Ends of the Years

I'm just been contemplating how many news years-eves I can recall - or which I could best recall.  

I can't specifically remember any new years eves as a kid, though I know I stayed up with the family and watched (in black-and-white) the ball drop in Times Square.

I do remember where I was on New Years Eve, 1999 - I was freezing down in San Pedro, by the Korean Bell, a gift from South Korea to the City of Los Angeles., that sits on the coast.  I was helping out as a cameraman on a live broadcast to South Korea.  It was freezing, I had a cold - it was miserable!  But we had a little excitement when our power generators went out ten minutes before midnight, not only leaving all of the crew in the dark, but all of the guests as well (a crowd of dignitaries were to ring in the new year en masse using the large bell. It turns out the production crew was providing all of the light for the event as well.  Just in time, all the power was restored and the show went on as scheduled.

I've been to numerous New Years Eve parties over the years, but the truth is that most are the same sort of thing - I'm not one for drunken all-out parties, and many of the others I've gone to are otherwise uneventful - hardly worth risking the drunk drivers out on the roads!

As for Times Square, I can't help but marvel at those people who brave a cold December day in New York City to stand around Times Square for most of the day waiting for the big moment - which is over in perhaps ten or fifteen minutes (though I have to admit there is some excitement in just "being there."

The other thought that almost always occurs to me is the transitory nature of new years eve - the fact that it happens in waves throughout the day, from one side of the world to the other - while you're celebrating, people in Australia have already moved on with their lives.  Being in California, we're just about at the end of the process - like so many other live programs, we see Times Square on a three-hour delay.  Since we don't have any great televised New Year celebration, we're stuck with leftovers...

Around the World with Freshi

Aboard the Cruise ship Golden Princess on December 18, 2007..

End of the Year - Time for a New Blog.

Actually, a lot has happened since the last posting - most recently being my journey aboard the Princess Cruise Ship Golden Princess.  I can't go into detail on why I was there - but it was for business!  I swear!  No, really!

 

Like my trip to India in '06, I hadn't ever considered taking a cruise, but I loved the experience.  I was also very impressed with how well the entire operation ran - 2600 passengers experienced nothing but a stress-free, high-quality environment.  The only time I saw stressed out people was in the final couple of hours before passengers returned to the real world.  It's inevitable, I suppose.  The Princess Cruise tag line is "escape completely,"  but it's not a permanent escape.

But it sure was fun....

Great in '08!!

I didn't have an imaginary friend as a kid - but I did have an imaginary Presidential Candidate. Jim Great was running for President on a platform that solely emphasized his Greatness. How could you not vote for a Great President?

Plans

When I was about eight or nine years old, I went through a period when I thought I wanted to be an architect. Actually, looking back on it, I suppose I was more interested in being an urban planner.

My single greatest achievement? I spent hours and hours creating a cross section of a vast underground city, consisting of sheet upon sheet of taped-together notebook paper. I don't remember too many details, but I remember the feeling of achievement as the plans extended further and further underground. It looked pretty cool as a cross-section. I tried to make a city that was livable, fun and futuristic.

Sunlight and claustrophobia didn't enter my thoughts. Not to mention fresh air- or the very thought of living your life hundreds of feet below the surface...

I wonder what a city would look like if it were designed by kids. Somehow, I think it would be a very scary place...

What Ever Happened to Ben? (Part Three)

The Ben Era

No sooner had I established my friendship with The Shuffleboard Kid that I became acquainted with Ben. I don't know just where and how we met, but we managed to find each other - two kids of the same age seeking an ally in our two week stay in an alien land (i.e. Miami).

Naturally, finding a friend of the same age under these circumstances is like hitting the jackpot. It didn't matter what we actually had in common - we were perfectly in tune in our fight against boredom. While Shuffleboard Kid was happy to find a friend, Ben and I were happy to find comrades.

There were just a few opportunities to establish a friendship, and even fewer responsibilities to maintain it. We could play at the beach of course - naturally, the primary form of entertainment at a beach-front hotel. The beach provided the backdrop for my only record of Ben - a movie of him goofing off for the camera and writing his name in the sand. If Shuffleboard Kid had come down to the beach, I suspect he would still have a name today.

