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Kate Brindle



Last Updated: 9/24/2009

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Status: In a Relationship
Country: US
Signup Date: 11/12/2004

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Friday, October 16, 2009 

The corner of my street when I left for work this morning.


Anybody up for swimming laps at my place?

9:33 PM 
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Wednesday, October 14, 2009 
For my birthday, I took a trip home to Michigan.  While I hate the weather, and the unemployment rate leaves much to be desired, I miss my home state a lot.  Wait, let me take that back, I miss May – September in my home state.  Any time during October - April, I’m perfectly content not being a Yankee. 

To celebrate turning another number, and to celebrate losing over 30 pounds, my mamacita took some “glamour shots” of me.

Here’s my failed attempt at looking natural.
 
I mean, who doesn’t sit on the deck like that?
 
I wish I would have had more time, but while I was there, I also got to see several folks that I love and I got to perform at venues including the Holly Hotel, the Ann Arbor Comedy Showcase, and the Island Resort in the Upper Peninsula .
 
I also performed at Maxie’s in Flint and got to see my friend Rusty, who is one of my favorite people.
  
Don’t worry, despite the clenched fists (that look like he might pop someone in the jaw), he’s actually quite sweet.
 
And I performed at the MGM casino.  But, the best part of the evening?  Winning $3 on computer black jack.  Who’s jealous?  I tried my hardest not to spend it all in one place.
  
That’s Todd and me celebrating my big victory and his new job! 
 
Before leaving the mitten for good, I took a brief trip to Toledo to see my good friend, Steve Sabo.  We headed to Connxtions Comedy Club, and it happened to be ladies night (where they were selling both Pampered Chef products and sex toys as part of their fundraiser – an interesting, yet useful combination).  So I did an impromptu set for the chicas, and then we went to (where else?) the bar.  That’s us with fellow comics Ky Miller, Scott Derenger and Randy Ankarlo.   
 

Maybe one of the best parts of the trip?  Beating the Southern humidity for the entire month of August.  Score one for not sweating on myself (and occasionally others)!

However, now that Virginia’s weather is in the seventies, and well, Michigan’s is in the thirties, I’m once again glad to be back in the South. 
10:22 AM 
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Sunday, September 27, 2009 
In August, I returned to Canada to protest the seal slaughter. Only this time, I went all over Western Canada.


I traveled with these awesome peeps (that’s Jill, Lucas and Nina. Awesome peep Ryan is missing as he was in the front seat) to Winnipeg, Regina, Saskatoon, Calgary, Red Deer and Winnipeg.

Holy crap did we ever do a lot of driving! I can now say my desire to take a road trip across Canada has been satisfied. I thought driving through North Dakota was boring! Good Lord, at least they have billboards. There is literally NOTHING in between Saskatoon and Calgary. It was pretty though. And getting to travel new places (especially when I’m advocating for a cause I believe in) is one of my favorite things to do. So the boring drives were worth it.

To pass the time, we did get to see a lot of towns with names that made us laugh. Exhibit 1: Findlater.

Indeed. Especially when I have to pee and am in search of a gas station. P.S. I still haven’t found it

Our demonstrations featured my favorite prop, fake blood, and looked like this.





In addition to protesting, I got a chance to explore some of Western Canada (and stick out like a sore thumb with my non-Canadian accent).


My first time in Calgary.


At a really awesome Thai restaurant in Saskatoon.

In Edmonton, we went to the West Edmonton Mall. If you’ve ever been to Mall of America, it’s the same basic concept, which I summarize as fun to go to once, but a nightmare to actually shop for merchandise in.


This mega mall had an amusement park though! Lucas and I went, and quickly realized that post the age of 21, rides kind of kick your ass. Serious tummy aches and weak legs afterward, but it was worth it. Many thanks to Lucas for making me open my eyes and holding my hand when I was fuh-reaking out on the roller coasters and scary upside down rides.

Me on one of the wimpier rides: the swings.


Edmonton also had a nature conservatory, which kind of reminded me of the movie “Biodome," except without Pauly Shore. Thank God.







