Random Sunday Funday

Between jury duty and work, Steve and I haven't had much of a social life, so we decided to hit the town on Sunday afternoon. And since day-drinking is a personal love, we ended up at The Abbey, which is kind of typical but what the hell -- you can be in the sun, the drinks are strong, and you never know who you'll run into.

One random thing, though... They now have these wall-size portraits up inside. They're cool, but they're the portraits from S-Bar, which is the bar located next to Katsuya in Hollywood.

Both Katsuya and They Abbey are owned by SBE Group, but it's just kind of strange seeing a design element Philippe Starck put together for Katsuya being re-purposed here.

Anyway, the day became rather fun as we ran into numerous people we knew.
Here I am with long-time friend Allen.
Then I ran into Jessica and Heather from work.
Funny lady (and Allen's roommate) Amy Witry was out so we could discuss jury duty gigs. We also ran into John Romeo (on the right-- and yes, that's his last name) who was with his friend James.

Friends Greg, Matt Breen (from The Advocate), and couple Randy & James were also out.Straight couple, Robert and Jamie (who works with Steve at The Disney Stores) also showed up. We protected Robert, who was quite game for all the gay insanity popping up around him.
Finally, our gay celeb sighting (besides a ton of reality-show gays who were out) is friend (and voice actor on Rick & Steve - The Happiest Gay Couple on Earth) Wilson Cruz. Such a cute pic of he and Steve.

Amazingly, no one was hung over Monday morning.

My Latest Jury Discoveries...

Jim J. Bullock was having lunch next to me yesterday. I didn't see if he was on a jury as well (or suing someone) but wouldn't you just DIE to have him in your ury panel making funny voices and cracking jokes?

One of the lawyers drinks his water like this: He picks up the bottle, lifts it toward his mouth, sticks his pointy tongue out so that it docks with the water bottle opening, then guides it into his mouth for a sip. It's like he's French-kissing the damn thing.

Some people in the courtroom don't want to be seen yawning, so instead they clamp their mouths shut. This causes the chin and bottom lip to vibrate like Beaker from The Muppets does when he's scared.

Whenever I'm having a hard time paying attention, I watch the translater as she listens to the people she's supposed to be translating. The confusion and look of, "What the F--- are you thinking?" before she translates is priceless.

Whevever the translator isn't translating, I watch the transcriptionist somehow successfully log everything on that tiny short-hand keyboard. I did transcription for a while and it's insane. I simply marvel at her skills, especially when she reads it back.

When none of that helps, I imagine running into the transcriptionist after the case and asking her the following:
*After listening to all these trials, do you curse your fast-typing skills?

*Do you ever listen to these people and want to ask them, "What the F--- are you thinking?"

*Did you know that Jim J. Bullock was in the building?

But the biggest discovery? This trial is now taking so long that they estimate we won't be done with TESTIMONY until April 6th or 7th. And depending on how long it takes the jury to come ot a decision, it could take even longer.

"I object!"

The Things I've Noticed During Jury Duty

1. They let anyone report for jury duty -- business people, working-class folk, conspiracy theorists and miscellaneous crazies.

2. In this regard, jury duty is very much like Disneyland.

3. The interview process is supposed to weed through the riff raff. In our case, they succeeded, which provides me with a small amount of comfort.

4. During that interview, the lawyers vainly attempt to get you to like them, and thus their client as well. Disturbingly, when the boring lawyer speaks and you start dreading what the trial might be like, you find yourself fighting the urge to stand up and yell, "GUILTY!"

5. The jury could really use those 5-Hour Energy Shots -- one in the morning and one four hours later.

6. No one cares about economic hardship, racism, or any other bullshit excuse you use to get out of serving.

During my interview I answered the following questions:

NAME? Richard Andreoli
WHERE DO YOU LIVE? Echo Park
MARRIED, SINGLE, IN A DOMESTIC PARTNERSHIP, LIVING WITH A SIGNIFICANT OTHER, OR HAVE SOMEONE IN YOUR LIFE WHO COULD BE CONSIDERED YOUR PARTNER, BOYFRIEND OR GIRLFRIEND. AND DO YOU HAVE CHILDREN?
Married. No children.
WHAT DO YOU DO FOR A LIVING? Screenwriter, author.
WHAT DOES YOUR SPOUSE DO? He (emphasis on "HE" because I might as well get political if I'm downtown) is a toy and collectibles designer for Disney and goes to (insert foreign country) all the time and does business with (insert nationality) people all the time.

