bloggie blog

Friends in New York and Boston are starting to blog, email and tweet about the pleasures of autumn. Alas, fall is not the same here in Los Angeles. I miss fall! In lieu of actual autumn, my favorite time of year, I post this promotional banner.

You may click on it. It will take you to Amazon’s fall sale. Lame, I know. Like autumn here. (Summer and winter, on the other hand….)

A few items from my Thanksgiving in Utah:

When I landed, my brother Nathan was about 20 minutes late in picking me up, so I bought the Salt Lake Tribune and learned that Donny Osmond and Real Salt Lake were big winners locally. Nice. (BYU beat Utah just minutes before my return flight, but either way there, there was going to be a big local winner.)

My sister Julia bought a great old house this year. She’s put a lot of work into it, and on Black Friday she rounded us up to do the same, without even resorting to Tom Sawyer reverse psychology. I swore not to participate in Black Friday, but we forgot and went to The Home Depot for some lighting supplies. It was quiet.

I was cold. Inside. My parents and my sister keep it cool.

Used Windows 7. Okay, I guess.

The Farming Game has stupid rules regarding “a” winner vs. “the” winner.

AT&T’s network in Los Angeles is the real problem. Works great in Utah.

Downloaded very fun iPhone app called iCaroler. Great way to start the Christmas season! You play with carolers, or even better, multiple people play with carolers … which I haven’t quite tested yet.

Received random, unexpected email from GOGII: “Dear _____, Your password has been reset.” Should I be worried?

As you may recall, I turned in my old car on Monday. I’m getting another car Saturday morning, leaving me with five days of carlessness in between. In LA.

A few observations:

1. It’s been pretty damn hot this week. Much sweating, much swearing.
2. I’m glad I had a free 5-day pass, one that they give out pretty liberally to people new to town.
3. Boardings: subway, 2; bus, 17.
4. Walking: too much given No. 1 above. But it’s good for me, so no biggie.
5. Rides mooched: 1.
6. Meetings late to: 1. Meetings missed: 2.

It’s the last one that’s the killer. And ultimately unacceptable. You have to allot too much time for early or late buses, is what it comes down to. And sometimes you have to wait in full sun. And those GD motorcycle drivers are such D-bags. And you have to pay close attention the entire time you’re waiting for a bus, keeping an eye for the next bus; those MFers will drive right past you otherwise. It’s just not right.

Sure, some routes are easy-peasy, maybe even easier than riding a car, especially if it involves only the subway, but the pricing scheme in LA is too steep — transfers are not free! Too steep except for long-term passes, so the system discourages casual use. Another huge problem. If I could change the world….

It’s very hot today. Well over 100 in the hot spots. You walk outside and boom you just feel it. But it’s okay. It’s great. It’s so much better than the hot days back east. I’ve been missing a few things about New York and Boston, but the misery I experienced back there during heatwaves, that I do not miss!

Hikes in the hills — a regular thing in my life these days — are tough, tough, tough. But a stroll on the beach after dark is in store this weekend. Excellent for this weather. Excellent.

Here are a few observations from a callback audition I had this morning for a national commercial. Each observation is about confirming common knowledge in such situations, or contradicting it. These are things I’ve heard many times since moving to Los Angeles. (This blog entry would be great reading for an actor on the verge of moving here.)

Getting the callback
After the initial audition, I wondered if my performance was a little off, maybe a little forced, and I didn’t expect to be called back. So often, an actor will think that … and then get the callback. And just as often, on the auditions you think you “nail,” you never hear back from them. It’s a funny thing. Not funny ha ha, but still funny ’cause it’s true.

Rain
Not too long after arriving in LA, I heard that the rain keeps actors away. I didn’t believe it at first, but it’s true: on rainy days, not only do some actors arrive late because the traffic is worse than usual, many just can’t get their sorry butts out of their apartments. (Regarding LA drivers in general and the rain … a whole other blog entry. Don’t get me started.)

I was 20 minutes early this morning, as I always try to be, but as the time approached and I was still the only one there, I suddenly remembered the rain. It wasn’t still raining, but it had poured earlier this morning. Cats and dogs. Yup, the rain causes some actors not to show up. This, for me, is good news. This, for me, means I’m even more motivated when it rains. If the day comes that that’s not true anymore, it will mean I have washed away all my Boston and New York heritage.

Going first
I have heard a number of casting directors say that you shouldn’t shy away from going first or early in the day. The subtext is that early birds often get caught up in start-up problems and thus have a disadvantage, but still, the casting directors need somebody to sacrifice themselves or the day will run long. This morning, I went first. The clients were late getting started, so there were many of us there by then, and I thought another guy was up first, but they switched to me. “Let’s do it,” I said.

By going first, I met an attentive, respectful group of clients, and I worked with a director who was awesome and ready to go. He had me do it five times. I’ve never been asked to do a read five times. It was great! Some actors might not like that, but I figure it meant he liked my work. And they definitely saw five different takes, where I took direction pretty well and made adjustments every time. Excellent.

Clients at callbacks are rude
Not this time. Yes, the worst actor stories of rudeness in the audition room do indeed come from the world of commercial callbacks, but this morning, it was all good. They all had laptops, maybe some in the back weren’t paying attention, but it was a good, attentive vibe as a whole. Plus one guy from the client team was named Kevin — he got a special thank-you as I exited professionally when I was done.

Summary
All in all, it was a good morning, and I hope to have many more like it. National commercials? Bring ’em on!

Happy. Happy to sit outside and eat delicious food. Happy to find a restaurant in LA that I like and that feels like Cambridge in a good way, an awesome place in Los Feliz called Alcove. And — especially — happy to meet up with an old friend for lunch. She has achieved more acting success than anybody else I’ve been friends with over the years, which is not surprising because she’s dripping with talent. But she’s just a person, and it was great to meet up with her for the first time in years, catch up on her new marriage, new shows, new life in Los Angeles. We agreed that my new life in Los Angeles is also going fine, or as I like to say, So far, so good.

It’s a rainy day in LA. Some real rain. Not truly torrential, but wipers at full speed not intermittent. And I love it! We need the moisture and I kinda got sick of perfect sunny days all the time. “Let it rain, let it rain, let your love rain down on me.”