Ben stood by me during the Bingo Incident. Our hotel had a bingo night, and Ben and I decided to join in. After all, there were prizes involved! Mostly, they were pens and pencils and paper wieghts, but that didn't matter. Winning the Prize was important - not the prize itself. We sat down, hoping to win some prizes.

That evening, I was to experience one of my most successful winning streaks, before or since. The Bingo Gods seemed to smile upon me as I won game after game after game. The Game Official (probably some cabana boy), checked each bingo card closer than the last - but my wins were real. Ben and I were giddy with excitement, while old ladies grumbled around the room. I won more prizes than I could handle, and began to hand some over to Ben, whose Bingo cards were sadly devoid of winning numbers. It seemed as if I couldn't be stopped. If I was in Vegas, I would have brought down the house. This wasn't Vegas, however.

The grumbles grew louder, and we grew happier, and the Bingo Gods grew more generous. Then, without warning, I was told to leave. I had won too much. I had to give other people a chance, they told me. WON TOO MUCH? I WAS TOO LUCKY? We were outraged! In this case, that meant it was my turn to grumble, and Ben's turn to grumble right along with me. I am convinced that I will one day have the chance to continue my interrupted streak of good luck, but as yet my efforts to summon the Bingo Gods have failed during my trips to Las Vegas.

Shuffleboard Kid, with an earlier bedtime, wasn't around for the Bingo Incident. As friendships unfold in the much-slower non-vacation world, we drifted apart. Sure, I would see him around the hotel over the next few days, but didn't spend that much time together - not like in the old days earlier in the week.

The unique character of a holiday vacation was always that everyone was there on the same general schedule. Most schools took off the last two weeks of the year, and so most families planned their vacations accordingly. When it was time to go home, we all parted. Nobody was left behind. We ALL moved away.

Ben, and Shuffleboard Kid and I became fast friends, and they were the first of many friends I would leave behind the following summer when my family moved across the country to California. Ben and I vowed to stay in touch - we had been through the Boredom War together - and survived With Something To Do. I guess you could say we're veterans. We might not have been fighting for freedom or our lives, but for the most important value in our lives at that single moment in time: Keeping Ourselves Entertained.

So....what ever happened to Ben? Until recently, I thought that we had attempted to write one another, but I didn't pursue the relationship when I realized how poor his writing skills were. My nephew, however, found a passage in a diary I was required to keep in my sixth grade class (in California) declaring, in bold letters, I GOT A LETTER FROM BEN! Unfortunately, that's all I wrote. Until I find that missing letter, the nature of our post-Miami friendship will have to remain a mystery.

With my nephew's help, I recently thought I found Ben on MySpace. He didn't respond to my odd little inquiry, so I can't be sure that particular east coast businessman is actually him. Of course, if it was him, we really wouldn't have all that much to talk about, anyway. Two Weeks. As an adult, that's practically an instant.

What Ever Happened to Ben? (Part Two)

The Shuffleboard Kid

The suggestion that one year in a dog's life is equivalent to seven in a human's is probably appropriate to kids and adults, as well. Summer can be an eternity to a kid - and two weeks nearly so. While an adult is almost immediately counting down the days when his vacation will end, the kid is generally thinking of the time at hand. Two weeks is an impossibly long time to contemplate.

Survival mode for a kid on vacation almost always means the challenge to Not Be Bored - particularly when the adults are off relaxing by the pool or entertaining themselves with a cup of coffee. Many kids out to dinner with their parents have formed brief alliances with mortal enemies caught in the same situation. They might remain enemies in school, but here in adultland, they only had each other, and put aside their differences rather than Be Bored.

At ten, age really matters. Generally, you hang out with kids your age or older - almost NEVER younger kids, lest you be considered One Of Them. On this vacation those concerns didn't apply.

I was checking out the shuffleboard courts (do they even exist anymore?) when I came across a boy I only remember at The Shuffleboard Kid. He was about seven or eight - an impossibly large age gap at home - and was playing with his mom. I was invited to play, which I suppose was her convenient excuse to beat a hasty retreat, for soon just the Kid and I were playing shuffleboard - and so forming a fast friendship based solely on Nothing Better To Do.

