A Round of Words in 80 Days, Parte Dos

One of the glories of A Round of Words in 80 Days is that it allows you to set your own goals. As I prefer to be my own boss, I think that this is pretty much awesome. When I posted yesterday, I did not have a word count yet but I think I've settled on...

650-1000 words a day.

It seems reasonable. It allows some flexibility and holds me accountable, which I need. So, there you have it. Now fly, dear readers, and have a wonderful holiday season. I'll catch you on the proverbial flipside. Here's to a happy, healthy, prosperous and productive 2011.

A Round of Words in 80 Days.

My good friend, and awesome author, Madison Leigh turned me on to a new type of writing challenge: A Round of Words in 80 Days. I've tried NaNo and that didn't work as I had planned. I fell behind, became hopelessly overwhelmed and kind of shut down. Not exactly stimulating to the creative process. A Round of Words in 80 Days proposes the perfect solution to this: you set your own word count and work on your WIP for 80 days, at your own pace with your own goals. Hey, I know you've got a life to deal with. I've got one, too. But the stories are inside, just waiting to come out. Don't they deserve a life, too?

The new round starts January 3rd. If you want to sign up, simply click the link at the top...or click right here: http://aroundofwordsin80days.wordpress.com

PS No, I haven't set my word count yet. I will ASAP!

Hash Tags and a Hilarious Line from Family Guy

Does anyone watch Family Guy? I know the humor isn't for everyone, but I really enjoy it. One of their running gags is that Brian, the snarky talking dog, is a failed writer. On

a recent episode he talks about giving up his dream after his first book is a terrible failure. Stewie, the psychopathic talking baby, responds with a classic line:

"You can't give up writing. It's the only thing giving your alcoholism any credibility."

Oh, Family Guy. Hilarious. Off color, sure, but my guess is that Ernest Hemmingway and Truman Capote would have laughed, too.

I don't Tweet. It's one of those things that I feel a little old for. A friend of mine swears that most Twitter members (Tweeters?) are folks in their twenties, but I don't know. I still feel like "You damn kids and your music. Get off my lawn."

However, I do love the "hash tag" thing that's happening on Twitter. I feel like it opens up tons of comedic possibilities. I want to start using it in daily life, like on Facebook or texting or instant messages or random emails. Really, think of the potential...

FACEBOOK STATUS:

Elisabeth Fitzgerald is avoiding work but spending quality time with TiVo. #ProcrastinationMeansYourCreditCardDebtWillNeverBePaid #RealLifeShouldBeLikeLawandOrder

TEXT MESSAGE:

323.555.0185: Dude, wat happnd 2 u lst nite? U left the club early. :(

310.555.6793: Met an awesome girl, went to her place. It wuz da bomb! #BadDecisions #CoyoteUgly #DoesThisLookLikeAWartToYou

INSTANT MESSAGE:

Friend 1: Hi!

Friend 2: I am away from my computer right now. #Lying #PretendingToHaveALife

EMAIL:

Dear Boss,

I will be late today. I have an emergency doctor's appointment but I hope it will go quickly.

Thanks,

Employee #PossibleJobInterview #TooMuchPartying

Yeah, I think we need to start hash tagging more. It can only lead to good things.

For example, I could tag this post #GoWorkOnYourBook #FamilyGuyReadsSouls. Or just #ThanksForSpendingTimeHere

T Minus an Hour and a Half

...until it's November 1st. And you know what that means?

NANO WRIMO!

(National Novel Writing Month)

Good luck to all those participating. I'll catch you on the flip side.

The Road to Hell is Paved with Good Intentions...

