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For a couple years I had a blog for friends n' family. At the end of every week, I'd recap my blessings n' vents. I'd call these posts Roses n' Thorns. I figured I'd resurrect that habit for this blog.
Rose
Last Saturday was such a perfect day that it inspired me to get back into blogging - even though I haven't blogged about it - as I found myself crafting a post in my head. To quickly summarize, J n' I had the day off together, so we explored the St. Lawrence Market (the world's best food market, according to National Geographic.) It reminded me of the Granville Island Public Market (which I LOVED), only 3 or 4 times the size. Impressive, if not a bit overwhelming. Afterwards, we enjoyed a nice brunch and then a leisurely stroll to wherever the sunny sidewalks took us, stopping to watch a shaggy savant play a speed round of chess in the park, and ending up at Young & Dundas Square, just in time to catch Oz in 3D. (Awesome!) We couldn't have planned a better "date day" if we tried, as it left us feeling happy and blessed.
Thorn
As shorts season is quickly coming upon us, I just took notice that the purple spider vein crawling across my thigh looks more pronounced than it did last summer. Likely a direct result of age and standing on my feet for hours a day. Call me vein (*groan*), but it bothers me about as much as a teenager and their first pimple. Sigh. While it only looks like a small bruise to an outside observer, I suppose it can always be hidden with longer shorts or a little cover-up. Still, I think down the road I might look into doing something more permanent about it, because I know it's only gonna get worse.
Rose
After 5 months of sleeping on an air mattress, we finally have a proper queen sized bed - or at least mattress, I should say. The box-spring, frame and headboard will follow later this month, via a friend of my boss who was upgrading. The timing couldn't have been better. In the last week, the cats must've poked a hole in our bed, because two or three times a night, J would have to get up and turn the knob to re-inflate it, as we'd begin sinking. (The knob was on his side... :P) It was brutal. Anyway, the new mattress is in great shape, nice n' firm, and best of all, it was free. Ah, the little things.... what bliss it is to own a bed again that doesn't require 4 D batteries.
Thorn
While doing some YouTube yoga, Luna sat watching me, perched in a funny position. Something about her squat made me suspicious. "What're you doing, Fishy?" I asked, to which she chirped, got up and walked away, leaving a little puddle beneath her! I couldn't believe it - the friggin' cat pissed on our bed RIGHT IN FRONT OF ME! Bah! What a jerk! I was feelin' pretty zen at the time, but she still got a misting of water in her face. I did see her get into an altercation with her litter box the night before, (she has these timid moments where she gets freaked out by its swinging door), so hopefully she was just having a moment and it won't become a habit as a result of our new bed (which belonged to a cat owner as well). She has since used the litter box successfully, so we think (hope) it was a one time thing. Also, very fortunately, the puddle didn't soak through to the mattress. Whew! (On a related note, in case you're wondering, at some point, Luna's name evolved into Tuna which quickly evolved (devolved?) into Fish/Fishy/The Fish. If I ever mention Luna, Tuna or Fishy, it's all the same cat. Our other cat is Emmy, but he more often goes by Bubba, Coco or Snowface.)Â
Rose
With the upcoming release of our movie in the US (May 21st), we've been concerned about the shitty marketing our distributor is doing south of the border. Once again, the movie is labeled as a thriller, now billed with an R rating (WTF?! That HAS to be a mistake!), and the new poster they designed includes a bloody hand. Seriously... this thriller b.s. is beyond annoying. If they want a thriller, we'll give them a thriller, as we could totally throttle someone over this misleading marketing!
Now, while this all may sound like a thorn, there is an up side. Attempting to take the power into our own hands, J contacted an Australia-based journalist he knows, who runs a very popular movie trade site. This fellow wrote a glowing review about J's short, and so the two have keep in touch off n' on over the past 10 years. J explained our situation, and asked him if he could perhaps do a blurb on his site, with the hope that the words "supernatural drama" might then bleed onto feeder sites.
