once again i have no idea what I'm going to be tomorrow

I'm always a late dresser decider for Halloween and this year is no exception. 3PM tomorrow will be my time to decide: Do I go conceptual (Previous years: El Nino, Katrina the Drag Queen disaster)? Character based (Previous: High School Football Coach, Bjorn Borg)? Somewhat skin-showing (Bjorn Borg)?

Current costume ideas: The Biggest Loser, A Tailor, An Unfocused Peace Protest, The Floating Garbage Sludge out in the Pacific That's the size of Texas, Breaking News, Facebook, Blackwater Guard, 100 Calories Pack, Foreskin, A Gloryhole, The Situation Room and/or Wolf Blitzer, Frank T. Lawman, Mark Marino, an insole.

I'll keep the thoughts going and am open to any suggestions.

As many of you know, the Castro is all set to be a joyless wasteland of non-fun, thanks to the previous year's violence and mayhem. Every single bar will be shut down because, well, apparently it was all those gays from the Twin Peaks that were shooting everyone last year. Strangely enough, many liquor stores will remain open. ?!&&*@?

I will be walking through the area on the way to a party, however.

Corcubita moschata

Harold Nachtrieb Octoberfest Action

Happy Octoberfest

I thought they were organizing a beer stein holding contest, but then it all went wrong. Horribly wrong.

making fun of the 'bu

Mark and I are very much enjoying the Chevy Malibu commercial with the bank robbers. I think any current Malibu owners/drivers would appreciate its honesty. I looked for it on the youtube but can't find it. Darn union!

It should be pointed out that Chevy Malibu is noticeable in Safeway parking lots where Mark has been asked multiple times if he'd like to get his dents removed for cheap by people roaming the parking lot in their cars. And when they ask, they always refer to the car by it's name (As in "would you like me to remove the dents on your Malibu?") Very suspicious.

Speaking of unions, I think if the stage hands go on strike on Broadway, some theater in NY needs to host staged readings performed by the union members. How about a large cast show? The Time of Your Life, perhaps? Coram Boy?

Speaking of length and time of life, would the gentleman with bronchitis or emphysema who lives next door to me please cover his mouth when coughing? I'm starting to imitate the noise you make as though you are a catchy pop song. At least limit coughings Between 11AM and 11PM. Thank you.

awwwwww

ok the plane landed now

And I am all landed. And in my underwear. And hoping to shower myself and face this gorgeous fall day with hope, passion, and a willingness to face fear.

I am in New York for about 30 more minutes

Firstly, apologies to all my New York friends that I did not see in the last two days. Sorry! I had a whirlwind two-day playwriting related adventure that consumed my time. But I'll be back very soon, I promise. And we'll get a drink or dinner or see a show! Or, maybe, I will stay at your place.

Anhyoo, I am blogging from the JetBlue Terminal where I am awaiting my flight home to the SFO (or "the 415" as San-Francisco-rich-kids apparently call the area as they are beating up Ivy League A Capella Groups.) New York was a pleasant 70 degrees and up during my stay, beautiful and balmy, though a bit rainy today but that's OK because I was indoors.

Anyhoo I am going to be boarding soon, oh shoot, barding right now...

I don't think I'll enjoy any new Albus Dumbledore porn

More Colorado In Georgia

They're still at it! Dad's Garage has extended their awesome production of Colorado until November 3! Yay for all!

ok i won't give up on jazz

but maybe it's just not what I should be listening to at a cafe while writing

oh and turn your lights off on Saturday

Especially if you live in San Francisco.

tuesday miscellany

Ah a glorious Tuesday night it is here in San Francisco. Indian Summer has given way to a crisp, slightly moist, Fall. A light drizzle dominating most of the day has opened up to a clear cool night. Perfect for a hearty dinner at Chow, a pressed sandwich from Tartine, or one of those hot dogs wrapped in bacon sizzling away near the 16th and Mission Bart Station.

A few random fall thoughts

Just bought the new Radiohead album which feels very Autumnal. I like it. It's warm! Still a little melancholy but there is some bubbling of goodness and strings beneath. Goodness and sadness together. That's so my genre.

My cardio at the Gym today was soured by being forced to watch CNN where, for literally about 15 minutes, they kept unswirling the swirled photograph of the child molester that Interpol is looking for. It's weird to watch CNN on mute. And depressing. White guy blabs in a concerned fashion, they unswirl the photo, cut to white guy blabbing, split screen of white guy and unswirling child molester, other photos of child molester unswirled, repeat repeat repeat. I think CNN was really psyched about the unswirling graphic.

I've decided that I don't really like Jazz. At least the boppy freeform scatty drummer hittin the high hat and cymbals too much lots of trumpet stuff that's somewhat assaulting on my senses. Perhaps it's my oncoming hearing problem rearing an early head, but repeated jolty noises make me uncomfortable, anxious, and shut me down emotionally. I don't want to diminish the power of beauty of Jazz for those who love it. I think it's like a language that I don't understand. Like Cantonese. It's not my music of choice.

I'm still enjoying Dirty Sexy Money, liked Michael Clayton, like the new 10 dollar pillows we got from Costco, like the Iron and Wine album I bought, like walking, am ambivalent about the arch support inserts I have right now though foot pain has diminished, am a little gassy, appreciating silicone based lubricant and its longlastingness, and continue to be troubled by the general state of affairs of the world.

facebook

So did everyone my age join in the last two months?

