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Inspired by Rachael Mason’s awesome memoirs of her life in NYC, here is a true story, presented for no other reason that to give you guys a break from my hurried summaries of comic books and cat behaviors. Plus to be completely above the boards I think it makes me sound pretty cool.

In late July 1994, when I was 23 and backpacking through Europe, I saved a British girl from drowning off the beaches of the Greek island of Santorini. Sounds cool, right? Even in the middle of it, when she was frantically flapping her arms and gulping water by accident, and I swam up and got her back to shore — I had a silly grin on, thrilled [...]

8 Comments | Tags: war stories

Say what you want about the movie — the comic is beautiful and a fun read!

Some comics are great for their subtle slices of life — but Frank Miller comics are great for their unabashed operatic scale — great big stories and heroes that he refuses to temper even one percent. It’s a relief to see stories without apology.

Edited to add: Just saw the movie with Kevin. Not good.

0 Comments | Tags: comics, movies

Some people, in the mid-30s, buy sports cars. I join improv teams. Come see one of them tonight! Strongers (featuring me, Terry Jinn, Ptolemy Slocum, Shelly Stover, Elle Kemper and Kevin Townley) at Acid Test. 8:30pm at Gotham City Improv. Details here.

Tomorrow I’m doing improv with some Reuben Williams folks as part of a benefit. Details here. Then 1985 is doing a Harold Tuesday night. Wednesday night, Primal Bias is doing a show at Ash Wednesday (edited to say: Primal Bias is NEXT Wednesday the 21st). And Thursday night, I’m doing stand-up at compadre Rob Lathan’s Get Psyched show.

1 Comment | Tags: improv

So I got to interview Ted Leo at work. I really dig his album Hearts of Oak, so I was pretty excited for this. Our idea was that since our regular host Sara was out of town that AOL sent a guy from HR to conduct the interview.

Ted Leo interviews for a job from me.Â

Ted Leo can improvise well, in addition to making great albums. Pretty cool, right?

I had to borrow a suit from a guy like twice as tall as me, so if you don’t like the interview you can enjoy how broad my shoulders look in that jacket.

7 Comments | Tags: music, work

This Bollywood movie snippet of a male Superman and female Spiderman fighting crime and dancing is a decently good time. It’s probably been seen a lot, but I only just discovered it via Vince here at work.

[youtube f5Pjo0WjBcs nolink]

I’ve seen only a few Bollywood movies, yet I’ve never seen one that didn’t have a Thriller-like dance sequence.

4 Comments | Tags: videos

I’m really digging the 33 1/3 series of what essentially are super-extended liner notes from Continuum Books. I bought a bunch at Virgin Megastore some months ago as gifts, but couldn’t help but read them before passing them on. They focus on classic or noteworthy albums — some very much in the standard rock canon, like ‘Born in the U.S.A.’ but also some that are easily overlooked like ‘Forever Changes’ by Love.

Each book has its own sole author, and the editors seem to give that author free reign to analyze the album in whatever manner he/she sees fit. “In The [...]

4 Comments | Tags: books, music

You have a greater chance of being hit on the head with the Space Shuttle than winning that lottery.

13 Comments

A leak spring in my kitchen ceiling. It seemed to start moments after I got home (around 10:45pm) as if it had been waiting for me. I slid a bucket under the drip and considering ignoring it. As that thought formed, the drop increased into a steady stream, so that it sounded like my kitchen was taking a pee. Then I looked up and saw the ceiling tile sag down, and the drip increased one more time. It seemed very possible that my entire roof was about to cave, but it didn’t get worse.

I called my landlord this morning and reported a “small leak” in my kitchen. I was ashamed to describe it as any worse, as if the leak [...]

5 Comments | Tags: apartment

I got a letter a few weeks ago informing me that my driver’s license has been suspended retroactively to last May. This is because after I junked my car last February I never turned in my license plates. They sat in a drawer in my kitchen (with my instruction manuals and take-out menus) for well over a year. I have a self-destructive resentment of a) mailing things and b) the government ordering me to do things. Well, I showed them!

I’m normally a responsible person: I pay my taxes and credit cards, I vote, I’ve never argued with police officers. But there’s something about the inconvenience of the Department of Motor Vehicles that makes me resent them. At least once a [...]

2 Comments