2/28 - It was a pretty uneventful day to begin a journal. We took the bus to Anacortes, Washington; left in the morning at about 11:00 and arrived about 8:30. Tried to write a little on the bus but the road was too bumpy. Mostly read “Burr” which I find very interesting and humorous; it helped keep my spirits up. The weather was pretty depressing; it rained most of the day. I also did my usual amount of napping—that bus just lulls me to sleep. After we arrived, Mike and I walked out for pizza. Excellent! Also went to 7-11 to buy a toothbrush and toothpaste which I had forgotten. We bought a little wine too—1/2 gallon. The motel is really nice with a living room and kitchen. It’s just about as big as our apartment. I’m glad the TV is not in the bedroom because Mike is watching hockey—Uggh!
3/1 – Up at the crack of dawn! Set up and school show at 2:00—another Rainmaker/Tarantella. We were told that the high school students about tore the school down the last assembly. We were prepared for the worst but actually the audience was pretty good—if a bit too quiet? There was a reception tonight and I was particularly gregarious. I teach tomorrow and I met many of my prospective students. I’m looking forward to it.
3/2 – What a rough day! Up at 7:00 to do two school shows plus I taught a Master Class. The students were gymnasts and altogether spastic in ballet, but nice kids. I had a great dinner—finally had my lobster tail. Spent a quiet evening, just the two of us, watching TV. Really good movie—“The Minstrel Man”.
3/3 – Had a really nice morning. Good lunch at Fisherman’s Market. Bought a little clown doll for Carl William (brother Carl’s and his wife Mary’s new baby—second nephew). The performance went well tonight—thank God. George’s good friend, Harriet, and two critics from Seattle were there. George talked to one of them and she really liked us. I’m exhausted! It was Becky’s last performance and I just kept thinking how much more tiring it will be when I have to do the Simple Gifts pas de deux in addition to everything else.
3/4 – One of those days when I just couldn’t seem to stay awake. We rode the bus back to Moscow arriving at about 6:30. We went out to eat with George at the new Moscow Mining Company. The food and service was dreadful but we had a good time anyway.
3/5 – What a wonderful day! It’s so good to be home. I spent the morning trying to catch up on my Time Magazines and my correspondence, and then spent the afternoon spending money. Boy would I love to be rich! Mike was also in the spirit and we bought new clothes, records and necessities. We had dinner at another new restaurant in town “Biscuitroot Park”. Thank heavens it is a nice place. We had an enjoyable evening watching the tube and sipping wine.
3/6 – Went to Mass this morning and the Bishop was there giving Confirmation. It brought back memories of Deanne Marie Theresa. Mended some clothes and did laundry. The day seemed to go by much too quickly. We had a Requiem rehearsal tonight—no more Becky. Chris did a real good job and it was nice to be back in the studio again with mirrors. I was pleasantly surprised at how good I looked. I was a little down most of the day although I didn’t have a good reason—probably just those old Catholic guilt feelings coming back to haunt me.
3/8 – We went to a going-away party for Becky last night and both Mike and I had way too much to drink. We had had rehearsal all day—didn’t finish until 9:30 p.m. By that time all I wanted to do was drink; we didn’t even eat dinner because I was too tired to cook. I was also in a lot of pain from being on Pointe all day. The alcohol snuck up on me because I hadn’t eaten anything.
Becky’s friend, Ross, was there and I ended up flirting with him most of the evening. I discovered he plays violin—there’s just something about a male violinist that brings out the romanticist in me.
Today I had an awful headache all day. It was an uneventful ride to Boise—I slept through most of it. We had a lovely dinner tonight at the “Sandpiper”. Mike is being wonderful and we seem to be getting along better every day.
3/9 – We had a 9:15 performance this morning and I felt surprisingly good; it went downhill fast after that, however. The kids were awful. They hooted and hollered and even yelled, “Kill him” during Rainmaker. Chuck Pizzaro and I got in an argument—sometimes he is so obstinate. It was about something in Tarantella and we eventually just stopped talking about it and it went away. We had a nice dinner again tonight and watched a good movie on TV. Mike’s feeling rather poorly though so he’s a bit down. He is still smoking like a smokestack even though he has a terrible cough.
3/10 – Had two more school shows today. The kids were incredibly enthusiastic. I am feeling better toward most of the women in the company, especially Terryl. I think she is finally realizing how hard the rest of us have been working all year. (She does the Mother in Rainmaker now that Becky is gone.) Who knows how many of the dancers will still be in the Company next year. It is exciting to think that new people will be joining us in a few months. Barb came over tonight and watched TV. I am glad she will be staying. We watched “Goodnight America” and they were talking about the book, “The Hite Report”, about female sexuality. It made me want to read the book.
3/11 – Still in Boise but we only had class and rehearsal today. I had a good class but Chuck is mad at me again. I swear he does things just to aggravate me. (Barb and Chuck Bonney broke up and Barb and Ben Benello, a new stagehand hired by Ballet Folk, are now an item.) Barb and Ben came over and we went to dinner with them. At dinner we ran into an old friend, who used to dance with us on occasion. She and her husband are making lots of money; they even bought a house. It made me a little jealous, but I guess that’s the price you have to pay for doing something you love. Maybe someday!
