You Can't Make This S**t Up

Get Outta Dodge

2006-07-13T10:26:00.000-07:00

So me and my boyfriend are going to this resort next weekend, and I couldn't be happier. Actually I'm thrilled. THRILLED. I have realized that over the course of the past 15 years I haven't taken one real vacation. A real vacation is a trip of at least 5 days that doesn't solely revolve around visiting family. It's actual go on the beach, relax, sightsee, etc (with family is fine--I'm just saying, 5 days visiting family in Paducah does not a vacay make).

I am just up to here with regret over that. What was I waiting for? I didn't want to spend the money, but I'll spend it one way or another throughout my life, and now I'm pretty fried. I get so tired so easily these days and I'm sure it's 'cause I just didn't have time to recharge.

So two days in Central Cali will be great, and then over my holiday hiatus we're probably taking 5 days to go up the coast. I will have no plans except to read books and watch tv and listen to the waves lap the shore and all that crap, thinking all the while that the average American takes less than 10 days a year of vacation. While our president takes 30!!!

Stay out of the Mommy Wars

2006-07-02T13:00:00.000-07:00

Apparently the big conflict of late to do with the middle class is the "mommy war." The "Opt out" generation is, according to various social observers, full of ivy-league educated females throwing it all away to stay home and raise the kids. It's either a tragedy or a glorious use of personal choice, depending on who you listen to.

On Friday I scouted a mid-thirties couple who want to sell their home and appear on our program. They're successful and hip, and they have a great house that's going to land them a pretty big profit. They're moving closer to family down south and are obviously going to buy a much bigger house with the cash they'll earn on the home sale. And thanks to the lower cost of living, the woman added that she wouldn't have to work and could have and raise babies at her leisure.

She sounded positively thrilled. Except for the fact she'd be bored doing nothing until the kids came, she couldn't wait.

This is an educated and independent woman (bought the house by herself before she got married--remodeled it mostly by herself), who worked her way up in the industry. She had no shame saying she couldn't wait to quit her job and raise children without the rat race or pressure of a heavy work load.

So how come she doesn't care about the mommy wars? In fact, I don't hear of any feminist conflict from my friends who are stay at home moms. And every mom I know who works (the ones with infants) hate the fact they have to work. The ones with somewhat older kids seem pretty content--now that the kids are older, they learn independence, mommy can work.

So what's the fuss? Well, some women thinkers believe that by staying home, we're destroying any inroads paved by earlier generations, to higher (how about EQUAL??) wages and better flextime and family benefits. This is true. But you know what--I'm the one who has to get up in the morning and enjoy what is happening to me that day. I'm the one who has to work, drive, eat, breathe and run errands. When I have a kid, I am not going to work my ass off, and thereby run myself into anxiety attacks and exhaustion, so that women will have even better benefits and wages as a whole. I'd love to say it's worth sacraficing my well-being. But guess what: It's not.

That's why I resent this "mommy wars" bullshit so much. Like anything, the media is blowing it all way out of proportion. Yes, it's a lot harder to get back into the work force after a few years. Yes, benefits are still crappy for families. But are we talking about a crisis? Are we setting back womens' rights by years and years? Time will tell, but currently, a woman has made it to the anchor's desk for a nightly news broadcast (Katie Couric--after of course E. Vargas presumably got fired for being pregnant-50% there anyways), Oprah's worth $1.4 billion, and Kelly Ripa holds down 8 jobs while raising 4(?) kids. Still small beans considering we're capable of world domination, but progress is inevitable; and the nagging fact remains that kids need parents. I know, it's most inconvenient, but they simply do.

All the writers and thinkers in the world can wring their hands and argue to each other about what's best, but in the end, it's each family that has to decide.

In fact, there are other ways women can have it all. Perhaps it's time for women to put on their trademark ingenious thinking caps and figure out a new economy where women can thrive. Many stay at home moms have profitable businesses--via ebay, scrapbooking companies, mail-order cookies. Some are lawyers and CPAs who work out of their home. I freelance in the female-friendly world of reality tv; as long as I keep my connections up and book some at-home work in the meantime, I can dip into that world pretty easily.

Perhaps the Senior VP of a brokerage would have a hell of a time recapturing that position after 5 years of potty training and spit up. But she could potentially make a decent amount of money--and her own hours-- by becoming an independent financial planner. If talented women also have the second income of their husband's in the checking account, they can have a little more wiggle room in starting these entrepreneurial endeavors.

I could be wrong, but I think that's the way for women to Have It All. They need to think ahead (something people never do, I've found, thinking that Everyone Does It - get married and have kids--without realizing it takes a lot of thought to make the experience ideal and less than nerve-wracking) and find out how they can be thinking, thriving, working people, without the Man cracking the whip and refusing to recognize familiy obligations.

And then, as all these homegrown female entrepreneurs watch their businesses grow, as they hire people, they will enact family friendly procedures for their employees. Right???

Maybe then everyone will shut up about the Mommy Wars. It's getting old!

Mayday

2006-06-26T08:38:00.000-07:00

I have not posted for about a million years because May was a ludricrous month. I think it was for a lot of people. A lot of shit went down, let's just say.

My story goes like this:

Part 1: The Show
I work on what apparently is now a bona-fide "hit" cable show, one of those cute lifestyle reality shows. Because it's been successful, the network is paying a lot more attention to it. This means perks like extra cameras on shoots, makeup for our stars, and brand-new segments of the show.

But the downside is they are using our talent for these new segments, which means travel. Which means we lose our talent for a good portion of the time. In fact, we lost one of our talent for the entire month of April. AND part of May.

So while we attempted to make up for the lack of shoots in April, we couldn't even schedule freely in May. So there was one week in May, in particular, jammed full of shoots.

On top of that, we had a new producer start, who is wonderful, but I was helping out on her sets to make sure she got what she needed for her episodes; and our boss was in the process of leaving.

This was a hectic, crazy time where there was little rest for the weary. I find it a small price to pay however, knowing the show is a success; though free coffee on sets has yet to come. That will truly be a day to rejoice.

Part 2: The Illness
I live with my cousin. She moved here a year ago and is the closest thing to a sister to me. Though being very young (early 20s), she is very worldly and wise in that old-soul way and has been working nonstop in production almost since she touched ground in L.A.. She can really take care of herself.

But even a young sturdy person can't keep up with 18-hour shoot days and 6-day work weeks, and one weekend in May, she had a fever. And it broke that night...and then it came back again. And again, and again. It was like tiny sick Beth in "Little Women"--the kid never got better. No matter how much water and tylenol she ingested, nothing kept the fever away for good.

She called her HMO, oh, about 3 times to get assigned a doctor, only to find out the doctor had retired the week prior. Then finally she found a PRACTICING doctor, and saw him. Five days later and multiple promises to refer her to a specialist, no referral materialized. (By now, she had a fever for two weeks.)

Remember Hell Week at work? The second day into it, a Monday (I had a shoot Sunday), she called me at work. "My fever is at 104," she said. "Find me the number for a cab. I'm going to the ER."

Once there, doctors kept asking, "Have you been traveling?" You could tell they were fishing for anything that could, once and for all, establish that the avian flu has indeed hit the US. She kept saying no, no no, she hadn't traveled. "But I moved here a year ago." "From where?" they'd ask excitedly. "Troy, Illinois?" she'd wheedle. Disappointed, they retreated and continued to ask her boring questions about her general health.

However, the infectious disease specialist assigned to her refused to believe the reasonable diagnosis that this was probably a viral infection. JUST IN CASE, she was tested for everything from ebola (despite the fact she was NOT bleeding from her eyes) to leukemia. In fact, knowing that she is slavic, he researched a feverish disease that plagues Macedonians. (I googled this like crazy and found nothing about this. But it's begging to be a plot point on HOUSE - hairy high cheekboned woman comes in with fever, has Mediterreanean disease that can only be cured by eating massive amounts of kalamata olives.)

Poor thing was a total trooper all week. People called, visited and sent flowers, and I ran over there every night to hang out. I was relieved when in the final analysis, it looked like she had a viral infection, which is obviously non life-threatening, but can hang on for weeks.

But there's no medication you can give for a viral infection, so she pretty much had to wait it out. Almost 30 consecutive days of fever later, she finally got well.

Of course, that's just the half of it. The HMO's traumatized her even more than the illness, but I won't get into that here--it's too effeng depressing. Did you know that Medicaid--which works with only the government as the middleman between doctor and patient--operates on about 2% of administrative costs, but the typical health care company allocates a whole 20%??? You know, to pay for all the paper pushers. And speaking of health insurance...

Part 3: Girl Trouble
The last portion of my crazy month or so occured when I had some routine medical "issues" that required an outpatient procedure to fix things. This meant going under (for the first time ever--it was like being on Quaaludes - for a WEEK) and and no heavy lifting or exercise (!!) for 6 weeks. So I'm going to get fat. Fantastic.

And that in and of itself was a mild ordeal, but my friends and family helped out just wonderfully and work was more than understanding.

All this wound down just in time for my 30th birthday. I'm hoping that's a convenient marker meaning the end of all this drama, for me, my cuz, and some friends who had some dark times too. A friend and I were chatting at my party this weekend and we agreed that things happen in threes, and it's such a relief when you finally hit that smooth sailing period in the aftermath. Until of course you hit a bump or two, but as my mother says, "Someone always has it worse." And right now I really feel bad for that person!

Airport!

2006-04-24T15:17:00.000-07:00

I traveled this week, and while that's nothing unusual, I still never get tired of aiports, flying somewhere new, seeing old friends. I loooove to travel, and now I'm starting to actually have the $$ to do it.

But this was no crazy adventure--I saw my parents (wait...that could at times be a crazy adventure). It was wonderful having some down time with them. Plus, they live in Springfield, IL, and while that sound unexciting, the whole town has been invigorated by the new, gorgeous Lincoln library, and the place truly had small town charm. And it was 79 degrees the whole blessed time.

But back to airports. First of all, there are a few things that the engineers haven't figured out about airports, and airplanes.

1. Airport bathrooms. The womens' stalls have doors that open IN, and the galley of the stall is never long enough to accomodate a typical carry on bag. Plus, most of the toilets are auto-flush, and ocassionally flush early, so they send a huge mist of e-coli filled bacteria whilst you struggle to race out, without hitting your luggage on any of the bacteria-laden containers/toilet in the stall.

In fact, I waited for a handicap stall that allowed for the (small) bulk of my baggage; and when I walked in--I mean the millisecond I set food in the stall--the autoflush toilet went for it. I didn't even get within three feet.

2. Security line. It's a known fact we're more likely as Americans to die from the common flu than from terrorism. Yet when you take your shoes off in the security line, you have to walk barefoot on the disgusting airport floor. Also, when you lay your laptop in a bin to go through security--and we know how we get our hands all over laptops--we are probably putting it in a bin that held someone's germ-encrusted shoes. Several peoples' shoes, actually.

Frankly, I'm more scared of dying from the bird flu passed around in security than a bomb. So, with much aplomb, I throw on a pair of socks to wear with my mules, put my mules in security bin, walk through security, grab my shoes, and take off the socks while turning them inside out. My feet never touch the floor and the now soiled socks are slipped in a pocket in my luggage reserved solely for them.

(This is a) a sign of bird flu hysteria and b) a sign I'm turning into my mother.)

3. Southwest. Listen, I love it--it used to be incredibly cheap and rarely does it run late. But cheap now? Don't count on it. Cheap quality? Oh yeah. Yes, the personnel are very friendly, but you still, despite the extra money, can't reserve seats, so it takes forever for folks to find a seat and by then you nearly run late; it's kid friendly, and they're Eff'ng annoying (you CANNOT find a seat not near kids anymore, I've realized); and unless you're lucky and get an emergency aisle row, there's a horrific lack of leg room.

On top of it, the endless transfers. And now that it's cheaper to fly jet blue? Forget it!

That is my rant. Otherwise...I really had a lovely time this weekend.

Good Friday? How about GREAT Friday!

2006-04-14T08:44:00.000-07:00

I remember growing up--during the grades one through four that I was in Catholic school -- that Good Friday always loomed dark and rainy. Sure enough, the forecast this week was sunny sunny sunny -- storms on Friday -- sunny sunny sunny. If you're a spiritual person, you just might think God is being literal--or you may think it's just a metereological coincidence.

If you were raised on three masses a week as I was during my formative years, the dark, gloomy weather also reminds you that someone died for your sins--YOUR sins!--and by gum, if you don't respect that, then you will rot in hell for years instead of eating mass quantities of donuts in heaven. You will also rot in hell if you 1) have had any kind of sex not done within a marriage AND the period of ovulation, 2) use birth control (excuse me...does the Pope know what it's like to raise seven kids?), 3) are gay.

It took me several years of public school (during which I FINALLY learned what the term "hooker" meant) and my mom repeatedly going, "Don't let them make you feel guilty!" to shake the fact that yes Jesus did die for our sins (that has been ingrained hardcore and forever), but that doesn't mean you shouldn't live like a nun, for Pete's sake. Does Jesus really give a crap that you don't want to have 12 kids (the average amount women would bear without birth control) and that you say the "F" word ocassionally, like to party at Rage, and maybe you hooch it up every now and again? Of course not! His best gal pal was Mary Magdalene, remember?

The guilt really falls, if you will, with our offical calendar. Good Friday isn't a national holiday, but it should be. Plus, this year it falls over Passover, which is one of the most--if not the most--important Jewish holidays.

