My funnest day yet!

Soooo - yesterday (this is Tim by the way) I had my most fun gig yet. I was booked - through an online casting company called LAcasting - on a video project that Bette Midler was having made to open for her big Las Vegas show starting next year. The premise is that a HUGE tornado tears through Las Vegas, picking up all sorts of "Las Vegas type" people - Elvis, a couple getting married, construction workers, showgirls etc. Well, I was booked as the groom AND a construction worker. It was such a blast. They put us in harnesses and then we put our costumes over top of the them and we were hooked into this suspension system in front of a huge green screen. We were hoisted above the ground and they blew a lot of air on us and we flipped around - all the while trying to continue the wedding ceremony. I'm not exaggerating when I say this - but it was probably one of the most physically demanding things I've ever done. I was drenched in sweat after the long takes and the director yelling different things for us to do. When I was a construction worker, they had us go from swaying in the wind to dancing to YMCA. By the end of that, I truly felt like I was going to throw up. But it was so fun and the director and crew all were so nice and told me they thought I was funny - SUCCESS!!! It was a non union gig (which means not much money) but you know - I'm really thankful for the experience and can only hope for more like it. Yet another chapter in living the dream!!

Oh - and by the way, if you happen to find yourself in Las Vegas next year, be sure to check out Bette's new show. It will be staged in Caesar's Palace and you won't be able to miss me. I'm at the very beginning on apparently the biggest screen in the history of mankind. Check it out. The picture I've included gives you an idea of what I was doing! Hope you're having an awesome day!!

DON'T WORRY - WE'RE SAFE!!!!

Hello Dear Readers (however many of you there might be)!

I (timmy) thought I would just take a minute to let you know that we are SAFE! We are NOT one of the 3/4 of a million people who've had to be evacuated because of these crazy fires. These fires, as you may have heard, are being rapidly spread by the Santa Ana winds - which blow east to west. Pasadena happens to be one of the further inland parts of LA - so the fire won't be coming out here. We also aren't directly in line with the winds so if a fire did start here, it would be quickly contained. So now you can sleep. Goodnight! :) Our good friend Amy Freeman is here and we took an awesome hike today on Echo Mountain and we could really see the smoke. At 1 pm, the color of the sun reflecting off the ground looked like sunset colors, not midday. Our neighbors told us today that they actually saw ash coming down like snow in Pasadena. I've got a few pictures attached for you to see. Please pray that we get some rain and that these wild fires stop.

In other news - Deb, Amy, and I had a great weekend visiting Deb's sister Pattie in San Diego. It only took us two hours to get down there. We got to spend time at the beach, shopping (ok, it was really the ladies dong the shopping), and we went down town for a nice dinner where I swear I had the BEST Mahi Mahi I've ever had - so good, in fact, that I took a picture of it. YUM! But it really was a fun weekend and if you haven't been, San Diego is just Gorgeous!

Tonight was really neat. Deb and I (ok, it was Deb) sent a homemade invitation to each of our neighbors last week inviting them to come drop in and have some milk and cookies with us tonight - Tuesday 10/23. We really just wanted the chance to meet our neighbors and show some hospitality to them. Three different apartments (out of 12) showed up. It was a really nice time and we look forward to getting to know them better as time goes along. Deb's cookies were AMAZING! We really enjoyed getting to talk with our next door neighbors. They are from Iran and couldn't be nicer - greeting us with hugs and kisses. We even got to meet their grandchildren and daughter in law.

So day by day we are establishing ourselves here. We're REALLY loving it. When you move from so far away, you really have no idea how it will turn out - but this is turning out to be so much fun! We've hosted our first out of state visitor - thanks Amy - we're waiting for more! Ok - I gotta get to bed. I'm working on a project for Bette Midler tomorrow :) Love you all!

And the journey continues...

Sorry it's been a little while since we last posted. We are definitely getting settled in here which means we're getting busier - woohooo!! The past week proved quite an eventful week with new exciting things. Debbie continued her week (if you can call only 3 days a week) of shaddowing. But she's beginning to get some patients of her own. The days are certainly long (I can finally sympathize with the long days I have to put in for background work) and tiring - but she is still excited about her future in the hospital - working, of course, NOT being a patient.

I worked on four different shows last week and all in all, it was pretty fun. I did my second open mic at LA's famous Laugh Factory. I went on 6th and felt pretty good about my bit (I did the being born bit again). I'm finding, though, that open mics aren't really that great. Basically - the only audience you get at most open mics...are the comedians. Besides that - the room is pretty much empty. Empty room with only comedians as the audience = not so great comedic experience. There's not really much energy so it makes it tough to get an accurate picture as to how well you did. I guess it's just part of the learning. I'm excited for my Novermber 18th gig because that should be a packed room with mostly regular people - not over critical distracted non - laughing comics. haha One day I can use these experiences as great stories for when I'm on the Late Show.

On another front altogether - I've been looking for just regular part time work. I had applied and been offered a job at a local bookstore but was really struggling with the fact that I'd have to work weekends and nights (times I'd rather be using for comedy and other stuff) AND I'd only be making minimum wage. It just wasn't going to offer me the flexibility I need to make the most of my time out here. So I was really thinking and praying a lot about this and I'm so excited about how God answered that prayer. I was talking with a guy on set the other day and he brought up - you ready for this - substitute teaching!! In LA - you need a bachelors degree (check) and to pass the cbest test (not yet a check). But it's day by day schedule and in LA - get this - they pay $170 a day - and you're done each day by 3!! Plus - I think I'd really enjoy working with middle school and high school students! So I'm going to begin the process of becoming one of the most abused people in the public school system today - a substitute (hey, I'm always looking for new material). I won't be able to take the test until December 1st - but we're really excited about this possibility. It's really just perfect! So pray that I get through the red tape.

Finally - Debbie and I went to The Warehouse (our church) for the fourth time yesterday and we left just so excited! We actually KNEW people and had some great conversations. We're not quite at the "Morgans always last to leave" rep - but we're getting there. We're just so encouraged because people are starting to recognize us and know our names. That was one of our biggest prayers - that we would get connected to God's community out here - and it's happening. So praise God for that! It's certainly a process, but we're thankful that with each week, we're getting more and more plugged in to this community!!

Well thanks so much for sticking this long blog out (if you made it this far). We love you all so very much! In the words of Garrison Keillor - "be well, do good work, and stay in touch!"

love,
timmy and debbie

Oh what a beautiful morning!

The weather was too beautiful today to not be outside enjoying it! So we went for a bike ride this morning. We biked over to the famous Rose Bowl Stadium and around the path that goes around the stadium. It is a really nice path and there were a lot of people out exercising on it too. Pasadena is a little bit hillier than I thought, though. I think that my muscles are going to be a bit sore tomorrow...

Tim auditioned at a comedy club in Pasadena called "The Ice House." He auditioned yesterday and they just called back today to offer him a spot in their Sunday show on November 18!!! Tim's first booking! He will have 10 minutes to do stand-up during a 2 hour long show. Wow-wee! He's on his way to becoming that comedian!

Work is going well for me (Deb) at the hospital. I think that the unit that I am working on is a good match. Tim is going to be on Hero's tomorrow as an extra. That's one of his favorite shows at the moment, so he's excited about spending 12 hours on the set tomorrow. (Extras really have to put in long days...) Anyway, we are well and hope that you are well too! So long for now.

PS Be proud of Tim. Today he was offered weed while we were sitting in the park and he just said "No." (true story) Crazy Californians...