3/13 – Yesterday was a tough day—we had class, rehearsal, set-up and performance. Afterward the Governor of Idaho threw us a reception. It amazes me that something Jimmy Carter did (he appointed former Governor Andrus the Secretary of the Interior) affected Ballet Folk so personally. Evans is now Governor and he’s a huge fan. He saw us two or three times when he was Lieutenant Governor and had come in place of Andrus. I really like Mrs. Evans too; we talked a lot at the reception. Both Carl and George said the performance went really well but, of course, Jaye didn’t say a word. Tension is mounting between George and Mike and, consequently, between George and me. It is hard to believe we used to tell each other everything. I am really sorry it had to end; we used to be such good friends. I am feeling such hostility from George, who is also our boss. I hope things calm down soon.
We had a nice day off today. I am working on a string crocheted bedspread and I finished square number 28. We saw the movie “A Star is Born” and both Mike and I thought Kris Kristofferson was terrific. We spent a quiet evening trying to get over our colds.
3/15 – Yesterday was an incredible day. We had a school show in Weiser at 1:00. Terryl sprained her foot during Tarantella and we had to do Rainmaker with no rehearsal. Michelle did my part and I did the Mother, a part I hadn’t done in over a year. I was proud of myself that it went so well and that I didn’t totally freak. We also had an evening performance. We took two hours off after the school show and then came back and rehearsed until the evening show time. I had to go back into my old part in Franklin and I was surprised I remembered it so well. In fact, after the performance I felt I had done it better than when it was my part. In fact, the whole performance felt great—the Company seemed to be working together better than usual and it was exciting.
Today, however, I was feeling awful. We had a Requiem performance in McCall and I had back cramps in addition to my cold which is really hanging on. The performance went well even though we rehearsed until almost 7:15 for an 8:00 show. We went out to eat while the Humanities people had their discussion. We didn’t eat much—we mostly just drank. Strike was about the most fun it has even been. Someone even made the comment that we should always have a drink or two before striking—it only took 20 minutes.
3/17 – Yesterday we had another crisis—it seems they are coming more often lately with less time to recover in between. We had a performance in Cascade, Idaho; and when Mike went to help Jonny back the bus around while there was still daylight, Jon noticed the brakes weren’t working. Luckily Kelly had driven his car; so after the performance, ten of us squeezed in it for the 30-minute drive back to McCall. The bus was fixed within the hour—it was the governor—whatever that is. The performance was well-received even though the audience was quite unsophisticated. We ate afterward in McCall at the Yacht Club which agreed to stay open just for us.
Midway through our meal, the waiter brought us a bottle of wine purchased by a man at the bar. He had seen our performance of Requiem the night before and was impressed. He also had his eye on Chuck and wanted to meet him. His name was Justin and he came back to the Lodge afterward and we all partied together. Chuck had some good pot and we all got loaded and had a great time—I was feeling love for everyone—something I hadn’t felt in quite some time. Today we drove back to Moscow and arrived at about 3:15. We shopped, banked and I finished my 29th square. (Just an aside, everyone in the Company smoked marijuana, even Carl, Jaye and George. It was relaxing and we looked at it no differently than we did alcohol. In fact, it was much cheaper to get high on pot than on beer or wine. I am not condoning doing drugs or drinking alcohol to excess, but we were under a great deal of stress everyday to perform. It was our way of unwinding—right or wrong.)
3/19 – We went to St. Maries last night and had a Humanities (Requiem) performance. The gym was absolutely freezing. Why we went so early, I will never know as we had two hours to kill after we set up—and that’s not easy in St. Maries. The introduction seemed interminable as we huddled backstage in our sleeveless costumes. I said to Kelly afterward that it really helped me get into the character of a freezing, starving Indian. Strike went quickly although the ride home was endless. I was feeling a great deal of hostility toward George and I couldn’t stop thinking about the rejection—imaginary or otherwise. Sometimes I think it is that bus does these awful things to my head.
Today was strictly a working day but tonight was the reward—George, Chuck, Barb, Ben, Mike and I went to the Janis Ian concert in Pullman. George baked his pot-filled brownies which we devoured before the concert. We saw Ross as we were waiting to go into the auditorium—he was looking really good and he seemed to be doing a great deal of staring at me. Tom Chapin was the Opening Act and he was great—I would like to find an album or two of his. Janis did a lot of loud, rock numbers which weren’t my favorites. After the concert we all sat around at George’s talking. I felt more relaxed with George tonight than I have felt in ages.
3/21 – Yesterday was really nice. All I did was read and watch TV. I read a book Mom sent me about six months ago called “How to Live With Yourself and Like It”. It was very helpful as I am a prime offender of taking myself too seriously. The book dealt mainly with the importance of a good sense of humor and the pitfall of being too serious. A person with confidence doesn’t need to do anything but be himself. A person without confidence can’t take criticism because it feels a little too familiar. He also always has a need to be right. I intend to put my best foot forward and try to be a happier person—one who likes herself more.
Today we had class and rehearsal. Afterward, I wrote Mom and bought a purse—only $20! George came over this evening and we watched Bette Davis in a lot of her old film clips. I sensed a lot of tension in the room between George and Mike. I really wish we could go back to the beginning of our friendship. Things have gotten so complicated.
