I'm holding another Sitcom Room Seminar

After a two year's hiatus I'm holding another Sitcom Room weekend seminar.  It will be the weekend of November 12-13, 2011 at the elegant LAX Hilton Hotel in Los Angeles.

Anyone who's been a professional sitcom writer knows that the most fun part of the job is being locked in a room with incredibly funny people.  Yes, at times you want to tear your hair out, but even then -- imagine going to work and laughing for ten hours every day.

And more and more sitcoms are being room-written these days.  Shows like BIG BANG THEORY don't assign scripts to individual writers.  The entire staff sits around a table and cobbles the draft together.  The more training you have in this unique way of writing, the more marketable you become.

And this is the only seminar/workshop that teaches you those skills.

THE SITCOM ROOM is a two day EXTENSIVE workshop that simulates just what it's like to be on a sitcom writing staff.   You'll be broken up into groups of "writing rooms", actual working Hollywood actors will perform a scene, and then (after an extensive briefing and many insider tips) you'll go back to the room and rewrite the crap out of it.   The next day the actors return and perform YOUR scene.

It's a great learning experience, a great bonding experience, a great glimpse into the real workings of television.   But be forewarned -- this is only for people who enjoy laughing.

For details, just go here.   Registration is limited to only 20 attendees.  Each person gets personal attention.  Soon I will announce when registration is open.  But if you're on the email alert, you will get the word before I post it in the blog.

Once again.  Here's where you go to learn more.  I've already had one graduate land a staff job on a network show.  Whether you're interested in becoming a sitcom writer or just want a "fantasy camp" experience to see what it's like working on a TV show, the SITCOM ROOM is for you.

UPDATE:

Here's an article that T.V. critic Alan Sepinwall wrote for the N.J. Star-Ledger about the first Sitcom Room.  You'll notice a lot of the article is devoted to whether the sitcom is dead?  I think we can agree, now five years later, that the sitcom is back and only getting stronger, which is good news for me.  I sure didn't want to start the PROCEDURAL DRAMA ROOM. 

Architecture Wednesday: Back To Seattle

So, after a few days in Seattle, with several days of clear sunny skies--a rarity for the Northwest--and evergreens and deep blue water, Carlos decides he must live there.
Uh huh, I say, well, howsabout this house?

The  Euclid House--which looks remarkably fresh and contemporary despite the fact that it was built nearly twenty years ago--literally towers over a 0.14-acre lot to take advantage of Lake Washington views and the surrounding forest. Generous decks and multi-paned glass walls in the great room allow close-up views of the dense woods, while 12-foot ceilings and white walls keep the interior simple and airy.
Situated on a dead-end street, it lies beside an expansive urban wilderness park, and is both close to the lake and an easy commute to downtown Seattle.

A sloping driveway leads to a 2 car garage and the owner/architect designed the home to have a splayed base to "anchor" it to its hillside setting. A cap of overhanging gable roofs mimics the distant mountain range while walls of glass set in a structural frame give the illusion that the roof hovers overhead.

The front stairs ascend to an impressive front door and open to the center of the home. The foyer has that Wow factor, looking up the column of stairs. The lighted staircase to the first level is slate with beechwood risers and stainless edges.

Aluminum-clad wood windows run from floor to ceiling, bringing in light and that amazing view. Tall, glass French doors open to the curved front wood deck overlooking the lake and the garden below. All of the windows in the house face south or east to take advantage of the light & warmth of the sun.

Who wouldn't mind being in a kitchen with this view? A wall of glass and French doors open to the large dining deck that connects with the living room deck. The granite topped island w/maple cabinetry has a rounded end to accommodate stools for having breakfast or keeping the cook company.

Rosabeta granite counters, a Dacor stainless 5 burner cook top, a Dacor stainless built-in convection oven, microwave and warming ovens, a wood faced Sub-Zero double door refrigerator, plus lake and mountains views make this the heart of the home.

The dining room, open to the kitchen and living room, is perfect for all that entertaining--I see a fabulous Cinco de Never party happening here! The dining deck has a built-in grill and more of those amazing views.

The master bedroom sits high in the tree tops, surrounded by windows to take in the view. The vaulted cedar ceiling only adds to the treehouse vibe. The top floor also holds the master bath, a large walk-in closet, laundry room, and private deck with hot tub.

The master bath has dual polished granite vanities, tons of built-in storage for your personals, windows to the view, and a glass door to the deck. The stainless walled shower has a window to the lake view.

