What'll $457.25 buy you these days?

So, maybe I'm FREAKING OUT and have too much to do in too little time. But this is the last season the Yankees are playing in the old Yankee Stadium and GF and I decided a few weeks ago, we had to see one more game there before they moved to the new stadium.

So I got some tickets online a few weeks back, thinking I'd be shooting by now and that I'd just leave set early one day and everything would be hunky-dory. Well, I had the tickets and, in spite of being behind the eight-ball, I was not letting these tickets go to waste. Hey, I'm a huge Red Sox fan and seeing them play the Yankees at either Yankee Stadium or Fenway is a pure joy.

So...important stats?

-2 jumbo franks.
-3 large beers.
-1 massive bag of cracker jacks.
-1 large pretzel.

GF ate stuff too.

What else? One guy about 20 rows below us got drunk, out of hand and ejected. There is nothing like being in a Stadium with 55,000 people chanting "Asshole...Asshole...Asshole" in unison. (Jim, you'd love it here.)

Oh, and then there's the final score of 11-3 Red Sox. Suck it Yankees!

An excellent time was had by all. Well at least all two of us from Polybloggimous-land.

I Am FREAKING OUT!

Today is Wednesday. We start shooting next Tuesday. There's a long weekend in the middle.

I'm not going to go into a lot of detail, but between stuff I haven't got yet and schedules that are changing by the minute, and the fact that instead of prepping the locations I do have, I've been spending every day in the van looking at choices for locations, I am FREAKING OUT! (I'm exaggerating the shit out of my level of anxiety, but hey, you guys know I'm a drama queen.)

In other news, I'm guessing Shawn Powers' placement in the Hawtness Calendar is going to bring him to NYC sometime in the near future...or at least that's the best I can figure from his email yesterday. If, in fact, Shawn is coming to NY, I'm going to get him to spend some time on set and enlist John the Scientist's aid in finding other ways to entertain and otherwise make him feel both welcome and discomforted all at the same time.

Anyway, as I mentioned, I'm FREAKING OUT over the amount of work I have to do to get ready for this coming Tuesday, so I can't spend much time here playing. You've all done a wonderful job of keeping the blog going all on its own for the last couple of days, so I'll depend on you to continue. I'll write some longer stuff this weekend when I'm on a cabin porch looking at a lake and sipping bloody maries. (The plural of maries looks wrong, but I'm pretty sure it's spelled right.)

You may now comb my archives and discuss my spelling deficiencies.

Nathan's O'Dark Thirty Post.

OK, I'm cheating a little. Maybe a lot. I'm writing this at 12:17 A.M. I haven't gone to bed even though I should have since I have to get up at 4:30 A.M. I'm a moron.

My plan is to save this and just publish it in the early morning when I won't have to think (too much). Anyway, here's today's (tomorrow's) O'Dark Thirty post.
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Transcript:

::Yawn:: Good Morning. ::Yawn::

The coffee is brewing. I'll babble at you while that's going on. Shawn would have a little kid run in at this point but I'm fresh outta little kids. I have cats, but the odds of them cooperating are about the same as McCain announcing he's voting for Obama.

I threatened to make videos. I'm not quite ready for that. For the moment, you'll have to make do with "dramatic recreations". Here's my first.

IT''S STILL FUCKING DARK!!!! (photo below is an artist's rendition of "It's still fucking dark!!!")


This has been a public service of Polybloggimous. We get up and look at the dark so you don't have to.

You're welcome.

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Update: 8/26, 6:38 a.m.

Those of you with those mystical, mysterious, magical RSS feeds, probably saw this published at 12:30 or so. That's a damned lie. I wrote and published this before 4:30 a.m. That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

And no. Jim didn't win. At least not yet.

War Stories.

On a Tech Scout, you spend a lot of time on the bus going from one location to another. Some of that time is spent talking about the place you just looked at, but more of it is spent getting acquainted or re-acquainted with other folks who are on the job.

We tend to tell stories about stuff that's happened on previous jobs...War Stories!