3/25 – We’ve been busy and I haven’t written in a few days. On the 21st we left for Sunnyside for an evening performance. Everyone was in good spirits and things went well. Mike and I drove so we could leave for Seattle the following day. There were 400 people at the performance; I could hardly believe it as Sunnyside is a very small town. They loved Tarantella even though I found it a bit difficult. Mark has been a real bastard lately. Tonight he asked me if I could please not hang on his arm after his “variation”. He has a lot of nerve. After the performance Jonny, Nancy, Chuck, George, Mike and I all went to the Safari Room.
On the 23rd George, Chuck, Mike and I drove to Seattle. We shopped for awhile downtown and then went over and took Perry Brunson’s class. That’s always a big ego trip for me. Perry said I was lovely and two girls asked me if I was from Pennsylvania Ballet. We changed at Harriet’s and met her daughter, Beth, who I really liked. The Pennsylvania Ballet was wonderful! My favorite was Cello Concerto for Eight Dancers—it was clever musically and in the way the choreographer, Benjamin Harkarvy, used men and women. The performance also included Eakin’s View and From Gentle Circles, another Harkarvy ballet. I think he is a real genius. We went out to dinner with Hannah and Kurt and then back over to spend the night at their house. George and Chuck stayed at Harriet’s. We all slept in the same room and so we talked far into the night. Hannah got a job teaching ballet at Holyoke College so she is really excited.
We left for Moscow early the 24th to get back in time to take Eleo Pomare’s Master Class. It would have been good but he is so unorganized. Also there were about 50 people in the class—most of them untrained. After class we saw George in the supermarket and he invited us over for dinner. We ate in front of the TV and were one happy family again. Today’s class was great—I haven’t felt that good in ages. A girl named, Jan, from Utah auditioned and was hired on the spot. I hope she works out. She seemed very shy and might not be that good of a performer. Ross came over later and we talked while Mike and Barb worked on Rainmaker. Ross is so nice and it flatters me that he thinks I am so neat. Later Mike and I went to another Pomare class and then a reception. Most of his dancers are really nice and they sound like us when they talk about touring. Too bad we will miss their performance tomorrow.
3/27 – Yesterday we had a performance in Orofino. It wasn’t very rewarding—about 50 people came. Everyone in the Company was feeling good though. Thank God it was not a repeat of last year when I had the flu and Becky kept throwing up because of some oyster stew she’d eaten for dinner. George was depressed about his shoulder; he had an arthogram yesterday and they couldn’t find anything wrong. Understandably he would rather have an operation if that would cure him once-and-for-all. He has waited seven months now to see if it would heal itself.
I worked on trying to figure out Terryl’s crocheting project. It was driving me crazy, but luckily I solved the problem after hours of work. I cursed her as I washed the white shoe polish out of my hair at 1:30 a.m. There are some rewards for doing the Mother in Rainmaker but they don’t outweigh the challenges.
Today wasn’t that great of a day—I intended to read Time Magazine but didn’t get around to it until 3:30 p.m. Later in the day, we went to the movie, “The Sailor Who Fell from Grace with the Sea,” which was good but not great. We saw Dave Johnson who writes for the newspaper. He is really looking good these days. He wants to write an article about me and Mike for the Idahonian—I’d like that. We went out-to-eat with George and later watched TV at his house. The three of us are one-big-happy-family again.
3/30 – March 28 we started rehearsing in earnest for the Moscow performances. In the evening we practiced Simple Gifts and the pas de deux was fantastic. I was so elated I didn’t even let George’s grumblings get to me. He was upset for the same reason he is always upset—we don’t remember things that I swear he never told us. I think he is just in a bad mood lately because of his arm. The new girl, Jan, tried to learn Tarantella today but I have serious doubts about her. She seems like a nice girl, but we have plenty of those already who aren’t going to be rehired.
Tuesday was an equally grueling day. My toes are killing me already and I’m wondering how I’ll make it through the week. We rehearsed all afternoon with Jaye and it was a joy. She has been giving me a lot of positive reinforcement lately which used to be rare for her. I wish a little of that would rub off on George. Even though I love him dearly I do miss kind words now and then.
In the evening, we did Songs and Tarantella. Jan just freaked during the run-through and did everything wrong. George very calmly and politely told her he felt it was too soon for her to do Tarantella so he took her out of it. I wonder how long the “calmly and politely” will last; I sense trouble ahead. Today was a pain-in-the-toes. The afternoon wasn’t bad but this evening we did Corelli and Simple Gifts. Chuck is really weirding-out and I think it’s probably because Mike is doing Pas de Trois. Chuck is taking it out on everyone. I thought he was going to start crying during Simple Gifts—and George talks about how ballerinas are always crying.
4/3 – March 31 things started really getting bad. We rehearsed both shows today—Friday’s in the afternoon and Saturday’s in the evening. We had to do Requiem in costume so Phil Scofield could get some pictures and so we could get some promotional film for the Humanities program. Luckily in the evening Jaye didn’t make Mike and I do Property. Terryl tried to do Franklin but hurt her foot again before she even started. This means I will have to do Simple Gifts, Franklin and Tarantella without a break. I wonder if I will live through Friday.
