Best Buy Coupon

With all of the media attention surrounding Best Buy this week, it likely played a role in me figuring out things like what is in my reward account. It isn't much, since it helps to get big-ticket items there. And I found out my laptop purchase was no longer eligible, it had been too long, over 90 days. I hadn't used a coupon yet likely since I hadn't printed it right after earning it. After being reminded of having it, and how I needed to use it soon before expiration, I decided to look at what I have for VHS tapes to see if there are any that can be replaced with the DVD version. I looked at the storage cabinet and just the bottom half are the cassettes, I have been slowly replacing them. Seeing my Reward Zone purchases also reminded me of how I have a Lady Gaga DVD I bought last year at the same time as my digital camera. I don't think I had watched it yet! So I decided to watch it this morning before going to do anything else, since it is just an hour long. I decided to get another Charlie Brown DVD with the coupon, 'You're a Good Man', based on the Broadway play. Actually it was more than the $5 coupon, but it was nice to get it at a discount. It seemed more relevant after seeing the play this year. Hard to say when I will get around to watching it when there's another one I haven't seen yet, the 'This is America' series. I can be the same way with books, as sometimes I have to wait on reading a book after buying it when I want to finish another book first.
   I watched another segment of the baseball documentary with my date, it covered more than just one decade as it was originally the ending of the video. Notable was the stories about the hard-luck Red Sox in 1975 and 1986, (though Game 6 in 1975 was covered and not Game 7 since the former was more exciting) as well as the Pete Rose story. First the record-breaking hit in 1985, and being banned from the game for gambling four years later. Naturally this was an era I was more familiar with since I recalled much of it as it was happening.

Airline Mile Exchanges

I was checking the balance on one of my airline mile accounts and saw one way I could redeem miles was to get gift cards. This led me from American Airlines to a site called Points dot-com. When looking at the programs I can register, I noticed there are three I have that are eligible- Delta Airlines as well as American, along with Best Buy reward zone. It also reminds me how I have a five dollar certificate at Best Buy expiring soon, in a week. So I should print it and use it soon, even if just for music or movies. The last purchase I made, a CD, which netted me just 4 points apparently. So I like knowing I have options as I almost saw it as a burden to have 2 frequent flyer accounts. Though Delta no longer has miles that expire, but American does. So I know I must fly with them at least once every 18 months. It may be best to effectively liquidate the account and move the points or get gift cards to clothing shops or restaurants I go to, or even move the allowable amount to my Paypal account. I noticed my class reunion is accepting Paypal for payment, proof it is in another era now. I haven't flown with Delta since August, when I went to St. Louis. Though I have added plenty of miles since then, from answering surveys, and just added some more tonight. I had to wait a minimum of 30 days until I could dump more in there, so as of tonight there is 500 more. I flew Sun Country to Florida in September, no account with them. And I flew American to Chicago in January, to avoid mileage expiration. I have been cutting back on my travels, though now I am reminded- from looking at pictures when retiring another 'school binder photo album'- that I could have signed up for frequent flyer accounts much earlier. When I lived in suburban Chicago I flew more to see baseball games on the weekends, since my rent was much lower for just renting a room in a house. But I didn't sign up for those accounts until I had moved. Guess it had to be suggested, or encouraged, when making purchases. It was how I got the loyalty card with Superamerica. And I like using it, for food as well as fuel. Though I wait until I have enough points for a Visa gift card, which takes a while. Since they moved to a new program last year, where I had to transfer existing points, I haven't redeemed any yet.

Little Monsters Ride

I was back at Maplewood Mall wanting to get another pair of pants for work, and found another photo-op besides the one for the kiddie ride that looked like Snoopy's doghouse. I did get a picture of the doghouse, but there was another one that intrigued me so I got two pictures. It was of a school bus that said 'Little Monsters' on it, reminding me of Lady Gaga's endearing term for her fans. But it wasn't the only time I thought of music during the day, or even at the mall. While entering, I heard the Green Day song 'Holiday'. At work I said I didn't have an online picture of Pink up yet, so I found one. It's right next to the ones of Eminem and Lady Gaga. So now the visit to the mall was profitable, helped by giving myself more time than last night. I went there shortly after 'Big Bang Theory' was done, a fun episode where Leonard Nimoy guest starred. I bought 2 pairs of pants in these visits, and retired three. I've done this before, where one shirt has replaced two so it would get used more. That is likely the next thing, replace a few shirts. I can do this when a gift card arrives, which should be next week.
  The big news in the area was of the planned closings of some Best Buy stores, as well as Twins player Carl Pavano being the target of extortion. The Best Buy closings of course include layoffs at the home office in Richfield, which I visited in December when wanting pictures of Charlie Brown and Snoopy statues. Hard to say how the store closing will affect me, as I don't go there too often. But I have bought some notable items there, like my laptop, microwave oven, and digital camera.

