Onward Upward Forward Through

photo by John Sandel

Remember Zen Monday? This was #37 from 2009, a photo taken of me by my husband, John Sandel, at Hahamongna Watershed Park. Our dear, departed Boz was still with us.

How things change. We're hiking in different places, and now it's Wilma who comes along on the leash. We still get our doses of Zen, though.

This is the last time I'll be posting here at Pasadena Daily Photo/Living Vicuriously. I've shifted operations to a new website, PetreaBurchard.com. Please join me there! The site has an event calendar, links to my books and voice-over demos, and even a blog where I'll post on Fridays. I hope you'll follow it and add your comments, which have come to mean so much to me over the years.

Don't be a stranger!

Now I Am Five

I have been living with my humans for a year now. They made today my birthday. I didn't tell them different because I don't know. So now I am five.

I get two meals and two walks every day, and I get a treat each time the humans have their meal. I think the treat I get in the morning is medicine but I will eat it because it is mine and because I will eat it.

I get a bath sometimes. The whole pack joins in this activity. I like baths.

I have a cage, but I almost never have to go in it, so I made it my office, for when I need quiet time.

I have three bones. I am tired of the blue bone. The red bone is for outside. The chicken flavored bone is for family activities inside.

I have five places.* FIVE! Plus a couch**, and sometimes an armchair if no one's watching. At the shelter I did not have these things, but I got meals and sometimes walks and treats. I had a cage which was too noisy to be an office.

What I have learned this year:

I have learned to walk on the leash without pulling. I wish we could go faster at the beginning, but after that it's fine. My fur is growing back where I used to pull against the harness.

Sometimes we see dogs. I do not like dogs! But I get a treat if I don't bark at them, so I begin to see their uses. I WILL NOT LIKE CATS.*** EVER.

photo by John Sandel

The back yard is mine. The sun is there. I am safe there. I can have a nap or I can bark. I bark at sirens. I rage at the mailman. I throw myself against the fence if a cat walks on top of it. I only do that when it's important because the humans make me come inside if I do it. I think I took out some fence boards but they must have put them back. I don't know how that works. I would like to give my humans a dead cat but they don't want one.

I know some words. I already knew "sit," "stay," "no," and "leave it." What is "down"? I don't know "down." I know "off." "Love" means "good." I learned "lick" (mostly comes after "no") and "come" (optional). These are human words. I don't say them. I say many dangerous things.

I had a swimming lesson! I will tell you about it when the female gets the pictures.

I like to cuddle.

Some things still confuse me. I have more to learn. I like learning.


For my birthday I would like to have a bath and a dental chew. I hope we will celebrate my birthday today. Sometimes I still worry that I won't get to stay here, but a year is forever so I think I get to stay.

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*Wilma's "place" is her pallet. She does indeed have five, so she can participate in family activities in the living room, dining room, and offices. One pallet stays in the bedroom for sleeping. 

**In the photo of Wilma on the couch, Boz's ashes and photo are in the background. Wilma knows about Boz, but we haven't talked to her about ashes. She's too young for that just yet.

***We use the word "cat" to denote "small animal," so Wilma won't have to distinguish verbally between squirrels, cats, opossums or chihuahuas. Too many syllables. We just say "no cat." 

Mount Wilson: Science in Transition

The Mount Wilson Observatory was founded in 1904 by George Ellery Hale, who encouraged the likes of Edwin Hubble and who also had a great deal to do with the way Pasadena looks today. Think the city center plaza and City Hall. Think Caltech. Thank you, Mr. Hale.

More than 100 years later, important astronomical research continues at Mount Wilson, especially the CHARA Array, operated by Georgia State University. Don't ask me what it does. I've had it explained to me twice, once by John and once by Craig Woods, and I still don't get it. But it looks cool from above.

Craig Woods, by the way, is the reason John and I got a behind-the-scenes tour. He's our friend and the superintendent at Mount Wilson, the guy with all the keys. He's up on all the experiments, the history, and the equipment at Mount Wilson. Plus he's willing to climb some precarious ladders.

I hope you'll take another look at my May 10th post about Mount Wilson. Here's a further explanation of those photos:

First, that big engine, and its rheostat, power the tool-making shed. 110 years ago, when you got up to Mount Wilson with your mule cart or your Model-T, you weren't about to run down to Flintridge if you forgot your screwdriver. If you needed a tool or a part, you made it. Many of those magnificent old things are still there. Some explain themselves, some don't. Unless you're Craig, then you know what they are.

