Funny Bone in Westport

I went to the 10pm show at the Funny Bone comedy club in Westport Plaza in Maryland Heights tonight. It was just a few miles from my hotel. I think I had seen the headliner, Jeremy Essig, before in the Twin Cities. The joke about the menagerie in rural Ohio sounded familiar. The MC explained a few jokes that didn't need to be explained, the feature was pretty good. It was the kind of jokes I had heard before, like date rape drugs, the Penn State scandal, and pet insurance. When the headliner said he suffered from depression, he then said 'hello comedy'. I laughed, but normally I would have said 'yep', meaning I'm agreeing with it but didn't necessarily think it was funny. I can relate as to how and why I got into comedy, as well as writing. Both were a healthy outlet. He handled it well when there was an outburst from the crowd, something about Al Gore inventing the internet. He asked the crowdmember if he came for other dated jokes like Monica Lewinsky. Then I noticed the club manager came around and warned him, how he would be ejected if he did it again. There was some good art on the wall inside the club, like Eddie Murphy, Billy Crystal, and Jay Leno. Another was of  Jim Belushi, if I'm not mistaken. At the club entrance there was a Chris Farley portrait, I got a picture of that one. I had a local beer, Schalfly (sp?), brewed right in St. Louis according to the label. The server went through beer choices, I wanted something different and was told it was a pale ale, so I was fine with it.
  The day began with getting the rental car from Enterprise at an airport suburb, Berkeley. It is spelled just like the famous college town in California. I got a piece of lemon poundcake and some orange juice before getting on the shuttle, hadn't found breakfast any earlier and wanted to be close to the reservation time when there was a schedule to keep. Then it was on to the post office in the same town, the Enterprise employees had no idea where it was even after I gave them an address I found online. It meant going just a mile or so, and right off the interstate exit. It was an 'Aloha' stamp I got so I could mail a card to a friend back home.
   After this it was on to the Cathedral Basilica, an idea I got from a Youtube video, a song by Jewel. The tour was in progress, but I was there early on so I did partake in the lion's share of it. I was craning my neck a lot to look at the mosaics on the ceiling, and there was plenty about the visit of Pope John Paul II in 1999. I often refer to him as 'JP2' as others have, since he had rock star status.
   My meal schedule is off on this visit, as I didn't have lunch until I got to the stadium for the Cardinal game in the mid-afternoon. The Cardinals beat the Marlins 3-2. Plenty of runners were left on base, same as Friday, but they scored enough to win. The errors were lower, which helped. I stayed in my seat for the first 5 innings, but the sun moved and I was right in the sun after a while in the upper deck. So I left my seat and didn't return for the rest of the game. I wanted to stay where it was cooler, and I found some places where one could see the action real well while being shielded from the sun. I was not alone, I could tell. There were heat warnings on the video board as well. Wanted to continue keeping score, and I did.
   After the game, I got a few more pictures nearby. Some were of the hotel downtown near the Tums building (yes, the antacid) as I recall staying at the hotel as a teenager with my dad. He thought I had run off, I just wanted to know which front desk was for the Clarion hotel. He stayed there as he wanted to get close to everything so he wouldn't have to drive much while in town. He hates to drive in big cities. I also recall him getting a 'wrong number' saying the caller expected a hooker in the room, per what the man's buddy said. My dad matter-of-factly said 'All I have here is a teenage son' so some comic might turn this one into a joke somehow.
   Also got some pictures of events at the Arch, where a festival was happening. I got up to the Arch and touched the bottom of one end of it. There was samples of a new kind of Pepsi nearby. The server wanted to see my schedule of events to see who was playing music on the stage at that time. Apparently, the headliner wasn't on just yet.
    After getting back to my hotel I did have dinner at the restaurant inside the hotel, and they did have toasted ravioli available as an appetizer. The manager came out to ask how everything was, I said I saw George Clooney's picture on the computers and was told that the movie 'Up In The Air' was filmed at the hotel. Liked seeing the TWA posters in the dining area, a holdover from their time doing plenty of business in the area. It was advertising many of the places the airline would fly to, a good number of them were international destinations. The airline no longer exists, bought out by American Airlines over a decade ago. The Rams stadium, the football dome downtown, once had the name 'TWA' or 'Trans World' but the naming rights were re-sold to Edward Jones. This was the sponsor of the replica World Series ring giveaway on Friday. The server heard my plans to attend a comedy show tonight and said 'don't bust a gut'.

