Improv of Chicago Round 2: A Mildly Sappy Post

A year ago today at 12:00pm I called my friend up asking if he wanted to come up north with me to see some comedy show that another friend had invited us to. I didn’t really want to go up there by myself and since we both had nothing better to do, he agreed.
 

A year ago today at 5:15pm I picked him up and we got a ride from my mom to the end of the red line. It was dark already and he asked me more than once why we were going so early, that it wasn’t going to take that long to get up north. I responded with something akin to “shut up, I do what I want…..plus I don’t want to be late.” We put money on his CTA card (boy do I miss you CTA) and got on the train.
 

 A year ago today at 7:15 when we got off the train at Belmont (after a long exaggerated “I told you so” from the idiot standing next to me), we decided to kill some time by stopping at the Walgreens to fulfill our end of the BYOB.

 You know the story of our first show with, what we now call, the Boys but what you don’t know is that it was the breath of fresh air (or as my father likes to say, the new 'one thing that you have to do every week'.) that the #trainwrecks seriously needed. We were in a rut. To be honest, we were in lots of ruts. A social rut for sure, where we were almost exclusively socializing with each other and in #Trainwreck HQ. We were both also, although individually, in a work rut. I was in a job that I had fallen into a few years before but lately with my hours being cut in half (and all of the crazy), the bads were starting to outweigh the goods. And Katie will be the first to admit that while she liked her day job, it wasn't what she had gone to school for and she was severely lacking a creative outlet. 
 

After we met the Boys, everything started to sort of fall into place. She got to talk up being a stage manager to people who actually needed one (and ended up being James Franco) and I fell down a flight of stairs and quit my job (and although the Boys had nothing to do with it, it was wonderful to quit in January knowing I was going to go laugh (and, yes, drink) about my mildly insane former employer the next day).
 

 I've now got a lovely day job that I truly enjoy almost every day. And again, while the Boys had nothing to do with that either it's just really great to have a place to celebrate in (and people to bake for, who actually eat anything I make.) Katie ended up stage managing for them and leaving me to drink by myself throughout the show, where are you #trainwrecks? Come keep me company. She also ended up at Second City, The Public House Theatre and some other places all because these guys gave her a shot.

We've also got, what I'm pretty sure every 23 year old wants in life, a bar where everyone knows our names. Seriously. And it's a silly tiki-bar at that. But you know what world? It's our silly tiki-bar. And I wouldn't trade it for the world.
 

So at this point, we would just like to thank these Boys, even though they will deny it all, they deserve it because they got us out of our rut and to this point in our lives. We owe them more than they know and that they'll admit, and the least anyone can do is stop by, give them $7 and become a potential friend.
 

I don't really have anything else to say other than, if you have no idea what i'm talking about come by Studio Be (3110 N Sheffield) on a Tuesday night around 8pm (doors open at 7:45), bring your $7 and your B (as in BYOB) and stay for the funny jokes, and a free beer at the bar down the street.

 

 

You can find them on Facebook, and on Twitter

 

And make sure to follow your favorite #trainwrecks (that's still us, right?) on all versions of social media.

Twitter: Andimatrainwrec (Katie), npalmerco08 (Nora)
Tumblr: Aaanndimatrainweck (official),  kahildreth (Katie), stillnuttypony (Nora)

 

 And yes we did just re-read that and said, "Who let's us talk to people!"   

Help Wanted: Inquire within Post

The #Trainrwrecks are in a bit of a dilemma. It would appear as though all of our guy friends are leaving us. No, it's not because they don't like us anymore. Rude. It is because they are off being adults and having jobs and what not. Whatever. Fine leave us for Canada ( I know, right? P.S. we love Canada but the joke was there.) and parts unknown (Army Boy). We don't care. (Yes, we do. Come back. No, bad #trainwrecks! We don't need you anyway. Yes, 'we don't need you' is definitely the part to focus on) Sorry.

