Hello my little firecrackers!
I know it's been forever and a day since I posted a blog and for that I apologize and willingly accept your scathing remarks, chiding comments, sneers, jeers, and wet noodle lashings. Now let's move on. Since last we encountered each other here in cyberspace much has gone down both in and out of my personal orbit. We now have our presidential candidates! I'm not going to bore anyone with a political rant about who I think is the person best qualified to lead us in the right direction... except that he's not old, white, or republican. Oops! That slipped out. Sorry.

Next, we just had a birthday! Yea U.S.A.! Hope everyone's 4th was fun and safe. If you drank I hope you put on a condom before you got behind the wheel. To quote my friend Julene: "Tons of fun but safety first". I split my time between parties at my friend Josh's (born on the 4th of July) and my friend/neighbor Priscilla's. Josh provided my favorite little shot called the Face Eraser. And Pris supplied the Rock Band and beer pong. I felt like a true patriot in that by the end of the evening I was definitely seeing stars if not stripes.
One of the many things we toasted yesterday was the somewhat ironic passing earlier in the morning of former Sen. Jesse Helms. Considering all the crap he spewed over the course of his lifetime it seemed almost fitting that he die on the 4th, granting blacks, immigrants, gays and everyone else he fought so hard to oppress true independence from his ridiculous bullshit agenda. Gee, aren't you glad I didn't get political?

RANDOM "I Have A Dream" EXCERPT from the book *PRONOIA IS THE ANTIDOTE FOR PARANOIA: How the Whole World Is Conspiring to Shower You with Blessings*
-By Rob Brezsny

I have a dream that in the New World, there will be a new Bill of Rights.
The first amendment will be, "Your daily wage is directly tied to the
beauty and truth and love you provide."
I have a dream that in the New World, childbirth will be broadcast in prime
time on a major TV network every night.
I have a dream that the New World will have exhilarationists, and they'll
vastly outnumber the terrorists. The exhilarationists will be performance
artists with a conscience ... charismatic improvisers who love to spring
fun surprises. They'll commit unexpected interventions and unscheduled
spectacles that delight hordes of strangers.
I have a dream that in the New World, we will add an eleventh
commandment to the standard ten: Thou shalt not bore God.
I have a dream of a week-long annual holiday called the Bacchanalia. Work
and business will be suspended so that all adults can explore their ripe
mojo with frothy erotic experiments. Tenderly orgiastic marathons will
rage unabated. Reverential ecstasy and grateful generosity will rule.
I have a dream that when anchormen report tragedies on their nightly TV
shows, they'll break down and cry and let their emotions show. No more
poker faces.
I have a dream that in the New World, plutocracy will be a felony. April
Fool's Day will come once a month. There'll be scientific horoscopes and
mystical logic. Every one of us will have at least one imaginary friend.
Compassion will be an aphrodisiac.
In the New World, we'll launch an affirmative action program that
ultimately makes most of us celebrities. Buddhist real estate developers
will build a chain of sacred shopping centers in the heartland. The CEOs of
the Fortune 500 companies will be required by law to enjoy once-a-week
sessions with Jungian psychotherapists. Pioneers in artificial intelligence
research will develop computers that can talk to God.


I also just returned from The Young Actors Theatre Camp (www.youngactorstheatrecamp.org) where I taught a motion capture acting class. It was one of the most amazing experiences I've ever had. And that includes that one time in Vegas during my friend Dave's bachelor party weekend when I... well, as they say, that shall remain in Vegas. But back to the camp. There were 120 kids ages 8-18 who converged on a YMCA campground in the Santa Cruz mountains of northern California for 2 weeks of performance arts classes running the gamut from dance, musical theatre, Shakespeare, monologue and scene work to voice and singing, filmmaking, and mocap, of course. The kids are looked after by a wonderful staff of counselors and taught by a great teaching staff as well as a host of visiting master class teachers such as singer Andrea Marcovicci, actor Dan Pintauro, casting director Josh Einsohn, Broadway choreographer Jeff Whiting, MAD TV alum Debra (Wilson) Skelton, and yours truly. In reality it was I who was the student and these amazing, talented, awe-inspiring kids who were the true "master class" teachers. I learned so much from them. I truly believe I'll be a better actor from watching them and a better person for knowing them. I highly encourage anyone in the business who can spare the time to think about attending one of these camps as a teacher or Q&A guest. You'll thank me later. I'm already planning my classes for the next session. I'll leave you with a few pics from the camp. Until next time (soon, I swear!!!).




Peace, Hugs and Grooviness!