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Annual "Put Your Crap on Your Lawn" Week

Progeny Crap
Progeny Crap, originally uploaded by m!les.

I don’t know what is up with these people, but suddenly everyone, as if with one mind, starting putting their crap on their lawns. I don’t get it. So, I convinced Holli to drive me around while I took pictures of it. Some of it is fairly nice-looking stuff (see piano).

Then, today, I parked in front of some Crap on a Lawn, but I wasn’t sure if I could (I don’t want my car getting carted away as mistaken Crap Almost on Someone’s Lawn), so I looked down the block and located several other cars in front of crap. As I neared one, I discovered a sheet of paper stuck under the windshield wipers. Fearing it was a ticket, I looked at it. It read, in a clear, feminine script:

Next time you park behind someone, give them some f***ing room between their car and your f***ing piece of s***. Next time I’m going to just back right into your f***ing bumper and drive off, a**hole.

Happy “Put Your Crap on Your Lawn” Week! Pictures are here.

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Got a New Phone

Ok. So, I pretty much just got a new phone over Easter. At first I was very anamored with it, but as time drew on, it found more and more things for me to dislike about it to myself therein. Then it stopped ringing when I got phone calls. Actually, I would put it into vibrate, and instead of vibrating, it would ring really really quietly.

That is not the point of a vibrate setting.

So I traded in this phone :

My New Phone
My New Phone, originally uploaded by m!les.

: for this phone :

New Phone!
New Phone!, originally uploaded by m!les.

: and I love it. LG all the way, baby! Next time I see you, I’ll take a picture of you.
P.S. My number is the same.

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I Am the Very Model of a Modern Miles-Rauschable

Lake Okoboji United Methodist Camp and Retreat Center

Three Crosses
Three Crosses, originally uploaded by m!les.

So, first there was the Okoboji camp, with Holli. That was nice. I got to meet those people in Holli’s life. I met Bryan (website here), Deb, Mandy, and Keith (website here), and one night we played Outburst at Mandy and Keith’s place (and I really suck at it). Felt a little like a hero when I fixed a computer issue in five minutes what Keith had tried an entire day previously to fix. It was largely because I had had the same problem earlier that week.

We prepared food, cooked food, set out food, brought back food, ate food, washed dishes, dried dishes, put away dishes, washed counters, and bleached counters. In the meantime, I finished The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (and I think it’s my favorite so far). Did some homework, went to Catholic mass in Spirit Lake (the priest forgot the name of the mass intention – *eek!*), got a tour, and then came back to Madison. Also, while cutting onions, I chopped into my finger. Then, minutes later, Holli did the same thing. We hate onions.

Pictures are here.

Honors Banquet

Holli, Mom
Holli, Mom, originally uploaded by m!les.

There was a banquet. They handed out awards to the students. It was a good meal, catered by DSU of course, and we all had to get all nice and dressed up. Mom managed to make it down for this. I got a certificate for graduating Cum Laude, for being a College Student Leader, for being an Outstanding DSU Artist, and for the Drama Club’s achievement of getting the Certificate of Merit (which I got because I’m the president). I am most proud of Outstanding DSU Artist, because I really devote a lot of my time to the arts and because (ironically) I’m not an art major. Afterward I made mom buy me a huge Mountain Dew, and she bought Holli something, too. It was SNOWING when we left.

Pictures are here.

Drama Club Stuff

The Drama Club had two meeting last week. One, on Monday, I couldn’t attend, but one on Wednesday I could. The major topic was Drama Club Kids Camp, which (despite being on the agenda since November) kinda snuck up on us. The Camp was set for Saturday and was geared toward middle school kids. In the end, only one girl signed up, so we had to cancel it. This left me feeling really let down, because I had high hopes for the Camp. I hope next year’s president decides to run with it again. It’s a good idea. On Sunday, then, we went to Augie to The Pirates of Penzance. It was a good show, very packed (good thing we reserved tickets), but I had a hard time understanding what was being said. It might have been the mic usage or our seats, but we made the best of it. I did really enjoyed the “I Am the Very Model of a Modern Major-General” song.

