Will 51 Be Tons O' Fun?

At 4:10a.m. I turned 51. Today, like that day over five decades ago, is Thanksgiving. I will be spending it with my dog and later, with friends.

I should probably have insightful, witty things to say on this occasion. Sadly, I do not. Maybe something will occur to me later.

Take care of yourselves, y'all. I am thankful for every sparkling day on this planet. UB2.

Broadway Series #2: Opening the Door to La Cage Aux Folles

Yesterday, my friend Missie and I went to Cleveland Playhouse to see the touring production of La Cage Aux Folles starring George Hamilton and Christopher Sieber. It was a rollicking good time.

I've seen other productions of La Cage, but this one played up the comedic aspects of the source material to a fantastic, almost slapstick degree. Sieber's Albin and strong voice did the role proud. His delivery of gay anthem "I Am What I Am" was heart-wrenching.

George Hamilton's performance as Georges was understated. His voice was tuneful and his dancing on target. His performance made any age considerations disappear.

Also worth noting was Billy Harrigan Tighe's performance as Jean-Michel. His clear, bright voice on "Look Over There" brought a tear to my eye.

I ran into some friends during intermission who seemed less enthused about the performance. Their primary criticism dealt with the sparse drag costuming, unaware that this tour was the minimalist 2010 revival production.

The cast did some fund-raising after the show for Broadway Cares. My only regret was not having cash to get a signed program. Missie and I hustled to the nearest ATM and back, but we were too late. I'm tempted to go back and try again.

After the show, Missie and I went to our regular hangout, Bricco, and had drinks while the parking deck cleared out. Once again, the restaurant was frequented by members of the cast. It's always interesting to see actors off-stage, interacting with the real world.

Next in our package: Hair in January. I can't wait!

Shenanigans: McDonald's Monopoly Game "1 in 4 Instant Winners"

I pass a McDonald's on my way to work after dropping Jake off at daycare. So, for good or ill, on those days when I want a quick breakfast or an easy dinner, I all-too often use their drive-thru.

The annual Monopoly game has traditionally been a pleasant diversion. I usually end up with a handful of instant winning tickets and had garnered a few online prizes, though nothing life-altering. However, this year I noticed a distinct change in the number of winning tickets. Once I realized there was a change, I started keeping track.

For 2011, the game started in restaurants in late September and ended yesterday, November 5, although most outlets ran out of game piece-bearing packaging sooner. According to the promotional pieces, the chances of winning are 1 in 4 with 125 million winning game pieces being distributed. Normally, I get enough instant winners to not give these statistics much thought. This year was different.

Over the course of that one-month-plus, I gathered 38 game pieces. (Keep in mind that most food items have more than one game piece, many have as many as 4 pieces.) Of those, I uncovered 1 instant winner. One. Singular. My actual winnings were 1 in 38.

I play the online "second chance" game and had 6 online wins. This brought my stats up to about 18%, still pretty distant from the supposed 25% winning rate. Five out of the 6 online wins were for Coke Rewards points, with the remaining prize being 20 free photo prints on Snapfish.

So, I'm calling shenanigans on McDonald's monopoly game this year. If I didn't take the time to play the online game, my disappointment would be much greater. Even with the online prizes, I suspect something is amiss. Anyone else notice?

Remember, Remember, the Fifth of November

"People should not be afraid of their governments. Governments should be afraid of their people."
- V for Vendetta