Second thoughts

Hmmm, I'm still thinking about that quote. When I posted it, I was thinking about it in terms of hesitating vs. making mistakes (and learning from them). I have long struggled, in improv and life in general, with hesitating out of fear of making a mistake, and the quotation seemed to speak to that.

The problem is, I ignored the other half of the quote, which was about being inferior vs. superior. I hope none of us are striving to be superior to our teammates. That isn't why we do this. I hope what we are striving to do is raise our teammates up so that we all feel good about what we do.

And I suppose the same holds true for life in general.

Another quote untentionally about improv:

Quote:
While one person hesitates because he feels inferior, the other is busy making mistakes and becoming superior.
Henry C. Link

Words to improvise by.

Quote:
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22). You've always admired those people who call a situation as they see it in the moment, and today, you're one of them. Helping others is how you're joyfully fulfilled.

What an awesome first show horoscope.

A couple things

There was just too much DSIF to process right now, so I'm not even going to try, but I wanted to put some things down before they slip away.

Quote:
From Dan Izzo:
"Who, what, where is there to serve you. You are not there to serve Who, what, where".

"Make a big choice, accept that choice, then play with it."

I got to be a pirate having a water balloon fight. How awesome is that? I am so lucky.

More to come, whenever I stop procrastinating and write it down. Right now, I'm headed for bed. It was an amazing week. Thank you DSI. I love you all.

Thinking about not thinking

They say you haven't really learned a language until you stop translating it and just start thinking in it. Improv is kind of like that. I know, we're not supposed to think. I don't mean we should think about the improv. That would be like translating.

I guess what I mean is, we need to learn to start thinking as our characters instead of trying to say what our character would say. I had a really interesting moment the other day. Not so much that the scene (a group game, actually) was awesome (it was way fun), but thinking about it later, I noticed something about how it played in my head.

I hate trying to describe scenes because they're just never fun if you weren't there, but it's the only way I can think of to explain what went on in my mind.

We started out sort of vaguely as a jug band tuning up, pouring water out of our bottles or jugs to get the right sound. Then someone heightened by making us a military force who could explode people's hearts by hitting the right note. We decided we'd just practice the bowel loosening note instead.

Now, I wasn't thinking "How would I react if this were true?" or "What would I say in this situation?" But I was thinking.

I was thinking "Wait, if we play that note, all our hearts will explode/bowels will loosen! Oh, ok, they must have ear plugs to prevent that. Shit! I don't have ear plugs! I'm screwed!"

I wasn't thinking "If that, then what?" I wasn't translating the reality of the scene. I was part of the reality of the scene, as silly as it was. I didn't stop to think "Ok, so if there were a military jug band strike force who could make people shit themselves with just the right note..." For just a few moments, I was worried that they would blow that note and I didn't have my earplugs.

Quote:
If you don't know where you are going, any road will take you there.
Lewis Carroll, "Alice in Wonderland"

I like finding quotations that are unintentionally about improv. The reason there are so many is that improv is about life. Sometimes life is disguised as space monkeys on the moon, but it's life all the same.

It is bad to be late for an audition. It is disrespectful to the people who are audtioning you and to those who are auditioning with you. That being said, sometimes it can't be avoided. Make sure you let the auditioners know as soon as possible that you will be late. Sometimes it may even be better just to stay away and not distrupt the process that has already begun. But sometimes it is about not letting the bastard stand in your way. (the bastard is nobody you know).

So I arrive at the audition (my what, fifth?) in tears and determined to go through with it. I weep on Zach for a few minutes and am let loose on an ongoing audition. I have no hope of being cast, but this is about not letting someone bully me.

I go up for my first scene, and as I turn around I notice a huge stain on my shirt. Then I look farther down and see the dog shit on my shoe. And I say to myself "Fuck it. I'm here to have fun." and I did.

I don't even want to try to describe what had already gone horribly wrong with that morning. It was just a seriously fucked up day. And now there's dog shit on my shoe.

The last thing on my mind was that audition. I wasn't even thinking about it.

Oh, ok. That makes sense, doesn't it? *Awesome.

*This was once a link to the announcement of the team that would become Take the Box!. As things tend to do, it has mysteriously disappeared, as if it never existed. Odd, that.