We had a school show on 4/1 and I started getting sharp pains on the outside of my foot during Rainmaker. This did nothing to ease my fright about the evening’s show. But Simple Gifts pas de deux went pretty smoothly. George even told me so at the reception later at the University of Idaho President’s house. Jaye talked to me before the performance. She said she was sorry about Franklin and she hoped I would understand. She even said she knows she takes advantage of me but it is a compliment. She said she knew I could do it and, of course, I did. Requiem even went amazingly well. Everyone was very complimentary at the reception. I talked with Floyd and Mrs. Peterson, Diane Walker and Carolyn and John Berg. Floyd Peterson conducted Requiem on our D.C. tour. I got pretty wasted again because I neglected to eat almost all day. I got sick when I tried to lie down and gratefully Mike was there to help me to the bathroom. I was glad I got sick because we had a show the next day.
We had most of the day off on Saturday before the show. I wrote Carla, sewed some Pointe shoes, did laundry and tried to get organized for the tour that started the following day. I worked straight through the day but didn’t manage to get packed before the show. I thought the performance went really well but Mike was upset that George didn’t say anything to him about Pas de Trois. What I saw looked good—Mike was much more relaxed than he had been at rehearsal. Ross came downstairs after the performance to tell us how much he liked the show. He stayed to help us strike and then went with us over to Mark and Terryl’s for champagne and caviar. The official event was Mark finishing his 6-year National Guard duty but we were all celebrating the end of hell-week and two performances well done. Mike and I both really like Ross and we promised to look him up after the four-week tour. We talked outside of Mark and Terryl’s for almost an hour. Mike and I still had to pack when we got home; we were up until 3:00 a.m.
4/3 – I found out fairly quickly that I hadn’t done a very good job of packing; I forgot a number of things. I slept most of the ride to Bozeman but also read a little of Time and did a little crocheting. Tonight we ate at Black Angus with Jonny and Nancy. I am really going to have to work to stay happy this tour. I am determined not to sink into depression like I did last time.
4/5 – April 4th was another day on the bus. We didn’t get to Casper until quite late. We went across the street to the A&W for dinner. The motel is surprisingly nice—big and comfortable. We slept pretty well and got up early, ready for the day. We had class at the Elks Club at 1:00; the floor was so slippery we went without shoes. We rehearsed the lecture demonstration and put Jan into some of Terryl’s parts. We went back to the motel for awhile and then left for the set-up at 4:15. The school looked really different than I remembered it and my memory was right. I asked the janitor and they had remodeled the auditorium completely; they got all new seats plus they extended the stage.
The performance went well although the audience was small—about 150. Simple Gifts went even better than in Moscow. Corelli was the only weak spot—mainly because we all felt weak. The altitude in Caspar is much higher than in Moscow and we had also spent two days on the bus getting out-of-shape. There was a reception for us after the show in an art gallery. I got in a very interesting conversation with a man named George, who I discovered had done some of the paintings hanging around us. They were all of dancers and we discussed them at length.
4/6 – We had a lecture demo at 10:00—pretty early since we were up late the night before at the reception, dinner and then washing my hair because of the white shoe polish. The demo went really well even though there was a group of rowdy boys sitting right in front. You could see them almost choking themselves to hold back their laughter. Everyone eventually really got into it and Property was a big hit. We had class in the afternoon. It was one of those days when I seem to always follow the person who is doing it wrong. That evening we saw “Network”. Most of the group went and we had a good discussion of it afterward.
4/7 – Today was our fourth wedding anniversary and it was a great day! We did two lecture demos and both were rewarding. I think junior high students are our best audiences for those. After the morning performance, one of the teachers told us how we had made her day. Her husband was having surgery that day and she had been depressed until she saw us. Words like that make you feel that what you’re doing is worthwhile. Lecture demos are even nicer than performances because you can see the people’s faces and their reactions. It is rewarding when you reach them. To celebrate our anniversary, we had a wonderful dinner at Benham’s, a restaurant where we had eaten two years ago.
4/8 – Today was strictly a driving day. The weather was beautiful and that always makes a day like that at least bearable. I finished Dance Magazine, read Time and did 1/3 of my 33rd square. I have really been working hard on the bedspread this tour—my goal is one every 3 days. We stopped at Jackson Hole for lunch—it is such a tourist trap but it is so beautiful no one even cares. We checked into our usual West Bank Motel in Idaho Falls late in the afternoon.
When we were in Caspar, Wyoming, I called Sue to check about our vacation in May. We can’t wait to see each other again and it won’t be long now as Cincinnati will be the first stop on our vacation. We will also hit Toledo, Utica and New York City. Mike and I are dying to see some ballet. I talked with Sue about Pennsylvania Ballet and it seems we have opposite tastes. She loved the ballet I didn’t care much for and didn’t particularly like the one I was crazy about. The phone conversation put me in a great mood, thinking about our vacation and what fun it will be.
4/10 – Easter Sunday – We have had two nice days-off in Idaho Falls doing nothing much. Yesterday I did, however, start choreographing a piece to Cat Stevens,“Majik of Majiks”, and today I finished it to the point I will teach in my Master Class. Mike and I decided he will teach the warm-up and I will teach the combination. This will help him get teaching experience which will come in handy later.
I have been reading “Life after Life” and finished it today. It is a fascinating book and it has given me a new outlook on life and death. I loved the way everyone who had “death” experiences explained how, as their life flashed before them; they felt no guilt or remorse. They felt only warmth and love from the being that came to them when they “died”. I was also amazed at how education fits into the picture; most people who have near-death experiences feel that learning goes on after life. So it is not all a waste—all this gleaning of knowledge we do on earth even though we know someday we will die. It was, on a whole, very comforting. I also enjoyed hearing about how people who have “died” have been brought back by someone who loves them and prays for them.
