International Christmas : Part II

As promised, here is a video of our traditional Swedish Christmas Eve Dinner. As you will see, part of the Swedish tradition is to get really drunk.

Below, is the first course. I got even more intoxicated than this video reveals while waiting for the second course and totally forgot to film it! For the second course we had ham, swedish meat balls, little sausages, beat salad, and a yummy potato dish called janssons frestelse. 

I still can't believe I was able to eat all of this food in one day!

Gran Torino

Saw it tonight, loved it. Clint Eastwood is still badass! I highly recommend this movie: it's really funny, it's really griping, and it's really touching.

The preview is below. It misses the tone of the movie a bit, but it still gives you a pretty good idea of what you're going to see!

International Christmas : Part I

We were invited to our Danish friends, Lehang and Michael's, for a traditional Danish Christmas Lunch. Typically, this meal is served Christmas Day and a warm dinner is served Christmas Eve, but Michael's family was flying in from Denmark Christmas Day, so they switched the meals to have the big Christmas dinner with their family!

Here's a little taste of our lunch. It was hard filming while passing the bazillion platters of delicious food around the table and eating all of the yummy food!

(International Christmas : Part II, whereupon we had a traditional Swedish Christmas Eve dinner--later the same day as this lunch-- will be up tomorrow!)

Merry Christmas!

Ok, so i'm a little late with the Christmas wishes, but that is because I was too busy celebrating to blog!  Christmas Eve was awesome!  Went to a traditional Danish Christmas Eve lunch and to a traditional Christmas Eve Swedish dinner.  I recorded my international Christmas Eve experience and will post it soon.

On Christmas, we went to a homeless shelter. At first, I was a little uncomfortable, but it turned out to be an amazing experience. We sat down with people right around our age and really had a great time together. They were so funny, telling us how their situations led them to the shelter, and what their plans were to get out of the shelter. They were so warm and open with little to no way of being distinguished from us. In fact, there were several times in the few hours that we were there that we were mistaken for being one of the people who lived at the shelter. It was a humbling and eye-opening experience because I realized that it really does and can happen to anyone. Just makes me more grateful for everything in my life that I have.

And, I'm grateful that I have you.

Tons of Love and Happiness to all and to all a goodnight!!

Spreading the Word

Meet Miesha.  I met her today while shopping at Ralph's. I was looking at some videos on my flip when she asked if I was filming her. I said, "no," because I wasn't, but then she starting mugging for the camera that wasn't on; I couldn't resist turning it on because she had such a fantastic and positive energy.

I'm posting this video because part of what this blog is about is my attempt to capture and share pieces of the world as I experience it. A big part of what I like to share are the people with whom I interact. 

Living in L.A. is amazing, if for no other reason, than to meet and come in contact with people of such diversity; people from all over America and the world; from varying backgrounds and all walks of life. I particularly like people, like Miesha, who are themselves, no matter what.  And, I think there is a certain quality about L.A. that allows people to be themselves more freely.

It happened.

This morning, I woke up with barely enough time to get ready for work. My work pants are unwearably dirty, so I reached in my drawer for my overhauls. Immediately, I was pulled out of the denial that this year's weight gain hasn't been that severe. The once loose-fitting overhauls were so tight that I could barely get them over my hips. I should have known because they were given to me by my skinny-ass-twig-of-an-Asian friend, Ethan, when I was at my skinniest.

So, soon after Christmas, Manorexic Mania will begin anew. I will be returning to the Zone Diet, on which I once lost 40 lbs in three months. If anyone wants to join in the fun, I recommend purchasing THE FORMULA : a 40-30-30 Weight Loss System by Gene and Joyce Daoust. It's a great book that changed my life and is always where I return when I need to get back on track. I will also be filming Zone 3-Minute Cooking Shows, so you can all see that there are really delicious meals that make "dieting" quite easy.

What do you say? Who's with me?!

A Note on Comments

First of all, I love them. Ultimately this blog is rooted in deep Marcissism, and I need confirmation, validation, and all other things that deep insecurity require.

Second, I've been told by a few that they were not able to leave comments. I've made some changes to my settings in an attempt to remedy this. In theory, you just choose a profile from the drop-down menu (or sign anonymously) and press post.

However, I, myself just had issue leaving comments on my own blog. Both times, a "your comment could not be processed," popped up, but when I tried it again, it went through. So, if that happens to you, just try it again!! Please.

