Just For Laughs and Louis CK

(Note: I started writing this on July 28th, then didn't finish it. Then I rewrote it today, August 14th, and Blogger is giving me credit for having written it on July 28th. I don't know how I feel about that. Or whether it even matters. Moving along...)

A few weeks ago Montreal hosted their annual Just For Laughs festival. Last I heard, it was the largest comedy festival in the world and always attracts some pretty big names in comedy. In fact, let me do a little research...

Well, I can only find the 2007 numbers right off the bat, since that was the 25th anniversary of the festival and they broke all their records, which were probably broken once again this year.

Number of indoor shows: 445
Number of outdoor shows: 1288
Number of artists: 1,682
Number countries represented: 19
Number of venues: 25
Festival attendance including ticketed and outdoor attendance: an estimated 2 million people

So that gives you all an idea of how big this thing is. All that to say, I went to see Louis CK on July 24th and was pretty much blown away. Not only that, but Jimmy Carr surprise opened for him with a quick 20 minute set before Louis took the stage. I'm a pretty big fan of Jimmy Carr and wouldn't hesitate to see him headline an event, so it was a real treat to see him open.

And then Louis CK came out and threw down 90 minutes of comedy. It was pretty impressive, to say the least. The first 70 minutes was all new material that I'd never heard, coming from someone who is putting out one hour specials every year. He recently went through a divorce, so his usual family themed (but definitely not family friendly) observations all had a new twist to it as he spoke about splitting up and being single again. And then for an encore, he went into an extended version of his "Everything is awesome, nobody is happy" bit that he did on Conan and is now a YouTube sensation. I posted it a few months ago, for anyone not familiar, just click on the Louis CK label to find it.

By the end of the evening my face hurt. The laughs were pretty much non-stop. I don't think a whole minute went by without cracking up. If that wasn't a big name comedian performing at the top of his game, then I don't know what is.

Slacking a little bit...

So it's been a long time since I've posted anything here, or anywhere, for that matter. Here's the scoop of what I've been up to lately and for the next little while...

I moved on July 1st and was really busy with that. I'm pretty much settled in now, although I've still got a few boxes to unpack and shelves to put up, it's at the point where I'm comfortable enough that I've lost motivation to keep unpacking. Why do work when you can sit and watch tv? Then, I've got two weddings to go to in the next couple weekends, including a few parties and seeing lots of friends visiting from out of town. And I'm still playing softball a couple times a week, primarily on the open mic nights.

Unfortunately, because of all this, I haven't had much time to do anything comedic lately. I suppose I should be making the time, but I've been sidetracked by that other stuff. I keep seeing my classmates going to shows (in some cases multiple times a week) and I can't help but feel like I'm really slacking off right now. I'm not even getting out there to support them because I've got something going pretty much every night.

I've gotta start putting other stuff on hold and making stand-up more of a priority. Which is easier said than done, but I might as well let everyone know that I know that I'm a slacker. Which should also come as no surprise to anyone who knows me.