Today we colored eggs with and Mark and Terryl and distributed them anonymously to the Company. I’m sure it won’t be a secret for long. We also got some eggs this morning on our doorstep—I’m pretty sure this was Easter Bunny Barbara’s doing. I finished my 33rd square today and called Mom and Dad. Mom is going to Hawaii with Grandma! She waited her whole life for this and I am sure Grandpa in heaven is happy for her.
4/12 – Yesterday we drove to Salmon from Idaho Falls. It was a beautiful day! Mike, Jon, Nancy and I sat out in the sun and read until it was time to go to the school to set up. Mike and I got the same motel room we had almost four years ago on our first tour—Shady Nook Motel, Room #12. It was a night to remember back then as Mike broke the light fixture while diving onto the bed. It has since been replaced.
The performance was quite uneventful although the audience was very receptive. When we got back to the hotel after the show, someone had stolen our beer, soda and cheese, which was in a bag outside our room. It was depressing as we have been feeling very broke lately. We went next door to the bar and felt better after that. The next day we drove to Arco and had a wonderful day. We climbed to the top of a mountain which was a few blocks down the road from the motel. It was rough going up; but when we got to the top, the view was magnificent. You could see the lava rock and exactly where it stopped all around the valley. We met Mark and Terryl at the top and walked down with them. We stopped at a bar for a brew on the way home—we were all exhausted.
4/19 – On April 13th we had a school and an evening performance in Arco. The auditorium was so bright for the school show that our lights did absolutely no good whatsoever. George was feeling really bad from a pain in his ribs so I taught warm-up. Everyone behaved themselves for once. The high school girls really got-off on Mike in Rainmaker. I told them I was married to “him” and they asked, “Doesn’t it bother you when he kisses her?” (pointing to Barbara). The evening performance was a really good show—at least we all thought so. George didn’t say a word but then maybe that’s because he was in pain.
4/14 – This was a complete and total waste of a day. We had a Humanities performance in American Falls, Idaho. There was some controversy as to where it was to be held but we set up in the grade school even though no one there was expecting us. Later we found out the performance was scheduled for the high school initially; but since the publicity said it was at the grade school, it was changed. We had an all-time record low attendance of two! We performed anyway as we needed the rehearsal for the following few days. We got to the motel very early because there was no discussion.
The following day, 4/15, we drove to Twin Falls and checked into the Rogerson where we have stayed many times. We had a few free hours so Mike and I check out Gremlins at the American Motors dealership. The bus took off for Shoshone leaving George behind because, according to Chuck P., George was still feeling badly from his sore ribs. We had a great Humanities performance—everyone was in the best of spirits. We were having balancing contests backstage during JoAnn’s speech. I held my balance on Pointe for a record 10 seconds and Mike on half-point for 23 seconds. I think we were all so worried about being so giddy before the performance that we put everything we had into it and it was a great show. I held an arabesque so long I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to come down; but of course, no one saw it.
After we got back to the Rogerson, I went to see how George was feeling. Chuck and I did what amounted to a comedy routine to try to cheer him up; but nothing seemed to work.
The next day 4/16, George called early and wanted to talk to me. Poor George, he and Bob split up. Bob is living with another guy and George is destroyed. What could I say? I wanted to help him, but I knew there was nothing I could do. George said it just helped to tell someone so I was glad of that. We drove to Mountain Home where I offered to teach and do Tarantella rehearsal. Jan did better in rehearsal than she had ever done before so George agreed to let her perform it in Boise on Sunday. Terryl can do Franklin again so that’s a burden off me. Bob and George talked and he decided to take a side trip to San Diego to see if he can patch things up. He leaves Monday. He was in a much better mood after he made the decision to go. Requiem went well—it was our last performance of it and I was a little sorry to see it go. After we ate and struck we drove to Boise and got there close to midnight.
The next morning, 4/17, we got up bright and early and set-up for a 2:00 show for the old folks. We performed in the new Special Events Center at Boise State University. It is a great little theatre and the audience was small but appreciative. Simple Gifts seems to get better every time. That evening a bunch of us went to our favorite restaurant, the Sandpiper to celebrate completing a really hectic week. It is all downhill from here.
On Monday, 4/18, we had until 2:45 free. Mike and I shopped at Sears; I got my watch fixed; Mike got a haircut and we looked at Gremlins again. We dropped George off at the Boise Airport on our way to Idaho Falls. The trip was pleasant and we arrived at about 8:00. I am reading Taylor Caldwell’s “Captains and the Kings”; and I am so into it, I can’t put it down. Chuck P. came over and brought a joint—we laughed until midnight.
Today 4/19 was just a bus day. We drove to Billings, Montana, by way of Yellowstone Park and saw some beautiful sights. I finished square #36 plus read a whole Time Magazine. Watching TV now and looking forward to a day-off tomorrow.
4/20 – Too bad the weather was so crappy for our day-off; the temperature only got up to 55 degrees, and I wanted to lie in the sun. We did laundry in the morning walking about 10 blocks carrying Mike’s big brown bag between us. Neither of us could carry it alone; it was so jam-packed. Mike also carried a full pillowcase slung over his shoulder. Unfortunately, I had put “Captains and the Kings” inside the pillowcase and hadn’t remembered until the washer was full. It’ll be awhile before it dries out and it will never be the same.