Pictures are going to be up soon.

And, as always, I have some video up, too.

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Accidental Hijynx

Water

Water!
Water!, originally uploaded by m!les.

So, Holli came over to do a quiz for Art History, and she goes into the bathroom. I then hear, “Oh! Hunny! I don’t know what I did!” Water was gushing everywhere. Holli had gone in to wash her hands, and it just happened to be the last movement needed to break the facet from the pipe. A couple phone calls, a visit from Justin Nowick, and 4 inches of standing water later, all my towels were wet and the plumbers were scheduled to come the next morning. Of course, there are pictures.

Bytes in Brandon Valley

Let's Go!
Let’s Go!, originally uploaded by m!les.

They Bytes was asked to perform (with a message) to a college prep course. We met Mike down there, and the six of us did three games, a sketch (a skit with a large emphasis on improv and only an outline of events) about the dangers of binge drinking (plus a conversation), and some words about college life. It was toodles. I got some pictures.

Easter

Easter Dinner
Easter Dinner, originally uploaded by m!les.

I went home for Easter, and Holli went home for Easter. This year’s Easter was pretty laid back. We plaid guitar at church, and we made Ben’s spicy beans (These beans are so spicy that I cried the first time I ate them. I cried like a girl ignored at prom). We did bowling, too, which was nice. We played the crazy kind of Balderdash (David’s version). Then we had supper at Sue’s place and I brought Ben’s beans (The first time I ate these beans I cried. I cried like a Star Wars fan after Episode I). Then I went back to Madison. There are pictures.

Holli’s Birthday

Holli in her Birthday Suit
Holli in her Birthday Suit, originally uploaded by m!les.

Holli had her 20th birthday on the 15th. Unfortunately, we couldn’t celebrate until that Monday. So I gave her her presents: Adidas Moves for Women, markers, I wrote her a myth, a messenger bag (this present came days later, and I had to do a lot of sneaking to get her to go to her car for no reason and find it). You can read her post on the day. She was on duty for part of the time, but we headed down to Sioux Falls and ate at Ruby Tuesday (my first time ever – very very excellent), watched “Thank You For Smoking” (very funny and satirical), and got some Coldstone Ice Cream. I think she had a good day. Happy Birthday, Sweetie! Pictures are here.

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Nightmare on Washington Street

Blank Stage
Blank Stage, originally uploaded by m!les.

Well, the curtain has closed on what is my final DSU production as a student. How did it go? Well, if you have to ask, then why should I tell you? Because that’s what I do. I tell.

We did 4 nights of the show. The show consisted of 15 Minutes (a monologue starring Adrienne Boese), The Actor’s Nightmare (a one-act starring: Ben Fox, Holli Gregg, Sara Harp, Monica Jacobsen, and Miles Rausch), and Comedy Bytes (improv starring: Mike Anderson, Ben Fox, Holli Gregg, Miles Rausch, Holly Smith, and Lisa Stien).

Friday

This was, by and large, our first rehearsal with lights. It’s a pity that it had to be a performance, too. The technical crew seemed less than thrilled to be there. It gave off a bad vibe, and I really didn’t like it. What added to problems was that Chris Zieg, our technical director, had to be back at work. See, he had chosen to use a two week vacation to construct a set and set and design lights and sounds for a play, but every vacation must come to an end, and his did the night we had our first performance.

According to memory, the play went pretty well. We had a decent turnout. Holli‘s parents and sister showed up. One problem we did have (and had every night afterward) was with a change I have where I go from standard accountant garb to Hamlet attire. This requires tights, which are just like they sound, and usually proved fairly difficult for me to get on in the short amount of time allotted for my change.