The master bedroom's hot tub deck has wood slatted floors, vaulted ceilings, and skylights, so you can watch the lake, the trees, and the stars.

This very contemporary guest bedroom has slate floors, a deep soaking tub and something called a Toto toilet. I don't think we're in Kansas anymore.

Finally, let's end our tour on the living room deck, with its Lake Washington views, and scenes from the forest, and the Bellevue skyline.


So, Carlos, for $1.2 million, could we get a piece of Seattle?
 
source

Scenes From A Vacation

So, here's a quick photo-tour of our time in the Northwest. 

As always, you can click 'em to emBIGGERate 'em.

My father lives very near, very near, the Canadian border, in a small farming community.  I mean, it's so close that one wrong turn and the Mounties demand to see your passport. This is a view of Mount Baker rising behind one of the farms.

Speaking of Canada, with their gay marriage and health care, this is the Freedom Arch at the border, and a view of the Canadian flag, done flower style.

In the harbor of Bellingham, I found the name of this boat particularly suited to me, as I often don't give a Flying F. After spotting this, I went in search of the Asshat and the Fucktard, to no avail.

This is the City Center of Tacoma, right across the street from a delicious Mediterranean restaurant we enjoyed. Tacoma is very reminiscent of San Francisco, so it holds a special place in my heart. Old buildings, streetcars--albeit new ones--and a waterfront.

In Tacoma, we saw an exhibit of Chihuly glass--if you've never seen a Chihuly exhibit, what are you waiting for?? But I was stunned that so much of his gorgeous glass pieces could be found on the streets and on freeway overpasses.

A piece of Chihuly glass. I love the reflection  of the overhead lights and how it looks like stars.

Another Chihuly. Many of his pieces are inspired by the handwoven blankets of Native Americans.

 The Tacoma Union Station, now a US Courthouse with a lobby filled with Chihuly glass pieces.

 Mount Rainer, as seen from the Chihuly bridge overpass.

 The street art. Row upon row of Chihuly artwork on a pedestrian bridge from the City Center to the waterfront.

 These are some of the fabrics created by Chihuly and then used as inspiration for his glass pieces.

 And what's a visit to Seattle without braving the crowds, sights and smells of the Public Market.....

....or getting all touristy and going to the Space Needle.

 I loved the views from the top of the Space Needle, looking out at Seattle. I was not so fond of looking down.

 The beautiful Snoqualmie Falls are just about 45 minutes from the craziness and traffic and noise and fun of downtown Seattle.

 The town of Snoqualmie had a railroad museum. Carlos loves railroad cars and railroad travel. I, however, was more taken by the rust and decay of the rail cars and found many--and I mean many--shots I had to take of rust and ladders and numbers.

So, there's a brief tour of some of what we did and saw and smelled and tasted and touched. farmland to city, waterfalls to trains. A little bit of everything, I guess!

Tweets worth Re-Tweeting

I was going to post this yesterday as a birthday toast, but then Annie built the Ikea cabinet and I had to go with that instead.  So here it is today -- a few of her Tweets. Tomorrow, the story of how she solves crimes (no, just kidding).

How long do you think it will be before Victoria Secret starts marketing itself as "The Halloween Costume Superstore"?

Apparently my twitter account was hacked into. I don't have a way for anyone to make money. If I did, I'd be doing that rather than tweeting

National Geographic recreated the floating house from UP! Next step: An adorable robot that cleans up waste and loves Hello Dolly!

It's National Grammar Day! I think I'll celebrate by putting a preposition at the end of every sentence it's in.

Charlie Sheen wants another Major League movie? The way things are going with him & Willie Mays Hayes it better be a Prison Baseball League

What is everyone so bitter about Valentine's Day? It's a national excuse to eat chocolate. And I plan to celebrate for weeks and weeks.

I love MOMA, but out of curiosity at what point is something made in 1880 no longer considered "modern"?

What would be the difference between a TRUE BLOOD spec and creepy fan fiction? Because I bet it would be pretty minimal at this point...

After watching the trailer for the new "Arthur," I find it incredibly ironic that a lot of the movie is about wasting money.

Once again Santa didn't bring me anything. I even baked him cookies. Sure they were in the shape of menorahs, but that still counts...

I'm semi-relieved that most of these new shows are terrible; I didn't have the time for any more serious TV commitments.

Why do I still watch True Blood? Did Sookie just check Bill's pulse? Why would a vampire have a pulse?

