Portland?

That acct who claimed I flaked on her wrote me an email today:

I recall you had some travel plans in the works, but are you working? Just wanted to say hi, I might have something else happening, it's a good (payroll) gig for the right person.

I wrote back that I was on EA until Thanksgiving but thanks for thinking of me.

I just got back a response - hang on...

Darn, but glad you are working... if you know of a nice payroll person, the gig is a good one, as I mentioned.

I suppose I could get more info, but EA is going to be fairly easy-money and I won't have to deal with packing stuff up and going somewhere.

Oh, and where else could I get to say "the giraffes are here"?

Bootcamp

I'm quite enjoying my new bootcamp. Today was #5 and I'm able to keep up with almost everything. I still need to work on my rope jumping skills, but it's going well. I'm so glad I found these guys - the gym was so boring.

Did I mention I finally got the payroll files on Tuesday? They were waiting for us when we got in, sitting out on the front walkway. I couldn't believe anybody would think that was ok, especially since the boxes weren't sealed or anything. It's not like they're filled with names, addresses, license number, social security numbers, etc - everything you'd need to rack up some swag on somebody else's dime. That woman is such a moron.

Carnival

The husband and I went to the carnival in the park on Saturday night. It was fun, but most of the rides were 2 person minimum and the husband's not a fan of that kind of stuff. Still, I rode one loop ride and we played some games, winning a stuffed tiger and a plastic sword, both of which are displayed in my office. I do wish we had taken Sofie with us but we didn't think dogs would be allowed. Of course, other people had their dogs...

Speaking of dogs, we went to the dog park Sunday evening and a couple of people got into an altercation about poop. I couldn't really make out most of it, but there was one guy (who has abusive dogs) who was confronted about not picking up the poop. It started out in front of us when a guy from the dog park mafia (a group of people who are ALWAYS there and who always sit in a big semi-circle) was talking to the other guy. They wandered over towards the mafia and the next thing I know, some woman from the mafia is screaming and they're cussing at each other. Then they're grappling and she's yelling for someone to call the cops. Then I'm pretty sure she kicked him and then he kicked her and the whole time they're grabbing each other's hands or shirts or wrists (hard to tell - they drew a crowd). They finally got broken up and she's yelling about the cops and how he can't just punch her in the face and he's walking back to his litttle clique cussing and muttering. We saw her on the phone, but the cops didn't show while we were there and the 2 groups pretty much stayed away from each other. I really don't know anything more than that but the guy's dogs are going to get "accidentally" kicked one day if they don't start behaving better - they really are bullies and Sofie usually ends up under my chair or in my lap if they're around.

Not Intimidated...

The construction acct still hasn't brought me the payroll files and she's been off the show since 7/25. This is the email I wrote her today:

K,
I need the payroll files for construction. At this point, I don't care if you've cleaned them up or not. Please bring them by as soon as possible so I can get on with my work. Someone is usually here from 8am until 7pm. If you need to come by at a different time, please let me know and I will arrange to be here. "The acct" is aware of the situation and if no one has told you yet, he has said if the files aren't here by the end of this week (yes, today) that he would have to inform MM (studio executive).

This is what she writes back:

Hi "film-chick",
That is news to me however we don't have a driver available until Monday. I made arrangements earlier today to have them delivered on Monday. If you have any questions I can be reached at 310 or by cell 310. They are ready to go.
K

What I didn't notice was she cc'd the acct and the studio exec with her response - wtf? Did she think I was going to be intimidated by that? I just spoke to the acct and he said he thinks she's going to do it all this weekend and have it brought on Monday, that the driver thing is a smoke screen because it's not done yet. And it is not news to her because we told her last Friday the acct wanted them by the end of this week. She had notice and did nothing about it... stupid cow.

Caroline's Cakes

I ordered my parents a Montana Gold cake from Caroline's Cakes in Maryland (www.carolinescakes.com) for their birthdays. I don't think Caroline's really needs the extra attention, but it was declared a success. 4 layers of chocolate cake covered in rich caramel icing. Yum.


Mom and Dad? Send me one!

A-M

I just finished the letter M in my crew list. I'm at 870 lines. This does not include construction (I don't have those files yet and isn't that turning into an ordeal...)

Snakes

We were supposed to have the cast and crew screening of SoaP on the 15th, but they decided to push it until the 22nd. I guess they didn't want to risk having anyone see it before the opening. I was definitely going to go when it was early, but now that it's behind everyone else, I'm not sure. It's not really my kind of movie.

Weird Things at the Prop Dept

Driving in to work, I pass the costume and prop departments (they share a building). The loading dock faces the street and this morning, I caught a glimpse inside the prop dept. Either someone is coming to pick up the life-size Jesus-on-the-cross, or the prop people are making a statement...

