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As most of you know I've been taking Improv Classes at Second City on Thursday nights for the past 3 weeks. First class had 20 people, second class had 16, third class 11. The teacher, Jackie Stone, has been pushing us be more blue. "Adults want to hear adult humor" which for anyone knows me hasn't been a problem. The classes have been great. For the most part the other students in the class are in the 27-35 range and are all in that "put up or shut up" phase of life. I have been having a blast in class, but the most fun I've been having has been on Saturday nights.

From Midnight to about 1:30 am on Saturday nights/Sunday mornings Second City has been allowing students a chance to be on stage at what they are calling the Improv Jelly. When you get there you have the chance to sign up to perform, and then they call up 2-5 students at a time to be on stage. If you look at the picture, you won't see me on stage, but that's me on the bottom right sitting in the stands (I took this picture off the Blog of someone else going)

Other than Choir, I have not been on stage since I was 7. The first week of the Jelly I was too nervous to go on stage. Week two, after a shot of Jose and an Old Style, I made people laugh for the most part. This past weekend was the first time I've felt comfortable on stage. Of the people on stage with me, I fealt I get the most laughs. I won't be going next week, because the new job has me working till midnight.

My parents acted, my sister acted, just about all my friends acted, but I always stayed back stage or took tickets. But to hear people laugh at my unscriptedI not usually one to be positive, but I'm liking where this is going.

Of the over Six Million entries into the ESPN NCAA Challenge, only TWO people picked the final Four. So here's an unconventional look at how the unbelievable Final Four will end.

It can't be any worse predictions than Billy Packer and Dickie V.

Game 1 UCLA vs LSU

Both teams have a U and an L so they cancel each other out so it comes down to AC vs S. I predict AC will be cold and LSU comes out on top.

Game 2 GMU vs UF

Again, the U's cancel each other out so it comes down to GM vs F. As anyone who watches sports can tell you a GM never rarely gets credit for winning, but always gets the blame for losing. I blame the GM for the UF win.

Finals LSU vs UF.

Whenever there is a battle between teenagers, FU is usually the last thing said and that means UF wins the title.

In my life, the greatest World Series I've ever seen was the
1991 series between the Braves and Twins. Both teams going from
worst to first, watching Jack Morris pitch 10 innings in Game 7,
but the greatest feat was Kirby Puckett's game 6. A 5'9 kid from
the projects of Chicago who graduated from Triton College in 1980
(where ironically my mother sent me to daycare from 1978-1981).
In that game he made a game saving catch in the 3rd inning and then
hit a game winning HR in the 11th. Last week Puckett passed away
and after hearing everything that's been said about him the past
10 days I only have one question.

If someone asked you to name a Hall of Fame Chicago athlete
who won a championship while wearing #34, who was loved and
respected by teammates and opponents, who was always
smiling, who had his greatest individual game in Minnesota
and died too young in his mid 40's; who would you name?


Walter or Kirby?

For those of you that read this blog, you know I'm going to take Classes at Second City Starting March 9th. SC is located on North Ave. & Wells in Chicago.

My Brother is also taking a big step in his life, as for the first time in his near 31 years he's moving into his GF's Condo near North Ave. & Clark. Litarly a Block away from where I'll be going to School.

Growing up we were inseperable. Mostly because we were a year apart and weren't allowed to leave the backyard of our Chicago Apartment. As we grew up we shared friends in Lombard but you could tell he wanted to be his own person. We finally got our own rooms when we were in Jr. High. In the three years we went to HS together, we shared one class together, Accounting. We both got A's in the class. I really enjoyed that class and went on to excell in all my math classes thru HS, and when I went to NIU, I declared my Major as Accounting because I thought it was what I was meant to do. But it wasn't as fun as it was in HS and it's scary that it takes writing a blog 16 year later that the reason you might have enjoyed the class so much was because of your little Brother. I became one of the many NIU Dropouts and went back to BK, My brother went on to play College Football and Wrestling, and was even Senior athlete of the year. I only saw about 6 of his football games because working in the Restaraunt Biz meant you didn't get many Saturday afternoons off. And we just grew apart.

For the last 10 years or so I can name on one hand the times me and my brother have gone to get a drink, a bite to eat, or to a ball game...just the two of us. And I'm not going Brokeback Mountain here, I'm just saying I miss time with my brother.

As I called him tonight to tell him about my new job, and then found out that where he was living I knew my dad was happy because we agreed to get together for a drink or a late snack every Thusday after my class.

For the past 5 years Thusday nights have meant nothing more to me than TV Family Comedy's. Now, at least for the next few months it will be known for Comdey and My Family.

One of the few pleasures in my life is going to Cubs games. For years I've usually been off work on Wednesday's and Sunday's. Since trying to get a Sunday ticket at Wrigley would cost you and Arm, a Leg, and you first born's Naming rights, I usually went to Wednesday Afternoon (WA) games...TILL THIS YEAR. The Cubs have three WA games this year-all before the end of May. Every Wed. game for the rest of the season is a night game.

Other than it being my day off, why are WA games so appealing you may ask??
1) Free Parking On the Streets around Wrigley till 5. WA games usually started at 1:20 and I could be driving past the place I was born before rush hour got too bad.
2) Not too crowded. And this is probably the main reason the Cubs decided to make them night games.

Now the last few years due to cash flow problems I have not bought Cubs Tickets (Except for the Red Sox last year). This year will proably more of the same but not as much for the $$ issue's. New Job & Going to School are going to be my focus this year.

It was late May of 1988, I had just turned 15 and was riding the bus to School. On the way there was a new Burger King being built with a sign in front saying "Now Hiring". I had just come off my first (and only) school suspension for fighting. I had been home alone for a week and was getting angry and depressed. My parents made me go to a shrink because they felt this fight was a cry for help. I didn't have many friends and I was fine with that because all the friends I've had from 1st to 7th grade all moved away, and to avoid being hurt again I figured alone is the best way to be. My Shrink felt differently and told my parents and me it would be a good idea for me to get a job so I could get some better acquaintances in life. So I interviewed with a 20-something Manager named Christopher at the yellow post outside the drive-thru because they were putting the ceiling in the dining room that day. The store was going to open June 2nd. My first day would be June 6, 1988...A day still known in the history books as D-Day (Some history books have the year as 1944).

Through the past 18 years very few in my life has been consistent, 7 part time jobs, 6 Cars, 5 addresses, 4 Dogs, and my 3-year Radio Career. Not to mention all the failed relationships. The one constant however has always been Burger King. As Mel Brooks has said on many occasions, "It's Good to Be The King" and it was until January 19th, 2006. On that day the best boss I've ever had decided to sell all his stores to a Larger Franchise of BK called Heartland. But as far as anyone could tell, It should have been named Heartless. If that wasn't bad enough, I was pulled out of my Naperville store thrown to the wolves in Aurora. In Naperville, Everyone had personality, everyone enjoyed their jobs, it was a fun atmosphere, and we worked as a team no matter whether we worked days, nights, kitchen, or cash. Aurora is a Me-First Store, a That's-Not-My-Job Store, a Racially-Divided Store.

So it is with much regret that I say goodbye to the longest relationship I've ever had - 17 1/2 years of Burger King.

And Hello.....Portillo's.

I Wish I could write this funnier than just the facts, but it's one of those stories that's Sad...I mean Funny, just by clicking the link(Don't do it yet, see if you can answer the question first without seeing the answers.)

The soon to open McCormick/Tribune Freedom Museum recently took a poll of 1005 Americans asking to name the five Freedom's of the First Amendment and the five members of the Simpsons. 22% of those polled knew Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa, & Maggie. BUT ONLY ONE PERSON could name all 5 freedom's.

Now, myself, having not taken a Constitution class since 1990 was still able to name four of them (which really shocked me).

Better yet, 25% could name the American Idol Judges...Fat Black Man, Angry Brit, and the Whore...right? But only 8 % only knew 3 Freedom's.

The reason this comes to my Blog is because earlier today I had a 19 year old punk vandalizing the restaraunt I work at and when I asked him to leave he stared swearing F.U. you G.D. Spic (and I'm not even spanish which made him look like more of a fool than he already was.) He started in with it was his First Amedment right to Swear if he wanted. Luckily, the Cops beleived diferently and he was taken to Jail.

Now I have to go to court in a couple weeks to get this kid for Vandalism and Public Disturbance charges. I'm almost tempted to tell him in court that'd I'd drop the charges if he could name the five fredoms of the First Amendment.