So obviously our guy friends are gone and we need new ones. Yes, new ones and that gives great opportunities to you, our dear readers. (Mom, do not reply). We are not looking for anything relationship-y or casual. We want serious PLATONIC inquiries only. I know putting this on the internet is only going to lead to creepy and god knows what things. But life is about taking chances and we choose to use our chance on this. (Bad idea? Probably)

So first the qualifications (or the musts):

Must be willing to listen to our rants and ramblings and offer more than a smile and a nod. I know that's how you respond to crazy people and it's just not going to work on us. (And that should be easy since you already read our ramblings. Just saying)

Must be a tactile person. We might enjoy a drunken cuddle every so often, or a sober cuddle. Really, we're tired of putting on tight t-shirts just to have a cuddle (Jon Richardson, anyone? You'll learn.) and we'd like to interact with real people.

Must not be gluten free. (No, we're just kidding. But if we weren't......no, really just kidding.)

Must not be planning on leaving the city for a very very very long time....I guess vacations are okay but you really should take us with you or they should be short. :)

The shoulds:

Should be nerdy, but really just to get some of our references. (We're not funny unless you get them) We can be accommodating too. We also like to learn new things...mostly. That's why it isn't a must.

Should enjoy comedy. But we are happy to introduce you to the joys of comedy. But seriously, who doesn't just like to laugh. One of those joys of comedy might just have to be the Potential Boyfriend Show at Studio Be in Chicago at 8pm on Tuesday nights. They are also welcome to apply. They should really be called our "Potential New Best Friends". Kidding! (Mostly!)


The 'it would be great if's':

It would be great if you ate more than five things. A certain #trainwreck only eats about that many different things, and as I like to bake and cook many more things than those five, I'd love if you were willing to eat anything I put in front of you. (Bacon cookies. Those are yummy)

It would be great if you were good at Mario Kart because we like to host tournaments (...that's what gathering a few friends and playing Drunk Driving is right??) and would love it if you could participate.

The Benefits (this is not just for us you know)
You get to hang out with two awesomely nerdy girls who actually like to watch you/play video games

You also get a cuddle buddy

You will be introduced to our wonderful world of British Comedy and other Chicago Comedy scene things. All that is wonderful

Nora bakes, so you will be paid in awesome sweets and pastries. And that alone should be enough to apply for this job.

Again only serious inquiries please.


Or, if you don't want to become friends IRL feel free to follow us at:

Twitter: Andimatrainwrec (Katie), npalmerco08 (Nora)

Tumblr: Aaannddimatrainwreck (official), kahildreth (Katie), stillnuttypony (Nora)

And yes we did just re-read this post and say "Who let's us talk to people." Oh right, the internet. Thank you!

Dear Miranda Hart,

I would like a job. Oh right, I should probably introduce myself and tell you why I would be qualified for a job. That is how logical writing works, right? While my prose can be quite well-written, I know you have very little time, so I think a list of credentials and reasons would be much quicker for everyone. So here we go, on with the letter! (See what I did there?)

1. My name is Katie, I was an Arts Admin Theatre Major in College and blah, blah, blah, all the things on every other resume. I am qualified to work in Theatre/Performing Arts.

2. I just want to work in comedy in anyway. You can easily provide that. You're a comedian. You need help with things. I can help you with those things. Those things can be pretty much anything, barring anything illegal or dealing with heights. I don't do heights well. So if you are looking for a bungie jumping partner, you may have to look elsewhere. But I would probably try to do it anyways.

3. I have previous experience in working in the comedy field. I am doing it now in Chicago. So, you know that I know the ins and outs of the comedy world.

4. I watch a lot of TV. A good chunk of my life has been spent with TV. It's like we are good friends, especially comedy TV. Comedy TV and I are best friends. So, I know what is good, what is bad, and what is good but the public just sadly never responds to. I've got it down.

5. You're kinda my comedian Idol right now. I found out about Miranda about two months ago and have already watched all the episodes at least 4 times and some more than that. It's funny every time. I would like to learn from you. Now, obviously that seems like more of a reason for me to want to work for you, but look at it this way. If I respect your work that much, you know I will give you more dedication than anyone else. I will go above and beyond, and that applies even if I am just the coffee/errand girl. I don't know care. All that matters is I am working for you.

