I'm now covering scripts from 2 sources. One that pays, the other that doesn't. The one that pays sent me a manuscript of a book. No, that makes it sound like something readable. I was sent an epic pile of pages with words on them. That they have a cohesive plot has yet to be determined.

Coffee shift starts soon and I'd rather be writing on one of my scripts.

repost

This is a post I read on Craigslist a while back, but it never left my brain. Maybe i should have listened.No, I'm not leaving LA, but I could see myself writing this letter.


it's over, I'm leaving you...
Date: 2006-03-20, 8:08PM PST

Dear Los Angeles,

As you know, well I've been unhappy with you for quite some time. The truth of the matter is you don't love me and I never loved you. In fairness, I tried. Really I did and I found some good things in you. I mean, I've made some really wonderful friends through you. So lovely in fact just recently it occurred to me that I may be one of the luckiest people in the world. And jeez, I can't say enough about you showing me the Museum of Jurassic Technology - I suspect the most amazing place you have to offer. I must also say, living downtown has been amazing, the parks are nice, and the mountains are gorgeous. I've had some fine sushi and mexican food while I've been here as well.

However, the down side is insurmountable. You are a bit on the shallow side, ridiculously scene driven, and why must you insist on driving everywhere??? It's maddening! I mean, there have been so many things that were wrong that truth be told, that this relationship is not salvageable. You really are the most self centered city I've ever been with as well as the most shallow, flaky, and well...plastic. Your obsessions with Scientology and Marilyn Monroe really creeped me out too, you should dial that down a notch. That fauxhemian fashion sense of yours always grated under my skin a bit as well, it's now available at Target so why don't you just give it up already? In my last relationship with New York, I mean you could see the warts with no effort made to even hide them but at least you know what you got, at least it was real. My friends warned me about you before I decided to give 'us' a shot, you have quite a reputation you know. I should have listened. I guess I must have thought it sounded like too much a cliche to really be true or maybe I thought I could change you in my own meager way. I've been proved wrong.

However, let's not dwell on the negatives, the truth is I'm leaving you to go back to New York. Yes, New York. Yes yes, I know you hate New York - New York hates you too. Lucky for the both of you that you're 3000 miles apart. You see, I've always loved New York, even when I was with you. Your jealousy of New York really didn't help matters, just be who you are, accept yourself for who you are. Stop trying to be something you're not and can never be. The truth is, New York is my true love. Granted it's not perfect, but scrape away the dirt and curtness and you find something real and wonderful and oddly free. New York thinks it's ok for me not to go out until 11pm, and New York wont make me drive after a few cocktails. In fact, New York wont make me drive anywhere. I know it seems silly but New York has so much more to offer than you do. I'm sorry but it's true. New York has good taste in art, and every band likes playing New York, and jesus christ, New York has much better taste in fashion. New York is also happy to feed me at 4 in the morning, it was like it took an act of congress for you to muster up a decent meal for me at that hour. On top of that, New York accepts me the way I am. I don't need a fancy car or fake tits to be with New York. And not to stick the knife any deeper in, but the sex was better as well. New York can be a bit dirty I suppose and there's nothing wrong with that.

And listen, it's not like we'll never see each other again. Hopefully we can still be friends. I'm sure after we've spent quite some time apart I might be willing to see you again but don't get any wild ideas like it may be permanent, at most maybe we have a weekend trip.

So, Los Angeles, I'm leaving you and moving out at the end of May. It's over. You can't change my mind and I'm not moving back. I'm sorry. I'm sure you wont shed a tear anyway.

I'm enjoying the show "White Collar" to an absurd degree. I'm not sure how much of that is the show, and how much is my glee at off the cuff comments about Fashion Week.

I'm a little bummed that I'm not going home for the holidays, not New York, nor Western Massachusetts, or splitting the difference in CT.

Job: still slinging coffee, filing for bankruptcy, interning on the Sony pictures lot.
Yes, interning is for free. The frustration and irony of the internship is that while I'm working there, I don't have any days off to write.

