Thanks to the multi-talented Ozzie Bloxson for developing the video,  and to Kim Laragan (also multi-talented) for sharing the film from years gone by. 

One of my all time favorite sitcoms was "The Larry Sanders Show" with Garry Shandling.  Larry's sidekick was a guy named Hank Kingsley (Hey Now!!) and he had a monthly newsletter that he would send to "Hanks Honeys" his fan club.  It was one of those goofy lists of mindless thoughts that he would rattle of to his devoted assistant.  An example would be "Whatever happened to that sexy mama from the Cowsills?  I loved the way we shook that tight min-skirt".  It looses something in the translation,  but it was hilarious.  Sooo here's my tribute to Hank Kingsley,  "Idle Mind,  Idle Thoughts...

  I've been keeping a secret of my new weekend job,  boxing with a kangaroo down in Mexico - 50,000 pesos a fight (about $500 U.S),  plus expenses.  Unfortunately Pepe the Mexican Boxing Kangaroo got me with a solid right this past weekend at a fight in Hermosillo,  and you can see the results above. 

I wrote recently about my years with Up With People, something of which I'm quite proud.  30 years later,  I'm still a "fan" and I'm very excited about their big plans for the cast this year.  A Cast of 68 young people were feature on this years "Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade".   I forgot to capture it on my own,  but here's a clip from Youtube (sorry about the lousy kinescope capture,  but it's the only I could find.

 

I haven't posted for a while and for that I apologize.  I have a good reason though,  I've been trying to set up "AndyPalooza 2008" for all of the folks that read my blog,  unfortunately all of the phone booths in the Phoenix area are already booked for the summer. 

Phoenix is a big city.  I've been here since I was 7,  and it's hard to believe how it's gone from a relatively small metropolitan area,  to a gigantic megalopolis that stretches for close to 100 miles (try driving from Morristown to Gold Canyon Ranch).  Phoenix has all of the big city trappings,  teams in all 4 major sports,  world class resorts,  more movie theatres per capita than any other market,  lots of enormous shopping malls,  casinos, blah,  blah, blah.  We also have a number of noted performance spaces,  the Dodge Theatre,  Grady Gammage Auditorium,  The historic Orpheum Theatre,  Celebrity Theatre, the list goes on and on.  We have a decent opera company,  an up and coming ballet company,  and a First Class symphony with a number of recordings. 

What we don't have is regular Broadway quality theatre.  We do get most of the bus and truck shows,  we've had Wicked play here for a month,  Phantom,  Les Mis,  Miss Saigon,  and pretty much everything else that's been put back out on the road.  But unlike San Diego,  Los Angeles,  San Francisco and Seattle,  we don't have long runs of Broadway quality shows.  We do have numerous local theatre organizations,  most amateur,  and a few professional. 

Dinner Theatre - it evokes images of bad buffet food,  followed by the bus staff going on a poorly lit stage to perform "Come Blow Your Horn" or "Plaza Suite".  I remember going to the old Windmill Dinner Theatre to see Robert Morse (of "How to Succeed in Business" fame) in "The Odd Couple" some 30 years ago.  He was good,  the setting and the production not so much. 



Last night I went to a "Dinner Theatre" for the 1st time since seeing old Bobby Morse those 30+ years ago.  What an extraordinarly pleasant shock.  The production was "Little Shop of Horrors" and it was,  in a word,  outstanding. 

A little background - just before I moved to North Scottsdale,  construction started near my old home in Peoria on the "Arizona Broadway Theatre".   It is a very impressive structure from the outside,  obvious fly space,  beautiful building etc.  No indication it is going to be a dinner theatre,  just looks like another nice theatre for Phoenix.  Turns out (according to the owners) this is something unique - a dinner theatre that is a combination of a world class theatre,  and gourmet dining.  It was all that.  The stage was a full size proscenium stage.  The sound and lighting were first class,  and the sets were extraordinary.  The theatre also has a full set shop,  and a full-time set designer,  and the set was very impressive.  The show made full use of the ample flyspace,  as well as using turntables,  trap doors, and moving platforms.  There was a 5 piece orchestra,  but apparently they use whatever size orchestra is recommended for the performance,  and have staged shows with up to 21 orchestra members.  The theatre seats 400 people,  in a nicely tiered house,  with plenty of room between tables and seats. 

