Gettin' stuff done!

I'm typin' away at the computer and watching Craig Ferguson on the TV, and I'm feeling like I've accomplished a thing or two. After the matinee today, I grabbed dinner (shrimp spring rolls and chicken soup from our fab Vietnamese place) and ran a few errands before I holed myself up in my hotel room to finish up a pending illustration project (see it here after it's been presented to its intended). After completing the sketch and heading to the printer to make copies, I once again found myself back in the room with a self-imposed to-do list. I made some Christmas cards, signed and stamped them. And I sorted through the landfill my living quarters had become over the last couple of days. I now feel organized and tidy and human once again. AND I get to head to the post office tomorrow morning and mail off a completed caricature project and the last of my holiday shipping. What a great evening!

And the evening wasn't without the catching of some holiday entertainment. I was happy to find a double feature on TCM of The Bishop's Wife and Christmas In Connecticut. Ah! Warm and fuzzy holiday vibe! And I caught most of the new Stephen Colbert holiday show. Really funny. And I've got my pine candle a-burnin' and my Christmas tree a-twinklin.' A lovely holiday eve. (Note: Photo above was taken at Matilda's Mouse antique event.)

So that's it for now. Peace and love to you all. Take a moment for you this holiday season... breathe and give thanks.

Big post full of plaid holiday thoughts...

I have the evening off. After a lovely Plaid Tidings matinee and an hour of drawing caricatures before the Welk comedy magic show, I'm sitting here half-watching the latest Muppet holiday program with oodles of Christmas presents laid out on the bed ready to pack, and I'm procrastinating getting work done on shipping prep and a pending illustration job. Of course this means that I'm now going to spend an inordinate amount of time writing a big blog entry. Ha.


This holiday season is just whipping by as if driven by these blustery and drippy North San Diego wintry days. But I think the reason time is a-flyin' is that I'm having such a great time and my heart is so full. It's a joy to be playing with this fab gang at the Welk bringing Plaid Tidings to these great crowds. It really does a heart good to chat with our audience members after each show. There are those who are really moved by the heart of the show, some who've cried at the closing number which, being the classic "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas," has some emotional ties to many at this time of the year. But most folks that drop by our table are just gushing over the music and our comedic shenanigans. Some even tell us about having sore abs from laughing so hard. And we get handshakes and hugs and high fives. We even had a spunky firecracker of a little Italian lady give us all enthusiastic astrological readings. It's all so amazing. How many jobs does one get so much immediate and effusive feedback? To call this experience a blessing somehow feels sorely inadequate. (The included photo is of our Plaid gang and L'il Bitty Kobe – my nephew's class project.)

The past few days have brought a couple arrivals of note. First, our fantastic Jinx, Paul, had to take a wee jaunt back to New York to take part in a recording. So, for three performances, we were joined by our amazing understudy Jeffrey. He did a really incredible job. Paul is now back with stories of wintry weather back east. Our director Larry and his fella David, both cherished friends (and Plaid royalty), drove down to catch a couple shows. AND they brought their movie projector to show some classic and blissfully obscure Christmas animated films at the hotel. Staying in a hotel at the holiday isn't the most ideal or Christmassy cozy situation (other than my little tree adorned with pics of the nieces and nephews), but it was such a holiday treat to join great friends for a special holiday viewing party. I was touched that they thought of us and made such an effort to bring the joy.



And if things weren't already happy happy, it has been wonderful to be in North San Diego County. So many friends from summers past (Moonlight Amphitheatre) are here, and it has been wonderful to visit with them... the Breners, the Beavers, the Brombachers, the Kennas, Ralph, Doug, and many others. One outing I've embarked upon with Nancy and Kathleen is a visit to Matilda's Mouse. MM is open just three days a month in the barn of the former Betty Crocker farm in Valley Center, CA. The head design diva Marla (along with her fellow designers and husband and pooches, Matilda the wire haired terrier among them) display antiques and architectural pieces and vintage toys and tchotchkes. It's a really fantastic experience... and the prices on the goods are very reasonable. With my wacky gang, fellow Plaid Johnny and I have caught a couple of their shows. (As you can see, I've included a photo of some of the amazing display work.) Take a look at their website, and if you're in the area during one of their shows, run – don't walk – to see some nifty stuff. I look forward to at least a couple more adventures with my peeps down here – and look forward to some when I return in February.