I don't know that I've written much of anything since moving to Los Angeles.

::MOOD SWING::
Just got word from RK that he won second place in the Samuel Goldwyn Award for his script Blowback. It is an amazing, well written story with a lead who is one hell of an operator and a bit of a coward. The script manages to walk a very difficult line: an intelligent action movie. I'm so thrilled that a great script got the recognition it deserves.

On that note, I'm back with my boyfriend Mark West. www.markwestwines.com. Pinot Noir 2008 is pretty tasty, and under $13 a bottle. Maybe that will get me writing.

I'm pretty sure I just saw a craigslist hook up happen. You know, the kind listed in either "miscellaneous romance" or "adult services"

I'd like to apologize to anyone who glances at this for my rampant abuse of exclamation points. It is a moderately appalling day when one realizes that one in fact is guilty of a heinous pet peeve.

In an unrelated note, Felicia Day came in yesterday for a vanilla latte. If you don't know who Felicia is, your nerd quotient must be lower than mine.

You can see her here: http://drhorrible.com/
and here: http://www.watchtheguild.com/

I think I can perhaps blame the exclamation points on my recent caffeine abuse.

I have no idea what to be for Halloween this year.

The internship is going well. I get to read scripts, and talk about 'what-ifs' with people who can actually make those 'whats' more than 'if'.

I've seen you before!

I make eye contact with guy in line, return to making drinks.
Interior monologue: Hmm. That guy looks really familiar. Do I know him from Massachusetts? New York? Maybe Massachusetts.

Out of my peripheral hearing, I notice a Eastern Mass accent.. I continue making drinks.

Somewhat familiar guy approaches the hand off bar, I call out his drink. He stays there, says 'I think that you've got another one back there for me.'
I apologize, ask the brand new cashier, who says yes, there was another one, he forgot to write the cup.

I ask some questions about the drink, he's not sure. He doesn't drink coffee, it isn't for him.

ME: By any chance, are you from Massachusetts?
Familar guy: Yup.
BRAIN COMES ONLINE. RECOGNIZES MARK WAHLBERG

ME: uh. I just realized that you didn't look familiar because I knew you from home, but because.... uh. Sorry.

MW: You're from Massachusetts,too? What part?
ML: Springfield.

I hand over his drink.
ML: Sorry about the delay.

MW:Don't worry about it. Nice meeting you!

ML: uh, Nice meeting you too!

Looks like I start the internship soon!
YAY!

Finally Finally Finally!
I like LA!

Ye Coach and Horses, followed by Canter's. Good times!

I have tomorrow off! YAY! Laundry and swimming and writing... and applying for internships. And selling organs so I can pay for class in the fall. I've got two kidneys.

I gaze into the abyss and my checking account cuts me a surly look before going back to sitting in a corner and sulking.

Today I had a few good conversations. The upswing of today's message? Pessimism is a far too costly indulgence.

as you were.

She can walk!
Ditched the cane a few days back, but I'm still a bit sore.
But healing well! YAY!

horror script is going slow.

He wasn't in LA? Really?

... Oceanic malaise. I never saw anyone reading anything more demanding than a comic book. I never heard any youth express an interest in science or art. No one even talked politics. It was all idleness, and whenever I asked someone a question, no matter how simple, no matter how well the person spoke English, there was always a long pause before I got a reply, and I found these Pacific pauses maddening.
And there was giggling but no humor - no wit. It was just foolery.

Theroux, Paul, The happy isles of Oceania. Paddling the Pacific. New York (G.P. Putnam's Son), 1992, 341

There is a young woman on television who is running- she looks so healthy and competent and comfortable in her own skin. I want that for myself. I want a lot of things. I just need to keep in mind that I can have them with a few steps everyday, and not a marathon every week. This is for running and writing, and getting out of debt, and making a home for myself.

