Woundup

Three cans shy of an imported four pack

noreply@blogger.com (WoundUp Corp.) — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 15:09:00 +0000

Not good, Woundup. Not good. I'll give you a pass this time. Let's clean up things around here, OK? OK. Now, away to your toil and report it with haste by the allotment.

Zwolfkinder

noreply@blogger.com (WoundUp Corp.) — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 14:53:00 +0000

Summer is finally here — not that I couldn't wait. I don't like the heat. I was happy when it was 60 degrees and raining a week ago. As time's gone on, I've come to believe what we had earlier in June is my ideal kind of weather — a vestigial preference from my Northern European ancestors.

Whatever. It's going to be hot today. Erika is watching Ella solo. We have two very effective ACs in the house, but I hope she can get out a little so she won't feel cooped up. She's doing a great thing, watching the baby by herself. I wish I could be there to help her right now.

Our baby is a wonderful little person who grows more and more each day. As she matures and exhibits more autonomous behavior, I feel a growing need to shield and shelter her, making her existence as pleasant as possible — the childhood cocoon we've all seen manifested in toy stores, amusement parks, on TV. A place with no unhappiness and total wonder, where each day, each minute is one of joy and excitement. The kind of excitement she shows when she wakes up in the morning.

My, is it me or was that a cold assessment of a carefree state? That's what you get here at Woundup: cold assessments. Well, anything to push that mercury back away from 90.

Woundup will never die

noreply@blogger.com (WoundUp Corp.) — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 16:36:00 +0000

Man, it's dusty in here. Time to clean off the cobweb-covered keyboards. The seven-person content team is on their annual summer retreat — this time to some dump in the UP. Normally they go to Mexico, but you know … These Tough Economic Times. … I'm sure they've got a lot (of reefer) to (smoke) talk about up there.

The Woundup family had fun in Wisconsin, and we are gearing up for our weekend's visit to Michigan, the fourth partner in the new pan-Chicago Geographical Zone. That's right, southwest Mich. is officially a part of Chicagoland because one little county, where our hideaway lies, now is included on the Channel 9 weather forecast map.

Ella still is a little too small to ride on a bike or in a bike trailer — one of our favorite pastimes in Mich. Perhaps on the next visit. Ella, however, is rapidly advancing in the eating/drinking department. Mom fed her lentil soup last night, and she can now drink out of a glass, which is a lot of fun to watch.

Lunch beckons. Woundup breathes deeply. … The afternoon is a blank canvas of (sleeping under my desk) all possibilities.

Visibility 1500 feet. That's the Mars Cheese Castle on our left, sir.

noreply@blogger.com (WoundUp Corp.) — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 17:33:00 +0000

We must be on summer hours here at WoundUp Corp. Actually, we truly are. Fridays are off mandatory, comrade. No questions.

Still, this is one of the busiest non-busy weeks I've ever had at the ol' Cracker Factory. What does that mean? Well, I suppose it means having the most amount of work possible that still does not cross the bar set by a normal fall/spring work week when we actually have issues of the magazine going out. I guess you could call it garbage time. And let me say that I'm a garbage time all-star.

Tomorrow we head north through the 58-degree mist to Green Bay to visit my parents and youngest brother. We'll be bringing Ella with us, and that will make them very happy. Ella has been a little more rambunctious lately, so much so that she kept waking up last night. This baby thing is a trip because when you think you've got a pattern set, they change it up on you. Well, that makes life more interesting, no?

All in a day's work. I'm going to get some M&M's. Talk to you next week!

Reset button

noreply@blogger.com (WoundUp Corp.) — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 14:50:00 +0000

Wow, a two-week break here at Woundup Corp. It was our early summer furlough. But now we're back. Last week's playwriting conference was a blast. I'm sorry it had to end in some ways, but I'm very happy to again be with my family. The weather in Chicago is mellow and bright, and we have plans to visit Green Bay and our little Michigan hideaway very, very soon.