Somewhere along the way, we also picked up this cute little guy:



If you want to protect his real-life friends, please click here.
8:48 PM 
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Sunday, September 27, 2009 
In July, I went all over Ontario to protest the Canadian seal slaughter with two awesome ladies, Arizona and Stephanie.

We traveled to London, St. Catharines, Toronto and Ottawa and held some demonstrations that looked like this:









Along with protesting, we had a bit of time for shenanigans too.







We also got to see Niagara Falls (and the wax statues and crappy tourist attractions that come with it).









And I got to try my first vegan KFC sandwich (P.S. After years of protesting, I never dreamed I’d set foot in one – wearing a PETA t-shirt no less – but 60% of Canadian KFC’s now offer a veggie sandwich and they also switched to killing their chickens with controlled atmosphere killing, which a less cruel slaughter method than American KFC's use).

Delicious.

In Toronto, we discovered more yummy food: ketchup chips.

Stephanie demonstrates.

And later, we made our way to Church Street.


A little bit of fun with fake blood and Halloween costumes (AKA how I spend most of my days)…







Now, Canada, it’s time to get your sh*t together. Way to go on universal healthcare and same-sex marriage, but, don’t you think it’s time to stop allowing the bludgeoning of baby animals in front of their mothers?

P.S. Here's how you can help.
8:11 PM 
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Sunday, September 27, 2009 
So now that it’s almost October, I figured it would be a good time to update what I’ve been up to this summer, right?

Right.

We’ll start with the best thing that happened to me all summer (Wait, make that all year. No, wait, make that all of my life.) – meeting all five New Kids on the Block at the same time!



It happened in June in Virginia Beach, and I swear, I think I’m still beaming.

Before meeting the boys, they held a mini-BBQ (complete with open bar – yee-haw!) and gave us some New Kids goody bags. The bags contained New Kids chapstick, a New Kids beach towel, and New Kids underwear:


They blended in quite well with my black pants, don’t you think? I don't know where I can possibly wear "Full Service" underwear in the future without getting arrested, but I'll try to make use of them.

Along for the ride, the person who just might love New Kids even more than I do: Todd.

We could barely contain ourselves.

But, to entertain ourselves before meeting them, we made friends with the staff:


And then...the moment we’d been waiting for! We. Met. Them. Sweet. Jesus.

Unfortunately, about ten other girls met them at the same time. Oh well, I still got to hug them.

Jordan gave great hugs. Danny was a little strange and appeared to be afraid of sweat (which was really just rain water since it was POURING). Donnie and Jon looked cute, and Joe was his usual adorable, smiley self (this trip marked my third time meeting him).

So after we stopped hyperventilating, we walked to our seats, which were in the front row.

Incredible.

Pictures from the show…








































Aren’t they gorgeous?

A dream fulfilled, for sure.

Now that I’ve met them, I think I can officially turn this blog back into a comedy blog. Well, until I go on this at least.
7:24 PM 
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Friday, September 25, 2009 
If you’re in Virginia, watch me make my Southern television debut doing stand up on Saturday night!  I’ll be on Comedy Spotlight on Cox Cable Channel 11 at 9:00 pm on Saturday, September 26, 2009.

If you’re broke and don’t have cable (like yours truly), find a friend who does.  And once you do, please tape it for me (that is, if anyone still actually uses VCR’s these days) so my poor self can actually see the thing.
9:39 PM 
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Thursday, August 13, 2009 
Tomorrow (August 14th) is my birthday, and I will be celebrating being “grown and sexy.”
 
Of course, I could also be celebrating “Call 4 Rental,” but I’m hoping grown and sexy suits me better.

If you’re in Michigan, I’m featuring at two shows at the Holly Hotel (110 Battle Alley, Holly, Michigan).  They start at 8:30 and 10:30 pm.  Stop by and wish me a happy birthday!  Or just stop by, laugh and restrain yourself from throwing things.