Yesterday I had lunch with a friend and dinner with the Mexican side of my family. We made dinner, ate tacos and went driving about in the Tujunga/Sunland area.

I worked today and I can't shake the insomnia.

I need to stop creating crisis situations in order for me to work in them. Life outside of crisis is a good thing. really. I learned this.

The other day I got a ride into work. My ride had to be at work for 5:30. I didn't have to be there until 7, so I curled up in the back of her car and slept for an hour and a half. It was probably some of the best sleep I've gotten in a long long time.

Today I was farmed out to a store in the Hills of Beverly.
The customers were not the holy terrors I'd be warned to fear, it was just a bit of a zoo around 11 when the nearby Hotel had checkout. There is always a bit of disorientation when working in a foreign store, things are not where you expect them to be. Different stores have different facilities, expectations, practices, etc. It is like learning a new dialect of a language.

A few hours into my shift and the shift lead and I realized that both of us were on loan from other stores. And we were the only ones on. The third person who came in was 30 minutes late and looked like deep-fried mess with a twist of hungover.

10 minutes before I left, my temporary boss asked "Have you seen the tip jar?"

People who steal tip jars go to a special hell.

My mom is fond of saying: If you want something done, ask a busy person. Clearly, I've not been busy enough, or something.

The newest spec is kinda just plodding along, and it frustrates me. Plodding very very slowly. A little too slowly. More importantly, the last spec wrote itself and I was just along for the ride. I can't help but compare the two experiences and fret that I'm a one hit wonder.

Jumbled

thoughts in no particular order:

Exactly when did Iowa become more awesome than California?

Applied for a PA position in writer room.

Will move to a hostel on June 1.

Have the song "God Willing" by the Dropkick Murphys stuck in my head.

Am hungry and totally uninspired by the contents of the fridge.

Need to swing by the bank tomorrow. I want to see "The Hangover" "The Hurt Locker" and "Public Enemies"... sadly none of them are out yet.

I need to buy another pair of work shoes, one just isn't enough.

Must find running group.

REally want a cup of coffee, but dread the consequences.

Leinenkugel's Sunset Wheat= teh awesome.

Looking for a new place to live that I can afford? Less awesome.

Update: I am now officially a resident of California-- I have the temporary proof from the DMV. The real deal comes in the mail in 3 weeks.

Of course at that point I'll be living somewhere else.

I'm going to investigating the UU church. I feel like my spiritual self has long been undernourished, and I find it important that religion be inclusive and not exclusive.

And I've not yet met a fanatical UUer.

Barista-hood is tiring, but I'll get accustomed to that soon. I'm a little bemused at the unilateral weight training-- my right arm is getting huge from slinging gallons of milk hither and yon.

I've got the next few days off. Looking for apts, writing some words, maybe seeing some movies.

Purchased:
TP
Water
Bug Killer DIE DIE DIE!

Made it into the apartment? TP, Water.

Bug Killer DIE DIE DIE is in L's car some hour and change away.

Gregor made an appearance,.. and went away, and came back.
I really hope it is just the one bug and not a legion that I'm seeing.

On the topic of the job:
I've gone from Database management to Barista trainee. While I'm sure that my first day alone behind the espresso bar will be nerve wracking--- I really enjoy it. I make people's favorite vice. and I get to make noisey frothy milk! And hit buttons! and pull levers!

It turns out that one of the regulars who comes in is from Massachusetts. This conversation came up during a conversation about the Red Sox.

There's just that tiny bit of not quite enough pay check. And not knowing what to do with myself when I'm not working. I'm sure Rob would appreciate it if I were around just a little bit less, but it seems that there's just been so many misses when it comes to making plans with others. Oh well. Will keep looking for more work.

I was blown away by the 2hour premier of Kings.

I'm on the second episode now.. and why had none of my friends told me of the awesomeness that is this show?

... unless it turns sour. Only time will tell.

Unrelated: Work was great today.

