Parking Ticket

Wasn't thrilled to get a parking ticket on my car when I went out to do laundry tonight. Had hoped it was just an advertising flyer. All I did was park close to a crosswalk, but it does appear to be one of the cheaper fines available. Somehow I avoided tickets this winter, in spite of all the snow emergencies. Will try to learn from it on where to park. I'm sure a comedian friend has done a joke about it.
   Tried to call a college roommate tonight, he was tired and advised me to send an email later on. We spoke for just over 6 minutes, and I was allowed to do much of the talking so I knew something was up.
   Bought some Civil War stamps at lunchtime today, had heard there was some available as it's the 150th anniversary. There was just 12 stamps on the sheet instead of 20. There were 2 kinds, Fort Sumter and Bull Run. One of them will get used right away, as I am sending in 2 receipts from the writer convention for reimbursement, 2 meals from the first day.
    Looks like the state government shutdown will be happening, no agreement yet on the budget. But I found out the concerts at the zoo will go on as scheduled despite the zoo being state-owned. I have a ticket for a show there in August, Big Head Todd.   

Across the Road

Went to the comedy club tonight, couldn't find a parking spot at first so I went across the road. Part of the lot was being re-paved. Didn't know as many of the comics as usual, but I definitely knew the headliner. Went out to my car right after the show ended, he went out to say hi to me and no I wasn't ignoring him. I know at some point this will become a joke, since it meant having to cross a highway that can have plenty of traffic at times. Signed up for a comedy contest there, since there was a page on a clipboard. But I didn't think of asking the when and where, but will likely get the lowdown on this soon as I gave them my cellphone number and email address.
   This time in the morning after stepping off the bus I got a picture of the controlled demolition across the street, on my digital camera and not my camera phone. Unsure what they will be doing with the skyway connection, for now it is still up.
    We had a picnic-type lunch at the workplace today, in celebration of the July 4th holiday a little early. I had 2 hot dogs, there was also different types of chips as well as fruit on a tray.

Night at Roxbury Imitation

One of my friends got the idea to do a 'Night At The Roxbury' imitation, unsure why but it was nice to do more than once. I'm thinking he may have heard the song at some point.
    As expected, I am gaining some Facebook friends from the convention in Detroit. One of them friended me earlier today, I accepted. Need to send out some requests to others.
   Got a camera phone picture of a controlled demolition near my workplace, I am told it is happening to make way for the light rail. It isn't thrilling how the downtown area will be torn up for 3 more years though.
    Getting tired in the afternoon is typical, but it was rare for me to decide to leave and take a walk to a convenience store to get some cookies, tea, and postcards. but it worked. The postcards weren't in the original plan, but they looked cool, including the 'spoon sculpture'.
   

Hi To Myself

The postcard I sent myself from Detroit arrived earlier today, liked trying this for once. Recall it being suggested in a travel writing class, as a way of remembering the travels. I said it was 'the 313, Eminem's hometown' on a plain, blank postcard, along with mention of things like historical markers and square dancing.
    Went to the comedy club tonight, there were shirts and posters from a movie called 'Horrible Bosses', starting in less than 2 weeks. It stars Jason Bateman, Jennifer Aniston, and Kevin Spacey. Probably will be better than 'Arthur' from April, another 'free shirt' day, still haven't seen it yet.
     Almost hate to admit how I kept laughing at the show closer swearing a lot, and using the same word, but in this case it was funny, when he spoke about junk food and fast food on the road.
    Work was busier than typical, due to one colleague who was out of the office, but it was fine with me as the day went by more quickly. A group picture for a volunteer event around the noon bell was a no-go, the AA claimed nobody accepted the meeting invite but it must have been an I.T. issue as I did get a meeting reminder when it was about to happen.

17 Canadian pennies

This was the final day of the convention in Detroit. We had a few things to vote on but not much was left. Had to check out of the hotel early since the shuttle took me back to the airport before the session was over, but there were 3 others with me and some left before I did.
   Notable about being at the airport was deciding to get rid of more of my Canadian pennies. so I pitched 17 more in the fountain at the Detroit airport, one at a time, on top of the 3 from when I arrived on Thursday. Decided to keep a few, but not many. Gave me a good reference point about checking the 'evolution', for lack of a better term, about every 9 years. This includes one from 1949, which was george the 6th, an odd reminder of the movie 'King's Speech' since I didn't find it again until after seeing the movie. All of the others are lizzie 2, since they are much more recent.
   I did get 2 more snoopy statue pictures for the project, at MSP airport. Had to ask for help on it but no big deal, one was in the main concourse and the other next to a playground near some of the gates.