Near the tool shed is another shed that's a treasure trove of maps, blueprints and files. There's a small library with early Scientific American magazines and other works. There's an ancient and dusty stand-up grand piano and a pool table that hasn't been used in, I would guess, 20 years.

Off the upper left of this map is the 100 inch telescope. You can see the circles indicating the 60" telescope and the smaller but taller Solar Telescope, which is still in use. The 60" has lately been used for a couple of Hollywood parties. Stars, stargazing. This is an old map so it doesn't show all the buildings you might be familiar with if you've toured Mount Wilson in recent years. Off the pathways to the right, beyond the "no entry" signs, there are some cabins that are not currently in use. Fixer-uppers.

Mount Wilson Observatory is old. Newer, larger telescopes dot the planet. The larger the telescope, the deeper into space an astronomer can study. Although Mount Wilson still has many uses, it's now in a transition phase, becoming a museum. Funding will be needed to preserve all those beautiful blueprints and plans, to maintain those telescopes and historic buildings, to keep it all available so the public can visit and learn about the early days of astronomy.

It's also a place of natural beauty, everywhere you turn, even on the steps climbing up the hillside to the tool shed.

More soon.

Multitasking

I signed up for the bluefeet newsletter because I like it and I learn from it. Bluefeet was founded by Lilli Cloud "to help people achieve their potential by capturing and communicating what makes them and their work extraordinary." Scroll to the bottom of any page of the bluefeet website and sign up if you want to get the newsletter, too.

This time around, Lilli and her staff sent a newsletter entitled, "Getting Your Flow On." They included a link to an article about multitasking. It says multitasking is bad for your brain.

I don't know if that's true. I get my flow on in multiple ways, all at the same time.

When John comes home and I'm nowhere to be found—the bed is half-made, some of the dishes are put away, the bathtub is squeaky clean but not the bathroom floor—I'm probably in the garage because that's where the filing cabinet is.

If multitasking is bad for my brain, that could explain the roots of my noun problem. I often have to grapple to find the word I'm looking for. I always stumble over "Brussels sprouts" and "sideboard," for example. I have no idea why these in particular give me trouble. Sometimes when I write and the word I want is not available, I write OWTTE (or words to that effect) or FABW (find a better word) and move on, hoping it'll come to me while I'm editing. It usually does. (It has to. I'm not finished until it does.)

I had a little trouble understanding the multitasking article because I had to switch screens between paragraphs to read another article I was reading about  the dwarf planet Ceres. Did you know it gets up to -28 degrees Fahrenheit up there? Hey, I've spent winters in Chicago. -28F is livable! Or it would be, if Ceres had an atmosphere. I don't remember anything else about the article but it gave me something to do between paragraphs in the multitasking piece.

I used to think my multitasking was a talent but now I know it's frenzied (FABW). It's time for me to buckle down, concentrate and focus (OWTTE), or I'll never GTD (get things done).

Fall Colors

photo by John Sandel

We have them, it's just that we have them in winter.

Anniversary

Summer, 2000

Before we got married, John and I had a date to the Huntington Library and Gardens. We asked a stranger to take our photo under the grapevine gazebo in the Shakespeare garden. That day, I knew we were going to get married when we bought a Huntington membership together. We married November 3, 2001, in the back yard of our rented house in Altadena.

Whenever we go to the Huntington we ask a stranger to take our picture at the gazebo.

Us 'neath the gazebo in 2010.

Once more, beneath the gazebo at the Huntington this year, 2014. That grapevine has really aged.

Happy anniversary, sweetie. These thirteen years can only be bettered by those to come.

Wiggle Waggle Walk

photo by John Sandel

Every year, the Pasadena Humane Society's Wiggle Waggle Walk unites families and dogs to raise funds in support of dogs that don't have families. There will be a fashion show and a look-alike contest.

I don't much resemble Wilma except in lounging posture, and neither of us is ready to be in such a big crowd. However, you can see by the photo above that Wilma wags in support of this cause. What you can't see is how her whole body wiggles when she wags. I've started wiggling and wagging right back at her. I think she gets it.

My friend Paula Johnson is heading up the Rose City Sisters team (a.k.a. pack) for the Walk. Here's what Paula says about the event:

I am thrilled to help support the animals at the Pasadena Humane Society & SPCA by participating in the 16th Annual Wiggle Waggle Walk on Sunday, September 28, 2014 in Brookside Park in Pasadena. Your donation will help provide nourishing food, safe shelter and medical care to over 12,000 animals this year! Your contribution will also help fund the low cost spay/neuter program, the adoption program, wildlife services, humane education programs and more. Help the animals by making a gift today.

