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!