Banquet and Readings

Finally got to some voting on resolutions, so I liked being more active in the process. Also like hearing the debate and being more informed about what it entails and the effects. Got some more postcards from a convenience store nearby, one reminded me of a comedian friend doing a joke about 'being over a barrel'. Many are asking about me doing comedy at the party tonight, must do it if allowed as my public wants me.
    I did email the event coordinator stating my interest in doing comedy, or reading poetry. At first I was told I didn't meet the deadline, but some really wanted me to perform, so it happened. We had a few who canceled out anyway, one delegate was unable to attend as he was injured in a car/bike accident just days before the convention. I was the next-to-last performer, doing 2 poems. Seemed more appropriate to do writings as it was a writer convention. It was poems about Lady Gaga, and Emerson Hough. I started off with saying there likely is something funny about me wanting to do poetry about Lady Gaga. I said the Hough poem was more personal to me since he's my inspiration as a writer.
   With the banquet in the evening before the readings, I at first asked about tartar sauce for the fish. But then I said I didn't need it if it meant having to wait a few minutes to get it. I said it was better food than what I normally eat, as I do often eat plenty of TV dinners at home.

The Art Museum

This is my first full day at the convention, liked the buffet this morning. Had some froot loops, thinking of the ex-friend from high school who called me 'toucan sam' and 'big nose'. Nice how I'm able to turn a negative into a positive. May want to get it into my comedy routine. Wearing an Eminem shirt today as an undershirt, seems appropriate when in Detroit. There wasn't much to vote on today in our legislative session, officially called the 'plenary'. Once I asked what it meant in the schedule of events, I knew I would have little time for events like a Tigers baseball game or a play about Tiger broadcaster Ernie Harwell.  It's fine with me, as I had seen plenty of museums and sporting events in 3 previous visits to the Motor City.
   Liked seeing the art museum tonight, we took a bus over there. There was a nice Diego Rivera mural there and a group of fiddlers performing. I didn't want to stand for long, so I went into another room and started to look at the art there. There were some Van Goghs, Renoirs, and a Mary Cassatt. I liked seeing her painting at the Chicago Art Institute, the one of the woman bathing her child. The Picasso cubist paintings didn't do anything for me, but I got a postcard for answering a survey. There was even a Warhol there, of Mao Tse-Tung.
   There was a speaker while we were having dinner, she took off her glasses often and then would put them on top of her head, then put them back on. Lost count of the 'up-down' total. We were given a gift card of $15, enough for the dinner in the cafe. I bought 2 more postcards with it, less than a dollar was left and I turned it in as requested. I think one of my fellow delegates wanted it as they had organized the event, wanted the refunds.
    

Detroit Convention, Day 1

Got up early this morning to get a flight to a writer convention, arrived earlier today. New delegate orientation is in a few minutes. Already met a few delegates on the airport shuttle. Liked seeing some historical markers downtown, when I went to mail a bill.
   I wanted to mail the bill before leaving town, but couldn't find the right time and place to do so since I didn't want to miss connections anywhere. I had to speak up to security about needing to make the early flight out of MSP, after another traveler did, and we re-directed to a shorter line whiuch was nice. Made it to the gate just as final boarding call was announced. Unsure if this checkpoint is available later on, or just in a pinch. Lucked out how when I arrived at Chicago O'Hare and checked the monitors for the next flight. It was at the same gate, so I did end up with enough time to go to the bathroom but little else.
    The markers were of the Shrine Circus, Salvation Army, and Christopher Columbus. I hope to find the time to get pictures of them while in town. Also saw a sculpture honoring Joe Louis, the boxer. It was his arm, with a fist already made.  

