Stefan's Blog

Small world -- Jenny Dolan from Pennsylvania

noreply@blogger.com (Stefan Avalos) — Wed, 09 Oct 2013 07:58:00 +0000

I wrote this blog-essay a couple years ago but never posted it. Wanted to get the words right or something.
Time flies. so fuck it. Here's the post, perfect or not.

No matter the clichéd expressions; it is not a small world. In fact, it’s an enormous world. But when a billion random moments happen every second of every life -- well, there’s gonna be collisions. And once in a while a collision will be so direct that… bear with me... This story is something. At least I think it is.

I’m in the movie and TV business. In addition to writing and directing some of what you see on big, small and yet-ever-smaller screens, I also “hire on” to plenty of projects. Currently, I’m working on such a project; a movie about the American civil war. I point out that I am not a creator of this movie so as to assure that I am not 'guiding serendipities' in any way. I’m merely one of the crew on this ship.

Today, in a comfortable editing facility in Pasadena, Ca. I work on a section near the beginning of the movie. Temporary “slug” fills the screen. In huge bold letters, a low-resolution image of a newspaper headline from 1861 asks the readers, “Treason and Rebellion -- Or the constitution?”

My job today will be to turn this temporary title into a cool visual sequence.

I watch and re-watch the scene, allowing my mind to drift creatively; imagining what it could look and feel like in the final program. Then, I retrieve the elements required; high resolution counterparts to the lo-res “temps”; the main element being the original newspaper article. Dated August 28^th, 1861, it comes from the Library of Congress. In its entirety, the headline reads: Reason and Rebellion or the Constitution? The Union & the laws? Which will you choose? Freemen of old Bucks in DOYLESTOWN…

Stop!!

As already indicated, I’ve live in Los Angeles. However, I grew up and spent the majority of my life in a small town in southeastern Pennsylvania; so small that when asked from where I hail, I say, “Bucks County”. In fact, the town is Doylestown. Doylestown, Pa.

Three thousand miles away in Sunny California, I feel like someone from the past has goosed me.

I look again. Indeed, the newspaper is from Bucks County! Doylestown!

I’m so excited that my home town is right HERE is this article from 1861, that it is going to be in this movie, that I have to share it with some of the others in the edit room. I explain this is where I grew up. I tell them how small Doylestown is; how I can’t even imagine how small it was in 1861.

“Wow. Small world.” they say. “Yes”, I reply at the overused expression. “Yes it is.”

Later in the day, the researcher for the movie comes in to the editing room to discuss something with the director. As he’s leaving, I motion him over.

“Dave, I gotta show you something.”

Dave leans over my computer as I bring up the newspaper from 1861.

“This –“, I say with dramatic pause, “- is where I grew up! Doylestown, Pa. I was born and raised here! Dude, CAN YOU BELIEVE IT?!”

Dave straightens up from my monitor and nods. He seems a bit impressed -- but not nearly the way I think he should be.

“Small town in Pennsylvania, right?” he says, more as a statement than a question.

“Yes.” I laugh. “I can’t believe it.”

“You’re the second person I know from Doylestown. I went to college with a girl from there.” Dave comments casually.

I dubiously ponder the odds David from Los Angeles actually knows someone from D-town, Pa. The casualness of his statement thickens my doubts.

“My R.A. at Syracuse University was from Doylestown -- in Bucks County.”

Wow, anything’s possible. He did say “Bucks County”. My mind immediately goes into age/deduction math mode. How old is Dave? I suppose he’s roughly my age…. When would he have graduated? Back in Doylestown, I knew a fair share of people from high school, the various hangouts (Kelley’s, Doylestown Inn, Finneys, etc.) How crazy would it be… ?

“What’s her name?” I ask.

“Jennifer Dolan” he answers.

At this point, please stop ALL background music and sound. The wings of the hummingbird outside your window have just frozen in mid-beat. The second-hand on your watch -- THOOONCK -- just came to a standstill.

“Jenny Dolan?” I gape. “She was my next door neighbor! I GREW UP with Jenny Dolan! We shared the same bus stop in front of my house from elementary school to high school! You KNOW Jenny Dolan??!”

I can’t believe this! I haven’t seen Jenny since high school, when she graduated in 1984. She was awesome! She was one of the sweetest people I ever knew -- and I have known her since I was in second grade and she was in fourth. We used to talk about my KUNG-FU lunchbox!!! I still clearly remember the last time I saw her; in high school, when she put a small flower in my shirt button and pretended it was a hippie moment.

He knows Jennifer Dolan!!! They went to college together!

Dave shakes his head faintly before winding up and punching me in the face, really FUCKING hard.

“Jennifer Dolan who got stabbed to death by her boyfriend?”

It’s actually not too easy to recover from a complete sucker punch and maintain one’s cool. I think I do well because Dave is only about halfway into his next sentence before I’m able interrupt him.

“What?”

“Yeah, Jennifer graduated from Syracuse and went to Washington with her boyfriend. I think they broke up or something and he couldn’t handle it and he killed her.”

I can’t blame Dave for the matter of fact way he relays this information to me. And really, is there a good way to hear it? He mentions having read it in the Syracuse University Alumni magazine, and then disappears back to his office.

Hey, this is a major TV movie. The work doesn’t stop; huge amounts of work for all of us.

I try to concentrate on the monitors, on the program, on that newspaper headline from 1861 that has alerted me to news I hope isn’t right.

That night, at home, I do serious googling. It turns out that ‘Jennifer Dolan’ is a fairly common name. There was a movie about “Jenny Dolan”. There was a burglar by that name; lots of people.

But, with enough cross referencing of years, schools, towns, grim key-words and finally - parents and siblings… I arrive at “pay required” archives within the Washington Post from 1991.

