Quality over quantity… I’ve always said that.

My new job at Make It Work has got me busier than I’ve ever been; I’m working nights and Saturdays, trying to work as much as possible so I can make some cash dollars. So far things have been going really well – of the sixty or so consultants in the company, I was ranked number four during my first month of appointments! Pretty kickass – and all the bosses and higher-ups like me. I’ve been to some insanely rich people’s houses, which is always fun. You know when you think “rich people”, you think the driveway at the top of the hill with the gate that opens to the big front door, and then the twirly grand staircase inside, and everything is all gold and frilly and somebody is wiping down the banisters and somebody else is repainting the fence around the olympic sized pool? Been there.
My Mini Cooper has already been to the shop twice (for small dashboard tweaks and fixes), and has made me appreciate it that much more.

Pickup trucks? They suck. I have to drive one for a few days, and I now know what it must be like to be a 300 lb person. Do some situps, Dodge Dakota.

VW Bugs? They also suck. I had no idea – I figured it would be a fun, zippy little car to cruise around in while my Mini was at the doctor’s. Nope. The Bug is a little too big to feel truly small, and it can’t handle its own power – from a stop, if you hit the gas slightly hard, the tires squeal and you look like an idiot. In your yellow Bug. Mine was yellow.

Yeah, yellow. Shut up.

Did you watch the big game? It was really close, I couldn’t believe they pulled out a win at the last second… very impressive. I am of course referring to the Puppy Bowl, the Greatest Sport on Television. The adorableness was simply off the charts this year. What with the frolicking and what not. Go Pups Go!

My parents came in to LA this weekend to visit my sister and I… it was great to see them. I’ve definitely become a lot closer to them in the last few years. I spose it’s because I’ve matured during and after college and can relate to them better now. I don’t automatically hate anything that they like anymore… that’s a step in the right direction, right? When I tell them that the weather here could be a little warmer, they politely remind me that back in Chicago, they have four feet of snow and to quit my complaining. California is crazy – I was driving through the hills in Malibu a few weeks ago thinking “Man, it must be brutal to get up these twisty turns when they’re covered with six inches of snow… ah yes… that doesn’t exist here.” These people have no idea what real weather is.

Dan and I went to the Grammys last Sunday! What a trip… I rented a tux and we got lookin’ all spiffy and rolled into the Staples Center like we owned the place. Pretty damn cool to see so many huge stars in one place. I’ve now seen Tina Turner, John Mayer, Alicia Keys, Beyonce, Daft Punk, Aretha Franklin, Little Richard, Jerry Lee Lewis, and I was even lucky enough to see the magnificent Mr. Kanye West give one of his trademark uber-cocky thank-you speeches and then get dissed by none other than Vince Gill. The afterparty was pretty cool too, and I fell in love with Natasha Beddingfield. What a babe!

A few final announcements.
Erik is going to open for me at the big show at Lynn University! I got the programs board to fly him out to Florida too so we can hang all weekend and then rock the show on Monday, March 17th. Anybody near Boca Raton should come, I promise to be funny!

My favorite skydiving model/dreamgirl Heather has moved to Zambia for the next year to work for a company called FORGE. I donated $50 to their cause and they won a $10,000 grant by one vote (donation) – so she’s sitting pretty because of yours truly. Yup. All me.

I’m going to Oakland this weekend to visit my Explo homey Elli – should come back with some good stories and pictures, so you won’t have to wait another two months for my next post.

After only going for a few weeks, I’m already hosting the open mic at the Hollywood Improv! Holy cwap! Tomorrow is my first time hosting there… I’m pumped.

And finally, I bit the bullet and bought a really nice HD camcorder and shotgun mic. I should have new standup videos soon. Stay tuned.

Finally settled into Santa Monica! And it feels so good.
I was offered the job at Make It Work during my interview, and after going home to Chicago for Thanksgiving, I took it. Such a weird job. I drive around in a free Mini Cooper going from house to house (about 3-4 appointments per day), meeting a bunch of new people each day, and working on computers and home theaters and all that fun stuff. As geeky as it is, I love setting up home theater systems. I have no idea why – I like connecting everything and making it all nice.
So, the job has been going really well so far… I’m fixing problems, installing huge TVs and new computers, making lots of friends, and I’ve already gotten two cute female relative offers. “Oh Peet, do you have a girlfriend? You would love our granddaughter!” and so forth. The really weird thing about the job is that there’s no office to go into – I mean, we have an office in Santa Barbara (a two hour train ride west along the coast), but I’ve only been there once and I don’t know when I’d be back. I wake up, and all of my appointments are in my Crunchberry, and I go to my appointments. I don’t know when I’ll ever meet the other employees! It’s a totally solo job and I kind of like that, i don’t have to rely on anyone but myself.

And, meeting crazy people is already starting to provide me with stories to tell on stage. “I don’t care if the computer guy is here, you said Brian was gonna live here for 3 days, it’s been 2 months, I want you back! I hate you! Go have another drink!”

True story.

I’m actually typing this on my company-issued MacBook in a Starbucks using the company-issued wireless account, and I got here in my company-issued Mini. And my first appointment today is setting up a lady’s super sweet new universal remote about 4 blocks away from my house.

Speaking of my house, my roommates have left me all alone in our four bedroom townhouse until this Sunday! Silly gentiles, all going home for Santa’s birthday. How ridiculous! Having the whole place to myself has really removed a lot of distractions(granted, they were fun distractions and I’d much rather be hanging with my roommates than cleaning my room) and I’ve finally had time to organize my space, unpack the last few boxes, and check a bunch of things off my to-do list. Last night I had run out of tasks so I thought I’d just go to bed, but then my friend Sarah (aka Crazyface) called me to come over and play board games. That quickly turned into playing with her Webkinz (god that’s the dumbest thing ever) and deceiving creepy dudes in an adult chatroom. Kids, if you haven’t done the “pretend to be someone else and say ridiculous stuff to weirdos in a chatroom” thing in a while, allow me to give it my full recommendation. I haven’t laughed that hard in a long time.

Comedy is coming along – January will be a step forward for sure. I auditioned and made it into a major comedy contest at the Ice House in Pasadena, I’ve booked a gig at No-Name Comics @ Room 5 (which is like a best of the underground, if you haven’t heard of these comedians, you should have), and I’m getting booked for the All-Headliner show at the HaHa Cafe in North Hollywood. I’m most excited about the contest… I can’t wait to show this place what I’m made of.
I’ve also got a semi major booking in the works – I’m lining up a headlining show at Lynn University in Boca Raton, FL for March. They’re flying me out and putting me in a hotel and paying me and everything! Crazy. I’m trying to get them to book Erik as well – we would put on a killer show together. With our combined handsomeness, the ladies won’t stand a chance! We should do a college tour called “The Sweet Boys That You Can Bring Home To Momma of Comedy”.

Catchy, right?