Seth

I recieved word this morning at 10:30 or so.

I have been reading the book "Live from New York," the history of Saturday Night Live, and had been struck by the passage detailing John Belushi's passing. In it, the authors discuss how, in the wake of his death, what resonated most seemed to be how it signaled an ending for the remaining members of the original group. "They could never go back, never regroup, never be together again. It would never be just like it was."

This had made me somewhat reflective about my life in BG. So much has changed, and so many have left to begin their lives. But still there was always the chance that there would be a reunion, a new gathering, a chance for my strange, glorious extended theatre family to come full circle and share in each other's lives once more. No matter where we all went, the possibility still remained.

That will never happen now. Not with Theta, not with the Shatners, not even with the department as a whole. For no matter how many of us attend, there will always be a vacancy, and no matter how strong our connection, there will always be a break in the line.

There are many emotions. Sadness, naturally. Shock, without doubt. A certain level of anger. Regret, because I had seen so little of him in the past few years. But above all, mourning. Not just for the loss of a friend and colleague, but for an era that is now gone and will never return.

There was to be a reunion of sorts in just over a week. A wedding. A celebration of the lifelong joy of one of our group's members, and one of my best friends.

There will be a reunion of sorts tonight. Myles Pizza Pub, 10 p.m. A gathering of friends in rememberance of our friend, who held court over so many Myles gatherings over the years.

Questions, both externally and internally directed, will be asked later. For now, our group will simply reunite in the spirit of brotherhood and love, remembering the man who has left our company, and mourning the empty space he leaves, one which will never be filled.

Rest in peace, my friend.

Always Look on the Bright Side of Life...

(whistles)

Some cool things to be happy about...

-Another 22 episodes of Family Guy have been ordered (according to PlanetFamilyGuy.com). That's in addition to the 35 Fox initially ordered, bringing the total number of guaranteed new shows up to 57. For those who haven't kept track, the entire original run of the show was only 50 episodes, so we've already doubled the total. Absolutely amazing. Not only that, but the show continues to thrive on a quality level, too - last night's episode was the best yet, with Peter's emerging stupidity, a classic Stewie line, and the wild firetrucks of the African plains. Truly bizarre and hilarious.

-Also, add another 13 episodes of American Dad to the order, bringing the guaranteed total up to 32. And that show, too, continues to grow and get better as it goes along, lacing in hilarious political satire in with its truly bizarre main storylines (where else can you see an alien's reproductive lactations used in a recipe for potato salad?) is making for a rapidly improving show. This is turning into one can't-miss hour of comedy.

-Plenty of leftovers from yesterday's Father's Day promotion meaning that I now have my own wicked cool Darth Vader "Who's Your Daddy?" poster. Yee haw!

-I splurged, I admit it. But 140 bucks later, Frasier is on its way! All six available seasons! Bring it on, USPS!

-Lindsey is in town! I'm seeing her tomorrow! Yay!!!!!

-Did I mention Batman Begins kicks @$$? I did? Well, it's worth repeating. See it, darn it!

And by the way, those who wanna see the very definition of a class act - just click here.

The Weekend

A summary of the weekend's events for all y'all interested...

-Saw "Batman Begins," felt it was easily the best Batman movie ever made, with the possible exception of "Mask of the Phantasm." See it. Now.

-Spent Friday bumming around, preparing for the trip, FINALLY getting up fo Heather's place to meet her shortly-departing in-laws, as she had requested (nice people, but then I dealt with them in a bite-sized dose - they left for home only an hour after I arrived), and then to Greg's place to watch some wrestling (ECW, natch...the PPV kicked 18 different kinda of @$$, BTW), then back home for some extremely late-night grocery shopping (as my folks were out of town and my bro and I were left to grab grub on our own, and since I was leaving in the morning, the only time we could was quite literally at 1 a.m.).

-Saturday it was down to Mansfield to see Abby compete in Miss Ohio. Two hour drive, no biggie, and then another hour or so spent driving around looking for a nice, cheap hotel room (TravelLodge for 50 is as good as I could do). Then it was dress up and head to the Renaissance theatre for the show, which as Abby promised was, indeed, better produced than the regional Miss Maumee Valley pageant I saw Abby compete in last August. But still tons of filler, relatively pointless musical interludes (including a "Phantom" refrain featuring a giant prop mask flying in that was so poorly done it looked like it was made outta mashed potatoes), and because the whole thing was telecast, no intermission to stand up and stretch your legs (or in my case, find relief from the very small chair squeezing my very wide butt cheeks together) made for a less-than-comfortable evening. And, of course, it was very disheartening to see one of my dearest friends not win the crown.

