Mr. Stewart

Mr. Stewart ended his earthly journey this morning at 4am. Fitting somehow...this is the 3rd Sunday of Advent, Gaudete Sunday...the day when we sing "Rejoice!" He died as he wanted, at home, with his family.

Mr. Stewart was the first in-law, a distinction he took very seriously. Sometimes too seriously. But then, he was a serious man. He was a thinker. Quiet. Where everyone else in the family would greet you with effusion and big hugs, he was the one who hung back a little before offering a subdued "Hey, Lorraine" and a quick embrace.

I don't know that Mr. Stewart was always that comfortable with the family. Given his quiet, serious nature, I think our crazy was sometimes a mystery to him. He liked it but I'm not sure he always knew how to get down with it. On the other hand, I'm saying this about a man who once dressed in drag and danced an Irish jig at Thanksgiving, so maybe he was crazier than he let on.

Here's what I do know: he loved his wife very much. He loved his daughters very much. And he was an awesome uncle. He was the one who would sign on to take all the kids off on some adventure when the rest of the grownups wanted to do anything but.

The last thing we ever did together physically was hold hands and pray. The last thing he ever made me do was laugh out loud for a long time. And ding dong, that's saying a lot.

I've played this before. The Spouse was just shooting random video at a family Thanksgiving. Mr. Stewart and his daughter Hannah, the one who made him a grandpa, were talking about her buying a car. Very mundane, but The Spouse turned it into something else. And somehow it seemed like a fitting tribute. Maybe because I don't have any video of that crazy Irish jig.

Rest in peace, Mr. Stewart. I'm so thankful your suffering is over. You were dearly loved. We'll catch you on the flip side.

Hannah Und Heir Papa

R.I.P.

Sydney Pollack died yesterday.

I really liked most of his movies but whenever he'd show up on the other side of the camera it made me smile. He had a kind of elegant scruffiness about him that I adored and it made me happy.

He was also married to the same person for 49 years. That's a heck of an achievement.

Rest well, Sydney.

Cinematic Wonders

Take 30 seconds, if you will, and check out the trailer for
our movie.

Didn't The Spouse do a nice job?

Day of Rest. Ha.

I got up yesterday at 6am because I had to go help out with the PTA Pumpkin Patch before retrieving The Child to go to church so I could deliver the homily for the youth liturgy and then come home and work on the school phone directory which is going out this week. If it hadn't been for the absolute autumnal perfection of the weather, an afternoon glass of vin rouge with The Neighbor (who is finally done gallivanting), meatloaf for dinner and "Brothers and Sisters", I might have found the day a bit too too.


All those things I wanted to get done last week got done and so now I can focus my energies on more exciting things, like writing projects and the upcoming Autumnal Feast. I came up with a menu last night. Have to run it by The Spouse before executing the plan but it is, in my humble estimation, killer.

The Spouse finished a rough cut assembly of the movie. It looks pretty darned good. Once the rough bits are smoothed out and Buck's orchestration gets laid down, I think it will be a fine little film. If you are dying of curiosity, you can g o look at some stills from the movie over at The Spouse's blog.

The Child is home with a stomach thing that has been going around. Blast. Blast about the stomach thing, not so much the her staying home thing. I'm making her stay in bed so it's not like she's in my way or anything.

That is all.

Oh, the Glamour

The movie premiere last night was totally fun. Mostly because it turns out that the movie is really good. Seriously. The Child was beside herself during the prelims, darting around like a butterfly introducing herself and mentioning, oh so casually, that she had a role in the film.

"Sans Vie" is set 50 years in the future, in a rather dismal world, where people can connect to a giant computer called "Opticonnect". Using special contact lenses their eyes become the computer monitor. They can connect to others on-line, go into virtual worlds, like that. Now, least you think "eew, it's sci fi", not so much. The point of the movie is that this virtual way of experiencing life cuts one off from others. (Of course, I have a fundamental problem with this premise given my experience of "virtual" friends via Blogtopia, but let's not debate that for the moment). The main character, Jolie, is one such person. She meets a woman named Paige, who does not use Opticonnect and whose attempts at friendship challenge Jolie to consider whether her "life" has any particular meaning and whether or not engaging with others might not be a better choice.

It's all in French, for no other reason than the writer/producer/director, Matthew Morris, always wanted to make a French film. It's beautifully shot and even more beautifully lit (thanks to the abundant talents of The Spouse, don'tcha know). But the real point of the evening was, of course, that this was The Child's film debut. Or, as I clarified after being corrected by The Spouse (who said, "What about 'Hannah und Heir Papa'?), the first film she made that wasn't based on daddy having a whim one Thanksgiving weekend.

