BOB COSTAS...

...makes everything seem like the Olympics. Right now he is doing Sunday Night Football and instantly making it the most important and inspirational event of the weekend.

Which, in this instance, is saying something.

I had a great Thanksgiving. Spent it with the Malone family of Yardley, Pennsylvania; M. Night Shyamalan country. Played a lot of Call of Duty 6 (MWII?), bought a lot of comics, slept. Rinse repeat. Spent Thanksgiving dinner with Rob's family on his mom's side.  Oh Zach Feintraub was there too. I made a decent batch of cornbread, met some characters, fumbled through some social customs a la "Curb", and played far too many party games. Not the type of party games that are actually fun for all people playing, but the entertaining and annoying party games that all seem to take pleasure in their vicious exclusion.  Games that make you feel stupid.  Games like "I'm going to the picnic", the "Open/Closed" game, the "Indian numbers game", some other version of charades, "Umbrella", "The Green Glass Window", and then one game that involved a number between 1 and 100, some kid from Washington, and Zach Weintraub "blowing my mind". We never played that last one. But Bob Malone and Kaity Malone were super in to it, and I guess the general bitterness those games create is a small price to pay for memorable social interactions between strangers.  

Yardley was relaxing in the best way. Rob's family was wonderful and even started making fun of me towards the end, which is just about the nicest thing a surrogate family could do to make some kid seem like he's at home. Tried to watch a couple movies, but never got through any. Saw half of Big Wednesday, Ultra Warrior, and Silent Movie, the end of Unforgiven, bits of Dead Snow, the beginning of Scrooged, and selections from The Ben Stiller Show.  Nothing finished.  Story of my...

No seriously, I blame it on my hip.

I don't know how many movies I can get through anymore if my hip keeps acting up. It really hurts to sit still in chairs, especially when I am putting pressure on my right side. It hurts and I always have to readjust for temporary relief. I feel like it's a pulled muscle but it's not getting any better. I also feel old.  

The one full movie I did see in its entirety was Old Dogs, in theaters. It's relentless and retarded and surprisingly watchable. At least Bernie Mac was in it. Oops. I can't recommend it to anybody but my hip was magically cured for those 88 minutes, so in that regard it was a success.

I bought 66 dollars worth of comics in the last week, which I'm still sorting through right now. I really like some of the things I bought and really dislike some of the things I also bought. That's how hunting goes though. How else would I know what's going on in the often disappointing, occasionally extraordinary world of comics?  

I guess I spend a lot of money movies I don't like. The ratio is probably worse actually, for movies, than comics.  

Anyway.

POWR MASTERS - CF

Blew my mind.

MONSTER PARADE - Ben Catmull

Judgment Day

I find out tomorrow if I get the allotment in my competitive Advanced Production film class. A lot of people probably don't even know that I'm in Advanced, or I'm trying to make a live action short film, or that I'm even alive for more than one day a month. But yes, I am in such a class, and I am fighting to stay in it (By fighting, I mean twiddling my thumbs). My fate is in the hands of one stocky, bleary eyed, difficult to read Ezra Sacks, who is at times among one of the best things about NYU. However, he's gotten behind a couple of terrible scripts. Also he doesn't talk to me much. Considering there are only 10 allotments left for 18 students, and that a few of those students are certified "locks", I should naturally be feeling nervous or antsy about these signals, and this situation.

But I'm not. I'm not really that anxious.

I can't really relate my calm to anything other than the prepared acceptance of one's fate, in which I have not only gone through every possible reason why I would or would not be selected, but every emotional response to rejection as well. With all these options explored, any of the normal, accepted worries are now behind me, or beneath me, or at least somewhere out of sight.

I'm also enrolled in Narrative next semester. So I guess the film will be made.

doodles from Advanced

I am writing right now to remember how it felt, since it's been awhile. I apologize if it is of little consequence.

I think I'm going to write some stuff about music this week. 

NEXT TIME: Chargers (8-3!), Suns (14-3!!), the crazy airport and suburban levels from COD MWII, the crazy nightmares I had from said levels, the mad brilliance that is the Mike'd Up Sports show on WNBC, the new "Indy" comic Rob and I are working on, the public access show I'd like to be working on, the Brooklyn comic book festival this weekend, the various movies I haven't seen and need to see, and my obsession with YahooAnswers.