Let it snow!

Hey Fam! Just a quick update. Friday, it started snowing, which is generally bad news in my job because it means 2 things: a shortage of service technicians (because they all have to shovel) and an increase in emergency service requests... So I wasn't looking forward to working on Saturday. However, the snow stopped nice and early on Friday and there was no need to worry.

Then, it started snowing on Saturday—for real this time. Good news for me because I have Sunday and Monday off! I coasted through a super-easy day. I went to Walmart after work and got some curtains for the bedroom (because the stupid Christmas lights outside my window do their best to pierce my eyelids every night), hung those bad boys up, and slept like a rock.

Sunday, B and I got up and built a Snow Cat! It was just the right kind of snow for snow sculptures but just a bit too wet for snow men, so we improvised and built a snow cat.

We also got a head start on wrapping presents this year. B & I are planning on having some sort of Christmas event with Griffin and Aaron before or after Christmas, depending on everyone's schedules, so that should be fun.

Well, that's all I've got, fambly. I love you all, can't wait to see you for Noah's Graduation!

11/11

Hello all-

Took a great hike yesterday up to "Mt. Hollywood". Awesome panoramic views of the city. I took a picture that pretty clearly shows the strata of smog that often covers LA. Gross.

When we got back, I got a phone call from my agent . . . I booked my first real job in La-La Land! It's a commercial for Scottrade. Wardrobe on the 13th, and we shoot on the 20th! Feels good to book some work!

Love you!

Dia de los muertos!

Awesome to hear from everyone . . . As I write this, we're spread out over 4 states. Spreading the word!

So, let's see . . . Babies! After my caveman show in North Dakota, I spent a few days in Minneapolis, which is populated by babies. I got to see quite a bit of Nate and Karen's bundle of joy, Isla (pronounced Eye-Lah), which was great. Nate's folks were in town visiting as well, as was my former roommate Laurel. It was nice to get back to Minneapolis for a minute, but with winter knocking at the door out there, I'm happy not to be there right now!

I got back in town just in time for Halloween. Our apartment was appropriately decorated, but as luck would have it, I booked a job that shot on Halloween day, and Tanya had to work that night, so I stayed in on all Hallows Eve. We did make it out the following day for the Dia de los Muertos celebration. It was pretty cool to see all the altars and so many people dressed as skeletons! I've always been a fan of that holiday, and it was cool to be able to participate . . .

Yesterday, I had my 60th audition here in LA . . . ironically, for the Minnesota State Lottery. As with the 59 before it, it was awesome, and I'm fully expecting to book the job! On that end . . . I just got put "on avail" for a commercial for Scottrade. Being "on avail" is the final step before officially booking the gig. There's still a small chance that I won't get it, but there's a great chance that I will. Keep your fingers crossed . . . this would be my first paid gig out here!

Next Monday, our new library branch opens up . . . right around the corner. Perhaps not the most exciting news in the world, but I'm still looking forward to it!

Love you guys, and talk to you soon!

Bloggity-blog

Hello fam! Long-overdue blog... sorry for the radio silence! Not because I'm jam-packed with awesome... rather because life here is rather monotonous unless you distill 1.5 months into concentrated Elly life.

ANYWHOO!!!! Life is good here in Superior. It's still mostly work-sleep-work-sleep, but we occasionally have some fun. =)

For example, on October 22nd, my work sponsored a volunteer day for all the employees. I personally volunteered at a place called Zuma's Rescue Ranch in Littleton. It's a very inspirational and awesome ranch that started out as a for-profit horse ranch. Sometime several years ago, the couple that owned it was going to sell it, but as they were in the process of getting ready to do so, a friend of theirs called them up and told them that if they didn't step in, seven perfectly good horses were going to slaughter that day.

Thus began the rescue ranch... they rescued neglected and abused horses, horses that would otherwise have gone to slaughter, and became a boarding house for people who couldn't keep their own horses for whatever reason. For a while they were doing this out of their own savings. Then, a close foster-mother friend of Jodi, the woman who, with her husband Paul, founded Zuma's, called her up and asked if she could bring her foster kids up to the ranch to spend time with the horses. Then, Zuma's became interested in the therapeutic influences of horses on troubled kids who had been neglected, abused, or forgotten by the system. They're currently working on making equine therapy a "legitimate" therapy so that it can be covered by insurance and they can open their doors to as many kids as need them. It's apparently a very effective therapy; that it teaches kids to relate and attach to other beings. The therapists can see more about the kid's true state of mind when they interact with the horses than they can through one-on-one verbal therapy, and there have been many reported cases of kids who work with horses having vast improvements in communication, self-control, and compassion in a short time.

If you can't tell, I was pretty moved by the organization and their mission, and I wish I had more time to volunteer there. I think they're doing great things.

Anyway, then on October 24, we had a huge Halloween party over at the community center! We rented out the big room, the breakfast room, and the movie theater--for free, since I'm an employee. It was pretty awesome, but not as epic as last year's party. *sigh* There will never again be a party that epic.

Halloween itself was awesome. We ran out of candy because we had a whole bunch of trick-or-treaters (which was all my fault! I did that), and then we went to Westminster for an insanely fun haunted house, where I made a complete fool of myself and learned, to my chagrin, that if I was confronted with zombies or chainsaw murderers I'd probably be the first one killed. Here I thought I'd be able to keep my cool. But no.

Then, as ma said, that next Monday, my infusion went immeasurably smoothly, and we had such a nice visit, I was very sad when it ended. =(

Unfortunately, since then, this week has been very long. Not for any particular reason, just ... blah. I don't want to work this week. But what can you do? Not much...

Okay so I'm gonna try to blog more often! Take care, mah peeps!

