An "On Stage" Caberet Performance

Back on Friday night, April 1st I made my to return to performing on stage. It was also a "first time" thing for me. I was part of the First Friday Cabaret Night in the BG On Stage Gaslight Theater.   

As stated on their website: BG On Stage nurtures the artistic and personal development of children, young adults, and adult community members through drama and music education, performing opportunities and live theater experiences. 

The Gaslight Theater is located behind the organization's offices on Chestnut Street in Bowling Green. It is a relatively small venue, with a simple stage set up and room for only about 200 people. 

At the start of 2016, BG On Stage started the "First Friday Cabaret" shows as a means of giving local performers an "open mic" forum to showcase their talents. 

I first heard about it on a local news program in February. I couldn't be a part of the March show, but I managed to get a spot on the program in April. I was one of about 10 performers for the evening. 

However, I didn't perform ventriloquism. For the first time, I played the ukulele in public. I played one of my favorite songs. It was written by Tom Paxton and best known as it was recorded by Peter, Paul & Mary. 

I was really nervous when I went on stage. I was facing an audience  full of people I had never met and didn't know me. I had to find a unique way to introduce myself; not only for just this first performance but any future ones as well. I did what I'm most comfortable doing on stage. I started with a few jokes.

Two of them I'd written myself and the other was an oldie but a goodie my dad used to tell. They all got laughs and set me up for being funny again in the future. 

I did rather well and had a lot of fun performing a song in public that I've been playing since I started learning the ukulele. Unfortunately, I don't have any pictures of video of my performance. I forgot to start my recorder on my phone. Duh!!!

I also enjoyed several of the other performance during the night as well. In keeping with the "Wild Card" theme of the night (a performer;s choice) there was quite a variety. Among them were: Two sisters who sang a duet from the movie "Tangled", another duo performed "The Time Of My Life" from Dirty Dancing complete with choreography, and a woman who had her 4 year old son "free-style" dancing on stage as she sang. The young man who acted as the MC was quite entertaining as well. 

I have already requested a spot in the First Friday lineup for May. The theme will be "Broadway." I'm not sure exactly which song I will be doing. But I know that this time I will be on stage with one of my ventriloquist partners. 

While it's only a small venue and intended mainly for younger performers, the First Friday Cabaret shows help me to do what I know I need to do more often. That's get out and be seen by as many people as possible. You can't be an entertainer if no one every sees you entertain. You never know where opportunities will come from. Like my stand-up comedy buddy, Rik Roberts, says on his podcast; in this day and age, networking is the key. 

When I do make my 2nd Gaslight Theater appearance, I'll do my best to remember to hit "record" so I can share it with you on my You Tube channel . 














  

A Focused Factor

Yesterday I posted a name change and the reasons for it on my Disney based blog, goofyguy909.blogspot.com. 

As mentioned there the changes in my online presence are the initial steps in "moving forward" toward what I've wanted to do on the internet for a while now. 

That brings me to the changes on this blog. Well, perhaps "change" is not quite the right word. That word would be "focus". 

I'm going to narrow the beam and start using this blog to write exclusively about the things that have to do with every day life. This will be the place where I will share: news and happenings that involve family and friends, places I go, things I experience, lessons I learn and growth in my faith.   

RH Factors blog will return to what it was originally intended to be; a means of sharing my appreciation for life and staying in contact with the family and friends I don't see or talk to everyday. 

Here are some examples of what you will reading about moving forward: what I did with my grandchildren over the weekend, my most recent road trip, things I love about my ole' Kentucky home town and more. 

The real change you'll notice will be what I'm not posting about here. But don't worry those subjects aren't gone, they will just show up in another place very soon. 

So let's call this RH Factors 2.0, unofficially of course. Check back again soon for my first post written under this change. 

Aria's Got A Secret

After a couple of weeks staying true to a promise to keep it under wraps, I finally am able to share some great news.  

Now it's not "breaking news" because it's already been revealed on Facebook by some family members. But I feel like I have to announce it on my blog too. 

I'm not going to just come right out and announce it. I'm going to let a couple of pictures of my granddaughter give you a hint. 

That's right!! My son and daughter-in-law are going to be parents again. That means Paula and I are going to be a "Nana & Papa" again too. 

Brandi is due at the end of October which means she's about 2 months along. She is having a pretty tough time with nausea just like she did with Aria. Any and all prayers for her improvement and overall health would be appreciated.   