The food was wonderful.  The theatre has a staff of 40 people,  one of them a "4 star chef",  who runs a 3000 sq. ft. kitchen.  My salmon (oh god,  but I love salmon) was perfect,  as was the salad,  veggie,  breads etc. 

Finally,  the performance was wonderful.  The theatre is recognized by Actors Equity,  and about 1/2 of the cast were Equity members,  and the others were local professionals.  They were all convincing actors,  and there were some outstanding voices amongst the cast.  I'm guessing that Audrey II is rented and moved from show to show,  because it was amazing to watch,  and the voice behind the plant was every bit as good as the voice in the movie.  How this gigantic "puppet" can eat people whole is amazing.  The theatre has it's own costume designer,  and the costumes were "fun",  particularly those for the "Greek Chorus".  


Here are the ABT's Seymour and Audrey (1?) -
both outstanding (and Audrey was definitely
easy on the eyes)

The bottom line - once the house lights go down,  if you look straight ahead,  it' not difficult to imagine that instead of the Arizona Broadway Theatre,  you're at the Winter Garden,  or the Majestic on Broadway.  I've seen a number of shows on Broadway,  as well as in Chicago,  Seattle,  Los Angeles,  and this was a comparable experience.  Throw in a nice meal,  and the ability to drink your coffee,  or iced tea (or a nice bottle of wine for that matter) while watching a good musical,  well it doesn't get much better than that.  If you ever visit Phoenix,  I highly recommend you see the current production at ABT - call me,  I'll be glad to go with you!!

I used to “kind of” enjoy a 1 ½ hour layover at a major airport that had something interesting to see or do on the “airside”, but I’ve been over that for a long time.  I actually get a little nervous (and I’m known for not letting most things bug me,  I’m have very boisterous personality around people I know,  but not too many thing rattle me).  Airports most certainly do.  I think it’s the long lines, the grouchy airline staff (and I go out of my way to be pleasant to them, believe me), and the security hassles.  Once I reach the “airside” I calm down a little, but I’m still not happy until I’m safely ensconced in my seat on the plane.  Having said all of this, there are good airports and bad airports, and really miserable airports, so I’m going to share some of my thoughts on airports I’ve visited.  I’ve been in at least 100 different airports around North America, and the world. 

I’ve been in all the biggies like Atlanta Hartsfield, DFW and O’Hare.  I’ve also been in some very small airports like Lake Havasu City, or Elmira, NY (or Aswan, Egypt for that matter).   So here come some thoughts on the best and the worst I’ve experienced. 

