The Walk to MSG

I was walking towards Madison Square Garden and feeling a little discombibimbapulated. I had just eaten more Korean bibimbap than the surgeon general and the gastroenterologist lieutenant recommends in one sitting. I was with a friend and we were on our way to see a comedian. My friend is a big fan of the comedian. I'm less of one, but I know from experience that a show is more enjoyable when you display similar emotions as the person you went with. I have a flashback to me broadly grinning at a Hall and Oates concert and my date sitting stone(d) quiet. At that night's show, for my friend's sake, I was going to do what the crowd handlers at Letterman's show say before each show, laugh if it's close.
I'm not very good at laughing when it's close, so I sat quietly through the first 3/4 of the show. I was caught out in the cold on some of her pop references, but near the end she told a nervous tale about her new relationship and I experienced the comedy cycle: smile, pain, laugh, pain, smile.