No Spoons for Lunch

I ended up singing the Alanis Morrissette song 'Ironic' after what happened at lunch today. For the second straight day we couldn't find any spoons in the breakroom. So I used a fork instead, for soup of all things. Naturally the song was slightly different, as it was 'it's like 10,000 spoons when all you need is a knife.' Before lunch I finished an online class that had just been assigned, and after lunch I finished the other one. Made up all of the time now after being late on Monday, with shorter lunches.
   Saw a friend at the comedy club tonight I hadn't seen in a while, asked for advice about my latest dates but I don't think he really gave any, but that's fine. It was nice just to see him again. Was informed by another comedian friend how he moved his open-mic night to Thursday, will make it easier for me to attend. It had been Monday, and I said things like comedy shows- along with movies and baseball games- are easier to do one a night.

  

Late for Work

I hated being late for work this morning, but pretty much expected to be when I had a horrible time trying to get to sleep. I think it was mainly the noisy neighbors. For this reason, I decided I was too tired to go to the comedy club tonight. I needed to get caught up on record-keeping and go through mail, shredding the junk mail, as well. Found out I missed a birthday celebration there, would have been nice to see. But we all must make choices from time to time. I did feel better after laying down for a while.
   I like finding music on youtube, and after seeing a comedian friend last night it spurred me to look up more versions of  'Tide is High'. Found 2 versions by Canadian rapper Kardinal Offishall, one of them was with Rihanna. Watched the Blondie version again, nice to see Darth Vader in it, that version was released in 1980, same as 'Empire Strikes Back'.
   A book I ordered arrived earlier today at the office, now I need to find the time to read it. This one is a 'Don't Know Much' book about literature, but it looks like Emerson Hough isn't in it. There are plenty of books in this series, even one about Abraham Lincoln. I already have plenty of Lincoln books, more than 10. I noticed one of them, 'Lincoln Conspiracy', was also a movie in 1977. Looks like some of the movie clips are on youtube, will have to see what is from the play 'Our American Cousin', the play shown when he was assassinated. Naturally I would still like to see the play, but it is hard to find. But I liked seeing the play 'Our Leading Lady' in the Carolinas in April, about the lead actress in the play, Laura Keene.

P-Diddy Reference

Tonight I was onstage and the comedian after me wondered aloud if I was just messing with people and was really P-Diddy in disguise, ready to speed off in a limo. I said 'not even close' but I liked getting zinged, who wouldn't? I had plenty of material ready from seeing my family over Thanksgiving. And from having 2 dates today, really had to rush to be on time at the comedy club since the second date was pushed back due to a change in venue. Hard to say what will become of the two, but I said my schedule is more available now since the holiday is over. I got the message earlier today about being offered stagetime and said 'yes I am in town, and I like the picture of your dog'- a bulldog- on Facebook.
   It was a fairly full day, along with doing laundry, which I did between dates and resting in my easy-chair. It feels good as usual being onstage doing what I enjoy and what I'm good at, and getting commendation for it. I've heard of 'hiding under a cloak of degradation' before, guess that described me for a while. When I saw a comedian friend tonight- same one that followed me- I said I thought of him when hearing a ska song this weekend as he likes doing music education. It was the John Holt song 'Tide is High'. I told the story how hearing it on a loudspeaker at a Walgreen- the Blondie version- was what helped me find the courage to ask a girl out. She didn't call me after I gave her my card, but I knew I had to follow through as I would have otherwise hated the song. I know this well how songs can bring back a bad memory or two, so I am careful about when I listen to music. Sometimes it means not turning on my car radio for a while.
   It is another reminder of what I am good at, recognizing music, since I've spent plenty of time listening to it on my car radio. I recall a fortune teller reading me well at the Renaissance Festival before, saying I have a talent for music. I said 'I know what I like'. I don't know if I have a talent for PLAYING music, which is what I figured she meant, though I've played some harmonica before. I see myself as a good drummer, maybe since it helps with working out frustration and I've often been just like a drummer in the roles I've held in life. Since I've often been the forgotten guy in the back, that still performs an important task- I was a dishwasher and janitor while in school. It is a good callback to that 'cloak of degradation' - since I'm probably selling myself short if I still think of myself as just a 'drummer' in life. If I'm onstage doing comedy I'm a frontman as well!
   I just read how actor Leslie Nielsen has died, I liked how they mentioned serious roles he did before 'Airplane' and 'Naked Gun', like 'Swamp Fox' or a 'Tammy' movie. I recall an official with the Swamp Fox festival in Marion, Iowa, telling me the story about trying, unsuccessfully, to get him to be the grand marshal for the parade.

Cold, Disappointing Game

I went to the Iowa-Minnesota football game today, a cold game and disappointing as Iowa lost 27-24. Playing most of the game from behind didn't help, and I'm sure the pundits will hang it on the onside kick from Minnesota early on, giving them more confidence. I ended up walking back to my car after the game, took a bus over to the game from across the river. It was a university walkway over the river that I had never walked on before.
   I didn't do much before or after the game, rested a lot. Main reason was to save on my energy. I woke up with diarrhea in the middle of the night, then threw up in the morning. What I ate at the Hawkeye Huddle the night before apparently didn't agree with me. But I said it would take more than that to keep me away from the game. I picked up a generic version of Pepto-Bismol at Walgreen on the way to the game, wanting some 'insurance' if you will. Though I seemed to feel better shortly after the nausea passed. Didn't end up eating much today.