TourTip

A quick tip for anybody taking the Universal Tram Tour: most of those cars you see parked right up next to the stages belong to actors and other VIPs. Each one has a name-plate on it, so when they're driving you around, you can look for names and see what kind of car JK Simmons and Jerry O'Connell drive. Those trams move slow enough, it shouldn't be a problem...

Dancing

Dancing With The Stars is looking for people to be on the show, specifically women who are out of shape who want to get fit while learning to dance... yes, I'm thinking about it.

The Purge Continues

I got thru my button collection and my shoes this weekend. I'm barely keeping any buttons, since I never wear them and I got rid of 10 pairs of shoes. That leaves me w/ 22 pairs now, but I think that's acceptable.

I need to speed up the process, but it's going to turn into a matter of space. I'll need more boxes and a dedicated place to stack them. But I have to get rid of the junk. Too much crap.

Liquid Explosives

Did I mention I'm totally wigged out by the new terror attacks they've foiled in England? I'm going to have to avoid the news outlets for awhile if I don't want to end up with another stress-induced allergic reaction.

But I have to mention one thing - right after 9/11, the husband and I were flying from visiting our families in TN back to CA. I had a bottle of water that I'd just gotten at the gas station. When I went thru security, they made me take a drink of it to prove it was ok. Now, if the security guy in TN can check on that 5 years ago, why are they treating it as if it's a new thing?

Scary.

Crazy Eyes

I'm wearing the contacts I got in San Diego, but no one has said anything yet. I should have gotten something more outrageous.

London

My current boss is going to London in September to do Tim Burton's Sweeny Todd with Johnny Depp. Yes, we've all metioned to him how much we'd like to join him but it's not going to happen. This will be the 2nd movie he's done with them (the 1st being Charlie and the Chocolate Factory).

Makes you wonder why I get stuck in Shreveport...

Book List #18

Started a book called Bandbox by Thomas Mallon that I got in Santa Barbara. It's about the staff of a men's magazine during the 1920's. There are a lot of characters and I'm not always the best at keeping track of who everybody is. It's a quick read, though and that's always good.

Sofa

We're finally going to be able to get rid of the last half of our sectional. We're donating it to the doggie daycare Sofie goes to and they're picking it up on Friday. Now I can put the furniture I bought off Used Guys into the "study" and get it out of the garage before I get a letter about it. Did I mention I got a letter about my kitchen window? It's a garden window and because we're on the first floor I put a window cling in it that looked like leaded glass. It was very pretty and didn't cut down on the light, just provided a bit of privacy. It wasn't colored or anything and had been up for a couple of years. Well, last week I got a letter to take it down and I spent time on Sunday putting up new curtains. It looks fine, but it's not as nice as the cling. At least I got rid of some stuff while doing it. I really need to get the purge going.

Work is really boring right now. There's no good gossip and nothing to do but clean-up until September. I swear if I hear anything good, I'll pass it along.

Crew List

On every show I've ever done, I made a cheat sheet of everybody who gets hired and how much they make. There's other info on it too, stuff that helps me do my job. Well, I knew the crew lists I had inherited weren't complete, so when I was out on Tuesday, I collated the lists and asked my clerk to pull out any files that weren't included. She only got thru the P's and the stack was about 4 feet tall! I was so pissed because it meant I had no choice but to go thru each individual file and make a whole new list. There's gotta be more than 600 files and wouldn't be surprised if it was closer to 800. And some people will have more than one entry, because rerates have to be separate so there's a trail. It's going to be a great list when I'm done, I'm just glad I've got until Thanksgiving to get it done!

Bird News

While walking Sofie this morning, I saw 2 crows chasing each other. They landed and the chasee looked pretty ruffled. Then I saw the chaser. It was a hawk of some kind. Wow. I knew they were working to get hawks into the downtown area, but to have one on this side of the hill is pretty cool.

In other bird news, I finally got around to taking care of my plants today. A lot of them suffered because I didn't take care of them when I got back from Santa Fe. Not sure why, just didn't... Anyway. I went to clean out the hanging lantern with the bird's nest in it and saw that one of the chicks didn't make it. Poor thing was dead in the nest. When I saw that, I had to throw the whole thing away. Couldn't deal with trying to pry it out.

Book List #17

While in Santa Barbara, I picked up a couple of books and just got a chance to start reading one of them - A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian by Marina Lewycka. It's an odd book and I'm not sure how much I like it. The premise revolves around an 84 year old widow who marries a 36 year old gold-digger who wants to immigrate. The guy has 2 daughters and one of them starts out thinking this may be a good thing! WTF? Who in their right mind thinks it's about anything other than the money (other than ANS)? I'm going to finish it and see if it redeems itself, but it's not hopeful.

Book List #16

I read The Strange Adventures of Rangergirl by Tim Pratt a few weeks back. It was quite enjoyable and for some reason, Sofie really likes the sound of "Rangergirl." She tilts her head back and forth every time we say it.

Anyway, I hope he's writing a sequel.