Too Much Time On My Hands

Repost - The things I do for breasts...

dayjobsandnightmares@gmail.com (M. Robert Turange) — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 12:48:49 PDT

So back on October 8, 2006, I wrote this blog entry to raise money for the Susan G. Komen foundation. In case you don't want to click that link, I've reposted the entry below.

This year, I do not have the time to walk, but that won't stop me from campaigning for friends who are walking.

If you like this post, please consider donating to a team of my friends who are walking a three-day, 60 mile marathon to raise money for cancer research. You can donate money here.

So, here is the old blog entry with a new donation link.

***

Dear Friends and Family,

It is difficult to write about breasts.

Sure they’re everywhere, and I should really just be an adult about this, but I know my mom is going to read this email and quite possibly my in-laws. When I think of them reading an email of me rhapsodizing about mammary glands and then asking for money to keep them healthy, my hands lock up about two inches above the keyboard. Sorry, I’m just a little repressed about these things.

Ahem.

I’m trying not to be dirty about this, but breasts are absolutely wonderful, and healthy breasts are even better. There, I said it.

I could quote statistics, but we’ve heard them, and frankly dismissed them, before. I will share with you something better. Something real.

I have two ladies in my life who have struggled with breast cancer. One is in remission and doing great – she’s even walking in the race this year.

The other one went through the surgery, the chemotherapy, and everything… only to find that it didn’t work. She has to start over at square one now, with another surgery and another round of chemotherapy and another round of tests and… another everything.

It is tough. It is tough to see this and to live through this, and I’m just on the sidelines. When you let someone into your heart, you let in all the love they have to offer, but you also let in all their hurt. It bothers me that someone so good and so undeserving can hurt so much.

There has to be a better way to fight breast cancer. There has to be a cure that doesn’t hurt the body more than the sickness. We are capable of so much, we should be capable of finding something better. A cure for all cancers would be incredible; a cure for breast cancer be amazing, but something better than what we currently have… something better is well within our grasp.

So this is what I’m doing to make something better happen - I am walking 5 km in the Komen Dallas Race for the Cure on October 21, 2006. I will wear a T-shirt and will try my best to be a good husband and not to stare at all the breasts when I walk.

And this is what you can do - support in the form of a cash donation. You can skip the Grande Half-Caff Vanilla Latte one morning and send the $5.00 to the Komen foundation. You can put off that iPod purchase for another few months and send a few hundred dollars to the Komen foundation. Whatever you feel is appropriate, I will appreciate it. Your donation is tax-deductible, so you can’t beat that.

You can follow this link and make a donation…

http://www.the3day.org/goto/Ronda.Carson

…but if you distrust this internet, please send a donation to this address.

Komen Dallas Affiliate & Race for the Cure®

460 NorthPark Center

P.O. Box 12010

Dallas, TX 75225

I really appreciate time, your contribution, and your attention. You are such a good person.

Love the breasts,

M. Robert Turnage

Priorities

dayjobsandnightmares@gmail.com (M. Robert Turange) — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 06:45:19 PDT

I ran into a friend at a restaurant the other day.

"So how's the new house coming along?"

"GREAT! I just installed ceiling mounts for my speakers. When I get my new TV this weekend, I am going to have the BEST entertainment center EVER!"

"How's the baby's room coming along?"

"Dude, the baby isn't going to be born until January."

Rules for the New Parent

dayjobsandnightmares@gmail.com (M. Robert Turange) — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 19:01:02 PDT

I never knew it would be so complicated...

(click to make the image larger)

Dallas Graffiti is Erudite and Celebrates Science Fiction Classics

dayjobsandnightmares@gmail.com (M. Robert Turange) — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 06:00:07 PDT

You might have noticed a lot of new pictures on the blog recently. That is because I went and purchased a Nokia N85 for the sole purpose of learning why you needto also purchase a data plan when you buy a smart phone.

