TGIM - U.S.A.

I had a hard time coming up with anything today. Not because there are not things to get all TGIM about, but because I really wanted to sound off on the wealth envy culture the government is further perpetuating. But it's Monday, the toughest day of the week for most, and that's just not what we do.

Today's TGIM is the United States of America, and that's America at its potential greatness, not its current hollow, Big Government shell. We live in the greatest country on earth. Every kind of climate you could want, electricity, running water, the best health care, etc. But even better than that is the opportunities it provides. You can do anything you want. You can be anything you want. You're only limited by your own drive and ambition. I'm not going to speak to anything else as that would place me firmly in the political pool and I'm staying positive.

Now, more than ever, is a time to celebrate the fact that you can make a life of your own choosing, even when it seems times are tough. Let's make good on our own lives while the world around us tells us we're slipping into a milieu of despair.

Sack up, America.

No Excuses

From time to time, often when drunk, I'll tell people that I don't believe in excuses. Excuses are just things to hide behind; reasons to preempt success with obstacles that delay it (I also don't believe in failure). I don't believe in them and I don't have any. I'm no Sean Stephenson, but I got off my But a while ago and haven't looked back.

I made a promise to myself, and this was before I got laid off, that I would finish a screenplay by the end of March. I've been living with and working on LYP since New Year's Eve. It's a story I really believe in and connect with, and even though it's not 100% figured out, and even though I haven't made any substantive progress on the actual nuts and bolts of the written screenplay, I will finish it by the end of March.

I looked at the calendar on my wall (a Walking Dead calendar for those that care) and counted out the days remaining. Including today, which will be largely wasted unless I get my ass to sleep, I have exactly 10 days.

Ten days, one screenplay, no excuses. It's on.

Kanye West Says "Gimme" to the Rainbow

As promised many weeks ago, I had to right about this. Kanye West wants the rainbow back. It's not fair that it's become only a symbol of gay pride, and not the hot symbol it originated as.

Kanye wants it back. You gotta respect the balls on this dude, if nothing else.

I felt this post was particular well-suited as I am about to go see I Love You Man. With a gay guy. It's going to be so bromantic.

Back on Track

It's been a tough week for me. My brain just wasn't working when it came to getting in the groove for my writing. The editing work was going fine, and I could totally focus, but ask me to do something of my own and I was like a goldfish who jumped out of its tank, flailing around and looking pathetic.

Today I went for a run (which I missed on Tuesday) and felt great after. Did some work (emails, considering an alternate career route to awesome, phone call) and felt like maybe I was coming out of my funk. But it was the afternoon that sealed the deal and put me back on track.

Heard about an Anniversary celebration at a Beverly Hills sushi spot called Lucky Fish. Everything was $1, and that meant I called up my fellow penny pincher Mel and we headed out there. The original plan was to hit it at 2pm and try and meet the lunch rush, but we pushed to 3:30. Mel texted me on the way that the line was "INSANE." Sure enough, it was.

We waited about an hour and fifteen minutes before getting in. They brought us some fried rock shrimp and were selling $1 hand rolls (which we did not partake of) while we waited. It was quality time with one of my favorite people in LA, so neither the heat nor the wait made me regret it. Once we got in, it was on. The place is moat style, where dishes come flying at you on a conveyor belt snake thing. You grab what you want and go nuts. Well, we went 20 plates nuts... It was pretty awesome. And might I mention that the normal prices are solid anyway, so I'll definitely be back.

Driving home, I stopped at a red light on Beverly and looked left. Who did I see coming back from buying a new monitor and some other stuff but Mr. JJ Abrams himself. I was half tempted to get out of the car and try to initiate a conversation, but I can only imagine how crazy that would look. Damn you sushi for making me way too full!

I got back to the crib following all that quality food and raw fish and wanted to go into a coma. Instead I did a lot of reading/research, then watched Brubaker's Crackle.com series, Angel of Death. The writing was solid, not his best, but the direction and performances were off in most cases. As a serialized web thing it was okay, but as a feature (watching it all at once), it definitely felt lacking.

Rapped with Marz and fired off a bazillion emails in between and after episodes, then did a little mulling and writing on one of the things I'm developing. I definitely feel like I'm back on track. It's good to be back.

The Limits of Control

There's a new Jim Jarmusch film coming. It has a crappy poster (at least the one I've seen), but a very cool trailer. Not sure if it's a hitman flick or something else criminal-ish, but it has the potential to be very good based on the look and tone he's got going.

Click it.

***

I've had a headache and been unable to wrap my mind around anything the last two days. Not sure if the two go hand in hand, but I really want to get some work done. And I'd prefer not having a headache...

TGIM - Dropbox

Okay, I admit it, I'm cheating a little bit.  I'm writing this one late as hell Sunday night (Monday morning here on the East Coast), and I need to be awake in 3 hours and haven't touched my suitcase.  The carry-on is all set and I'm debating whether DVDs are more important than a blood pressure cuff (don't ask).  In any event, today I got my dad hooked up with Dropbox, and I figure it's just about the greatest thing to happen to The Cloud since gmail, so I'm gonna pimp it.

Dropbox is secure backup, sync, and file sharing made easy.  It is literally one of the most seamless and stable programs I've ever used, and it's just as easy on Mac or PC.  I dare say it's perfect.

You create an account, install the software, and you're set.  You now have a folder on your computer that auto-syncs with the same folder in the cloud.  Make a change anywhere, auto-sync.  Sync more than one folder as I do.  I have it set up on my laptop, desktop, and in the cloud...  I keep all of my writing and most of my current editing docs in one place, and that means I can access from literally anywhere with an Internet connection.  And oh yeah, even if I have no Internet, like say on the plane, any changes I make on my local dropbox folder will automatically sync up as soon as I reconnect again.  Science!

If I'm on a friend's computer, I can just log in using their web client.  Any browser will do.  And you guessed it, any changes I make to the folder in the cloud... get seamlessly synced up with my local folders on my machines.

Default configuration is 2gb free, but if you need more space you can get 50gb for $9.99 or $99.99 for the year.  Of course, if you click MY LINK you can start with 2.25gb.  I've referred several happy customers, but now they're offering to expand your storage space (and those of anyone you bring in) for each referral.

Seriously, I have one folder for writing, and it's everywhere I need to be.  I keep all of my published samples in the public folder and can easily send out links to prospective employers.  It's so easy I even taught my dad how to use it in about 5 minutes.

Sign up, and breathe easy.  I'll see you folks back on the Left Coast in the afternoon.

Is That HD Video In Your Pocket Or...

I'm gonna keep my eye on this.  Engadget has details and a potential price tag on the Toshiba Camileo.

The possibilities are intriguing...