On the subject of 5 in the morning

Okay... it's technically 5:37 in the morning. I have been up for almost an hour now.

The song on the iTunes from Gary Go asks "whatever happened to me?" I don't think there could be a more appropriate song for this moment.

Over the last two months, my life has undergone a drastic change. I have seen the highs and the lows, the best and the worst... and I realize that I have not shared any of it like I used to. So let's get to that shall we?

This week alone, my wife and I have sold and bought a house. We never thought we would want or need to move, but as kids grow up, they seem to need space. Maybe, I should be more accurate. We needed more space. I love my kids, but they always seem to be right on top of us, leaving me and Gale with very little room to breathe. So now, we will have some breathing room as well as a new opportunity.

I have always wanted to entertain friends in my house, and our new house will allow us to do that in spades. It is a dream house that we could have never dreamed of, but as the stars aligned, interest rates low, job doing well, and housing prices where they are... we could.

Then, there is improv. Oh my God, how improv has changed my life. I have spent so many entries on this blog telling you about improv, but I had no idea what it would truly mean to me. The freedom it has given me to expand my horizons is limitless. That's what happens when you make up life as it goes along.

My improv group, {breakout}, will be moving into our own theatre in December. I went into this theatre with the idea of just doing some shows and the timing could not have been any better. They wanted to have a regular group to bring in younger audiences... and there we were. It is a magical place, or that was the feeling I had after our first rehearsal there. It seems so right, and I look forward to the hours I will be spending there.

The place that taught me all the improv skills is still a place I call home as well. Jet City Improv is looking to me to help them raise money as a member of their board. It is a tough thing to do with the limited experience I have, but ideas seemed to be what they needed. Let's hope those ideas can turn into dollars. I think they will eventually.

How about family? Life could have changed pretty dramatically there too. If there are peaks and valleys in any marriage, I have seen them both in the past two months. From the desperation of feeling totally detached to the high of new possibilities, this thing called love has been a crazy little thing. I am very blessed that I was raised to see things through, and keep promises, and that is what I continue to do every day. Happily, I have a good partner in that.

My kids... well, my relationship with my daughter is recovering. I am sure there are people who feel that they have no attachment to their kids. Not like the woman in "Private Practice" who won't look at her baby. I am talking very little in common and constant fighting. Such as it is with my girl. However, it seems like the freeze is beginning to thaw from both sides, and somewhere through the ice, we will swim in a relationship again. That's nice.

And what about a son who is so close to being you it is uncanny. My son is a mini-me. He does the same things I did growing up, makes the same mistakes, pulls the same tricks. He, however, has something inside him, that I never saw in me at his age - heart. He puts a lot into things even though he gets knocked down (that, I understand.) He is an amazing soccer goalie, with a competitive spirit. When it comes to friends, it's hard to see how it's going. He say he's picked on a lot. I know I was at his age. He has a strength that I did not, so I think he will be just fine. He is a loving son, and we are lucky that he is around.

Work? Wow... I could not have thought that things could change so much in a year. Yesterday, I left my office of the past three years, after five years of having an outside office, and moved back home. I sit here in the home office typing this and it seems surreal. And today, I discuss the future with my major clients, and I do so with confidence of a job well done. If you had asked me two months ago about my confidence in the future, I would have told you it could go either way. Today, it seems pretty good!

So what gets me up at 5 in the morning? That is the 64,000 dollar question. I can't sleep anymore. It started this past summer. The guy who loved to sleep in till 10 AM and hated mornings finds himself up before the sun on most days. I try to figure out a way to get back to sleep, but many mornings, I just give up. Like right now, I feel like going to bed, but it seems more right to talk to you.

The Gary Go playlist plays in the background. One of the songs on that collection is called "I am wonderful." It's not a song about egos, it's a tale of feeling good about yourself. Well, today, I, am wonderful. Tomorrow may hold other things, but I will take today.

Yours truly,
Johnny Blogger.

On the subject of "Don't Stop Believin"

There is a video on YouTube that is guaranteed to put me in a magical mood.



I was never in Glee Club. Our school didn't have one. However, if there was half this magic, I would have joined in a minute.

