Impractical Jokers-Live

Mommy and Ozzie are out of town this weekend visiting Grandma, leaving me home alone for the weekend. My plan was to start a franchise on my new Madden game, catch up on TV shows on the DVR, and maybe catch a movie. I'd also have to forge for food somewhere in there too. Megan is a great cook, and I can make frozen pizza. Luckily we had 2 in the freezer. 

Friday night, after some TV and video game time, it was about 8:45 and I said to myself "Andy--" actually I don't call myself Andy when I talk to myself. I said to myself, "Big Daddy Cool, you can do anything you want all weekend." 

A few friends were going out for karaoke, and I considered that for a while. Then I thought about the great rock and roll show I saw last weekend downtown, and looked at what shows were in town this weekend. I looked at the Orpheum website and saw that the Impractical Jokers had a 10:00 show, and they had student rush tickets available for $20 cash. I hardly ever have cash, but I happened to have a twenty in my wallet. I found my old student ID from Metro State and headed downtown around 9:00. I had seen some pics of my Facebook friends outside the Orpheum theater who saw the early show. 

I thought the worst case scenario would be the show is sold out and I'd wander around the corner and see Lizzo and Caroline Smith at First Avenue. So I pulled up to the Orpheum, and there was an underground parking lot right across the street for $5. I parked and took a stroll to the venue. I waltzed up to the box office and asked if they had any rush tickets left. They did, and I didn't have to show my student ID. He gave me a ticket on the main floor; Row G. I quickly counted up to that letter in the alphabet and realized that it's the 7th row! 

Regular priced tickets were $50. I'd already made out like a bandit. I followed the line inside to my seat. I said last week that The State is my favorite place to see shows; The Orpheum is a close 2nd. Last time I was there I saw Wicked with Megan in seats 3 rows from the back wall in the balcony. This seat was quite the improvement for a fraction of the cost. 

My vantage point

As the clock passed 10:00 and the show wasn't starting I looked behind me and the theater was only half-full, at best. They must've held the door to see if anymore people would arrive late. The show finally started at 10:15 with an opening stand up comic. I don't remember his name, and I didn't recognize him. I chuckled once during his ten minute set. Finally around 10:30 The Tenderloins, or Impractical Jokers, took the stage. 

I expected imvov and/or sketch comedy, but they each just stood at a microphone and told stories and made fun of each other. I'm not belittling the show, it was just different than my expectations. The guys are such fun, and know each other so well that it felt like we were just hanging out with them at Embers, or something, after a show. They told road stories, and stories of filming the Tru TV show, and gave examples of stunts that the network kiboshed. The only one I remember was one called "Get in the Van," where they would have driven up to a corner of children in a big, white, unmarked van and flung the door open and said "hey, kid. Get in the van." 

They made it seem like they were coming up with the stories right there on they spot, but I could tell that each show is the same stories. They still laugh at the self-effacing anecdotes, so it was fun to watch, but the show could be a lot stronger with some direction. Murr had his laptop on a little table behind them and worked it to bring up pictures while the other guys talked. That was a little distracting, and would benefit from a person running the laptop backstage. The guys also talked over each other a lot and some of the jokes were missed because of it. 

They mentioned that they've been together for 25 years; since meeting in high school in 1990. They talked about some of the first shows they did in New York City where they had to rent the stage for $50, and only brought in $15, so performing the show cost them $35. Their chemistry and friendship reminds me of an improv troupe I'm honored to have been a part of, The Drunk Baby Collective. These guys are my best friends to this day, and the show was a lot like us when we get together now at Perkins for pie. We tell old stories and laugh like hyenas. 

DBC reunion in 2011

I'm glad that I had the opportunity to see The Impractical Jokers live. The price was right. I might feel slighted if I had paid the full ticket price, but all things considered it was a great way to spend Friday night. Now back to Madden 15. I'm 0-2 after a couple of close games. I need to turn things around if I want  to make the playoffs this year. 

Spoon Concert

If it's too loud, you're too old. 

