California Fever

Butterscotch

I could give a rat's ass about America's Got Talent, but I'm rooting for young Butterscotch--from DAVIS!  Hoping she takes home the MILLION.  Check her out on The Tom Green Show:

some good news

I don't know about you, but I could use some good news tonight.  Let's see what I can round up...

ABC's Ugly Betty continues to rock my world.  I love this show.  I think it's beautifully cast and acted, and I think America Herrera is going to be a big, big star.  I'm seriously hooked on watching the episodes online (so much better than sitting through all of those commercials--only a handful of 30-second interruptions instead).  I haven't completely caught up yet, but this morning before work (and what a delightful way to start my day) I sat in the dark living room with just the tree lights on and watched last week's show (which was a repeat of the first episode, which I'd missed) with headphones while J. slept.

Carolyn was at the hospital with Taylor today--she called on her way home tonight.  She asked me to thank all of you for your continued love and support of Taylor.  She said Taylor is having a tough time of it, mentally and emotionally.  And who the hell could blame her?  But I can't help thinking that that sort of anger and feisty reaction might serve her well in her fight to regain movement and strength.  She asked if you would please continue to send Taylor your love and support and prayers and thoughts--she really believes it's making a difference. THANK YOU for all of the fabulous photos you continue to post to Taylor's Flickr pool.  They're greatly appreciated.  Oh, good news...there is some...I have the impression that our little buddy may get to move to Shriners Hospital even before she's weaned off the respirator, and that would be good news.

Saw in today's S.F. Chronicle that J's old buddy Todd Field's new film, Little Children (starring Kate Winslet), has won the S.F. Film Critics Circle award for Best Film.  Jackie Earle Haley (remember Bad News Bears?) won Best Supporting Actor for his performance in the film, and Todd and Tom Perrotta won Best Adapted Screenplay.  Todd's last film (as writer/director) was the much-lauded In the Bedroom in 2001.

Last Christmas Day, Andrea was in tears at Glide over her inability to conceive.  Last Friday, Ben was born.  (I'm SO happy for her and Matt.)  Now that's good news of the highest order!

And speaking of Glide...be sure to check out Will Smith's new film, The Pursuit of Happyness.  It's based on the life of Chris Gardner, who went from being homeless with his small son in the 80's to multimillionaire status.  He often went to Glide for meals and support when he was homeless, and Glide's Rev. Cecil Williams (still going strong!) has a cameo in the film.  (We haven't seen it yet, but it's been much written about in local papers.)  Here's the article from today's Chronicle.  (And when I opened the Datebook section this morning, there were the two movie features side by side--Will Smith talking about his film in which my old church plays a role...and J's old buddy winning a couple of awards.  Don't see that every day.)  ;)

Okay, what good news do you have to share?

Day 23

I missed doing a separate post yesterday.  I added a second part to the Day 21 post [and if you'd like to send well wishes to a seriously injured 5-year-old girl, please leave your comment there], and then the rest of my day and evening was spent with Ciara.  It's her birthday weekend with us (she turned 9 on the 11th), so I picked her up yesterday afternoon and then we hit Wal-Mart to shop for a pattern and fabric for her sewing date.  As you can imagine, it was very patient, slow-going on the sewing since I had to explain every little detail, but she seemed to enjoy it.  Auntie's back was aching by the time we finished the top last night, since I let her do most of the stitching while I bent over her chair and helped guide the fabric.  But, success!  We'll tackle the elastic-waist pants today.  There was also pumpkin pie (her fave) and whipped cream, and she got to sleep in the sleigh bed with me (which she loves).  J had a gig in Oakland and he told her he'd crash on the couch when he got home, much to her delight.  I'm trying to sneak in a post while they're both still asleep.

The Sunday Scribblings prompt is hero.  I'm a bit tired at the moment and trying to type quietly, so this will probably be crap.  It will most certainly be unedited. 