Here's one I heard today, and one from me about a job I did years ago.

The new one:

Our Director just finished a movie in South Carolina. On the first day of the job, one of the grips showed up in a shiny new car. During breakfast, before the actual crew call, a bunch of folks were admiring the new car. One wanted to know what kind of mileage it got. He answered that he had only picked it up the day before and had only put about 60 miles on it. He promised to let them know once he'd driven it more.

(I have to interrupt the story a minute to give you some background. Once the trucks park during the day, they can't just run off to the gas station to top off the tanks, so we have a fuel truck that fills all of the trucks and generators that need it. This also saves tons of overtime on the drivers because they don't have to stop on the way back to where the trucks live overnight.)

Anyway, one of the crew made a deal with the Teamster Captain. Every day, the fuel truck would put a couple of gallons into this grip's new car. Not enough to fill it, but enough that the level never fell by much.

Around the fifth week of shooting the original guy went back to the grip and said, "So now that you've had it for a while, how's the mileage on the new car?' The grip gushed that he was still on his first tank of gas. It was still over 1/2 full and he'd driven over 1500 miles.

They never let him run out of gas for the rest of the show. We're all curious to find out what his reaction was to how much gas he started using as soon as the job was over.

My Story:

Coincidentally, on a job in South Carolina. I've mentioned before that when we're out of NYC, I end up hiring a lot of off-duty police details. Sometimes it's for working on the shooting set; sometimes it's for overnight security. At any rate, I can become fairly popular with a local police department.

On that job, most of the locations were outside of the city itself, so I was dealing mostly with County Police. Most of our locations were 60 miles or so in every direction from the hotel where we were actually living. Needless to say, some of us tried to cut a few minutes off of the drive.

Shortly into this job, the Producer hands me 11 speeding tickets and asks me to see if I can't get them fixed. I called my contact and told him all about it and he said to drop them by his office and he'd see what he can do. Now, apparently, in the jurisdiction, there are a couple of ways a ticket might be forgiven, but in all cases, it requires the officer who wrote the ticket to go along as well.

So I get a call from my contact a few days later. He says, he can get rid of ten of the tickets, but his boss says it's on the condition that the Producer get a driver and not be seen behind the wheel of a car in this county for the duration of the show. "Done," I say, "What's the problem with the 11th one?"

"Is it possible your Producer called one of my officers a cocksucker?", he asks.

"I'm surprised he didn't call all of them cocksuckers! We'll pay that one."

Those are my two stories from today.

TaDa...

Um...Hrmmmm....Uh....Oh, Yeah.

I told you I'd be starting to get up pretty early starting today. This is probably the last morning I'll get to sleep 'til 5. It sucks.

No, this isn't a video. Sorry. But this counts as talking first thing in the morning with too little coffee in my system. Not much to tell you, but I'm living up to my bloggerly duties by posting anything.

Today starts the Tech Scouts. There's nothing like spending 13 hours riding a bus all over town. A bus which I have to tell how to get from point A to point B to point C...without getting on any parkways because the bus is too big to fit under some of the overpasses.

Yesterday, we looked at a location and the director loved it. Too bad it replaced a location we already had instead of being the one major set we don't have at all yet. We looked at a choice for the one we're missing and it doesn't work. Oh, and there's the swimming pool. We've had a fairly spectacular pool since the first week the director got to NY. I got an email last night telling me that the scene in the pool is being switched to a scene at a gym. Instead of Jake teaching Leah to swim, I guess Jake will be showing her the joys of the treadmill. I don't know. I do know that gyms are not easy to close down for filming...and it's not just about paying them enough. People who workout like to do it every day; every day at the same time. Apparently it annoys them if their gym is closed one day when they show up for their sweatfest. Blech!

Anyway, it may not be video but these are my incoherent early ramblings. I have to get in the shower in a few minutes and get my ass into the city. My wish for all of you in my own time zone and all of the time zones to my west is that you're all still comfy in bed and will remain oblivious to all of this for a few more hours.