Well, I still have some more movies to post but I am not sure that I am going to make my 31 Horror Movies in 31 Days goal. I had to return to Chicago to deal with a family emergency, and my viewing schedule got all messed up. Damn it all! I tried to watch some scary movies at home, but I was forced to sleep on my parents' couch (with the dog on my chest) and sometimes my father likes to stay up late watching "Gettysburg" which is fine, except that he knows every line and it's not really a scary movie. Oh, and it has a lot of horses. Why are horses bad, you ask? Well, remember the aforementioned dog? You know, the one that was sleeping on my chest? Well, said dog either really likes or really hates horses. We're not sure. Regardless, when he sees one on the TV he jumps up, goes flying at the TV and barks loudly at the horses. When they're not on screen, he has to check behind to the television to see where they've gone to. Eventually he calms down and goes back to where he was (sleeping on me). Unfortunately for me, there are a ton of horses in "Gettysburg," so my night consisted of the dog jumping on and off of my chest. Who knew that such a cutie pie could cause so much trouble?

Never fear, though, I am still diligently watching horror flicks and will update with all my viewings and my thoughts after Halloween. I know, you can't wait, right? Patience is a virtue, dear friend.

However, apropos of nothing, I will share with you this awesome vintage dress that I found at the dollar sale over the weekend. It was a dollar! It's awesome! I can't wait to wear it! A friend is having a party at a swanky Hollywood club next month...what do you think? Too much? Not enough? Hey, Elisabeth, it's not 1970?

You can just ignore Ol' Mr. Bones on the doorknob. He's just hanging out until All Hallow's Eve.

A Letter.

Dear Pinched Nerve in My Neck,

Please stop being pinched. It's hurting me. It's also rendering me unable to do certain things. Like write. Or hold my head up without pain. Or eat soup. Do you know how hard it is to eat soup when you can't tilt your neck down? Really difficult. And I really like soup.

So, please unpinch yourself if you can. It would be much appreciated.

Love You Lots,
Elisabeth

31 Days of Halloween

October is my absolute favorite month of the year. Besides being my the month in which my Beloved was born and my parents were married it is also the month in which we celebrate HALLOWEEN! Yes, friends, this is the month of all things scary. Ghosts, goblins, things that go bump in the night...I love 'em all. Every October I make it my perogative to watch a scary movie daily. It makes me happy and I like to share my happiness with a world. So, I've decided to post about my scary movie watching experiences. Enjoy!

ALIEN

This was a double whammy. It's also on Empire's 500 Movies to See Before You Die, which I am trying to work my way through. ALIEN is an amazing movie and one that should be seen by everyone. It's scary, holds up really well and features Sigourney Weaver kicking ass. Check it out!


MUM and DAD

This movie isn't for everyone. It's pretty violent. It's a British movie about a girl who is kidnapped by a family that has an...odd lifestyle. The acting is pretty good, and I found myself actually caring about the characters, which is rare in a horror film.


CHRISTINE

Aah, a classic. A movie based on a Stephen King book that is actually good. Another rarity in the horror world. This movie taught me to fear classic cars. And also to kind of be in awe of them. What does that say about me?


THE NEW DAUGHTER

Um....Kevin Costner. In a direct to DVD horror movie. That I got for free from Redbox. 'Nuff said.

AMITYVILLE 2: THE POSSESSION

This is a complete rip-off of THE EXORCIST and, for some incomprehensible

reason, I can't get enough of it. It seems like it takes

place before the first AMITYVILLE movie, but no real time line is ever given.

The title pretty much explains the movie. It's a POSSESSION!

LET ME IN

This is currently playing in theatres, possibly in one near you. It's the American remake of the

fantastically awesome Swedish film LET THE RIGHT ONE IN. And, really, it's pretty much the same movie as the original. I enjoyed it greatly, but it furthered my theory that people need to learn to read subtitles. Check out the original from Netflix or take a date to the theatre to catch the American version of this excellent vampire flick. You won't be dissapointed.

COMMUNE

This is a truly independent movie. Low budget, smaller actors...but, still, an interesting story and very good direction. The bonus is that this film was written, directed and produced by a woman and I always support my fellow Ladies of Cinema. There aren't enough films by women, so COMMUNE was a breath of fresh air in that respect.

SLEEPAWAY CAMP 3: TEENAGE WASTELAND

Another awesome 80s horror movie. I have all three of these movies, but I chose to watch them backwards. Are they better that way? Meh, probably not. The best part about these slasher flicks is that they know exactly what they are -- B Level Gory Horror -- and they embrace it. Combine relatives of famous people (Pamela Springsteen, Tracy Griffith), sassy one liners, absurd deaths, paper thin characters...80s horror at its best.