I honestly don't recall having any heroes when I was very young.  I think I turned all of that sort of energy toward my over-sized stuffed animals.  I imbued them with a sort of magic, with the power to heal me.  I do remember being enamored of the housewife characters on 60's black-and-white CBS soaps which I watched religiously in the 4th grade during a long home-alone convalescence.  I used to try to imagine what my life might be like if I had one of those--not a housewife, but a stay-at-home mom.  Although even then, I realized that most of my friends did have them.

Around 10 or so I think I began to be more aware of popular culture, to the point where even into my thirties (My thirties, people!) I literally could not understand why anyone would choose any profession outside of show business.  I can't believe I'm admitting that.  I thought if someone ended up in a career (because surely they must have ended up being something--they wouldn't have done something outside of show business if they'd had the choice, right?!) that it was only because they didn't have what it took to be an actor, dancer, singer, director, musician, comedian, talk show host, producer, writer, choreographer, model (I considered the fashion business part of show business), etc.  And really, how sad for them.  How unfulfilled their poor, sad lives must be.  (I may have just added a layer to your understanding of why I stopped drinking at 35.)

I think I can safely, and humiliatingly, say that until I was 35, current events, world affairs, humanitarianism, any remote sort of compassion for a fellow human being, volunteer work, the desire to make a difference, all of it...well, let's just say that I'm not sure I was aware that anything like that even existed.  I'm not the dullest tool in the shed, but my world view could not have been more insular.  Know who my biggest hero was in my teens and 20's?  Lauren Hutton.  Now I happen to still think she rocks it big time, but that was my dream--to have a somehow glamorous life that would finance a lifestyle of exotic travel.  (Well, okay, maybe not as exotic as Lauren's, that ol' snake wrangler.)  I was fueled most of my life by a desire to escape--into a fantasy world, into a world outside my own existence, into other countries and hemispheres.  It was all about getting OUT.  It didn't matter where I was, I wanted to be somewhere else.  And it can really piss a gal off when no matter where you go, that feeling travels with you.

And if real life held no appeal, I suppose it's no wonder that all of my s/heroes were fantasy people--either characters in films or TV (Ann Marie was much more real to me on "That Girl" than Marlo Thomas was as an actress...not to mention the whole side delusion where I began to fantasize lopping off my last name and using my first and middle names for 'the stage'...Marilyn Marie...yeah, that's catchy), the actors who played them, or the world's first supermodel.  (And Janice Dickinson better back off of that claim.) 

Yet, oddly, I was drawn in a big way to feminism.  I wasn't completely delusional.  And when I think back to some of the things I was involved with in the early to mid-70's, it sort of boggles my mind.  I was inspired by people like Jane Fonda (what, you thought it would be someone other than an actress?)  Even though I didn't really understand Jane's politics at the time, I understood enough to know that she was doing things that were causing the establishment to chafe--showing up in North Vietnam, producing a film about the nuclear power industry, hooking up with Tom Hayden.  I should have known that once she got into the whole workout thing it would be a downhill slope--surely breast implants and a marriage to Ted Turner were inevitable after that.  Now she does stuff like show up at press conferences with her lap dog...in her lap.  But, hell, she's in her 70's and she's paid her dues--I'll cut her some slack.

So maybe now you can see the irony over the fact that I seem to have somehow accidentally created a blog persona that some of you think is sometimes kind or compassionate or cares about others.  (Even Jeffrey thinks my blog persona reads that way, and he knows me at my worst!)  Sometimes I read your incredibly sweet comments and are sure you've posted them to the wrong blog.  All I know is this:  If you ask me today who my s/heroes are, you'd get a very different answer than you would have a couple of decades ago.  It would probably be a very long and obvious list.  But in addition to the obvious s/heroes many of us share, I would say that ultimately what truly inspires me is a life well lived.  The kind of life that creates the kind of obituary that's inspiring in itself.  It could mean speaking your truth, standing up for what you believe in, manifesting your creativity, helping others, being the best parent you can be, traveling the world, exhibiting kindness and compassion in your daily life, focusing on humanitarian efforts, striving for excellence in your chosen field--however you define a life well lived.  If you're in daily pursuit of that, then you're a s/hero to me.

(And yes, I know there's no 37th page prompt to this post, but I'm pooped and typing it on the sly.)