Wow! Am I blathering on and on or what?? I REALLY need to get wrapping and drawing. Take care, all! Wishes of peace and love are coming your way at this wonderful time of year. Take care!

Another week down...

As I write, we've reached the end of another week. It's really hard to believe that we have only two weeks left of Plaid Tidings. Time really flies when you're having fun. We have so much to be thankful for. We spend time in the lobby after each show, and the responses we get from our crowds are really amazing. The show really strikes a chord with certain folks, and it's really rewarding to be bringing up such happy feelings in folks. I'm so thankful!


Plaid bro Johnny and I visited Whoville this evening... that is, we saw How the Grinch Stole Christmas at the Old Globe Theatre in San Diego (thanks to friend Stevie Gunderson who is playing Papa Who). While I treasure being onstage at this time of the year, it was so lovely to be able to be in the audience for an hour or so. Tomorrow, I hope to finish up the Christmas shopping, get some drawing done, and spend a bit of time just chillin'. It's back to Plaidland on Tuesday. Honestly... I can't wait!

What a crazy week!

As I've mentioned before we are into our nine-show weeks at the Plaid Tidings show and things really are great. The crowds are great and it feels so wonderful to be spreading the joy this holiday season!

But it's a long haul, primarily this week (essentially a ten-show week)... Two shows Tuesday, a show and a remote news shoot Wednesday, two shows Thursday, one official performance Friday along with a full show put-in rehearsal for our wonderful understudy Jeffrey, two shows Saturday, and one week-ending show on Sunday. Whew! Add to this a caricature gig at the Welk on Wednesday and a dermatology appointment Friday and visiting friends (both shows today and the matinee tomorrow) and Christmas shopping, and you've got a busy busy boy. And I also have a few illustration jobs to complete over the weekend and early next week, so you have an über busy boy. It's a lot. But I say again that I'm SO thankful for it all... work, friends, family, health, fun, and making a little difference in many folks' holiday season. Wow! I feel so blessed.

So keep an eye out for more updates forthcoming as well as some new art and more peeks backstage. Take care, all! Happy holidays. Peace & love, y'all!

Happy Plaid moments.

First off, I'm still grinning from an incredibly lovely gesture from a Plaid fan today. Brenda (and her husband Mike) hosted the Plaid fellas for dinner between shows. We had appetizers as we caught a bit of the USC and Oklahoma games. Dinner rocked (pork tenderloin, taters, green beans, and homemade rolls) and the apple pie at dessert was some of the best I've had. Brenda showed us her Plaid room which contains quite a bit of fun memorabilia – and is slowly giving way to a Jersey Boys section. In fact, I noticed something familiar on her wall... a copy of a sketch I did for the JB gang that she had signed. That was a cool surprise. And Brenda capped off the evening with a gift for each of us – some delightful biscotti and a beautiful counted cross stitch mitten ornament (see photo). What a delightful time we had! Thank you Brenda and Mike!


The show is really rollin' along. The crowds really seem to be having a great time. I feel so proud of what we're doing. I'm having such a great time with our Plaid family, and I look forward to the next few weeks. On Thursday we have friends from the Grinch show at the Old Globe coming to see us, and then we'll visit them next Sunday evening.

And when I'm not in Plaidland, I've been working on a couple art projects that are due soon. I have more projects on the horizon... and some Christmas shopping to do. I'm a busy boy. And I'm very thankful for it all. I hope you all are enjoying the season. Peace and love, y'all!

Another glimpse backstage...

Plaid Tidings is rockin' along quite nicely. I'm finally feeling like I'm beating the cold that hit me towards the end of last week. And this brings to mind another opportunity to share a peek backstage at – drumroll! – bodily fluids and functions. There are certain types of the aforementioned that shouldn't be witnessed (at least in excess) by those attending a shiny, happy holiday show. I'll break it down...

