memorialize this As an "adult", something I’m beginning to realize I am, we don’t get "breaks". Like summer break (unless you teach school), spring break, winter break... True, I have many friends here in LA for whom adulthood is one big-ass break. They don’t work, living off what I know to be family money, because they have admitted as much, or living off "savings", which means family money and they haven’t admitted as much, or living off residual checks, or unemployment, or the proceeds from the occasional dime bag, or perhaps sucking cock on the Boulevard. How so many people in LA survive without jobs is beyond me, but many do. Since I do work, regrettably, I am just beginning to understand fully the sheer fucking pleasure of having even a day off. Let alone a vacation, god forbid. One of the reasons I temp is because I can leave whenever I want, be it for the day, or for vacation. I just don’t do it much because the flip side of that freedom is: your ass don’t get paid while you’re gone. Unlike employees, those sell-outs. I didn’t even know it was Memorial Day weekend until Friday, that’s just how "tuned in" I am to the world around me. I mean, I listen to NPR and watch CNN and read the NY Times, but these news agencies don’t often say, "and just for you boneheads out there, remember to turn your fucking clock back an hour tonight". Yes, I often miss that one too. But on Friday when Big Stupid Company announced that we could all leave at Noon and see you on Tuesday, I didn’t quite know what to do with myself. So I went and saw the Matrix. Alone. I got me a big ol’ sandwich from the deli and a big ol’ diet coke and a big ol’ bag of popcorn and happily munched away while watching Keanu and Larry and Joe and Hugo and the new chick (man she is something) jump around very quickly and talk very slowly and I loved every minute of it. I mean, it wasn’t a great movie, or even a good movie, but I had a blast. I wished there was a bit more of that cool action, but I had fun fun fun. Then rollerbladed. Rollerbladed my ass off. That night we went to our friend Dario’s new apartment. He lives down in like deep deep nasty Hollywood where I ain’t never even been, but in the coolest apartment. We call it Dario’s barrio. Rail thin gentle gay guy living in Cholo-town. Very stylish. Very Fabulous. We sat around drinking ("vodka, only vodka allowed at my parties") and chatting about current Hollywood gossip (stories about Harvey Keitel, Tom Cruise, Jeff Goldblum, Ricky Martin, Cal Ripkin Jr. and Kevin Costner – and no, not all "he’s gay" stories either) and then Dario’s contingent went to a wild gay bar and the rest of us went to a bar near UCLA where we can drink for free, and proceeded to drink for free. Saturday I ate breakfast alone at my local diner and read a script I had do coverage on. Then I ran around looking for birthday presents for girlfriend who has been in Italy for a couple weeks probably having an affair with some dude named Guillermo. I wouldn’t really blame her. I mean, you’re in Italy: you have to have sex. No question. Biked my ass off. Then opened a new show with my group. It was a really weird evening because though we had a very small audience due to the holiday, they were a really good crowd. And we were all drunk. So we ended up having fun. Then we all climbed onto the roof of the theatre and drank until 3am. On Sunday, feeling guilty for my hangover and the Taco Bell I ingested at 4am, I went Rollerblading with some new friends: Winston and Tracy. They are a couple. I don’t have many couple friends. Winston recently joined my comedy troupe, and is quite a strange and cool guy. Tracy is just as cool. An actor also. Everyone I know is an actor. It’s really sad. Anyway, after playing with their beautiful dog Madison, the three of us sped through the valley streets for an hour. Talking and racing and pushing each other. Then I met with co-director of my short Frank over lunch. We inspire each other. Not only did we begin to plot our game plan for editing the film, but rapped about the biz until we both felt a little better about our place in it. Shopped some more then watched 3 movies, sitting on my couch the whole night. Pi was excellent. Very exciting what you can do with a totally original idea and a small bit of money. Walking and Talking is one of my favorite smaller pics, and then I saw My Best Friend’s Wedding, which I also quite like despite myself. The blonde who lip-syncs in the opening is so damn cute. That movie, and Babe, made me really re-appreciate song when used well in film. And I don’t mean some hit song playing in the background or over a montage, but using song as an integral part of the piece. Ed’s Next Move, a pretty bad little movie did that also. On Monday I shopped yet again and then went to the house of my other couple friends, Todd and Hillary. Todd just got a surround sound system so we watched action sequences from his huge collection of action flicks, and then went to our favorite LA dive bar for drinks. My lady gets back tomorrow and I’m incredibly excited to have her back. It’s nice to really actively miss someone, and know you get to see them soon. God, I’m so happy I could puke. This is where I let Larry King take over my body for a few minutes. I cleaned my house today. I hate cleaning. I have allergies...the A's and Giants are still keeping things interesting this season, despite low payrolls and expectations...cats are very petulant...red wine: good...tori amos' choirgirl hotel is a damn fine album...a plane skids off the runway in a severe rainstorm killing 9 including the pilot, and the news has to mention that he'd been on for 13 hours straight, insinuating bastards...
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