(This is where I silently pray they'll ask if he likes it or hates it, and I can tell the story of when they factory owners brought him hookers in the hopes that my disgust would have me removed. But, ya see, they don't care.)

No one cared about any of that. In fact, the (slightly) more successful lawyer was skilled at using "husband" when asking about Steve. Then he asked about my screenwriting career. I started to hate him.

OTHER THINGS I OBSERVED:
7. The fun of living 10 minutes from the courthouse is quickly eclipsed by the panic of trying to also complete your regular job in the morning, during the 90 minute lunch break, and in the evenings.

8. The judge could use a 5-Hour Energy Shot as much as the jury.

9. The case isn't finished but I definitely know one thing the defendent is guilty of... WEARING PLEATS.

WHAT??? I KNOW! "Guilty! Guilty!"

Blgo Voting Time

On my blogroll I have "Where There's Wil, There's Always a Way." He writes about music, family, and the local scene in Portland, Maine. And the blog is up for Best Blog in Portland, Maine -- again.

If you read it and like it, vote for him. If you're not sure, check it out and vote for him.

Cheers!
Rick

Steve's Big Weekend at The Disney Store

Steve made his first in-store appearance at The Disney Store in West Covina today (WHAT? Where's that? Head east on the 10 like you're going to Palm Springs... just don't expect as much driving, liquor or excitement.)
Here is Steve outside the store. Notice is tense shoulders and uncomfortable stance. Someone was extremely nervous. After all, Steve hates public speak, much less being the center of attention. And he gets even more nervous when children are involved... and making him the center of attention.
So here's the sign explaining the basic deal. There are these new princess dolls called Disney Princess Darlings. You buy one, you get a sketch drawn for you on the spot by a real-live Disney artist (or if you didn't want to wait in line-- or got there too late-- you could choose one of the digital copies of Princess pictures the artist had already drawn).




Steve did not design the dolls, but when you're looking for someone who draws the princesses you turn to him. He was joined by Dan, another artist/designer for the stores (pictured here).


So basically the guests (because I think that's what they're called) had four choices: Sleeping Beauty and Cinderella from Dan, or Ariel and Belle from Steve. Curious as to which Princess was the fan favorite?

Yes, Ariel -- here are a couple pictures Steve taped to the side of the animation desk. They're from the style guide he created a couple years back for Disney Consumer Products.
The crowds were very big -- with some people even filming Steve as he drew. For his part, Steve just stayed focused on drawing, turning out a pic every 5 minutes. He kind of ignored the crowd to focus on work, both because he had to in order to work that fast, and also because it took care of the anxiety.
But my favorite girl was this one. She wasn't bothered by his nervousness, she just stood close and talked to him as he drew. She was so excited to see her favorite Princesses (Ariel) come to life. She even got in line a second time to have him draw Belle, this time with her mom watching by her side. It was super cute.

And just in case you're curious we spent yesterday icing his shoulder and arm, then applying Tiger Balm. No joke. Passions have their pains, you see.

Jury Sentence 10-15 Days, & Steve’s In-Store Appearance

So I got stuck on Jury Duty for 10-15 days. I can’t talk about the details, obviously, but I’ll talk about the process tomorrow.

However, I can talk about Steve’s big weekend at The Disney Store. He’s going to be making an in-store appearance at one of the stores in West Covina (not the one pictures here-- I just needed a picture). I’m a little hazy on the details (because Steve is living in pseudo-denial about the whole thing) but here’s what I’ve got:

1. He’ll be there early and I think Cast Members and their families are the first to be allowed in.

2. He’ll be filmed for some Disney website.

3. Families who purchase some new Princess product will be allowed to get an original Princess sketch drawn by a real-life Disney artist (Steve).

4. I think there is one other Disney employee there drawing.

5. Steve’s basically stuck in West Covina from 8:30am until 5pm, then has to drive back.

Now here’s what you need to know (if you don’t already) about Steve:

1. He hates being in the spotlight (unless I’m there to help).

2. He likes children but gets anxious when talking to them.

3. He also becomes anxious when he’s asked to draw on demand – “Draw, monkey! Draw!”

4. He’s a perfectionist, so any drawing that you and I would think was perfectly lovely, he’ll hate and want to redo 10 times.

5. When being asked to draw in front of people, someone invariably asks him to draw a character he’s never drawn before, like Spongebob or Woody from Toy Story. This combines with all the elements above to make for a really bad situation.

I'll go down-- probably with Steve and just bring my laptop to do some work so that I'm not totally behind. And I know some friends are coming with their kids, so we'll have some cute photo ops.