I pay to read 90 odd, sterile words that I translate into my reality: Sweet, cute, wonderful - girl, teen, woman – Jennifer Dolan -- of Doylestown Pennsylvania… a friend I haven’t seen in twenty-seven years – has been dead for more than twenty of them. She never got to live her life. She never got to realize her dreams. In November of 1991, at age twenty-five, it was over for her; she was stabbed in the heart by her estranged boyfriend in a murder-suicide.

Been thinking about it for a while now and I haven’t found the meaning in any of it yet.

In 1861, a headline was set in type about the impending Civil War; a war of horrible, wasted young life. One hundred fifty years and three thousand miles away I read that headline, prompting news of a woman’s murder, twenty one years before: Jennifer Dolan, a girl I had known daily and with whom I’d grown up.

That's a lot of time and distance going backwards and forwards to demonstrate what a small world it is.

But dammit, did the story have to take that cruel twist?

The Cave

noreply@blogger.com (Stefan Avalos) — Wed, 09 May 2012 00:09:00 +0000

Wow... he lives... a blog entry after more than a year. That's crazy.

Yes, Facebook has decimated the blogging energy that I use to have; not that it was ever that great. Gone are the hours spent writing one post, instead - many small status updates. I fear that I too have an ever-decreasing attention span; a result of non-stop Internet. Well that and how busy I've been over the year.
Much work in TV, a move to a new home, moving in with a new girlfriend - yes, it has been a busy year.

But here I am, doing a quick entry to write about my new Post-Edit suite. Ah, exciting times -- I spent the better part of three months converting, building, hacking, framing, dry walling, etc. to create my dream editing suite.
You can check it out at cavemanpost.com

Lots of TV, lots of editing and several new projects in the works. After years of avoiding it, I have decided though... to make another horror movie! There you have it: a bit of inside news from me.
I won't say too much about it as I have promised 'the scoop' to a specific magazine writer, and she'd kill me if let slip too much information here. It's still in the early stages but I am excited about it. It's going to be very in-your-face; the title itself will be guaranteed to upset.

Stay tuned...

LEE & GRANT

noreply@blogger.com (Stefan Avalos) — Mon, 30 May 2011 23:23:00 +0000

I was the Visual Effects Producer of this Special Documentary.
Check it out if you can. Premieres May 31st at 9:00 PM on The History Channel

FINAL CUT X NAB PREVIEW

noreply@blogger.com (Stefan Avalos) — Wed, 13 Apr 2011 06:53:00 +0000

After months of rumors, Final Cut X was announced today at NAB.
Taking the feed from somewhere, I respond...

FINAL CUT PRO X -- people say the new interface looks more like imovie. I think it's starting to look a bit like Avid Media Composer.

1. Crowd is unruly!
Of course, it's an Apple product. Zombies get unruly very easily.

2. Final Cut X is a full rebuild from scratch
Good!

3. 64 bit – Crowd: “finally!” “thank you!”
AMEN. About friggin time. Adobe products have been for more than a year.

4. Cocoa, Core Animation, Open CL, Grand Central Dispatch support
Okay.

5. The Focus was on image quality
Um, yeah, I guess it kinda should be -- considering it's an EDITING PROGAM!

6. Fully color managed
see above

7. Resolution independent playback/timeline all the way up to 4K
Nice, but I don't really work that way and neither does any pro.

8. Features people detection, single or in groups
Gimmick.

9. Non-destructive auto color balance
Yeah, I guess everyone is doing crappy TV these days that has to be churned out fast.

10. Automatic audio cleanup (option to auto noise reduce audio, more)
See above.

11. Features “smart collections”: a lot like the smart folders found in OS X
I have an Assistant Editor. I'm sure he will get a laugh out of that.

12. Editing can start immediately during importing of AVCHD and other media, switches silently to local media as it ingests
I'll believe it when I see it. Again, my AE will have things to say about that.

13. Uses every available cpu cycle to keep things rendered. Also highly scalable.
So I can't update FB while I work???

14. Will even work on a Macbook
yeah. whatever.

15 No interruption for rendering. No transcoding, EVERYTHING native. (incl DSLR footage–assume this means AVC)
So, things will render in shitty quality AND good quality in the same timeline? YAY

16. Presentation received a standing ovation!
Of course it did. See #1.

STUCK WITH HACKETT

noreply@blogger.com (Stefan Avalos) — Fri, 10 Dec 2010 20:33:00 +0000

Stuck With Hackett Premieres tonight on the Science Channel.
Check it out... It's a fun show. I know, I edited it!

The smartphone

noreply@blogger.com (Stefan Avalos) — Mon, 29 Nov 2010 06:56:00 +0000

Yes, 1 in 4 or you -- or some inordinate percentage, already have iphones and blackberries and androids -- but until two weeks ago, I was stubbornly holding onto my old dumb txt-ready-but-not -much-more-than-that cellphone.
Upgrade - to a super duper fancy dancy smartphone; a MYTOUCH 4G to be exact. Never one to fall into the Apple camp readily, I didn't actually forgo the Iphone so much as say NO FRIGGIN WAY to another ATT contract. Been there, done that, made a vow never to go back.

So, Android-phone, you are my new techno-lust, my newest obsession. You are so sexy.

So, iphone store has about 200,000 aps, the android store has about 100,000 aps. In looking through the countless lists of top ten must have apps for this or that, I see basically the same 20 or so apps. Is it so? Is it really like cable television (with an exponential number added) Are there really so few good, download-worthy apps for either system.

Huh.

Let me know. tell me what you have on your phone.

I was on Jeopardy

noreply@blogger.com (Stefan Avalos) — Wed, 27 Oct 2010 16:19:00 +0000

Last night, on Jeopardy, the 1600.00 question in double Jeopardy, under a Movies section was --

Pretty cool. I was, well a movie I made, was a question... wow.