About the only thing I remember with certainty about The Shuffleboard Kid was that he was a bit sensitive - particularly, it seems, about animals. In fact, if he's an animal activist today, I might have witnessed the beginning of his lifelong quest. The Kid and I attended the hotel's sixteen milimeter screening of the original "Doctor Dolittle," which featured Rex Harrison as an 18th century vegetarian vetenarian who also, by the way, talked to the animals. At first, the screening almost didn't happen. Hotel staff couldn't figure out how to adjust the wide-angle lens on the projector to allow the film to project in its corrrect widescreen mode. I'm proud to say that my dad, the film executive, saved the evening by showing them how it was done, and thus making the screening possible.

After the film, Shuffleboard Kid was in tears. Why couldn't we treat animals like people? It just wasn't right! He seemed deeply hurt by the lack of what today I might call Equal Access For Animals. I thought it was really a major over-reaction, but I stood by my friend, tried to reason with him a bit, but generally just shrugged and hoped he would get it out of his system. It reminded me that he was, after all, Just A Little Kid.

For the first couple of days, The Shuffleboard Kid was my Best and Only Vacation Friend. His standing was about to be challenged.

Ben was on the scene.

Part Three: The Ben Era

What Ever Happened to Ben? (Part One)

When I was ten, my family took a trip to Miami, Florida for the winder holiday - a two week vacation at a (then) typical Miami Beach hotel - multistory, some scheduled activities, and the beach right behind the hotel property. This was before today's "revitalized" Miami Beach, with (I'm told) glitzy hotels, night life, and lots of Cuban atmosphere. There might have been a lot going on, but for a ten year old kid, what counted in Miami Beach was the place where I spent most of my time - the hotel. I think a kid in Vegas might feel the same thing - plenty of lights and activity - but what does it mean to him?

Looking back on it, this vacation was actually one of the more activity-filled trips we took. We visited plenty of local attractions, including Parrot Jungle (where about four heavy parrots balanced on my scrawny arms for a photo), Lion Country Safari, where (I think) I saw the dolphins who performed in the TV show, Flipper (before computer graphics spared such animals a good deal of online work). We didn't get to visit the just opened Disney World (my dad didn't want to fight the traffic), but we did visit Kennedy Space Center - though it was late in the day and only the gift shop was open- I sitll have the Apollo 15 cap we purchased there.

At the hotel, however, there was a entirely new set of adventures. This was in the days before video arcades, wireless internet, or widescreen televisions. The list of activities, in my ten year old's perception, included the ocean, the pool, the shuffleboard court, the nightly bingo games, and a movie night (where they rolled out a sixteen milimeter projector). An adult - or older kid, like my teenage sister - would look at the situation as dire, but at ten, I accepted reality and went about seeing how I could fit into my new, semi-independent limitied-to-two-weeks world.

Part Two: The Shuffleboard Kid

Back By Popular Demand!

Okay, maybe it depends how you define popular - let's say popular in the world of people who read my blog. I'm going to resume my blogorific experience....

It's been an eventful few months - from my work with FreshiFilms, LLC (where I serve as Director of Production), to my move to Valencia (about 2o miles north of my previous home), and numerous projects of all sizes and types - it's been a hectic time. I'll touch on some of these activities over the next few weeks.

I've a got a few newly-discovered childhood stories to share - and others to enhance. My move uncovered some forgotten artifacts from my kid years, which I'll review here in my own personal anthropological expedition (say that three times, fast), as well as exploring some ongoing mysteries.

The first of those mysteries: Whatever Happened to Ben?

Useless Luck

Today, on 7/7/07, I made a purchase that added up to $7.77.

So, where's my luck?

If I'm to believe all the superstitions about three 7's, then this should indicate that good luck is coming my way...

Or perhaps my luck was that the salad and water I purchased for $7.77 was contaminated. With all the contaminated food floating around, I'll take what I can get!

Freshiflix.com

FreshiFilmWorx, the worldwide filmmaking consortium I work with, is about to initiate it's annual film camp. Here's a look at last year's camp, straight from the Freshiflix.com website for young filmmakers....

