Choices...

My cluttered mind has never been more apparent than right now.  I was going to sit down and write a philosophical and meaningful post, but it came out as a mindless stream-of-conscious-rambling that bored the hell out of me; I can only imagine what it would have done for you. Click...I'm outta here....let's blow this self-indulgent pop stand!  Rantings from a very confused mind.  Maybe I should rename the blog:  Confessions of a Confused Mind.  Nah...I'll leave it. For now, anyway.

Here I am...once again at a crossroads.  Seems like I'm ALWAYS at a crossroads.  What's the matter with me? In the movie in my mind, I somehow seem to think that "this" (whatever "this" is) will be the next chapter of my life.  The next BIG moment.  And the orchestra swells, and we hear the strings, and the drums and the camera zooms in for a close-up...and then...as I gasp in anticipation... 

NOTHING happens. 

 Because it's not a movie.  It's my life.  Damn!  All this time I was hoping this was a movie.  If it were, I think it would be either an old-school Woody Allen flick, or a Wes Craven horror film.  "Don't go in there Deb...it's BAD in there."  Wouldn't that be great, if you heard that advice everytime you were about to make a terrible decision?  "Don't do it...it's bad..."

Ah well...life just doesn't work that way, does it?

I'm trying to reinvent myself; yet, it seems all the good inventions have been taken.  Anybody got any ideas?  I can use all the help I can get...

Edamame

Yeah, I know...I'm a little late coming to this party--but it's only recently that I discovered the joys of edamame.  What?  You know what this is, right?  Of course you do.  They're soybeans.  And who woulda thought they would be SO delish?

I'm sure there are tons of ways to enjoy them/prepare them, but frankly, I like snacking on them right out of the shell.  I know they're available out of the shell, but I like the work of getting them out of the shell and into my mouth.  That's part of the fun.

Here's the thing folks:  I'm a snacker. (That's snacker, not slacker!)  Sad, but true.  And when I'm sitting at my computer working on my writing assignments, or editing a manuscript, or reading screenplays and writing coverage, it's very easy for me to chomp away on a bag of peanut M&M's or some other easy-to-munch convenience snack that will cause detriment to my body, mind and soul.

BUT edamame...aahhh.....I have one bowl filled with them on one side of the desk...and another empty bowl on the other side (for the empty shells) and I've got that whole hand to mouth coordination thing going, while I snack away on something healthy and fun to eat.

I get a frozen bag of them (in the shell, slightly salted) at my local Trader Joe's (where else would I shop...my loyalty to Joe is amazing!) I heat them up for a quick 2 minutes ( I like them warm, but you can eat them cold) and I'm good to go!  Plus, they are WAY LESS expensive than a megabag of Peanut M&M's.  Not to mention SO MUCH better for you! And no crash from the sugar rush.  I see this as a win-win situation.

So tell me...do you know about this wonder food?  Do you like it?  How do you eat them?  In the shell or out?  Warm or cold? I'm now on the edamame band wagon and want to know what you think about this fun and delicious snack!  I eagerly await your comments!

Mind Control

By Joe Notaro

I'm always in awe of artists who see things in a visual way.  Painters, sculpters, photographers, graphic designers...I might be able to paint pictures with words, but I wish I could actually paint with images.  I wish I had that gift. Unfortunately, I don't.

My friend Joe, whom I've known since forever, does have the gift and he recently helped me out with the graphics for the poster for my upcoming short play, MIND CONTROL, in the Samuel French Off Off Broadway Short Play Festival. I sent him the script, he read it, and immediately came up with this great concept for the poster.  He was able to do it quickly, and when he sent it to me, I immediately loved it.

A little nip and tuck here, a little tweaking there, and it was done!  Sent it in to the Samuel French PR people and they loved it too!

So I'm sending a huge shout out to Joe Notaro for helping me and creating this really cool artwork. THANK YOU JOE!! I appreciate this so, so much!

What do you think of the poster? Does it make you wonder what the play is about?  Does it titillate you to want to know more?  As always, I welcome your comments and am eager to hear your thoughts!

Continuing Education?

Every artist I know goes through periods of doubt regarding whether or not they are following the right path. I go through this all the time. Lately, I’ve been getting a lot of stuff in my email inbox about choosing other careers. I wonder if the Universe is trying to tell me something.

Sometimes, I wonder what might have been if I had pursued a business degree or studied marketing. When I first went off to college to the University of Redlands, all I wanted to do was be an actor. I was so narrow-minded at the time, I never allowed myself to look around to see all that this beautiful Southern California University had to offer.

Recently, I took a drive out to the desert, and passed through the Inland Empire on my way to Palm Springs. I forgot how gorgeous that area is. I remember my parents being amused when they visited me at school one time and saw all these girls sunbathing on the lawn while snow-peaked mountains hovered over us in all their splendor. That’s California for ya!

