March 9 – March 15 (2015) – Wally On The Web

RANDOM PIC OF THE WEEK

Anthony Lisi sent me a photo of his stunning Blue Psycho Ranger costume he unveiled at a recent convention in Lexington. I LOVE IT! Congrats Anthony! (I did the voice for the Blue Psycho Ranger all those years ago on “Power Rangers!”)

As you can clearly hear in The Andrew Oldham Orchestra’s version of The Rolling Stones’ song “The Last Time,” the 90’s group The Verve borrowed some riffs for their hit “Bittersweet Symphony.” The true story about its creation is long and drawn out but I fully encourage you to do some internet research to learn the entire story! It’s intricately woven and ultimately fascinating!

Monday the 9th – I LIKE BIKE! – Shortly after 2 I took my bicycle out to enjoy the beautiful day. I stopped by Office Depot to get some ink cartridges, and I also stopped by my vitamin store to get some supplements. My messenger bag was chock full of stuff, but the kind doctor at the vitamin store wanted to load me up with free samples. I told her I had no way to carry them but I would get them next time when I had my car. I went back home and traded my bike for my car, and then drove to Naimie’s Beauty Supply to get some supplies. What I had to get there couldn’t be carried on my bicycle. I got home and fed the animals, then went to Jerry’s Famous Deli to meet my friends Kevin and Boz to talk about some new show ideas. But they weren’t there. They texted me to say they were outside, but I couldn’t find them. Apparently, I had missed the part about meeting at my house, and not for dinner at Jerry’s. So I toddled off back home and we had fun chatting and planning. When the guys left I grabbed a short nap, then got up to do work around the house, record my auditions, write Wally’s Week, and make some Buffalo Mac and watch another “Batman” episode on Blu Ray!

Tuesday the 10th – BITTERSWEET LAWSUIT! – When I got up around 1 I did some work around the house, did a few pick-ups for a commercial I recorded a few days ago in my home studio, and then I put Roxy in the car and we went for a drive. First stop was KFC for some quick lunch, and then we went to Fast Signs to place an order for the new signage around Planet Wallywood. I stopped by one of my favorite comic book stores to pick up the latest issue of “Batman ‘66” illustrated by my pal Ruben Procopio, and then headed home to do some more work before my dinner meeting. I grabbed a meal with my pal Grigg, formerly of the Detroit PD (retired) and we had a fun time catching up. Then I went home to nap for a bit on the couch. When I got up I decided to hit the internet and learn everything I could about the “Bittersweet Symphony” lawsuit involving the group The Verve and the Rolling Stones. It’s a long, convoluted story, but suffice to say I became entranced by a song called “The Last Time” by the Andrew Oldham Orchestra, recorded in the mid 60’s. It served as the inspiration for the orchestral groove in “Bittersweet Symphony.” It’s a sad but fascinating story! I made some spaghetti and enjoyed another “Batman” on Blu Ray episode!

Wednesday the 11th – PRETTY AS A PICTURE! – Mid-afternoon I woke up and started to get some mail ready to take to the post office. I did a quick audition, sent out my movie invites for Saturday night, and signed some photos to send to fans who had e-mailed me requests. I decided that the cabinet that held my photos had gotten uncontrollably messy and disorganized. So I made a plan right then and there to clean it all out. The cabinet was filled with a huge 3-ring binder of slides, and two large boxes of negatives from all the photos I had ever taken on film. They’ve been sitting there for years untouched, so I decided they needed to go in an airtight/watertight box in my underground storage. I spent the afternoon dividing up the photos, throwing out all the crap that was in the cabinet unnecessarily, and storing the rest of the stuff downstairs. I even got a chance to reorganize my office workspace. I was on fire! As the day ended I looked into my kitchen and saw a piercing orange light beaming through the slits in my blinds. I opened them up and saw a magnificent sunset! Beautiful! I snapped several photos. Then I went upstairs and saw my cat Spooky lounging on my bed with his outstretched paws lying on my jogging pants. It was super cute. So I grabbed another photo. It was turning into a good day for cool photos. I grabbed a nap on the couch, and then got up later in the evening to do my auditions. I walked Roxy later and it was an absolutely gorgeous night. It made me think of Palm Springs, and I got happy thinking that it was just another 2 weeks until my trip there with Roxy. I went inside to make a salad and watch another “Batman” episode!