6. I love London. I currently live in Chicago with my mom and you know how that can be. One wrong, little thing said and you are a ball of rage. So, I will happily (oh so happily!) move anywhere you may need me, which I really hope is London area. If it's not, I am little confused, but I will take it.

7. Please. I asked nicely and that should count for something. Right?

8. It isn't just you. I could probably help you navigate those tricky life situations because I could at least equal some of your embarrassing moments, if not surpass them. My boss just told me today, "Maybe you're chemically unbalanced." He also calls me "sassy" a lot. So standing next to me, you can look like a well poised and elegant person.

9. I will work for practically nothing. I just graduated from university. I am not expecting much from life, money-wise, right now. I just need enough to live and pay a few small student loans. That's all. I have survived on a bag of pretzels for a week. I can handle the small wage, you could provide.

10. I am patient (sort of, it depends on what I am waiting for. If I am waiting for someone driving to take a right turn, not patient. For you to give me a job, super patient). Perseverance , I think, pays off in the long run. So, I am willing to wait for this as long as you need. If you see this a year from now, If the date is December 2014, still contact me. I will accept whatever job you have to offer at any time.

Well, I hope those reasons have given you something to think about, and that you will consider me for the next open position you have available. Regardless of how this goes for me, I can't wait to watch the next season of Miranda. I hope all is well with you and you also keep laughing. I know I am laughing at myself right now.

Cheers,

#The Trainwrecks

Improv of Chicago: PBFs at Studio Be

No, the title does not mean Peanut Butter and Friends even though it totally looks like it does. It means something so much better, Potential Boyfriends. No, this is not a weird dating thing like many of our "friends" thought when we proposed to go and see them. They are an Improv Troupe in Chicago. They perform at Studio Be on Sheffield on Tuesday nights at 8pm for $7, but don't worry fellow broke people that $7 gets you a free beer at the Karaoke bar down the street. Where you get to drink and sing with them and possibly, if you're lucky, hang out with us.

Now, you're probably wondering why we are talking about this random Chicago Improv Group. What do you care, you live in Germany. But seriously people need to know about these guys and come down and see them. So we thought we would share our experience of seeing them with you.  So let's go back a few weeks to our first time with the Potential Boyfriends.

Tuesday, November 27th, 2012. It is just after Thanksgiving; (in America, sorry again Germany. We do like you.) and what does a person need more after a week with family than a good laugh? So after my friend Shannon (another friend! They do exist. Sorta) introduced me to this show, and I thought, Nora needs to see this and Dan can come. You'll hear more about Dan. Now I am passing the computer to Nora because she got there first and has a fun story,

I actually have many fun stories. But I'll just share this one with you, have to keep you coming back for more. Right, so Dan and I leave pretty early to head down there because we are taking mass transit, and I trust nothing to get me anywhere on time. PBFs is a BYOB (I know right, awesome) so we walk into the Studio Be with our wine and say hello, introduce ourselves, and then belatedly realize that in order to open the bottles of wine, one must have a corkscrew (Katie chimed in with "One must not be an idiot." I know, so mean.). A PBF, Pete, offers to go retrieve their corkscrew for us, and while he does, we chat and mention that our friend told us about their show and she should be coming too.  All of a sudden we hear a CRASH BANG BOOM and some sort of yell that I took as triumphant. I call back "That sounds promising." Turns out, it was. Pete returned with a corkscrew, and we were able to drink our wine. Or, we would have been had we brought cups. Poor Pete was sent on another adventure to go find us cups. (I will cut in on myself with the fun fact that we have never brought cups and last night I just looked at Pete and said in a vaguely pathetic "Pete? Cups?" His so appropriate response was "I should just hand them to you when you walk in the door." See? They are the best.) We stay to chat for a little bit longer and then as more people arrive go in to take our seats. Annd back to Katie. Oh but first, I will tell you that I had texted her "We made friends!"


