Wednesday, October 31, 2007

Office Space

For Halloween, the Board of Directors played a very funny trick on us. They moved our office.

Have you ever tried to find your way around an unfinished office building?

SAMSON was working "reception," which meant sitting with a laptop and a folding table outside the elevator. I was wandering the halls aimlessly...which come to think about it, is pretty much what I do anyway. Only usually the halls have light switches.

Here is a snippet of actual conversation

SAMSON: What are you doing?
ME: Trying to find the office I was in two minutes ago.

Photocopiers and server access be damned. I'll settle for a GPS and a flare gun.

Tuesday, October 30, 2007

Some Scheduling Changes

NOTE: My scheduled dates at the Comic Strip for next week have been moved to NOVEMBER 21-25

As well, my next Living Article will run this Friday, November 2 in the Edmonton Journal.

Latest headLINES is here

I'll also be updating this blog with a story from this past weekend in the next couple days. Uma Thurman might be in it.

Stay Tuned.

Sunday, October 28, 2007

I'm Shocked...Shocked

Upcoming Comedy
Monday, November 5 - The Comic Strip, Edmonton
Tuesday, November 6 - New City Lounge, Edmonton
Wednesday, November 21 - The Comic Strip, Edmonton
Thursday, November 22 - The Comic Strip, Edmonton
Friday, November 23 - The Comic Strip, Edmonton
Saturday, November 24 - The Comic Strip, Edmonton
Sunday, November 25 - The Comic Strip, Edmonton


Upcoming Teaching
Dating for Dudes (three Tuesdays, starting November 13)
Learn more at www.metrocontinuingeducation.ca

Upcoming Writing
Living Articles in the Edmonton Journal
Friday, November 2 - The Power of Not Now

A Pair of Singles with Dawn Dumont appears in ed Magazine. Current article is here.

Dan Brodribb's headLINES appears every Monday in the Edmonton Journal's online ed magazine. Current headLINES is here


I went to my first hockey game last week (thanks for the tickets, JL).

The game was great, but my favorite part was between periods. This local casino was doing a promotional thing where they have this giant electronic roulette wheel that goes all the way around the arena. A guy picks copper or blue and if the wheel stops on his color, he gets a prize.

He got three 'spins' and lost every single time. I think he walked out of there with a baseball hat.

I'm not in marketing like JL, but that struck me as the worst promotion for a casino ever. "Come to our casino and lose all your money."

If they watched 'Casablanca' these things wouldn't happen.

Friday, October 26, 2007

Hangover Music

The last few times I've gone drinking, I've felt terrible after.

That's patently unfair. You shouldn't get a hangover unless you were drunk enough to deserve it.

I guess I need to start drinking less.

Or drinking more.

Wednesday, October 24, 2007

Playing it Safe

Upcoming Comedy
Monday, November 5 - The Comic Strip, Edmonton
Tuesday, November 6 - New City Lounge, Edmonton
Wednesday, November 7 - The Comic Strip, Edmonton
Thursday, November 8 - The Comic Strip, Edmonton
Friday, November 9 - The Comic Strip, Edmonton
Saturday, November 10 - The Comic Strip, Edmonton
Sunday, November 11 - The Comic Strip, Edmonton


Upcoming Teaching
Dating for Dudes (three Tuesdays, starting November 13)
Learn more at www.metrocontinuingeducation.ca

Upcoming Writing
Living Articles in the Edmonton Journal
Friday, November 2 - The Power of Not Now

A Pair of Singles with Dawn Dumont appears in ed Magazine. Current article is here.

Dan Brodribb's headLINES appears every Monday in the Edmonton Journal's online ed magazine. Current headLINES is here


I don't have a lot in common with Tucker Max, but I do enjoy his writing.

One of the things I like is his commitment to being honest about what he feels and where he's coming from. MIKE HARRISON talks about the same thing when he talks about comedy. Personally, I feel there's a difference between being honest and being genuine. You can use honesty to some crappy stuff to people. I think the solution is to be genuine instead. It's a subtle difference, but an important one.

It makes me feel guilty when I look back at this blog. I've always played it safe here and a lot of these posts have been pretty bland as a result. Everything I've written has been honest, but I've also omitted a lot of stuff because I was afraid of offending people or having others "not like me."

That needs to change.

Wednesday, October 17, 2007

Duck Duck Bang

Upcoming Comedy
Wednesday, October 24 - The Comic Strip, Edmonton
Tuesday, November 6 - New City Lounge, Edmonton
Wednesday, November 7 - The Comic Strip, Edmonton
Thursday, November 8 - The Comic Strip, Edmonton
Friday, November 9 - The Comic Strip, Edmonton
Saturday, November 10 - The Comic Strip, Edmonton
Sunday, November 11 - The Comic Strip, Edmonton


Upcoming Teaching
Dating for Dudes (three Tuesdays, starting November 13)
Learn more at www.metrocontinuingeducation.ca

Upcoming Writing
Living Articles in the Edmonton Journal: TBA

A Pair of Singles with Dawn Dumont appears in ed Magazine. Current article is here.

Dan Brodribb's headLINES appears every Monday in the Edmonton Journal's online ed magazine. Current headLINES is here


--Tuesday night I got to do a show at the Strip. AFterwards I ended up chatting with a couple from Fort McMurray who came to see the show. It's always interesting to get perspective from someone outside of the business. Once you've been doing comedy for awhile, you lose some of your objectivity, so it can be really helpful to hear things from the point of view of a fan. Valuable stuff.

