money for:
new computer
new road bike
PlayStation 2 and Guitar Hero
new fancy suit
trip to LA
trip to Montana
Great America water park
trip to Aurora
trip to Brainerd, MN
trip to Milwaukee
iPod
Pitchfork Festival
Lolapalooza
and then the eventual visiting of parents in Brainerd.
Well, I did my part to help out the economy, that's for sure.
Sketchcore's show is done and the last show was a good one. Lots of friends in the audience and they all liked it. Skeleton Attack had a good show last night and that makes me feel good.
I saw Andrew Bird at the Logan Square Auditorium this past Friday and it was good to okay. He doesn't really like to play old stuff which always dismays me. And his new stuff seems to be going in a more rock directions, which also dismays me a little. Almost all the bands I was a huge fan of two years ago seem to be putting out worse and worse stuff. Le sigh.
Turkey Day was okay. I slept in most of the day due to doing karaoke into the few hours of the morning the previous night. Then I had dinner at a friends' apartment and I got my yearly full of turkey. We played Guitar Hero II to my delight and two rounds of Celebrity. Later I got to try out the Nintendo Wii, which is neat and cool but I'm still not sure it's more than just a fad. The controls are so ahead of the times I'm not sure people will like it. Playing boxing on it sure is fun though. Then I went to see Casino Royale. I liked it very much and the more that I think about it the more I like it.
I got my headshot. Now I need to actually get it duplicated and I will have completed a very big checkmark off my list that I created at the beginning of this year.
Monday, November 27, 2006
Friday, November 17, 2006
Quick updates
Sketchcore's last show is tomorrow. We got 5 out of 6 stars in Time Out Chicago!
Rattlesnake has a show tonight. I love these guys.
FELT had a full house this past Wednesday and it was a lot of fun.
Played Candy Land, old school Trivial Pursuit, and Battleship this week. It was nice to remind me of those games.
Armando is great again. This past Monday was solid gold.
Guitar Hero is the tool of the devil. Sleep is overrated.
Next week I'll get my old headshot developed again. Then I can get them duplicated. Unless I decide I just HAVE to get ones in color. (old headshots were shot in black and white so there's no way to colorize them. boo)
I have competing urges to gush and to keep quiet about my private life. That's all I'll say about that.
Rattlesnake has a show tonight. I love these guys.
FELT had a full house this past Wednesday and it was a lot of fun.
Played Candy Land, old school Trivial Pursuit, and Battleship this week. It was nice to remind me of those games.
Armando is great again. This past Monday was solid gold.
Guitar Hero is the tool of the devil. Sleep is overrated.
Next week I'll get my old headshot developed again. Then I can get them duplicated. Unless I decide I just HAVE to get ones in color. (old headshots were shot in black and white so there's no way to colorize them. boo)
I have competing urges to gush and to keep quiet about my private life. That's all I'll say about that.
Monday, November 13, 2006
God Help Me
God help me.
I bought a Guitar Hero Playstation bundle through Best Buy's online store. The bundle includes the Playstation 2 console, the Guitar Hero game (the first one), and a Guitar Hero controller. I'm sure I'll put Guitar Hero II on my Christmas wish list.
This purchase will doom me into becoming a hermit this winter season. It will also eat into my Netflix watching time. And I'm sure I'll put off doing laundry or getting groceries or even eating because I've just GOT TO finish this ONE LAST song. I know it's going to be addictive as hell. I'm just happy that my fingers will start to hurt after long hours of playing it. This will probably ensure that I actually take a break and, you know, resume actually having a life.
I'm also preparing for these songs to invade my dreams at night.
On an unrelated note, I watched The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi on CineMax yesterday. Unfortunately they were the altered versions because Lucas just can't leave well enough alone. Doesn't he realize that once you release a movie to the general public, the movie experience almost becomes public domain. In that the movie we see becomes what the movie is. A movies shouldn't be a canvass that can change. It shouldn't change at all. You cannot change things in a movie 25 years later... even if you are the director. The God damned singing number at Jaba's palace looks so awful next to all the actual Henson creatures around it. It looks like the creators of Men in Black inserted a crappy Pixar creature in the movie. It's too kiddie; too cute, too unrealistic. I hate it. Hate, hate, hate it.