I did receive that text and promptly ignored it. So, my night begins on the train trying to find Shannon. I live a little farther South than her so she was waiting at a stop ahead of me. Now we weren't trying to take the same train, but I saw her and instantly jumped out of my seat to the door, which was a bit retarded since it takes a while for the train to stop and the doors to open, so everyone on the train looked at me like I was crazy. (Nothing new) I then ran out of train to Shannon, screaming her name only to find her standing next to one of my superiors from work. Now, I did get to find Shannon so win, but I also look like a moron in front of one of my bosses, so lose. We're even though, so the night is off to a great start. I then leave Shannon to go and get her drinks at Walgreens because I think I should get to Nora, since she has never been here before. She will just be alone with Dan. As I walk into Studio Be, I talk to Nick who is handling the money and say, "I have some friends here." He then responds "Oh, you know Nora and Dan." And I am just like, seriously, you guys have been here for 5 minutes. What could you have done to already have them know your names? I am truthfully not surprised but still. It happens every time. Why? We just make friends, awkwardly, every where we go. I just start laughing, and Nick is then confused. I finish paying and getting my stamp for the show and see Nora waving obnoxiously from the Theatre.

Now onto the show. Yes, that was just the pre-show! Now the show goes as follows. There are two opening acts that are anything from a sketch group to a stand- up comedian. This week there was one sketch group and one improv troupe. Both were quite good. We had lots of laughs. One of them was even from Second City's touring company, Nicole Hastings. We thoroughly enjoyed these groups, but they did not top the PBFs. The PBFs were in top form, mainly because of Dan. Dan had the improvisers dream suggestion. The question they asked to the audience was, "It was Thanksgiving last week, did anyone do anything weird or awkward? Dan waited a moment to see if anyone would say anything, but when they didn't, he offered this gem. "I broke up with my girlfriend in a 5 hour car ride. The beginning of the car ride." One of the PBFs, Pat,  went straight to shake the Dan's hand. This led to the way they structure their set, which is by telling personal stories based on the suggestion, and then acting out scenes based on their stories.

So they took the suggestion and ran. There were too many great bits to remember, but this one stuck out for it being utterly ridiculous and hilarious. Nick talked about his last girlfriend, who was on the heavier side and loved fireworks. Fireworks was actually why they broke up. He kept talking during the fireworks, which distracted her from watching the fireworks. (Really? How can talking disrupt the loudest form of boring entertainment.) That is also what Nick thought, which led to their fight and then their break up. So the scene was then based on killing fat chicks and luring those chicks into the basement with fireworks. Machetes were mentioned. It became complete chaos, but the best part was watching Nick, who was not in the scene, turn bright red, not be able to stand because he was laughing so hard imagining his friends luring and then brutally murdering his ex-girlfirend. No one in the audience could even handle the amount of laughter that was occurring. Yes, that bit was a bit darker than their usual...sometimes, but it was amazing.

The other bit we have to mention came from the second week we went. (Yes, we have gone for 3 or 4 weeks in a row. ) Nick and Pete are playing 2 mothers in a scene and the one mother (Pete) is looking to redecorate her child's room now that they have moved out. Pete suggests sex dungeon. Nick, also a mother, starts talking about all the different things one can do in a sex dungeon. He rattles off a few and then ends it with this,"Sometimes you just want to get punched in the butt by a garden gnome." (Do you know what that means? Neither do they.) So, then the rest of the scene is played with Pete trying to get Nick to describe what that euphemism actually means. Nick, obviously having no idea, spends the scene trying not to describe what the euphemism means. The battle between the two makes this scene unbelievably funny. Then right when Nick is backed into a corner and about to explain, Pat runs across the stage and stops the scene. Everyone in the audience laughs and groans because they wanted to know. Joey then runs out and actually explains. (But sorry guys, we don't remember the explaination. Maybe that's a good thing.)

The next part of the night is our time at the bar where we obviously become best friends with the PBFs and by "best friends" we mean, we talked/hung out with them a bit. They are really nice, personable guys. (They might deny that) Okay, if you are not a big improv fan (I don't understand why you wouldn't be but to each his/her own.) there is one other major reason to come out on Tuesday night, and that is to see Nick perform karaoke. There is no one that can beat his performance of "I Want You Back" by the Jackson 5. So if you go, don't sing that song. Nick will kill you. He owns the stage. That alone should get you to come and see these guys and get a FREE beer.

