trapped like a fly, but loving it

Twice in the last month i have made plans with the fabulous Miss Colleen, Esq to work on my Local See and Do List since i need to mark at least six things off before the end of May and i am currently at only two local things seen and done.
Plans were set in place, i drove to Virginia to meet up with her and we never left her apartment.
Really, her place is like a frickin' gravity well.
It's cozy and comfortable with a gigantic sofa that wouldn't fit in my living room and televisions bigger than my kitchen. She has On Demand in one room and some something else in the other so we can peruse two totally different sets of music videos. She even Tivoed the 30 Seconds to Mars MTV Unplugged episode for me in HD so that it is always there.
We have the best intentions of going into the city to find the George Washington as Zeus statue or visit the WWII Memorial, but... the apartment... it's just so dang comfortable.
I will say that one weekend we were challenged by track work at her Metro stop and another it was cold and windy, but honestly we could have surmounted those obstacles if we were committed to the plan.
 Instead, we stay in our pajammies, order subs, burrow into the couch like hedgehogs and watch movies and videos. Every once in a while there might be a potty break or a run to the fridge for more beverages, but that's about it for movement. Partway through the day we will haul ourselves into her room to attack the next service's catalog of videos. Eventually we'll order Thai food.
It is glorious. 
I'm always a little sorry that we haven't gotten anything else checked off of the list, but mostly i am happy and relaxed. That's the way it is with Colleen; we like to do cool things together, but never feel compelled to have to do things. Sometimes we'll just hang out and read. Her living room might be the chillest place i know.
This week's quote kinda captures the flavor of that type of friendship; it comes from Jonathan Auxier's Peter Nimble and His Fantastic Eyes:

There is something wonderful that happens between true friends when they find themselves no longer wasting time with meaningless chatter. Instead, they become content just to share each other's company. It is the opinion of some that this sort of friendship is the only kind worth having. While jokes and anecdotes are nice, they do not compare with the beauty of shared solitude.

It does however mean that if i am ever gonna get a chance to go to the reading room at the Library of Congress, i'll have to meet her in the city cause going to her house is like running headlong into a spiderweb - without all of the pesky liquifying and consuming of my vital organs, of course. 

complete randomness

Yesterday it was 86 degrees; today it is 56.
Welcome to spring in Maryland.

I had a show this morning (what idiot authorizes Saturday morning shows? oh, yeah...) and it was the same one where i got a touch electrocuted yesterday. I'm glad that i had to do the Jacob's Ladder again right away cause if i'd had to wait more than 20 hours i might have really psyched myself out. I was so skittish about testing it before the show that TM Chris actually laughed at me at one point. Good news, though - it worked perfectly, just like the hundreds of other times i've done it and no alternating current entered my body.

This is one of the ugliest flowers i have ever seen.
It is huge and kinda impressive in its weirdness.
One of my dad's friends grows them in his cool butterfly garden.
I don't remember what it is called, but it goes to prove that beauty really is in the eye of the beholder because it is quite popular with insects.
Maybe it has UV markings that attracts them.
Did you know that some insects can see in the UV spectrum?
Science is awesome.

When i was trying to remember the name of that hideous brown flower i did a Google image search with the parameters "pitcher shaped flower brown with yellow veins" and pretty close to the top i got this:

Really, Google? Try again.

I do not understand single ply toilet paper.
You aren't saving money or conserving resources cause you have to use twice as much, so what is the point?

I really like red hair.
I don't have many friends who are natural redheads,
but yet several of them have redheaded babies, like this little miss of Oregon Francie's:

Genetics is fun.











There is a new location of Sofi's Crepes in Belvedere Square,

 so now you can grab some crepes before or after your movie at the Senator.
As you can see, TM Katie's flabber was pretty much gasted [awesome phrase stolen from Jim Butcher and reworked to fit my needs] by the size and deliciousness of her Original with Bacon.
I am a bit embarrassed to admit that i've never been to the Sofi's by the Charles Theater -a Baltimore tradition- so this was a new experience for me completely.
I ordered like this Florentine beauty

which was tasty and a homemade butterscotch one that was hands-down the most delicious dessert i have ever eaten, ever.
Just be warned that there is a delectable, piping hot lake of butterscotch waiting at the bottom of the crepe, waiting to explode all over your uniform.