Won't Be Glowing

I had a dental appointment after work, and picked up some Oscar Mayer Lunchables at a Walgreen before getting there. Reminded me of a friend's joke about those things, they're tasty. The dental assistant had me do X-rays, some of it wasn't much fun as the things I had to bite into were pinching. I said my primary physician ordered a chest X-ray last month, asked if it was too recent. I was told the radiation from it is very low, and I 'wouldn't be glowing' tonight. The fill-in DDS was quite observant, looking at my teeth I was asked if I had braces, I said I had them for most of my 2 years of junior high.
   I had to wait a little for my appointment, so I read a Sports Illustrated article about baseball, what else? It was an extensive one about Albert Pujols, now signed with the Angels. He discussed hitting like it was a science, but of course the jury is still out as to if being given a 10-year contract is a good idea when he's 31.
   I decided to rip up another pair of pants, they were getting frayed much like the others. So I decided to go replace one of the pairs right away at JC Penney. I arrived right before closing, and used one of the gift cards I had. While there, I liked seeing a kiddie ride that happened to be Snoopy's doghouse. I would have taken a picture of it but didn't have my camera with me. I can go back to Maplewood Mall soon, like this weekend, for the photo-op.
    As usual, I think a lot about music. While at a senior leader meeting, held 6 times a year, eventually I thought of the Anna Nalick song 'Breathe' as I like the line in it about 'And I feel like I'm naked in front of the crowd, cuz these words are my diary screaming out loud' nailing how I feel about writing and comedy. So this evening I found it on Youtube, but not before seeing suggestions on the front page for the Eminem song 'Elevator'. So I listened to that one as well as '8-Mile'. After this I listened to 'Breathe', with clips from the TV show 'Greys Anatomy', along with Brandi Carlile's 'The Story'. I already had found the latter video from the same show previously.  

Three Coins In A Fountain

After seeing the comedy show tonight, I passed by a wishing well and saw plenty of coins in it. Nothing unusual there, except there were a decent number of quarters. I am used to seeing pennies and nickels. I haven't seen the movie 'Three Coins In A Fountain', but I know Steve Martin sang it in a scene in 'Planes Trains and Automobiles'. He got some odd looks when he did.
   Before the show I got caught up on some errand running, like shredding junk mail and retiring a pair of pants that was getting frayed. I would have went out right away to replace them, but didn't have the time. Later in the week is likely. I can use a gift card when I do.
    I did place another order of gift cards at work, before an attendance party. I figured it was best to do so only after the last one I ordered was received, and it was on Monday. So it will bring me current on awards. Hopefully these will arrive more quickly, as it took nearly two weeks for the most recent one, usually it is just a week.
   Yes, we do have an attendance party at work, once a month. Though they changed the type of game, and Bingo isn't my game. I was a few minutes late, they started without me. So I joined when the next game began, and didn't win in any of the 3 games I was in. I like it more when it is things like movie trivia, as I am good at it.

Leave The Club Now

There was a man who was asked to 'leave the club now' after being warned at the comedy club tonight. He likely had too much to drink. He was sitting near me, in the back. I could have helped with it, but it was best to leave it up to the professionals for multiple reasons. One, I was boxed in anyway. Two, they seemed to handle it well enough without any help. Three, I want to avoid conflicts of interest as I want to have chances to perform at this club. The comic onstage when it happened was allowed to 'start over' while it was being handled, meaning his time on the clock before seeing the red 'time light' started over. Some comics made jokes about it, but I saw nothing funny about it. Thankfully, this doesn't happened much before. As I recall, it was the first time it had happened.
   I called my dad back while at the club waiting for the list to arrive. He tells me he would like to see me perform sometime, don't know when it is possible. We talked about baseball a little, like about fellow Iowan Casey Blake. I said I was unsure if he had been signed by a team this year, he had previously played for the Dodgers. Dad was unfamiliar with who Bernie Madoff was or a Ponzi scheme, odd how I had to explain these things since it had been over 3 years. It was in reference to team owners, since I knew the Dodgers were sold due to a messy divorce, and the Mets may be as well since their owners had dealings with Madoff.
    It was easier than typical at work today, as we were short a few people so I was mostly covering for them and somebody else was making copies for most of the day.

College Hockey Regionals

Went to the college hockey tournament at the 'X' earlier today, where Minnesota beat North Dakota 5-2. Gophers went ahead 1-0 about midway through the first. Then early in the 2nd they got the 2nd goal, and North Dakota answered less than a minute later. Minnesota's third goal was midway through the second, and the 4th about 5 minutes later. The score stayed 4-1 until about 4 minutes left in the 3rd, when Minnesota got their 5th goal and North Dakota answered about a minute later. Many fans were cheering 'let's go Sioux' though the team no longer had the Sioux Indian head on their uniforms, just the state name on the front and the uniform number. No mention of the nickname in the program either. There were plenty of boos when videos of the NCAA president spoke, guess the fans blamed him for having to drop the mascot. Speaking of the program, I liked how it was cheaper than the college basketball tournament program, as this one was just $5. But when I looked at it more closely, I realized why- it was much thinner.
   When doing laundry before the game, I did listen to the basketball tournament on the radio. Kentucky defeated Baylor in the first game, from Atlanta. The second game was from St. Louis, where Kansas defeated North Carolina. But I saw very little of it, just on the TV monitors at the 'X' during intermission. So the Final Four in basketball will be Ohio State, Louisville, Kentucky, and Kansas.
   It was notable to attend this tournament, as it was my first time there. Previously I had attended other post-season college games. I've seen the College World Series 6 times, the college basketball tournament 7 times, and 2 college football bowl games- the Holiday Bowl and Outback Bowl.

