July 30: Shouldn't the First Day Be Boring?

The flood in southeast Saskatchewan was five weeks ago, so, holy crap, Batman, why did we still have to drive through water on the highway between Midale and Macoun? On a more positive note, the bridge that was out on the way to the port of Estevan has been repaired, so we could enter the United States there.

Poor, poor Minot. We saw the cleanup starting after their devastating flood. House after house and business after business was being stripped of everything. We saw a motel that was stripped except for its studs and windows. Everything else had been demolished.

At Jamestown we turned down this paved road to get to a campgrounds. Oops! Since we didn't have a canoe strapped to the top of the van, it was time to find a different campgrounds.

In Jamestown, Bob spotted this poster. Going to the show meant we had to backtrack 100 kms, but the Kings will go any distance for a good musical. The group putting on "All Shook Up" in the little town of New Rockford, NS puts on 35 (!) performances in a theater that seats about 130. Now these are local people who have other jobs sheriff, hardware store owner, etc. so their dedication is noteworthy.

The show was fantastic and, Colleen, you might be interested in knowing that their chorus consisted of 2, yes, 2, people. The entire cast was 12. You might also be interested in knowing that they stressed the sexual innuendos so much more than you did!! We will have to tell you about "The Devil in Disguise" scene with inflated plastic guitars, a deflated erection, and the costumes of the 2 chorus girls. The 5 member band was elevated at the back of the stage and the set was created to make it look as if they were inside a jukebox. After the show there was a meet-and-greet of the cast which was a lot of fun.

Here's a photo of the opera house where the musical took place. Theater is certainly thriving in this 1000 person town.

I saw two great quotes today; one will be of interest to no one except Leah. The first was on a church sign. Now we all know the Catholic Church in Weyburn always was great quotes that are like mini-sermons. And for any other church, I would expect its sign to say something like "Jesus Saves" or " God is Good." Well, this church sign said, " Life is a constant struggle between chocolate and carrots."

The other quote was on the back of an audience member's t-shirt at "All Shook Up." It read, "We choke our own chickens." I pushed my way forward to see what the front of the shirt was. It was a shirt from a fried chicken restaurant.