RANDOM PIC OF THE WEEK
I received this pic in an e-mail this week. I love it! (Given the amount of dog pictures I post here, should I just rename it to Random DOG Pic of the Week?)
After I heard some people singing “Build Me Up Buttercup” at an Italian restaurant the other night, I could NOT get it out of my head. The Foundations had a hit with this song back in 1968, and we used to play the heck out of it on the oldies radio stations where I used to work.
Monday the 21st – BORIS WITH BOOBS!? – After getting up around 2 in the afternoon, I walked Roxy and then settled in to read my e-mails. I had some last-minute voice tracks to cut for Go 96.3 in Minneapolis, one of the radio stations I do Image Voice work for. A last-minute Pizza Hut audition was also in my inbox. I got some mail together to take to the post office, signed some photos from people who e-mailed me requests for them, and got ready to go run some errands. My pal Sandy, who just moved here from Iowa to get into Voice Over work, came along with me. I also took Roxy along for the ride as it had cooled off quite a bit and was a really nice day. First we stopped at Fast Signs to pick up a few new signs for Planet Wallywood that they printed. We went next door to Blast Off Comics and I picked up issue #27 of the “66 Batman” title. We hit the Post Office and I mailed off my stuff, I dropped by my mailbox and got my mail, and then we ate lunch at Paty’s. While we were there we ran into my pal Brittney Powell who was just finishing up a lunch meeting. Small world! When I got home I noticed an orange-ish hue to the pool area. It looked super cool, but kind of creepy. I looked into the west and a gorgeous orange sunset was unfolding before my very eyes. It was also getting quite a bit cooler. Sandy did a little work for me while she was here to earn extra money, and after she left I grabbed a nap. I got up later and did my auditions, and looked at the Palm Springs weather for the end of the week. I was planning on leaving Wednesday for a four night stay, but after getting a look at the weather forecast, I called the hotel and canceled my trip. I was heartbroken! But Thursday’s high was expected to be 108! MUCH warm for me, let alone Roxy too! (Actually the high on Thursday and Friday was 111!) Oh well, I was bound and determined to get to Palm Springs soon for some relaxation! This just wasn’t the week for it. I settled in to watch another episode of “The Girl From U.N.C.L.E.” on DVD before bed, and it was a terrific episode with Boris Karloff in drag playing a character called Mother Muffin. Ahhhh the 60’s. Anything goes in the 60’s!
Tuesday the 22nd – PALM SPRINGS ETERNAL! – I was really sad that the Palm Springs weekend wasn’t going to work out. I had been looking forward to it for so long. My friend Officer Mark and his girlfriend Connie said they were still going to go and brave the heat. I sat at the computer and typed out Wally’s Week, did some work around the house, took a dip in the Jacuzzi, did my auditions, and hit the hay early for a VERY busy Wednesday!
Wednesday the 23rd – TRIFECTA! – In order to be on time for the first of three sessions I jumped out of bed at 8am. I drove over to L.A. Studios on West Cahuenga to do an NCAA radio spot for State Farm insurance at 9am. By 10 we were wrapped up and I was headed over to Studiopolis in Studio City to do some work on “Sonic Boom.” We worked there for a few hours and by 12:30 I was back home walking Roxy and giving her and Spook a treat. I worked on a few things around the house before I sped off to Taco Bell to get lunch, and then I headed to Guns Direct in Burbank to buy a new Smith & Wesson 8 shot .357 Magnum revolver in matte black. It’s a beauty! I’m able to pick it up on October 3rd. (Stupid California 10 day waiting period!) I can understand a 10 day waiting period if you’re a first time handgun buyer, but I already have 26 handguns in my collection! If the 10 day waiting period serves as a “cooling off” period, it doesn’t make any sense to inflict it upon known handgun collectors. Totally illogical… but that’s the California state legislature for ya! After I filled out my paperwork I went over to Bang Zoom studios to do some more work on Project X; that new project I’ll be working on for the next year or so that’s very similar to the one I did for US Airways. We didn’t have much left of the script we were working on, so the director told me we’d be done in an hour and a half. I was looking forward (particularly after the long day I had going on) to getting out of there at 4:30 and getting a pizza, heading home and relaxing. And we finished the script, the director said, “Great job!” and I packed up my things. But apparently he had forgotten that the company told him they wanted us to get started on the second script right away upon finishing this one. RATS! So I unpacked my stuff and we recorded for another hour and a half. I just decided to soldier through and do it. But suffice to say I treated myself to a large Roundtable Pizza after the session really WAS over! YUM! I stopped by my mailbox on the way home to get my mail, and when I got home I jumped into the Jacuzzi to relax. I got a bit of a nap, and later my effects guy Jim Ojala stopped by with the latest work he had done on the Michael Myers/William Shatner 3-D head (read last week’s Wally’s Week for details on this). I had one audition to do and then did some work on the computer. By the time I was ready for bed to watch more “Girl From U.N.C.L.E.” and finish off my cold Roundtable pizza, I decided to turn on the TV and watch the Pope enter the Congressional chamber for his speech. I watched a little bit of it and then nodded off.
