Tuesday, August 31, 2010

Digeus.com

I got this email from Alise Johnson. She wants me to try out this product. I don't have time for that, but I will post it on my blog.

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TV and movie comparisons/ Takers/ writer update

Aug. 28 Comparisons: I remember this saying: "If you have a problem, think of all the solutions that won't work. Eventually you will find a solution that will work." I'm thinking of all these similar things occurring on TV shows and movies. Eventually I will think of something original.

Kid hiding in closet as mother gets killed: It occurred in the movie Unleashed and the TV shows Tru Calling and Law and Order: SVU.

Character wakes up in hospital and tries to escape: I saw this in the movies Nikita, X-Men, and Ginger Snaps 2.

Law enforcement drive black SUVs: I was watching Criminal Minds and CSI: NY and they both drive black SUVs. However, they are both on CBS.

Guy action hero, woman sidekick: In movies like Knight and Day, The Killers, Transporter 3, the guy is the action hero. The woman isn't, but kind of tags along. At least with Mr. and Mrs. Smith they're both action heroes.

Cops going into a computer game to solve crime: I saw that on Law and Order: SVU for the ep called "Avatar. CSI: NY went on the Second Life computer game. I did like that part in the episode where this blue wolf suddenly appears in the game. I burst out laughing at it because it came out of nowhere.

Cartoons doing a whole episode about playing a computer game: South Park did an episode, I think about World of Warcraft. Marge plays Earthland Realms on The Simpsons.

Flashbacks of how characters met: They show these when the show has a couple of seasons on them like Lie to Me and Criminal Minds.

A supernatural show that investigates suicides in a prison: I saw this on Warehouse 13. A few years ago I caught an episode of Supernatural though I don't usually watch that show.

In a cast of characters, one has to be really shallow: My sister said Caroline on Vampire Diaries is the shallow one just like Anya on Buffy. I would have said Spike on Buffy was. I remember in an interview Spike (James Marsters) said Spike was supposed to be the "new Cordelia." He's supposed to say whatever comes to his mind like Cordelia did. This was after Angel and Cordelia left the show to do Angel. There's Jackie on That 70's Show.

In a comedy, there's usually a really dumb character: Kelso on That 70s Show and Joey on Friends.

Finding a dead body in a carousel: I mentioned this earlier where I saw this on Criminal Minds and then Castle. I was watching a CSI:NY rerun earlier this week, I haven't seen it before. It turns out this show did it first.

The story starts with a prison break: It's done in the movie Romeo Must Die and the TV show White Collar.

Someone other than a cop teams up with cops to solve crime: In White Collar, a criminal teams up with a cop. In Castle, it's a writer. In Missing, it's a psychic. In The Mentalist, it's kind of psychic.

Dad acting crazy and waking up the character: I saw this the other day on South Park. Stan's mom tucks Stan into bed. The dad Randy then bursts into his room saying they need to get water and leave the house. It was something about Family Guy airing Mohammad on the show, and there would be a terrorist attack because of it.

This was done on The Simpsons where Bart is afraid Sideshow Bob is going to kill him. They go to witness protection become the Thompsons. Homer bursts into the room wearing a chainsaw and hockey mask.

Homer: Hey Bart, do you want to check out my new chainsaw and hockey mask?

Songs: This is kind of like the above. I find that Karl Wolf's song "Hurting" sounds like Danity Kane's "Damaged."

"Hurting" chorus: "Because I'm hurting, hurting, hurting, hurting."
"Damaged" chorus: "Because I'm damaged, damaged, damaged, damaged."

I'm not saying one is copying the other, but the beats to the chorus are similar.

Aug. 29 Reading: Right now I'm reading Write Screenplays that Sell, the Ackerman Way by Hal Ackerman, this screenwriter. This should beat my writer's block. I read the first 10 chapters today.

Takers: I didn't see this movie, but I read the reviews that it's all style, no substance. It's unoriginal, but it took the best part out of all other heist and action movies and put it together. I noticed in the trailer of the 5 guys walking away from an explosion. There was this funny music video with Alias creator JJ Abrams and SNL star Adam Sandberg. They sung about how guys always walk away from explosions instead of running.

Kind of like another movie cliche where the character is running, and the killer is walking after them.

Aug. 30 Writer update: This is an email I sent to the producer John.

Hey John

Here's my monthly email update. I checked out the book Write Screenplays that Sell, the Ackerman way by Hal Ackerman. I don't know if you ever heard of that. I'm already halfway through it though I started reading it yesterday.

Do you remember the old TV show Mentors? It was shot in Edmonton way back in 2000. It was about a teen named Oliver and his friend Dee and they brought people from the past to the present. After a few seasons, the actor who played Oliver got too old, and couldn't play a teen anymore.

I'm mentioning this because at the rate The Fighter is being produced, Kit Cope would be too old to play Alex. But he could play Banks.

I've been working on another script called Rain though. Well, I'll write you next month.

Sunday, August 29, 2010

news/ Wal- Mart/ Post Secret

Aug. 27 News: I found this through my Job Boom news letter. It's about inmates who work at call centres. Inmates redeem themselves by working and learning job skills.

http://www.forbes.com/global/2010/0719/ideas-prison-televerde-james-hooker-salvation-at-call-center.html

Horoscope: In the Edmonton Journal it said: "Detach and get away from what might be a ritualistic approach. You need to break past former barriers. A novel approach will open doors. Be willing to change courses, even if you're nervous. Take a risk."

Friends: My friends who had worked at the deli section of the grocery store (at different locations) all said they had bad experiences. One said she didn't like the drama of the co-workers. The other said she worked in the bakery, but she got very little shifts. She didn't want to work in the deli because she didn't like touching meat.

Amnesia: I could add this to "comparisons." I was watching Rookie Blue and they have a case with a guy who has amnesia. That's been done before on Castle, The Mentalist, and Republic of Doyle. I wanted to write about this a few months ago when I was watching The Mentalist.

What if you forgot who you are? I guess I could remember who I am by reading my blog and going through my stuff.

Wal-Mart: For all you haters of Wal-Mart, I'm going to add fuel to your fire. I was reading yesterday that there is a class action law suit against Wal-Mart for sex discrimination. In the National Post, they talked to this woman who was working as an assistant manager. This guy who does the same job as she does gets paid $23,000 more. The manager said he has a wife and 2 kids. She says: "I'm a single mom with a 6 month old." This is $1- billion law suit. If they win, I'm sure Wal-Mart can pay up, and still be fine in the recession. Wal- Mart is the biggest retailer in the world. You can't take them down and close down the company.

I was also thinking about how everybody disses Wal-Mart, but no one disses Zellers. They're similar as in a big corporation that sells things for cheap. The Simpsons, Family Guy, and South Park have all done episodes where they dissed Wal-Mart.

Aug. 28 Money: I got a job that has a meal plan. It's like I get $3 taken out of my pay check everyday when I work there. Say I work 5 days a week, $15 is taken out of my paycheck. I can buy a sandwich for $6 and only have to pay $3 for it. I can always switch out of the plan.

I was thinking about my New Year's resolution to make more money this year. I haven't been successful. I have to say 2009 was the year where I made the most money because I had 2 jobs and I worked full-time. This year, you might as well say I was working part-time hours.

Cheese biscuit recipe: I got this from the Soup place.

1 and 1/2 pound of tea biscuit powder
5 ounces of shredded cheese
Stir it.
Add 250 mL of water
Bake it in an oven at 350 degrees for 8 min.

Quote: I was going through my notes and I wrote about Resident Evil: Apocalypse. There was a line: "Computers are unreliable just like people." Or something like that.

Job search: I was going through my desk and I found this piece of paper with the canadiandirect.com link. Canadian Direct Insurance is actually part of the Canadian Western Bank Group so I applied there. I bookmarked the site.

I also found caritas.ab.ca. There's a list of hospitals that are hiring. The one closest to me doesn't have any positions that I qualify for. I bookmarked that site too.

Writing: I buckled down and read, wrote, and thought up some things for Rain. I was listening to some techno and dance music on the radio as I was writing. It's kind of interesting. What if the bad guy Stabile was targeting Rain in the first draft? Then what if he's targeting Eddie in the second draft? Now what if Stabile is targeting Damon? Or Stabile and Damon are what's the movie about.

Aug. 29 Family: My grandpa just passed away. He lived a long life. I wasn't very close to him. There's that saying: "Life would be meaningless if there wasn't death."

It makes you really think about life. What have I been doing? Looking for a job, and working. I try to keep the job. Keep my spirits high with a positive attitude.

Post Secret: There's this secret this week that said: "I do not think anyone would believe that he raped me because I kept the baby." Well lots of women who have been raped, still have and keep the kid.

The secret right below it: "To the nurse that held my hand and told me eventually it would be okay, as I lay there losing my baby: THANK YOU. Today would have been my due date- and you were right. I'm ok."

"I base my happiness on whether or not someone visited my blog." I would say I'm happy when people comment on my blog."