Wrong Bus

I got on the wrong bus after work, lost an hour as I had to double back and wait for the right one. Didn't watch any TV tonight as I was busy after getting home. Also didn't go to the comedy club. I was busy as I was getting ready for being out of town at the writer convention in Detroit. I wanted to pick up a few items I needed at Walgreen, like a bigger memory card for my camera. This was done after wanting to look through all of the emails and see that I understood all of them well enough. I was getting inundated with convention emails, and decided to print the ones that looked important like resolutions. With others, I wrote down helpful information about where the shuttle would be picking me up at the airport. It of course will be more relevant once I get there.
   Wanted to get a good night's sleep, but I didn't retire as early as I wanted to. As usual. I packed in a rush and had a hard time figuring out what I needed most. In addition, I was trying to go with a smaller bag so I didn't have to check it and then go to baggage claim.

Coupon #20

Used coupon number 20 for Taco Bell tonight, got them done before expiring at the end of the month. No receipt, got copies of the last coupon, and took a picture of the sign. I had my contest night at the comedy club, didn't win but liked getting laughs at some new jokes. I just liked getting the stage time and competing. A few friends were there supporting me, didn't know any of the other 4 contestants that night. There were meant to be 6, but there was a no-show, much like my night last year. One of them was a late arrival, the manager said late arrivals would go first. It was a blind woman, who brought a cheering section. Almost thought my beer wouldn't arrive before I needed to go backstage for the show, it was busy since the server said there was just one bartender handling orders.
   There were 2 performers after the contestants, one of them was a friend from open-mics and he was funny. The show closer was the closer from open-mic this Monday, he wasn't that funny. Tried too hard.

Denny Hecker Auction

Checked more online articles and found out there's another Denny Hecker auction scheduled for today, including the Linus statue he sponsored. It would have been a long drive to the auction site, just for a picture, so it's just as well on not knowing about it any earlier. Figured there wouldn't be any more, since he's in jail now. there had already been 5. Also notable was a family of 4 bronze bears, according to the article those stood outside his mansion in Medina. One of them, the biggest, doesn't fit all the way on the pallet, just 3 of the four paws fit on it. The other 3 bears fit on one all by themselves.
    I did a warmup for the comedy contest tonight, got some good ideas about what works and what doesn't. It means dropping the one about not having friends in high school, heard an 'aw' and it was hard to ignore. I was told I was doing an 'unplugged' session after the show, which helped me with some other ideas of what to add. It was in response to one comedian friend doing a joke about a bumper sticker, that was on my car. He didn't know it was my car.

Cave Tour

Saw the Wabasha Street caves tour in St. Paul today, nice to get that one crossed off my list finally. Got a few more Charlie Brown and Snoopy statue pictures as well, 10 more for the weekend, now up to 64. One of these was a Snoopy outside the cave. After the tour we went to a drive-in on the east side, a Dari-ette, with Italian food. Liked seeing metal tray holders there, no need to have the tray resting on the car window then.
    Made it to a documentary movie about baseball, nice how the crowd clapped at the end. Reminded me of seeing the Beatles movie 'Hard Days Night' when it was re-issued to theaters while I was living in suburban Chicago. The movie we saw was 'Jews in Baseball', and it did cover the likes of Hank Greenberg, Sandy Koufax, and Moe Berg. It was a little graphic when there was footage of a player being beaned in his first major league at-bat.
    The cave tour ended with me getting a postcard as I pointed out how there was a disco ball up. Liked seeing some pictures of some gangsters on the wall there, like the Ma Barker gang. I am more interested in doing the gangster tour at some point, which begins there and lasts about 2 hours.

College World Series

Went to a sports bar to see the opener of the College World Series, Vanderbilt vs. North Carolina. Vanderbilt won 7-3. I had seen the opener the past 6 years, but it can be expensive to go to Omaha each year. especially with the new venue, looks like tickets on stubhub are way more. Bush 43 was being interviewed during the broadcast, couldn't hear it but I was mainly there to see the game anyway.
    The date continued into the evening, as we watched a DVD, one of mine, 'Cinderella Man'. Or at least we tried to, near the end the disc kept skipping so I think I will want to replace it. There was a big scratch on it, bought it previously viewed.