Once upon a time

Once upon a time I lived in Queens, in an apartment that was hot in the winter and very very hot in the summer. We had the occasional cockroach. Fewer than in some apartments and more than in others. One night before going to bed, I saw a fairly spectacularly large roach on the wall of my room. It was the size of a cell phone, and I told my roommate that Gregor Samsa was hanging out in my room. I didn't want to smoosh it because the clean up factor would have been ugly. The roach spray wasn't around. So, I stood on my bed, hosing the bug on the wall with extra strength hold hairspray.

The bug fell to the ground with a wet plop, I walked away to wait for my sheets to dry.

Hours later, I went to bed, no clothes on as it was a million degrees in the apartment. At some point in the middle of the night, I rolled over and

::CRUNCH::

there was no blissful moment of ignorance. Immediately, I knew that my nemesis returned while I was sleeping. While I was shrieking and trying to get bug goo off of me, I realized that there was only 1 buggy leg on the bed.

My roommate came running in, armed with a baseball bat, and in time to watch me do the naked creeped out buggy dance.

She grabbed some paper towels, removed the corpse from my back and did away with the body.

Just a moment ago I saw a roach that was even larger than the one from back in New York. Again, no toxic chemicals around, other than some 409.

Sigh. Roach traps tomorrow.

105 degrees today.

Went on an interview for weekend employment. The guy I interviewed with reminded me of an old boss back in New York - one I didn't particularly care for.

Got a call for employment at the coffee shop. While it pay rent or bills, it won't pay both, but it will allow me benefits. YAY! The quest for work continues.

Went to the WGA library. Read one script, the pilot of Leverage, that was excellent. I'm glad it was there so I could get a feel on how to write my spec for Leverage. Read some scripts from another show that made me feel much much better about my writing skills.

Dinner was salad and crab cake. yum.

Better than therapy

Had an interview at the coffee chain today. I made it to the second round. I should hear shortly. It certainly isn't enough to live on, but after you complete a fiscal quarter with 240 hours worked, you get benefits.

If I get the job or don't, it was nice to interview- nice to make it to the second round.

I felt... validated.

on that note:

Ocktapodi: Just.. awesome.

I snagged this from Jules

Walking in LA

Today I walked to the grocery store. It was only like, 2 miles away. You'd think that I was mumbling to myself wearing a tinfoil hat. Boy, did I get a lot of funny looks.

I'm in California!

Yesterday, Today

Yesterday I was frantically typing up marching orders for the guy who is starting work today. Last night I was taken to dinner, and talked about books. Today, I was taken to breakfast, and lunch and talked about books and scripts and tv and I'm strangely exhausted.


I've set up shop at a Starbucks in midtown.
Tres Jolie should be arriving from TN via LaGuardia, any moment now.


And there she is!

Spent a lovely Friday night and Saturday AM with The Chef and The Curmudgeon. It was awesome. There was food to assemble and music with which to dance around the living room.

I've not packed nearly enough.

State of Affairs:

My clothes, especially the summer ones, are a wee bit, uh, waaayyy too tight. I guess that's what happens when one stops running and lets the 'day job' become the 'day, night and all the time in between job'. My last day in the office is March 24. I'm going to see my family for a week, and then I'm off to Los Angeles. Where the sun shines and the job prospects are... less than stellar.

I saw the Watchmen this AM. I'd seen a preview of it at Comic Con last month, and was looking forward to the feature.

The preview was better. Essentially this thing was too damn long. In an attempt to remain true to the graphic novel, the movie went overboard and showed nearly every freaking frame of the comic book.

Way too long. Acting was decent from some, less decent from others.

All in all, it didn't move me. Maybe that's my true reaction to the film, or maybe that's the ennui talking. I'm feeling a overwhelmed, etc. etc. blah * no job?* blah blah blah.

Despite the great notes, and knowing my characters inside and out, I've had a hard time sitting down and finishing the script. It will take me all of 8 hours.

