36 Comments
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Ofifoto's avatar

I got held up in traffic getting to this piece, but what an experience! Thank you for sharing it. I'm with you in being prepared. The 5 Ps are my inspiration. (Proper Planning Prevents Poor Performance)

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Lyns McCracken's avatar

I remember seeing your note about the pigeon a few weeks back and now I have more context 😍. This was such a delight to read! I respect you even more for writing this for the time seed pod when your daylight savings time post you already wrote could have perfectly fit the bill. Well done! Subscribing immediately!

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Amanda Jaffe's avatar

Thank you so much! To be completely transparent, I actually posted this the day before the seedpod opened. I thought about going with the other one, but this one seemed a little less on the nose. It just felt right. Thank you for subscribing! That means a lot to me.

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Terry Gaffney's avatar

Liked the 'you can go big and go home.'

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Amanda Jaffe's avatar

Thank you, Terry, and thanks for taking the time to read!

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Linda Thompson's avatar

Wow, I've never heard of something like this. Good for you for staying the course!

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Amanda Jaffe's avatar

If you ever have the chance to try some marathon theater, I highly recommend it!

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Joey Held's avatar

I’ve never ran the New York Marathon but I’d like to think it would be a quicker endeavor 😄 thanks for giving me some good laughs while I’m sitting at a car repair shop!

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Amanda Jaffe's avatar

Are you done at the car shop yet? Because that's an entirely different kind of marathon. Thanks for reading, Joey!

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Joey Held's avatar

That visit was quick...the one before held onto it for nearly two weeks! Truly a far less enjoyable marathon.

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Jessie's avatar

That’s quite an interesting concept for a performance but idk if I’d be able to make it through!

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Amanda Jaffe's avatar

That's what everyone's saying...but if you believe you can, you will! You just have to look inside yourself around Act 3, dig deep, and push on!

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Lorraine Graybill's avatar

As a fan of audio books, I was definitely intrigued for your review of Gatz. I'm glad it was good! But you really need to pass along your t-shirt idea -- "I Satz through Gatz" is simply brilliant!

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Amanda Jaffe's avatar

If the writing thing doesn't work out, writing pithy t-shirt slogans just might! Thanks, Lorraine! I really appreciate you taking the time to read and comment!

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Mark Jaffe's avatar

Ah, root canal or a marathon play - hard choice.

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Amanda Jaffe's avatar

For some....

You missed a great bowl of nabeyaki udon!

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Rona Maynard's avatar

OMG, it’s not a joke. This play actually exists and nicely complements your sense of humor. Glad I read this, definitely skipping the play.

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Amanda Jaffe's avatar

If you skip the play, you don't get the t-shirt! Thanks so much for reading and taking the time to comment, Rona. Much more efficient than the play (which really was a fascinating experience), no?

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Ed's avatar

This was great! I'm awed by your stamina. I'm a theatre person but I don't think I could have done it. My favorite phrase is "Ninety minutes, no intermission."

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Amanda Jaffe's avatar

And mine is "How close are our seats to the bathroom?" Thank you, Ed. I appreciate your readership!

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Tim Burns's avatar

It sounds like a long, but interesting, day. But having sat through many a long theater engagement and many a root canal, I'll take the theater. Hell, I'd take the theater over the opera, and that's saying something for me.

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Amanda Jaffe's avatar

Choose anything over a root canal, Tim! The day (and night) were truly interesting. I think you would've found it fascinating.

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Tim Burns's avatar

I think I would have enjoyed it too, so long as I had a remote control to pause it every once in a while for a bathroom break. :-)

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Chris Stanton's avatar

I totally would have gone to that. It sounds cool. Andy Kaufman would sometimes go on stage and read The Great Gatsby to the audience until he emptied the place out. He had a different agenda than this, obviously. Also, “I Satz Through Gatz” is hilarious. What a missed opportunity!

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Amanda Jaffe's avatar

I remember when Andy Kaufman used to do that. Clearly, it's all in the delivery! Thanks so much, Chris!

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Paige Okun's avatar

You’re back with birds. You really cannot help yourself. And I’m surprised you didn’t dovetail (oh, yes I did say that) more birds in the reference to East and West Egg…did you feel like a hatchling at the start and end sparing like an eagle?

Well written as always.

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Amanda Jaffe's avatar

Seriously, Paige, until you mentioned it, I didn't realize I'd done it again! And totally missed the whole Egg thing....Thank you for that! And, as always, thanks so much for taking the time to read and comment.

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Laura Grossman's avatar

I won’t have Sam read this until after his root canal on Friday. 🫣

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Iris Nagler's avatar

You were very brave to have sat through such a marathon of a play. Kudos to you!

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Amanda Jaffe's avatar

It was easier than you think!

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Good Humor by CK Steefel's avatar

I'm too old. I remember seeing Mahabharata at BAM in the late 80s. It was 12 hours long. Jeffrey and I brought lunch and picnicked in the lobby along with many other, I suspect, starving actors.

I would imagine that the highlight of your day was being with your kid. 🥰

Anne Kadet just wrote a funny piece about the giant Pigeon.

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Amanda Jaffe's avatar

When worlds collide! Everything Anne writes is so good. I look forward to reading her piece!

A twelve-hour production of the Mahabhrata. More a triathlon than a marathon. I hope you brought more than just lunch! I would sign up for that in a heartbeat.

And, yes, the highlight of my day (and my evening) was being with the kid. Whichever the kid, it always is....

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Good Humor by CK Steefel's avatar

Yeah. I’d go Axe throwing if it meant being with my kids.

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Amanda Jaffe's avatar

Yeah, but would you go to one of those places that combines axe-throwing with a bar? That never seemed like a good idea to me.

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Good Humor by CK Steefel's avatar

Right? Whats up with that? Axe throwing without booze is an odd game.

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