Wait Wait Don't Tell Me @ the Wang Theatre

"That's why we edit. And that's why you're at the live show." —Faith Salie

We've been longtime fans of Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! (I might even double press the talking crosswalk request buttons just to hear "wait wait"). So when Ian discovered the show was coming to Boston (so Peter Sagal could once again run the Boston Marathon as a sighted guide for a visually impaired athlete), we jumped on tickets.

Just like most Wait Wait fans, we crossed our fingers for Paula Poundstone but were still thrilled to see nameplates listing Tom (Bodett), Faith (Salie), and Maz (Jobrani) alongside Peter and Bill.

Here's the thing: you can listen online. So it seems pretty pointless to write about the actual show. What's interesting about catching a radio show live is seeing how it works, and hearing the bits that don't make the cut in that hour-long time slot.

Before the recording started, Peter explained a little bit about what to expect and warmed up the crowd (requesting the audience express "enthusiasm up to but not including flipping police cars over" and sharing his love for Boston). Bill made some jokes about the venue name, and then the benevolent overlords wearing headphones hit record.

The Not My Job guest of the week was Dick Flavin, Red Sox poet laureate. He was hilarious, but some of the panelist's questions for him resulted in less entertaining stories. Not boring, just not laugh out loud funny. But thanks to the magic of pre-recording , everything that Dick Flavin said on the radio was comedic gold. (They also cut out all of Peter's attempts to get Dick to say Peter Sagal the way he announces MLB players.)

There was a hilarious extra back and forth with one of the panel questions before they zeroed in on the answer of grilled cheese, but by the time the show aired on Saturday, we had already forgotten it. Womp womp. If we ever remember, we'll update this post!

By the time they closed out the show (with predictions about the next gyrocopter news event), the producers had a list of lines that needed re-recorded. Anything that Peter, Bill, Tom, Faith, or Maz flubbed or stumbled on the first time around was repeated so that by Saturday they would all be well spoken and witty (guests and callers don't get the same opportunity, but the edits were generally to their advantage). This was followed by a Q&A, to reward all of the fans who stuck around through the re-recording.

It was an evening well spent, and the next time they're recording in Boston, we'll be there!

thankful list | April 2015

01. trivia night, even though our team didn't come close to winning.
02. doctor friends to help me figure out if I should freak out about a bump on my arm or not (not).
03. Easter brunch with Ian's parents and a couple awesome old friends.
04. our DR team meeting (technically the second, but first really, because snow cancelled February).
05. a handwritten flyer advertising the new "ConVeneice" store (because, hilarious!)
06. Chicken Provençal in our new Le Creuset (that I've been dreaming about forever).
07. the Claude Cormier lecture at the Gardner Museum.
08. two awesome years working with Ingrid (I'll miss you!).
09. making the best of missing the update that Color Me Rad Boston was rescheduled to August.
10. using the rental car, meant for Color Me Rad, to go to some open houses.
11. also using the rental car to go to Russo's.
12. transferring our Color Me Rad registration to Providence (the Boston reschedule is during the DR trip).
13. Super Cluckin' Sunday, always.
14. Gregory Alan Isakov at the Sinclair.
15. beautiful crocuses popping up everywhere.
16. Nolan and Ingrid joining us for dinner (I cooked, and it was actually good!).
17. grabbing a photo of the finish line, since we'd be away for the weekend.
18. Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! live at the Wang Theater.
19. a weekend on the Cape.
20. Amie pastries on the beach for breakfast.
21. a visit to the Sandwich trout hatchery (so many fish! feeding them is so fun!).
22. a nice long walk on our modified Marathon Monday commute.
23. tracking progress of the runners we know, thanks to the BAA website.
24. pretty flowers for Administrative Professionals' Day.
25. eating Ben & Jerry's (pistachio) ice cream out of the container.
26. magnolias in bloom (see photo above).
27. flowers from Ian.
28. when a Kansas news channel again used my photo sans permission, my friends and family had my back.
29. a final farewell party for Nolan and Ingrid.
30. Ian's safe travels to Florida for EXPO.
31. breakfast at Tatte (I grumpily concede they pronounce it Tah-tay, although French should be Tat).
32. an operations off-site meeting, involving a team competition to make dumplings.
33. lunch with two of my favorite little friends (and Erin!).
34. a work of art made especially for me by G.
35. Forsythia in bloom.
36. an evening with Micki and Grandma Judy.
37. picking Ian up at the airport after five days apart.