No, I am not a lepidopterist.
Thankful this Thursday for a handy husband, the Man of the House. As annoying as he can be (and all those who have ever been married understand whereof I speak), the cost of renovations over here at Casa Lagarto would have been far greater if not for the MotH’s abilities–and willingness–to pitch in and fix things. Plumbing, light fixtures, drywall, roof leaks–nothing seems beyond him.
The MotH is a retired Broadway stagehand–a member of the illustrious band of brothers and sisters known collectively as IATSE: the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees. Furthermore, he is a member of Local One, the New York local branch. Rock on!
I’m telling you, these guys and girls are a can-do bunch.
It’s fashionable in certain quarters to complain about the theatre unions, and the stagehands come in for quite a bit of the flack. Any actor who has been scolded for moving a chair knows what I mean.
But they keep the show running, the scenery (and sometimes the actors) flying, the props at hand, the trapdoors opening and closing, and everybody safe.
You like that chandelier in Phantom… , the spectacular skating track set of Starlight Express, the ice skating in the Radio City Music Hall Christmas show?
Thank the stagehands.
And now, one of them is spending his retirement working every bit as hard far off the stage as he ever worked on and behind it. And in far weirder conditions.
This week, he had even planned to be in a canoe under the dock running a PVC pipe to serve as a conduit for the electrician who is going to clean up the wiring down by the water. At the mercy of tide tables and spiders and the frustratingly hilarious fact that when you hammer something from a canoe, you tend to float off from within striking distance of the nail. (We know this from previous experience. Don’t ask.)
He’d have done it, too, if it had not turned out to be possible to pull up some of the boards.
He’s saved us a lot of money. The house is prettier, safer, and more efficient.
I can hammer a nail myself, and I could probably figure out the other stuff if necessary. I am very glad it isn’t necessary, however.
* MotH: Man of the House