Day 17

Yesterday I let go of the 37th page part of my own writing prompt (because I loved the Sunday Scribblings prompt so much).  I thought my veering off-prompt might be a one-time thing...until I picked up the Datebook section in yesterday's San Francisco Chronicle and read about Suzan-Lori Parks' 365 Days/365 Plays project.  I just have to share this with you, because this is about a project that came about because a playwright created her own daily writing challenge.

I'd read about the book previously, but hadn't realized until yesterday that the 365 Days/365 Plays were about to be produced all over the country.   From the Chronicle story:

All the hubbub is gearing up for what may well be the largest-scale theatrical collaboration in U.S. history.  Starting Monday, more than 600 theaters across the country will be presenting a Parks play a day (or in any case seven plays a week) for an entire year.  In each city or region -- San Francisco, Atlanta, New York, Los Angeles, Denver, Seattle, Austin, Chicago, Minneapolis and Washington, DC, plus areas around the Carolinas and the Mississippi River and a network of universities --  a different theater will be responsible for a week's worth of plays, then pass the baton to another theater.

How much do I love this idea?  A LOT.  I think it's extraordinary.  First of all, it's extraordinary that one of our foremost playwrights (a Pulitzer Prize winner) got the brilliant idea to write a mini-play every day for a year.  Secondly, because this is such a large collaborative project, it's bringing together theater companies in every region who may have never before collaborated, and, as mentioned in the Chronicle piece, might not have even been aware of the other's existence. 

Although you might never have guessed this from anything you've ever read here, I am a HUGE fan of live theater.  Heck, at one point in my mid-20's I thought I might like to make a career of stage managing.  (Before I felt like a fraud when a golden opportunity got handed to me on a silver platter and I ran from it in panic.)  So I am all over this like white on rice.  Think about the scope of this project and what a boost to theater companies all over the country it can be--providing work for 52 theater companies in every region.  The fact that this playwright is female and African-American...well, that's just icing on the cake.  :)

You know I'm not gonna throw up a post like this and not give you some links, so here you go...

Thought you might want to read the transcript of Suzan-Lori Parks on The Tavis Smiley Show here.

But here's the real gem:  Theatre Communications Group is going to publish each of the 365 plays.  The first installment is up--read it here.

The 365 Days/365 Plays website is here (although it appears to still be under construction).

The Chronicle story mentions how this collaboration evolved from Parks' discussions with Bonnie Metzgar, associate artistic director of Denver's Curious Theatre.  Curious' 365 Days info is here.  Here's the info for several other cities around the country:

San Francisco
New York
New Haven (Yale)
Los Angeles (and here)
Chicago
Atlanta
Austin
Seattle
Washington, DC

And I'm sure there will be many more areas involved.  You know what they say--check your local listings.

In the Tavis Smiley transcript, he asks her what drew her to writing.  He's written many non-fiction books himself, but professes admiration for those who can write fiction.  He says, "But with fiction, you have to create something, like, out of nothing. There's nothing here. You just, like--You create something out of nothing"  To which Parks replies, "Or you create something out of the great everything..."

Go tap into the great everything today.  If this project doesn't let you know the world is WIDE OPEN and CHOCK FULL OF POSSIBILITIES, well then, I don't know what will.  ;)

Day 12

"As the region's largest performing arts organization and California's largest nonprofit musical theatre, the Theatre relies on corporate and community donations to help ensure the quality of its presentations and to partially underwrite several of its community outreach and education programs."

That's from page 37 of the Playbill I received tonight when I took Kayla to see Sweet Charity with Molly Ringwald at California Musical Theatre in Sacramento.  It was her gift for her Sweet 16 birthday (which was in August).  It seemed like a nice idea to give her a Broadway show featuring the star of 16 Candles.  It was part of their Broadway series--it's the national touring company.  Kayla had never seen a production beyond high school level until last night, and she LOVED it. 