TRAIN

Despite the presence of AMERICAN BEAUTY's Thora Birch, this horror movie set in Eastern Europe is essentially a low rent version of HOSTEL. And as I didn't really care much for HOSTEL in the first place, I was less than thrilled by its imitator.

SLEEPAWAY CAMP 2: UNHAPPY CAMPERS

My personal favorite out of the triology. Here we get to see an adult Angela Baker and what has become of her. Poor Angela. She still can't catch a break at camp, but that's okay. She'll show those bad kids whose boss! Pamela Springsteen (sister of Bruce) is the psycho camper and Renee Estevez (sister of Emilio and Charlie Sheen) is the virginal girl that may or may not ma

ke it. This film is completely worth watching for the death of one character...a nasty "Mean Girl." Watch it and you'll see what I mean.

SARAH'S CHILD

This movie about a woman who wants a child so badly that she spontaneously made one appear was more like a Lifetime movie than a genuine horror flick. Yeah, the child may or may not have been evil but it was hard to look past the lousy production values and over acting long enough to care.

PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 2

Full confession: I LOVED Paranormal Activity. Like, LOVED it. If someone comes to my house and they haven't seen it, I insist that they watch it. I think that it's an excellent horror movie. It's scary, effective and the relationship between the main characters is real and compelling.

Paranormal 2 is more of the same scares, but they're still effective. And I loved the way they kept the original main characters in the story. If you've seen, and enjoyed, Paranormal 2 then be sure to check out Paranormal 2.

976-EVIL

Fun fact: this was directed by Robert "Freddy Krueger" England. It's a fun film, about a dangerous 976 number that gives callers more than they bargained for. If you dig 80s horror movies, then this one is for you.

976-EVIL 2

Let's be honest here. The first movie wasn't that great. The sequel was not as good. Nuff said?

HELLRAISER 2

The first three Hellraiser movies are awesome! The others...not so much. Especially once they put Pinhead in space. I firmly believe that every horror franchise jumps the shark when they decide to do a space movie. That said, the second Hellraiser was a very good sequel. It picked up right where the first left off and it didn't spare the gore. Viva Pinhead!

THE EXORCISM OF EMILY ROSE

Yet another exorcism movie that wants to be, but isn't, The Exorcist. This one is lucky enough to feature amazing performances from Jennifer Carpenter, Laura Linney and Tom Wilkinson. It's more of a courtroom drama than a horror movie, but there are enough scary scenes to drive fear into the heart of anyone that believes in evil.

LEATHERFACE: THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE III

I own this on DVD. Don't judge me. It's fairly hilarious and has a young Viggo Mortensen as one of the cannibalistic killers. That said, it's really subpar. Although, not as bad as the Texas Chainsaw remake with Jessica Biel.

MY SUPER PSYCHO SWEET SIXTEEN

Why did TiVo record "My Super Psycho Sweet Sixteen" for me? Why did I watch it? It should have been called "montage of scantily clad teenagers set to music I don't recognise because I am ten years beyond MTV's target demographic." And there was underage drinking. CHILDREN! Be good.

UNEARTHED

This film was featured After Dark's 8 Films to Die for fest. Evil things live underground and kill when they're awoken. Meh. I liked it when it was Tremors.

UNREST

Another of the 8 Films to Die for, this one about a medical student whose cadaver has deadly intentions. Not great, but definitely not terrible. A solid entry to that film festival.

MY SUPER PSYCHO SWEET 16 PART 2

Okay, I totally asked TiVo to record this for me. And I'm not even sorry! It was super fun. A girl was lit on fire and then ran though a party. There was a twist ending. And more montage hilarity. Well, played, MTV. Well played indeed.

SAW

Oh, Saw franchise. What will I do now that you aren't releasing a new movie every Halloween? Granted, I havent'seen one in the theatres since Saw III, but still. It's the end of an era. And, to celebrate that I decided to watch the first, and best, of the series.