I'll let you know how it went tonight. In the meantime, talk among yourselves.

Oh, BTW (posted later before the scout begins),

Yesterday's driver:

-Couldn't find the Queens Mid-town tunnel.
-Drove over a few of the lane dividers in the tunnel.
-Admitted late in the day that he really didn't know his way around NYC very well.
-Admitted later in the day that he'd never driven a 15-passenger van before.

Needless to say, we won't be seeing him again.

This Proves I didn't MisRemember It At All.

There was a discussion somewhere recently about what is your generic term for the drink category that includes Coke, Pepsi and, God-forbid, YooHoo.

Lots of folks said Soda; some said Pop. I remembered that as a child I'd always ask for a Coke.

If Mom took me with her on a downtown shopping trip, we'd have lunch at the Walgreen's lunch counter. This was considered a huge treat. Let's take a trip in the WayBack Machine.

Me, my mother and her mother have just sat down at the lunch counter. I'm 7 years old and sitting between the two of them. Grandma reaches over and buttons the top button of my shirt. Mom reaches over and unbuttons it. This battle goes on silently for a couple of minutes until Mom switches seats with me, putting me out of Grandma's reach.

Mom: What do you want to drink Nathan?

Me: A Coke!

Mom: What kind?

Me: Grape Nehi!

This seems like a completely retarded way to refer to things, so much so that I was becoming convinced that I couldn't have remembered it right. Or if I was remembering it right, this use of the word "Coke" to include all soft drinks must have been an idiosyncracy unique to my clan.

Strange Maps has confirmed my memory as correct. Those of us from the south use the word Coke like the rest of you use Kleenex, Xerox and Jell-O to represent the entire category of products. This doesn't make it any less retarded, but it does vindicate my memory.

It's Sunday. That's about as deep as we're gonna get right now.

What regionalism did you grow up with that seems stupid in hindsight?

Check in Often! It's Another Multipost Saturday!

Just so you all know MultiPost Saturday is my excuse to just throw up random shit and consider it blogging. Don't count on seeing anything deep and meaningful here today, (like you ever do anyway).

Let the MultiPost begin...

We'll start with a Douglas Adams quote. Hey, you can't go wrong with Douglas Adams.

There is a theory which states that if ever anybody discovers exactly what the Universe is for and why it is here, it will instantly disappear and be replaced by something even more bizarre and inexplicable. There is another theory which states that this has already happened.

Douglas Adams

P.S. I've used his name three times in quick succession. That's gotta be good for sucking in innocent GoogleSearchers.
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More on a Saturday Morning...

So, I was just poking around at Shawn's Cerebrum, and I felt the need to leave a comment. It took me like fifteen minutes to write a paragraph. I am Vocabularily Challenged. There was a particular adverb I wanted to use. It was right there at the tip of my Medula Oblongata, but it refused to reveal itself to me. Finally, in a moment of clarity, the clouds parted; the sun shined through, spearing my eye, the angels sang their heavenly chorus. Debilitatingly, was the word I was searching for. Shawn's comment SpellCheck told me I was a crappy speller. It looked right to me. I went to Ask.com. (I find that Ask.com does a better job when I type in "Define ______" than most other search engines. It suggests better spelling more often that bears a resemblance to what I'm looking for). So anyway, Ask.com told me I was not deficient in my Spell-Fu. Shawn's comment window continued to put that ugly red line under the word. As is my wont, I chose to decide that I was right and ignore this blot on my intellect.

And another thing. Shawn's video posts are inspiring me to (possibly), follow his example. I'll be getting up at 0'dark-thirty every day, starting next week. (Right now the alarm goes off at 5:30 a.m. for leaving the house at 7:00 a.m.) I'll be getting up earlier soon. Why? I need an hour or more in the morning to become vaguely human.

I don't speak in the morning. Even more important than that is that I don't repond to speech in the morning. My mother use to tell me that when I was 6, I'd drag my ass into the kitchen in the morning and she was able to translate my inarticulate grunted response to "Do you want Cocoa Puffs or Quisp this morning?"

