Inspirado

Lest you think all I ever do here is whine about the horrors of life on the lower branches of the comedy tree, I want to change the subject.

You could be forgiven for wondering, "if these open mikes are so sordid, WHY DO YOU DO IT?" I am reminded of the story about the guy who cleaned up after the elephants at the circus, a horrible job. He was asked why he didn't just quit, and he said, "what, and give up show business?"

Well, there ARE some good times, great times in fact. One of these is the moment when you find a new bit, when the inspiration strikes to write material. Sometimes it's just a couple of words, and you write them down, and boom, it just flows. Other times you get that first germ of a joke, and it takes awhile for it to develop into a full-fledged bit that you are willing to try on an audience. You play with it, twist it a few different ways until it finally locks in.

I love the feeling of taking that bit out on stage for the first time, especially when I think I've got a winner. When I do a bit for the first time for an (non-comedian) audience, and I think, "this will work," and, wonder of wonders, it does, it's a great feeling. I wanted to make people laugh, and I did it. Nice the way that works.