I hear its cold back home, as well as the rest of the midwest and the northeast. I'd just like to mention that it was 86 degrees today in LA. But hey hey, there are side effects to the heat, like the two small brushfires I drove past on the 101 freeway. Or the multiple semi-truck accident that backed up traffic for eight miles (during non-rush hour). See, things in SoCal aren't always great.
But yea, 86 degree weather is pretty awesome in February. Unless it means our planet is dying of course.
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This morning, Roger asked me if I was going back to TAF this year and it reminded me of my dream last night. In it, I walked into some eating establishment, much like a Denny's or a Perkins (although I actually think it was the diner in THE OC), and saw all of the returning and new TAF PD's and the new ED sitting in booths planning and discussing TAF 2007.
I walked up to them and watched them interact. I saw their faces and expressions and all of the smiles that go along with planning a TAF program. And in the dream, I didn't say anything to them, and they didnt say anything to me. I don't think they even saw me. So I just watched for a moment, stopped, turned around, and slinked away to a dark table in the corner and sat down with other TAFers who aren't as involved anymore. And from there, I watched the new group of PD's work only a few tables over, yet it felt like they were far far away.
While that may sound morbid to some, it isn't that bad. When Roger triggered the memory of my dream, I laughed and I smiled. To be honest, it feels pretty weird to not be involved in TAF at all right now, to not know what meetings and conference calls are going on and to not be getting emails or to be writing any emails. My past four February's usually mark the beginning of "getting into-TAF mode". And right now...there is none of that. I went from getting to do everything, to hearing nothing.
But I think why I laughed and I smiled is because in my dream, I got to see the new people do what I got to enjoy for four wonderful years, and to see that some of my old co-pd's are still there. And I saw the happiness on all of their faces. So I know everything is in good hands along with full hearts for TAF (though there was never any doubt to this). I may be there in August, and I may not. But either way, it's neat to be so excited for something that you know you might not be able to go to. So good luck to the 07 PD's and ED, and especially to Alex and Tiffany for JH.
And since everyone likes to ask me, TAF will be held from August 5th - 12th at Manchester College in North Manchester, IN...but you might want to double check with a current PD.
Overheard last night on the LA area evening news preview, when it was FIFTY-FIVE DEGREES outside, "New lows have people in LA wondering, 'Are we headed for a deep freeze?!?!'".
Right...
There is this Cingular commercial some of you might have seen where two guys are dancing and singing to a song playing off a cell phone. Like many songs, they mishear the lyrics, and think it's saying "Lock the catbox" or "rock the cashbox", and that is the "hero" (industry speak for THE catchphrase or product visual) line. BUT THE NAME OF THE SONG IS ROCK THE CASBAH. I dont understand how they could misinterpret the chorus of the song when they have the damn name of the song on the cell phone being held in their hands. Idiots.
Also, im in this fantasy basketball league and everytime I hear about how such-and-such player is on a hot streak, I go try adding him to my team but I see that this one guy in the league has already taken him. but this isnt the first time, it has in fact happened many times, and its annoying! plus, he oftentimes drops the player i wanted, but then REPICKS him up again before I have a chance to even realize he had dropped him. it adds an irritating tease to the whole act, including the fact that the player sits on waivers for 2 days.
so then i happened to look at the league list of how many moves each manager has made. in spite of my ability to pick up the guys I actually would like, I have made the second most moves in the league with 18 on the NBA season. this other guy Alex has made 14 moves, and our other friend Ming has made 11. those are pretty standard amounts, considering there have only been 11 weeks in the season so far.
but that one guy, HES MADE FORTY-ONE MOVES THIS YEAR ALREADY! FORTY ONE! Stupid Steve Lin...
Anyways, the I caught a televised session of the Prime Minister's Questions in Britain on C-Span the other day, and it was thoroughly entertaining. Examples can be found on youtube. I don't think there is any possible way in the world that George W. would EVER be able to do that for thirty minutes every Wednesday.
What an enthralling post.
Whatup Justin.
Randoms:
- It was 85 degrees today. Yea.
- I had little emotional investment in the game, but it is pretty ridiculous that OSU had 51 days in between bowl games. The NCAA is stupid for scheduling that long of a break, then also claiming a playoff system would take too much time.
- I need to start growing my abs more. Abs abs abs. Grow your abs.