VFW Birthday Party

Went to a friend's birthday party at the VFW in Minneapolis, but I left early as I was tired. There was thunder and lightning while driving home, at times the rain was coming down so hard it was tough to see. But I know well enough to be careful while driving, the main thing is getting home in one piece and I was in no rush to get home anyway when there was no work in the morning.
    This was one of the many Facebook invites I get for shows, I liked seeing many of my comedian friends there. I liked how one of them did a favorite joke of mine for the first time in a while, where he speaks of a sports coach who's much like the trainer in the 'Rocky' movies. I likely could have gotten stage time had I thought about asking well enough in advance. But of course I don't always know how I feel from one day to the next as to if I want to attend a show, there are some nights where I'm fine with not going anywhere as I want to rest.
    I ended up parking on a street that is familiar to me, and making a short walk over to the venue as I often go to the Lagoon theater nearby for the arthouse movies I like. It also served as a reminder of what I looked up recently, how the VFW was founded by veterans of the Spanish-American War, and Philippine Insurrection. American Legion was founded by World War I veterans. My hometown had a post for both organizations.

Rihanna Concert

Went to the Rihanna concert at Target Center in Minneapolis tonight. The show closer was 'Umbrella'. I let out a primal scream, had a nice time there. For some reason I thought of my visit to New Orleans, which I have called a 'benchmark' in my life. Maybe since I was enjoying myself much like in the Big Easy.
   There are some likely reasons why, since I liked 'Live your life' and was pointing to myself often when it came to 'my life'. I did listen to some songs I didn't know on youtube before departing for the show, it helped fill in the gaps and I knew a higher percentage of the songs being played. I wrote down about 15 songs, as it would help with the review I want to write on Ticketmaster.
   There were 2 opening acts, I saw the second but not the first. Ceelo Green did 'Forget You'- the dirty version. The show, as expected, was about promoting the new CD, so some hits like 'S.O.S.' were not played but most hit songs were.

King Tut at Science Museum

I went to the King Tut exhibit at the Science Museum in St. Paul tonight, I liked the actual part about the 'boy king' himself but there was plenty before it that wasn't as interesting to me. I was familiar with Howard Carter finding it in the 1920s, the history behind finding it was more compelling to me. I bought a few postcards when it was done, and found a smashed-penny machine as well. It was a company outing so I liked getting released early from work to attend, at 2pm. And they bought dinner, we got in about 10 minutes before they stopped serving. It was fairly basic fare, hamburgers, hot dogs, and grilled chicken along with desserts. There was a healh fair, and it ended with plinko chips after finishing the journey card and I got a movie gift card. We are also up to 54 on the Charlie Brown and Snoopy statues, as me and my date went over to the Eagan community center before the company event. I added some of the pictures to my Facebook page, 7 of them now.

The Cards Arrived

The business cards arrived, called earlier today from the office and found out. Went over after work to pick them up. This was why I was a little late at the comedy club tonight. But I wanted to have them ready since I figured my comedian friends would like some in order to find the blog. So there may be more traffic soon, as there was some demand to hear about where it is.
   It was packed there tonight, the finals of the contest. I asked the event coordinator about where to sit, since I didn't want to stand for the entire show. I was asked to follow a comedian friend to a back section where we'd be sitting right behind the judges. I laughed a lot, and one judge turned around to find out who it was.
   I did some volunteering at work today, but it meant giving up nealry half of my lunch hour. I made sure to do it after I had returned from mailing a credit card bill. I said some things were better for me to do than others, so I said no to sewing and the like. I was squirting shampoo and conditioner into these little plastic cups, and somebody else was capping and labeling them, my 'cube neighbor'.

Stayed Longer Tonight

I stayed longer tonight at the comedy club compared to previous Mondays, but still left before the show was over as I was tired. Liked seeing a comedian that is a Facebook friend there, who was in town from California. She was in demand, many others wanted to say hi. Just by listening I found out more about how she was a native of the area. It also reminded me of how since I was friended about 2 years ago after a show I have made great strides in doing comedy. For this I am thankful. I am no longer relying on notes like then, found out I was good enough to go from memory. Informed one friend of being in a contest next week, he hopes to attend.
   It was busier than expected this morning at work, which was fine with me. One colleague was out of the office until mid-morning, and more work meant the day went more quickly. Walked a little during lunch, found out the covered wagon I found and got a picture of is still there, possibly for the longterm. Thankful I found it again. Felt bad about being so busy how I didn't get my laundry from Sunday out of the basket until after I got back from the comedy club, but sometimes this can happen. One must do the best they can.

