So in an earlier post I typed about creating your own opportunity. Back in March, I approached a couple buddies who have a local bar and we talked about the potential of bringing comedy to St. Paul and how there's nothing really like it in the city. They decided to give it a go every third Friday. I stressed promoting and they got a sponsor(Yaaaay)! Our first show was in July and I had a good turn out. My dad even came out and introducing him to the comics has been one of the highlights so far. He's been to all but two. I booked over ten folks and it ran well over two hours. Couple "names" stopped by unexpectedly and I felt like crap because I couldn't give them time. I really wanted to, but I didn't have the onions to tell comics that I approached when I needed comics that they couldn't go up now. The people had a good time and the bar said it was one of the best nights in 3-4 months.
There are opportunities where I feel we can take advantage of, I know it's going to take persistence. Now, I have 6-7 comics I know the crowd will like and am saying no more often and it aint that bad.
I did a show up the road at a spot called Walking Jax and I wasn't really nervous. What helped is that I knew the other comics except for the headliner who was so nice! I kept thinking that I was the only comic that didn't have a head shot for the poster outside and couldn't help but wonder what the reaction would be once they got a load of me. I did well and returned back to some feedback by the older comics, jotted down on some paper. It actually helped. Then I sensed a disturbance in the force and noticed that this man walking toward me with that familiar walk was my dad! I told him I didn't expect him to show up and he said he knew. Easily one of the best moments of my life.
After hosting the Capitol City Comedy Show, I felt something was missing and it was bugging me the following day. That night I was hosting another show, but this one was special. Another comic had asked me to host his birthday show and it meant a lot to me. I took on an entirely different mindset. It was also a fellow comics first time doing 30, so this was a big deal all around. Before the show, my friend was telling me how nervous he was, having never done this before. That made me unecessarily nervous for a little bit, but I got over it a lot faster than him. I had to.
Minus the comics there were a grand total of 5 people looking to laugh! I ran through my set and saw I still had time, so I did some crowd rap. I had never done that before and it felt good. Afterwards, the feature told me that he didn't have a good feeling about going up until he heard the crowd open up. I was honored just be a part of the show. I had more fun at that show than my own!
One show was fun because it was in a nice setting, the host was cool and I was a fan of most of the comics. An old friend came to see me at a show. We caught up for a bit and he said that it encouraged him to keep following his dream. That meant a lot.
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
The Chili Bowl
Ok, so every year when the Vikings play the Packers, I have my friend come over and cook her famous chili, which is the best I've eaten, so far. I feel that way because it's just spicy enough that you can still enjoy it. The plan was to cook up the chili and let it simmer overnight. Now, I have to use some discretion because if you come over, you need to be about the game and/or the chili. So I invited some folks over that I knew would meet the criteria. More importantly, they had to mesh personally. Most important, they had to be Vikings fans and sing along with our fight song, Skol Vikings. The only exception would be Bill and that's because him being a Packer fan is just one of the rare things we disagree on. That and the use of steroids.
So my friend and I are on the way from the grocery store, coming around the corner I see there is a hole in my bedroom wall.
{I still have to sort through all my stuff to find the cord to link camera to computer, because you really have to see it to believe it. The pix are coming soon.}
My whole body went numb, like when your foot starts to fall asleep, not yet that prickly feeling. I was speechless and that aint easy to do. I was shocked, but not surprised and here's why.
(Back story)
I have a crazy neighbor who has a ridiculous history of just walking into people's apartments for whatever reason. She's done it once since I have lived here. she came frantically knocking on my door once. She came in breathing heavy, with a worried look on her face. She desperately claimed to need help zipping up a coat that she wasn't even wearing. She will go into her garage, which is located directly across from where I lay my head at night( A-Ha!), start her car and rev up the engine. Like she wanted to leave but it was in neutral. She'll then turn the car off and come back inside. It's not like it was winter and she wanted to warm the car up, she just was losing it. Even the other neighbors tell me that she's touched in the head.
(Back to now)
I knew that she was a threat to not only herself, but to the other tenants and this was even more proof. I spoke with eyewitnesses that said they could see her from the other end of driveway. She said she came at it full go and saw that something was broken. She then pulled back into the garage just as fast. I noticed she sure did, but left her bumper in my bedroom. As my friend contacted the lady's next of kin and police, I checked inside. I never felt so vulnerable, as I went through the damage and could hear everything going on outside, like I never left. As I was taking pictures of the outside, the old lady wanted to get back into the car to see if it worked. My fiend and the eyewitness talked her out of it. I used my camera phone to record it. I wanted to document everything I could.
The cops couldn't believe it when they checked it out and took pictures. One of them told me that she clearly has dementia and shouldn't have had keys to a car. She has had the cops called on her before because of a disturbance. Her son came and looked grizzled and ashamed. He barely looked me in the eye or even offered an apology.