First off, I should address the one I know best, which would be my home airport, Phoenix Sky Harbor International.  PHX has 3 terminals, 2, 3, and 4 (Terminal 1 was torn down about 15 years ago, and they didn’t want to cause confusion by renumbering the existing terminals).  Probably 75% of my flights go out of the enormous Terminal 4, which is the home to the primary hub for USAir / America West.  It is also the busiest location for Southwest Airlines. It may come as a surprise to you if you don’t live in Phoenix, but PHX is the 5th busiest airport in the US, and the 9th busiest in the world, so it’s a very busy place.  Overall I like Terminal 4, it’s a very modern, attractive terminal with good places to eat (try the burro’s at Oaxaca in the 2nd floor food court, some of the best Mexican food in the city with the world’s best Mexican food.  Also they’re only $4.50 which is a bargain.)  My only beef with Terminal 4 is it is huge, probably ½ mile or more from one end to the other.  There are moving walkways, so it’s not so bad, but it’s a long way from the gate A-24 to gate D-24, and there are no moving walkways once you’re in the gate areas.  Terminal 3 and 2 are much smaller, and they’re fine, both have recently been remodeled, and have adequate food service at reasonable prices. Of the other mega-airports in the US, I would have to say my favorite is Atlanta.  Although it is huge in size, thanks to the central transit corridor with the people-movers, you can make most tight connections even if your going from the T-gates to the E-gates.  What I like best I about ATL is that there is lots to do while you’re waiting, and if you don’t like what’s available in your terminal, the others are a short ride away.  There is a wonderful food court in the D terminal, with a player full-grand piano, that plays the classics 24 hours a day.  There is also lots of shopping etc.  The “new” Denver International is very impressive, but a) it’s just too big, and confusing with no real transportation once your inside, and b) if you’re working in Denver, you have about a 40 mile drive out to the middle of nowhere to get there.  After driving for 30 miles from d/t Denver, you arrive at the exit for the airport (Pena Drive), and you find you still have 9 miles to go. I love the new International Terminal at JFK.  They wisely turned the operation over to a private vendor, and it’s like flying out of your local shopping mall.  Huge food court, lots of shops, plenty of time-killers in a place where you will always have lots of time to kill (International carriers normally require you arrive at least 3 hours early).  Orlando McCoy Jetport is usually the top-rated major airport in the US, and I can’t disagree.  Of course the proximity to Disneyworld doesn’t hurt.  Transportation from the terminals to the departure/arrival hall is via People Movers, and the informative voice is the same as the one you hear on the Monorail, trains and other transportation at Disneyworld.  There is also a large Disney Store in the lobby, as well as a store for Universal Studios, and Sea World.  They have a hotel right in the airport itself, which is very nice but very expensive. I’ve been in a number of airports in Mexico, and outside of Mexico City and Guadalajara, they are hard to tell apart.  They are all operated by the same quasi-governmental company, and they’re very Spartan, but usually clean.  Mexico City’s airport is chaotic; it’s right in the middle of the city and very busy.  Leaving Mexico City’s airport in a rental car is an adventure all its own.  The airport is located right in the middle of an ordinary neighborhood (there are homes right across the street from the terminal), so you have to drive through this neighborhood that is totally unmarked in order to get to the freeway or “Circuito Interior”.  Vancouver BC’s airport is very nice, although small for such a big city.  Overseas my favorites are London Gatwick, and Frankfurt International.   Gatwick is surprising small, and I was surprised to find out it is the world’s busiest single runway airport.  You have to wait for your flights in a huge central departure hall, but it’s reminiscent of being in Vegas, lots of neon, very festive setting.  Frankfurt is just the opposite, quiet, sort of subdued elegance and it’s very large and spread out.  Most of the Middle East airports I’ve visited have been a little rough, except for the airport in Amman Jordan, which is beautiful. 

Oh, there are so many, this could go on forever, but I’ll try to keep it short.  In the incredibly ugly division, there is Detroit Wayne.  It’s the perfect hub location for the worst airline in the US, Northwest.  The airport is old, and coming apart.  Dirty bathrooms, peeling paint, lousy, expensive food, blah, blah.  St. Louis is not far behind, particularly since American acquired TWA.  I particularly dislike that St. Louis has smoking rooms that appear to have no ventilation, and are right off the main corridors.  As much as I hate smoking, I don’t hate smokers, and I have no problem with providing somewhere for them to smoke once inside the airside.  What I don’t like is that STL has these rooms where you have no choice but walk by these stinky, ugly rooms.  I haven’t been in all of the terminals in JFK, but I have spent some time in Terminals 1-2 which are the Delta terminals and they are awful.  Everything is old, and the building is impossible to navigate.  The waiting area for the last flight I took