Thursday the 24th – BATHROOM BOUNTY! – My contractor Electric Bob and I have been trying for about a year to find time to redo the shower in The Puppet Room. My parents will be coming out in a few weeks and I want to have that rickety old shower replaced by the time they get here. So Bob and I went to Lowe’s to do a little shopping. We picked out a great enclosure (it comes in 3 pieces; which makes it a lot easier to load in through narrow doorways!) a terrific variable-height hand-held showerhead, a four foot long shower base, and we custom ordered some extra tall shower doors in rain glass. Occasionally I like using the Puppet Room bathroom but I don’t like bumping my head on the low-clearance shower door in there. When I had the shower redone in my room shortly after I moved in back in 2000, the first thing I did was to get rid of the short shower doors and have some tall ones made to give me some headroom. On the way home I had Bob stop off at Jersey Mike’s so I could get a sandwich, and then we headed back to my house to go over the fix-it list of little repairs needed around the house. It seemed weird going over the list with someone other than Terry. I still can’t believe Terry’s gone somedays. It’s still a bit surreal. I spent the evening dusting the living room; the top of the video cabinet as well as the action figure cabinet. Then, exhausted, I hit the hay to finish my Jersey Mike’s #13 and watch “The Girl From U.N.C.L.E.” I’m enjoying this show quite a bit!
Friday the 25th – SHUT OUT! – My maids were due at my house between noon and 2. I had a lunch meeting scheduled with my friend Angelique Perrin at 2:30 so that would work out perfectly. I was looking forward to it because my place REALLY needed cleaning! I walked Roxy outside and she spent some time lying in the grass enjoying the sunshine. Even though it was about 100 degrees, she still loves lying in the grass sunbathing. It’s the weirdest thing. But when it had gotten too warm I called her to go inside. But my door was locked! I knew I hadn’t locked it on the way out. What happened? A guy by the pool said he saw my maids going into the house. THEY locked me out. I was banging on the door and ringing the doorbell but nobody answered. It was getting hot outside! I was just about to go get my hidden key in the combination box when I heard them open the door. Whew! I got showered up and headed to Jerry’s Famous Deli to meet with Angelique. As I pulled in I got a call from my friend Alex Zsolt who was in town. Strangely enough, he was just finishing up a lunch meeting…AT JERRY’S! He was just leaving and I was just coming in. So we sat at the booth and chewed the fat until Angelique showed up. She didn’t mind him staying, so the three of us had a fun conversation for a few hours. When we finished I went over to Fast Signs to pick up some more signage. Then I stopped by my mailbox to pick up my replica Starsky & Hutch badges I had made by an actual badge company. They turned out perfectly! I was very happy! I went back home to do some work and Jim Ojala came back over with the latest version of the Myers/Shatner head. It was better, but still not as close as I had hoped. The mouth is very specific and has a uniquely distinct look. My pal Jasmine stopped by to say hi on her way out on the town. It was fun catching up with her. Then I drove out to the Coral Café to have dinner with Sara, and enjoy some delicious pot roast. I picked up a few grocery items on the way home, and then grabbed a quick nap on the couch. I got up and fed the pets and took Roxy on our late-night stroll through the neighborhood. A gorgeous “almost full” moon was shining brightly above. In a few days we’d not only have another “Super Moon,” but it was going to also be another “Blood Moon” as well. I got to bed and watched “The Girl From U.N.C.L.E.” and hit the hay for good around 9am Saturday morning.
