cherry cordials

I went to cub foods after a date tonight, as I needed a few things. I got a TV dinner, and cherry cordials, from little Debbie. I had one already and it tasted fine. my date was still with me at the time as we both needed some things. guess it was a big deal since I think it was my first date in 3 years. we ate at Genghis grill in Eagan, a place I went to every so often when I had been in a relationship. when I arrived the hostess recognized me, then I had to find out why. it was due to my date arriving first and showing my picture so I could get recognized. the hostess said she had also seen me perform recently. I wanted to talk about that more, but I said I didn't want to talk about it with my date as I don't want to be 'in character' all the time. I said 'it is just something I do' although I will admit I like being recognized for performing. I liked how I covered a wide variety of subjects with my date, it is not too often that I get this kind of intellectual stimulation. it was likely a good idea that I didn't talk about my family much, aside from when my dad broke his leg slipping on a wet floor at a movie theater. I still sometimes tell that story, because I had to see this movie after hearing about the story. it was '10 things I hate about you'. I didn't do much after getting home, watched 'blue bloods' and then fell asleep watching the news. by then it was nearly midnight, it was cold outside and I figured I wasn't going to get around on time to go sing karaoke. so I put in a DVD and watched a charlie brown special about valentines day. I think it was a later version, after schulz died.
    the weather was likely why I didn't get out all that early today. I watched some episodes of 'different strokes' that I found on youtube, some of them were the 'cautionary' ones. but around midday I went out to pick up a few things at Walgreen, and then lunch at a speedway. then on to the library, where I filed a few more online job applications. and some emails that were follow-ups to the interviews this week. I left before closing time because I wanted to be on time for the date.

turn in bus pass

I was called in the early afternoon about my bus pass, and was told I was still being charged for it despite my job ending over a week ago. so I turned it in, then went to two job fairs. hard to say if the job fairs will yield anything, but you never know.
   I remembered my plans to attend one of them real well, but when I got the reminder page out of my letter sorter I was reminded of another one that I had wrote down. so I went to one at a library first, since it was going to wrap up first. there were some nice surprises there, including getting some treats from the bimbo bakery table. although no jobs in my field for them. I picked up a few flyers at other places. guess that even a medical device company still needs admin people. one table I didn't need to talk to, but I did. since there was 'laboratory' in the name I was thinking of my college roommate, who was a science major. it was nice to talk about that subject, I will admit. the second job fair was company-specific. I had been to it twice before, but it sounds like they might have something in my area of interest this time. before it was just call center. I like doing analytical work, and claims, even spoke of the insurance exams I had done when working in life insurance. but the catch is that the role wouldn't start until april, and I am not sure if I can last that long being unemployed. but I was given the email for who I interviewed with, so still a good idea to follow up about it. no offers yet, so I have to chase down any decent leads that exist. it was cold outside, so no problem at all remembering to get my coat when leaving, I decided to hang it up instead of have it on the back of a chair.
   in the evening I went to sing karaoke. I did 'when you hot you hot' by jerry reed, and 'elastic heart' by sia. there was birthday cake when I arrived, in honor of somebody I didn't know. but somebody that knew me said I could have some.

sassy, chic nail brushes

i went to perform tonight and the show runner was offering prizes to those who went onstage. I was on near the end and got sassy, chic nail brushes. they are green, my favorite color. hard to say how it compares to other things I have acquired due to performing. the one I evoked tonight was the doll leg I got when I performed with the late bill young.  a drag queen performed twice, at the start, and end of the show. as I was leaving I had somebody tell me they had seen me perform at another venue. I guess it is nice to be noticed.
    this day started earlier than most did. I had an appointment at a coffee shop with a fellow u. of iowa alum, who would like to help me with job searching. it was odd to get an email about 30 minutes prior saying the time had changed to the afternoon, but it hadn't. I checked on LinkedIn and was told the time was still the same. so I said I was within walking distance and made it over there right away. I like knowing I can talk history with this alum as he said he majored in political science and minored in history. when he spoke of spending time in the Carolinas I spoke of my visit there nearly 10 years ago, and finding sites related to francis marion. I also spoke of last night's event at the loft where there was mention of a book about john Fremont.
    I had two more appointments after this one. there was a phone interview, which started late and didn't last long. I didn't say much about it starting late, because I want the job. then in the early afternoon I went to a 'hiring event', or job fair, at an online car dealer. once I was done there I went to the bank and deposited a check, then went to the library to print some things. when I got back after I was done performing, I saw an email about a job so I responded to it. of course it was after-hours for this place, but I hope to hear something the next day. although I must be wary when I did an online search, to find out it is a staffing agency. but when there are no offers yet I can't afford to be overly picky. another notable thing after I performed I found some episodes of 'different strokes' on youtube. I hadn't seen this show in a while.

vodka lemonade

I went to an event at the loft literary center in Minneapolis tonight. the first drink I had was a vodka lemonade, hearing about such a drink intrigued me. the lineup for the wordplay event in may was being announced. one of the authors will be CBS newsman scott pelley. I also recognized two history books-about Washington, as well as john Fremont. and there was mention of an event leading up to it having karaoke, and we all know I like to sing. I went to get some godfather's pizza after the event, and I timed it well on the parking fee, expiring the minute I got back. then it was on to home for a brief time, then back on the road again, this time to perform. there was some arguing and I heard the show runner talk about it with two people at the bar. something about the dude being ejected last week but still came back. this might explain why I heard him say on arrival 'never want to talk to you again' and as expected it wasn't directed at me. I liked seeing airway there, so I have some motivation to get there even earlier now. there was a long pause, and empty stage for a while, after the dude was ejected tonight. then a poet went up and did two poems. then the techie said it was an open stage and it was getting late, not many people left, and I said 'me'. I did a completely different set than I had originally planned. it was largely story telling, but it still got some laughs although that was not my intent by any means. I just didn't believe in ignoring what had happened. there is a time and place for everything, and it was no big deal to change it to something appropriate.
   on the job front, I went to the library and printed more pages. and more interviews are set up. in fact this week is busy enough that I said it was fine to move one interview to next week since it was the time that fit both of our schedules. so I would like to think I won't be idle for long. although I am aware that getting interviews is one thing and getting offers is another.