Hannah Und Heir Papa



Anyhoo, we were watching "Sans Vie" and The Child grabbed my hand when she realized her scene was coming up. She only had one line (in French), mostly it was emoting and such. But she looked fabulous and did a really fine job with her part. She was soooooo proud! Here are some stills of her in the film:









Here she is with Melissa Roberts, who plays the adult Jolie:



And here she is last night at the premiere, with the director in his superfantastic Versace suit that he bought for the occasion and let me just tell you that if I'd known he was going to dress like that and that his girlfriend was going to be in a hot black strapless gown with matching gloves and that half a dozen other women were going to be dressed to red carpet standards The Child and I so would have glammed up more than we did. I coulda worn my floofy tulle skirt, for crying out loud.



And now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to spend the rest of the weekend doing absolutely NOTHING.

Birthday Treats

Sling couldn't make it to my birthday party but he promised he'd be there in spirits, and by "spirits" I mean, he promised to design a cocktail for the event. And he did. The Neighbor, JP and I had one before the party and until the Chambord runs out, The Neighbor and I will be enjoying one at least once a week. (It's a little much for daily consumption, what with us wanting to keep our trim and youthful figures, but the occasional indulgence is good for the soul).

This is the email he sent me, which was just sweet as can be:

I know that you enjoy "Pink Squirrels",so I wanted to design something along those lines for your birthday,only a little more special.

I wanted it to be seasonal,what with your B-day landing right on the cusp of Fall.
I wanted it to be something that wasn't too expensive...But still,..this is a milestone event!
I wanted it to be festive,AND!...
I wanted it to be named after you.
Two recipes follow...Single serving mixed drink,and blended party style.

****The 'Rainey Day****

Single serve:
In mixing glass with ice;
3/4 oz. Chambord Raspberry Liqueur
1/4 oz. Dark Creme De Cacao
1 oz. Vodka
1 oz. Light Creme (or milk)
Shake and strain into chilled Martini glass
Garnish with Maraschino cherry.

Blended:
Fill mixing cup 3/4 full with ice,..Add;
2 oz. Chambord Raspberry Liqueur
1 oz. Dark Creme De Cacao
2 oz.Vodka
Splash Whipped Cream
Add milk to top of ice and blend until desired consistency.
Serve in Poco Loco (or some such fancy) glass.

Happy Birthday my Dear Friend!!

Isn't he just the sweetest thing, ever? I love having my own personal bartender.

Thanks, Sling. It's a very yummy drink. You're the greatest.

JP loved the Chambord bottle. He said he felt like the pope when he carried it.

It does look like something you'd find in a sacristy.

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In a perfect world, we wouldn't do a single thing this weekend. And mostly we won't. But tonight we are attending a movie premiere. (I know...such a glamorous life). It's for a short that was done by The Spouse's buddy Matthew Morris, a little thing called "Sans Vie". It's set in the future, in the French quarter of Seattle. Yeah. We don't have a French quarter. Whatever. It's the future. I guess the French are in charge. JP will hate the future.

The Spouse worked on the film and The Child had a small role as the main character as a young girl. It was her first film so she's very excited to see it.

Filmed Entirely on Location

I keep finding gaffer's tape everywhere!

The recycling bin is nearly full and it was just picked up on Thursday. (Movie crews go through A LOT of bottled water).

I sure hope all the cobwebs in the living room don't show up on film.

Someone left their makeup bag.

I have to find a place to hide the box of Tootsie Pops.

Somewhere between right now and 4:08pm Friday I have to mop.

That's a Wrap, People!

We're done shooting the movie, which is hardly to suggest that it is finished. Any amount of scoring and editing lie ahead, but that's not my lookout. All I have to worry about is how many of my scenes land on the cutting room floor. Well, that and return my house to some semblance of normal. The crew did a good job of generally returning large things their proper places. But there are still any number of half-full water bottles to recover from the set the living room, piles of "wardrobe" to be returned to the closet and I want to take my duster to all the cobwebs I noticed during the "poor pitiful me" scene.

Here's a picture of The Hat and The Child, between takes.

It was so good to see The Hat, even though most of our interaction came from shooting each other smiley looks and sharing an aside between takes. On Saturday night we wrapped at 11pm (We had some night exteriors to shoot...none of that "day for night" nonesense for Herr Director) and then The Hat and I stayed up until 1:30am, talking. I love her.