Running Around Town

Just listened to 'Run This Town' by Jay-Z on Youtube. Found one of my bandannas and I am wearing it now while writing, inspired by the look in the video. One friend from work is still surprised about the interests I have in music, but I have a wide range of interests. It took a while to like rap, but much like alternative music it tapped into my emotions and is very therapeutic. Also tonight I went to a used CD shop and got 'Pisces Iscariot' by Smashing Pumpkins. I did get 'Adore' and 'Machina' earlier, all are replacements for the versions recorded on cassette tape by somebody I once knew in suburban Chicago. I had enough time to listen to "Iscariot" tonight, I like 'Landslide' on it but knew few of the other songs. Did this after the Hawkeye Huddle in downtown Minneapolis, an event done before Iowa road games. I've done these before and like the people I meet there, one of them had an "Iowa native" shirt on, and I knew my classmate's brother is the company owner. Liked hearing 2 Lady Gaga songs there, 'Poker Face' when arriving and 'Paparazzi' near the end. It reminded me of seeing my aunt over this Thanksgiving, and she called Gaga 'an idiot'. I like needling older people about Gaga, since they're too old to appreciate her talent as an artist. She's the latest version of the 'temptress', like Mae West, Marilyn Monroe, and Madonna before her. Also liked seeing an older woman grooving to 'Get This Party Started' by Pink, definitely made me grin.
    It was a nice drive this morning after the holiday, liked how I made fewer stops than on the way there. It was 2 instead of 3, but when nature calls you answer it. Staying in a hotel worked just fine, I was more comfortable and slept better with the heater on. Saw 'Pretty Woman' on cable, liked certain scenes in it like when Edward played piano only for strangers and the pillow talk where Vivian said the 'bad stuff is easier to believe'- sad but true. I was on the road around 8am on Thanksgiving and made it to my destination, West Des Moines, around 12:30. My uncle said he didn't know if I would make it, but he sent the Facebook response to my earlier message after I began the drive. My sister was there for a little while, and extended lunch away from work. It was nice seeing my dad, though he is old-school. After checking into the hotel I eventually made it over to the casino and had a drink there, couldn't find my friend who works there but I sent him a message on Facebook saying I had been there.

Waiting to Venture Out

I was checking the weather report often this week, and it still sounds like waiting to hit the road for the holiday is the best gameplan. The evening news spoke of a road closure in Iowa on the road I am planning on driving. And there was plenty of snow already as I was getting off work. So I stayed in tonight and watched a movie, 'Planes Trains and Automobiles'. Seems appropriate when it's about trying to get somewhere for Thanksgiving. Called a friend of mine tonight to wish them a happy holiday, we spoke for about 8 minutes. I am pleased that I have permission from them to do jokes about them, but I'm still not sure about following through with it. I prefer keeping them as a friend, so I usually don't do jokes about friends. Maybe this is why many of them are about exes and myself.
   I showed some artwork to a colleague today, it was of an Amtrak train that I drew when I was 8. This was after riding the train to Chicago for a family vacation, the San Francisco Zephyr. Realized I drew it more like a stretch limo than a train. A former boss and mentor said it looks like I drew all women as passengers, I said 'maybe all of the men are on the other side'.
  

Bearing Gifts at Work

Odd things happen all the time at work, today that was bearing gifts related to the company's Health Ahead movement. I chose the bar of soap as I will need another one soon.
   Another notable event was telling the colleague, the theater man, about my interest in seeing a play called 'Triple Espresso'. I had a card from its run previously, when I had missed it. There will be a nearly 2-month run of the play so now I need to figure out when to make it. As expected, it is 5 dollars cheaper on lower-demand nights, that is performances not on Friday or Saturday. So I see myself going on one of those days. I did the same when I saw the world premiere of 'Little House' at the Guthrie 2 years ago. The caricature of 3 men on the card reminded me of one thing I had heard before, how former 'MASH' castmember Mike Farrell is involved with it somehow or was at one point.
    Went to the comedy club tonight, one comic looked a lot like filmmaker Michael Moore, another was a large man who was from Oklahoma and he had a joke about automatic doors I liked. I did one thing there I wouldn't have done 2 years ago for multiple reasons. I made a call in the bathroom to my date from the past weekend. I didn't have a cellphone 2 years ago, was just getting started with comedy and online dating (on a serious level) at that time as well. Proof of how things can change. I felt tired at work, so I decided to lay down for a while after work before going out and felt better as expected.
  I'm checking the weather report periodically and it looks like I am better off waiting until Thursday morning to start the drive for the holiday, which is what my original plans were.