--I saw Duck Duck Bang on Sunday. I know the woman who did the set design and costumes, so it was neat to see her personality shine through in some of it. She also wrote the lyrics to some of the songs and I kept listening trying to see if I could pin down which lyrics were hers.

The show itself was awesome. I especially liked the aerialists. I was just astonished at how much body control they had and the way they could wrap themselves up in these ropes and stuff. I can't explain it. You would have to see it to believe it. It was also kind of funny during the wire work, looking up into the rafters (or whatever you call them) and seeing the crew running around like madmen pulling ropes to make the actors 'fly.'

Friday, October 12, 2007

Moustache Watch

AAAAAH!!!! MY FACIAL HAIR SUCKS!!! THIS IS NEVER GOING TO WORK!!

On the other hand, it's given me an idea.

dansmustache.blogspot.com

Thursday, October 11, 2007

Stuff I'm reading

www.tuckermax.com

Radical Honesty article

Hard Work and Moustache Update

Upcoming Comedy
Wednesday, October 10 - The Comic Strip, Edmonton
Thursday, October 11 - The Comic Strip, Edmonton
Tuesday, November 6 - New City Lounge, Edmonton

Upcoming Living Articles in the Edmonton Journal: TBA

Upcoming Teaching
Dating for Dudes (three Tuesdays, starting November 13)
Learn more at www.metrocontinuingeducation.ca


Dan Brodribb's headLINES appears every Monday in the Edmonton Journal's online ed magazine. Current headLINES is here.

A Pair of Singles with Dawn Dumont appears in ed Magazine. Current article is here.


Went to the final open mic at the Riverside Pub in St. Albert last night. It's a tough room, but a good time. I'm osrry to see it go. I owe a lot to my nights at the Riverside. There were nights I wouldn't even want to go because I knew what a challenge it would be, but every night I went up, I was glad I did. LARS and I were talking about this phenomenon yesterday. The good rooms are fun, but the rough ones are satisfying. In the words of the legendary Arn Anderson: "Adversity introduces a man to himself."

One of the most rewarding things about comedy is that it is one of those things where working hard pays off. Onstage, at least, it really is a meritocracy. The people who make that extra effort to show up and hone their craft seperate themselves from the pack. For myself, I notice. When I'm lazy on stage or don't put the effort in to hit open mics, it shows in my act. But when I dedicate myself and challenge myself I see measurable improvement.

I am also seeing signs of growth on my moustache, but over all it is not encouraging. This may have been a mistake.

Shameless Plug Department.

The latest Pair of Singles is up. Check it out here.

I'm performing at The Comic Strip tonight. Show starts at 8pm, so come check it out.

Wednesday, October 10, 2007

New Goals

I think I'm going to grow a mullet. And a moustache. And possibly start talking with a fake Australian accent (I'd prefer Irish, but that's beyond my impression abilities, which are pretty lack-lustre for a stand-up comic).

I'm going to get people to sponsor me. They'll pledge a certain amount of money for every date I'm able to secure (I will post pictures so people know I'm not faking) while sporting my new follicle-accoutrements. I'll give half the money for charity and keep the rest. Then I'll write an article about the experience.

And to think some people actually work for a living.

Wednesday, October 03, 2007

Under the Thinking Tree

Upcoming Comedy
Wednesday, October 10 - The Comic Strip, Edmonton
Tuesday, November 6 - New City Lounge, Edmonton

Upcoming Living Articles in the Edmonton Journal: TBA

Upcoming Teaching
Dating for Dudes (three Tuesdays, starting November 13)
Learn more at www.metrocontinuingeducation.ca


Dan Brodribb's headLINES appears every Monday in the Edmonton Journal's online ed magazine. Current headLINES is here.

A Pair of Singles with Dawn Dumont appears in ed Magazine every second Saturday. Current article is here.


MIKE HARRISON is an interesting comic. He's a comedy idealist, and while I don't agree with everything he believes, I enjoy hearing his thoughts.

One thing I agree with him wholeheartedly on is being genuine on stage (offstage as well, I supposed, but let's keep the discussion to comedy). Being authentic and true to what you want, whether it's experimental or straight down the middle mainstream will keep you from going crazy. I suppose that could apply to anything in life.

That's not to say people can't be succesful doing something they don't like. I've seen it happen. But they aren't very happy.

The audience comes to be entertained. Nothing else matters to them. Authenticity doesn't make a difference to them. In the end, each time we choose to do something that isn't really us, we're cheating ourselves.

Tuesday, October 02, 2007

Ramble On

Upcoming Comedy
Monday, October 8 - The Comic Strip, Edmonton
Tuesday, November 6 - New City Lounge, Edmonton

Upcoming Living Articles in the Edmonton Journal: TBA

Upcoming Teaching
Writing Fantasy and Science Fiction (five Thursdays starting October 11)
Dating for Dudes (three Tuesdays, starting November 13)
Learn more at www.metrocontinuingeducation.ca


Dan Brodribb's headLINES appears every Monday in the Edmonton Journal's online ed magazine. Current headLINES is here.

A Pair of Singles with Dawn Dumont appears in ed Magazine every second Saturday. Current article is here.


At the last minute I got to participate in the 24 hour film festival where people try and make a movie in 24 hours. I helped on the script and then rushed off to do a show. (two shows, actually). The headliner was fun, and it's always a blast hanging out with Dawn.

Also, I have a new joke that works. Hooray. Happiness is a reliable one-liner.

I'm feeling a little foggy this week. I love the fall, but once it starts getting cold and dark, all I want to do is sleep. Instead I've been trying excercise to raise my energy level. A friend of mine is taking capoeira lessons--I'd love to get back into martial arts, but I don't think it's in the cards at this point given my current schedule.