out of there from JFK to PHX on a 767 (which is a big plane, seats almost 300 people) was off by itself, and very small, maybe enough room for 40 people to sit and no other gate close by.  I do like the new monorail system that they have to get from terminal to terminal, but the hotel shuttle area is a disaster.  You have to take the monorail to the end of the line, where you wait in an uncovered abandoned parking lot, no seating, no protection from the elements (this was in November, below freezing and record winds).  This is also where you pick up rental cars, and the rental car company’s don’t like you getting warm, or using their bathrooms if you aren’t renting a car from them. (I just show them my frequent user card from whatever company it is, that usually will get them to leave me alone).  La Guardia is too small, and too old.  But it’s so close to mid-town that I can live with that.  I like Newark fine,  and I often work downtown in Manhattan instead of mid-town,  and if I’m staying at one of my favorite hotels in the world,  the Downtown New York Embassy Suites,  I fly into Newark.  The new monorail is so much nicer than the old one, and it takes your right to the train station for a quick ride to either the Jersey City PATH station for downtown or to Penn Station for Mid-town.  The worst major airport in the US has to be Seattle-Tacoma.  It’s actually marginally attractive, and well-kept.  They have a good food court, and an interesting shopping area, although the shopping area is before security.  But the airport itself is a mess.  You’re always guaranteed of having a nice long wait in some line.  Their security situation is a mess, typically the wait time is at least an hour.  About 4 years ago, I had an early flight going out on Alaska, and I decided to move from my downtown hotel to an airport hotel so I could get to the airport nice and early, in order to avoid the lines.  I arrived @ 5a for an 8:30a flight.  When I arrived @ 5a, the security wrapped all around the ticketing lobby, and out the door.  Suffice it to say, I missed my flight, BY 3 HOURS!  It took over 6 hours to get through security.  It’s much better there now, but it’s still a big hassle.  Once you’re beyond security, it can be a very long walk to your gate, and there are no moving walkways.  There is an underground subway system, but it always seems to be under construction, and it’s not real convenient anyway.  It’s a shame, because flying in and out of Seattle can be a real treat.  You often can see Mt. Rainer jutting out from above the clouds,  and one of the primary approaches fly right over downtown Seattle and the Puget sound,  which is just stunningly beautiful.  Internationally, I haven’t experienced a genuinely horrible airport, although the airports in Egypt are not great by US standards, but not as bad as one would expect.  Cairo’s domestic terminal is a little rough, but bearable.  Their International terminal is fair, except the area for the daily flight to JFK on EgyptAir, which is a very nice area.  They may hate us, but they understand where the money comes from.  Heathrow is just too darn busy and big, Inter-terminal connections

can be a nightmare, but it’s a very nice airport overall.  I’d much rather fly into Gatwick. 

So,  I'm sharing an intimate appletini in the La Paloma Resorts' hillside hot tub with my new lady... Glenn Close.  We're both at the Up with People Reunion 2007,  she having been one of the original cast members back in 65,  and I came along starting in 77.   We have the "Push on Through" album from 77 playing in the background,  and we're chuckling over the pictures on that 1st album from 65.  Can you believe Glenn looked so young,  that Bob Hope and Walt Disney had their pictures and endorsements on the back cover...  All of a sudden I sense her lips on mine,  and I sense a very rough, wet tongue... 

That's where the dream always ends,  being brought to reality by my Lhaso mix,  Duster DoGooder lapping away on my face until I swat him away.  The reality is I've never met Glenn Close,  but we do have one thing in common (well, 2 things if you included the massive wealth and stardom),  we were both in "Up with People".  She was a member of the original cast,  started in Mackinac Island,  Michigan back in 1965.  It was a a little different back then,  it was more of a "review" with the core "Sing-Out" group,  and then some small groups,  in particular the Colwell Brothers (who are legends to us "Uppies"),  and the Green Glenn Singers (Glenn as in Glenn Close). 


