Saturday, December 29, 2007

Brian Regan at The Little River Casino

Well, tonight JJ and I went to see Brian Regan perform at the Little River Casino in Manistee, MI. Bad weather lowered the turnout by at least one: the comedian who was going to be Brian's opening act. Since nothing in the advertisements or on the tickets mentioned an opening act, we didn't know there was going to be one, and it's hard to feel a sense of loss over something you didn't know you had. I still did feel that sense of loss, but it was hard.

Brian did mention that his buddy had flown from New York to Chicago, apparently for no reason, and was now looking for a space on the floor to curl up and sleep through the rest of the holidays, so at least we got to laugh at the poor guy. I would tell you who he was, but his name was never mentioned, so I have no idea. If you were at O'Hare airport on Friday, December 28th, and slept on the floor next to a very bitter looking guy that seemed especially disgusted, and yet was funny anyway, that was probably him. If you got his name, let me know.

Just to set the tone for this "review," let me say that our expectations for this show were incredibly high, so Brian Regan had no chance to live up to them. He still did.

He started out with some banter about the weather, and some local jokes. Something like: I got a comment online that somebody was coming *down* to see my show. *DOWN*? To Manistee??? Who is this, Santa Claus?

It was interesting to notice the change when he slipped into his more "prepared" act. Not more or less funny, just different.

One disappointment with the evening was that I had seen most of the bits already on YouTube. I wouldn't have watched them, but I had no idea we'd ever get an opportunity to see Brian, as at the time of finding out about this performance there was no possibility that I would be able to get the time off work. Since I figured he wouldn't do another show in the area for quite a while, I thought I'd be safe to enjoy a bit of his humor online. Wrong. Of course, he's much, much funnier in person, but a lot of the time I knew what he was going to say.

The other was the big screen on either side of the stage. We sat pretty far back ($45 for these seats, and we were in the front row of that section) I think it was like $90 to sit down front. Anyway, from where we were we could see his face pretty well, but of course the screens showed it better, so during the punchlines I always found myself looking at the screens. I kept thinking, I could be sitting at home watching him on TV, I want to look at the actual dude!

But, for all those little details, and the incredibly slow drive there and back - it was snowing very hard, but come on, if you're going to drive 20 mph on a two lane, pull off every once in awhile and let the people who know how to drive go by - it was an incredible show, and as I left I noticed I had tears at the corners of my eyes from laughing so hard.

All but a couple of the bits I hadn't heard were unbelievably funny, and the ones I knew were still worth a second listen. Brian must have come equipped with some extra face muscles that we don't all come with, he can stretch and make faces that would make an on-duty D.O.T. cop laugh. And one time, he made his eyeballs completely disappear while his eyes were all the way open! Unbelievable!

As we walked through the snow to the car, JJ said, "This was the best Christmas present ever." Wow. She got a computer last year. This year she got a T-shirt that says "When I grow up I want to be a dumbass, just like Daddy" (get yours at OnlyIdiots.TV.) And this show was still better.

So Mr. Brian Regan, you are definitely the funniest man I've ever seen, and my daughter thinks you're the best Christmas present ever.

I would have a couple more things to say, but my truck is in the driveway and somebody just called and said they need some logs. So, just one quick Pop-Tart and I'm outta here.

- Trevor.
2007-12-29
Branch, MI

P.S. Get your piece of Brian Regan, the best Christmas present ever:

Thursday, December 27, 2007

Shorts and Sandals

I wear shorts and sandals almost all of the time, even in winter. I prefer them whenever it's warm, and even in the winter I spend nearly all of my time in a warm environment. When I have to work outside, or be outside for any length of time, I put on warmer clothes. But I don't change just to run into a truck stop.

Last year about this time, I stopped at the T/A truckstop in Fort Bridger, WY because it looked like the weather was going to get very bad very fast, and I thought I should find out what I was going to be driving into before I did it. Turns out it was a very fortunate decision because about a half-hour later they closed the road due to a severe crash, and it was closed for a long time, like half a day or more. Because I stopped when I did, I didn't have to spend that time in my truck on the side of the road, with no facilities. Instead, I was able to spend it parked near a restaurant and bathroom! Yeah!

There was no snow when I pulled into the truck stop, but by the time I got parked and was ready to go inside, there were a couple inches on the ground (it was snowing pretty hard). But I was parked fairly close to the building, and I didn't see any reason to change for a quick walk. When I got near the door a driver going in held the door for me and waited. As I passed by I said, "Thank you."

He replied, "You're welcome. The way you're dressed I wasn't sure if you'd know how to work a door"

- Trevor.
Branch, MI
2007-12-27

Wednesday, December 26, 2007

Carpool Lane

I do quite a bit of driving, which means I have time to think, and often while thinking I see road signs.

Road cops have such an awful job that it doesn't take them long to turn into very nasty people. In their defense, they *have* to be pretty nasty people to do that job, so it's likely that a lot of them started out that way. :-)

Anyway, I like to try to think of ways to mess with them that would get them back for being jerks to me all those times when they were (and sometimes, they were incredibly unbelievably bad, although in truth I've gotten tickets from some good guys over the years).