Still feeling giddy, but as I was falling asleep, I did ponder a few goofy things.
1. I was happy that the contestant was able to quickly answer the question correctly.
2. I was impressed that he did so as I do think it's a bit obscure.
3. My next goal is to somehow be another question on Jeopardy, but - a cheap question. I'm aiming for 100 dollars. That means that I'd be sufficiently in the pop culture as to be expected to be an easy answer. Yeah, that's the goal. Now, how to to accomplish that without doing evil???

The Bit Rate Calculator is all wrong!

noreply@blogger.com (Stefan Avalos) — Thu, 08 Jul 2010 23:28:00 +0000

Facebook has killed the blog. That's kinda true, isn't it? There was a time when I would spin a ten word thesis thought into an essay. Admittedly, some were better than others - and that was the overall life of a blog. Facebook as killed that. The ten word thesis is nothing more. "Today I am blue" "Shouldn't have had that last Chili Dog" "Earthquake".

argh.

So, here's an attempt at a blog entry again. The fact that the microsoft word plugin that worked well with google blogs doesn’t work anymore, doesn’t make this easier; I’m typing in the clouds now, hoping that this will work. Life is a continual experiment.

I’m working on two new projects, both similar to each other. Action/coming of age movies. One is being fast-tracked. If we can get it all together, we could be shooting in the fall. In Europe. More realistically, it will be in the springtime. No matter, it’s very cool and exciting. More to follow. Hopefully.

To my left, the machine that was rendering a nine part DVD series for three months now renders another DVD project. For some reason, this supposedly simple output, something that should have taken no longer than a few hours, has taken three days thus far. Don’t know what it is, but the computer is getting a lot of predictions wrong. With DVD authoring, predicting final size of files is of utmost importance. You want to play as close to a zero-sum game as possible. You want the disc full, but of course it can’t go over. Normally, the calculators and bit-rate predictors are accurate to within a few “K”. For some reason, I’ve been off wildly on this one - hundreds of MB, signifying - failure. Argh, Frustration. Hair pulling - virtual.

I need to wrap this one soon as I have another job coming down the pike. Gonna be running a Sumo Wrestler over with a Smart Car. Gotta get prepped and in gear.

Fun times ahead.

working and rendering

noreply@blogger.com (Stefan Avalos) — Wed, 19 May 2010 21:12:00 +0000

To the left of me, my Mac-Hac-Pro is rendering away at a major show -- 18 hours that will span 9 DVDs. It has occupied my time non-stop for the last two months. At last, I see light and it is with great delight that the computers are doing their jobs without complaint.

I am allowing myself a bit of time to blog (all too rare these days) and return to a story which I've been working on. In scraping up childhood memories to exploit for this current screenplay, I am recalling a favorite childhood book, The Magnificent Inventions of Alvin Fernald. Anybody here remember it? If you have kids, a boy around 8 years old, this is a good one to have him read. I don't think it matters how long ago it was written, I believe it would still be very entertaining.

Back to work...

Avalos, Eisenson to intervene in WGA case

noreply@blogger.com (Stefan Avalos) — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 18:45:00 +0000

Avalos, Eisenson to intervene in WGA case

Posted using ShareThis

Italian Musings

noreply@blogger.com (Stefan Avalos) — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 21:29:00 +0000

Entries into this blog have been sadly absent this year. As I’ve
written before, it means that I’m busy in life.
Should I make a New Year commitment?

Is that a cliché? Is it destined to fail?

Likely, yes on both accounts. Instead, I’ll try to do some short entries. Perhaps that is better for all – those who might read and myself. I do admit that Facebook as taken a bit of the thunder out of these writings. When it is possible to jot a one or two sentence thought of your immediate feelings, it quells the necessity to ponder the last several days or week and write a tome.

Thus – today’s entry, essentially verbatim from a post to a violin makers forum about a recent trip I took to Italy. I will try to do these short paragraphs more often. Expect more from this recent journey, as well as video.

I'm back from Italy; a fantastic trip in every regard and Cremona was a real joy.

At the museum, seeing the molds, knives, clamps, etc. of Tony himself was quite awing. We also went to the town hall, where my girlfriend was quite struck by the Amati built for King Charles the 9th. We heard Andrea Mosconi (the conservator) play the Strad Ex-Bavarian there. It's on loan to them at the moment. I wish he'd have let me play it, as I would have given it a bit more of a work out. :)
In terms of playing, though time was a bit limited, I had a chance to play several violins in a few different shops. Overall, many of the shops weren't really 'open' to the public, but the luthiers I did manage to talk to were quite friendly. I played a few 'used' violins -- a 1690 C.G. Testore, for example (for the price -- eh).

Of the new violins, I noticed quite a range in quality. What I took away from the trip was the, i guess obvious, "Luthier located in Cremona" is not synonymous with "great". I realized fully that Cremona is to many Luthiers what Los Angeles is to actors. You're going to get a wide range of capability.

However, not to be mistaken -- I did also play some very concert worthy fiddles. I was most impressed by one that was made by Andrea Castellani. To the point where I asked him the price; a surprisingly low 6000 EU. It did get me thinking. In the excitement of playing violin after violin at his shop, I didn't ask him what bow I was using, which I regret. In hindsight, it was the best bow I've ever had my hands on. Hopefully an email to him will have him remembering (and hopefully it wasn't a Tourte or something. I'd really feel like an ass.)

Anyway, a great experience. I suggest everyone do it once in their life, at least.

Time to make a movie

noreply@blogger.com (Stefan Avalos) — Sat, 06 Jun 2009 19:43:00 +0000

The updates on this blog have been getting spottier than ever. That's obvious. Time is being fragmented by so many things that it becomes difficult to maintain a routine. With this blog, I make attempts to write more than just brief, unimportant updates as to what I'm doing; Facebook or Twitter, etc. are fine for that. One quick aside about that phenomenon -- why is it essentially the same people that are completely paranoid about the government tapping phones and email are also the same people that update their 'twitbook' every ten minutes? For being concerned with privacy issues, we have very happily put it all out there, haven't we? Hey, I'm obviously one of 'them'. Aside complete.