And Easter is supposed to be the most important holiday for Christians, too. Even more than Christmas--anyone can be BORN, but who rises from the dead??? It's a bit more impressive an event than a birth (virgin as it may be). Seems weird we're not given the day off when so many folks have to end up taking today off anyways.

But, no traffic. So that's good. God does work in quite handy ways, I guess...

A Wealth of Goodness

2006-04-10T17:06:00.000-07:00

Sunday nights are a veritable pleasure fest. Oh, the television! In order, starting at 7pm PST:

1. 60 Minutes. Airs alongside Dateline, if you want to get a tabloid version of the human-interest and political junkie stories that the venerable 60M specializes in. Me, I prefer Lesley Stahl to Stone Philips, but ocassionally the "gone missing at sea" stories are just the thing for a lazy Sunday night. ("What you don't know about your washing machine can kill you.")

2. The West Wing. Rescuissitated (barely) into a once-again nail biting journey of politics, thanks to a fortuitously timed "TV land" election. And the best part? (SPOILER ALERT)

The Democrats won!!! (Altho frankly, Vinick was a Moderate Republican--better than a full-on bleeding heart Dem, in my opinion--and always took the high road. So either way, it was a fantasy.)
John Spencer's untimely death was incredibly sad, but the writers have turned it into a drama goldmine. I hope Mr. Spencer, up in heaven watching reruns on Bravo, finds that flattering as opposed to tacky.

2a. A cute little show on HGTV which I will not announce here as I work on it and THERE GOES MY SECRET IDENTITY...but it IS the best show on HGTV, hands down!

3. Law and Order: Criminal Intent. Dare I say it, I almost prefer Chris Noth and Anabella Sciorra's wry, under-the-radar duo to Vincent D'Onofrio and Katherine Erbe's oddball pairing, although it's really like comparing Veuve Cliquot with Dom Perignon. Noth is so hardboiled without pushing it, and Sciorra plays her character like a seasoned vet with a peculiar insight into crooks as well as vast knowledge of the most trivial things. Last night's ep was about an opera house that ended up fertile ground for murder, complete with over-the-top characterizations by Alice Krige and Julien Sands. Loved it!

4. Law and Order reruns of every flavor--SVU, CI, and often the mother ship--late into the night on various cable channels. Heaven!

5. And, though I forgot to Tivo it, I hear So NoToriOus, on VH-1, is a crowd pleasure. As if I can fit any more juicy goodness into my Sunday nights. I worship thee, Sunday night TV gods.....

boot scootin' boogie

2006-04-07T14:02:00.000-07:00

I am obsessed. It's unhealthy and bizarre.

I'm determined to master line dancing.

It all started when I met a pal who loves country music as much as I do. I learned that if you seperate the wheat from the chaff, you can find some pretty good tunes--good melodies, lyrics, instrumentation. Then, for fun, we went to a gay country bar on Ventura.

We all tried to follow the line dances--to no avail! These steps were out of a britney spears video. Impossible!

Then I went to Dallas just a couple weeks ago, and again, was confounded by the routines. This is stupid, I thought. This is the corniest looking dancing around and I, who took dance lessons from kindergarten on up through college, can't do it??

So now it's V's big 30th birthday party, and she's having it at this huge country and western dance club in Thousand Oaks. Dag nabbit, I decided, I WILL master line dancing.

The Tush Push. Slappin' Leather. The Cowboy Hip Hop.

And so, I bought (bought!) a line dancing DVD and went to town. While I was learning the Grapevine and the three-step, I realized that I have longed to take dance lessons more intensely than I realized. I've been dying to take a 6-week ballet series, I've attempted ballroom dancing - twice--with the boyfriend, but nothing sticks. Then I saw Take The Lead to review, and even though it was pretty cheesy, the dancing was awesome, and I thought, this is what is missing from my life.

But for now, the only excuse to dance on my tight schedule is this line dancing. So dammit, I'm gonna make it count. Kentucky Chug, I will master you!

Hell-Ay

2006-04-06T09:11:00.000-07:00

I have this side gig reviewing movies for a network's website, which has to be about the most fun part time job there is; and the screenings routinely take me to L.A. Proper. I used to live in West Hollywood--when you could share a two bedroom for barely $500 a piece, imagine!--but I migrated, first against my will, to the Valley. I used to look down on the Valley in scorn: Too hot, filled with suburban strip malls, no personality. But the cost of living is cheaper there, and once I got settled, I liked it: Wide streets, plenty of parking--no lines at Trader Joe's on Sunday afternoons!

Plus, the early years of living in LA were rougher because I lived in the heart of it; there's a certain soullessness to all the people that inhabit the "cool" parts, the struggling or not so struggling models, actors, etc. Everyone has a certain air of wanting something that's always out of their reach. Of course, there are plenty of enjoyable aspects to "real" LA, the yoga classes, coffee shops, and boutiques; but I always felt a little uneasy.

And of course, I generally came to hate LA in general, valley or no.

Now, after several years, I've come to accept it. I don't plan on settling here for live, and sure as hell won't raise my kids here, but I have a respect for L.A. It is tacky, opportunistic, and garish, and F U if you don't like it! You don't even need a high school degree to make it big out here; just a mix, in whatever percentage, of talent and cajones. Plus it's sunny most of the time, arid, and mild. No warming up the car for 20 minutes every morning and scraping off the windows! And yet, we get an ocassional rainstorm and brisk, fall-like weather.

I think of all these things when I drive home now after the movies, and last night I came up Sunset Dr and had to keep glancing back at the road--looking at the new nightspots open, staring at all the billboards, watching the curve of the street lead to Hollywood. It reminded me that as a child, all I wanted was to come here, and yeah the traffic and smog, and sometimes the atmosphere really blow, but for the most part, L.A. has not disappointed.

Lonesome Jim

2006-03-31T23:05:00.000-08:00

Jittery hand held camera. Understated-to-the-point-of-monotone acting. Preciously, uniquely "quirky" characters. Awkward moments of silence between characters.

There's this indie sensibility that I just described that hit movies in the '90s that still creeps into our pop culture today. It's tired and I'm sick of it!

I saw Lonesome Jim last week (it's released today) and I gave it kinda harsh review for the site for which I review the odd movie. 'Cause Casey Affleck has the charisma of a rock in it (he's playing a depressed writer and you know he's going for the 'ultra naturalistic REAL acting' style), the characters are all oddballs and offbeat, and people do things dispassionately (have sex, tell each other to go to hell) that people NEVER do dispassionately in real life. All in the name of verity, I imagine.

Plus it takes place in a "small town" in Indiana, but with large, nice houses in suburbs that seem relatively affluent. And yet, people are rubes, small minded, naive, etc. I hate portrayals of people in small midwestern towns as total nincompoops. Having lived in midwestern smallish towns, I can tell you that yes, sushi is considered poisonous and you probably won't find a lot of gay bars, but for heaven's sake, people aren't Amish-BACKWARDS. They have DSL and running water, okay?

Steve Buscemi directed it and for someone who acts shamelessly with such spitfire and vim and vinegar, I would have expected something that had a little more gusto. The script actually wasn't that bad, but the deliberately atonal silences and oddly timed humor was trying to hard.

Okay, my rant is over. I can rest now.

!!

L.A Downtown coming alive?

2006-03-29T12:30:00.000-08:00

http://www.downtownla.com/EventDetail.asp?EventID=264

I missed this due to my trip in Dallas, but apparently downtown is experiencing a "renaissance."

It's been experiencing this "renaissance" for about 20 years now.

Yeah, hasn't quite made it yet.

I love downtown for many reasons--the Staples center, the Pantry restaurant, the library, the subway, the cool lofts. But there isn't a grocery store, you know what I mean? You're kind of isolated when it comes to living.

Plus it's pretty compact and you can find yourself right around the corner from a pretty sketchy area at the drop of a hat.

Once I was doing a show at the L.A. Theater Center (Complex?) on Spring Street. It's a wonderful complex and parking was right next door, but that 100 ft from parking to the complex was scary. People followed me, a homeless guy harassed me for change, and one time as I rushed to the front door, I found it was locked. It was like trying to be the final person on the last 'coptor ride out of Saigon--OPEN UP!! Scary.

Maybe in twenty more years. I hope. There's nothing like a "real" city, with high rises and one way streets.

Dallas

2006-03-28T10:45:00.000-08:00

I went to visit one of my best friends (buddies since Junior high, when our lockers were just a few spaces apart!) in Dallas this weekend. I admire him so much as he is getting a "real" job - he's studying to get his PHd in Clinical Psychology. Reading some of his course-related text is mind boggling. So far he has diagnosed me as "neurotic," but assured me that this classification is underneath the "normal" heading. Thank god!

Not much to do in Dallas but eat, eat, eat. And at least the eatin' is good. I was sick for the trip--got a sore throat the morning I flew out--but all the spicy food and tequila ensured that I could at least function.

We also went to the Grassy Knoll, the area on the outskirts of downtown where JFK got shot.

That's me considering the many conspiracy theories behind who REALLY shot JFK, with said Knoll in the background.

It's something that always fascinates me, seeing something famous (or infamous, in this case), whether a document, person, or site, in person for the first time. Its character changes. It also becomes human and everyday--just a grassy knoll. Smaller than you remember seeing in the Zapruder screen shots. But fascinating nonetheless.

I left Dallas on Sunday and am already forlorn that I will not be eating real Tex Mex anytime soon. Or BBQ brisket. But at least LA is the Sushi Capital of America--that I CANNOT do without!

West Wing-ery

2006-03-21T13:56:00.000-08:00

Why did this weekend's West Wing fail to address Josh and Donna's momentous kiss last weekend???

Even the sound guy on a shoot shortly thereafter was giddy about it. ((After I brought it up first.) Everyone wants them to shag and have babies. But he missed getting her hotel key and fate intervened!!! For now!!!

Then last week's episode was about Santos' suitcase, filled with incriminating info, kidnapped by the Vinick campaign. Yawn. (Actually it was kind of interesting but since Vinick and Santos didn't kiss, who cares?)

On a serious note the show is definitely winding down with its dignity intact, which is nice. Watching seasons 1 and 2 for the first time last year, I was struck with how sad it was that the show lost its magic touch. At least it's not going down in flames.

Small World

2006-03-18T10:33:00.000-08:00

It's really scary what a tiny, tiny town Hell-Ay actually is. I helped a good buddy get a job transcribing at the production company I work for, and the show she was logging (a typical 1/2 hour how-to reality show we specialize in), she recognized one of the homeowners as a former coworker.

It doesn't shock me. When I first moved here and got my first agent, I went out with a pal to celebrate. We went to this great little bar called Max's, on Fairfax (dearly departed now), and as me and my bud started chatting, a guy approached and asked if he could take an empty chair next to us.

I look up, and it's this guy I did theatre with in Chicago--mere months ago!

Of course, I had a sickening crush on him, and though it had mostly weathered away by then, it was even more delightful of a coincidence. He had moved out, as I did, to pursue acting, and I'm happy to say that he has quite a resume now. He's a semi-regular on a sitcom, pops up in commercials, and I saw him on an excellent episode of Without a Trace. I'm telling you...the world is just collapsing into one small neighborhood.

Then there was the surfer/actor I dated, who was from a tight theatre clique in Chicago. We knew generally of each other's theatrical resume, but on the second date, he started showing me pics of his Chicago buddies.

i realized that not only had I worked with one of his best friends on a show, but that I had met him. We both remembered the exact day - New Year's Day 1998 - it was for a rehearsal, during which I had to pretend to beat the shit out of his then girlfriend, who became his much-bemoaned ex.

Unreal.

The other weekend, a buddy who is on the editorial staff of a magazine recounted going to Teddy's, the ultra-exclusive club on Hollywood Blvd., where she saw: Paris Hilton, Mischa Barton, Lindsay Lohan, and Jamie Foxx. She said she just looked around her thinking, What the hell am I doing here? (Mind you, she's fabulous, interviews celebrities for a living, and all that, so she totally fit in, but starlets who unnecessarily make worldwide headlines all gathering in one place...it's a little ridiculous.)

What Happened to The L Word?

2006-03-17T17:13:00.000-08:00

I started watching The L Word when friends recommended it. I loved the soapyness, the drama, the comedy, even when it edged on cheesiness. I loved the actors--all are superb, and I have a hetero crush on Kate Moennig as lady-killer Shane--and the story lines were provocative, slightly fantastical, but almost always true to LA lesbian life. (I have enough sapphic sisters in my life to know.)

Then this season...sigh. What happened?

Season 3 starts with a complete role reversal of the couple that anchors the series, Bette and Tina. Bette is alpha female, caustic, hard-charging, ocassionally insensitive, but has a big, warm heart and good intentions. Her partner Tina, pushed away by Bette's coldness and infidelity, eventually returns and they have a baby (thanks to a sperm donor and Tina's womb).

This season? Bette is going on meditation retreats and Tina is a cold, hard bitch having an affair with a man.

How many people have an extreme personality change in a year?

Shane, the loverboy of the group, is attempting (yawn) monogamy with the naggy Carmen; the Cutest Couple Ever, Alice (the comic of the group) and Dana (the dork of the group), are broken up; oh, and Dana dies.

Dana dies of cancer. From start to finish the whole shebang took about 3 months in "real" time, if I'm following the episodes correctly. Despite being a pro tennis player with the best medical care, they didn't know the cancer spread until after her mastectomy.