I am terrified of being happy."

"One of the happiest moments of my adult life was watching you blow bubbles in a Wal-Mart parking lot."

"Now that I know my crazy is bipolar II disorder, I feel free to live my life."

"The day I met you was the last bad day of my life."

"I still get butterflies on my first day of school. I'm a sophomore in college."

An email: "I still get butterflies on the first day of school. I've had 23 first days of school, 4 of them as a teacher. (Secretly, we're more nervous than the students!)"

Friday, August 27, 2010

In Plain Sight/ job interviews/ rant

Aug. 23 In Plain Sight: I was watching this show and they did another episode about a family going into the witness protection program. That means you have to quit your job and move far away. I would miss my friends. I'm sure the only thing they will remember me by is reading my old blog entries.

If I had to move away with my family, I'm sure they would miss their friends, jobs, home, and other distant family members. We'll adjust. I'm sure everybody else can get jobs. If I were forced to up and leave my life right now, I'd be fine. Witness protection help you get new jobs. At least I would still be with my family. I can start over somewhere new.

Titles: I'm going over my old notes about titles. I remember this time back in 2001, I was talking to my friend Mary Ann.

Me: Have you ever heard of the TV show In a Heartbeat?
MA: Is it a soap opera?
Me: It's about a group of 4 teenagers who are paramedics. It's on ABC Family.

It also stars Shawn Ashmore, most well- known for his role as Ice Man on X-Men. I remember this time I worked at Roots back in 2005. I was talking to the assistant manager Lyndal.

Me: I'm going to go home and watch Veronica Mars.
Lyndal: Is that a sci-fi show?
Me: It's about a teenage girl who solves mysteries.

Aug. 24 Baby High: I was going to watch Teen Mom, but instead this show was on. It's about a high school for teen moms. I am getting sick of teen pregnancy. I don't really like this show as much as 16 and Pregnant, and the spin off Teen Mom. Maybe I will grow to like it.

Aug. 25 Job interviews: I went to an interview to be a receptionist at a law firm today. There are 7 applicants including me. I don't think I got the job because I was stumbling through my answers. I kind of redeemed myself by asking questions about the job. She did recognize me from the Soup place.

Then later I went to this job fair at a college. It's to work for the cafeteria in there. I thought there were going to be a lot of tables and displays, but there was only 1 table there. I did an interview on the spot.

Woman: Did you email your resume?
Me: Yes, I did on Kijiji. I also came in person to cover all my bases.

She said she's willing to hire me. We set up an interview for tomorrow with her supervisor.

Woman: Can I write on your resume?
Me: Yes.
Woman: Good. Do you know how many people often say: "Can I have that back?"

She also said that it's usually 10% of employees from the previous year come back to work here. So there's a high turnover, but that's still good to have 10% of people come back.

Aug. 26: I went to part 2 of the interview and got a job at a food court in a college. I hope this one works out. I just got a call from my high school friend Mitchell. He works at this food place. It pays a bit higher than this position I got, but he said there are a few applicants vying for this position. I'll stick with my job that I got now, because I know for sure I have this job. I don't know if I can get a job at Mitchell's place.

Saying: I was thinking about that saying: "It's like a car accident, it's so bad, but you can't take your eyes off it." That used to apply to me watching Dr. Phil and Maury. Now it's onto reading the 16 and Pregnant thread on twop.com. Now it's about reading the business section in the newspaper where they talk about the gloom and doom of the economy.

I'm trying to stay positive with my job search, but it's hard when reading the business section. I have to read it so I can know what's going on with the economy. Did you know that Sears sales decreased by 35%?

Quit: I have to cheer up. I quit working at the deli at the grocery store. It reminded me of The Secret Life of the American Teenager where Ben and Ricky work at the butcher shop. I checked my bank account and got paid from there.

Good acting: I was watching SLAT, and there is a bout of good acting. In a burst of anger, Ben (Kenny Bauman) asks: "What did you do to get that ring?" The anger was pure and raw. It seemed and felt real.

Robin Thicke: Onto something else not related to work. I was watching SLAT, and there's this new dr. and he looks a little like Robin Thicke. I had a dream where I was at Kingsway mall and there's this talent contest. The prize were flowers. I then heard the song "Lost Without U" by RT at a store in the dream.

News: I don't really get upset reading the news about murders and terrorism. It doesn't have a huge effect on my life. I was thinking about those miners who are stuck in the mine for the next 4 months. I was reading the Edmonton Journal's "Venting" section and someone said they should get paid time and a half for being there. True.

I was thinking about money, and the fact on how to stay away from boredom. People gave them food, water, and some board games. They should throw in some books, and a laptop. lol.

Rant: I'm experiencing that angry and depressed mood again. I got another job, and I feel like this won't work out. I had a series of jobs already this yr and they didn't work out. I just had a chat with my sister, and she says: "You don't get to pick and choose. You can't always find an easy job. You have a high school diploma and writing diploma. You have these sets of skills."

I might as well throw this one in too: There is a difference between bad thoughts and bad actions. Bad actions are worse. I kind of wished something bad would happen to the Call Centre #3 supervisor who told me to "lie my ass off" to get completed surveys. Then his eyes kind of got damaged.

I guess I wanted it to be like Michael Phelps when he was on Jay Leno.

MP: I used to get picked on a lot when I was in school. Actually it's kind of funny, when I go out to dinner with my mom, the people I used to go to school with are now servers there.
The audience laughs.
MP: No, that's not the funny part. The funny part is that they say to me: "Oh hey, we used to go to school together" and I'm like: "Yeah, and you used to pick on me. Now we're like friends? That's weird."

So I wished the supervisor had gotten a crappy job like a server. I'll throw in that I want Call Centre #3 to close down. I got laid off from there, and now I want all the other employees to get laid off too. However, I can't do anything about it to make it happen. It's a call centre, it will eventually close down on it's own.

Aug. 27 Blue: Let's end on a positive note. I watched a couple of music videos from my favorite British boy band Blue. I met them when they came to West Ed mall back in 2002. I was so happy and excited. I got all their autographs and the best part was when I got to hug my favorite member Lee Ryan. Good times.

When I first saw their video "All Rise" in 2001, I noticed Lee first.

Me: Who's that guy wearing that white hoodie and denim jacket over it? He's got such a sweet boy next door appeal. That's my Alex (this character I was writing at that time.) What's his name? How old is he? Where's he from?

Lee was 17 at the time and from the UK.

Wednesday, August 25, 2010

funny videos/ quit/ call backs

Aug. 23 Funny videos: This woman Carol Brown emailed me on my blog:

"Hi Tracy,

My name is Carol and I work with Onlinedegrees.net. We recently published an article that you may be interested in entitled, "15 Funniest Commercials from Your Childhood ".

I thought perhaps you'd be interested in sharing this article with your readers? After having followed your blog for a while, I feel that this one article would align well with your blog's subject matter. If interested, here's the link for your convenience:
(http://www.onlinedegrees.net/blog/2010/15-funniest-commercials-from-your-childhood/).

Either way, I hope you continue putting out great content through your blog. It has been a sincere pleasure to read. Thanks for your time!

Thanks

Carol Brown"

It is a good link. There's even one with Jason Bateman (Arrested Development, The Switch) back when he was young. This is the kind of video that Jay Leno would put on his show. A celebrity comes on the show, and then JL shows a video clip of before he gets famous.

I remember this time a couple of years ago, Ryan Phillipe was promoting his movie Stop- Loss and how he did a Calvin Klien jeans commercial.

RP: The commercial was aired in Europe.
JL: We got the clip right here.
RP: No, don't show it!

Cut to RP running around with these jeans in his hands.
He enters a club and gives them to this girl.
They both put on the jeans and they are transported to this paradise.
They kiss.

Cut back to the show.
RP: They're a pair of magical jeans!
lol.

Funny comment: I was reading that 16 and Pregnant thread and all these people were dissing the pregnant girl Nikkole's boyfriend Josh. They're saying he's narcissistic, a sociopath, will father a lot of kids, and ultimately end up in jail. What's good is that he was the one who made himself look bad on national television. There was this really funny comment on twop.com:

"I'd like to let Amber loose on Josh, he just might be the biggest douche I have ever seen on realitytv and that's saying something considering the trash I watch."

lol. There's an a Teen Mom episode where Amber totally hits her boyfriend Gary for disrespecting her father. I know domestic violence is nothing to laugh about, but I kind of laughed at that comment.

Funny pic: I found this on Yahoo News. The antelope looks like it has a beard. Check it out:

http://ca.news.yahoo.com/nphotos/This-strange-bearded-antelope-was-seen-just-a-few-weeks-ago-in-Kenya-Its-not-clear-why-this-young-creature-looks-so-different-from-its-kin-Credit/photo/20082010/10/photo/strange-bearded-antelope-few-weeks-kenya-s-clear-young-creature.html

Job search: This morning I went to the dr. to get my Paxil. I've been procrastinating for a long time on it. I didn't want to spend the money to get it. The saying I follow by is: "Success doesn't lead to happiness. Happiness leads to success." -Ghandi

I need to be happy as I'm looking for a job. I got 60 pills that should last 2 months if I take it everyday. However, I may space it out and take it here and there. In the dr.'s waiting room and waiting to get my prescription filled at the pharmacy, I read the newspaper and looked for a job.

