Keithin' It Real

The Return Of Project Seven

2008-07-09T12:17:00.010-05:00

This Friday, I'll be doing an improv show in Wisconsin with my very first improv team, Project Seven. I'm really excited. I don't think I've been this excited to do a show in a long time.

Project Seven formed from during my very first improv class at Comedy Sportz in Milwaukee six years ago. Our instructor at the time, Brian Allman, told us he and his friends used to do to shows outside of bars with his friends years earlier. Casually, he suggested we do same. I don't think he expected us to take him up on it, but we did. However, we decided to move the show inside.

Our first show featured Nicole Devin, now Nicole Devin-Angel, Nic Schmidt and Chase Stoeger, myself and featured Brian and we called our selves "The Butt Fungi's." We performed in a cramp corner in Games bar. From what I remember of the show, it was horrible. But, we decided to do another one. Brian said the couldn't commit to the show and don't blame him. It was an hour drive and he was playing with people well below his talent level.

So, we were in search of someone new. Then came Harz. At the time, Harz worked at Comedy Sportz. We asked to play with us and he happily agreed. So, for our second show it was Nicole, Nic, Chase, Harz and myself. We also changed our name to "Project Seven." A name created from a combination from Fight Club's "Project Mayhem" reference and an improv warm up game named "Yah 7". This second show was not so great, but better than our first. We decided to keep Harz and the name. We did a couple more shows at Games, but decided to find a bigger space. We were getting better and began to get a little bit of a following. Also, it was a pain in the ass to do shows next to a dart board.

So, then we moved down the street to Muddy's restaurant. Mike Christian and Greg (who I forget his last name) let us perform in an empty room above their restaurant. The space was great. We couldn't have asked for anything better and we performed there for a couple months.

However, one day I received a phone call saying that Muddy's closed and we needed to find a new place to perform by tomorrow night. So, I called a good friend, Matt Uelmen, who worked at Weiland's Bowling Alley, and begged him if we could perform there. Matt happily agreed. At the last minute, we switched our performance across town. He let us perform in one of the conference rooms reserved for parties. After the show we asked Matt if we could do a show every other week and he "yes." So, there we were performed for a little over 3 years ago. I remember before every show moving tables and adjusting track lights to give us more of a stage feel.

We had many special guests including our good friend Tony Teofilo, Deanna, AJ and more that I'm forgetting and Brian returned to do one more show. We had good shows and bad shows. We ended up getting a good following and we even sold T-shirts. One fan, "Hollywood," came to almost every show. He also got us our first paid improv gig for the Boys And Girls Club.

But, as most improv groups, we took a short break which lead to big break. We thought we'd take a couple months off, but it lead to a lot more than that. It seemed as if we'd never reunite until this Friday. So, if you get a chance, check us out.

Wisconsin!

2008-06-19T17:47:00.008-05:00

So, once again, it's been a while. But I have a good reason: I forgot my camera in Wisconsin. But, before I left I took a bunch of pictures. Over this last weekend, I got it back.

Here's Jenny and I after leaving the Art Bar in Milwaukee. As you can see, I look like an idiot. But, this is the best picture of us. Seriously, we took 5 pictures and in everyone, I look stupid. Whatever.

Every Memorial Day weekend my friends and I go to the "Jam For Kids." It's become a little reunion for all my Wisconsin friends. "Jam For Kids" is a festival with music, food and beer where all the proceeds go to the kids or at least I think so. After all these years, I've never actually took the time to find out. One of the highlights was a band playing the worst version of Kanye West's Golddigger. It was so bad. I wish I could remember the bands name.
Here's a picture of Jessy. I really needed to include a picture of her because there's about 25 pictures of me on her myspace page.
Stacy and Jaydee are just being adorable.
And ladies, it only counts if it's below the waist.

Louie vs Scott

2008-05-17T02:08:00.002-05:00

Last weekend, I went to Dan's place to enjoy a nice BBQ. However, things got a little messy when Louie and Scott decided to get into a slap fight. Luckily I had my camera with me to tape everything. Here's my first youtube video.

2 Birthdays, 2 Shows

2008-05-05T21:05:00.005-05:00

Once again, I've fallen behind with my blog.

Two Saturdays ago (I'm posting this far back because I don't have any new pictures), I was quite the busy bee. I first went to Leo and Matt's place to celebrate Leo's Birthday. It was super fun. We play Super Smash Bros and Rock Band. Here's Leo looking as if I just told him something interesting. I didn't.

Afterwards, I went to celebrate another birthday. Min-Aha had her birthday at Jin Ju.

Then I went to do a show with Cornwallis at The CIF Preview and then I did another Cornwallis show at the CIC Theater. Here's an actually picture from the show (wink, wink). I believe this is scene were I'm talking to Elisabeth and Lina about the downfalls of drug use. I'm a pharmacist, hence the counter.

Whip It Out: The Game

2008-04-17T12:23:00.006-05:00

Last night, Anthony and I went to see Karissa perform MacBeth at the Athenaeum. The show was good, but the real show started afterwards at the Lincoln Tap.

