Day 15-16 [pt. 1] (Jan. 27-28): A lazy man's Fight Club

ANSWER: This Ocean current outdoes any river; at maximum flow off the Carolinas, its flow is 3,500 times the Mississippi's.

-Day Fifteen-

What do I mean by part one? As mentioned in the previous entry, I pulled an all nighter. I decided that instead of murking up the line and not knowing when the all nighter ends and the flight begins, I will go until the break of dawn and finish off the series with an entry just about the bittersweet departure (I am probably going to do a retrospective as well, but not until the weekend possibly). As a result, you also will not see the Question for January 28 until then.

Because I went to bed late, I wake up around noon and hang out by myself for awhile. I have grown to appreciate the free time to myself and I cannot just jump into situations. I need to get psyched up for the day. On this day, I was pretty much in a cheerful mood, if just because I picked the right music. When I finally got up, I walked by the living room, where I have been meaning to mention that someone in that family owns a plush version of the dragon from Pete's Dragon. I kind of admired that because "Brazzle Dazzle Day" has been a go to song for cheering me up.

Bambi and Violet were the only two performers left. About six stayed at the house and most left before noon. I had some breakfast and ended up talking to Natalie's mom for a decent amount of time about the origin of our cats. Where did they come from, and what they mean to us. I have been trying to get her cats attention during my brief stay there, and it was unsuccessful. I really derailed conversations quickly whenever a cat entered the room because, well, I wanted their attention. 

Bambi, Alex, and I just began talking about the differences between London and Los Angeles as well as just about life in general. Alex was counting money from the night before and we also got on a little rant on different currency as well. Alex was impressed that I was involved so much with the conversation, but truthfully, things have been odd and I just cannot jump into conversations that feel exclusive, like I needed to be somewhere in order to get something. That tends to be what most conversations were with Alex's friends. Not this one. We were just talking about random things, and yes, I had things to say.

We were eventually all set to go and the four of us headed for the train, and later the boat back to the mainland. Alex spent a good portion of the ride talking about his PR days and how This Is It is not a Michael Jackson scam. Sometimes you have to wonder if Alex was still in the PR gig, what stories he would have to share. I cannot see how anyone would fire him. He really does have charisma and dedication. When we arrived, we said goodbye to Bambi and Violet and took our long trains back to Rye. I have nothing but positive words to say about those two, as I felt like we got along just great. 

During the train ride, I ended up listening to Jay and Silent Bob Get Old. A whole two hour episode, which was very much an endurance test. If these shows were 70 minutes tops, this would be a really solid addition to my weekly listening. I was laughing and just enjoying the stories. However, the longer it got, the more I wanted to turn it off and just move on with my life. However, because the ride was so long, I stuck it out and kind of am back to being opposed to listening weekly as I initially planned. Still, I think that they're more entertaining than I initially gave them credit for last year.

I forget what the rest of the train ride featured. Knowing me, it was probably another Lena Dunham interview. I remember listening to quite a few. Either that, or the Auteurcast. I really forget what it was exactly. We eventually got to Hastings, which was the last stop because there was work being done on the rails between that point and Rye. To compensate, the train company hired a bus to take us the rest of the way.

Alex and I took to the back row, which lead to a lively discussion about where the cool kids sat on the bus. I honestly didn't know because I had a father who loved me enough to drive me to school. After that died down, we started what felt like a lazy man's Fight Club. Basically, we spent the remainder of the trip punching each other in the shoulder. Usually I give up rather quickly, but this time, I stuck it out and part of me regrets it, but I couldn't let Alex win. In the end, I felt that we both lost. My shoulder still hurts like hell.

Once in Rye, we got snacks and began to prepare for the ultimate all nighter. We figured that a few hours of sleep would do us good. We headed to our rooms and I tried to get sleep. However, around 11, I realized that I wasn't quite to that point yet. I caught up on Sundance coverage and watched my favorite Ellen Page compilation Youtube video, which is one set to KT Tunstall's "Suddenly I See." It got blocked in the states for some reason, so I abused the privilege. I was at peace.

However, my suitcase was empty. All of my clean clothes were stacked on the floor and nothing had the look of leaving. It became a dilemma of getting everything in its proper place. However, after catching up on all of the Sundance news, it was time to just sit back and enjoy podcasts. That happened until about 2:30 AM, when I finally got up and about and sloppily threw everything together. When I closed everything up, I was listening to By the Way, which had Lena Dunham on.

