December 4 – December 10 (2017)

RANDOM PIC OF THE WEEK

I just love this picture of, as Bill Murray once said, “dogs and cats living together!”

For the past several months at movie night, I’ve been showing my guests the first season episodes of “The Monkees.” Now that we’ve finished the first season, I wanted them to see Mike Nesmith’s “Elephant Parts” video album he did in 1981. Mike is considered the “Godfather of the Music Video” and for good reason. He was a visionary who put his music to video long before many others. One of my favorite songs from that video is “Tonight,” which talks all about living in the TV. Enjoy!

Monday the 4th – NOT SURE WHAT TO DO WITH MYSELF! – Because I slept all night on the couch and woke up at 9am I was way out of my usual routine. And I didn’t quite know what to do. It was weird. So I did some business stuff, read and sent some e-mails, and around noon I made some food. But I still hadn’t actually been to bed. So I went to bed around 1 and watched “I Dream of Jeannie” and napped from 2:30 to 5:30. As good as it felt to sleep all night on the couch, it sure screwed up my usual way of doing things. I did some work around the house, did an audition, worked on some paperwork for the upcoming Batman ’66 exhibit at the Hollywood Museum, and then headed to CVS to get a prescription. Then my assistant Sara and I got Chinese food and shopped a little. I headed back home and did some more bookkeeping in preparation of closing out my corporation for another year. I always dread this time of year because of this, but because that’s the way these types of corporations are set up, it’s a necessary evil. I typed out Wally’s Week, fed and walked Roxy, and then hit the hay early so I could be up the next morning for a session at Disney Imagineering!

Tuesday the 5th – BUCKET LIST A BIT SHORTER! – On my way to Disney Imagineering, I stopped off at a local store to buy some little gifts to give to the staff. I was cast to voice a few characters in a Disneyland and Disney World ride (can’t say any more than that) and it was quite an honor! Though I’ve voiced things for the parks in the past, they were for temporary features. But this will be a permanent exhibit! I’m SO excited! The western sky was gray with smoke, and the news on the radio said a new wildfire had broken out in the Ventura area of Los Angeles. I parked on the top floor of the Disney parking structure and had a clear view of the plumes of smoke. It looked just awful. The session was a blast, and I didn’t want to leave when it was over. SO much fun! When it was over at 2 I headed over to get my mail at my box, get some lunch at McDonalds, and then I headed home to do some work. I took a short nap, fed and walked Roxy, and then I went to pick up my “adopted grandma” Shirley. We went over to the Laurel and Hardy fan club meeting called “Sons of the Desert.” She and I enjoy watching the old films with an audience and having a hot dog. I even brought popcorn for the occasion! Every year about this time I make a point of taking notice of the first time I hear Andy Williams’ “The Most Wonderful Time of the Year” in passing. That to me denotes that Christmas has officially arrived. Well, the organizers of the Sons of the Desert meeting were playing a CD of Christmas music when Shirley and I walked in. And within a few minutes there it was…”The Most Wonderful Time of the Year!” I couldn’t think of a better place to initiate the Christmas season that to be surrounded by fun people who love Laurel and Hardy and are all dressed in festive clothes, in a festive setting. But apparently the CD only had a few songs on it, so within a few minutes we heard it again. And then a few minutes later, there it was again. I laughed and said to myself, “Alright already! I get it! Christmas is here!” What a fun evening of Christmas-themed films! We took off around 9 and I took Shirley back to her apartment. I got home, lit the fire, turned on my LED lights, turned the Christmas music on quietly on DirecTV 801, and enjoyed some quality “Christmas Nappies” on the couch. Later I got up to do a bunch of auditions; a few animation projects, and three commercials. Then I fed and walked Roxy. We didn’t stay out long because the air quality was horrible with the fire. I came back inside and reheated the leftover Chinese food from the night before and watched a few more episodes of “I Dream of Jeannie.” As I was prepping to go to bed I noticed the smell of smoke, and my window sills were covered with a thick coating of dirt. All the winds and the fires had made a mess!