(It was kinda loud)

If I'm listening to local radio, I'm listening to 89.3 The Current. They don't play commercials, and I've found a lot of bands that I wouldn't otherwise know on there. Lately I noticed that every time I liked the song that was on, and I checked my radio or the site where I stream it, the band was Spoon. I did a little research on them and found out that they've been around since 1994 and are from Austin, TX. 

I got their latest album, They Want My Soul, last week and it's been on heavy rotation on my iPod. I already liked three songs on the ten-song album from hearing them on the radio, but when track 5, Knock Knock Knock, played the first time I was like "whoa, baby." Lead singer Britt Daniel, 43, sounds nothing like Roger Waters, but the song is Pink Floyd-esque, and I loved it, too, right away. 

During my research I saw that Spoon was coming to town September 19th at The State Theater and tickets were only $35. That's actually a pretty cheap ticket these days. Ticketmaster had a single ticket in the 12th row. I thought about going to The State to buy my ticket at the box office to avoid the extra fees, but they were only going to add an extra $15. I figured that for the convenience of ordering the ticket at midnight in my basement, that was a fair price. Right before checkout, though, they added one more fee making the total almost $60. I almost gave up on principal, but I had made up my mind by that point and I just pulled the trigger. 

I love live music, and have since the first concert I attended, which was the Foo Fighters at First Avenue when they were brand new; right after Kurt died. Since then I have seen many big name/big ticket shows. The State is my favorite venue to see concerts. 

*Digression-Once at The State for a Lou Reed show, there were two older (60+) couples behind my dad and me. They had spent whatever they did on four tickets, and before the show one lady asked the other what show it was they were about to see. The woman replied "Lou Rawls," and went on to explain who Lou Rawls is to her. 

I got there around 7:45 and opening band EMA was playing. I watched a video of theirs on YouTube to see if they're any good, but I couldn't even finish the video. They weren't any better live. Their boring shoegazing music was made worse by the fact that there was no spotlight on any of them. There were some lights behind them, but their faces were never illuminated. A clock radio would have made a better opener. 

Spoon took the stage at 8:45 and energized the crowd starting with the title track from the new album. They went right into Rent I Pay after it, and the crowd stood for the whole show. Daniel's voice was right on all night, sounding like John Lennon on Revolution or Twist and Shout. A voice like a bee sting. He would emphasize notes with the neck of his guitar, and kept the crowd banter light. He mentioned he loves this town. As the show progressed I realized there were even more songs that I already liked that I didn't even know were by them. The most rocking number of the night was Don't Make Me a Target. It was like a grand finale of fireworks, exploding sound for 5 minutes. The light production was impressive throughout the show too.

They started their first encore with Knock Knock Knock. They finished the last song at 10:30 sharp. Nearly two hours of rock and roll by a band who has been around long enough to be engaging for the duration. The theater was mostly full on the main floor. I couldn't see the people in the balcony, but I think it was almost full too. 

When I left the theater there were four guys playing buckets on the curb right outside the theater. They weren't just dicking around either. They were tight and good, and even had some choreography. They would all play together for a bit, and then each would solo down the line. Their solos were faster than a machine gun. Their arms would flail so fast that I couldn't see them. It was a pretty cool surprise to walk out to. I threw a dollar in their bucket that was half-full of cash. 

My ears are still ringing in that good way that reminds me that I saw an excellent show. I'm glad I realized who Spoon is in enough time to attend the show tonight. I think even someone expecting a show by the late Lou Rawls would have been pleasantly surprised. 

State Fair (Feedbag '14)

Another MN State Fair is in the books. You know what that means? Summer is over. Pack away your flip flops and swim trunks, and pull out the flannels and boots. I hope you got everything in that you wanted to. A lot of kids start school tomorrow, and some already have. Over the summer I went from fish-belly-white to a little off-white. I know that I didn't get everything in that I wanted to, but it's hard to squeeze everything into 2.5 months.

Anyhow, we had our annual trip to the fair to eat, and we ate plenty. I was really looking forward to it this year to try a new food called a Breakfast Juicy LuLu. It's a Jucy Lucy of breakfast food, with sausage stuffed with cheese. They only served it until 11:00. Megan wanted to try another new food of breakfast nachos, served only until 10:30.