It started with Anthony tell us of a game him and his friends made up and played a couple of years ago that they called "Whip It Out."

All that is needed to play is a tape measure. The object of the game is to whip the tape out and see how long you can get it to extended with it staying straight. By that, I mean it doesn't fold over. You're also allowed to cradle the tape measure with your hand.

Anthony claimed that he, at his prime, could get 10 feet and his friend had the record of 14 feet of the tape measure out while keeping it straight. Personally, I believe this to be impossible. Needless to say, a debate started between the two of us and we argued for while. It was decided that the only way to come to a conclusion was for him to prove me wrong. So, I asked the bartender for a tape measure and luckily he had one. Now, to give Anthony credit, the tape measure was old and Anthony hasn't played the game in a couple of years. But, I still expected him to get at least 8 feet without while keeping it straight. Below is Anthony playing.

After a couple of attempts, Anthony could not accomplish it. You can see below him trying to getting about 7 feet. Which is pretty good, but it folded over.

However, even after trying and failing, Anthony still believes that 14 feet can be done. So, this arguement is far from over. Please post your thoughts on whether or not you think he can do it. This will be settled at the Home Depot.

Southport Brown Line Reopens!

2008-04-01T12:55:00.008-05:00

Hallelujah!
On Sunday, the Brown Line El Train Station reopened. Thank God. For the past year, I've had to walk to the Addison Red Line. Now I can get to work faster, go to more places easier and not have to worry about drunken Cub Fans.

It's a little cleaner, more spacious and it has those blue strips on the edges. Oh, and there's a wheelchair elevator. If you're asking "was it worth a year wait?" No, it was not.

Return of the Blog

2008-03-25T12:42:00.007-05:00

Alrighty, so I've neglected this a little. I'm going to make a point to update this more.

Here's some quick things:

I'm on a new CIC team called Counter Productive Lover. Jorin made us a sweet logo.

Also, after a show, we paired up and wrestled. I wrestled Dan. It was a split decision as to who one. According to Bryan he beat me in points, but according to everyone else, I won. Here's a picture of Ticha and Karissa and wrestling. Yes, the ladies wrestled too.

Louie and I after getting our haircut. As you can see, Louie is very happy with is haircut.

Jill and Louie after Chrissy and Mike's War Dove show. Again, Louie is very happy.

Two weekends ago, my cousin Kaela married Luke. Here's a picture of my cousin Julie, Alivia and myself.

Mac and a Movie

2008-01-25T08:26:00.000-06:00

With my holiday bonus, I bought a new Macbook. My old computer was on the verge of taking a dump. So, for I love this thing, except for the fact that there's no Microsoft Office on it.

I saw Cloverfield this last Monday. It really enjoyed it. I friend of mine, TJ Miller is in it. He plays Hud. Maybe, it's because I know him, but I thought he was the best one in it.

After seeing the film, I decided to find some more facts about the movie and I found a crap load of viral marketing stuff for it. I've spent easily over 3 hours looking into it all! Most of it's on the site http://cloverfieldclues.blogspot.com/. It's amazing.

Florida

2008-01-05T02:24:00.001-06:00

For Christmas, my parents and I joined my Aunt, Uncle and their two sons, Mike and Bobby in Fort Myers, Florida.

Fire & Ice

2007-12-19T23:54:00.000-06:00

Once again, I have neglected my blog. Shame on me. Here's a couple of things that has happen to me since the last entry:

Anthony crashed on my couch for a couple of days. His place caught on fire. He and his roommates are fine. If you'd like to read more about it, and suggest you should, go to his blog on the right title "Brett and Anthony." One thing he doesn't mention is that he grabbed 3 things when he ran out; his guitar, his computer and his Marvin Harrison jersey. That says everything you need to know about him.

I had a show open in the new Chemically Imbalanced Theater. It's the story of Laura Schultz spending Christmas in Arizona. I play a minuteman. That's right, this story tackles the issues of immigration.

I went to my first Blackhawks game. Louie got tickets from Seth and invited me to go with (I'm assuming Chrissy didn't want to go). When I was in middle school, I was a big Blackhawks fan until they traded Jeremy Roenick and Chris Chelios away. After going to game, I've decided to get over it. Plus, it was 15 years ago.

Hanging with Alivia

2007-11-29T17:44:00.001-06:00

So while I was at home for Thanksgiving, I got to see my niece, Alivia. Below are some pictures her.

Here she is with her horses. By the way, the two smaller horses can fly.

While being at home with her home, I noticed she doesn't eat much meat. This is the conversation we had about her dislike for meat;

Sean- "Are you going to be a Vegetarian when you get older?"

Alivia- "No, I'm going to be a Mermaid."

Weekend O' Fun with Favorites!

2007-11-15T13:09:00.000-06:00

Last Friday, a bunch of went out to The Silver Seafood to celebrate Vanessa's birthday (Although, it wasn't until Wednesday). The food was okay, but my favorite part was the lazy susan in the middle of the table. One rule with the lazy susan: counter clockwise.