1. Mucus: I've been dealing with this quite a bit lately because of the cold, and like all folks who regularly make use of their voice, I have my cures... some sort of medicine containing guaifenesin (Mucinex, etc. which "thins the mucus and makes coughs more productive"), lots of warm liquids (tea), and significant sleep. Still, the cures aren't always totally successful so there may be an occasional (or ubiquitous) blob on the vocal cords one has to "sing around." It makes things interesting, sometimes resulting in not-so-pretty sounds.

2. Sweat: I've always been a rather heavy sweater... a somewhat fluffy, Cosby-type. Ha. Seriously, I sometimes sweat through heavy costumes. Attractive, I know. But I'm not alone. In Plaid Tidings, even with as relatively fit some of these guys are, we are usually drenched by the end of the show. This is partially because we work so hard, and also the theatre is sometimes kept a bit warmer than we might be comfy with. But we try to keep things in check with our own personal sweat-mopping hankies and towels stashed off-stage. Still, it becomes a lesson in Zen-type concentration when there's a bead of sweat slowly trickling down the nostril and it would be distracting to dab it.

3. Spit: It's par for the course when you sit in the front row at a concert or show that you may be occasionally spattered with singer spit. It's definitely not something we're purposely doing, but it happens. Sometimes I feel that between the spit and the sweat, that folks in the front row should be provided with Gallagher-type tarps.

4. Flatulence: Don't be too incredibly appalled. Everyone does it. In the theatre, we generally have enough control to hold it until safely away from the audiences or fellow cast members. The one time I knowingly broke the "fourth wall" (with my wind) was back in 1996 at the Candlelight Pavilion Dinner Theatre. Right at the edge of the stage, I jerked suddenly in a bit of staging and... totally grossed out a teenage girl who hadn't quite finished her dessert. I was mortified (likely more than the girl). That was an isolated incident, though. As things typically go, we're mostly concerned with avoiding offending fellow cast members. At the Plaid show, we have a policy giving a nod to A.A. Milne (or Disney or Loggins & Messina)... If we have to take care o' business, we go to a corner or remote bathroom set aside for that purpose which we call "Pooh Corner."

So that's a little glamorous peek behind the scenes. The next time I share a little sneaky peek, I'll pick a topic that's a bit more elegant.


This week has been lovely so far. The day off was great – hanging with friends, strolls around Balboa Park (see photo) and La Jolla, some good food, and a really amazing sight in the sky... a lovely crescent moon and two bright planets. Last night, Paul and Humphrey and I caught the amazing Tuck & Patti at a jazz club in San Diego. And our audiences at the show have been growing like crazy. The holiday season feels like it's really here. It's a beautiful thing. And now I need to jump in the shower so I can go do two shows. Take care, all! Peace and love.

Day off and some fun news...

The week brought a great Turkey Day and some really fine audiences at our Plaid Tidings show. But I spent the weekend fighting the sniffles and those crazy mucus monsters from that commercial. I think I'm winning the battle, though. Now we're at our day off, and I'll soon be heading down to San Diego to meet up with friends and maybe hang out a bit at the coast. (This photo is from South Carlsbad on my last day off.) It will be nice to get some r & r before...


Our first nine-show week is coming! Throughout December, we regularly add a Friday matinee. The tickets are selling, though, and we look forward to some great audiences! Backstage, we're hunkering down for four weeks of Plaid. I understand that Secret Santas will be organized soon. We're planning some outings – a concert, taking in some other folk's shows. And we're just looking forward to a lovely season. It's a blessing and a gift to be working and to be doing something so enjoyable. I also need to give thanks for another bit of good news...

I recently found out that I will be spending a bit more time at the Welk next year. I'll have a month off after Plaid, and then I'll start rehearsals for The Scarlet Pimpernel. I get another crack at Ozzy, the character I've played a couple times previously, and I look forward to finding out who else I'll be getting to play with soon. The run goes from mid-February until close to the end of April. So YAY for work!

I'd best be hopping in the shower so I can hit the road to San Diegy. Take care, all! Peace and love!