Thursday the 12th – MAIL CENTER! – My first stop of the day was to the post office to mail a bunch of packages and signed photos. But their computers weren’t working well and the place was at a standstill. I only had 3 people in front of me, but by the time I got to the window the line had grown to about a dozen people. And none of them were in the mood to hear about the postal service’s computer problems. How can this antiquated place still stay in business? The post office is a poster child for inefficiency! The lady was nice enough, but was still waiting on the computer to do her work for her. I suggested that we return to the old days. I asked her to weigh the packages, and put old fashioned stamps on the packages to cover the cost of shipping. She did, and it went very expediently. I think they’re too reliant on computers to do their work. I paid for the stamps and was on my way. What an experience! I picked up my mail at my box and then went to Studiopolis to pick up a paycheck for a Sonic session. I headed to the bank to deposit a bunch of checks, and then headed to Staples to get supplies. I needed more dividers for my new Mail Center in my kitchen cabinet. I needed enough horizontal metal dividers to contain my photos of all my characters. I found just what I was looking for, and headed to CVS to get a prescription and some supplies. I got home and fed the pets. My pal Brittney Powell came over and we walked Roxy over to the Studio Café for dinner. We finished up and I continued working on my mail center. Everything worked great, but I still needed a few more metal dividers. I got home and finished up the Mail Center, and then went downstairs to finish putting stuff in big plastic bins to store in my underground storage space. All my slides and negatives are now in a cool, dry place until the end of time. I need to get a few more bins to finish the job, but I made major headway! It was a lot of work, but worth it! I did my auditions and then hit the hay to be up early for a Friday morning audition at Voicecasters!

Friday the 13th! – GOOD DAY, BAD DAY! – With the top down in my Mustang, I drove over to Voicecasters at 10 in the morning to do an audition. It was gorgeous and the next few days were going to be summer-like! After the audition I drove to Target and bought 11 new plastic storage bins for my downstairs storage. Then I went to Staples to get more dividers, but they didn’t have the kind I needed. I got lunch at Wendy’s, and while I was enjoying it in my car listening to the radio, my pal Pete Tassler, Producer of “Hawaii Five-O” called with devastating news. He told me his house had burned down two nights earlier. Luckily his family and dogs were fine, but his house was completely decimated. And though he lived, Pete suffered serious burns on his face and arms. What horrible news! I drove over to the Firing Line in Burbank to try out my most recent handgun purchase…my Taurus PT 92 FS. It shot like a champ! I also shot my CZ Rami. What fun. Then I drove to a local jewelry store to have a ring resized. While I was in the area I stopped by the Office Depot to see if they had the horizontal metal dividers I needed. They didn’t have the exact brand, but something that was close. I bought it and came home to set it up. But getting up so early in the morning and then being on the go all day had poohed me out. I turned on the fan (it was HOT outside!) and napped on the couch for a bit. I got up for dinner later with my assistant Sara and I drove to the restaurant with the top down all the way. A magnificently beautiful night! After dinner I stopped by the store to get some groceries and head home to relax. But it was then I realized that my legs, feet and butt were all sore from doing all the heavy lifting and scurrying around in my crawlspace a few nights earlier in my downstairs storage. OUCH! I got home and put away the groceries, and then napped on the couch for a bit with the fan on high. It was nice! I cut some stars out of glow paper for a project, and I even cut a few extras for my little next door neighbor kid who loves that sort of thing. Last Christmas I got him a “Moon In My Room” and he loves it! So now he has some stars to go with it! I made some soup and watched another “Batman” on Blu Ray!

Saturday the 14th – FIRST DAY AC! – When I got up mid-afternoon it was pretty hot out. In fact, it was the first day so far this year that I’ve had to crank on the AC! But the heater will be back on in a few days again I’m sure. We’re not quite out of winter yet. I checked e-mail, made some calls, and took Roxy outside so she could lay in the sun for a bit. She LOVES sunbathing! I spent the rest of the afternoon working on my speech for the upcoming South Dakota Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction on April 18th. I called Sara to see if she wanted to meet for burgers at Bob’s Big Boy and she jumped at it. Luckily it was right between the lunch rush and the dinner rush, so we got right in! I got home and grabbed a quick nap before movie night. We watched Ringo Starr in “Caveman” and then followed it up with the new “Tiger and Bunny” movie called “The Rising” on Blu Ray. After everyone left I cleaned up, did some more work on my speech and watched the final episode of the 60’s British show “The Avengers” to feature Diana Rigg as Emma Peel! I was stunned at how it ended! But apparently actress Diana Rigg had a real problem with how she was being treated by the producers, so she left. Letting her go was a BIG mistake on the Producers’ part!

Sunday the 15th – SUNDAY SLEEP-AWAY! – Though I didn’t get to bed until about 10am Sunday morning, I woke up at 2 in the afternoon to walk Roxy. Then I napped for a bit longer until it was time to get up for evening church. When we walked over in the evening it was still fairly warm out, but not unpleasant. After church the evening was magically balmy! Beautiful! My friend Emily and I met at Paty’s on the patio to grab dinner, and then I went home to nap. I got up later to do a ton of auditions, finish some work around the house, and I made a pizza to enjoy while watching another “Batman” on Blu Ray!

And how was YOUR week??!!

PIX FROM THE WEEK

This is how Roxy enjoys laying in the sun for her sunbaths. Spoiled? Yeah…pretty much.