October 12 – October 18 (2015)

RANDOM PIC OF THE WEEK

Totally jealous that Roxy gets so many of her pics posted here, my cat Spooky decided to hog the limelight this time and give us a sample of his amazing singing ability.

Last week I posted a video of Native American musical artist Waykey playing a song in his booth at the Palm Springs Village Fest. Well, as luck would have it, I was unable to get the song out of my mind all week. It’s so haunting and beautiful. Here’s the version of “Canyon River” as it appears on his album.

Monday the 12th – PULL # 1! – When I got up just before noon I had some voice tracks for Go 96.3 in Minneapolis to cut. I did them right away and e-mailed them over to Minnesota. Then I did a last-minute audition for my agent, got cleaned up and headed out to gas up the SUV I rented for the weekend to go to Palm Springs. It only needed a little bit of gas to be at the agreed-upon level when I returned it. I turned it back in to Enterprise, got a ride home from one of the associates, and then hopped in my Mustang and drove to Mr. Stitch in Sherman Oaks. I wanted to get some custom information embroidered on the back of my Sons of the Desert fez, since I’m now an official member. I’m having them embroider the name of the tent, the oasis number, and the city and state. I drove over to get my packages at my mailbox, and then drove to Jim Ojala’s studio to see how the first “pull” came out of my Michael Myers mask. We have been working on creating the ultimate Michael Myers mask from the movie “Halloween” by scanning and enlarging a small, original William Shatner mask. It’s been a long, complex process, but I’ve learned so much! The first pull looked great. It’s a little on the thick side, but since I have no plans to actually wear it, it should be alright for display in the Chaney Room. Jim needs to cut out the eyes, patch a few small areas, then paint it and “hair” it. Now the fun begins! I stopped to get some groceries on the way home. My pal Brittney Powell came by to say hi, since she was in the area. Then I took a dip in the Jacuzzi and grabbed a short nap. I got up later in the evening to do my auditions, write Wally’s Week, and then make my traditional Saturday night GIANT salad and watch an episode of “The Persuaders”; an old British show from the 70’s that I really love. (I know it’s Monday night and not Saturday, but since I was out of town on Saturday night this is make-up night!)

Tuesday the 13th – READY FOR FALL, ALREADY! – It was so much fun staying up all night and watching TV, I actually didn’t get to bed until around noon! Just before I turned in I did some more Go 96.3 stuff and a few other things. I slept for about 4 hours and then got up to get some things done. I worked around the house and watched the debate on CNN. There was some more stuff to record for Go 96.3, so I did that in between watching the debate. I took a quick nap, did my auditions, walked Roxy for our late night stroll through the neighborhood, and really pined for fall. It was still warm and humid out, even at 3am! I’m ready for those crisp fall nights. I came back inside, made some dinner, and watched an episode of “The Girl From U.N.C.L.E.”

Wednesday the 14th – THE SHOWER SHOW ABOUT TO BEGIN! – My contractor Electric Bob was going to call me later in the day to let me know that all of the stuff we ordered for my Puppet Room shower remodel had arrived. Since my folks arrive in less than a week, I was getting a bit nervous that we were cutting it so close. I did some auditions that came in last-minute, did some more Go 96.3 stuff, and saw a video my pal Scott Sebring cut together for my friend Emma. My neighbor Caroline has a niece named Emma who’s a huge fan of the Voice-Over world, and her latest obsession is the movie “Big Hero 6”; particularly Ryan Potter who voiced Hiro in the movie. Ryan’s at the same agency I am, so for her 17th birthday several months ago I got her a signed picture from Ryan through our agent. I also sent her on a small scavenger hunt throughout Caroline’s house looking for clues to the ultimate prize…which she loved immensely! It was all shot on video, but we had never gotten around to cutting it together, even though Emma would ask me about it on a regular basis. Well, it arrived and it’s spectacular. You can find it on Youtube if you search for Ryan Potter and Emma. I paid some bills and headed to the post office to mail them. I stopped by my box to get my packages, and then hit McDonald’s for lunch. I stopped to get some more groceries, some gas in my Mustang, and then I headed home to do some work. My pal Sandy came by and we took a dip in the Jacuzzi. Then we met my assistant Sara for a late dinner at DuPar’s. I got home and did some auditions and then hit the hay early. Electric Bob and his pal Ernie would be coming over at 8am sharp to start the shower demolition in the Puppet Room, and I wanted to be awake and sharp for that process!