RINGU

The Japanese film that "The Ring" was based on. The rare thing about both Ringu and The Ring is that they are both terrific movies. Scary in similar yet not exactly the same way. I actually prefer Ringu because it has more of the mysticism that Japanese horror movies are famous for.

AUDREY ROSE

I love this 1970s horror movie starring a young Anthony Hopkins. It's about reincarnation and what happens when the soul is not at rest. It's not particularly scary, but it is very intriguing.

THE EXORCIST

Hands down, the scariest movie of all time. I'm not saying that to be cool. It's legitimately terrifying. When I told my mother that I was going to watch it on Halloween, her response was "Alone?! In the dark?! I'll pray for you." Maybe it's just because I was raised Catholic, or maybe it's because Linda Blair's performace is epically scary, but this is one of the few movies that made me lose sleep at night.

Well, that's that. Happy Halloween, everyone. Be safe and don't overdose on candy!

Shiny Objects!

Some days I feel like I may have a touch of ADD. I just cannot stay on track with anything. I swear, half hour sitcoms were invented for me, because I can't concentrate on anything for longer than 20 minutes.

(To demonstrate, I just had to stop writing this blog in order to IM my friend a picture of the truly unfortunate bangs that Courteney Cox sported in SCREAM 3. Seriously sad. Who did that to that poor woman?

And, can we just talk about the fact that everyone and their mother was in SCREAM 3? Patrick Dempsey! Parker Posey! Carrie Fisher! Scott Foley! Jenny McCarthy! Patrick Warburton! Freakin' Jay and Silent Bob!)

I'm sorry, what was I saying? Oh, yeah. Attention span of a gnat. Well. Think I proved my point on that one.

Unfortunately, the same thing can happen while writing. You're plowing along on one story and it's going B-E-A-utifully. Things are flowing, banter is witty, characters are arching and then it just...stops. Maybe you write yourself into a corner. Maybe you're faced head on with a scene you don't really want to write. But suddenly, it's not so new and shiny anymore.

But, wait, what's that? Why it's a NEW idea! A pretty, fresh idea full of limitless potential. It's so tempting to give up on the hard thing and just start writing the new story. After all, new is always better, right?

Wrong.

Hey, new is great. But, hey, I'm a vintage girl at heart. There are some beautiful treasures out there, just waiting to be rehabilitated. So, take notes on that new idea. It may turn out to be a good one. Just don't give up on the story at hand. No matter what your attention span may be, that story was new once too.

Blogging Random Thoughts from the Emmys.

No, I'm not there. I wish, kind of. I've done the award show thing and it's not all it's cracked up to be. It's much more fun to sit on the couch, drink wine and make comments. In fact, I think I'm going to share some comments with you! I'm not live blogging, per se, but you know...I'm pre-recorded for an earlier telecast blogging. Don't worry. I'm not going to comment on things that I don't find particularly interesting.

Loving the opening number. Jon Hamm dancing! Also Jane Lynch rocks!

Jon Hamm + Betty White presenting Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy? There's nothing I don't like about that sentence.

Yay for Eric Stonestreet! Love "Modern Family"! (PS Is Jesse Tyler Ferguson crying because he's happy for his co-star or because he didn't win? Thoughts?)

Sophia Vergara's dress is lovely. Gold! Sparkly! Cute accent! Am I the only one that hasn't ever seen "The Big Bang Theory"? And these jokes are falling flat. You know who won't win an Emmy for writing? The Emmys. Hooray for more "Modern Family" love and hooray for writing!

JANE LYNCH for the win of Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy! Hell to the yes! My former company did a movie with her and I just love her to death. Go Jane! And she's from the South Side of Chicago! I officially could not love her more.

Lauren Graham and Matthew Perry presenting? Is it 1998?

George Clooney. That's a whole lot of yes right there.

Best actor in a comedy....I guess Alec. I was wrong. Maybe I should start watching this "Big Bang" thing.