Now it is on a Tuesday, so that is hazardous for those of us who work because they might end up at work the next day covered with PBFs stamps all over their face and arms. The stamp ink does not come out easily and forced me (Katie) to wear long sleeves to the office in order to not have my boss ask questions. It also kinda looked like I got punched in the face because the ink smears just fine, so it looked like a little blue blotch on my face. It was very flattering.

So what should you be getting from this long convoluted post? If you are in the Chicago land area, make time on a Tuesday night to see some cheap funny theatre and get a free beer with The Potential Boyfriends. You will see us there, laughing our asses off. How will you know it's us. Just do the #trainwreck hand signal, which goes as follows. Put your arm straight out toward the person you believe is a fellow #trainwreck, and then with your palm facing them, move it in a circular motion. If they are a #trainwreck, they will respond by doing that same hand gesture but with the hand/palm facing themselves. Basically this is silently saying to them "#trainwreck" and them responding "obviously." We hope to see you there!

Check out PBFs Facebook Page Here: http://www.facebook.com/potentialbfs?fref=ts
If you like the page, you will know about all their shows and what not.

Make sure to follow us too on:

Twitter: Andimatrainwrec (Katie), npalmerco08 (Nora)

Tumblr: Aaannddimatrainwreck (official), kahildreth (Katie), stillnuttypony (Nora)

The Women Of Comedy

Okay, I will be the first to say, I am not a feminist nut. Seriously a well placed "get back in the kitchen" is hilarious to me. Granted if you say that to me, your house may burn to the ground. (Just a warning. Ask me about the Toaster Waffles sometime.) To many, these type of jokes seem to weaken society, but to me, it's empowering. We have literally taken that phrase and made it our own to make others laugh.

Also, I am usually not the biggest fans of female comedians. No, this is not me saying that only old weird looking white dudes are funny. Granted they are hysterical. But so many women tend to fall into the trap of either, trying to ignore that they are woman and only making the vulgerist of jokes to prove they can keep up with men, or making every joke about how they have cramps and how men are retarded. There are obviously places for those jokes, but it should not be everything. That is why in this post,  I would like to show my appreciation for my three favorite female comedians. (In no particular order.) These women know what's up.

1. Amy Poehler- Let's just start with how amazning Parks and Rec. is. It is one of the best comedies on television in my opinion. Let's hope NBC doesn't do something dumb and take it off the air. She built such great and diverse characters in this crazy little town. It makes you almost believe local politics can work. If you have not seen it, please go on netflix and watch. (See I said please. I am being nice today.) If you don't have netflix, go on hulu. If you don't have either, I am not sure why you are reading this, and I would like to ask how you survive like a #trainwreck without at least one. At least one that is borrowed (stolen) from a friend. Sorry tangent. I do that a lot. Bare with! (Miranda anyone? We will get there).

Okay back to Miss Poehler. Now we all remember her on SNL as well. She played characters like Hilary Clinton and hosted Weekend Update. She even rapped better then some actual rap artists. Then even her small appearances like presenting an Emmy, she makes an impression. I can't say "I lied!" without thinking of her. She has done so much for women in comedy.

Then not only is she an amazing Comedian, but her message is fantastic, especially in Parks and Rec. She is able to empower women though her comedy. You see this obviously kooky and over-invested person and think she is crazy. However, if she just says she is going to be President, suddenly you're like, "Well if Leslie Knope can, I can!" Her character is always uniquely herself and never wavers from that. She is the most positive female role-model, I have seen on mainstream TV in a while, but is absolutely friggin hilarious at the same time. It's like you're learning to be an empowered woman through hypnosis because as you watch you really don't realize what is happening. All of sudden you're like "I can be anything! Thanks Leslie!" Truly, she is amazing! Also, UCB is fantastic.


