 U.S. states, as well as in Mexico, Singapore and Russia. In 2007, five new branches were opened in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, located at 1-Utama Shopping Complex, Midvalley Megamall, Sunway Pyramid, Mines Shopping Fair and the new Pavilion KL Shopping Complex is the first branch they opened for their comeback. In total, there have been seven branches in Malaysia. The Masjid Jamek branch, Ampang Park branch and the Lake Gardens branch were closed in 1998.

Featured food items include the Double Western Bacon Cheeseburger and the Six Dollar Burger, so called because it is claimed to be of the same quality of a burger one would pay six dollars for in a sit-down restaurant. In May 2005, Carl's Jr. introduced "The Spicy BBQ Six Dollar Burger" in a controversial advertising campaign.

In 1997, CKE Restaurants acquired Hardee's, a restaurant chain with 2,500 locations in the Midwest, South and East Coast regions. Hardee's restaurants are gradually being converted to be more like Carl's Jr. with some of the same menu items and even adopting the same star logo. The chain has also opened at least one restaurant in a former Rally's location in Hollywood with a drive-thru lane, walk-up window and no interior seating. This location carries the branding Carl's Jr. Jr.

In 2002, CKE Restaurants, Inc. acquired Santa Barbara Restaurant Group (the parent company of the Green Burrito brand). Some Carl's Jr. stores are now co-branded as Green Burrito locations. Three Carl's Jr. locations in downtown Los Angeles serve beer: Macy's Plaza on 7th & Flower, California Mart at Main & Olympic, and Citigroup Plaza at 5th & Flower.

In 2004, Carl's Jr. was portrayed in the film Idiocracy as the dominant fast food franchise in a dystopian future.

In October 2006, Carl's Jr. and sister-company Hardee's introduced a promotion with The Palms Casino Hotel to sell a $6,000 Combo Meal exclusively at The Palms. This meal includes the signature Six Dollar Burger, fries, and a $6,000 bottle of French Bordeaux. This meal is available on the Palms room service menu.

In 2008, Carl's Jr. eventually expanded into American Samoa, alongside fellow competitors McDonald's, KFC, Pizza Hut and Checkers.

On January 11, 2008, Carl Karcher, the founder of hamburger chain Carl's Jr., died at the age of 90. A spokeswoman for CKE Restaurants said Mr. Karcher suffered from Parkinson's disease and was being treated for Parkinson's-related pneumonia when he died at St. Jude Medical Center in Fullerton, California. Many Carl's Jr. restaurants flew their flags at half staff in memory of Karcher.

In February 2009, CKE Restaurants announced that Texas would be their top growth market for the next five years. Franchisee deals were made with two companies to open Carl's Jr. locations in the Dallas/Fort Worth and Houston markets. The franchisees plan to open 193 new restaurants in Texas over the next 10 years. Carl's Jr. had initially expanded into Texas in 1984, but due to the poor state economy most locations never met sales expectations. By 1987, Carl's Jr. had temporarily pulled out of Texas entirely closing approximately 36 locations. Another attempt to bring the chain to Texas was attempted in the 1990s.

Co-branding
Carl's Jr and Green Burrito restaurant in Bell, CaliforniaIn several Western U.S. locations, Carl's Jr. parent CKE has begun operating co-branded restaurants with its Green Burrito group. This is a similar strategy used by Yum! Brands with its KFC, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, A&W Restaurants, and Long John Silvers concepts to help expand brands without the additional expense of new buildings and land.

Taco de Carlos was a fast-food Mexican restaurant chain that spun off from Carl's Jr. In 1972 Carl Karcher Enterprises decided to get in on the Mexican fast-food business because it was a new phenomenon that was proving successful with Taco Bell going public just a few years earlier. Taco de Carlos offered menu items not found on Taco Bell, like the California Burrito, with the green chili, and the Machaca Burrito.

It also served up the standard Carl's Jr. burgers. Some of the Taco de Carlos locations opened next door to a Carl's Jr. By the end of the 1970s Taco de Carlos had 17 locations. Carl Karcher Enterprises could never muster up enough business attention for Taco de Carlos, and the taco chain found itself in financial distress. Meanwhile, the bigger names like Taco Bell, Del Taco, Naugles, and Pup-n-Taco were enjoying success.

In the early 1980s Carl Karcher Enterprises sold off most of its Taco de Carlos locations to Del Taco, and the rest to other buyers. In 1988, after strengthening the Carl's Jr. brand, they decided to try their luck again with fast-food Mexican fare, and struck up a co-branding deal with Green Burrito.

2011 At the Cheyenne Civic Center

These performances may well be sold out already, but I'll share them here anyway.

Civic Center Box Office number is ...not given anywhee in theie 2010-2011 seasopn brochure that I can see. Jeez. Well, look 'em up on the Internet.

Anyway:

Forever Doo-Wop, March 4, 2011. Stars the Diamonds, the Tokens, and Danny and the Juniors.
Bowfire - March 18, 2011 - fiddle and violin virtuosos
Cats - April 20, 2011 - Andrew Lloyd Webber
Riverdance - May 10, 2011
Oakridge Boys - Christmas special - November 28, 2011
Moscow Ballet Nutcracker - December 8, 2011

Wizard of Oz at the Cheyenne Civic Center

I went to the Cheyenne Civic Center last night to see the touring production of The Wizard of Oz. I'll have to return there to take photographs of the building, for now I'll just concentrate on the Wizard of Oz, and other performances to come.

I seem to remember seeing the Wizard of Oz before...I think at the Minneapolis Children's Theater, and it was a regular play, not a musical. Or I may be confusing it with the Grinch, whcih I definitely saw there. Ah, sucks to get old and misplace your theater program collection.

Anyway, it was fun. It used most of the dialog and songs from the movie - including Over the Rainbow, but with a few additional lines and at least one scene - the Jitterbug scene that had been cut from the movie was done here.

Andrew Haserlat, who played the Scarecrow, didn't have the physical dexterity of Ray Bolger, but his physicality was okay and he had a good singing voice. Jesse Colman as Lion didn't try a Brooklynese accent a la Bert Lahr, but his Cowardly Lion did kind of make him stand out - excellent delivery of some comedic lines.

Pat Sibley as the Wicked Witch also did a good job.

We were far in the back and I hadn't brought opera glasses, so I didn't realize until today that the actress who played Aunt Em also did Gilda, and the actor who played Uncle Henry also played the Guard. As the guard, his vocalizations reminded me more of the guard from the movie Robots than from the movie - where Frank Morgan had played him, the Carriage Driver, the Doorman, and the Wizard of Oz.

Here, Robert John Biedermann played Professor Marvel and the Wizard of Oz. His best scene was of course the last scene where he is handing out the diploma, the testimonial, the medal, and so on.

Dorothy was played by Kate Bristol, Tinman by Beau Hutchings.

A projector had been set up that did the house rising and falling, Aunt Em calling for Dorothy changing into the Wicked Witch doing so, etc.

All in all, a very fun performance - all actors well up to the task, but those with the best lines of course standing out the most.

I checked out some reviews of the touring production and discovered that the actors who played the Munchkins were all locally recruited school kids. According to a letter written by a parent (3 years ago, for a New York production) - the local kids have to pay to be taught all the dance steps they are going to use in the performance - they are themselves not paid. Apparently they get a T-shirt and a line for their resume.

(Note the back of the program which says that the Munchkins had been trained by Lorraine Brown-Bassett and Andrea Rinne of EnAvant Dance Studio.

I also didn't realize that this was a one-night only show. I guess that's how they can be sure every performance will sell out, but gee, that's got to be hard on the actors, getting used to a new space every single day....