Hither and Yon

Hi Fambly....I'm on short time again. Last post caused me to miss the earlier bus to DIA. Actually watched it pull away...nnooooo....jumped on the next one still with lotsa time to spare, so no prob. I was leaving Superior after a great week-end.
"The goils" are flying in to DGO shortly. We'll leave from the airport for Sante Fe.
I've thrown together a suitcase full of costumes (which can double as my day clothes)...hairpieces,mardi gras beads, scarves, slips and make-up. That should about cover it. Susan's bringing camera equip. Boo has the hazy-shades of a script and her generous wit! My lap top will enable us to Skype-Chat...so, don't hesitate to jump into the production! Back to DGO Thrs. They leave Early Fri (the 13th!!).
Meanwhile Dad's in Denver (mtg), Superior (fun w/B&E), Co Springs (football w/McLachlan &Noah),Denver (fun w/N&CC), Superior (more fun), then Reno on Monday. I'm pretty sure that's followed by a return to Durango :)late Fri. night. Dad & 'the goils" are missing each other entirely, bummer.
OK, gotta pack & go pick 'em up. Good luck w/Caveman, Code. Noah and CC here for
Thanksgiving. Then Elly treatment, followed by N&C graduation, Caveman shows Nov-Dec, smash bam into Christmas!! Phew, I'm exhausted. And Excited!!LoveLoveLOVELoveloveLUVxoxo

From Superior, CO

Hi all--gorgeous day today. I'm flying back to DGO in a short while. Bus to the airport. As I've learned along the way by hanging w/yous guys, using mass transit does eat up a bit more of your time, but I like the not driving/parking etc. Plus it's an adventure!
This has been a great, if too short, trip. Flying vs making that trek across the state was a treat for a change. Elly, Branden and I (& 4 legged friends) threw together a stroganoff dinner on Sunday. Noah, CiCi and WaWa joined us. For the record, I later WON a par-the-cheese game without crying first.
Best case scenario yet for E's infusion. Not only one poke each for blood draw and IV insert, but much less palpating,proding,heming&hawing in general. We spent our extra free time at the gym later on. She is an amazing trooper. I would have to take to my bed with the vapors for several days of recuperation.
Oh, so much coming up and time is flying!! Speaking of which---I gotta run. more later. Loving All of You Madly, your mom xoxoxoxoxoxo

Grand Forks, ND

Forgot my camera all day. . . bummer

So, to the best of my reccolection, this is my first time ever in North Dakota. As I've been led to believe, our states are united (save two), and I've been to a great number of them, and now I get to check one more off the list.

Tonight was great. The past several months (and perhaps, the immediate future) have been a great challenge. The sheer size of the Los Angeles market is terrifying. I always have the feeling that success (as currently defined) is always around the corner, but I always feel like I'm on the wrong block. It's mind taffy. A mind-fuck, if you will. Being an actor was never such a job . . .

Anyhoo. Standing Ovation here in Grand Forks, ND. About half an hour from the Canadian border, and across the river from Minnesota. Tonight reminded me that not only do people need to be entertained, but I can be one of the many to entertain them.

I thought that it might be too late in the season, but lo and behold, I was able to witness some of the beautiful foliage in the Red River Basin on a letterboxing adventure today before the show (ended up being a 10-mile walk!), and had some great conversations with locals to boot.

It's strange, this life . . . all last week (between the Chicago trip and yesteray-leaving for this show), I had auditions . . . trying to prove to folks that I had what it takes to sell something or BE something or whatever, and then a night like tonight where seven hundred people stand up and applaud what I'm doing . . . it's just a nice reminder.

Anyhoo, it's late here. Just wanted to put this out. Love you all, and talk to you soon!

Chicago

Well, I still love Chicago . . . Let's see now . . .

Weds, 10/7 Flew LA-Chicago early. Beautiful sunny day. I bopped around downtown in the loop for a bit, just taking the city in-ogling the new buildings, etc. In the early afternoon, I met up with Dustin and Uncle Ken for a beer before heading over to meet Wyatt. Wow. Those babies are awesome. Wyatt is made out of muscle . . . every time I held him, I felt like we were wrestling, and he was sort of winning. O is awesome as well-talking up a storm! Ah, babies.

Thurs, 10/8 Woke up as O & W went off to wiggle worms with their grandma. I spent a couple hours in the morning relaxing at K&D's pad before heading uptown to meet up with Troy and his new puppy. While we were hanging out, Tanya got in to town, and we met up a Clarks-the first of many gastro-intestinal trips down memory lane. After lunch, T and I headed up to Rick and Cory's place to unpack. With Cory teaching 4th Grade, and Rick in his final year of Grad school, it's amazing to see the paths everyone has taken in life.

Fri, 10/9 Woke up and made the trip out to Ohare to meet Marie. The plan was to head straight from the airport to the Marathon Expo, but a fire at one of the train platforms pushed our plans back a few hours. We still made it down to the Expo, which was pretty cool. I had a few pounds of bite sized energy bars, energy jellybeans, energy drinks, etc. By the time we left, I was buzzing. On to Leona's for more delicious food.

Sat, 10/10 Allie (Cory's sister) arrived early in the morning, and we picked up Cynthia (Tanya's mom) shortly thereafter. We had a 4pm pasta party for the runners, combined with a "support group meeting". That was great. Lots of old war stories.

Sun, 10/11 Marathon Day. We made it down to our first spot (4mile marker) first thing in the morning and it was COLD! It was cool to see the pros pass . . . one of the Kenyans set a Chicago record! From 4, it was a short walk over to the 10 mile marker, then a quick train trip to 12. We missed Tanya at 12, but Dustin and Olivia were there to cheer! From 12, we trained down to Chinatown around mile 20, where it finally started to warm up. From 20, we headed to the meet-up section at the end. It was Epic. After a while, we gathered up our 4 runners and seven supporters and wound our way back north.

Mon, 10/12 Recovery Day. Ally went back to Ohare early, and we drove Cynthia to Midway shortly after. Spent the rest of the day in and out of consciousness while watching the first season of "Dexter". Caught the Broncos on MNF. Nice.

Tue, 10/13 Met up with Troy and Family for a late breakfast and then headed downtown to see the sights. Man I love Chicago. We checked out the new Trump building, wandered around Millennium park, and picked up some Garrett's. T and I had dinner with the Cousins, and got some good playtime in with O and Wyatt.

Wed, 10/14 T left for the airport around 4am and I had a pretty relaxing morning hanging out with Rick until around noon, when I headed off to Ohare. No excitement on the flight home . . . just the way I like it!

