May 20 – May 27 (2019) – Wally On The Web

RANDOM PIC OF THE WEEK

This past week I saw a sight you don’t usually see during one of my walks. Sheared metal on the wheel assembly of an SUV. It was the result of an accident that forced the SUV over to the curb, and the impact sheared the metal right in half. OUCH!

Some line in a session I was doing this past week reminded me of this tune by Paul Simon. I think the line was something like “It’s eight in the evening”…so I started singing “Late in the Evening.” It’s truly a great song! And I’ve been humming it ever since.

Monday the 20th – MARVELOUS MONDAY! – When I woke up at noon I did a little work, and then headed over to Paty’s to get a salad and enjoy the beautiful day. I drove over to Bang Zoom studios to do a 3 hour session for the digital assistant project we’ve been working on for several years, and then I went back home to feed the kids. I went over to Jerry’s Famous Deli to meet up with my pal Clay, who brought me some work I had his wife Mariah doing for my kid’s book project. Then I went back home, did some more work and grabbed a short nap. When I got up I had a bunch of auditions to do, I needed to type out Wally’s Week, and then I hit the hay.

Tuesday the 21st – WONDERFUL WALLY WALK! – To get out and stretch my legs, I walked over to the bank to get some operating capital for my upcoming Palm Springs trip, then I grabbed some fried rice at Chin Chin, and then went next door to Voice Trax West to do an hour’s worth of voice tracking for American Airlines. I walked back home to do some work, record a few auditions, and then my friend Andrea came by so I could show her my kid’s book stuff and do a little test marketing. She and her daughter fit my target audience perfectly. I grabbed a nap, and then got up later and spent all night packing for Palm Springs.

Wednesday the 22nd – WET WEDNESDAY! – Since I’d be heading to Palm Springs later in the evening, I wanted to put my Gran Torino back in my auxiliary parking spot, and get my Mustang out to run some errands. It was raining off and on, and I never like to drive my Gran Torino around in the rain anyway. I started the day by getting Roxy in to the groomer’s for a bath, then I went to my seamstress Shelley’s house to drop off some materials so she could work on a project while I was away. I stopped at Taco Bell to get some lunch, and then went to get a few grocery items for my trip. I stopped at Enterprise on the way home to get my SUV; a Hyundai Tucson. The rental agent followed me home so I could park my Mustang, he gave me a ride over to the rental office, and then I drove the Tucson back home to get it ready to get packed up. By now the rain had passed over and it was pretty sunny and nice out. I walked over to the groomer’s to get Roxy and got home to start packing. I grabbed a very short nap, and then my housesitter Ariel came by shortly after 8 to stay with my cat Spooky for the weekend and keep an eye on Planet Wallywood. I hit the road around 8:30 and made it to the Palm Springs Denny’s by 10:15. Since I usually don’t get there until after 11, I always miss my buddy Michael who works there. But since I got there earlier than usual, I was lucky enough to see him at Denny’s and catch up. Michael was responsible for convincing the owner of the Elvis Honeymoon Hideaway to open it to the public for tours. He knew the house had historic value for Elvis fans, and Michael has an encyclopedic knowledge of all things Elvis. I got my order and headed to the Hyatt to check into my usual room. I got unpacked and ready to sit all night on the balcony and watch stars. Unfortunately it was a pretty chilly, cloudy night. But it was pleasant nonetheless, and fairly cozy under the blanket I had laid over me to ward off the night time desert chill. The cool weather was very unseasonal for this time of year in Palm Springs and all the locals were talking about how unusual it was. But it was still a very relaxing night on the balcony. And it was good to be back in Palm Springs. They were expecting it to warm up in the coming days, but nowhere near as warm as it should be this time of year.

Thursday the 23rd – THE PALM SPRINGS ROUTINE! – Since it was such a nice, cool day I wanted to hit the dog park with Roxy. We had a great time as usual, and then came back to the room to relax. The street fair started around 6, but we didn’t get out to see it until 7 or so. It’s always a blast seeing all the cool dogs, meeting all the great people, and checking out all the interesting booths. I bought my mom a few things for a late Mother’s Day gift, and stocked up on some beef jerky and grape licorice. I was sad to see that a lot of the usual “mom and pop” stores had gone out of business on Palm Canyon Drive, and I’m hoping that the landlords aren’t bumping up the rents so high that it’s driving those types of stores out of town. I really don’t want to see Palm Springs become littered with a lot of giant chain stores on the main drag. When it gets to that point, I’m done visiting Palm Springs, as it will have lost its quaint quality I love so much. The last thing I need is to visit Beverly Hills “lite.” Roxy was getting tired so I took her back to the room and dropped her off. I went back out on the street to enjoy the waning hours of the street fair and get a Dole Whip. As the street fair was winding down, I went back to the room and grabbed a short nap. I went across the street to get an NYPD pizza and then got ready to watch stars all night on the balcony. It was clear skies all night, but still chilly. I got to bed around 5am.