Excuse me?

The excellent recaps on afterellen.com reflect the vehement and hands-thrown-in-the-air attitude of the message boards on Televisionwithoutpity.com, and rightly so. What happened to the sudsy, decadently filmed, well acted mishmash of love, lust, and comedy? It's soooo depressing. And killing Dana? What???

In the super serious PSA after the Death to Dana episode, the VO claims this "Groundbreaking" episode of television brought to light one of the most serious cancers known to woman--the most serious, in fact. First of all, you don't need to kill a favorite character to make a point. Second of all--might it be a wee bit more inspiring to show Dana SURVIVE?

Instead, creator Ilene Chaiken smirks piously at the camera and says that these things just happen in life, that's all...and the story line kind of wrote itself...or something like that.

The chat room's response? FUIC!

Bleh.

Say AHHHHHHH!!

2006-03-15T12:57:00.000-08:00

No one likes the dentist. Regrettably, thanks to genetics and bizarre bodily chemistry, even if I brush 8 times a day and floss nightly, if I don't get regular cleanings I'll have dentures by the time I'm 30.

And, even though I've been getting cleanings, I had two cavities. Grr! BTW, insurance doesn't cover porcelain fillings, and how did I not know this? $300, down the drain.

So I go in today, and the dental assistant first of all doesn't suck up all the saliva in my mouth so I get the uncontrollable urge to swallow, hitting the dentists' hand and sending a drill on my tongue. Great start.

Then it turns out this is a mega cavity, and she drills and drills and drills away, and keeps injecting me with anesthesia, enough to knock out a pony. This whole time I'm actually anxious, even though the act of flossing is often more painful than a typical cavity filling. Plus, I almost convinced myself that one can die from cavity anesthesia, until my more rational mind noted that if that were the case, the average human life span would be 15.5 years.

Finally the dentist finishes and says, "Well, I don't have time to do the second one. You'll have to come back."

Well, I don't have time to rearrange my entire schedule because YOU'RE too busy drilling people's tongues!

Now the anesthesia is wearing off and my tooth hurts, but it could be worse -- I could have TWO cavities healing.

Maybe I should get them all pulled out and wear dentures??

Debt Diet

2006-03-12T15:30:00.000-08:00

Oprah has a series called "Debt Diet" where she's helping America cut up those credit cards one day at a time. She's picking some pretty wounded souls who have psychological issues that lead to their spending habits.

So, in this episode (Fridays' ep), this lady is back with her husband and they show a party she had, where she aired the FIRST Oprah episode on which she appeared. it was sort of an "outing" herself to her mother and friends that she is in terrible debt.

Part of the episode showed her in front of a 2,000 sq foot house--beautiful, classic lines, typical Suburban America I've Made It house--and says, "Here's my $300,000 house. My husband said we couldn't afford it, but I really wanted it."

I rolled my eyes and said, "Of course you can afford it." Then I turned the show off and puttered into the kitchen of my 842 sq-foot condo that cost me $240,000. On a single woman's meager salary. Shit, if I can (against all logic) barely afford this, surely a two-income household can afford THAT!! (It's called clipping coupons and picking up an extra job, honey!)

Leave it to the L.A. housing market to change your perspective on debt!

Since I Moved To L.A 8 Years Ago...

2006-03-09T11:16:00.000-08:00

I've...

1. Been Mugged
2. Had my car broken into. 6 times.
3. Had two cell phones stolen
4. Have had 4 agents and two managers.
5. Have worked at over 15+ places of employment (thanks temp agencies)
6. Saved a kid's life (long story)
7. Been (lightly) shoved by a cop
8. Been hit by a car as a pedestrian
9. Been in two accidents
10. Lived in 6 different apartments
11. Dated a man 15 years older than me
12. Worked as a marketing associate. Then a telecom project manager. Then as a cable tv producer.

Dude. I'm tired.

Rachel McAdams: A Girl's Girl

2006-03-08T12:36:00.000-08:00

Ask me my favorite movie of last year (go on, ask!) and I'll say Red Eye. It's the tight airplane thriller by Wes Craven starring Cillian Murphy and everyone's lady of the moment, Rachel McAdams. Most folks thought it was a nice B-movie white knuckler, simply and aptly done, but I say it's more than that.

(fF you haven't seen it, maybe you shouldn't read the rest.)

It's of course a pure and simple "female empowerment picture," so clearly laid out that it inhabits the same home with with the best of the B-movie "message" flicks and every third Lifetime Channel MOW. Rachel M's character, Lisa Reisert, is successful, pleasant, and easygoing, a people pleaser but clearly capable running her life. While Cillian M's terrorist character is trying to use her to enable an attack on the director of homeland security at the hotel Lisa manages, she must summon up the ability to fight back. The same ability to fend off 'evil' that never came to her rescue when, as she says around the third act, she was assualted in broad daylight two years prior.

Easy to connect the dots: Her anxiety and helplessness from the assault will be resolved if she can kick this guy's ass. And she does--not just him, but another attacker, and she thwarts a terrorist attack, and she tells off two obnoxious hotel patrons. And yes, it's a very clear, uncomplicated redemption for this character, but for a 80 minute thrill ride, that's all you need.

Crucial to the success of Red Eye's ability to convey this message of empowerment is McAdam's performance. Her eyes definitely tell a story, and yes that's corny, but so few actresses can do this; and in a neat, spare-no-words thriller like this one, it's vital to see every machine whirring in her brain. Her vulnerability, quiet resolve, and her ease with the sometimes obvious dialogue keeps this "b-movie" first in its class.

Cillian Murphy is excellent as well, providing the perfect foil to the archtypical type-A "too nice" character of Lisa.

It's the perfect role for McAdams, one every woman watching should treasure. She uses her wits and her muscles to fight back, all in heels. And she's one of the few actresses out there who is not only glamorous, but also seems like she wouldn't bore you to tears if you met her, or annoy you, or come off as completely flaky. She's centered and grounded, while most other actresses out there seem to look down on us. It's clear she's the actress of the moment with total staying power.

CRASH

2006-03-07T08:02:00.000-08:00

Hello,
I am eager to start blogging here again, for the 2.5 people who actually read it. I miss online journaling and viewing others' thoughts and doings, so it begins again. It helps that my new place of work is not as prisoner-like about their IT department, like the last place. And since I don't blog much about work, I'll definitely be able to work on it during lunch breaks and the like.

So here's an auspicious '06 debut for the blog: I got hit by a car yesterday. Not while in a car--I, me, the person, got HIT by a car.

I'm from Chicago, where one can do cartwheels willy-nilly down the street without a crosswalk, and it's a-okay. I consider myself a professional street-crosser. I was leaving work yesterday and instead of taking a 10 minute round trip across a lighted intersection in a slightly shady area of North Hollywood to my car, I chose to cross directly across the street. Like EVERYONE DOES on this street.

I looked both ways, swore to God there was no one coming to my left, and literally out of nowhere, in the middle lane used for left turns, this car slams into me. First, a screech, then I look up, see the car, roll up on the hood, then back -oof!- on my ass on the concrete, like you see people do in the movies or every third episode of "Law and Order". Clearly the driver had been distracted and speeding--while other cars had been rolling to stops in anticipation of a red light further down the way.

I didn't hurt much at all, it was really just like taking a simple fall down a coupla stairs, and I was totally wide-eyed with shock. After some debate me and the driver - a chain-smoking middle aged woman with a European accent-- finally called the cops, and waited in our respective cars till they came, and I called a few friends to chat and help me stay calm. Though the woman who hit me was more irrational than me--i had to calm her down! Believe it or not... the woman had been claiming all this time that it was "my fault" becuase I crossed in the middle of the street--to which I reminded her that ped's always have the right of way. "Oh, is that what your insurance is telling you?" she snapped. Uh, first of all, yes, everyone knows that; and second of all, any concern at all for this girl you just hit??? Good lord!

When the cops came they were very polite and patient, and the woman's husband started bellowing how she was stopped at a red light (?!?) etc, and the cop asked him to stand aside. We all went to the 'scene of the crime' where I clearly pointed out that I was leaving work and thus the incident happend right in front of the building. Luckily the woman went back to the original, accurate version of the incident now that her husband was gone.

The cops filed a report, shook our hands, and took off. I went to the ER, and that's where the worst part happened.

They called me in right away. Woo! The nurse was sweet and funny, and then the doctor who came in was appropriately good looking and relaxed.

"How did it happen?" he asked. I gave him the short version. "Did you dent the car?"
I cocked his head and said, "I weigh 118, of COURSE I didn't dent the car!"
He laughed and said, "I haven't seen that kind of attitude before."
I joined in and said, "That's a pretty L.A. comment, huh?"
But seriously, after all my working out and ending my ice cream habit, me dent a car? Hurumph!

He did a little once over for broken bones, and then I told him that the only thing really hurting besides a mild ache here or there, was my bum (the bone you hurt when yhou come down hard on you butt in gym class in the third grade--you know the one). He said, "Okay, we'll just check that. Any blood in the urine? Any vomiting?" Nope, nope, nope.

"You're very lucky," he said. "Just get on your stomach and we'll check the spot that's bothering you." I complied, pleased that I'd be out soon, thanking God about a million times over that I was safe, and promising endlessly to Him/Her to go to church EVERY weekend...the doc lowered my panties just a bit to check my bum for bruising...and I hear him say to the nurse-

"Could you hand me the lube?"

My eyes widen again, like a deer, like a deer who has never been told to "bend over and cough," like a woman who has only experienced such...rear view action NEVER, not any time, who has NEVER been curious about that kind of "goin' up where stuff goes out--" I contain my apprehension and sit up.

"The next thing I have to do isn't the most pleasant," the doctor said kindly, surely smothering a giggle.

"Yeah--I got that," I said.

I did as instructed, laying on my side, and then he--well, you know what he did. Oh my god. It was worse than getting hit by the car, really. He had to check for inner fractures, so he poked around like dog sniffing a gopher hole, asking, does that hurt?

"YEEeeeEES," I kept replying.

"Okay--let's try to diffrientiate from the, ah, actual exam and--real pain."

"Yep, got it--okay, that doesn't hurt--oh. That DOES--"

I was clenched so tight around his finger, I swore I was going to break the man's knuckle. Freud would say his theories of anal retentive personalities are correct-- me, type A control freak; my ass, so tense it could spontaneously combust.

You know, I was meaning to see "Brokeback Mountain" this weeekend, but it's not going to happen. And the inner gay guy I keep declaring myself to be? He's a top.

After an xray it was determined my coxxus--the butt bone area--is merely bruised. Bruised badly, but nothing a couple of days of taking it easy and ocassional ice packs can't hurt. And thanks, God--not onloy did you spare me my life, you have ensured that no matter how many margaritas I have, no one could ever talk me into having a little action where the sun don't shine.

"chocolate"

2005-10-13T23:59:00.000-07:00

According to a pal who works in the entertainment industry, there apparentlly is code going around for cocaine: chocolate. I imagine this is the update to "dust" and "party favor."

And it's still endlessly going around that all these skinny blond girls on the big screen--even the uber-innocent seeming ones--are doing a lot of chocolate.

People, when will it all end?

For years now I've gradually come to the conclusion that being rich and famous just isn't worth the misery. Though we all claim we'd be able to handle it. But I wonder.

Don't spam me, a**holes.

2005-10-13T23:55:00.000-07:00

Please, if you think about putting a comment up here to advertise your blog, stop.
I don't know how else to stop you, but it's adding stupid emails to my email box and you know what? I'm not going to your blog. Ever. Okay?
thanks.

Big news day

2005-10-11T08:55:00.000-07:00

This is way too late to post all this. But working where I do, in tv production of the pop culture sort, I heard about Nick and Jessica right about when it was posted on Defamer (meaning several hours, shockingly, before anyone else published the news. God bless defamer.) Then I hear, "Oh and can you believe Katie's pregnant?" right after lunch, and I hop on -yes- defamer, and there it is. As a result, taping for my show was pushed almost an hour. but hey, the people need to know.

And of course, supposedly the Simpsons are doing fine and there is no such divorce. I hate to say it--sometimes, I have a salacious need to read gossip. But I wouldn't miss it. I always thought everyone was like me, with an admiration for entertainers but a casual disgust for their idolatry. And then I saw a Dr Phil where teenaged girls were wanting to be just like Paris, and then I realized why celebrity culture has exploded. Oh well.

In any case, I'm now dreaming about working for NPR. You know, to flush out all the toxins.

Ashes to ashes

2005-09-30T08:06:00.000-07:00

In L.A., the usual apocalyptic atmosphere is keeping everyone on their toes. This time, it's the fires, which are occuring pretty close to me. Ashes are on everyone's car in the morning, but the smell is mostly gone (at least towards Hollywood). The other night, driving home, the horizon looked like Tara was burning.

Hopefully no one has been hurt still, even though some homes have been destroyed. California may be the land of dreams, but it's also the land of earthquakes, freeway shootings, horrible fires, mudslides, and actor-turned-governors. Sometimes I think all this freakishness is in exchange for the gorgeous weather and the late workdays (it seems no one gets to work before 9am out here). I guess I'll take it.

PAY DAMMIT

2005-09-27T09:05:00.000-07:00

So I'm thinking about doing more freelance writing to make my house-poor ass some extra dough, and hop on the Writing/Editing jobs section of craigslist.org.

