Blogging? A thing of the past?

I noticed that I haven't updated any blog posts for a long time. Neither has Jared.

Is blogging falling by the wayside? Are Twitter and FB updates the new way to speak your mind, albeit in short bursts?

Hmmmm...

Midwest Airlines New Motto: We Suck!

I have presented a challenge to myself for this post. I am trying to get it finished before the coffee is done.
Anissa and I went to Clearwater Florida this weekend for an anniversary getaway (celebrating seven years, thank you) we left Friday morning on Midwest at 5:45, bound for Tampa by eleven and a stop in Milwaukee on the way. We departed a half hour late, missed our connecting flight in Milwaukee and didn't get to Florida until 9 PM. We wasted a whole day traveling. I called Midwest and they moved our return trip to Monday instead of Sunday, giving us the day back that we missed. Good enough. Then Monday we were on the plane and leaving Florida, when the pilot had us deboard because they could not get a door closed on the plane. An hour later we were back on the lane and thirty minutes later we were in the air. We missed our connecting flight in Milwaukee. There were no flights to Kansas City until 6:30PM so another whole day wasted. Then, our 6:30 plane came in late, at about 7 PM and had some maintenance problems. We jumped to a 7:50 flight just before it took off, and arrived five minutes before the 6:30 flight arrived. To make matters worse, they lost our luggage. It is located and safe now.
Midwest was not the best care in the air, no matter how good their damn cookies are.
Coffee is finished burbling...

Improv Thunderdome - Season 3 Round 1

This past weekend marks the one year debut of Loaded Dice. Of course we worked hard rehearsing before that, but we hit the stage on the very first Improv Thunderdome performance ever. We rocked the sold out house.
A year later, we have done four additional full shows, plus a few sets 30 minutes or less. This coming year we look to do about six full shows.
Thunderdome this time around featured Kill the DJ, Scriptease and Holy Cow! (from Rockhurst University). Kill the DJ wins with two members of Loaded Dice leading the charge and two improv students of mine shining on stage. Okay, so I taught Jeremy only a little bit, but I am still proud of their set. Good job guys! They did a longform with a gimmick: the only way to switch to a new character was to die. So the story was fun and rambling as the characters died and new ones took the audience to new locations. Yeah, some stuff was hack. The audience loved it, and was appropriately silent if something didn't hit or if it felt forced.

Scriptease was off. They lacked energy and their set was just a little too random for the audience I think. Thank goodness they went first! The guys are great improvisers and I enjoy their previous sets a lot. Too bad they didn't hit that night.

Holy Cow! Performed some short form games. The energy was okay, I think they were nervous. Cindy Paasch (gosh, I hope I spelled that right) led the pack of eight, which just seemed like too many people. They started with Gibberish Murder, and it was rough. Then they reqrouped and put on a nice show. Yeah, it was nice. It could be I am jaded because I performed short form so long that I watched from the booth and went, "oh thats wrong... I would have done this...they should do this...why aren't they doing that..." Also, they read their games off a piece of paper. I know, I know, I shouldn't be so critical... but we just got lambasted on Cindy's blog for not being critical enough.

So that brings me to...
We are too nice as a group of improvisers in Kansas City. I liked the idea that good improvisers are a breed above the rest. I used to look up to people like Corey Rittmaster and Rob Lawrence for guidance as to what I was doing wrong, what I needed to do right. Now, people look to me to ask that and it is a nice feeling. And I am nice back. Sometimes, though, I just want to tell someone that they suck and that they need to work on it or stop doing improv. It got told to me, and it made me work on it. It got told to my old roommate, and he stopped.

Stupid Women: Don't Leave Your Baby with Him.

Really. It happened again. Some stupid woman left her infant daughter with the guy she shacks up with. When she returned the baby was beaten to death. Hmmmmm...
How many times does this shit have to happen? Nothing makes me more angry than someone hurting a kid. Read the story:

ST. JOSEPH | A St. Joseph man accused of killing a 36-day-old baby was not only the boyfriend of the child’s mother, but was also her uncle.

That was part of what came to light in the first day of Steven Zorn’s first-degree murder trial, which continued Wednesday in Buchanan County District Court. Zorn is charged in the beating death of Cora Jean Lockhart on Jan. 7, 2008.

Prosecuting Attorney Dwight Scroggins told jurors that Zorn started dating the baby’s mother, Suzan Lockhart, when she was pregnant by Zorn’s half-brother, David Petty. Cora Jean was born Dec. 2, and by then Zorn lived with Lockhart and her two other children.

Just over a month later, Scroggins said, the baby was beaten to death.

Defense attorneys don’t dispute the baby’s cause of death, but believe evidence will show that Zorn did not knowingly kill the child with deliberation.

So I know the death happened a year ago. I just don't understand something in the story. The attorneys don't dispute the cause of death, Zorn (asshole) did not knowingly kill the child. What the hell was he thinking? "I didn't mean to kill the little baby, but my fists were just too heavy for her body. So I didn't mean to kill her, so be lenient." What a dick. Man I just wish that someone would pummel his ass to death. On second thought...

Here is my solution (?) to this problem -
When someone commits such a horrible atrocity, I think a statement needs to be made: He should serve two years in prison. Then tatoo on his forehead "BABYKILLER" then he has to look at it every time he looks in the mirror, when people ask about it, he will relive the horrible deed. Eventually someone will beat his ass for it. Maybe that will happen more than once. Maybe someone will beat him until his life is gone. That would be closer to justice for the little girl.