Yesterday The Spouse woke me at 8am. We had to scramble because call time was 9 am. And this crew of ours, which I will remind you is NOT getting paid and doing this all for love, are extremely professional. If call was 9am, people would be arriving by 8:55.

I hoped up, greeted The Hat, made coffee and realized that I had my two biggest speeches left to shoot. Guess what? I couldn't remember either of them. At all.

The Hat ran lines with me when I got a chance. She was very nice. She tried very hard not to laugh at how often I stared off blankly and then asked, "Line?" She told me to do the Chicken Dance. It worked, shaking loose the lines just in time for me to actually deliver them on camera.

These 4 days of shooting have been exhausting. By yesterday morning I was beginning to feel ready to be done with all this, have a normal weekend around the casa and all that. But I confess that when I heard "This is the martini shot, people!" I got a little varkelmpt. When the Director shouted, "That's a wrap, people" and everyone started applauding, there were tears. Tears I could have used in the "poor pitiful me" scene, but tears nonetheless.

Then we all ate lasagne. I'm going to miss craft services.

Once the house was restored, sorta, to rights and the last strips on the script board were ceremoniously turned by our superfantastic AD, once idiot checks were done to be sure no bits of equipment lingered where they ought not and once everyone was properly hugged and thanked and sent on their way, I lay down to nap. For 3 hours. Then we watched dailies. Then I went to bed.

Get your fancy schmanzy clothes in order. I'll let you know when we're having the premiere.

Now I get to focus on this coming weekend's celebrations and the arrival of JP. I. Can't. Wait.

What I Really Want to Do is Direct

Not.

I learned something very important this weekend: movie making is not glamorous.

It is hours of waiting around for 2 minutes of action. Which you then have to repeat over and over. It is hitting your mark, opening a quarter turn to the camera, being cued and then having to wait because yet another jet is flying overhead. It is being in makeup at 9am with your first on-camera lines coming at 2:30pm. It is getting yourself all worked up so you can cry on camera and just when you get actual tears realizing that the crew is still fussing with the camera angle. It's remembering to have the sound guy take off your wireless so you can have some privacy in the bathroom. It is putting in an 8 hour day for what will amount to 5 minutes of final film and being so tired that your bones ache, even when you are sleeping.

Yup. Glam.Our.

On the plus side, the people working on this project are all really nice, really funny folks. And they are all total professionals, even though none of them is getting paid. It is very cool to see Iwanski and The Spouse's words coming to life. Things that seemed rather simple on the page became much more interesting in reality. It's fun to learn a new language:

"Kill the baby!" (Nothing to do with child abuse and everything to do with lighting).

"This is the martini shot!" (Last shot of the day - we get this right and we can all have beer).

And there's the litany for each shot:

"Slate!"
"Sound?"
"Sound ready".
"Camera?"
"Ready...camera rolling".
"Action!"

Another thing I learned about movie making is that it is a big plus to work with a good director. And I can honestly say, even though I am sleeping with him, that our director is a dream. The Spouse has a decided vision of what this film is supposed to look like and he communicates that clearly to both cast and crew. Additionally, he's a consummate professional. I have never, of course, really seen him in action movie-wise and when I did he was working as an electrician. In all his years of movie-making, he's learned a lot about direction and it shows. He's getting the performances he wants, he trusts his crew and he's on the mark with his shooting schedule. I was very apprehensive about working with him in this capacity but I needn't have been. He is A.Maz.Ing.

Not to mention, he was brilliant with The Child. I was bored out of my skull most of the time but at least I know how to cope with boredom. The Child, especially the first day, was twitchy and goofy and I, for one (though I don't think I was alone in this) frequently recalled the old Hollywood adage, "Never work with animals or children". But The Spouse managed to pull the performance he wanted from her and was able to control her in a very professional manner. It wasn't daddy yelling at the kid, it was the Director, working calmly with giddy teen talent. He did his job and she did hers. And yesterday she was far more composed and far less annoying.

It's been quite an experience so far. I'm looking forward to next weekend's shoot. I also know that I am so not giving up my day job.

Thursday Bits

The Child is coming with me to work today for just a bit. SCG is picking her up and taking her off to be a little almost-mama helper. The clock is ticking down on impending motherhood and SCG has some things she wants to get done before that.

I was going to be SCG's doula until her OB declared (a week ago) that the baby is looking to be about 10 pounds now (with a due date of Sept. 2). The doc said the odds were real high that she could labor and labor and labor and ultimately need to have a C-section. So they've gone ahead and scheduled it for Monday. That means I won't be doing doula duty but I'll get to be with her in the recovery room. Yeah, I'm kinda disappointed but we're all a little relieved that there won't be any frantic 3am "we're in labor" calls. All nice and tidy and on the calendar. If you gotta do it, you gotta.