Here's a paraphrased sample of the ads:

Need hip, connected writers with a feel for what's new in Los Angeles to write about health, fashion, beauty, and other current topics.

There is no pay, but we'll link to your website and give you a byline to encourage shameless self promotion, and this is a great way to build clips and be seen by an ever-increasing audience.

***
I don't need "clips." Your audience increases from 100 readers a day to 101. Give me. A BREAK. Dammit, I need MONEY.

When I was producing little shorts on mini-DV for my hosting reel oh so long ago, I hired a camera man, and a friend as field director. I wasn't rolling in cash (at one point, I believe I was even temping), but I paid the DP $75 and my pal $100, for no more than 10 hrs of work. Sure that's not a lot, but $75 for one day of work when you weren't working anyways--that's not bad. Once, I only hired them out for a half day at the same rate. I think people just feel better when they're PAID. Give them that courtesy. Even $50, or $25--just ANYTHING. If you need a product, and you have SOME income (even just a few bucks from online ads), pay, for shit's sake! Even if it's $10 an article. Seriously, I'd write for $10 an article.

In fact, I'm catering this weekend for extra cash. Yes, catering. (Shockingly it pays more an hour than what I was making at one time as a producer at a notoriously cheap but friendly production company.) And catering will pay me. They'll pay me to pour wine and be nice for five hours. It pays pretty well in fact!

So that's what it's become for web writers. I'm surprised no one has written a polemic underneath listings for the ads (sometimes someone does that). I'm actually turning to just pitching publications outright--I was planning on it--but thought I could at least make a few bucks here and there doing some web writing in the meantime.

Guess not.

Good buzz: P&P

2005-09-27T09:03:00.000-07:00

Some lucky ducks I know saw Pride and Prejudice at the Toronto Film Festival and said it was an Oscar contender. I watch the trailer a lot for work and I literally swoon every time. It seems extremely elegant, yet full of true moments that imbue romance. And Matthew MacFadyen (apparently a veteran of the British police show MI-5) is a dream. -sigh- I am a sucker for that stuff.

And no matter what some people think of Keira Knightley (I'm thinking of a particular film critic who seems to hate her), I really like her acting. Her face is gorgeous and imminently watchable and she has a ton of charisma. Maybe as she ages the charisma will wear off, and underneath there will be nothing--but I'm not so sure.

Mall'ed.

2005-09-24T10:42:00.000-07:00

Los Angeles has many malls, and the two newest shopping/entertainment centers are the Grove (near Farmer's Market) and Hollywood and Highland, the much-ballyhooed revitalization attempt of the pimps n ho's district of old-time Hollywood.

Walking around H&H yesterday, a very confusing myriad of upscale stores and random no-name outlets with a confounding set up of escalators and multi-levels, I realized it's the Paris Hilton of L.A. malls. Never will be invited to the Oscars, but will go to the after-parties. Skanky dressed up in designer wear. Not too smart either. (The parking is bizarre--people stand at aisles and wave you down to the right or left, preventing you from going straight ahead to pursue spots closer to the elevators. And the exit signs are misplaced and change every time you turn the corner!!)

Whereas the Grove, where I go frequently as it's near my work (good for rush-hour skipping movie watching), is like the Emmy-nominated actress: Probably not prestigious enough for the movies, but elegant, classy, and comfortable enough not to make you feel beneath her. It's very warm, very classy, and yet slightly tacky (it has a faux-European villa sense about it). It also has the NICEST PUBLIC RESTROOMS I HAVE EVER BEEN TO. In fact, this week I didn't make my usual pit stop at work before heading to the Grove, as I knew the bathrooms at their main entrance are nicer, and cleaner. I think that's won me over for life.

Elizabethtown is a 5.

2005-09-24T10:38:00.000-07:00

I saw it last night with a buddy who got a free screening and it was...eh. I can see why folks are complaining. There is an awkward sense of pacing; Orlando Bloom is lacking something--a certain depth, and comfort with Cameron Crowe's more poetic dialogue--and there are lapses in logic. For example, a character provides Bloom with a guide to a road trip across the company, but the expert planning was all done in 24 hours and the guide pretty much gets the whole trip timed down to the minute. I don't see how that can happen.

As someone who thinks "Legally Blonde" is Shakespeare, for a lapse in logic to bug me really says something. But, "Elizabethtown" also has its sincere, and sweet moments, and it made me cry a couple times, and that says something--that doesn't happen to me every day.

So, it's a 5. I would say, wait for the DVD. And for a sincere effort, it wasn't awful, either.

LA Times: Again: No going back to New Orleans

2005-09-18T09:07:00.000-07:00

Somehow, I find the Saturday LA Times to be the best issue of the week. Maybe because they don't think anyone reads it and sneak in more interesting and even--dare I say it--gossipy stories.

Anyhoo, one not so gossipy but baldly truthful story started on the front page and discussed how residents of N.O., displaced to other communities, are really preferring where they've landed. Better schools, safer environment, cleaner, better jobs.

These are working-poor folks who were unswervingly loyal to N.O. despite the horrible schools, murder rate (up to 300 homocides were expected this year), and piss-poor job market.

I wish Katrina never happened, but a lot of these people are discovering a better way of life inadvertently. I wonder what this says about how the city was run in the first place? If only Katrina could have only swept out corruption and poor leadership, and left good things in its wake for its citizens.

Anyway...it was interesting.

Public Transport: Sucks.

2005-09-18T09:02:00.000-07:00

So since my rallying cry last week to take public transportation, I *have* taken it..once.

You see, when there are only two subway stations for all of San Fernando Valley (a huge overpopulated expanse of Hell-Ay), there is NO PARKING for people who have to drive 10 miles to said subway stations.

Luckily, the Orange Line opens soon--it's a fancy schmancy busway that - gasp! - connects the farthest reaches of SFV (in fact there's a station just 10 min from my apt) to the ACTUAL SUBWAY!

Honestly, this town...! In the LA Times' editorial secion yesterday, it was noted that a subway couldn't be built along Wilshire Blvd (the main street that connects LA proper from Downtown to ritzy and business-heavy West L.A.) because of gross amounts of methane. And now there are possible plans of sneaking in a mixed-use building in the last bare lot along wilshire, and wealthy WLA denizens are freaking out. Of course, they also prevented more public transportation (methane or not) from being built there. And now traffic is snarled all along Wilshire every single day. (These same citizens voted down a subway that connected all the way to LAX. Can you believe it? So now you have to take 3 subway lines from the valley, let's say, to about 10 minutes short of LAX--and take a BUS SHUTTLE. Good heavens!!)

But Mayor V is having a new study done on this "Methane" and the legislator that sponsored the no-subway bill said he'd relent if the methane really wasn't that big of an issue. And hopefully, many years and a billion dollars later, LA'ers will have another way to get to freakin' work on time without sitting in traffic.

This town makes no sense to me sometimes.

Damn IT!

2005-09-18T08:59:00.000-07:00

So I hate not posting every day on my blog, and ironically i'm holding down the first total-in-office job in two years. BUT, the IT department at my company are like the nuns in parochial school in 3rd grade.

For example, in orientation, I simply asked if there was a wireless network so I could bring in my laptop and work on it that way. Well, it was as if I asked if I could go around the company unplugging everyone's PCs. NO, they said. NO. IT'S VERY HARD TO GET INTO OUR WIRELESS NETWORK AND IF YOU COULD HACK INTO IT, WE'D HIRE YOU. HA HA HA BUT NO. DON'T EVEN THINK ABOUT IT.

Uhh......

So I tried even downloading and using ICQ to IM folks...no such luck.

Damn you, IT!

Everyone: Public Transportation!

2005-09-07T20:54:00.000-07:00

Seriously!

Okay, so PT is a joke in L.A. Nonetheless, I'm determined to make 1/2 my journey on PT. I can take the subway, then the bus for a 20min trip over the hill to work. When it's all added up, I'll probably only save $1-2 a day in gas, but I'll be left with less guilt and my car's life will be prolonged. I'm absolutely determined not to laze out of it.

Plus, the Orange Line debuts in late October, and that's a special busway (with a super neat bus-like vehicle to match) that goes all the way from Warner Ctr in Woodland Hills to the NoHo Subway! Yes, it took Hell-ay this long to connect passengers from the valley to an ACTUAL subway station!

I still have no idea how the powers that be turned out a highly ineffectual subway map, but at least they're trying to make up for it.

Screw the oil barons. Public Transportation!

"Eh" for Elizabethtown?

2005-08-31T20:24:00.000-07:00

A pal who's seen the three hour (yes, three hour) version of Cameron Crowe's upcoming heart-string-tugger Elizabethtown says it's...unimpressive. There are few however who love it so much they don't even want it edited down. Sounds like another Almost Famous--bored me to tears, couldn't make it through it, yet there are those who dote on the additional scenes on the DVD.

This pal says it's Orlando Bloom who's mostly to blame. Apparently when out of his warrior tights, he can't pull off every day young man.

I have seen the preview about a million times, and Orlando doesn't have the gravitas or sparkle that his costar Kirsten Dunst has in droves. There's just...something missing. It'll be a big test for him since Kingdom of Heaven didn't do so hot, and that actually looked good.

THINK, people

2005-08-31T20:18:00.000-07:00

1%? Are you kidding me?

I don't know what's going on with people, but I think Americans can be dumb, dumb, dumb. I've struggled mightily to find a lucrative, and steady career that I actually ENJOY, and paid for it by not being able to save nearly as much $$ as I'd like. Nonetheless, I have enough stashed away to get me by for 5 or 6 months. And a wee retirement account on top of that. Still hardly anything, and I was getting really tough on my self, when I've been reading lately that:

A) The average household debt in America is around $4,000, by some estimates, and I've heard worse.
B) The average household saves *less than 1% of their monthly income.* 1%!!!

What do these people think they're going to do when it comes time to retire? I don't know about you, but as much as I enjoy my job, I'm just pounding away until one day I can sit in front of the telly and eat bon bons. Ain't no work for me after 55, no matter what it takes. And I know with kids it's damn hard to save too, but somehow my parents managed to pack dough away here and there, even if it meant we had to go to --horrors!--state schools.

And here's a few real genuises, as quoted in the LA Times, about the housing equity craze ("Equity Is Altering Spending Habits and View of Debt," August 28th):

"If you paid your mortgage off, it means you probably did not manage your funds efficiently over the years. It's as if you had 500,000 dollar bills stuffed in your mattress.... [It's] very unsophisticated."
That's David Lereah, chief economist of--guess who!--the National Association of Realtors (or Really Disilusioned)

I see...so taking out a huge loan to take a vacay or buy a big telly is "sophisticated?" Adding on to already albatrossian loans with more debt? Smart homeowners already have managable mortgage payments (i.e., they didn't stretch themselves to buy in this overheated market) and use the equity to invest smartly in other properties, or to make home improvements that will add appreciable value to their home, or even use the new, low-interest/tax deductible debt to wipe out large credit card debts.

Luckily a Ms. Sandi Bandfield, interviewed in the LA Times article, got the memo about renting out property. Otherwise these anti-Mensa candidates woulda been screwed:

"Last year, the couple began talking about retirement. "We don't want to work forever, and someone's got to pay for this house," Bandfield said. "We have a nice life, but nothing in savings to speak of. I saw us relegated to a dinky gray condo in Las Vegas if we didn't do something."

Stocks? "I dabbled. I think I made $26 last year." Social Security? "It's piddly. Who wants to live like that?"

This woman is 55 years old, and is part of a two income household. She and her husband have "nothing in savings to speak of." WHAT HAVE YOU BEEN DOING WITH YOUR MONEY???

Turns out the Bandfields bought properties and rented them out. Not for the faint of heart, but when done with thought and enough time to spare, a very wise way to have retirement income.

If they hadn't? They wouldn't be able to retire.

PEOPLE!!!

Kelly, Kelly, Kelly

2005-08-29T20:49:00.000-07:00

I kept switching back and forth between various Law and Ordi and the VMA's, and found reruns of L&O far more interesting. Even the various cognescenti in the audience were ennui-istic.

Thank god I tivo'd it, however, because I'm quite sure that R. Kelly's bizarre interpretive rendition of his vanity piece, "Trapped in the Closet." And he really is in the closet, it seems like, which is fine, as I know all about the "down low" culture, and in fact am obsessed with it (and indeed this culture was on an episode of...Law and Order! [SVU]).

So score points for gay pride, but uh, it sounded like a car wreck. So of course I can't wait to watch it.

However, I am very happy that Ms. Kelly Clarkson won twice, and that she was able to cap off the boring events with a show-stopping rendition of "Since U Been Gone," her hit single. I did actually go through the trouble of watching this at work (headphones on), and enjoyed it. It was a little rough--she had to go to three different stages for whatever reason, and was rained on--but so full of vigor and growling, powerful vocals that I just can't tolerate the other non-talents on display so often on MTV. And here's a girl, average, pleasant looks, not super skinny, with amazing charisma and phenomenal talent--and AMERICA chose her. American Idol may be cheesy, but it goes to show how real talent WILL actually get you somewhere with, yes, the mainstreamest of audiences.

And Clarkson has done something extremely notable: Reinvented pop stardom for herself. She's added producers who can sear rough edges onto pop ditties for a sound that Avril Lavigne already introduced to radio, but more for adult ears, and I am so glad she came on the scene. Pop has to lean more towards rock if it wants to evolve as it always does. Clarkson is totally on the right track. I do love that Kelly. (And maybe I will love the grotesquerie of R. Kelly as well. But I will wait to see that one.)

