Thunderbolt

The weather took a turn for the better yesterday and for the past couple of days it has been wonderful. We took in an independent league baseball game last night in Avon Lake where the Lake Erie Crushers play. The team is made up of single A quality players who weren't drafted or were cut from major league affiliated teams. All of these guys are looking for their break in the minors and are essentially trying to keep in form in case a call comes. Anyway, it was great fun, the team won with a walk off home run and we got to run the bases after the game. How cool is that? My only complaint is that the seats are too close together. In an otherwise beautiful stadium, there just wasn't enough legroom. Today was relaxed. We hung out at Julie's sister's house playing on the Slip and Slide. Well, I didn't go near that frigid water, but the kids seemed to have fun. Later on we ate homemade meatballs and spaghetti. Man, I am gaining weight by the minute out here. It invariab...

My first day in Ohio and it was relatively uneventful , which is a good thing. Getting assimilated to a new time zone and a vacation mentality is always what happens on my first day away from home. The flight out here was quiet. The plane was half empty and I sat next to a 60 year old man from Strongsville who owns his own recording studio. With gray hair, a diamond earring and a gold chain, he was much more youthful in appearance than most other 60 year olds I've ever met. He was a nice guy and listening to him gave me an idea for a screenplay or new story. I haven't been inspired like that in a while. I have felt so burned out on movies lately that it was almost a foreign feeling to be formulating a visual story instead of something interior like I've been working on for the past four months. We'll see if I ever get around to writing it. I've come across so many good ideas that I filed away never to see the light of day again. Man, what I wouldn't give...

Went to the circus tonight, man was that a strange experience. I can't say the I was totally enthused or even entertained, but I came away with an appreciation of what circuses are and the hard work that goes into putting on the show. This particular circus, Circus Vargas, has been around for 40 years. As I watched the show I thought to myself how strange that no one has made a contemporary film about circus life. I had a couple ideas for kids films and maybe a farce, but I also kept coming back to a star studded Altman-esque idea, something I will never write. It seemed that everyone had a couple of jobs at the circus. The death defying motorcycle rider whose display of skill closed the show was also the guy taking photos of audience members and trying to get them to buy the picture before the end of the show. Seems that everyone who performed also worked on the crew in some capacity. Trapeze artists also rolled out the carpet, the women who performed magic also sold concessions b...

I don't want to be negative, but I'm afraid that the Indians season is slipping away. There would be nothing I'd like more than to be proven wrong on this one. But with one of their starters, albeit an ineffective one, and one of their best relievers (who was one of their best starters before he got switched to the bullpen) both getting injured last night, I'm getting that sinking feeling in my stomach. There is so much talent on this team, yet they don't seem to have any fire under them. While I'm sure that Eric Wedge is a good manager and I've supported him in the past, I wonder if there needs to be a shakeup and if the blame shouldn't fall on his shoulders. It's not just about inspiring, it's about managing . The great manager, when his guys are slumping, he yanks 'em to place a more effective hitter in the lineup. Torre does it. LaRussa does it. And to use an excuse like, "we're a young team" is crap. Martinez, Sizemore and ...

I was so disheartened that I had left the room. But something told me to go back and watch the last second of this game. Something inside me said that I wouldn't want to miss a miracle if it actually happened. So back to the bedroom I went, where Sophie and Julie were laying in the bed and the TV was on. The Cavs had 1 second. ONE SECOND! They would have one chance to throw the ball in bounds and take a shot and there was only one person who should be handling the ball. I'm still smiling. It was the most amazing feat I've seen in a very long time and the fact that it was happening for a Cleveland team and not against it was the kicker. Yeah, they blew another huge lead, but this kind of win can create momentum. Let's hope. Gotta love Marv Albert's call at the buzzer.

I am nearly out from under the pile of DVD reviews I committed to reviewing for Popdose. One of them came out in April... zoinks. Basically I should be cranking these things out but I always want to go back and proof the reviews and revise what I've written. It's not like I'm writing some dumb blog or anything. The thing is, we're trying to make Popdose something unique, which means doing my best as a writer. I know PR firms have to tell their clients how many reviews they've received, but since I'm not getting paid, I feel like they can cut me some slack. The worst thing that could happen is I don't get nay more DVD's to review and I have to spend all of my time working on the book. Actually, that would be a great thing. I just want to get done with these reviews so I can focus on the book. I feel like I've hit a wall and I really need a kick in the ass to get back writing. I'm pretty frustrated with myself for slacking off after having such a g...

Julie has returned and we now go back to routine of normalcy until school lets out. Then , I don't know. I'm not going to lie and say that this summer is going to be easy. Without Julie working get regularly things are going to be T-I-G-H-T, tight. Man it would really help if something could get sold, but even if someone bought one of my scripts, the reality is that the money wouldn't be in the bank for months. So, we bite the bullet. We shall make ends meet as best as possible and hope that the fall brings better fortunes. But hey, let's not all get down about this. We're not the only ones going through this, so I take some limited comfort in that. For some insane reason I am not gnawing off my fingernails over this. What is this feeling? Hope? Blind faith? Or perhaps I have just lost it. Oh, and let me as this: I downloaded UB40's version of "Red Red Wine" from their greatest hits album ad it's the single version, sans the ska rap at the end. ...