I have often thought of going back to school; enrolling in a continued education program. You know that old adage: “If I knew then, what I know now…” Well, if I knew then what I know now, I would have definitely taken some courses to sharpen my business and marketing skills. I sure could use some of those skills these days. I think if anyone was looking for a California business school, U of R would be a great place to go. I remember this great little 24-hour doughnut shop very close to the campus. Not sure if that doughnut shop is still there, but we used to make doughnut runs for our 1AM study sessions and we’d get the apple fritters hot out of the oven. That, of course, is not the best reason to go back to college, but it’s a great place to start, don’t you think? And if you got your degree in business, think of all the doughnut shops you could open!

Anyway, let me know what schools, colleges or universities you like, and if you have or are considering continuing your education. I’d really love to hear your stories!

Support for the Arts, Anyone?

Photo by Salvatore Vuono

Before I get to the business at hand, I must send out an enormous thank you to Absolutely *Kate for publishing my story "Coils of Gold" on her amazing site AT THE BIJOU! The story was inspired by an incredibly fascinating photo taken by my friend Damian.  To see the photo and read the story, please head on over to AT THE BIJOU.  There are many other things to see and read while you're there, so stay awhile and enjoy yourself!

Absolutely *Kate always likes to interview the authors she publishes, and in her interview with me, she broke the news wide open of that tidbit of information I hinted about in my previous post. So if you haven't read it there, I'll tell you now. 

My short play, MIND CONTROL, has been accepted as one of the 40 finalists for the 35th Annual Samuel French Off Off Broadway Short Play Festival. Whoa!  Wow! Mind-blowing!  I'm stunned.  Seriously.  I am beyond thrilled, but seriously stunned and still wrapping my head around the information.  BroadwayWorld did an article about the fact that this year, Samuel French received a record number of submissions. Over 880. And they narrowed it down to 40.  Six will get publishing contracts!  Can I say it again?  WOW!

After getting over the initial excitement, I'm now overwhelmed with the logistics of the situation.  I need to wear the producer's hat for this thing; a role I'm not too comfortable playing.  I have to get my tush out to NYC (the festival takes place July 13th-18th), I have to get a director, a cast, and find a way to pay for all of this.  YIKES. Daunting....but not impossible.

I'm not asking for a handout, folks...I'm simply asking for some fundraising ideas because this opportunity is too good to pass up, doncha' think?  It's not like I'm trying to produce a massive Broadway-scale production...just a 12 minute play that will help convince the Samuel French powers that be to realize this play needs to be in their catalogue. But of course, even that takes money when you're doing it all by yourself.  Which I am. 

They say if you don't ask, you don't get. So, I'm throwing it out there.  And I'm hoping for some positive feedback.  I apologize if this is clumsy and awkward...it is not my area of expertise.  But...if you don't ask, you don't get.  So, I'm asking....

Thank you in advance for your advice and good wishes for this humble writer...I look forward to hearing your ideas and suggestions.

Back to the Blog!

Photo by Salvatore Vuono

Forgive my negligence to this blog!  It's been two weeks since my last post. Time seems to be getting away from me  lately.  I hope you haven't deserted me.  I've been traveling to distant lands...okay, well not that distant, but I did go up to Portland, Oregon for a week.  Pretty darn beautiful, I must say. Never saw the color "green" look quite so green!  It was absolutely amazing.

I saw waterfalls! Up close and personal that made me gasp out loud.  Oh, the beauty of nature--do you realize how incredibly cool and spectacular waterfalls are?  I guess I didn't fully appreciate them until now.  Sorry it took me so long Ms. Mother Nature.

I came home last Monday and hit the ground running, catching up on old work and new gigs galore.  So it's all good.  I do have some exciting news to announce, but you're going to have to wait a little bit longer.  I'm not quite ready to fully go public with it yet.  Needless to say, it's delightful news and I'm pretty excited.  Now you're going to have to check in regularly to find out what it is.  A real cliffhanger, huh?

In the meantime, it's good to be back to the blog.  I'll try not to be away too long next time.  Oh...before I forget...a major shout out to my new and dear friend Absolutely Kate.  She featured me on her blog AT THE BIJOU (with the Rabbit, Rabbit post I wrote here last month.) She also included a delightful interview because she is a delightful woman.  I've used that word "delightful" three times now. I must be delighted with it!  Ohhhhh...that was lame...I will now stop! Anyway, please go check out Kate's terrific blog(see...I didn't use "delightful" again!) It features some really amazing writers and it's a very, very fun read!

 Okay...gotta run.  I promise I will be back soon.  It WON'T be two weeks before you hear from me again. So tell me...what have YOU been up to these past two weeks?  Seen any good waterfalls lately?