I have started thinking about the next movie. The past few years have been a series of ups and downs in terms of trying to get another feature off the ground. Like so many other people in this town, I have my stories of, "it almost happened but the deal fell apart." Unlike many in this town, that won't do for me. I have always been rather self sufficient and – as that is a strong suit – I shall, necessarily, put that self sufficiency back to work. I have begun to seriously entertain some revamped ideas about 'the next movie'.

And I do have a seriously cool idea buzzing around. The buzzing goes a little bit like this…

It will no be dissimilar from, The Last Broadcast.
It will be absolutely up to date with every aspect of technology and information dissemination as it exists today.
The future audience of it will be involved as it is being produced; they will be a recursive element in the movie.
It will work online as well as on the big screen; in fact, it will actually originate partially online, before actually becoming a story element.
It will be an extreme action movie.

In accordance with the self-recursive premise of the movie, for the moment I am going to try a full-disclosure idea on what is happening.

Now, that I've laid it out there, I have to make it happen. I've dared myself.

You dare me too.

Maurice Jarre 1924 - 2009

noreply@blogger.com (Stefan Avalos) — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 17:20:00 +0000

Why so slow?

noreply@blogger.com (Stefan Avalos) — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 04:54:00 +0000

A month old cut and paste news article about a punk rocker that died constitutes a blog?

I check the statistics and see that there are the faithful that return to my writings, or lack thereof - with incredible patience. So why am I so slow in updating, in writing, in musing? Simply, because like much of this country, nay, this world - I am desperately looking for work. I haven't had the time to write and if I had - it would be useless, ponderous tripe. Proof is this entire previous paragraph.

So... what exactly is happening? What news is there to tell?
I am developing a new project. It's a reality show. It's for kids.

Here's a quick sneak peak.

There will be more. For now, I am leaving with that.

Oh, okay... here's some more. This is just me griping and is not of much use...

This blog entry is being written on a Mac. Yes, I, the PC (as in Microsoft XP based) user is writing this entry on a thin aluminum MAC keyboard, looking at an OSX Leopard screen on a 26 inch monitor. My latest system is a screaming fast 3.0ghz quad-core monster that can do either OSX or XP. On this beast, I've been using primarily OSX Leopard. My faithful laptop is an XP Pro machine.
I haven't decided that I prefer OSX. I do see that there is a certain organic user experience -- a "this is not really a computer" feeling, that doesn't exist with XP. Good Bad? Eh.
I have found that I can't find certain software I need -- and that the alternatives are very expensive (and not really better). The OS is a lifestyle -- an expensive one. And therein lies the annoyance I've always had.
While it is a smooth OS, I maintain that most impressive feat of Apple is their branding. They have worked hard and successfully to create the perception that they are the originator and innovator of everything. While there is absolutely something beautiful about the system - the fluidity of Leopard -- I am also continually annoyed by the "Appleness" of things that have no reason, right or rhyme to be considered such. The entire, "we are different, we are unique, we are artsy" attitude of true-blue Apple users is so misplaced as to be frightening.
Here's a news flash: there are things that work and are ergonomically better on the PC than on a Mac. An example: If one wants to see how large a folder of stuff is on a PC, one only needs to hover their mouse over it to bring up a little info bubble. On a Mac you have to right (or control) click and then scroll down to the 'get info' and then click on that to bring up a window that tells you the info. Don't tell me that Apple has Microsoft beaten on everything ergonomic.
Right clicking to create new stuff - like txt docs, etc. OSX - nope. not unless you get an after market product. PC does it out of the box.
In the Finder, if you click on a folder - rather than tell you how much space the files within it are taking, it tell you how much space is remaining on the drive. Come on. What's that about? Once again, one must right click, blah blah...
The spotlight, while wonderfully fast, is kinda sucky if you want it to do something crazy like -- find something. Sure you can launch things from it with no problem but if you want to use it to find where something is located, forget it. Why can't there be a simple right click function to actually tell you or take you to where the found item is? At least you can do that in the Finder.

okay... this blog wasn't supposed to be entirely Mac bashing. The fact of the matter is that I do this because the OS is so beautiful. I am enough of a user now that I can't imagine ever buying a computer again that isn't capable of using both OS's. There are just some things that XP does better.

Well, for anyone still with this -- I do hope to write more and of better quality. I hope your economic situation is faring fairly and that you will return.

Bye.

Lux Interior dies at 60

noreply@blogger.com (Stefan Avalos) — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 21:34:00 +0000

Founder, front man of punk band, The Cramps…

As a Teenager, I had a lot of fun playing covers of some of this band's tunes. The GOO GOO MUCK, as simple and silly a tune as it is, will always bring a smile to my face and memories of parties, guitars, amps, and summertime in high school.

I had the hiccups

noreply@blogger.com (Stefan Avalos) — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 07:32:00 +0000

Three days ago, I had a few bouts with the hiccups. I used to get them frequently when I was a child, but this was for a different reason. After ruling out a few things, I realized it was the eating of crackers, and drinking of water that was precipitating them. Of course, it wasn't really the fault of the crackers and water. It was the Vicodin that I'd been popping. Dulling physical pain as well as my mind, I guess it also dulled my muscles and their abilities slightly. So what pain was I dulling? Well, on Monday morning, I had a brief surgery. Yup – in and out in about three hours, said surgery added a nice scar about belt level, a shaved stomach and leg -- and hiccups. Lest anyone be overly concerned about my well being, it was surgery for a "lifting of heavy weights" injury – yes, a hernia. Minor, and something from which I will fully recover with no restrictions (eventually), it is currently a nuisance.

