porky's restaurant farewell

i made it to porky's restaurant in st. paul tonight after seeing a feature on the 6 p.m. news about how it's closing in a few days. nothing like media attention to attract a crowd. the feature said the wait was 30 minutes for food, it was more like an hour when i went tonight. things were a little disorganized. i ordered a pulled pork sandwich, then was told they were out, would get a cutlet instead. still got the pulled pork though. ordered fries and tea as well, but got pepsi instead of tea. i was not alone on bringing a camera and taking pictures. also signed a memory book, one signer swore at the owner. i spoke of how comedian louie anderson's book 'dear dad' mentions it since one of his sisters worked there. it was sad, but thankful i witnessed it. some were angry, blaming light rail. decided to pick up a souvenir as well, but i already have too many shirts, coffee mugs, and travel mugs. i got a money clip for $5 instead, still nice to have along with the receipt of course.
   also saw a feature about jokes, whether or not ones about race and religion and gender are offensive. it was at a comedy club i go to often for open-mic nights.
   busy day at work, i stayed a few extra minutes to complete a payoff report that arrived late in the day. when i got on the bus tonight after work i saw a nearly full bottle of nestea, so i got it from under the seat across from me and took it with me at my stop. i emptied it in the dirt and then tossed the bottle into a trash bin. i pick up other people's trash all the time, i definitely have civic pride and hate to see litter.

car wreck dream

i had an odd dream this morning, something about going in reverse in my car and then crashing more than once. then i was found trying to lay down near the entrance of a bookstore, whatever that means. i usually analyze my own dreams, i know i often have a chip on my shoulder from how it was hard to get my license as a teenager since i was dealing with some impossible people who wouldn't teach me, or didn't want to. but since then i knew i had to try way harder than others and became essentially a self-taught driver. often when i am in the car by myself and make some quick turns real well i say 'drives pretty good, don't he sarge?' a line from 'smokey and the bandit'.
   i was onstage tonight, was given 3 minutes and ran it a little short but it went real well. much like when i opened for a friend on saturday, and did many of the same jokes. why not if they work?
   before the show i went to the grocery store to get a fruit tray for a potluck at work on thursday. same thing i brought to the last potluck, since it's simple.

laundromat ants

I saw ants at the laundromat tonight, though it wasn't the only notable thing i contended with. there was also a man who was probably homeless asking me if i was the owner, maybe since i picked up the trash on the floor. but i said i once was a janitor and hate seeing dirty floors. it didn't take that long either, much of it was dryer sheets and i decided to use 2 for my own laundry. he said the venom from an ant can paralyze, and was trying to tell me how make balding happens due to being around computers, the 'microwave effect'. and something about lasers as well, don't know where he was getting all of his information. still amazed at how inspirations for comedy and writing just seem to fall into my lap.
   laundry was moved back from sunday, too busy that day. but it meant having to do it shortly after getting off work, which i didn't like since it left no time to rest up a little before going to the comedy club. but i didn't want to wait any longer on the laundry either. one man showed up and asked about the show, i said it had jsut let out for the night.

drivein theaters

for some reason i looked up drivein movie theaters today online. there are just 4 left in iowa, my native state. one of them is near my hometown of newton. but the last time i recall seeing one was 'rocky 3', which has definitely been a while. but i'm thinking about getting back to one this season. the novelty of eating at a drivein A&W restaurant gets me to one at least once a summer, but that doesn't translate into the same style of movies.
   saw many of the regulars at the comedy club tonight, and picked up a small resuable shopping bag and shirt advertising a movie called 'arthur'. saw some of the posters for it already.
    

waiting for superman

I did watch 'waiting for superman' earlier today, as expected i enjoyed it. there was plenty about michelle rhee, the D.C. school czar, who tried to change things but ran into too much resistance. even did a text message, after it was mentioned in the movie. sending the word 'possible', and it asked for a zip code. as the saying goes, 'think globally, act locally'.
   it was one of 5 things i wanted to do today, got all but one of them done. there was 2 movies to see, otherwise i likely would have done all of them, didn't get laundry done. did dishes and groceries. also found an article about my hometown, about the 'Fort Emerson Hough' playground in my hometown, how its future is in doubt. one of the reasons is vandalism.
   the second movie was at a film festival in Minneapolis, a biography about Hank Greenspun, who seemed to be like a Forrest Gump, a part of many historic events as a Las Vegas newpaperman. Would like to see their movie about baseball, but sold out and a waiting list. there may be a second showing later on, due to the demand.

redbox rental

i'm still evolving and willing to change. today that meant trying redbox for the first time. i decided to try them since blockbuster didn't have the movie i wanted, 'waiting for superman', and started wondering what options were available. and i found out redbox is simple, signing up online, and locations are everywhere, like places i already go to such as mcdonald's and walgreen. haven't watched it yet but plan on doing so on sunday. had no time tonight since i was opening a comedy show in minneapolis for a friend, and it became a date as well. my set went well but the comics after me had a tough time, dealing with a heckler.
  also notable was doing taco bell coupon number 15, for lunch. but again, no receipt. still seems to depend on who the manager on duty is as to if i get one.

don't stay too late

but that's just what i did, unfortunately, at the office tonight. wanted to get caught up on work, and stayed nearly an hour past my normal leave time.