It’s amazing how little things can bring back powerful memories.  Like tonight, on my way to get my haircut, I flipped on the radio and the song “Bohemian Rhapsody” by Queen was on.  Now, even without these memories, that song is amazing.  One of my all-time favorites.  But it holds a special place to me now…and it’s all because of high school theatre.

From day one in high school, I knew I wanted to do something with the theatre.  I wasn’t sure how much of an actor I was, but I knew if I couldn’t do that, I would do something.  The first play my freshman year was “A Midsummer Night’s Dream”.  I decided to try out (no guts, no glory, right?)  When reading through the script, I latched on to the part of Puck (little did I know how huge the part really was)  Needless to say, I didn’t get the part, but as I said earlier, I still wanted to be involved.  So I sold box office tickets.  Sure, not really THAT involved, but it got my feet wet (and I got to see the show for free multiple times)  The next show that year was “West Side Story”.  I have always loved that play, and again, wanted to get involved.  This time, I signed up for the “run crew” – basically, they are the shadows that change the scenes when the lights are down.  A pretty big task, and one of the bigger parts of the “tech crew”.  It was stressful, yet a ton of fun.

If I recall correctly, the third show for that year was “Little House On The Prairie”.  The biggest thing I remember about this show was the fact that the director (Mr. Dayne – love that guy) asked if I wanted to learn how to run the light board.  The current light board operator was a senior and would be graduating, so they needed to start training someone.  So, naturally, I jumped right in.  And I never stopped.  I was the light board operator for every show after that until I graduated.  It was so awesome to be THAT involved in the show.  I spent some really late nights helping hang lights and spent some really early mornings going through light cues with the director.  I was a big cog in the tech crew machine and it was really awesome.

But that’s not what this story is about.  This story isn’t about the tech crew vs. the actors.  Sure, there was always a little rift, but for the most part, I knew a ton of the actors/actresses and they all knew us techies, so it was a pretty civil relationship.  At the end of every show, the actors would go into the green room and start changing, the techies would be fluttering around cleaning things up, and then – Bohemian Rhapsody.  I don’t think I ever heard the story of how it started, but apparently it was quite an old tradition.  Everything in the green room would stop, everyone would gather in the center – and sing.  And dance.  And go crazy (at the appropriate part, thanks to Wayne’s World).  Then we would all come together for a big “We Did It” moment at the end.

I’ve been out of high school for 6 years now, and I have heard that song literally hundreds of times since then.  But something about hearing it tonight got to me.  And really made me smile.  And actually gave me chills.  And I will admit, got me a little choked up.  Remembering us all coming together in that moment, after putting on a fantastic show, as one whole group.  It made me miss that part of high school, and made me very grateful for the amazing memories I had and the amazing people I met and hung out with (and some of them I still talk to today) because of theatre.

It’s amazing how little things, like a song, can bring back so many memories…

I was at Lambeau Field on April 25th, 2009. Well, more like in the Lambeau Field Atrium – but same thing really. This was the first day of the 2009 NFL Draft – and they were having a draft party. It was a pretty huge event for something just as huge. 256 players would begin their NFL careers that day, and we were all there in the Atrium to see what new players we might be cheering on in the green and gold. The Packers held the 9th overall pick, and a raucous ovation went up when defensive tackle B.J. Raji was selected. We figured we had a good amount of time before the 2nd round pick game up, so we went around the different booths and areas they had set up for the event. In a few of the upstairs meeting areas in the Atrium, they even had former Packer players signing autographs (everyone got a ticket for 2 guys) So I went upstairs, around the 20th pick of the first round, to get in line to get some autographs. The line was fairly long (everyone seemed to have the same idea as well) but they had TVs everywhere, so I wasn’t missing a second of the draft action. The picks ticked by, the line got smaller. As I was getting closer to the table (Will Blackmon and Jordy Nelson were awaiting my arrival!), I heard the sound of a pick being turned in on the TV. But it wasn’t a pick, it was a trade – and suddenly a cheer went up around me. I turned to the TV – and suddenly the Packers were on the clock. So much for having a lot of time…

The rest, as they say, is history. The Packers selected outside linebacker Clay Matthews III from USC with that pick. I hadn’t read much about CM3 (as he would affectionately become to be known), only that he was one of 4 great linebackers out of Southern Cal and although he was probably rated behind Cushing and Maualuga, he had quite a bit of talent. With a new defensive coordinator and a new defensive scheme, some fresh blood might not be a bad thing. Little did we know what we were actually getting.

Clay Matthews joined one of the better linebacking corps in the league. Now I know maybe people out there in the Packer Blogosphere have berated A.J. Hawk for “not living up to his draft status”, but Hawk, Barnett, and now Kampman are three crazy good football players. Now add in Matthews, and role-players like Desmond Bishop, Brandon Chillar (congrats, BTW, Brandon), and Brad Jones and you see my point.  Active and talented linebackers are a huge part of the 3-4 defense and the fact Thompson moved up in the 1st round to select Matthews showed his commitment to the new defense.

While Matthews may have started off a little slowly, as most rookies will, he has come into his own recently and has started to enter the discussion for defensive rookie of the year consideration.  He just seems to play with a little extra umph and he has a great nose for the ball.  I definitely look forward to seeing him prowl the middle of that field for years to come – long blonde locks and all.

