Ahem.

Not that I'm complaining about it not being 113 degrees in the valley, but where oh where did my hammock/picnic/blowing bubbles in the sunshine weather go?

(By the way, when I post in a few weeks about how hot it is and where did the cool spring temperatures go, I give you permission to [verbally and politely] smack me in the face.)

I guess the grass is always greener on the other side, eh?


(photo credit: I got it here)

shortest movie review ever

Go see Pixar's new film, "Up." It's amazing. Bring kleenex.

(photo credit: I got it here)

random Monday musings

Hey guys!

Guess where I went for my birthday this weekend. No, guess. If you guessed Disneyland, you're The Awesome! (also, The Perceptive, as the pic to the right is me.)

And I had SO much fun. I took a Disney newbie with me (always the best) and we did 17 rides. I know, right? I didn't even know Disneyland HAD 17 rides working at the same time. The crowds were great, the food was super, the children throwing temper tantrums in the middle of Toon Town were minimal, and it wasn't too hot or too cold. Perfect.

ALSO: I got a writing gig. I am BEYOND excited. I applied for a position at the Los Angeles Examiner (it's a blog site that encourages people who know a lot about a topic to write weekly articles on that subject) and I got tapped to be the ::clears throat, ahem::

LA Actor's Life Examiner!!!!

People, I am so excited. I love writing, I love acting, I love life, and I love blogging about all of it. I will probably start writing my articles by the end of this week, so look for a weekly smattering of links to some of my articles that give acting tips, advice, and takes you through the day to day journey of what it means to be an actor in Los Angeles. I am going to have so much fun.

Here's another thought, and not all of you will be on board with me for this one: I know I am truly comfortable in a place, and I finally feel like it's mine, when I get the urge to clean it. Weird, right? Does anyone else do that? Several months ago I moved into a new apartment and it didn't quite feel like my space yet. It took me a few weeks to finally get acclimated and want to clean and organize and make the place mine, and now my bookshelves look nifty and my bathroom is freakin' awesome and I make my bed everyday.

Today, I showed up to the job I've had for the past couple months, took a look at my desk, and I wanted to clean it and re-organize it and make it mine. So I did, and as I sprayed that CO2 onto my keyboard (so odd, it gets colder the more you use it) I felt a sense of peace and accomplishment. Do you guys get that after a good cleaning too?

At any rate, I had a fantastic birthday, a super wonderful weekend, I'm looking forward to my new little side gig of blogging about the trials and triumphs of being an actor in L.A., and my keyboard looks shiny and new. And with that, I leave you dreamers and cloud-watchers with one of my favorite new photography websites.

Happy Monday, everyone :)

Friday night lights

Yo.

If you aren't doing anything this Friday, June 5th, and you're looking for something a bit more off the beaten path in Los Angeles, I suggest this, which is about eight steps cooler than just finding a bar somewhere and hanging out with your friends. C'mon, whaddya got to lose? Plus, I'm not in town this weekend, so if you go, I can live vicariously through you. And, true to my blog word, it's less than $15 (well, the $9 entrance fee is. The food and drink might push your $15 budget over by a bit).

Still. Who can resist a tour of the Natural History Museum at night, a public discussion and book signing by an expert on Darwin and evolution, and then almost five hours of music spun by one of the hottest DJs in Southern California right now? And did I mention organic food and drinks?

Note that this is only the first Friday of every month that the Natural History Museum puts together these shindigs, so if you can't go this Friday, you have to wait until July to check out the next one.

Step on it, kids! :)

budget suck.

Well, boo. Under Governor Schwarzenegger's proposed budget cuts, over 200 national parks might close in California, and not only does that seriously crimp my verb-ing style, it just downright sucks. Those national parks need all the money they can get, and some financial expert-like people are saying that it could take up to a decade for some of these national parks to recover from the temporary closures.

Here's a partial list of which parks would close in Los Angeles, including my beloved Point Mugu in Malibu, which has one of The.Most.Gorgeous hikes you could dream of:

1. Leo Carrillo State Park.

2. Los Angeles State Historic Park.

3. Los Encinos State Historic Park.

4. Malibu Creek State Park.

5. Malibu Lagoon State Beach.

6. Pio Pico State Historic Park.

7. Point Mugu State Park.

8. Rio de Los Angeles State Park.

9. Robert H. Meyer Memorial State Beach.

10. Santa Susana Pass State Historic Park.

11. Topanga State Park.

12. Verdugo Mountains.

13. Will Rogers State Historic Park

and the rest of the 220 parks can be found here. A more thorough explanation of the proposal can also be found here.



Boo. :(

Life Is...

Well, you get the picture. Enjoy your day and know that sometimes life's joys are in its simplicity, quiet moments that gather and help you find peace.

on the way to work this morning...

while driving through my favorite canyon, the traffic ahead of me came to a gentle slowing and cars starting driving very precisely and carefully. One of my favorite reasons for driving the canyons in Los Angeles is the sense of community you just don't get on the freeways -- it's usually one lane, down winding residential streets, and there's a better sense of "look, we're all in this together" than in most driving areas of Southern California. I think we forget that we're all in this together.

Also, there are trees. I will take tree-lined streets wherever I can get 'em.

As I drove by, I saw what every car before me had seen -- three deer; two adults, one baby fawn, peacefully and calmly munching a mid-morning meal, either oblivious or accustomed to the traffic that probably drives by their favorite eating grounds every morning. I smiled, something lifted off my shoulders, and the world was new again.

We're all in this together.