Now is the time, June, to ready and launch the next marketing campaign. I've almost got the synopsis for the new play polished off — never an enjoyable task. Soon I'll be spending a lot of time at the Fort Dearborn Post Office. I'm happy because we've drifted apart these last three months.

Speaking of furloughs, we're into our summer slate of forced three-day weekends here at the Cracker Factory. Not all that bad, as the salary hit is negligible and they're encouraging us — imploring us — not to even look at our work e-mail. Fine by me. I'll be taking care of the baby solo tomorrow, which I love to do. We'll have some fun.

Welcome back, Woundup! Welcome back, Woundup fans!

Wandering

noreply@blogger.com (WoundUp Corp.) — Thu, 21 May 2009 17:36:00 +0000

Tomorrow afternoon I'm heading out of town to a playwrights conference in Omaha. I'll be gone for nine days. I'm excited about the opportunity, but I'm really, really going to miss Erika and Ella. At least I'll be able to talk to them on the phone.

This is a kind of symbolic last event of the spring — and what a crazy spring it's been. I hope the rest of the year calms down and people without employment can find it again. America needs a break, in general.

I should be posting from the road. I'll let you all know how it's going.

Outlaster

noreply@blogger.com (WoundUp Corp.) — Wed, 20 May 2009 19:30:00 +0000

I finished my third play today. I started it last June. As I've said before in other posts, I've experienced many more changes and ups and downs during the writing of this play than with the last two. I know some of that went into it over the course of things.

What's left to do? Relax for a month. I'll probably work on some marketing materials next week, but for now I'm going to crack open a cold one and toast this play. It's earned its place at the table.

Monday night

noreply@blogger.com (WoundUp Corp.) — Mon, 18 May 2009 21:02:00 +0000

Phhheeewww … The high tide of work stress has receded. Tonight I'm going to format-check my new play, drink beer and watch the "Gossip Girl" finale with the ladies. Hold my calls.

Lay down your sword, noble warrior

noreply@blogger.com (WoundUp Corp.) — Wed, 13 May 2009 14:52:00 +0000

This month I retired my second play from active submission. My MO is that after a year passes, I stop. I've done about all I can do to let people know it exists. This play, in turn, has performed heroically on the field of marketing combat. I only hope someone takes a real chance on it soon.

I've almost wrapped up my third play — probably by early next week. I look forward to seeing how it will do in Das Grinder. I'm not a great talk-talk salesman. Who knows. Maybe it won't matter.

Rest

noreply@blogger.com (WoundUp Corp.) — Mon, 11 May 2009 18:10:00 +0000

My Grandmother died a week ago. She was 95 and had developed lung cancer in the last year. Erika, Ella and I saw her some 12 hours before she passed away. The thought of her being relieved of that kind of suffering made the loss a little easier to swallow, but still I'd rather have her here, healthy and forever. As we all know, that can't be done.

There was a memorial service at a South Side cemetery on Saturday. Many of her friends are gone, too, and many of our relatives — already a small group — were out of town and couldn't make it. Still, I was happy to see who I saw. We all agreed that Grandma was a great lady.

Since I moved back to Chicagoland in 2002, I had helped Grandma with her finances, bringing cash once a month for her home health care worker to buy groceries, etc. — but more so to spend time with Grandma. I also called her once a week. I really enjoyed speaking with her, and we shared experiences as Chicago residents, homeowners and baseball fans that I didn't with the rest of my family.

She was my last remaining grandparent and the living link to a part of my life that now only exists in my memory. At least I can keep her there. Sundays will never be the same. Goodbye, Grandma. I miss you.

Raining

noreply@blogger.com (WoundUp Corp.) — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 02:32:00 +0000

Today everyone at the Cracker Factory was forcibly given a pay cut. It applies to about two weeks of work days spread out over the three months of the summer. The good news is that I'll now have a bunch of Fridays to spend with the baby and take three-day weekend trips. The bad news is, well, that's pretty obvious, but it's not crippling, and Erika is gainfully employed, too.