V for Very Quiet

2005-08-22T21:47:00.000-07:00

I receive a calendar every Thursday that has changes in release dates. It's canon at my workplace, so I trust it.

So when I inquire about V for Vendetta from someone 'in the know,' imagine my surprise when I learned that it was pushed back to March!

And there it is, on Yahoo.com/movies, the words "March 2006" silently glowing at me beneath its title. So it's all out and about, but no big news. Of course, I don't troll all the major film sites every day, but it isn't on Hollywood-elsewhere, it isn't on AICN, or Chud--on the main pages, anyways. Well, I guess problems continue for the film.

I liked the comic book all right, though I wanted a continuation of the story. I don't know how it'd work as a movie if literally translated, however. There needs to be more meat in some ways; or maybe Acts I and II be the first and last halves of the book, then a full resolution to the political issues at hand. If you've never read the comic, this will make no sense, but, there it is.

Time will tell!

Red Eye

2005-08-22T21:44:00.000-07:00

I'm loving Rachel McAdams. I find she's the only actress around most days who doesn't seem like she'd be annoying and high-falutin in real life. Plus, she can actually act. Fancy that!

So I treated myself to a movie and saw Red Eye. Loved it. Great flick. So trim, so linear, and no, I didn't think the plot was that all fantastical. And throughout it, there were funny moments, even during the most nearly tragic action scenes.

I also, and I hate to sound like an overearnest college student, thought it was just the tiniest bit feminist. I mean, at one point, a villain is felled by a stiletto heel jabbed in his calf. Obvious, but delightful!

See it, love it.

I HAVE A TV.

2005-08-02T09:50:00.000-07:00

When I first started working production, not even two years ago, I was a grizzled 27-year-old who, while holding down soul-sucking corporate jobs to fund my oddessey to be an actor (which was even MORE soul-sucking--at least I got promoted at the other jobs!), was longing for an actual CAREER I loved.

So I chose production after I got laid off from the last corporate gig. I was a lowly PA and I was trolling the offices of the first place that hired me, I noticed: Everyone had a t.v.! I thought: This is a great career for me! Where watching t.v. while working was CONDONED!! Hot damn!

When I finally landed a string of staff positions at a particular company, no one got a cable-enabled telly.

But at this new job--I just started yesterday--I have one. EVERYONE, including P.A.'s, have one. OMG, it's big too!!!

A friend here told me she doesn't have one by a fluke, but she's afraid if she did she'd never get any work done. For me, I work well with a T.V. softly murmuring in the background. My new job entails some paper edits and writing, and when I get stuck or need a break, I just turn, see Dr. Phil or Marlena from "Days of Our Lives" speaking earnestly to the screen, and, comforted, I turn back and write dilligently.

I have made it. I have a T.V. at work!!!!

My Ecstasy

2005-08-02T09:45:00.000-07:00

So, I have been drinking this coffee, a particular brand, and I swear to god, it's like doing uppers.

It's Don Francisco Hawaiian Hazelnut, it's been sitting in my pantry for a year, and in desperation I cracked open the can. I don't know what's in this shit, but once I have a couple sips, I feel like I'm freaking president of the united states. (Not Bush; Clinton.) The hazelnut flavor is sharp and real, as opposed to the cloying, almost buttery tinge of other hazelnut coffee; and it's STRONG, even when I make it supposedly weak.

Anyhoo, it's a good way to start the day, but I'm afeared I've become addicted: I think about it a lot, and once even had some at 10pm!! It was when I wasn't working the next day, but, still.

All in all, though, it's a hell of a lot cheaper than some people's habits. Don Francisco is like $5 for a can!

I am "bi"

2005-07-26T12:39:00.000-07:00

When people ask my advice (because I know how to reboot a computer and use basic photoshop, they think I'm good with computers, which strikes my Unix/RedHad/IT professional of a brother as hilarious) on whether to get a Mac or PC, I shrug and say, "well, if you want to write stuff and use the internet, get a PC; if you want to record music, edit movies, and do a lot of photosharing, get a Mac." They expect me to, like many others, fire off an icinderary diatribe against one or the other.

I used to not like Mac's so much, and I know despite being in the desperate minority (what is it...5% of all computer users have a Mac?) they're freakin' expensive, but since OS 10 I've had a pleasurable time navigating them. Then, as I got into production and dabbled in songwriting and wanted to be able to edit and also record music, the Powerbook seemed an obvious choice. Each mac comes with Ilife, including the robust and amazingly simple Imovie (negating a Final Cut Pro purchase) and Garageband, so good at editing and recording music that some pros use it. I do love my powerbook.

But sitting in my walk-in closet, on a shelf I jerry rigged in the back, sits my 7-year-old HP desktop. The monitor is bigger than my entire upper body. My boyfriend aches to toss it for a cheap, new dell or something. It's my "backup" computer and my DSL hardware plugs into it. It works just fine!! Sure, it can't shut down anymore (thanks to the DSL) and it can't burn CDs and uh, in fact, it still uses floppy disks, but it's made the way things were supposed to be made--to never break!

So I always told people it was up to their preferences what computer they got. They prodded and pried, trying to get a biased answer. "I have both," i'd say, "a PC and a Mac, and I love 'em equally." Just like my two cats.

And now, I'm sitting at the Mac "Genius Bar," during my hiatus (my new job starts in August), thinking a Tuesday morning would be a slow time. Well, not when kids are out for summer. I have an hour long wait to find out how to clear up my "Startup disk." Mac "Help" was anything but ("delete some files on your startup disk," it says. Well, what files? the ones that contain actual programs for my Mac???).

So now I'm batting a bit more for the other team, the PCs. I still remain "Bi" but I'm definitely favoring that old steam-powered HP comfortably humming in my closet. But I'll be patient. I only half hour to go till some "genius" quickly rearranges my startup disk and I'm back in business. Hopefully.

Kyra Sedgwick. Emmy. NOW.

2005-07-19T12:39:00.000-07:00

Kyra_Sedgwick
Originally uploaded by violetta.

Does anyone watch The Closer? Well, you should, because it's one of the more elegant and solid crime dramas around (and being addicted to these kinds of shows, I profess to be a bit of an expert).

I am enjoying Kyra Sedgewick's version of a "strong" woman without pushing the machismo element. She plays a southern former CIA interrogator (who almost always gets her confession) and current police chief in charge of "priority" homocides (high profile folks). She slips into a very alluring southern accent and charming mannerisms but she also does the stern cop thing very well too--it all reads so genuine.

I'm assuming it's too late for The Closer to be eligible for the Emmys, but next year, if Sedgewick doesn't get one, I'm picketing. I don't know who, but I'll picket SOMEONE.

The Reality of Women

2005-07-18T21:33:00.000-07:00

So I was watching "60 Minutes" last night about women staying home to raise kids. Some think these women--of the elite sort, like lawyers and business school grads--are throwing away their brains and hard-fought rights. And, businesses aren't exactly easy to work with when their female employees leave for raising kids.

As I was watching this, I realized that almost every producer I've worked with in reality has been a woman. As you go more towards network reality shows (the "big" ones) you get a higher male-to-female ratio, but still, in a big way, it's a woman's world. The higher-earning camera and audio engineers are still largely male, but I've worked with at least 3 or 4 female versions too.

So most of "show biz" is still a man's world, but the trailer trash cousin, reality, is actually the most enlightened of the bunch when it comes to hiring women. Isn't that funny? In a good way, not a ha-ha way.

How Did I Miss This?

2005-07-17T17:53:00.000-07:00

See this link:
http://www.jossip.com/gossip/tom-cruise/tom-cruise-is-gay-now-with-substantially-more-fake-evidence-20050629.php

Okay...I know, I know, there are more important things in the world. But wouldn't it be great if an A-list actor for once came out and made it just a wee bit easier to be gay?

And it definitely lends more credence to the whole weird TomKat thing. I'm dying to read that Katie Holmes intervew in W magazine...

Dammit! Must watch C-Span! Must...watch...PBS! Must get gossip trash out of my mind!

Style File 1.0

2005-07-15T16:50:00.000-07:00

So I'm paging through "Metropolitan Home" (in one of my many forays into extracurricular activities--i.e., perhaps writing for home magazines) and I see a stunning ad.

The rings are gigantic and candy-colored, but so elegant.

Go to this site--you'll be glad you did. It'll make you hyperventilate.

http://suzannefelsen.com/

The First Couple Nickname

2005-07-15T01:21:00.000-07:00

Since Deep Throat has been revealed, finally watching All the President's Men has been a particularly absorbing experience. Little did I know it also portended Brangelina and Bennifers I and II.

After a very shocking piece, a pivotal story, of Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein's making, Ben Bradlee (played by the super awesome Jason Robards) storms into the Washington Post newsroom and shouts:

"WOODSTEIN!"

This guy shoulda worked for Star Magazine!

How are the kids doing?

2005-07-11T18:15:00.000-07:00

There is a new essay contest in Vanity Fair, and it asks, what are today's youth concerned about? Notice how an election and war dividing the nation has now taken back burner to other rather insignificant things, like Tom Cruise and Lindsay Lohan (or are these things distractions from our deeper worries...)

But, I too have noticed a disaffection amongst today's youth. I'm under 30 and ashamed of my own self for not getting more politically involved, but, as my boyfriend says, "Bitch gotta eat," and even after 50 hrs of work a week I still barely get by. Leaves little time for civil disobedience. The average family's financial risk as increased dramatically from the socially conscious '70s.

Anyhoo, me and the boy were at a party recently that happened to have a niche of just-graduated beachy golden boys. Most seemed from wealthy backgrounds--after all, one of these grads was hosting us at his beach apartment home (and techically my buddy, who is older, who lived next door--and not a spoiled college grad). As I went to find some cake, my boy overheard the following:

Guy: "When you fire a guy, that's bad--that's competition. When you fire a woman, it's okay--hey, future wife."

That's where today's youth is. Great, isn't it?

God Bless Amerrrricaaaa

2005-07-09T21:11:00.000-07:00

I have been in L.A. for too long. First of all, I am now blond. Second of all, I now produce reality television. And third of all, I'm stupid.

I was in D.C. today walking around with my brother, sister in law, and two year old niece. As we turned away from the Washington Monument and towards that great domed building in the distance, I bent down to little CeCe and said, "See, that's where that evil man who runs the country lives."

My sister in law, imbued with motherly patience, said, "no, that's the capitol, not the white house."

I stared at her dumbly and then said, "oh, yeah, the white house has all those columns in front."

Time to renew my subscription to The Economist.

Nobel Peace Prize Goes To...

2005-07-06T14:27:00.000-07:00

There are two things that I regularly list as the best inventions ever.

1. The Post-it.

2. The Tampon.

And now, I have added a third...

3. Tivo.

or, as it is known in non-copyrighted circles, the DVR.

I just got one and am shocked, SHOCKED, I got by without it. Now I can tape all the episodes of every show I've worked on, Dancing With The Stars, my new favorite show The Closer, every L&O known to man, and, of course, Cyber Seduction: His Secret Life on Lifetime. I can watch when I'M ready, and to hell with working my schedule around the networks'!!

It is a good and brilliant thing. Who created this? Give them the Nobel Peace Prize.

Martha, Martha, Martha!!

2005-06-30T20:49:00.000-07:00

An audio engineer who worked on the Martha Stewart "Apprentice" confessed the other day that she couldn't remember upon which ankle rested her house arrest device. The engineer, who had to affix her mic on Martha on her free ankle, got away with her forgetfulness and even said Martha was quite lovely to everyone.

I guess prison really changes a person, huh?

The Ritz is Chintzy

2005-06-28T14:58:00.000-07:00

So I was staying at the Dana Point Ritz-Carlton (my dad was there on business--this is not an everyday occurence) and I found it delightful and pleasant.

There are two things I take issue with, however.

1. No in-room fridge.
2. No in-room coffee machine.

My family loves coffee. Often, during family trips, we have an end-of-day pot of decaf in our hotel room while shouting at the usual round of pundits on MSNBC or engrossed in Law and Order reruns. Well, first of all, the cable channels were pretty lame (no HGTV!!!!), and second of all, the food was ridiculously expensive. Expected, of course; but now you can't even save your ridiculously expensive leftovers in an in-house fridge!

And they couldn't afford a $5 4-cup coffee maker? Whatever. So you have to order their $4-a-cup coffee? Which, by the way, isn't that good. !!!

I'm still glad I got to spend a day there. But if I were a paying customer...

Rest...Rest...All I Wish to Do Is Rest...

2005-06-23T22:08:00.000-07:00

I remember auditioning for "Uncle Vanya" for one of the characters--hell if I can remember who--and I remember her always saying, "All I want to do is rest..."

Now, after a increasingly brutal (for HGTV standards) shoot schedule, one that I bear the brunt of more than any of my hardworking peers, I drive home, piddle through my mail, hurriedly take a shower, and think: Rest. All I want to do is REST. But my brain is thrumming and I'm going through my mental checklist of how I can squeeze a full seven hours in between now and 7am and if I can make it through the next 48 hours, for that matter, and how I'm going to pay my bills this week on top of it. I still can't REST.

Finally, that time has come. Instead of filling a cooler with ice and ordering lunch and being told my the cameraman that he needs protein so could he PLEASE have a chicken sandwich instead of pizza and being asked by a homeowner as I'm cleaning his floor if I'd "like to be a producer someday" (only to tell him I'm, ahem, a Segment Producer), I will be working in a cool, AC'd, gray cubicled normal humming OFFICE.

