A Night at the Circus
November 18, 1999
6:11 a.m.
I know, I know, I know. I've spent the past few days wasting your time with stories about baseball and wzxing inanely about the computer world when what you really want to know is how much writing I've gotten done. What? You don't want to know how many words and chapters I've gotten through? Hmmm.... Well, then let me say that I didn't write at all last night. Instead, I hopped on a bus and went to Downtown Disney to see LaNouba at Cirque du Soleil. I got to the area quite early, and stopped for ice cream first (it's been a good conference for me, so I rewarded myself [sheepish grin]). Then I walked around and found Virgin Records. This is a very big place. It's a multi-floor CD and book store in a building the size of an elementary school gynmasium. A ring of TV screens surround the place, constantly flashing information and well-formed young bodies at you as you browse the aisles. There are a lot of acts you never hear about when you live in Columbus, Indiana you know? For example, I'm relatively certain I've never seen a CD by Napalm Death in our fair city. Of course, that's offset by the influx of Brittney Spears (did I spell her name right?). Don't worry, though, the teen-age wonder seems pretty big in the Virgin Records store, too. I walked thes aisles smiling at CDs on every rack. Names I hadn't seen for quite a few years kept popping up. I won't tell you who they were for fear of really dating myself. Now, all you folks in big towns probably don't think this is such a big deal, but when you're from Columbus, Indiana, something this large is really danged impressive. In the end, I didn't buy anything. I was going to, but then I thought, "You know, you don't have time to listen to the music you have, why are you buying more?" So I went to dinner at Planet Hollywood, wherein I got to lean on Robert Redford's shoulder for fifteen minutes while I waited for a table. Let me tell you women that he's really not that tall, and he's a little sharp around the edges. Okay, actually I just leaned against a Plexiglass display with his shirt and pants from that movie he made with Michelle Pfieffer. The grilled salmon was fine. Then it was on to La Nouba. I cannot begin to describe the specific things that go on in this show. Usually, when someone says something like that, they immediately begin to try to describe them. But I won't. First off, it would ruin it for those of you who want to see it. Second, I wasn't lying when I said I can't do it. Call it a lack of skill. Call it being overwhelmed. Whatever. What I will say is that the entire thing is like a David Lynch version of the circus. That's it. It's the circus mixed with Twin Peaks and a little ballet. I laughed. I almost cried. I applauded. I left with my heart thumping wildly. The tickets are very expensive, of course. But if you get a chance to see it, you don't want to miss it.   For the few of you who might actually have been disappointed when I didn't share my word count, let's say things have gone well, but not as well as I had planned. I'm through chapter 10 of what I'm loosely calling the "rewrite." The story is hanging together as I expected it would, so I'm focusing on line-editing and clarity only. I'll get further on the plane today, but I still won't hit chapter 18, as I had planned. But that's all right. There's always time. And, last but not least, brace yourself. Another revamping of the site is on its way -- starting on the front end/entryway. It may take me a day or two to get to it, but expect changes. Okay? Many Thanks to Shannon Wendt for her award   "So, how tall is Michelle Pfieffer?" Daily Persistence is © Ron Collins |
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"It's the most unique thing I've ever seen." Me |
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