One way theater could be more like reality television

Offer special performances of the same play but have someone in front holding up signs indicating prices of all accessories and jewelry in the play. Plus factoids on the actors.

Hopes for the weekend:

• I hope that I will sufficiently be able to honor Al Gore's recent big win
• I hope that I will not fuck up my play by rewriting parts of it
• I hope that I will make it to the gym for the usual cardio, sit n push ups routine
• I hope that I'll receive some penile enlargement spams directly into my in-box
• I hope that I will actually make it into the shower within the next few minutes
• I hope the Tortellini in Chicken Broth is yummy tonight
• I hope I haven't had too much broth the last few days
• I hope Calendula Tom's of Maine Deodorant will once again be available at Trader Joes instead of only the unscented flavor. blech

only new TV show I'm managing to watch

Dirty Sexy Money

anyone else? anyone?

Today's foot revelation

So I have high foot arches. This means that more pressure gets placed on my heel and the balls of my feet, and the middle section of the foot remains more tender as it never touches the ground.

I have recently had these weird events where I take a step and feel some pain in my left foot that leaves a bruise, but the pain goes away quickly and I continue on with my life. A recurrence of this event provoked me to go see a Podiatrist who took x-rays of my left foot. Firstly, the number of bones in a foot is really quite impressive. Secondly, I have high foot arches.

I do have something of a foot obsession. For years, I had odor-heavy feet, which tended to make me self conscious when I had to remove my shoes (shoe removal is a very common requirement in California). In recent years, I have managed to conquer the odorous tendencies of my paddles by a strict cycling of footwear (never two consecutive days in the same shoes, steady influx of new footwear, etc...) not to mention very thorough washings.

But now it appears the pedal architecture is also coming to play as a challenge. Just as my mother feared (She's always told me to be vigilant) So now I find myself considering getting orthopedics, probably some nice medical ones and some Dr Scholls ones in the meantime.

This also means that, if I'm wearing some sort of new sole, that I will be appearing taller.

File this in the blogging overshare category!

cheers, Atlanta!

It was a quick and magical sojourn to Atlanta for some quality theater watching at Dad's Garage. I have now returned to the clutches of San Francisco where I missed the bluegrass/street fair/blue angels. This time of year here is nuts.

On a highway in Atlanta, there was a billboard advertising a camera encased in a pill that you could swallow if you thought you might be having GI issues. I think it said "Indigestion? Heartburn? Irregular?" to one side, with a giant picture of the pill camera on the other.

Is a billboard the correct advertising for a medical device that I would assume require some, um, medical expertise in its useage and its knowing-when-to-use-it?

It reminded me of the time when I volunteered at Steinhardt Aquarium when a researcher had a shark swallow a sensor device that would track something about its insides. The device got stuck and I got to be part of an exciting emergency procedure where said researcher stuck his hand up the shark's ass and pulled out the pill-shaped device.

Hello, ATL

So far, in my brief time in Atlanta I have held back from calling it "The ATL" and I think that's just better for everyone. I don't think I ever want to call it that out loud, but I seem to always want to write it as "the ATL." You know, so you know I'm down with the vibrant ATL hip hop scene. Sorry.

Anyway, I'm in Atlanta for the second time ever (the first time involved performing in a murder mystery for Worldcom pre-scandal)! For some reason, I have met more people from the Atlanta theatre scene than many other places (Hello Megan, Freddie, Sean, Jasson, and now more!) There seems to be some sort of connection between California and Georgia. I'm not sure I can explain that right now, but I have always been intrigued by the theater scene here and happy to get a little dab of it.

I'm seeing Colorado at Dad's Garage (as would be suggested above). Firstly, in my brief, um, less than a day's time exposure to the theater, I must say that it is awesome. Here are some the reasons:

• Tin Roof - (apparently less awesome in certain weather)


• Feels like a down n dirty speakeasy, where you could gamble, get in a fight, drink too much, and see a play.


• Buckets of beer for sale


• Great taste in play selection


• Play at 8. Improv at 10:30


• Unpretentious


• Generous


• Audience demographics where I'm not the youngest person in the room, and may even be older than the median age. OK, I might be around the median. Buckets of beer unite all ages!


• Artistic director, Kate Warner, makes amazing scones.

There are other reasons, but it's just fun to step into a theater environment and feel "oh they got it going on here. This is the future of theater." I don't mean that in a grandiose way, but it's a vibe around the theater and plays that makes it feel accessible, welcome, and appealing to a diversity of crowds. I feel really lucky to have worked with some great theatres that are reaching non-subscriborial audiences. I was talking with Kate and she raised the point that for theatre to reach young (or any new) audiences, you have to go beyond just marketing a specific "youth-positive" pieces and make the entire building welcome at any time.

[A big part of this welcome, I think, is tickets under 25 bucks. (and if you let beer in the theatre, you can bolster the sales even more) Let's see more 10 pound seasons in the US! C'mon corporate America, step up, underwrite seasons! ]

OK Enough of that.

Most importantly, the production of Colorado here kicks ass, if I don't say so myself. It's a superb cast that gets the comedy and keeps the characters identifiable and real. It's wonderfully directed, paced and toned perfectly, and the right audience to enjoy it! I'm thrilled to be produced here. Boo yeah!

happy october!

(i didn't take this)