I did the usual of looking at the Edmonton Journal classifieds, and the 24 classifieds. I even looked at last week's Edmonton Examiner. I didn't pick it up last week because I had gotten a job at that grocery store. Now the job has not gone so well.

Horoscope: In 24, my horoscope said this: "You keep saying things about not doing enough or being lazy in life, when in reality you have been working emotionally."

Job: I hate this new job at a grocery store. There. I said it. I dread going to work. Why I should quit the job:

1. I don't like it.
2. I'm not good at it.

Aug. 24 Quit: Today I woke up early and was reading the newspaper. My sister came.

S: Shouldn't you be at work?
Me: No.
S: Did you quit?
Me: No, but I'm going to.
S: I don't care.

Okay, I'm going to admit it. My family's opinions do matter. S didn't say: "You should stick with it." So I didn't.

Yesterday I was talking to my brother about it. He worked there too, some summers ago but he was pushing carts. He said I should stick with it. Then I told him I quit, and he's like whatever. My mom told me that I should ask my dad before I do anything. My dad's out of town so I'll assume he would say: "Yeah, sure. Do whatever you want." Of course, I could call him, but I don't.

I'm 25 and am a grown woman. I can make a decision on my own and quit this job. It's not like when I was forced to quit the bank job because I was really not fit for it. It's a really good job, and my parents did keep pressuring me to keep it until I was told I wasn't good at it. Same goes for NAIT. I wanted to quit, and told my parents, but they told me to finish the rest of the year.

I'm not quitting a career or college. This is just a job. I told the grocery store that I still want to work for them, just not the deli department. I did give them the courtesy of a phone call. I don't want to burn my bridges.

Call backs: I got an email from this company to be a community support worker. I was told to come on Tues. during this time window. I did and I knocked on the door for a min. and no one was there. I slipped my resume underneath the door with a note.

I called this cafe where I did an interview for a couple weeks back. They said they hired someone else. Then I emailed Press'd Sandwich Company, who I earlier canceled an interview for, for the grocery store. They said they finished hiring.

I'm a little disappointed, but then this morning I got a call back from this law firm looking for a receptionist in downtown. I'm going for an interview tomorrow.

Monday, August 23, 2010

music/ crazy day/ names

Aug. 21 Music: I was listening to some music on my satellite TV and found this song called "I'm in love with you" by Timbaland and Tyson Ritter (lead singer from All-American Rejects.) Here's the song. It's got a good beat and makes me want to dance:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PeDfZD0Q-Eg

I've been waking up at 3 or 4am and not being able to go back to sleep. I then saw the full- length 10min video of "Alejandro" by Lady Ga Ga. I didn't really like the song or the video. I saw "Crossfire" by Brandon Flowers (lead singer of the Killers). Charlize Theron is in that video.

I also saw the promo for Degrassi: The Next Generation. They played "Shark in the Water" by VW Brown. The Degrassi cast is set in a circus.

Feelings: I feel anxious because I feel like there is so much to do, but I haven't done much. Well I got a job, so that's the biggest fish I fried. My confidence is undermined because it's been 5 months and I had jobs where I worked 1 or 2 days at. I'm going to get my Paxil and see if I improve.

Job search: Cafe Europe called me a few weeks ago. It's at West Ed. Yesterday I got calls from two fast food places. They pay well, but I do have a job at a grocery store, so we'll see how that goes first.

Last week when I was hanging out with my friend Angela, she asked me why I was looking for an office job.

Me: I can't work at retail, call centres, and restaurants for the rest of my life.
A: Yes, you can.
Me: Yeah, but there are no benefits and job security.
A: These days, there are no job security for any jobs.
Me: Yes, like working in the cafeteria in the hospital. It's easier to close down a restaurant, but it's harder to close down a hospital.

16 and Pregnant: I was on this twop.com thread and there are dozens and dozens of pages about one episode with the girl Jenelle. Everybody on twop said what I was thinking. Jenelle kept threatening her mom by saying: "I'm going to take the baby and we'll leave and you'll never see us again." I wanted to say to her: "Yeah, sure. Where are you going to go? Your friend's house?" I get her to start packing up and leave. Then she'll learn that she's going to have to follow my rules. However, others have said that J doesn't know how to take care of a baby and could put the baby in danger.

I would kick J out of the house. She may be gone for 1 day and then I'll take her back. I find with J, she should have gave the baby up for adoption.

Productive: Today was very productive. I helped my grandma sweep and mop the floor in the morning. I washed my hair. I washed the lunch dishes in the afternoon. After that I looked for a office job in the Edmonton Journal and applied to some places.

Kyle Riabko: Yeah, that's right, I'm writing about someone other than Robin Thicke. Last week I was going to go out and my sister told me that Canadian singer Kyle Riabko will be on 90210! That's great that he's getting more work than the Canadian TV show Instant Star and theatre work. He's getting himself on American shows.

Priorities:

1. Get a job. Done that.
2. Get an office job. Today I looked for an office job and applied to some places.
3. Work on The Fighter script. I didn't because I was onto #4.
4. Work on the Rain script. Fortunately tonight there were no TV movies or movies on that I like. I typed up 4 pages.

Cheryl Cole: I was looking up Eddie Cahill (CSI: NY) and it lead me to this singer Cheryl Cole. It's because there's a Cahill remix. I really liked her video "Parachute." There is really good ballroom dancing and the song's so catchy. There are all these guys dancing around her, and it looks so beautiful and strong. It's a little like tango.In her "Fight for Love" video, she's got good clothes, hair, and makeup. Now to the dancing. It was hip-hop dancing with girls. It was good.

Aug. 22 Crazy day: It was a crazy day. I woke up early at 7:15 am so I can catch the buses to work. It's a Sunday so that's why I have to take 2 buses. I worked for a whole 8 hr shift. The first 2 days was training and that's sitting on the computer learning about the company. The 3rd day I worked for 4 hrs and it was easy.

Today it was hard. I mainly cooked chicken all day. The woman who trained me was smart and good at her job. However, I was not. I don't like it, and I feel like I will end up getting dismissed if I don't end up quitting first. I feel overwhelmed. Lisa who worked with me in the Soup place has worked at this new job for one week before I came. She didn't say she had EI. She was still working at the same part-time job as she was working at the Soup place. She quit her other job now.

It's good that there is a 15 min break in the morning. Then I had a 30 min lunch break. Then in the afternoon I had another 15 min break. I hadn't had so many breaks since the days I used to work at a bank.

Rant: While I'm at it, I might as well throw in this rant about a 16 and Pregnant episode. There is this guy Josh who totally disrespected his girlfriend Nikkole when she was pregnant and had his kid. He kept saying: "I'm number 1, I trump you" to Nikkole's mom Rikki. Someone on twop said something I didn't think of: "Neither of you guys are #1, her son Lyle is." That's true.

I hated that guy. I got this feeling that I haven't gotten in a long time. The feeling when I used to watch Maury and Dr. Phil. However, I'm working on my anger. It's a lot better than the days of 2006 when I used to watch those shows and had gotten laid off from my job. I've been pacing myself with this reading twop comments on this show.

Names: I'll throw in like what a lot of other twop people are saying: I don't like how the name Nikkole is spelled.

Regular spelling: Nicole
Spelling with a twist: Nikole
Crazy spelling: Nikkole

Reg. spelling: Eric
Spelling with a twist: Erik
Crazy spelling: Arik. (Seriously. One of my fave actors is David Anders. He has a older brother with that spelling.)

Reg. spelling: Tracy, Tracey
Spelling with a twist: Traci, Tracie. (I'm getting a flashback of gr.7, with my gym teacher Miss. Taylor. She thought my name was spelled like Tracie.)
Crazy spelling: Traycee. (I think I remember someone on Fametracker forums back in 2003 was talking about name spelling for TV characters.)

I also don't really like the name Lyle. It sounds like lie. I do like the name Kyle though. Probably because of the music artist Kyle Riabko and actor Kyle Gallner. Others on twop.com said: "I like the name. It's cute. It reminds me of Lyle, Lyle, crocodile."

Friday, August 20, 2010

job news/ Robin Thicke/ EI article

Aug. 17 Job news: I'm sure you've all heard about that guy who was a flight attendant at this airline, and then he made a big dramatic exit by quitting his job and taking a case of beer. My sister was talking about one of the managers who used to work at her store. He made a statement by quitting at Christmas time, the most busiest time of the year. I kind of did that.

