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?