With or without religion, you would have good people doing good things and evil people doing evil things. But for good people to do evil things, that takes religion.
The good life, as I conceive it, is a happy life. I do not mean that if you are good you will be happy - I mean that if you are happy you will be good.
Too much sanity may be madness and the maddest of all, to see life as it is and not as it should be.
The only way to find the limits of the possible is by going past them into the impossible.
October 30, 2009 - 3:47 p.m.
I enjoyed a double header last night. No they did not play two World Series games. I did two fun things.
The first thing on the agenda was being in the audience for The Colbert Report. I know that many of you got jealous as soon as you read that. It wasn't my doing, Chris is the one that got the tickets and he asked me to join him. He wanted me to get there early to get a good place on the line but they wouldn't even let me on the line. They were checking to see if you were on the list. I called Chris and let him know and he cabbed it over to make better time. While I was waiting I was joined by Jill and Erin. I didn't know that Chris got four tickets and that they were coming. They knew to look for me. Chris arrived not that long afterwards. I was the 49th person on the line. They let 107 people in so even with the VIPs who go in first we were safe.
It is amazing how long it takes to see a half hour show. I got there at 4:35. I didn't get out till 8:00. First we waited outside. Then they let us in through security. We had to go through a metal detector. They we waited for over an hour inside a room that wasn't very large and had no seating. Finally they let us into the studio. There are no bad seats so ours were fine.
I was wearing a Met cap and the warm up comedian was talking about the Yankees and Phillies and when I reacted to something he said, "He's a Met fan. That means he's gay, Jewish, and lives in Queens. He got two out of three right. Do my Gentle Readers know which two? That was my biggest laugh of the evening.
I wasn't too excited by the Stephen's scheduled guest, "the sports guy" from ESPN. He wrote a book on the NBA. What did excite me was the surprise guest, Rosanne Cash! Am I know only two degrees away from the Man in Black?
When Stephen comes out he does a Q&A not in character. He never comes out of character once the show starts. Not that we discovered anything that enlightening.
As usual I did not appear on camera. They panned the other half of the audience.
As usual watching a TV show being made was lots of fun.
I was a bit anxious about the time. My second thing planned for the evening was seeing Aoife O'Donovan at the Cornelia St. Café in the Village. The website said the show started at 8:30. We didn't get out till 7:57.
So here's where I admit to something weird. I actually enjoy being on a tight schedule like that and having to navigate efficiently. As I walked I calculated the route. The studio is on 54th street between 10th and 11th Avenues. I eschewed going to the closest station, 7th Avenue and 53rd Street where I could catch the E train to W 4th street. I didn't go down to 50th Street and 8th Avenue where I could catch the E train or C but would have to choose which to wait for. Instead I walked up to 58th Street and 8th Avenue where I could catch any of four trains, A,C,B,D I figured having that many options more than made up for it being one stop further. Then as I walked I made sure to walk the most efficient path. I walked in and the C was there as I got on the platform and I got to the Café at 7:21. I was proud of myself. I then found out I was rushing for no reason. 8:30 was when the doors opened not when the show started so I had to wait around. It did mean I was the first one in so I got a seat down front perfect for taking pictures. I didn't get a chance to download them to my computer so you'll have to wait till tomorrow to see them.
I don't often get to see Aoife with a backup band. She usually performs as part of Crooked Still or Sometymes Why, two of my favorite bands. She's a favorite with her own band too. There was some overlap of material with Sometymes Why but some of it is only performed there.
I think I might have to join the stage hands union. They recently doubled the size of the stage at the Café but that means it is now tiny, not miniscule. When Aoife went to play the piano there was no place to put her guitar so she handed it to me and I held it off the stage. I noticed something really cool. I actually had to hold it, there was no place to lean it. The strings vibrate sympathetically with the instruments on stage, in particular the electric guitar.
The show was a double bill but it was late and I wimped out and left after Aoife's set. I'm sure she jammed in the second half but I had seen the other band last year when they played with her and wasn't impressed and I wanted to get home at a decent hour. I couldn't find Aoife when I left to say goodbye. I did find Brittany her bandmate from Crooked Still and said hello/goodbye to her.
Because I was in such a rush I didn't have time before dinner. That was the other reason I left early. I was hungry. I discovered a new place close by, New York Hot Dog and Coffee. It was a Korean/American fusion. It's a chain that started in Korea by an American who couldn't get a good hot dog there. I wanted to keep it simple and check out the dogs so I just had a plain dog and fries. It was good and it was inexpensive so next time I'll try something with Korean influence.
The best part was the woman working there. She complained that she was too tired to have a proper conversation but she was very entertaining. She's the one that told me the place's history. She fumbled over the words some because she's worked 20 days straight. I am no one to judge someone fumbling over words. She had personality, that counts for more than saying the wrong word now and then.
I made my Halloween plans. I'm seeing the Knick home opener. I'm going in costume. I'll hand out candy between 5 and 6:30 then hop on the subway, in costume. Alan won't appreciate it but I'll have him take a picture of me.
My building is a bit fascist when it comes to trick or treating. I found a sheet of orange paper under my door with a pumpkin on it. I was throwing it out when I saw there was writing on the other side. It said that if you want to give out candy to put the sheet on the door. Trick or treating will be limited to 5:00 to 8:00, children that live in the building and that they can only knock on doors with the sheet attached. I hope kids come. I bought candy and I'll eat it myself if they don't.
Tonight I'm seeing Mark Allen Berube at Gizzi's Coffee in the Village. I know it's the last moment but I have to buy elements of my costume tonight too. There will be lines at the Halloween store so I'll have to leave myself plenty of time. I just realized that I don't hang out there as much as I used to and I'm not sure where the store is. Maybe I can find it online. I know the one I want. It's huge.
Elevators 101 - November 04, 2009
Reading and Writing but no Rithmatic - November 03, 2009
Dark Shadows - November 02, 2009
A Met Fan's Halloween - November 01, 2009
Northeastern Comfort - October 31, 2009
Email me: GordonLew at gmail
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 License. Horvendile October 30, 2009