Well, I told the Soup place to hire another person to work here because there's always 1 or 2 people who miss 1 or 2 days of work a week. I'm overworked pulling my weight. I then got a job at Call Centre #3 and only worked on the weekends. Then the managers listened to me and they hired 2 people to replace me. The thing is, the 2 young women who replaced me are really reliable.

But there are still the 2 people who always miss 1 or 2 days of work a week. The managers end up calling me anyway to fill in for them.

Aug. 18 Inspiration: I found this pianist Liu Wei who lost his arms when he was 10 yrs old to an electric accident. He was on China's Got Talent and he played the piano beautifully with his feet. It was very inspirational. That also reminded me of something I saw years ago on Maury. It was back when I used to wach it. It was about a woman who doesn't have arms, but lives a relatively normal life. They showed her buy groceries and making dinner with her feet.

Here's the Yahoo video clip:
http://new.ca.music.yahoo.com/blogs/realityrocks/385927/armless-pianist-liu-wei-defies-odds-on-chinas-got-talent/

Robin Thicke: I bought his "Sex Therapy" cd a few months ago. I've been listening to it nearly everyday. I would think I got sick of it by now, but I haven't. Today I bought two of his other cds "The Evolution of Robin Thicke" and "Something Else." He came out with his song "Lost Without U" in 2006. I've heard of it and thought it was boring. I remember seeing the video "Wanna Love U Girl" feat. Pharrell and I didn't really notice him. Then his song "Magic" came out. I love that upbeat song that you can dance to.

In the Metro I read an article about him in 2009. Then I heard the tail end of "Sex Therapy" and I liked it. I saw some of the video on TV. I then went on the internet and looked it up, and loved it. For the past couple days I've been watching interviews with him.

Calgary: I was talking to my friend Angela about how I traveled. I didn't spend any money for the 3 days in Calgary. I went to the hospital to see my grandpa and had hospital food. I think that's the first time I had hospital food. I did get a flashback because the last time I ever was at the hospital was in gr. 3. I was part of the choir and we went there to sing.

I picked up this Chinese/English magazine. It talked about celebrities I don't know. Some part was Chinese, and some was written in English. The writing wasn't very good. I have never read a magazine like that.

Comparisons: I was typing up my script and am reminded of a movie. I thought it was like Gone in 60 Seconds, but it's about Nicholas Cage's character who's a retired car thief. He has to pull a huge heist to save his brother. I am reminded: "No, wait I was thinking of Swordfish." It's about hacking into this mainframe to steal the govt.'s dirty money. Hugh Jackman's character wants to see his daughter.

Then there's the plane movie Red Eye where Rachel McAdam's character has to do something so her father won't get hurt. That's how I hit writer's block. I try to be original, but then I am reminded of something similar.

Aug. 19 EI article: I read this article in the National Post about this guy DB who's 29 yrs old and graduated with an engineering degree. He gets $401 EI and he works part-time so he can keep getting EI. He got laid off somewhere else. The article was about how the govt. is taking care of people. The writer talked about here's a guy who's in his prime age to be working. He doesn't because he wants to have fun this summer. The govt. is to take care of people who aren't able- bodied or able-minded.

I'm not like DB at all. I'm still looking for that office job. DB should be looking for an engineering job. He might after his EI runs out.Smoke: There must be a huge fire in the city. I was in Bonnie Doon, and all I smell is smoke. Then I went to Capilano and downtown and I still smell and see it.

Lookalike: I may be listening to too much Robin Thicke and watching too much Wes Brown, but I think they kind of look alike, especially when they have facial hair.

Aug. 20 Saving money: My parents volunteered at the Heritage Day Festival, and they got 6 bottles of leftover ice tea. I was the only one who drank it. I never buy pop. I don't like buying things to drink.

Combination lock: Yesterday I did a little shopping because I needed to buy a lock for my locker at my new job. I had a $4 one I bought in jr. high and used it for 6 yrs. Then my sister needed one for her gym locker so I gave it to her for free. She used it for 3 yrs and counting.

I was going to ask her to pay me back since I had to buy one for myself now. But I didn't, because yesterday she gave me a leftover scone. She always gives me leftover pastries and I eat them. So in a way it balances out. I did ask my brother for his lock, if he can find it.

New job: It's kind of funny. My friend Meghan from Professional Writing and Chamnouer both worked at the same grocery store chain, and they worked in the Deli section. Then I bumped into Chase at City Centre mall and he guessed that I would work at Deli. Then I was talking to my aunt and she guessed which section I worked at. That's because it's mainly women who work at that section.I did 2 days of training which is mainly learning on the computer.

Then today I did the hands-on experience with dealing with the customers. A little overwhelming and I had to learn how to use the computerized scales and where things are. I had to learn the codes.I'm going to give it my best shot.

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

blog comment/ headlines/ new job

Aug. 14 Blog comment: Anonymous wrote something on my blog again. I don't know if it's the same person who told me to go out and live my life, but he sounded like he was joking around:

"'and there was very little customers coming in' - How little were they? Do you mean midgets or actual pixies?"

lol. You know what I mean. There were very few customers coming in.

Aug. 15 Headlines: Here's a batch of headlines:

"Zombie victims scare emergency workers." The 5 occupants in the car got into an accident. They were dressed up as zombies for a party. They're all alive.

"Granny used live grenade as paperweight." It was in BC. No one know how it got there, but the bomb disposal team was called in and everybody's safe.

"Machines sell wine to blowhards." It's a vending machine that sells alcohol. You have to blow in it to test your blood alcohol level. If you drank too much, the machine won't sell alcohol to you."

Out of towner caught urinating in public, police wait at ATM for him to pay fine." The headline says it all. The police force him to pay for the fine now so he can't go and skip out on it when he leaves town.

"Monkey wanted to cuddle." It's this monkey in the Paignton Zoo that took a toad and held it as visitors watch."

"Florida Man Bites Girlfriend's Finger Off." -All Headline News

In Illinois, a school bus filled with children was driven into a ditch. The driver had to vomit, so he opened the door and it fell into the ditch. No one was seriously injured, but a mother of one of the children is suing the company for $48,500 Canadian."

"Man Gets Jail for Vomit- Assault." Arizona Republic headline.

"Toeing the line." Jerry Douthett of Rockford, Michigan had something wrong with his foot, but he didn't know what it was. He had a Jack Russel terrier chewed off the infected toe. It turns out it was bone infection and they amputated what was left of the toe, so that's good.

"Jon Bon Jovi meets Regina fans after reading they named a child after him." Chera and Blaine Miller named their second child Jovi. That was cool to meet a celebrity.

Funny: I read this in the Globe and Mail. A German father dumped his 14 yr old son on a highway 300 miles from home to "teach him a lesson." Police took the boy to a the police station and called home. The dad came and they hugged each other and apologized. Aww... however, it will be reported to social services.

"Misuse of a self-help book." The Los Angeles Times says: "...that a man was arrested for allegedly spying on a woman by embedding a camera in her copy of Chicken Soup for the Soul." The camera was in the spine of the book. The article mentions how people buy the book as a shelf filler. No one reads it or throws it away.

Crazy: This 51 yr old Italian man hated those vuvuzela horns, and he attacked a bar that was playing that music. He fired shots in the air, and there's no effect. He rammed his car into the bar 3 times.

Cat pictures: There is kitten in Russia that has 4 ears. I saw the pic. There are his main ears, and two more little ones without an ear canal.

There is a guy wearing a cat mask at a concert and giving a devil horns sign with his hand. The caption from the National Post says: "This is not Snoop Dogg, Sarah Harmer, a member of Arcade Fire or a 'shooter girl." This is a man attending Osheaga in a tiger mask, and he is AWESOME." lol.

Stupid criminals: In the Atlanta Journal- Constitution, this guy robbed a Wendy's and later called complaining that (twice): "The next time, there better be more than $586."

Junk- food confession: A serial rapist pleaded guilty to rape, kidnapping, and robbery charges is trying to overturn his conviction. He accuses his interrogators used junk food to get a confession in Memphis, Tennessee. The 275 pound man said he was fed lettuce in jail, and when he was offered junk food, he confessed to 19 felony charges.

Music videos: My sister was bored so I showed her a couple of music videos I liked like "Unthinkable (I'm Ready)" by Alicia Keys and "Roller coaster" by Robin Thicke feat. Estelle. That's one conversation where we didn't argue.

Aug. 16: "Dutch zoo hires Olympic gymnast to teach orangutans how to swing." This is in the zoo Ouwehands Dierenpark Rhenen. The monkeys forgot how to swing after the place closed down for renovations.

Job search: I looked at the Job Classifieds, and the Edmonton Journal Classifieds today and yesterday's. There's nothing. I can't stop looking for an office job because there's good job security and benefits. I have a college diploma, I should use it.

Writing: In the morning I looked for a job, and in the afternoon I did some writing. I turned off the computer and wrote. There was a little writing. I was busy imagining the actor Wes Brown in my script.

