here's a piece of advice for anybody living anywhere near a theatre, playhouse, or auditorium: never see "I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change." never see it unless you enjoy trite sexist stereotypes like the husband saddled with the wife's shopping bags, the bridesmaid who still isn't married, the married couple who just don't have time to have intercourse, and many other tired topics all set to brain-deadening music. God it was horrible. A's school chum is involved in the production's coming to Chicago in some way and got us comped tickets, so we went. after the first act finished, I begged A to leave, but she felt obligated to stay for the rest of the show since she knew her school friend would ask about it. it was so hard to stay. so very hard. but I did it. I found that watching the piano player, who was shrouded behind a scrim that composed one of the set's walls, was far more entertaining than the overexuberant actors onstage. so that I did between heaving sighs the last half hour of my time there.

to repeat: never see that play. I'm just happy I didn't lay down any cash for it.

the weekend fatigue hangover has still not lifted and I just know that I'll be falling asleep at the museum once I get there today. not so good. on the upside, it looks sunny outside. grey, but sunny. I can't believe the weather changed to coldness so quickly. they're calling for a possibility of wet snow early tomorrow morning. apparently Ma Nature doesn't remember that it is not to snow before my birthday just as a rule. she is a fiesty mistress, la donna Nature.

can't remember what else . . . oh yeah. the following email to me from my friend Sam makes me laugh because in a way, it says a lot about me. so here it is:

"I have three things that should entertain you.

First, the fart machines arrived today. They work pretty well. Yours is waiting for you. I think you owe me 11.50.

Second, the other day in class (pathology as I recall) was taking notes and I think we were talking about cell death, and I wrote down "deathy." It made me think of you.

Third. I saw KG on the street yesterday. She is rather hard to miss. I'd say she's put on a few. I take pleasure in her suffering. She was looking all like she had somewhere to go. I crossed the street to avoid her though. I was thinking though I could go up to her and be like, so how are things at work? But I decided I couldn't do it and be convincing that I didn't know what happened. And considering our history, I thought it might get ugly!

That is all."

KG used to work with us but was fired when it was revealed she had neither of the two PhDs she claimed to possess. Sam wasn't working at the same place when KG was fired, so in theory he'd be unaware. in the past, Sam got the sharp end of KG's tongue when he called her out on some insulting office etiquette rules she'd drafted and then openly broken. and that's that.

anyway, the first two bits say a lot about me, I guess.

or maybe you should just ignore this whole part of the entry? hmm.