I have 2-for-1 passes, and if you email me, I’ll send them your way.  However, you must email the secret password to get them.  Here’s a hint about what it is: it rhymes with drone and Lexi. 

Hope to see you there!
12:41 PM 
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Wednesday, August 12, 2009 
Before moving to the South, I never did a ton of comedy here.  I had previously performed in Kentucky, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia, but never ventured south of that. 

So this summer brought some firsts, including my first time performing in North Carolina and Georgia.

First up? North Carolina. 

Pictures from my way there:
 

I saw some monster trucks on the way.  I was so tempted to get out of the car and do some a “bad ass pose” with them.  However, my version of a “bad ass pose” consists of puckering my lips and/or making a peace sign.  So I decided against it. 
 

I performed at the Comedy Club in the Outer Banks.  It was so much fun!  Great crowd, super nice staff and funny comics.  Here’s comic Bill Russ in an oh-so-candid front door shot.
 

After the show, a little more posing ensued.
 

Jazz hands gone wrong.
 

For Fourth of July weekend, I performed in Georgia for the first time.  Not too many pictures this trip, but I did capture proof that I was indeed in Georgia.
 

Despite my car’s lack of air conditioning, it being humid as all get-out and a nine hour drive, the road is still where I find myself happiest:

12:57 PM 
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Tuesday, August 11, 2009 
I have been seriously neglecting my blog this summer.  What can I say?  Facebook and Twitter updates have stolen my heart.  But, I’m trying to remain true to my long time blog companion.  So I’m back. And with one mother of an update of mostly food pictures, but an update nonetheless! 

In June, I took a trip that included stops in Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Arizona, California, Michigan and Canada. 

I started by flying into Boston.
 
Or Boton as it’s also known as.

One of the first signs I was greeted by on the freeway.
 

In Boton, I met up with Kristina and Blake and we headed up to Cambridge.  I couldn’t stop thinking about Good Will Hunting, and I LOVE LOVE LOVE that everyone had the same accents that the New Kids on the Block possess. 

Excited about eating at Veggie Planet.

The reason why we were excited?
 
Their famous vegan Caesar salad!

In Providence, Rhode Island, we ate at this cute little restaurant:
 

Where Charlie, the restaurant owner’s dog, was a fixture (and local celebrity).
 

Gluten-free vegan macaroni and “cheese” with broccoli = yum!
 

Back in Boston, Blake and I took a three hour trip to a vegan pizzeria.  The pizza shop was only a few miles away, but Boston traffic + pouring down rain = epic journey.  P.S.  I do NOT recommend driving in Boston.  I think I’d rather be subjected to an SAT study session with Paris Hilton than I would to taking out a vehicle in that city.

The pizza was so good; the drive was totally worth it!  Not even the rain could make me stop smiling about it.
 

Blake liked it too!
 

So by now you’re probably thinking the purpose of our trip was to go on a weight-gaining frenzy.  While that was a byproduct of the trip, we actually went to conduct demonstrations outside of McDonald’s, who we are encouraging to adopt a less cruel slaughter method called controlled atmosphere killing. 
 

After we toured the East Coast, I flew to Arizona, then headed out to California for the Funniest Female Contest. 
 
Yep, I was there.

First stop: Palm Springs. Then on to LA for the contest and then back to Palm Springs for a little nature (and hopefully an opportunity to work off all the food I’ve taken pictures of and subsequently consumed). 

So…what did we do when we got to Palm Springs?  You guessed it – EAT.
 
Native Foods in Palm Springs.

The food we had.  I have no idea what it is because it’s been so long since I’ve eaten it (and digested it), but I do recall it being most delish. 
 

 

The Funniest Female show went well, and I advanced to the quarter-finals.  One of the best parts?  Marilee and Heather, my Michigan friends, came out to cheer me on.
 
After the show, Marilee, Heather, Kasie and I went to a meat market for 60 somethings.  Wow, can those single seniors ever dance!  We sat and (surprise, surprise) ate while they cut a rug and told us to “get the f*ck out on the dance floor!”  How do you argue with an AARP member that says the f word?