Let me just say up front that I do not hate Jeff Garlin on Curb Your Enthusiasm. However, I do not like him as an addition to podcasts. His voice just gets to me and he is somewhat of a blowhard. However, his show has had two great guests on, and they have been fascinating subjects. First was Larry David (which is well worth listening to) and Lena Dunham. Somehow, they produce great subjects, but Jeff Garlin just bugs me. It almost makes me wish that it was reverse and that these guests were interviewing him. Larry David is so great, he needs a show. 

I passed out sometime in that period. Where was Alex in all of this? Here is the reality. We were supposed to meet up at 1 AM. I was up doing stuff at that time. When it didn't happen, I began listening to podcasts. Suddenly, I turn off the lights because I don't need it. He's knocking on the door while I am listening to stuff. I don't hear it. Note, I have gone to the bathroom at least two times that night, and neither signified a crossing of paths. I passed out at 6 AM and saw him at 8 AM saying that I had 90 minutes to get ready. Luckily I did actually pack before I passed out.

Sundance coverage isn't much, but some noteworthy things. Fruitvale is the big prize winner there. It may arguably be one of the possible Oscar contenders for next year. I don't know what it is about, but I know that I probably will see it now. Also, keep an eye out for Escape From Tomorrow, which is a guerrilla style film shot at Disney World and has been described as very David Lynchian. I don't know why, but as Girl Walk // All Day will prove, I just enjoy something about guerrilla style fictional narratives.

It has been a great trip, but it isn't over yet. Got a little bit more time to go before I wish you all adieu. Check out what happened after 8 AM in the next entry.

QUESTION: What is the Gulf Stream?

Day 6 (Jan. 18): Supermarket Fantasy

ANSWER: Often called the race of truth, it can be for the whole team or just one cyclist against the clock.

-Day Six-

As it has been established, I fell asleep very hard at 8 pm last night. I  have  no idea what happened in the last conscious 10 minutes of my night, but when I woke up, I had an odd daze where I looked around the room, almost forgetting that I had taken up space in Alex's. It was only made more trippy because he had on a red lava lamp that seemed to accentuate the room in an eerie, humdrum fashion that almost made me feel like his room was exotic. Since I didn't care to figure out where the light switch was, I just accepted that the light would be this way for the remainder of my stay.

However, an 8-5 sleep is pretty impressive, and I got enough sleep. Enough to the point where I realized that getting back to sleep was impossible. Of course, things were only made more interesting by the fact that my iPod was charging in the other room, which was currently procured by the other guest, Bill. It would make no sense to go down there and grab the music player without seeming somewhat voyeuristic. 

I was left with my phone, and since it got connection to the internet, I tried to use it diligently, but ended up going overboard. Reading was no longer satisfying me, so I decided to start watching videos. Of course, the most enjoyable part was when I discovered that the Hives did a video for "Abra Cadaver." It was an old school throwback to horror films, and for all the ingenuity that was put into it, my favorite part was when the guitarist just slid across the floor as if on a moving device. Millions of videos do that, but as usual, I seem to admire the little things.

After a little Girl Walk // All Day and catching up with everyone back home, I noticed that my phone was wiped. I was also going mad, as I was now up in the room for two hours with very little to do. It was getting closer to a reasonable hour, so I decided to take a shower. It oddly featured a couple turns of the door knob from outside, but even that wasn't enough. When I got out and downstairs, it was almost 8 and everyone was still asleep. I didn't feel like going back up the stairs, so I just walked around looking at stuff in their house. I didn't fondle anything, but with an indefinite amount of free time, I could justify looking at every picture with a fine eye.

I eventually gave up and sat on the couch where I petted the cat and waited for the world to wake up. Chris was the first one up and about, and after mistaking me for Alex through a conversation in the dark, he revealed that we were having a cooked breakfast. Sausage, eggs, beans, and pancakes. It was quite good and also kind of a relief to have the world waking up. I don't understand how people can have problems sleeping if there is nothing to do at 5 AM. It was a trip that I had been up four hours before everyone came down complaining about sleep. In fact, this trip is odd solely because I rarely go to bed before midnight and now I have seemed to make a routine out of it.

We started the day off simple by watching some videos that Chris found online. I think it was from the Annex or something. He first showed me a video of this Australian group called Axis of Awesome that took every song written on four chords and made a medley out of it. It was pretty impressive. We also watched a video of this guy miming to Natalie Imbruglia's "Torn," which was only made better by the man's facial expressions throughout the entire event. It also got to discussion of other comedians that I will be introduced over the remainder of my stay. I  have no idea what they're called, so I apologize.