I usually hate offices. But after all that hot-heavy-lifting-construction-site-filled menial labor, I just want to sit somewhere and do paperwork, make phone calls, rush to the copier, fill in my boss on post production status, and rest. Just rest.

Finally, I can. Sweet Jesus, thank you.

I'm going to bed now.

I Be in front of TV for "Being Bobby Brown"

2005-06-22T12:28:00.000-07:00

The show debuts on June 30th on USA and will hopefully be one more good reason I pay for cable. I keep thinking, maybe I should cancel since my living expenses have increased thanks to my mortgage and all...and a second later, I think, are you on crack???? Of course I have to have cable! What would I do without it? SOMEONE has to make sure Bobby Brown is doing okay!!

Sneak Peek: 40 Year Old Virgin

2005-06-17T12:40:00.000-07:00

Steve
Originally uploaded by violetta.

I saw a screening of the "40 Year Old Virgin" last night--very funny! Hilarious. Although I wrote on my little "feedback card" that it was verrrrry slow at times. I have a feeling there's gonna be some snip-snip.

Judd Apatow is credited with Steve Carrell as a writer; and his "Freeks and Geeks" sensibility (silly humor with heartwarming, sincere emotional arcs) works great here. The actors are all superb and a fine time was had by all. Just...too long. Too long, and a little unfocused and jumbly. I'm sure some careful editing will make for a tight and fun romantic comedy.

Nananananananananan BAT MANNNNN!

2005-06-17T11:26:00.000-07:00

batman_on_set
Originally uploaded by violetta.

Okay. Best superhero movie I have EVER seen. And I was quite a sucker for the Spider Man movies.

So many good things about this; a poetic thematic arc about facing fear, about facing guilt; a dash of conspiracy about correcting the evils of man worldwide; a perfectly (almost...TOO perfect) orchestrated combination of different characters and how they wind together elegantly by the end; and almost-fantastic fight scenes. (Too close up in many so you can't see the martial-arts play--probably because there was only so much Batman could do in that stiff suit, huh? I'm guessing.)

And lots of fun, lots of drama, beautiful set pieces...and Christian Bale. Listen, Batman has to be intelligent and super hot all at the same time, and he fits the bill. Sweet!

All the actors are fantastic--including 28 Days Later's unexpected Cillian Murphy and the chameleon-perfect Gary Oldman.

Oh, I could go on--instead I'm going to start counting the hours till I see it again tomorrow.

Gossip FROM the Stars

2005-06-17T11:15:00.000-07:00

So lately the big brou-haha about Tom and Katie (ENGAGED--did you hear? Ew!) has brought about reminiscing over the bizarre circumstances that may have surrounded the Tom and Nic divorce.

Here's a theory, by the stars themselves:

A friend of a friend was accompanying a famous actress pal of hers to a party. In the kitchen were several high-profile players--including the biggest director of our time, and one of the biggest actors of our time (hint: both are neighbors in the Palisades and have made several movies together).

The group was bandying about theories about the then-recent Tom and Nic divorce. "So is he gay, or what? Is that actually true?" someone wondered.

"Here's what I heard," came a response. "I heard that when she got pregnant, it was a total surprise to Tom. She had told him from the beginning she couldn't get pregnant, so they adopted. When she got pregnant, it was his [not Ewan MacGregor's as has been rumored], and she had to confess she'd lied to him. She never wanted to bear a child because she wanted to preserve her figure."

Wow. That's a hell of a lot harder to make up than TC being gay or bi, or Nic cheating, or whatever.

Even more interesting is that celebrities, like us, wonder about the people who populate pop culture too. Gossip is universal!

I Dream of Lindsay

2005-06-10T15:31:00.000-07:00

I had a dream last night that LL was earnestly helping me with a booth for some film festival. She was doing it all for free with no publicity or anything, and I felt bad for exposing her horrid thinness on my blog.

Then I woke up and I still felt bad, but I realized that I blogged about it because of how disgraceful it is that women are killing themselves to look "better." Now the word is that drugs are the problem, and that sucks too. How is it that once someone "makes it," they're miserable? Or crazy? (See: Tom Cruise.)

Please. Eat. SOMETHING.

2005-06-02T21:23:00.000-07:00

ouch
Originally uploaded by violetta.

I don't get it: People get fabulously wealthy in this country and immediately stop eating. Imagine my shock when I see the pic of Lindsay in the red dress looking like a cross between a banshee and a wraith. Now don't tell me she doesn't have a problem--this is gross!

Feeling completely disturbed, I started sending her mental energy, hoping to transplant in her brain images of hoagies. I'm sure when she finally eats one it'll be national freakin' news.

Even I didn't like it

2005-06-02T21:13:00.000-07:00

I like a lot of swill. I had Sorority Boys on in the background the other day and I praise "Dr. Phil" for being an "upscale Jerry Springer."

And yet, even I did not like the new Star Wars movie.

Everyone has their complaints, so I'm not going to get into it. But honestly, Lucas, did you HAVE to show a shot of Jar Jar at the end? What the hell was that?

Rest...I Only Want to Rest...

2005-06-02T21:10:00.000-07:00

This is really fun: You're working on a "hit design show" that can't spare oh, say, a full time production assistant, but nevertheless, you and the other producers get down and dirty and go so far as to sweep and vacuum, and even feed all participants. Then one of your most important team players hits you with such attitude and meanness--for the millionth time--that you want to sit in a corner and glare meanly and everyone who walks by.

Who needs that shit?

Paris Hilton: Yea or Nay?

2005-05-25T16:32:00.000-07:00

Why is our culture currently obsessed with a girl who

a) isn't smart

b) isn't interesting

c) makes porn

d) resembles a shorn-too-close poodle?

Why? Why?

Some people find the whole concept--the whole IDEA that being a socialite with nothing interesting to say could capture the world's imagination--fascinating. I could be counted as one, every now and then.

But, it's still just odd, isn't it? Jessica Simpson supposedly isn't smart, but that's an image she offers with a submissive wink. Ashlee Simpson (let's keep it in the family) is a helpless puppet who doesn't know the real world from her left hand, but at least her situation/show is a sympathy-and-cringe-inducing train wreck fest that opens our eyes about modern celebrity. Britney Spears--well, if she doesn't provoke some conversation, whether it's being horribly and deliciously idiotic on the missnamed "Chaotic," or her reliably snappy tunes, then you're completely immune to pop culture.

But Paris Hilton? I just don't get it.

Just curious.

"Do's" and "Don't's" Star Wars Style

2005-05-20T10:19:00.000-07:00

anakin
Originally uploaded by violetta.

We were discussing here in my office how George Lucas is a magnificent producer, not so hot on the writing and directing aspects of filmmaking.

This extends to hair and makeup. Apparently, even though the effects and cinematography are already miles different from the old movies, he attempts to imitate the 70s-era looks of his sequels in his recent Star Wars flicks--to disastrous effect.

However, in the new movie, Return of the Sith, I'm seeing way better hairstyles. Anakin Skywalker, played by Hayden Christensen, is the greatest improvement.

Remember in the other two movies, he had that horrendous mullet-let, the beginnings of a bi-level, with that horrid spring-break-in-Cancun-in-1994 braid? Ech! How can you even identify with an anti-hero with such horrid hair?

Now, he has a lush haircut, perhaps a bit too poofy, but when sufficiently weighed down with sweat and angst, has that hot I'm-a-NYC-filmmaker-in-the-70s shagginess. I love it!

Yoda is next!

Oh-My-God-The-O-C: Season Finale

2005-05-20T09:50:00.000-07:00

Okay, it was full of potboiler twists--totally operatic--but I must say, there were a couple scenes where I really was touched. The acting in this show is totally top notch, and that's the most important facet of this show. The show has to deliver outrageous plot twists--that's why we watch it; it has to deliver high drama; but to make it palatable and in-depth, the acting has to be straightforward and skilled. Luckily it is, even by the people who play the most cartoonish characters (i.e. Melinda Clarke as Julie Cooper). Well, Mischa Barton isn't exactly Meryl Streep, but she's fine for now.

I'll miss it. Will Marissa go to jail? Is Tray actually dead? Will Kiki survive rehab? ?? Will she??? WILL SHE??

Must calm down. I have a summer to get through mentally intact!

"Double Feature"'s all around

2005-05-19T10:15:00.000-07:00

Unbeknownst to me, Alias was two hours long!

Prior to that, I caught the rerun of the E! "True Hollywood Story" of a woman with a grand pair of double features herself, Dolly Parton. Her parting words were something like: "20 years when I look back, I'll say that I've made it, I've been a musician, a songwriter...and people will still probably say, she looks like a tramp!" She then giggles festively and I giggle with her. God, I love that woman.

So Alias, for all those who missed it, was a little confusing (that's what happens when you pay your bills AND try to watch a spy drama at the same time). Some highlights were finding an actually quiet and kind Irina, and Vaughn proposing to Sydney after a funny "ask for your blessing" scene with Jack Bristow. All kinds of fun stuff is happening, but Arvin Sloan's ties are still way too wide. Good Lord, they're bigger than his head!

This is Shane from the L Word

2005-05-18T16:22:00.000-07:00

s
Originally uploaded by violetta.

So I've been googling Katherine Moennig, who plays Shane in "The L Word," expecting to see "smashingly talented hot actress Kathrine Moennig" or "best character on the L Word, hands down, played by stunningly effective actress Katherine Moennig..." but no, just the cursory mention of her along with all the other fine actresses in this delightfully syrupy soap.

Maybe she calls to me so well because I think even Sydney Bristow cries too readily. I like my heroines super tough with realistic lapses of armor. I think Moennig does a great job. And I LOVE HER EYELINER. I seriously need a change style-wise and perhaps Ms. Moennig's stylists on the L Word can urge me to do so. Perhaps a change back from Blonde to Brunette? Dare I be so persuaded???

Reasons Why I Haven't Updated My Blog

2005-05-17T12:26:00.000-07:00

1. My mother visited last week. Since I just moved into a condo that still needs many things (including carpet), we were VERY busy. We went to Target three times, one visit that actually drew blood.

1a. Further on the house/drawing blood tip, I've been trying to check off a never-ending to-do list. I still need carpet, and I have to constantly get on Lowes' ass about delivery; I have furniture to buy; painting jobs to finish (I painted one bathroom cabinet and one desk); a damn fridge to sell (3 people have flaked out already); and...and...shit, I can't even remember. Too much. Not that I'm complaining; it's a wonderful thing to finally be "house poor."

2. I have been working. Not the normal 8-5 bullcrap, but a tv production job. Which is a whole other fun scintillating but very tiring ball of wax.

3. I got cable. Like 800-channel digital cable on steroids (for three months anyways--introductory offer). Which leads me to...

4. I have been watching "the L Word." Per a co-worker's recommendation, I rented the first 4 eps of season 1, then used my handy "Showtime ON DEMAND" on my new cable system to blaze through the first part of season 2. And can I just say: I love SHANE!! Kathryn Moennig (sp?) is an awesome, intriguing, dynamite actress. I wish I were someone with some sort of power so I could build a show around her--she's incredible!! I *so* want to do my eyeliner like her.

Re: Character, Shane's the rough-and-tumble heartbreaker who takes everything in stride and keeps her eyes and ears peeled without meddling in anyone's business. She's got a sexy low demi moore voice, but a boyish look and figure that is altogether so cool and so unique. I'd love to completely imitate her look for, like, a month.

Re: Pam Griers, not a good fit for the show. Great lady, but her character's all wrong. Luckily, with my ON DEMAND service, I can fast forward. Cable, how I love thee.

Dear Slade - Re: Alias

2005-05-02T09:14:00.000-07:00

You know what...I do not watch Lost. If it's on, I'll take a gander, but I just can't get into it. I've noted that newer Lost fans do not partake of Alias either. Two different schools of the JJ Abrams university? I guess so.

Marshall is awesome. Without him, the show would have a dead weight to it. But he brings just the right amount of comic relief to Alias. Bless him. And JJ Abrams.

PS. Is Jack Bristow going to die?????

I Live At Lowes

2005-04-28T14:58:00.000-07:00

I just "bought" a condo (i.e., the bank really owns most of it for the next, oh, 20 or so years) and now I'm either, cleaning something; unpacking something; wandering the aisles of random hardware superstores; or slapping paint chips on walls with frenzied enthusiasm. I have all weekend to PAINT, and I need to be prepared, because Mom is coming to town next weekend, and then I work the next few weekends. So the time is NOW.

So, I live at Lowe's, with ocassional dalliances with Home Depot. Lowes for hardwood flooring, Home Depot for paint, Lowes for clean aisles and Home Depot for surly clerks. Thank God, I work on a home improvement show. I actually know the difference between flat, semi-gloss, and faux finish. I also know when I'm getting ripped off on carpeting, and what tile should cost.

I have to confess, I'm obsessed with home improvement. I'm insisting on tiling my bathroom myself. Luckily, the bathroom is about the size of a shoebox, so this is good.

I'm Not Gay! I Swear! Hey, Bitch...

2005-04-22T16:55:00.000-07:00

From Craigslist, persons (Platonic Only):

Hey, I'm lookin for people to hang out with. Go out drinking with, play video games with. Gender doesn't matter. I'm not gay. Not looking to be gay. Just lookin for cool people to hang out with. Nothin more than that. You know...the people you call after work and say "Hey bitch? What are we doin tonight?

