Demetri a "Go", Snowshoe a "No"

A Winter Wonderland it is certainly not, here in the Twin Cities. While the East coast and other parts of the Midwest recently got a healthy dose of #Snowmageddon (and more snow on the way for the East), Minneapolis has managed to stay "high and dry" (unseasonably high temps this winter, limited snow precipitation, that is). Sadly, this "high and dry" reality resulted in the cancellation of the Snow Shoe 5K that I was supposed to participate in yesterday morning. And in turn, that means it's looking highly unlikely that I'll complete that item on this year's list of 100.

Still, yesterday wasn't a total wash, list-wise, and instead I checked off a different list item: see a comedian perform live - specifically someone who I've never before seen live.  Last night, B and I went to see Demetri Martin at the State Theater. I've been a fan since his early career, enjoying his Comedy Central specials, tuning in here and there to his now defunct television series, and most recently, watching him play the douchebag, Ellis Hightower,on Showtime's House of Lies. So, a few weeks ago when B got an email notice that Demetri Martin was coming to perform here in Minne, we didn't hesitate to buy tickets.

"Glitter is the herpes of craft supplies" - Demetri Martin (image source: found on Pinterest here) 

While I tend to prefer storytelling comedians, like Mike Birbiglia (one of the best, IMO), I can't help but be captivated by Demetri Martin's fast-flowing, off-beat stream of consciousness, subtle, sometimes snarky and always quirky observations of everyday life. Plus, how does he manage to memorize his packed sets? Plus, I'm a sucker for the musical comedian, and was thrilled when he situated his harmonica and saddled up the guitar to let the satire flow. I also appreciate that he is able to get people to look at the world a little bit differently with a comedic approach that is, in my opinion, relatively innocuous, or at least less 'in-your-face' about it all.

I also admire Demetri because he "took the leap" to be true to himself, taking a gutsy risk to drop out of law school after two years to pursue a different path. His story is a great reminder that it's ok to change your mind, to pop out of your bubble of  mediocrity, to say 'screw you' to the naysayers, and to stick the middle finger to traditional expectations. I think that perhaps it tends to be easier for us to make decisions out of fear, regret, mediocrity or complacency...and to get a bit cliche all up in here, the "path of least resistance" that can seem so inviting and easy, can turn into a "slippery slope", full of all sorts of shitty "twists and turns" that could have been avoided, simply by choosing to be open to a detour from the expected and "take the road less traveled."

On a semi-related note (regarding the video included in the link in the above paragraph...or if you didn't click on it, then it's really just a lazy non-sequitur), early on in my consulting career, when I was often out on the road doing consumer research - focus groups and in-homes and whatnot --  we used to play "word of the day" with focus group moderators, challenging the moderator to somehow fit in ridiculous words (hippopotamus, mandolin, sycophant, engorge) into the discussion. Good times...good times.

For those keeping track at home, I'm now at 2 out of 13 for the year - right on track! I'd like to offer up a 'teaser' at this point --  I've got something fun cooking up for next weekend, one that has the makings of a a terrific 'bonus item' on my list, if all goes well.  Stay tuned....