Displaying More Artwork

I did some more cleanup around my home, and decided to display some of my artwork that had been in storage for a while. I like how it looks, flanking the TV and next to my easy chair. Near the TV: Lady Gaga painting, Cardinals Gashouse Gang, Norman Rockwell's painting of a man asleep in a fishing boat, Grand Vin de France 1919, Fight Club, and Chat Noir. Liked having a few French ones of course. The ones next to the easy chair are cartoon puzzles, Charlie Brown, Shrek, and Pinky & the Brain. I moved some of the books and put more of them on the bookcase I have. I got an empty box of copy paper for all of my CDs that didn't fit in the cases I already had. Also put some art on the table where I write this blog, one was an essay contest certificate and the other being a poem called 'Follow Your Dream'. The Serenity Prayer, inherited from my grandma, is nearby. As the Sheryl Crow song suggests, the change will do you good. Guess I needed some motivation and got it, from one of my comedian friends doing the photography project.
    It was actually an afterthought to do the cleanup, I was on my way to the comedy club and stopped for fuel and couldn't find my wallet. So I went home and still couldn't find it, checked my coat pocket and it was there, I am used to it being in my pants pocket. I recalled how when boarding the bus tonight I put the wallet in the empty box next to my lunch bag and Star Wars backpack, this confusion did contribute to my misplacing it. Another factor was the freezing rain, I needed time to scrape frost before going anywhere.
    There were 2 notable things at work, one of them being my computer was replaced, finally. There were two previous delays. It also led to some cleanup, I don't dust much behind it and it was suggested moving the nic-nacs to a file cabinet above it. I will see them more often, when it's open of course. And I tossed out about 50 FEDEX packages when told they are not eligible to be recycled. I had saved them for over a year, thinking they may have been.
   The other notable thing was a colleague constantly grimacing in pain, especially in the shoulders and back. So he took an extended lunch and went to a chiropractor, much improved. It was definitely more notable than my boss returning after more than 2 weeks on leave due to surgery, she put in a half day and I don't think I even had the chance to say hi to her.

Using Available Space

Felt good about getting caught up on sleep, literally. I did some errand running as well, like get batteries for a portable CD player, the remote control for my DVD player, and the digital camera. I found 3 duplicated books to donate, but as expected I didn't make it in time to the donation place. So I got groceries nearby and headed home. I had dinner and then drove to the comedy club, but not enough people so the show was called off. I did see a comedian friend there and she followed up on a Facebook comment thread. She's a photographer and spoke of a project where she photographs comedians in their homes.
   One of the good things about the show being called off was having plenty of time to do some cleanup around the home in anticipation of the visit. I decided that I needed to use the available space a lot better, and it meant putting more in the closets like newsprint and magazines. It looks way better now, but there's still a ways to go. With any project, though, it helps to take pride in how far you've progressed. It helps keep you motivated and focused.
   Another notable find from the cleanup was a radio I was given when entering the 2005 College World Series. Probably hadn't used it since it was given to me, opened the back to look at the batteries and one was rusted, then the spring came out. So I decided it wasn't worth saving, hated putting it in the trash but I really had no choice. Must think of my safety and health.

Abraham Lincoln Books

Tonight I decided to go through my books and see what all I had, as expected I found plenty about Abraham Lincoln. There was 15 in all, looks like 2 were the same one, different printing, from the Carl Sandburg series. I already knew about having 2 copies of 'Uncle Tom's Cabin' so I guess I will donate both duplicate books soon to a secondhand store. I had bought plenty at stores like Goodwill in recent years, they're cheap there and some are hard-to-find.
   I have the books better organized by category than before. Some of these categories are: Charlie Brown, traveling, writing, baseball, French, self-help/psychology, biography, and history. None of these categories surprised me much, since these are all interests of mine. Anybody who knows me knows I have had my struggles over the years, and have tried to find answers in self-help/psychology books. I think this is because it was hard to know who to trust, and the therapist I had didn't have many answers for me. I liked how she recommended that I try writing, but in other areas she was little or no help to me.
   I know what prompted me to go through these books, it was watching a college football game- Notre Dame vs. Army from Yankee Stadium in New York. I had bought a book from the History Book Club in 2008 about the events at this venue, and wanted to see again what was in there about the series. There was one page about the 'win one for the Gipper' speech. During this game they did go through the history some, and I liked seeing the archival footage.
  It was a busy day all around for me, I had an oil change done on my car nearby. When they finished I was still reading an article in Sports Illustrated about Joakim Noah, a pro basketball player, so I stayed a few extra minutes to finish it. I had seen him play for Florida in the college basketball tournament a few times, I recall how he had that competitive fire but sometimes couldn't rein it in when needed to prevent this attitude from being costly.
    Then it was on to Kohl's at the mall to use a gift card, and to get an outfit for a first date today. Got a green shirt and pants, to replace ones that were getting ratty or stained. This is my first pair of corduroy pants in a while. This first date went well, meaning there will likely be a second one. We went to a Chinese restaurant I hadn't been to before a few miles away, then to a hobby shop across the street. I said I wanted to get to a gamewatch with my fellow Iowa alums, so that is when the date ended. Iowa led at halftime but couldn't hold on to beat Ohio State. I had 2 beers and some cheesecake, since it was between meals. I was reminded of why I don't go often- besides the cost of food and drink. There can be some obnoxious fans there, one of them kept standing up and blocking my view of the screen.