Tomorrow we get to relive one of the best rivalries in sports once again. If you talk to most Packer fans these days, the Vikings/Packers rivalry has started to become a little more heated than usual over the last few years (even aside from the “Purple Judas” drama of this year), but nothing will ever be able to compare with the Packers and Bears. Since their first meeting in 1921 to their last meeting in Week 1 of this season, the Packers and Bears rivalry has always run red-hot, and it is always in the debate of “best sports rivalries”, up there with Yankees/Red Sox and Ohio State/Michigan. Both teams this year are going in different directions at this point, but the records truly never matter when these two teams meet (forgive the cliche). I just want to throw out a few thoughts before the game tomorrow…

Don’t look ahead
The Packers control their destiny when it comes to the playoffs. They have been playing some very strong football and they can’t let their foot off the gas now. They need to (again, pardon the cliche) continue to focus on one game at a time and not worry about what the other teams in the race are doing. Plus, we all know this game is about a lot more than just the playoff race (especially since Chicago isn’t really in it) It is about bragging rights. Since Lovie Smith took over as Chicago’s head coach, he has never been swept by Green Bay in a season. That could change tomorrow.

Keep the pressure on Cutler
The defense picked off Cutler 4 times in their first meeting, and he hasn’t really gotten much better the rest of the season. The Packers D is the best at forcing turnovers and taking control of games and they will need to continue doing that.

Give me more Ahman Green!
Green has seemed to do a lot more with his limited opportunities than Grant has with his abundant ones, and I would love to see an established running game for once this year, so I really hope that McCarthy’s starts using Green (and even Jackson) a little bit more if Grant struggles.

You never know what Chicago team will show up, but you always know it will be a tough matchup. I think the Packers will be able to handle the Bears, and it should be fun to see Cutler struggle again.

Prediction: Packers 31, Bears 16

Well, we might not be very good – but damn it, do we have fun. We went 2 – 5 for the second straight week and still sit firmly in last place. Next week is our first-half position round, and we still have a shot of getting out of last place, which will be a fun incentive to play for! I almost had a triplicate tonight (which is the same score all three games) – I shot a 136, 136, and 134. Actually above average for me, so I can’t complain too much.

This is our third year in this league and we have always been a second half team, so we are definitely looking forward to starting the second half. Technically, it doesn’t start until after the New Year, but due to my parent’s anniversary on January 9th (and the rehearsal being on the 8th), we are pre-bowling after next week’s normal games. So we get to bowl 6 games next week – fun stuff!

I know it would be a silly thing to ask for from anyone, but I am always a dreamer.  This is one of the coolest things I have ever seen (and something I would definitely want in my “man-cave”)

Arkeg

It’s an arcade machine with a tap on the side.  Comes pre-loaded with a ton of classic arcade games and room for one of those skinny 5-gallon kegs.  Now that is just insane.  Now sure, the price tag on it is $3500, but seriously, how could you NOT want one?!  It’s two of the best things ever all in one: beer and video games.  Simply amazing.  Check it out at http://www.drinkngame.com (thanks to @jef4wi from Twitter for posting it)

While we are talking about beer and really sweet gifts, I caught this at Hack-A-Day:

Bender Keg Cooler

It’s a keg cooler; fairly straight-forward.  But it looks like Bender (from Futurama fame, of course)  That is one of those shows that still seems to age really well.  Just a neat looking way to keep your beer nice and cold.

Now it’s time to get ready for bowling! Oh, how I love thee, bowling night

So I sit here checking out my Twitter feed, and all I can see is people commenting on this evening NFL football game.  Now, sure, most people (myself included) would see a lineup of “Browns v. Steelers” and perhaps throw up in their mouth a little bit.  But even still – I am about as diehard football fanatic as they come.  Even if it is just on in the background, I love watching/listening to football.  But when it comes to any game on Thursday nights, I am a little behind the 8-ball – all thanks to my lovely cable company.  You see, Thursday night games are aired on NFL Network.  And I don’t get NFL Network, because Time Warner Cable doesn’t seem to want to to work out a deal with the league.  Time –  can I call you Time? – it’s to the point now where people are beginning to ask “What are you waiting for?!”  The channel has been on the air for 6 years.  You are one of the biggest cable companies in the country.  And you are really my only damn option in this city!

Look – I am not that naive when it comes to this.  I understand the NFL is probably just as much at fault.  And I know it is all about money.  And let’s be honest – even if the Browns/Steelers game turns out to be a barn burner of a matchup (the Steelers choked, by the way, and lost again – big whoop), I won’t lose sleep over missing the game.  But it is the PREMISE behind it all!  As much as I love my Sprint phone and the fact I can watch the games for free on there, watching a choppy video on a 3-inch screen pales in comparison.  Let’s just quit this pissing match, boys, and figure this shit out.

On a related note, I really can’t wait until Uverse is available in my area…

Holy crap – a full-fledged website?  It’s been…well, I can’t even remember the last time I did this.  And I don’t think I ever purchased a domain name for myself before.  But when I found the combination of..

1. Free web hosting
2. $0.99 domain name

How could I NOT let the Andyman’s Hideaway have its own personal home once again.  Sure, everyone and their mother (literally) has a website these days, but it’s still fun and hip…right?  Right?!  Oh boy…

It has been years since my days of trolling around Tripod and Angelfire and Geocities (R.I.P.), and I have numerous failed attempts at a blog, and honestly – if there were a bet out there, I would put my money on me posting on this thing less than once a month.  But at least I have an outlet for really whatever the hell I want now.  Be it my beloved Packers, or the Brewers, or the latest good movie out there, or the funniest new comedy TV show out there, or my absolutely amazing wife and cute-as-a-button daughter.  Wherever the wind takes us I suppose.  Nobody knows and that is the thrill of it, right?  So I guess all I have to say is welcome, and enjoy the ride.