Thank you and Good Night.

i wanna eat u 2

I'm back in L.A, and tonight I went to the annual-Lerma-Chappell's-White-Elephant-Holiday Party. I took very limited footage, but I couldn't resist cutting this together. 

Please don't report me even though there's a dildo in the video!

And, if you're wondering why a dildo would be at a holiday party--held by the host's mother even--then you've clearly never been to a party at the Lerma-Chappell's, and should join me next year!

Adelaida Road

Away for the Holidays

ON THE ROAD

Ok, heading north. First stop, some sort of Twin Peaks lodge for lunch.
It's christmas soon, see the tree? Have you all been nice this year? Is
Santa going to glide down your chimney? If you all could wish for only
one thing this christmas, what would it be?

. . .

I am contemplating taking a little trip. It makes me worried; can you
live without me, or are we taking the drama on the road?

Brad Pitt Vs Tom Cruise

I was recently able to see screenings of Benjamin Button and Valkyrie, and thought I'd share my thoughts with you.

First, I saw Benjamin Button. A preface about my experience : I had gotten three hours of sleep the night before and wasn't feeling well. So, not sure if it was that or that the movie is two-hours-and-forty-five minutes, but the pace is in-cred-i-bly slo-w. It's one of those movies where you know the end at the beginning and nothing that shocking or surprising happens while on the journey, but you still really enjoy the ride.  I did, for the most part, like the movie.  Cate Blanchett is ah-mazing, as usual.  Brad Pitt looks really good.  If anyone deserves an oscar for this movie, it's the make-up artist.  Really remarCable work. I think a Christmas opening will serve Benjamin Button well because it's a snuggle-up-to-cozy kind of movie that audiences seem to crave on that day.

The next night, I saw Valkyrie.  For this movie, I was feeling even worse, and had once again gotten minimal sleep the night before. I didn't know what to expect, but my expectations were low. What, with the Tom Cruise craziness of the past few years, along with his box-office flops, and my knowledge that the movie's release had been pushed back several times, all led me to believe the movie was going to be boring and dry. It was anything but. I thought it was a very thrilling movie with a wonderful tension and suspense. I wouldn't say it is a great movie, but I was very entertained. I also really like that it is a fresh story on an old subject. It was nice to see a different perspective of World War II Germany and I think it is a very compelling story to which the world should be exposed. I feel it would be a much more powerful film if it had been a German-speaking movie with subtitles. It took me a while to suspend my disbelief enough to believe that Tom Cruise, speaking with an American accent, and the rest of the cast speaking either in American or British Accents, were supposed to be Germans speaking German. Once I did, I was able to enjoy the movie. Really, it's just Tom Cruise in Mission Impossible or Minority Report, only set in Germany during World War II.

It all comes down to who you prefer : Brad Pitt or Tom Cruise.

3-Minute Cooking Show : Holiday Special!

Love 'em or Hate 'em?

Me and the Mobile Man

I stayed up way too late last night/this morning watching the fifth season of the L word. At a little past five this morning, I remembered that I had to turn one of my freelance jobs into the office before eleven o'clock. I decided, since the office is so close to my place, that I would just drop it off before I went to sleep so I wouldn't have to get up early.

I left the apartment in my pajamas with my car keys and a cigarette.  I was about to smoke my last cigarette of the day when I realized I didn't have a lighter. Ok. I'll just pull into this Mobile gas station, get a book of matches, and then I'll smoke my cigarette.

I walked up to the window (because the doors to the station are locked in the wee hours of the morning) :

ME 

Can I please get a book of matches?

MOBILE MAN

We don't have any matches.

ME 

You don't have any matches?

MOBILE MAN 

No. We only sell lighters.

ME

I don't have my wallet with me.  I just need to light my cigarette.  Can you just put the lighter through the window, I'll light my cigarette, and give it back to you?

MOBILE MAN

No. It's a $1.50 for the lighter.

ME

But, I don't have my wallet.  I just want to light my cigarette. Please.

MOBILE MAN

It's a $1.50 or no lighter.

ME

You know, I just want to ask you : one human being to another why you can't help me out right now.  I just want to smoke my last cigarette before I go to sleep, and I don't understand why you aren't able to help me, as a fellow human being.  And, it's really not a big deal : I'll get to smoke my cigarette; I'll just stop by another gas station and they'll give me a book of matches. I just wish you could look me in the eye and explain it to me because I don't understand.