Thursday the 15th – PUPPET POTTY: PHASE 1! – As expected, Electric Bob and Ernie arrived at 8am. I moved my car out of the garage so he could park his truck there and unload all of the new items for my shower remodeling project. I helped them move a bunch of stuff out of the room so they could work. I was moving tons of puppets and toys down to the Chaney Room for temporary storage. The project will take a few days, but it’s going to be really nice when it’s completed. While they worked I did a few things around the house, and then napped on the couch for a bit. I got up to go do the final session for this phase of Project X at Bang Zoom. It’ll be a few weeks before we start the process again for the next phase, so I have a little time off. Project X is a lot like the job I did for U.S. Airways, although slightly different. On the way home I stopped at Jersey Mike’s and got a sandwich. I got back home and spoke with Electric Bob and he said it should be another day or so until they’re done with the shower and bathroom. I took a nice, relaxing dip in the Jacuzzi, and then met up with my friend Jasmine to visit for a while. I took a quick nap on the couch until 1am, and then got up to do my auditions. I watched an episode of “The Girl From U.N.C.L.E.” and hit the hay. But not for long…

Friday the 16th – PUPPET POTTY: PHASE 2! – Being very proud of myself, I got up at 8am for a second morning in a row! It didn’t last very long though, because as soon as Electric Bob and Ernie started working I went back to bed and slept until noon. The guys were still working away, I chose a paint color for the bathroom (a cross between Kermit the Frog and the Emerald City) and I headed off to KFC to get some lunch. Then I went to Jim Ojala’s studio to check out the second pull from the Michael Myers mask mold. This one is going to a friend of mine in South Dakota. We were huge fans of the first two “Halloween” movies when we were kids in the 80’s. I stopped by Aardvark vintage to see what they had in stock, but I didn’t find anything interesting. I stopped by Anawalt lumber to get a piece of wood cut for a base for one of my display mannequins. Then I headed over to Aaron Brothers Art Mart to pick up some supplies for a watercolor sketch I was doing as a gift for a few friends. I got home and checked in with the guys to see how their day went. But we had a problem. It seemed that the shower fixture wasn’t quite what I remembered ordering. It was on a bar system so the height would be adjustable, but it didn’t pivot downward like I wanted. So before we installed it permanently I wanted to make sure I was going to be happy with it. Electric Bob said he’d stop by the hardware store first thing Saturday morning to check on alternate fixtures, while I sped off to Bed Bath and Beyond to see if they had anything like it. But the traffic on the streets was AWFUL! Wall to wall traffic! I wasn’t sure why at the time, but a few days later I found out it was because the 101 freeway was shut down because of some numbskull threatening suicide by jumping off the overpass bridge. I found a suitable shower fixture bit I still wasn’t convinced it was going to work. I took it home and started working with it in the shower. It seemed like I could “jerry rig” it so it would pivot the way I wanted it to, but it still would need a bracket to hold the bar in place. Then it struck me. I dug out the original fixture and did some futzing around with it. It WILL work! It was kind of like a Rubik’s cube. You needed to scoot something around one way, then pivot something else, and then you could tilt it downwards. I called Electric Bob and told him not to bother, that this showerhead would work out fine. But now I have an extra showerhead I don’t know what to do with. Oh well, you can never have enough showerheads lying around in case you need one. After a nice dip in the Jacuzzi I napped on the couch. When I got up I did some work around the house. The Puppet Room is in horrible disarray; it’s filthy and messy. I’ll be glad when it’s all fixed and finished and everything is all clean again. I made some food and watched another episode of “The Girl From U.N.C.L.E.” and got exactly 1.5 hours of sleep before the work continued on the bathroom!