I still love Blossom. Even if she can't dress herself.

@ dodger stadium for "viva Los dodgers" and "Jewish Community Day." always a winning combination.

Is it just me or do Minka Kelly and Leighton Meester look super similar? PS. Please don't judge my taste in TV shows entirely on this tweet.

I got a ticket for parking on my own street. It was definitely because my car isn't nearly as nice as everyone elses. Automotive profiling?

Hey INCEPTION, thanks for these crazy meta dreams.

The new Health Care Bill will impose a 10% tax on Tanning Salon Customers? My heart bleeds for the cast of Jersey Shore.

Gym. Tan. Laundry. (minus Gym and Tan)

"Look they have a trivia night. You should go; you're trivial." -My Mother

Perfect For the Morning After

After a few martoonis last night, I need some Adele in the AM.

Jerusalem Day in Iran

When you page through the photographs UPI presents from this Tehran love-in, you shall undoubtedly imbue some of the loverly feelings. How can you not, seeing scenes like this one:

One detail, though, just a technicality actually - the caption under that picture says:

An Iranian woman holds a pictures of Imam Musa Sadr and wear a sign with a picture of American president Barack Obama on swastika...

Well, swastika is just one of the symbols there, my sharp eyes detect another one...

The Boy Scouts of America...Teaching Homophobia To Your Children

Denise Steele and her family.
FAMILY.

I was never a Boy Scout, but I was a Cub Scout. Oh, not because I liked camping or making knots, but because i looked cute in a kerchief and cap. I mean, who doesn't, right? But I am not fond of the Boy Scouts because of their homophobia, and now I have even more reason to find them reprehensible.

Denise Steele is a mom who has been part of her son's Boy Scout troop for the past six years. She began as a den mother for her son, Jackson, because no other parent would step up and take on being a Cub Scout troop leader.

No other parent.

And she was good, too. Jackson's troop excelled at everything, including accomplishing badges and winning the Blue and Gold Award all five years, one of the highest awards for Boy Scouts. Did she do it for the Scouts? No; she did it for her son, and those other boys, to make sure they had a good time, and because no other parent wanted the job.

No other parent.

But last June other parents did step up, and now Denise Steele’s chances to further bond with her son through scouting were dashed.

See, she was removed, removed, from her position after an assistant scoutmasters discovered that Denise Steele is a lesbian, and in a nineteen year domestic partnership with Jackie Funk. The couple lives in Potomac Falls with their two children, Jackson and Jaden, and Denise Steele’s nephew Will.

Still, Denise Steele’s homosexuality was never an issue in the past, with regards to leading her son’s Boy Scout troop. In fact, according to Denise's partner, Jackie, it may have actually opened some eyes to gay parents and gay parenting: “Some of the guys would come down and ask her advice. Being a woman, forget about the gay part, it didn’t matter. They respected her for her commitment and what she offered and how much she put into it. They respected her.”

As did the boys, all of whom stayed in Steel's troop the entire five years; except for two boys, who moved away. But that doesn't matter. it doesn't matter that she was the only parent to step up. it doesn't matter that her troop excelled. it doesn't matter that the boys loved her. What matters, according to Phil Holliday, the executive pastor at Christian Fellowship Church, and Esther Schaeffer, the charter organization representative, is "the rules".

When a chartered partner, like Christian Fellowship Church, agrees to sponsor a scouting unit, an annual charter agreement is signed. In that contract, they agree to provide a place for a meeting, select volunteer leaders and follow the policies and guidelines established by the Boy Scouts of America. Which doesn't allow homosexuals to be Scouts or leaders or involved in any way, even if they are the only way to keep a troop together.

The Boy Scouts of America organization says it believes that “open homosexuality is inconsistent with the values” and recommends that scout parents and sponsors share this belief.

Parents. Like all those parents who didn't step up when Denise Steele did. She even finished the year-long training to become an assistant scout leader in just three weeks because she wanted to do this for her sons. And she even went to the scoutmaster, Mike Tucker, and told him she was gay, and in a nearly twenty years, and he said it wasn't a problem.

Until this past June when Steele took her troop on a camping trip to Assateague Island. Since the trip lasted from a Saturday to a Monday, and Steele needed to work Monday, she asked Jackie Funk, her partner, to pick her up from the campsite.

After she left one asshatted busybody, assistant scoutmasters, Skip Inabinett, began asking questions about the woman who'd come to take Denise Steele to work.And after discovering that Denise and Jackie were a couple, asshatted busybody, assistant scoutmaster Skip Inabinett decided she should be removed as an assistant scoutmaster.