We celebrated Dash's second birthday last weekend and Kate made this great cake.
Yes, the pan did all of the tricky mouse shaping, but she piped on all of those delicious buttercream stars. My hand is cramping just thinking about it.





I've spoken before about about crazy school mascots that we encounter in our travels. Recently we were at a little private school that were the Panthers. That isn't that unusual, but check out this painting:

Is that not the smuggest expression you have ever seen?
He is painted on the wall where we were performing.
I felt like he was judging me during the entire show and distinctly found me lacking.
Oh yeah, Mr High and Mighty Panther? Well, you're... you're two dimensional!

Finally, i understand that we are a litigious society so there are warning labels on everything, but should anyone have to be told that it is a bad idea to put a mechanical hamster on his or her head?

That is all for now.
Return to your regular programming.
Thank you.

1 thing i do NOT like about my job

... accidental electrocution.

Totally my fault, no permanent damage and the audience didn't even know it happened, but
OUCH!
A girl can put up with nearly anything for a vocation that she loves, but dang it that hurt.

Oh well... i got the feeling back in my hand so i guess it's all good.

Remember people, do not try to plug in and start a Jacob's ladder in the dark with a fiber optic lamp in your hand just because it looks better without the lights and you're trying to be slick; wires could be draped on transformers and a spark could jump right to you. That's bad.

Today's Public Service Announcement has been brought to you by Nikola Tesla and Show Adrenaline Anonymous.

I'm in love, again

Browsing the library, picking CDs at random can lead to a lot of wasted time and heartache, but sometimes, sometimes you accidentally pick a winner.

I've started a passionate love affair with Trombone Shorty.
...sigh
I picked up the CD For True just because of the name Trombone Shorty; i mean, who plays the trombone in this day and age?
Troy Andrews, apparently, and he does it very, very well.
The library categorized it as jazz, but i'd also call it funk and r&b, with some rock guitar, bounce vocals and old school hip-hop. Really, it is nearly impossible to define because it feels like its own thing.
It does however, make me dance and you know how i love to dance.
The CD has been on repeat for 2 days now and i keep finding nuacnes that make me smile.
Do yourself a favor, give Trombone Shorty a try; be sure to listen to the whole album.
You can thank me later.

National Red Cross Month

When i donated blood last week i found out that March is National Red Cross Month.
It seems appropriate that this month's charity should therefore be the Red Cross.
Consider donating time, money or blood - you never know when you might be the one in need.

being an adult sucks

Family, whether blood or choice, gather for events.
When you are all the same age -like school friends- you tend to mark the passing of major life changes around the same time as each other: several years of graduations, several years of weddings, several years of babies.
Tomorrow is the first funeral among my college friends (Kurt's doesn't really count because we were still so young).
Bruce lost his valiant fight against melanoma.
I certainly pray that this isn't the beginning of a trend,
but it is a mile marker.
We are middle-aged.
In our heads we are all still kids, but the truth is that disease is more likely to reach out, our bodies are more likely to betray us.
That's a fricking slap in the face.
In between doing 4 shows in Virginia today i traded calls and texts trying to arrange getting to the funeral in South Carolina tomorrow afternoon. The plans became more and more elaborate until i finally realized that for everything to come together, i wouldn't sleep for three nights. Not that i couldn't go three nights in a row, but mayhaps that it is a poor decision.
I want to see my friends, want to connect with them and share this loss. I want to hold Julie's hand, knowing that there is nothing in the world i can say to ease her pain, but BE there as a solid presence beside her.
Instead i am taking the safe option, the keep-myself-healthy option, the i'm-sure-that-i-will-regret-this-later-but-it-seems-wise-now option.
And that decision, more than any number of years, makes me feel old and i hate it.
Rest in Peace, Johara Trebb.
Your quick smile and easy humor made me feel safe when i was so far from home.

good work, people

And yet another February managed and survived and conquered.
I saw a lot of teamwork out there.
Everyone brought their A-game.
There was even some sunshine (though it goes without saying that i got sunburned, right?) and relaxation and Vikings.
A great effort put forth by all of us to plow through.
Rest up, people - only 360 days until February 1, 2013.
Until then, let's rejoice in the words of Robert Frost:

In three words I can sum up everything I've learned about life:

It goes on.