Car In An Elevator

I have had some really odd dreams recently. One was about having my car in an elevator at work, next to a typical hauling cart for the office. How it got there, I have no idea. The next one was having 2 dogs in my home, but in reality I don't own any dogs. Then I was at a bar, and I spoke of how I 'fired a friend' and there was somebody who didn't understand why I had to do this. Finally I was at an event where somebody recognized me, and I asked for their name, it was Jeanette Gonlow Bloom. I was left wondering how and where I knew them. This is an unusual name. I usually analyze my own dreams, my best guess is these are things I had been thinking about quite a bit recently. I know I often think about my car, especially when it has been in the shop due to the check engine light but nothing found yet. The part about an ex-friend I think is due to me for some reason liking the sound of saying 'you're fired' as it is something often said in a drama part of a TV show or movie. I don't think anyone really enjoys being on either end of those words.
   I went to Auto Zone on University Avenue in St. Paul this morning, as my check engine light was on again, the third time in a week. I was told it was the O-2 sensor, for real. After I was done, I liked looking at the archival photos at the TCF bank nearby, as it is on the site of a former baseball field. I had passed by it before and had taken pictures of the marker, but knew there was more inside the bank. Though it was hard to tell if any of the inside photos were at all different from on the marker or the outside of the building.
     Then it was on to the airport, and my flight to St. Louis for the weekend. It is warm here, reached the century mark. I could tell how hot it was while walking from the airport to my hotel, and this was a fairly short distance at less than a mile. The same was true when I went over to Subway for a drink and cookies, after a break while channel surfing. So I had no problem deciding to take the airport shuttle, since it was offered at check-in. The shuttle takes guests there not just for flights but also to the light-rail system, known as Metro Link.
  I did take plenty of pictures already, like the rainbow effect when water was turned on from the fire hydrant near the baseball stadium. I got a pair of Cardinal socks at Busch Stadium, and went to my seat before getting food and drink. I did get food and drink at the Hardee's after 2 innings, it was on the same level as my seat. Actually there are two, the other is in the main concourse on the lower level. Love the Hardee's burger, and the drink was a strawberry shake. Also got up for water and a bottle of Sprite later on. A bank clock at the stadium had the temp at 87 degrees near the end of the game, still warm for nighttime. I liked seeing a group of drummers outside the stadium after the game, which the Cardinals lost to the Marlins 3-2. Three errors and leaving plenty of runners on base were the big causes. I said 'you're good, kid' to this kid who was likely no older than age 7 and part of the drumming group. He was doing a small drum on top of a milk crate. Some of the money from onlookers went directly to him, so I was not alone in feeling this way. But I left my donation in the main box for all instead of directly to one performer. I didn't mind taking the time to watch the drumline, as it also meant I had a shorter wait for the train back to the airport. The crowds can be enormous right after a game. Some panicked about getting on the 'wrong' train, as it branches off eventually. But I was quite aware of what train I was on, just wanted to take the first one available and get away from the crowds as quickly as possible. No big deal as long as one transfers at Forest Park or earlier. Then at the end of the line, which is the airport, a security guard gestured to us, or maybe just me in particular. I figured out he probably wanted to know the result of the game instead of just saying 'hi'. So I did a head gesture meaning 'no' since they lost. Earlier, I had company while online. It was somebody trying to send a fax at the copier next to me, he said it was hot in here. I said it was hot outside as well. I let him know I was at the Cardinal game, so we spoke about the Cardinals some. I like how sports can unite people, when at times few other things can. Same is true with knowing I noticed a man's southern accent when he let me pass on the stairs after the game. I asked Arkansas, I was correct, as he said he was from Fort Smith. But this is a regional team, I knew it was possible. Some might have been surprised to know I was there all the way from Minnesota.