The refrain for these times has been "At least you still have a job." I'm getting sick of hearing that, as they chop off more pieces of us, week by week. Now's probably the time for a good Karl Marx quote about worker exploitation, but that's too much effort to dig it up right now. I'm tired. We still have to sail on through this week, patching up all the holes they punched in our ship.

I'm pretty sick of talking about work, so I'll stop. What I'd really like to do right now is get a drink at the bar at the Chicago Yacht Club and stare drunkenly at the nautical maps on the walls. Or better yet, I'd like to get a drink with Charles Barkley. Can someone make that happen?

No? Well ... I'll settle for comics in bed. However, I don't have anything to read on the bus tomorrow. Maybe I should go with Karl Marx. Or the Marlene Dietrich story, which I actually own. Yes. I don't know. … It's time to go to bed.

Never relent (circa 2009)

noreply@blogger.com (WoundUp Corp.) — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 19:27:00 +0000

Tomorrow begins Painful Writing Ordeal 3.0. This play has gone through more rough waters than the two before it, and still it has persevered. Reading back parts of the last revision, I've begun to develop an affection for it hitherto absent. In my own personal awards ceremony, I will give it a medal of honor.

I've also begun to realize that I'm soon going to toss another virgin play into the maw of the Theatrical Industrial Complex — a machine mostly indifferent to new work. It doesn't help I have a writing style the majority of its officers seem unmoved by.

I'll run this poor play through the gauntlet, and if it, too, does not win a full production by next fall, I will have to consider other options. Wearily I wince, knowing that means self-production. I see how others in my shoes have done it, and perhaps I will have to follow them. I'd rather just write these things and have someone else take care of it. But that someone may not be in existence.

All I can do at this moment is apply massive heat and pressure to the last draft until it is a finished piece. Though it's painful, I enjoy this process, and I honor that thing its creates. To me, that thing is unassailable.

Three things

noreply@blogger.com (WoundUp Corp.) — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 16:41:00 +0000

1. The rough seas at work now are calm. And as I look out from a 23rd-floor perch at the great Lake Michigan, I'm filled again with a desire to steal away to our favorite vacation spot. I have some new schedule leeway, so getting there will be even easier this spring. … Two years ago we went for the very first time, and when we go next it will be Ella's first. I'd love to move there — sometime in the next 10 years but hopefully sooner.

2. I've become obsessed with the English Civil War. I think seeing "Cromwell" on TCM in Iowa earlier this month got me pumped up. I believe this was the first time in history (let me say "European history") a regent was overthrown for an alternative form of government. It certainly set a tone for the next three centuries.

3. I don't really have a third. Uh. Lunchtime's almost here: leftover BBQ seitan, roasted vegetables and mashed potatoes. I eat like a king (or a Rump Parliamentarian).

Job rap

noreply@blogger.com (WoundUp Corp.) — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 18:09:00 +0000

What a week at the Cracker Factory. It started out mellow but harshed by Wednesday morning. Now, well, I guess it's almost over. We've had a lot of people leave here, a lot of organizational shock-waves and still no clear structure in the aftermath. I guess the same could be said for many (most?) businesses across the country. Dad just needs to keep his head in the game, though understandably it can be hard. Some of this static was externally applied, but two problems were of my own creation, based on snap decisions. I need to better question my choices before I make them. (How about that for job commitment?)

Seriously though, I do take pride in my work here. I know it's not my life's work, but I'd like to think I do it well and help those I'm in with. Recent circumstances have made it a bit harder for all of us to truly take as much time as we'd like on all of our tasks. I only hope that by year's end we'll get some kind of relief.

