Bonni Brodnick Blog

Photo by the Author My darling 91-year-old mother and I watched the afternoon movie presentation of “Dior and I” at The Maplewood at Strawberry Hill, where she’s now living. The documentary brings the viewer inside the storied world of the Christian Dior fashion house. With a behind-the-scenes view, we follow the newly-appointed creative director Raf Simons as he pulls together his first haute couture show in Paris.  Mom and I sat holding hands, enraptured by the flick, the fashions, and the laudable teamwork of this esteemed house. Under Simon’s leadership, they had only eight weeks to create what turned out to be an exceptional and successful runway show. After the film, with Mom on her walker, one of the aids quipped, “Betty, you win the award for ‘Best Dressed Resident‘ at The Maplewood!” #  # # Originally published by "The Shortform" on MEDIUM. (150 words)

Photo by the Author I kept playing in my mind the last time I saw them. Retracing my steps.  I remember sitting over there. I was thinking I needed to wash the green eyeglass swatches. Then backtracked what I had done at what hour and where I had been. Did they fall out of my purse when I was having tea and croissant at that French place? Or what about that other shop? I called both places and asked if anyone found a black case with tortoiseshell glasses. Both said no. I was obsessed. Finally, my husband found them while searching for an umbrella in the back of the car. My obsession had fallen inside a cloth bag with jumper cables. “Look what I found,” he said. There was the black case with tortoiseshell glasses. Just as I imagined. I embraced them tightly. #  #  # * Originally published by "The Shortform" on MEDIUM / 100 Words

Photo by  Cristina Gottardi  on  Unsplash I t was the time of month when my gray roots began to show. Plus, I had to go to the dentist and could imagine what he would think when he looked down at the top of my head, which was practically  in his face.   “This babe  really  needs to get her roots done.” But no more! The last time I had my hair dyed was February 2020; lockdown from Coronavirus began in March. Foregoing dye had been something I wanted to do in ten years anyway. While many ran to the hairdresser as soon as they could, I had come this far with growing out my real hair. So I decided to stay gray. My hair has its own unique history. Starting in sixth grade, I used lemon juice to get that kissed-by-the-sun look. When  Sun-In  came to market, I was thrilled. It’s intensity worked faster than lemon juice ever could and you didn’t even have to wait all year for summer. Fast forward to college: I did henna, an ancient medicinal plant tha...

  In writing about hair coloring (stay tuned!), I remembered something ... While I was still in nursing mode with my first born, my mother said, “Darling, your hair looks sort of mouse-y.”  Mouse-y? Could she have meant mousse -y ? I hadn’t been able to wash my hair (let alone shower) for a few days and I did have a lot of mousse on that day. “Mom, what do you mean?” “Well, a lot of times after giving birth, a woman will start losing her hair. Other woman’s hair color changes and it looks, well, more brown. Ish. Like yours is getting." "Maybe she’s right,” I thought in my exhausted state. Box-dye beckoned. I went to the local drugstore and searched for a box with the model wearing light brown. When I brought it home and tried doing it myself, it looked horrible. Result: Mom said she would treat me to go to a hairdresser to "fix" it. #  #  #

At a Broadway performance of Company, Patti LuPone recently cussed someone for not wearing their Covid mask properly. “Put your mask over your nose. …That’s the rule.  I f you don’t want to follow the rule, get the f — out!”  For a r eview of basic concert and theater etiquette, more instances of audience  misbehavior  (and great quotes from Patti), read my latest piece, "Broadway’s Patti LuPone Blasts Etiquette No-No’s:  A Word on Good Behavior for the Performing Arts"

Photo: Broadway.com   Something memorable happened while Tony and Grammy Award-winning Broadway mega-star Patti LuPone was appearing at a concert at Caramoor Center for Music and The Arts.  In the middle of her finale , two audience members got up to leave. Patti abruptly stopped singing and said, “I hope you get to your car in time.” The audience laughed.  A spotlight shined on the couple as they slithered out of the concert tent.  Rude audiences are ruining it for everyone. Stay tuned for my latest piece on Patti LuPone!

Photo by the Author It was a precious moment, indeed, when my 91-year-old mother reached over to touch the foot of her new (brand new!) great-grandson Bowie Llewyn. That's more than 33,348 days vs. 42 days. My mother's weathered hands have seen a lot of living and loving. Bowie's little feet haven't even touched the earth yet.