2. Tina Fey- She is the one who made me decide that I wanted to work in comedy. Even if I am just the coffee girl on a cable access improv group show, I don't care. I will work in comedy in some form.(Hey Chris Hardwick, do you need someone to run Nerdmelt in Chicago???? My co-writer and I would be perfect.) Hell, as long as this blog exists and I laugh while writing it, I am doing pretty good. Well, hopefully others are laughing. (Nope. Just at me then. Oh well).

But seriously. I started watching 30 Rock and was just mesmorized by it. Liz is almost the perfect example of a #Trainwreck. She makes me happy to be one. Nothing goes right in her life, she is constantly stressed, she is the nerdiest person she knows, and she barely gets the admiration she deserves. That is how I feel most of the time. (Okay, all the time.) Of course, everyone feels that way in some capacity, but she is the person I want to be, so it's more special to me!

She was also the first female head writer of SNL. If that is not a thing for women, then I don't understand the world. (Well, I don't but I understand that!) She makes me want go for what I want and makes me believe that as long as I am doing what I love, I will find happiness in someway. Even if most people don't consider an over-stressed comedy junkie to be happy at all, I do.


3. Miranda Hart- Okay, I should not have favorites of favorites, but if I had to choose, Miranda Hart would win. I only recently discovered her because of my new obsession with British Panel shows. She was on Big Fat Quiz 2011. Have you seen our Big Fat Quiz of the USA post? It is quite ( and the American version of "quite" which means "very or really") good. I am biased though, but seriously, my co-writer and I worked hard! Sorry back on track! Bare with! (Get it now?? "Bare with" is a line from Miranda!) After watching the quiz,  I obviously internet stalked and found her on Would I Lie to You, The Graham Norton Show, her Sitcom and everything else. (I have a lot of free time and I don't sleep. Leave me be!) I am also ordering her book and just ordered the dvds....I kinda had an amazon.co.uk binge the other day. Yeah, no paycheck for me. Amazon is getting all my money.

Miranda is the perfect example of #trainwreck. (and I obviously am using #Trainwreck in a positive way). If you have not watched her show, here are some examples of her trainwreck-y-ness: She is constantly falling, lying, and acting just obscenely awkward in so many situations. She tells an old crush she is an olympic gymnast. And even though I watch this and constantly see how much of a mess her life is, I want to be her anyway because she just seems to be having so much fun in the not-so-perfect life she has created. She never lets criticism stop her and she lives how she wants, even if that includes fruit friends and a hoover vacuum dressed as man. So it is okay for me live online, have one friend, and watch British Panel shows and call it "research" for my career. Normal is whatever definition I choose.

Each of these woman has added great things to the comedy world and I salute each one. I hope you check out some of the things I have mentioned here because you'll laugh. And if you don't want to laugh you may want to seek help. Thanks and goodnight!


Make sure to follow us on:
Twitter: Andimatrainwrec (Katie), npalmerco08 (Nora)
Tumblr: Aaannddimatrainwreck (official), kahildreth (Katie), stillnuttypony (Nora)

The Blog Turns One Month Old Today

N: Good timing for a thank you post?
K: I think so! So I guess we should do that then.

Welcome to our writing process.

That's definitely, actually, just about how it happened. I know, I don't know why anyone reads this either. (oops, there's Katie in the background "Because we're HILARIOUS. Obviously." Way to be humble Katie.)

Now that all most some of the crazy has been let out, to the real stuff.

You guys are freaking awesome. Our blog just turned one (month) old today, and we have had 1200+ views. In four weeks. Seriously, awesome sauce (yes, I just said that). For a blog that may or may not have started as a joke between the two of us, you have no idea how much all of you reading this means to us.  We've

HIJACKED! Nora has left to get our delicious bread-sticks out of the oven. Now that this blog has a following, it is time to discuss the real reason we started this. It is for my (Katie's) plan of world domination. I will need help though. As you know, Rome was not built in a day. Oh god, she's coming back. We will discuss later. *Acting Nonchalant*

And stolen back. This is a blog so I understand perfectly well that you can't see us, but I just rolled my eyes at her.

