A Spirited All Hallows Eve To You

The Feast of All Saints is tomorrow. Spooky mysticism is one of my favorite things to come of my Catholic upbringing, and I love this time of year. The Nightmare Before Christmas is playing at the El Capitan in 3-D, and I'm gonna try to see that soon. Hooray Danny Elfman/Tim Burton :)

Monday, Monday

Everybody's using lyrics for their blog entry posts, so I thought I'd temporarily hop on the bandwagon.

I've tweaked my sidebar a little, most notably better categorizing stuff and adding to Music. I want to add more to Music, and add a Films section. It's not so much a practical thing, as much as enjoying expressing who my favorites are and letting you know me that way. The arts, and especially these arts, are crucial to my life experience.

The Seahawks lost yesterday, ugh. Bad calls were involved, and this is a wee bit embittering, especially if you're familiar with last year's Superbowl. We won that fucking game. Even Roethlisberger copped to miscalls when he was on David Letterman. But the Hawks are good men, and they take it in stride and hang in there. They are currently missing key players that would be helping not only with the quality of their game, but morale and confidence. Phoo.

What else? Joy and Jason and I will be going out for Pho for dinner tonight. They have the best coffee on the planet, and I'm looking forward to it. If we cut into after 8p, I'll just ask Jason to TiVo Prison Break for me. Maybe I can watch that at his house Friday, and finally see the Gary Sinise thing I had him TiVo.

I have been a lazy bum at work today, completing the text of only one report. Bleah. But to end on a positive, I'm in a pretty good mood and Joy complimented how I look :) I have on some frighteningly too-roomy yoga pants on, and they are very flattering. I'm gonna have to tweak them so they stay up better. Also, I have new face scrub I just test-drove this morning, as well as nice clean hair and a fairly cute top.

Numb (Contents of) Skull

I''ve been having a hard time, and I tend to withdraw when that happens - even from myself. I have a private blog that only I see (also a 'Codex', the fourth notebook), and I can guage the state of things by looking at how long it's been since I've made an entry into that. Sometimes I just have a little dry spell or feel lazy for awhile, and that's one thing. But if it's been over a couple weeks, something's wrong. If it were something new wrong, I'd probably let whatever it is happen and settle, then write about it. But if it's the same old damn thing, I'll just turn away from myself, fed up and disgusted. I go kind of numb, and that's where I am lately. Tired, in the big tired-of-life kind of way.

I need some good news. Anything will do, actually. Got any good news? Gno gnus is gnot gnecessarily good gnus.

The latest on my other job: Gilmore Girls on Tuesday, recalled for tomorrow. This is not usually the pleasantest or tightest set, but they did a pretty good job the other day. I love going to Warner Bros. because it is so easy to get to and from.

*Sigh*

I'll post something better tomorrow, I'm just waving hello right now.

The Redskins lost their game Sunday, as did the Seahawks. Bleah. However, I believe that my hunch was right (see entry just below this one). The 'Skins were feisty and played well for stretches of that difficult game, especially the 1st and 2nd quarters. Antwaan El made a spectacular 87-yard touchdown, for a beautiful close to the first half. It was the coolest thing to happen to that team so far this year.

JPB remains ahead by a few bucks, no one buys anybody scratch tickets when everybody loses.

For Some Reason...

I think the Redskins are gonna fight like the world is accustomed to seeing them fight, this weekend. I just have a feeling they'll be coming back to themselves. I think it's something about them playing the Colts ... something'll click.

I get a bit psychic about all the Seattle teams - not for every game, but now and then - when I'm keeping track of them. I'm dead on (or pretty close) surprisingly often. Well, apparently it works not only with Seattle, but any team I'm paying attention to. My hunch was right for the Redskins/Jaguars (W 36-30), and for the Seahawks' loss to the Bears (I dreaded this game, L 27-6); we'll see if I end up three for three. Check back here late Sunday or early next week.

Work Was a Day at the Beach

Yesterday I had the pleasure of hanging out in the general vicinity of Jeff Goldblum, who is just a marvellous person:



Jeez, what a perfectly lovely guy. I've seen a few interviews with him and know that he can be quite eccentric, so I was kind of expecting a picky, sensitive actor. No way, he was very easy, warm and kind. We were at Venice Beach filming a few scenes for mid-season replacement "Raines". Read the comments there, very intriguing. It sounds like yet another winner for the small screen, which is loaded with them these days.