Aug. 17 New job: Today I started my new job at a grocery store that I applied at multiple times. There are benefits and the pay is $11.15/hr. It's also close by. It was also cool that I got to see Lisa who used to work at the Soup place with me. I saw her time card, her name was in her writing. She works at the same department as I do.

Rant: Here's a mild rant. The whole day I was mainly on the computer doing my job training. Then I got a phone call from my cell and it's this jewelery store calling to see if I'm still looking for a job.

Me: Yeah, how much do you pay and what are the hours?
Woman: Since you asked how much we paid, I don't think this job is really for you.

I was like: "Whatever." The lesson is don't ask how much it pays upfront. I don't usually ask that. I always ask: "Which location?" To see if it's far away. The thing is, they called me when I already got hired somewhere else. I wasn't really interested in working at a jewelery store, but I always like to keep my options open and gather information. There's no major loss.

Monday, August 16, 2010

Buffy/ fun/ Lies and Deception

Aug. 13 Buffy: I've been watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer season 6 reruns on Much Music. I only saw these episodes once when they first aired 2001-2002. I do watch this show differently though. Always ask: "Why does your character do this? Why does your character do that?"

In the season 5 finale, Buffy sacrifices her life to save the world. In the season 6 premiere, Willow raises Buffy from the dead. Why? Willow thinks Buffy is in some hell dimension and doesn't want her to suffer for the rest of her life. The way it goes is, one slayer dies another one is awakened. Buffy dies in season 1 finale, and then brought back. Kendra the vampire slayer comes.

Kendra dies, and then Faith comes. Faith is in jail (on Angel). Faith has to die so another slayer can be awakened. There is another reason that Buffy has to be brought back. A group of demon motorcycle gang has taken over Sunnydale. Buffy's friends Willow, Tara, Xander, Anya, and Spike can't get rid of them.

In the third episode Buffy reveals to Spike that she was in heaven. She tells him to not tell the others. Why does she tell him that and not her friends? She doesn't want to upset them. In the musical episode "Once More with Feeling", through a spell, that's when Buffy tells the truth that she was in heaven. Willow was crying.

Anti-climatic: I really liked the episode "Normal Again." What if Buffy was in a mental institution and she wasn't a slayer? It was all in her head. I know that would be never be used as the series finale. If it did, it would be very anti-climatic. It's okay for one episode. I remember on jumptheshark.com, a lot of people didn't like that episode.

I did imagine that the series finale would be Sunnydale being destroyed. I didn't imagine that Willow would do a spell so that all the slayers-in-training would be awakened. That's good because instead of one slayer at a time saving the world, all of them could save the world and share the responsibility.

Rookie Blue: I went on Global to watch it, but the new episode wasn't put up yet. Instead I watched some behind- the- scenes footage like my favorite Edmonton actor Eric Johnson giving a tour of the set.

EJ: And here's my trailer.
ost: What? Your trailer has your character's name instead of your real name?
EJ: Yeah, for security reasons.
EJ was joking. lol.

Aug. 14 Preschool/ nursery school: When I was in Calgary I thought of: "What's the difference between preschool and nursery school?" It's because I was seeing my little cousins.

I went on the internet and it said nursery school is a day care facility. The people are trained in childcare and willing to take babies that are 6 weeks old.

Preschool is more educational and teach skills to help kids get into kindergarten. The kids are too old for nursery school. They teach letters, numbers, and shapes.

Fun: Also from Calgary, I saw a convertible with the license plate "Chariot." I went to the hospital to see my grandpa in the hospital and it reminded me of this joke from Prison Break.

Cashier: What's your grandpa's name?
Tweener: My grandpa's name is Grandpa.

Friends: I went to see my friend Angela in downtown and we hung out for 6 hrs. We met her friends, saw the festival at Churchill Square and talked. It was fun because I hardly get to see my friends.

Lies and Deception: I just saw this TV movie, and I liked it. It's average to good. Let's start off with the actor Andrew Walker. I thought he was an average guy with good looks. He looks familiar, but I don't know where. I looked it up and I have seen him, with different hair in the past 10 yrs in shows like Radio Active, Sabrina the Teenage Witch and Maybe it's Me. I thought he was good looking back then, but I didn't really notice him until now. He was wearing his hair kind of shaved. He's Canadian.

The movie was made in 2004. It is about a woman named Jean played by Madchen Amick. She looked familiar, and she's on CSI: NY. She sees a psychic who reads her tarot cards. She tells the psychic to stop mid-way. Cut to a car that's blowing it's horn in an industrial area. Jean has lunch with her mom Mom paid for the psychic, and Jean doesn't believe in them.

Cops investigate the dead body in the car. Cops tell Jean that her husband has been found, though he died 5 yrs ago. She IDs his body in the morgue, and it's Sam. He had died in a boating accident and went missing. I read books about how to fake your death, always by drowning.

Cops can't help her because Sam died of natural causes, no investigation. He gives her a PI card named Eddie Fate (Andrew Walker). J and E talked about how Fate is his real last name and he gets some jokes. That reminds me of Eric Stretch from the old boy band No Authority.

ES: And yes, Stretch is my real last name. A lot of people think I have made it up.

Back to the movie. Jean wants answers to why husband left her. J goes to sign papers to get Sam's body, but Sam's new wife signed for it. Eddie and J go to see new wife Charlotte to discuss what happened. J says that the house doesn't fit S's taste, and S had his own room because his belongings were everywhere. If S and C were really married, they would share the same room.

E goes to a strip club to investigate, because they always have to go to a strip club to make the story sexier. E talked to the janitor there who's son died of cancer, and his son's doctor was Sam. J's old friend Chris Swartzman (Joseph Kell) bumps into J and E. C went to med school with Sam.

J starts looking for Sam's half- sister Denise. Her house burned down and she died. J and E break into this warehouse holding medical supplies and there was this bubble wrap that had this water inside it. They triggered this motion detector and the alarm goes off. They run. E takes the water to this lab, and it's actually a really good cancer treatment drug. Sam was a doctor who did medical research. Through all of this, 1hr and 20min in, E and J hook up. E and J go back to Charlotte's house. They see Charlotte kissing Chris. They trigger an alarm, and E and J run. Then there's this guy who's been following them the whole time. Guy pulls out shot gun and hits E with it.

E wakes up in the medical warehouse where they were earlier. Guy beats up E as E is lying on the ground. Chris is talking to E. E manages to fight off Guy, and get his gun. E shoots Guy's leg and he falls down. Chris holds out this phone and when he pushes the button, it will give the signal to Charlotte to kill J.Chris explains that Sam found this great cancer treatment. It would take 7 yrs for the FDA to approve the drug, so Chris, Sam, and Charlotte were going to sell the drugs to patients and make money off it. Sam felt that it was unethical and was going to tell. Chris and Charlotte says that if he does, they will hurt his wife Jean. So Sam fakes his death, so Jean won't get hurt.

Cut to Jean tied up to a chair. Charlotte enters and takes off the gag. J starts screaming.

C: Save your breath. No one can hear you. I knew my brother loved you too much.
J: Denise?

That's so good. A really surprising reveal because you thought she was dead, or she didn't exist at all because earlier Charlotte had mentioned that she didn't know that Sam had a sister. This proves she was lying. Charlotte's beeper beep and that gives her the signal to kill J.

C was going to inject J with a needle, but J kicks it away. C gets the needle and is going to inject it into J's neck. E bursts in with a gun and tells C to put it down. C wouldn't, and he shoots her arm. She falls down.

It's good. No bad guys die, they get hurt. There's continuity. In the beginning J sees a psychic, and she tells J of what she went through. It reveals character that she experience loss. She sees one in the end, and she predicts good things for J. At the end, J and E kiss.

It also reveals of why E became a PI. He was a cop, but was dismissed because he broke a rule.

Writing: This movie made me think of my script. I had a psychic start off the movie. I had a kidnapping too.

Friday, August 13, 2010

The Avalanches/ Basement Jaxx/ comparisons

Aug. 10 The Avalanches: I recently rediscovered this techno band again. They're like Basement Jaxx, Dirty Vegas, and The Wiseguys (song: "Start the Commotion.") I have heard their song "Frontier Psychiatrist" years ago. I totally forgot about that song until today I was listening to Basement Jaxx on Youtube, and it lead me to them. They're all good.

Basement Jaxx: I really like the song and video "Take me Back to your house." It's really different with the Russian and Ukranian dancing to a pop/ dance song. I was watching Much Music and I see the band Dragonette. I recognize the singer Martina Sorbara. She was in the Basement Jaxx's video "Take me back to your house." She co-wrote and starred in that video.
It was back in 2006. That's so cool.

I always liked Basement Jaxx's song "Red Alert." I heard it on a beer commercial back in 2000/2001. I remember it's during the supernatural TV show Freakylinks. Then I remember going to Mary Ann's bday party back in 2001 and she had that song on in the cd player. I then had to wait until 2006 to see the movie Bend it like Beckham on TV to hear that song.

