Oh wait, this thing is HAPPENING???
Workwise, I haven't worked full-on in the film industry since 2004, when I took a job with a regular company that I worked on and off with in my spare time during the late 1990s. A few years ago I began providing communications services to another organization, providing them with guidance on a redesign of their public website and generating content for their social media channels and a few strategies for messaging the general public as well as their members. A lot of politics in that one, so I refrain from putting my heart into it, which is really good for me honestly.
Homewise, we lost my dad a few years ago after a decline that began in 2013.
It was just so tough to see him go, as I have enjoyed a tremendously loving relationship with my folks. I feel so guilty sometimes knowing that others have had such a shit show. A real treasure.
He left me millions of memories in the form of a collection of just about everything he ever had, including stuff that should have gone into the dumpster a few decades ago. As a result of the time lag, those items are suddenly all cast in the light of 'vintage' which makes disposing of them so much more difficult. For instance, I found the cardboard box that came with the Sony Trinitron I bought them in the early 90s. I am watching a tribute to Anthony Bourdain on that same television right now, wondering if I could sell the box and the television for "big bugs" on eBay or something. The real answer is I should cut out a Trinitron logo from the panel and toss the rest of the cardboard.
Speaking of cardboard, this year was the 9th annual Cardboard*Con and this year we finally came up with our own theme song. Well, I came up with it. But some friends helped me make the video at the last minute. If you have any way of making it go viral please do, since Jurassic Park is coming out soon...
Cardboard*Con Offishul Theemsong: It's In March
PiratePalooza is looking at 14 this year, and Captain Drew is a bigger mess than he's ever been (on the last day of the "renniesauce festicle" he showed up with a bag of toasted bread and every time one of the minstrels called out "A Toast!!" he would yell "Some Toast!!!" and fling a piece in their direction). He has some VERY serious plans for something groundbreaking later this summer, so I'll let y'all get in at the ground floor - it's good that he doesn't have a bigger platform or he'd be in so much trouble.
For the past several years we have ended the crawl and started the pub sing in the backyard of a restaurant fronted by celebrity chef Kevin Gillespie, and word went out a month or two ago that he had been diagnosed with renal cancer - just terrible.
I still use my MacBook Pro every single day and operate in a Mac/Adobe/Amazon environment. I really need a Mac Mini with updated ports so I can do some videotape preservation. My iPhone is a champ and I use the shit out of it every single day. I can quit out of all my apps at noon and by noon the following day I'll have 20 apps open, most of them having been used extensively.
I haven't read much since my cancer back in 2009, but I have become a voracious
listener of Audible books and podcasts (primarily stories from The Moth). My favorite book series remains The Baroque Cycle by Neal Stephenson and probably always will be, and the Audible version is breathtaking in its performance.
Still single. Chased a nice girl for a few years but she had zero desire to be caught (by me) and I finally walked away from that friendship, or whatever it was. It was tough, but every day that passed made me remember who I am (I'm bloody Captain Drew, baby!) and sad that I was in such a low place in my life that I had not gotten out of that mess permanently, and a whole lot sooner.
Best and only cat died on Christmas Day in 2016. Heartrending. By the beginning of 2017 we had a feral mother cat and her two kittens (and their Aunt(??)) inside the house and over the course of the past 18 months the kittens have grown and are half-tame and the 'Aunt' kitty is my new 'best' cat.
I am so busy on a daily basis that I don't have time to jump in and play Minecraft, though I have so many fond memories of the silly shit we have done in that game. You people who never took the time to buy the game and learn to log in have seriously missed out on some epic adventures. I swear that I'll join up again one night and hide from creepers like the chicken I am!!!
Politics. Sheesh. I know that I was pretty goshdarned conservative back when this place went up, but over those years I have made the unusual transition from right wing to left of center. Many of the well written, rational conversations that happened here over the years helped to lay a foundation for that change. Having friends with different backgrounds helped too. I stopped using "Social Justice Warrior" as a label and understand how the fundamental fabric of our society is changing -
must change. I am not a fan of our current president's style, methods, or sensibilities.
There's ZERO reason that any of you should really drift away from here again. Nobody carries on rational extended conversations on Facebook, and they never did. We are all tired of memes and image macros and dammit oh god the political rancor. This place has been great because it's "always been there" for us to return to over the years. I love that.
I badly want Murbot to go back and find his original photos from his lesson on hard drives. I still remember the night when we went crazy on the forums and suddenly we all started getting our own image icons and somehow I got Meatwad, y'all.
What I've been watching: Westworld, Silicon Valley, Barry, Game of Thrones, everything Star Wars, everything Marvel, I was in a low spot when Thor: Ragnarok came out and boy howdy did I love that movie SO MUCH. I enjoyed Star Trek Discover without being a whiny little bitch about them messing with canon - it was fun and new and I decided not to hate it right off the bat.
Having that attitude has helped me through a lot of struggles, even when I do find myself quietly cursing situations or mumbling about people who have let me down.
I am simultaneously more connected than I have ever been in my life, while being even more isolated in my personal life.
This is a condition I can survive in for quite some time.
I like reading your posts.
Boobs.
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