The Pageant of Atascadero is Coming

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The Pageant of Atascadero is coming. It is part of the year long Atascadero Centennial. You are invited to be a part of the history of Atascadero.

Show Title:  The Colony, written by Anet Carlin and Colleen Goulding, first presented in Atascadero in the 1990′s.

What it is:  A musical pageant, to be performed outdoors as part of Atascadero’s 100th Birthday celebration

Director:  John Lambie

Show description: a musical about the founding and early years of Atascadero, families and individuals there.  Includes singing, dancing, some romance, comedy, and drama.  Much of cast portrays early families to Atascadero that make up its population.

Persons needed:  Singers of all ages, children at least age 7 ( must be able to focus and follow directions)

Rehearsals:   Monday, July 8 through Thursday July 18,
Children 9-11; All cast 6 pm to 10 pm.
Saturday, July 13, all day.  Sunday, July 14, 1 pm to 8 pm.
Dress rehearsal:  Friday, July 19, 4 pm to 10 pm
Shows:  Saturday, July 20 and Sunday, July 21, 5 pm (in Atascadero’s Sunken Gardens)

Audition Location:  Atascadero Community Church, Fellowship Hall, 5850 Rosario Ave, Atascadero, CA

What to bring to Audition:
– Prepared, 30 second monologue
– Plan to sing 24 bars of a song.  Bring sheet music for the accompanist.
– Recommended to dress as for a job interview; wear shoes appropriate to move in.

 Questions?  Contact Dianne Greenaway, 805-712-3947

Web TV Awards

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While at COMDEX in Las Vegas in January, I went to the International Academy of Web TX awards. It was a gala to honor the wonderful work being done on the web. It was a hoot! Just like the Academy awards, but a bit smaller and it was dressy. I could meet many of these people who are creators, writers, actors, and cinematographers face to face. I wish you all could have been there. Too Much Fun. Well I decided to look up and view as many of the winners as I could stand. All I can say is Fabulous, simply Fabulous.

Some Samples are: Continue reading →

Web TV

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After years of Cable TV, Satellite TV and plain old antenna TV, Even with all the channels, we found that we could sit down in front of the boob tube and do a channel check (that takes about 20 minutes with all the bazillion channels) to come to the conclusion that there was nothing I wanted to watch anyway! That sure is a long time to come to that conclusion, but it happened over and over again.  So Sad! Well, we gave up on subscription TV and turned it off. We especially did not miss all the commercials which are now over half of what is broadcast. After all the cable connection is over a grand a year these days and that is too much to pay for commercials! After a very short mental adjustment time, we found we did not miss it.

Well we then went on to our DVD collection and even our VHS collection and found, and re-discovered many items. We even found things that we had not watched and enjoyed them all the more.  Now with the web and a good internet connection we added in streaming for netflix and found a wealth of movies, dramas, and documentaries that fit our tastes very well.

Now the latest addition is web TV. It seems that while I was not looking there are lots of series shows and movies on web TV. We are using Hulu and YouTube to discover lots of quality entertainment for free, with a minimum of commercial interruption. – Seriously Web TV via Hulu and YouTube is free! Note that the Hulu Plus subscription is about streaming to your hand held devices (phones and tablets) and is not needed!

It is a lot of fun. For some tips go to my next blog entry about the International Academy of Web TV for some tips.

Ramona Pageant 90th Celebration

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imagesI just received a note about the upcoming Ramona Pageant in Ramona, CA near Hemet.  For those who have never heard of, or for those who have not seen it, the Ramona is the official California Outdoor Play. Ramona is a place like no other where history and the arts flourish and the experience is very memorable. If you can, the show is April 20, 21, April 27. 28, and May 4, 5 2013. for details and booking see

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www.ramonabowl.com

for information you can call (951) 6658- 3111 or (800) 645-4465
Enjoy this one it is a spectacle!
As Always – Charley and Anet

2012 Atascadero Fall Colors

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All the residents and visitors of Atascadero were so lucky this year to see the wonderful show of colors. All around town, in parking lots, along the El Camino, and in back yards there are examples! As I traveled around town I collect a few to share with you! Here you go!