So, 'hic', I am now focusing on things that don't require much movement. I am relaxing from exercise until the good doctor says otherwise, and am exploring the wanderings of the mind when popping Vicodin. Actually, I've drastically cut back on the stuff and am using just half (or less) of what is being prescribed. While it's not a bad feeling, I am having a need for full use of my mental faculties. I'll take a bit of discomfort if I can think straight.

Of course, right now, I'm about to go to bed and with my side is hurting a bit….

Maybe half.

'Hic.'

Loyalty in the New Year

noreply@blogger.com (Stefan Avalos) — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 19:36:00 +0000

These meandering thoughts began with my attempt to fix the sync. No, that's not a typo; this all began when Yahoo.com, my internet homepage for quite a few years, stopped synchronizing with MS Outlook. Follow the trail of thoughts and see where it leads.

Basically, I am an extremely loyal person. I am not one to give up or move on from something very quickly. Dogged perseverance has been one trait I've had as long as I've been around. While this is generally considered a positive trait, I also see it as a detriment. For years, I owned a British sports car. While beautiful to look at, mechanically, it was a piece of junk. That perseverance and hope for a better day only led to me being stranded countless times – betrayed, shamed, humbled. Why did I keep with it? Why did I keep working at it? Why did I think it would somehow change?

I have had similar experiences with other machines, as well as Banks, pets, stores -- and people. It's not a trait that is unique; I'm sure this is striking a nerve, right?

So, back to fixing the sync. I tried. I really did. I bet if I were to spend more time with it, I could get it to work. But it shouldn't be that hard. Not in this day and age. So, I'm looking elsewhere. That is the thing I'm going to do differently in the New Year. I won't call it a resolution; the word is too trendy around this time; it's going to be 'a thought process'. I'm simply not going to try as hard with something that is obviously broken. Already, the last few days have involved deleting, removing, and disposing of useless detritus from the past and I'm happy to say, it gets easier with practice.

Yahoo, get it together or good bye. I will switch my homepage to Google entirely – and it DOES sync, with Outlook.
I am writing this on a laptop which runs Windows XP Pro. I've been a Windows user for many years, happy that I didn't have to cow-tow to a company that insisted on providing hardware, software AND a state of mind. However, I now also have a Quad-core top-of-the-line computer sitting just to my left, from which the desktop of Apple's Leopard OS X has just gone to a screensaver that is … frickin' awesome. Like everyone else that experiences OS X, it has been a very nice pleasant shift. Is it better? Eh, I don't know. It's prettier. I certainly haven't been converted to an Apple-Store-Zombie, ready to kiss the ground that Steve Jobs walks. However, it is all working well (and considering that I built the computer, I'm absolutely amazed) So… from here on in I am going to allow for much less patience with software/hardware issues of any sort – on either system. Microsoft – Get it together, or good bye.
I have used Ipowerweb.com as an ISP for years and have a bunch of websites. However, this past year, they let me down once too often. Ipowerweb -- Good bye. I've moved to Bluehost.

You get the idea. Those are all web and computer based geek-issues, but amongst the other pruning that I've done thus far, phone numbers have been deleted from my cell phone (that felt great), a credit card was dumped (awesome), and food thrown out that I hated, that had been occupying precious shelf space for months (just good sense).

Still to come- artwork, clothes, discs of music and software that I'll never use or listen to…

I highly suggest you try it. Chuck the baggage, downsize, fire, eliminate, break-up, throw-away. And don't look back.

It's a new year. It's a great time to shift loyalties to new hopes and dreams. And hell, if someone did it to you – be it an employer, a friend, a dream, a lover, a (fill in the blank)… good riddance. It's a new year!

From Matewan

noreply@blogger.com (Stefan Avalos) — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 04:09:00 +0000

Squeaking, clacking and low rumbles of a mile-long coal train are echoing outside of my window as I write this. The tracks are only a quarter mile away and it is sound I have heard often over the last couple nights. The streets are shiny wet from a light snow that is falling but not quite sticking.

I'm in a decrepit hotel in Matewan, West Virginia -- the area famous for the Hatfield-McCoy feud, among other also-violent happenings, mostly involving coal mining and unions, sometimes a flood. We drove the poorest Appalachia to get here. Matewan, with a population of about 498 is actually quite a bit larger than the 'towns' we went through to get here. All no more than a quarter mile in diameter, restricted by the mountains, these collections of buildings exist only because of the railroad tracks that wind through the bases of the mountains – the tracks upon which is delivered the coal, coal, coal.

Most of the buildings in these railtrack-side towns are prefab or trailer homes. I think that carting things away is too expensive or too much effort for many. Junked cars, appliances, etc. pile up next to buildings and frequent burned out shells of homes stand next to still-occupied ones. There is no shortage of churches. The denominations one would expect in this land – Baptist, Revival, Methodist, Zionist, Fundamental, are all within walking distance of any domicile in these towns. But even the churches look sad and more than a handful have been abandoned; left to be devoured by the elements. No matter what your beliefs, a house of worship crumbling down upon itself, is one of the bleakest sites to see, especially in a town that is not quite dead.

The mile long trains laden with Coal frequently lumber down the tracks and the massive coal mines themselves, appearing suddenly as one goes around a bend in the road, are an impressive sight. In one place, we actually drove under a huge conveyor belt that moved coal from the mountain on one side of the road, to the tracks on the other side.

Disturbing to see are the areas where strip mining has occurred. Huge swaths of forest, hundreds of feet across – one seemed to be about a mile across, are gone, bare ground chewed into by machinery. They look like bomb blasts. And another form of mining that I was not aware of is also taking place: mountaintop removal. I leave it for the interested person to click on that hyperlink to learn more.

I took this picture not knowing what exactly was being said. Click on the picture to see it in full size -- then zoom in on the sign to see what caught my eye. Googling provided the answer. It is the sign of one Mick McCoy, an English teacher in these parts. Were it not for that sign, I would not have become aware of this insidious form of mining.

