Debut

“Do one thing every day that scares you.” So proposed Chicago Tribune columnist Mary Schmish in 1997.

Check. Learned to sail, quit the jobs, sold the house, bought the boat, living on the boat, blowing through our cash on the boat, no reliable new sources of income yet on the boat. Thanks a lot, Mary.

OK, next proposition:

“Do one thing every day that humiliates you.” So proposed, uh, I, I think, just now.

On one hand, I suspect it’s derivative, although I can’t trace the original.
On the other hand, it does gain some leverage from more well-established propositions such as “Pride goeth before destruction” (Proverbs 16:18a, KJV) and “Humility is good for the soul” (commonly accepted wisdom offered in various shades and formats by at least 1,200 or so people as quoted on Goodreads.)

This admonition to garner one humiliating moment per day is, in my humble opinion, great advice for someone who thinks as often and as highly of himself as I do.

I wonder what great mind first proposed it.

Anyway, that’s why I spent a large part of last week writing and rehearsing four minutes of material for my first-ever open mike standup comedy set.

And this past Tuesday night at the Compass Bar here in Charleston, SC, I performed it.

It went just as I expected: I bombed.

And it was everything I was hoping it would be: I had a great time.

Below, I’ve posted the most successful portion of the set, about 84 seconds on the subject of my athletic ineptitude. So if you love great standup comedy, do not click the link.

But if you just want to witness a daily dose of my self-inflicted humiliation, please enjoy.