I then went on twop.com to ask what that song's called and that's how I found out who's it by. I also really like the song and video for Basement Jaxx's video "Romeo." It's very Bollywood. I learned about this band in 2001. Their song "Bingo Bango" was on the Get Over It soundtrack. Their famous song was "Where's your head at?"

Psycho: I saw the 1998 remake of this movie. I read about it in my screenwriting books so I'm spoiled. Vince Vaughn is in a serious role where he plays the killer Norman Bates. He's usually in comedy roles so he's got range. I remember my sister pointing out that the license plate adds up to the number 13. It's like the Stephen King movie 1408 about a guy who stays in a haunted hotel room. That adds up to 13.

Back to Psycho. It's a good and scary movie. It stars Viggo Moretenson and Julianne Moore. Well acted and well- written. I recommend you watch it.

Aug. 11 Comparisons: Here's some more:

Quirky dad, good daughter: That's on Castle and Lie to Me. The lead characters are dads, and their daughters are very smart and straight-laced.

A sleeper agent is awakened, and sent to kill someone without knowing it: I was watching Dollhouse and there was a really good plot twist. This woman was being attacked by a bad guy, and then the Dollhouse boss Adele calls the home and says something to awaken the woman. It turns out the woman is a doll named November. She's awakened and then she kills the bad guy. This was in 2009.

On Alias, they did that in 2001. Well Sydney meets a guy in a mental hospital. Then later he calls her by her real name. S then figures out he was the one who was sent to kill her fiance Danny. The killer knows S's real name because he was in her home, and saw a picture with a banner that said: "Happy Birthday Sydney!"

On The Simpsons, Sideshow Bob hypnotizes Bart into murdering Krusty the Clown.

The school is low on funds, so someone has to do 2 jobs: On South Park, Chef works in the cafeteria and as gym teacher. On The Simpsons, Lunch Lady Doris also works as the school nurse.

Protagonists jobs: I was reading in the Edmonton Journal about this teen girl who followed everything from Seventeen magazine for 1 month. The article mentioned about these jobs that teens could do, but seems more like what romantic comedy protagonists jobs are like a baker instead of bussing tables. Work at a pet shop or veterinary clinic.

As for action movie protagonists, their jobs are cop, CIA, and anything law enforcement. There was the movie Eagle Eye starring Shia LaBeouf and he was a regular guy who got caught up in something. Same goes for the movie Cellular with Chris Evans.

Scam: I read this in the Edmonton Journal awhile back about this scam that targets seniors. Today I was reading "Toasting" section where people thank others for good things they did. This one person wrote: "I went to Money Mart to get $4,300 to give to my grandson. The person said that could be a scam, and that I should ask the grandson a personal question. Then he hangs up on me. So thanks to Money Mart for saving me money and grief."

Aug. 12 Old job: I talked to Judith from Call Centre #3 and she said that the supervisor who told me to "Lie your ass off" to get completed surveys, he didn't really get laid off. He had another job and had some injury to his eyes. He then worked as an interviewer there, and she hardly sees him on shift. So maybe he quit.

I don't know. I guess I should count my blessings that I don't have injury to my eyes.

Money: I'm very careful about money these days. I spend when necessary like a bus pass. I did buy a $12 membership for the library so I could check out books, cds, and dvds for a whole year. I did spend $10 on pizza, but my siblings and I pitched in. I got money for my birthday, but I'll be saving it.

Aug. 13 Job search: I woke up at 3:30am and I couldn't sleep so that's why I'm up now on the internet looking for a job. It's dark outside and no TV shows are on. It's like last morning it rained really hard so it forced me to buckle down in front of the computer.

I called Suzy Shier again. They said they're looking for an assistant manager with 5 yrs of experience, so I don't qualify. They did say they will call for interviews at the Kingsway and West Ed locations for sales associates positions.

Job interview: Last night I went to a interview at a cafe. I don't think I'll get the job. He said there are 30 applicants and there are 7 people (including me) he will do interviews. There are 2 full-time people, and 1 other person who buys groceries. The new hire will be P/T and eventually F/T. I feel this position will end up being redundant. That happened to me before a few times like that restaurant job I got in Apr. There are 4 people who work there, and there was very little customers coming in. There's no point in keeping me the 5th person. I wasn't surprised.

Wednesday, August 11, 2010

headlines/ The Sausage Factory/ birthday

Aug. 7 Little joke: I told my Professional Writing friend Cherie about the Writer in Residence Chris Craddock. He reads your writing and provides tips.

Cherie: Thanks Tracy! What a find! I'll keep him in mind. (Rhyme was not intentional :P)

Aug. 8 Headlines: Here's another batch of headlines I found, and will send to Jay Leno.

"Firefighters Dismantle Police car to Rescue Kitten."-Arizona Republic

"Where's granny? Japan searches for missing centenarians." -Edmonton Journal

"%&*#@! Canadians out-cuss Yanks, Brits." -Edmonton Journal

"Hell, no Kitty! It's now a motor oil." Hello Kitty's face is on a motor oil can.

Classifieds: "Good Farm Lady 61+ to live acreage near Stony Plain to care for senior gentleman."- Edmonton Journal

My favorite: In the Edmonton Journal Sunday Reader, an Amish youth fled police in a horse and buggy. He went through a stop sign in Leon, NY, and didn't pull over. "That triggered the slowest cop chase since OJ hit the cruise control on the Santa Monica Freeway." lol.

The kid upended the buggy on a sharp turn. The horse and driver weren't hurt. This could be used for a movie. No disrespect, but the Amish are a pretty easy target to diss. They live in the 18th century though the world is in 21st century.

Bear: There was a black bear that walked into a house in New Hampshire and took fruit, took a drink from a fishbowl, and took a stuffed teddy bear and left. -New York Daily News

Places: Did you know there's a place in Saskatchewan called Big Beaver?

Funny picture: There is this huge 2-D plastic pine tree, and some is standing behind it. It looks a giant air freshener.

Borderline funny: This is kind of funny, but kind of not. "Deer attacks on rise in B.C." The headline's funny, but not the article."

Nuns with record deal get death threats." It's the same as above. The nuns had won a deal to create a chart-topping album. Some people didn't like it so they gave death threats.

"Latest BlackBerry takes aim at Apple." I thought it was kind of weird that technology companies are named after fruit.

The Sausage Factory: This is a TV show that aired in 2000-2002. That's the Canadian title. In the US it's called Now What? It's about 4 teen guy friends. There are actual episodes on Youtube. I was thinking about the ep called "Sex, Guys, and Videotape." It's the one where Gilby and Zack get jobs at a video store and Gilby lets teen boys rent out porn tapes. He puts The Empire Strokes Back tape into the The Empire Strikes Back tape and scans it through. Money to the rental, and extra money for Gilby for scanning it.

Zack: What if you get caught?
Gilby: I'll say I simply misread the title.

G becomes the assistant manager. Z wants to be it, so G let Z have the position.

It's like the line from the show Dollhouse: "You can't always predict or control the consequences." The consequence was a man comes in and threatens to beat up the assistant manager Zack thinking that he let his teenage son rent out porn tapes.

G: He misread the title, it was an accident, it won't happen again.
Their friend Ted enters and returns a tape.
T: Thanks for the porn.
It does teach a lesson to not do what Z and G did. You will get caught, and you will get fired.

Aug. 9 Writing: I was reading Susanna Daniel's article in the National Post about how it took her 10 yrs to write a novel. At the end of the article she says: "it took 1 yr to write the first half, another yr and half to finish it, a few weeks to sell it, and 18 months for it to lumber through the publishing process." The novel is called Stiltsville.

The Fighter: That made me reflect on how long it took for me to write The Fighter. I thought it up back in Feb. 2006. Maybe a month of writing it here and there. Then in Dec. 2007, I talked to the screenwriting teacher Geo Takch and I finished the first draft. It was 24 pages. I started pitching it in Jan. 2008.

Then in Oct. 2008, Glynis Whiting from Super Channel read it and gave me 1pg and half of notes on it. I was told a screenplay is at least 90 pages. I then wrote 20 more pages. In Nov. 2008, I emailed it the new 2nd draft. In Dec. 2008, she emailed me back with another 2 pages of notes. I was referred to Conni Massing, the writer in residence at EPL.

I emailed her the script, she read it and gave me some tips. In Mar. 2009, I finished the first 90 page script. The whole script was written from Oct. 2008-Mar. 2009. It took 6 months to write it. I'll throw in 2 months (Feb. 2006, Dec. 2007) for it's original first draft.

Aug. 10 Summer: I thought summer was a good time to be unemployed. If I get sad, I go outside and enjoy the weather. I like passing out my resumes by walking on the street. The con is that I rather have fun than stay inside on the computer looking for my job.

Same goes for the winter. You get sad because of the weather, but it makes you want to stay inside and buckle down and look for a job.

Aug. 11 Birthday: So today's my birthday and here a few jokes like on The Simpsons.

Grandpa: Bart, you remembered my birthday.
Bart: I sure did. And here's the bus schedule.
Grandpa: Fits right in my pocket.