After Comedy Bytes, we stood in the entry way and waited for people to file by. We said goodbye to Holli’s parents and sister (who said they enjoyed the show). Then I bought a brownie, and we waited until 10 o’clock for our next Comedy Bytes show. 2 people showed up. Then they left. We cancelled the show, and then Holli and I went and got ice cream.

Saturday

My parents came to this one. It was a matinee performance. This one went well, too. I was feeling a little less energetic at this one. Holli and I did have Chinese for lunch, so that was nice. We tried something new with the costume change. This time I changed into tights and shorts, and then I rushed out on stage where Holli (who plays a stage manager in the play) helps me continue to get ready and berates me for wasting time. The play went pretty well. Mom said she was laughing so hard that she had tears in her eyes. The Comedy Bytes part went well, too. This crowd was a little quiet, and it was mostly relatives and some friends. It was also Picture Call, but Mom and Dad had to go, so Holli and I said goodbye to them, and took pictures, and went to mass, and then we went to Ben Fox’s place for some awesome ribs and beans and roulette and blackjack and horses. There’s a whole RIBS set on Flickr.

Sunday

Slept in! Lazy Sunday. Probably did some homework and relaxed. I can’t really recall.

Monday

Second to last show. I bought Holli flowers and hid them backstage and never even came close to hinting about them. This crowd was good. You can tell how good a crowd is going to be by how much they laugh at Adrienne’s monologue. The change on Monday night was blazing fast. We almost didn’t need to do the fake change on stage thing. There was a problem with me and my falling out of a garbage can. It wasn’t intentional, but I see how it could have been (I would do something like that). Holli did a good job of keeping character, but I saw Monica laughing (tsk tsk). Then, when they were pushing the executioner out, they almost ran into Holli and Monica. It was after this performance that the decision was made to switch the Private Lives wagon with the Executioner wagon as far as sides of the stage go.

Comedy Bytes went well. We had our normal 8ish showing. Then we had a break, during which I spent most of my time on the ground. We thought we would only get two people again, but the turnout was greater than that. We also didn’t have our tech crew (they all left except for Tiffany), so Sara Harp ran sound instead. She did a good job. Our second show was fairly dirty. I guess it wasn’t so much dirty as it was disappointingly immature. You’re only as good as the suggestions you get. I tried to filter as host, but there is only so much you can do.

Tuesday

The final performance. We switched platforms. The change didn’t go as well as it could. I really didn’t want to do it. I was tired and ready to be done. But I did it. I gave my all, and I gave my final performance. This crowd was very quiet. Probably the worst crowd we had, just in that they didn’t seem to find anything funny. Idiots. Anyway, I think we were all at our end. When we were finally finished, we tore the set apart. I took pictures and a video, even. Of course! To top it off, the audience mentioned “Chuck Norris” as an improv suggestion.

Hey. Remember when I said that Acting Is A Threat To My Health? Well, that holds true to this day.

  • Canker Sores
    • Mouth (one)
  • Abrasions
    • Right hand (one)
    • Left elbow (two)
    • Left arm (one)
    • Right knee (one)
    • Left knee (one – big one)
  • Bruises
    • Right arm (two)
    • Right hand (one)
    • Left arm (one)
    • Chest (one)
    • Right knee (one)
    • Left knee (two)
    • Left ankle (one)

All in all, I enjoyed it. It got a little frustrating, and I know I’m suffering from some sort of exhaustion, but I think I gave the best performance I could, and I hope the audiences enjoyed it. Unfortunately, we weren’t able to get it taped, so there’s no video record of the performances. One highlight (for me) was the inclusion of a sketch I wrote called “Happy 125 Years, DSU [redux]”. I had originally written a skit titled “Happy 125 Years, DSU” which was about the school bringing General Beadle back to life, as a zombie, to celebrate 125 years as an institution. The first plan was to perform it at the Spring Convocation, but it didn’t work out. Then we were going to perform it at our Spring Production, but time contraints didn’t allow for that, either. So, I wrote a largely improvised skit (a sketch) based on the same ideas, and we opened the show with it.