Of course, I don't ever have it as tough as Erika, who had to go on a field trip to Champaign this morning against the wishes of her boss. She'll get back by 10 p.m. tonight. I cannot wait for the weekend to start. I plan on spending it exclusively with my wife and baby. It makes me very happy to know we'll all be together at this time tomorrow. Hang in there, Woundup.

His jumper's like a Pound Canto

noreply@blogger.com (WoundUp Corp.) — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 15:53:00 +0000

Hmm … Scanning the headlines here. … Something to write about. … Well, I was reading from the newest issue of SI with Ella — one of my favorite things to do with her right now — and I was struck by the erudition of the Houston Rockets supporting cast, as evidenced in the feature about Ron Artest. Brent Barry used the word "idiosyncrasies" and Shane Battier made a James Joyce reference. Once in awhile you'll get one cultured nugget in a sports story, but two? This piece really raised the bar for years to come.

Of course, Ron Artest remains a bit of an idiot savant. Great player and maybe he's mellowing out, but he'll always be remembered for … well … you know.

Walking the line

noreply@blogger.com (WoundUp Corp.) — Sun, 12 Apr 2009 04:17:00 +0000

When curling comes on the TV is it instantly time for another beer, no matter what time of day? Truly one of the toughest questions that confronts humankind. I'll say no, though it's tempting.

I've been indulging myself with the ol' converter box tonight, nearly overdosing on WTTW Prime big blocks of documentaries. Now I've turned to the 24-hour NBC winter sports channel and here the grand game is. There's one beer in the fridge. Ah, but it's too late. Erika, Ella and Suzi are getting in after 9 tomorrow morning from Florida. (Wait, the French play this game, too?) I don't think I should tempt fate. What I should do is TURN OFF THE TV.

Well, not just yet. SNL, Antiques Roadshow, Burt Wolf. Did you know Burt Wolf has a Cedar Rapids P.O. box? I think that's the most interesting thing I've learned all day. See, that's the line I walk: between sound mental health and television-induced temporary insanity. … It's probably time for bed. Yes.

P. Allen Smith's Garden Home.

Fade away

noreply@blogger.com (WoundUp Corp.) — Fri, 10 Apr 2009 00:04:00 +0000

Wow, Ken Burns' "The Civil War" is nearly 20 years old. I remember very distinctly watching it with my family when I was 14 years old. They're showing it now on the new WTTW Prime on the converter box.

I loved "Baseball" and "Jazz," but I believe this documentary is Burns' best. And how good is Shelby Foote? When Foote says the bit about the North fighting with one hand behind its back? It feels tremendously anti-climactic at first, but he has such a understated way of conveying Southern resignation to their loss you feel bad for the Confederacy, if just for a few seconds.

Tonight is 1865 and the end of the war. Burns has footage of the remaining vets marching in the 1920s as old men. Seeing my own grandmother now at the end of her life at 95, the idea of "living memory" is a powerful one, as links to the distant past leave us. I feel for people in these positions, who daily lose those they could truly reminisce with, unable to fully convey what they've seen to a world that can never fully understand it.

Rebels are we, born to be free

noreply@blogger.com (WoundUp Corp.) — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 17:37:00 +0000

Back in Chicago, the sun is shining, and though it's a bit busy at work, a great deal is now behind me and I'm breathing easy. The residency at the college last week went really well, and I was very happy with the staged reading they did. I'd like to bring some of those people to Chicago if anyone ever doubles down on this play. We'll see.

Erika has the week off, so she's enjoying it at home and out and about with Ella. Tomorrow, the two of them are flying down to Ft. Lauderdale with Suzie, whose mom has a time share there. Dad will be left home alone. … Sniff … I've got a great picture of Ella by my desk at the New Cracker Factory, and it really captures who she is. When I look at it now, I wish she were here. It's going to be tough to be apart for nearly five days. I expect they'll find me in my underwear covered in Thai takeout boxes and the hard ends of pierogies, the TV on, Okocim empties all about. It's not going to be pretty.

