2001-11-08 - 10:02 p.m.
A while back, we all got really drunk and went to Kwik Trip. I vaguely (through my alcoholic haze) recall Jesse telling me something along the lines of, "If I had been that clerk, the mere sight of you would have been enough to make me hand over all the money in the register."
"What do you mean?"
"Look at you, you unkempt motherfucker. You've got scruffy hair, pants you could house a family of four in, bloodshot eyes, a chain around your neck, cigarette burns on your head, and you're wearing a ratty old sweatshirt. Actually, you're not even wearing it. Just sort of dangling it off your arms. You look like a white cholo. And you're obviously drunk, or she would have probably expected you to be stoned." He was right, but that's how I always look.
Keep in mind this was at around 3am. We'd taken John B. out to the bars for his 21st birthday. (Man can that boy drink. He managed 19 shots, and the six of us who went out took out around 13 pitchers of beer. At some point, I think we all forgot who was buying the beer. Fresh pitchers just kept showing up, almost as if they were filling themselves.) I have a vague recollection of Anne (the toga chick) dropping out early. Josh made sure John got home okay (suprisingly, he didn't puke), leaving me, Jesse, and his friend Casey from home. We decided to go to Kitchen, but it was closed, so we drove to Kwik Trip. Somewhere in the back of my mind, I recall thinking having anyone drive was a bad idea, but I was assured Casey hadn't had that much. And I was too drunk to care.
We bought the 3 for $1 hot dogs at Kwik Trip and ate them in Casey's van. Then we went home and slept.
Now THAT'S how you celebrate an opening night for a play. Too bad the closing night's festivities were such a letdown.
Oh, yeah, the play was fantabulous. Jesse was nominated for an award for his work on the masks. The musicians were nominated for their...well, music. A scene between Joe and I is up for what's called the "Evening of Scenes" at the American College Theatre Festival (ACTF) in January.
And I'm an Irene Ryan nominee. So are Joe and Rita.
Irene Ryan, for those of you who don't know, was an actress. Moderately successful, she is best known to mainstream America as the Granny from the Beverly Hillbillies. And she died rich, and left her money to fund scholarship competitions for struggling theatre students.
Am I going to win an Irene Ryan award? Hell no. I'm competing against grad students in acting for God's sake. But I get the right to compete in Evansville in January, and have all the casting agents get a good look at me.
It's not a career, but it's a start.
I had a song prepared, but my voice is going, so maybe next time.
Now to see if I can figure out what the hell is wrong with my ankle....
Ken
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