My life has taken an incredible sharp turn over the past year. Once a man obsessed with everything sports, the games on the field have taken a back seat to the games played on a stage. I have been bitten by the theatre bug, and it's venom may have saved my life. Okay, that might have been a little melodramatic, but there is no doubt it has changed who I am and how I identify myself. My work no longer defines who I am, and that is an amazing thing for me.

Ironically, the thing that makes sports most special is what is making these performing arts so rewarding. It's the ultimate team sport. There is no way that I can do any of this without the amazing dedication of others to make it happen. This is not the Jon show. I just get to play a part in it.

Last Sunday, Jet City Improv put on a fundraiser for its At-Risk Youth Education Program. We raised over 37-hundred bucks, which is not Jerry Lewis money, but not bad for a first effort. The idea came from a lunch conversation with my best teammate - my wife, who mentioned how cool it would be for me to do my karaoke on a big stage. One lunch turned into another and plans were set in place and it all came together.

To get an idea of how amazing it was to take the idea of Karaoke and put it on a theatre stage, I think you just have to see the pictures. It was the excellent work of dozens of people that made that show what it was... a magical night that we won't soon forget.

The result of the evening is a new ability to make a positive difference in the lives of many in the community and in particular, the improv community at Jet City. I so look forward to the opportunity to dream big dreams and watch them come to life.

Now, it's on to the next challenge. Another talented team, the Breakout Improv group, is getting set to take the stage for the first time next Saturday for the first of our preview performances. We would not have been able to come this far without the amazing dedication of our director, Mandy, and the belief that 8 other people have in yet another crazy idea. Again, big dreams turning into a beautiful reality.

So, I guess my mid-life crisis has been answered. The higher purpose question has been answered. What was in that blue room has been answered. It is a empty theatre, where dreams can come true just by stepping onto a stage.

All I have to keep remembering is...
"Don't Stop Believin'"

Yours truly,
Johnny Blogger

On the subject of Breaking Out of a Dutch Oven

This blog began upon the inspiration of two friends from an improv class I took last spring. The class, Jet City Improv's 201, was a gathering of people from many walks of life. To me, it began as an opportunity to try a new style in improv education. I had taken almost a year of classes leading up to that class, but nothing had really clicked. 

The teacher was a talented young man named Doug. Like my previous teacher, his brain ran on 78 while the rest of the world runs on 33. Through his guidance and ever present kind words and motivation, I began to understand what this world of imagination called improv was all about. 

Meanwhile, I found myself in the middle of a new kind of people. None of them were tied to any work I did. Few were the sports types I usually hang out with. And each one could make me smile with an action or just a few words.

These were my friends... and by the end of the class, they felt like family. 

My "Rehab Blog" entry tells the whole story of how I felt about those moments. However, the story has grown into a new dimension.

After a couple of more sets of classes, my friend Sarah had the idea of forming a group to do improv together. We called it Dutch Oven, a double entendre name inspired by something that she said in a warmup game. We met at the Ram to discuss the idea with fellow classmates Paul and Ilias. We were all so busy, we did not know how it would work out.

Using Facebook, we put a plan into action, forming a group and inviting all the members of the 201 class into the group, and set up our first "playtime." We asked some members of another class who we liked (and caught our eye), to join us.  It was at the cabana of Amanda's complex and it was a fun time. I took the lead in some ways to get us through the class, but it was a group effort.

We met again, this time at Ann's house, the same night as the Jet City auditions. Here, we were joined by a new group of friends. At this rehearsal, those of us who were not auditioning did what we could to help those who were. We even went to the audition and cheered our comrades on.

That was the last time we ever got together to play, which was a shame as it seemed like things were really starting to click. However, life got in the way, as everyone had their own lives to live.

Following a workshop, Sarah and I tried to get the group back together by holding a gathering at a local bar, but by this time, many of the group were on to their own thing. Dutch Oven was to be a casual gathering at best, but not a group. When everyone went their separate ways, Sarah, Paul and I stayed behind and talked.

"We still want to do this, right?" I said to Sarah. We were all in agreement. We wanted to do something, but what? There was a fourth person there. Deb, who had thought that this was just a post class gathering, saw what had happened and added her thoughts. The four of us left the bar that day knowing we were going to do something.