Ft. Snelling State Park

The plans today involved going hiking at a state park, near Ft. Snelling. It was nice to see a maple syrup demonstration. Hadn't done this kind of outing in a while, they're nice to do. I think I had been over to the historical part of Ft. Snelling just once before, in 2009, for a themed weekend about the Civil War. I have a college roommate who works at the VA Hospital nearby, but was informed how they aren't over at the historical part much. It was kind of warm with the hiking boots on, but I had bought them recently as a replacement and I wanted to get some use out of them.
   I did an oil change at Jiffy Lube early in the day, and had a breakfast sandwich as McDonald's as well. After the event, I went to an antique shop in Burnsville with my date. I got 3 items there, 2 were books. One had Charlie Brown and Snoopy comics in it, paperback and hand-size. The other was a Michael Moore book, 'Dude, Where's My Country?' and the clerk said they didn't like him but they were older than me. The third item was an Eminem CD, 'Encore'. I have an Eminem shirt, and it is inspired by this same CD, which has 2 discs.  He is wearing a suit and holding a gun on the shirt. I thought about getting a reference book about Western movies that had some photos from 'Covered Wagon', based on an Emerson Hough book, but if it's still there on my next visit I can get it then. I wanted to limit my spending there, so it was a tough choice what to get.
   I definitely had Emerson Hough on the mind today, due to doing an outdoors event. It was why I had my EH hoodie, shirt, and metal drinking cup with me.
    In the evening, I watched another segment of the baseball documentary with my date. It was the 8th inning, covering the 1960s. Plenty of Cardinals were covered, like the retirement of Stan Musial. The others were Bob Gibson, since he was a dominating pitcher, and Curt Flood, since he challenged the reserve clause by refusing to report to the team he was traded to. We ate at Genghis Grill in Eagan, I like the food there. Plenty of TVs there, but the sports being shown wasn't the college basketball tournament so I had a hard time following the scores on the bottom of the screen. I did check online about the college hockey tournament, as I am attending a regional final. The matchup will be Minnesota against North Dakota, as they defeated Boston University and Western Michigan respectively.  

Regina Spektor

It was a long day at work, was nice to see it end. There was some leftovers from the previous day's potluck, liked the Little Smokies and the Sloppy Joes so I had more of both.
   I had thought about going out to see a friend's comedy show, but decided I needed to stay in tonight and rest. Also a good idea, in terms of wanting to get caught up on things like going through receipts in my wallet. I did make it to Arby's for a fish sandwich, and to McDonald's for a Shamrock shake. On the way back, I decided to get another photo album, so I have gobbled up another one of those 'school binder' type albums I had wanted to replace. Though I still have some pictures not yet in an album, and they've been this way for a while.
   I did watch some of the college basketball tournament tonight, but the games I wanted to see- from St. Louis- were not on CBS, but TBS. I had seen the tournament there twice before, in 2007 and 2010. I did follow the scores when given, how North Carolina needed overtime to beat Ohio. Then Kansas held on to beat North Carolina State. In the game I was watching, from Atlanta, Kentucky beat Indiana. Though I could have paid more attention to it. I wanted to do things like read the paper and do the 'Photo Shuffle' and check email, so it was largely just background noise. I have been to Atlanta as well, and to that venue, the Georgia Dome. I was there in 2006, but not for the tournament. There was some Taekwondo matches, got in free.
    I am still researching Regina Spektor, the musician. The Wikipedia page said she was Russian-born. I listened to some more songs besides 'Fidelity', including 'Music Box', as well as a cover of Leonard Cohen's 'Hallelujah'. Oddly enough, I found the former when looking up the big instrumental hit 'Music Box Dancer'.
   

Peanuts in Mouth

When I was searching for the Regina Spektor song 'Fidelity' on Youtube I found a remix which intrigued me, as there was some Charlie Brown art on the album cover. It was from an act called Blockhead, and the album 'Peanuts in Your Mouth'. It was the Charlie Brown body, with the famous shirt, but another head superimposed on it. It was kind of a jazzy version of the song. It was all right, but I likely need to listen to it more in order to like it. At this point I still like hearing the piano play in the original version.
   When I dropped a coin on the floor, I went to find it and found a Canadian quarter under the refrigerator. Also found a Jawbreaker, unsure how it got there and how long it's been there.
   I am getting plenty of calls and emails about jobs, but need to wade through them to see if they interest me. Seems like most of them are sales, which doesn't interest me. I am responding to them to see if there are something available in claims.
   I needed to run errands tonight, so it meant getting more photo albums, and replacing the 'school binder' types. I gobbled up quite a few with 2 albums, over 400. So there is just 59 left in one album I want to retire.
    A classmate friended me on Facebook, hadn't heard from him in a while. He got divorced, I said I would be there for him.

James J. Hill

Toured the James J. Hill home in St. Paul earlier today. It was the second time there, first time in a while, I recall it as being part of the Winter Carnival. Bought some postcards there, three for a dollar and change. One had the logo of the railroad he owned, Great Northern, now part of Burlington Northern Santa Fe as I recall after some buyouts.
   After the event, I found a friend and went to get more Charlie Brown and Snoopy statue pictures. We found one in the west metro and and the others in the east metro. The owner at one business did give us some other leads. I am surprised how we haven't run out of ideas yet, and we've found over 120. I figured we would as we approached 100.
   At the comedy club tonight, one friend in town left early, said he was ill. He had commented on my 'Field of Dreams' picture on Facebook previously. Saw another friend after the show, she was onstage tonight. A couple, who had seen her at another club, talked to her for a while, and me. One of them spoke of 'Meet-up', I did that once with an ex. One song played after the show was over stuck with me, it was one where I had to write down some lyrics so I could find it later online. It was 'Fidelity' by Regina Spektor. 'Breaks my heart, hear these voices , hear this music'. After seeing the video on Youtube, I said it was 'powerful'.
    My music search didn't end there. Also decided to listen to 2 Eddie Rabbitt songs, as I heard one on the radio on the way to the event this morning. 'Driving My Life Away' was the one. Another one he's known for is 'Love a Rainy Night' so I found it as well.
   On the news tonight, there was a feature about a boy at Tartan HS who was barred from bringing an 'adult entertainer' to his high school prom. I went alone to my prom, couldn't find a date. I am with the boy- let him bring whomever he wants. It can be hard to find somebody who will accept, seems silly to tell him the wrong girl accepted.  I made it a Facebook posting, as it meant enough to me.
   Also on the news, there was a feature about a long basketball game being played as a benefit event for the tornado victims in Joplin, Missouri. I recognized the logo from the gym, it was the Missouri Athletic Club in St. Louis, a place I have stayed at since I was the guest of a member, friends of mine.