I can't even remember the last time I saw a musical--it had been a long, long time.  (We won't count the 24 performances of Ain't Misbehavin' that J played for when we lived on St. Thomas--that was such a funky production that there weren't even MICROPHONES.)  My favorite moments in Sweet Charity came during the production numbers--those are always my favorite moments.  I loved Wayne Cilento's choreography.  It was sexy and modern and oozing with a quirky 60's grooviness.  The costuming was good (except for Molly's dress), and the set design was wonderful. 

About Molly's performance...  If one thinks of a Gwen Verdon or Shirley MacLaine in the role of Charity Valentine, it's going to be a bit jarring to see someone heftier and clunkier in the role.  I thought her costume was a bit unflattering, and the poor girl is not a dancer.  She has a few moments in the show where she's able to overcome her lack of grace and do a competent job with some steps, but the show is filled with very good dancers, and it's hard for her lack of skill to not be glaring in comparison.  But keep in mind that I might be a harsher audience than some (since I grew up wanting to be a gypsy and studied dance at one time).  But I don't think so--it was a recurring theme in every review I read beforehand.  But she's good at the comedic stuff and has a perfectly adequate voice (although she's obviously not a Broadway belter).  And she conveys such a sweetness in the role that it works its way into likability.  It must be poignant for her to return to her hometown in a Broadway production (and she mentioned it during the curtain call).

At the end of the curtain call, she made a plea for Broadway Cares, and then dashed offstage to head to the lobby while her costar, Guy Adkins (who's wonderful, and had Kayla in such stitches at one point she could barely breathe) took over explaining the cause.  Molly sat at a table in the lobby and signed autographs with all donations going to Broadway Cares.  It cost a little more for a personalized autograph (for a very worthy cause), and you know I wasn't going to let my niece leave without one of those.  So now she has a Playbill that says "To Kayla - Molly Ringwald" to remember her first Broadway show for her 16th birthday.

Brian Regan

Stumbled upon the Hollywood Futures site this morning.  What a great idea!  It's career advice for kids looking to make it in show business.  The young man hosting it, Joel Holland, is very personable and confident in his interviewing skills.  I spent about half an hour this morning watching his interview with one of my all-time favorite comics, Brian Regan.  (Scroll down the Hollywood Futures page until you see Regan's photo/link.)  God, he makes me laugh.  Laughter of the 'I'm laughing so hard I'm not making any noise' variety--just sitting there quaking with tears running down my face.  Have you ever seen Regan's bit about visiting the optometrist for an eye exam?  One of my favorite bits ever.

Live from London

Any Duran Duran fans out there?  An old dear friend in New York emailed to tell me about a one-night-only screening of Duran Duran's new documentary, "Live from London," in select cities on November 1.  Here's a list of where it's showing:

NEW YORK:
Loews 42nd Street
Address: 247 W. 42nd Street
Retail Partner: Tower Records
Radio Partner: WPLJ 95.5
Tickets: http://www.loewstheaters.com/promotions/duran/index.html

LOS ANGELES:
Loews Universal Citywalk
Address: 100 University City Plaza
Retail Partner: Tower Records
Radio Partner: KYSR "Star" 98.7
Tickets: http://www.loewstheaters.com/promotions/duran/index.html

CHICAGO:
Loews
Address: 600 N. Michigan
Retail Partner: Tower Records
Radio Partner: WTMX 101.9
Tickets: http://www.loewstheaters.com/promotions/duran/index.html

SAN FRANCISCO:
Loews Metreon
Address: 101 4th Street
Retail Partner: Tower Records
Radio Partner: Alice Radio 97.3
Tickets: http://www.loewstheaters.com/promotions/duran/index.html

WASHINGTON DC:
Loews Rio 18
Address: 9811 Washington Blvd.
Retail Partner: Tower Records
Radio Partner: WWZZ 104.1
Tickets: http://www.loewstheaters.com/promotions/duran/index.html

DETROIT:
Emagine - Novi
Address: 44425 West 12 Mile Rd.
Retail Partner: FYE - 5 Stores
Radio Partner: WDVD 96.3

SAN DIEGO:
Ultrastar
Address: Del Mar Highlands 8, 12905 El Camino Drive
Retail Partner: Tower Records
Radio Partner: KMYI 94.1
http://www.ultrastarmovies.com/index.htm
   