And when we get home I'll immediately pour him a cocktail, because I know after a day of drawing and dealing with kids, he'll most likely need one.

I'm thoughtful like that.

Jury Duty...

Los Angeles has a system where you call in to find out if you have to serve on a jury. I called last night and was told to report for service, so I've been sitting in this jury room since 7:30 this morning.

You fill out forms, hear them give instructions a hundred times because people are idiots at following directions, and then wait to be called. The one thing that did hit me, was a judge came in and made the point that this is a serious gig. You literally could decide whether a person lives or dies, loses his fortune, or simply gets out of a speeding ticket. It's kind of heavy when you think about it.

An upside to this, I was on Facebook yesterday and saw my friend Chris (Producer of the Stephanie Miler show) post a photo that said he was on jury duty this week. So I immediately contacted him. He just stopped by and we're having lunch today.

You know, the court gives us approximately 90 minutes for lunch, which is kind of nice-- I could even drive home and eat there if I wanted. I could even drive home and have a cocktail (I DO love day drinking). But I suppose that wouldn't really be good for my civic duty... and everyone would be able to smell the booze on me. I hate appearing tacky in court.

If this day drags on, I could be posting with much frequency...

Random Birthday Happenings

This was a fantastic birthday weekend. I checked out a possible new space for the circus school with Cirque School LA's owners, Aloysia (pictured here with me) and Rex. If everything lines up, we could have a new home this week. Classes would then start soon after.

We also got to test out the space-- laying down mats, setting up the rig, and hanging a few trapezes. This, of course, meant that we also got to do some practicing... all weekend long.

No photos, but it was a higher location, which means we can start trying even bigger tricks. Really excited to see how that goes.

Friday night Steve made me a beautiful birthday dinner since he knew I'd be working on the school site all weekend and we wouldn't be able to hang out. He made a simple caprese salad with fresh buffalo mozzarella, basil, tomatoes and a little olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt & pepper. That was followed by a juicy filet mignon, simply seasoned with salt and pepper, some asparagus, and a nice bottle of wine.

Saturday was a long day of trapezing, and by the time I came home I was exhausted. I fell asleep while watching America's Next Top Model (can you blame me?) and went to bed. Sunday was another day of trapeze fun, and I got home late last night.

That schedule also meant not checking on my emails over my birthday weekend. Here's the breakdown:

212 - on my AOL account.
540 - on my website (which were almost all junk mail about getting bigger boobs, designer watches, good drugs, and a bigger tool)
85 - Facebook "Happy Birthday" wishes

Prepping for an upcoming preschool trapeze show in April. Super excited. I'll be doing a comedy bit, working in tandom with my friend Jessica. We're going to be some kind of Superman/Wonder Woman type show, but we're keeping it clean and silly. It's for the kids, after all.

BTW, Steve is making an in-store appearance this coming weekend. More info to follow...

Today Is My Friday - Plus Some Comedy for You!

I'm taking tomorrow off from work. Since this company launched the new site, which involved a ton of extra work time, I haven't had a break. And because this weekend is my birthday (I know, right? Beware the Ides of March, yo!) I decided to take Friday off.

Of course, what then arose was a circus project. So I'm actually going to spend the weekend with circus folk, working out on the trapeze, and trying to look fabulous.

It's funny, because I've never been a big one to care about age. Then the other day it hit me that I'm turning 37, and when you work with a bunch of young tech types it can make you feel old. You can't drink or party as much, Steve is younger and still beautiful, yadda, yadda, yadda.

But then I realized that I've enjoyed getting older. I feel like I don't sweat the small shit as much, I'm less concerned about money, and I've dropped the dramatic people from my life. I also have Steve, and a solid relationship really makes working through any life crisis so much easier.

Besides, when I was younger I couldn't do circus tricks-- hell, I couldn't afford the classes. Now I can... and I look pretty good as a result, I think (and so does Steve). So even if my birthday is spent with aerial people, I feel like it's going to be a great day, and the beginning of a great year.

But wait, what about that "Funny" I promised you?

I have jury duty next week, and our good friend Amy Witry does a great stand-up routine about how she loves jury duty. Here's a clip of her performing at the famous Caroline's in New York. Play it with your headphones, but it's definitely worth the 5 minutes.

More Lynda Carter and Some Early Releases

Steve and I were shopping for groceries Sunday when he spotted the new Pinocchio DVD sitting on the shelf. (Um, of course he did...) Anyway, it wasn't due out until today, Tuesday, and even though we didn't have the time to watch it we quickly scooped it up. Kind of random, and it was the only one on the shelf-- so clearly someone screwed up-- but we lucked out.

