March 31 - Goodbye, Corporate Blues

We didn't sleep very well. The night before a big goodbye usually includes a groggy dawn of restless last gropes. At 5am we paid a somnambulent farewell as couples do. I handed her overpacked suitcase to the cab driver and watched her long witch's fingers wave bye. The counting begins now.

Today I played a blues drummer in a music video for Second City. A giant corporation hired them to make a video that would appeal to executives, coaxing them to come to the big conference. So they recorded a blues song with goofy corporate lyrics and hired about 15 improvisers to play various office roles. Most of them were friends of mine, or people I knew of through the big, socially awkward family of improv.

At 8am I arrived at a deserted office space by Navy Pier. Often when improvisers get together they often like to riff and do bits. It can be fun, there's often a lot of laughter. Sometimes I participate, but in recent years I've preferred to keep quiet and to myself. There's only so many silly non-conversations one can have. Also, at 8am a small break room filled with big, loud energy can be trying.

So I explored the rest of the office where time had stopped. It was a shithole. And seemed very male. I discovered boxes of old wall plaques, an instruction manual for Windows 95, and a key marked VEGAS. The kitchen had its plumbing ripped from the walls. Every cubicle had been electronically raped, with a showerhead of wires poking limp from the wall.

A cubicle tucked away in a corner became my dressing room. I hung my suits on one of the dead showerheads and took a nap in an executive chair with a broken arm.

The extras and band enjoyed a warm and decent catered meal while the leads worked on the set, blocking for this long one-shot. A lot of time was spent wandering around munching on errant chips, donuts, and jerky, waiting for something to do.

In the afternoon it was time for the extras and the band to hit the set. My drums sat atop a large corporate meeting table. Joining me on the table were Eileen on Fender bass and Anthony on keyboard. The premise was that news of the big conference turns the dull office into a blues club. Again, all in one long take. Since the band comes in at the very end of the video, we mostly sat in the separated meeting room, listening to the takes and doing half-baked bits in between. See: British accents.

Out in the office, the improvisers were riffing pretty hard. It's fun to play make believe about the corporate world when it's not what you actually have to do. Everyone was pretending to be stressed out, yelling about faxes and reports and deadlines. I even got in on it a little when I pretended an old calculator was an old cellphone. I've still got it!!!

We did about twelve takes and wrapped by 5pm. Oh, yeah and I got paid about three times what I make at my delivery job.

It was a beautiful day out. I ate an Italian beef (sweet and dipped) on a gusty strip of River North and headed to Bitter Tears practice. Fatigue made me a bit sloppy and a bit cranky about being sloppy. We practiced four songs we plan to record next week in Indiana for a European tour EP.

Despite having a lucrative day on a video shoot and a productive band practice, I can't really call a day with a long goodbye to Lauren a win.

Verdict: Loss