- Illinois football has a really good recruiting class coming in including the top DE and a top 3 WR. Four guys in the ESPN150 overall. Way to go Zook.
- I have yet to eat at a real authentic Mexican restaurant here in LA.
- Ok I really don't have much to say now, other than work related things, which was covered in the previous post that had been sitting waiting to be published for a few days. But if Justin asks me to update, goshdarnit I'm going to update!
- One last thing. For some brilliant reason, city planners in LA decided to have the 10, the 5, the 60, the 110, and the 101 all meet around downtown. That's FIVE major freeways in about a 2 mile span. That's effing insane.
As the new year begins, I have much to look forward to. Beginning this month, I will start working for Formosa Films with Will Tiao on a feature film which some of you may have heard about entitled Formosa Betrayed. For the first few months, I will be working as an assistant to Will, who is the Executive Producer of the project. And hopefully if I prove myself to be competent enough, I'll be even more involved when production (as in filming) begins. I am actually very excited for this job. I look at it as an immensely satisfying opportunity to do what I want to do and staying true to myself while being paid for it and hopefully keeping the parents happy.
While working on commercials in Hollywood has been a great experience, the final product of my work lacks the positive impact on humankind that I wish my work to have. A few weeks ago this began taking its toll and I forgot some of the reasons why I came out to LA in the first place. I was actually thinking about going back to Illinois in the springtime, just to hang out with friends for a month. But while I dearly miss the people there, it's not for me right now. Luckily, I remembered that one night and promptly wrote a post-it note on my desktop saying, "stay in california until formosa betrayed gets made." And as fortune would have it, I ran into Will at a Taiwanese event that weekend, and we spoke about the possibility of me helping the project, and here I am now.
I feel that my life experiences really make me qualified to help this film out. First and most obvious is my Taiwanese background and identity. My parents have always had very strong Taiwanese identities, and that has passed on to me through them and fostered through TAF. A heavy majority of my closest relationships are with TAFers or people met through TAFers. So needless to say, my life would be VERY different if I wasn't Taiwanese or had never gone to TAF, and even that I feel, is an understatement. My college major showed how films and media can impact our society and bring attention to issues that are commonly held as afterthoughts to the general public. This definitly lets me grasp the magnitude and power that the film could possess. My work as a Program Director has also provided me with an invaluable skill set of handling logistics, teamwork, problem solving, problem anticipation, managing, and more. And then the last three months I've spent in Hollywood have helped me learn the film industry, which adds a professional element. Yes, those are my powers, and I look forward to using them for good.
So wish me and everyone else good luck. I am very thankful and grateful for this opportunity, and I am also very thankful and grateful to everyone I have ever met and for every experience that I have ever had. It has brought me here thus far, and I have every intention of continuing to build upon that. Happy New Year.
I ran/walked for over 8 miles yesterday, 5.5 of it running. Surprisingly, my legs arent too sore.
I've posted before about Plato's quote, "Time is the moving image of eternity," before. I am never good at explaining this, but in a nutshell, the Universe/Time can be considered a series of events, which when viewed as singular instances, are "frozen in time," and therefore eternal (because they have no past, no future, just 'are'). And when one recognizes this as it happens, it's like seeing perfection, because in a roundabout way, things eternal can be considered perfect (just go with me here).
So a very few amount of times in life, I feel like I've witnessed this. Today laid claim to one of those times.
I was standing in line at a store, waiting to make an exchange. Staring into space, I could all of a sudden feel everything in the room in a slow motion. I saw the expression on each face, felt the ground beneath my feet, heard the intro to Frou Frou's Let Go play on the store speakers. It was there and gone in an instant. But I saw it. And it was beautiful.
And it's kind of funny you know? Because watching people holiday shop while you're standing in a long line with aching feet shouldn't be something to be thrilled about. But it was. And I'll always be happy when I can truly witness all that there is in a single moment in time.
After that happened, I thought about what it was that I did see. We all know the argument about the commercialization of Christmas, as well as my attempt to not be a victim of the consumer culture, but hey. Buying a gift for someone can be an attempt to show you care. That you've taken the time to think about them for a little bit. So seeing all of these people give into commercialism, but perhaps doing it because they love their friends and family, well, that might be ok. Frou Frou was a nice touch on the moment too. It felt like I was in Garden State.
