Into the Black

I was invited to an improv workshop last night with OTC Comedy Troupe, an improv group that does weekly webshows out of a coffee shop Duluth. My friend Amy is a member of the troupe, so I was already familiar with them through her. I must have made a decent enough impression, because I was asked to join them for their show this Wednesday. I’m looking forward to it; I haven’t done any improv in Atlanta since I moved up here, so it’ll be nice to get my foot in that door.

August has been a pretty busy month for me, hence the lack of updates. I turned 28 on August 2nd, and managed not to break a hip, so I must not be old yet. I used money received as gifts to purchase a shiny new Kindle, and I’m currently waiting with bated breath for it to arrive. The first batch of the new ones shipped out yesterday, but my order date puts me in the second group, so mine may not ship until September 4th. Expect a full post once I get it and can play around a bit.

I’ve been doing some traveling this month, and made it back down to Seaside, FL to do a pair of improv shows with The Flaws as part of their annual season-ending Sketchfest. That was a blast, and I’ll have photos and hopefully some video to post soon. I also visited Snow Camp Outdoor Theatre in North Carolina, where I worked two years ago, to visit my friends who are still there and catch the shows. I had a great time seeing the folks there, and ended up taking a ton of show photos. Ed, the director there, asked if I could send him copies, since they haven’t had any new publicity shots done in a few years, so hopefully mine will be of some use.

I’m currently reading Stephen King’s On Writing, and it’s lit a fire under my ass to force myself into a dedicated writing schedule, as well as rekindling my love of writing fiction. With the exception of a few poems and one short story, most of my writing over the last few years has been either plays, screenplays, or sketch comedy. I finished the first draft of a new short story (Light It Up) the other day, and it’s reminded me of why I used to love writing fiction so much.

On that end, I’m setting new goals to keep myself writing: 1000 words of fiction or 5 pages of a screenplay every day. My big problem has always been that I spend a disproportionate amount of time planning compared to how much I spend actually writing.

While writing Light It Up, I was reminded just how much can come out organically while writing prose. From all my planning on this series, I know a lot about the world, its mythology & history, and certain characters in it. But when I sat down to write this story, I didn’t do all my usual outlining and planning. I knew the location I wanted to use, a few basic things about this particular character, and a single line I wanted to include. Everything else just came naturally from that, and it worked. I really should learn to just trust myself more. I’m starting work on a new story today, so hopefully I’ll have some good luck with that as well.

Here’s another digital short that I recently put online! There Will Be Movie Rentals is another There Will Be Blood parody I shot with The Flaws last year (along with There Will Be Coffee.) I tried to shoot it shot-for-shot to mirror the final scene of the movie. Check it out & give it some funny votes on Funny or Die! Thanks!

Hey, Icy folks! You know that McNally guy? Yeah, the one with the guns. Well, I now have proof that he exists.

Icy & McNally

For anyone not in the know, McNally is a regular from my old video game website. He booked a dive at the Georgia Aquarium, so I met up with him for lunch while he was in Atlanta.

One more down. Who’s next?

My new digital short, Antichrist Pregnancy Test, is complete & online! Finally, you can do your part at home to keep the apocalypse at bay.

View it below at YouTube, and go vote it “funny” at Funny or Die! Thanks!

I meant to post this last week before I left for Valdosta, but didn’t get a chance. Here are a few family photos from my trip to Minnesota for my uncle’s memorial. Full set on Flickr.

The Knaggs family

The original Work siblings: Uncle Steve, Aunt Becky, & my dad

Me with my parents, Uncle Steve, Aunt Cindy, & Aunt Becky

My cousin Denise's dog, Sky

My Uncle Bob passed away last year. He didn’t want a funeral, so instead his friends & family gathered at their home in Minnesota on his birthday over July 4th weekend for a memorial to remember & celebrate his life. My Aunt Becky asked everyone to write something about their memories of Uncle Bob. I wrote this in the hotel the night we got there:

As soon as we got on the plane to fly here, the first thing my dad noticed was the sign on the back of the tray table advertising the airline’s wifi. The second thing he noticed was that there was one of these on the back of every seat. So, like any normal, rational person, he spent the majority of the next three hours trying to pry open the ad’s plastic casing in order to determine how difficult it would be to replace them all with ads for his concert venue. Meanwhile, my mom is smacking his hand trying to make him stop, and I’m smiling politely at the cute girl who keeps looking back trying to figure out why her chair keeps shaking.

The thought didn’t occur to me until we were disembarking from the plane, but when it did it made me smile: Had Uncle Bob been on that flight, not only would he have egged my dad on, he would have tried to find him a screwdriver or a very tiny crowbar.

