we need scissors and we may or may not be doing something illegal

To enhance the experience...
I recommend clicking play below before continuing to read.



Side note: How much did I love this show when I was little. Stephanie Powers was the bomb! I suppose in this installment, the role of Stephanie Powers is played by Angel, Sam is Robert Wagner, and... I guess I get to be Max!

...Cuz when they met, it was murder!

Mission: ILYPM
7/16/2008
7:36 pm

Here is your mission, should you choose to accept it: Take a road trip with two infamous Ewan McGregor stalkers fans and retrieve the coveted ILYPM sign.

Such signs are fairly standard in the local movie biz to help direct cast and crew members to location shoots. In this case, the "ILYPM" signs were for the indie drama "I Love You Phillip Morris," which stars Jim Carrey and Ewan McGregor.

Earlier in the week, Sam had spotted the ILYPM sign near the I-10 offramp across from Tanger Outlet Mall in Gonzales. Evidently, it was installed at this strategic location to help direct the crew to Hunt Correctional Center in St. Gabriel.

Sam wanted to go get the sign for Angel but knew that it would be much more fun to have her participate. He designed this mission as a surprise for her. He would not tell her where we were going, only that "we need scissors and we may or may not be doing something illegal."

I was merely along for the ride. An accomplice.

Mission Accomplished



::Bonus:: Seaside Cheddar


I am ROLLING!

2007, my year in review

Let's start with the subject of travel... The major highlight of my travels this year was the cruise. Our first cruise was a week-long jaunt over spring break with family and friends wherein we found ourselves sailing into exotic ports along the Western Caribbean.

We climbed ancient Mayan ruins in Mexico, experienced some of the culture and natural beauty of Guatemala, snorkeled the barrier reef in Belize... Very exciting, very memorable!

I landed in New York City for the third time, accompanying members of my family on their first trip to the Big Apple. You could say I was a sort of tour guide. It was a lot of fun. Shut up, it was!

After a few days of sightseeing, we struck off for New York state to attend my nephew's momentous graduation at the esteemed West Point Military Academy. We toured the historic campus and got to hang out with Danny.

We squeezed in a trip to the beach... Orange Beach. Sipping margaritas and splashing around with the stingrays. We had a great time. Maybe next time we'll try parasailing? Not!



We completed a weekend roadtrip to Dallas, Austin and back, in three days, to see Rufus Wainwright perform two great shows -- one at the Nokia Theatre in Grand Prairie and one outdoors at the legendary Stubb's BBQ in downtown Austin.

Mid-August. Outside. 6 hours. Standing in one spot. It was totally worth it.

In other concert news, I saw Tori Amos perform for the 12th time! Her shows are always an experience.

While we were in Houston, we visited the Butterfly Center at the Museum of Natural Science. It was pretty cool.

On the way home, I saw Galveston for the first time. It has its own thing going on. It was nice.

Some other shows we caught closer to home...
Justin Timberlake's FutureSex/LoveShow at the New Orleans Arena. Quite a production!

Matt Wertz at the Parish, where I discovered Jon McLaughlin and Stephen Kellogg and the Sixers.

Francis Cabrel at Festival International de Louisiane in Lafayette. I still can't believe he came here to perform -- est-ce que ce monde est sérieux?

Fest for All in Baton Rouge. I went to check it out while everyone else was at Jazz Fest in New Orleans.

The Police reunion tour at the New Orleans Arena.

Dave Barnes and Matt Wertz Two Birds / One Stone Tour at the Varsity, a.k.a. how I discovered Gabe Dixon.

And let's not forget Josh Kelley at Wal-Mart on Siegen! (You know, the guy who just married Katherine Heigl a week ago.)

Some miscellaneous events that occurred...
Dave Eggers reading from his latest book at the New Orleans Center for Creative Arts. (Neeerds!!!) What is the what?

Spanish Town Mardi Gras parade (Should I mention the Isis parade?)

Monster Truck Show at the Centroplex Baton Rouge River Center



Femme Femme Femme exhibit at NOMA

Kathy Griffin FTW!!!1 How awesome is Kathy!



Movies I enjoyed...
Helvetica special screening courtesy of the New Orleans Film Society!

Paris je t'aime

Into the Wild, which I had the pleasure of reading before I had the pleasure of viewing on the big screen.

Other book moments I liked...
On the beach, leafing through some of Wil Wheaton's short stories.

Eat Pray Love. How else can you sum it up? Just remember that I read it before Oprah (and potentially Julia Roberts) ruined it.

What else?
I played music for the first time in years at the family reunion.
I think I did a funeral too. Did I make it through the year without doing a wedding?? Not to worry, I already have two booked for 2008. :)

Almost had jury duty for the first time.

One of my childhood friends died in a car wreck.

Another friend moved away.

We lost Uncle Gene. :(

Some of my best friends at work got better jobs and moved on. Literally and, I'm hoping, figuratively as well. The world has turned and left me here. Should I mention that I almost got promoted? Nah...

Made some new friends. McGregor, party of four?

