I interrupt the blogging at Canter’s to pop in a quick post to mention why I had to leave at 6:30pm instead of hanging out with the crew. I walked up the block on Fairfax to the auditorium of Fairfax High School to attend the premiere of the Gay Men’s Chorus of Los Angeles (GMCLA) of Harvey Milk Schools Project which was co-presented by the Equality California Institute (EQCAI).

I was honored to be in the audience for the first ever public performance of The Harvey Milk Schools Project. GMCLA uses Harvey Milk’s life story to mix music and spoken-word to bring a message of equality to Los Angeles area high schools. The performance is compelling and poignant and brought the audience– which included State Senator Mark Leno– to its feet. As this program will be seen by thousands of students, I think this program is going to inspire and change the lives of young people! Huzzah, GMCLA!

What an amazing way to commemorate the first ever Harvey Milk Day (and what would have been Harvey’s 80th birthday). Other members of the audience included EQCA’s Executive Director Geoff Kors, Bruce Cohen (producer), and Dustin Lance Black (screenwriter) of the Academy Award-winning movie MILK.

If you know any schools which may benefit from the performance, here are just a few things GMCLA’s program offers at absolutely NO COST:

•Access to a live, on campus choral performance open to all interested students and faculty

•Historical information and education about various genres of music, composers, and important social issues such as racism, discrimination, civil rights, and human rights

•Lyric and music analysis experience

•Professional introductions from GMCLA’s diverse singing members about their careers, personal experiences with the chorus, and struggles as out, proud, non-stereotypical gay men

•FREE tickets and bus transportation to a main stage GMCLA concert

•A specialized, flexible program crafted to fit the scholastic and artistic needs of each individual school’s student body

•Master classes for choral students taught by GMCLA’s Assistant Conductor

GMCLA’s program engages students in the important work of comprehending and discussing the complexities surrounding human rights, civil rights, and the LGBT struggle for equality. This program actively promotes the reality that our community’s struggle for equal rights is not only universal, but an issue that has and can affect any group of people who find themselves in the minority.

… so let’s see how much more cash-money and food we can get in our donation box before it’s all over (mission: Food Bank plug – achieved!)!!

The service here is really fast! I actually had my Mac & Cheese in front of me before I finished writing that last post. They’ve got tons of employees working right now – which I guess should be expected, this place is a late-night eating mainstay, after all. The Mac & Cheese is pretty good, and so is the chocolate milk, even though it came from syrup.

All the staff is also extra-helpful now that over a dozen prom-goers just wandered in for a bite!! And so did Lucinda and Travis, who of course couldn’t resist sneaking up on the teenagers for a photo op (seen below with spoons on their noses). Some kids were also slow dancing to the live music coming from the other room.

Oh, and P.S. these Mi-Fi thingies are about 1/4 the size of what I expected them to be. They are almost credit card-sized. I now see why Lucinda called them “cute” earlier.

So, I’m sitting alone at the counter at Canter’s at 12:40 a.m. with a computer in front of me, fixing my makeup. I’ve had weirder nights.

It’s been a looong while since I’ve visited this joint, and I was too distracted by the ridiculous traffic on Hollywood Blvd. a half hour ago to give one thought to what I wanted to order. This menu is so huge it’s quite intimidating. It took me nearly 20 minutes just to pick something out.

After being tempted by the smell of the meat being cut just a few feet away from my seat, I decided to do something different (OK, not that different for me) and order the Macaroni & Cheese. With a chocolate milk (hey! at least I didn’t order the Peanut Butter & Jelly Sandwich – which is a kinda ridiculous $4.25 on the big kid’s menu).

I must really be harking back to childhood diner food experiences, since it’s taking a lot not to devour everything in those delightful miniature cereal boxes sitting right in front of me, teasing me. And my eye was also drawn to one of the kid’s coloring book drawings posted on the wall behind the counter, of “Canter the Dog”.

One of the great things about living in LA is seeing character actors everywhere you go. In line to pay for my monte cristo, I stood in front of this guy. Yes, I recognized him on sight. Yes, I knew his name. Yes, I am a cornucopia of knowledge.

RobNoxious and I are sitting here, shooting the proverbial shit, and Canter’s is packing up. The line to get in is stuffed like a twice-baked potato. Nearly every table is full, and about half the people coming in are nattily-attired youths on their way to the Kibitz Room, presumably to have exciting, memorable interactions and then choose partners with whom to fornicate later in the evening. Whereas I’m here with my monte cristo. And Rob.

I may have mentioned Sheryl. She’s my new server. She doesn’t insult me like Daniel did. But then, she doesn’t call me Tootsie Pop either.