SEATTLE:
Galaxy 12
Address: One Galaxy Way
Retail Partner: Tower Records
Radio Partner: KPLZ 101.5

PHOENIX:
Harkins Arizona Mills 24
Address: 5000 Arizona Mills Circle, Tempe, AZ 85282
Retail Partner: Tower Records
Radio Partner: KMXP 96.9

BOSTON:
Loews Boston Common
Address: 175 Temont Street
Retail Partner: Tower Records
Radio Partner: WBMX 98.5
Tickets: http://www.loewstheaters.com/promotions/duran/index.html

Or you could always buy the DVD.  (You can preview three songs from the DVD at this link.)

What, you might be wondering, does any of this have to do with my old pal I've known since first grade?  He edited this film.  :)

Beauty and the Beast

C. turns eight on Veteran's Day.  Since she recently went to her first theatre performance (national touring company of "Annie" in San Francisco) and loved it, I thought a good birthday present for her this year would be another trip to the theatre.  I didn't want to have to drive all the way into the City (and yes, locals really do refer to S.F. as City with a capital C), so I started looking for a regional production.  Sacramento draws national touring companies, but then I remembered that Solano Community College in Fairfield has a theatre program that's supposed to be quite good.  I checked their schedule and saw that their production of "Beauty and the Beast" is running through this Saturday.  Perfect.  Fairfield's only a half hour down I-80 (three towns west). 

I bought tickets last week for C. and I to attend last night's show. (I chose Thursday in case Jeffrey got called to do a gig on Friday or Saturday; we only have one car.)

I picked her up in Dixon at 5:30.  Her Mom had done up her hair in cute little pigtails and C. was sporting the shirt and necklace her Mom had just brought her from Vegas.  The bear was also a Vegas gift.

Dinner was first on the agenda.  Fresh Choice (a salad bar/buffet type place) is C.'s favorite restaurant, but she asked if we could go to Bakers Square instead.  I told her we could go anywhere she wanted.  (And how lucky for Auntie's wallet that she cares more about pie than quality entrees.)  So Bakers Square it was.  It's in Vacaville.  (We also have one in Davis and I may have instilled her love of Bakers Square by taking her to the one here.)  There was much talk of "I HOPE they have pumpkin pie!"  She was grossly disappointed the last time we went to Bakers Square and they were out of pumpkin pie.  The first thing she did when we walked into the restaurant last night was make a beeline for the pie case.  Thankfully there was a pumpkin pie in there.  She looked up at the pie board, to double-check.  Yep, it was listed.  There was a big sigh of relief all around.

On the way to Vacaville, I was admiring her new bear.  I asked if it was a girl or boy bear.  At first she said it was a boy bear and she was going to call it Teddy.  But she quickly changed her mind.  "No.  She's a girl.  Help me pick out a name."  Auntie, momentarily losing the use of all neurons...stalling for time..."What's your favorite letter?"  "M...but it could be any letter."  Auntie, wondering why she suddenly can't think of any M girl names save her own..."Do you want a cute name?  Or a pretty name?  Or a silly name?"  "A cute name."  Auntie, finally coming up with a name she used in a story once..."Maddie?  Do you like Maddie?"  "Yeah!  She can be Madison but we'll call her Maddie."  So Maddie it is.  Maddie accompanied us to dinner.

C. ordered the kid's pasta and I, reverting instantly to a 7-year-old, ordered a grilled cheese sandwich...which arrived laden with bacon strips and tomato slices.  Sacrilege!  (I ate it anyway.)  "How's the pasta?"  "It's good...well, it's not the best pasta ever..."  "That's okay, because we don't come to Bakers Square for the pasta...WE COME FOR THE PIE!"  C. nodded her head vigorously in agreement.  We ordered three slices of pumpkin pie with whipped cream--the third one to take home to Jeffrey.  C. and I had been discussing the merits of cold pumpkin pie eaten right out of the fridge.  And I (bad influence that I am) said I particularly like to eat it that way for breakfast.  C. said she likes it cold, too, but they don't eat it that way because nobody else in her family likes it like that.  Thankfully our slices arrived cold ("Feel how cold my fork is!")  The waitress set down our plates and said that we got the last two slices with whipped cream.  We peeked in the to-go bag; sure enough, Jeffrey's was plain.  C:  "He won't mind."  We each ate about two-thirds of our pie and then I put our leftovers into one to-go container so she could take them home.  (I'm hoping she'll eat them for breakfast this morning.)