Some old friends,  and the "Flag" the truck that carried all of our equipment

I spent a little short of 2 years as a cast member,  more specifically the drummer for 4 different casts. I have great friends from all 4 casts,  but the one that mattered the most,  the one that probably affected my life and future the most (and for the better) was Cast B (or as we called ourselves "Company B" as in Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy from... you get it) 77-78.  I just finished attending the 30th reunion of that wonderful year.  It's very difficult to explain how amazing it was to see this "family" of mine 30 years later,  but I'm going to try. 

I had been a "fan" of Up with People since I was a 10 year old kid.  I saw the TV specials,  had all the albums,  attend all the concerts in Phoenix etc.   A cast came to my high school for an assembly show my senior year - I knew then I had to be in Up With People.  It took a couple more years until I got around to actually becoming a cast member,  but finally in July 1977,  I headed down to Tucson,  to join about 350 other folks who would make up the 4 UWP casts for 77. 

Explaining the  Up with People experience can be a little difficult as well.  You take about 60 to 100 young adults between 18 and 24 (now 29) who have been selected through an interview process that is held after all Up with People shows.  If you're a musician, you also have to audition.  My audition was with one of those "legends" I talked about earlier,  I got to jam with Paul Colwell,  and the band from the cast that was performing in Phoenix. 


Who's that attractive (thin) guy with the glasses,  in the white shirt with the stripe?  I promise I haven't gained a pound since this was taken. This is actually 1/3 of a panoramic shot of "Company B" taken early in our tour.  We all looked the same at the reunion.

After 5 weeks of intense (I mean INTENSE!!!) staging and rehearsals,  you head off onto the road with 60-100 of your now closest friends.  The public face of Up with People (at least back then) was of course the 2 hour show that each cast puts on 3-4 nights a week (sometimes more).  If you're not familiar with the Up with People show,  it's a very high-energy professional quality show.  We travelled in 2 buses for the most part,  and were followed by a semi-truck hauling 1000's of pounds of professional grade sound and lighting.  We did everything,  taking turns unloading the truck,  setting up the massive sound equipment,  hanging the lighting,  setting up the sound board, putting up the staging equipment etc.  The band was also responsible for setting up their own equipment,  so I had to set up my drums,  mics,  monitor,  etc.  We did shows in all manner of venues,  high school auditoriums, and football stadiums,  bullrings,  professional baseball stadiums,  symphony halls,  20,000 seat basketball arenas,  you name it,  we played it.  We also would perform daytime shows (sometimes the whole cast,  and sometimes in small "acoustic" groups )  at high schools, rest homes,  prisons,  breweries,  tequila mfg plants on and on and on. 

So you're thinking,  you must have all been want-a-be broadway stars or recording artists,  but that was the exception not the rule.  The UWP show is more a vehicle that allows the educational / social aspect of UWP to exist,  and that's really what UWP is about.  Cast members came from all over the world. Having the opportunity to travel around the world,  meet all types of folks,  live with host families (I didn't mention that part did I?) was a very important piece of the UWP experience.   I've lived with host families that have had extreme wealth,  and I've stayed with host families that didn't have running water in the house (1 tap out back in the outhouse/shower,  err cold shower) or glass in their windows.  

That doesn't mean that the show isn't important,  it's often (at least in the minds of the cast members) too important.  But UWP has a storied reputation to live up too.  Just some examples of "big" UWP events,  4 Super Bowl halftimes,  Television specials in the US,  Belgium, Mexico, Venezuela etc.  The 1st International performing group to perform in Mainland China since the revolution (that happened in my 1st year,  in 77).  We've had casts perform on every continent except Antarctica.  I was lucky enough to perform at the White House (Summer of 78 - unfortunately President Carter was off at Camp David negotiating w/ Begin and Arafat),  and that same cast also performed on the DC mall for the big annual 4th of July spectacular that's become such a big thing.  We also performed for the 78 Indy 500,  performing at the big dinner,  then in the parade (on a float),  and finally at the big race (Back home again in Indiana,  where the...  that's all I remember). 