Saturday the 17th – HOLLYWOOD HOTNESS 2.0! – For the third day in a row I got up at 8am and opened the house so that Electric Bob and Ernie could start working. I went back to bed and slept until noon. The main noisy part was over (the demolition of the shower) so it wasn’t bad sleeping while they worked. My pal Brian was going to come over at noon and do some work on my computer getting the bugs out of it, but he was having car trouble so we agreed to postpone until another day. While the guys continued on the Puppet Bathroom I did some work around the house. I sped off to the hardware store to pick up some bulbs and batteries, then I mailed a few things at the Post Office, picked up a package at my box, and then met Sara at Paty’s for lunch. It had cooled off considerably so I took Roxy along with me. We had a nice time on the patio enjoying lunch. Fall at last, maybe? I got home and started getting ready for the Halloween party I was going to attend that night. My buddy Brian was putting on the second annual Hollywood Hotness Halloween party at the Roosevelt Hotel. My pal Sandy came over to get into the Star Trek officer’s dress I had her wear. My neighbor Caroline came over and I asked her to come along. She tried on the Julie Newmar Catwoman costume and it fit perfectly. But she said she had some other things she needed to do, and as much as she would have liked going, she decided to stay in. I dressed as Michael Myers and we drove into Hollywood. I was happy for Brian as it was a HUGE turnout! And what a fun party it was! It was a charity event for Breast Cancer, so I bought some raffle tickets and waited for the big raffle at 11pm. Sandy was hungry so we dashed over to Hooters on Hollywood Boulevard for a bit. In my Michael Myers costume I was certain that people were going to think I was one of the guys who hang out on the boulevard posing for pictures for tips. I kept my eyes focused straight ahead and we made a bee line for Hooters. We got back to the party just in time to meet up with my friends James, Cynthia and Kevin. They too had bought raffle tickets and were waiting to see if they had won anything. James won some stuff, but I didn’t. But I wanted to bid on a nifty Superman figure that was up for auction. I got into a bidding war with a lady, but I came out victorious! It’s an amazing piece featuring the likeness of Christopher Reeve as Superman. There were a lot of really nice people at the party, and a lot of sexy gals! We left the party and we drove over to DuPar’s to rendezvous with James. I had something to give him and I didn’t get a chance to give it to him at the party. I took Sandy back to my house so she could change and then walked her to her car. I was a bit sleepy, so I laid down on the couch with the intention of sleeping for an hour or so. Three and a half hours later I woke up! RATS! I was glad the guys weren’t coming to work later in the morning! I got up to feed and walk Roxy, and then made my salad and got ready to watch “The Persuaders.” It was one of the best episodes of the series. There are only 7 episodes left! I’m really going to miss that show! I watched the news for a bit and then walked Roxy before we turned in at 10am. It had sprinkled a bit while we were watching videos. It’s going to be a much cooler day…very overcast; which is fine with me!

Sunday the 18th – FALL HAS FALLEN! – Around 2 when I woke up I decided to do some work around the house until it was time for evening church. It was sunny out, but still pleasant. I took Roxy out for a bit, and then came back inside to enjoy my restful, relaxing Sunday. Roxy and I had a nice walk over to the evening church service. And when we walked home at 7 I noticed it was definitely starting to feel very fall-like. NICE! As the late, great Yogi Berra once said…”It gets late early out here.” I napped on the couch and got up around 11 for my auditions. Electric Bob and Ernie were coming back Monday morning to finish up the project; which was just in the nick of time considering my folks get into town Tuesday night and will be staying in the Puppet Room! I made a Chef Boy Ar Dee pizza and watched another episode of “The Girl From U.N.C.L.E.” and turned in. I’m looking forward to having my folks in town for a week. I have lots of fun stuff planned!

And how was YOUR week??!!

PIX FROM THE WEEK

This is a watercolor painting I did this week for my friends Elliot and Edi. Elliot wrote and sang the 1972 hit song “Brandy (You’re a Fine Girl)” and I introduced him to my friend Edi a while back. Now they’re getting married in December and this is my (late) engagement gift.

My pal Sandy enjoys her brief time in the Captain’s chair!

We enjoyed running into a slew of other Federation crewmembers.

This huge dinosaur puppet was MOST impressive!

Jedi Kevin finds a kindred spirit in the Star Wars realm.

Here’s a darn good Edward Scissorhands!

Here I am as Michael Myers! The party was named Hollywood Hotness for a reason. This costume was HOT!

Here I am hanging with James and Cynthia as we check our raffle tickets to see if we won anything.

A simply stunning, gorgeous, amazing, breathtaking sunrise I witnessed this week (just as I was going to bed, of course) . Is this not utterly beautiful?!

This is a wonderful Christopher Reeve Superman figure (over 2 feet high!) that I won in an auction at the Hollywood Hotness party last Saturday in Hollywood.

Fresh out of the mold! Here are the first two “enlarged” masks pulled from the mold in my ongoing Michael Myers mask project. (See previous Wally’s Weeks for details).