Ah well. Stop beating myself up about this, get some dinner and go home.

Moving to Los Angeles

Yeah. That.
April 7.
More to come.

Got a haircut, drank too much wine, told roommates I was moving out. Met up with Mr. Kate this AM to give over the rent. Saw Milk-- which was amazing. and... a victorious heart break, if such a thing is possible.

At work currently. Glutton for punishment.

I meet up with Carlo at 4 to go over 'dreaded action flick.'

.. OK. I just kept writing fluck instead of flick. Hmm. Fluck. I kinda like it.

Six Dollar Review: Notorious, Friday the 13th

I actually went to the movies to see Defiance. Ok, I went to the movies because I has just parted ways with my family and felt that walking into a bar at 10AM was a little much, even for me.

Oh, so 10:20 Defiance. I'm the only one in the theater. AWESOME. And then smelly man comes into the theater. and sits in my row. I ignore him. He starts wrestling with his belt buckle. I wasn't going to stick around and find out what he's looking for, so I vault the railing, get a 8 from the judges for technique, and 9 for flair as it was done with a laptop and winter coat.

So... what's playing? Notorious. Fine. Great. Whatever.

It was surprisingly good.

Friday the 13th.. was not.

Big change....

coming really really soon.

Conversations in Apartment

Me: I just killed someone with a garden hoe.

Anna: My pig is devouring a woman. Is that the last of the coffee?

( My screenplay, her painting, our kitchen.)

and sometimes

Today was a weird weird day.

I mean, what does one expect from a trip to comic-con?

Alicat and I walked to the diner of awesome-- only to find out that it had caught on fire the previous evening, and hence was closed. All the regulars were wandering around outside, a shipwreck without an island, while the employees pushed mountains of water and debris out with shovels and brooms. I'm really hoping that they open up again.

We went to New York Comic-con. There was supposed to be a nerd shuttle to take folks from Grand Central to the Javit's center. Couldn't find one anywhere. We ended up taking the city bus which dropped us off at the Intrepid and not the convention center. Ali and I started walking and kept walking and within moments we had a trail of people following us.

And then we encountered the hordes. Lots of people without voice modulation. I wanted to see the Watchmen panel- we were twenty minutes late, but still managed to get in just as it started and watch about 20 minutes of the film. So far so good. The camera work was amazing, the visuals and story telling seemingly faithful to the book, and the alternate history recap very deft and adept.

We stayed seated after that panel for the Friday the 13th panel. Super gor-rific and fast paced. I will admit that I felt really uncomfortable with with the squealing fan girls (and FAH-LAMING fanboys) of Jared Padalecki. Then again I feel really uncomfortable with a lot of the zealotry of fandom. Where does cheerful enthusiasm end and creepy crawly bad-touch begin?

I typically like to keep my 4th wall firmly in place. Not only because I'm socially awkward but because the resonance one might feel with a writer or an actor or a character stems so much from internal baggage of previous real life experience with which the actor/writer was not part.

or something. I'm also drunk posting so if this is remotely coherent Sunday AM when I'm at work AGAIN, I will be fucking shocked. And awed.

point.. oh yes. 2 of them. Famous-ish people. Regardless, today I got introduced to Ginjer Buchanan. Having had friends in the publishing for quite a few years, it was nice to put a face to the name that I'd heard so often in connection to some favorite books. She's not one of the famous-ish people because editors are not frequently the names that people know.

She introduced us to one of her writers, Amber. I commented on Ginger's tattoo that was clearly taken from a Patricia Briggs novel. (If you like Urban Fantasy, read that series.) I suggested that Amber pick up this series as the world building is great and the characters even better.

Regardless I was a having a weird moment of juxtoposition? Diorientation? De ja whatever? particularly when it finally clicked in why this woman, Amber, looked so damn familiar. Amber Benson played Tara on Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Tara was, more than most of the other characters was concrete and familiar. I don't know how much of that was the writing or the acting, but when she was on screen I never rolled my eyes or felt,'gee. here is this actor, acting.'

