Musings by Tulis

I DID NOT GET THE FATHER I ORDERED.  I ORDERED JIMMY STEWART - IN AN OXFORD SHIRT AND KHAKIS.  I ORDERED HENRY FONDA IN A DOUBLE BREASTED SUIT.  I ORDERED CARY GRANT IN ANYTHING AT ALL. INSTEAD, THEY SENT ME TO MY FATHER JIM.  I TRIED TO TELL THEM THERE'D BEEN A TERRIBLE MISTAKE.  I PRAYED FOR THEM TO TAKE HIM BACK.  I OFFERED TO EXCHANGE HIM FOR A DIFFERENT MODEL.  Continue reading Father’s...

Here is the deal: Understudies are those actors who stand by in case one of the principal actors is unable to perform.  No understudy = no show.  There are the occasional exceptions, but 99 and 44/100 percent of the time Understudies are the deal.  THAT’S who we are talking about here. Continue reading Tony Awards at Musings by Tulis.

Sometimes the way to cure the blues is to pay attention to something other than the blues. And there could not be more of a no-brainer than to pay attention to the light. Get Over Yourself and pay attention! Continue reading From the Archives: Monday Musing – Mid-Winter Blues? GET OVER IT! at Musings by Tulis.

The internet and libraries are filled with books that all say the same thing. Do something. Choose optimism. Or as my mother used to say, “Don’t think. DO.” Continue reading From the Archives: Aspire to Be Anything at Musings by Tulis.

I am feeling vindicated today so watch out. I heard an interview with Alice Walker the other day and the interviewer referred to her relationship with another female writer and used the term “you guys”. Walker stopped him cold. She said, “I don’t like to be referred to as a guy.” The interviewer apologized and said he was not even aware he had used that phrase. “Most people aren’t.” she said. News...

Continue reading I Like The Dark at Musings by Tulis.

Hello everybody! Monday musings are coming back but in the meantime, enjoy this holiday message. Love, Tulis Continue reading Santa vs Jesus at Musings by Tulis.

Continue reading July 21, 2025 at Musings by Tulis.

I am feeling vindicated today so watch out. I heard an interview with Alice Walker the other day and the interviewer referred to her relationship with another female writer and used the term “you guys”. Walker stopped him cold. She said, “I don’t like to be referred to as a guy.” The interviewer apologized and said he was not even aware he had used that phrase. “Most people aren’t.” she said. News...

Our collective batteries need charging. Do something that makes you happy. Sounds silly but happiness is contagious and builds strong bones 12 ways. Happiness is better than Wonder Bread. Continue reading Monday Musing ~ Do Something at Musings by Tulis.

So now that our New York City primary season is over we are faced with another enormous decision – what to do with all the political fliers we got shoved into our mailboxes over the past few weeks. Continue reading Monday Musing ~ Primary Promo Flier Pollution!!! at Musings by Tulis.

Hot enough for ya? That’s what we used to say to each other back in the day. That was all you could say because nobody HAD air conditioning. Continue reading Monday Musing ~ Hot Enough For Ya? at Musings by Tulis.

Let's play hooky! ALL OF US! Continue reading Monday Musing ~ Let’s Play Hooky! at Musings by Tulis.

WHY people are missing shows is their business, but the people who step into their shoes deserve more than a pat on the back and a “thank you so much.” They deserve recognition and a big fat award. Come on American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League. Belly up to the bar. Tonys for Understudies. Continue reading Monday Musing ~ Annual Plea ~ Tony Awards for Understudies and Techies at Musings by...

On Memorial Day my father picked peopnies from his mother's garden and drove them and us to the cemetery. Continue reading Monday Musing ~ Memorial Day Part Two at Musings by Tulis.

As Thomas Wolfe said, “One belongs to New York instantly. One belongs to it as much in five minutes as in five years.” In this case that would be nearly 50 years. What’s your story? Continue reading Monday Musing ~ My Memorial Day Move 1976 at Musings by Tulis.

The Shortstop is the one to keep your eyes on because the shortstop has one foot in the present and one in the future and one in the past. Continue reading Monday Musing ~ The Shortstop and Time Travel at Musings by Tulis.

May 12, 2025 Continue reading Monday Musing ~ The Gift of Many Mothers at Musings by Tulis.

I was not raised to be hopeful. I was raised to be Catholic. We were an Irish Catholic family, unless you count my dad who was Methodist but not showy about it. He and my mother were married in the 1940’s when mixed religion marriages were frowned upon. That being accomplished there not much to discuss, philosophically speaking. He was a Christian. We were Christians. Not much difference in Point...

It is the season of the peepers. In high school the peepers came in partnership with the spring concert for which we rehearsed weeks and weeks in advance. Everyone who wanted to get in GOT in. Music was a leveling agent. “Here are the notes. Sing them.” And if you weren’t so good at it, the teacher put you next to someone who was so you could get a leg up. Continue reading Monday Musing ~ The Peep...

“The Ten Commandments,” THE MOVIE. I was six years old and I had it bad for Charlton Heston. Seriously who wouldn’t? His hair turned from short and dark to majestic and long and grey then white and WAVY. Heston was buffed and spent a lot of time without a shirt. He was also tan and righteous. What 6 year old girl could resist that. Continue reading Monday Musing ~ New England Easter-Time Memories...

...this epidemic of good deeds and dispositions was out of my control. I put down my book and watched as the Samaritans began to multiply out on the street. A pizza guy stopped to hold a door open. A woman stood still while her dog said hello to a puppy. A man on his phone paused his call and executed a tiny soccer move to stop something rolling down the street being chased by a panicked teenager....

...We will not be driven byfear into an age of unreason... We must not confuse dissent with disloyalty..." Edward R. Murrow, March 9, 1954 Continue reading Monday Musing ~ Edward R. Murrow’s Words Still True at Musings by Tulis.

My father was born on April Fool’s Day. Once I was old enough to understand the ramifications of that I imagined the doctor telling my grandfather he had a son and wondered if Grampy might have asked if this was an April Fool’s joke. Continue reading Monday Musing ~ My Father Was An April Fool (Revisited) at Musings by Tulis.

what happens every single time I take a power walk in my neighborhood park is this is: I come home feeling better. Even if I don’t want to. Continue reading Monday Musing ~ That Old Springtime Depression Remedy: Operation Daffodil Rescue at Musings by Tulis.