Tagged Pictures

Tonight for the first time I tagged some pictures on Facebook. It was a favor for some friends, and it was from their going-away party I attended on Friday. It also meant tagging myself, including some from a while back like when I was at the Field of Dreams in Iowa last August. I added 8 photos, 5 were from the party. The other 3 were from the Killebrew memorial service, a covered wagon I finally found again, and a Snoopy statue from Charles Schulz hockey arena.
   This weekend I helped my lady get our quest up over 50 statues, finding 13 now at 53. This included the 5 at the pharmacy in South St. Paul. We were able to get those 5 today. It was the most we've seen anywhere so far, same as at Lafayette Park. It was a reminder of being there for Kaposia Days last year.
   We also went to the Saints game today, they beat Gary 3-2. It was a day with a Jewish theme, honoring Hank Greenberg's 100th birthday, a baseball player with Detroit. After the game, I did a favor by getting a fountain drink at a convenience store while dinner was cooking. I pay attention to music nearly everywhere I go. At the store I heard a song that sounded familiar, looked it up later and found out it was 'Your Beautiful Soul' by Jesse McCartney. No relation to Paul, the Wikipedia article said he had been on soap operas.
   I got all of my errand running done after dinner, the pictures were sent to the one-hour photo place then I went on to do laundry. After that was groceries.

The MGD Box

I went outside this morning to get the paper which was still in my car, saw an empty box that once held bottles of MGD. I like picking up litter, and it held plenty of it like empty water bottles. Then I walked to a big trash barrel and put it in there. And went back to sleep as I woke up earlier than I wanted to for a Saturday.
   When I finally woke up to greet the day, a few hours later, I got around to doing a Facebook posting. It tends to be infrequent as to when I give status updates, need to be inspired to do so. It was about the movie 'Super 8', I said I was disappointed when finding out it had nothing to do with the hotel chain of the same name. Read about the movie online, found out it was a sci-fi movie and I don't see many of those, except for 'Star Wars' and a little 'Star Trek'. I had heard of the movie '8mm', apparently this one is called 'Super 8' for the same reason, the film being used.
   I went to see a friend in the early afternoon, found a few more Snoopy statues, a project I am helping with. Tried to go to Wabasha Street caves in St. Paul, was turned away, informed there was a private event. Inquired about when it was available to the public again. Despite this, we still got 8 more. Two were in the Hispanic neghborhood, 3 in Woodbury, 1 on the east side, and 2 more on Grand Avenue. Pro-X Pharmacy had closed for the day, will have to try again on Sunday.
    In the evening we saw a DVD, 'One Fine Day', starring George Clooney and Michelle Pfeiffer. I liked it as it was a screwball comedy, and I like Clooney. Liked hearing multiple versions of the song that became the movie's title, one of them by Natalie Merchant. Felt bad when we were out on a  dog walk, as my date fell and ended up with a skinned knee. Since I was unable to prevent it from happening. Though I was told I could have done very little about it.

A Friend's Going-Away Party

I went to a friend's going-away party tonight, at a comedy club I've performed at before. Showed up before most did, stayed for a while. It's a reminder of what I'm thankful for on doing comedy- the sense of community, as well as the circle of friends. But also the sense of pride on finding the courage and confidence to do comedy, as I've found the courage to do many other things because of it. Actually it was 2 friends- a couple- that is moving to California to pursue comedy, writing, and education. I ended up with 4 books they were giving away, as well as some good pictures on my camera, and some cake. Did it seem appropriate for it to be raining tonight? Maybe. I think 2 songs I heard will help me remember: 'Boy Named Sue' by Johnny Cash, playing at the bar. The other? 'Bottoms Up', heard it on my car radio after it was over while driving home.
   It really moved me and touched me by how much the guests of honor enjoyed having me there. I've been to going-away parties before, but this one I think will be memorable for a long time. In a positive way, of course. I felt modest about it and wanted to say 'aw shucks'. Borrowing a line from 'Wizard of Oz' played a big role, 'I will miss you most of all'. Reminds me of how I once sold myself short, many years ago, thinking I had flaws like those book/movie characters. Telling myself I was a Tinman and Cowardly Lion. But nothing could be further from the truth. I've proven it before, finding courage when others couldn't, and having a heart as well. It's just that I sometimes wouldn't let others in, wouldn't know who to trust. Thinking no one would understand, but then I understood nobody trusts me if I don't trust them. So if I were to borrow a line from the same movie in terms of how I felt, it would be the Tinman. 'Now I know I have a heart, because it's breaking'.
   This is also the day I found out next year's class reunion will be at the American Legion, and I bought 2 shirts at lunch. One of them was a Ford Mustang shirt, as I owned a Mustang in high school and college. But I already know it's a day best remembered because of the friends I saw.

