Saturday, December 16, 2006

So trite, but sometimes song lyrics do say it better.

where are we?
what the hell is going on?
the dust has only just begun to form
crop circles in the carpet
sinking, feeling

spin me 'round again
and rub my eyes,
this can't be happening
when busy streets amass with people
would stop to hold their heads heavy

hide and seek
trains and sewing machines
all those years
they were here first

oily marks appear on walls
where pleasure moments hung before the takeover,
the sweeping insensitivity of this still life

hide and seek
trains and sewing machines (you won't catch me around here)
blood and tears
they were here first

Mmmm what d'ya say,
Mmmm that you only meant well?
well of course you did
Mmmm what d'ya say,
Mmmm that's all for the best?
of course it is
Mmmm what d'ya say?
Mmmm that it's just what we need
you decided this
Mmmm what d'ya say?
Mmmm what did she say?

ransom notes keep falling out your mouth
midsweet talk, newspaper word cut outs
speak no feeling
no I don't believe you
you don't care a bit,
you don't care a bit

(hide and seek)
ransom notes keep falling out your mouth
midsweet talk, newspaper word cut outs

(hide and seek)
speak no feeling
no, I don't believe you
you don't care a bit,
you don't care a bit

(hide and seek)
oh no, you don't care a bit
oh no, you don't care a bit

(hide and seek)
oh no, you don't care a bit
you don't care a bit
you don't care a bit

-Imogen Heap

Saturday, September 9, 2006

Do you wonder where I am? I'm at a red light.

You sing a song
While sitting at a red light
You think of home
While sitting at a red light

Too slow to roll
Put your life on hold
An open path
With nowhere to go
You start to wonder
While sitting at a red light

You could run a red light
Give up at a red light
You break the mold
When running through the toll
Speeding through your whole life

A chance to breathe
While sitting at a red light
You look around
reflecting on your life

A chance to think
Am I drinking too much
Should I keep going
Lose the life that I love
A second glance
While I'm coming to a red light

You could run a red light
Give up at a red light
You break the mold
When running through the toll
Speeding through your whole life

You could run a red light
Give up on your whole life
You break the mold
While you're running through the tolls
Speeding through your whole life

When things look low
You've gotta keep strong
Feet to the grass
You've gotta walk it off
The bow's been tied
Too tight to laugh
Feet to the ground
You've gotta walk it off

Walk on

You can run a red light
You can run a red light

Start to think
Am I drinking too much
Should I keep going
Lose the life that I love

You could run a red light
Give up at a red light
You break the mold
When running through the toll
Speeding through your whole life

You can run a red light
Give up on your whole life.
You break the mold
When running through the toll
Speeding through your whole life

You can run a red light
You can run a red light

You sing a song
While sitting at a red light

-Johnny Lang

Monday, February 20, 2006

Sometimes, when you have big things on your mind, you should just revel in the fun. The simple, silly fun.

Sunday, February 12, 2006

Truth, indeed.

We all talk about truth in comedy. Comedy=tragedy+time, etc. Never has this been more clear to me than it was last night.

The last several weeks have been a blur of hospitals and doctors and nurses and procedures and deep, dire conversations. My dad is doing better, and on Monday we moved him into a nursing home. The move is supposed to be temprorary, just until he regains his strength enough to go home, but I am not the only one who fears that we may not see that happen.

I'm getting to the improv part, I promise.

I was on stage last week, but my head was at the hospital. How could it not be? It made for a difficult show, and I probably should not have played at all, but I was grateful for the outlet.

Last night, I went to the nursing home straight from work and sat with my dad for a while and then headed to the theater to play, my mind so occupied by thoughts of family and obligation that I almost missed my exit.

With 'Swamp' as our suggestion, we began our Harold, and when I stepped out with Dave in the first scene, his initiation was "You're going to put me in a home."

I was momentarily overwhelmed by the fact that Dave was reading my mind. For a week, I have had nightmares about being in a nursing home . Then I thought to myself, "Ok, I can either shut down, or I can just take all this shit that's rolling around in my head and explore it to see what it means."

During the show, I said so many of the things that I have said or thought for the last few weeks. It was incredibly cathartic. Dave played a dad (he plays the BEST dads) who was vigorous and obviously didn't need to be in a home. I was the daughter who kept trying to impose old age on him and make him feeble when he wasn't.

Daughters always want to see their daddies as strong. In a way I can't explain, this scene helped me to accept and understand my feelings with what is going on with my dad right now. It helped me to play with my fears and thereby, understand them.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that if you've got big things on your mind, those things should be in your improv. What we are ultimately trying to do is explore the human condition, and it just so happens that there is much to rejoice in there. Don't hide from it.