Be sure to check out the pictures from the shows on my Flickr account in a special Nightmare on Washington Street set. Also, I’ve uploaded some videos to Google Video. And now, back to my life.

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Happy Birthday Dad!

Smile!
Smile!, originally uploaded by m!les.

First: it’s my dad‘s 46th birthday is today.

Second: it’s CSS Naked Day. That’s why the page looks weird. I’ve taken all the styling off of it, so it’s only the HTML.

Third: it’s hecka late, and I’m completely dead.

Fourth: The play is this week! Check it out in the sidebar (for details). I think it’ll be a good time, but I won’t say that it hasn’t had it’s sacrifices.

Fifth: the gala was nice. I was planning an entire post on it, but my life has caught up with me. I will say that, while I’m not the best at social interactions, it was nice to dress up and eat a nice meal with my parents, brother, and girlfriend. Pictures are here. I also have video of Tony and Tyler.

Sixth: look over there!

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Fancy Footing It to Fargo

Dance Off!
Dance Off!, originally uploaded by m!les.

Don’t forget about the play coming up! I finally got my computer put back together with a new Firewire/USB2.0 card and a front panel to access them all nicely. Now, on with the post.

It was a glorious day. We left DSU and drove to Big Stone. This was after, of course, David running back up to his room eight times to grab things he forgot, or thought he forgot, or forgot he didn’t own. We started with me driving, but I had taken benedryl for a sinus headache, so I asked Holli to drive. I was hungry. In Big Stone we ate fish sticks and mac’n’cheese. We stood around, talked a bit, and then we all clamored into the van, and Bryce drove us to Fargo, North Dakota. Yes. There’s a state above South Dakota. We had to pause music periodically for “story time”. If you don’t know what that is, take a road trip with Bryce and you’ll find out.

Once in Fargo, we made it to Tony‘s house. This could have been eventful, as Bryce wanted to go off of his memory. I decided to call Tony, instead. Our first greeting into his house? A fourth roommate. He gave us a tour, with pictures, and we sat around watching TV. It was pretty close to midnight, so Tony took Bryce and Lindsey to the liq, and they brought back pizza(!) and liquor. We ate the delicious pizza and then started watching videos on David’s tablet and Holli’s tablet. The videos on David’s tablet all seemed to be horrifying examples of how unintelligent and fearless human beings can be. We watched cool guitar tricks instead. Eventually (like at 4am) we went to bed.

We got up at 11am or so. I managed to get up, get showered, get dressed, and lay back down without ever waking Holli. It was good for her. Tony took Bryce and Lindsey to Ty’s place. Ty is a friend of Linds’s who transferred from Marshall. I had met her previously when she came to Big Stone to visit Linds during New Year’s Eve 2005. The remainder of us went to Grand Junction to eat. Grand Junction is (as described accurately by Tony) a HuHot for subs. And they cook it just like they cook in HuHot. I liked my sub. Good job, Grand Junction.

Thence went we to campus for a tour. We saw a “quad”‘s room. A “quad” is a quadriplegic, but Tony knows the guy so it’s okay that we call him that. We picked up Bryce and we made 10-point turn. Then we went back to campus to look for an Ag building Bryce wants to write a term paper on. Holli started feeling rotten. Then we went to the mall. I got an Orange Julius. Holli looked for a peacoat. Bryce made plans with Tim. Then, for supper, we tried this Alien food place, but it was mucho full. So then we tried iHOP (which wasn’t necessarily a popular choice), and finally to Bennigan’s. ‘Twas good. Holli and I both got steaks, at the opposite side of the “how done?” scale. From there we journeyed to Tim’s. I enjoyed that. I was able to interact with Ava and Gabe (or Doofie) and Charlie, which I’ve never much had a chance for before. Once back at Tony’s we did tennis like a menace.