Lastly, I was standing in line to exchange some jeans that I shouldn't have been able to because a) I had no receipt b) no tags were on the jeans c) the jeans had been washed once and the manager could tell, BUT I was very very nice about it. I completely understood the manager not allowing me to exchange it and I told her that. As I was leaving, she walked to the front of the store and called me out and said she would do the exchange for me this one time, because I had been so nice. So kids, it pays to be nice and understanding.
Afterall, were one big human nation. What else can/should/could we do than help each other out? A little love and compassion, empathy and beauty.
Happy Holidays.
Today is December 9th. I have been here since September 20th. Today, it rained for the first time since I have been here.
This past week was busy. I helped produce four commercials, two for Publix, a major supermarket in Georgia and Florida, and two for Bubblicious. One of the Publix one's featured the little girl from the DLP HDTV commercials, the one who says, "it's the mirrors". I think she's awesome. It's not often you see a commercial and think someone is talented. (I'm trying to make complimenting a 9-year old girl sound as un-sketch as possible).need some of those.
Tuesday, we filmed in Pacific Palisades. This was the view from the crew parking lot that I took with my cell phone.
Yup. I had to wait in the parking lot for about 10 minutes during one stretch of the day. And it was pretty awesome. I read later on that Baywatch was filmed at that stretch of the beach. Hasselhoff.
Andrew came home from Northwestern today for winter break. On the way to the airport, I took a picture of Mei Mei with, again, my cell phone:
She's cute. And also very emasculating when holding her in public. Aunt Lily bought a balloon saying "Welcome Home!" for Andrew. But apparently, Mei Mei has had emotionally scarring experiences with balloons in the past, and the moment she saw the balloon in Andrew's room, she ran away and started hiding from us (which she never does). We brought her back into the room to show her to not be scared of the balloon, but she ended up trying to run away. I scooped her up and brought her into my room, but then I noticed the fear in her eyes. She kept looking up at the ceiling to make sure no balloons had infiltrated the area. Im sure it was traumatic for her, but all of us humans had a good laugh.
My thoughts change a lot, on life and on the future and on what I am doing now. So I find it easier to not really say anything about it yet.
Creative outlets. I could use some of those.
Further evidence of Scrabbles signifigance in my life:
1) I came back to Vince's house, and I found my guitar tuner which I had lost last winter. Vince and Ming had looked for it for me back then, but no luck. And where did I find the guitar tuner eleven months later? In the Scrabble box.
2) I'm posting this while Vince and Alex (team #1) and Ming and Helena (team #2) try to complete their Speed Scrabbles after I (team #3) finished first.
Yeaaa....
I haven't made fun of Karen in awhile...
I have been back in Illinois since 5am central time at O'Hare International, and I am now sitting in my bedroom at home in Springfield.
And all I can think about is how freaking cold I am right now.
Alfonso Soriano! With Derek Lee and Aramis Ramirez for the next four years! Yea yea yea! Oh and to point out something, the Cubs handily defeated the Cardinals head to head last year, thus backing up my fact that the Cubs are the BEST TEAM IN THE WORLDDDD.
Go Cubbies!
I listend to USC visiting USC for a basketball game tonight. As in, the University of South Carolina vs. the University of Southern California. Both of the schools happen have a maroon/goldenrod logo. I've also held this belief for years that there is some jokester conspiracy between the nicknames of the schools. Southern Cal is popularly known as the Trojans, while Southern Carolina baseball caps were popular years ago because their mascot is the Gamecock, and on hats, it was simply "COCKS".
So we have two teams, with the same abbreviation, same jersey colors, and one team is called the Trojans and the other the Cocks. Right...
South Carolina won in overtime though, so in regards to the spread, the Trojans were unable to cover.
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Here's a photo of the sandwich I mentioned yesterday.
Know that I took a few bites out of the sandwich before remembering to photograph it. What you see is about 2/3rds of 1/2. Yes, picture the sandwich a little bit bigger, TIMES TWO, and that was what I was given for lunch. It was large.
Some days this job can be very easy. For instance, a day like today. My only actual "job" activities or assignments included: walking the hundred steps to pick up the mail, walking the two hundred steps to drop off Fedex, ordering and picking up lunch, organizing some books on a shelf, and keeping the office kitchen tidy.
