Hey gang! I'm at my sister's house in Laguna Hills now. My nephew Simon will be celebrating his second birthday this weekend. So I came down with my parents today. First, my dad picked me up at my place this morning. Then I was with my parents as we drove down in the afternoon. We decided to go later instead of the morning so we'd avoid the traffic going through San Jose and Los Angeles. We had a nice drive down, and we made pretty good time. I'm certainly looking forward to the party on Saturday!

Yesterday was the Fourth of July. Usually, I go to Fisherman's Wharf to catch the fireworks. But this year, I did something different. I'd found out about an event at Space Gallery on Polk St., so I went there. Space Gallery is an art gallery with a bar, like 111 Minna. Anyway, the event was called Bazooko's Circus. There were a lot of art on the walls with a circus theme. And there was a DJ, plus live entertainment. Burlesque clown Dottie Lux was the hostess, and she performed some of her sexy antics. One of the exhibiting artists, Hassan Said, showed a short film of his, "It's a Strange World", with live musical accompaniment. It was a nice change of pace, and I enjoyed myself!

Last night, I went out and saw the musical "Spamalot"! When it came to San Francisco, I just had to see it, being the Monty Python fan that I am. I'd purchased my ticket already, and I went last night to the Golden Gate Theater where it was playing. So it was a great show, every bit as funny as I thought it would be. I liked that it wasn't just about "Monty Python and the Holy Grail," but had other Monty Python references as well. (F'rinstance, God was represented by two cutouts of that huge animated foot and the voice of John Cleese!) There were lots of great scenes, and if I had to pick a favorite, it would be the one with the Killer Rabbit. Best musical number was "You Won't Succeed On Broadway." I'm very glad I went!

My search for employment has taken me here and there. Most recently, I applied for a clerical position with the U.S. Army Recruiting Center. I even got an interview today (my first one in a helluva long time!). But I found out I'd pretty much have to join up if I was to get the job. That includes basic training! Well, that didn't appeal to me at all. No member of my family was ever in the military, so why should I break tradition? The staff sergeant interviewing me did try to persuade me with some good arguments: a decent benefits package, job security, training for new skills, plus for someone my age, breaking into a new career won't be easy anywhere else. So I said I'd like some time to think about it. I got some brochures to look over, and was told to call back tomorrow morning with my decision. So I'll just tell him thanks but no thanks.

Current Mood: stressed

Ever had a power outage at your house? How about having a power outage in your whole neighborhood? That happened to me today. I had been out shopping earlier today, and when I got home, there was no power in my building. The elevator wasn't working, there was no lights in the hallways, and no power in my apartment. I wanted to do the laundry, but as the washing machines didn't work, I had no choice but to wait. I caught up on some art while I waited. I couldn't turn my drawing table lamp on, but the sun hadn't gone down, so I had adequate light. After at least an hour, the power came back on. So I went right down to the laundry room to wash my clothes. In the laundry room, I found out what had happened. A transformer nearby had malfunctioned, and even started a fire. Anyway, I then went back up to my place. The power didn't stay on, unfortunately. It went out again. And I knew the washing machines were still running. Had to wait a bit longer. The power flickered a moment at a point or two. Finally, the power was restored. The machine holding my whites was still full of water. I had to wring them out before I could put them in the dryer. I remember when San Francisco had a huge city-wide power outage back in December of 1998. This incident reminded me of that!

Yesterday, I was part of a big artistic event. The San Francisco Cartoonist Conspiracy put on a big comics jam at the Cartoon art Museum. There were tables set up in the lobby right outside the bookstore, and it was open to anyone who wanted to join in. What we did was, we drew the panels on square Post-It notes and arranged them into a story on sheets of paper. There was more than one story going on, and we were super-productive! The comic jam I worked on had some bears from space invading a world of bees for honey to power their spaceship. I penciled my share of panels, then I ended up inking most of the pages on it. Afterwards, I went with some friends to see Up (which was excellent!).

Current Mood: cheerful

I've been having cell phone trouble recently. And I hadn't had it but a few months! I plugged it in to be charged on Friday night, and it seemed to malfunction. When I tried to turn it on Saturday morning, it wouldn't go on. So I took it to an AT&T Store, but that location was closed. (That particular location was downstairs from some stockbrokers' offices, so it wasn't going to be open on weekends.) I didn't even think to try a different location, which was just a few blocks away! Anyway, when I told Mom about it, she suggested a different location. I went to the one she recommended yesterday. So the salesmen there tested my phone, and found it wasn't working. They gave me a number to call. So when I got home, I called it. The woman I talked to had me go through a troubleshooting routine to see if I could get it working again. But it didn't work. So she suggested I go to another location to exchange my old phone for a new one. I didn't feel like going out again then and there, so I decided I'd do that today. So today, I went to the AT&T location I'd been given, at a kiosk at a shopping mall. The clerk there thought my phone just needed a new battery. He called around to see if he could find one. Then told me to go to a nearby location to see if I could get this mess fixed. So I finally went there. I explained the situation. The problem was I wouldn't be able to get a new phone in the city, it would have to come from one of their larger customer centers. So I called that number again at the store. Had to go through the whole troubleshooting routine again. Anyway, the woman I talked to said she'd have a new phone sent to me through the mail. It'll take a few days, though. It's all so frustrating!

Current Mood: frustrated

Last night, I saw a stage musical, "Wicked." Since the show is back in San Francisco, I wanted to see it, since I enjoyed the book. I had gotten my ticket two weeks before. Anyway, last night, I first treated myself to dinner at Chevy's. And after that, I went to the Orpheum Theater, where "Wicked" was playing. I'd gotten a side balcony seat, and it had a decent view of the stage. It was a very enjoyable show! I suppose my favorite character would have to be Galinda/Glinda. The best number would have to be "Defying Gravity." I had already known the musical would be different from the book, and I didn't mind much. I thought they got creative here and there. All in all, I'm glad I went to see the show!

Last night I went to this wild and crazy gallery reception! The gallery was 111 Minna, and the show was "Pin It Up, Babycakes!" The art on display was inspired by pin-up and burlesque art. So there was a lot of sexy paintings and photography. And some of the artists were burlesque performers themselves. I'd found out about the opening from a fellow cartoonist's E-mail. So I met him there, plus two other friends. At nine o'clock, they had a burlesque show. Plenty of women hit the stage and stripped down to pasties and panties! And the audience showed their rowdy appreciation! At the end of the show, there was a hard-rockin' all-girl band called the Merry Widows. I went home with my eardrums in shock, but it was definitely a great experience!

Current Mood: amused

Hey gang! Writing from my parents' house, as I'll be here for Christmas. We won't be going to my sister's house in Laguna Hills this year, because my dad was called for jury duty. And I was really looking forward to the trip too! :(
Well, thankfully there was something special that happened today. I went with my parents to see Ennio Marchetto at the Berkeley Rep. If you don't know who he is, he's an Italian comedian/performance artist who does amazing things with paper costumes. Here's a taste of his act: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QERUjf8fbII I've seen his act before at San Francisco's Theater on the Square, and loved it. So when my folks were getting tickets, I just had to tag along! And he gave quite a show! So while I did miss out on going to Laguna Hills, at least I caught a great show!
And one more thing...Merry Christmas!

Current Mood: cheerful