Last week we also got a copy of Kelly Clarkson's new CD. There's the song playing right now, "My Life Would Suck Without You (Since You've Been Gone)," which is a fun little toe tapper. That's actually not the real name of the song, but every time she sings "My life would suck..." Steve and I shout out, "Since you've been gone!" since it basically sounds like the same song.

The new album also has a song that sounds like Beyonce's song, "Halo." SO follow the train of thought here... Kelly has a song that sounds like Beyonce's song, that was really intended to be a Leona Lewis song, so it's sort of three-times removed. It's still good, but every now and then we'll be singing a long, miss the lyrics and start singing bits of Halo.

We don't blame Kelly. After that last stinker of an album you stick with what works and makes you money.

There are also a couple great ones that will undoubtedly be remixed into gay dance anthems just in time for summer. So that's something to look forward to, I suppose.

Do you all read Pink is the New Blog? You should, and not just because Trent did a lovely mention of Steve and I and our night out at Lynda Carter on Friday. Steve and I now feel quite gaymous. He also has a clip of Lynda performing.

And speaking of clips, here's one more of Lynda Carter from Friday night's show where she sings Diana Ross.

Lynda Carter Was Amazing, Plus Trent & Gillian Are Superstars

It finally happened. Steve and I met Lynda Carter at the show tonight. I've interviewed her twice before, but getting to meet her was amazing.

Steve said to her, "Oh my God, this is the best night of our lives!"To which Lynda replied, "You two are so cute!" She was in incredible shape, sung beautifully, and gave a dynamic performance.

Steve and I then met Trent from Pink Is the New Blog and friend Gillian. I'd actually met Gillian before when she worked for TMZ-- the two of us were on at a media dinner together and hit it off famously. She recognized me, which was funny, and the four of us hung out all night-- drinking, eating, and chatting about all things famous.
Steve and I had a marvelous night. It was really one of the best birthday celebrations I've ever had. I mean, seriously, I meet Lynda Carter, then Trent and Gillian in this random night on the town? Super awesome.

It's a Big Friday

My birthday is this month but I'll be working on a shoot that weekend, so Steve surprised me last night with tickets to see Lynda Carter, who is performing in LA tonight. Very excited.

We saw her last year and she was amazing, but it was in a huge civic auditorium. Tonight she's at the Catalina Jazz Club, which is a much more intimate venue.

Steve also bought me the Wonder Woman DVD that came out this week. The DVD is getting pretty good reviews so we're really looking forward to watching that-- perhaps on Sunday during our usual Rock of Love screening with friends Matt and Rick (Rick worked on the show, which is why we watch it every week-- quite the guilty pleasure for us.

Today at work, however, is also a big day. It's my evaluation day. I've never had an employee evaluation. I've always worked on productions where you run around town with the producer/director/whoever. You don't quite have an office, you finish the job and you're done, etc. The five years I ran development for a production company there were only two bosses and the accountant, so I've never had this big office environment.

I'm actually not that worried about the evaluation-- my boss was let go and I stepped in as the sole copy writer for the company, so I think I'm doing well. I am excited about the possibility of a raise. (But hell, right now I'm just happy to have a job.)

The weird thing is that I feel like you do when you've gone on a bunch of dates with some guy and he's like, "Hey, we should get together and talk..." and you're like, "Oh God! I haven't done anything wrong. We always have a good time together, right? Or do I just think that, and the truth is that he isn't having a good time. Does he hate me? Is he breaking up with me? Does he want to move on to the next level?"

So it's interesting to see me getting all anxious about this.

But then this morning, as I drove to work from the gym, I realized something very important: no matter what happens today, Steve and I will have Lynda tonight. And a DVD for Sunday. All in all, that makes for a good weekend.

I'm Gaymous on Someone's Blog

The very funny Amy Witry wrote a sweet little note about some of her gayz, including mini bios about how she knows each person. In the mix is me, and she used this great old author photo so that her friends who don't know me would think I was still young.

(Seriously, that photo is from early 2004. But to be fair, she let me send her the image. So really, who's the sweet but crazy writer now, writing about himself in third person as though no one were the wiser?)

Amy is a comedienne, writer, silly girl who we love to death for various reasons-- and they don't necessarily involve alcohol. She wrote about a couple of things, including the Troy & Craig wedding where I helped avert disaster for her. So while you may have read my side of the story in this blog, now you can read Amy's version. Check it out.

Oh, and Amy works in marketing, needs a job, and is single but likes watching sports. Just an FYI.