Last Friday, Mer and I actually invited some friends to go out. We have not done that in a very long time because of financial constraints, but we had some money set aside for social purposes, so out we went!

Jerry and Linda are our friends, and they both work at CVCA, so there was always plenty to talk about. I would not tell them what I had in mind for the evening, but they were game souls about it. The roads were a bit sloppy (school had actually been canceled that day), so we stayed close to home for eating out – we went to Rockne’s, a restaurant that is a local chain, and it is only about 2 miles away. We had an excellent supper (I had a cheesesteak for the first time in years), but we did skip dessert because of time constraints.

We then headed the short distance up to Hudson, to (where else?) Actors’ Summit theater. Mer and I know not everyone is a theater nut, but Jerry is CVCA’s baseball coach, and the theater was doing Nobody Don’t Like Yogi, a one-man play based on Yogi Berra’s life.

The occasion for the play was Yogi’s coming back to manage the Yankees after having been gone for 14 years (after being fired by the owner). He was in the locker room, and talking out loud about a speech he had to give to the fans. From starting the speech and getting sidetracked, Yogi told us about his childhood, playing baseball, managing baseball, his wife and family, and more. He had lots of good “Yogisms” thrown in, which were very funny (Yogi was known for saying funny things in all seriousness, and coined “It ain’t over till it’s over”).

The actor playing Yogi did a magnificent job. We talked with the director and the actor after the play, and the script is 60 pages long, of just Yogi talking. Incredible. The actor played a range of emotions from joy to nostalgia to very real anger about being fired.

During the performance, when Yogi would mention a player or a stadium, a projected picture of what he was talking about was shown above the stage. It was very helpful to those of us who are not so familiar with baseball as real fans are.

Jerry and Linda seemed to enjoy the show very much, and since it was opening night, there were desserts after the show and a chance to talk to the director and actor. Both were very affable, and we learned quite a bit about the process of putting on a one-man show. Apparently, position on the stage helps you to remember where you are in the script.

Saturday, the socializing continued. It was Mer’s day, and we ran a few errands, and then our friends Zach and Londa came over and we all headed out to the Cheesecake Factory. Yum! The wait was quite long (75 minutes), even at 8:00, but we used the time to run over to the local non-Borders bookstore to browse for awhile. I lost myself in a book by an English comedian who toured all 50 states here in the U.S. I spent about 15 minutes reading his entry on Maine, which is where he started his tour. He was very favorable, describing Mainers as friendly and hard working.

We finally got our seats in the restaurant, and ordered. I got a breakfast sandwich – it was not too much, and I had a taste for it. It left me feeling less bloated than usual at the Cheesecake Factory, so I had room for my favorite dessert – the factory mudpie. The mudpie is a good-sized piece of chocolate cake with chocolate chips, ice cream, whipped cream, and hot fudge sauce. Wow, is it good.

Zach and Londa are very fun people, so we had a great time. Throw in good food, and the evening was just about perfect (it would have been perfect if the bookstore had been carrying C.S. Lewis’ Till We Have Faces, but sadly they did not have it in stock).

So, a good couple of evenings. The problem with the weekend is that it gets late so early.