All told, it was a great week. Busy, but a load of fun. I always miss Chicago, but with winter setting in, I'm surely not going to miss the cold. I got a bit of a cold when I got home, but I've been hitting the auditions pretty hard . . . don't want to miss a step! Love you all, and talk to you soon!

Bodiless Bob and Beyond!

Hello . . .

Well, last Thursday through Sunday I spent a good majority of my time inside a refrigerator. Quite literally. The project: Bodiless Bob . . . a student film from Chapman University in which two roommates deal with the head living inside of their freezer. It was a strange script, but a very fun shoot. The hours were long, but the set was filled with fun folks.

On Monday, T and I got to see our dubious friend Jason Knauff in his performance as Baron Vegan VanHamburger with the Handsome Little Devils (google them for more!). They've been touring with the "Tour de Fat" with their vaudeville show, and though we only saw a smidge of it, it was a good time. Los Angeles can feel a bit isolating at times, so it's always nice to see a familiar face! Jason hung out with us Tuesday, and I did my best as a host to show him the best of Los Angeles . . . highlights including doing my laundry and packing for Chicago . . .

. . . where I woke up this morning! Got in Yesterday, and after watching the end of the Rockies game with D and Uncle Ken, I got to play with Olivia and Wyatt all afternoon. I don't know how they do it. By the time they went to bed (around 8?) I had seen them for 6 hours, and felt like I'd been run over by a truck! Currently, they're off at "wiggle worms" with their grandmother (Ken and Jo in town until Friday), and I'm playing with their toys.

The marathon frenzy will no doubt begin kicking up tonight as the old crew starts to gather! More to come soon!

Love you!

Fun Pet Adventure

Hey there Fambly! Lots of fun adventures are happening everywhere--Mom and Pops are painting the house and then OFF to Utica, Noah and Cici are emmigrating, and Cody's auditioning non-stop. I myself have the world's smallest adventures.

On Saturday we had an event for pet owners, a "pet parade" with a pet/owner look-alike contest and other such nonsense. A photographer came to take official portraits of pets and their owners. I was working, but my co-worker Laurie was super-nice and allowed me to run out for about an hour to get my picture taken with the kitties.

Branden and I carried Squish and Tayler over to the community center. As soon as we started heading down the stairs into the quagmire of dogs, they started up the yowl machines, but were otherwise very well-behaved. They were the only cats in attendance and a whole bunch of people came up and petted the crap out of them, which confused them a little bit ("What? I'm trying to be upset over here but this feels sooooo gooooood"), and then the photographer's room was large and free from any other animals, so they were able to prowl around a little bit and get their bearings. We had several pictures taken, and the cats were surprisingly cooperative, and then we took them home--and even they seemed sort of exhilerated by the experience. They both went outside, hung out in the living room, and snuggled with us that night, so they seemed to not have any lingering anger (which they usually express by hiding under beds and glaring at us).

Anyway, here are the pictures we had taken, and I think they turned out very well:
The Pictures
Username: horizons
Password: myportraits

Then, on Sunday, Branden and I went to Elitch's, then spontaneously caught a movie. After that, we went over to Joe and Sarah's to roleplay. Fun times were had by all.

Monday, I got a haircut, and it's super-cute. Branden picked up some new shoes on Pearl, and we took a walk around down there. The rest of the day was very relaxing and good, with reading, movies, video games.

Unfortunately, I haven't gotten out to work out at all since last Monday. I actually made that decision, but I'm getting back on the horse tomorrow morning. My joints are getting all squeaky.

Okay, love you guys!

THE HUBSTER

Hey Peeps-

So, I've been putting off blogging for a couple of days because I wanted to take some pictures, but I keep forgetting my camera . . . ah well.

I imagine that the cold weather makes excercising a bit more difficult sis-remember to walk between the cold! Remember how good it makes you feel! You're awesome. There you have it.

Careful with the guttersniping! Truly awesome projects going on at the homefront, an it's a miracle that they haven't resulted in trips to the ER! If there is a beaten to be taken in Durango, I hope that the garden is the only thing injured!

So the auditions have been trickling in . . . had a callback yesterday for a non-union casino commercial in Fresno. Weather I book it or not, it was nice to get a callback! I've been really happy with this commercial agency (Coast to Coast)-they've been sending me out pretty regularly, and I feel like I've had very little to show for it! But callbacks are a great thing-it means I've made the final 5 or so out of possibly hundreds of submissions. We'll see. I'm also starting to get into some casting offices repeat times-the more, the merrier!

I've got two shorts still in production-this Friday and Saturday I'll be finishing "The story of John Slade"-a 16mm student production in which I play the murderer John Slade, and hopefully by next week we'll finish shooting "The NBA", in which I play a secret agent deep under cover. The first week of October, I'll be playing Bob in "Bodiless Bob"-a very much alive and excitable head that lives in the freezer of a couple of hapless roommates. In november, I've got a small role in another short playing the Principal of a school that's making budget cuts.

You never know with these things . . . by this point, I'm starting to get some tape back . . . you'll remember the Caveman shoot from last month? I leave you for now with the finished product . . . love you all, and enjoy!

http://www.vimeo.com/6721897

Guttersnipes

Hi Team. Rained HARD again last evening and the gutter above the garage door DID NOT leak! First time in years. Everyday for a week I ascended that tower of scaffolding, hung off of it with one arm so that I could reach and applied more goop to the gutter. And every night it rained. And each morning I was greeted by a steady plopping....a drip,drip dripping not unlike Poe's Raven. Or was it The Monkey's Paw? You get the idea.
While I was atop tall metal structures, dodging lightening bolts, Dad was rehearsing Oliver Gambel's outdoor wedding.You are sorely missed Cody. Colin Day's here w/his missus from Evanston. More on that post-nuptials today.
Noah needs to give us a shout-out. He and CiCi cleared another hurdle yesterday in the immigration process. Successful personal interview. Noah, you guys might be creating earning potential for yourselves. Walking others thru the process. Good job you guys!!