onstage after proposal

I performed tonight, and it is hard to say how this compares to so many other performances over the years. I followed the trumpet player proposing to his lady. thankfully the show runner did a joke before I went on. the dude told me in advance that he would be doing it, when he was practicing in  the hall where one finds the bathrooms. the flautist was there as well, but behind a closed door. she said she was called 'flute lady' when on a local French language radio station. I said I have to push myself to call her by her name instead of what she plays.
 I got a lot of little things done, a few more interviews scheduled for later in the week, albeit phone interviews. I was trying to get more set up, but it was a case of phone tag. had to let the call go to voicemail since I was in my car, and reviewed the message when I got to my destination, the library. I printed some things while there. one of them was a reminder of a place where I would like to have dinner on Friday evening, with a new friend. if it progresses farther, I think I will be fine with saying more about it. at this point, it is a long story and kind of a weird one.

shampoo movie

this afternoon and into the evening I watched a DVD on loan from the library, 'shampoo'. I recognized many of the actors in it, warren beatty, and jack warden, as well as goldie hawn. carrie fisher had a small role in it as well. howard hesseman was listed in the cast but I missed out as to what role he had. I will have to admit that I needed to watch the special features to understand the connections between some of the characters. I knew that warren's character, the hair dresser, was fooling around with three women. but not that they were apparently all related to jack's character, an investor. his wife, mistress, and daughter. a man that wanted to invest in warren starting his own business. warren was always needed for his hair abilities, and at times it meant he left the salon and went to their homes, riding his triumph motorcycle to get there. the backdrop was the night of the 1968 election, and one does see big pictures of Nixon, as well as Reagan, in the background at one party for it.
     there was a snowstorm overnight, and into the morning. but it was no big deal getting around once I needed to, around midday. I had a gig, being the blogger for the show done by the Wisconsin couple. it didn't take long to get the snow cleared from my car. there was a system problem that I heard about when I arrived so I still documented the show, although there were no facebook postings. unless they are done by the show runner later on. school bouncer was one of the performers, as well as a comic that I did a fringe show with. she had  a pink hat, matching the color of her hair. she did some jokes about her tattoos. bathtub comic was there as well, along with his mom, and I shared the story about buying her music CD when I was surprised to find it. I saw Arizona Chicago near the end of the show, but she did not perform at all. there was a Barbra Streisand impersonator, and I liked hearing about her story. I guess she goes to impersonator conventions. after the show we had lunch and I was next to a man that told a story about finding a rare history book. I had a mushroom and swiss burger.
   after watching the movie I tuned in to the Oscars, and since I had seen two of the nominees this weekend it meant more to me to see clips during the show. I had seen three nominees in all, and all three won in some category. this also included 'judy', as renee Zellweger won for her role, playing judy garland. the first thing I saw when tuning in was a Verizon commercial. it was notable to me as it had a smashing pumpkins song in it. I asked my college roommate on facebook as to if he had noticed, as he was the one that got me interested in that band's music.

marriage story movie

this afternoon I went to see the movie 'marriage story' at the lagoon in Minneapolis. this is a limited release movie, only one screening today as part of the theater wanting to show all of the Oscar nominated movies. surprised me a little that it wasn't until this weekend that I saw any of this year's best picture nominees- 2 out of the 9. I had seen 'judy' and it did get 2 Oscar nominations but neither one was best picture. 'marriage' was hard to watch because it is about divorce. this may have been why I noticed one couple leaving the theater. it was during a scene when there was arguing. well I kind of expected some arguing! there were multiple things that made it compelling enough to go see it. one of these was the all-star cast, including laura dern, ray liotta, and alan alda as the lawyers. another was movie-music veteran randy newman doing the music. although I will admit that I barely noticed the music in it. this was probably the first movie I saw that was produced by Netflix.
   much like the previous day, I had a quick meal before the movie, but this time it was a sandwich, still at a speedway gas station. the news had something about a pedestrian being hit by a car on a busy road in the capital city. facebook had a posting from a classmate about the death of my high school's football coach.
    tonight I think I will try a new karaoke venue. it worked well at a new venue, I sang 'bad day' by REM. I like how there is some kind of 'barrier' between me and the crowd while singing. all too often, I am singing in a 'dive bar' when there isn't a barrier. I spoke with somebody before I went to sing and at first he appeared a little un-nerved by what I might have been looking at. I was asked how I was doing, I said I am doing the best I can. I was looking off in the distance at the TV monitor showing a boxing match. so we spoke about boxing for a little while, as I said I had seen some live matches in the area. for some reason, I forgot to mention seeing boxing at the pan-am games in Toronto as well. although that is not professional boxing. so I ended up with a cheering section, I could hear them even though they were way in the back. so I likely have found a place I will stick with for a while. and I have to think it was 'prophetic' for lack of a better term. I saw a signup slip that mentioned a song from the blues brothers movie, and it reminded me of asking a trusted advisor about how I should handle an altercation recently. I liked the response, as I am fine with going to a place where I feel welcome, even if it is farther away. I just hate having to change my schedule, but sometimes it is necessary. it can be liberating to say 'I have had enough' and there is nothing wrong with saying it when one arrives at this understanding.