Lily Tomlin Movie

I watched a DVD I found at the library, it was a vaudeville/variety show starring Lily Tomlin called 'Search for signs of intelligent life in the universe'. There were a few lulls in it, but there were some great observations made in it by each character, like how 'all we know is what little we know about what it all means'. Or 'creative without talent is like a perfectionist being unable to do anything right'. I had hoped it would be a comedy show, since she is known for comedy, but this still came across as intelligent which I liked.
   I had the day off from work so I could attend a mentoring event at a local college. Learned something as usual, like the Piper mascot being a reference to the 'pied piper', another German story like the Brothers Grimm tales. My student was absent, said he might be out of state visiting family. But I liked getting to know who was assigned me for the day, said he was interested in studying journalism and writing at Columbia U. in New York. I spoke of my interests in writing, like the blog.
  The event was done by the early afternoon, I had hoped to get more errand running done than I did after it but was tired and wanted to get home. I did scout out the location of my date on Saturday, wanted to do a dry run so I was familiar with the neighborhood. It meant parking my car and walking around, since it's at a slower pace and one can see everything much easier this way. When I got home I slept a little and woke up in time to watch 'Jeopardy', I may not know every answer but more than half which is good.
   Besides watching the DVD there were other things I got done this evening. One of them was ordering a book from the club, I had two books from the 'Don't Know Much About' series already and will add  a third, about literature. Used some bonus points and free shipping offers, so it will total less than $10. First order since March, third of the year. I did thin out the envelope some more to keep the articles about books I wanted to read the most, ones about the Civil War, Great Depression, and the West. Emerson Hough would be proud that I kept some about the West, some were people he wrote about.
   I used the 3rd of the Taco Bell coupons tonight, this one I didn't get a receipt as the clerk said he needed to keep it as it was a free meal. If I steadily use these then it will be no problem finishing all 20 by next June, like 2 on the weekends whenever possible. Hopefully I won't grow tired of Taco Bell by then, I know some of my comedian friends like to do jokes about it.
   Another notable thing I did was check Facebook and see a comment I knew I should respond to, since I am well-read on history. It was about a college football game that will be played at Wrigley Field in Chicago, Northwestern vs. Illinois, and using just one endzone for safety reasons due to the brick walls there. I said there had been plenty of football played there before, as the NFL's Bears have this name due to playing at Wrigley, with the Cubs, for decades but moved to Soldier Field in 1971. Bears even played one game at Northwestern in 1970, so it's coming full circle. Found out the article was much shorter than the version in the paper, though it was an update of sorts that wasn't in the paper. Upon a closer look at what was online, I found it was a blog instead of an actual article. With the version in the paper I liked how it covered the football history at Wrigley, calling it the 'long-ago home of the Bears' and the first college game there since 1938, DePaul vs. St. Louis. Those 2 schools no longer have football programs.  It is a notable weekend for college football venues, as Indiana-Penn State will be played at the home of the NFL's Washington Resdkins and Notre Dame-Army at the newer Yankee Stadium. I know the latter  matchup had been played at the older Bronx stadium, it was mentioned in a book I picked up covering the history of the venue in its final season.

ALL CAPS, lower case

One online match sent me a message in all caps, except for her email address. She went right to email stage due to her trial membership running out soon. This is in direct contrast to my writing style, using lowercase whenever I can. Sadly I don't think it will go anywhere, as I checked where she is online, and it's 60 miles away. I prefer matches being 30 miles away or less. Should have checked it before accepting the match, most of the time I do that.
   I stayed an hour past my normal leave time today at work to see that I was caught up before being out on Friday for a mentoring event. It was a high-volume day of special requests, but I wanted to prove I could do them on my own. It meant I was home just in time for prime-time TV. Wanted to watch both of the Charlie Brown Thanksgiving specials but 'Big Bang Theory' was on opposite the first one so I switched over after 'Theory' was done.
    I did some more shredding of catalog pages from a while back, I had been ordering some history books but the club no longer sends out catalogs. There were some pages worth reading- describing the books- even if I didn't buy the book, others were reminders of books on my list. Still, I haven't ordered a book from there since March. Though the recent purchases reminded me of ones on my list, especially since one was mentioned in a book I just bought, about being a similar theme. Thinning out the envelope does make it easier to find the ones I really wanted. I've piled up some bonus points due to my previous orders, would like to see if I can use any of them.