The rest of the time was spent: playing literati, filling out the LA Times crossword, writing on multiple facebook walls somewhat randomly, making plans with Marg Yoo next week, trying to see how many times Karen could call me retarded/stupid in a day (3!), researching for my fantasy sports teams, and eating a humongous sandwich for lunch, in which I could only finish half. If Jon Lee can only eat half of a sandwich, it must be big. I'll post a picture of it when I get home if I remember to, before I eat it for dinner.
I would love to spend time complaining about the insurance company that I have been dealing with, but it is only a waste of time. If I could get someone on the phone, it would feel SOOOO good to yell at them. But alas I can only contact phone operators, which doesn't help.
I fly back to the Midwest Monday.
my aunt and uncle have a guava tree in the backyard. i also have been having amazingly huge and tough (physically) poops lately.
and conclusively:
"Guava leaves are used for medicinal purposes, as a remedy for diarrhea[citation needed], and for their supposed antimicrobial properties. The same anti-diarrheal substances which are useful in folk medicine may also cause constipation in the case of consumption of large amounts of guava fruits."
Cndncrippler1 signed on at 6:24:00 PM.
thendxcrd: this is oooouuuurrrr country
Cndncrippler1: no
Cndncrippler1: dont do that
Ahem. Following up my last post, I went to church today, and leading worship was Tim Hughes. And if I hadn't gone to church today and had my rental car, I would have been working on The Shins music video. So, yea, famous people everywhere. And I'm sharing this with you like its relatively important news. Yeup.
I wonder what it must be like to grow up in Los Angeles, California. With my Midwestern eyes, I feel like it would be somewhat surreal. Film, television, and music are arguably the most accessible global entities, being consumed across the United States and the world twenty four hours a day, 365 days a year. The vast majority of it starts and finishes here in Los Angeles. I could argue that this is the center of the world for many people who idolize movie stars and Gwen Stefani. So in your daily life, you're bound to cross paths with famous people who, in my Midwestern mind far removed from growing up in the sunny shores and bright lights of Socal, seem to be larger than life. It's like those sidewalk interviews you see on Jay Leno, where people know who Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez are, but couldn't recognize Allen Greenspan or Tony Blair, aka people who probably have had a MUCH greater impact nationally and internationally on people’s lives than Bennifer would have ever had.
As I sit down and watch TV, it's completely different to watch "The OC back" in Champaign, Illinois, than to watch it here. I now recognize where they're filming. I used to wonder why all the characters on the show wore sweaters and jackets with them living in the famed sunny Cali climate, but then I realized that yea, its cold at night. You start to notice little things like that. It makes it a little more real and less real at the same time. Instead of The OC being in "California", it’s just at a place I was walking around yesterday. "Arrested Development" takes place in Orange County too, and in one episode their oddball lawyer goes to the City of Industry to pick up a hooker (for comedies sake). And um...the City of Industry is oh, just north of me. I could ride my bike there and listen to “Konstantine” only once. Anyways, one of my first thoughts was, "I wonder if they just chose to say that the male prostitute was in the City of Industry because the rest of the nation wouldn't know better and it sounds like a city where there would be male prostitues." Because really, the 340 million other non-LA citizens of the United States would have no idea right? (Although there really could be a place like that in the CoI, I wouldn’t know.) And actually, my first thought after seeing "City of Industry" on the bottom of the screen was figuring what freeways he took to drive there from Newport (the 57 North to 60 West probably).
I was filming last weekend near the Santa Monica Pier, which is close to 8th & Ocean. I didn't even realize it till a few days after I was there. When you see it, it is not "8th & Ocean", it’s just...an apartment building. I was reminded of this as I was looking at apartments online. In a few years I could be living at say, 4th & Ocean. I bet Jeff would be too happy to hear that and ask me to go find the twin models for him. This also brought the song “Ocean Avenue” into mind by Yellowcard. This Californication (another song) is everywhere. I am proud to say that I haven't listed to Phantom Planet while driving to work on the 101 yet. Cuz you know, "driving down the one-oh-one" is not as glamorous as it seems in between the hours of 600-930am and 330-630pm. Traffic is never fun.