It all seems a little unreal. We've know SCG since she was in college; she and The Spouse were in the same RCIA class, back when The Child was just a wee bit. She became a beloved part of our little community and we've walked with her through all sorts of "growing up" sorts of experiences...losing a parent, graduating, getting a "real" job, meeting and marrying her Prince. Now she's going to be a mommy and I can hardly stand it! I can't wait to meet the little beggar and pinch his wittle wittle cheeks!

In other news, I think I mentioned that The Spouse is making a movie next month, a little short written by the fabulous Iwanski. We had a rehearsal last night. It's coming together but I'm still not off book. I just don't have any time to work on my lines right now. Fortunately, I'm sleeping with the director so he's cutting me some slack.

I was the lead in every student body play from 5th-8th grade. I loved, loved, loved acting. And I was, though I say it myself, not half bad at it. But I didn't have much drive or competitive spirit. Once I got to high school, I couldn't bring myself to go out for big roles. What if I didn't get it? (I realize that is a very sad little statement...fear of rejection kept me from doing something I really enjoyed. But I was not a child possessed of enormous confidence. So there you go. And that's why Meryl Streep is famous and I'm not.)

I was in the chorus of "Finian's Rainbow" my freshman year and played Annie, the nervous housemaid, in "Life with Father" my junior year. I actually won the Best Supporting Actress award for that portrayal. (See, no small parts, only small actors). But the acting bug had pretty much fled by college. Although I dated some actors. That was enough drama for me.

Anyhoo, point is, I'm excited to get in front of the lights again, after all these years.

And now, all of a sudden, I find thoughts of work and all that I need to do today crowding into my head, leaving no room for bloggy observations. Let me tell you something: I am very grateful that this Little Job came along when it did, for many reasons. But I will be soooooo glad when I'm done. It's so nice to make a little bit of money while clarifying that no, working in an office is not even remotely what I want to be doing at this time in my life. It's nice to have that confirmed.

How Do You Say, "Bummer" in Swedish?

Strictly speaking, there is someone who is in worse shape than I am. Ingmar Bergman has died.

Honestly, I wasn't a huge fan of his work. Oh, sure, I appreciated it intellectually and wanted to embrace his films because all the cool kids were doing it and he influenced film-makers I do care about, like Woody Allen. But mostly I thought his films were sorta boring. I actually fell asleep watching "Wild Strawberries". In the theatre.

You know who else puts me to sleep? Stanley Kubrik. No kidding. With a very few exceptions, Kubrik bores the snot out of me.

But I digress. Ingmar Bergman was a gifted film-maker who knew his way around, uh, a camera and um, austere windswept Swedish landscapes. And he sure knew how to light his actresses. Snaps. (I'm sorry, I keep having this picture in my head of him playing chess with Death before he, you know, died. Is that wrong?)

Rest in peace, Ingmar.

Here's a little film The Spouse made some years ago; his homage to Bergman.




Hannah Und Heir Papa

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More Good News

The Child learned yesterday that she's getting honors-worthy grades in math and science as well! Her homework scores in math are 100%, 91% for science. If she keeps that up and does well on tests she's golden.

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Some months ago The Spouse put out an open call for a script for a movie short, just so he can fool around with making a movie. He likes doing that sort of thing. Iwanski rose toe the bait with a good basic script. The two of them have been honing and polishing and tonight we're having our first read through. Yeah, neopotism. The Child and I are starring, with The Neighbor cast as "the best friend". It will be a stretch for her, but she's game.

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We're also having Renee's Thai steak salad for dinner tonight. Yum.

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And that's all. I have much to take care of today, given my obsession yesterday with the bank account.

TGIM

It's not often that the weekend makes you wish for Monday but this was pretty much the kind that can. Not that it was monumentally horrible. The front-end was too loaded with running around plus there's some ambient stress in the household that, shall we say, wasn't managed in the best possible way. On Saturday morning I was having coffee with The Neighbor and asked, "Is it Monday yet?"

But there were some highlights. Working backwards, the season finale of "Battlestar Galactica" was swell. I'll never hear "All Along the Watchtower" in quite the same way again.



Bob Dylan is a cylon!

I made a terrific pork tenderloin thing for dinner last night, oven roasted with an orange marmalade-ginger glaze. I cooked down the pan juices & glaze & enriched it with a blob of butter to make a sauce. Accompanied by couscous with lemon, mint & chives and some asparagus, it was a very lovely springtime supper.

