Lunch with Jesus

Last week I met another intern at work, a Canadian no less! He's a college senior, a casual musician, and an all around cool guy. Oh, and his name is Jesus. So today Jesus and I grabbed lunch in the cafeteria and had a great chat about our internships over fried chicken and cheesecake. He told me where to find great New York restaurants, the hottest concerts, and some sweet deals. So I'll probably have to check those tips out sometime -- I mean, who am I to argue with Jesus?

What else have I been up to lately...?

Well, I semi-spontaneously decided to check out the Upright Citizen's Brigade Theater last night (a comedy club-esque improv place on 26th). The 9:30 Sunday show is always free, which is great, but I knew I'd probably have to go a little early to grab my tickets.

So I showed up at 7:30.

The line was already a hundred people long.

I sighed a deep breath and slumped to the back. Within twenty mintues, the line had almost doubled. At 8:15, they started handing out tickets; I got within ten people when the employee announced that pre-tickets were all gone. The rest of our line transformed into the standby queue (we were pretty much guaranteed entrance, but we'd have to wait outside the theater for another hour and we would be standing during the performance). Well, like any obstinate theater-goer, I waited.

It was in this standby line that I started talking with the people ahead of me. Turns out that the girls right in front were recent acting grads and, believe it or not, SNL interns. We chatted and had some good laughs, and before I knew it the hour had passed. The theater doors opened and everyone flooded inside -- I zoomed through the halls with my new acquaintances (who clearly knew where they were going) and followed them right onto the stage floor itself. Even though the regular tickets sell out hours before, few people know that standbys can actually sit on the edge of the stage. Had I not met Girls A, B, and C, I would have been standing at the back, craning my neck to even catch a glimpse of the actors. Instead, I was on stage :^)

The show was on-par with the best improv I've ever seen (easily as good as "Whose Line Is It Anyway?" and Second City). I don't know how these guys do it, but every line is gold. My favorite was far-and-away a guy named John who, for all you TV nuts, plays the character Lutz on NBC's "30 Rock". Ridiiiiiiiiculously funny guy.

That's about it. Work is going well (I finally got my V-Card). Yesterday I bought four cartons of blackberries for $2; today I ordered a free strawberry milkshake to my apartment just because I could. I discovered this video. I'm meeting more interns, making more friends. Planning things with Jesus. So yeah -- seventeen days down, seventy left. I know it'll go quicker than I can possibly imagine, so here's hoping those next seventy days are filled with just as much fun as the ones before them.