They told us the good news back at the start of the month when we first arrived in Florida for our Disney World vacation. I was glad they did.

As physically demanding as a tour of Disney can be it was important that we were able to be considerate of her condition while we were in Orlando. Some things take priority over Disney.

Anyway, they asked us to keep their secret until Brandi had her first doctor appointment, which was last week. Now the whole world can know. 

So, now we can now look forward to holding another grandchild. It's going to be a wonderful blessing.  

My prayer for my relationship with my new grandson or granddaughter is to be around long enough to a part of their life and to make sure he or she remembers me with fondness and love.  

Now if I'm not mistaken, doesn't this means another trip to the Magic Kingdom around the end of 2020? :)

100 Word Movie Review: London Has Fallen

Blogger's Note: This is the first of what I hope to be an on-going series of 100 word movie reviews. My goal for this series is to give you my opinion and recommendation about movies I see in as few words as possible. I would enjoy hearing any comments you may have about this or any future "100 Word Movie Reviews"

London Has Fallen

This is the sequel to “Olympus Has Fallen.” A vengeful arms dealer orchestrates a terrorist attack on London and gathered world leaders. The US President races through the city running for his life with the aid of Secret Service Agent, Mike Banning.

This film is full of action, but goes way over the top. 

Banning is excessively violent;  and seemingly indestructible in an unrealistic way. In order to enjoy it, at one point, I had to imagine that I was watching a video game. If you enjoyed the first one, you’ll like this sequel. But I’d wait for the video.  

A Special Announcement: 

For the first time in nearly two years, I am proud to announce the return of my Disney centered blog: "Goofy Guy Off World Disney Blog." 

The initial return post is the first in a series that shares with you the story of my recent "Bucket List" trip to Walt Disney World with my granddaughter. Check it out and let me know if you enjoy it. Just click on this link: Goofy Guy Off World Disney Blog

Projects and Pursuit

Welcome back to my RH Factors blog. It's been nearly 5 months since my last post. I could go on a detailed explanation as to why I have been away from the keyboard for so long but l want to try and stay focused. Let's just say I'm just grateful that I now have the time and opportunity to start writing again. 

As of this week, I have made a major change in my life. I have gone from collecting a paycheck to working on some of the other important things in my life. 

Paula's continued excellent performance at her job and devotion to her career path has advanced her to a place where, as a married couple, we can procure a support system that we both benefit from and improves our lives.  

As of now, my job is to take care of things we hardly had time for when we were both putting in 10/11 hour days at our jobs.

This not only means doing the day-to-day tasks but also finally getting our home improvement projects finished. This includes cleaning up the clutter, organizing rooms, and supervising the repairs and remodeling that needs to be done.  

It also allows me to start paying a little more attention to my health. No,I'm not experiencing any major issues; just the things that come along with getting older. Things that need to be taken care of and addressed.  

Another thing this change allows me to do is explore some of the non-traditional vocations that I'm interested in pursuing. In other words, doing things I enjoy as a hobby that have the potential for bringing in some additional income. 

These are things that require some creativity and mostly involve doing things online and in entertainment. But I will be writing more about them as I work on and develop them.

There are other changes coming in our lives that right now I can't write about because they are not yet fully in place. But they promise to be very exciting and will add yet another facet to the jewel that is the life for which I am extremely grateful. 

So as Paula and I start this new chapter our lives, I truly believe and have faith that the best is yet to come. Part of it will mean blogging more often. 

This means sharing details of "every day life" here RH Factors blog and posting about other things on some other blogs. Keep looking for my posts on Facebook (if you are not already friends with me just send a request) or follow me on Twitter (@RHFactors909) where I will alerting you about where to go for details and share in this journey with me. 

Thank you for taking the time to read this blog. I really appreciate it. Gotta go now. It's time to go get things done. 

Same Song, Same Place, Different Performances

One of my favorite words ever is "Juxtaposition". The strange relationship between two contrasting people, places, or things based on their proximity to each other just always seems to catch my attention.

Last night, for the 6th time this year I went to a Southern Kentucky Performing Arts Center event. This time it was to see a pop music legend in concert. 

I won tickets to see Don McLean from a local radio station. Although the show was in the middle of the week, I knew I had to go just for the experience of seeing him perform "American Pie". 

The song is as much a part of the legacy of American music as (insert your choice for greatest pop song of the last 50 years here). 