Droid Troubles

I liked the line 'trouble with your droids?' from one of the Star Wars movies- Empire Strikes Back. I've said it before when machines broke down at work. It happened at the end of the workday, few people around to do much about it. So I moved to another copier and emailed people to keep them in the loop about it, toner bottle was full and I don't know how to handle that.
    Checked my cellphone messages after work on the bus, and there was one about a book I ordered from Garrison Keillor's store last week, already in. Hadn't finished reading the one I bought last week, about 'The Simpsons' show. This one is called 'Idiot America', I think I will like it as well. I'm trying to get into the habit of checking my phone after work, at times I don't check daily and it's because I get a low number of messages.
   Read with interest about the recipients of the presidential Medal of Freedom, there was an email about former St. Louis Cardinals player Stan Musial being honored. It is described as a lifetime achievement award, unfortunately like many other awards sometimes it's given posthumously. This was true for Jackie Robinson, awarded more than a decade after he died. Musial will be turning 90 soon, and I found out from the Wikipedia article he has had presidential honors before. He retired at the end of the 1963 season, and served as President Lyndon Johnson's physical fitness advisor for a few years. Then he was the Cardinal general manager for one season, 1967, when the club won the World Series.
  I was pleased that a colleague asked me if I was a history major, he must have heard me mention it to others. He sent me a link to Gutenberg for online books, and spoke of a biography of President Abraham Lincoln written in the 1880s. I know his law partner William Herndon was a biographer, but this one has a different author.

Gift Cards

I had ordered 2 gift cards last week through my employer's reward system, they arrived today. It was the Kohl's card, and the Red Lobster card. But that's not all. The card I won as a prize from the 'company wing-ding' this month arrived as well, for a grocery store. So it was a bumper crop of cards today. I put them in the envelope where all the others are, saves space.
    Looks like the first date is on for Saturday, offered her a Chinese restaurant nearby. Enjoyed seeing one of my friends at the comedy club tonight, he said he would be competing in a comedy contest out of state this week. It feels good to have made friends from going to open-mic nights, though I wish I saw more people I know more often. I was informed how one of them lost his job in the past few months, guess he would have less money to be in bars. I liked seeing his 'entourage' as well.
   A notable event today was taking a call at my cubicle. Nothing unusual there, except I decided to go underneath since I didn't want to have anyone hear me speak my social security number. It would have been a funny story if anyone had walked by during that time and asked what was going on. When I had done this before my then-boss thought something was horribly wrong, since all one could see was my legs and feet coming out from under the cube. I stayed there until the end of the call, it is kind of comfortable when on your back.

Bagels

There were bagels at work, celebrating something but I don't recall what. Since I had a light lunch due to the high workload, doing special requests, it did me well to have 2 bagels. It got a little sticky since I was using some jelly as the spread, then ate them while pulling files. Made it through the day just fine, which I liked. Nothing left over for the next day.
  Sent a picture to one online match, said she couldn't see any pictures as a trial member. Since there was a low battery on my digital camera I was unable to find out-without some serious guessing- which one was the one with my dad. So I sent the first one on the CD, with some friends from school. There was plenty of messages exchanged with one match this weekend, inquired about having dinner soon but still waiting to hear from her about it. Made it to the comedy club as well, had hoped to see more friends there but I did see one, and said I would like to do another comedy duet soon.

Fitness Center

I made it to the fitness center today, first time in a while, maybe the first since I started the blog. It's free since it's through my employer. I like going on a Sunday, free parking and I have the place to myself. Decided to go to a different grocery store after it, since it's cheaper than the one in my neighborhood. Used the second of the Taco Bell coupons, at halftime of a football game I was watching today. So there's 18 left! Sundays are nice, usually very little that needs to be done. Reminds me of a Bangles song 'Manic Monday'. "wish it were a Sunday, that's my funday my I don't have to run day."
   When looking up my hometown of Newton, Iowa on youtube I was surprised to find 2 things- fights at the VFW, and a news story about actor John Ratzenberger appearing 3 years ago in Iowa advocating against outsourcing. Too little, too late for the Maytag plant, it was just a week before it was closed. Yes, this was Cliff on "Cheers".
   It was nice making it back to the comedy club tonight. There may be some promising matches from online dating, hard to tell at this point. I think the activity is due to the free communication period, but take it how you can get it.
  

Facebook movie

I saw the Facebook movie, 'Social Network', tonight after much of the snow had fallen. I liked how references were made to Napster in it, how that site changed music much like Facebook changed networking. This is true, as I don't listen to CDs much anymore, since I can find plenty of songs on Youtube. I decided that seeing the movie served more than just the purpose of seeing a movie that I had wanted to see. It also gave me more time to figure out the snow emergency routes here, about what streets and sides of the street you can park on to avoid getting ticketed and towed. It just meant looking for the signs, easier to do on foot of course. So I parked my car in a nearby lot and walked around to get a good look at the signs. And yes, I did make seeing the movie a status update on my Facebook page, seemed appropriate on many levels.

Taco Bell Coupons

This summer I won some Taco Bell coupons through a contest on TV, the 'word of the day' on syndicated reruns of 'The Office'. There are 20, at first I was going to turn them over to my boss and let her decide who gets them, since it said 'lunch for 20 people in your office'. But I got no response, so I figured I was on my own with it. Tonight was the first time I had used them, may want to use some more this weekend since I only have until the end of June to use them. I know why they weren't used for a while, they were in my desk drawer at the office. No locations close to work. This is one of many times where I switch having things between the office and home.
   I thought about going to see the Facebook movie tonight but didn't get around early enough, since it's Friday I decided to read the paper. I get it once a week for the sports standings and the movie times. Also got caught up on record-keeping and paper-shredding. It also included writing out a check for the utility bill. Guess the movie will have to wait another day.
   It was a fairly ho-hum day at work, at the end of the day it meant getting caught up on some paperwork- like insurance benefit elections-  since I would have more free time this week than the next.

