October 2008 Music Diary

Sorry for the lack of updates. Very very busy with work, and fighting off that cold that's going around. Here's what iTunes tells me I'm listening to this month.

The Man Who Can't Be Moved - The Script
Spiralling - Keane
The Lovers are Losing - Keane
Pretend That You're Alone - Keane
Black Burning Heart - Keane
Take Back The City - Snow Patrol
The Shock of the Lightning - Oasis
Human - The Killers
One Day Like This - Elbow
Sex on Fire - Kings of Leon

The Script - yet another sappy sensitive male alt-pop-group from Ireland. Curse them for being so catchy.

Keane's new album has grown on me. The first week I had it, it didn't move me - but now there are more and more tracks that have burrowed their way into my brain.

Just got the new Snow Patrol - haven't heard enough yet. Love this track, though.

Thank you, UK Radio, for exposing me to the new Oasis and Elbow. And Sex on Fire might be Kings of Leon's best song ever.

Killers - are we dancer? Not your best song, but still damn good.

At least my teeth are clean...

Sigh. Long boring story involving insurance companies, but the end result - I had to go to a new dentist. So I went to a dentist on my new plan today for a cleaning.

First off, Doctor Stabby McStab D.D.S. was thirty minutes late. Second, the offices were cold - they felt like the inside of an old Soviet military hospital. No color anywhere, no colorful pictures - just a stale white everywhere.

Then they made me retake my x-rays even though I had x-rays from my last visit IN MY HAND. They gave me some story about how the pictures weren't good enough quality for them to be able to use. Because apparently the aperture on my old x-rays was ALL WRONG, the composition was a mess, and sharpening the layers in Photoshop would take too long. Thankfully, the John Toll of dental technicians came along and saved the day.

A more cynical man would think that they retook the x-rays because it's easy money from the insurance company. But shame on you if you thought that. Their dedication to dental x-rays beautiful enough to frame and mount on the wall should be applauded.

Next came, Stabby McStab introduces himself and does his check to see if my gums were receding. How does he do that? By stabbing me repeatedly over and over again with some pointy thing, then telling me that this is proof that "bugs" (his words, not mine) were sneaking into my gums. I'm not mocking the seriousness of gum issues, but if you believe the literature they gave me, my gums are apparently going to cause me to die immediately.

Oh - meanwhile, the television set in the dentist's office? It's set to some A&E program about Cold Cases - while I'm getting scraped, I get to hear Bill Curtis' robust voice explaining, "The police couldn't find the woman's body... until the police near the cattle field made a grisly, disturbing discovery."

Then we have this conversation-

Stabby McStab: You have a filling on your back molar here.
Me: Yeah. It's old.
Stabby McStab: It's cracked.
Me: Doesn't surprise me. It's old.
Stabby McStab: You're probably going to want to get that- HEY, have you considered teeth whitening?
Me: Wait, what?
Stabby McStab: Teeth whitening! It's the latest thing. Let me show you!
Me: What about my cracked fill-
Stabby McStab: Let me show you the pictures. They're amazing!

And then finally, after the assistant cleans my teeth, I get the water to spit... and there's NO SINK to spit into. I basically get a vacuum hose that I get to spit into, and the vacuum sucks my spit away.

The co-pay at the end felt less like a co-pay and more like a bribery to get me out of that office. Take my money and let me out of here. Now I know how Victor Lazlo felt getting the papers of transit at the end of Casablanca. "Get me the @#$# out of this Godforsaken place!"

So there it is. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go move heaven and earth to get my old dentist back.

Rumors

I love the rumor mill that goes along with being a writer. Everybody has to stay on top of what's going on in the industry. But sometimes it gets a little silly.

Case in point.

Back in the summer, the gossip was about someone we'll call Writer C. At an event in early July, the talk was all about how Writer C was going to be head-writing on a BIG SHOW. Everyone talked about how it was a great gig. Writer C is a great writer and the Big Show was a perfect fit for him. Writers were excitedly talking to their agents about sending their samples in.

Then came Comic Con in July. Around Friday of Comic Con, a friend told me that word was out - the Big Show had been killed. The news had come directly from one of Writer C's agents. Much of the gossip at the parties was about how it sucked for Writer C that he lost such a sweet gig.