Oh geez...now I am gonna be late for work. Good concert, El? Re exercise....just focus on how good you feel, right? Doin' great.
More later. lovelovelovelovelove and miss you all xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

Workout routine: Week 2 winding down

Hello fam damly! Short update from me. I worked out 3 times this week so far (Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday) and I'm going to try to squeeze in a workout after work, before heading down to Denver for the Jonathan Coulton concert. I hope I am able to, I always feel so good after working out, and judging by my yawns this morning, I think it has a very good effect on my energy levels.

Despite 4-times-a-week workouts for the last 2 weeks, I seem to be gaining weight rather than losing it. I know that muscle weighs more than fat, and I know I'm doing a good job, but it's still slightly discouraging.

Well, that's it for now! Talk to you all soon!

Like sand through an hourglass . . .

Elly . . . you are a machine. Keep up the good work. It's so nice to get your updates! I'm thrilled to hear about Brandon's success . . . with health care reform dominating the news, it's an exciting time for technology in that industry!

The fiercing and roaring cat adventures are exciting too. Question: when your mighty hunter brings you a mousegerbil, how do you prepare it? Do you serve mousegerbil with a white or red wine? Perhaps smeared with a bit of pesto?

Bummer to hear about Marge and the committee. Having moved so many times over the past decade, I haven't really ever gotten to know a neighborhood like the one at home, and our neighbors across the street have always, well . . . been there. Dad-way to honor the passing of a bit of history that will never be studied . . . a kind and fitting tribute to a neighborhood footnote. With any luck, one of the new neighbors will take up the charge of overzealous christmas decorating. And of course, as with all things, the final chapter of the Crestview Committee opens the door for a new group of neighborhood tribal elders. Who in the area is brave enough to take up the banner? To boldly sit as both judge and jury over the opinions of the goings-on of a mountain town community? Hmm . . .

Things mostly quieted down since my last post. I was able to hit at least one audition a day last week, but the well has dried a bit this week. I have booked a couple of more student projects. I sure wish landing a commercial was as easy as landing these student gigs. Again, I'm trying to build up my reel . . . it's a calling card out here. I've got some good stuff on it right now, but I'm always looking for more options. Hence, the student films. Of the last two, one is a thriller, the other, a spoof comedy. Despite my years defending cavemen, I still need some good comedy on my reel. By the end of the month, I will have shot 6 "shorts" so far. One of them is complete, but seeing as how most of them are also projects for school, I should have the footage for most of them by the end of the semester (the new year?)

It's cooled off a bit here in Cali, and the ever-present mushroom cloud from the station fire has all but died off. Football season begins today (I know you've been counting down the days Elly!), and so I'm planning on taking the next five or six months off. More to come soon!

Love

BBQ and Workout Routine

Hello Fam! Small news post today.

First off, my tooth-related New Month Resolution is holding up under pressure. Haven't missed any days in the Month of September so far. My teeth are singing, and that's awesome.

The New Month Resolution regarding working out hasn't been so easy to uphold. First day of workout was last Friday; Saturday I had to Wii Fit instead of going to the gym and while that's good, it's not AS good. Sunday I had a nice 70-minute bike ride, which definitely counted, Monday we cleaned for 5 hours and I called that a workout. Tuesday I didn't do anything physical because I had the infusion and then D&D... and BBQ, but let me get to that in a sec.

But Wednesday... ah Wednesday. I had made (tentative?) plans with Shad to work out that evening, but I know that Shad can be flakey so I was planning on working out that morning. However, I didn't get myself out of bed in time for that. Happily, Shad was as good as his word and showed up at about 6:30 for our workout, only to find out that his cat had peed on his workout bag!!! Ugh!!! But the in-unit washer/dryer to the rescue... a mere hour and a half later his clothes were washed, dried, unstinky and ready to go, so we headed over to the rec center. The machine that I used was a wee bit broken (crossramp couldn't be raised/lowered), but it was a great workout anyway. Afterwards, we staggered back home and watched Branden play video games for a while, then had dinner together. All in all, a very fun night.

This morning, I got up at 7:15 (should have been out the door by then, but better late than never) and headed over to the rec center again. Sadly, I had to use the broken elliptical machine again (but I had reported it to the manager the night before, so it should be getting fixed today or tomorrow), but again, a very good workout. Home again for an AWESOME shower (that's the best thing about working out--the subsequent shower feels SO good), breakfast, and off to work, and here I am!

I'm hoping to start my workouts earlier, about 6:30, in hopes of Sarah joining me, and Joe and Branden if they don't have to leave for work super-early. However, I'm happy to be doing them at all at this point.

Okay, so BBQ. We bought an awesome gas grill before Branden got sick, and we finally put it together on Monday. We decided to host a BBQ on Tuesday before D&D since B & I had the day off; so we grilled up some burgers, brats, and veggie burgers. Carlie brought corn on the cob and Rachel brought grapes and strawberries, and we had ourselves a bit of a feast. Overall, a roaring success!!! I am VERY happy with our grill. The grill bits are removeable porcelain-covered steel with a removeable grease trap, so it was relatively easy to clean in the sink with a scrubby. So much fun!

I believe it was that night that Squish caught a mouse-thing out on the patio. It didn't look like a pet store mouse, more like a mouse-sized gerbil; it had a short furry tail rather than a long pink tail. But I think that might be what wild mice look like. Anyway, he's getting to be quite the rodent-killer. However, with every rodent-kill he scores, he goes out and tries to pick fights with bigger cats.

I had decided that the way he interacts with strange cats was natural territory-marking and that if he could establish his territory with a given cat, he may then be able to be playmates with the cat. So, my new policy had been, only if there are two cats yowling at each other (meaning that the other cat yowls back) would I go out and break it up. The second cat yowling would mean that the second cat did not accept Squish's assertion of territory and was willing to fight about it; staying quiet means they don't want to contest it. Last night, while I was out working out, apparently Squish tried to pick a fight with an "enormous" black cat, and that cat was having none of his posturing. Branden broke it up, whew.

So... anyway. That's about it for now. I love you guys!