Veterans Day

There were multiple events marking Veterans Day at work. One of them was a patriotic costume contest, though just 3 people entered it. I said to one of them how I wondered if the World Series was beginning as they were wearing bunting. Another thing was writing to service personnel. I did this in the afternoon after the payoff reports were finished. I marked the day by wearing a Desert Storm shirt, and my Navy p-coat that a college roommate gave me. I don't wear the coat much now since the lining inside the sleeves is torn. It's an old coat that belonged to his dad, Korean War-era.
   Having one colleague in my department has led to me getting more intelligent conversations, which I like. I learn plenty from him, we discussed an Oasis song and it reminded me before how he said 'what's the story morning glory' was slang. But I had forgot to look it up then. I looked it up tonight online and found out it refers to sex and drugs, at least as British slang and it's a British music act.
   The other would be how I had a gift card for a bookstore and hadn't used it yet. I've had it since February. It's for Common Good Books, owned by Garrison Keillor, and I had a hard time fitting it into my schedule especially when it's in a neighborhood of St. Paul I'm not too familiar with. Looked up the store hours online and found out they're open until 10 pm on most days, which made it easier to go there after work. Made it there tonight and got a book about the TV show 'the Simpsons' and ordered another called 'Idiot America'. It should arrive in a week. I had read about the latter one in a catalog I had been sent this week. So it is nice to get something crossed off my list.
   

Red Ribbon Day

I almost forgot to wear red today for the Red Ribbon events, but saw the reminder form in my backpack this morning when putting a book in there to read while riding the bus to work. There was a seminar about teen drug and alcohol use, I thought the main speaker wasn't as articulate as the other two since she kept saying 'and,um'. When somebody does this they aren't very sure of themselves and haven't practiced their material well enough. Some of the things depicted were familiar, as I saw beer bongs in college. Didn't know what one was when I went off to college, was a little naive, had to learn quick.
   It did remind me of a cop talking to us about drugs in 6th grade, as part of the DARE program, but I was informed that DARE has suffered from lack of funding in many places. And I recall 'Red Ribbon Week' in high school. It got me into a picture on the front page of the paper as I was one of those who wore black stripes in the shape of an X, representing those who were killed in drunk driving crashes. I knew that somebody would want to shut me up, and yes it was somebody who was dressed up as the Grim Reaper who gave me those stripes to wear.
   It was a routine Wednesday evening, after getting off the bus I sent two items from the office to a donation bin bear my home. It rained off and on tonight, including on my way to the bin. Picked up some laundry soap at Walgreen, since I finished up the bottle this past weekend.
   Also at work, I got caught up on some paperwork, like submitting another time off form and ordering 2 gift cards after getting an award at a meeting recently. I decided to go with the staples of life- food and clothing- this time, last time it was a bookstore card at Barnes and Noble. I ordered a Red Lobster gift card, and a Kohl's card. I haven't been to a Red Lobster before, but it should be a nice reminder of my vacation in Boston in 2001 where I had lobster for the first time. And it helped me see some of the places where my favorite movie, 'Good Will Hunting', was filmed. I made sure to see the historic sites and a baseball game as well.

Skewered and Seared

I was onstage tonight, what I like about comedy is being able to skewer exes, it's therapeutic. I called the latest one 'scatterbrained and loopy', since she forgot I was going to be out of town for the weekend even though it was why we met on a Thursday. It flowed a lot better than the last time onstage, since I made sure to commit it all to memory in terms of the jokes I wanted to do. I forgot some of them last time and covered it up with laugh breaks and running my fingers through my hair. I also promoted a friend who would be on later, saying I was privileged to do a comedy duet with him recently. I was helped on remembering one about my dad by a coworker, since my dad liked saying 'getting seared at Sears'.
   There are likely a few more dating stories I can tell soon, like the match who said she wanted a ride to a concert. The match went away, may have been just a 3-day free trial. It wasn't a musician I knew that well, but I would have welcomed making it back to my old neighborhood in suburban Chicago, where the venue is. The tickets for the Michael Buble concert seemed to be scarce and expensive, only scattered single tickets on Ticketmaster and well above face value on Stubhub. It was a fairly routine day at work, got the forms back today for some Fridays off next month. Need to use up days before yearend as I am unable to carry them over.

