Well, dear readers, here it is, a gloriously glorious weekend. It’s been quite summery here in the City of Studio, with temperatures nearing ninety and beautiful blue skies smilin’ at me. Nothin’ but blue skies do I see, for example. Happily, she of the Evil Eye does not come today, so I can sleep as late as I please and no one can say boo about it. I’m sorry. As soon as I wrote that no one can say boo about it, someone showed up at my door and said boo. I hate when that happens. I’m running on high energy these days, a feeling I really enjoy. I love juggling various projects, especially when each project is fun. Yesterday, for example, I juggled quite a bit. I went to a meeting with Miss Tammy Minoff, where we listened to a young fellow tell us the way in which he helps people raise large sums of cash. It apparently works really well for him, but I don’t think it’s going to work for us. I’m sorry I have to be so enigmatic, but I have a rather grand scheme that I’d like to see become a reality, but it’s going to take a lot to get that to happen. I have some other ideas about how to achieve said grand scheme, which I’ll fill you in on soon, as I think you’ll find the grand scheme interesting. Meanwhile, we’re going to look elsewhere to fund this play that I’m writing. We went to one of those trendy downtown cafes located in the trendy fashion district of downtown Los Angeles, which resembles nothing more than Skid Row. This is where the new Hollywood types are moving – they are buying up lofts and making them into showplaces. The real estate in that neighborhood, which was at give-away prices, has now shot up like crazy. I wouldn’t live down there if you gave me a loft. But, anything trendy. The café is loved by all these trendy young Hollywood types. They do the cheese plate, where you get a few slabs of cheese and put it on bread. How exciting is that? Every dish in the jernt has at least three ingredients I would never want in my food. I ordered a Caesar Salad, which I was told was excellent. It was tolerable, but it had no relation to any Caesar Salad I’ve ever eaten. I also had a chicken salad sandwich on a huge roll – much more roll than chicken salad and, of course, there were two or three completely rancid-tasting spices, which trendy young Hollywood laps up and proclaims yummilicious. Barfilicious is more like it. I then went to Vinnie’s to nitpick a few of the new mixes from the day before. It was minor stuff, but it really helped, and I am now very happy with everything. There might be one really nitpicky little thing to do, but I have to listen to the track a few more times. I think it’s fine, but I just have to make certain I’m completely happy with it. And, best of all, I tried my new order and, with one exception, it works really well. So, I’m going to flip two songs and the order is done. It only took three tries, which, for me, is very fast.
I then came home briefly and then headed over to my friends, the Havertys, to deliver my book manuscript to Adryan Russ, who’ll be proofing it. Doug and Adryan were talking about a production of their musical Inside Out which Doug just saw in Germany. They’ve asked me to put the cast album of the show on Kritzerland and I’ll probably do it. I’ve asked them to redesign the package – the booklet and inlay card. It will cost them a little bit to do it, but I think it will make all the difference in the world. Looking at the current cover, it’s hard to tell that it’s even a cast album. The inlay card info is printed so small that you can barely read it. Plus, they have a really good cast, and you wouldn’t know it from the CD packaging. I want the cast names prominently displayed. When you’ve got two Tony nominees (Jan Maxwell, currently up for Chitty Chitty, Bang Bang, and Ann Crumb, who was nominated for Anna Karinina, and who starred in Aspects of Love on Broadway), plus people like Cass Morgan, there’s no reason to keep it a secret. The CD was originally issued by DRG, who sold so few that it shocked even me. Doug and Adryan now have the rights back, so perhaps, if they’ll redo the packaging, we’ll have another Kritzerland release right away. Isn’t that exciting? Isn’t that just too too?
Well, why don’t we all click on the Unseemly Button below, because we’ve got blue skies smilin’ at me and I want to be out in them very soon.
I fully intend to catch up on my writing this weekend or, at the very least, ketchup on my writing. I may even mustard on my writing. Plus, I’ve got other interesting things to do this weekend, like getting in some DVD viewing, taking the lovely Julieanne and Pogue for a birthday dinner this evening, and then going to a baby shower on Sunday (yes, Virginia, you heard that right – it’s a baby shower for men to attend, rather than women).
Then, starting Monday, I have to attend to many, many things prior to leaving for New York, New York. Thankfully, I have several helpers helping with contracts and things. We’ve got to lock up the recording contract for the show, although, in this particular instance it wouldn’t matter whether we went in without it, as it’s just a “permission” contract – there aren’t any royalty provisions or anything like we normally do. I have to meet with Mr. Kevin Spirtas on Tuesday, I have to start getting the booklet information ready for the Guy Haines album, I have to coordinate the booklet stuff for the show we’ll be recording, I have to actually decide what’s going to be on the recording (what dialogue bits, etc.), I have to deal with the Kritzerland website, I have to get publishing contracts in by Monday, and on and on.
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must write, I must do errands, I must make telephone calls on the telephone, I must sup with the Pogues, I must pick up a package or three, and I must watch at least two count them two DVDs. Today’s topic of discussion: Continuing our book discussions – we’ve done humor and historical – what are your favorite science fiction books? I’ll start – I love John Wyndham’s novels The Day of the Triffids and The Midwich Cuckoos (Village of the Damned). I enjoyed Harry Harrison’s Make Room, Make Room (which became Soylent Green), Ray Bradbury’s The Martian Chronicles, Frederic Brown’s What Mad Universe, and a few others. But, I leave the rest to you, and maybe I’ll get some good suggestions, as I always do. Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst we look at the blue skies that are smilin’ at me, because frankly nothin’ but blue skies do I see.