Saturday the 26th – RESTLESS CANINE AND MEDDLESOME FELINE! – I tried to enjoy a long, restful sleep…but my pets were NOT having any of it. Roxy was up and down on the bed, constantly waking me up wanting to cuddle. Then Spook would get up and purr in my ear and want me to pet him. I would just get into some deep REM and then some fur person would get in my face and wake me up! I “slept” until 4, and then I got up to do some work around the house. My pal Scott Sebring had just gotten off a job in Burbank so he came over to chat before movie night. I cleaned up as we talked and made some “Spooky Cat” cookies. I buy those darned cookies every year (because my cat’s name is on them) but I never get around to baking them and then they turn bad. But this year I was bound and determined to make them! Since it was movie night it was the perfect occasion. It was a great movie night with good friends. When everyone left I nodded off on the couch for a few hours. When I got up I fed the pets and did some work around the house. I noticed that the signage I had attached to my walls that were under displays looked a bit lackluster. So I went into the garage, found some one inch thick styrafoam sheets, and cut little spacers to place behind the signs. This would make them “pop” out of the wall and garner a bit more attention. They looked pretty neat. I’m not sure why I didn’t think of that years ago. I put some satin sheets on the bed, just to change it up, but I remember not liking something about satin sheets. Oh well, I did it anyway. I did some more busy work around the house and then made my traditional giant Saturday night salad and watched “The Persuaders” before bed. I’m sure going to miss that show when it’s over. Since it’s only one season, I’m about 10 episodes away from the end. It seems like Roger Moore and Tony Curtis were really having a great time together on that show. Around 9am Sunday morning I walked Roxy before we turned in for good. I saw a few of my neighbors so we chatted with them for a bit. By the time I got to sleep it was about 11am Sunday morning!
Sunday the 27th – CLOUDY SUPER BLOOD MOON! – The weather had cooled considerably so I walked Roxy over to evening church. When we got out I was looking at the sky to try and see the eclipse of the moon called the “Blood Moon.” The moon was also supposed to be a lot closer to Earth than usual, so it was also going to be a “Super Moon.” But our skies over L.A. were so cloudy it was tough to see anything. I drove over to Ernie’s Taco House to have dinner with Sara, and when I got out of my car I could just barely see the eclipsed moon in the sky overhead. The past few Blood Moons that have occurred have been around 3am; which is perfect for me, because I’m usually up at that time anyway. In fact, the Blood Moon that happened before this one was at 2am. I got a comfy chair from my house and sat outside in the driveway watching the entire eclipse. So catching this one wasn’t necessarily a big priority for me. I came home after a sumptuous dinner and did a bit of work around the house, and then grabbed a nap. I got up to do an audition, and then sat at my desk listening to music paying bills and reconciling my checking account statements. I decided to get rid of the satin sheets on my bed. I had remembered what I didn’t like about them; no traction. As I was sitting up in bed watching TV, I felt myself eventually sliding down. I would have to keep sitting back up straight. Also, the sheets would slide off the bed, and the comforter would slide off the sheets. Basically, it’s like trying to sleep in a vat of Crisco. So, I put them back in the closet…where they’ll probably stay for a long time. I made hot dogs on the grill and watched “The Girl From U.N.C.L.E.” again. Fun!
And how was YOUR week??!!
PIX FROM THE WEEK
These are the new Starsky & Hutch badge sets I put together, with replica badges matching those of the series almost exactly. They’re gorgeous! Coupled with the ID cards, they make for a very impressive replica prop set-up!
My friend Jasmine stops by to say hi before going out for a night on the town with friends.
A gorgeous orange western sky as the sun sets over Los Angeles!