Inundated With Resolutions

I have been inundated with resolutions related to the writer convention in Detroit soon, and decided to print as many as possible. I decided to support 2 of them, simple ones in terms of lending support to our 'brothers and sisters'. It's nice being able to read through all of the comments and be able to understand what they are and how people feel about them.
   Some of them were funny, but also 'sad but true' more than likely. One of them responded to a resolution saying that the chapter submitting it was 'making a mockery of the process'. Since their plan was to change the bylaws. It reminded me of a 'Flintstones' episode where somebody said 'can't change the bylaws' at a water buffalo lodge meeting, the lodge that Fred and Barney belonged to.
   I didn't print all of them, was running out of time since the deadlines to be a co-sponsor was coming up soon. But I did make a list, or maybe a scorecard, so I could fill in the gaps on my knowledge of which ones were already printed and which ones weren't. Since many were jsut building on previous comment threads when responding to them. This really helped me out, since I could easily write 'have it already' next to its column, and then the 'yes' or 'no' as to if I wanted to support it.

Land of Confusion

At work today there was an article about the centennial of President Reagan's birth. It made me think of the song/video by the band Genesis, called 'Land of Confusion', which made fun of Reagan. I recall it being 'spitting image' puppets, and he was dressed up like Superman.
    Two notable items arrived in the mail today, one was a critique of some poetry from a contest. One of them liked what I wrote more than the other. I was pleased that they liked the 'Ode to Lady Gaga'. I'm thinking Lady Gaga might be interested in it, so it means sending a message on Facebook. The other item was the school paper from Roosevelt High School in Minneapolis, as I had bought a 'shout out' at the Mosaic Festival last month. I decided to do a 'shout out' to Emerson Hough, who was Roosevelt's friend. And of course my inspiration as a writer.
    The writer convention is coming up soon, I have seen plenty of messages in my email account related to it. I will also want to find out what I have the time for while there besides the convention, as I also like baseball, history, and comedy.
   I did go to the comedy club of course tonight, after calling my college roommate for advice. My cellphone shut off as the battery power was gone, so I let it recharge while at the club. I was next to somebody who made a joke about my denim jacket, though I had heard them before and even shared one.

Century Mark

I was informed the temperature reached the century mark today, was hard to tell but I know I was too warm with a denim jacket on at lunchtime so I took it off when walking over to mail the phone bill. One colleague spoke of biking in, so it would be warm for biking home.
    Made it to the comedy club tonight as usual, a contest was ongoing. one comedian friend sent me a message on Facebook saying he was surprised to see me gone so quickly on Monday, I was tired and just decided to go home before the show began. Still getting comments on the 'fame thread'.
    This was a rare time when I ate at the club, normally I eat before getting there but couldn't find the time. I had the 'blue lucy burger', and like the flavor of the blue cheese in it.

Need a Ride?

While walking at lunchtime today I saw somebody get offered a ride while I was waiting at a light to cross the street. I commented how they must know them, and she said yes, he's a comedian. I said I knew what it was like to spend time around comedians.
    Saw a big guide dog on the bus this morning, and it was warm today. When I was driving over to the comedy club after work I heard the traffic report on the radio that said there were parts of the road that had buckled, so I decided to take a slightly different route. Didn't want to be late again like I was 2 weeks ago, as I like getting signed up every week. I didn't stay long tonight, which has been typical lately. Got a few responses to my Facebook posting about fame, though too few of them were serious, but what else can I expect from comedians? Sometimes I forget I'm around them, in terms of the responses I get. It's led to me thinking things out differently, knowing how many things can easily be turned into a joke. Not too busy at work today, assigned special requests for the week.

   

Toy Train Museum

I went to the Toy Train (or Model Railroad) Museum in Bandana Square in St. Paul today. It was fun to see these again, brought back memories of going to a similar place near my hometown, called Trainland USA in Colfax, Iowa. I thought of my dad, as he knows railroads well, and I think he would enjoy seeing this place. I got some small souvenirs, 2 postcards and a button. Later on I went to an Old Country Buffet in nearby Roseville and was spotted by a coworker.
    After that I eventually got home and decided to redeem more of the 'cash' from answering surveys for airline miles. It had been piling up and I hadn't redeemed much until I got a message last month saying one could redeem once a month now, so now it's 1,000 miles in June after 2,000 miles in May. I plan on doing more next month, which will knock down the balance to a level where I likely won't have any redemption options for a while. Fine with me, looks like it was close to expiring near the end of the year.
  