Adorable Paradox

I bought a long-coveted pair of Dr. Marten's Two-Strap Mary Janes, yesterday:

Cute! And sooooooo comfy, a pitch-perfect fit. Docs devotees have always said, "once you get 'em, don't be freaked when they hurt; you'll have to spend awhile breaking them in ", so I braced myself yesterday for an afternoon of pain, blisters and not straying too far from home. This would be the excruciating Part One of what I figured would be maybe a month-long process. But...

These shoes do not hurt me, at all.

That is the least I could say: they were actually a relief from my Adidas, which are a little old now and have never been exactly right for me. I walked outta the store with them on, like an excited little kid, thinking 'hey these feel so good and do such good things for my stride, I have to wonder whether my Docs Devotee friends have been buying the wrong size for themselves.'

Or maybe the Doc is making them differently now than he did back in the day? Anyway, speaking of then, I've really wanted these particular shoes for a very long time, years actually. When I'd see them, in black, in my size, of course I'd be broke; when I had the money, I wouldn't see them or think of them. Or, they'd be all over creation but in the wrong size, wrong color (gotta have black first) or they'd have that freakish punk-geek style sole that I just can't stand.

Yesterday, I still couldn't really afford them, but here's the thing: I did have the money, there they were in black, size seven, classic sole and on sale for $69.99 (they are a $100.00 pair of shoes, $89.00 online). But here's what made the decision: they were the LAST pair of the Two-Straps in the store. Of any size, color, etc. They were the display pair. I thought, The Cosmos Hath Spoken. Today's the day.

In other news, the Seahawks won an exciting, great game against the Rams yesterday. On the other hand, the Redskins LOST to the fucking Titans. Jeeeeez. Poor Jeff. I think the pain-relief lottery ticket is pretty freezing comfort, but it did win $5 and he is still ahead of me by a few bucks.

Winning a Day of Work

I think I'm gonna get a call-in service. I heart Central Casting, but boy is it time-consuming to get through to them. Joy pointed out that it sounds like I'm trying to win a contest at a radio station - that is exactly what it's like. I'm trying as we speak to get booked on The Loop for Monday. Wish me luck.

Jeff/Cath update:

Cath:

Good news for the Redskins - This is who you guys play Sunday:


Jeff:

big money.

Cath:

You sound thrilled :P

Jeff:

nervous, must win that game. must.

Cath:

I know man. I really do. I'll cross my fingers for ya. Just this once, if [the Redskins] lose, I'll buy a couple tickets, because that would just be TOO BAD. Enough of that though, back to optimism: the Skins will torch those "Titans" geeks.


Jeffrey B.
To: me
October 13, 2006 1 hour ago

Seahawks got a tough one against the Rams. I'm gonna watch that, should be good..

Monk Business

Do I just look like a cashier?:



Yesterday I had fun on the set of Monk, with Tony Shaloub.



For whatever reason, they asked me to be a cashier in the shop where Monk and his friend, played by Andy Richter, are buying San Jose Sharks souvenir hard hats. It feels nice to be picked out, especially when you were just sitting around talking to this sweet kid from Dallas and not expecting anything. Anyway, setting up for the first take, Tony Shaloub came into the team store and smiled at me, gave me a warm look. I nodded and smiled. I just love that, love finding out the actors you have fun watching on TV are really nice to meet, pleasant. I watched him talk on his phone a lot, smiling and pacing around. He seemed pretty kicked back, warm. At the end of the day when Andy was wrapped, Tony applauded him and hugged him. None of his communication with anyone (including me) struck me as anything other than easy and genuine. He is not a big-voiced, announce-y actor. He's not 'on', I don't think even between "Roll sound" and "Cut". He's just being himself, then being Monk, and having a nice quiet sort of time about it. Very pleasant, classy, kind. He's a good guy and that was a pleasant set to work on.

Jeff/Cath Update - He's Ahead

His team is looking a lot better:

Jeffrey B.
To: me
October 5 (1 day ago)

NOW you finally have to buy [me] a scratcher! I thought the day would never come. Scratch it, my fingers are crossed!! Who does Seattle play this weekend?

Catherine T.
To: Jeffrey
October 6 (22 min ago)

I had the girl at the store pick one out for me, got a "Jumbo Bucks" which won $15! You get $9 to add to your $1.20 (Jeff$10.20) , I get $6. to add to my $1.80 (Cath$7.80); you are ahead by $2.40.