Afterwards, Mark, George, Vanessa and I ventured to Chinatown to watch Let's Get Out Of This Terrible Sandwich Shop. They're a much better band than I was expecting. They play really great music and they do hilarious jokes in between songs. My favorite part was the unveiling of the new logo. Wanna see it? See the show.

Later in the night, I did two shows, one with The Chicago Sashay Company and the other with Cornwallis. My favorite moment of the shows was Anthony naming a Roller Coaster, The Birth Controller.

What also made these shows great was that Vince, Wiley, Ryan and Tina came to watch the show. After we went to The Wild Goose for Drinks. My favorite Part? Watching Wiley befriend a table of strangers just to get their chicken wings and beer. It was just Wiley being Wiley.

2007-11-09T11:27:00.000-06:00

Today's the first slow day I've had at work in a long time. So I thought I'd blog.

A couple of weeks ago, Jill tagged me. List 5 things that certain people (who are not deserving of being your friend anyway) may consider to be "totally lame," but you are, despite the possible stigma, totally proud of. Own it. Tag 5 others:

1. Every weekday, I visit imdb.com and read the news, guess the trivia questions and take part of their daily poll.
2. It took me 10 years to beat the original NES Zelda (I couldn't find the Silver Arrow). I consider it to be one of my greatest accomplishments.
3. Speaking of video games, I wanted in line for 7 hours for a Nintendo Wii and I'd do it again.
4. Every Friday morning at my firm's breakfast, I drink one glass of Cranberry juice just for the benefits on the bladder.
5. When I was 11, my Aunt Kim & Uncle Steve bought me Batman on VHS. I watched it at least once a day, every day for over 2 months.

Since everyone else I know has been tagged, I tag Louie.

Lina's B-Day!

2007-11-07T20:10:00.000-06:00

On Friday, we celebrated Lina's Birthday with a little karaoke at the Hidden Cove.

The crowd at the HC seemed a little tense. In fact, one man tried to pick a fight with Louie. I'm still not quite sure why. Why would anyone want to fight this karaoke legend?

Sorry

2007-10-25T10:39:00.000-05:00

So, I've been neglecting this a little. I promise I'll update it more often.

Here's a couple of things I've been up to:

Cornwallis performed at The Around The Coyote Festival. We collaborated with an artist named Caroline Picard by improvised with her paintings.

I also had a sketch show close last Saturday called Blind Stinkin'.

One thing that has been a real time consumer is that I've been playing a new video game.

Louie let me borrow Metroid 3 for the Nintendo Wii. It's pretty cool. The best part is when I put the game in my Wii, it uploaded something that now let's me access online content. I can get the news and weather and I can vote and I can download original NES games. I'm going to be reliving my childhood for the next week.

New York

2007-10-08T22:31:00.000-05:00

Over the weekend, I was in New York City to perform with Cornwallis in The New York Underground Comedy Festival. Overall, we had a good show. There wasn't much of an audience, but it was still a fun show.

We stayed at an apartment for the weekend which was located a block west of Central Park and a block south of The Dakota, the building Lennon was shot. Across the street in the park is a place called Strawberry Fields. It's a memorial to Lennon and peace. Below is a picture of the memorial. In the middle of the circle it reads "Imagine." The memorial is great for a lot of reasons, but what makes it really great is that every day a man decorates the memorial with objects, from peddles to apples to marijuana leaves. He will also give a detailed speech to tourists about the history and what people can do to help the memorial.

Since this was first time Jill and I had both been been to NY, we ended up hanging out a lot and doing some sight seeing. Here we are about to ride the Ferris Wheel in Toys R Us. We were really excited to ride, but about after the 4th revolution, we were begging to get off.

Here are some other things I saw:

Central Park
Washington Square Arc
Grand Central TerminalA Daring Bird

We also went to the Empire State Building (which is the view in the above picture). On your way to the top, they take everyone's picture and they try to sell it to you as you leave. Jill and I saw this and decided we didn't want to get scammed into buying a picture. So, we made our picture very grumpy. Well, it turned out really funny and I bought it. They got me.

Off to The Big Apple

2007-10-03T09:03:00.000-05:00

Tonight after work, I leave for New York City until Sunday. My improv troupe, Cornwallis, has been invited to perform in The New York Underground Comedy Festival.

I'll have a bunch of pictures when I get back.

Wedding!!!

2007-09-29T19:35:00.001-05:00

I finally decided to buy a digital camera and start a blog.

And just in time too for my good friends Eric and Erin Froemming's Wedding!

I didn't realize until now that this is the only picture I took of the two of them. Oops.

This is just a great picture of Nic and myself, especially myself.

Erich (not the groom), better dancer, better usher or just a man who is incredibly sensitive to bright light? I'll let you decide.

The night was little somber too because my good friend Jessy and Troy are moving to North Dakota and this was the last time I'd see them for a while. I wish them the best and good luck!

P.S. The Earth is bigger than the moon.