We walked downtown while the wash was going; and by the time we got back to the motel, my legs were pretty wiped out. We saw “Rocky” that evening and I really liked it. Jon, Nancy, Mark, Terryl, Mike and I drank beer and ate sandwiches while waiting for the other group to get out of “Woodstock”. I was feeling pretty amiable toward all.
4/21 – I taught a barre in the morning and then we rehearsed the lecture demo and set-up. I am really enjoying teaching lately. Everyone is behaving themselves quite well with George gone with one exception—the Anderson’s. They invariably want to do something different from the rest of us. Terryl went into a tirade today about how much time the Company wastes—she should know. I did a radio interview in place of George but never got to hear it. I thought it went pretty well. We lay in the sun a little in the afternoon and then taught a Modern class in the evening. It really worked out well with Mike warming them up and me teaching them the Cat Stevens combination we did in Idaho Falls. It was a good Master Class and I felt wonderful afterward.
4/22 – Was a great day for sunning and that’s almost all we did all day. We had a lecture demo at night which turned out to be just a performance of Tarantella because there were only five people in the audience. George is back and, despite a bad time in San Diego, he was in a wonderful mood. He said at dinner that he was really glad to be back with all of us. After dinner we went back to George’s room and had an unusually deep conversation.
4/23 – In Billings, Montana, and had another “crowd” for our lecture demo—there were about ten people this time. We just did barre and Simple Gifts. The rest of the day we lay out in the sun and got darker. We had a performance in the evening and for some reason my toe nails were killing me. I guess my performance went well nonetheless because George told me so and the audience of around 300 was very appreciative. They liked Pelleas and Property the best. George, Chuck, Mike and I went to The Golden Dragon for dinner and it was pleasant even though we were all dead tired. Because of Daylight Savings Time, we had lost an hour the night before.
4/24 – We drove to Havre, Montana, with me feeling a little bus-sick all day. Chuck Bonney’s driving certainly didn’t help—he wears out those brakes. I saw a girl at the Pizza Kitchen with a t-shirt that said, “Where the Hell is Havre!” My ham sandwich at lunch was almost pure fat which didn’t help my stomach any. I finished my book and Mike and I worked out some choreography for a class we teach tomorrow.
4/25 – It was a hot, sunny day and we spent a good part of it lying in the sun. We went for breakfast at a little café down the road; and when we paid with Travelers’ checks, the waitress asked if we were on our honeymoon. We had lunch at the hotel restaurant but I stayed away from the ham sandwich today and had soup and salad.
Mike and I taught 30 high school students a Stage Movement class in the evening. It was an experience that left me hoarse. Some of the guys refused to take their shoes off which created problems as they couldn’t go on half-point in their thick-soled sandals. We started with some basic steps: pas de bourre, balance, polka, mazurka and polonaise. We ended by pairing the girls and guys and teaching them a little dance done to a waltz. Initially the guys put up some resistance; but after awhile, they really got into it. They actually did much better than the girls.
4/26 – We had the usual performance day with class in the a.m. George’s class was frustrating as he was in the mood to choreograph and his combinations were too tricky for my morning brain. It clouded up in the afternoon so no sunning today. It was a tiring show for me with Corelli, Simple Gifts, Property, Tarantella, Rainmaker and Hoe Down. At one point, we thought there were no programs so we were going to shorten the show; but unfortunately, someone came up with them. The audience turned out to be very responsive so it was a rewarding performance even so. We went for pizza afterward.
4/27 – Today was mainly a bus day. We didn’t leave until noon so we got to sleep in. We actually got in a little sunning even though it was freezing and windy. On the ground it wasn’t nearly as bad. The bus ride was pretty rocky with Chuck Bonney racing a train at one point and Mike threatening to throw up on him. We stopped in Great Falls for lunch and most of us ended up lying in the sun on an island in the middle of the street instead of eating. We arrived in Missoula at 7:30. We picked up Kelly on the way to dinner and decided to walk over to the college and look around before we ate. We ended up at a dance concert dress rehearsal of college Dance Majors. It was pretty sad but at least some pieces were clever if not well danced.
4/28 – It was another beautiful, sunny day and we lay in the sun over at the college before we taught our class. We had a Modern class of about 15 in the men’s gym and had a difficult time getting all the basketball players, weight lifters and runners cleared out. The class went OK but everyone seemed disinterested and lazy. Mike and I tried to liven things up, but nothing seemed to work. We went to a neat restaurant for dinner called “Alice’s”; I had an Ortega pepper sandwich—really good. We saw the movie “Bound for Glory” about Woody Guthrie starring David Carradine. I liked it better than “Rocky”. Carradine was wonderful and I don’t even like him. The music was also very uplifting. The movie taught me things about U.S. history that I didn’t know about or had forgotten. Migrant farm workers really had it rough back when Guthrie was writing his songs and I don’t think it is that much better today.