World of Warcraft

After experimenting with World of Warcraft for a couple of months, I ultimately cancelled the account. It was interesting to explore the "massive multiplayer" environment, but even with an enormous 3D world to explore, and numerous ways to interact with other players (and computer generated characters), that world becomes a repetitive excercise in endless quests and battles against enemies. For kids with time to spare, I can see how engaging it might be, but without that time, it's just an endless time-sucking monster.

My friend Andrew Tarr (with whom I created "What Ever Happened to Andy Tark"), writes a blog about Second Life, which is another take on the massive multiplayer world. I might try that shortly - Second Life is an attempt to expand these alternative online worlds to reach a wider audience. It's not so much a game as it is a world largely generated by users - including retail vendors hoping to be on the ground floor of a new marketing bonanza.

Ultimately, I think that all of these worlds will increase in popularity in a massive way when individuals can virtually enter highly defined environments, and "wander" in a fully immersive world, walking and talking with users around the world. There was a time when such a concept was pure science fiction (as in the film "Total Recall," but technology is moving ahead so rapidly, I suspect such an world can't be that far ahead.

Time Flies!

I didn't realize it's been so long since I posted an entry here - life has been hectic lately.

Here's few random, unrelated bits:

1 - I'm restarting my filmmaking workshop at Pacific Lodge Boys' Home, which I had to sideline early last year when my father was sick. We have a new camera, and a Final Cut editing system - I'm looking forward to seeing where the program goes this time around. Volunteering at PL has been one of the most satisfying experiences I've ever had.

2 - I bought a 3 inch-long remote control helicopter at Fry's Electronics - and it actually works! Seeing it on display, with it's cheap-import-toy style packaging, I more then expected it NOT to meet expectations. It works! Here is someone's demonstration on YouTube of the little guy....Well worth the $24.99.

3 - I have absolutely no news to report about Paris Hilton, but I thought I would mention her here to see how many searches turn up my site.

Associations

I was reminded today about the association certain sensations have with a particular person, time or place. The smell of a cigar will always remind me of my father, the smell of a pipe (exceeding rare today) reminds me of one particular uncle. Yoohoo, a chocolate drink popular mostly in the eastern United States, recalls childhood days spent at Jones Beach on Long Island, New York. Chlorine reminds me of the New Hyde Park public pool. The Good Humor chocolate bar that's called the chocolate eclair reminds me of when I could buy it off of the Good Humor ice cream truck that passed through our neighborhood every summer day. Likewise, freshly cut grass reminds me of my old neighborhood.

I also remember certain food landmarks, for lack of a better word, the represented my childhood culinary preferences (hmmm, sounds important, doesn't it?). My McDonald's order was always a double cheeseburger, chocolate shake and french fries (health food? What's that?). At the International House of Pancakes (now known simply as IHOP), I would almost always order silver dollar pancakes. Many times, my dinner would include a particular desert - a sweet, heated item called a "honey bun." My grandmother would make a great dessert consisting of a stack of graham crackers covered in chocolate pudding.

I know someone who eats the same food at the same restaurant every day. I suppose he has his reasons, but I like to revisit my fondest food memories occasionly.

Special Meanings of the Commonplace

I'm currently in Rocklin, a community north of Sacramento that began as a way station for prospectors making their way to San Francisco (no gold was ever found here). It then became a major source of granite for foundations, graveside memorials, etc. (hence the name, Rocklin).

When you take history down to the level of the individual, even the most mundane sites become intriguing. Quite a while ago in this blog, I attempted to map out my travels in my old home town - literally my "stomping ground," as the saying goes. Commonplace landmarks take on special meaning: the lamp-post where we waited for the school bus, the intersection where an informal bike race began between the neighborhood kids, or the curbside where I set up my lemonade stand. Overlay with that the memories of the generations and residents that followed, and each of those locations take on multiple meanings, each special to the individuals involved, but unknown to anyone else.

In any old western town, buildings and landmarks with histories that go back well over one hundred years likely have special meanings to many, many generations of residents, most long gone.

Schools in particular hold simulaneous memories from countless generations. A particular tree, a particular locker,a corner of the lunch area, or the PE field. To passerby, any school is bland and generic - to those who attended, the special meanings of the commonplace are everywhere: the place where you and your friends met during lunch; the place where you had that fight, the fence you used to climb; or the classroom you hated. To those who preceded you, and those who followed, the meanings are different, but just as vivid: where you met at lunch may have been a place they knew to avoid; where you had that fight might have been the site of a school prank; the fence you used to climb might have been totally unknown to another generation as a means of escape; and the classroom you hated might have once been the classroom where someone else's life changed forever.

