"i'm a lumberjack, and i'm okay!"

well, if the rain and crappy weather don't turn him away, matt pilcher should be arriving some time this evening for a weekend visit. and he will have come a long way in the past few weeks to do so. but first let me tell you a little about mateo.

matt was responsible for my first and only acting experience in high school. matt was a thespian - black turtleneck, big curly head of hair on top of a football player's body, fearless on stage beyond measure. we were both freaks our senior year of high school, but matt was a bigger one - i was told by yearbook staff that i came in second to him for the yearbook award of "most original." which, of course, is just the student body's euphemistic way of saying "weirdest motherf*%ker in our class."

anyway, my first and only acting experience onstage (to this day) - was as a chorus member in the monty python lumberjack skit, which we performed at the spring "spectrum" talent show. it's a funny, funny skit that, um... well, let's just say it explores gender roles. matt was the lumberjack.

keep in mind, this skit was performed in front of hundreds of parents and younger brothers and sisters of students. if you're unfamiliar with it, i will now include some lyrics:

I cut down trees, I skip and jump
I love to press wild flow'rs
I put on women's clothing
And hang around in bars

chorus repeats:
He cuts down trees, he skips and jumps...
He's a lumberjack and he's okay...

matt went on to finish a masters at the university of arizona, learn arabic, and now he works for the state department (i think - matt may have to correct me on this one). anyway, he just got back from working at the embassy in kuwait city, and now he does stuff like this.

he was present in may when kuwaiti women were finally given the right to vote. i imagine he's seen some pretty remarkable things over there, and i can't wait to talk to him about it.

i am infinitely impressed by the good work that he's doing, and consider myself lucky to call him a friend.