Masturbation, Skyline Chili, and Indie Books

What do the three have in common? Well, one is something I got to hear about in a comedy club, one was dinner, and the other is equally stimulating, just using a different (and very specific) part of your anatomy...

The Drunken Space Penguin found out really quick tonight why Ashley does not drink. Ashley can look at alcohol and get buzzed. Tonight, Ashley had TWO drinks. Ashley feels pretty darn good. :)

I had the pleasure of spending some time with my dear friend Michala (from Bite My Book) at the local comedy club, Comedy Caravan. We figured, eh, it's Thursday, we don't have anything really to do, and it's $2.00 admission tonight. Because it was amateur night. 

Now, I'm all about supporting local and indie authors, artists, bands, musicians, comedians, and whathaveyou, because since joining the indie community myself, I realized there is some very REAL talent out there that often goes unrecognized because they simply haven't "made it to the big time" yet. And we had a few good laughs, one girl had me laughing pretty good, and one dude hit my funny bone. But I gotta say...there is a REASON it was $2 admission night. And there was also a reason why there were only six of us in there tonight. 

But if you're looking for a good cheap night out where you can spend time with friends and have a few drinks while getting in a few laughs, amateur night is for you. If you're looking for an all out laugh-fest where you piss your pants twice, then piss your neighbor's pants from laughing so hard, you may want to spend a little more than two bucks. 

Now, I tell you this story not to drive traffic to Comedy Caravan (although for the most part, they're pretty good about finding and supporting good talent, and their higher priced shows have been known to be pretty awesome), but it was to stress the importance of supporting the indie community and giving them a fair shot. Okay, so their name isn't in lights and they're not headlining Showtime At The Apollo, and maybe they're not even that great yet. But I tell you one thing they're definitely not: giving up. 

So I will continue to support our indie comedians. Just like I support indie authors.Because every once in a while, you will come across a gem so perfectly perfect, that you have to tell your friends. You have to tell you family. You have to tell your Twitter followers and Facebook fans. You have to tell your great Aunt Charlotte's dog's brother's owner's step-son's cousin's nanny's grandfather's best friend's pet parakeet's former trainer's sister's mother's great grand-nephew's dog's groomer that lives next door to you. 

That's what Chris Stralyn is to the indie author community. A gem who's not giving up. So enter for a chance to win This Time You Lose, support an indie author, and see what you're missing by ignoring anything not pounded into your head by mainstream media. I bet you won't be disappointed.