We did a tour covering almost all of Mexico.  starting at Tijuana,  ending at Nuevo Laredo,  and going almost to the Guatemalan border.  In Mexico (and in a number of other countries for that matter) Up with People was well,  it was like we were the Beatles.  In our 1st show in Tijuana,  we had to lock up one of our male cast members from Mexico,  because the women were "attacking" him after the show,  trying to get a lock of his hair,  or to hug him,  sign autographs. etc.  Everywhere we went,  we were treated like big stars.  I've signed 1000's of autographs in Mexico, and I was just the drummer (Soy El Baterista!).  We had to limit the amount of albums and other merchandise we could sell in any particular city,  because we couldn't keep it in stock.  We did 3 nights in a huge basketball arena in Guadalajara (probably 20000 seats),  and sold out all 3 nights.  It was the same story in bullrings,  baseball parks,  the Auditorio Nacional in Mexico City,  all sold out,  all big venues.  I have a reputation for drinking a lot of Diet Coke,  and my castmates still bug me about the northern part of our tour,  where our sponsor was Coke,  and they'd follow us around with a truck full of bottles of coke products - I was in heaven!!

Unfortunately life on the road wasn't always so splendid.  In that summer cast I mentioned earlier,  we also spent 3 weeks at the Inaugural "Baltimore County Fair" at the abandoned, rat and bug infested,  Martin Airfield, accompanied by Chuck Carbo and his Hell Drivers,  and Princess Ida atop her 30 foot pole.  Somebody in scheduling really screwed up on that one. 

I also went on to travel with a couple of casts the following year (more like 1 1/2 casts,  special project for General Electric long story) but again,  none were as special as "Company B". 

I have hundreds of stories,  and maybe I'll share a few more as time passes.  The important thing,  is that this  past weekend,  seeing this extended family of mine,  was 1 of the high points in my life and couldn't have come at a better time.  We lived together for almost a year,  often spent 14-16 hours of virtually every day together,  sometimes more.  We laughed with and at each other,  cried together,  kept each other warm on those long bus trips.  We taught each other Spanish (or for some English).  We rehearsed until out throats, muscles  and feet ached,  and then we'd rehearse some more.  We put on shows that ended at 10p (in a 90 degree,  100% humid, non-air conditioned theatre),  finished the strike at 1a,  and had a breakfast show the next morning,  90 miles away @ 7am.  It's a singular experience,  and it's difficult to convey how much I love these people,  and how wonderful it was to see them again.  Some I've seen recently,  some within the last 10 years or so,  but most,  this was the 1st time I'd seen them in 20-30 years,  yet it was like we just finished that last show a few days ago.  If you're one of those family members who happen to be reading this,  well... God Bless You so much.  I can't tell what it meant to see you all again,  I love my Up with People family so much.

One last thing - about that Indy 500...  We did a recording session in preparation for the TV presentation of the parade.  The producers of the show asked me to play a drum cadence that could be played for the bumpers going into and out of commercials.  Well,  it's been 30 years since I recorded that cadence (it was a variation on the cadence from 50 Ways to Leave Your Lover),  and they are still using that cadence for the Indy 500 parade TV show to this day.  Unfortunately I haven't seen a penny in residuals... maybe if I renew my American Federation of Musicians membership I can get the union involved...

I knew this was coming - as soon as I saw that Deb Owen had "tagged" my Pal,  Linda,  I had a feeling I would be on Linda's list of "tagees".  Unfortunately,  I tend to be an "open book" kind of person,  so I've already shared much of what may be found to be interesting about me.  So a caveat,  I may have already covered some of this ground in the past. 

Anyway,  following the rules, (and I am of course a stickler for the rules),  here 1st are the rules...

1) Post these rules before you give your facts.
2) List 8 random facts about yourself.
3) At the end of your post, choose (tag) 8 people and list their names (linking to them).
4) Leave them a comment on their blog letting them know they've been tagged!