There is just so much of the entertainment industry here. I have yet to be really star struck, and I hope I don't because in reality they're just people, and you should figure that out quick when you're here because you shop at the same places and drink the same coffee they do. But the fact is people do get star struck and a little delusional (ex: all of the bad singers who go on American Idol and think they’re legitimately good).
In the wikipedia article for Hollywood, it says this:
"Every year, hundreds of runaway adolescents leave their homes across North America and flock to Hollywood hoping to become movie stars, as portrayed by the lyrics of the 1960s Burt Bacharach song "Do You Know the Way to San Jose?" whose lyrics include the words: "All the stars / That never were / Are parking cars / And pumping gas." Such individuals soon discover that they have extremely slim chances of competing against professionally trained actors. Many of them end up sinking into homelessness, which is a problem in Hollywood for adults as well as youth."
It is however, fun to tell to people who aren't here, because usually we all get a kick out of it. But why is it so hard to make it out here? Is it really THAT hard to get into the entertainment industry? Perhaps it's because my chosen path so far has been production...but schmoozing with famous people doesn't seem too far off down the road. It would just be part of my job. I give credit to my fortune of having a normal childhood and an education, family and friends who are supportive, and who don’t get swept up in all this shiny Hollywood shtick.
Ryan noted months ago that he liked the song "Boston" because unlike many songs you hear (and film you see) that "make love to California," "Boston" was the antithesis to that. But then again, the song is still largely about California. And when I listen to it I feel like, sure, some snow would be nice, but really...75 degrees in November with no humidity and watching the Sun set off the Pacific Ocean is pretty hard to beat. My point though is that you gain all these real ties to the mass media. Their world is your world.
(I bet “Entourage” can really screw with peoples heads. It is a fictional story set in a factual industry with factual people making cameos as themselves who work to create a fictional world for us in the real world to consume.)
You sit in the same traffic and breathe in the same air, watch the same sunset and walk on the same sand. You shop at the same places and eat at the same restaurants. "Hello Jim Edmonds, Bobby Lee, and Jamie Kennedy, welcome to Yardhouse!" Grace would have to say...minus their names, while I sit in the corner and eat my buffalo wings. Reality and surreality collide. (Wow, that’s not a real word, but it should be.)
So this is my best guess as to why we keep making love to California. For those of us outside of LA, were drawn to it by all this glitz and glamour and the hopes of becoming rich and famous. And for those that are here, the reality that you formed in your own mind about life is now blurred by film, television, and music once you arrive. Your world is seen and heard around the world through media. Your world is the center. And so you feel a little more important. A little more like a big shot. We give celebrities way too much time and credit than we should. My guess is that if we can claim a connection to someone famous, it makes us all feel a little more famous too. Fame is power and acceptance, and maybe that’s a deep human desire acting out in all of us.
So, LA isn't all that its cracked up to be. But sometimes, it is. Some people really just come out here for the weather or job opportunities. It's certainly good enough for both. Just don’t get too caught up in all the Californication.
(Yes, it is ironic that I tell people not to get too caught up in loving California while quoting from a song about California.)
Oh and for Howard and Karen (and the StL kids for fun), Jim Edmonds should be BHC #3. It's a freaking cinder block on his shoulders.
I broke 400 in Literati for (I think) the first time tonight.
In a nice coincidence, I had hot pot tonight for dinner, which is my favorite partly because of huo guo's association with using sah-tsah sauce. In said Literati game, I used the English spelling for sah-tsah, SATAY. What gloriousness this day has brought forth.
Well, today was not the best of days.
First, as we were wrapping up set location last Saturday for the music video I was helping Karen produce, an unfortunate accident involving (not) my car's trunk and the driveway gate of the house we filmed at occured. It was one of those things were there was nothing more I could have done to be cautious, but I still end up with a $1100 estimate for damage.
Fast forward to today, where I had the chance to witness a little VW Beetle drive into the side of my door, and watch glass shatter past me into the car. I'm okay, physically and mentally. It is quite a unique two-second process to go through however; see car, see driver of car looking other way, see driver step on gas and turn right into you in the middle of an intersection, and see glass shatter everywhere. It was actually pretty intense.(And hopefully the other driver's insurance covers everything, since it is very much her fault.)
