One time... At PCPA...

Whatever happens on the road stays on the road-

So I get back from St. George, Utah from a mini-"vacation" with the fam and the in-laws. We went out on Monday, saw Zion National park on Tuesday, came home Wednesday night: late.

I amble into work on Thursday around 11 am (Do I love my job or what?) and begin the greulling summer work of web surfing and email checking. (It's exhausting, let me tell you)

My friend Sara comes in looking for lunch at the appropriate time- which is anywhere from 10:30 to 12- and we discuss our options. Currently we are a "Bakers-free zone" because Harlan is in France. So Togo's it is! Yeah!

She tells me about her lunch with our student, GW, the previous day and passes along his disappointment with the lack of visitors he has received during his summer theatre fun. An idea forms--

We should go see him. Then Sara says this would be a great weekend to go because her honey is away- I let it be known that getting a sitter is no problem- And the "Road Trip" is born. We have to negotiate a few details and set up some baby/dog sitting but we decide that we'd leave on Friday and come home on Saturday! All we need now is some gas money, some snacks and maybe a map!

After a detour to the dentist for me, we meet up in Riverside and head out. Getting out of town is a little problematic but after a couple of false starts, were off. I've got a small bag, a pillow, a blanket and a supply of "Oreo" cupcakes- Awesome!

After 4 1/3 hours of driving, good conversation and some highly acrobatic driving/texting skills, we arrive in good spirits in Santa Maria, CA at the PCPA theatre festival. Oh fun!

We drive up to see a young man sitting out front with his head bent over a guitar and we both recognize him- GW! Only he's wearing red!?!? RED?!?!? What happened to the perennial black clothing? And boy is he tan? I hardly recognize him. As we park, around comes a zippy little number in oversize black shades and a cute coppery 'do. Breanna! Last time I saw her she was a blonde!

My oh my, how summer stock changes a person! After delivering the cupcakes to the copper cutie- their intended destination, we head in to the theatre for a tour. Our students aka friends (we can call them that during our "not at work" weekend) tour us about the space showing off their work and what they think is silly and what they like. I have fun guessing what type of tech we are meeting- stage manager? lighting guy? They view us with polite disinterest. Typical.

After a bit, GW has to head off to work at the out door theatre in Solvang so Bree takes us on a tour of the "shops"- scene, costume and props. Neat- I laugh at the predictable nature of the costume shop. They eye us with less-than-polite disinterest. Again, typical. Oddly I have found that, with a few exceptions (you know who you are) most costume shop techs are bitter queens. It's true, I swear- the men and the women- it's almost funny to watch.

We realize that we have time for a quick bite before we head out to see the show, but we should drop off our stuff first. GW had said we could stay with him as Bree had 25 roommates. So Bree directs me out to BFE Orcutt (not orchid like I originally thought) to a small, well landscaped trailer park the doesn't allow jogging. Darn there went my plans!

GW is renting a "room" from a sweet little old lady in a double wide- yup that's right double wide, complete with stuffed crow and knick-knacks. Said sweet little old lady has a pet tarantula much to G (Spiders scare the hell -out of me and make me scream like a girl) W. Well, we all have our quirks.

Bree lets us into the small apt/room to drop off our stuff. We see a tidy little room with a four poster bed and an ivy comforter- so NOT GW. After a brief voyeuristic look into GW's bedroom psyche- Jack Skellington sheets and a collection of Buffy and Angel DVDs- we head out for that quick bite.

We choose a small dining establishment called Jack's in the middle of "Downtown Orcut". Inside was like stepping back into 1954. Complete with grey pot roast and the ubiquitous brown gravy and mashed potatoes served with a side of mushy veggies, by a waitress with big hair and red lipstick. (Ok, so I'm exaggerating a bit- there was no lipstick, but still) All in all, an ok meal except for Sara's. Poor Sara- all she wanted was some meat-free spaghetti- but oh no! Jack's didn't know Jack about labeling his menu- (And I've learned a thing or 2 about labeling menus)"Flo" brought her spaghetti and meat sauce NOT spaghetti and marinara as labeled. Damn- so after a large salad (hold the bacon please!) and some hot cocoa, we quit Jack's dining establishment.

Our bellies mostly full and time running out we zip off to Bree's for a quick stop then on South to Solvang. As we wind our way down the 101 we laugh and giggle about things not fit for "table discussion". We exit at Solvang and drive into the entirely too Dutch and too cute town.

We meet up with GW for another tour- I saw his hot box, gave him some "food for thought" and then it's time for the show. We girls snuggle up in our blanket, and watch the drama unfold. During one particularly dramatic moment Sara decides to whisper a particularly un-dramatic bit of funny into my ear. It's all I can do to keep from cackling out loud. I am laughing so hard I'm crying and can't breathe. Bree wants to know whats so damn funny and I can' tell her. I takes me 3 time to finally get it out. I'm lucky I didn't pop a blood vessel!

After dinner and a show, we decide it's time for the traditional after play meal at the traditional place; Denny's. Sara can finally get something to eat and I can get pie! Awesome! Peanut butter and chocolate pie! Not awesome- Damn. The conversation was awesome and so was the company!

So what do 3 crazy girls and a tall, tan and lanky guy do in "Cool Hand Lukes" little town at 12am? Why go to the all night grocery, buy some very adult beverages and head back to Bree's for some more conversation, of course! We decided that we'd best stay at Bree's, 25 roommates or not, because I was likely to wake up "little old lady" with my laughing.

We enter the large house with too many people and too few beds and no clean surface in the kitchen- ah college life! We mix up some beverages with very little ice, and gather round the coffee table and talk, and talk and giggle and talk.

The young'uns decide that at 3:30 they are tired- wimps, and head off to bed. Sara and I amble on back to where we are sleeping and, as is tradition with the sleepover, continue to talk for hours. Luckily this time I don't have my Mom coming in telling us to "Go to sleep or else!" Sometimes being a grownup is awesome. We talk until "0-Dark-Thirty" about all things girls talk about and finally fall asleep.

Around noon we roll out of bed and venture into the living room. We four regroup and decide that food is required- isn't it always! Sara and I, after a quick shower, (separately) get ready to go. We decide on "Red Robin" for lunch. More food, more fun and more witty banter is had by all. The only drawback was the scary "Robin" mascot with chicken legs- creepy.

Then it's time to head home. We drop off our friends and say our good byes. We start back down the 101 towards home and after 4 more hours of driving and talking we arrive back where we started.

I learned many things about my friends this weekend- most of which I can't share. So here's to "menus", rump roast and lemonade. Here's to cupcakes, road trips and a little TMI! And really what's a little TMI among friends?

Thanks Sara, for going with me and thanks GW and Bree for showing us a good time.

I've also learned this truth: a good friend and a full tank of gas are all that is needed for on hell of an adventure!

So... one time... at PCPA....