That was three months ago. A few days ago I had lunch with Writer C. And, of course, he's now working on the Big Show.

I asked him about the whole process, and he told me about how he first got contacted to write the show... the week AFTER Comic Con.

I told him that everyone had heard about him getting the job a month BEFORE Comic Con.

Needless to say, he was baffled. Somehow we had all heard about him getting a job - and then LOSING said job - weeks before it happened.

Which leads me to my point. I need to start a gossip website. Seriously! I'm trading in gossip before it even happens! How awesome would my website be? You watch - I'm going to start a Defamer website for animation people. Stuff like, "Eugene was spotted stealing a Rice Krispie treat from the Disney commissary."

Let me know if you hear anything.

My NHL Predictions

Sorry about the lack of updates. So busy I haven't even had time to play Colonization. More busy days ahead.

But the NHL season has started, so it's time for me to make my annual predictions. I've done this for a few years, and three things have become painfully evident-

1. I am really good at predicting the Western Conference. I've got the pulse of the Western Conference.
2. I am really awful at predicting the Eastern Conference. Last season, the four teams I picked to be in last place? They all made the playoffs.
3. I hate being a Los Angeles Kings fan.

So take this with a grain of salt. This is just what I'm thinking will happen.

Western Conference

1. Detroit Red Wings

C'mon, is there any surprise here? They return a championship team... oh, and just to hedge their bets, they poached one of the best players from the team they beat to win the championship. I don't know if they're a shoe-in to win the championship at the end, but they're a shoe-in to be the best team in the regular season.

2. Dallas Stars

Dallas, San Jose, and Anaheim are all neck-and-neck in the Pacific Division. I'm giving the edge to Dallas based on how well they finished last year, but it could easily be San Jose or Anaheim. The top three in the Pacific are that close.

3. Edmonton Oilers

Lots of young scorers, Souray is back, and Visnovsky was a steal. As long as their young scorers don't suffer the sophomore jinx and their goalie doesn't get hurt, I see them the strongest team in their division.

4. Anaheim Ducks
5. San Jose Sharks

Again, Dallas, Anaheim, and San Jose are almost too close to call. I'm just ranking them this way because Dallas closed last season strongly - and because San Jose closed so poorly. But again - too close to call.

6. Calgary Flames

Just checking. Mike Keanan hasn't erupted yet, right? He hasn't ripped the team apart? Okay, cool. Then the Flames are fine.

7. Chicago Blackhawks

As long as Toews and Kane don't suffer a sophomore jinx, the Blackhawks have upgraded their talent at all positions. They're going to be in, and pretty soon, they're going to be REALLY good.

8. Phoenix Coyotes

This one is tough to call. It's hard to see four teams from the same division making it, but just on paper, Phoenix has enough talent to make the playoffs. Turris might win Rookie of the Year, Jokinen is going to have a monster year, and Bryzgalov is going to be money in net.

9. Minnesota Wild

Too much scoring gone from the team - and the Gaborik contract thing will be a distraction all season long. But they're so good defensively, it wouldn't surprise me if they make that #8 spot.

10. Vancouver Canucks

I'm not big on the Canucks talent up front - and the Sedin contract thing will be a distraction. But they're rock solid on defense and their goaltending is all-world.

11. Nashville Predators

I'm always picking the Preds to barely miss the playoffs, and they always make it. I'm probably wrong again. But I just don't see how they make the playoffs over the other teams. Maybe I need my vision checked.

12. Columbus Blue Jackets

The last four teams in the conference are all pretty close in talent - but out of these four teams, Columbus has the best goaltending. So hurray for them - they'll look more respectable with that coveted 12th place.

13. St. Louis Blues

Maybe the Blues will surprise me. But they need their defensemen to step up and make up for the loss of Erik Johnson, and they need to squeeze another year out of vets like Tkachuk and Kariya.

14. Colorado Avalanche

The Avs make no sense to me. Talentwise - especially up front - they should be a lot better than this. But with guys like Sakic, Svatos, and Hejduk all missing time with injuries, they just can't keep up with the other teams. Their goaltending is also questionable. I mean, really, RAYCROFT? What, was Dan Cloutier not available?

15. Los Angeles Kings

I'm sure the Kings will be better than last year, but they'll still be last in the conference. And they won't get the #1 overall pick - the teams in the east will get that. The future is really bright. The present? Not so much.