Another Busy Weekend! and TR2N!

So this weekend, I have been asked to be the DJ for Jeremy Alexander's wedding reception. He is marrying Katie Brest, Ben Brest's sister. The rehearsal dinner is tonight, and the wedding is tomorrow night. Then I am at Independence Center at 7:30 AM to help host the Breakfast with Santa for the kids club at the mall. At 3;00 PM I am headed down to the Westport Coffeehouse to setup and do our final tech rehearsal Sketchy Thoughts. Then the show starts at 8 PM! It should be a great show. Funny and offensive all at the same time. Then on Sunday I can sleep in!

Today I hung out and went over my lines for the sketch show. I was watching Tron on the G4 network when I heard them make a reference for a sequel. I did some searching and here is what I found:

Tue Dec 2, 2008 — by Robert Greenberger
'Tron' Sequel Getting a New Name?
Sequel Awaiting Confirmed Cast, Release Date
Slash Film is reporting that Disney continues to toy with the name for their sequel to Tron. For months now, the project has been known not as Tron 2 or Tron 2.0 but as Tr2n. Now, defying all reason, it may be altered to TRZ.

The news comes from Production Weekly although the studio has yet to officially name the project or provide a release date despite teaser images being made available since the summer.

The industry newsletter has the following synopsis “After being transported into the surreal landscape of a mainframe computer to destroy an intruder, a programmer finds himself allied with the leader of a rebellion against a corrupt cyber-entity.”

Jeff Bridges reprises his role as a programmer named Flynn with Karl Urban and John Hurt also said to be part of the cast. The new film has been written by Adam Horowitz (Lost) and Edward Kitsis (Lost) with Joseph Kosinski making his directorial debut. A 2011 release date is anticipated given the effects-heavy work required.

Wow. After watching the movie today, the idea of a sequel is very intriguing.

I Am Not Afraid to Admit I am a Fan of Billy Idol

Billy Idol is Global Ambassador

http://www.hear-the-world.com






Hear The World
is a global initiative developed to raise awareness for the topic of hearing loss. As of November 10th 2008, Billy was announced as
Global Ambassador for the initiative.

On Behalf of Hear the World

Diane Kruger is the New Face of Hear the World
Mischa Barton, Maggie Gyllenhaal and Billy Idol join the German star to draw attention to the issue of hearing loss.

Stäfa, Switzerland (PRWEB) November 10, 2008 -- Actress Diane Kruger has become the most recent Hollywood star to offer herself as an ambassador for the Hear the World initiative. The international star is the cover model for the current issue of the Hear the World magazine.

In addition to Kruger, Mischa Barton, Maggie Gyllenhaal and Billy Idol have joined the team of famous ambassadors. All have been photographed for the cause by Bryan Adams, the initiative's official photographer, in the Hear the World pose - with a hand behind one ear, symbolising conscious hearing. The goal of their participation is to raise awareness about the issue of hearing loss.

Kruger celebrated her international breakthrough with the role of Helen in Wolfgang Peterson's "Troy." She is currently filming Quentin Tarantino's new film "Inglorious Bastards" with Brad Pitt, which is scheduled to appear in cinemas in 2009. With her star power, Kruger plays an important role in drawing attention to the message of the initiative.

The Hear the World magazine utilizes a culture and lifestyle platform to address the topic of hearing. Always linking content to the subject of hearing and sound, the magazine's features focus on a broad range of topics, from music, to art, nature, and everything else that makes life more beautiful. The magazine is supported by the global Hear the World initiative, which is dedicated to raising awareness about hearing.

A team at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore estimated that 55 million Americans have hearing loss in one or both ears. One out of six, or 29 million adults, have some trouble discerning speech, more than previous estimates, they reported in the Archives of Internal Medicine.

Current ambassadors for Hear the World include Plácido Domingo, Joss Stone, Mick Jagger, Amy Winehouse, Harry Belafonte and Annie Lennox, among others.

Hear the World magazine is published quarterly and is available at select newsstands and at airports internationally for $8 an issue. A free copy of the magazine can be ordered at www.hear-the-world.com. Net proceeds of the magazine benefit the Hear the World Foundation.

About Hear the World
Hear the World is a global initiative by hearing device manufacturer Phonak created to raise awareness about the importance of hearing. The initiative calls attention to the social and emotional impact of hearing loss and addresses prevention of and solutions to a problem that affects more than 10% of the world's population. In the context of the Hear the World initiative, Phonak has established the non-profit Hear the World Foundation to improve the quality of life of people with hearing loss through financial and technical assistance. The foundation is committed to the prevention of hearing loss as well as the support of people with hearing loss and their families.

About Phonak
Headquartered near Zurich, Switzerland, Phonak has developed, produced and globally distributed state-of-the-art hearing systems and wireless devices for over 50 years. The combination of expertise in hearing technology, mastery in acoustics and strong cooperation with hearing care professionals allows Phonak to significantly improve people's hearing ability and speech understanding and therefore their quality of life. Phonak offers a complete range of digital hearing instruments, along with complementary wireless communication systems. With 2'500 employees worldwide, Phonak drives innovation and sets new industry benchmarks regarding miniaturization and performance.

For more information please visit www.hear-the-world.com or contact:

11/15/08

Disco Inferno

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