Anyway, as it turns out, over the last year or two, this guy has since become the CEO of a rather successful PR company with employees based in NY and LA, doing work for shows by HBO, Fox, Universal, and celebs including Michael J. Fox. We know our US distributer won't be going to any lengths to promote our movie outside of their crappy poster and a mislabeled genre on iTunes/Netflix/etc., so anything we can get out there to the trades on our own - with the proper spin! - will serve us well. Anyway, this fella has offered his PR savvy n' connections to help out a mate, so we are pretty excited. A lesson for all that it pays to keep your contacts! :)
Thorn
I can't think of any other thorns... It's been a pretty rosy week.
Rose
Earlier this week, we checked out our friend's documentary, "Blood Relative" at Hot Docs Film Festival. It was a great follow-up to her first doc "65_RedRoses", which J n' I finally got to see last month, when it screened as part of Hot Docs' 20th Anniversary 20 Best Documentaries series. It ws such an amazing, heart-breaking movie that has really launched her career. Here are the trailers for both.
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Rose
Friday, J n' I met with a literary agent at one of Toronto's biggest talent agencies. While he (and every other agent out there) is only looking to rep writer/directors for television, because the feature film industry in Canada is frustratingly close to non-existent, he didn't give us a hard "no". It seems that our latest screenplay is definitely one of the better scripts that he has come across, and he is confident that we'll get it made. (He inquired a few times who we've shopped it around to so far.) He was also intrigued by the other things we're writing. He expressed that he can tell we're hard workers and that we know exactly what we're up against in terms of Canadian success. (Like others before him, he recommends we move to LA - a better fit for our ambitions.) That being said, even though we're not what he's looking for in terms of clients, it seems our material and personalities piqued his interest enough that he wants to sleep on it and get back to us early next week.
So, at the end of the day, who knows where it'll go, if anywhere at all. Regardless of the outcome, we still chalk it up to a great meeting. It was nice to hear that "CH" is above par and has a lot of potential. It was also nice to hear that he thinks we both have what it takes in terms of talent and drive. But I already knew that. ;)
Rose
My fancy non-GMO, heirloom seeds finally arrived from Cali-forny-way! I worry that it might be a little late in the season to start planting, as a couple people have suggested, but I don't care. It can't be any worse than the crappy gardens I've harvested in the past, so I'm gonna try! Worse case scenario, I've already got my seeds for next year.
So bright n' early tomorrow morning, I'm going over to my friend's place to borrow his shovel n' other tools to get started on building a garden. Fingers crossed it works out. I know I'm gonna have to dog and raccoon proof it too... That should be interesting.
The seeds I bought are:
Basil Herb Mix
Harvester Beans
Tongue of Fire Beans
Broccoli
Bok Choy
Tendersweet Carrots
Chives
Cilantro
Cucumber
Gourmet/Mesclun Mix
Red Burgundy Onion
Cayenne Peppers
Mixed California Wonder Bell Peppers
Purple Beauty Peppers
Small Sugar Pumpkins
Spinach
Black Beauty Zucchini
Spaghetti Squash
Butternut Squash
Rainbow Swiss Chard
Heritage Rainbow Mix Tomatoes
They also threw in some Large Red Cherry Tomatoes for free.
Holy crap!! It just occurred to me NOW how much I actually ordered. They were all on sale for $1.00/pack, and well, as I recall, I had just come home after an evening of drinks with friends when I saw the ad, and yeah... ya think I went a little crazy? Man... I'm gonna be digging up our whole back yard! However, my neighbour upstairs offered to get involved with this project, as she's never gardened before. Hmm... I wonder if G has TWO shovels I can borrow? ;)
Anyway, I have another rose or two from this week, but I want to wait a bit to confirm their outcomes before I say anything. All in all, it's been a very good week. :)
We have to believe that magic will happen, even on the hardest deflated mattress days. Fake it 'til ya make it! 