After the untimely death of
Richard Sher, I wasn't sure my favorite radio program
Says You! would be doing any more new episodes. Would one of the panelists take over his duties? Would it be a rotating position? Would anybody be able to match his ability to make terrible puns and draw the most obscure guesses from the panelists?
Glancing through their website a few weeks ago, I noticed two shows were announced. One was a "memorial" show in Bennington, Vermont, and the other was happening the next day down in Dorset. The second was simply being advertised as a standard show.
For weeks I mulled over whether or not I should attend. As a fan, I wasn't sure I'd ever get another chance to see the show again. I also wanted to be there to show solidarity for the program, and show that I, like many others, would miss Richard.
On the other hand, it wasn't going to be cheap. There were tickets to buy, a hotel room to book, gas for the car, dinner to get, and other, unknown expenses. I pondered this a lot up until I glanced online two weekends ago and saw that the tickets to the first performance were sold out. Well, I decided, that settled that.
...or did it? On a whim, I sent an email to the show asking if any more tickets might be released. I said I'd be willing to sit anywhere, be it in a balcony, off to the side, or in a folding chair just outside the auditorium so I can listen. The next day I received notice that there were two tickets available. I sought out anybody interested in going with me, but since it was such short notice for a radio program most of my friends have never listened to (thanks, MPBN), I soon found myself replying that I would love one ticket if they still had it.
I purchased a ticket for the second show, booked a hotel room, and planned out what to pack.
On Friday, I left work early, climbed into my car, and headed off into the wild green yonder. I went to somewhere that still has patches where I can best describe the quality of my cell phone signal as "Ha-ha, no."
For the remainder of this week, I'm going to be doing some observations from my trip, starting with something a bit more personal than the others.