When watching Cocoon cast members make out became too much to bear, we finally drove back to Palm Springs.  The next morning, we woke up early and scaled a mountain.  And by scaled, I mean we rode the slightly scary cable car. 

Pics from the journey up:
 

 

I was pretty in awe once we reached the top.  These pictures don’t do it justice, but we were SO.HIGH.UP.  Like, it was seriously 20 degrees colder on top of the mountain.
 

 

The state park on top of the mountain.  It was so beautiful!  So many lush trees – in the middle of the desert. 
 

After California, I flew to Vancouver to conduct this demonstration:
 
The Olympic Shame we’re referencing is Canada’s annual seal slaughter.  Please visit this site for more information.

While I didn’t have too much time to check out the city, I enjoyed what I saw.  Must go back there at some point.

From Vancouver, I flew to Michigan to perform at Mark Ridley’s Comedy Castle.  And the New Kids just happened to be in town that weekend.  Do I have good timing or what?  Well, actually, the answer is usually no.  But, when it comes to my boys from Boton, usually the timing is just right.

This picture pretty much sums up the last year of my life.
 

We had pretty crappy seats (after all, what can compare to front row and backstage passes like we had before?), but the concert was still amazing.  And seeing Donnie moonwalk?  Topnotch! 
 
Unfortunately, I lost my car for an hour and a half post show.  Grr.  But, on the plus side, I got to ride the lovely golf cart around the entire venue looking for the ol’ girl.

After a whirlwind weekend back in the mitten state, I flew home to Virginia and did some much-needed sleeping (and much-needed beer drinking and reality tv watching as well).
1:03 PM 
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Sunday, July 12, 2009 
A couple weeks ago, I headed up to Poplar Springs Animal Sanctuary in Maryland to play with the animals.  If you’d like to see some of the animals’ stories (or give the farm a donation), pop on over to http://www.animalsanctuary.org/. 

 Amanda and Jena preparing for farm livin’ on the way there. 
 

Getting in touch with my small town roots. 
 

After testing out the John Deer’s, our trusty GPS headed us directly into the water. 
 
Really, Ms. Direction Lady?

“Really,” was her reply.  I had no idea that GPS’s are programmed to say “board ferry,” but apparently they are.

So board the ferry was exactly what we did.
 

When we arrived at Poplar Springs, we headed to the chicken and turkey area.
 

And we got to hold them!  They really are just like cats…just without all the purring.

They were so sweet though, especially this guy who didn’t want to be put down.

Lindsay holding a chicken.
 

Ashley’s turn.
 

Amanda got to hold the rooster.
 

Jena with another rooster.
 

This was Opal, a survivor of the factory farm industry.  She had such a sadness in her face.  It’s no wonder considering she most likely survived multiple sexual assaults (turkeys are bred to be so big that they cannot reproduce naturally and are artificially inseminated) and the pain of having her toes and beak cut off with no anesthesia.  But, hopefully she is happy now.
 

Opal with some other turkeys (I forgot their names).
 

Next up?  The goats!  AKA giant dogs.  They were so friendly and demanded to be petted the entire time.  They seriously wouldn’t leave us alone, and they were so sweet!
 

See?  Goats will make you smile!
 

With Monty, my favorite goat. 
 

Then we moved onto visiting the piggies, who were SO. CUTE!  Seriously, they weren’t the only ones squealing.   
 

Their eyes looked so much like human eyes. 
 

 

The pigs LOVED Ashley!


Since the sanctuary was so close to Washington DC, we headed there and ate at Asylum.  Not only did they have badass vegan chili cheese fries, but they played *multiple* Toto songs.  Any place that plays “Africa” is forever cool in my book. 

Some pictures of us (and of us taking more pictures):

  

 

 



After Asylum, the trip got more adventurous (including fender benders and a dog peeing on my leg – luckily, he was super cute and sweet so I forgave him), and we didn’t return home to Norfolk until 4:00 am.  Lots of sleeping and fond memories the next day.
7:01 PM 
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