Friday the 24th – LOUD, SMOKY IDIOTS! – At noon I woke up to take Roxy out. Then I slept a few more ours until 3, when Roxy and I headed down Palm Canyon Drive to our favorite local eatery…Ruby’s Diner. It was a stunningly gorgeous day (considering it was raining back in L.A.) and we enjoyed sitting on Ruby’s patio watching the people go by. We walked back to the hotel and napped some more. A little later that night my pal Brittney Powell drove out to join us, and we went across the street to get some food at NYPD pizza. When I got back to the room I noticed the people in the room beneath mine were on their balcony smoking and talking very loudly at 1 in the morning. The hotel has a strict no smoking policy, and their loud, inconsiderate chatter was very annoying. Luckily I know the night time guard fairly well, so between he and the night time desk clerk Esther, the problem was solved very quickly. Since the day was a lot warmer, I didn’t need to get the blanket out until near dawn, as the night was very pleasant for sitting on the balcony relaxing. It was fun watching all the night time climbers traverse the mountain behind my hotel. I can’t make out specific people, but the head lamps they wear let me keep track of their progress. One of these nights I’d actually like to do that, but I’d want to go with an experienced hiker.

Saturday the 25th – PALM SPRINGS; OH HOW I LOVE THEE! – Once again I got up at noon to walk Roxy, then came back inside and slept until around 3. I feel so relaxed in Palm Springs. I can really unwind there as the pace is a lot different than L.A.! Brittney and I took Roxy over to Sherman’s Deli and had lunch. As usual, Roxy was the talk of the restaurant. Then we went over to the Palm Springs dog park again and let Roxy run around again. We met quite possibly the most adorable puppy I’ve ever seen; a Dachshund named Woody. I got back to the room to drop off Roxy, and then Brittney and I walked Palm Canyon Drive to get some exercise. I made dinner reservations for my Sunday night meeting with my pal Ron Chaney, grabbed a Dole Whip, and headed back to the room to rest. Later Brittney and I went across the street to NYPD again to get dinner. We sat on the balcony and enjoyed our food while we enjoyed the night time desert ambience. But it had turned cool again, so I dug out the blanket and enjoyed some balcony time watching stars and climbers on the mountain.

Sunday the 26th – WHERE DID THE TIME GO?! – I couldn’t believe my vacation was almost over! It seemed like I had just gotten there! But I was very relaxed and rested. I slept most of the day, packed up a few things to get ready for my Monday exodus, and got ready for my dinner meeting with Ron Chaney at LG’s Steaks. On the walk over I noticed an area on Palm Canyon Drive that had several photos and markers for military members and police officers who had been killed in the line of duty. It was a very nice Memorial Day display. Ron and I had a great dinner and got caught up on all the goings-on. On the walk back to the hotel I enjoyed a cigar and a nice, leisurely stroll. I got another Dole Whip and headed back to the room. Sometimes when I visit Palm Springs, I’ll pack up and head back home during the late night hours of Sunday night/Monday morning. I do this to beat the traffic. But since Monday was a holiday, there wasn’t really any reason for me to be back by Monday, so I got ready to enjoy my final night of vacation. I packed up a few things to get a head start on it, and enjoyed one last, chilly night on the balcony watching stars. It had gotten quite cloudy, windy and cold all of a sudden, but then after about an hour it all cleared away and quieted down. Such is the strange weather of the desert. I got to bed around 5am.

Monday the 27th – MEMORIAL DAY! – Though I had a late check-out scheduled, I got up around 11 and started packing up for my departure. I walked Roxy around noon and saw the line of people in the lobby waiting to check out. I was glad my check out time was much later! But I wasn’t laughing for very long. When I checked out at 2 and hit the freeway, I realized I was in for a VERY long ride home. The freeway was wall-to-wall, bumper-to-bumper traffic moving at about 10 miles per hour. So I tuned the radio to a good station, laid back and enjoyed the scenery. The traffic coming out of Palm Springs was indeed horrific. It took me about an hour to go 12 miles. But shortly after the Cabazon exit it opened up quite a bit, making me realize that a lot of people were heading to the Morongo Casino. By the time I got home at 4:30 it had really only taken me about 3 hours to get home…not too bad. I unloaded all my luggage and checked in with my housesitter Ariel, and all was good. Once I got everything settled I checked e-mails, did some work around the house, and napped for a bit. I got up later to do some auditions and sign some photos for people who had requested autographs. I’ll hit the post office on Tuesday and get everything sent off. I love being on vacation, but it’s always good being back home too.

And how was YOUR week??!!

PIX FROM THE WEEK