So, anyway, back to the point. Shawn recently posted a bunch of videos of himself talking to the camera before his first cup of coffee. (Here they are.) First of all I couldn't believe how brave he was to post those things. I know he wasn't coherent while recording them. I have doubts about his coherence when he actually hit the publish button.

Also, watching yesterday's video entry inspires me to think that I could post video impersonations of some of you guys...or at least impersonations of my impression of some of you guys. (Shawn would actually be really easy.)

I'm not saying I'm going to actually do this, but I think it would be funny. I'll think about it some more and let you know.

P.S. I already know that all of you would like to see me mortifyingly embarrass myself by following through on this threat. Comments on this subject will be harshly judged because it's just too easy a target. I will not be grading on the curve, so make sure you have your chops engaged before poking me on this topic. Just Sayin'.

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My Attitude about Facebook.

I don't remember exactly when I set up a Facebook account, but it was a while ago and I didn't actually do a thing with it. More recently, there's been a bunch of Juicy Heifer friending going on and I'm happy with that. Then, Kate invited me to be a vassal and play Knighthood. (I'm too lazy to link it right now, but you friend people, get them to build you stuff and give them (fake) money to buy loyalty and make them more productive.) Given the time, I'm pretty sure I'd really like playing with Knighthood (sort of an interactive game of Civilization), but there's a problem. It's designed for the folks who run around Facebook friending everyone in sight willy-nilly. And that's never going to be me. You only advance in the game if you keep enlarging your realm and keep assigning vassals (friends) to work in your newly expanded marketplaces, garrisons, etc. You can never have enough friends in Knighthood!

On the other hand, Facebook has resulted in me reconnecting with a few real-life friends from college and one I mentioned having worked with in Seattle a few years back.

Which brings me to this. Jeri, I can, with a fair degree of confidence, state that Mark (the aforementioned work friend in Seattle), is not a stalker, axe-murderer, or fiend of any sort. I had a meal or two at his house with his family and they seem completely normal and safe. Mark, I've been talking to Jeri online for quite a few months now and a few other people I talk to regularly online have actually met her in person. While full UCF membership is closed, I believe we came up with some sort of Adjunct Junior Space Ranger version some time ago. (You'll have to search the archives because I'm way too lazy to search and link stuff).

Anyway, the point is...if at some future date there were to be another UCFish link created, I can pretty much vouch for Mark, but as far as Jeri is concerned, it's entirely possible that she's a dangerous, psychopathic, deranged, zombie...posing as the mild PG-13 personna with the normal home-life and growing boys she claims to be. Her husband seems totally safe from what I've been able to deduce, but I'm not making any guarantees where Jeri's concerned.

Legal Disclaimer: Polybloggimous bears no responsibility for for any decisions made by its readers based on anything actually said or percieved to have been said here. As always, (cribbed from a great weather map over on John's Site), Use for information purposes only. DO NOT USE FOR LIFE AND DEATH DECISIONS.

There's a high probability that that line is going up on my banner next time I make a new one.

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And Another Thing...

If someone wants to photoshop a UCFish, I think that would be pretty funny.

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This Week In Text Messaging...

I received...

-Wazzup! It's Kate. Have a great pizza incident-free day!
-Hello, Nathan. You know you'll be getting these all day, right?
-Levitate the dragon, but still drink the soup.
-The super is going to be at least a half hour late for our appointment at Sterling Place.
-Ook! I'm a Librarian!
-Hedgehog Buggerer.
-Aren't we just a little fucking ray of sunshine? Cheer the hell up, dammit!
-Fucking flannel sheets! Oh, you meant paper sheets...sorry.
-Juicy Heifers say "MOO, Mofo, MOO!"
-Are you going to pick up your damned pizza or not? -Dominoes.
-Moo mother fucker, moo.
-Bitch shot me in the foot!

Does anyone detect a pattern? And what's with the weird message about the super being late? That doesn't belong here at all.
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Jeri Made Me Do This...