In the meantime, I have become a little addicted to taking pictures and uploading them from the phone. This is especially true when it comes to graffiti.

Dallas has amazing graffiti. Most people just like writing their names in barely-legible letters, but not Dallasites. They like scribbling on bathroom walls famous quotes from T. Jeff, who I can only assume is a DJ of some sort.

Also, there is the message so important, so overwhelming in sheer brilliance, that it needed to be SCRATCHED IN to the door of the men's room stall.

By now you are probably asking, "What are you doing taking pictures in a men's room stall?" And the truth is, I liked the graffiti. It did lead to an awkward moment, however, when someone walked in on me doing it.

This phone is going to get me into trouble.

More Work in the Library

dayjobsandnightmares@gmail.com (M. Robert Turange) — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 22:26:01 PDT

So our four bookshelves weren't cutting it. We had to buy three more.

And we bought a CD case that was a real bugaboo to assemble.

The trick was to move the CDs from the top of the kitchen counter into the CD case alphabetically.

It is working out. I moved all of my comics to the three new bookshelves, freeing up the old bookshelves for the opera scores and other books that are still in boxes.

Comic book shelves (complete with the ghost of a fan in the window - our house is haunted by a cool, cool breeze).

Shelves for opera scores, sheet music, and other assorted literature (in progress).

Current CD shelf.

It still looks like an absolute mess, but the house is coming together. Slowly but surely, our crap is getting in order.

Another Great Onion Video

dayjobsandnightmares@gmail.com (M. Robert Turange) — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 21:02:52 PDT

Facebook, Twitter Revolutionizing How Parents Stalk Their College-Aged Kids

The DVD Collection

dayjobsandnightmares@gmail.com (M. Robert Turange) — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 21:58:52 PDT

That bowling ball on the top is a special edition of The Big Lebowski
.

Work in Progress

dayjobsandnightmares@gmail.com (M. Robert Turange) — Sun, 30 Aug 2009 22:22:50 PDT

So the house has been taking up a lot of time, unpacking and getting things comfortable. There is enough improvement for a few pictures.

The library now has books on the shelves. Only about half of them are organized, though.

The kitchen still needs some work. I have cooked a few meals on the stove top. Right now, there is shelf paper everywhere from where we were papering the shelves.

The dining room now has a place where you can sit down.

Same goes for the living room. Both are still in progress, but look much better than they did a week ago.

Here is my office. Yes, it is typical for me to have dual monitors and a laptop going all at once.

And the other half of my office which contains a futon, a lamp, and more shelves.

After the Move... Before the Cleanup

dayjobsandnightmares@gmail.com (M. Robert Turange) — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 18:15:14 PDT

We're in the new house and have sort of unpacked.

Now all we need to do is start cleaning up the mess.

Living room

Library

Looking out into the front yard

Dining Room

More Sonogram Pictures!

dayjobsandnightmares@gmail.com (M. Robert Turange) — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 15:50:26 PDT

I will not do something no one else in the history of the internet has done . I will share cute photos of my kid.

Internet, meet the Critter!

dayjobsandnightmares@gmail.com (M. Robert Turange) — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 13:37:37 PDT

So I haven't been posting as much as I would like, and when I post it is usually a YouTube video instead of something strange and wonderful that has been rattling around in my head.

Not to make excuses, but I've been busy. On July 10th, we placed our house on the market and on the 16th, we got an offer. So all we need to do (as of this writing) is find a new house. That was a lot of work, but that is not all!

I also wrote and published the best book in the universe, and spent three weeks in California for work, but that is not all!

I still have grad school starting this fall, but, seriously, that is NOTHING compared to news about the Critter.

Yes. That is right....

The Mrs. and I are having our first kiddo - a little girl that we have not named yet. Before we knew the gender, we started calling it the Critter, and that name stuck, much to the chagrin of people who do not like to think of children as crawly animals, only bigger.

We are pretty excited, and it is about time the internet in general knew about this.