A Man Smoking

When I was waiting for the bus after work tonight, I saw a man smoking. Nothing unusual there, except it appeared to be a marijuana joint. I wanted to get a closer look to confirm it, just acted like I was looking way down the street for the next bus. In reality, I wanted to do both.
   When I returned from lunch, I had a massage therapy appointment for 15 minutes. I had won it in a contest, as I had answered some questions about a new website at work. The therapist said I looked familiar, I had done it before. I trust it's a good thing, I tell myself, to look familiar. In my comedy routine I have referred to how some likely think I look creepy, but I didn't hear how or why I looked familiar. Some might say I should give myself more credit, as we can all be our own worst critic.
   At the comedy club tonight, a friend was the MC, I call him 'Magic Man'. There weren't quite as many friends onstage as last week, but still some. The MC could hear my laugh real well at one point and did acknowledge it, though after the show he wanted to make sure it was me. It was likely why I got no shout-out, but the laugh did stand out like it often does.
    After the show, I saw a small plush toy nearby, and it made me think of my standard line. How I'm sure somebody misses it. I thought about depositing it in the trash, but I just do this for real trash like a paper drinking cup.

Comedy Store

Tonight at the comedy club I spoke with somebody who said he once performed at the Comedy Store, I recognized it as being in Los Angeles. He said he had a magic act, and finally got to go onstage at 3 a.m. I said the shows here don't run that late. Much like other chances I've had, I enjoy discussing the craft with anyone who wants to hear my take on it. I just wish I could recall the names of both who were there, I had to let them know things like when the list came out so they must be new to the place.
   At work I did hear from the theater guy as to how his St. Patrick's Day went. He spoke of being at a pub where some frat boys came in, and they were asked to leave after one of them ordered an 'Irish Car Bomb'. Hadn't heard of such a drink before, but was told it was disrepectful to order it in an Irish pub. At first he said he had no stories to tell, which I found hard to believe as he usually has some. I'm told him he has enough to write a book about, as they are adventures that likely few others have experienced.
   This week at work should be easier than previous ones, as I have one day off for a mentoring event. As I recall, this would be the anniversary of the Iraq War begininng back in 2003. A few days later, I went to a Chicago Wolves hockey game as I lived in suburban Chicago then. I saw plenty of military recruiters there, even leaving business cards next to urinals in the bathroom. Then there was somebody saying 'I will clap for him!' when veterans of various wars were honored during intermission, and it was a World War II veteran. Guess it's a good reminder of a scene I once saw in 'The Simpsons' where the VFW hall was called 'veterans of popular wars'.

Sending 4 Letters

After getting some birthday cards this month, I decided to write and respond to them, and say thank you. It was to my aunt, mom, a sibling, and my friend's mom. I wrote the most to the last of the 4 mentioned, saying the Jack Jablonski story has been a big thing in this state. I spoke of seeing an ad in a comedy club bathroom ecnouraging people to contribute to his benefit fund. Also in reference to finding out my classmate had another child, a third daughter.
   I went through the Charlie Brown and Snoopy statue totals on my official list, and it came out to 123, about what I expected. First time I had looked at it since November. Also decided to change the pictures on my Facebook page, there were 7 statues and now it's 5. There was 3 original Snoopys, but no Linuses. Now there is one from each series.
   Watched a Charlie Brown DVD tonight, it had 2 specials on it. There was the motocross special-'You're a Good Sport' but also the decathlon special called 'You're The Greatest'. The interview segment included had Schulz's son Craig describing his interest in motocross, also showing an original Snoopy statue with a motocross theme. Soon I will have to watch the history series, a birthday gift.
   I activated my resume on Monster and Career Builder, first time since 2006 and 2005 respectively. It's proven by already getting sales job offers I don't want.
    The Simpsons episode tonight was fun, where most of the nuke plant employees being replaced by robots. Because of the intelligent things that some robots said to Homer. After it I went to get a Little Caesar's pizza. It was the shift manager who asked 'what do you need?' when taking my order. It seemed more appropriate so ask what I wanted. He had just made a pizza and it went to me. I like how there was no waiting, sometimes there is for a pepperoni.

99 Problems By Jay-Z

I went to a Best Buy store in the west metro after dropping off a friend at a dress shop nearby. I would have been bored there, and it was no problem staying occupied while looking at movies and music. I ended up getting the Jay-Z single '99 Problems' for $5 as it made me think of a joke that a comedian friend has done about space aliens and a redneck. Already made it a Facebook posting, and got some likes on it. There weren't many men in the shop, no surprise there.
    I watched Inning 7 of the baseball documentary with my date today, the 1950s. Plenty about the New York teams, as they did well until 2 of the 3, the Dodgers and Giants, left for California. Surprised how there has been no mention of Stan Musial yet, but maybe in the next segment since he retired after the 1963 season ended. Some would call it a 'New York media bias'. I am impressed by mention of Yogi Berra playing in 75 World Series games for the Yankees, if a record it is unlikely to be equaled. But his team was real good when he played catcher. It is rare to see 2 segments in one weekend, but we had the time and we would like to get through it in a timely fashion.
   Notable today was where we ate. At lunchtime it was at a Boston Market, hadn't eaten at one in a year, since I was in Chicago for the weekend. The busser said there were 2 other locations in the metro. The other was Buca Di Beppo, in the evening, in Burnsville. Wanted to use up the gift card I had, good food there. Plenty of art on the walls, looked at it before leaving. It included Pope Benedict XVI and President Kennedy, both Catholic but not Italian. Another memorable one was Packers coach Vince Lombardi. After the dress shop and lunch it was on the state's museum for a lecture on Lincoln and the Civil War, related to civil liberties since he suspended the writ of habeus corpus. It was compared to presidents in later wars. The speaker had a book signing after the event was done.