If you're looking for a team, you can join Paula's. If you can't make it on the 28th you can still donate money via her team, or anyone else's.

We have always had shelter dogs. They require dedication, just like any relationship, and like any relationship, the dedication is worth it. I suggest you don't make physical resemblance to you a requirement when adopting, but there's something for everyone.

Here are some photos from the 2013 Wiggle Waggle Walk. And check out this video, made by a favorite local celebrity in 2012.

Wilma Acts As If

Act As If: Stumbling Though Hollywood With Headshot in Hand is my book of essays about the life of a journeyman actor in Hollywood, a life I lived for twenty years. It's not easy work, but it's hilarious if you bring your attitude.

The book comes out in August. In celebration, Wilma shows us how to Act As If. 

Here's Wilma with John, acting as if she's dangerous.

Here's Wilma with her bunny, acting as if she's a big time squirrel hunter. (I'm sorry, Bunny.)

Here's Wilma, acting like she owns everything in the house. She doesn't.
(Photo by John Sandel. Raised bowls thanks to Bellis.)

Here's Wilma with John again, acting like—actually, she's not acting here. She's being herself.

I discuss these techniques and more in Act As If, and I give each topic all the gravitas or hilarity (or both) it deserves. Wilma is a very good actor.

Makin' Moobies

Over at our house, we've been making a movie.

No, really.

It's hard work. Plus when you're finished, you have to fill all the holes.

The film, called "Strong Love," is scary and romantic. The black & white photos are stills from the film, which stars Jeff Elam and Karen Zumsteg (both pictured) and is directed by my husband, John Sandel.

This week, we shot at Mountain View Cemetery and Mausoleum in Altadena. I love this place. Really. I know it's a cemetery, but wow.

If you've got to die, you want folks to put you here.

This door is my favorite thing in the Mausoleum. And upstairs, there's a rooftop crypt I like.

We also shot out on the grounds. Left to right: Elvis Metcalf, Assistant Director; Marilyn Morris, Sound Designer; John Sandel, Director; Wael Shukha, Director of Photography (here with his Steadicam rig); Glen Silva, Assistant Camera (his site's not finished but you gotta love his url), and Rosemary Stevens, who is, as we say in the business, "talent."

   

Our crew consisted of seasoned pros as well as newbies, all of whom were amazing to work with, a supportive and professional group. Also thanks to Andrew Boyle, Eric Michael Kochmer, Greg Bell, Whit Spurgeon, and Chris Frederick. You guys made it a wonderful day. More pictures on Facebook.

Litfest Pasadena, 2013

Litfest Pasadena 2013 happened yesterday, May 11th, and a good time was had by all. Such a good time, in fact, that I'm too tired to write much today. But I deserve a day off after Litfest!

 Setting up

The crowds loved it

 My partners in fun, Kat Ward and Des Zamorano

My husband John Sandel brought things I forgot and stayed to help for a while.

This was my first book fair/festival with Camelot & Vine. I loved it. Can't wait for the next one!

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This is a repost from PetreaBurchard.com/blog.

My Muses

I have two muses: Hahamongna Watershed Park, and Boz.

For me and John, Hahamongna is a higher place above our petty concerns, a trail that absorbs tension and makes it disappear, and a connection to nature. For Boz, it's joy, abandon, and direct contact with his wolf-self. Kind of the same thing.

Some of you may remember when bloggers, activists and naturalists had to defend Hahamongna from development. It looks like we might be clear for now, but our eyes remain open. The watershed, especially as water becomes more scarce, is a precious resource.

Boz is precious, too. John and I walk him at his pace, which is slower than it used to be. We might see him running in the watershed's spring runoff next year, but honestly, it's not likely. As I write, he snores on his bed at my feet. I'm enjoying all his noises, his sighs, his smells. He's my little love. How funny it is to have an old baby!

Though I rarely post pictures of him, my husband, John Sandel, is also a muse. I'm blessed because many of his own photographs have appeared here, and because he is nothing but supportive of whatever I do. Except ride a bike. He really doesn't want me riding a bike.

What a blessing to have such a blast and so much love and such happiness. I would rather not be sappy but it's not easy.

Mountain View Cemetery: Filming

The other day I promised I'd show you parts of Mountain View Cemetery and Mausoleum that most people don't see. Here's one of those parts.