Here goes,  8 random facts about me:

1) I have a veritable alphabet soup of designations and certifications (MCSE,  MCP,  MCT,  A+,  Altiris Deployment Certification, yawn) most of which are relatively meaningless. They used to mean something,  but nowadays with weekend boot camps,  and 3-day intensive training sessions,  any monkey with a laptop can pass the tests. 

2) I too was a "Music Performance" Major in college on what my school called a "fee waiver",  essentially a scholarship.  I was convinced I was going to be the next Peter Erskine or Neal Peart or I could have settled for the tympanist for the Boston Pops/Philharmonic.  After 2 years on the road playing concerts every other night,  I discovered a) I was good,  but I wasn't good enough to do the kind of work I wanted to do (studio or orchestral),  b) outside of stardom,  the studio,  or a permanent gig like a major orchestral organization,  there's not a lot of money in music performance c) the road,  in a word,  stinks. 

3) I recently (unofficially) joined the 1/2 million mile club - my life is an endless trip from airport,  to airport,  to 737,  to 777 (oh god,  do I love flying on 777,  best 1st class in the air,  no matter which airline) to A320.  I love airplanes,  and I actually enjoy my time in the air.  I'm a very big guy (see #8) but when I have to fly coach,  I am an expert at fitting comfortably into a window seat.  I still,  even after so many flights,  am a little kid when it comes to looking out the window.  Recently,  on my return from Cairo to JFK,  I woke from a nap,  opened my window shade,  and there were the Italian Alps some 15000 feet below - unbelievable.  There's just something magical about flying over Greenland,  or the North Pole,  somewhere you'll never visit,  that's virtually uninhabited,  yet you can see all of it from 6 miles up.  On the other hand,  I hate airports.  I actually get nervous when I'm at the airport, there's just so many things that could and can go wrong.  Maybe someday I'll write about the 6 hour security line @ Seattle,  or my Phoenix to Las Vegas to Phoenix to Atlanta flight (supposed to go straight to Atlanta) that took about 28 hours in all. 

4) I don't drink alcohol,  although it's not from some moral position or because I had a problem.  In fact,  just before I stopped drinking,  I had a hobby I really enjoyed,  brewing my own beer (it's just not as much fun when you can't drink your own product).  I was a beer snob,  as well as something of an amateur wine connoisseur.  Why don't you drink then ,  you ask?  well.. it's because Remicade changed my life.  Say what?  I have some form of severe Rheumatoid Arthritis,  either Reiters Syndrome,  or Psioriatic Rheumatoid Arthritis,  my Dr's can never agree.  Doesn't matter to me,  all I know is that I was quite debilitated for some time.  I was using a walker to get around,  and there were days I just couldn't get up out of bed,  the pain was so horrible.  Remicade has changed my life,  essentially put the Arthritis into full remission.  Unfortunately as a result I have to take a bunch of other drugs that are very hard on the old liver.  So, I've got two choices,  one live a short but happily inebriated life,  or just stop drinking all together.  I actually thought I'd miss it,  but it just doesn't matter.  There are times when I'm at a restaurant that brews their own,  I get the urge,  otherwise no problem. 

5) If I could come back as anyone else (and I'm not that unhappy with the current version),  I would come back as either John Williams (the composer,  not the guitarist) or Placido Domingo.  Try listening to ET or Schindlers List for that matter without the orchestral soundtrack - where the heck does that come from?  I can write a song with a simple harmony (give me a circle of 5ths and I'm dangerous),  but how can someone hear such amazing sounds in their head,  and translate that to paper?  I suppose it could be Mozart,  Jerry Goldsmith, or Berlioz (OK, not Berlioz - too complex, makes my head hurt),  but JW makes it work with what's happening on the screen.  Absolutely amazing.  As for Placido,  he's the very incarnation of what an operatic tenor should be - amazing voice,  range,  control,  great acting and presence on stage,  and drop-dead great latin lover looks.  As a former denizen of Mexico City,  I also respect what he did quietly to assist with the earthquake so many years ago.  I look more like Pavarotti (for now,  see #8),  but I'd rather be Domingo. 