Oh, and if Facebook is any indication, this baby thing is going to be fun.

Reminds me of Some Parts of My Childhood

dayjobsandnightmares@gmail.com (M. Robert Turange) — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 19:11:21 PDT

The Book is Out!

dayjobsandnightmares@gmail.com (M. Robert Turange) — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 07:13:26 PDT

I am proud to announce that my book, 26 Short Screenplays for Independent Filmmakers, is available now exclusively from the website www.26screenplays.com. The book is a collection of Creative Commons screenplays that filmmakers can use to make their own films. Each screenplay is tied to a type of film project. For example, there is a project called "The Meet Cute Scene" and it consists of two characters meeting in a really cute way. Other projects include "The Car Chase," "Pseudo-Documentary Style," and "The Horror Short." The idea is that an independent filmmaker can use these scripts to develop a portfolio showing his or her versatility.

I know everyone who reads this blog wants to support the book in whatever way possible, so here is a list of things you can do to show your support.

1. Buy the book. I know it is stating the obvious, but the more people who buy the book the more money I make. And I like having money. www.26screenplays.com

2. Tell people about the book. To the best of my knowledge, there isn't a book like this out there. There are a lot of "how to make your film" books and "so you want to be an independent filmmaker" books, but there aren't any other "screenplay cookbooks" out there. And feel free to mention the website. www.26screenplays.com

3. There are snarky T-Shirts on the website, too. Thanks to the power of Cafe Press, they cost more than the book. But, hey, T-shirts are cool and cool is priceless.

4. Make a short film using one of the screenplays and send it along. Every film made from one of the scripts gets featured on the www.26screenplays.com website.

I know some people are not made of money and don't feel comfortable sending hard earned cash to an exciting and vibrant website. Not a problem, because there are things people can do to support the book for free.

1. Follow the blog at blog.26screenplays.com. I will use this as a bully pulpit to talk about films, screenplays, and intellectual property law.

2. Follow the Twitter stream at www.twitter.com/26screenplays. This will be like the blog, but more fine tuned for those of us with ADD.

3. Follow the 26 Screenplays YouTube channel www.youtube.com/26screenplays. Everyone who submits a short film from one of the screenplays will be featured here.

So there you go. This is why I haven't been writing on this blog as much as I wanted to and why I probably owe you an email. Thanks for your interest and I hope you become as excited about this new book as I am.

Photographic Obsessions

dayjobsandnightmares@gmail.com (M. Robert Turange) — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 15:14:56 PDT

There is no way to truly know how you are going to react in a stressful situation. You can mentally prepare for it, you can train for it, but when the actual moment happens, there is a moment of spontaneous, unrehearsed reaction.

And sometimes people take a picture of this. We call them mugshots.

There are some websites that specialize in mugshots. The Smoking Gun has a regular feature where they display police mugshots. I have followed this for years and have even used the for photoshop experiments.

For example, this mugshot of an angry young K-Mart employee:

Becomes a motivational poster.

And this fella who has had a hard life:

Gets a little love after a trip to Olan Mills.

So you can imagine the joy that shot through my cynical heart when the Denton police got its own mugshot twitter feed.

http://twitter.com/DentonPolice

I am completely obsessed with this. Every time someone is booked, a new photo is posted. I have been known to click through these pictures for hours.

Part of me wonders why I am so obsessed with mugshots like this. Is this sense of entitlement and superiority because they are criminals and I have not been convicted of anything? Is it a celebration in the way people don't really look like Hollywood starlets or Glamor Shots? Or is it because I am awaiting the day I see someone I know in one of these line ups.

Maybe it is a combination of all three.