 
John Sandel and Jay Brown in the "morgue"

More people get a gander at this room than you might think, though, because it's a film set. Though the room is not a real morgue, the equipment is eerily real. The "drawers" at the end of the room can accommodate equipment, crew members and actors ("bodies"). One of the doors is actually a full-sized entry/exit disguised as morgue drawers.

Pasadena doesn't make it easy for film crews to shoot here. Fees are expensive and permits are hard to get. Altadena, where the cemetery is located, is part of unincorporated Los Angeles County and more welcoming to film crews.

According to Jay Brown, owner of Mountain View Cemetery and Mausoleum, a good deal of filming goes on at the property. And Jay is happy to welcome the film business. With free parking, versatile spaces and gorgeous views, it's a no-brainer. You can visit, too, between 9am and 4pm. But unless you're on a film crew, you're probably not going to see the "morgue."

Girl, Interrupted

 

"Suzie! Time for dinner!"

"Okay!"

Scuffle scuffle run run run blam! In the chair.

"Did you wash your hands?"

"Aw, Mom, I'm hungry!"

"I don't care, wash your hands."

"Mom..."

"Wash."

Chair scooch. Stomp stomp stomp. Splash.

"Good. Did you pick up your toys?"

"........" 

Towel flip. 

"........Yup."

 "Fine. Let's eat."

Script Kitchen

UPDATE: 

John and Tara report strong response to Script Kitchen, so they'll open a Sunday class soon. Date and time TBA. Questions? Want in? scriptkitchen@gmail.com

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Tara Samuel and my husband John Sandel finalized plans yesterday for the screenwriting class the two of them will begin teaching in--wow--just over a week. We're pretty excited around here.

Script Kitchen will include 7 students in 6 weekly classes, "focusing on story structure and how the hero determines the tale." John and Tara believe we all know deep down how a good story is supposed to work. (You know when a story doesn't work, don't you?) In their class you'll find out how much you know and how to apply it to creating a screenplay, full length or short.

I'm sorry they're not teaching novel writing. Next time, maybe? I learned everything I needed to know about story structure from John.

There are still a couple of openings. Here's the info:

In the picture, Tara is not taking dictation. I gave her the notepad as a prop because all she had was that little ole' apple and John had a whole bowl of chili. We offered Tara some chili. Really we did.

Dog Wrangler

John and crew have been shooting his short film, Strong Love, at our house. My job is "dog wrangler."

During the two days of shooting last week I made myself scarce and took Boz to Burbank for play dates. But at 4:30 in the afternoon it's time for Boz to eat. Dinner has to happen because he's got a tummy like a clock. I could take kibble with me in the car, right? Not exactly. This puppy is 14 years old, with a gastrointestinal system like a 19th century sewer. He gets hamburger with his pills. So I brought him home for meals.

After dinner and a long walk, Boz and I closed ourselves in my office and he napped while I worked. Sometimes, between shots, we'd take a break. Dogs just have to be in the middle of things. I don't think he even liked it but he had to be there. (Thus the need for a dog wrangler.)

Two more days of shooting are set to happen in a couple of weeks. That's bonding time for the dog wrangler and her pal.


Be sure and vote before midnight tonight for your favorite of this past week's entries in the Camelot Where You Are photo contest! (Poll at upper left.)

Idylls are the Thing

It's not that I haven't been taking photos, but I couldn't resist posting another shot by a guest photographer: my husband, John Sandel. I wish I were tall enough to photograph such a view; luckily, John is.

While you're here today, please vote for your favorite photo from this week's entries in the Camelot Where You Are photo contest. The poll is at the upper left of the blog and will be available until midnight Sunday night. It should work; I believe I've got the time zone thing figured out.

I can't tell you how much I've been enjoying the contest. I've received so many great entries that we're going to skip Zen Monday this coming week and do Camelot for five days straight.

In case you're wondering why: it's because I've written a novel and it's being published this fall. Camelot & Vine is about an actress who, on the day before her 40th birthday, loses everything she never cared about, flees Hollywood for England, falls through a gap in time and accidentally saves King Arthur's life. A lot more happens after that. Think 6th century Britain, chain mail, love triangles and Saxon invaders.

Each weekly winner receives a free copy of Camelot & Vine upon publication, about which I will have more details soon. Publication day, whatever day it turns out to be, will be the final day for entries. 

Send in your pic now! It's easy to enter and anyone can do it. Entry details are here. And be sure to vote for your favorite! Thanks.