One Republic Song

I like the drumming and the sound of the hi-hat crashing in the One Republic song 'Good Life'. It has been on the radio often lately. As usual, I like how search engines help with finding it when the radio doesn't always announce the song title and performer. The word stuck in my mind was 'hopelessly', but I had to add 'good good life' to find it.
    My colleague, the theater guy, is still fun to listen to. He spoke of making a go-cart out of a Ford F-150 pickup body and a sawmill engine. He said the speeds were 'on and off'. I was trying to think of what was appropriate for his plans for celebrating St. Patrick's Day this weekend, I said 'try not to get arrested'. It was all I could think of when he plans to drink a lot, and he did tell me about getting arrested once at a bar, though he wasn't part of the bar fight.
   At lunchtime I saw more than just Girl Scout cookies for sale, also daffodils, from the American Cancer Society, as I recall. I got another box of cookies, a  type I hadn't heard of before- 'Dulce De Leche'. Was told there was caramel in them, will have to see how it goes. It was the third box of the season, hard to say if there will be any more. I prefer to eat some more before buying another box as they are meant to be eaten. Notable was seeing no adult helping them at the table, but they were correct on the change back from a $20 when the boxes are $3.50 each.
   This evening I watched another segment of the baseball documentary with my date, Inning 6. It covered the 1940s, and it was longer than the others. It made sense why, since plenty was done about the sport during World War II, and then Jackie Robinson's debut in 1947. Quite a bit was about Ted Williams and Joe DiMaggio as well, since they played for rival teams and both had good years in 1941.

Red Spraypaint On Trees

I had noticed for a while how there was red spraypaint on some trees nearby, and finally this week I saw the postings how they will be cut down on Friday and not to park on the street. So I went out to get pictures of them, 13 in all. Two of them were of the signs themselves, and some signs were shrink-wrapped to the trees. Still don't know for sure why they are being cut down. I would have done it earlier but the memory card was bought after sunset last night, and I get better pictures in the daytime hours. To be honest, I waited until it was official as it tends to mean more when the deadline is given on anything. So I got them shortly after getting off work.
    I used another gift card this evening, it was at Target, to get some winter shoes. So now I am down to three, another one has been ordered this week and is on the way.
   There was a lower volume of work today, so I am more caught up than I had been. Near the end of the day there was a signup sheet for a potluck next week.
   Notable on the bus tonight after work was the driver arguing with two riders, one of them had his music on too high. The driver threatened to have them evicted, eventually the riders just let it go.
  Normally I watch the news on WCCO, but not tonight since it is the CBS affiliate and there was the college basketball tournament on. I get used to a schedule, and prefer to avoid watching a late edition of the news, especially when I don't know for sure when it will be on. Can recall seeing it as a kid in the TV Guide- 'time approximate after sports'.

Given Money Onstage

I went to the comedy club tonight and the headliner was given money, 120 dollars, by a crowdmember while still onstage. I tried to find him after the show to say I liked mention of movie quotes, especially 'It's not your fault'- which is from my favorite, 'Good Will Hunting'- but he went to the club owner right away and said he didn't know what to do with it. Same comic that is in town from D.C., an old friend.
   I had dinner with my date before the show, I was asked to take care of a critter on the ceiling. Not sure what it was, maybe a centipede. No idea how it got there, unless these things are coming out of the woodwork now since it's getting warmer. Likely explains why a boxelder bug later dive-bombed me in the face while at the club after the show getting signed up for stagetime next month. I said I would show up and take care of the critter if I had some dinner there. No big deal handling it, as I knocked it off  the ceiling with some toilet paper- didn't want to touch it- then saw it run on the floor. I picked it up and then flushed it down the toilet, so odds are it won't be coming back.
   On the way to the show, I picked up a memory card for my camera as I wanted to take some pictures of some trees that likely will be cut down soon since the street was lined with signs that said 'Do not park here'. Don't know if it is due to the emerald ash borer, heard plenty about it recently. I've learned this one many times before- do things now as the window of opportunity may be closing soon. It was odd how I needed help to get it down from the display as it was locked up. I didn't think those cards were valuable enough to steal, they go for around $10. But each person is different as to what they value and what value they put on things. Especially when desperate.

Print Encyclopedias

On the news tonight was a feature about Encyclopedia Britannica ending publication of its print version. It does make me think of how my family had other types when I was younger: American Peoples, and later, World Book. We got the newer one as I felt like an idiot when I did a report in 5th grade on Louis Armstrong, who was listed as still alive. The one I was reading was woefully obsolete!
    Also notable was checking on Facebook, and the Emerson Hough building in my hometown will now house the alternative high school and administrative offices. First they closed the wrong school, now they're compounding the problem. I left a comment asking why just 5 of the 7 board members voted, and noticing how the renovations to accommodate the move cancel out some of the projected savings. Afraid it will be another 'we saved less than $100' sad stories. Still no mention of what the plans are for the former Maytag Mansion, which housed the administrative offices. Hard to say what comments I will get, if any at all.
   It was a fun night at the comedy club, plenty of friends in the lineup tonight. The host at the club let me look at the list when I was ordering a drink. A friend who got me into a show at another club last month was MC, and another friend was show closer- saw his rap duo show on New Year's Eve. No surprise about getting the 'how right I was' feeling late last year while at a show- as it has paid true dividends to get into comedy.