Not that the weather around here has been remotely springlike. March is a stupid month. We're ready for spring, it is spring but we had borderline torrential rain all weekend. And while it is actually clear this morning, there was ice on the car again. I digress.

The best thing about the weekend was that The Spouse and I got to attend the Seattle premiere screening of ""Fortune Hunters" the film he worked on last summer. It was terrific.

With a run time of only 21 minutes, it is a sweet little film about a Chinese-American guy, played by Kelvin Yu, who writes fortunes at his dad's cookie factory. His girlfriend is planning to go to China for a year so he decides to break up with her. After realizing what an idiot move that was, he writes her, begging for another chance. He unknowingly sends the message to the fortune printer and mayhem ensues.

The movie is charming, funny, well-acted and beautifully lit (which, of course, owes almost entirely to The Spouse. Just saying). The film has been screened at a couple of film festivals and they've entered it in SIFF, the Seattle International Film Festival. Given that this is in fact one of the biggest festivals in the world, it would be huge if they get in. Fingers crossed.

Meanwhile, the film just begs to be a feature. Writer/director Thom Harp and Mike Standish, who produced and co-wrote the show, are working on the full-length script as we speak and plan to shoot in Seattle, with as many of the crew who are available. The Spouse told Thom he'd do what he could.

You'll remember that The Spouse had a terrific time making this movie. Part of the reason for that had to owe to the fact that everyone involved in the production was just as nice as can be. I didn't have a ton of behind-the-scenes experiences during the time that he was making movies for a "living". But based on what I did, it always seemed like the crew were totally awesome, fun people but that the farther up the echelon you got, not always so much. Thom and Mike are truly lovely people, not at all pretentious and really super funny. There was a little Q&A after the screening and I kept imagining the two of them in tuxes, accepting the Oscar. Oh. Wait. Oscars rarely go to comedies. More's the pity. They deserve it.

If you have a chance to see this little number at a film festival near you, please go. You won't be sorry. And Seattlites, if it gets into SIFF you gotta go see it.

Before the movie started, The Spouse was talking to some folks and called me over to meet them. I'd met Neil Holcomb, the cinematographer, on the set. There was some lad who I totally forgot already (sorry) and a cute little thing who reminds one of Goldie Hawn. The Spouse introduced her with a "And this is Jessica, who did something on the show". She was only the female lead.

After the screening I went up to congratulate her and said, "If it wouldn't be too much trouble, would you mind giving me your autograph?" I told her about The Child and her new-found love of acting and thought it might be very cool for her to have an autograph from a real live actress. Jessica was so cute...I think it might have been the first time anyone asked for her autograph. She gave it to me, adding "Break a leg" to her signature. I'm going to frame it for The Child.

The other cool thing about the screening was seeing The Spouse get a credit. He's worked on a lot of stuff but his name didn't always make it onto the credits. Seeing it on "Fortune Hunters", especially when he so enjoyed the experience of making it, was really superfantastic. Way to pad that IMdb profile, sweetie!

Well, That's a Fine How Do You Ho Ho Ho

It turns out that next Friday is the last day of school for the year. I did not know that. After being quite lacksidaisical about Christmas preparations I now have to get the bulk of it done next week, while I still have the freedom to do so. It's not a big deal, just a little surprising.

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Last night I dreamed that I found my earring, but it was missing a ruby. I discovered it at a birthday party for The Child, the theme of which was "fairies". The house was full of people I didn't know, leaving little adorable fairy-like party dresses as gifts. Except The Child was her real age and at 13 wasn't going to be fitting into any of the dresses. And then some woman wandered through and said, "I'm assuming because of her politics she'd like something that can be recycled?" Huh?

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I'm looking forward to this weekend. We don't have anything to do, except that The Child and I are going to Lorene's book-signing and out for coffee afterwards. (She told me yesterday that she wants to spend more time with me. Awww.)

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Speaking of spending time...as a family we are in the same house quite a lot but we don't necessarily spend inordinant amounts of time together doing mutual family things. Besides sitting down to dinner, that is. But we have a new project. The Spouse wants to make a little movie and he has received a script from the fabulously talented Mr. Iwanski and so it's going to be lights! camera! action! The Child and I are starring. Won't that be fun?

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I spent some time yesterday working on the play list for this weekend's 80s video extravaganza. It has, as I told JP, become a sickness with me. And mercy, just when I thought I'd run out of classic 80s hits I uncovered all sorts of things that hadn't been played yet. It'll be a fun weekend.