Ooh, Kerri Russell is wearing hot pink while she presents with Will Arnett. I like it! I also like Will Arnett. I'm just saying.

Writing in a drama series...I feel it necessary to comment on the writing awards. I'm going "Mad Men" but just because I heart that show times a million. And....I was RIGHT! Go "Mad Men"!

Are we really reading from Twitter on the Emmys? Really? Also, am I the only person that doesn't have Twitter?

Oh, but it's okay. Nathan Fillion is here now. He'll make it better.

I don't watch enough TV apparantely, because Joel McHale and Jeff Probst are the only things I've been excited about in quite awhile.

Oh, and a writing award! Hoorah! Best Writing in a Variety Series goes to...the Tony Awards. Uh, okay then. See you when something else interesting happens.

Oh, Ricky Gervais. I just love you so very, very much.

George Clooney wins the Bob Hope Humanitarian Award. I fell in love with George Clooney when he was first on ER back in the day. Still adore him. And so glad that someone is going to give an honorary award speech that I actually want to hear. Thanks, George.

Uh oh. The part with the dead people. I've always forgotten some and then I feel bad. Like, "Oh, shoot, they're dead?!" Wait...did they just put Corey Haim's name on a picture of Fred Savage? Did that just happen?

I've liked Claire Danes since "My So Called Life." I wish she worked more.

Okay, so I think I may be wrong about the Haim/Savage thing. Apparantely, they just look(ed) a lot alike. Whew.

Last two awards, woo hoo! I'm going "Glee" for Comedy and "Mad Men" for drama. Let's see about this...

Drama....MAD MEN! Woot! I'm thrilled because a) I never guess correctly and b) I love "Mad Men" and everything associated with it.

Comedy...Modern Family! I was wrong, but still thrilled! Seriously, "Modern Family" is an AWESOME show. You should watch it.

So, that does it for me at the Emmys. Time to go do something productive. You know, like, write.

For Those Who Think That Los Angeles is Nothing but Freeways and Movie Studios...

Griffith Park is one of my favorite places in LA. It's like an enchanted wonderland forest right in the middle of the city! Peaceful streams, moutain trails, lizards running along the terrain...just an abundance of nature. My friend and I go hiking there every Sunday, but I also like to take advantage of the park when I'm in need of some inspiration. Sometimes home is just too distracting. You know, the television and the internet and the DVD player and the telephone...lousy modern convieniences. Besides, how could I not feel creative with this surrounding me?

It's nice to remind myself that LA is more than just assisants, execs, agents and actors. I mean, sure they're in the park too, but at least I don't have to pay attention to them.

All I need is my writing, my latte and my iPod. Aah, simple joy...

The Art of Being Rejected

Rejection. It happens to everyone. I've come to know it especially well during my time in Hollywood. When I started sending out query letters for "Becoming Magdalene" I joked that while finding an agent would be difficult, I wouldn't let it get to me. After all, I'd already been rejected by every possible thing that can reject you: schools, jobs, family, friends, men, credit cards, insurance companies...and so on.

So far, I've stuck to my resolve. The rejections are coming in, but I'm not letting them get to me. Hey, I know it's not personal. I reject people all the time in my work.

However, the last couple of letters I've received have caused me to throw my hands up (and not in the cheery Miley Cyrus way). Lots of agencies don't accept email queries (totally understandable. It shows you're a serious writer and helps weed out the potential crazies). However, it costs money to send out hard copy letters. Two stamps, at least, one for your letter and one for your SASE. That may not seem like a lot at first, but it adds up. While being rejected by these companies doesn't sting, it does hurt a little to receive a form rejection letter than doesn't even include your name.

My favourite rejection came today. It was slightly smaller than an index card and was addressed to "Dear Author." I understand that my work wasn't right for them, but I wouldn't have minded something that indicated that they actually read my letter. Like, you know, my name. Or the name of the agent that I queried. Something like that. Oh, well. That's 88 cents I'm not getting back. At least I know that they're not feeling me right now.

*sigh* Well, I'm off to send more query letters. Fingers crossed that someone cares enough to ask for a sample letter (or at least sign the rejection in ink)!