Cheese Not Steak

I like eating the 'Superamerica Special' before I get to the comedy club on some nights, like tonight. Except when I chose food from the roller grill, I noticed it wasn't what it was labeled after biting into it. I expected steak 'wraps', wanted them, got cheese instead. When coupled with the Pringles chips it was plenty of cheese flavor, more than I really wanted. But I didn't want another hot dog so quickly after this week's events, as it would have been the third in five days.
   Work was easier today, since I was asked to help a colleague with the payoff report I didn't do any copies for document release until the second half of the day. I helped with logging out pages after it had been pulled from the files by my colleague. I like doing the payoff reports as it's familiar.
   At the comedy club tonight, I recognized one name on the list as somebody from Seattle who had been headliner at another club last week. One friend was in town and made the list as well, first time I had seen him in a while. He decided to put 'from Neptune' next to his name. In many ways he is like royalty when some have followed him on Facebook having plenty of gigs out of state. I recall the dateline as Virginia, close to where he is from in D.C. I had to ask where his Redskins football hat was, he had a different one on, a plain black hat.

The 5th Inning

I watched inning 5 of the Ken Burns baseball documentary with my date in the early afternoon, covering the 1930s. So there still was plenty about Babe Ruth, but also Lou Gehrig and his farewell speech in 1939. Also liked seeing mention of the first class of inductees to the baseball Hall of Fame, from the same year as the Gehrig speech. As usual, there were many things I was familiar with like the discussion of the Ruth 'Called Shot' in the 1932 World Series. Same is true with the 1934 Cardinals, known as the 'Gashouse Gang'. Along with Cardinals player 'Ducky' Medwick being removed from the final game of the World Series as fans were throwing debris at him. I had read about the 'Gassers' back in elementary school, plenty of books to read in the library there. We are now halfway through it since there is a 'tenth inning', done after the original series was aired in 1994. Looks like the next segment is longer than the others, at two and a half hours.
   For some reason I got started a little earlier on errand running. I liked the feeling of finishing earlier, though it meant missing part of 'The Simpsons' in the evening. It may have helped that I went grocery shopping and did the dishes right away, before a brief visit to the fitness center. Then I went to do laundry. The fitness center visit is likely why, wanting to get there by 5pm. But also wanting to fill in the time before getting there by doing errands but not laundry, afraid I wouldn't make it for exercise in time since things at the laundromat can be unpredictable. One doesn't know how busy it is at times, like if there is a wait for using washers. If it was due to scheduling, using the available time effectively, then there's nothing wrong with that. Quite often before, I would do the grocery shopping and dishes in the evening, like after watching 'The Simpsons'.

Bowling and Basketball

I went bowling this afternoon in St. Louis Park with my date. I didn't do great, and I know I am out of practice since I haven't bowled much since I was in a league in elementary school. Notable was seeing a pin stuck in a gutter as it went beyond the range where the downed pins would be swept away. But eventually one ball did go into the right gutter and sent it back to where it needed to be. Before the event I needed fuel and tried to get it across the street from a shopping area I was at, but it was a no-go. It was a membership warehouse, and I had to be a member to get gas there. Found this out after waiting in line to get a pump, 'Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds' was playing on my car radio. So I had to drive around a little before finding a Mobil station.
   In the evening, we went to the Wolves basketball game against the New Orleans Hornets. The Wolves lost 95-89, when they got close they usually couldn't take the lead. Ricky Rubio missed the game, I knew he had been injured the night before. Looks like he is sidelined for the rest of the season.  Since there was pizza at the bowling alley, we didn't want to eat too much at first at the game, especially when we arrived just in time. So at halftime we got food and drink, at first I wanted something that smelled like chili and it was a taco salad- meat but no chili- but I said no as it was expensive. I got a hot dog instead, my date got a pretzel. It was nice riding the light rail to and from the game, parking at a ramp near Mall of America. I noticed on the train after the game that one man was wearing a DCG sweater, at first not sure if it was a school in Iowa but then I saw a shirt hos son was wearing, which said Dallas Center Grimes. So it was the school I was thinking of. But when it's one state away it doesn't surprise me much on getting visitors from Iowa.

American Legion Fish Fry

After a stressful day at work, in the evening I went to an American Legion and attended the fish fry. I had 2 kinds of fish, boiled as well as fried. I felt a little guilty when I left some of it on my plate, but I was full. I did eat plenty, they gave me plenty. I liked the little potatoes available, though I think some things were not as I arrived in the final 30 minutes of serving. Found no water there, just milk in a jug resting in some ice. Watched some of the state high school hockey tournament, the first game on TV went into overtime and the other was a blowout. So now Hill-Murray meets Benilde St. Margaret's for the large school title.
    I called my dad while watching the hockey tournament, hadn't spoken with him in a while. I let him know about getting the birthday card, still not sure yet about when I am making it to Des Moines for an Iowa Cub baseball game this spring. I have taken a look at the schedule online. I already said it would not be during my class reunion. It was odd how I had to explain what Redbox was, where I have rented some movies. But then I looked up locations online and found out he had reason to be unaware of it. He lives on a hobby farm in southern Iowa and there aren't any locations in the nearest town of note, which is just over 2,000 residents despite being a county seat. For some reason he spoke again about how my sister has an out of control dog, don't know why. I said I know it works best when one uses what is taught in obedience school. And he doesn't visit my sister's much anyway.  