We managed to find the campus theatre in Fairfield without much problem.  I lived in Fairfield a couple of different times, in the mid-70's and again in the late 70's and into 1980.  I probably hadn't been to the Solano College campus in 25 years.  It's a nice theatre and the lobby was packed when we arrived.  We picked up our tickets at will call, grabbed a bottle of water for C. (allowed inside the theatre) and found our seats.  The theatre seats about 375 and I'd say it was about 95% full.  (The Solano College Theatre program has a second theatre in the historic section of downtown Suisun, adjacent to Fairfield.)  I was shocked at how many people were there on a Thursday night.  It was nice to see that regional theatre is being supported in such a big way.

The production was actually quite good.  It wasn't national touring company quality, of course, but it was shockingly good for a community college.  The singing was very good, the production numbers were very well done and quite entertaining, the the set wasn't nearly as cheesy as I feared it would be and the acting veered between professional and good for a student program.   

The girl who played Belle was very good and had a nice voice.  The guy who played Gaston was a hoot!  But then, Gaston has always reminded my mother, both my brother's wives and me of my brother.  So it was hard to watch him without thinking of my brother.  Even C. said afterwards when we were walking to the car and talking about our favorite parts:  "Gaston?  His personality?  It was kinda like Dad's."  :)  The woman who played the Wardrobe was very good, as were the guys who played Cogsworth ("I liked the clock!") and Lumiere.  Lumiere wasn't a great actor, but he made up for it with just enough adorableness.  And it cracked me up when I saw in the program that the man who played Maurice (Belle's father) is a Solano County Deputy D.A.

All in all, it was a very enjoyable experience.  C. grew a bit sleepy toward the end of the first act and began cuddling up to me.  She wadded up her sweater and laid her head on the armrest and snuggled up with Maddie.  I didn't blame her--the first act was long, over 90 minutes.  But we took a potty break during intermission, called Mommy to check in and she was good to go for the second act. 

I had her put the back of the passenger seat all the way down for the ride home, since I knew she was sleepy.  Then we got into a deep philosophical discussion.  "You know how they made the Prince disappear in the beginning and then it was the Beast?  I wonder how they did that?  'Cause it looked real!  It looked like he really disappeared!  Like it was magic!  When he changed back into the Prince at the end, that one was probably more obvious...but how did they do it in the beginning?!  I don't even know how they did it at the end 'cause that looked real, too.  But it can't be real...it can't be magic...they have to be doing something.  Right?  It can't just be magic...'cause there's only a few people who know how to do real magic...like Santa."  I gave the occasional "uh-huh" and tried to steer her clear of explanations.  I want her to believe in "real magic like Santa" as long as possible.  C. again:  "Like Santa...no one else in the world has reindeer.  How does he get down chimneys?  How does he make the reindeer fly?  (then, laughing)...How does he EAT SO MANY COOKIES?!  I'll bet he just throws 'em in his bag." 

God she rocks my world.

