That Time Again

Must stop...looking at...Ted Levine. Must...stop...

Because I have started a new script. In fact, two. But if I stop to stare into those dreamy blue eyes, I'm lost...and if I'd rather dream about my Teddy Bear, it means I'm losing steam on the scripts.

Let's face it, writing a script takes work. Lots of it, along with discipline and passion and enthusiasm. Every time I write FADE IN, I worry. Will this premise carry me to 110 pages and beyond, numerous rewrites, including championing my vision through the long night of the Valley of No?

I'm always afraid. Afraid I won't be able to finish. Fearful that what I'm writing is crap. Scared that it's a lost cause. It's like going to a well, and each time you draw some water, you're scared shitless that one day, the well will run dry. And when that happens, what next?

My hard drive is littered with the carcasses of half-completed scripts. It's not that I don't mean not to finish them. I always start out with the best of intentions. Usually something else takes over (usually another script idea). I tell myself that I'll return to those scripts one day...and hopefully I will.

That's my problem (if you can call it that) in a nutshell. I'm always coming up new ideas. I tell ya, it's a blessing and a curse.

Tips for a Better Life

1. Take a 10-30 minutes walk every day. And while you walk, smile.
2. Sit in silence for at least 10 minutes each day.
3. Sleep for 7 hours.
4. Live with the 3 E's -- Energy, Enthusiasm, and Empathy.
5. Play more games.
6. Read more books than you did the previous year.
7. Make time to practice meditation, yoga, and prayer. They provide us with daily fuel for our busy lives.
8. Spend time with people over the age of 70 & under the age of 6.
9. Dream more while you are awake.
10. Eat more foods that grow on trees and plants and eat less food that is manufactured in plants.
11. Drink plenty of water.
12. Try to make at least three people smile each day.
13. Don't waste your precious energy on gossip.
14. Forget issues of the past. Don't remind your partner with his/her mistakes of the past. That will ruin your present happiness.
15. Don't have negative thoughts or things you cannot control. Instead invest your energy in the positive present moment.
16. Realize that life is a school and you are here to learn. Problems are simply part of the curriculum that appear and fade away like algebra class but the lessons you learn will last a lifetime.
17. Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a beggar.
18. Smile and laugh more.
19. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone. Don't hate others.
20. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.
21. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.
22. Make peace with your past so it won't spoil the present.
23. Don't compare your life to others'. You have no idea what their journey is all about. Don't compare your partner with others.
24. No one is in charge of your happiness except you.
25. Forgive everyone for everything.
26. What other people think of you is none of your business.
27. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.
28. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends will. Stay in touch.
29. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.
30. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.
31. The best is yet to come.
32. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.
33. Do the right thing!
34. Call your family often.
35. Your inner most is always happy. So be happy.
36. Each day give something good to others.
37. Don't over do. Keep your limits.


Thank you Facebook!

Things I Learned From Harold and Maude (Thanks IMDB)

1. Get Together Regardless of Your Age, Race, Religion, Creed or National Origin.

2. The world's sorrow comes from people who are individualistic but allow themselves to be treated as a clone.

3. Age isn't a boundary for love.

4. "Here today, gone tomorrow, so don't get attached to things!"

5. Try something new everyday.

6. "Consistency is not a human trait."

7. "A lot of people enjoy being dead."

8. Never give up your sense of curiosity.

9. Some people will surprise you.

10. Enjoy simple things.

11. Computer dates will always attract weird people.

12. Never let your mother try to hook you up.

13. Don't Be Shy

14. If You Want to Sing Out, Sing Out

15. "It's best not to be too moral."

16. "Everyone has the right to make an ass out of themselves."

17. "The world still dearly loves a cage."

18. Always look for the new experience.

19. The curse of a government job is to be officious.

20. Don't be bothered with the mores or folkways of society.

21. Cat Stevens songs

22. Revolt every day.

23. Use creativity to get out of sticky situations.

24. If your mother is too busy being a societal women, she will ignore your pleas for attention.

25. Birth and death are all part of the life cycle.

26. Photographs will always stay young and bright, though you will age. (book)

27. Create things.

28. "It's okay, it's organic!"

29. A different definition of "public property."

30. "Go out and love some more."

31. "Everyone should be able to make some music."

32. If you want to be free, be free.

33. Don't worry, be happy.

34. You can do it better in a hearse.

35. Old people have sex. And enjoy it!

36. Live before you die.

37. It's just as easy to be happy as it is to be sad.

38. Banjo players are picky.

39. Live for today not in the past.

40. It's cool to be different.

41. Money can't buy you happiness.

42. Don't let other people rule your life.

43. You don't need a license to drive.

44. Everyone has the right to make an ass out of themselves.

45. If you throw something you love into the sea, you'll always know where it is.

And Now For Something Completely Different

I am very happy to get feedback and comments on my blog, but I must admit, I was taken a bit aback to receive a note from "Anonymous" that "for a writer, I didn't write that much" on my blog. Too many You Tube videos.

When I told this to my hubby, he laughed and opined that whoever said this didn't know me very well.

I am always writing. Even when I'm not at my computer, I'm writing.

I've always thought of my blog as my scratch pad, where I can write and share what moves me. Artists like Natalie MacMaster and Fleetwood Mac. I don't post these videos to fill up band with. This is the stuff that flows through my veins, fuels my creativity.

On this blog, I've written about my highs and lows, the disappointments. True, there's a lot of personal crap I haven't written about, mainly because I believe that there are some subjects that should remain private. There are some days I wonder why I even get up to take a shower; other days, I can't wait to jump in the shower.

I've written on lots of other subjects too, like politics, fame, fortune, gossip, movies, TV, my obsession with Ted Levine. But I can understand why some people want a blog to be, you know...a blog.

So how about this for a 2008 resolution: more writing, as if I'm not writing enough. More essays on movies. And more of myself, even when it hurts.

Cos after all, in addition to everything else, I'm a writer, right?

New Year New Hopes

A new year, new beginnings, new goals.

It's the same thing every January. We start off the new year with such lofty
aspirations. This is going to be the year I lose weight. The year I make that big breakthrough. The year I hit the lottery. The year I realize all those unfulfilled dreams. And you hit the ground running like Danica Patrick, full throttle.

But you can't keep that kind of velocity and adrenaline going forever---no one can, without the use of drugs---and slowly, when things don't quite work out the way you'd initially hoped, you begin to run out of gas.

And the whole cycle begins anew each January 1st.

I want this year, 2009, to be different. I really do. Change we can believe in, yes we can, and all that jazz. 2008 was so bad that in comparison, 2009 can only be better.

That's the great thing about turning a new leaf (or year). We can wipe the slate clean, start fresh, regain optimism, recharge our batteries. There's nothing to hold us back except our fears.

And if we falter or fail or take a giant step backwards...there's always next year.