Pesto,Pesto,Pesto

Hi fambly--Anybody have any basil recipes? Out of freezer space and I'm told it doesn't dry well. We are loving it!! And hopefully our co-workers do too because we reek of garlic 24/7 and have green herbs stuck in our teeth. We're having problems being taken seriously....????

So, while I was admiring an absolutely picture-perfect spider web attached to our house, an enormous, hairy, orange striped arachnid sidled into view (frothing at the pincers). I got an old, stubby, long-handled broom---it was at gutter height--and smashed that beast like I was hitting it out of the park. Vaporized. An exact replica of the web now spans the underside of the deck around the pine tree. Fair enough...and far enough. This one I will simply observe.

Skating rink scheduled to open Oct. 1st. Hopefully my "private" sessions will remain under the radar so I can continue my training at supersonic speeds. The beauty of self-delusion....I ordered a new sharpening stone off the internet (!). I"m pretty sure it'll make me go even faster.

Soliciting blockbuster home delivery suggestions. Finished 5 seasons of "The Wire". "Mad Men" has a very long wait. Frost/Nixon and Body of Lies were good.

Thanks for resurrecting the blog and writing on it. We love and miss you guys. That's an understatement. xoxoxoxo Peace-Out

The Committee Is Adjourned

Marge died last week. Sometimes cruelly referred to as "hunchie", she was the last of the group of neighbors who regularly convened on the porch across the street, holding court on the state of the neighborhood. A meaner bunch would be hard to assemble. When we first moved in they took it upon themselves to actively oppose mom's day care license, the sound of children playing obviously being something to be avoided at all costs. The original group was comprised of Marge, her husband, her sister who lived next door, and the sister's husband, Nick. Occasionally Kay (our next door neighbor) would join them, injecting some much-needed positive energy to the group. Kay always liked us, and perhaps that was our ticket. Over the years we wore them out little by little, until they accepted us. Never overly friendly, but we did manage to come to reasonably comfortable terms. Then they began to fade away. First it was Harvey, Marge's husband, who left. Too mean even for The Committee, he moved to Aztec, never to be seen again. Apparently still alive, too mean to die. Then it was Helen, Marge's sister, who died. Her husband Nick started having trouble seeing (macular degeneration), and he stopped driving. When Kay died last year, The Committee had dwindled to Marge and Nick, and Nick began to drift. Nick was moved to private care when his alzheimers got to the point where he wasn't safe living by himself. And then it was just Marge. By this time she was about 18 inches tall and hooked up to oxygen full time, but she still got out there on the porch every day. The family set her up with one last over the top light display at Christmas, which for all of the joking over the years I will definitely miss. And now she's gone. And so the hood is in transition. A single guy named Mike lives in Kay's house now. Ever since he moved in there has been a 2 block long Winnebago parked in the driveway for sale. As un-green a vehicle as there is in the world, my guess is that it will be there for years to come. Their back lawn has not been mowed since he moved in (see, I could be on The Committee too), and two elementary school kids live there every other week. Not much communication, but no problems either. By this time next year there will be entirely new occupants of the houses across the street- maybe they'll feel us watching them. We will undoubtedly be less judgmental, but not entirely so. Not sure where I'm going with all this, but change is in the air. Fall is upon us, days shorter, colder at night. Mom and I are hoping for a couple more weeks of warm days to bring our last couple dozen tomatoes to ripeness. We've been eating our garden extensively, squash, zuccini, tomato and onion sautee being in the center of our plates every night. We're going to Utica for a week on October 10. The last time I was there was our New York trip as a family 11 years ago. Too long. I've always enjoyed Utica- fond memories of my girlfriend's family and home. I intend to relax, not think about anything legal, and hopefully see U. Rick and Aunt Sue for a day or two while out there. Hopefully the unbeatable Colorado Rockies will be roaring through the playoffs at the time and some bragging can be accomplished. I've been missing our brave and fearless children and their mates, my layers of pride too deep to describe. Life here is good- not flashy but good. I had a 3 week jury trial in August, the most different thing at work for quite a while. Unfortunately it was in Pagosa, so I was away more than usual, but other than that it was fun, interesting and professionally challenging. Now I'm back to tearing apart families and spending other people's money, the usual ebb and flow of human unhappiness. Boring it is not, however, for which I am grateful. Okay guys, I'm babbling- it's time to go. I love you all so much- stay in touch. dad

Wow... now I feel boring

Cody's life being so busy and comparatively exciting, all of a sudden the little bit of news I wanted to talk about is very mundane. Oh well, here goes nothin'.

Branden put in a solid week of 10-12 hour days last week with not nearly enough sleep- or fun-time. Unpredictably, he's sick today, miserably at home playing miserable video games with a pair of miserable cats (right?). Excitingly, The Big One has committed to ThinIdentity and they're shipping out something like 3,000 units for their Proof-of-Concept (initial trial, essentially). Once the PoC is complete they'll be needing something like 50,000 units... yay! ThinIdentity is anticipating this influx of cash and is moving into a bigger office with AIR CONDITIONING so that the programmers no longer have to melt. Happily, it is just as conveniently located as the current office--right off 16th St in Denver!

I got up at 7 yesterday and went to work out at the Rec Center--very good workout, it always makes me feel so good. I've made a New Month's Resolution to work out daily, so today I got up at 7 to go work out again, but apparently they don't open till 8 on weekends! Booo! So I went home and did a Wii Fit yoga workout instead. Not quite as good, but... getting there.

I've also made a New Month's Resolution to floss, brush, and Act every day, and that's been going well. It's not so bad if you just do it.

Anyway, that's all I got! Love you guys!

Another day in the life of a Fool . . .

Allright, let me walk you through my yesterday . . .

5:30am-The alarm goes off and the morning dance begins. I had stayed up late reading, and quickly calculate the four hours of sleep. Pull myself into my "Kutting-Weight" suit (sort of a neoprene surfing-style getup), pull on the sweat-stained shorts & shirt . . . find the keys & out the door.

Is it overcast today? . . . No, that's just haze from the fire . . .

How is it 6 am, and traffic on the Highway is averaging 80 mph? That'll wake you up in a hurry!