I also discovered that through the back door of the house, a cat came in. Not the two that live here, but just one with a bushy tail that was intensely adorable. It was almost heartbreaking to part with it as the snow came down and we had to get a move on. It also got me thinking about how different cats are in the states. I am not saying that all are like this, but animals tend to be very defensive where I am from. They won't let just anyone near them unless they sense that you are harmless. So far, I haven't met a cat that just walked up to me and wanted attention. I first noticed it last time when pigeons refused to fly away when I got close. No matter how much I chased them, they were more contempt with walking near me than flying off from yards away.

We were eventually on our way to Kent to do some grocery shopping. Being from Long Beach, I still am finding it revolutionizing that people can drive great distances without a stop light. It was the same in Arizona. Sure, you had stop signs, but for an extensive drive, there was only one light. I know that it was the country side essentially, but it was weird that it was just a long, winding road that seemed to be fortressed with trees. I also discovered that Paul McCartney and Johnny Depp have homes in the general vicinity and Rod Stewart used to own one a long time ago. 

Also, just to contrast cultures, I have heard a story about Depp a few times. For Halloween, he went incognito as a postal worker. The next day, everyone commented about how the new postman looks an awful lot like Johnny Depp. That is way more entertaining than hearing that people stopped him and questioned who he was. which feels very American, or just Californian.

Once we got to Kent, more interesting things came up. They have limited parking in their supermarket parking lot. This is made noticeable by security cameras that record the moment you arrive and then it is up to you to get out of there within two hours. Maybe it is the extensive amount of time in grocery stores, but it made me think that we basically were going to go straight there and spend 40+ minutes looking at stuff. I am not that way, but I feel like stereotyping customers, especially since we were buying a lot of stuff.

But we went to the nearby shopping area where Alex and I split up from the group, which also featured Chris, Viv, and our driver for the day, Bill. It was pretty much a day to try and catch up on the loose ends of my presents list to family. I won't spoil if anything was bought, but I did see a lot of interesting stuff that could possibly be coming home with me. Also, we stopped in at a local book store where I learned a few things. Alex is way into choose your own adventure books, he thinks that there will be another Scott Pilgrim series (as a consistent follower of Bryan Lee O'Malley, I am still challenging him to prove it), that there is a novel adaptation of Dawn of the Dead, and I have not read any Kurt Vonnegut. In a way, I felt like a bad person with that last one. 

Plenty of interesting shops were visited and I even got a picture inside a phone booth for good measure. However, by this point, I was finally introduced to snow. I haven't seen snow since I was a young kid, so this was quite a treat. Also, the only places that I really get cold are in the cheeks, nose, and hands. A hood combated most of it, but the hands were still an issue. I brought it up with Viv when I next ran into her. She oddly had a pair on her, so she gave them to me. Somehow, all of this weather gear feels strange, as in California, it feels excessive. But here, I cannot imagine time with out it.

After Alex finished a really flat strawberry soda that he called a liquor, we headed over to the supermarket, which was called Tesco. I was excited to see what the interior looked like. Outside, it was practically the same layout, save for an elaborate area to put carts that featured a large overhead. I get that it probably has to do with the weather, but it still blew my mind how inconspicuous it tried to look.

Inside, it immediately reminded me of Wal Mart. it  had a very warehouse feel to it. However, that is just because the ceiling and lighting have this aura that makes it feel like everything was shoved in there as opposed to properly placed. The layout isn't too impressively different and not worth going into detail about. The aisles are longer and don't split down the center, which is the only significant difference. Alex even showed me the area where they had DVDs on discount, which wasn't all that impressive, though makes you wonder about his sanity when he calls the Paul Verhoven Total Recall really bad and Wrath of the Titans anything but unnecessary. I am not even calling that cultural differences. I am just saying that the 90's Total Recall in his algorithm is improperly placed and should never be below Wrath of the Titans in any spectrum.

The checkout lines were the more impressive. I let Viv take care of the grunt work and I just stood and looked over the entire store's layout. For starters, I hadn't heard an intercom request assistance for anything. People bagged their own groceries in plastic bags (though they were being advertised as reusable), and most impressively, the cashiers actually had chairs to sit on.

If you want to hear people bitch about the grocery business, just talk about the chairs at the check stand. That is a very personal subject. We don't have it in the states no matter where I go. However, 100's of hours of being a bagger has given me time to listen to people complain about their feet/back hurting. Yet they cannot have chairs because the customers would find that they are lazy and other complex reasons like that. I am not saying that chairs for the entire duration is the goal, but as a bagger, who has had to be on his feet for eight hour shifts, I am aware that the human body isn't always prone to being pristine after moving around in very limited quarters. The checkers more-so, as they are not allowed to leave their check stand lest they are doing floor work, and in most cases, nobody is allowed to do that before five.

