The Bitter Cold

Upon returning from class on Saturday I went to the library to return some overdue books.  I decided that since I had Martin Luther King Day off, I'd pick up a DVD I borrowed, but didn't get around to it before: The Harold Lloyd Collection, Vol. 1.  Harold Lloyd was a silent film comedian and considered one of the big three with Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton being the other two.  He was best known for the film "Safety Last" featuring the iconic scene in which he's hanging from a clock atop a skyscraper.

 

It was unusually cold for LA, even in January, so it seemed like weather for curling up with a movie.  So I did.  There were several of his shorts and two other features, but "Safety Last" was the only one I got around to.

 

In the 1920s Lloyd was more popular than Buster Keaton, and I can see why.  In the film he plays a character that's optimistic, cocky, and supports the can-do attitude that sort of permeated the time.  The film is also technically good with nifty special effects done in-camera, such as a shot in which he checks his hair by using a bald guy's shiny head as a mirror.  While all three are very different and have things I like about each, I think I still favor Buster Keaton.

 

I borrowed the video on the premise that I could return it through the book drop.  The reason my other books were over due was because I work when the library's open, except one day a week, Saturdays.

 

I was told I could return the DVD in the book drop, so on Monday night I took the bus a couple of stops down the street to the library and discovered the book drop was locked.  I'm not sure what a book drop would be for if not for returning library items when the library is not open, so I played with the door and pried it open.  I had to be done before 11:45 because that's when the bus back to the apartment came.  I did not want to walk home in the bitter cold.

 

I managed to force the door open enough to slip the DVD in and run back in time to catch the bus.  And yes, it was cold.  Everyone I talked to commented that the weather's never been like this in California, of course, no one in California is from California, so they might be faulty testimonies.  Unprepared as I was for this weather, I asked for my pea coat.  It was actually my uncle's coat from the Navy in the 80s.  I like it because of its buttons and its thick material, good for keeping warm.

 

Tuesday night I went to my internship and called the lights for a couple of the shows including the MADtv one.  I didn't as good a job calling the lights because I saw an opportunity to end the show and missed it.  I looked for the next ten or fifteen minutes and just yanked the show at the next punchline I saw for fear of running late.

 

Wednesday I pondered going to Synergy Cafe for the first time in a while, or perhaps "Name of Show" since I was in Westwood for work, I was near Westwood Brewing Co.  But that show wouldn't be on for another few hours and Synergy meant that I'd be waiting a while for the bus when it was over.  Not something I wanted to do in this cold.  Besides my living room light bulb had burnt out, so I needed to stop at CVS to pick one up.

 

I looked forward to Thursday as it was the second night in a row I'd be going, more-or-less, straight home.  I could get some more sleep than usual.  I caught some TV, "30 Rock," "The Office," but I fell asleep before I could see Stephen Colbert greet "Papa Bear" on his "Report."

 

Friday I went straight from work to IO West for the open mic at the Black Box Theatre.  A friend of mine from Boston did the show too so I greeted him.  Since the show is one that's held in a rehearsal space, and there's no attempt at promotion, the show gets pretty inside.  One comics went so far as to talk about other acts that weren't there and refer to them by name.  This is typically what his act consists of, commentary on the open mic shows.  It's something that's kind of bothered me for some time, but I haven't said anything, and something that shocked my friend, so we went to Border's and talked about comedy and caught up for awhile.

 

Today, I was late to class, but it was actually pretty good.  I felt like I did better than the previous week.  We did three-minute scenes, scenes in which we had things that we wanted from our partners, scenes in which we shifted status, and a more free-associative style of two-person scenes in which we edited each other.  I was probably most successful in the status scene since I moved the plot along and developed the character quickly while setting up things for my partner to use.  I was to start with a higher status and end with a lower one.  I think it worked.

 

I went straight home.  Despite the clouds it was still the first nice day in at least a week, and I saw a package at my door.  It was my pea coat.  I might venture out more in the coming week.

 

Thank you, I'm Eric Cheung.  I'm on MySpace and Live Journal.

 

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