4/29 – Missoula is turning out to be pretty depressing—only seven dull, uninterested people showed up for my Modern class. Not many more than that showed up for our lecture demo so we performed Simple Gifts instead. That was also depressing. Chuck came out of the triple finger pirouette one too soon and about killed me by grabbing me in the crotch on the last lift. The evening was boring too—we just watched TV and waited for Ben to show up. His car was in the parking lot of the motel for an hour before Barb found him. We all sat on the steps and speculated about where he could be. Not my idea of a fun evening.
4/30 – Today was a regular performance day. We lay out in the sun for awhile in between class and make-up. It was a really hot day and, naturally, I was the first one out and the last one in. I wasn’t too “up” for the performance. Property didn’t go very well because it was just too dark. George said he heard people in the audience complaining about it too. Even so, I think we were a big hit with those who came. George, Mike and I ate at the French Connection afterward.
5/1 – Home at last! What a gorgeous day to come home. All the plants are fine. Ben did a good job. It was really nice to be in our own bed again. It was also nice to cook—I made beef kabobs and they were tasty if I do say so myself. We watched the National Survival Test on TV and Mike and I both scored far above average. I got an 84 and he got an 89—the national average was about 70. Tomorrow is Ballet Folk & Friends at the Moscow Hotel so I have to get my beauty sleep.
5/2 – Today was Ballet Folk’s big fundraiser and I was glad I didn’t have to perform for a change. Mike, Barb and Pam were doing Pas de Trois. I wore my new green dress and curled my hair. During the day we did laundry and house cleaning, and I was feeling good about being home and about myself. The weather was cold and rainy so I didn’t have a chance to deepen my tan. I am reading “The Hite Report” and I think it is helping me feel good about myself and my sexuality. I think everyone should read it—men included. It was maddening to hear story-after-story about how women feel they have been sexually objectified simply to gratify men. It certainly is time we stood-up for our rights; it is just a shame we have to ask.
At Ballet Folk and Friends I felt great—everyone told me how nice I looked. I was afraid Ross wasn’t coming when I didn’t see him for the first hour but he came later. He had orchestra practice. We talked a lot and flirted and, after the performance, Ross, Mike and I went to the Moscow Mining Company with Chris, Vince, Barb, Ben, Michelle and Russ to dance. It was fun as we were all feeling slightly looped by then.
5/3 – Another rotten day as far as the weather went. Our dryer broke so we had to go to the Laundromat in the morning. We saw Jonny and Nancy there and discussed our hangovers. In the afternoon I had a long talk with Carl about teaching this summer. It turned into a discussion about my helping out next year when George is sick or needs a break. Carl said he wished he could pay me for it but I hadn’t even thought about that. Our next year’s salary will be $450/month but we’re not supposed to tell anyone.
Mike and Kelly were fixing the car all afternoon so I was pretty much on my own. I went over to George’s to borrow his cutting board. I had a few tokes with Chuck and Barb while George explained what Jaye had in mind for the Company next year. It is very heavy—I don’t know how our Idaho audiences will react to it. No more “Ballet Folk”. I am actually glad because personally I am ready for something different.
Ross came over later and tried to fix the dryer without success. Kelly and Mike dropped in to eat but left directly afterward to do more work on the car. Dave Johnson came over at 9:00 to interview us for the article he’s going to write for the paper. We filled him in on our lives and all the Ballet Folk dirt. It made me feel like a celebrity; although after he left, I just kept thinking about all the dumb things I said.
5/4 – We left for another little tour. Lenore came with us to take pictures; she is going to do the photographs for a book about Ballet Folk. It felt glamorous to have a photographer with us. We did two school shows in Coeur d’Alene—pretty routine. We stayed in town and watched Philobolus on TV.
5/5 – Today something new happened that will go down in Ballet Folk history. We cancelled a performance. We drove to Wallace, set-up and got ready for class. When class time came, the students refused to leave the gym. They were rude and even argued with George. There was no way we could have had class with all the commotion that was going on. The principal had gone home for lunch and there was no one in authority to help. We just struck and left. A woman from the newspaper talked to George and was almost on the verge of tears. She said she was embarrassed for Wallace and the whole area. She also said she had known of the discipline problem for some time. We were all glad George had done what he did. Everyone always walks all over us and this time we stuck up for our rights. Later that day, Mike and I walked downtown and visited the American Motors dealership.
5/6 – Kelly, Mike and I drove to Spokane to look at cars today and we found a beauty. It is a brand new last year’s model for only $3,217.00. The salesman didn’t sound too excited about our old car as a trade-in but we can always sell it later ourselves. Kelly even offered to sell it for us in Spokane. We picked up Pam and Chris at 1:00 and drove to Bonner’s Ferry. I read “The Hite Report” all the way there—I am going to be sorry to finish it. The book had given me a feeling of camaraderie with the whole female population.
We got to Bonner’s Ferry about 3:30 and went to the old high school auditorium. The old high school had been torn down and the auditorium looked like it had been bombed during a war. Lenore took some pictures of us holding the building up. The performance was a disaster. The stage was very small—we used only three rolls of our floor—and our spacing was all off. We kept bumping into each other. I felt horrible about Property—nothing went right.
5/7 – We drove back to Moscow early the next day arriving home about 1:00. Mike worked on fixing up the car to sell while I blocked some of my bedspread squares. It was a lazy day.
