Monday
June 23rd, 2014 – Island Lake, IL
Two
things I have never suffered well throughout my life are (in no particular
order) idiots and bullies. Occasionally they show up in the same person, and
that makes it extra hard to dummy up and let it pass. I have been getting
better at keeping my big mouth shut, but I still suffer relapses.
I always make the disclaimer that I don’t think I know everything and
never have. I am wrong a whole lot, and when it happens I readily admit it.
When I’m right I will often defend it, and that is where much of my trouble
lies. It doesn’t matter if one is right. All that matters is perception.
Today I got into a war of words with somebody on Facebook of all things.
I thought I’d learned to stay out of those high school skirmishes, but something
caught my eye and I commented on it. The next thing I knew I was in the middle
of a knock down drag out verbal clash…with an idiot.
A comedian and former student of mine commented on how he was putting together
a chunk of new material, and that he didn’t like most of it. Harmless enough.
Someone else that claims to be a comedian chimed in with “Adding five minutes
of material a month is a new hour every year.”
I probably should have let it go, but I find that statement to be flat
out ridiculous and I thought it was necessary to point that out to younger
comedians. NOBODY “adds five minutes a month” of quality comedy material. It’s
not that easy. It’s like adding five pounds of muscle. It’s HARD, and it takes
a lot of sweat and effort to achieve it. If it were that easy nobody would ever
be paid.
Standup comedy is a craft – and an extremely difficult one at that. If
one really wants to master it, that person needs to know the rules and have
some respect for how much sacrifice goes into it. I’ve spent a lifetime paying
dues, and when some imbecile fires off the stupid gun I get incensed.
What set me off was some pompous female – I refuse to call her a lady –
that got on some trip about how “positive thinking could make it happen” and
blah blah blah and how I was ‘negative’ and more blah blah blah. Sorry, there’s
nothing negative about it when it happens to be the truth.
She just copped an attitude on the wrong day in the wrong way, and I
admit I let her have it for not only agreeing with an incorrect statement, but
doing it so smugly. She has NEVER been on a comedy stage in her life, and to
think she knows her ass from asparagus twisted my left nipple.
She wrote back trying to insult me, and I just laughed and unfriended
her. Unfortunately, she is a “fan” of comedy to the point of stalker, and now
my name will be dragged through the mud yet again. I have a knack for pissing
people off, but only idiots. Smart people and I get along great.
Another feud with anyone is just not what I need right now. I’ve had
enough for six lifetimes, but I felt I had to defend the craft of comedy so any
newbie with a clue wouldn’t see that and get the wrong idea. It’s not easy to
add new material – especially when an act is just getting started.
More accurately, five quality minutes a YEAR is more realistic. Whether she
hates me or not, truth is truth. I just have to learn to shut my mouth and not start
fights with idiots. Nobody wins. On the up side, hopefully she’ll spread my name
to other idiots so they’ll all stay away from me.
 |
| This about sums it up when it comes to Facebook. |
 |
| Just because we've come a long way with our technology doesn't mean we've been able to weed out idiots. Stupid transcends everything. |
2 comments:
Yup. The comics here, in their early twenties who think they are funny because a school they paid for told them, are the reason why no comic that makes it out would want to come back here. These local hacks, generally are not good people and they don't want to get better. It seems like they just don't want to go home after work.
Post a Comment