Alias is Super-Cool

2005-04-20T14:22:00.001-07:00

I know Alias has hit some turgid moments--new, vaguely bland characters, super-serious, complicated missions--but lately, the writers have been having a hell of a lot of fun. First of all, Marshall, the computer geek that constantly gets our spy soldiers out of many a pickle, had to go by himself to locate and dig Sidney out of a grave. Yipes! Then he had to pluck a bad guy's eye out with a spork! Yes, a plastic spork!

Marshall's sober co-workers play well against his spastic technobabble; the chemistry is both comic and edgy. So now that Marshall's had a chance to bloom, we get to see Nadia (Syd's half-sister) actually become interesting. Apparently, she was a mean street kid-turned assassin in Argentina, and we see a potential love triangle turn deadly in fascinating flashbacks.

Finally, now there's a second bad guy. The first is Ron Rifkin's debonair, wraith-like, perfectly coiffed evil-turned-remorseful (yeah right) Arvin Sloane, now head of his own team of CIA super-spies. At the end of last week's episode, turns out there's ANOTHER A. Sloan wreaking havoc, in Chile, and looking creepily similar to Rifkin's Sloan--except even more wraithlike.

Whew--it's been done. The writers of Alias have recouped from a dip in momentum and have brought a sharp crack of mayhem back to things. I can't wait to see what happens tonight.

PS Please bring back Sark! He's cute.

Juice Fast!

2005-04-20T14:22:00.000-07:00

Yes! I am on a juice fast!

I have a rip-roaring headache and the energy level of an armadillo!

Yes!

I'm going to sleep now...

Just in Time for 4/20...

2005-04-19T13:50:00.000-07:00

Craigslist ad:

Cat nip

Reply to: anon-69151..0@craigslist.org
Date: 2005-04-19, 9:46AM PDT

I have a cat nip bag.
My cat is simply indifferent to it.
If you want it, you have it!

I'm mostly avaiable in the morning or late evening.

Celebrity Sighting 1.0

2005-04-19T10:40:00.000-07:00

Le Pain Quotidien on Melrose Ave., Saturday afternoon. Chris Kattan nattering on a cell phone and telling my hot Australian friend, "Excuse me, Ma'am."

"Ma'am"??

Renee Watches...Do You?

2005-04-18T12:24:00.000-07:00

Apparently, Renee Zellweger is a huge fan of HGTV, including the show I help produce. It's free basic cable therapy.

Unfortunately one couple on the show were awful, telling our staff they "claim" to be interior designers. Apparently, after receiving mucho offers for their home (which said "interior designers" on our show remodeled), in a fit of guilt, they bought us all Starbucks cards.

Several half-caf lattes make all the abuse worth it. No, really!

Score Another Point for Old Men

2005-04-15T10:34:00.000-07:00

tedturneramangrycap
Originally uploaded by violetta.

Courtesy New York Times
A prominent Israeli rabbi has reversed an earlier ban and ruled that the anti-impotence drug Viagra can be made kosher for Passover, an Israeli newspaper reported Thursday.

The rabbi, Mordechai Eliahu, a former Sephardic chief rabbi in Israel, said Viagra could be consumed provided the pill was placed in special gelatin capsules before the weeklong observance begins April 23, the Jerusalem Post reported.

Passover imposes strict dietary laws, with many everyday kosher items banned, and a number of men had contacted Viagra's Israeli manufacturer to ask whether it could be taken during the holiday, the newspaper said.

Rabbis have in the past several years ruled against taking the drug during Passover, citing the coating on the pill.

No, Bradley. Not You.

2005-04-14T06:51:00.000-07:00

Apparently Bradley Whitford, who plays the lovably neurotic and sweet Josh Lyman on The West Wing, has some problems with group gym classes. Taking a stretching class at an L.A. gym recently, he was overheard complaining, putting up a fuss, and name dropping like heck. Not exactly what his fans expect from him, but I guess being on the same show for years with no sign of a light at the end of the tunnel can make even Pilates class a test of one's endurance. Or maybe he's just a creep.

Not something his adoring fans, who hook onto Josh Lyman's adorable demeanor like an innertube in the rapids, want to ever hear.

In other workout news, Edward Norton was seen at a local gym looking a little chubby. He was lifting one weight at a time, taking long breaks in between reps by chatting with his trainer. I'm hoping he's simply bulking up for a role.

Bradley Whitford mean and Ed Norton fat? What's next, Britney Spears pregnant? Oh God, wait a minute...

Short Term Memory Loss

2005-04-13T16:41:00.000-07:00

I totally had a nice piece of harmless gossip and dang it if I can't remember it. Oh, well--I blame it on growing up watching MTV. This is also the reason why I switch the radio when an already good song (which almost never happens here!) comes on, or why I start yawning when a movie's inciting incident doesn't come immediately at minute 5. I berate myself for not being able to just. Slow. Down.

But I don't say I have ADD. Because I don't. How many of us actually do?

The friend for whom I travelled to New York is a grad student in psychology and firmly believes ADD is a made-up syndrome. Mind you, he believes some people do truly have problems, most of which are evidenced in learning disabilities, sharp, bright people who just have some issues putting ideas together straightforwardly. But today my supervisor spoke about babysitting a two year old ON RITALIN. What??? A two year old? Aren't kids just hyper? And the most severely troublesome, just have a few issues that extra tutoring and therapy can help? What's good about having toddlers walking around hopped up like Judy Garland?

There is one gal on the addictive reality show Starting Over who truly just couldn't stop--talking, walking, doing different things--she couldn't slow down (http://www.startingover.tv/wherearethey/Denise.html). There's people like her. But I'm thinking less than are actually on drugs.

I can't think of a snappy remark to finish this posting because I just got distracted my work email. Bye!

Escape From L.A.

2005-04-11T11:01:00.000-07:00

I just spent 3 whirlwind days in NYC--what a blast. It was for my dear friend's 30th birthday and was so much fun, my heart sank as I left.

I'm not in love with NYC, but I have a huge crush on it. It's the place I want to live in for 6 months, not six years--and visit often. I love the subway, I love the people, I love the spectacle of Times Square and the classy grittiness of Fifth Ave. And I LOVE the medium-strength, hot deli coffee that the vendors fix with cream and sugar for you. It's the little things.

And I have to add that JetBlue is the best airline ever (for those of us on economy-class budgets). I watched three hours of MSNBC yesterday and read some chick lit during the commercials--it was just like at home! There's plenty of leg room and the flight attendants are perky and nice. AND...non-stop, round trip, Long Beach to NYC cost me less than $300. You can't miss.

Especially since service from Burbank starts next month............I'm closer than ever to my latest crush.

These Are a Few of My Favorite Streets

2005-04-05T17:38:00.000-07:00

There are several streets in Los Angeles that I love. Since I moved here way back 7 years ago (I think that makes me a native now), I've learned every shortcut, alternate route, and detour known to man. Seriously. Friends of mine who are natives even scratch their heads as I wind them around the messier parts of traffic.

Thus, the best streets are the ones that are not main thoroughfares. Maybe they don't have any entrances to freeways; no malls or big attractions. What they do have: LIGHTS.

Ah yes. Traffic lights!

There's Whitsett, which you can take south, south of Ventura and hook around on Laurelgrove to spill out on Laurel Cyn, bypassing the nonsense on the Studio City strip of Ventura Blvd.

Crescent Heights, of course, which is not quite at mass capacity but getting close--you can take it all the way from Venice in West LA to over the hill to Studio City, up the curves of Laurel Canyon.

Washington Blvd, a street that, despite some confusing switchy-changy in Culver City, can take you all the way from the ocean to downtown. A true beauty of a street when you're stuck on the ten and must.get.off.

I also quite like Burbank, it takes you all the way to Encino without a break, and rarely backs up.

If you don't like talking about traffic, you must not live in Los Angeles. As far as I'm concerned, LA taught me how to read maps and maintain a huge ability to navigate. Lost no more. And yet, it would be nice to have a subway system. That works.

Signs Rocks

2005-04-05T10:30:00.000-07:00

I love Itunes. My latest discovery is a collaboration between The Neptunes, Justin Timberlake, and Snoop Dogg called "Signs." Rip it right now--it freakin' rocks.

I am a little bummed, however, that Itunes doesn't have a lot of 2Pac's first work (you know, the output from when...he was a live). I wanted to get a feel for his stuff since my immersion into 2Pac ephemera and Itunes only has the posthumous work, and his Greatest Hits is only a partial downloand. I have no idea what's going on with that but I hope for a greater selection in the future.

The number 10 Hip Hop/Rap album on Itunes, by the way? A remaster of Notorious B.I.G.'s "Ready to Die." Some things never change.

Aw, Pope.

2005-04-01T10:08:00.000-08:00

I was raised a Catholic and still, despite not actually attending church for one year, still consider myself a Catholic (except for the whole abortion/birth control/priest abstinence stuff) just by default. It sticks with you.

So I'm sad about the Pope being sick, but you know, when it's your time, it's your time. The guy is obviously suffering. The Catholic church condemed the court's actions for disconnecting Terry Schiavo's feeding tube, even though *she* was suffering and a shell of herself. Now they'll do whatever they can to keep the pope alive and unwell, though he is indeed on the last legs of a long, fulfilling life.

Ah, the irony. Catholicism is full of it.

This Man, Inspecting Your Home Soon

2005-03-30T09:25:00.000-08:00

Originally uploaded by violetta.

So in all the rush of buying my place, I of course come across various California Real Estate Urban Legends. One of them is that Martin Hewitt, the cutie from Franco Zeffirelli's Endless Love (in which he got to kiss Brooke Shields...over and over again), is now a handsome, dashing housing inspector. Bombshell, indeed. Of course, I had already had my inspection, otherwise I would have called on him and asked him what it was like to act with Shannon Tweed. I wonder if he gets that a lot?

Divorce, TV Style

2005-03-30T09:15:00.000-08:00

It's kind of weird when you shoot a tv show that's perfectly non-offensive and in fact downright engaging in its innocence...to find out only after the fact that two of the on-camera people featured on the show are going through a divorce. Weird, isn't it? Why would a couple apply for a tv show while they're going through a divorce?

Of course, it could be conjecture, but the writer for the episode noted a particularly cringe-worthy moment caught on tape wherein the host forced the couple to hug. The wife practically shrunk away from her husband. Ouch.

Counter-offerings

2005-03-27T10:31:00.000-08:00

In this month's Gourmet (a way less pretentious mag than it sounds), the big trend is going from the four-star snobbiness of white-gloved dining rooms to four star food at 1-star countertop settings. Many high-falutin' chefs are opening diner-ish counterparts to their well maniucred dining rooms. A new contributor, Anthony Bourdain, reminds us that "Restaurants are supposed to be about food - aren't they? They're supposed to be...well...fun." I like this guy already.

He mentions new crowded low-maintenance shops from France to Chicago, but none in Los Angeles. L.A. has some things going for it: The desire to enjoy luxury, in casual-ness. No one bats an eyelash when top chefs (like Wolfgang Puck) serve their dishes in grocery stores. I like that. I like that you can walk in a $200/person restaurant in jeans. It's about time this lack of pretentiousness has caught on in other cities. As long as other trends don't spread--I'd hate to see the average Chicagoan Botox their pits because they sweat a lot. Something like that needs to be contained here, don't you think?

To Affleck...or To Not Affleck?

2005-03-26T14:40:00.000-08:00

I just like him. I can't help myself. Everytime I'm convinced he's a tool or clueless, I see him trade bon mots on MSNBC about politics or hear an adorable story about him. There are reports he's a bit of an a-hole, but contrasting accounts of personable nice-guyness. I imagine he just has a lot of mood swings. (Hey, what million-dollar earning actor doesn't).

My favorite story is when a pal of mine was directing a play starring a roommate of Affleck's (at the time...this was a coupla years ago), and she shows up at the place, meeting her actress in the kitchen. Who walks in to grab a beer but Ben. In his boxer shorts. The nicest guy ever. Stays and chats for a bit, perfectly laid back.

Now he just needs to find a project up his alley. No more stolid hero guys--he can't pull it off. His next gig, about an agent doing personal-rep damage control, sounds great. Good luck Ben! And say hi to Matt for me!

Is Anyone Interested?...Are You Kidding?

2005-03-26T14:38:00.000-08:00

Found on the L.A. Craigslist:

Nudist Stoner Group

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Date: 2005-03-26, 12:23PM PST

Anyone else into hanging out and getting high in a nudist environment? Let me know...

this is in or around Hollywood

Is Robert Mondavi the Devil?

2005-03-23T10:14:00.000-08:00

Originally uploaded by violetta.

A new doc, Mondovino, according to those who viewed it recently, is an artsy, provocative view into the mass production of wine. It sounds like a great compliment to Sideways and a deep look into how wine production has changed, evolved, and, perhaps, devolved.

Me, I'm a hard liquor girl. But I like reading about wine. I read the Gourmet magazine wine section every month and my favorite column in the Wall Street Journal is the gabby and familiar "Tastings" wine column by husband and wife team Dorothy (Dottie) J. Gaiter and John Brecher. Their wines are rarely overpriced and they love telling readers about good deals without pretention.

Love to read about it, not crazy about tasting it. I guess that makes me a shameless foodie. But is there any aficiandos who like to talk about the "woodsiness" or "clean taste" of a shot of Jack?? If there are, call me, 'kay?