15 minute drive to Sherman Oaks, followed by an hour of sweating. Half-way through bootcamp, the sun has popped over the horizon and the cooking begins.

7:30-Drive home from Bootcamp. This trip can take between 20 and 40 minutes, but today, it takes almost an hour. Stop-and-go on HWY 134. Finally get to the intersection of the 5 and see the reason . . . a pretty nasty 2-car pile-up. In comparison, my morning is looking all right.

Get home, drink my 3rd and 4th bottles of water of the day (we keep them refilled and in the fridge), get the coffee going, and jump in the shower. Rinse the super-suit, rinse the man-suit, and back to the kitchen. Grab a big bowl of Granola, a redundantly hot cup of coffee, and hit the office.

Two new emails about auditions . . . nothing major-student films-put them in the audition book.

Check the on-line audition submissions, LAcasting.com, and Actorsaccess.com . . . no new postings . . . there are rarely auditions posted this time of the morning.

Catch-up on the news, check-in with facebook, print up some resume's, staple some headsots. Print up my Thank-you card for Monday's audition at Kathy Knowle's Casting.

Bundle up the couple of changes of clothes I'll need for the day.

9:20am-The drive to Groundlings. I like to ride my bike to class when I can, but on days like today, when there's multiple things to do, I'll drive. It's about eight miles away, and takes at least 30 minutes either driving or biking.

Class is great. It's a morning class, and that energy is pervasive, but we're doing fun things. During our 15 min. break, I consult my friend Iphone for new news. None.

1:30-Out of class and into the car. Back to Kathy Knowles casting. It's a sauna outside . . . the walk from class to my car (one block) just about kills me. I had just made the trip to Kathy Knowles on Monday, and it's a small relief to know just where I'm going, and where I'm going to park. It's about 15 miles away, which translates into 30-60 minutes, because I have to take the 10. Today, it takes 45, and the closer I get to Santa Monica and the coast, the cooler the air gets. Ahh. I'm happy with my choice to drive shirtless.

On the drive, I try to prep for the audition. All I know is that it's for AT&T. I've learned quickly how important it is to get to these calls with plenty of time, because I often don't get a chance to look at the sides until I'm there. The only prep I've done is to peruse AT&T's advertising to try and milk any little details that will help me out. I've got a couple that I feel good about.

2:15-Head into the office and sign-in. This includes logging in to "Casting Frontier" with my super-special barcode (no headshots needed!), and snapping a picture with their computer camera. Often times, there will be a "session runner" who takes care of all this, but I've been noticing that more and more offices are just leaving that up to the actor.

After signing in and grabbing a copy of the sides, I repair to the washroom to give myself a once-over. Damn I look good.

The sides look good too. Lots of copy (lines) for a commercial, and we get to read it a few different ways-different characters. That's not always the case, so it's fun when it happens. My name is called, and I head into the studio.

Commercial audition studios are generally the same. There's a Mark where you, the actor, stand, a small camera on a tripod connected to a monitor and a laptop. The lines are generally written out for you on a large piece of paper so that you don't have to hold you sides the whole time. When the Casting Director is ready, you give your Slate (your name, and sometimes your agency), sometimes your profiles (like a mug shot), and then you often times get a chance to run it once or twice with the CD while the camera is paused.

I audition. I'm awesome.

When I'm done, I take a moment to thank the CD, and to drop off a Thank-You card for my audition on Monday. The more I stick my mug in front of these folks, the more I'll get to know them. And Them me.

3:00 Back in the car. Back to Hollywood. I decide to take the diagonal route of Santa Monica Street to get back to where I need to be. I think that it'll be less annoying than the 10 at this time of day. I'm totally wriong. It's a nightmare. I've got about 90 minutes before my next audition. It takes me about 70 minutes to get there: 15 miles. On the way, I pass Beverly Hills.

4:30-First time at this casting office, and it took me a little while to figure out where to park. I ended up scoring a metered spot directly across the street. Awesome. I even remembered to fill the meter! 25 cents for 15 Minutes. I give it half an hour.

I enter the building and head downstairs. It's a madhouse. Turns out this is a father-and-son spot, so there are kids everywhere. Perhaps more terrifying that the kids . . . the mothers. Now, I'm not sure, but I'm pretty sure that for every 5-7 year old boy there to audition, there were 2-3 younger siblings. I sign in. I prep my barcode. No Headshots needed.

They're running late. I go upstairs to put more money in the meter. I call my next appointment to let them know I'm running late. I descend into the pit once more.

When it's my turn, there's some confusion as to who my son is. I meet this 5-year old charmer just moments before I'm tossing him around like some sort of teddy bear. I don't generally make it a habit of meeting kids and then manhandling them, but after this experience, I just might.

Saw a few dudes from the last audition. They had just had the same awesome driving experience that I had. I had a vision of the four of us sitting in shoddy clothes in a shoddy OTB bar with a race ticket in one hand-eyes glued to the horse race on the old TV, "Come On! If I keep putting money down, I'm bound to win One of these Days!!"

I walk out of this audition thinking I could have done it differently . . . and better. Oh well.

5:20-Back in the car. The next call, for a graduate Thesis Film is only a mile away. I could have walked, but I was running late already, and didn't know how long it would be, and I had to change anyway. . . so I drove. Took me twenty minutes. Ug.

I had downloaded the sides for this audition a few days before, and had been "working them". The character was a redneck "peckerwood". On this one, I actually had a chance to read the script, and understand how my character fit in to the story . . . a rare luxury at this stage of the game! Above and beyond that, I liked the script, and I'd been to this casting office a few times now, and I felt comfortable with my audition clothes. It was a good feeling.

And so I read for the camera. I had to adjust a few of the moment's that I had prepared, because the pace of the Reader (off-camera, delivering the other lines in the scenes) was different from what I had prepared, but I felt pretty good about what I did. There were a few other guys there reading for the same part, and everybody looked . . . well, like "peckerwoods". I feel good about what I left on tape in that room.

6pm-back in the car. Back home. Traffic in Hollywood is not as bad as it could be. Takes me about 25 minutes to get home. Since the granola, I forgot to eat all day. Damn.

