Tuesday, October 21, 2008

Lucky, Lucky Tuesday

It's Lucky, lucky Tuesday. Do you know what that means? It means you need to sit down and get comfy because it is story time! I am about to share another morsel from my life regarding Barta Heiner. (for a little Barta background go here)

Again, when I was at BYU and rooming with the best roommate on the planet (besides the husband) we both worked at the Morris Center. Did you work at the Morris Center? The roommate, let's call her J, and I met there, in fact. We worked together, serving food to ravenous dorm-livers for a whole year (and eating the yummy cookies from the dessert line).

After we spent a year working together, we decided that we should be roommates. So we were. And it was great. Except for the psycho roommates. And we got a new living situation. And we bought a t.v. from Barta Heiner. And from then on, we were obsessed with all things Barta. Because it was a funny thing to laugh about. An inside joke, if you will.

One day we were at work and there appeared by the kronos (the time clock system used by BYU) a stack of half-sheet fliers advertising a production that Barta was to be appearing in: The Glass Menagerie. We did the only logical thing that one might do, if you ACTUALLY KNOW Barta Heiner. We took home that stack of Barta fliers and cut out her face from each one and taped them to the wall to form a huge heart-shape from the numerous mugs of her. That's so logical- we heart Barta, therefore we should make a heart-shape out of her pictures.

In the following days we came across small posters advertising the production which we took home to add to the shrine. There was an article in The Daily Universe announcing the opening of the show. We cut that out and encapsulated it in the Barta heart.

J and I met in the Cougareat at the Wilk one day for lunch. As we were simultaneously eating and checking out the hotties (actually, I was the only one checking out the hotties since J had a missionary + a boyfriend= dear john. and all I had was a really great guy friend who shared a confusing relationship with me) we noticed on the wall, hanging near some large artwork, a giant 3' x 4' poster advertising The Glass Menagerie with guest artist Barta Heiner. We had to have that poster. It was the missing piece.

A plan was hatched. The production was to run February 23- March 9th. The final performance being March 9 at 7:30 PM. We determined to be in the Cougareat on March 9th at 7:31 to claim that poster for our own.

On the appointed day at the appointed time we made the dangerous journey to carry out the risky mission. We made our way to the Wilkinson Center and carefully removed the poster from the spot in which it hung. We stole that poster. (Can you believe it? We are thieves.) We took it home and displayed it proudly in the front room of our house.

After it hung in the front room for a few weeks, it was relocated to our bedroom so that it could complete the Barta shrine. It was hung on the wall adjacent to the heart. And it was a thing of beauty. The likes of which have never been seen since. It was pure tribute to the wonder that is Barta Heiner.




Shortly after, J became engaged and I met the man of my dreams and became engaged myself. We both had summer weddings and new roommates. The shrine was dismantled. And in packing up at the end of the school year for a new life, somehow I won the poster and the cut out faces.

One newlywed evening the husband and I were talking and I divulged to him the whole Barta odyssey. I ran to our closet and pulled from its dark corner a rolled up poster. I slid off the rubber bands, unrolled the poster and revealed to the husband a tidbit from my past.

A plan was hatched. We took that poster and a few of the cutout faces and in the dark of night crept to the basement apartment of J and her groom. We pasted the poster and little Barta faces to their door, knocked and ran like a child who is trying to pull one over on the clerk at the Corner Store.


I haven't seen the poster since. But I trust that it is well taken care of.


*after I dug this picture out of my stack of un-scrapbooked photos, I noticed that there are show tickets and a play bill from the show. I do not recall going to the show. I don't have a clue what the tickets might be from. My memory fails me. So, J, if you read this can you remember what those are?

8 comments:

Me (aka Danielle) said...

Love it! My co-workers must think I am crazy sitting her laughing to myself! I love the Barta stories! Keep them coming!

Nathan said...

Hilarious. I have my own Barta Heiner, so I'll have to post about it sometime. Her name is Janie Thompson. I'm sure you're just itching to know about her, but it will have to wait.

She's amazing, just like Barta.

Mechelle said...

awesomeness!!

Elizabeth said...

Love the fact that you are a crazed fan of Barta! Maybe someday your girls will have a similiar "crush" j/k

Jae said...

I also do not recall going to that show> so did ya go by yourself< or what???

trublubyu said...

jae- no i didn't go to that show and i can't figure out for the life of me where we would have gotten those tickets and what they were. they had be something to do with barta or why would they even be up there? mystery.

Chris said...

I saw The Glass Menagerie at BYU, but I think it was way before I met you, and definitely not when you lived in this apartment, so they are not from me. :)

uniquelynat said...

well i was going to ask why you didn't just go to the play and try to get her autograph or something. you probably fished those tickets and playbill out of a garbage can on campus or something!