Asshatted busybody, assistant scoutmaster, Skip, Skippy, Skipper, Inabinett, sent an email to a close friend of Denise Steele's, whose son was also in the troop, saying, “If what you said about Denise Steele being an active sexual is true, do you feel comfortable talking with her about stepping down/resigning as an ASM … as her friend, this may be an opportunity for you to share with her about Christ’s love and the need to believe that as sinners we cannot get to heaven on our own and that we need a savior.”

The conversations centered around how Inabinett thought Steele’s lifestyle choice was a sin. In fact, asshatted busybody, assistant scoutmaster Skip Inabinett actually began speaking to Denise Steele about her, um, lifestyle choice, in what Jackie Funk described as an episode of bullying: "[T]his guy, who’s demonstrated very much a bullying behavior, if boys bullied other boys or girls bullied other girls to get what they wanted the way this guy has bullied her in today’s school system you’d probably get kicked out of school.”

And there is a chain of command that people follow in the Boy Scouts, but asshatted busybody, assistant scoutmaster Skip Inabinett went straight to the Boy Scouts of America with his complaint to get her removed as an assistant scoutmaster.

And it worked.

Denise Steele: “He didn’t go through those steps. He skipped over the scoutmaster, he skipped over the committee, he skipped over the district. He went straight to the highest level because that’s where he would get his answer. He went to the highest point to get me removed.”

And yet, Deron Smith, the director of public relations for the Boy Scouts of America, says Steele wasn’t removed from the national council , but that it may have been a troop decision.

How so? I mean, if asshatted busybody, assistant scoutmaster Skip Inabinett went all the way to the top, utterly ignoring the troop aspect of the process, then how is that possible that the troop, who apparently adored her, wanted her gone?

And now asshatted busybody, assistant scoutmaster Skip Inabinett is not talking. I mean, his work is done. The lesbian is gone.

I wonder if another parent will step up.
I wonder if another parent will work as hard as Denise Steele.
I wounder if the boys in that troop will learn from Denise Steele how to live ones life, or if they will get their example from asshatted busybody, assistant scoutmaster Skip Inabinett.
I wonder if the Boy Scouts will ever realize that being gay isn't a bad thing, or even a good thing, it's just a thing.

source

Design Star: It's Nate!! It's NATE!!!!!

Okay, so I was gone last week but they have this new thing called a DVR that allowed me to watch the show when I got home. Which i did, and will now recap in a few sentences:

• Karl got all architectural and camera ready and won.


• Mark went all woody [again!] and used some old things he found as wall art [again!].


• Meg hoisted a 200-pound ottoman over her head, and the lifted a Toyota Prius off of a kitten, and half-designed a room with a crooked art display.


• Kelly refused to listen to a five-year-old who wanted bunk beds and should have gone home but for some reason did not.


• Leslie turned a two-year-old's show biz performance room into a guest room with a wonky stage from which she was cancelled.


• Kevin went all pop of color and yappy little dog and, eventually, he went home, too.

Caught up? Good.
This week the designers are tasked with taking one of the smaller condos in their building and using $2500.00 to spruce it up, like say, the owner of the condo might do. They are given identical spaces with furniture and some accessories that they can use or discard. This is like the White Box Challenge from weeks back, but now it's a White Room.
There are no new ideas.
Let's rip:

Meg
For some reason Meg makes up a whole story about the person who lives in her space; some sort of brokedown, trust-fund baby named Graham Wilcox who used to travel but now she's poor and living in a giant loft in Brooklyn and eating Ramen and hanging baskets on the wall.
Oooooooooooookay.
She has the painter paint the room gray and then takes long strips of molding and attached them vertically to the wall. Oh yeah, she paints the molding yellow. All of the designers picked bland and boring paint colors. Did they never hear Kevin talk POP!!!
But the idea of the molding, and the floating shelves attached to each piece, was interesting. What wasn't interesting was the large silver L-bracket you could see beneath each shelf holding it up. Um, Meg? Perhaps some yellow paint on the brackets? Or, better still, get actual floating shelves and notch then around the moldings so you don't see the supports?
Just sayin'.
For her Camera Challenge, presented Live! on The Nate Show, Meg took an old coffee table, painted it gray, and then did some sort of loopy, swirly, squirrelly design on it. Seriously, she called it chic and modern, when it looked like something a seven-year-old might do. And then she goes all Beefy and The Beast and demands that the audience ooh and aah as she paints the table. Frightened, the audience submits.
But the judges loved the fact that Meg finally finished a room, on her own, and on time, and she gets the win.