This is Me Every Time I Get In Front of My Computer

dayjobsandnightmares@gmail.com (M. Robert Turange) — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 19:23:50 PDT

We've Traced All of 70s Fashion to Patient Zero

dayjobsandnightmares@gmail.com (M. Robert Turange) — Sun, 07 Jun 2009 19:22:11 PDT

Really Want this Video Game

dayjobsandnightmares@gmail.com (M. Robert Turange) — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 11:37:12 PDT

I Miss the Days When Music Videos Never Even Tried to Make Sense

dayjobsandnightmares@gmail.com (M. Robert Turange) — Sat, 30 May 2009 07:59:58 PDT

As Much as I Hate Sequels, I Have to Admit This Gets Me Excited

dayjobsandnightmares@gmail.com (M. Robert Turange) — Fri, 29 May 2009 21:02:44 PDT

I wish I could quit you.

Discussion from a Recent Trip to Austin

dayjobsandnightmares@gmail.com (M. Robert Turange) — Mon, 25 May 2009 21:13:19 PDT

"So what was it like to relocate to Austin?"

"Austin has everything. Cowboys, hippies, nerds, and politicos."

"And those are just the school mascots."

Today is Going to be a Good Day Thanks to Swine Flu

dayjobsandnightmares@gmail.com (M. Robert Turange) — Wed, 06 May 2009 08:34:52 PDT

It is amazing how little things can make you happy.

This week has been a particularly stressful week. There is a lot of jobstress and bookstress happening right now (the book is in the final final editing phases just about ready to go to press). On top of that, yesterday, I got a speeding ticket. (Which is not THAT big of a deal - I just need to take defensive driving and fill out some paperwork and it is stricken from the record. It is just the hassle of going through the motions of penance when I know I am going to drive the same speed on the same stretch of road at the same time of day in the same levels of traffic and not get a ticket. This is why it is called a daily commute. I think that is why most people get so angry at speeding tickets - I have done the same thing I always do without consequence, why are there consequences all of a sudden. The only thing that is different about this situation is you, Mr. Police Man. And because you are different, I will not heap all of my frustration on you. But I have digressed...)

Today, looks like it is shaping up a little, though.

I have a twitter feed (http://twitter.com/gamookie) that I use as a steady stream of casual venting. I use it to complain about the jobstress or to make jokes about popular culture. It is really there to amuse myself (and/or the Mrs.) and to communicate with some friends who send me those @ replies.

Today, though, the local neighborhood website neighborsgo.com featured me as their Twitter friend of the day. May 6, 2009.

Wow! That just makes me happy.

Here is the exchange:

https://twitter.com/neighborsgo/status/1716750994

neighborsgo

@gamookie is our featured Twitter friend up top on neighborsgo.com. Who wants to be next?

https://twitter.com/gamookie/status/1716883974

gamookie

@neighborsgo Wow! How did that happen? Wow... Thanks! All I did was be me.

https://twitter.com/neighborsgo/status/1717124489

neighborsgo

@gamookie You had us at "the first rule of swine flu is that you don't talk about swine flu."

***

So there you go. Make a joke about swine flu comparing it to Fight Club, and people love you.

I learned something new. It is going to be a good day.

"Witty" Banter with a Fifteen-Year Old Kid on Facebook

dayjobsandnightmares@gmail.com (M. Robert Turange) — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 21:00:24 PDT

I am a Facebook friend to the children of some my friends, including this lovable fellow who loves music by U2 and The Smiths yet somehow hates the 80s.

Too bad I am not a KISS fan, otherwise I would have continued the banter.

Write about What You Know

dayjobsandnightmares@gmail.com (M. Robert Turange) — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 17:55:05 PDT

Or rather... what I've heard happen to a friend of mine once or twice back in Middle School.

Office Meeting

dayjobsandnightmares@gmail.com (M. Robert Turange) — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 18:04:46 PDT

So I went and made one of the Xtranormal films myself.

My Friend Sherri Makes Movies about Her Life

dayjobsandnightmares@gmail.com (M. Robert Turange) — Mon, 13 Apr 2009 11:39:09 PDT

From Sherri. The final one, "What Are You Thinking About?" is my favorite.