So the chairs is a revolutionary idea. I get where the complexity would come from, speaking as the baggers would be heavily handicapped by not having chairs, but the checkers are a different story. I sympathize with the desire for them to just rest their feet once in awhile, and sometimes breaks are not enough. I am not about to start a revolution, but for those that really want to know, chairs are the most ground breaking aspect of my visit.

Also, as I left, I noticed that the Tesco sign had open hours posted by the entrance. That is also quite something, as it is Monday through Saturday 8 AM to 10 PM and on Sundays 10 PM to 4 PM. I admit that convenience for us would be sacrificed in that, but being open 6 AM to 11 PM just really, really, really makes you jealous. I am not saying that the overall service of the trip is superior, but it felt like they were somewhat successful in creating an apt working environment. I suppose the only issue is that employees would be complaining about the need for more hours. 

Back at the house, I finally got to see what a ground covered in snow looked like. If the place wasn't very rural and had cars going every which way, I would be happy to just get down and snow angel everything. As it stands, I am so tempted just to spend the snowed in time walking around Rye to see what a city covered in white looks like. For a boy from Southern California, this is somehow also revolutionary.

It is odd that in my stay, I have found the simple things more exciting than the buildings and landscapes. The stone beaches, the chairs, the snow. You don't get those where I'm from. It almost feels novelty. I also talked to Viv, who was concerned that the trip wasn't meeting my standards. I pretty much have stated many times, many ways that I just got on the plane and that was the end of my plans. I just wanted to see Alex and do something fun with him. So far, I would say that it is going great. I also find it weird that when we do go touristy, I end up being overwhelmed and tired. However, when I see snow outside my window, I am thrilled. Go figure. Hopefully it doesn't hold up seeing Django Unchained in the next week somehow.

The night wasn't that much more exciting. We finished off season one of Threesome, and I found one episode exceptionally hilarious. Also, this is mostly in terms of sitcom filming, I was rather impressed with the way one sequence with a merry-go-round was shot that almost seemed to be more artistic than the scene needed to be. Overall, I am just really digging this show and I want to see where it goes.

The night wasn't eventful, as I ended up having dinner and almost crashed immediately. I tried to hold up until 10 PM in order to fix my sleeping routine. However, I made it to 9:30 before I was told by Alex to just go to bed. I decided that it was a great time to catch up on Sundance coverage, which was officially starting that day. I was about to watch Katey Rich and Matt Patches' video log on day one. I had it already to go. Somehow, I ended up falling asleep right as the page was loading. It drained my battery, but gave me plenty to watch this morning. So far, I am now convinced that Crystal Fairy is one of my anticipated films of the year. Michael Cera doing drugs in Chile? Yes please. Also, I have seen shots of Ellen Page there with the Touchy Feely crew and now I am kicking myself because she actually is there. 

Though don't get me wrong, I would regret if I chose that over seeing Alex. True, it does little to forward my career, but I think the time away has done me good. Just finding new things to appreciate is enough to make this trip successful. I think I just needed contrast in my life. I still have no idea what happened when I went to Brighton that made me overwhelmed, but having a slow day after that really put me in my place. 

Side note, expect a review on CinemaBeach from me on A Glimpse Inside the Mind of Charles Swan III. I was expecting to write that up before I left, but I ended up doing it last night all here. Now the question is, did I like the idea of that movie better than Gangster Squad? I am really having trouble determining which of the two is the best film of 2013 so far. I would say that John Dies at the End would be it, but I still consider that a 2012 released based solely on VOD release. Of course, that review may not pop up for awhile, depending on how much more important Sundance coverage is, which I am sure will be more significant for the next week or two. It will be up eventually.

Another slow day, and I promise to try and get the pictures up soon. I am also going to be calling family back home today. We have some interesting developments in the process, so I will be excited to hear about those. Also, I hope to hear from Tiger. I miss that cat. Anyways, I hear breakfast calling my name, and hopefully this is a start to a day where I am not out of sync after a few days of early to rise and early to bed. In fact, I'll leave you with a quote:

"Early to rise and early to bed leaves a man physically rested, but socially dead."

-Yakko (Rob Paulsen) in Animaniacs

QUESTION: What is a time trial?