Tomorrow will be cold so I'm preparing as best as possible. It's hard to believe that I'll be back in L.A. in a few days. It seems so distant from where I am right now.

Another horn of a diesel engine has sounded. Another mile-long train, cars piled high with coal is beginning to pass. I'll go to the window to watch it, then to sleep.

What day, what hour, what state?

noreply@blogger.com (Stefan Avalos) — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 04:49:00 +0000

We are getting to a point where we really have lost track of what day it is. Since our day off doesn't fall on any particular day, certainly not the weekend, it is no help, chronologically speaking. Time, the actual hour, is also getting a bit tricky. Bouncing back and forth through time zones does that. And states? All I know is that I'm experiencing an east coast autumn this year. Twice. Much of the areas we are traveling look similar to where I grew up in Pennsylvania, though the moment the locals speak, it is obviously the deep south. Today was a dreary gray, rainy day. The temperature is mild for the moment, though I fear the inevitable plunge of the mercury for which I am not fully prepared. I'm hoping that I'll be back to sunny Los Angeles before that happens in earnest.

I am enjoying the hotel we are currently in. Little things like complimentary breakfast, a microwave in the room and decent internet make all the difference in the world. We were dreading the next location; a place that was quite unlikely to have these amenities (not to mention fitness rooms, a bar, LAUNDRY!, etc.) Once we discovered that the commute wasn't much different, we petitioned to stay in this hotel. Petition granted, we are happy that our current beds and bathrooms will remain the same. In a couple days we will be heading to the new location, Salley, South Carolina; a town with a population of 412. Our crew will actually, temporarily, increase the population of that town by 2% as well as completely screw up their ethnic demographic. Even the people who live here (here being Lexington, South Carolina) have, for the most part, never heard of this tiny burg.

Should be interesting. There, we will be shooting part of the "Chitlin Strut", the event for which this town is known.

Getting here from Austin, Texas was one of those trips one hopes never to repeat. At the airports we have a combined 36 cases of equipment and personal luggage. Most of these are massive cases that store lights, cameras and grip equipment. At the Continental gate, one of the first camera guys checking in was told that his personal check-in bag was too heavy. He was then given the bleak information that the weight limit was 75 pounds, well below the 95 pounds that other airlines had placed. We all turned to look grimly at the mountain of equipment cases looming behind us. This was very bad news.

The arguing of a harried producer with the airline resulted in nothing. This was not a problem that money could solve. It was either ship them by ground, or by Fedex or lower the weight somehow.

With about ten cases well over the limit and with a shoot the very next morning, we had no choice but to open up the cases and move things around as best as possible – shifting things from one case to another in order to get some of the 95 pound cases to weigh 75 pounds. It is certainly not a good way to move expensive equipment and with cases of open camera gear; tripods, large lights, cables, etc. spread out on the airport floor as we moved things around, it was not a great way to start the morning of travel. We hoped it was a final kick in the teeth from Texas, rather than portents of South Carolina. We did finally succeed in getting things on board and happily flew out of Austin. Hopping on another flight in Houston, we watched from the windows of quite a smaller plane as the baggage handlers below the wings argued with each other about the mountain of equipment that was supposed to go into the belly of the plane. The shaking of heads, staring at our cases, more shaking of heads, and furrowed brows shifted to the sounds of much thumping and banging as they loaded our stuff aboard. After about thirty minutes, this was interrupted by an announcement from the captain that 'some' people wouldn't be getting their baggage on this flight as ten 'random' bags were going to be removed due to weight issues. Our intrepid producer stomped down the aisle of the plane to the front, where the powers-that-be were getting off the intercom, and explained with frustration that if all our equipment didn't arrive with us, thousands of dollars worth of production were at stake.

I heard that it was a rough and bumpy takeoff, with more than one crew member cursing under their breath as they stared out the windows. I heard that it seemed to take a long time to get up to speed for take off. I don't know. I was asleep as something about being on a plane puts me to sleep as well as a tranquilizer dart. I did awake briefly for a jag of turbulence that really made one aware of just how fast we were flying. Arriving at a tiny airport, we finally, after much checking and cross checking saw that we were only missing a couple lights and a monitor. We got lucky and the show went on without hitch.

Meanwhile, some innocents aboard that plane didn't get their luggage because of us and our obnoxiously large cargo. We, the crew, apologize. Blame Continental. They should have known better from the start.

Now, it is eleven thirty (or is it eight thirty?). Tomorrow is another day. What day? Uh, I don't know.

I do know that I'm tired and the bed is calling.

Good night.

From Austin

noreply@blogger.com (Stefan Avalos) — Sat, 08 Nov 2008 06:09:00 +0000

Road journal? No, sorry. The days have been too long and I've been rolling into bed pretty quickly after shoots.

I happily watched Obama's victory in Mercedes, Texas. For our day off, I went to South Padre Island, waded into the Gulf of Mexico and had a Margarita and burger at an outdoor beach café that, with the peeling paint, weather beaten wood paneling and 'Creedence' playing over the busted speaker – couldn't have been more perfect.

Mercedes itself is like a town out of Last Picture Show. Now, I'm in Austin, which is quite a cosmopolitan city. However, from the vantage point of a hotel room, there's not much difference between the two. We'll be having a day off in Austin, so I'm looking forward to a bit of fun. I haven't been here in quite some time, and am looking forward to it.

About the shoot itself, I really can't say much. Confidentiality contracts and all that. However, it's a doozy. Eventually, I may spill the beans.

From Austin, we go to South Carolina, and then Kentucky, or Missouri. I don't know which. Then, supposedly home, by the 24^th. Wow, that date seems far off right now.

If something exciting happens, I will recap.

Sorry for the tepid entry. Gotta sleep.

Hittin’ The Road

noreply@blogger.com (Stefan Avalos) — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 18:20:00 +0000

Got a gig that will be taking me out of town for about eight weeks over the next three months. When a job happens, it tends to happen fast. For this one, I had about a week notice and just got my itinerary this past Friday. I leave tomorrow morning – so, wheeee, of I go.