She had a great handshake, was super attentive and present and asked if we could have our photo taken with her for her to twitter.

See?

http://twitpic.com/1dl78


I've read the write up of her book and I'm looking forward to reading it.

We went on, listened to a panel. Sat next to a voice behind a little blog called "galleycat". One of the speakers on the panel was Vicki Petersson. She, like Amanda is a homegrown Las Vegan. Unlike Amanda, she's a showgirl turned novelist. Her heroine and heroes are flawed and visceral and honest in a way that characters are frequently not portrayed in the sub-genre of Urban Fantasy. When I was on my way home from Shady A's posthumous birthday party, one of the books in her series was all that I wanted to read. What a weird thing, right?

The reason I bring this up is that I mentioned to Liz (Editrix extraordinaire) and she encouraged me to tell the author this. I felt weird about it because.. well.. the fourth wall thing and the discomfort with fan zealotry and the last thing I want is to inflict that on someone.

I somehow got up the stones to tell Vicki about it, and she shared how a MaryJanice Davidson book was her escape when her dad was sick. And we talked about writing, and she thanked me for sharing that and how it made her feel better after a rough year of re-writes. And re-writes.

And then Liz, Alicat and I went out. And there was booze. and food. and then Liz left. And then the hockey team bought us a round or maybe more and gave us cake.


And now, it is way past my bedtime.

"Cheese is the devil's play thing."

-- House

$8.00 review: My Bloody Valentine 3-D

Despite some plot holes and a couple of eye-rolls MBV delivers what it promises. The 3D is surprisingly effective. Had the audience been less savvy and taken the genre seriously, it wouldn't have been as fun.

$6.00 review: Slumdog Millionaire

I try to hit the mantinee once a week. Here movies are $6 before noon Friday-Sunday, and thank god for it. This week's movie was so satisfying that I didn't feel the need for a double feature.

Slumdog Millionaire is based on a novel called 'Q and A' by Vikas Swarup. The screenplay was written by Simon Beafoy (The Full Monty, Ms. Pettigrew lives for a Day), Directed by Danny Boyle (Trainspotting, 28 days Later) and co-directed with Loveleen Tandan ( Art Direction for Deepa Mehta's film Earth, AD for Monsoon Wedding and Casting for Vanity Fair and Brick Lane).

It has been a long long time since I've seen a movie that combines the elements of so many genres without feeling like a casserole of mistake. Instead this took the talents from a wide range of talent fields and combined it to make it something amazing.

The story telling, the visuals, the use of language and music-- all of it came together to be one of the better movies I've seen in a long time. Dark, brutal, and yet somehow managed to maintain an optimism that didn't feel contrived, or inorganically attached after rounds of notes and a profoundly abused screenwriter.

( We're ignoring the last 1 minute of dialog here. Nobody's perfect.)

Dev Patel did an admirable job of playing Jamal. I was surprised to find out that he's only 18 years old. Not because he looked older, but because he was the kind of good that usually only comes after years of training. As Freida Pinto's first role, I think she played Latika as a smart survivor when it would have been very easy to play her as a flat 2 dimensional object.

So, you have a guy who directs horror movies, a screenwriter who's known for 'the little movie that could' scripts and an AD/Art director with a stunning visual sense usually reserved for art house films. It could have been a disaster of pretension and instead all those parts worked together amazingly well.

Auld Lang Syne

2008 in which I took a full time job working for the man that has gone from 40 hours a week to far too many for far too little reward, gained 20 lbs and lost a loved one.

2008 in which I traveled to London for the first time, secured full time work, had holidays full of joy and family behaving well, finished my first script, submitted, made top 5%, got to see my friend 2 weeks before she kicked the bucket.

2009

look into becoming an elementary school teacher. What is involved?

finish two features. submit them.

send said scripts to agents.

write short story for anthology.

floss.