6) Speaking of Mexico City,  I missed being in the earthquake of 1985 by, well as Maxwell Smart would say,  "I missed it by this much".  I had planned to be in Mexico City for 2 weeks in mid-September.  As I've discussed in an earlier post,  my brother Brad played wide receiver for the Chicago Bears in the mid-80's including on the Super Bowl winning 1986 team (the ring must weigh 4 pounds).  About a week before I was heading for Mexico,  Brad called and asked me to come out to Chicago and stay with him and his wife Michelle.  Imagine my shock to wake up on Friday Morning Sept. 20th to see video of the neighborhood where I would have been staying in absolute shambles.  There is little doubt,  I would not have made it if I had been in that neighborhood during the quake.  Make no mistake,  there is a God...

7) I'm not even sure if my "Pal" Linda knows this,  but I was a working "DJ" in Phoenix when I was a senior in High School.  I worked at KOOL-FM, which at the time was a mid-rated top 40 station (it is currently the #1 ranked station in Phoenix,  and has an "oldies" format).  I didn't have a regular shift,  I filled in whenever they needed me,  mostly on weekends.  This was definitely the era of the "Boss Jock" and I used the moniker of "Rob Anderson" (try saying Andy Anderson really fast).  I also recorded commercials for the local dragstrip "Beeline Dragway". (SATURDAY NIGHT! AT FABULOUS BEELINE DRAGWAY!!!  RONNIE SOX AND BOBBY MARTIN WILL BE COMPETING FOR BIG CASH PRIZES!  TOM THE "MONGOOSE" MCEWEN AND DON PRUDHOMME THE SNAKE,  THEY WILL ALL BE THERE!  BRING YOUR CAMERA, BE THERE!)

8) This is more of a commitment,  but I'm  treating it as a FACT,  and I'm demanding that anyone that reads this holds my feet to the fire.  If you've read some of my earlier posts,  you may know that I've had a particularly crazy last 2 years or so (I told you I was an "open book" kind of person.)  I've done a massive amount of soul-searching in the last few weeks,  and I've made up my mind to in a sense "start over".  Don't get me wrong,  I'm not unhappy,  just want to be a little more comfortable in my ample amount of skin.  Sooo, 1st and most important,  I am a size 34 trapped in a size %& body,  and that's got to stop.  Until this moment,  I've shared with one person only,  but I figure the more people who know (and I know there's just 1000's out there reading this :>,  the more pressure to get it together and lose the weight.  The big secret is that I've been approved for gastric bypass surgery.  But...  I've decided that for now,  I'm not gonna do it.  I've been extremely committed to going it the "natural way"  good diet,  and working out.  I've made an amazing amount of progress in the last few weeks,  and I will prevail. 

You know,  this personal blogging has been something of a godsend.  I've had a political blog for years,  and I'm a contributor to a commercial blog on IP network security,  but I never thought of authoring a personal blog,  until I saw my pal Linda's.  Even then,  it was more of a lark, but since I've found it extremely cathartic,  and it's become my primary outlet for sharing what's happening in my life.  I guess I'm leading up to how I'm going to deal with the last 2 "rules".   I honestly don't know anyone specific that maintains their own blog,  other than those who have preceded me on this "chain".  I've tried to encourage some of my old Up with People friends to blog on my primary website/portal  http://andy-anderson.info/communityserver (or anywhere else) but so far no luck.  Sooo, one of things I'm going to do this weekend at my 30th reunion is find 8 people who are willing to share their 8 facts,  and in the process hopefully I can get them into the blogosphere.  The more the merrier of course,  I've found that reading personal blogs of friends,  and friends of friends often serves to recharge my batteries.  If you've been fooled into reading this blog,  please,  keep it up.  I originally didn't think I'd care if anyone reads it,  but I've discovered it feels good to get a comment here and again.