So back to the drawing board we went. First with a new Facebook group to communicate with each other.  Then we went on a search for people who we believed would create wonderful chemistry with the rest of the group. We found one in a classmate who seemed to be that "girl with something special." Another came from an old friend from an old show. One came from the magical family of Spring 201 and another from my 301. And the final piece, someone we saw in a showcase that just rocked our socks and made us laugh with everything he did.

Next, I consulted with a good friend from Jet City Improv to talk over the format I had in mind. I wanted to do a different kind of improv show... one with more risks and interaction with the audience. The inspiring performances of Teatro Zinzanni provided a basis for many ideas. A show within a show where no one would ever be sure who was a part of the show and who was not. When I discussed the idea, my friend thought I might be onto something. So I sent out the show idea to everyone and many came back with a confused reply. They didn't see my vision.

So now I had the show idea, and brought together this group, but I knew that for success, that for one of us to be the "leader" was going to be problematic. I had taken an improv directing class from the man who wrote the book on the subject, but I knew I did not have the experience. But I also knew, from examining my own faults, that I have a tendency to take over a room. I don't know if it's my size, or my booming voice or just my personality. I didn't want to place that on the group, so I went in search of someone who would want to grow with us.

Many groups hire coaches, but I was looking for someone who wanted the opportunity for authorship. I wanted a partner in collaboration. And someone who wanted a show to call theirs as well. So I sent a Facebook message to someone who I had remembered from an old class. I had never shared a stage with her, but I have been mesmerized every time I see her perform. Many of us had given her the nickname "the ringer" as she looked like one of those players hired as a professional to come in and make a rec team be awesome. I asked her if she would consider growing with us. And she said yes!

We began rehearsals with a "table read" so to speak, as I tried to explain in voice what I had written on the page, and that description seemed to click with the cast. This idea of improv in a non traditional performance space seemed to challenge us all to try something new.

Rehearsals became a magical world of unlocked doors. The Ringer knew how to bring out the best of us, by opening our eyes to new perspectives on the approach we knew about improv. Week by week, we were learning new things, and taking copious notes so that we would have a workbook to use to develop ourselves as improvisers.

Now, the challenge was to find the space, and I did in the most unlikely of ways. I was meeting with someone two exchange some information at a tea house in Ballard. I noticed that there was a small stage that actually had a table with chairs on it. I saw the setting that I had imagined when I had come up with idea of a "central relationship" that would drive our show. When I saw this venue was the home of music of all kinds, and stand up comedy, that they might be open to something new.

Sure enough they were. The place is called the Chai House in Ballard, and their talent booker was intrigued by this show within a show, and last week, he booked us for our first show on the second Friday in September... a day with an infamous name... September 11th.

I thought, to myself, is that the best day to start something new... and then I said, if that day can be remembered by a few people for something positive, then it can only be positive.

And so, Breakout was born... and you can follow us on our Facebook fan page as we work up to our premiere. We'll have preview videos and photos as we lead up to the opening night. 

For me, this has been a lesson in persistence. I did not want to give up on a dream, so I just threw all my knowledge into it... from producing to to using Facebook, everything came together. I can't wait to see how it will all turn out.

Yours truly,

Johnny Blogger

On the subject of Carrying a Tune

I sing constantly. My XM gets a workout as I am always looking for a song to sing. Until this weekend, the sound of loud music always covered up my singing, and I thought it was best that people not hear my warbling. Well, I may have to reassess that situation.

Under the incredible direction of Doug (improv teacher extraordinaire) and Amanda (have pink guitar, will travel), the Jet City Musical Improv workshop took place this past weekend, and I was one of the participants.

On the surface, this workshop was just another piece in my giant improv education pie, but little did I know how tasty it was going to be.

On Saturday, the group of 10 students began their foray into the musical improvisational arts by learning how to commit to a chorus. Rules include keep it simple and make it catchy.

Under the suggestion of Werewolves, my chorus was inspired by a meek person in a haunted mansion. "Why must I be so scared in this house, I am as frightened as a little mouse." Okay, it's not Lennon and McCartney, but it was my first effort, and it felt cool. What was even more interesting was that I actually was singing. My voice broke into spoken word singing, but it began with actual hitting the right note singing. I was amazed.

Others were more amazing than I was including some students from the UW who sounded and looked like they were just out of theatre class.

I was happy to be joined by some of my improv troupe and was loving their work as well.