6:30-plate full of sandwiches, and I'm back in the office. Over the past 12 hours, the on-line submission boards have filled up. I'm going through one-by-one choosing which to audition for. I submit to anywhere between 5-20 projects per day . . . and get called by a fair percentage of them.

I print up my Thank-You cards for my commercial auditions today. I map out my day tomorrow-nothing scheduled . . . a blessing or a curse? We make a delicious dinner, and tune into the news. . .

Yeah, it's long, and being in the car for a significant part of the day is a drag, but I love days like this. The mixture of the art and the business. . . after a couple of years of days like this, who knows . . . I might book a job!

Love You All.

A Thousand Degrees in the Shade!!

Los Angeles is Burning.

If you've tuned into national news recently, you've no doubt heard of the "Station Fire" burning just outside of LA. It's amazing . . . This mushroom cloud has been looming over the city for about a week, and it sounds like it's going to keep burning for a couple more weeks! We're not in any danger, other than breathing, which apparently is dangerous. The further east you travel, the more you can taste the smoke, and this morning, my car was sprinkled with white ash. I'd like to reiterate that we're not in any danger, it's the size of the fire, not the proximity that's so amazing.

Complicating the fire is the extreme heat we've been dealing with. It's been in the hundreds for a few days now, which is difficult to deal with. We've got several fans going pretty much 24/7 at strategic spots throughout our apartment. Pretty much, from midnight to about noon, it's cool in here, but as the afternoon and evening progress, our place becomes a sauna. Though it's not pleasant, we've determined to put up with it for now (should break soon), and take more drastic precautionary measures-swamp cooler/whatever!-next summer!

Enough whining!

We had a nice weekend with the Lane Ladies in town. We spent a day at the beach, a sunset at the Griffith Park Observatory (not the Mt. Wilson Observatory, currently in jeopardy of burning down), and a lot of time shopping. I was able to escape a couple of times for auditions-couple of student film/independent shorts-which was a nice break from the . . . shopping. Ug. What with the heat and all, we generally had a siesta-a-day program . . . sleeping through the hottest part of the afternoon.

This is my final week of bootcamp, and I'm planning on using it to roll into a self-motivational workout plan starting next week. I've also started my second week of my second session at the Groundlings, which has been great so far. This week's assignment was to find a magazine that I wouldn't normally buy and base a character off of it. I found a sweet Karate Magazine with Bruce Lee on the cover. Tomorrow it's bootcamp morning, Groundlings class, Alka-Seltzer commercial audition, indy film audition, and who knows what the evening will bring!

Here's a couple of "home projects" we've done recently . . . the chairs we found on the street. We've thoroughly cleaned them, and T is covering them in a spiffy black material. The floating shelves I made out of a hollow-core door (just the top and bottom shelf-the middle one is from Ikea). You can't really tell from the picture, but they're cut on an angle, so they taper towards the wall. They still need to be stained or painted, but they seem to be working! Now, will they be earthquake-proof?

Hope everyone is doing well! Love to all!

Life and more life! Not as awesome as Cody, but...

Some possible exciting MS news: Scientists reversed MS in mice. Here and here. Sounds like research is still years away from even trying this on humans, and it says it's only effective while MS is in its earliest stages, but you never know what the future may bring...

Also, more MS/health news.
I've had 7 infusions so far, 5 more to go (the next is on September 8) before going off Tysabri in order to ensure that PML does not infest my brainmeats and turn me into a superhero with x-ray vision. I spoke with Dr. Vollmer about this exciting (?) new transition this past Monday the 24th of August. For the last 3 months of the treatment, I'm going to be overlapping Tysabri and Copaxone in order to avoid a "rebound" effect from going off of Tysabri. In addition, the good Doctor said that there is no problem with going off Tysabri and then going back on it at some point later in life; meaning, the body doesn't build up a resistance to it. Also, the negative effect that I felt from Copaxone is apparently part of how the drug works, and is one of the reasons some people go off of it; the injection sites were so itchy, for me, that I would unconsciously itch deep bruises into my legs and arms. It is an allergic reaction that is part of its effectiveness. I don't know; maybe I can take benedryl concurrently with my injection to lower the effects, or maybe I'm doomed! Doomed to a life of unending itchyness!

By the way, don't try to read patient reviews of MS medication. It makes me want to move into a cave and just let the disease take me because so many people have had such bad reactions... Anyway.

So, everything's going great in our new apartment. It's close enough to being "complete" that we've gotten pretty behind on putting in the finishing touches--hanging pictures, putting the last few things away, etc. Every week we make plans to finish it up but every week something comes up. It doesn't help that the only day off we have together is Sunday. But Eventually, We Will Prevail.

Noah, I'm starting to use the shampoo that you and Cici got me for my birthday tomorrow (I wanted to finish the stuff I was using before switching) and I'll keep you updated on how awesome it is. Though the bottles are so small I may actually end up saving them for travel shampoos. =)

In other news, everything's going well with Branden's job. It's demanded some late nights from him recently, but it's the good kind of working late. He's going to be getting a promotion/raise after they complete the project they're on, so that's exciting.

Branden's brothers are safely in Longmont. Their new apartment is very cute, sort of like a mini-Horizons. The apartment is very small but nicely designed, with in-unit washer dryer and on-site workout facilities, very exciting. I'm so happy those guys are on their feet again and doing well.

Branden and I went up to Placerville, CA a few weekends ago to visit his grandparents. His grandpa is in bad shape; they're pretty sure he has Parkinson's though he doesn't have the classic Parkinson's symptoms. He's not able to walk anymore (really, not able to move at all without assistance), so he stays in his hospital bed all day, except when the nurses come to bathe him. He's pretty demented as well. Branden's grandma spends all day in the house, trying to feed him and make sure he's comfortable. Her life is very focused now, and she doesn't have anything to say that doesn't have to do with Grandpa and his illness, so being there was very hard for me. I only went into Grandpa's room once, but I couldn't stand to see the state he was in, so I left after just a few seconds. It was really sad, more than anything else, so it was probably a good thing that Grandma shooed us out of the house more of the time than we were in it, to go to Lake Tahoe and Sacramento. Those parts were fun.

