Dan Posluns

It’s been hard for me to keep up the writing, as I’ve been so busy lately with Rocky Horror. The show is coming along just fine, although I am still dealing with my vocal insecurity. We had our first run last week and it took three evenings to get through a show that’s less than two hours long, but we managed to seal up most of the holes while doing so and hopefully things will start to run smoother as we head toward opening.

I’m still doing improv when I can, but it’s pretty much down to one day a week (usually Saturdays). Once Rocky opens I’ll have more time during the week, but probably won’t be able to do any improv until it closes. (Maybe a couple of Sunday evenings… if I go from my matinée in Burien to the Market Theatre in Seattle.)

AT&T cut off the service to my iPhone the other day due to my outstanding balance. They didn’t have an open call-centre (at least not one that I could reach from the automated system they shaft you to whenever you try to dial out), so I was forced to shell out a doozy of a credit card payment over the phone and wait for them to restore service “within 30 minutes”… after waiting for over an hour I gave up and went to sleep.

The next day I called them on my mercifully reconnected phone and politely explained that I had no problem paying my bill if they would be so kind as to actually start sending them to me. I knew they had my correct address because I had received a piece of mail two days ago - I had assumed it was the bill I’d been waiting for (I was originally going to wait until the weekend to open and pay it), but it turned out to be the notification that they were turning off my phone. When I asked the agent if I would start receiving my bill now, he replied with “definitely”, but when I followed up with if he could tell me why I hadn’t received one yet, he responded that no, he couldn’t. They were accommodating enough and reversed the $36 reconnect charge without a fuss, though. I’m not thrilled, but I still prefer them to Helio.

I have been taking fish oil pills to help protect my voice… after a few weeks it’s supposed to assist in keeping the vocal cords more lubricated. Don’t know if they’re helping or not, but they make me burp, and each burp has the taste of fish, so I don’t think I’ll be keeping up this regimen after the show closes.

*fishburp*

Dan.

Well, I finally have the new iPhone and while not the work of pure divinity one might expect, it’s worlds better than anything I’m used to with my old Helio. I don’t even feel that badly that it’s costing me $20 more per month after adjustments to my account in order to get a decent amount of text messages (which were included for me before).

Read about my adventure in purchasing the iPhone

Improv last night was interesting… we were short-staffed for Theatresports so the teams only had two people on them. I was partnered with the talented and skilled Jeremy Richards, which was great, except I think I wound up letting him carry us more than he should have had to. I don’t think there was a problem with our scenework and the audience seemed amicable enough, but it was still kind of an off-night for me and I made some weak choices. In spite of that, though, I really enjoyed the two-person teams, and how it took away the element of choice: you’re always out there performing whenever it’s your turn, so you have less time to think about what you’re doing and don’t have to worry as much about balancing the performers.

I went Friday to see friends performing in South Pacific at Snoqualmie Falls Forest Theater (where I’ve performed in Shakespeare shows as recently as a couple summers back). I was disappointed I missed the opportunity to audition and play with them, but after the long drive out there and thinking about how much time I would likely have been spending in that Quonset hut again I figured that I’m probably better off just camping with them a couple of weekends anyway.

My audition this past week was okay, but could have gone better… I had unexpected breathing issues in my song. I really hope I get called back, but I got a fortune cookie the other day that told me to “manage my expectations”. I’m used to fortune cookies not giving actual fortunes out, but it’s the first time any foodstuff has directly advised me against hoping.

Dan.

I’ve obtained a photo of me in my new suit:

… Dashing.

This past weekend was hectic as a friend was visiting from Edmonton. We ran around the city doing and eating far too much. I performed at Theatresports and it was okay, although the energy was a bit weird in a way we couldn’t quite explain afterwards. I also attended what was hopefully my last wedding this summer… it was beautiful and the ceremony was (mercifully, in the summer heat without air conditioning) about the shortest I’ve ever seen.

My attempts at getting the iPhone have failed miserably so far. I went on launch day only to witness a line of several hundred people that apparently was taking as long as six hours for people to get through, and I was having none of that (although I did know three people in the line who were apparently much more dedicated than myself). I thought I stood a decent shot this morning as I returned from dropping my friend off at the airport… but after an hour and a half in line and being second to the front I was informed that they were all out, which was quite a bit infuriating as they kept insisting they didn’t know how many they had left but when the final answer is sixteen they are either deliberately misleading you or grossly incompetent. There’s talk that they might be getting more by Wednesday. My patience is wearing thin, though… I’m sick of my Ocean.

I grabbed a bunch of pictures taken from the last few hours of the Improvathon and added them to my gallery. Unfortunately I don’t have a more complete selection available. I’m hoping to get galleries online of other shows I’ve done as well… Damn Yankees, Urinetown and the like. Dredging up photos is hard, though.

I was feeling kind of ill today but I think I’m better now. It’s probably from all the sun, food and activity over the weekend. My stomach still hurts a bit though… bleagh.

We’ve been having some beautiful weather. I hope it lasts a while longer.

It’s audition season, and I have an audition every week for the next three weeks (including this one). Depending on how I do at them, I may have three callbacks as well in the final week. I’m also pre-invited to a callback in August. It’s all so much stuff… I’m almost as scared of getting cast as I am of not getting cast.

Dan.

I wish I had something more ceremonious around which to mark this turn of events… my landmark 300th post would’ve been coming up a few months from now, and the fourth anniversary of my starting a blog was only a few months ago. As it happened it was just time for me to switch hosting companies, and when I did I took the opportunity to switch to new blogging software. BBlog served me as well as I suppose it could, but as blogging software goes it’s long-dead now and buried in an undead zombie graveyard overflowing with comment spammers, and it was driving me seriously batty. Sometimes you just bet on the wrong horse, ya know?

So I’ve restored my old blog and you can access it from the links at the right, but I’ve shut down new comments and it doesn’t exist as anything more than archival of what once was. Long live WordPress…! (At least I hope so.) Please be patient with me as I figure out the kinks of this new system.

In other news, I saw WALL-E today. I had every expectation of it being like other Pixar epics: beautiful and heartwrenching. I was not disappointed. *shakes fist at Pixar*

As the geese go through their disgusting adolescence, a reprieve comes in the form of a family of ducks that’s moved into the area at work… a mother and the most adorable little hatchlings that I caught on my cameraphone as I edged my way closer and closer to them on my belly in the grass, mosquitoes and goosepoop be damned.

On the subject of my phone, I mentioned in my last post on my former blog how I was considering getting the new iPhone… well it seems that decision has now been cinched for me, as Helio has announced its acquisition by Virgin Mobile. Virgin is the company whose billionaire playboy owner/CEO Richard Branson called net neutrality a load of bollocks, so I’m perfectly happy allowing his purchase of my wireless carrier to be the straw that breaks the camel’s back. Come July, say hello, iPhone!

Dan.