On the Lighter Side....

In case anyone actually did go and Google Jessi Slaughter after reading my last post, I apologise if it left a nasty taste in your mouth. Please enjoy this AWESOME video of a pug that says "Batman." (I love squish face dogs.)

That's it, I'm Getting a Dog.

I don't have kids. It's not that I don't like them, per se. I like other people's kids just fine. I'm just way too selfish to have any of my own right now. Thankfully, that seems to be the case with many Angelenos. Most people here are very focused on their careers and, thus, don't start having kids until they're in their late 30s.

However, I've recently been made aware of an incident that makes me rethink the idea of having kids completely. Like, maybe I'd be better off if I ripped my uterus out right now. Perhaps you know what I'm talking about. Have you heard of Jessi Slaughter? She's an 11 year old girl that made several YouTube videos after being harrassed online. She told her cyber bullies that she was going to "stick a Glock in your mouth and make a brain slushy." Her father even got into the mix, making an angry video and spawning catch phrases like "cyber police" and "ya dun goofed." I'm not going to post the videos here. You can see all that, and more, with just a quick Google search.

I admit, I'm kind of out of it when it comes to the new hot websites. I'm on Facebook. I check Perez Hilton several times a day. Other than that, I've got nothing. I don't even use Twitter, because I don't understand it. I take the attitude of "You damn kids and your music...get off my lawn!" Yeah, I'm old.

This incident has spawned a multitude of articles about cyber bullying, safety on the internet and the validity of sites like Tumblr and 4chan. However, I'm left with a much more basic question: what is happening to our children? This girl is ELEVEN YEARS OLD. When I was eleven years old, I was...well, I was in sixth grade. I think I had a crush on Jason Priestley. I listened to Mariah Carey (still do, actually). My friends and I thought that a big adventure was going to a movie at the dollar theatre and then getting some fries at Lindy's.

Granted, we didn't have the internet when I was in sixth grade. In fact, I think that my generation is the last to grow up remembering a time before the internet. Certainly, we knew nothing of "sexting." It was a big deal to even KISS!

Look, I know I sound old. I do. But I can't helped but be disturbed by how fast kids are growing up these days. They know about things that I didn't know about until I was in college. And they don't seem to understand the consequences of their actions. If you take a picture of yourself naked, someone will see it and, more than likely, someone will do something bad with it. It is not private. It will come back to haunt you. It is ALWAYS a bad idea.

So, what to do, then? Who's to blame? Is it the media? Bad parenting? Cow hormones in food? I don't know. Maybe no one is to blame. Maybe this is just a shift in our society. Maybe I'm the one that needs to get up to speed with today's kids.

I'm not sure. All I do know that is if I ever do have kids, I will watch them VERY closely. Or, better yet, maybe I'll just stick to dogs.

Vintage Rehab

No, not the kind of rehab that Lindsay Lohan will soon be going to (too soon?). I'm talking about FASHION REHAB!

In my novel "Becoming Magdalene" Maggie Vega is obsessed with clothes, especially those with designer labels. In her defense, when I was her age (and I was when I wrote the book) I adored the idea of designer labels and Rodeo drive style clothes. However, I live on the east side of LA (not east LA, the east side. Big difference) and you are totally influenced by your neighborhood. I live in hippie/hipster central so my tastes have evolved to funky vintage threads and big jewelry.

Parenthetically, I think that my sheer adoration for the TV show "Mad Men" has also inspired my love of 60s duds. I mean, who wouldn't want to be a Betty or a Joan? Their clothes are so fab! Big prints! Full skirts! Hats! Loves it.

One of my friends is also a big vintage buff so she and I go hunting a lot. Last week, I found an awesome Betty Draper-esque bed coat for a dollar. A DOLLAR! However, it had a few rust stains down the front. I decided to take it home to see what could be done. For a dollar, how could I not?

It turns out there is a very easy fix for rust stains and it's organic, too! Simply rub lemon juice onto the stain and let the garmet dry in the sun. Wash as usual and VOILA! Good as new!