My niece got engaged.

Matt got engaged! (All my babies are growing up!)

At least one of my siblings got divorced, possibly two?

I tried a yoga class!

Experienced what I would consider my sickest day ever.

And... I started a blog!

Suck on that!

Here's to 2008!

into the wild

What if I were smiling and running into your arms?
Would you see then what I see now?

Saw Into the Wild last night. I liked it. Emile Hirsch did an incredible job in his portrayal of Chris McCandless.



Kudos to Emile, Sean Penn, Jon Krakauer, Chris' family, both at home and on the road, for telling his story and allowing it to grow into what it has become.

trapped in the closet

Forgot to mention... R. Kelly's Trapped in the Closet was on IFC last weekend, all 22 chapters of the hip-hopera. I decided to check it out, just for the silly novelty of it. It was immediately annoying, due mainly to the hysterical singing and the nauseating repetition in the music. Yet nothing is repeated, no verse, no refrain... By repetition, I mean that he only uses two chords throughout the entire work. 84 minutes. 2 chords. Genius? No. Excruciating.

It tells the story of how a one night stand can set off a chain reaction of events that reveal a web of lies and deception. Yeah, he leaves no stone unturned in his examination of the relationships in this twisted tale. Well, eventually, after several dramatic cliffhangers, I was curious to see how the hell it was going to end. "To Be Continued."

Kelly claims to have made twenty more installments "that have yet to be filmed," and then reiterated his open-ended stance on the fate of future installments, claiming that the series will end "when the aliens say it's over". I suppose he'll be busy for a while, trying to figure out what else to cram into his story. Shock and awe. Is this what they call carving out one's own niche? Truly a pioneer? Don't say I didn't warn you!

more helvetica

The DVD edition of Helvetica is now available for order. The DVD includes the full 80-minute feature film, plus over 90 minutes of additional interviews with Massimo Vignelli, Matthew Carter, Erik Spiekermann, Hermann Zapf, and many more. 16x9 anamorphic widescreen presentation, with English and German language subtitles, and a 12-page color booklet.

Release date: November 6. Pre-order now, you'll save some cash, get early shipping and exclusive goodies.

There's also a limited-edition box set, which includes the DVD, three letterpressed mini-posters, a color C-print of a still from the film (one of ten different stills) signed by director Gary Hustwit, two love/hate Helvetica buttons, and a letter of actual Helvetica metal type! Limited edition of 1,000 copies, order yours now.

Within minutes of receiving the email notice, I pre-ordered my very own copy of the DVD. Can you guess which version? :]

one night only

Saw a special screening of Helvetica last night at the Contemporary Arts Center in New Orleans!

A documentary film by Gary Hustwit about typography, graphic design, and global visual culture, it looks at the proliferation of one typeface (which is celebrating its 50th birthday this year) as part of a larger conversation about the way type affects our lives.

I didn't know what to expect. I was curious about the film. But as more and more people arrived, I grew more excited. It was becoming more of an event. Eventually, the theater room, which seats about 200 people, was full.

For a documentary about a font (understatement?), I found the film interesting and quite entertaining -- and from the resounding laughter and applause, so did the rest of the audience. Plus, I thought it was cool to see and hear the faces behind the typefaces, names I had come to recognize -- Erik Spiekermann, Matthew Carter, Hermann Zapf, the guys from Hoefler & Frere-Jones... Spiekermann was particularly amusing, with his opinions and eccentricity. Later I remembered that I subscribe to his blog.

Oh Dae-su

Here's one you probably haven't heard of... Saw Oldboy last night, a Korean film about revenge. It was wicked and delightful.

This might hurt a little...

If you want to stay healthy in America, don't get sick.

Ain't that the truth? Saw Sicko last night. It was interesting, sad, infuriating, funny...
I recommend it. We have so much to learn from Canada, England, France... Cuba.

P.S. I'm moving to France!

On a more positive note, one of the previews was for a movie entitled Into the Wild based on a book by Jon Krakauer. Looks like quite an escape. I just checked out the book from the library and cannot wait to start reading it! I want to finish it before the movie comes out in September. Wish me luck!

broken hearted hoover fixer sucker guy

Saw Once last night. It was great.

From a NY Times review:

...“Once” is not a typical musical, rock or otherwise. The film tells the story of a busker who meets a young Eastern European pianist on the streets of Dublin. The two become friends and collaborators; although each is in the midst of a troubled relationship, they also become potential lovers. As the two characters rehearse and record the busker’s songs, the musical performances are woven into the narrative; instead of being jarring set pieces, they’re part of the plot.

[The director] hopes that the ambiguous relationship at the core of the film will also resonate with viewers. “It’s the ones who are gone who haunt you for the rest of your life,” he said. “Instead of saying, ‘I love you’ or ‘I miss you,’ they just disappear.”

et moi, j'aime paris aussi

Aujourd'hui on a vu le film Paris, je t'aime. C'était super! Mais je ne suis pas tombé amoureux 18 fois, comme l'affiche dit. C'est la vie...