Karl
He's mostly worried about the Camera Challenge since he's been a little off in that area. And he's even more afraid when he's told he'll be presenting Live! on The Nate Show. But his repurposing, or creating something a homeowner can do themselves, was a cool idea. He took store-bought, boxy shelves, stood them om end, and used actual books to make the book shelves. It was a cool ideas, and worked in his space, but would have looked better had there been more of them.
Still, his presentation, again, Live! on The Nate Show, went very smoothly and he generated oohs and aahs naturally, not through inti-Meg-ation.
His one mistake, other than more sad paint colors, was to take what looked like a bunch of paint stirrers and make them into a small dot of a clock along the biggest wall in the condo. It looked a little lonely.
But, because of his shelves and his Camera success, Karl gets a Second Place finish and some more tears.

Mark
Hottie Mark is at a loss. I so wanted to hug him, but then, i always want to snuggle a hot Latino. He gets all caught up in what to do for the Camera Challenge--to repurpose an item that a homeowner can do themselves--that he forgoes things like art. And design.
There's a lot of moving of furniture. A lot of painters painting. Some hanging of boxes all crookedy and crazy on the wall, and the purchase of some thrift store chairs that he could have painted some fabulous color and reupholstered as part of a, oh, i dunno, Camera Challenge.
Instead, he opts to silver-leaf a desk lamp because everyone can silver-leaf, right? I know.
Mark presents his Camera Challenge Live! on The Nate Show and gets all tongue-tied and nervous and calls silver-leaf tinfoil. i imagine a lot of bored housewives in some of the square states rushing to the kitchen for the Reynolds Wrap, and a hot glue gun, then cursing Mark when it doesn't turn out well.
Still, even with all his troubles--Hey! Maybe he should have gone woody and recycled wall art again!--Mark gets a save.

Kelly
She decides to create the condo space as if it were her own.
Mistake One.
I mean she's a suburban wife and mother, not your typical New Yorker. It'll be like Iowa in Brooklyn, and those two don't really mesh.
She buys rag rugs and then decides to use them to reupholster some stools. Ooh, never seen that before. Padding. Rug. Stool. Staple gun. Done. Très exciting.
Mistake Two.
And, in all her shopping, she forgets to buy window treatments for the one huge window that hits you in the face as you enter the space. So, she hangs table-cloths up there, and then places sheers behind them, and lower than them.
Mistake Three.
Her Camera Challenge, presented Live! on The Nate Show, was very clinical and dull. She must have said, two or three times, while holding up a rug, a stool a piece of foam, and a staple gun, "We've all seen these before." And we have, which made it a boring segment.
Mistake Four.
Out the door, Kelly. You've been cancelled.

Rants
I have a few.

This season is dull. Except for a few designs in the White Box Challenge there have been no Oh my god moments and no Wows. It's dull. And boring. And it's been seen before.

Genevieve Gorder is a moron with the design sense of dirt. I mean, the woman wore culottes and pumps last week, and is more high school girl giddy on TV than anything else.

Vern Yip is an annoying little queer who says things like "super interesting." The last time anyone said super interesting was in the 80s, and she was a high school girl. In fact, I think she was Genevieve Gorder.

Nate Berkus. I mean, come on, without Oprah, it's be Nate who? And his raves about Meg had me wondering: He's from Chicago. She's from Chicago. I sense a schoolyard reunion, where the bully is on a relaity show and the bullied one is a judge and too afraid the bully will take his lunch money again so he picks her as the winner.

And finally: Bring back Candice for crying out loud.

buh-bye, Kellie. You are out of this picture!

Handy Annie

I am not what you’d call “handy”. When I was in the 5th grade I took part in a citywide model boat competition. For weeks I built my wooden sailboat – sawing and sanding and hammering and varnishing. It looked awful. Lopsided, nails every which way, jagged instead of rounded curves. If they gave the same exercise to monkeys they could build better boats.

I took my funky vessel to Rancho Park for the competition. There must’ve been over 300 kids who participated in these boat races. Much to my embarrassment, the next day the Herald Examiner published the results. Out of 300+ entries I finished second to dead last. I beat one other boat and a third sunk.

Shop classes in Junior High were a disaster. My sugar scooper looked like an IUD insertion device. I can’t build things.