Helped a Rookie Comic

I decided to help a rookie comic who was asking me questions tonight, it's my version of 'don't ask, don't tell'. If they don't ask, I don't tell- them about things like the 'red time light'. I'm flattered when people look to me for answers about the craft. They didn't stay for the entire show, but I thought they did fine while onstage, though a joke about exorcisms when I'm not Catholic was largely lost on me. Much like when I saw the movie 'Dogma', my college buddies who had went to Catholic school understood the jokes better.
    I was a fill-in, or role player, at work today. It meant doing my least-favorite duty, special requests. But I did fine, I just don't like having to do so much copying of documents. I just told myself it was for only one day, then back to my 'normal duties' for the week.
    One new match from online dating did raise some eyebrows. She said she was mainly interested in a ride to a concert in Chicago early next month. At first I thought, 'why doesn't she just rent a car?' Then I realized I don't think quite like others- she wants a companion, idiot!  Most people like to share events with others. I know I once rented a car to get to a concert- Pearl Jam at Alpine Valley, Wisconsin, my first year in Illinois. I checked the performer's website, it is actually the suburban arena, just a few miles from where I lived so it's my old neighborhood.  I did attend a few concerts there when living nearby like Billy Joel/Elton John, Everclear/Matchbox 20, and No Doubt. So I would welcome a visit there, but reminded myself to have expectations in line with reality. I never meet most of my online matches, the percentage is right now still about 1 in 250. But it will be a good story to tell if it does happen, reminding me of some of those road movies I enjoy since I like traveling a lot.

Penpals

I decided to respond to a message from somebody in France about penpals. There was mention on a website I frequent about somebody from France wanting one. The responder said her grandson would like one, sounds like he attends a prestigious school in Paris and is a resident of the French Riviera when not in school. I had to translate the message from French and then translate what I wanted to write since I wanted to write it in French. I mentioned how I studied the language in high school for 4 years but was out of practice. So we will see how it goes, I am hopeful to get better at French in exchange for helping somebody with English.
  There was still more chores and errand running to do today, such as laundry and a few more dishes. Also watched a DVD called 'Crude', about a lawsuit against an oil company for contamination in Ecuador. Since much of it was subtitled from Spanish it didn't interest me as much as I thought it would, and I was nearly falling asleep during it. This tends to happen when comfortable and tired, I was on the couch while watching it.
   Went to the comedy club tonight, but the show was called off, not enough people showed up. So I got caught up on some record keeping.

2 Dark Rooms

Went to a comedy show tonight, and a movie. So I spent time in two dark rooms. Odd how I referred to Rogers Hornsby, the baseball player, on one of the reasons I said I was fine with just attending the first comedy show. Hornsby was known for saying he didn't attend movies as he was afraid being in a dark room for an extended period would damage his vision and make it harder for him to see the ball while at bat. Also odd, since I made a spur of the moment decision.  I looked at my watch and said I had enough time to drive to a movie theater to see the final showing of the night of  'Inside Job', about the economic crisis of 2008 and narrated by Matt Damon. I had wanted to see it earlier in the day, but got to the parking ramp and it was full. First time I could recall this happening to me at this theater. So I had a Blizzard treat at the nearby Dairy Queen and picked up some toilet paper at the Walgreen and left. I then drove to a Blockbuster where I found a documentary I missed at the theater, along with a Misfits wrist band. It was a band I had heard about from a comedian friend who likes doing music education on Facebook. I will admit the band's name is a drawing card, since I have thought of myself as a misfit before, but then again, who hasn't?
   To be accurate, I did more than just attend the comedy show. I was asked to help bring pieces of cake to people as there was a birthday celebration, and I lit candles inside the globes on each table. Then at the end of the show after the headliner I was asked to say a few words, something I had asked about in advance. Surprised to get the opportunity! Guess I can do well unrehearsed, it helped that the headliner was still there and we were more like a duo, where I was the ham and he was the straight man. It was a benefit event for a fictional disease, which was part of the joke, like doing Robert Frost on Facebook and looking like a college professor on public TV. Must be why somebody honked at me while I was in my car after the show, must have recognized me from being onstage. I get that more often now and I am getting used to it since I like the recognition.

Lunching With a Leader

I had a rare opportunity to lunch with a senior leader today. It was somebody I had known already as I had taken the time to find out his favorite baseball team is the same as mine. We're all people, and there's no need to be in awe or afraid of anyone because of their job being higher on the ladder. I knew well enough to do plenty of listening, as I learn more when I listen more. What I learned was he had played tennis in college at Ball State. Usually I had just seen him in passing before, so even though we spoke it wasn't for long since he is a busy man. He can be out of the office often, traveling to other locations, in fact he said he was doing that next week. Before we went to a lunch counter that had a judge theme- including pictures of people like Oliver Wendell Holmes on the wall- I noticed a picture in his office. It was with baseball pitcher Rich Gossage, now in the Hall of Fame. He shared in other areas as well, like how he met his wife and when, college buddies and how some of them are divorced, even handling his dad's finances more after his mom passed. Proof that it  was well worth it to put in the entry for the 'lunch with a senior leader' drawing through the United Way campaign. Might have had minimal competition for it, but who cares?
   Part of the evening was spent getting caught up on chores like doing dishes and trash and recycle, along with going through mail and shredding some of it. Not much fun, but I need to do it regularly.
   