Duluth Younkers Manager

After work tonight, I went to the 'X' in St. Paul and watched a game in the high school hockey tournament. There were 2 games, I saw the first and went home as I was tired. So I saw Lakeville South defeat Duluth East, 3-2. Duluth East led 1-0 after one session, it was tied after 2, and Lakeville South took the lead early in the 3rd. They went ahead 3-1 in the final minute on an empty netter, then Duluth East got one back. I thought about staying for the second game, where Benilde St. Margaret's defeated Edina 3-2, but knew how tired I already was. I watched the game on channel 45, and it was still going on when I am normally watching 'Nightline'. Didn't see the first session, it was scoreless after one when I turned it on after getting home. Then it was 1-1 after 2, and Benilde went ahead early in the 3rd, but Edina tied it right away. It stayed tied until the final minute.
   I had a nice view at the arena, as I found a chair in the upper level just above one of the goalie nets. Even though the popcorn box was the 'smaller' one, it was still bigger than typical. I had about half of it and then dumped the rest into my empty cup of Coca-Cola as it was easier to get home on the bus. One fan next to me was complaining about the cost of the hot dogs, I think he got a bigger one than I did. Also notable was hearing somebody in the back of the bus saying he was a Younkers store manager in Duluth. I had a hard time not looking at a wrapped condom on the floor near me. Don't know where it's been, don't want to know.
   I would have preferred my annual visit to the tournament to be for the small school final on Saturday afternoon, but it didn't work in my schedule like before. I like how it's a much smaller crowd there, where I can pick my seat in the lower level. Memorable was the students of course, hearing one band play Lady Gaga's 'Bad Romance' and the chants of 'You Can't Do That' after a penalty.

Fanny Pack and Bowtie

At the comedy club tonight, one comic was memorable for their outfit. He had a crewcut, black framed 'nerd glasses', braces, a bowtie, and fanny pack. I went there after a dinner date, but not with my date.
   Today is my birthday, and I was in many ways humbled by the greetings on Facebook. There were 93 messages waiting in my Hotmail account, more than twice the normal volume. I did take the time to respond to all of the postings. Some were classmates, plenty of them were comedian friends, a few were famous people like a movie reviewer in the paper or a journalist that now lives in Texas. Some I have seen more often than others of course, like the comedian friends. Some I may not have met yet, like the movie reviewer. Though I like reading his reviews. With classmates,  I said how I look forward to seeing them at the reunion in June. Ah yes, it does leave another one, a fellow writer that I met at the convention in Detroit. I quoted 'Throw Momma From the Train' as there is a line in it that resonated with me- 'A writer writes, always!' It was in reference to the question I received about how it was going for me.
   There was more than one no-show at the club tonight, which is odd to me. My guess was if I still wanted stagetime, I could have had it. But I made it right before showtime, and I figured it likely was not available.
    I made it to an Erbert Gerbert sandwich shop in St. Paul today, first time there as this downtown location had just opened about a month earlier. Usually I eat out for lunch only on Fridays, but didn't feel like heating up the soup and needed to step outside the office for a few minutes since it was so busy. The memorable thing was somebody asking me what 'supersede' meant, I said it's something that takes the place of what came before it. He said it then meant 'override', and I said close enough.
   Some might call it 'News of the Weird' but one feature on 'Nightline' tonight was about military-trained personnel shooting wild pigs in Texas.

Two For The Show

I was onstage at the comedy club tonight, two guests came to see me. I did fine except I stayed on the first joke too long. It was the same one as the night before, but extended, about Johnny Cash. So this may have been why it was less effective, since openers should be quick and to the point. So it was 'two for the show', much like the Elvis Presley song 'Blue Suede Shoes'. Don't have any, but I have some suede shirts, I like the way they feel to the touch. Also did a birthday card joke, since my birthday is soon. Already have one greeting on Facebook.
   As usual, I think about music often. As I was leaving the club tonight, I heard the Eminem song 'My Name is Slim Shady' and I still recall the first time I heard it, back in suburban Chicago. The DJ said he would play it even though he would likely be fired. When I was driving home tonight I heard on my car radio 'Rich Girl' by Hall and Oates. It was a reminder of my weeklong vacation in Seattle in 2007, as I recall hearing it there.
    Don't know yet what I'm doing on Thursday and Friday, but there are some options. Sometimes these days are spoken for well in advance, but I don't plan on going to a comedy show. The state tournament for hockey is this week, though it doesn't work in my schedule to attend the small school final on Saturday afternoon like before. 
    After work, I liked seeing the people watching available on the bus. It was a couple and their young son. When we passed the 'X' he asked his parents if he could go see the hockey players play, the mom said no as it was too expensive. It of course depends on the event, but they have more than just NHL hockey there. I said nothing, it was none of my business. Seemed more polite to just listen.

Weight Lifting Trials

After being at the comedy club tonight I went to print something at a Fedex Office near me and saw a familiar face, one of the employees. He spoke of being in Columbus, Ohio, for the Olympic trials for weight lifting. He said he also got to meet Arnold Schwarzenegger, who had plenty of bodyguards with him. I thought about leaving right after I was done but I'm not in there much, and see him even less often. So I went back in after a man who was swearing a lot went outside. I will admit that I wasn't expecting him to say this was one of his interests, based on us speaking before. He is a med student, but we all can surprise others on our interests.
    I was thrilled to get picked to go onstage at the comedy club, I was third. I don't think there was any newcomers this time. Started off with a joke I wanted to try for a while, 'who did you expect, Johnny Cash?' and it flowed real well. Write what you know is the common thing one hears, and it works best. The next comic made some reference to a character named Tobias, a friend of one of my comic friends was sitting next to me and said it was on the TV show 'Arrested Development'. We had to pause however, as on the first attempt to tell me we ended up doing an inadvertent head-butt. Had to look up this character, had seen the show before but I was familiar with other characters, played by Jason Bateman and Jeffrey Tambor. Don't know if it was meant to be flattering, but I've heard worse before.

