Today we looked at a very small place with a very large deck and a very large place with a very small deck. And then other places that were dirty and far away from local shops, no parks nearby, and then there were places that were close to shops and parks.

Friday we're checking out a place with a bedroom loft. And there are others, in Los Feliz I think, that we found by doing drive-bys.

Plus, I had fish tacos from a mexican place that claimed they were the "Best in LA"...but I think they were lying. The fish was dry and the tacos were only two to a plate and it was an overpriced plate at that.

Still searching for the best fish taco in LA...still searching...

Have you ever met someone and thought to yourself, 'That's a man I could love'? It's a hard question to answer.

Damn.

Fire! Fire!

Today, there was a fire along the 60 as I was driving to Riverside. The yellow planes bringing water came dangerously close to the road. The sky was a dull brown. It smelled like BBQ smoke, I saw the orangey flames dancing alongside the concrete freeway, teasing the firemen and the police officers that were trying to keep everything contained, controlled. It seemed like they should be more upset, the way the fire was mocking them like that. The fire had already burned most of the hillside, the smoke billowing up into the clouds. At first I thought it was a tornado, the way the smoke swirled upwards so violently. You could see the blue clearly on either side. I wanted to fly in those yellow planes, they had a purpose. I liked seeing them swoop so close to my car, because I wasn't used to it probably, and because I wanted them to put out the taunting fire.

At the same time though, it was mesmerizing, watching the hill burn like that, and so quickly. A change in the routine, the day to day. Is it wrong to welcome a burning hillside for selfish reasons? It's not like I had to worry about it destroying my home. Still, I felt guilty. Relishing in how it burned. My heart pumped in my chest, I was so close. I think I'm a bit of a pyro.

We're looking for a new place to live in LA. Checking out a place in Echo Park and Silverlake on Wednesday. Hopefully I'll get to check out the AFI Fest, as well. Yesterday we looked at a cute guest house in Atwater Village (and then also a not-cute guest house which was more money).

Probably be spending Turkey Day and Christmas in LA this year. I'm looking forward to visiting New York come warmer weather. I am constantly contradicting myself. But I like my life right now - full of possibility. Always good. :)

Dog-Sitting, the Silverlake Way

We're dog-sitting for tonight, crashing at our friends' place in Silverlake while they're in Vegas. The hunt for our own apartment continues as we get back in the groove of the daily routine in La La Land (though M is convinced we should take off and move to Argentina). M's existential crisis aside, I'm enjoying being back in Los Angeles. Besides New York, it's probably my favorite place to be in the good ol' US of A (as far as cities go). This summer we drove across the country to NY and back, stopping in small and large towns and cities in between, and I can seriously say that I LOVE AMERICA. The people in it anyway that aren't trying to be greedy and steal all the money for themselves. The States are complex and all over the place. Southwest, Northwest, Middle of the country, New England, Mid-Atlantic, South. This country really does have it all. I just hope I can afford to do what I want to do. Find a job when I graduate. Make a living. Hell, I don't need much. I'm thrifty. :)

And so here we are. Craigslist job postings are ghastly. Really. "Work for free and maybe we'll give you a job eventually...Cheers!" No. Thanks.

Screenwriting is going good. Working on many new projects that I'm excited about, and Fiction, well, that's going along. I'm building the spine right now of the NY stories project. It's a slow and sure process. I'm amazed at how much more time and effort it takes to complete a short story in fiction than a screenplay - or maybe it's just that I have movies on the mind? Or that I don't necessarily think that writing a screenplay is depressing work (because I enjoy it). I'm a broken record. Why must there be one or the other - why not just write what I feel like - just write, you know? The Movies and Books sections are always the first to be read when browsing the NY times. I really like what I do. I just hope I can find a way to keep doing this when I graduate.

I've discovered that finishing projects helps - as in really finishing them. Then at least I can send them out in the world. See if they can find a home. If anything, I'm working towards that. Completing ideas so that they're tangible. Even if someone hates what I write, at least I've finished something, you know? It's one more thing to add to my body of work.

So that's it. There you go!

There's been a heat wave this past week. It's been in the low 90s. Heard it snowed in NY already. Crazy. Is this global warming? I ran around the Silverlake reservoir for the first time yesterday. It was late at night, but I wasn't scared. It just made me run faster. Plus, there are lots of people out and about in that part of the city so all was well.

Enjoy the day!

Wow.

First noticed this on a friend's link and had to share:

Kseniya Simonova is a Ukrainian artist who just won Ukraine's version of "America's Got Talent." She uses a giant light box, dramatic music, imagination and "sand painting" skills to interpret Germany's invasion and occupation of Ukraine during WWII.

Let it happen to you. Life is in the right, always. - Rilke

Show Me Show Me Show Me Show Me

I love Dexter and Mad Men. Sigh. They are always, always a good time. I'd even say that they're art.






Oh yeah, and True Blood. Guilty pleasure.



The end.

The Redwood Forest

So, you get it going. So, you get it gone.

We're driving to the redwood forest today. We are driving to the redwood forest today. It sounds...enchanting. Like a fairy tale. I've been there before, but still, the redwood forest played with my mind, the light disappeared before it was supposed to. There were other worldly turns. I was by myself. Maybe this time it will be different.

Nature can do that to you. And life.

Sacramento was surprisingly fun!

Next stop: Up north. More so.

Joy.