Can We Talk 2

Hollywood Night at Church

         My church holds an annual soup and dessert cook-off, cooked by men only. The entrants may not be assisted or directed by a woman-wife, mother, other relative or friend. She can tell him where the knife is, but she can't cut the onion, for example. She can't stir the broth!

         The entrants come early and register with one person who puts the name on an index card and places it on the table. No one knows who made it except for the family of the cook, no names on the crock pots or platters. A panel of judges come in to test them, when all are displayed and choose 3 places in each category, with no knowledge of the cook. The top dessert chef and the top soup chef win a small gift certificate. Second and third place get either a cake mix or a can of soup. These guys would compete without prizes, just to win the applause.

         All of us non-judges dine on the soup of choice, although most get more than one. When it comes to desserts, most plates have small portions of multiple desserts. The large room is theme decorated and accommodates a large crowd. It's good for families or single (-again's) and their friends. The Hollywood theme used a lot of glitter and gold and stars. They had a board ready for photos like celebrities. All the ladies wore their cruise outfits or other glittery things. I wore a gold sequined top, black velvet skirt and multiple layers of pearls with extra make-up. Of course, all the glittery people posed by the celebrity board,some with their kids. My friend posed with her teen-aged son dressed like Indiana Jones. I vamped.

         The entertainment included not only the awards for the cook-off, but piano solos, songs from Grease sung by the choir (with Danny and Sandy in their 70;s), trivia contests, an emcee in a tux, and more. The song Let It Go was sung by the choir director in a slinky navy glittered dress, with a child's Frozen crown. As she sang a group of preschoolers threw foam snow up into the air and danced around. They put on their own little show and enjoyed romping and picking up the snow and throwing it up in the air again. The audience was riveted by the children in their joy. But as the words of the song sunk in, and the singer glanced occasionally with a smile at the children, you could see the attention of the children and the audience shifting to the singer. As her voice rose to the climax, we all appreciated what a beautiful song she sounded. When she sang the line about changing her life, she took the little crown off her head and threw it in front of the stage. I never appreciated the meaning of the song before. It was nice to include the kids in the show.

         I expected it to be corny. It was. It was wholesome and simple, yet better than any of us expected. We grownups liked playing dress-up and hamming it up. I was one of the contestants on stage for the Name That Actor contest and didn't want it to end.As expected, I didn't know the newer movies.I was runner up for a mini-Oscar in the final round. It was good clean fun, renewed friendships, and a creative outlets for families and individuals.