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Monday Blues

It’s Monday. To most people that means heading back to work after a weekend that was too short during which they probably didn’t get to do what they really wanted to do and instead had to clean out the garage or (insert chore you’ve been avoiding for months here).

For me, however, Monday is pretty much just another day of the week.

Why do I say that? Well, I’m a person who works “freelance.” As in, I go from project to project, job to job, gig to gig and get paid for that gig. Once it’s over, I’m done and I move on. Or, hopefully the same people hire me again to do something else for them or, in some cases, more of the same.

I’m also a person who, if I don’t have someone paying me to do something right that moment (which happens, believe me), is probably doing something anyway. That means I pretty much work every day. I’m not complaining, mind you. I chose this way of life long ago and I’m sticking to it.

Monday, Friday, Thursday, Sunday, it doesn’t really matter. Chances are if I’m even marginally awake, I’m doing something. These days, most of that time is spent writing.

That doesn’t mean I’m sitting at the desktop or with the laptop pounding on the keys and actively writing a story, script, comic, blog post or whatever. To me, writing also encompasses all the stuff I do before and after the actual process of inputting the thing.

Outlining, breaking a story, thinking about characters, brainstorming, research, pre-writing, whatever. I don’t really have an “official” name for that time, I just lump it in with writing. That, in turn, I consider working.

I’ve heard a saying that goes something (or exactly) like this: “If you love what you do, you work every day of your life.”

Yep, that pretty much covers it.

One More Thing

Well, it’s really more than one. Occasionally when I’m bored, or avoiding work, writing or whatever, I check out a site called The Chive. If you’ve seen it, you know what it is. If not, maybe you’ll check it out sometime.

For those of you who don’t know and don’t want to check it out, let’s just say I like to go there sometimes because once in awhile a guy just wants to see pictures of girls in yoga pants and random people doing random, and often strange, things. And did I mention the yoga pants? I think I did. Okay.

Case in point on the random tip are the photos below. I had a distinct reaction to each of them. I will leave it you you to guess what that reaction was.

I also included these photos because I may start highlighting some random photos here every friday. Or, who knows, maybe more often.

Okay, continue with enjoying your Friday/Weekend.

Couple Things

Happy Friday. I hope you have some great plans for the weekend. I don’t really but that’s okay, I’m going to Vegas next week for several days so that should be relaxing enough.

We will be staying at a hotel I’ve never stayed at before (I mostly stay at THE hotel at Mandalay Bay) called The Palazzo. From what I’ve heard from a few friends and seen online, it seems nice and should be a fine choice. I’ll let you know how it goes.

I’ve got a couple things to tell you before I let you go off for the weekend. First, I saw Steven Soderbergh’s new movie Haywire earlier this week and enjoyed it. I’ve got a full review of the film up over at The Flickcast.

Second, we’ve got the Kickstarter campaign going full swing for our first comic Believer. If you’ve been reading me here, you probably already know that.

What you probably don’t know is that Rich Johnson over at Bleeding Cool gave us a nice mention today and I just want to thank him for that. So, thanks Rich. You are a man among men.

That’s pretty much it for me today. I will be taking it easy this weekend and trying to save my energy for Vegas next week. I know it’s tough, but somebody has got to do it.

Hanging At the Grove

The Grove in Los Angeles is one of those great, outdoor shopping areas that attracts all manner of people. It’s situated next to the famous Farmer’s Market, which has been a fun hangout for hipsters, and non-hipsters alike, for many years.

I was at the Grove tonight to see a screening of director Steven Soderberg’s latest movie Haywire. It’s an action extravaganza starring MMA sensation Gina Carano, Michael Fassbender, Channing Tatum, Ewan McGregor and Michael Douglas.

I will be doing a full review later this week for The Flickcast. For now, just enjoy the above picture I took at the Grove this evening.

Yes, it’s actually even nicer than it looks in the picture.

On a related note, we’ve made the decision over at The Flickcast to make the site dark in protest of SOPA and PIPA. We firmly believe in stopping piracy but we don’t want to give up liberty to do it.

For more on how you can get involved, go HERE.

Because of my personal disgust with SOPA and PIPA, i won’t be posting here at all tomorrow either. Be back Thursday.

Have a great day off from me.