And so, unlike Howard's two accidents in the span of 15 minutes, I had two accidents in the span of three days. Add Marci getting backed into on Saturday also, and Jules getting into a pretty bad accident last week...I'd say DRIVE SAFE to you all right now. Or don't drive at all, which is what I plan to do voluntarily (I don't want to risk any more on my current streak of bad driving luck) and involuntarily (since well, there is no window on my car).
So yes. This is currently my reality here in California, which makes this day not so great. Oddly, last night I had the premonition of getting into an accident with an attractive girl, as the girl who actually did hit me was a 5'10" white version of Jamie. But let me tell you, it's no fun meeting models when they just hit your car.
It was 94 degrees out today too.
Since no one watches it anymore, here's a play-by-play summation of tonight's The OC.
thendxcrd: the oc has gone downhill right.
Mahoney575: i didnt even dvr it tonight
thendxcrd: yeup.
thendxcrd: i didnt realize it was on.
Mahoney575: thats how little interest i have in it anymore
thendxcrd: im watching it for old times sake.
thendxcrd: its kinda like watching a car accident ya know? so bad, but you cant turn away.
Mahoney575: ha
thendxcrd: ohmyGod.
thendxcrd: lukes 2 little twin brothers are characters on the show now
thendxcrd: its so bad.
Mahoney575: thats awful
thendxcrd: one of the possibly developing storylines in this episode
thendxcrd: is that ryan and marissa's mom are having an affair
Mahoney575: gross
thendxcrd: or at least theyre alluding to that
thendxcrd: hahaha
Mahoney575: lets hope not
thendxcrd: yea
thendxcrd: everyones cheating on everyone
thendxcrd: at least they still have cool music
Mahoney575: thats one thing
thendxcrd: summer aged
thendxcrd: oh wait ok
thendxcrd: ryan and marissas mom arent having an affair
thendxcrd: thats good.
thendxcrd: theyre meeting to kill volchek.
thendxcrd: hahahaha
Mahoney575: makes much more sense
thendxcrd: yea
thendxcrd: ryans brooding as ever.
thendxcrd: he doesnt care about anything!
thendxcrd: he didnt go to marissas funeral!
Mahoney575: youre a nerd
thendxcrd: im giving you play by play on the show.
thendxcrd: i bet youre laughing.
Mahoney575: just a bit
Mahoney575: ha
Sigh. Season 1 was so great. I am contemplating buying it just to cherish a season of great writing and storytelling. Season 2 had it's moments (like the Spiderman re-enactment). Anyways.
I don't have anything else pertinent to say now.
Except you all should watch Arrested Development, which has now been cancelled, and you should all watch Friday Night Lights, so that it won't be cancelled.
- This morning I woke up to Mei Mei barking outside, for a long time, without my Aunt reprimanding her. I was confused. But when I woke up for real and came downstairs, my Aunt told me when she let Mei Mei out to the backyard, another dog was hiding in there and came out and tried to take a bite out of Mei Mei. It turned out that the other "dog" was actually a coyote. But Mei Mei is ok. Whew.
- One of the directors at Uber Content (Aaron Reull) filmed the opening sequence for Napoleon Dynamite. I thought that was pretty awesome. But then I was reading an article around the office, and it said Aaron Reull also played Kip Dynamite, aka, Napoleon's brother. I couldn't believe it, since I see him at the office all the time. But yes, it was him. I think him not having that mustache threw me off.
- I was calling camera truck companies today in search of one for our next commercial (a Public Service Announcement for the American Lung Assoc). I called one guy, and his response was, "Oh! Sorry, all of my trucks are out filming Die Hard 4!" Haha, that's a pretty unique response for me to hear. I didn't even know Die Hard 4 was being made. That felt like an Entourage moment.
- Marci is in LA too! Marcindaaaaa!!!!
Random niblets that have been floating around my mind to blog about (I started this earlier in the week):
- In my 27 days since arriving in Los Angeles, I have refeuled the Jetta five times, for a total of $168.47.
- It should come as no surpise then that on working days, I spend at the minimum three hours a day in the car. That means on a good day, about 12.5% of my day is spent in traffic.
- Because of this high percentage of car time, I have developed an appreciation for sports radio (710 ESPN here in SoCal). I think people who call into radio shows are oftentimes similar to those who post on message boards; they're delusional idiots.