So, this thought has been running around my head for a couple years, and it seems like the perfect "crime". Please, if anyone can think of a reason this wouldn't work, click that comment button right down there \|/.

You get a friend to lie down on the floor of the backseat in a jurisdiction where back-seat passengers are not required to be belted, then go drive in the carpool lane. You could do one better by having a blow-up doll or mannequin or something in the front seat.

It seems to me that you're perfectly legal, while looking illegal. I think it would be wise to make sure your car, insurance, and registration are all *COMPLETELY* up to snuff, 'cause if I'm right this guy is gonna *WANT* to write you for *SOMETHING*.

If you try it, let me know, and if it works, you'll get hero status from me!

- Trevor.
Branch, MI
2007-12-26

P.S. I've also considered displaying a ton of license plates from all over on the back of your vehicle, with only one of them being the correct one, and that one *not* in the middle. My guess is they've probably got a rule about this one, but I don't know of one.

Paradigm Shifter



I've been having some troubles seeing things from other people's points of view. Thinking I could use a little help, I superglued a couple of dimes to my gearshift so now everytime I go from zero to sixty I've used my pair-a-dime shifter about 12 times. YMMV.

- Trevor.
Branch, MI
2007-12-26

Treasure Hunt

The post below that says it's "Just for Danielle," is part of our Christmas treasure hunt. One of her clues sent her to my blog to find her next clue, which by now you may have guessed was found in a book entitled "Into the Wild," at Chapter 13.

She eventually found her present, a Fur-Real Friend Kitty Cat named Sorrelltail.

- Trevor.
Branch, MI
2007-12-26

Mom's New House

Mom recently moved to Owasco, NY to take up her post as Pastor at Owasco Reformed Church. She lives in the parsonage next door, and although almost everyone who cares has seen the house, I thought I'd post a couple pictures anyway. It's a *very* nice house, with lots of interesting details and history. The pictures don't really show that, but they do show that it's a nice place.


In this photo, the church is just to the left of the camera, about 30 feet from the house. Although a lot of a pastor's work is done away from the church building, Mom's going to have a hard time calling in and saying the weather's too bad to go to work.














Those are some snapshots of her house, Kitchen, Living Room, Dining Room, Master Bedroom, and Sewing Room. I hope I'm able to visit quite often. Even the people are nice there in Owasco.

- Trevor.
Branch, MI
2007-12-26

It's Been a While

It's been very busy these last few months. The few times I've had time to get to the blog to tell the two of you about things that were going on, I haven't felt like it. So, it looks as if you're going to get caught up in a hurry, with a bunch of posts. The neat thing is: the way this blog works, you'll probably already have read all the catching up by the time you get to this post. Neat, huh?

- Trevor.
2007-12-26
Branch, MI

Monday, December 24, 2007

This post is just for Danielle

"Into the Wild", I won't go there. Maybe you could, Chapter 13, that's where!

- Trevor.
Branch, MI
2007-12-24

P.S. credit goes to JJ for authoring this post.

P.P.S. If you're not Danielle, and you're reading this, it's not likely to make a lot of sense. So in other words, it's like the rest of my blog.

Wednesday, December 5, 2007

Goodbye Fred

Fred Gibbons, My Stepfather

This man brought an entirely new outlook into my life.

He made my Mother happy.

He made the world bigger.

The trials of life are easier to take because I knew Fred.

He was famous for his gruffness, but because he was honest, no one would call him rude. It might have been hard to make him smile, but when he did, you knew he meant it.

I have wondered for two weeks why it was so hard to understand that Fred is gone. Now I understand that Fred will never be gone, because his uniqueness is branded into everyone who knew him.

I'll miss you Fred, and I'll always be a better person because I knew you.

- Trev.






On Monday, November 26th, at Owasco Reformed Church in Owasco, NY, friends and family gathered for a Memorial Service for Fred. Fred's Stepdaughter, and my sister, Katy, sang Amazing Grace from the balcony. Just her voice, it was the most powerful music I've ever heard. Ever.

There were many people in attendance, I didn't think to count. I'm sure at least a dozen people stood to speak of Fred, his life, his exploits, and the people he touched.

To end the service, we stood and sang "Joy to the World." Well, most people did. Every time I tried to add my voice I got choked up, so mostly I just stood there and felt the moment.

Fred only got 66 years, but he lived every minute. And enjoyed most of them :-).

And Heaven and Nature Sing.

- Trevor.
Barstow, CA
2007-12-05

Updated:
Springfield, MO
2007-12-06

Please visit FredGibbonsPhoto.com

Saturday, December 1, 2007

Place Holder

Hi everyone (with emphasis on the *one*, since that's how many of you there are :-) ).

I will post here soon.

This is a placeholder post.

If you want to catch up on news before I post about it, please check out this wonderful post by my sister, over at the "SeaSaw MaMa by the Seashore" blog: Hello, Goodbye

- Trevor
Springfield, MO
2007-12-01