Big Is the New Big

Over the weekend I had the fortune (misfortune?) to be in the Inland Empire. We went out there to go to a furniture store and also stopped for a bite of lunch at what passes for a Sushi restaurant in the IE.

I also had a chance to go to the Bass Pro Shops “Outdoor World” store. If you’ve never been and are a fan of any of the following: hunting, fishing, guns, knives, fishing boats, ATVs, camping (or any combination of the these) you owe it to yourself to go there as soon as possible.

I’ve been to a lot of stores in my time, and big ones too, but this one is the most massive devoted to the “outdoorsman” I’ve ever been in. I’ve been told by those in the know that they have an even bigger store near Las Vegas, but I can’t confirm that info at the moment.

And no, I didn’t buy anything. I don’t hunt, I don’t fish and I haven’t camped since I was forced to when I was Boy Scout. I prefer to get my food the civilized way, by ordering it in a restaurant.

I didn’t find any furniture I wanted either. I did, however, manage to overpay for some mediocre sushi and teriyaki chicken, so I don’t consider the trip a total loss.

The Eagle Has Landed

I found this while at my Mom’s today. It’s a Dinky Toys Eagle from the TV series Space: 1999. Made in England, circa 1979.

I wonder if it’s worth anything? Even if it was, I doubt I would sell it. Of course, now that I found this I have to wonder what else is hidden in those closets. One day I really need to find out.

That day is not today, however.

eagle-space1999-500x500

Enjoy your weekend.

SoCal

Today is a nice day to be in Santa Monica, CA. I won’t lie to you, it’s pretty amazing. Here’s a little picture to illustrate.

Breakfast Anytime

For the record (and what better record than a blog post?) I love breakfast food. Pretty much anytime of the day or night I will eat it. Toast, eggs, omelets, pancakes, breakfast burritos and everything else that is traditionally thought of as breakfast food I will eat at 3AM on a Thursday.

I also fancy myself as a bit of a food person. As in, I think I know the difference between good food and that which is best served to dogs, pigs or other animals with less discerning palettes.

That said, I’m not a snob about it or am I what is commonly referred to these days as a “foodie.” I just like good food and know it when I see, or rather eat, it.

So, when I come across some really great food I feel like sharing it with others who may appreciate it. That happy circumstance happened to me just today at a place called The Gypsy Den in Santa Ana, CA.

I had what I consider one of the top five breakfast burritos of all time (that’s a picture of it above). And believe me, I’ve eaten quite a few in my day.

If you are ever in Santa Ana or near their other location in Costa Mesa, I highly suggest giving them a try. Oh, and if you get the breakfast burrito, spring for the Avocado inside. Trust me.

You won’t regret it. And hey, the coffee is pretty darn good too.

The Joy of Books

I’ve read quite a few books in my time and I still enjoy reading them today. Over the last few years I’ve spent more time reading them digitally on the Kindle or iPad than reading actual, physical, bound bunches of paper.

It’s a trade off. I love physical books but I also love being able to take ten of them on vacation with me in a device a bit larger than one of them. I’m sure there will always be books printed and bound for collectors to purchase. I don’t know if mass market books are long for this world, however.

That makes me kinda sad. To cheer me up, I found this video made by a husband and wife who obviously love books even more that I do.

Enjoy it. I know I did.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SKVcQnyEIT8&w=500&h=281]

2012 Update: Balance and Taking More Photos

As I’ve said before, I don’t make resolutions. However, for 2012 I decided to at least make some decisions about how I’m going to do things and how I’m going to live my life.

So far, it’s going well. I’ve managed to be more productive and also managed to enjoy some quality time doing as little as possible. I’m well on the way to achieving that balance I was looking for.

Another thing I would like to do more of in 2012 is take photos. With the iPhone 4S it should be very easy. The camera is great and there are several apps that help to make the pics look cooler. One is Instagram, which is what the pic above is.

I highlighted some of those apps and some of my latest photos in an earlier post. Now that 2012 is here, I’m going to be doing more with these apps and trying to take a few photos each day.

I’ve done this experiment before (taking a photo a day for thirty days I mean) and it seemed to go well. I will try to make it last longer this time around. We’ll see how it goes.

How’s your 2012 going so far?