Sheryl has the least seniority of any server at Canter’s; she’s only been here nine months. Before moving to LA she lived in Massachusetts, and I tell her I used to live in Boston, and then she mentions the Celtics I have to do that thing where I pretend to know more about professional sports than I do. She’s really busy, so she didn’t notice.

OK. I’m going home. Janna is here, and she’s gonna take over. I’ll see you all at four in the goddamn morning.

Lord. The things you do for love.

Not sure of the name of this band, but RobNoxious and I are listening to them play right now. Real old-school rock-and-roll Canter’s. The reason Canter’s is here and famous, you know?

Oh, and the monte cristo sandwich has defeated me.

Come on over, and bring some canned goods or cash for the LA Food Bank. Or just come to hang out.

Ruth666 again, to post this adorable video.

Live a little  – and Bring Some Damned Canned Goods To Canters Already!

Know that Daniel, our waiter, was a complete doll and super-competent — he’s NOT who I’m talking about in the video -

…because this is the Monte Cristo that’s about to be applied to my face.

So, yeah. There it is. The reason I’ll be cold and in the ground at forty.

Also, a waitron switch: Daniel is gone, much to my chagrin. He called me “Tootsie Pop.”It was a thing we had. Now, there’s Sheryl, who reminds me a little of my mom because they’re close in age and she brings me food that results in the staccato thud of my arteries slamming shut.

Oh, yeah, and Julia is up my ass about reminding you all about the LA Food Bank donation bin. So bring some food. Don’t do it for the needy. Do it for me.

The switch over is happening now. Kevin’s in the house. He and Rob Noxious have decided to wear the same uniform, though luckily they chose to wear different shirts.

Kevin has UPPED THE ANTE and ordered the Monte Cristo. I’ll let him post those pictures…I don’t want to steal his thunder.

Music has started in the Kitbitz Room and will be there until 2am. It’s not crowded now, so come in, get some awesome salted meat sandwiches and pie and settle in.

The Jello at Canter’s: only $3.25! A bargain at 1/2 the price!

JozJozJoz stopped by again for one last adios before going home for the night! Nice surprise to see her today. Hopefully I’ll see her again tomorrow as she heads to work. (She promised to stop by again!)

Dinner for me consisted of meatloaf, mashed potatoes, gravy and corn (“The vegetable”) and a nice cold bottle of Newcastle Brown Ale. More yum.

Then there was pie. Lots and lots of pie. Kurt had the blueberry a la mode and Lynn had cherry a ala mode.

To see the meatloaf and pie porn, please click past the jump!

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We are perched at the end of the counter, look for the big LA Foodbank donation box (which is getting pretty full, thank you all, I think we are well on the way to 200 pounds of canned food.)

We had a rowdy time with Fraz and Ruth and Travis and Lynn and Greg and his kids. Lynn is lingering over pie (post to come) and Al (long time reader, first time joiner) and Kurt my husband just wolfed down a slice of blueberry pie al a mode. YUM! Daniel our is still giving us shit and we love him for it. He’s only here until 10 though.

The place is really filling up, both in the main room (the old school room with the acid trip ceiling) and the bigger, newer dining room. A young couple right here next to me said they live out in San Bernadino and San Gabriel and go to school at UC Riverside.

–OOH! Rob Noxious just got here! Woot!

Back to the young couple — it’s her first time at Canter’s and his 5th time. They LOVE the food and she thinks the onion rings are the best ever!

That’s why we are here, people. Come on over!

What are the odds?

“I knew I didn’t hate Travis as much as most people, right off the get-go” Says Daniel our server at Canter’s. Turns out he and Travis went to high school together way back when in the DC area. Who would have guessed??

Banter at Canters between bloggers and readers has been fun here.  Lots of laughs and some really great food make for a great combination.

Travis quoted me wrong about the pickle, but not by much.  Seriously, the pickles may be nice and crunchy but its not in the least, well you know, shall we leave it as not insertable.

Stop in, join the fun, drop of some food or cash for the donation box.  Ruth666 and I have added our stash from out pantrys can you please empty your larder too?  Its for the LA Foodbank and really a worthy cause.

The real frazgo, post 701.

So you may have heard that our connection is slow. We’re not just talking slow; we’re talking sloooooowwwwww. Add that to Ruth666′s password debacle and this is the conversation that just took place behind me.

Ruth666: Are you in?

Frazgo: I’m in.

Ruth666: Ooh, I’m in too. We’re both in at once?

Me: Excuse me? And you’re getting in trouble for posting about pickles?