What's Up Buttercup

I stayed a little later than typical tonight at work, which is common for being out of the office the next day. I want to see that things are caught up so I lower the risk of getting yelled at when I get back. Then my joke is 'I will get yelled at for using the term getting yelled at' since the supervisors say they don't yell.
    When I did leave the building, the escalator was blocked, as some kids were treating it like a toy. So I politely said 'I would like to go down now' and was told they didn't see me. I could hear them  later on repeating what I had said. It must have sounded funny to them, but I wasn't trying to be funny at all as I was tired. I've learned a long time ago to ignore things like this, no need to take the bait.
  I tried watching 2 episodes of 'Big Bang Theory' tonight but fell asleep in my easy chair. I knew the first one was about an easy chair that Penny, the neighbor, found on the street. I had seen it before, but it was worth seeing again. I liked her snappy responses to Sheldon's knocking on the door, 3 that went well together. It was: 'what's up buttercup, what's the word hummingbird, what's the gist physicist'. I finally got out of my chair after watching the start of 'Person of Interest' and took a walk around the neighborhood, including picking up trash I had found. When I got to the Superamerica I found a trash bin for it all. Also decided to keep 4 pull tabs from pop and beer cans as we've been collecting them at work for the Ronald McDonald House.
   When I got back I decided to finish the mustard container, there wasn't much left. I had to reach in with a butterknife of course. It was tasty, and I knew I needed to finish this one as I wouldn't start the other bottle until it was the only one in the refrigerator.
  I don't understand why Reggie Jackson, the Hall of Fame baseball player, was ranting so much in an interview. In his opinion, Twins star Kirby Puckett, among others, didn't belong in the Hall. It was mentioned on the late local news tonight.

Eagan Water Park

Saw the '44 Presidents' play at a Lutheran church in Minneapolis tonight. It was put on by a community theater group known as Pro Rata. It was really well done. Much of it was familiar from studying history before. Plenty of artwork for each president available there, but some had already been sold. Others were not for sale at all. It was displayed on the support beams of the church basement, behind the seating area.
   I got most of the jokes in it, like John Quincy Adams arriving to the tune of the theme song from 'Leave it to Beaver'. It came across as a joke about him being the unqualified son of a former president. Naturally, they were unable to go in depth on the presidents as there are so many, and it was a 90-minute play so it meant about 2 minutes each. There was an intermission, and even this I caught as a joke since it was right after the first term for Grover Cleveland was covered. 'We'll be back', and so was Cleveland, since he was president number 22 and 24. A constant drum beat about Lincoln being surrounded by death, first in his own life and then as the Civil War president, captured him well, along with being assassinated. It went in a loop, about all of those close to him who died, along with mention of certain Civil War battles like Antietam.
   I also made it to the water park in Eagan with my date, but I didn't bring my undies for after I was at the park. So even as I write these words, I am not wearing any. It still seems fairly comfortable, maybe since it is so warm. I liked going on the waterslides there, though I wasn't expecting one of them to be so fast, the enclosed one. So I had to duck right away, as it likely otherwise would have hurt more than the typical thing I deal with. This would be hitting my head on ceiling fans. It was crowded there, as expected, since it was a day off from work for many.

