ah, "flying"
Anna, the bride, with lil' Stella
Well, we got to the
airport, we returned the car, we had our lunch, we
got our coffee and now we're at the gate waiting for
our plane and it looks like we're about to become a
statistic--our flight is delayed. Now, granted, it's
delayed due to weather, but not in the "taking off in
hectic weather" kind of way, but in the "lightning
might hit the ramp that people use to get to the
airport" kind of way, which is actually a new way for
me. So, w'e're hanging out and I have a bit of time
to write, but not post, because I refuse to pay the
wireless access fee! I'm telling you, we're living in
one of those times where people in the future will
go, "Oh, yeah, back in the day you actually had to
pay to access the Internet from a public space, how
weak is that, T-7 Service Droid?" I mean, okay, it's
not technically a big deal, but still, it's so
insanely frustrating--it's so cheap to offer free
Internet access, I would argue it's more expensive to
set up a payment system than to "just" install a T1
line and a network of wireless access points. Throw
in a portal page with advertising, maps and
directories of the airport and boom, everyone's
happy. Provide an online coupon code to some cafe,
all the better.
Whatever; I'm on the plane now--we ended up getting
in the plane then waiting for 20 minutes before
moving, and then another 20 minutes of taxiing and
now, finally, we are flying and now I am trying to
type this out, which is hard because, as is always
the case, the person in front of me has put his seat
all the way back and it is basically impossible for
me to see the screen.
As usual, lots to talk about, I wish I could type out
multiple strings of thought at once, to be honest. I
have a few different storylines in my head:
1 - the wedding weekend and associated experiences,
including running two red lights (one right in front
of a cop!), a heated yoga class, seeing the collapsed
bridge, the actual wedding, reception at the zoo, the
importance of befriending the DJ and the bartender at
all wedding receptions, the amazing amount of kids I
was around and a freewheeling discourse of how the
Mall of America (and, I guess, all malls) as the
precursor to the modern day World Wide Web.
2 - the frustration of walking into a plane and
passing by people reading scripts that I have read
about but am not reading--how even in the middle of
the country, you can be reminded how there's so much
more to actually get DONE before my career is
actually cooking. While it is simmering now, the
bubbles are few and far between, and though I have
had some fun this year, I need to book some work
before the year is over, big time.
3 - the mixed blessing of being able to write scenes
(or at least build scenes) that would be interesting
to watch but are bereft of an actual story to be
incorporated into. I have been writing these things
down, but the only thing connecting them is that I am
writing them down. This is pretty typical, I guess,
for me--I can sketch for days, lots of little
scribbles and mini scenes, portraits, buildings,
whatever, but they all float on the page, each kind
of interesting, but in that way that someone else's
dreams are only so interesting--yes, neat, but, in
the end, so what? Perhaps I am overly ambitous,
perhaps the scenes need not be part of a movie,
perhaps a music video or a short. As I write this, I
otice myself thinking, "Yes, that's it! Make a music
video!" But, of course, all the scenes I want to
shoot take place over the last few hours in a plane
taking off in the middle of a torrential downpour. No
matter, no mater. I can inject them somewhere else.
4 - I am reading a book called The Sundance
Kids by James Mottram. It's very similar to this
other book, Rebels in the Backlot by Sharon
Waxman (the books cover the same people during the
same time, early 90s filmmakers like PT Anderson,
Spike Jonez, David Fincher, Wes Anderson, etc), but
spends a lot more time actually going into the movies
and analyzing them, which makes the book both more
interesting and sometimes a little irritating. I
don't have a lot of experience reading film
criticism, I admit, but I can't help but wonder why
the ongoing discussions of color palette, themes and
editorial comments on why a film was particularly
"good" or not bothers me. I guess that's one thing
that the passing of time provides: a comfy couch from
which to judge other people's hard work and
mercilessly categorize it.
5 - And, finally, I want to talk about how it felt to
meet extended family members who have been reading
these journal and viewing the photos on the flickr
site, how it was really gratifying to know that
people would visit from time to time, and how it was
a very different experience to know that they knew me
already from all my ramblings. While we didn't go
into it too much, it changes, again, how I think
about this site, which began as me throwing HTML to
the world without any expectations of an audience in
the first place, to knowing that once in awhile,
someone will choose to visit with some kind of
expectation of something new. What started out as an
offline backup of experience has turned into a
relationship, and like all relationships, I gotta
make an effort to keep it interesting.
To that end, I am going to do something a bit
different. I am going to write about the above topics
now (well, as long as can stand it) and then release
them throughout the week. A lot more manageable for
both of us.
More soon.