Excuse me while I try to get back to my happy place.
I bought a Guitar Hero Playstation bundle through Best Buy's online store. The bundle includes the Playstation 2 console, the Guitar Hero game (the first one), and a Guitar Hero controller. I'm sure I'll put Guitar Hero II on my Christmas wish list.
This purchase will doom me into becoming a hermit this winter season. It will also eat into my Netflix watching time. And I'm sure I'll put off doing laundry or getting groceries or even eating because I've just GOT TO finish this ONE LAST song. I know it's going to be addictive as hell. I'm just happy that my fingers will start to hurt after long hours of playing it. This will probably ensure that I actually take a break and, you know, resume actually having a life.
I'm also preparing for these songs to invade my dreams at night.
On an unrelated note, I watched The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi on CineMax yesterday. Unfortunately they were the altered versions because Lucas just can't leave well enough alone. Doesn't he realize that once you release a movie to the general public, the movie experience almost becomes public domain. In that the movie we see becomes what the movie is. A movies shouldn't be a canvass that can change. It shouldn't change at all. You cannot change things in a movie 25 years later... even if you are the director. The God damned singing number at Jaba's palace looks so awful next to all the actual Henson creatures around it. It looks like the creators of Men in Black inserted a crappy Pixar creature in the movie. It's too kiddie; too cute, too unrealistic. I hate it. Hate, hate, hate it.
Excuse me while I try to get back to my happy place.
Sunday, November 12, 2006
Sitting in and Another Wedding
I'd say I'm 98% healed from my pulled shoulder muscle which is good news.
The warm spell in Chicago is over, which isn't good news.
I sat in for Dunbar in the Sketchcore show and I did all right. I had a little trouble with the Taking Back Rainbows rap before the show started. When I get frustrated that I can't get something I've been working all week on, I start to shut down and get defensive. I tried to combat that while the cast calmed me down and worked through the problem. I had the tendency to go too fast while doing the rap. During the show I did pretty good. I did mess up towards the end, but I covered it up pretty nicely. The show was over before I knew it. Because I did Chocolate Shop, I got to grab Molly's breasts and make out with her, which is hilarious. Being an actor means you can do those sort of things with your friends and it's okay.
Right after the show we took a cab over to Chris and Carrie's wedding. It was in this small club that used to be a restaurant that the city now uses for people to rent out. They had a British Invasion cover band play and they were amazing. They're called the New Invaders and we gave them the best gig ever I feel. I danced up a storm along with a sweat. Then we headed over to Holly and Alex's apartment for an after party. During the coarse of the night, I was witness to many new coupling-up instances. Had this happened two weeks ago, I would have been down about this out of jealousy. But I wasn't. It way, way too early to say anything at all... but I will just say that whatever I have going on, it allowed me to not be jealous, which is good news.
So I've been to 3 weddings this Autumn. I'm glad I have no more in the horizon because I need a break from them.
The warm spell in Chicago is over, which isn't good news.
I sat in for Dunbar in the Sketchcore show and I did all right. I had a little trouble with the Taking Back Rainbows rap before the show started. When I get frustrated that I can't get something I've been working all week on, I start to shut down and get defensive. I tried to combat that while the cast calmed me down and worked through the problem. I had the tendency to go too fast while doing the rap. During the show I did pretty good. I did mess up towards the end, but I covered it up pretty nicely. The show was over before I knew it. Because I did Chocolate Shop, I got to grab Molly's breasts and make out with her, which is hilarious. Being an actor means you can do those sort of things with your friends and it's okay.
Right after the show we took a cab over to Chris and Carrie's wedding. It was in this small club that used to be a restaurant that the city now uses for people to rent out. They had a British Invasion cover band play and they were amazing. They're called the New Invaders and we gave them the best gig ever I feel. I danced up a storm along with a sweat. Then we headed over to Holly and Alex's apartment for an after party. During the coarse of the night, I was witness to many new coupling-up instances. Had this happened two weeks ago, I would have been down about this out of jealousy. But I wasn't. It way, way too early to say anything at all... but I will just say that whatever I have going on, it allowed me to not be jealous, which is good news.