Well, if I rent "Bananas," I'll probably make it thru the week. Yes, that sounds like a plan. Let's make it happen.

He do the police in different voices

noreply@blogger.com (WoundUp Corp.) — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 16:08:00 +0000

This accursed month's almost over, my friend. I'm looking forward to adventure in April and … mirth-making? in May. Well, let's not get ahead of ourselves. April, after all, is the cruelest month — in terms of having to do your taxes. Wait. Maybe that's not what he meant. Dammit.

All kidding aside, I've won a playwriting award sponsored by a college in Iowa, and I will go there later this week as part of a short residency, which culminates with a staged reading of my most recent play. That play has served me well, and I'd really love it if it could get a god's-honest, real-life production in 2009-2010. We'll see. In the meantime, I will enjoy this opportunity. I was a little shocked it came long, but … "enjoy when you can" …

There's another accolade coming my way in May, but like I said, let's not get ahead of ourselves. Mazel tov.

To mein readers

noreply@blogger.com (WoundUp Corp.) — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 18:37:00 +0000

Well, at the end of a long week I suppose I should put in an appearance. What a week it's been. I found out, officially, that I'll be keeping my job here at the New Cracker Factory. We've also had both my mother and Erika's mom staying with us to help with baby care. Now I'm looking forward to some peace and quiet this weekend — just me, mom and baby.

March is almost over. One of the roughest months I've ever gotten through — although February might've been rougher. I'm thankful, though, for having family to help us and for gainful employment. And, of course, for our beautiful baby, who is getting bigger every day. It's pretty amazing to witness first-hand.

Next week I get to do some special writing stuff. I'll fill you in then. Have a good weekend.

Have you seen the inside of Tacitus's vomitorium?

noreply@blogger.com (WoundUp Corp.) — Tue, 24 Mar 2009 15:06:00 +0000

I've staged a complete recovery from last week's food poisoning. It's good to be able to eat, say, fresh mozzarella that was sitting out a little in its own water, or bagged lettuce getting brown around the edges, or a room-temperate cheesy-bean-and-rice burrito from Taco Bell (with hot sauce) or week-old hummus. Yes, all the things I love.

I think this WeBLoG needs some direction, don't you? Getting a little aimless as the weather warms. That's really because the seven-person content team all went on a spring break–style vacation to the official Woundup resort property in Tutacahana, Mexico. There are going to be some workshops, but we really know it's just an excuse to try and score cheap cocaine and maybe act depraved a bit before coming back home, feeling guilty and recommitting to the gym and sobriety (for a couple of weeks). God bless the liberal arts.

Time for a wilted-lettuce and room-temperature sour cream taco.

Thank you, converter box

noreply@blogger.com (WoundUp Corp.) — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 22:03:00 +0000

Zelig is on 26.4 right now. This thing just paid for itself.

I cry, I throw up, I cry again

noreply@blogger.com (WoundUp Corp.) — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 16:31:00 +0000

Another baseball season is nearly upon us. Remember the Cubs' "super rotation" of 2004? Unfortunately, I do.

The many moods

noreply@blogger.com (WoundUp Corp.) — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 16:47:00 +0000

Mommy took pictures yesterday of Ella at the Lincoln Park Zoo. I think this one sums things up best.

Take a number

noreply@blogger.com (WoundUp Corp.) — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 16:41:00 +0000

The line at the great automat in the sky is really backing up: Harold Pinter, David Foster Wallace, John Updike, Horton Foote and now James Purdy.

I first heard of Purdy in a New York Times article about Raymond Carver's break with Gordon Lish. D.T. Max said Lish was influenced in his editing of Carver by Purdy's spare style. Not long after that I picked up "Malcolm" (which was adapted for the stage by Edward Albee). I can't say I thought it was great, but he certainly knows how to depict the fringe, and I kept thinking of "Fur" as I read it.

Well, I think I'll give him another shot. R.I.P.