As Always
Charley Carlin

US State Quarters 1999 – 2008

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The State Quarter series produced from 1999 till 2008 put pieces of history in everyone’s hand. So much I have to learn about so many places! Here is a look at all 50 with the current state motto! I was amazed at some of them.

As Always
Charley Carlin

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Savory Moroccan Stew

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Well it seems that even an old dog can learn mew tricks. I had ordered the Moroccan Stew many times at one of our finest little secrets in Atascadero – Fig Fine Food on Traffic Way. Chris does a wonderful job and also does incredible catering. For a map and opinions see the FIG page on Yelp.com – Just click here for a link to FIG Fine Food with a map. Well after trying theirs for some time I decided to create my own version and I have posted it here in Charley.net under the recipes, along with many other favorites by our friends opinions and maybe yours too! Tell us what you think. Enjoy!

Link to Charley’s Version of Moroccan Stew – Click here

Across Colorado to Silver City, New Mexico

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Dear Friends

We arrived in Silver City last night at 6PM after three days traveling.  That attests to the fact that we are aging.  It is 800 miles total and we just made it in 3 days!  I have driven that far alone in one day, when I was a little younger.
Day one of our travel was mountains and churches.  We saw the oldest church in CO (catholic) and it is a newer church built at the sight.  However, we got to light a candle at Our Lady of Guadalupe.  We lit one for Vicki, one for Ted, one for us as we traveling, and one for Jo Wolters our former neighbor….very catholic and living now in Salmon ID with her daughter.  Bless the Internet.  We sent a pic of the candle, Our Lady and a note from our telephone to Jo in Salmon.
We enjoyed the beauty of the high country with the yellow birch up in the mountains, or is it Aspen?  The feel of fall is so real.  There are many very high mountain meadows/ranches in that southern part of CO and northern part of NM.  We had seen the beginning of a steam train loading passengers in Alamosa where we started our day, and that train goes up and over these mountains to Chama in NM.
Amazing to hear and see that train (or another one) coming up the pass from NM into CO.  Loud, black smoked locomotive!  Then into NM we went, stopped in Chama to have breakfast where NM green chilies (Hatch chilies of course) were served as a sauce over our omelet. We turned East to go through Taos, crossed another beautiful mtn range and spilled down into a high plateau.  Through Tres Piedras and past VERY interesting new eco type structureral homes.  It could have taken us a day to go over and find out about the community. (this really was nearer Taos).
We were surprised by the Gorge of the Rio Grande.http://www.sangres.com/statenm/index.htm  Never heard of it before.  We walked out on the bridge called strangely enough, The Beautiful Steel Bridge. The day was brilliantly blue.  On past signs that showed a cow plus the extra, for these parts, of a spaceship decal.
Taos is of course so different than it was when I was 14, 40, 48 and older.  Walmart and McDs.  We had a nice lunch in the square and visited astonishing art (and prices).  Onward south with a short stop at the Mission in Ranchos de Taos.  I cannot see that church without seeing the GIANT Black Cross painted by Georgia O’Keeffe that dominated the NM landscape behind it..  It is palpable at that church.http://www.artic.edu/aic/collections/artwork/46327
On down a few miles to Espaniola and up the canyon to Chimayo.  There is a church there that has red dirt that is supposed to have miraculous healing qualities.  I must say that the interior of that church is amazing.  There are three altar background paintings.  I said that poorly.  I mean that on the wall behind the altar….there is one up front, one to the left and one to the right where there are usually chapels on the cross arms of a cathedral.  All very wonderful primitives.  Like San Miguel by us but even more primitive looking. They sell Milagros there.  That tells you many believers from Mexico.http://www.elsantuariodechimayo.us/
Down off the Santa Fe (we didn’t stop) area and down again into the Rio Grande and Albuquerque.  We stayed across the river from Albuq.  We got up the next morning and visited the Petroglyph National Park.http://www.nps.gov/petr/index.htm  A one hour walk in the sun and we enjoyed and learned a lot.  This is the only rift valley in the Western Hemisphere.  Amazing.  It looks like block fault as well.  Black lava rock that was a blackboard for an ancient people to leave their tale that they were there.
On south and south to San Antonio, NM where we ate the best green chili cheeseburger in the country.  So says Sunset Magazine.  See the Buckhorn Cafe.  Really really good.  The Bosque del Apache Wildlife Preserve http://www.fws.gov/southwest/refuges/newmex/bosque/ is in getting ready mode.  Plows digging the marshes out so that water can fill a space for the 100,000 birds that on their way from the north.
Through Truth or Consequences (where my granny owned a motel once)  We were caught by her, standing out on the highway waving in tourists.  We wanted her to succeed!.  Charley shared some food with some road people and off we went on the last leg of our journey.  Over the Black Mountains at Elgin Pass where you can look out over the vast Gila Wilderness.  We stopped to see the landscape and dove down into Silver City.
What a trip.  We are tired but getting rested today.  Judith and Alfred are grand.  Same ole same ole.