Picture Picture

I'm reading an excellent book by Ann Patchett called State of Wonder in which a doctor from Minnesota takes a trip (for which she is unprepared) to the deepest Amazon. Patchett makes the jungle real in her writing. I wonder how she researched that. I mean, did she look it up online? Read books? See a movie? Or did she actually go there?

I might be able to research Patchett and find out, but for the moment I'd like to ponder the question.

In one scene an anaconda nearly kills a boy. I don't know a thing about anacondas and it would have seemed real enough to me if the danger had come from either constriction or the snake's bite. But let's say you know about snakes. Would it bother you if the author got it wrong? Or would you just think, "It's fiction, she's allowed to make it up"?

John and I discuss questions like this when we talk about writing. When we talk about photography, we don't. We just take our pictures from our different angles, and we're fine with that.

Boz, Muse

I resist posting about Boz every week--even every day. He's one of my favorite subjects, so as soon as I think I've let enough time pass as not to bore you, I'll put up a picture of him. I've got a million of 'em. I mean that very close to literally.

Boz is muse to other photographers as well. He even appears in Ibarionex Perello's Chasing the Light, an honest-to-goodness published book about photography by an honest-to-goodness professional photographer.

John made this impressionistic image of our elderly beastie on one of our Hahamongna romps. Boz mopes around the neighborhood like Eeyore. But a dog can have a muse, too. Out in the open spaces where his cousin coyotes roam, he is inspired.

He Make Movies

Along about the time I started this blog (1/1/08) I was transitioning from an acting career into writing. I didn't know at the time why I lost interest in acting, though it's clearer to me now. I'd been working in Hollywood, in small parts on television. At first it was exciting--let's face it, it's fun to be on TV and it's an honor, too, because there's a lot of competition. But I found myself playing the same parts over and over again.

When you work in the Hollywood entertainment industry, unless you're a mogul you're always working for one--serving someone else's vision, supporting someone else's story, making someone else's dream come true. There's nothing wrong with that. But if you've ever wondered why even famous actors sometimes perform live theater for free, perhaps this makes it clear. Hollywood's not about art, it's about money. That's why you see remakes, why "blockbuster" films feel formulaic. They are.

Not so independent films. Their makers don't hold the big purse strings, but like self-publishing authors they are finding ways to make movies. Smaller movies. Different movies. Often better movies.

Which brings me to my husband, John. He's an independent filmmaker--a self-published filmmaker, if you will, "independent" isn't exactly the word. John's part of a collective called We Make Movies. I told you about We Make Movies when John and I went to a screening a few months ago. WMM was formed by indie filmmakers to help each other make their movies by sharing resources and working together. It started out as a couple of people. Now they have more than 500 members: actors, writers, producers and other film artists.

John produced a video for WMM's Kickstarter spring funding effort (other members shot, edited and participated, as you'll see). You could watch this video. You could even kick in a buck or two if you are so inclined. (It won't make you a mogul, but there are no moguls here, which is kind of the idea.) In the video, John explains (in fewer words than I've used here) why independent filmmaking is important. You get to see him in action! Sort of! (Well, he sits and talks, and he's wearing the same t-shirt in the video as in this photo!)

And if WMM reaches their fundraising goal you'll get to see John's short film, because his script was selected for funding this time around.

Home Studio

Lately my multi-talented husband's been doing some drawing work (animation, logo design) and yesterday he had an on-camera job. No, he's not launching an acting career. John's arm and hand were filmed at high speed while he drew, to be pixilated in a web video for a new website.

For one day, John's home office became both animation studio and filming location. This would have been claustrophobic for a big crew, but there was enough room for both set and crew because the cinematographer, lighting designer and post-production supervisor are all one person named Denny Kukahiko.

I took this shot of John and Denny before they started shooting. You can see the camera suspended above the drawing table. The lamps are called China Balls. I know they resemble what my parents had in their dining room when I was in high school but these are slightly different and they give a sugary, diffuse light.

There wasn't quite enough room on the set for producer Kendall Kanoa Hawley, who set up her laptop in the dining room. Kendall, Denny and Denny's brother Chad Kukahiko make up Superfreako Productions (rhymes with Kukahiko, see?). You met them here when I told you about their short film, Carefully Descending. John met them through his participation in the Hollywood film collective, We Make Movies. John's got more projects coming up with WMM, so I'll have more to tell you soon.


Update 1/17/12: Cinematographer Denny Kukahiko posted about the shoot on Superfreako's blog.

Update 1/20/12: Hey! Here's the final product.