Or the one where Patty and Selma exchange gifts.
Patty: Happy birthday.
Selma: Happy birthday.
They open the boxes and scream because there's a virus that was unleashed on them.

The one on South Park where Cartman is passing out invitations to his bday party. He's dancing and he's jiggling his round body and saying: "Cause it's my birthday."

Monday, August 9, 2010

fun/ dialogue/ cliche

Aug. 7 Fun: Today I went to the farmer's market in downtown. Martin Kerr from Canadian Idol 2008 finalist was there playing guitar and singing. He was busking for money and he had a cd there. He's talented.

There was also this 7 yr old Asian boy playing the violin and busking for money. His parents were there and bought him a candy apple. Did you know that Justin Beiber busked for money by singing and playing the guitar when he was a kid?

I saw a young woman with this tattoo on her left wrist that said: "No codeine, no penicillin." I thought that was interesting.

I checked out the Caribbean festival in Churchill Square today.

Friends: I was chatting with my friend Michelle on Facebook today. She lives in Airdrie and I told her I drove by it when I was on my way to Calgary. We talked a bit about my job search. I emailed my friend Chamnouer some job positions, and she emailed me back saying she got a job at a store and have been working there for a month now.

Good for her. It kind of gives me hope that if Chamnouer can get a regular job in the summer, I'm sure I can too. I'm still looking for a job, but I feel like I will get one by fall when people go back to school. That's what happened last fall when I got Call Centre #3 job.

Job search: I applied to a few positions in the Edmonton Journal classifieds today. I picked up the Edmonton Examiner and there weren't any positions.

Danica McKeller: Do you remember her as Winnie on the TV show The Wonder Years? She has been writing math books for teen girls. She has the 3rd one published. I saw an interview of her on Yahoo and she was talking about how girls can be smart and sexy. That you don't have to dumb yourself down for guys. She's actually expecting a child by mid- Sept.

Jaleel White: He played Urkel on Family Matters. I saw an interview with him on Yahoo awhile back. He's acting, writing, and producing this sitcom called Fake It till You Make It.

VW bug: Maybe it's because of the long car ride to and from Calgary, but I saw 5 green VW bugs. I'm sure some of you would say: "I saw 10 silver cars that are the same make." People notice different things. I guess I noticed this car because it's unique, I don't see a lot of those kind of cars in that color. It's also because it's in Mandy Moore's first music video "Candy." She drives in that one.

Aug. 8 Post Secret: There was a secret this week that said: "I want to save people from what I'm afraid of." There is a childrens' book illustration of a fire truck with fire fighters.

News: I read in the Globe and Mail about this one African- American teenager who almost drowned, and his friends tried to save him, but they drowned instead. Did you know that 69% of African- Americans don't swim very well or at all? 41% of whites do.

African- Americans don't swim because they're not interested, they don't have pools in their neighborhoods, they don't have money for lessons. As for whites, it's the opposite.

I read this also in the Globe and Mail awhile ago, about old technology that still exists. Did you know that the NYPD still uses typewriters? I remember seeing that on an episode of Law and Order: SVU that sets there.

Actors: You know the singer Cory Lee? She has the song "The Naughty Song." Well she played a singer in Instant Star, and a hotel receptionist in The Listener. Now she's a teacher on Degrassi: The Next Generation. All the shows are shot in Toronto.

Dialogue: I have writer's block. I should write more about writing. I was thinking about dialogue and how people don't always say what they're thinking. I remember in the Buffy season 3 episode where she develops telepathy. It's interesting to see that everything that Cordelia thinks she says.

C (thinks): I'm so bored.
C says: I'm so bored.

As for Willow, she thinks one thing and says another.

Focus: I got focused and spent a couple of hours on Kijiji looking for a job. I was going through the past few days of the Edmonton Journal's classifieds. I applied to a lot of the Kijiji postings and feel accomplished. I also went to Career Builder.

Cliche: It was awhile ago, but I kind of caught a cliche. I was watching Paget Brewster (Criminal Minds) comes onto Conan O'Brien. She's running and then she steps up and lost her balance, and almost falls backward. Fortunately, Conan catches her just in time. It was a little comedy and action.

I thought to use it and write it into my script so these 2 characters can bond. Then I was watching a Heartland rerun. I missed the first half of the episode so that's why I was watching the beginning. I remember an episode in the 1st season where a horse kind of jumps and then Ty pulls Amy out of the stall and protects her from getting hurt. I realized it's been done.

Aug. 9 Fat Burger: I applied there on Job Bank, and maybe Kijiji. Then I emailed my resume when I saw their ad in the newspaper. I picked up a Job Classified and the Edmonton Journal classifieds and as usual, there are no positions. I picked up 24 and did some research on places, but they were really far away.

Saturday, August 7, 2010

celebrity advice/ Calgary trip/ old job

Aug. 3 Celebrity advice: My favorite Edmonton actor Eric Johnson said: "Don't hold your breath" after an audition. He mentioned about how he was holding out for something better in roles and TV shows to come along for him. He said he was offered to be on a soap opera when he was out of work.

He held out for something better, and then Smallville came along. He signed on for 5 yrs, though he was let go after 1 yr because his character didn't bring a lot to the show. It was still good, because after that, he still got a lot of work because being on an American network show exposed him to a big audience.

In my case, I can't really hold out for something better. I usually take whatever job I can get. The only times I reject a job is because it's too far away. I did reject one job because the pay was min. wage with 12 hrs a week. I knew I would end up quitting it real soon so that's why I didn't take it.

Pep talk: I had a pep talk with my dad a few weeks ago. As usual, my life revolves around TV and it reminded me of Ben and his dad Mr. Boykevich talking to him about how Ben got Adrian pregnant (Secret Life of the American Teenager).

Good acting: To continue on about this TV show, is that I can't believe I'm saying this, but there is some good acting on this crappy show. There was a scene where Adrian (Francia Raisa) is talking to Ricky's foster mom at the abortion clinic.

Rant: I have a mild rant, but Adrian is going to have the baby. It's an American network show, you can't show abortion.

I don't know why I was holding my breath, but I was hoping A would get an abortion. Be different like Degrassi where Manny gets an abortion.

Contest: I got this in the mail to enter into a contest to go to Hinton, AB. It's from Travel Alberta. I did a phone survey for that company before months ago. I don't usually enter in these travel contests, but I decided: "Why not?" I enter into contests to win cds when I was a teenager. I did win a Mandy Moore cd that I still own. lol.

Aug. 7 Calgary trip: I went to Calgary on Aug. 4 and came home today. It's good to have a few days off. I didn't drink coffee, watch Much Music or South Park (my grandparents don't have Much Music or Comedy Network) for 2 days. I went without the internet (specifically email, twop.com and Youtube) and my job search for 1 day.

Though I will admit I tuned in and watched a Big Brother episode. It wasn't that good. I only saw a few episodes this season. You know it's bad, when you're laughing at the producer's attempt to make it different this season. There was a house guest that was a Big Brother saboteur, and then she gets evicted within the first week!

Now there's no twist. However, the producers are asking viewers to vote who the next saboteur should be. I watched So You Think You Can Dance and late night talk shows. I actually saw the Today show today. I don't even watch that show, but there was internet there.

The important thing is that I saw my family like my grandparents, uncles, aunts, cousins and nieces. I called up my cousin Joyce, but I didn't see her. I called up my cousin Doris so I can arrange to see my nieces. This is a first, we didn't go to a Chinese restaurant. We did buy Chinese barbecue, and bought roast beef and oysters to cook at home.

Buffy: I did do a little shopping in Calgary. I didn't buy anything. I went to the crafts store Micheal's. I haven't done crafts in years. I did it a lot as a kid. I still have those 2 Buffy props I made back in 1999/2000. I was obsessed with that show back then. I used a hollow cardboard book and painted it black. I wrote the word Vampyr on it.

Then I bought a cardboard box and painted it orange. There's some black design on it. It's supposed to be the box where all the voices were stolen inside it. Remember season 4 episode called "Hush" where the whole town of Sunnydale loses their voices? I also bought a green sweater that looked like the ones that the Initiative soldiers wore. Seriously, you can look at it.

Shopping: Did you know that Martha Stewart has her own art line? I'm not surprised, but I've never seen it until I went into Micheal's. There is Halloween stuff out at that store too. I went to the mall and Superstore.

I went to the hospital to see my grandpa. I then got a flashback that the last time I ever been to a hospital was back in gr. 3 for that choir trip. We performed there.

Maury Chaykin: He's an actor who died a couple of weeks ago. I had to look him up. I have seen him as the dad on the Winnipeg sitcom called Less than Kind. It's a pretty funny show about a 13 yr old boy named Sheldon. His dad has a driving school, his mom's a stay at home mom, and he has a big brother who's a jerk and wants to be an actor.