If there’s one thing I remember about Uncle Bob, it’s that he was always a good sport about things, especially when it came to going along with something. He moved back to Georgia to help my dad start up the Trade Center. I heard a story about Bob making horseradish with my Uncle Steve. My dad has a habit (that I’ve picked up) of pulling someone’s leg by making up false facts & convincing them that they were true. When he would do that to us kids, Bob would be right there to back him up. And when you’re six, that’s pretty darned convincing, even if you’re being told that Fraggle Rock is actually in Florida.

I believe I was ten when the show SeaQuest started to air. Time has probably warped my memory of what that show was actually about (as much as I’d like to believe it was about a talking, superpowered dolphin), but what I DO remember is that it starred Roy Schneider.

Now, I had never seen Jaws at this point, so this was my first exposure to Mr. Schneider. But, of course, being ten I was unfamiliar with the concept of two people looking THAT similar. When I asked Uncle Bob about his new TV show, he didn’t confirm that he was moonlighting as an actor, nor did he deny it. He just smiled, and let me wonder.

That’s the Uncle Bob I remember: The caring man with the warm smile who was always looking for a way to make someone laugh. In Jonathan Larson’s musical “Rent,” it’s said that you should measure your life in love. That being the case, Bob lived a life far beyond his years, and will be remembered just as much as he will be missed.

Just finished uploading all my photos from my trip to Seaside last week. Here’s a few select shots:

David & Krista at Stories by the Sea

Sunset at the Bay House

The Tempest at Rosemary Beach

The Flaws: Baby Boss sketch

The Flaws improv

Brook shows off his battle wounds from last night's show

I must be the only person who’s excited that Steve Carell is leaving The Office.

Now, don’t get me wrong. I love Steve Carell. Loved him on The Daily Show, he was great in Little Miss Sunshine, and The 40-Year-Old Virgin is still a favorite. But his Michael Scott character is by far my least favorite part of The Office.

I generally catch a lot of flack for this. From what I’ve gathered from talking to people, it’s sort of an unwritten rule that if you’re a fan of The Office, you like Steve Carell on it. But I just really don’t. I get that his character is supposed to be unlikable to a certain degree. But I don’t like him AT ALL. I don’t know if it’s the stupidity, the self-centeredness, or the complete & utter cluelessness (or perhaps some combination), but when he’s on screen I just wait for the moment he’s off.

It’s not like I think Carell’s bad in the show or anything. On the contrary, he does a great job. I just don’t like the character. I find Dwight much more likable than Michael, which I think is in large part because Dwight KNOWS he’s an ass. He’s honest about it. Michael is an egotistical jerk who steps over everyone, and expects them to love him despite it.

I think The Office will be just fine without him. They’ve got such a great supporting cast already in place (especially Jim, Pam, & Dwight), and if they decide to bring in a new actor to fill Carell’s position, they’ve got a full year to integrate them and make the transition work. I’ll be very disappointed if they decide to end the show after next season, but I’m fairly sure they’ll at least try to keep it going sans Carell.

Now that I’m back in Atlanta from Seaside, it’s time to figure out my next stop. I’ve got a number of places I want to visit in the next few months; it’s just a matter of finding the time & money.

• Minneapolis, MN: I’m flying up to Minnesota this Friday for my uncle’s memorial. Not going to be there long; flying up Friday, memorial on Saturday, flying home on Sunday.
• Valdosta, GA: I need to swing down there to see Christen’s Country Rocks show at Wild Adventures and visit the folks working at Peachstate.
• Bangor, ME: A friend of mine (CuteLucca for any Icyfolks) is an amazing tattoo artist, and I’ve talked to her about doing my tattoo. I have to go up to Maine for it, but it’ll be worth it for the quality.
• Snow Camp, NC: I didn’t get up there to visit last year, but I’m hoping to make a trip to see the shows & visit friends this summer.
• Chicago, IL: Katie, Cody, & Zabrina from Seaside have all been telling me I need to come visit, so I want to make it to Chicago to see them, as well as Melissa, Lauren, Phillip, Andy & the rest of the VSU crew (I’ve lost track of who all lives there now.)
• Road trip through Texas: The screenplay I’m working on now is about a group of friends roadtripping through Texas. I’m doing my research on interesting places to use (and if you’re from Texas, please let me know so I can pick your brain), but no amount of research compares to actually going and visiting the places.
• Seaside, FL (again): I’ve got an open invitation to come back and perform improv with The Flaws, & I’m hoping I can make it down one more time this season.