I always used to joke that if I ever killed someone and there was an All-Points-Bulletin out on me and I was looking for somewhere to hide, somewhere where I know no one would ever think to look for me – I would hide out at an Ikea.

So it was with much trepidation that I agreed to help my daughter construct some furniture she purchased recently at Ikea’s. Annie just moved into a new apartment and bought a desk, night table, and dresser. The night before I tried to talk myself into this. Hey, it’s not rocket science. You’re a grown adult. How hard can it be to read a set of instructions and just follow them? The instructions can’t be that complicated otherwise no one would buy the items. And hey, my boat didn’t sink. It just kept going in circles but didn’t sink. I could do this thing.

On Friday morning I arrived at her place, pumped. This was going to be my chance to prove that I wasn’t totally helpless.

First up was the desk, least complicated of the three.  I took the pieces out of the box. So far, so good. There was a set of instructions that looked very doable and weren't in Japanese. Every step was carefully explained. Also included was a little sealed plastic bag filled with the screws and pegs needed to do the job. Right away I was in trouble. There were no instructions on how to open the little plastic bag. I had to improvise and use the scissors. What if I didn’t have scissors, Ikea? Then what?

Step two (step one being the baggie) was to attach four long double-sided screws into the corners of the desktop. They didn’t fit. And since they were double-sided, you couldn’t use a screwdriver to twist them into the wood tabletop. And trying to twist them without a tool just ripped up your hands. Ten minutes of that and we said, “Okay, that’s enough of that.” We put the desk aside and moved onto the nightstand.

So I'm helpless?  So what?  I have other talents.  I can live with that.  I have before.

Having successfully rationalized my uselessness, we proceeded to the nightstand. 

The finished product would look like this: A little square with two sliding drawers. The dresser was larger with many drawers. To me that was like building the bridge on the River Kwai. Not a chance. So we set out to conquer the nightstand, although if we didn’t get past step two in the more simple designed desk, what chance would we have with this bad boy?

The nightstand came in a bigger box with all kinds of pieces and a much bigger bag of screws, nails, pegs, plastic doo-hickeys, and round gym-gicks. We emptied the contents onto the floor, I got one look at them and said, “Let's go see a movie.” But Annie, God bless her, said, “No. We can do this one.”

And she was right.

Except – that by “we” she meant “she” could do it.

You’d think raising a daughter you’d know her strengths and weaknesses. I had no idea. Annie laid out that instruction booklet and just dove in.  I stayed off to the side silently saying, "Who is this child?"  I watched in awe as my little princess built this pesky cabinet with the ease and assurance of a highly-trained contractor who charges two hundred an hour and then never shows. I was relegated to inserting wooden pegs and handing her the appropriate tool, and on more than one occasion was told, “No, not that screwdriver, daddy, the other one.” There are different screwdrivers it seems.

Within no time she had this nightstand built. The drawers fit! They were on rollers and when you pulled them out, they actually rolled! Now I know what it must be like to see your child win an Olympic event.

(Forget genetics.  I have two kids.  One can build furniture, the other is an engineer. If they didn't look like me I'd be getting tests right now.)

We were going to tackle the dresser but it was lunchtime (11:25 is lunchtime, right?). She had things to do in the afternoon and couldn’t get to the dresser till later. I was a little disappointed. It was fun watching her work.

Experiences like these are great for daddy-daughter bonding, although usually it’s the dad who builds doll houses or constructs cabinets for the kitchen. It’s not the daughter who does the work while dad inserts eight wooden pegs. But we’re a strange little family anyway.

The thing is – like I said – I never knew. My daughter surprises and delights me everyday with new things she can do, or new funny things that she says. I may not be a handy man but I’m a lucky man.

Today is Annie’s birthday. Have a happy and joyous one. I love you, sweetheart. Sorry to say I can’t bake a cake. But I know you can.

Tomorrow: a look at some of those funny things.

Equal every which way!

Meryl has a great post here on the issue of... er... visually challenged people. Apparently, one Daniel S. Hamermesh, a professor of economics at the University of Texas, Austin, is a harbinger of a new approach - legal protection for ugly people.

On one hand, being somewhat homely myself, I harbor a good deal of resentment to characters like Cary Grant, George Clooney and Woody Allen, whose beauty surely secured  their fame, wealth and sexual prowess. Of course, to lawyer up and get some of all that f., w. and s.p. from these guys is a move one can only dream of today.

On the other hand - go and read that post.

Aletta Ocean