To Abs, I will only say this - I am not gonna reiterate the same "I woulda voted for you" speech you've heard a million times before. I will only say this, and believe me when I say I am being completely honest here: For all the people who I saw perform on that stage that evening, contestants and "professional" entertainers included, what I know of you and your ability, drive, dedication, intelligence and raw talent outshines the lot of them. I believe in my heart that you are in a class completely above what I saw that night. And no decision from a buncha stuffy middle-aged coots in tuxes who don't even know how not to look like a deer caught in the headlights when smiling and waving at the camera will ever change that.

-After a night in my comfy TravelLodge bed and even more comfy A/C, I drive back home today to celebrate the Father's Day with the father, including a trip to Chili's and the purchase of a SNL DVD and the original Batman movie (Adam West and Burt Ward, I mean). I mean, how ELSE do you spend Father's Day? I also grabbed the Johnny Carson DVD set (all my copies of those classic collections were VHS, needed an upgrade) and spent the afternoon reliving memories of one of my childhood heroes. And thus concluded a truly up-and-down, yin-and-yang, bizarre weekend.

Back to the grindstone at work tomorrow...

Sorry for my extended leave...

I am writing this on a library computer, for my home connection has been spotty at best and damn annoying at worst, usually kicking me off after but a minute of use for the last two weeks. Hence, my lack of updating in that time, as making additions to a blog usually requires, you know, the ability to be online.

Meantime, because of my environs and so forth, this'll have to be a short one, anyway. Let's just say I've been busy on top of everything at work, and I'm getting ready to head down to Mansfield to see the lovely and talented Abby Bollenbacher become Miss Ohio. Also seeing Batman Begins tonight, so I'll try to pass along word on that one, too...

Stay cool, dudes, I will be back with a vengeance, and soon!

Abby's Questions!

#1. To date, what accomplishment, personal trait or event you were involved in are you most proud of and why?

Pretty easy on this one. "Picasso." It's not often someone gets to live out a lifelong dream, and do it with the help of a bunch of his best friends in the process. All the obstacles we faced in getting that one to the stage made the ultimate success of the show all the sweeter. The greatest compliment of my life came from a grad student after seeing the show - he told one of the cast it was the best show he had ever seen at BGSU. I've never been happier or more proud with one thing I've done, and I will be forever grateful to everyone who worked on the show for making it possible.

#2. Choose one of your favorite wrestlers; describe both their appearance and personality to someone with ABSOLUTELY NO WRESTLING KNOWLEDE by using pop culture or historical comparisons.

Okay - Mick Foley. Not just a favorite wrestler but a personal hero. About 6'4", 280 or so (probably less now that he's out of the biz), dark hair and beard. Not muscular at all, a build closer to Lou Costello than Lou Ferrigno (not that heavy though). While he was wrestling he played a multitude of characters, most famously as Mankind, a character which went through a bizarre transformation over the years, starting out as a Hannibal Lecter-esque madman and progressing into a more loveable goofball with a reputation for doing most anything. Personality-wise, Mick's speaking style has always been very glib and witty, with the ability to get serious when the occasion called for it. Mick's style is so distinctive and unisue, in fact, that I am struggling to come up with a historical or pop culture equivilent - just watching him is the best option. And I'd be happy to provide footage for anyone who asks. :)

#3. You are one of the most generous, kind and selfless people I have ever met, so answer selfishly: What would you do on a day with absolutely no obligations and $500 magic dollars in your pocket FOR YOURSELF?!?

$150 dollars would go toward picking up the box set of the six seasons of "Frasier" that are on DVD so far (The biggest gaping hole in my collection of favorite shows that I don't own yet), and the other $350 would go toward a trip to see all my friends who are a long-distance drive right now (Jeanine, Mel, Anne, Jessica, etc.).

#4. Where is Waldo?

Right behind you! AAAAAIIIIEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!

#5. Okay Mr. Movie Buff, you’re locked in a Turkish prison for the rest of your life- what one… well, make it two movies would you want/ could you tolerate playing over and over and over and over and over and…

First of all, what the heck did I do to deserve being in a Tuskish prison, and a Turkish prison which lets me pick which two movies I'd get to watch? :) Anyway...right off the top of my head, the two movies I'd go for would be "GoodFellas" and "Citizen Kane," for pretty much the same reason - no two films in my life have been so effective at swallowing me up whole within their narratives. Each film tells a very different story, in a very strong and powerful narrative form, in such a way that the sheer force of the storytelling sweeps the viewer along from beginning to end. No matter how many times I've seen either of these films, I'm still not quite sure where they're going next, like a beautiful and complex composition that you simply surrender to and let yourself be a part of, rather than simply listening passively. If the goal of choosing a film would be not only entertainment value, but escapism - the ability to get outside my predicament and live vicariously in another world - then those two would definitely be it.