[redwitch]

I'm not a big opera fan -- mezzo-sopranos actually cause physical pain on the high notes, but I love the symphony and ballet. Ditto plays.

Guess one of my favorite stories is around Cats and London. As a Christmas gift, my then boy friend had given me a ticket to anywhere that TWA flew with the proviso I meet him in Paris in January (he was to be there for business).

We were going to go to Chaminoix to ski but there was a blizzard in the Alps so we decided to hop over to London instead. Got there, got a room in the Russell Hotel. The lobby was beautiful -- a chandelier larger than a villa here. Lots of oak and brass. Then, we got to our room -- old, faded rugs; chenille bedspread with half the chenille missing and a moldy smell; the shower wasn't fit for human use; the sink was barely better. Thank goodness we were there only for one night. So, off we go to explore London. Pass a ticket booth, stop and ask for Cats tiks. No problem -- get 2 seats third row at half price no less! Off to see Cats that evening.

So, we're sitting there like good American tourists. All of a sudden, they did "Up Past the Russell Hotel." That was it! I had my head buried in my lap for the rest of the play laughing my rear off -- I sooooo wished we could go up past the Russell Hotel.

To this day, I can't hear even one line of Cats without cracking up.