Welcome to our friendship.

Where was I...oh right, in the middle of a sentence. We've been read by countries I've never even heard of (Oman, right?), countries that I totally wish I WAS from (the UK for a certain co-writer and Spain for me. Hablas espanol? I do.), gained like a million (ish) new tumblr and twitter followers. Okay, Katie is sitting next to me and just interrupted my internal monologue with "A million, really? More like 20." I responded with "That's what the ISH is for." Co-writers, so annoying. Katie just sent an evil glare at me, awkward.

We've even been RE-TWEETED by some, okay one, of our favorite subjects. A Justin Robinett for those of you still reading this. We've also expanded our youtube-music worldviews. Stay tuned.


All in all, it has been a super mega foxy awesome hot (Starkid anyone? No?? We'll get there.) month. And we could not have done it without your support. Like seriously, we've had a blog before..one post. Went real well. You've had us for a month and we're not bored yet! Yay!

You're awesome.  I talk too much. Katie's looking at me bored. So we're done. Keep reading, we'll keep posting. We love you.



oh and one last thing THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!! No seriously, we love you.




In case you are not yet following us on the Twitter and the Tumblr, feel free to @andimatrainwrec or @npalmerco08 (or both, your choice) on the Twitter and aaanndimatrainwreck (official) or stillnuttypony or kahildreth on the Tumblr. That'd be super awesome.

Nerdgasm #4

We've met right? You know that I love everything to do with the Nerdist? Watch this video because it not only takes nerdy stuffs happening around the internet this week, the show is formatted in a sports center type thing. Katie calls it SportsCenter for Nerds.

Just watch it.

Do You Know Who Stephen Fry Is?

So the other day, I spent my night watching QI a British Panel show. (No I don't watch too many...okay maybe I do but it's my sad/awesome life choice. Don't Judge me.) Anyhoo, this show is hosted by none other than the great Stephen Fry. Please tell me that when your read that name you knew who it was. He is a phenomenal and super famous British Comedian. He had a show with Hugh Laurie (House) for god's sake.

Well, I told my mother what I was doing, and in a vain attempt to make it seem less frivolous to her, I told her it was hosted by Stephen Fry.  He is a credible, renowned comedian that anyone would want to watch, and therefore my mother would obviously approve of my activities.  However, she just looked at me and asked, "Who is that?" I was floored. How could she not know? Everyone knows. Right? Right? I am not crazy? Well, I am but that's another post. So, I then asked my friend and co-writer of this blog if it was weird my mother did not know who he was. She agreed (see not crazy...okay she is not the best person to vouch for sanity), but then she told me her family really had no idea who it was either. So I was back to square one.

All these occurrences made me think. Maybe my world view is skewed, and I have not realized it until now. I literally watch and research so much into my shows that what I consider common knowledge may not be common at all. Not everyone knows who Stephen Fry is. Not everyone knows that Who is not Doctor Who's surname. (Catherine Tate). Not everyone knows that Supernatural started 2005, along with a lot of other great shows like The Office, How I Met Your Mother, and so on. 2005 was really a good year. Sorry off topic.  Not everyone knows that Joss Whedon's reaction to the writers strike was to write Dr. Horrible's Sing-A-Long Blog. Not everyone knows that the Mascot of Greendale is the Human Beings. Not everyone knows that "Once More with Feeling" premiered almost exactly 11 years ago today. Not everyone knows that J.K. Rowling's favorite animal is an otter and that's why Hermione's (the character she considers most like herself) patronus is also an otter. And that Jack Russell Terriers are known to chase otters which is why Ron's patronus is a Terrier because he chased/liked Hermione. Okay, I that last one is a stretch. I got a little carried away.

But seriously, I really thought that people would know who Stephen Fry is regardless of their British, TV, or comedy interests. He is just a known name. I guess that is not true. Now, I am reflecting on all my TV facts and just wondering which is me being a #trainwreck and which is just a me being normal (as normal as I can be.)

It could be a generational thing. Do You know who Stephen Fry is?