Now if I could just turn myself into a seamstress, life would be so awesome...

Shameless Self Promotion

Anyone out there a fan of Selena Quintanilla Perez, the queen of tejano music? She was murdered in 1995. Jennifer Lopez played her in the movie of her life. Any fans? Well, I am. A HUGE FAN. Like, I went to Texas specifically to visit Selena's grave and see the museum of her life that her family maintains. Hey, everyone has something.

Recently, I helped a fellow fan out with his Selena site. It's Selena-Quintanila.net and you should definitely check it out. Be sure to take a peek at the articles that I wrote for the site, regarding the Selena movie soundtrack (my net handle is LaEscritora). Peep my stuff here: Selena Movie.

I now return you to your regularly scheduled weekend. Happy Fourth of July to all American readers out there!

Star Wars vs. American Pie

I know what you're thinking, just by looking at the title of this entry. "Blashphemer! How dare you! We're kicking you out of the Nerd Group!"

Actually, you may want to kick me out of the group anyway when you learn that I'm not really a huge Star Wars fan. I know! On paper, it really seems like I should be. Genre movie fan? Check! Knowledgeable about the Whedon-verse? Check! Versed in comic books and video games? Check mate. Just not a huge Star Wars fan. I think the movies are FINE, but I'm not a Warrier? Warlockian? What's the Star Wars equivilant of Trekkie?

ANYWAY. Last weekend, the BF and I were having dinner and I had a couple of delicious margaritas. This lead to me comparing the two trilogies Star Wars (I refuse to acknowledge Episodes 1-3) and American Pie (Likewise, I refuse to acknowledge all of the terrible sequels that followed American Wedding). Clearly, the plots vary greatly, but think of the film in terms of careers launch and careers deferred.

Let's compare.

Mark Hamill (Luke Skywalker) vs. Jason Biggs (Jim)
Mark Hamill is Luke Skywalker. End of story. Yes, he's had a lot of luck with voiceover work and he's a good actor in his own right. Yet he will always be known as LUKE. Likewise, poor Jason Biggs will always be the dude that had sex with a pie. I'm sure that both thought that they had career making roles on their hands. Sadly, it didn't work out that way.

Carrie Fisher (Princess Leia) vs. Shannon Elizabeth (Nadia)
Both hotties primarily remembered for not wearing a lot of clothes. Using the Carrie Fisher theory, I predict that Shannon Elizabeth will have a career resurrection later in life when people will discover that she's actually pretty funny.

Harrison Ford (Han Solo) vs. Eugene Levy (Jim's Dad) vs. Seann William Scott (Stifler)
This was the subject of great debate. Of course, Harrison Ford was the biggest star to come out of the Star Wars series. That would be difficult to argue (feel free to do so in the comments), but what about the American Pie series? Those movies made Eugene Levy relevant again. He's turning up left and right these days. Likewise, Seann William Scott has worked consistently (the quality of his movies is also up for debate). So...thoughts? Who's the Han of the Pie flicks? Jim's Dad or Stifler?

I know you're probably thinking that I should include Alyson Hannigan (Michelle) in this post, but come on. Girlfriend was Willow on Buffy. Saucy lines about band camp aside, that's a pretty badass career move right there.

And just like that, we've arrived back at my nerd-dom.

Escape from LA

I'm sure you've all heard by now. Times are tough. Unless you've been living in a cave with your fingers in your ears, you know that I've just made the understatement of the century.

Los Angeles is being hit particularly hard. So many of my friends are out of work, and not just the industry peeps either (although a lot of them are industry peeps). It's slim pickings for job seekers, no matter how qualified you are.

Still, we always joke and say "Yes, everything kind of sucks right now, but at least we live in LA." "Sure, it takes an hour to go eight miles, but at least we live in LA." "Yes, the earth just randomly shook on its own, but at least we live in LA." Most of us grew up wanting nothing more than to live and work in HOLLYWOOD! so we're able to forgive a lot of faults.