That's show business. Like working for the government, one is often required to drop everything and just go - wherever. Thankfully, the people that I hang with and the woman that I'm seeing, are also in the business and familiar with its turbulent nature. However, it is not easy on social life or whatever other jobs you are involved with. I have to unfortunately give up two projects I was very excited about.

Being a single person now, plans for house care - cat, bills, plants, trash – also take on a different level of planning than in the past. And what about voting? Aargh, absentee ballot mail-ins are tricky when you don't know what address things should be sent to.

I will try to blog a little from the deep south of the United States, which is where I am going to be in about 30 hours. It'll be interesting… especially on November 4^th.

Those who don’t remember the past… etc.

noreply@blogger.com (Stefan Avalos) — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 17:07:00 +0000

"We're in the Money,"
lyrics by Al Dubin, music by Harry Warren

We're in the money, we're in the money;
We've got a lot of what it takes to get along!
We're in the money, that sky is sunny,
Old Man Depression you are through, you done us wrong.
We never see a headline about breadlines today.
And when we see the landlord we can look that guy right in the eye
We're in the money, come on, my honey,
Let's lend it, spend it, send it rolling along!
Oh, yes we're in the money, you bet we're in the money,
We've got a lot of what it takes to get along!
Let's go we're in the money, Look up the skies are sunny,
Old Man Depression you are through, you done us wrong.
We never see a headline about breadlines today.
And when we see the landlord we can look that guy right in the eye
We're in the money, come on, my honey,
Let's lend it, spend it, send it rolling along!

"Life is Just a Bowl of Cherries,"
lyrics by Lew Brown, music by Ray Henderson (1931)

People are queer, they're always crowing, scrambling and rushing about;
Why don't they stop someday, address themselves this way?
Why are we here? Where are we going? It's time that we found out.
We're not here to stay; we're on a short holiday.
Life is just a bowl of cherries.
Don't take it serious; it's too mysterious.
You work, you save, you worry so,
But you can't take your dough when you go, go, go.
So keep repeating it's the berries,
The strongest oak must fall,
The sweet things in life, to you were just loaned
So how can you lose what you've never owned?
Life is just a bowl of cherries,
So live and laugh at it all.
Life is just a bowl of cherries.
Don't take it serious; it's too mysterious.
At eight each morning I have got a date,
To take my plunge 'round the Empire State.
You'll admit it's not the berries,
In a building that's so tall;
There's a guy in the show, the girls love to kiss;
Get thousands a week just for crooning like this:
Life is just a bowl of . . . aw, nuts!
So live and laugh at it all!

"Brother, Can You Spare a Dime,"
Lyrics by Yip Harburg, music by Jay Gorney (1931)

They used to tell me I was building a dream, and so I followed the mob,
When there was earth to plow, or guns to bear, I was always there right on the job.

They used to tell me I was building a dream, with peace and glory ahead,
Why should I be standing in line, just waiting for bread?

Once I built a railroad, I made it run, made it race against time.
Once I built a railroad; now it's done. Brother, can you spare a dime?
Once I built a tower, up to the sun, brick, and rivet, and lime;
Once I built a tower, now it's done. Brother, can you spare a dime?

Once in khaki suits, gee we looked swell,
Full of that Yankee Doodly Dum,
Half a million boots went slogging through Hell,
And I was the kid with the drum!

Say, don't you remember, they called me Al; it was Al all the time.
Why don't you remember, I'm your pal? Buddy, can you spare a dime?

Once in khaki suits, gee we looked swell,
Full of that Yankee Doodly Dum,
Half a million boots went slogging through Hell,
And I was the kid with the drum!

Say, don't you remember, they called me Al; it was Al all the time.
Say, don't you remember, I'm your pal? Buddy, can you spare a dime?

Mystery Berries and taste alterations

noreply@blogger.com (Stefan Avalos) — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 16:49:00 +0000

My close friend, B, ever the curious and adventurous person, read about the newest "rage" among food-hounds several months ago; a mystery Berry that originated from Ghana or some other like-mysterious place that does strange things to your taste buds. I'm not sure of the exact science, but it is evidently a protein blocker or something of the sort – rewiring the tastebuds in such a way that things, especially sour things, don't taste the same.

After much research, B found the berry in a tablet form and ordered it. The tablets sat in his refrigerator for the better part of the summer, while he and his wife, E, waited for the perfect time to host an event where we would indulge in these curiosities. Two weekends ago, that day arrived, and with much excitement, I received my invitation for their first "Flavor Tripping"party.

What will they do?

E is one of the best chef/cooks/bakers I know (among her many talents) and an invitation to their home for lunch or dinner is always anticipated with delight. But on "taste tripping" day, the guests were requested to bring foods from a specific list, that, when laid out on the table, likely resembled the feverish nightmare of a culinary student before final exams. A bizarre amalgamation of Limes, Vinegar, Grapefruits, Feta Cheese, Blue Cheese, Peaches, Tomatoes, Radishes, unsweetened chocolate and more; the foods were carefully selected based on their strong character and texture, not how they would complement each other… or if they were even pleasant or edible to begin with.

With a little trepidation but mostly a lot of laughing, we, the lucky invitees, all popped the tabs, er, pills – the instruction being to let them dissolve on our tongues; swish them around, etc.

They had no real taste, being almost "Tums" like in consistency and flavor. I noticed no difference at all in the way my mouth or tongue felt.

'E', (B's wife) was the first to test the supposed effects of the berry. She took a slice of lime and boldly bit straight into it. We watched her face as she chewed on it… "It tastes wonderful… sweet." She proclaimed. We all were convinced she was lying, but there were no tears or grimaces to contradict the words. Could this indeed be?