Warehouse 13: I was watching this episode last week. I recognized the actress Jewel Staite. She's in Buffy creator Joss Whedon's show Firefly and movie Serenity. I thought I saw the actor Sean Maher. I checked it on imdb.com and recognized that it was him, and he was also on the same show Staite was in. Warehouse 13 is from Buffy writer Jane Espenson. It's like a Buffy reunion. lol.

Old job: Earlier this week I bumped into my old co-worker Judith from Call Centre #3. I bumped into her months ago at the same place, City Centre. She said she was still working there and so with this other woman Michelle. I know for sure Bradley and I were both dismissed because he told me he was.

Judith said her shift was canceled so that's why she's at the mall. That only reminds me to not go crawling back to Call Centre #3 again. Even if I did work there, it will be the same thing with canceled shifts. J did say she did go for an interview at Call Centre #4 a long time ago.

J: I did an interview with them, and they never called me back.
Me: Maybe they forgot and you should call them back.
J: I was like forget about them.

In fact, when Bradley and I first met, he said he did work at Call Centre #4 and he didn't like it. So it's a good thing I don't work at call centres at all.

Wednesday, August 4, 2010

blog comment/ headlines/ shopping

Jul. 31 Blog comment: Yesterday Anonymous posted on my Jul. 30 blog post "news/ future self/ job interviews":

"Hey there. I really admire your struggle through the tedious drone of life. I'm sad that your date didn't work out, and I hope you find that right guy out there. I think you are an amazing writer, and you should keep it up. You will find a great job and a great guy. It is just a matter of perseverance. Keep your stick on the ice."

That is so nice and sweet for this person to encourage me.

Friends: I thought the other good thing was that my friend Justin emailed me back. It turns out he was let go from his cafe job, but he still has his office job so that's good. It was cool to hear from him.

Aug. 1 Headlines: You know Jay Leno and how he reads newspaper headlines. Well since I'm unemployed I've been reading a lot of the newspaper and I found some things that I will send to him.

Stupid criminals: "Woman drops off resume while allegedly stealing clothes from the same store." "...She was wearing clothing she had allegedly stolen from the business on a previous day." It was on a security camera."

Cops on coffee break arrest Starbucks robber." The uniformed cops were in the Starbucks when the robber goes to the till and starts demanding money.

Three women dined and dashed from a Waffle House restaurant without paying their $40 bill. They forgot their purses and woman came back for it. The manager got the police and they used the ID in the women's a wallets to track them down.

My favorite: "What have we learned? In other crime news, police in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., said a man used a crucifix to pry open a church's donation box and steal the cash inside. According to the South Florida Sun-Sentinel, an arrest quickly followed."

Vandalism: "This is a desecration of a cemetery. Snapping off an angel's stone penis is just not done." -German fashion designer Wolfgang Joop

The last three paragraphs are actually from the Edmonton Journal's Sunday Reader section. These last two are borderline funny. That means, it's not totally guaranteed to get a laugh.

"Man apologizes for fire sparked by grow-op." The headline is funny, but not the article because the fired damaged homes.

"Teens use missing (Louis) Riel sword as fight prop."

Funny pictures: I'll send in a few funny pics:

1. A very lifelike T-rex that are standing over children.
2. A guy floating in a boat with a huge Kermit the Frog with him. It's called "The Old Frog and the Sea."
3.A little girl with her grandma sitting in between a huge plastic pig that's wearing a necklace with a soap on it that says the word "soap." On the other side it's a plastic rooster. Very cartoon.

Online cleaning: I'm deleting old book marks and emails that are useless. They hold me back from moving forward.

Aug. 2 Online dating: This guy I went out with 2 weeks ago, emailed me back saying he wants to hang out again. That was weird because we didn't email or call each other at all that time. I said I wasn't interested because we didn't really connect and wished him luck.

Now he just emailed me back saying: "It was your fault." Well that definitely proves that we're not a good match. I say something nice by wishing you luck, and then you diss me.

Actors: I had this random flashback of the actress Rashida Jones. She's on Parks and Recreation.

Me: Wasn't she on the TV show Boston Public where she plays the secretary? It was on way back in 2000/2001.

I looked it up on imdb.com and I was right! She was in a lot of episodes, but her role wasn't really that big. I can't believe I remember her. The scene I remember is where she overhears a teacher talking to another teacher about how he is having a sexual relationship with a student.

Shopping: I have mentioned that I am so sick of shopping, but today I did go shopping. I didn't buy anything. I browsed. The last time I shopped was two weeks ago, but it's because I bumped into my friend Jessica and her family and we walked around a bit. Last week I was at Bonnie Doon mall for an interview, but I didn't shop. I read the newspaper instead. Not only is Dollarama jumping the gun by putting out Halloween stuff, but so is Party Central.

Aug. 3: Today I did go shopping and the only thing I bought was that I renewed my library card for $12. I resisted the urge to by 2 packs of 8 AA batteries for $5 at Shoppers Drug Mart and 2 for $30 Robin Thicke cds. I need to save money and that library card is going to last really long.

Monday, August 2, 2010

Rhema Marvanne/ friends/ Lie to Me

MONDAY, AUGUST 2, 2010

Jul. 29 Rhema Marvanne: I found this on Yahoo news. This 7 yr old girl Rhema Marvanne can sing very well. I was impressed as she sings "Amazing Grace." She makes an appearance in Gerard Butler's new movie Machine Gun Preacher.

There is a video clip of her on the Maury show performing. Adrian from the girl groups Cheetah Girls and 3LW introduce her. This doesn't count as a relapse that I'm watching his show, because this segment is not trashy.

http://new.ca.music.yahoo.com/blogs/videogaga/52593/amazing-voice-7-year-old-gospel-singer-belts-whitney-and-celine-songs/

Jul. 30 Friends: I have called my friend Daniel whom I went to jr. high, high school, and Professional Writing with. We hung out and talked for 1.5 hrs about movies. He also got an email from our classmate Cherie to read her piece and edit it.I never noticed this, but D pointed out in the Jet Li movie Kiss of the Dragon, JL's character is always analyzing and anticipating every fight move. One guy is always kicking, so JL keeps moving to a narrower hallway so he can't kick him.

I haven't seen that movie in years. I saw it on TV, and I remember the fight scenes were pretty good. It was an average movie.

Ascension: I was looking for a job and I see that the West Ed store Ascension is hiring. It sells products made out of pot. It pays $11/hr for 44hrs a week. I find working there to be kind of unethical. It's not illegal, but my parents wouldn't approve. My little brother would never work there. He holds his breath when we walk past it because he doesn't want to smell it.

Jul. 31 Fame: I was thinking about Ashley Dupree, you know the prostitute that governor Elliot Spitzer hired. She didn't want to be famous, she was thrown into the spotlight because someone found about about Spitzer. Then they tracked her down. I heard she's writing a book.

Fun: Today I went out and read the newspaper at Churchill Square while listening to live country music.

Old job: I looked at Job Bank and I see that my old Call Centre #3 is hiring. I then emailed my boss back to see if I can have my job back considering I got laid off from them back in Apr. We'll see.

Progress: I'm getting way more call backs for receptionist positions this time around with my job search.

Aug. 1 Cell phone kiosks: I had talked to my friend Justin a few weeks ago and he told me to apply to cell phone kiosks. I did land an interview at this one place. I didn't get hired, and the manager told me that I needed to research the company.

He added that I didn't have telecommunications experience or worked in a commissions environment. In the interview I told him I worked in retail and worked with the public and customers for years, but it didn't apply to this job. I gave it my best shot.

Post Secret: This was awhile back and I found a secret: "I'm 26 and I'm a virgin."

"I put 2% of my income to a bank account for my future offspring. I'm 26 and I never had sex before and I'm single."

An email reply was: "You taking care of your future kids make you that much sexier."

Lie to Me: I was watching Lie to Me and I see Melissa George (Lauren from Alias) on. I also noticed Deputy Leo from Veronica Mars on. I saw him on a Castle episode. The episode is did this young woman MG, kill her wealthy and old husband for his money?

It turns out she didn't. You would think she did because MG is the biggest guest- star. It's the husband's assistant who did it. The husband asked him to because he's Catholic and suicide is a sin.

Twilight Zone: I've been watching this show for the past few months now. This show is in the 60s, people on twop.com is usually gushing about how good this show is. I do like to watch it because it's supernatural. It's very creative and unoriginal.

There's this one ep where this guy is allowed to be granted 1 wish. He has these scenarios go through his head and decides to be a genie in a bottle.

Job search: I checked the Edmonton Journal Classifieds and Job Classifieds today. No luck. I went through my book marks and saw Castle Rock. You know they print The Key work books to help students prepare for exams and their courses. I did apply there. Then I looked it up and there isn't a career section on the site so I deleted the book mark.

I did an interview at the restaurant Fargos earlier this week. The place seems nice and everything, but I don't think I'm a good fit for it. I don't think they'll hire me either. I did an interview at a hotel, but they didn't call me back when they're supposed to. I guess I could them back.