Cornea Transplant a Big Success

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December 2009

Anet’s Cornea operation a success
Dear Friends,
Well, one down and one to go.  Those were the words of Dr. Aldave on Friday, last, as he checked his work.  He was showing a visiting Dr. from India the transplant.  “Hum, it looks excellent” said the Indian Dr.  “It doesn’t get any better than that”.  And so the first transplant is a success.
Charley and I drove down to LA on Wed night to ready for a call telling us when the surgery would commence.  It was to be at 10 AM on Thursday morning.  We drove to UCLA through the morning traffic and arrived to prepare for the operation.
It was exciting, scary, and unknowable as to how this would turn out, how we would feel and what we would experience.  I asked Charley for regular Prayer Treatments throughout the day on Wednesday.  For a week I had felt as though I were fighting off a cold or virus.  I did everything I could think of.  I did Reiki every hour or so, washed my hands if I came near anything, gargled several times a day and bought a nasal/sinus cleansing device.  It worked!  I stayed healthy throughout the week before the big day.

The surgery itself is quite remarkable to a layman, although the surgery team was very confident that everything would go smoothly with a high chance of total success.  You are “awake” during the surgery although they give you a sedative to relax you.  My eye was open and I could talk to tell Dr. Aldave if I felt pain and they would add medication.
I “watched” through the eye he worked on as he talked to the Fellows (Drs that are studying under him at UCLA) watched and commented.  I “saw” him remove my lens and put in a new one, I “saw” him remove the back of my cornea.  I remember him saying now give me the donor tissue and put her under again.
Then I woke up and was on the way to Recovery.  About two hours later, he appears with yet more young Drs and examines the attachment of the new tissue to my cornea.  Full attachment, said he, and he tells me we might expect even a quicker clearing of the cornea than he had spoken of originally.
we returned on Friday, as I said, and got the good news every thing looked great.  We returned home on Friday and slept in our bed.
Charley, as you know, is a tremendous support and loving husband and caregiver.  He watches me and tries to keep my hand away from my face.  I am sneaky though and have many excuses.
Can I see?  Well, yes, I can.  When my left eye (the new one) is clear, I can see about the same amount as I can with my right eye without glasses.  That means I can count fingers at about a few feet but cannot read or make out faces of people across the room.  It will take up to 6 months to get the hoped for 20-30 vision we expect.  In about 4 weeks, I should see as well with the new left as I see currently with the right with glasses on it.  So, it is simply a matter of waiting (and seeing).
My next surgery is on Dec. 17th.  what a Christmas present.
All of this lying around will be good to put the finishing touches on the healing of my Achilles.  there is no question about the fact that it is healing!!!  So, come New Years, watch out Baby I am going to storm the streets of Atascadero with new eyes, a strong Achilles and much gratitude.
Charley and I did those throughout the day of surgery.  Gratitudes.  For every person who helped us in so many ways.  The entire staff at all levels at UCLA Jules Stein Eye Institute
were just wonderful.  We kept being amazed at the fortune we had to be there with this marvelous Dr. Aldave, under such excellent care from all.
but I am most grateful to a 52 year old man who most likely lost his life in an automobile accident five days before my surgery.  He had planned that someone, like me, would receive his gift of sight.  It is humbling.  thank you thank you thank you.
Namaste,
Anet
“Vale mas fracasar por intentar un triunfo, que dejar de triunfar por temor a un fracaso”
Arturo Saenz Guerra