'B' followed, also biting into a lime slice. He started laughing and at first we weren't sure if it was because he had been fooled by his wife or because, truly and bizarrely, the lime tasted good. He swore that it tasted great.

Enough for me, I grabbed a slice and doing the tasting-equivalent of jumping off a bridge, bit into the lime deeply. It was sweet, a wonderful taste. I couldn't believe it. This was no longer a lime, no bitterness or sourness remained. It had now become a fruit that I would pick from trees and eat with happy abandon.

Shortly thereafter, everybody started digging into the various foods. We would excitedly tell each other what we had discovered. We drank white vinegar by the table-spoonful, a slightly sharp cidery taste; huge forks of Feta now tasted like cream pie, oranges were now a fruit that might have been produced by the Gods. Unsweetened Cooking Chocolate had become a dark chocolate that might have been produced in Belgium.

Some food didn't taste so good and some food – radishes for instance, became bland – like mistakenly eating a waxen verisimilitude instead. Grapes suffered a similar fate. But overall, the effect of these mystery berries was stunning. As I was indulging in these normally potent foods, I had the fear of consequences. How much vinegar and how many limes can one ingest before the stomach cries foul? After all, just because one is anesthetized doesn't mean that the nail through the hand won't hurt in the morrow. Happily, there were no evil consequences. The effects of the mystery berry lasted for about an hour. Toward the end, the formerly wonderful lime started regaining its bitter strength, the Feta's strong 'Goatiness' returned, the wonderful Autumnal tasting punch… a Grapefruit/Bitters/Ginger/Lemon Rum concoction became – undrinkable.

So, for those who enjoy food, are a bit adventurous and have friends that are like-minded, I recommend investing in these Mystery Berries. It was a unique and entertaining culinary experience.

Opera:

Il Trittico was fantastic. I had no complaints except maybe for the last "choice" made in Gianni Schicchi. Suor Angelica, the 2^nd of the three parts was stunning. The soprano, Sondra Radvanovsky, was out of this world. I really believe she will become known as one of the great voices of opera. WOW.

A few days later, I had a chance to see the final Dress Rehearsal of Madama Butterfly as directed by Robert Wilson (Einstein On the Beach). This is a very famous production, having been performed in Amsterdam and L.A. before. There is a filmed DVD of the Amsterdam production available. Of the L.A. Opera production I saw, the voices are excellent.

Robert Wilson's Production of Madama Butterfly

But honestly, for all the hoopla of Wilson's production, I'm not so sure what I think of it. It is definitely "Butterfly" for the experienced. My complaint is that the ultra minimalist and stark nature of the production doesn't complement the music. This is the point, of course – forcing the audience to really listen to the music. However, the minimalism is so extreme, the emotions of the performers so blank, that it seems but one step from being a recital. Don't get me wrong, this is a wild way to see it and if one has the chance, one should. The costumes are beautiful and daring as is much of the choreography. Just don't expect to see things like… props, or smiles, or tears.

Crazy times in the Valley

noreply@blogger.com (Stefan Avalos) — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 18:34:00 +0000

I am just now catching up on email – flagged at the time of receivership, to be replied to promptly. My gosh, there's nearly a month of responding to catch up on!

The last few weeks have been consumed, spent in a bizarre and sordid world from which I'm still trying to wash off the stench. I think, like all overly-impressive experiences, it will take time. Suffice to say, I was working in a documentary capacity in the world of show business whose production takes place primarily in "the valley". Those who know what that means will, well, know what that means. Those who don't… eh, don't worry about it. You're probably better off.

I will say, (remaining vague while yet attempting to convey my thought) it seems, much of the time, people do end up in the situations they deserve. There are those that, no matter how hard one tries, will always shoot themselves in the foot. They are incapable of escaping the situation they are in; not for wont of chance but simply a lack of vision. No matter how hard one attempts to show them a way, a path, they simply can not comprehend or see it – much less start down it. They see nothing but the most basic of landscape directly in front of their feet, frequently through distorted vision. Nothing can be done and it is best for a sane person to simply walk away.

There may seem to be a certain callousness in these words (if they make any sense at all), a certain lack of social caring, but over the last couple weeks (and year, in general) I have seen that some people simply cannot be, or refuse to be "picked up by the bootstraps." They will cut those straps as soon as they are pulled taut.

On another note, an upbeat note – I have been spending the most delightful time recently with someone that for now, I will only call "S". It's so nice how the day can seem brighter, colors richer, (and any other cheesy hallmark platitude) when you've shared common laughs, thoughts, memories and opinions with someone. It's great when there's that "click".

This weekend, courtesy of a friend of "S" – we will be seeing Il Trittico at the Dorothy Chandler! This atypical opera (actually 3 little operas) has some wild stuff going on in it. One of the three (actually the third of the three), Gianni Schicchi opens with a standard sounding orchestral melody – that is then followed by a bunch of people grumbling and moaning – which then turns into the melody. It's a rather "Russian" sounding start, coming from Mr. Puccini, though the opera itself is a comedic one about greed. Were it truly Russian, it would be a tragedy about greed in which the entire village eventually suffers. And I really am only describing the first few seconds of the opera. It very quickly heads, sonically, "back to Italy."
I've read some preliminary reviews that have lauded this particular production, so I go in with high hopes. Sometimes, opera production can go horribly wrong when directed by "stars". This production is directed by none other than Woody Allen (Gianni Schiacchi) and William Friedkin (Il Tabarro and Suar Angelica). I'm not expecting to see any cleverly-written-kvetching or high-speed car-chases on stage, but I do know they aren't playing the operas entirely straight either. I'll let you know how it goes.

Now, onto the email, then to figuring out what the next step in my adventure shall be.

More coming soon... In the meantime enjoy this clip

noreply@blogger.com (Stefan Avalos) — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 04:32:00 +0000

Disney Lab Unveils Its Latest Line Of Genetically Engineered Child Stars