. . . 

His demeanor shifted.  He didn't say a word.  He just placed a book of matches in the tray and slid them through the window. I said, "thank you. very much," and I meant it.  It was one of the most satisfying and liberating moments of my life. Seriously, it felt amazing.

Hot Twin Gay DJ's

I found a few pre-blog videos I wanted to share with you. Hope you like them!

Mrs Blockovich

Because I heart her, and I think you will too.

B

Fire on Wilton Place

I was late for work.  Here's my excuse :

Where the Fuck is My Package?

My friend Libby sent me a package via FedEx. I wasn't home all three times they tried to deliver it.  Here's my adventure in trying to retrieve my package.

Blondes Have More Fun!

Two things you need to know before watching this video :

1.) the girl in this video admitted to me (while I thought my camera was on) that she was underage and had been drinking in Santa Monica.

2.) the 10 FWY is approximately 2.2 miles from the intersection of Wilshire and Fairfax.

Hope you enjoy the D R A M A!

Emerging Fashion?

I loathed the black ones, and though I'm still not a fan of the style, I think this woman works it out. Seriously, she's hot. Don't you think?

Britney's Comeback!

Today, Britney Spears is releasing her new album "Circus," and I for one hope it is hugely successful.  I want Britney to have the biggest comeback of all time.  Love her or hate her, she is a STAR!

Five years ago, when Britney was at her peak, I had brief access to the pop diva.  It was 2003 and I was working as a Script Production Assistant on All That, Season 9.  Jamie Lynne was a cast member on the show.  I spent many hours with Lynne Spears in the green room.

Our first conversation began with me, without knowing who she was, commenting on how wonderful her highlights looked.  We talked for hours and not long after we began, I realized she was Britney's mother.  We talked about the price of fame, and, at the time, she said, "you just can't listen to what people say.  You have your family and your friends, and they know the truth.  Because these magazines don't tell the truth.  But, you hold the truth close to you by holding your family close to you."  Another memorable quote : "I'm the same person I've always been.  I haven't changed.  I'll still give the shirt off my back if you need it," a small beat, "It may be a designer shirt, but I'd still give it to you."

I was with Lynne Spears while watching the live feed from the studio when the now-infamous-Britney-Madonna liplock occurred.  She had little reaction.  She let out a half laugh, while slightly rolling her eyes and shaking her head, as if silently thinking, "oh, Britney."

My interaction with Britney was much more limited.  She was a guest star on one of the episodes.  She did not show up for rehearsal.  She showed up three hours late on the day of the shoot.  She walked by me, sitting on a couch next to her mother, wearing a tank top that revealed a pooching stomach and sweat pants folded down a couple of times to reveal even more of her overly tanned body.  She pointed to her body guard, and introduced him to me. "This is [insert name]; he's with me," she laughed and walked up to her dressing room, where she remained until the taping.  All the while, they have not rehearsed at all.  There was no walk through, no read through, no anything.

Meanwhile, I wrote out her cue cards.  Hours later, she came down, transformed into the image of Britney Spears, and they began taping.  I held her cue cards.  There were many takes.  She is not a great actress, but the live audience didn't care.  They loved her!

When finished, Britney vanished, unaware of the behind-the-scenes tension she had created because the Assistant Director was trying to run a shoot with child actors on strict time schedules.

Even then, I could tell that Britney lived in a bubble.  But, even then, I could also tell that it was not her fault, and she didn't know any other way to be.  Now, she is more isolated then ever, so I hope she can make the most of her bubble, and create a happy healthy life and a great career that we can all enjoy, as we watch this potential legend's life unfold.

I SAW STEVE!!

I'm still a little giddy with excitement. Right before I got off work, I looked over to the next line and saw Steve from Sex and the City. He looks exactly the same in person, and I got so excited. I was glad he wasn't in my line because I don't know if I would have been able to contain myself. I've seen many celebrities at the Toluca Lake Trader Joe's, and I never get star struck.

But, I do get character struck.

I love Steve. I mean : how can you not love Steve!?

I realized the actor portraying Steve isn't even a real person to me; as I looked at him, all I could see was Steve. I didn't see a three-dimensional person with his own life, his own joys, his own problems.

Then I thought, it's kind of sad for an actor to be so identified as as a particular character because if I can't even see him as separate from Steve, how could I possibly accept him in another role?

What do you think?