90210 in the Pooper?... And, Ray

2005-03-22T15:45:00.000-08:00

Okay, not exactly, but turns out that the ritzier zip codes in Los Angeles are actually dropping in housing prices, whereas less palatable areas--like Compton--no seriously, Compton--are increasing. People are getting priced out of LADERA. LADERA.

Here's a tip: Buy in a rising area (like Ladera), flip in a few months, and use the cash to purchase a now-falling-in-price place in West Hollywood or Beverly Hills adjacent. Yeah!!!

Interesting days we live in. Some think the market will continue to go strong, but it looks like a wave affect--the nice places crest first, the not so nice places crest second, and in the end, it'll all even out. Maybe not collapse, but the market will straighten out.

Ah, don't get me started on real estate. I could go on about it forever.

BTW, anyone who saw Ray--pretty straightforward biopic, yah? It doesn't seem to be overly magical in any way to me. I am enjoying it, but sort of in that way you'd enjoy a very good Movie of The Week. Watcha think?

2005-03-20T18:17:00.000-08:00

The Genesis Awards dole out kudos to writers, reporters, filmmakers and other artists who call attention to animal rights issues. It was held at the swanky Beverly Hilton last night and, according to a friend/coworker who's also a well-known face himself, a star, a true star, that makes us all weak at the knees, was there...and he got to meet her. Smell her. Say her name to her face.

Betty White.

-sigh-

See for yourself on Animal Planet. Times as follows:
Two-hour edited version of the ceremony: 3 p.m. Sunday, April 25, on Animal Planet
A one-hour edited version will air at 10 p.m. Saturday, May 1, and 1 a.m. Sunday, May 2, also on Animal Planet

Alas, no Bea Arthur or Rue McLanahan to wash it all down.

House Hunting is Scary...but not as scary as Ring II

2005-03-18T23:14:00.000-08:00

Just saw Ring II after a tiring week of negotiations over a tiny but well-located condo...and the Ring II shocked me out of my tension. Now I'm just scared that a decrepit little girl will crawl out of my tv.

Naturally, the previews matched the subject matter: I.e., thrillers. Well, War of the Worlds is an action-thriller, whatever. Anyhoo, The Skeleton Key, starring a blessedly subdued Kate Hudson, and Dark Water, with Jennifer Connelly, are all related somehow to The Ring (same minds behind them--writer of the Ringu novels, screenwriter), and why is Ring built around themes of single women kicking ghost butt? I don't mind seeing these female heroines, but is it because ephemeral supernatural beings can only be caught by female intuition? If I weren't so drained from counter offers and lending fees, I'd try to figure it out.

Everyone's Gay, Let's Face It

2005-03-18T23:10:00.000-08:00

So who cares, right? One day, we'll all go to heaven, and then we'll find out just who was what.

So I've heard of a couple folks who really bat for Team Lavendar, but it's innuendo, isn't it? And who cares anyways? What's funny is, that they even care to hide it anymore. Queer Eye, Ellen, etc etc--isn't it okay now? At least on the three coasts? (Pacific, Atlantic, Lake Michigan?)

At Least Yoda Is Better

2005-03-13T19:43:00.001-08:00

Lesley Stahl asks the tough questions of George Lucas re: the last painful Star Wars film, due out...oh, whenever, who cares. Anyhoo, a companion noticed that the old Yoda actually looks WORSE than the new one. He sorta resembled Joan Rivers with a mud mask. Now, he seems a little more...Yoda-ish.

Lucas suffered for his art badly enough for the first/third flick so now, as he tells Stahl, he doesn't care about what the critics think now. I'll go see it, shoot. I like Hadyn Christensen's hair better in this one. At least that's one improvement.

Next up? "Small movies," Lucas says. American Graffiti with Wookies?

At Least Yoda Is Better

2005-03-13T19:43:00.000-08:00

Bob Saget Sex Parties...or Is He Actually Funny?

2005-03-12T17:06:00.000-08:00

Just over the Hollywood Hills, near Runyan Canyon, where active Los Angelenos walk their dogs, is a plethora of apartment buildings that happen to butt up to Bob Saget's estate. Yes, Bob Saget. Yes, estate. (Tennis courts and all.) Neighbors have reported listening to hysterical female laughter from said property, meaning he's entertaining them one way...or the other. Who knew blandness was such a turn on? Then again, I hear he cleaned up his act for America's Funniest Home Videos and the like. I would hop over the fence to snoop, but I fear snipers must man the tennis courts. Ah, well.

The Passion Re-What?

2005-03-09T22:03:00.000-08:00

Apparently there is a "re-cut" of Passion of the Christ. Not director's cut, or theatrical cut, but a "re-cut." So I hop on l'internet and come to find that Mel Gibson read my mind: It's the movie, with 6 of the goriest minutes cut.

Now I think I might catch it. (Did you like how I said that? "Catch" it? Like it's Hitch or something.) I don't have anything against a religious film and heard it was quite beautifully filmed as well, and I think Gibson is a bit of a nut, but I have to give him credit for sticking to his convictions.

Even more so because, despite the millions over expectations that this movie made, instead of releasing an indulgent director's cut, Gibson wants to widen its audience even more to nervous-tummied folk like myself, but CUTTING the even more indulgent blood and gore.

Reserve your Easter tickets now, everyone. What's a little martyrdom? Catholics beware: I overheard someone say when they saw it the first time around, it was so brutal they felt guilty just getting popcorn.

Only in L.A.: Part 1

2005-03-09T08:59:00.000-08:00

Found on Craigslist....on the writing/editing job board, no less:

"Busy executive looking for Ms. Right with the help of a Personal Match Maker, that is you. The duties will include: 1) Posting profiles on different websites and interacting/screening possible female candidates, 2) Meeting with other match making companies here in Los Angeles and determining which are the best companies and which possible female candidates should be considered, 3) Provide weekly reports on all aspects of the project on Monday and Thursday, 4) Some weekly meetings will be necessary to go over the status of the project and the Project book that you will be maintaining. Must be strong writer and good commmunicator on the phone and in person. Send resume, cover letter detailing what you are doing now and what have you done that makes you ideal for this job. If you have been involved in internet dating detail your experiences good and bad."

And not only that, the pay is $15-20/hr! And who says the job market is shaky?

Tupac Theories: Everything but the grassy knoll

2005-03-05T23:29:00.000-08:00

Tupac
Originally uploaded by violetta.

So ever since Black History Month weekend (see several posts below), I've been delving into the whole Tupac-Biggie thing. There's tons of theories that I am JUST NOW sampling, from the bizarre (the old saw that 2pac is still alive) to the likely (the LAPD were way deep in it--this according to retired detective Russell Poole).

I watched Tupac: Resurrection and finally understood all the fuss about this guy. He is sharply intelligent, educated, soulful, and also violent, churlish, and eager to create adversaries. His success combined with his youth likely led to such complexities and contradictions, so on one hand, you feel he created some of the controversy, and on the other, you feel the weight of the tragedy.

Both Biggie and Tupac were under 26 when they died. You wonder how can someone pack so much influence into such a young life.

The Golden Years

2005-03-04T21:03:00.000-08:00

Yay! The Season Two collection of The Golden Girls is due in May! Long a fan, I reguarly do yoga to the 6 o' clock hour of reruns on Lifetime, and spent New Year's Weekend streaking through Season One's collection.

The warm, witty ladies appear to be consummate professionals, and no doubt chummy in real life. However, according to a friend who knows Golden Girls Marc Cherry (creator of Desperate Housewives, the ladies spoke little and some even had cold relations between each other. However, consummate professionals they were--the show held little to no rehearsal, but what resulted was comedy gold. All three were comedy veterans and of course it shows. I still can't imagine they didn't talk much off the set, but stranger things have happened--and these gals were old school: Real actors.

Once More 'Round The Bend

2005-02-28T20:08:00.000-08:00

What a long, busy weekend! First, I checked into my suite at the Four Seasons. Then, it was off to a dress fitting. Then, party after party after party. And finally...The Oscars!

ha ha ha! In actuality, I was helping shoot an open house for HGTV. Far less glamorous, but no less exciting.

That said, was this Oscar's a snore or what? I dunno--I think it's maturity, but I don't really care that much anymore. I think it's great to honor those involved with film because I adore movies, but what's up with all the pomp and circumstance? I work so hard for my money and to see this other "class" in the clouds above us, trotting around with fancy gowns...I think the evening, for me, has lost its luster.

And yet, I love it enough to call all the winners right and win, in a three-way tie, the Oscars voting contest. That was pretty fun--I'm very scientific about it, and it's funny how you can call the winners by analyzing the general buzz and attitude of the Oscars. Shocking was that the screenplay awards...gasp!---went to the people that TRULY deserved them!

PS A few clever ladies in the crowd brought their knitting to do. By the time the show was finished, they had an afghan big enough to coat the floor. Mental note: Learn to knit before next year...

Oscar-ama

2005-02-25T11:00:00.000-08:00

The Oscars. I don't care about them that much, but approach me about a pool and I'm all up in that stuff. I love debating who will win and why; so much goes into it, especially random emotion--kind of like the stock market. I look forward to seeing Chris Rock--I'm surprised he's such a controversial choice--and I know that there will be lots of surprises.

The biggest surprise to me is that The Aviator got such buzz. I'm sorry, but wasn't it a connect-the-dots Movie-of-the-Week biopic? Very surface suffering and an odd "why he's screwed up" childhood vignette does not add up to another Citizen Kane. Marty, I love you, but maybe you should go back to the old days of rough n' tumble heartfelt stories like Mean Streets. Hell, what do I know--I work in reality TV. But still.

"The Thing About My Folks" is that um it's just okay

2005-02-22T20:06:00.000-08:00

I caught Paul Reiser's "The Thing About My Folks" at a screening as part of a UCLA class that my website editor is moderating, and it was eh, okay. (Say those last two words with a Peter Falk tough guy accent.)

Peter Falk was great as Paul Reiser's dad, Paul Reiser was great as...Paul Reiser, everyone was great in it, actually. It was just super duper ooper sentimental. All the little cliches were there, thinned out a bit by sensible directing, but there nonetheless.

However, it seems to elicit a warm response and I think it's heartfelt and sincere, which is saying a lot. And, I love Paul Reiser. He's a really good actor. Falk was good too, but it was more like he was playing a cartoon character than a real person.

I'm completely shocked the film hasn't found distribution. It's a total sentimental crowd pleaser. Honestly, I can't figure out this country. What do they want? Then again, it's the distribs to blame, I suppose. They think the film is "too Jewish." There's not one yarmulke or dreidel to be found, just a few phlegm-filled yiddish slang. Was "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" too Greek, for Pete's sake?

It's Our Middle East

2005-02-20T17:48:00.000-08:00

I turned away for one minute from the Notorious BIG "Behind the Music" and completely missed the part where he and Tupac went from good friends to enemies. No matter how much I read or go over the whole East Coast-West Coast rap wars, I still can't quite get the story right, sort of like the situation in Israel. I'll Google it.

You Can't Make This S**t Up

Get Outta Dodge

Stay out of the Mommy Wars

Mayday

Airport!

Good Friday? How about GREAT Friday!

A Wealth of Goodness

boot scootin' boogie

Hell-Ay

Lonesome Jim

L.A Downtown coming alive?

Dallas

West Wing-ery

Small World

What Happened to The L Word?

Say AHHHHHHH!!

Debt Diet

Since I Moved To L.A 8 Years Ago...

Rachel McAdams: A Girl's Girl

CRASH

"chocolate"

Don't spam me, a**holes.

Big news day

Ashes to ashes

PAY DAMMIT

Good buzz: P&P

Mall'ed.

Elizabethtown is a 5.

LA Times: Again: No going back to New Orleans

Public Transport: Sucks.

Damn IT!

Everyone: Public Transportation!

"Eh" for Elizabethtown?

THINK, people

Kelly, Kelly, Kelly

V for Very Quiet

Red Eye

I HAVE A TV.

My Ecstasy

I am "bi"

Kyra Sedgwick. Emmy. NOW.

The Reality of Women

How Did I Miss This?

Style File 1.0

The First Couple Nickname

How are the kids doing?

God Bless Amerrrricaaaa

Nobel Peace Prize Goes To...

Martha, Martha, Martha!!

The Ritz is Chintzy

Rest...Rest...All I Wish to Do Is Rest...

I Be in front of TV for "Being Bobby Brown"

Sneak Peek: 40 Year Old Virgin

Nananananananananan BAT MANNNNN!

Gossip FROM the Stars

I Dream of Lindsay

Please. Eat. SOMETHING.

Even *I* didn't like it

Rest...I Only Want to Rest...

Paris Hilton: Yea or Nay?

"Do's" and "Don't's" Star Wars Style

Oh-My-God-The-O-C: Season Finale

"Double Feature"'s all around

This is Shane from the L Word

Reasons Why I Haven't Updated My Blog

Dear Slade - Re: Alias

I Live At Lowes

I'm Not Gay! I Swear! Hey, Bitch...

Alias is Super-Cool

Juice Fast!

Just in Time for 4/20...

Celebrity Sighting 1.0

Renee Watches...Do You?

Score Another Point for Old Men

No, Bradley. Not You.

Short Term Memory Loss

Escape From L.A.

These Are a Few of My Favorite Streets

Signs Rocks

Aw, Pope.

Even I didn't like it