So I've been to 3 weddings this Autumn. I'm glad I have no more in the horizon because I need a break from them.
Wednesday, November 08, 2006
Election Results Fever!
Holy crap. I can't believe the Democrats actually pulled it off. Both the House and the Senate? Hats off to you guys. You all really made that distaste America has for Bush work in your favor even though most people really don't think you're really all that better than the GOP.
But I'm ecstatic. Finally, after 12 years of conservative Hell, we'll have at least two years of Democratic Purgatory. I'm kidding and I'm not. Am I a democrat? Yes I am. Do I think anything will really change in America? Not really.
Although I could be wrong. I surely didn't see Rumsfeld's resignation coming. At all. The Democrats winning the House wasn't a surprise. The Democrats just eeking out a majority in the Senate, that was surprise on the level of a slap in the face. But Remsfeld stepping down was a surprise on the level of sucker punch... in the balls and the face. "My face! My balls!"
---
Promise Keepers is the best improv group out right now. Such great work. I'm so envious. I'm so inspired. Thankfully I get to improvise with two of them on Rattlesnake High School.
But I'm ecstatic. Finally, after 12 years of conservative Hell, we'll have at least two years of Democratic Purgatory. I'm kidding and I'm not. Am I a democrat? Yes I am. Do I think anything will really change in America? Not really.
Although I could be wrong. I surely didn't see Rumsfeld's resignation coming. At all. The Democrats winning the House wasn't a surprise. The Democrats just eeking out a majority in the Senate, that was surprise on the level of a slap in the face. But Remsfeld stepping down was a surprise on the level of sucker punch... in the balls and the face. "My face! My balls!"
---
Promise Keepers is the best improv group out right now. Such great work. I'm so envious. I'm so inspired. Thankfully I get to improvise with two of them on Rattlesnake High School.
Monday, November 06, 2006
Handle With Care
As I slowly approach 30 I'm noticing some changes in my body.
I've finally hit puberty!!!
No. Not really. I kid. What I mean is that I've noticed that my body is breaking down like a product that's past its warranty. People told me that my metabolism would slow down eventually, probably around 30, and I just laughed. "I'm gonna be young forever. It'll be around 40 or 50 that I start to actually age." Silly rabbit, tricks are for kids.
I still have a high metabolism, but I have noticed that it's not as ridiculously high as it usually is. I've gained weight in the last year. Like 15 to 20 pounds which for me is crazy. I'm not too terribly out of shape but I'm still out of shape. I should probably start trying to get in shape before my metabolism slows down even more. Prevention is better than playing keep up I figure.
I should be doing sit-ups. And push-ups. Maybe some pull-ups. All the "-ups." Stretches: yeah, that's a good idea too. Yoga? Let's not get ahead of ourselves. Remember that one time where I tried to start doing yoga? Did that last? No, it didn't me. But using my bike more often and maybe, just maybe easing into some running would be good too. That's probably all I could handle at this point.
This issue was forced into my mind or more accurately, brought into sharpe focus, this past Friday. I had just put my coat and messenger bag on in the morning. I was ready to head to work. Then I raised my right arm up - why, I don't even remember - and left my right shoulder muscle says "oh no you don't" and decides to pull itself out of place. Ouch!
At first I thought maybe all it would take to right itself was a nice stretch to crack the bones. No such luck. I took Advil and went to work but by the time I arrived at the office I was in real pain. I couldn't focus on work it was so bad. I told my boss about it and he let me go home super early. I think I made it until 9:15am before I had to bow out of work.
This past weekend was all about sleep and Advil. I feel better but I'm still not 100% recovered. My lower right side of my neck is still stiff. It feels like all it needs is a good cracking and then all will be better. But I won't attempt to force it to crack for fear of hurting my neck even more. When I rotate my neck in a circle, my neck crackles a lot. I've got more crackling than a camp fire at this point.
I've finally hit puberty!!!
No. Not really. I kid. What I mean is that I've noticed that my body is breaking down like a product that's past its warranty. People told me that my metabolism would slow down eventually, probably around 30, and I just laughed. "I'm gonna be young forever. It'll be around 40 or 50 that I start to actually age." Silly rabbit, tricks are for kids.
