Ah Nature

Yesterday I left the house on a dreary, rainy morning as I headed over to my brother's house. I was going to babysit for a little while before taking my nephew to see a movie.

As I came creeping around a bend in the road in my neighborhood I see what appears to be a huge blackbird frantically flapping its wings and flopping around the wet roadway. I slowed the car to a crawl assessing the situation when suddenly the bird flips over and I see a second head, and another set of wings. What I originally took for a wounded blackbird, was actually two blackbirds locked in battle that had fallen to the street below. The birds flapped their wings viciously, scratched with their talons, and pecked with their beaks trying to wound each other. By this time I had stopped my car and was watching for several seconds before finally, having had enough, I honked my horn.

I had places to be, and people to see I couldn't be held up by a pair of sparring blackbirds.

The two birds, startled by the horn, lept to their feet and started to fly away still swiping at each other and darting back and forth as they disappeared into the trees. I put the car into gear and started off again with a thought, 'Maybe they were mating.'

Another Audition.

This past weekend Sara and I auditioned and were both called back for Colonial Players of Annapolis' final production o the season: Wonder Of The World. Sara gave an amazing audition and barely missed out on being cast as the female lead. I was very proud of my wife and her audition. - It was fun being the talented 'couple' at the audition. - I was cast in the show and will be seen on the Colonial Player's stage this June as Kip Harris; a straight-edged, loving husband with a full sweater drawer, and a dark secret. It is a disturbingly funny show and I'm predicting that my parents won't love it but they'll still laugh in spite of their age. (hehe)

WTF?

I asked myself, 'What's wrong with this picture?' I stood, with my wife, riding down the escalators at Target. Ahead of us, on the escalators, was a herd of Amish women, and in the middle of the herd was an Amish midget!

So many questions raced through my mind...

Are the Amish allowed to ride escalators? Do all Amish women travel in herds and wear Sketchers? How rare is an Amish midget? How much is that rarity increased when you place that Amish midget inside of a Target? Do the Amish prefer Target to Walmart? Does that Amish midget have a mini-buggy pulled by a mini-pony?

These are the questions that occupy my mind...

St. Patrick's Day

Happy St. Paddy's! Hoping to get a Guinness in before bedtime, maybe even a green beer or 2.

'Bears ain't fussy, it's true."

Recently finished this book. I enjoyed it. The premise is that a bear, the protagonist, finds a manuscript beneath a tree and decides he is going to claim it as his own and heads off to the big city to get a book deal. He dresses the part, stealing some clothes, meets with agents and editors, and tries to fit into our society. Worth the time if you're looking for a fun read.

End Of An Era

The historic Senator Theater is closing after 70 years. Even though I've only been inside to see the CAMM SLAMM film festival, I remember the theater fondly from my college days. So sad...

The Case of The Coffee Surprise

Our hero sits at his computer, working on a story. Next to him a steaming coffee cup sits precariously close to the edge of the cluttered desk. He intently reviews what he has written so far, as he absentmindedly sips his cup of joe.

The orange coffee mug is replaced; still dangerously near the brink. Our hero returns to typing. He is in the zone. The story almost writes itself.

The coffee mug is raised to his lips again and he tips his head back to drain the dregs of the cup. Maybe he should reheat another mugful. The desk chair scoots back on the blue carpet and our hero gets to his feet. Break time...

What's this? In the bottom of the mug?

Our hero looks deep into the mug and there on the ceramic bottom lies half of a piece of farfalle. The bow tie pasta has absorbed some of the coffee and shows a dark molasses tinge to its surface. Somehow the pasta must have found its way into his cup between the coffee machine, the microwave and the desk.

But how? How did that get in there?

The mystery may never be solved.

***PS. Later the mystery is solved when the wife returns home.***

The mug in question, which I left sitting next to my computer yesterday morning after emptying it, was actually used by my wife as a trash bin when she dropped a farfalle on the rug yesterday at lunch.

Now I know what you're thinking. What, you used a dirty mug? It was early. I was tired, and the mug was sitting where I left it so I wrongly assumed that it was fine to drink coffee from - I drank coffee from it only yesterday morning.

Lesson learned. I will always get a new mug each morning from now on. I will always check the bottom of my cups, glasses, and mugs for discarded pieces of pasta. Life goes on.

Things That Go Bump In The Night

Recently, I listened to 'The Shining' on audio book. Currently, I'm listening to 'Salem's Lot', also by Stephen King, and reading David Morrell's 'Creepers'. Last night I awoke and suddenly had the urge to check all of the doors in our apartment. I got up, shuffled through the dark rooms and was undeniably spooked. I felt like a little child peeking into their open closet and expecting to find the BogeyMan! Next book I read will have to contain a few laughs.

What Am I Watching?

It was close to 2 in the morning. I was sitting on the couch, finishing a beer, and contemplating sleep. I was randomly flipping between stations when I came across Nitro Circus on MTV. (It's, apparently, the new 'Jack Ass'.) Johnny Knoxville is a producer and the cast members do crazy stunts on dirt bikes, motorcycles, cars, etc. Trained professionals... supposedly.
Anyway they were starting a new segment. One of the main guys is from Annapolis and they were visiting his family. The particular segment featured the adrenaline-fueled cast in a downhill Big Wheel Race. As the race commenced and more people ended up skidding off the track or falling from their 'vehicles' I noticed familiar landmarks and remembered a day, several months ago, when the front street of our neighborhood was blocked off for filming. Could it be? Yes, it could. This TV show featuring these grown adults rocketing down a closed downhill road course on Big Wheels just so happens to have been filmed in my neighborhood!
It was a highly entertaining piece of television. Tumbling bodies, skidding Big Wheels, and road rash all in the friendly borders of Epping Forest!

... And The Award Goes To...

So last night, Sunday March 1st the annual W.A.T.C.H Awards were held in Alexandria, VA. We did not brave the weather to take part in the festivities even though, I've mentioned before that, 'Hauptmann' the play I did last Spring was nominated. Well, it's official. 'Hauptmann' Is An Award-Winning Show!

Best Lead Actor.
Best Featured Actor.
Best Direction.
Outstanding Play of the Year!

That last one is pretty impressive. Granted that my individual work was not recognized - I didn't expect it to be, it wasn't that type of role - but the show itself won for Outstanding Play of the year! I was a part of that. I was a member of the cast and our work was acknowledged as the best play(not a musical)of the year. That makes me happy.