Wednesday the 6th – LET IT BLOW, LET IT BLOW, LET IT BLOW! – In addition to the fire, the winds here have been blowing like crazy. Winds and wildfires are a disastrous combination. And I heard that another fire had broken out near the Getty Center! As I looked around the house I discovered more areas of thick dirt on my window sills. It had even blown in underneath my front door and had coated the marble floor in my entry way! YUK! I checked my e-mails and noticed that we had been given a small respite to the high winds. But they were due to start again the next day. We may not get cold and snow here, but the blowing dust is worse! I drove over to Warner Studios to do a short session for an upcoming Lego videogame (can’t say any more about it, unfortunately), and saw my pal James in Post-Production Services. I hit Wienerschnitzel for a few chili cheese dogs, and then went to my box to pick up my mail. I got home, fed the pets and cleaned up. I went over to a Christmas party in Burbank to say hi to some friends. One of the museum folks who are heading up the Batman ’66 exhibit invited me to his home for his annual Christmas party. My old pal Hank Garrett was there, so it was great seeing him again! The winds were picking up again, so I headed home to “batten down the hatches” and do some auditions. I took some Christmas Nappies, and then got up to feed and take Roxy on a very short walk. I made some stew and watched a few more episodes of “I Dream of Jeannie.”

Thursday the 7th – OUI OUI! OW! OW! – At 2 I sprang from bed and got ready for an interview I’d be doing with a French TV crew about “Starsky & Hutch” and my Gran Torino. They arrived at 4 and we went to my auxiliary garage and unveiled my striped tomato. We used what daylight we had left to get shots of me driving around with the host of the show. As we started losing light, I put the car back in its parking spot and began covering it up. As I bent down to lock up the car cover, I felt some aches in my legs and back. Uh oh. I remember in the shower earlier that my “hair hurt” a little bit. I hate when that happens because that can only mean one thing…the flu. Or food poisoning! I bucked up and headed back to my house to do the interview portion. Luckily I was able to soldier through the interview on pure adrenaline, but I was definitely not feeling well. I was achy from my lower back all the way down to my toes. So after the crew wrapped up I fed the pets, took a long, hot shower, took a few pills and headed to bed. Sure enough, I had something. It was a miserable night, and my head felt like it was going to burst open!

Friday the 8th – BOY, THE TIME JUST FLU! – When I got up later in the afternoon I felt better, but still achy. I did some scanning, bookkeeping; real minor stuff. I took a few more pills and laid down on the couch until 5. Later when I got up from the couch I was feeling even better, but still not 100%. I’m thinking it’s some 24 hour flu or food poisoning that was working its way out of my system. I tried to eat some soup, but didn’t have much of an appetite. I really hadn’t eaten much on Thursday, so my stomach was really pretty empty. I laid down again on the couch and woke up at 10. I had to do a lot of packing and assembling of the items I’d be loaning to the Hollywood Museum. I was due to deliver them on Saturday! By 2am I was all finished and ready to go. I fed and walked Roxy, and then came inside to crash on the couch until 6am. At 6 I walked Roxy and then headed to bed. The best way to beat this thing is just rest!

Saturday the 9th – MUSEUM MADNESS! – My pal James brought his SUV over to my house and we loaded up the Batman items I’d be loaning to the Hollywood Museum. My Robin mannequin was wrapped up in black plastic, with a clear plastic bag over his head. It looked like we were hauling a dead body! After we loaded the stuff in and checked it in with the museum’s acquisitions guy Steve, James and I had lunch next door at Mel’s Drive In. I took it easy and had something mild; turkey and mashed potatoes. I got home and then got in my Mustang and went to pick up some groceries and supplies for movie night. I got back home, unloaded them, and then movie night began. We watched the old early-80’s comedy “Young Doctors in Love.” I found it to be much funnier than I remembered it from back in the day. Hilarious! Great cast and lots of great bits! After my guests left I grabbed a nap on the couch. I got up later to do some work around the house, make my traditional Saturday Night Super Salad and watch an episode of “SNL” from the first season. My stomach is still a bit sensitive, but it’s getting better.

Sunday the 10th – SEDATE SUNDAY! – Right around 4:30 I woke up and headed to evening church with Roxy. When it was over Roxy and I enjoyed a quick walk through our church’s Christmas tree lot (it smells so good!) and then went home. Just to make sure I’d be totally healthy for the new week, I grabbed some Christmas Nappies. When I got up later I did a bunch of auditions, paid some bills, prepped a bank deposit, reconciled my business receipts for tax purposes, and then went to Denny’s to get some food to go. I watched the final two episodes from the second season of “I Dream of Jeannie.” The end-of-year wind-down officially begins this week, so there’s lots to do before we kiss off 2017 for good. And what a strange year it was!

And how was YOUR week??!!

PIX FROM THE WEEK