Completion of Suspended Game

A long night at the St. Paul Saints baseball game, as it was actually two games. First there was the completion of a suspended game from the past month, which began in the other city and was called due to the league's midnight curfew. It's not too often that one hears about this, especially when it was in the 7th inning by then, already an official game, and the Saints were leading as well. They went on to win it, but we didn't see any of it as I was en route with my date while it was happening. I got an email from the club about the plans for the night, and how the start time was moved up an hour. But since I was working I said I was keeping the same schedule. I need a good reason to knock off work a little early, and a baseball game usually isn't one of those things. A medical appointment is a more likely reason, and those are relatively rare.
  Naturally when there's the big annual 4th of July fireworks show, there is also the ceremonial events. Different military moms were honored, such as a 'Gold Star Mom' for those who lost a son in combat. I had heard of this kind of day before, such as when my parents got a big flag to display. There was a brochure along with it about the days to display it, and one of them was on Gold Star Moms Day. Don't recall for sure what month, but I think such a designation goes back to World War I, same as the Veterans Day observance.
 The game started late, and it became a high scoring one at 13-6, where the Saints beat the Lincoln (Nebraska) Saltdogs. The Saints trailed for a while but then had a big inning that put them ahead for good. Then finally, the fireworks. But it was well worth the wait for the fireworks, as it was a good show and playing music along with it adds so much to the experience. Much of it was patriotic, but it doesn't have to be. I liked hearing 'These Are Days' by 10,000 Maniacs at one fireworks show.  

Reboot The Sensors

I had the mechanic reboot the O-2 sensors on my car earlier today, after the check engine light appeared again. Auto Zone said this is what was needed. Thankfully it cost me nothing. While there,  I picked up a can of A&W cream soda they had in a little refrigerator. It reminded me of having to reset computers or copiers at work in the office, as shutting off and turning the machine back on can clear an error message.
   I got a text message from a classmate, still trying to figure out if it works to meet them while in town for the holiday this week. The friend likes the Nook in St. Paul, I've been there once. When I think of the establishment, I understand how it lives up to the name as it is small. I know it has the same ownership at the Shamrock, also in St. Paul. The Shamrock is a place where I have done comedy, but not in a while. Now I think I know somebody who is a bouncer there, a fellow writer.
  At the comedy club tonight, there was a guitar player who had his own versions of nursery rhyme songs that were meant to be pedophile jokes. Rare to see this kind of act, much like seeing a ventriloquist, but it is a nice change of pace. Best advice I was able to give him was to see that you're ready when your name is called. He seemed to be familiar with the rule about the timelight, so he must have been doing comedy for a while in other cities.

Moonrise Kingdom Movie

Saw the movie 'Moonrise Kingdom' at one of the Oakdale theaters earlier today, the more southern one. Liked it, plenty of jokes in it, probably hard to catch all of them when there were so many but I likely caught most of them. Good cast all around, I like Bill Murray, as well as Bruce Willis, even Ed Norton, as Ed was in 'Fight Club'. I could guess real well how they were going for the New England backdrop for the island, I was thinking Massachusetts but the closing credits said it was filmed in Rhode Island. Plenty of music by Hank Williams (Sr.) that I recognized. Directed by Roman Coppola, son of 'Godfather' director Francis Ford Coppola. I was already familiar with some of his work, as he has directed some music videos like Green Day's 'Walking Contradiction'. Other movie directors have done music videos as well, like 'Good Will Hunting' director Gus Van Sant. I was surprised how it was being shown at 15 different theaters in the metro area, as it seemed to be more like an independent movie which would get a limited release. But it made the top ten for the weekend in ticket sales, at number 8.
  I decided to change my profile picture on Facebook, to something more recent. Eventually I chose to crop a picture from the class reunion. At first I had to go back to Walgreen since I was given the wrong pictures on the CD, none of them were of me and all appeared to be from the 70's. But they corrected it , at no extra charge to me, so I was fine with it.
    I had two odd dreams this morning, one was while driving my car and I said to my date 'I'm about to go into the median' but somehow corrected it before I did. I may have been distracted like trying to read a map. It likely was due to a memory of skidding off the interstate and into the median in college, as it was a icy winter day. I wasn't hurt, thankfully. I learned to be more careful during winter driving due to it. The other was seeing a friend, we didn't talk at all, but I did talk to the friend's dad.