Next up, we had to create entire songs... verse then chorus. Off the suggestion of Checkers, I went into a song about how I loved a soft furry puppy named Checkers, then I proceeded to kill him off in a horrible accident in a parking lot when I had to rhyme with something. The class laughed hysterically and then Doug imagined me taking it to a whole darker level with the dog causing a fatal accident killing the person driving the car and we all went - yikes, but knew it was the right way to go in improv.

Other classmate's songs included subject matters like Hover Monkeys, Corsets, Square Dancing in Gym Class and evil girlfriends (the nastiest song of the day.)

Snow fell on Seattle Saturday night into Sunday morning putting our class into jeopardy (singing the thirty second timing song here - nothing as genius as the woman who had the perfect timing song for cooking top ramen when her timer was broken, but I digress.) However, 9 of us traversed the icy roads and made it to class, and thankfully we did, because day 2 put an exponential spin on the class.

We began with some warmups that included Hot Spot. The premise here is that one person takes center stage in the circle and sings a song to which the others can join in. However, the warmup takes two shapes. One is to see who is willing to take the spotlight or hot spot and put themselves out front. Second is to see the judgement of the others on when they choose to tag in and take the spotlight for themselves.

After a couple of people sang, I tagged in and started into the one song I absolutely knew I knew... Amy Winehouse's Rehab. I went full force into performance mode, and for the first time with this song, I actually heard myself singing it, and it wasn't that bad, bordering on good. Later, I broke into Rapper's Delight in a full force fast pace making eye contact with many in the circle. We were all in a great mood after the circle... and ready for what was to come.

It was time for Duets!!! I got to work with Will Li (no relations to the Letterman band member.) He was one of the UW Collective - the university improv group. He was something right out of a musical, with a great voice and pitch. Our suggestion was bath house... but we took it in a different direction with the power of the bath house to make one awesome. I got the chorus in which "The steam gives us courage... the heat will make us strong." I know it doesn't rhyme, but it sounded good.

Beth and I did a duet as well... but for some reason I can't remember my verse.

Our class danced and learned the diamond which can lead to improvised choreography for a big production number. Pretty cool.

The highlight duet by John and Beth was off the suggestion of Chuck Norris. It was a strange mix of a love song and a story of domestic abuse in the number "Karate on my Body." Hilarious. Really, it was.

And Sarah's Checker is my Plan... about the evil mastermind who replaced people's eyes with Checkers.

Finally, we did scenes and played SING IT where we had to break into song when prompted or when it felt right. My scene with Will and Beth was set on the transporter deck of the Enterprise. I was apparently beaming up people and turning them into mutant squirrels. When I finally brought a human onto the ship, I offered her an acorn, which she said she didn't like. That meant "I did something right!" Of course, that created the song "I did something right, that became "you did something wrong" when the red light came on leading to self destruction. Oh, the joy of failing.

So, now my obsession with singing has taking a whole new level, which happily, now has a direction. Class was incredible, and my interest for the process peaked.

Weather permitting, we will all get on stage on Wednesday and try out our new performing skills. I'll let you know how it goes.

Good night fellow singers!

Yours truly,
Johnny Blogger

On the subject of Improv Videos.

When I tried to put videos online last time, I failed miserably... so here is my first You Tube attempt. Let's see how it works...

Here is Standing Sitting Lying Down. At any time in the scene, one of us has to be standing, one has to be sitting and one lying down. The suggestion is Asbestos. The result is comedy... or chaos!

Here is Alphabet. Each line in the scene has to start with the next letter in the alphabet. We start with G and the suggestion for the scene is Pez Dispenser. Sorry it's a little tough to hear... so crank those headphones!

And here is Chain Murder Mystery.... Lauren describes what it is all about before the scene...

More to come from

Yours truly,

Johnny Blogger

On the subject of a "Different" Me

"Jon is slowly descending from the mountain top that holds the rare air of total happiness to see that there is still the real world to contend with below the clouds."
- Facebook Status Update from Today.

For a while, it was glorious. My wife said, "well at least you had some time up there."

Up there is happiness. Up there is where I want to be all the time. Up there is what I used to be.

A new friend went to my improv show the other night and had a very interesting comment. "That's a different Jon there."