- As mentioned previously, MadTV is filmed in a stage next to my office. On the opposite side of my office is the stage for the Suite Life of Zach and Cody, and That's So Raven. I haven't sighted any of them yet, but I do see a lot of other child actors/extra's walking around. Yesterday I saw a kid wearing a bright pink shirt that said, "Real Men Wear Pink". He walked past me, looked up, and smirked real big at me, all Hollywood like. Needless to say, I laughed out loud once he was past me.
- Is no one else's interest piqued by the phenomenon of John Mayer and the Killers having two songs with nearly the same exact chorus? Has this happened before in music, where three fairly unique words (fire, wire, higher) are used the exact same way?!?! I mean seriously, it kinda creeps me out.
- The Bears game Sunday night. I see or hear a few Bears fans talk about how "THAT WAS THE GREATEST BEARS GAME EVER OMIGAAAHHH!!! Well, I wouldnt be too proud of your "greatest game" being a come from behind victory against a perpetually crappy team with one playoff win since 1947 starting a rookie at quarterback. That just doesnt seem like it should be the pinnacle of a franchise. Do you really want your greatest game to be against the Arizona Cardinals? THE ARIZONA CARDINALS?!?! I don't think so. The vaunted Chicago team should never have been in that position. I've also been having humongous poops the size of peoples forearms. Its like giving birth analy. (Just trying to sneak that information into this post. And that giving birth analy description I just made up sounds HORRIBLE...but its true in my case.)
- I am pretty confident that I could make a very comfortable living in this industry being a producer of sorts. Is that cocky? A little too confident? A little too naive that I can climb this supposed ladder quickly? Doing a job seems like doing TAF, except it is a new job every one or two weeks and on a professional level. Instead of counselors you have camera crew, grip crew, lighting, etc, instead of ILT you have Production Assistants, and instead of campers you have actors and talent agencies.
- I spelled OUTSWIMS for a 143 point score last night in Literati. It was my highest word score ever. The T was open on the board, the O went on a 2x word score, the W (which is 4 points alone) on a 3x letter score, and the end S on a 3x word score. The 2x and 3x makes it a 6x word score, which is pretty sweet. So it came out to be (in OUTSWIMS ORDER) 1+1+1+1+12+0+1+1=18 (my I was a blank) * 6 = 108 + 35 for a Bingo Bonus = 143. I'm a nerd for writing all that out, but it was pretty awesome. I finished the game at 380 points.
- 99% of the people that I have met in the commercial film production world have been extremely nice and friendly. From my superiors who always say thank you to me, to the guys on set who are always open to giving advice and also saying thank you, to the guys at the film supply stores who offer you coffee or cookies when you're waiting for your order. It is very refreshing to feel that day in and day out in and around work.
- Moving on from that, one of my bosses asked me to bring them a coke the other day and to wash the ice for her. Yea. Wash the ice. So I did just that, and I washed the ice before I poured her coke into a glass. Haha...
- It's SOOOO COLD HERE! Like 51 degrees. CHILLY!
- We eat ridiculously well in this industry. There is food galore. Like mentioned earlier, coffee or snacks are offered while you wait to get equipment. There is a kitchen in my office stocked with all kinds of snacks and beverages. On film days, I have had grilled salmon, bbq ribs or chicken, etc etc, for a meal. They serve hot breakfast too. And everyday we order lunch (which is paid for by the company) and my meal usually costs around 10+ dollars from a fancy shmancy Hollywood cafe. I think thats why I don't mind work so much. You feed me, I stay happy, and therefore I work better for you.
- I need to run. This industry is making me gain weight.
- Continuing with food, we filmed our commercial last Thursday at a home in LA. The nanny took the kid of the house out for dinner, since we were filming in their kitched. My Production Manager Tracey said sure, no problem, we would pay for it and call it a location fee since it was logical. But then the nanny came back from dinner and handed Tracey a receipt for $143 dollars. Uh...WHAT?! You took an 8-year old kid out for a $143 dollar sushi dinner?!?! WHO DOES THAT ON SOMEONE ELSES DIME?! You are a bad bad person.
- I like to add pictures to spruce things up visually sometimes. So here is a photo of what happens to Mei Mei when she does something bad and needs to be punished.
We make her stand up for a few minutes and make her think about what she's done. As you can see, Father Lo is making sure she understands to never run off from the house and chase rabbits in the night and get herself all dirty. Bad Mei Mei.