Work's going fine, nothing really to report there. Squish and Tayler are now allowed out of the house on their own; Squish likes going out at all times of day but Tayler only wants to go out after dark. Last Saturday, Squish killed a bunny on our balcony--a baby bunny, about the size of a hamburger. I heard a weird thump and went to open the door, and there was Squish and the bunny, who was on its side kicking itself around in a circle. We think Squish must have broken its back because we didn't see any blood. It died pretty fast and we cleaned it up; it was with a heavy heart that I named Squish "mighty hunter" and gave him an admonishment to only kill things he wanted to eat. I don't think he got it.

Pretty much every night since then I've had to go out and collect Squish at about 10pm because I hear him yodeling, which is the sound he makes when he's establishing his territory to another cat or similarly large animal that he hesitates to attack outright. Every time I've gone out to get him, he seems pretty thankful that I was able to remove him from the situation without hurting his pride. Silly cat. If he doesn't want to fight, he should be less territorial.

My workout routine has been sporadic at best because I seem to have misplaced my iPod. I don't like working out without it =(

Anyway, that's about all I have to say for now. I love you guys! Hope everything's awesome forever!

Taking this Caveman thing a bit too far . . .

Well, this past Monday was a doosie . . . not as busy as it was supposed to be, but crazy none the less! After getting just a few hours of sleep, I woke up at 2am for a 2:45 make-up call for this "viral video shoot". Two and a half hours in the make-up room, a pot of coffee, and an hour drive later, I found myself in the desert-the crew was hustling to get set up for a sunrise shoot.

The spot was about a caveman who was frustrated by technology (it's for a French Product called "The Hubster"), so he hauls his TV, clock radio, picture frames, and Internet router out into no man's land, and smashes them all with a bone. What a blast. I found myself mostly naked in primitive glory monkeying around and crushing things with the thigh bone of (I'm assuming) a cow. I've always had a sort of daydream/fantasy about being able to smash up a store with a baseball bat . . . there is something so satisfying about wrecking havoc . . . and it was nice to be able to sort of play out that fantasy in the desert.

The shoot went much longer than I anticipated, so I ended up missing another audition (for a student film, no big whoop), and also my first day of the new session at Groundlings. I hate missing class, but this was the first one I've missed out of three sessions. Later in the afternoon, I auditioned for Duraflame, and had a really good audition. This commercial spot felt a lot like the Comcast spot I did last year . . . just a slightly older version. We'll see.

After that, it was up to NYFA (New York Film Academy) for another student film audition, then off to an evening bootcamp.

Yesterday, we spent time getting the house ready for weekend guests . . . still so much to be done! Nothing too pressing, just using this weekend visit from the Lane Ladies as an excuse to finish projects that we seem to talk about, but never quite get around to doing. I got a call from my agent for a same-day audition for Sprint, and hustled out in the early afternoon . . . sounded like fun . . . supposed to dress "like flight of the Conchords" and bring my guitar. It wasn't until I got to the casting office that I realized that I was expected to play and sing . . . "Take Me On" by the Ah-ha's. This was not a good experience. Painful for all involved. Oh well.

Last night, we drove down to Anaheim for a screening of a film I was on in Minneapolis. "Mysterious Ways" was accepted into the "Indiefest" movie festival. Though turnout was very small, and the quality in the theatre was not great, it was fun nonetheless. This marks the third time I've seen my work on a big screen, and though I was nauseous, I haven't left the theatre in tears yet. More, more, more!

Boot camp is over this morning, and it's off to the Groundlings. Will there be laughs today? I guarantee it!

Love

And, oh yeah.....

We also saw "Julie & Julia"on Sunday.
We enjoyed it alot. Very easy to watch...
kind of a break from the usual angst.
Probably be a just fine rental also.
I would love to be able to find the old
J.C. cooking classes that were on TV.
Might have to explore that a bit.

Then on to "Inglorious Basterds". PHEW.
Tarantino all the way and really good, we
thought.

Talk atchyez later Carpe Diem!!!

Blogalicious

Only an Eighteen Month Hiatus!

The Hollywood Sign has a terrifying pre-recorded announcement keeping you away if you get too close!

Elly, Cody, and Noah at the San Diego Zoo!

Hello Family et. al.

Well, I've been wanting to Blog for a while, and I keep putting it off for no good reason . . . so I'm going to try and get better about it. It's been just over 5 months since moving into our apartment, and things are going well. First, some things I've seen from our front window:

A crazy person taking a dump on the sidewalk (day 1)
A fire raging on the hill across the street (amazing and terrifying to see palm trees burning!)
A bomb squad investigation (laterally in front of our apartment-a jerry-rigged car bomb-we were evacuated, but no boom!)
Michael Jackson's funeral procession (actually had to walk to the end of the block for that one)
The Miracle of Life (a birds nest out of our bedroom window)

Bomb Threats aside, this has been a great apartment so far. We're close to a busy street, but the car noise has become less bothersome (read: more tolerated), and the occasional band practice downstairs can be a nuisance, but the space is wonderful. Elly and Branden (and friends) were our first guests, which was wonderful, and next weekend, the Lane Ladies are spending a night or two.

I've been auditioning like mad, and have booked a few small things . . . more details to come. I've also been consuming biographies, both auto and non . . . most recently finishing Montgomery Clift, and moving on to Eliza Kazan. The weather here is constantly awesome, and I've put a lot of miles on the bike. This coming Monday, I start my third session with the Groundlings, and have very much enjoyed classes there. Monday's a busy one . . . Filming a viral video (where I get to dress up as a caveman-complete with facial prosthetics) starting at 3 in the morning, then an audition for a short film, then Groundlings class, then a commercial audition, then bootcamp in the pm. That's the way life seems to go . . . Nothing for days, then EVERYTHING on one day.

Well, we're off to a BBQ in Santa Monica this evening, so I'm signing out. I'm going to make an effort to give more regular and in-depth updates here though.

Love to all, and can't wait to see you again!