Live in a house or apartment where others have lived before, and you're living in the faint echoes of their own lives.

YouTube Pays

Coincidentally with my recent entry, YouTube has announced that it will reward the top several dozen most viewed Youtubers with financial rewards (the specifics weren't revealed). As I suggested, it is rapidly becoming profitable (for a few lucky, quirky people) to just live their lives - or at least create an illusion of reality that's entertaining enough to draw a large following.

At some point - and perhaps it's already here - major media will attempt to take part in this new form of entertainment. While many media outlets already broadcast excerpts from their programs on YouTube, and some other content meant to supplement media on other platforms, I expect that they will attempt (or are attempting) to create their own YouTube characters.

The trick, though, is not creating a feeling in the audience of being fooled and deceived. If, for example, a character is created that proves to lead ultimately into an upcoming television sitcom, will viewers tune in to the show, or resent the manipulation? Would a Daxflame (see earlier blog) sitcom fly?

Flavors of LA

I had the opportunity recently to shoot an episode of "Flavors of LA," in which Los Angeles City Councilman Eric Garcetti introduces the viewing audience to communities across Los Angeles through visits to a variety of restaurants in selected council districts.

Los Angeles is such a international city - but I wonder how few people really have the opportunity to experience the international selection of restaurants - from Cuban to Lebanese to Indian to Salvadoran - almost any fare around the world is represented here. For example, we were treated to a fantastic meal at Maroush, a Lebanese restaurant. For the purposes of the show, the restaurant prepared many of their signature dishes, providing us with a real introduction to Lebanese fare. I believe, at times, we miss the chance to explore establisments and foods like these strictly out of unfamiliarity - the same reason, I suppose, many Americans avoid international travel.

Fear of the unknown, whether we're talking about international food or culture, leads both to ignorance and arrogance.

DaxFlame

One of the most discussed channels on YouTube is by an individual called Daxflame. While there's an ongoing debate as to whether this individual is "real" or an actor, Daxflame is ostensibly a fifteen year old, excitable, socially inept high school student. His apparent view of the world has been described by his viewers as somewhat autistic, while others claim he appears to have Asperger Syndrome, which exhibits some of the same symptoms. Still others, on the basis of the angst-ridden world he relates in each video, are convinced that no acutal person can be living his soap opera., and that he must be a talented actor. All agree, based on the comments left, that his videos are funny, entertaining, and lots of fun. With well over one million total views and over 18,000 subscribers, he's one of the Stars of YouTube.

Real of not, Dax hints at the development of an entirely new form of entertainment in which the viewers, through their messages and videos, interact with the central "character," creating an ever-widening world. Search for DaxFlame on Google, and you'll find that he's the subject of debate and discussion in groups all over the world. Search on YouTube, and you'll find videos about Dax. Some are direct responses to Dax's own videos, while others are extensive investigations into Dax's true origin. Still others are Dax inspired - imitiating or emulating his videos.

Characters on YouTube, real or not, have a much more intimate connection with their audience. Their 3 or 5 or 10 minute videos seem personal and unedited. The most popular people on Youtube aren't slick, well rehearsed or even particularly articulate. They feel real. Their connection is more personal.

This isn't "reality television," as conventional programming has defined it. Audience-based programming, perhaps?

McDonalds Aint Not Doin Nothin Good

In the event that you missed his comment to my recent blog about illiteracy on McDonalds receipts, my friend Stephen, with whom I visited the McDonalds in question has an interesting update.

Stephen brought the receipt in question to the attention of the manager of the McDonalds. The manager looked at the receipt, crumbled it up, and threw it away.

Stephen's father reports that he came across the same badly written blurb at another McDonalds, which suggests that the cash registers receive programming from a central location - corporate headquarters, perhaps? It's frightening to think that someone with such a poor grasp of the language wields such responsibility. I hope McDonalds is more careful when placing individuals in positions related to food safety.

