Tuesday, August 05, 2008

Flashing through my mind like poundcake...

... which is to say... not very "flash-ing-ly"...

You see, I keep meaning to write these things down but old age, senility, and that... oh, what was it now?... I forgot... um...

It was one of those mornings when... you know... one of THOSE mornings... I woke up on time but just couldn't seem to get out of the house. I forgot my phone. My water bottle was empty. My front tire was low. By the time I'd hit the road on my morning 16 miles, I was already running five minutes late. Trust me, when it comes to biking, five minutes count for a lot. I knew that even if I pushed myself as hard as I could... it wouldn't really count for squat.

But I did anyway.

Just after Imperial Highway, I passed through a cloud of gnats. These don't mean much when you're walking; you just brush them aside and keep your mouth closed. But when you're biking, in the dark... it's like speeding through a cloud of raisins. Spat! Spat! Spat! In those instances, you're extra careful not to open your mouth!!

I haven't mentioned the play in a while. You'll be surprised to hear it's nearly completed. I've been writing at lunch and it just pours out of me with little effort. The hardest part was the rhythm. The inspiration for this show - musically, if not lyrically - came from the TV series, Studio 60. I loved the rhythm the writer's kept up. I still love watching it on DVD, simply for that comic beat. So, I tried to write a show that had a good rhythm - some people may not get what I'm saying but I think the results will come across on stage. The nice thing about writing musically is that you don't have to worry about the beats. They're right there. You can see the jokes before you need to write them; it's so easy. (Yeah, I'll shut up now.)

(BROKEN NEWS: I finished the first draft of the play today at lunch! That's right. I'm a playwright again!)

I've been hoping to get some folks together for a staged reading but it's not turning out to be so easy. Most of the usual suspects (Tim, Steve, Chris) have disappeared and the few actors I still know, well, they're good! They're working! I can understand that. After all, it wouldn't make sense to admire them if they sucked, right? But scheduling a reading has been difficult, all the same. I'm tempted to pull Vicky in to read and even Jeff, as well. The important thing is to hear the words out loud. Comedy works better when spoken.

I reached the farthest point of my ride this morning with only two minutes to rest. I faced the east. I took a deep breath. I thought about my day...

... a cute jogger bobbed on by...

Shit! Two minutes are up so fast! Back on my bike, I headed home.

School starts in two weeks. Can you believe it? It's been a nice summer, with lots of time for... well, not much, but I did get a little rest, which was good. I'm taking two courses this semester and I hope to take two more in the spring. That will leave me with five courses to take. Five. Some of these must be done sequentially, so I'll probably be stuck taking one each semester. Crap. This is taking forever.

By the time I got home, my skin was glowing with heat. I generate a lot of BTUs when I'm riding - just off my skin alone. Vicky is more cold-blooded (watch it) so she is amazed at how hot my skin gets. After a long ride, I'm pretty amazed, too. I wish I could plug myself in, rather than glowing like a furnace. Oh well.

Up to the shower.

Time to wash off some bugs...

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