Dave Chappelle

What can I say?  Chappelle was freakin' hilarious.  But we walked to the wrong venue.  I'd thought the show was at the hall where the ticket office was--the ticket office we'd visited three hours before showtime to pick up our tickets.  But when we arrived there 15 minutes before showtime and found it deserted, boyfriend decided to mention that he thought the show was at a different venue.  WHAT?!  That resulted in us desperately trying to locate another human to direct us to the proper venue, since we had no idea where it was on campus.  Oh yeah, and we were ON FOOT.  It turned out to be a bit of a hike, but we found it easily.  We had to part outside the venue, since our seats had different entrances.  I gave him the lower seat.  We were basically sitting in the same section, just different levels.  I, however, had seat #1 for my row.  It was in the basketball pavilion, so we were on bleacher seats.  Everything was fine when I first arrived.  There were three guys next to me and then some open seats.  But when we all had to vacate the row to allow the two couples to get to their seats against the wall, that's when I got screwed.  Everyone sat down--like an adult version of musical chairs--and I was left with about three inches on the end of the bleacher bench on which to park my bony ass.  People, I'm a small person.  I'm not short, but I have a very small build--I'm only a size 4.  I don't take up much room!  I asked everyone to please move down--I may have gained half an inch.  So I spent the entire show with one butt cheek clinging to the edge of a bleacher seat.  Not fun.  It's a good thing Chappelle was so funny.

The opening comic was good, too.  (I'm sorry, I can't remember his name.)  But I didn't laugh hard with him.  He elicited a more cerebral response from me--I appreciated his skill in crafting a joke.  But Chappelle?  Side-splittingly funny at times.  Raunchy and nasty as hell, of course, but it wasn't all about sex.  He got in some Bush stuff.  He called Bush a pimp and a gangster.  And he pointed out something so patently obvious that I can't believe it hadn't occurred to me.  He said he knew right away there were no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq..."Because we're America...we don't invade countries that have weapons of mass destruction...that shit is DANGEROUS!  We negotiate with countries that have weapons of mass destruction.  There's North Korea sayin' they got the shit!  (inserts Korean accent)  'We have nuclear weapons!'  (back to American accent)  'Okay, calm down...let's have some tea and talk about this...you want some food?  We're gonna give you a shitload of food--just stop makin' those nuclear bombs.'" And his bit about Colin Powell going to the U.N. to make the case for the Iraq invasion was dead-on.  (mimics Powell pointing to enlarged satellite photo)  "As you can see, there are two large trucks parked back there...they could contain chemical weapons...(quietly) or ice cream..." 

The place went nuts when he walked onstage of course.  When the crowd finally began to quiet down, he said, "I appreciate the clappin'...and the screamin'...but damn, haven't you heard?  I'm insane."  Then he started talking about reading in Newsweek that he was a crackhead.  He said up until that time he'd always believed Newsweek was a credible magazine.  (mimics flipping magazine pages)  "Damn...I smoke rock!"  He said he almost started believing it himself.  :)

He was very, very, very funny.  I can't begin to do any of it justice, but suffice it to say that boyfriend said afterwards that his head almost hurt from laughing so hard.  We both agreed that although we appreciate the cleverness of "Chappelle's Show," we don't always find it that funny.  But Chappelle's stand-up?  Now I understand why the last time I saw him on The Daily Show Jon Stewart said that for his money, Chappelle's the funniest stand-up around.

Now here's the weird part.  The Davis newspaper didn't have ONE MENTION of this show (after the tiny blurb announcing ticket sales a month ago).  Don't you think that's WEIRD?  Dave Chappelle performing in Davis is the biggest news in this town aside from the UC Davis football team beating Stanford last weekend.  If it was in the paper, I sure didn't see it.  Hard to imagine that there'd be no mention of a white performer of the same stature performing in Davis.  I'm just sayin'...

I'm in shock...

I was sitting at the kitchen table, window cranked open, antique radio on, munching on a burrito.  I'd been on a bike ride around and beyond the UC Davis Arboretum and followed that with a stroll through the Farmer's Market.  I figured I'd earned a burrito.  I hadn't gotten around to reading yesterday's Davis Enterprise, so I was leisurely making my way through it...when I suddenly spotted a blurb I could hardly believe!  Tickets went on sale at 10 am today...and it was already 1:15?!  Holy shit!  I whipped my MasterCard out of my wallet at breakneck speed, grabbed the phone and called tickets.com.  The best I could get were two single seats.  As soon as I hung up the phone, I went to the venue's website...where the show is already listed as SOLD OUT.  Whew.  Got in just under the wire.

Boyfriend is gonna FREAK!!!  He's not gonna believe that this guy's gonna be performing a few blocks from our house next month.  Heehee.  :)