It's a list of foods. I'll follow her instructions:

Directions: Copy this list into your blog or journal, including these instructions. Bold all the items you've eaten. Cross out any items that you would never consider eating.

(BTW, I copied it but it ditched the columns, so here you go with one long-assed list.

1. Venison
2. Nettle tea
3. Huevos rancheros
4. Steak tartare
5. Crocodile
6. Black pudding
7. Cheese fondue
8. Carp
9. Borscht
10. Baba ghanoush
11. Calamari
12. Pho
13. PB&J sandwich
14. Aloo gobi
15. Hot dog from a street cart
16. Epoisses
17. Black truffle
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes
19. Steamed pork buns
20. Pistachio ice cream
21. Heirloom tomatoes
22. Fresh wild berries
23. Foie gras
24. Rice and beans
25. Brawn, or head cheese
26. Raw Scotch Bonnet pepper
27. Dulce de leche
28. Oysters
29. Baklava
30. Bagna cauda
31. Wasabi peas
32. Clam chowder in a sourdough bowl
33. Salted lassi
34. Sauerkraut
35. Root beer float
36. Cognac with a fat cigar
37. Clotted cream tea
38. Vodka jelly/Jell-O
39. Gumbo
40. Oxtail
41. Curried goat
42. Whole insects
43. Phaal
44. Goat's milk
45. Malt whisky from a bottle worth £60/$120 or more
46. Fugu
47. Chicken tikka masala
48. Eel
49. Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnut
50. Sea urchin
51. Prickly pear
52. Umeboshi
53. Abalone
54. Paneer
55. McDonald's Big Mac Meal
56. Spaetzle
57. Dirty gin martini (gin is just foul)
58. Beer above 8% ABV
59. Poutine
60. Carob chips
61. S'mores
62. Sweetbreads
63. Kaolin
64. Currywurst
65. Durian
66. Frogs' legs
67. Beignets, churros, elephant ears or funnel cake
68. Haggis
69. Fried plantain
70. Chitterlings, or andouillette
71. Gazpacho
72. Caviar and blini
73. Louche absinthe
74. Gjetost, or brunost
75. Roadkill
76. Baijiu
77. Hostess Fruit Pie
78. Snail
79. Lapsang souchong
80. Bellini
81. Tom yum
82. Eggs Benedict
83. Pocky
84. Tasting menu at a three-Michelin-star restaurant.
85. Kobe beef
86. Hare
87. Goulash
88. Flowers (but also why?)
89. Horse
90. Criollo chocolate
91. Spam
92. Soft shell crab
93. Rose harissa
94. Catfish
95. Mole poblano
96. Bagel and lox
97. Lobster yes, Thermidor no
98. Polenta
99. Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee
100. Snake
and 101. Stinky Tofu!

So, I think I got 59? I lost count every time I counted. Probably more like 55.
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This just in...

I stopped at the book store, so I am now about to interrupt my reading of The Yiddish Policemen's Union to read Zoe's Tale by some guy or other. I really haven't had time to get too far into the former and I've been waiting for the latter. And somehow, because of Chabon beating out Scalzi for a Hugo, it seems slightly appropriate. (Don't worry Mr. Chabon. I'll be back with you presently.)

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A final addition...

Unless something momentous happens, this will close out this weeks edition of MultiPost Saturday™. We just watched Across the Universe (thanks Netflix) and it was pretty damned amazing. When it first came out, I was all excited to see it and then some of the stars were on one of the morning talk shows and performed. Sorry, but they sucked live. So I crossed it off my list.

Amazing what a few hours in the studio can do, though. There was only one song I didn't like the way they did it. And I really want to know what kind of drugs Julie Taymor is on. She's obviously out of her mind...in a way that I admire the hell out of.

Before we watched the movie, I started Zoe's Tale. Sucked in immediately. I read fifty pages while barbecuing. Guess what. I've already laughed a few times. I expected that. Then I bawled a little. Didn't expect that. And then, I was laughing and bawling a little at the same time.

I've got to get back to it now that the movies's over. This may be one of those books I read in one sitting.