5/8 – Today was Mother’s Day and Sue’s birthday. I didn’t call Mom or Sue although I did send cards—but considering I didn’t mail them until the 7th, I doubt they will arrive on time. We went to Jaye’s school performance in the afternoon—she has some very dedicated little dancers. Barb and Chuck performed a pas de deux that George had choreographed the day before. They worked on it until 2:00 that morning. It was a gift for Jaye and she was overwhelmed.
5/9 – We had a class at the studio and then filmed Corelli at the new Performing Arts Center on the U of I campus. Ben and Ross came to watch and I was glad it was a good one—even George said so. We walked back to our house when we finished because our car was getting painted. That evening we had dinner at Chinese Village with the Ballet Board. We talked about the problem with the “Ballet Folk” name and all agreed it has to be changed. People think we are folk dancers and not ballet dancers, although the name was originally chosen to mean ballet for the common folk. Mike and I went back to Jaye and Carl’s house for a few hours after the dinner and discussed it some more. We also talked about Kelly and we were happy to hear he is being rehired.
5/10 – Drove our car up to Kelly’s folks in Spokane and then drove with Kelly to Deer Park. While we were setting up, the bus rolled back and into a tree—putting a big dent in it. George was inside the bus at the time but didn’t know how to work the hand brake, although he helped by steering the bus into the tree instead of a house. The performance went exceptionally well—we haven’t had one that good in ages. Kelly’s Mom drove back with us—she is one old-fashioned woman. I wonder what she would say about “The Hite Report.” “Shocking”, I’m sure.
5/11 – Went to Kelly’s Dad’s tire shop early in the day to take the snow tires off our car and wash the engine. We drove it over to the dealership to see how much they would offer us for it—only $600. We decided to sell it ourselves so we had to wait to pick the new car up until after the lecture demo. We drove to St. Maries and waited for what seemed like forever for the bus. Chuck had taken the wrong road—doesn’t he know how to read a map? The performance went very well—we got the best applause ever for Property. Barb drove back with us to Spokane to keep me company on the drive back to Moscow. We stopped off for a beer first and then drove over to the dealership to pick up the new car. I followed Mike, and Barb and I had a good girl-to-girl talk. Once we got back, we went out to dinner with George and Chuck and then over to George’s afterward. George and Chuck were doing their trip again so we didn’t stay long—I swear they bring out the worst in each other.
5/12 – We had a full day today even though I didn’t wake up until 10:10. I raced like mad to pick up George at 10:30. Dave Johnson had called earlier and said Phil Scofield would be taking pictures today so I had to look good. Phil ended up taking a million pictures of us so I hope something turns out. We raced to the bank to get the loan for the car and then raced home to get lunch and clean house before Dave showed up. He came at 2:00 and we sat outside and talked with him. The article is supposed to come out in the paper tomorrow. I am anxious to read it.
Later in the day we saw Carl and signed our contracts. Hooked for another year—trapped, I should say. Pam’s wedding shower was that night so I had to run and get her a gift and make a salad. I ended up getting her a white nighty—she got a lot of nice things.
5/13 – 5/17 – I am writing this much later as I took a vacation from everything after the 17th. That was our last working day before our six week’s vacation. Everyone was in a great mood but no one felt much like working. A lot of people knew who would be leaving after today and everyone else had a pretty good idea. At any rate, we all knew the group would never be the same.
Dave Johnson called before we left and asked what we were having for breakfast for the newspaper article. Being put on the spot, I said eggs over easy and then felt obliged to make them even though we didn’t have time. We hardly ever eat anything but a piece of toast. We had a lecture demo in the afternoon and I almost passed out from the heat and lack of air in the gym. The kids were horrendous but we all gave it our best last effort. In between the shows, we all sat on the grass outside the gym and ate, drank and talked until it was time to get made up. The evening performance went OK. Mike and I had a little trouble with the famous lift in Property and it was pretty obvious. I seemed to recall we had trouble last year in the same place. Maybe the people who had seen it before thought, “They’re still having trouble with that lift,” or maybe, “Last year I thought it was a mistake but I guess it is supposed to be like that.” One the way home, Chris and I recounted stories of our lives to each other while downing a bottle of wine. I am sorry she won’t be coming back. We were never better friends than we were that night.
One Saturday, 5/14, and Sunday, 5/15, I remember being terribly antsy—probably because we were in an in-between state. My body wasn’t on vacation yet but the rest of me was. I blocked the rest of my bedspread squares, read my magazines and books, cleaned house, cooked and watched TV—all the things I do any normal weekend. It is kind of hard to stop dancing cold. I always have so much excess energy—I don’t know how to channel it. We had an ad in the paper about the car, but no one called.
Monday morning early, Ross came over. I wasn’t even dressed yet so I didn’t have time to fix myself up. We sat around and talked, and Mike and I showed him the article in the paper. He was very impressed; the headline was, “Among Pointe Shoes and Pirouettes, a Fairy Tale Comes True”, and it was on the front page. We went over to Barb’s and then to the Ballet Folk office to look at the pictures and slides Lenore took. There were no good pictures of me but one great shot of Mike. The rest of the day I put together my scrapbook for the year and took a walk around Moscow.
On 5/17, Mike and I decided it was no use waiting for someone to buy the car in Moscow. No one had called in three days. We decided we would let Kelly sell it in Spokane after all. We threw together our stuff; had lunch with George, Barb, Ben and Chuck, and then took off in both cars to start our six-week vacation.