So, imagine my shock when I had this conversation with a dear friend recently:

Me: How's it going? How's the job hunt?
Dear Friend: Not so great. In fact, the boyfriend and I are thinking of moving to Texas.
Me: Oh, I know that feeling. I just tried to convince my Beloved that we should abandon everything and move to Santa Barbara to live in a trailer on a beach.
Dear Friend: Yeah, but we're really leaving.
Me: Yeah, okay...wait, you're serious?
Dear Friend: Yeah, we love LA, but...we just can't win here. It's time to think about the future.

Wow. First off, I will miss her tons when she goes. She's a dear friend and a wonderful person. Texas is definitely gaining an amazing couple. And, it's definitely LA's loss.

There seems to be some kind of flight from LA lately. More and more people are leaving the city for greener pastures (or snowier pastures, or more mountainy pastures, or whatever). My Dear Friend is moving to Texas. My BFF moved to Las Vegas three months ago. My Buddy keeps talking about moving to Arizona.

Is Hollywood losing some of its glitz and glamour? I don't think so, but I'm one of those crazy people that spends an hour and ten minutes in traffic just to go across the city. I understand what it means to get burned out on a place. I've said it before and I'll say it again. Los Angeles is HARD.

So, what do you think? Is the grass really greener on the other side, or is it bad everywhere?

PS Speaking of grass, my gerainium and basil plants are still alive. So, that's something at least.

Indoor Gardening

In addition to trying my hand at cooking, I'm also attempting to garden. Like the cooking, I blame this on my mother who managed to raise three kids, cook a wonderful and creative meal every night, always look amazing and grow her own vegetables and herbs in the backyard of our suburban Chicago home. Really Mom. That's a lot for one girl to live up to. Especially an LA transplant who used to think that having extra thyme meant that she could stay out partying a little while longer.

However, I find myself becoming more and more domestic with age. We recently added a ten gallon aquarium and 4 danio fish to our household and I decided that I wanted to try my hand at plant life, too.

The problem?

Our apartment has a north-south exposure. None of that yummy morning or afternoon sunlight pounds through the windows. That makes for a good thing in the summer: lower A/C bills in the sweltering CA heat. But what of my plants?

I decided to just go ahead and try it. What the heck? How much damage could I really do?

Well...there's probably a goodly amount of dirt behind the bed now (our bed is under the window and the plants are on the windowsill. You see the bind I'm in), but I have learned that you can, in fact, grow lavendar and rosemary indoors. Both of those plants are doing well! However, you cannot grow cilantro, snapdragons and, possibly, geraniums indoors. Those did...less than well. I think the folks at Home Depot grew sick of seeing my smiling face. *sigh* I hope our next apartment has a balcony with some sun.

Oh, well. At least the fish are still alive.

Elisabeth and Aida ~ Parte Uno

I'm not much of a cook. My mom is an AWESOME cook, so I never really felt the need to learn while I was living close enough for her to feed me. Why bother when you have the master making you dinner?

However, my mother lives in Chicago. And I live in Los Angeles. Thus, I can't exactly pop round for dinner on a weekly basis. If I want to eat a real home cooked meal I have to cook it. At home.

I've had some disasters. There were the ribs that were a disaster of Clark Griswoldian proporitions. There were the chocolate chip cookies that somehow turned out salty (yeah, I have no idea either). But, I've been getting better. I can cook lots of things now and I haven't poisioned myself or my Beloved even once.

My darling mother is thrilled with my new found culinary abilities and gifted me with a copy of Aida Gabilondo's "Mexican Family Cooking" for Christmas (actually, the book was technically a gift from the dog. My family is a little weird like that). I've been trying to work my way though it, little by little. While I could never aspire for a "Julie and Julia" situation (despite the title of this entry) I thought it might be fun to document a couple of my tries.

Today, I found myself with some free time (read: I was avoiding writing script notes), so I decided to make some salsa casera. I chopped tomatoes, onions and jalapenos, plucked some cilanto from my windowsill herb garden and gave it a go.

The result?

A little watery and maybe fewer tomatoes next time, but for a first attempt? A definite win. Ole!