April / May 2005

 

It's good to be the King (at Epcot)

It's been roughly two weeks since the debut of Tortugapalooza 2: Spies in Florida. We've allowed ourselves some much-needed downtime relaxation, but now it's time to get back to work. It is 8:05 in the morning - those of you who have been reading these journals know that this is late for me as I am an early riser - and I am currently sitting at our friend EJ's work desk at his home in Gastonia (near Charlotte), North Carolina.

I've come to stay here once more for a short revisit and to belatedly celebrate his and his wife Charity's one-year anniversary. We've had a delightful time together doing what we always do: playing Xbox, dinning out, shopping, and conversing about the multiple paths our lives happen to be taking. Speaking of which...Charity is "with child." Dylan Thomas Beam will arrive somewhere in and around four months from now. This means that the next time I see Charity she will be sporting a tiny, adorable clothes rack for all the baby outfits she's been buying of late.

We have plans for dinner at Kabuto Japanese Steakhouse and Sushi Bar in Charlotte on Thursday. Hopefully joining us will be Suzi & Dave and Robbie & April (though I have yet to hear back from these two). The last, and the first, time we all got together was in December for my birthday. Everyone had a good time, and we all promised to do it again soon.... And so we are!

 

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Another day; another early morning journal entry. I heard from Robbie & April yesterday. It seems that they are in the process of moving into new digs, and might not be able to attend the dinner tonight. Suzi called and said that she and Dave couldn't find a sitter for her two kids, but EJ suggested that they bring them along, too. I still have hope for tonight's success - we'll see.

I have yet to comment on the Palooza 2 show. I'm sure that it's the first thing mentioned in both Ronn's and Jef's journals, and that they both give it the proper kudos that it deserves, but I'm having a hard time putting it into words. (If you can believe that!) It is all a blur of stress-bliss-stress, and I am hesitant of jumping into a description of the memory with a retelling that might not do it justice. (Writer's block can be a bitch!) Oh well, enough of my kvetching; let's dive in, shall we....

 

Dr. Phoenix video shoot rehearsal

Jef luvs on our video-guy, Adam

Pre-Palooza lunch at Maggiano's

The time spent before the show was a jumble of last-minute searches for still-missing props and pulling our collective shit together. Who'd have thought that a Wonder Woman comic book would be so hard to find... or that the second year in doing this we'd wind up, yet again, editing video right up to the eleventh hour...or we'd have the staffing issues we did with so many of our usual "go-to" people wanting to see the show instead of working it.

The break-down/Afterparty time was both better and worse than last year's Florida event. Breaking down went a lot more smoothly, with very little direct Tortuga involvement. There was the logistical problem of not enough space for too much crap - a problem that was resolved through the help of our very resourceful Tortuga Minions. Much thanx, Jimmy, Kevin, Chris, Mark, Adam, and Steve & Laurel! However, we were not as pleased with the Afterparty as we would like to have been. As a result, we have added a few more things to check off our pre-Palooza list, and we will not be using the Centro again in an Afterparty capacity.

 

Jef makes friends with a pilot on the Cursed Delayed Flight back to GA

Ronn asleep at Tampa International

Then there was the trying to get back to Atlanta for a festival show the next day. We were up at o-dark-thirty, and just a hop, skip, and a jump away from Tampa International - helps to be staying at the Airport Marriott. It was a good thing, too. Otherwise we would not have been able to get stuck at the boarding gate, waiting many hours for the weather around Atlanta to clear. We made it back in time to do two of our four shows, and boy was the management not happy with us on that day. Not to worry, though, we managed to smooth everything over in true Tortuga style. (What's a little bribery/extortion amongst friends/business associates?)

Now, as for Palooza 2 itself....

I would have to say that it has to be one of the most, if not the most enjoyable performance experiences that I have ever had! Everything fell into place. Each of the jokes that we were worried about brought down the house. We were also concerned that, with a show that was so scripted, there would be no room for "our brand" of improv. This, too, proved to be unfounded. Basically, we had a blast...and so did you! We got nothing back but rave reviews and declarations that this Palooza did no less than outshine last year's performance.

 

It's so Good to be Bad!

TortugaPalooza 2 starring Johnny Phoenix (with the Tortuga Twins)

With Cowhead at the country radio station the Outlaw, in Tampa

So now we are enjoying a brief respite. We have rewarded ourselves with two Xboxes (for Ronn and I), and a Playstation PSP (for Jef to diddle around with). Soon we will be off to Ohio where we all put down before flying out of Pittsburg to the Council Bluffs, Iowa show and the new Port Angeles ('bout two hours north west of Seattle), Washington show. I think that by that time both Ronn and I will also have PSPs so that we can join Jef in some head-to-head gaming during the flights.

Oh, yes, and we did manage to catch the Revenge of the Sith opening at 12:01am last Thursday morning. We loved it. It wasn't Gone with the Wind or nuthin' fancy like that, but damn it gave us some nice geek candy to chew on.

And on that note, I bid you adieu. Enjoy life, my Tortugaholics... and may the Force - whether you lean towards the Dark Side or the Light - always be with you.

 

Whipmaster Jef puts a spankin' on those vicious Georgia mosquitos

Tortuga friends Steve and Laurel from Faire Folk Creations

Ronn with favorite fans Angie and Sharyn