The next morning we had church. Good God. We got seperated from Tony, but we met up afterwards. We decided on the mall for lunch, and it wasn’t bad. I had chinese, and I liked it, but Bryce and Linds also had chinese, and they didn’t like it. Then we saw Lonie and Mickey! How weird is that, though we knew they were headed up this way to shop. Finally, we parted ways with Tony. Bryce drove us Back to Big Stone. That was supposed to be a quick stop, but my dad wanted me to look at a computer problem for him. It took forever, but I finally figured (most of) it out. We nabbed some supper (since it was now that time) and took off for Madison.

Good weekend. Pictures are on flickr.

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Playing Around

The Actor’s Nightmare

April 7th (7:00pm), April 8th (2:00pm) Picture Call, April 10th (7:00pm), April 11th (7:00pm) Strike.

Comedy Bytes

April 7th (10:00pm), April 8th (9:00pm) Jam Session, April 10th (10:00pm).

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The United States Postal Service Makes Me Cry

Keeping You Posted
Keeping You Posted, originally uploaded by m!les.

See Identity Crisis + Comedy Bytes! April 7, 8, 10, 11 in the Dakota Prairie Playhouse. Times to follow.

Look carefully at this comic. Maybe even read it. When the US Postal Service stoops to using Kathy comics to get peole interested, then things have really sunk to a new low.

In other news, my life (creatively) is extremely hectic. There is, of course, the play. That is going well, but we’ve decided to add Comedy Bytes to the same night, which means double rehearsals until we’re done. It’s nice, I guess, to do it all at once, but I’m feeling all at once like I don’t have any time.

Filmed part of a music video this past weekend, but due to time contraints and missing actors I couldn’t finish it. I did, however, purchase a firewire card so I can, in time, capture the video I’ve taken.

There have also been some interesting / exciting / frightening developments in my personal life, but I don’t feel ready to talk about them. Alright, I’m gay, no I’m not, but seriously, I can’t talk about it yet, but I will sometime, hopefully.

The second part of our lines are due for The Actor’s Nightmare, so we have that, plus Comedy Bytes practice tonight (for which I should try to get the latest draft of Happy 125 Years, DSU finished), and I’m feeling quite a bit pulled apart by horses.

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Student Leadership Award

I’m probably not going to write the kind of essay you want. I don’t like talking about myself, and that is basically what this is supposed to be about. You want me to gush about all the amazing accomplishments I’ve had in my time here at DSU. Only, I don’t do that.

Let’s get down to brass tacks (an expression I’ve always loved and rarely use). I am a reluctant leader. I lead when no other leaders step forth. I am really quite a shy, inhibited person who becomes quite the opposite in certain social situations. I’ve been in Drama Club for 5 years. Why am I president this year? I am president because no one else wanted to do it. So, I took up the yoke. Thing is, a good leader surrounds himself or herself with good people who can get things done. I’ve tried to do this, and Fear the Turkey has had highest consistent attendance and involvement than it has since I’ve been a freshman. It’s not necessarily me, though. This semester there have been a number of motivated individuals who have stepped up and really helped move the club further. We organized the Love Out Loud cards which made us a little bit of money but (more importantly) got our name out there and brought Valentine’s Day cheer to others. We also spent some time at Beverly entertaining the residents there, to good effect.

My other leadership roles have been less obvious. Usually, in classes, I am the designated leader because, almost to a fault, I am organized and precise. And I’m usually pretty good at delegating things. I suppose that’s a leadership quality. Surround yourself with good people, know their strengths and weaknesses, and then give them tasks that you know they can do efficiently and correctly.

As you can tell by my other activities and positions, I am mostly a documenter. I prefer to sit, observe, and report. I believe the position of “secretary” was once (and sometimes still is) call the position of “historian”. That’s what I mostly am. I would rather tell the tales of the great leaders than be one of them.

I hope this essay serves as an indicator of the type or leader and person I am. I can imagine that, to most people, this would seem to be a sort of suicide, but I want to be honest with you guys. I will say that only at a school of DSU’s size and friendliness could I have ever become a recognized student and student leader.