They play again on Sunday the 15th @ St. Louis. I think you guys play on the 8th.


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Watch This (click on the pic)! Looks great, I cannot wait:

Coco and David Arquette

I don't get to see kids to often, so it was cool yesterday to watch Coco Arquette hanging out with her dad on the set of "In Case of Emergency".



Mom and Dad, David and Courteney Arquette:



Both are cool people. Courteney was friendly with background (including myself) on the set of "Dirt" a few months ago. Yesterday, David was not only fun to watch do his job, but friendly and 'normal'. He did not exclude himself from the people around him during down time, as well-known actors often (understandably) feel more comfortable doing. He brought his kid in for a snack where I was hanging out.

When you first meet or see a well-known actor in 3-D, like I often did in the store and usually do on whatever set, here's what happens:

1) You have to re-recognize them. It is completely different for your brain to 'see' a whole human moving in front of you in real space-time, rather than just an image or image set seen in 2-D. It needs a moment to cast a whole new file for this person, which can now have a live, whole-being heading on it just like everyone else you've ever met and remember. It has happened (as in the cases of Sean Astin and Ruth Buzzy, the latter of whom I've been familiar with literally my whole life) that I fail to recognize them for a few minutes. I'll know I know them, like on the tip of my brain, but draw a strange-feeling blank in trying to make the ID.

2) In stepping into your realm of actuality, they do this thing that feels to me like becoming unremarkable, maybe de-lustering. They don't, they are still remarkable, but you now learn the magic of the person the same way you do everyone else's: aspect by aspect, from the inside out. And it will be markedly different than the 'aura' you've learned (you now automatically un-learn that) from the remote ways in which you had previously become familiar with them. It will feel like others' magic or aura feels; David Arquette is now special in much the same way as my brother Noah is special. It feels more real, more whole, a little more crumpled and charming, substantial, chewy. A lovely result of this is that the well-known person now seems innocent of something, like he's put a cumbersome thing down and has had a seat in the kitchen, sipping a drink.

3) You stop taking for granted the singular, utterly unique experience of a human being's eyeballs looking at your own eyeballs. Even a lucid imagination of this from a favorite well-known person, or a photograph of them looking into the lens, does not come close to this actual, living act. Maybe look at a friend's eyes during conversation and give it a shot during that, also take a moment to appreciate your connection with the friend.

Hawks got MAULED :(

From: Jeffrey B. Oct 02, 2006 (22 hours ago)

NOW you finally have to buy a scratcher! Thought the day would never come!

_________________________________________________________


From: Catherine T. Oct 03, 2006 ( One hour ago)


We got killed. You guys, on the other hand, rocked the house. I think I may have been right about them waking up and rallying.

CONGRATS !!

I could scratch the ticket, or stick it in the mail...? Would be nicer hand it to you and see you for coffee or something, and I wonder if there's anything wrong with like Starbucks on a Saturday.


-----------------------------


I'm waiting to hear back, hoping to get to spend some time with my friend. I almost never get to see him anymore. When I do, it's too brief and rushed because we're at the building so he's on his way somewhere or has to get back upstairs. I'm glad we have this game because it's something to do with him even though I don't get to see him.

Go Snap

As well as being lyrics in one of my favorite songs at the moment, the title of this post is also a good description of what my brain does when I'm sitting down at the keyboard, suddenly faced with decisions about what to say to you people. I realize how much stuff there is running through my mind (go) and I wonder where to begin. Faced with limited time, I often break off (snap) and come back later. Which at the moment, is now.

Here is some of the stuff:

*Various experiences on set, always interesting and fun

*A very cool "time machine", being transported to the gorgeous expanse of sea and sky at Whidbey Island, circa 1980, by the scent of freshly overturned earth on Sunset Blvd.

*My favorite music currently, including the new Ludacris 'Girls Gone Wild' - awesome

*What I'm doing tomorrow

*John and his blog. he's so damn good at being an adult, and a good writer, and whatever techie thing it is he does for a living. Also, he has a brand new Scion, my within-reason dream car. Read his enticing description of the God of Fire Robusto cigar that he thoroughly savored in honor of his birthday.

There's more... Hawks are playing the Bears as we speak, as are Jeff's Skins v. Jaguars. Never heard of 'em.

Okay, I'm working all day tomorrow then vigilantly keeping track of Prison Break, so I'll probably talk to you Tuesday or Wednesday.