We got in the gates around 9:30, and went right to the first information booth we saw. The people working those booths know where everything is without Google. They're quite remarkable. We asked where the nachos and the LuLu's were. We were close to the nachos, and the LuLus were on the other end of the fair, so we swung by the nachos place first. Megan got them, and the egg on top was the best part. I give the dish a solid C.

Then it was off to the west end market where my LuLu's were. I passed many food stands along the way. I didn't want to spoil my appetite for what was sure to be a new highlight of the fair. 

We arrived to the area around 10:15 and found the place selling them. I got in line about 15 people deep. The lady who got in line behind me was telling her adult son that she was going to order three of them. Megan found a table where we could sit and enjoy the bounty with which I'd return. 

As I inched toward the counter for my Breakfast Juicy LuLu, I saw that they also sold something called Gorilla Bread. I had time in line to Google "Gorilla Bread," and it said it's a special cinnamon-type pastry bread. I thought it would compliment the no doubt savory Juicy LuLu, and I decided I'd get it too; as a surprise. 

                           

I was just next in line, one guy in front of me ordering, when someone from the kitchen yelled "we're out of Breakfast LuLu's!" 

Out of Breakfast LuLu's? How could this be? It was only 10:30. They sold them until 11:00. My heart broke in two. Thinking about it again now makes me sad. How do you run out of an item at the State Fair? It wasn't the last day of the fair. 

I had to step up and order. I confirmed with the guy what I just heard, and he confirmed they had just run out. I ordered the Gorilla Bread and slunk to the table where Megan was playing with Ozzie in his stroller. 

I was too forlorn to think to take a picture of the Gorilla bread, but it was just okay. I kept thinking of what I did wrong to miss out on the item that brought me to the fair this year. 

If the GPS on my phone didn't take us through construction, we would have arrived sooner and I would have gotten a LuLu. 

If we had walked faster to the stand I would have gotten a LuLu. 

If we had left the house earlier I would have gotten… 

You get the idea. I was seriously crestfallen. I needed to sulk for a bit, but then it was onward to find other foods. I thought at least I could still get my fair favorite; a deep fried slider. They were sold at Axel's on the outside corner of the food building. We had passed where I thought Axel's was, but there was a different vendor there. I thought Axel's must've moved. I asked another information booth where they moved to, and was told that they are gone. The person said the Axel's people now run the LuLu's booth. 

Seriously? 

We walked around the fairgrounds all day. We spent 7.5-8 hours there. Ozzie was good as can be. He tried all of the food we got, and we even got him his own milk for $1.00 outside the cattle barn. He fell asleep for about 20 minutes in his stroller too. We don't know how he did that in the heat, with all of the people and noise, but you'll see him below catching some Zzz's. 

I know I've had Sweet Martha's Cookies before. I wanted to try them again for the purpose of this blog, but the lines were always insanely long. Since I know I've had them before, and they're not on my must-have list, let me tell you that they're just chocolate chip cookies, people. Do you like that they're warm? Bake some at home. They're always warm right out of the oven. You don't even need to make the dough. Get the refrigerated dough that pulls apart. Do you like that you can get a bucket of them? Bake some at home and put them in a bucket before you eat them. They're. Just. Cookies. 

With the disappearance of my State Fair staple food, I had to find a new reason to go to the fair. I found it at a booth near the all you can drink milk stand. The booth is painted with a Canadian flag, and the food is Poutine. French fries covered in gravy and cheese curds. I've had it there before and liked it, but it has now stepped into a starring role. It was Colin Quinn on Saturday Night live, but now Poutine is Colin Quinn when he anchored Weekend Update. 

Another new food this year caught my attention. Deep fried Buckeyes. They're at the Deep Fried Twinkies stand. Buckeyes are peanut butter balls dipped in chocolate, batter, and deep fried. They're dusted with powered sugar before handed to you. They're sugary, sweet and delicious. I think I got to cavities just eating them. 

Luigi Fries

Poutine

Deep fried Buckeyes with strawberry "dip"

 When we got home I asked Megan to take a picture of me: