The Random Theme

Allright, so in my very first column on this blog, I explained the concept of this whole thing.

The thing is, that being random about the Fringe prior to the Fringe actually starting is a distinct challenge. So, today I choose just to be random. Some of the things in this entry will be Fringy, some won't. All will be brief, though. For as some wise guy once wrote, brevity is the soul of wit!

• Upon searching for a random topic, I asked a pretty little redhead I know what I should write about today. She said, "Kittens." I'm a cat person, rather than a dog person. Although I've always had a dog while growing up, I helped train all my parent's dogs except the one that they had when I was born, and I really want a puppy now. But when it comes down to it, if I can only have one pet, it is a cat. I have two. They are siblings from the same litter. I got them together and carried them home inside my jacket as I drove through the hilly streets of Sioux City, IA. I still see them as kittens, even though they've been with me for almost 9 years.
• In Texas it is illegal to have sex with a fish. In Florida it is illegal to get a fish drunk. I'm thinking that there are far too many people spending quality time with fish for either of these laws to be necessary. I can't even fathom the logistics of the first one. Although the FL law does make "Drinks like a fish" a little more real.
• I do realize that by writing this at 9-something, that I got up before noon, which I mentioned I wouldn't do in my last column.
• A certain director mentioned in an earlier column uses two words a lot while directing "Beautiful" and "Stupid." The two words are often in the same sentence. "That is so stupid it is beautiful." I like that thought when it applies to theatre. Simplicity, and yes, even stupidity, has a very primal beauty to it. And it is often humorous from a very natural place. So putting that phrase to work in theatre works. I do not recommend conjugating the phrase to apply to your girlfriend. Not a good plan.
• The most I've ever made producing a show at the Fringe Festival was $1500. The most I ever lost was $70.
• I found this on www.hookedonfacts.com : "Mailing an entire building has been illegal in the U.S. since 1916 when a man mailed a 40,000-ton brick house across Utah to avoid high freight rates. " -- Somewhere in this there has to be at least a 10-minute play. Did they move it brick by brick? Did it even get delivered? How did it fit in the mailbox?
• I talked to a friend of mine the other night, the lovely Tina Fredrickson, and she is appearing in Desdemona: A Play About A Handkerchief. She's always very good. Go see it.
• I have two other columns to write today. Both are for www.sportsoutlaw.com. I've found that although many actors give lip service to hating sports, there's a large number of guys in the Twin Cities theatre scene that play Fantasy Football.

Well, actually, I should get cracking on those other columns, as I'm behind schedule on that. Only two more days until the Fringe really gets going. I can't wait.