Business Cards

Did some errand running, including ordering some new business cards today. Wanted one with a quill pen on it, looks cool. Also scouted out locations of Snoopy statues. It led to finding 6 of them, I feel good about getting the total even higher. Four of these were in Maplewood, 2 at a bank and the other 2 at a hospital. Plenty are in the suburbs, so still not that far to go find them.
   While on this search I ended up at the Liffey, a pub near the 'X', in St. Paul. I was spotted by somebody who had recognized me from doing comedy at Acme in Minneapolis. Made me feel good, though I didn't think I was famous by any means. I will be asking my comedian friends on Facebook to share their stories of fame. It does remind me of the quote by Andy Warhol, how everyone is famous for 15 minutes.
    In the evening on my date we watched a DVD, 'Return to Me', a romantic comedy starring Minnie Driver, who was in my favorite movie, 'Good Will Hunting'. I liked it as it had a setting in Chicago, and of course I once lived in the Chicago suburbs.

Preacher on Bus

After work today I took the bus home and heard somebody 'preaching' on it, saying 'God Bless' to all those when they were leaving. Odd how he spoke of his religious faith being stronger than believing he was actually on a bus!
   In the evening I went to the mall and used a gift card for the Gap and got myself a pair of khaki pants and some nice socks, replacing some pants that were getting ratty. After I was done in the fitting room an employee was there waiting for me, I asked if there was anything about me that led to her interest in what I was doing and was told it was just her job. I said it was a new thing to go to a Gap, usually I go to a place like JC Penney. I thought about using another card, at an Express store, but their sale prices were higher than what I normally pay. I do recall at one point getting a postcard from them advertising a discount, and it was due to their higher prices compared to other stores apparently. I was better off with just using one card at a time.
   There is some other errand running I want to get done this weekend, especially Saturday. Like pick up some baseball tickets for a game in a week. I'm sure I will get it all done, but it helps to do things like make a list to remind me. I tend to get more done this way. I get bored dealing with petty squabbles at work, the office politics. More fun to discuss things like getting a discount code for ordering baseball tickets after answering a survey.

4 Eminem Videos

I just watched 4 Eminem videos on Youtube, for some reason I had an urge to watch them after checking email. I must have been thinking of one in particular, 'the Real Slim Shady', where he says 'please stand up'. Sometimes we all have multiple personalities. I also watched 'Beautiful', memorable to me since the demolition of Tiger Stadium is happening in the background. Then there's 'When I'm Gone' and 'Mockingbird'. I like how the music is really personal, the most successful art tends to be the most personal I've found out. This has been proven when I'm doing comedy, and of course writing. One is best writing what they know. I thought about watching a few more but I hadn't seen most of those lately, the others are more recent like 'Need a Doctor' , 'Not Afraid', and 'Love the Way You Lie'.
   There was a meeting at work today where I was the note-taker, I take it seriously and got it done by the end of the day. Also notable was seeing a repairman who came in to service the copier, near the end of the day he asked me about favorite sports. Found out he's an ex-Chicagoan like me, so it was more than just sports that bridged the gap. I've said it many times before, we should try harder to find out what unites us instead of what divides us. The president said the same in January when in Arizona for the service after the congresswoman was wounded, and he's right.
    I hadn't called my college roommate in a while, but I did tonight as I needed advice and he was very helpful. I should probably call him more often but I try to figure things out on my own if I can.

Savings Fell Short

Thanks to Facebook I found out about more media attention related to closing Emerson Hough School. A big deal was made about how less in $100 was saved in utilities there, and how the wrong school was closed. I didn't like how the feature was short, some things were left out such as how things like pay raises for some were done while others were laid off. But hopefully it will remind people how this issue isn't going away. I trust there will be more media attention around the time of the school board election in September.
   I made it to the comedy club tonight of course, after falling asleep for a little while after work. Some said it went well for me co-hosting a show recently, I liked hearing it. Also waiting to hear about an itinerary for attending a writer convention soon.