WOW!
Wednesday afternoon we got a call from the Activities Director: Would we like to take a tour of Waltonwood at Lake Boone Trail, be treated to drinks and a full dinner? Today, in an hour? Waltonwood Lake Boone Trail opened in October 2018 and we had not seen it yet. It sounded great, so we dressed for dinner and went to the Club, waiting for the bus, curious who else was going. We learned that a whole group had gone for lunch, yesterday as well, and so we were full of expectations. What followed was a totally different and unexpected experience.
Instead of the bus, we were picked up in the red cadillac by the Lake Boone Driver. Instead of getting a tour of the building, we were ushered to the second floor, to an activity room, where a chef had created two cakes and several cupcakes, and was decorating them. People sat at the table watching and two men took pictures with cameras. It was then obvious that they were doing a photoshoot for Waltonwood’s website and possibly Facebook page. We were asked to stand and sit close to the table, and then volunteers were asked to help decorate some cupcakes. I volunteered, got instructions, and decorated a cupcake, then another. “What a big smile!” one of the camera men said.
“You are looking at a retired actress!” prompted Mike. Amazement. We were all asked to eat a cupcake while the cameras were rolling, and after that the Activities Director came over to ask me to go downstairs with them and do a testimonial about Waltonwood. WOW!
We went downstairs and out to the patio, where they installed me properly, set up the cameras and a large disc light reflector, and talked a bit before the shoot; I mentioned that one of the places I had done some acting was in Archie’s Place. Everyone is always impressed when they hear that, because everyone knows of Archie’s Place. “OK, just pretend that you are in Archie’s Place and start telling about your experiences in Waltonwood.” The first thing I said was “Can I have a drink please?” because it was hot outside and I was thirsty after that cupcake. Someone got me an iced tea from inside the building and then I started talking about Waltonwood. I had to be careful that I did not describe things that Lake Boone did not have, like the cottages, the pond, and so on. We did three takes of one sentence that I could not get right, and of course they will cut and paste when they are editing. What all this meant was that I will be a spokesperson for Waltonwood, on their website and Facebook. WOW! How fun is that! I can’t wait to see the results of the pictures and video. The driver stood at the ready to take us home again, so no drinks or dinner! But I got something more out of our visit than that!
The leader of the group doing the shooting was a filmmaker and owner of a movie company, he told me, when I asked him if he had any contacts in the movie industry. The grand opening of his latest film would be in October. WOW! That is the closest I had ever been to a movie producer! I gave him several of my business cards and, since he expressed interest in my book, I promised I would have a book ready for him when he came over to Waltonwood Cary Parkway. They would go there next, to shoot videos and pictures of the beautiful landscaping we have here. So that’s what happened. We were taken back to the Club in the red cadillac, I got a book from home, autographed it and handed it to the producer when he came in. That night, I he Messaged me on Facebook and said that they were looking forward to meeting me again soon! WOW!
More exciting things are waiting in the wings, many more, but those are not yet visible on stage!
It’s a Wonderful Life!
Until next time,
Ronny