Company wing-ding

There was a company event today, I call them 'wing-dings'. We got to leave work to go to the lower level where it was held, some food and drink and music and games. It was a chance to talk with some people I don't see that much. More fun than redundant training in the morning, since we had some similar training already earlier this week. There was no truth in advertising on the length as well, going 35 minutes over. Made it harder to deliver things in a timely fashion, likely why some stayed away from it.
   I think Emerson Hough would be proud again today, since I went to Caribou and got some 'somersault' granola treats. There was a cowboy on the bag and it said 'Santa Fe flavor', and of course New Mexico was where Hough was a lawyer and started as a writer. The same is true with leaving a comment on the 60 Minutes story about Newton, Iowa. I said the E.H. school closure- mentioned in the feature- was a story as well, in terms of the shady politics over what school was closed. And I said I would have liked mention of Hough being a Newton native, a western writer that became Teddy Roosevelt's friend. Hard to say how many will see the comments, but I'm doing what I can to educate people about Hough. I noticed how Donald Trump made the story about Newton a talking point on Fox News, but that doesn't being jobs to town. Too many people have already made it a political football, and it appears this will continue.

Another Recount

Some people recall the recount for the Senate seat two years ago, well it's happening again, this time in the governor's election. I turned in last night and no winner had been delcared, and nothing in the papers either. Online there was mention of how the margin was narrow enough to trigger an automatic recount under state law, since it was just under one half of one percent. Though the margin is larger than in the Senate race. Both had third-party candidates polling more than 10 percent of votes cast, making it more likely there would be a recount. When a colleague heard it he asked if it was a political rant, I said no. It's news, and it's civics! When in school we are asked to name office holders like the president and governor. One should know how government works.
   More relevant to my family and friends circle, I found out the family friend was elected to office in Iowa, state representative. Though the margin was closer than I expected, 51-49, since he was running against a newcomer.
    In the same online publication I am seeing more follow-up stories to the '60 Minutes' feature. The Domino's Pizza owner is getting donations from people nationwide and decided to give away pizzas to people on the street. While I do like hearing feel-good articles like this one, it's jobs that will get the town  moving again. When people talk about the positives of small-town Iowa, they mention just about everything EXCEPT jobs. The thing I am hearing from people is that not enough of the positive things were covered. Well if one doesn't have a job, will they be able to think about what positive things exist in their life as easily? No! Even one of the people interviewed at the American Legion said all they cared about is jobs. I concur. When I was unemployed for a few months after graduating from college, I hated how I couldn't afford to do anything or go anywhere. People like to feel useful and productive, and jobs help people feel this way.
    What I'm afraid of, although I hope it doesn't happen, is that the media attention will end up being just a band-aid solution. I know this is what was the case in Haiti after the January earthquake. People cared as long as it was in the news about helping the people, then many have short memories and move on to something else. This time, at least, I liked how it was a domestic story, as I am an 'America First' type. I believe in helping out our own people before we help out anyone else. I mostly care about what affects my countrymen, my fellow Americans. It's way more relevant to my life.

Two Seminars

It was an unusual day at work, had two seminars to attend, and they were back to back. There are many days when there aren't any meetings to attend. The first was about insurance benefits, and I left it a few minutes early since they were just taking more questions by then and the main presentation was finished. during this brief interlude I saw one colleague wanting to ask me something- correctly predicted it was
about Stefani Germanotta (Lady Gaga's real name) as this is a common subject. It was the song 'Alejandro', I had said it was my favorite. Even if it's good dance music, I don't go out dancing much and music sometimes is good to listen to without having to be good dance music. On Monday we discussed the song 'Straight Up' by Paula Abdul. Also referred to an interview with Smashing Pumpkins frontman Billy Corgan. I like trying to let him know I do like a wide variety of music.
   It was Election Day of course, and I voted after work. Liked seeing how they had ballots for the kids, can recall doing mock elections when I was a kid. I paid closer attention to the online directions when finding my voting precinct, compared to the August primary. And I went from memory as well, on the shortest way when I made it back home back then, which was likely more important.
   Still some buzz in my hometown after the '60 Minutes' feature. There was an article about how Donald Trump called the mayor, though no mention yet of any serious offers to bring business there.

Prize Winner at Work

I got back to the office, and found out I was a prize winner. It was from the United Way campaign, lunch with a senior leader. Sounds like it will be later this week, may not have had much competition, but who cares how I won? Will try to make the most of the time available.
    I put up a sign about the '60 Minutes' feature at work, actually just using the other side from my 'out of office' sign, and informed a few people about it. Heard from a few classmates as well about it, many of them said it made them sad. I felt sad as well as numb. One Facebook friend said there has been many calls already, hopefully some legitimate offers will be made. I read through many of the comments on the story, and as usual some of them stray too far from the subject and some are just plain bickering, especially about partisan issues.  And still way too much finger pointing. Guess I should have expected that, unfortunately it's human nature: blaming is easier than doing something about it.
   On my way to the comedy club I stopped for a sandwich at a convenience store and was surprised there were giving away Tootsie Rolls, the clerk said it was left over Halloween candy, not enough kids showed up on trick-or-treat night. So I had some.