I still have a high metabolism, but I have noticed that it's not as ridiculously high as it usually is. I've gained weight in the last year. Like 15 to 20 pounds which for me is crazy. I'm not too terribly out of shape but I'm still out of shape. I should probably start trying to get in shape before my metabolism slows down even more. Prevention is better than playing keep up I figure.
I should be doing sit-ups. And push-ups. Maybe some pull-ups. All the "-ups." Stretches: yeah, that's a good idea too. Yoga? Let's not get ahead of ourselves. Remember that one time where I tried to start doing yoga? Did that last? No, it didn't me. But using my bike more often and maybe, just maybe easing into some running would be good too. That's probably all I could handle at this point.
This issue was forced into my mind or more accurately, brought into sharpe focus, this past Friday. I had just put my coat and messenger bag on in the morning. I was ready to head to work. Then I raised my right arm up - why, I don't even remember - and left my right shoulder muscle says "oh no you don't" and decides to pull itself out of place. Ouch!
At first I thought maybe all it would take to right itself was a nice stretch to crack the bones. No such luck. I took Advil and went to work but by the time I arrived at the office I was in real pain. I couldn't focus on work it was so bad. I told my boss about it and he let me go home super early. I think I made it until 9:15am before I had to bow out of work.
This past weekend was all about sleep and Advil. I feel better but I'm still not 100% recovered. My lower right side of my neck is still stiff. It feels like all it needs is a good cracking and then all will be better. But I won't attempt to force it to crack for fear of hurting my neck even more. When I rotate my neck in a circle, my neck crackles a lot. I've got more crackling than a camp fire at this point.
Thursday, November 02, 2006
What Happened Halloween Weekend
I got to see Sketchcore this past weekend. It was their second show but the first one I got to see. We worked on transistions before we opened the house and one of the transitions we changed works so much better. A reviewer is coming to the show this weekend and I'm excited about that. Mostly because I'm assured that the third show will be the best one.
After that show I had a show at iO. We're doing a more scene-work focused form right now and it was our second show where we implimented it. It didn't go as well as the first time but it was more due to us being rusty at scenes rather than the from itself.
Molly, Paul, Rex, Bill, and I went to the Halloween loft party at Cusick's old apartment. Many people still think of him as the host of it even though he doesn't live there anymore. Paul, Rex, and Bill did a trio group costume. They did Weekend At Bernie's with Rex being Bernie, Paul as Andrew McCarthy, and Bill and Jonathan Silverman. Molly was a girl from the rival band of Jem. I didn't have anything picked out but I did put on my cowboy styled shirt on and just told people I was a gay cowboy. It was pretty hot in there and crowded but two hours into it the place got a little more bearable. I got pretty drunk and as a result had a pretty good time. Let's just say that I wasn't shy at the party.
I've been doing the terrible thing of staying up late (mostly due to watching Freaks and Geeks episodes) and waking up late. I've really seriously debated calling in sick to work almost every morning this week but each day I manage to get myself to work on time.
After that show I had a show at iO. We're doing a more scene-work focused form right now and it was our second show where we implimented it. It didn't go as well as the first time but it was more due to us being rusty at scenes rather than the from itself.
Molly, Paul, Rex, Bill, and I went to the Halloween loft party at Cusick's old apartment. Many people still think of him as the host of it even though he doesn't live there anymore. Paul, Rex, and Bill did a trio group costume. They did Weekend At Bernie's with Rex being Bernie, Paul as Andrew McCarthy, and Bill and Jonathan Silverman. Molly was a girl from the rival band of Jem. I didn't have anything picked out but I did put on my cowboy styled shirt on and just told people I was a gay cowboy. It was pretty hot in there and crowded but two hours into it the place got a little more bearable. I got pretty drunk and as a result had a pretty good time. Let's just say that I wasn't shy at the party.
I've been doing the terrible thing of staying up late (mostly due to watching Freaks and Geeks episodes) and waking up late. I've really seriously debated calling in sick to work almost every morning this week but each day I manage to get myself to work on time.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)