A different Jon? Seems like a very familiar one to me, but the statement struck me. It appears that few of my friends really know who I used to be, and only know the stressed out, work obsessed, family driven person that I have become.

The comment took me back to the days of dating in Atlanta. I was seeing a woman named Pam Pyevich (yes - I am writing it in case she Googles herself so she can see I did eventually fall in love and marry.) We had been dating for a few months when I let the "L" word slip out. No, not the L word from television.... sheesh. To make a long story short, we broke up shortly after the utterance.

Early in our relationship, I took her with me to join my friends at a taping of World Championship Wrestling. The Atlanta Boys, as our group was known, was notorious for forcing the WCW production crew to add in sound effects and change their shooting because we were among the first groups to cheer for jobbers (guys who usually lose) or guys who were not getting the star quality we thought they deserved. Simply put, we were troublemakers, adn loving every minute of it.

It was in this light that Pam saw me for the first time - a mischievous, kid-like, devil may care guy who just wanted to smile, laugh and make others do the same.

When we broke up, she told me that the only time she thought she saw the real me was at that wrestling taping. She said I put on a different identity to protect my own and rarely let down my guard. She went on to say that she probably could have gone out with that "other guy."

Strangely, she was absolutely on target. I am one who likes to be liked and will go out of my way to please. I care what people think. I protect my reputation with a pit bull like mentality. I never want to be thought of as "that guy (rolling eyes)."

Being a boss, and a husband, and a father, it's difficult to be liked all the time. Many times, anything you do can just piss people off, even if you have the best of intentions. Other times, it's a no win situation.

Back to last Sunday's improv show. There I was in my Zinzanni hat, taking the stage and just acting the fool. I wasn't caring what people thought. I just cared that I was giving my all to entertain and I didn't care if I fell on my face (or my back in this case) as long as I was true to my heart.

The high that the show gave me, and the feeling of belonging to something truly wonderful filled my heart with joy. I had found a place where the old me, the different me, the true me could flourish. Now the challenge will be to figure how to allow this me to make peace with the me that lives every day - the one that has to be the boss, husband and dad.

There is hope, and it has to be protected from the failing economy, shattered dreams and everyday challenges of life.

So say hello to a different me, and I hope you get to see him some more. I am going to attempt to remember he exists and let him out for a run every once in a while.

And please no schitzophrenia jokes. None of you realize what role that plays around my life, which is one reason the new me has to be, and old me only appears as a special guest star.

Good night to all the mes and all of yous.

Yours truly,
Johnny Blogger

(Had to remove the video as it wasn't function properly. Kept saying "Yes, but.")

On the subject of The Facebook News Flash

The Train of Thought Sketch Comedy people have nailed Facebook properly. Not with hammer and nails, but rather in their own comedic way.

John Boyle, Kaci Aitchison, and Ryan Miller are all members of Jet City Improv, and are talented comics as well. I wanted to share the old version and the new version that just debuted on current TV (Al Gore's cable network.)


The Facebook News Network
and the new and improved Facebook News Flash.


Thanks you guys for making me laugh again.

Good night, oh wait. I have been tagged in a photo!


Yours truly,
Johnny Blogger

On the subject of Awesomeness

"Welcome to Seattle. where the waters cold.

You can kiss my mocha frappuccino soul"

- Lease, the Musical 

There are few times I have been absolutely blown away from going to a movie or a show. Tonight was one of those rare occasions.

Having been a student of improv, I understand the basics of yes, and as well as other "rules," but I have no idea how the cast of Lease, Seattle's Own Rock Opera is able to do what they do. They are, in a word, awesome. Okay, they rock. Okay, there is not a good enough word to describe them.

The premise is this. An 80 minute musical where the opening number is the only thing planned. Everything, and I mean everything is made up on the spot including musical numbers that rival broadway songs that have been written in a room and revised 90,000 times. Here, they are made up on the spot and the entire cast of seven participates, sometimes singing a group number. Hey - how do they know what to sing. They just do, and it is incredible.

I am proud to say my teacher is one of the leads, but in this show, because everyone plays a lead, and every night it is different. 

Sadly, closing night is tomorrow, otherwise I would be calling everyone to go see it.

Bravo people. You Rock!

Good night, lights down, take a bow.

Yours truly,

Johnny Blogger