...

THERE ARE AN AWFUL LOT OF SCENES on the cutting room floor, but I've managed to come up with the third movie in my Grandson trilogy. This one, The Grandson Greets the Sandman, was just produced today, after many spells of intermittent filming. It seems to be the preference of the VIP actor to work sporadically, eschewing any kind of schedule. And this director-producer certainly caters to his every wish, feeling it quite a privilege simply to work with the little guy.



I've been spending many mornings with him as his mother attempts to piece cat naps together into long and restful sleep. Some days this exercise extends into the afternoon hours, and frequently the finished product is so tattered, one can only call it Dozing. Ironically, this very exercise is one at which the little VIP is more adept--asleep one minute, awake the next, then slumbering and waking and greeting Mr. Sandman at least a dozen times before he says, "Hey, make yourself at home, put your feet up and stay a while...(only until it's time to order up my next meal, of course!)"



...

...


COME BACK IN TIME WITH ME, DEAR READER.



















I'd like to show you some history.



I'm taking you to a time when things seemed to move at a slower pace.



One didn't spend so much time communicating via technological advances and traveled around in simple and natural ways.



Another huge benefit of this time period was the fabulous, warm, and blue-sky weather.  I can assure you, Reader Dear, that whole, entire Colonial period there was downright delightful weather!
Hmm. I see you raising your eyebrows. You should...Oh! Wait...dear me...you didn't suppose I was dragging you back three hundred years, now did you?! Good heavens, no!
My intent was to bring you back a mere three days. To give you a peek at my morning-long span of time in Williamsburg, Virginia. En route home, don't you know, from Uncle Sammy's funeral. Yes, yes, that's the earlier time to which I did refer: After a delectable breakfast with my horse-driving man, we took a stroll; like I said, the pace was slow, cell phones turned off, the weather, oh, so balmy. We tasted every sample in ye olde peanut shoppe (and then bought more--no peanut beats those good Virginia goobers!) There was the outdoor herb shop and the carriages to inspect. Truly, I was reluctant to speed forward into time and leave behind that fine Colonial period!



...

...


HERE IT IS-- THE ANTICIPATED AND MUCH-BALLYHOOED
sequel to The Grandson (well, really there was no ballyhooing...the producer-director just happens to like that word): The Grandson Orders Brunch...in which the title character can no longer be pacified by his doting grandmother. Just to set the scene, I can tell you the grandmother arose at 6:30 in the morning and dressed her sleepy self--so recently home from a trip to southern Virginia, where she'd gotten but scant restful slumber (on account of spending the night in a room with a lovely view she had known since childhood--besmirched, however, by the malodorous inklings of mold and mildew) . She sets out to rescue her daughter, who herself is in the throes of a much more extreme case of sparse and interrupted sleep.

A note of warning: You may find yourself, Dear Viewer, a bit disgruntled by the abrupt ending, leaving you with a hunger for slightly more development of the plot (not to mention the way it leaves one hanging, questions on one's lips). Keep in mind the producer-director was dealing with a a disgruntled little actor, quite dissatisfied with the blue-green plastic object hanging on his lips. And, yes, indeed, it was his outsized hunger calling all the shots!



...

...


AS THE GOOD BOOK SAYS: There's a time to be born and a time to die. And then, of course, there's all that time in between. In which I just found myself rushing through a one-week portion bookmarked by a timely birth and a timely death--a blessed beginning and a blessed end. Of the former event, Dear Reader, you've been greatly informed. Of the latter, this much I can say: My Uncle Sam was a very good man. I loved his genuine smile. This younger brother of my father was his sidekick in many a shenanigan. Oh, the tales my dad could tell! As well, throughout their lives, both brothers had a knack for lending a hand to others.

Thus, the crowd at his funeral yesterday was swelled by those paying tribute to the gifts and talents he so freely shared. Yes, Uncle Sam led a long life and he led a good life. And declaring as much, the very southern preacher then said, "Can I get an amen?!"



...

...


I'VE FALLEN HEAD OVER HEELS IN LOVE with my little VIP and it had been, dear me, half a lifetime ago since last I saw him! So this evening, when he penciled me in for a personal tete-a-tete, I was pretty excited. Imagine my thrill, then, when I got him to agree to a starring role in my current movie, The Grandson!



He's making his acting debut in this movie, and I think he's a real natural. (As the director, I was slightly disappointed that he couldn't seem to give me a smile when I called for one, but then in retrospect, I realize it was much better to go with the unfocused stare--what genius! I'm certain I'll be using him in lots more of my work! If you happen to be a movie critic, Dear Viewer, please give me a thumbs-up rating. (A thumb-in-the-mouth might be okay, too.)



...