Also, McLean's second best known hit, "Vincent" is one of my all-time favorite "non-love song" ballads. It was one of the first 45 records I ever bought with my own money when I was a kid. 

But let's get back to "American Pie" and the juxtaposition I mentioned earlier. 

Of course hearing McLean perform his American standard was a unique experience in and of itself. 

However, it was actually the 2nd time this year that I heard the song's iconic melody played at SkyPac. 

Both of the performances were unique and memorable but artistically polar opposites.  

The first time I heard the tune was during the encore at the conclusion of the July 7 Weird Al Yankovich concert. 

That's when Al, amidst a standing ovation from the sold-out house, returned back to the stage surrounded by a group of costumed Star Wars characters. Dressed as a Jedi warrior, he sat on a wooden stool. Much to the audience's delight he sang "The Saga Begins"; a parody of McLean's "American Pie" that humorously tells Darth Vader's origin story. 

Just like the rest of the show, this finale was an amazing on-stage production. Here's a pic of what the stage looked like.   

Having seen Weird Al in concert twice in the last 5 years, in my opinion he is a genius performer. 

Fast forward to 16 weeks later and another SkyPac audience is gathered to hear McLean, the 70 year old member of the songwriters hall of fame, play and sing his hits. 

Over the course of 90 minutes he sang "And I Love You So", "Crying", the previously mentioned "Vincent" and finally his magnum opus, "American Pie." 

But this time the melody was not witnessed by Vader & company nor was the singer in any kind costume. 

The stage was set up more like a rehearsal hall than anything else. Here's the best shot I could get with my phone's camera. 

Juxtaposed along side Weird Al's elaborate production stage it would seem that last night's concert left a little to be desired. Yet McLean's signature song made Al's tour finale possible.   

Which brings me to yet another one of my favorite words: Irony. 

So there you have my ironic experience of hearing the same song in the same place twice presented in two totally different ways. 

Just one of those things that happens once in a while that continues to make life fun and interesting. 

December Vacation Plans

Last weekend Paula and I decided to do something we've never done before. We're going on vacation in December. 

Now that I have been at my job for close to a year, I can take a week off and Paula has vacation days she needs to use by the end of the year. 

With the week we're going being late autumn and very close to the start of winter; places we'd like to go up north would already be cold. We're going to be driving and don't want to take the chance of having to drive through or getting stranded by snow. 

Therefore we have decided to head south for our getaway; more specifically; we're going back to Central Florida. 

Now anyone who knows me, knows that Central Florida usually means just one thing to me: Walt Disney World. 

Because we have had 2 previous vacations that centered on the "most magical place on earth"; this time we are going to try to enjoy some of the other aspects of the Sunshine State. 

Already included in our plans is the fulfillment of a promise I made to Paula more than 4 years ago. I'm going to take her to spend time at a beach. She's not a swimmer so the fact that the water will be cold doesn't matter. She just wants to walk along the shore or sit in a chair and relax in the sand. Enjoying the sun and the waves. We will be visiting either Clearwater Beach or Cocoa Beach during our stay.

We have rented a house from "All Star Vacations Homes" in Kissimmie that has a screened in private pool.  

The only theme park we plan on going to for an entire day, at this point is Sea World. 

Now that doesn't mean that we won't be visiting Mickey and his friends in Walt Disney World.

Ever since December 2002, when things didn't work out for us to spend our honeymoon there, we have wanted to see how Walt Disney World celebrates, the most wonderful time of the year, Christmas. 

Our plans include exploring the resorts and shopping areas to see the decorations. 

One night we will be at the Magic Kingdom as "guests" at the Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party.  

So now that the "when" and "where" and some of the "what" of our 2015 vacation has been decided I can now start my gathering information that will help us get the most out of it. 

I am in full trip planning mode. Over the next 6 weeks I will be gathering information on some of the "non-Disney" things we might want to do.   

Of course the Florida weather is tricky at this time of the year. The average high temperature is in the lower 70s but I have seen it be much colder than that. This only means that packing the right clothes could be a challenge. One good thing is that, on average, Florida gets its least amount of rain in December than any other month of the year. 

I am looking forward to our trip. It will be our first long road trip in our new Kia. The next six weeks will be full of excitement and anticipation. 

Of course, once we get back I will be sharing all we do on my blog. 

Have you ever been to Florida in December? What did you do there? How was the weather? Any hints or suggestions to help us have a good time? Let me know.