Union President Messages

Today I watched Inning 4 of the Ken Burns baseball documentary with my date. Pleased to get 2 innings done this weekend. Also went to a pancake breakfast at Henry Sibley High School. We had to wait to eat until the band was done playing, as it was a benefit for the school's band. We had just arrived as the band was about to play, and I do recall the showbill from a comedy club saying there would be no food served for 30 minutes. The band started late, so I had to ask when they would be done. The school song was the last one played. There was mention of places they would be traveling to in the summer. I bought some peanut butter cookies to eat while we were waiting. There was plenty of silent auction items, a few appealed to me but I didn't want to wait around another 3 hours to see if I was the winning bidder on anything. It was typical for silent auctions, as there were so many items that some hadn't been bid on yet.
   There was 2 messages waiting from the writer union president, one was about the suspension of the treasurer,with pay. One of the charges was 'conduct unbecoming', as she recently had copied all of the convention delegates on an email where she blasted the union president. The other message was about the passing of a member, a jazzman from New York City. There was a Youtube video attached to one of the messages. Not sure if I met him in Detroit, as there were so many people I met there. It led to more emails than typical for the weekend.

Fries Come With That Shake

I needed to get motivated to get up this morning. Even though I wanted to go out for breakfast it took a while to get there. I like laying around for a while on the weekend if I can. I had an Egg Mcmuffin at Mcdonald's and liked seeing a shirt on one of the employees. It said 'do fries come with that shake?' and it had animated characters on it. This may go back to the days when there were numerous Mcdonaldland characters, now it's just Ronald doing most ad campaigns and for the Ronald Mcdonald house, their official charity. There was ads up for the shamrock shakes, I like those as well. I had one this week already, and it was at a downtown location I hadn't seen before. Pleased it had a Ronald statue on a bench near the entrance for photo ops.
     For my date tonight we watched another inning of the Ken Burns baseball documentary, inning 3. It covered 1910-1920, and there was plenty about the 1919 Black Sox Scandal which happened during the World Series. I've said it before how seeing 2 movies in particular helped with the understanding of it: 'Eight Men Out', and 'Field of Dreams'. It also covered the opening of Fenway Park in Boston, and the rival league known as the Federal League. Wrigley Field in Chicago was built for Chicago's team in that league, which lasted just 2 seasons. Also liked mention of the 1914 World Series, won by the 'Miracle Braves' who went from worst to first, and beat the A's who had the 'Hundred Thousand Dollar Infield'. I had read about it in a book in elementary school, I liked how they covered subjects I was familiar with and went in depth on telling the story. Like how former star pitcher Christy Mathewson had a hunch about the World Series being fixed.
    After the 10pm news we watched 'Life to the Max' on WCCO as we wanted to see the feature about the Kodak Museum in Rochester, New York. It's a nice treasure trove of the history of photography, and not just Kodak. In the early evening I liked watching a paid TV program which was a 30-minute ad for Time/Life music, I don't buy anything but it does sharpen my knowledge of music. I was more familiar with the more recent musicians profiled like Kenny Rogers, the timeframe went back to the 1950s through the 1970s.   

Girl Scout Cookies

I bought 2 boxes of Girl Scout cookies today at lunchtime. It was at 2 different tables, one of them had just sold out of Dosidos, so I just got the Tagalongs. I like the peanut butter kinds, those 2 have it. I had some of them this evening already. But I like to have them last as long as possible, when they're just a once a year thing. So I see myself waiting a few days before having any more of them.
  I went to a friend's comedy show tonight at Mall of America, the later show. I know it's easier to get into the later show, I've done it a few times before. Since most prefer the earlier show, since the later one often finishes around midnight. The friend was an opener, the headliner was a New Yorker. I liked the headliner's jokes about food, being married, and 'be a man'. The last one was in reference to how men are taught, to be strong, to grin and bear it. I liked how my friend did some of my favorite jokes, one of them I ask for each time I take the stage as I shout it. I had hoped to get a picture with my friend so it can go into the 'ring of honor' I have but he was not available after the show. Since it was late I guess I don't blame him at all. So far I have a picture of just one comedian friend. There is one with him from the Faribault show last year, tagged on Facebook, but I prefer a more flattering picture than that one. As a matter of fact, I saw somebody at this show who said he was at the Faribault show, still surprised he remembered me. He even said he took the picture for us. Something about me must be memorable, don't know what, hopefully a positive thing.
   This was a rare day in terms of the mail, as all that was received was relevant- 2 bills, a driver license, and a birthday card. I am used to some of it being junk, like nonprofits wanting money, and then shredding it.

'Small World' on Violin

I was onstage at the Corner Bar in Minneapolis tonight, and the act before me was a male dancer in a camisole. He did his act while a girl was nearby, playing 'It's a Small World After All' on violin. His routine was the storyline of the movie 'Footloose', something I guessed rather quickly. Also notable was blowing out a candle after the show ended and some of the wax ended up on my glasses. I think I can somehow find a way to get it into my act, not quite the same as 'egg on the face' or 'pie in the face' though. I decided to park in a different lot this time, as I found one slightly farther away that was cheaper than the customary one. There was snow on the walk over to the club, and it continued after the show. I liked getting stagetime here as it allows me more minutes than other clubs, and they want comics to try new material there so it is definitely an 'experimental' club. I would have preferred a larger crowd of course, it was sold out last week when I was there to see a friend perform. Though I don't think sellout crowds at this club are typical.
    I didn't realize it at first, but I was so moved by hearing this song being played. Though at first it just sounds repetitive and annoying. This is why it can be the butt of jokes since it is the song on a ride at Disneyland. But the lyrics do resonate: a world of laughter, a world of tears, a world of hope, a world of fears. It does seem somewhow appropriate to what I've learned about my life, since I've seen both sides of it that are mentioned in the song. So it seemed to fit a comedy show, especially when laughter is mentioned. I would have liked seeing a new episode of 'Big Bang Theory' tonight but I've given up watching the show for other events before. Thankfully there is now syndicated reruns 5 days a week, I did watch one before having to leave.