Eastern Conference

1. Montreal Canadiens

Oodles of young talent at all positions. As long as Carey Price doesn't choke in the playoffs. Because he might.

2. Pittsburgh Penguins

Losing Gonchar hurts bad. As long as Crosby, Malkin, and Fleury are okay, the Pens will be okay. Wonder if Staal has a break-out year in him?

3. Washington Capitals

All-aboard the Capitals bandwagon! Ovechkin is so awesome, I predict the Caps will cure diseases, solve world hunger, and establish peace on Earth.

4. Philadelphia Flyers

Great young talent at forward and defense. If they get better, they might even be good enough to win their division.

5. New York Rangers

No Jagr, no Avery, no Shanahan, no problem. They have enough scoring punch up front to give Lundquist a fighting chance every night.

6. Boston Bruins

Even though they're not at Montreal's level, the pieces are there up front and on defense. Can the goaltending be good enough all year long?

7. New Jersey Devils

Every year I think the Devils are finally going to get too old and not have enough. This is not the year. But it's coming.

8. Buffalo Sabres

They barely missed the playoffs last year. I think they make it this year. Talentwise, they don't have as much as some of the teams beneath them - but they always seem to squeeze maximum effort out of their guys.

9. Carolina Hurricanes

Man, these guys get really bad Stanley Cup hangover. I really like what they've done with their defensemen, but I think they miss the playoffs again.

10. Ottawa Senators

One unstoppable line of forwards, but their best defensemen have gone elsewhere and they have goalies that no other team would want. Not good enough to make the playoffs.

11. Tampa Bay Lightning

They've totally remade their last place team from last season. The problem is that we've seen time and time again that you have to remake your team with young kids - not buying your way with veterans. They won't make the playoffs.

12. New York Islanders

Just like the West, the last four teams in the conference are close in talent. That makes goaltending the difference maker, even though three of the teams have great goaltending. So I'll give the Isles this coveted 12th place spot.

13. Florida Panthers

In back to back years, they've traded away their franchise goalie and their franchise forward. Once Bouwmeester makes it clear he's not coming back, they'll trade away their franchise defenseman. What a mess.

14. Toronto Maple Leafs

Toronto needs Mat Sundin to come out of retirement, and they need Jason Blake to bounce back with a 50 goal year. I don't think either is going to happen.

15. Atlanta Thrashers

The winner of the worst team in the NHL this season. They've got one of the most dynamic forwards in the league... and nothing else. Their goaltending is good when healthy - and that's not very often. If Kovalchuk is still on the team, I think they draft Tavares. If Kovalchuk wants out, I think they draft Hedman.

Worst... Best Man... EVER

Sorry. Very busy - no time to blog. In the meantime, laugh at this.

No Business Like Show Business

Had a meeting over at Warner Animation today. Can't tell you anything about it on the blog, of course - but suffice to say, there's some AMAZING jaw-dropping stuff being done over there. I mean flat out WOW.

So living in Los Angeles, you get used to those yellow signs around town that direct crews to their tv and film shoots. I live near a street that's used all the time for tv and film shoots, so we occasionally get sent these notices about upcoming shoots. They're mostly just warning us not to panic if we see Kiefer Sutherland torturing terrorists or Andy Dick driving erratically. That sort of thing.

A few weeks ago, we got this hand-delivered to my house-

My Name is Earl

Description of Scene:

EXPLOSION & SIMULATED BULLET EFFECTS

Talent is blown up out of chair.
Explosion 7:00am - 10:00pm.
Simulated bullet effects 5:00am - 10:00pm
Talent dragged by picture cat.
Talent hanging from crane and swings into prop wall that is on fire.

Awesome. I need to start watching My Name is Earl again. The description alone makes me want to watch. The fact you might see my house in the background is an added bonus. And I'm a big fan of people being dragged by picture cats.

I've got a ton of work to do, along with Sid Meier's Civilization IV: Colonization waiting to be played. More blogging when I get time.

Trueheart's Hollywood Axiom

From LIFE IS MORE BEAUTIFUL THAN YOU DESERVE!-

Trueheart's Hollywood Axiom

Executives are frustrated producers.
Producers are frustrated writers.
Writers are frustrated directors.
Directors are frustrated actors.
And actors are frustrated human beings.