After the initial shock and anger of it, I took a step outside of myself and realized that this guy has to deal with his mother who is now a shell of her formal self. He is seriously gonna have to look into assisted living for her and he didn't look like he could afford it. As I am typing this, she still lives in the complex and still puts a rock down to hold the door open while she gets her mail...one day, I decided to kick that rock.
Everyone that came to The Chili Bowl took snapshots of the wreckage and it was the conversation starter, ice breaker and go to moment of the night! For a temporary inconvenience, I got new A/C, windows and carpet out of the deal. Was also able to take care of some bills!
So my friend and I are on the way from the grocery store, coming around the corner I see there is a hole in my bedroom wall.
{I still have to sort through all my stuff to find the cord to link camera to computer, because you really have to see it to believe it. The pix are coming soon.}
My whole body went numb, like when your foot starts to fall asleep, not yet that prickly feeling. I was speechless and that aint easy to do. I was shocked, but not surprised and here's why.
(Back story)
I have a crazy neighbor who has a ridiculous history of just walking into people's apartments for whatever reason. She's done it once since I have lived here. she came frantically knocking on my door once. She came in breathing heavy, with a worried look on her face. She desperately claimed to need help zipping up a coat that she wasn't even wearing. She will go into her garage, which is located directly across from where I lay my head at night( A-Ha!), start her car and rev up the engine. Like she wanted to leave but it was in neutral. She'll then turn the car off and come back inside. It's not like it was winter and she wanted to warm the car up, she just was losing it. Even the other neighbors tell me that she's touched in the head.
(Back to now)
I knew that she was a threat to not only herself, but to the other tenants and this was even more proof. I spoke with eyewitnesses that said they could see her from the other end of driveway. She said she came at it full go and saw that something was broken. She then pulled back into the garage just as fast. I noticed she sure did, but left her bumper in my bedroom. As my friend contacted the lady's next of kin and police, I checked inside. I never felt so vulnerable, as I went through the damage and could hear everything going on outside, like I never left. As I was taking pictures of the outside, the old lady wanted to get back into the car to see if it worked. My fiend and the eyewitness talked her out of it. I used my camera phone to record it. I wanted to document everything I could.
The cops couldn't believe it when they checked it out and took pictures. One of them told me that she clearly has dementia and shouldn't have had keys to a car. She has had the cops called on her before because of a disturbance. Her son came and looked grizzled and ashamed. He barely looked me in the eye or even offered an apology.
After the initial shock and anger of it, I took a step outside of myself and realized that this guy has to deal with his mother who is now a shell of her formal self. He is seriously gonna have to look into assisted living for her and he didn't look like he could afford it. As I am typing this, she still lives in the complex and still puts a rock down to hold the door open while she gets her mail...one day, I decided to kick that rock.
Everyone that came to The Chili Bowl took snapshots of the wreckage and it was the conversation starter, ice breaker and go to moment of the night! For a temporary inconvenience, I got new A/C, windows and carpet out of the deal. Was also able to take care of some bills!
It's been a while....
So, my last post was back in July and I had a little over 400 "friends" on facebook. Well since then, that number has gone up at least 200, so I have obviously been whoring myself around, being anyone's "friend" and letting them poke me. I have seen and done some things, hopefully making me a little better than the last time I typed.
It's been many moons since you last read about me. I have since, hit a milestone in my comedic journey. I started a monthly comedy show back home in St. Paul and there's nothing like it around! I got a job moving & selling dirt at a landscaping company and I'm convinced that it's the only job where the customers are as dumb as the product(I'm here all night, folks). An old lady drove her Plymouth Sundance through my bedroom wall, but it didn't keep me from hosting another kickass Chili Bowl... the next day! Tried improve, didn't do nearly as much writing as I should. Got interviewed about comedy for the first time and have met a few more people that can help me get to the next level. I even met a man who asked me if I beleived in spiritual gifts and proceeded to tell me that I'm here for a reason. I'm telling you, it was like The Oracle came to me instead if me going to her like in the movie. Needless to say, I've made a few revelations since the summer.
It's been many moons since you last read about me. I have since, hit a milestone in my comedic journey. I started a monthly comedy show back home in St. Paul and there's nothing like it around! I got a job moving & selling dirt at a landscaping company and I'm convinced that it's the only job where the customers are as dumb as the product(I'm here all night, folks). An old lady drove her Plymouth Sundance through my bedroom wall, but it didn't keep me from hosting another kickass Chili Bowl... the next day! Tried improve, didn't do nearly as much writing as I should. Got interviewed about comedy for the first time and have met a few more people that can help me get to the next level. I even met a man who asked me if I beleived in spiritual gifts and proceeded to tell me that I'm here for a reason. I'm telling you, it was like The Oracle came to me instead if me going to her like in the movie. Needless to say, I've made a few revelations since the summer.
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