Stephen also sent an email to McDonalds corporate headquarters. A form letter apologized for his poor experience, and referred his complaint back to the local McDonalds - the same establishment with the paper-crumbling manager.

Since receipts are the single greatest source of literary contact that McDonalds has with the public, I suppose they reflect McDonalds' respect for its customers.

Or Lack Thereof.

LIVE ON THE NET!

The newest rage on the World Wide Web these days is going LIVE. It's now possible for anyone with a high-speed connection and a decent webcam to broadcast life for all the world to see. At the moment, the center of all this activity seems to be stickam.com, which features hundreds of people from all over the world broadcasting live. Usually, the result is a rambling, stream-of-consciousness rant - sort of a video blog unrestrained. Live netcasting on this scale is still fairly new, however, so the look of this organic network is still developing.

On Justin.tv, a San Francisco-area tech/geek in his early 20's is netcasting 24/7, through a wireless webcam mounted on his hat. He claims he'll keep it up for the foreseeable future, but his audience is beginning to cause trouble - calling in fake emergencies to the police and fire departments, and causing so much havoc in his apartment complex that he could be evicted. It seems that going live sometimes means leaving yourself at the mercy of the entire world. In the meantime, check in and see Justin have breakfast, work, go to parties, use the bathroom (discreetly), and live a life as random and usually bland as anyone else.

Most people, both male and female, are far more limited in their netcasts. A good number of them are netcasting as the logical extension of their YouTube presence. Take, for example, Brandon3773 (his name on both YouTube and Stickam) Brandon is a thirteen year old from Texas who specializes in random commentary on the world around him (lots and lots of random commentary - 417 videos at last count), and holds court some nights on Stickam, responding to other live netcasters and text chatters on any sort of subject that comes to mind, and keeping the pervs and other freaks out of his world. Topics on a recent night included updates on his new website, behind-the-scenes anecdotes about the making of his YouTube videos, and a response to a question about why a kid from Lubbock, Texas doesn't have more of a Texan accent. He's just a typical thirteen year old kid. He's not edgy or extreme. I wouldn't even call him hilarious. He's just being a regular 21st Century kid - building a brand of his own.

After all, success is not only about a good resume, but also about selling a good product - yourself. With sites like YouTube and Stickam, it's possible to make yourself famous on the net. Just what you can do with that fame remains to be seen. Justin already has several sponsors. Brandon has 512 subscribers, and over 51,000 views. If those numbers continue to grow, he could be just the ticket for corporate sponsorship. Just by being a regular kid. Cool.

Childhood. Sponsored by Coke?

Driving By

In Los Angeles, nothing remains the same for too long. Most of the local landmarks from my childhood are long gone.

The Topanga Theater, my childhood theater of choice in the West San Fernando Valley, closed perhaps ten years ago. It had once been a single theatre, had already split into two by the time I began attending films there, and later was further split into four tiny theaters, which made the venue useless. It was to be torn down and replaced with a huge, modern multiplex, but neighborhood opposition forced Pacific Theaters to move that concept a mile or so north, replacing a drive-in movie theater that had also gone from one to two to four screens. Today, after a couple of years as a furniture store, it stands empty. I will always remember it as the place where I saw the original "Poseidon Adventure" about 15 times (using my dad's pass, which required only that I paid tax), and the scene of countless movie previews.

Several miniature golf courses in the area were long ago destroyed as land grew in value, as was a branch of the Malibu Grand Prix kart racing track and arcade, a very popular destination for kids at one time. It's now an auto dealership.

The massive Westfield Topanga mall was once known as Topanga Plaza, and featured an ice-skating rink, which was later converted into a food court. When the mall was overhauled in the last couple of years, the food court itself was deconstructed, and the space where it existed, which until then retained the shape of the old rink, was completely removed as the mall more then doubled in size. That very spot is now just another wing of the mall.

True, there are some parks in the area that have vastly improved since those days, and forms of entertainment have changed dramatically - there's not a lack of things to do - and a mall is still a mall, just bigger and more "upscale," but the business of recreation, aside from movie theaters, has shifted to the personal rather then the social. We didn't have video game systems, movie rental houses (or cable TV), or the internet.

Not only did land become more expensive in Los Angeles, but kids drifted away to more convenient recreational activities as time moved on.