Hello again. I hope all is well with you. Here’s a look back at January 2007 in the Cameron/Utt household.
TOURNAMENT OF ROSES SHOWCASE OF FLOATS
Did you know that after the five-mile parade through Pasadena, all the floats are driven to a public park and left on display for three days? It’s called “Tournament of Roses Post Parade: A Showcase of Floats” and it only costs $7.
On the Plus Side:
- the floats can be seen at your own pace
- no clapping is required
- you can take as many pictures as you want
- no horse manure
On the Minus Side:
- it was a two-mile walk to see every float
- people kept stepping in front of our camera
- only two of the floats were animated
- none of the celebrity talent stayed with their floats.
Plus or Minus [depending on your point of view]
- frozen lemonade vendors
- cinnamon almond vendors
- kettle corn vendors
- cotton candy vendors
George Lucas was the Grand Marshal this year and he was quite a draw. In keeping with this year’s theme “Our Good Nature” he brought along Darth Vader, Darth Maul, and a bunch of storm troopers…
http://www.usatoday.com/life/people/2007-01-01-star-wars-rose-parade_x.htm
Our friends Ashika and Gaurav live a few blocks from the parade route, so after viewing the floats, we walked over to their house for a cookout and to watch the Rose Bowl.
THE TWELVE DAYS OF CHRISTMAS
As I mentioned in the previous update, Christmas lasts until January 6th in the Cameron/Utt household. We spent the evening at our friend Diana’s house for a get-together and a belated gift exchange for friends that had been out of town.
CONFESSIONS OF A MORMON BOY
The following week, we went with our friend Cynthia to see the one-man show Confessions of a Mormon Boy. It’s the true story of Steven Fales, a sixth-generation Mormon who struggled to reconcile his sexual orientation with his religion, got married, had kids, got divorced, moved to New York to be an actor, became an escort instead, and struggled with drug addiction. After becoming sober, Steven created a one-man show about his journey for the New York Fringe Festival, and now he’s touring the country with it. http://www.mormonboy.com/
PALM SPRINGS INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
One of my New Year’s Resolutions was to watch less films and write more, but I couldn’t say no when my Uncle Carl invited us to the Palm Springs International Film Festival. The two-week event had a terrific slate of films—especially if you don’t mind subtitles—but we only had two days. Of the 253 titles included in the festival, we saw five:
Ghost of the Dog—India
Twenty years after his death, a family believes that their son has been re-incarnated and is living in a neighboring village. They bring him home and try to re-build a relationship. The first half of this beautifully shot story was terrific, but the second half lost all momentum.
Venus—UK
An aging actor becomes infatuated with his friend’s grand-niece. Great performances by everyone, including Peter O’Toole, but I think he’ll get shut out at the Oscars.
OSS 117: Nest of Spies—France
This comedic take on James Bond was equal parts Pink Panther and Naked Gun and was our favorite of the weekend.
Go West—Bosnia-Herzegovina
A man must disguise himself as a woman so that he and his boyfriend can escape the Serbian/Muslim unrest of Eastern Europe. It was a difficult story that was told well and was my Uncle’s favorite pick of the weekend.
Fat Girls—U.S.A.
I was disappointed with this rambling, amateur effort until I found out that the director wrote it when he was 19, starred in when he was 20, and convinced MTV to turn it into a series when he was 21. After learning that, I became jealous.
Here is a complete list of the films that were screened at the festival.
http://www.psfilmfest.org/festival/film/results.aspx?FID=29
OSCAR NOMINATIONS
Of the three Best Picture nominees I’ve seen—Babel, The Queen, and Little Miss Sunshine—I’d have to go with The Queen. Although set in 1997, the film reminded me of those solid historical dramas from the 1960’s like The Lion in Winter, Anne of the Thousand Days and A Man For All Seasons.
If you are hosting an Oscar Party, having an office pool, or just want to keep track on Sunday, February 25th, the Academy offers this handy printable ballot:
http://a.oscar.abc.com/media/2007/images/nominees/printballot_2007_2.pdf
TWO YEARS IN LA
Daryl and I moved to California in January of 2005. Two years later, we continue to see new places, do new things and meet new people. We are fortunate that everyone in our immediate families has made the trek out here. That many of our friends have done the same makes us doubly grateful.
As far as work goes, Daryl is at Disney Interactive Studios and I’m across the street working again for Disney Parks in Global New Media and Technologies. Our morning commute is only two miles and in this town that is priceless.
The biggest change besides proximity to our families is our living arrangement. We miss our 3-bedroom house with the fenced-in yard and two-car garage. We would need well over a million dollars to find a similar-sized lot and house. Click here if you don’t believe me: http://livingchoices.com/home/homedetail.aspx?refer=homegain&hid=535806417&mid=4480
THE DAVID HOUSE PART TWO
Speaking of houses - The day after I sent last month’s update, E! began airing High Maintenance 90210, a reality series set at a company that employs personal assistants, butlers and au pairs. Norwood Young, the owner of the David House hired a butler and they have been following his assignment. I can’t recommend the show because the 10 minutes I watched was awful, awful, awful. But, if you want to see more of the David House, the owner, or his pink and blue poodles, here’s your chance. http://www.eonline.com/on/shows/highmaintenance/
STAR SIGHTINGS
At work this month, Daryl bumped into former Saturday Night Live cast member Chris Parnell and chatted with him for a while. Kevin Farley [Chris’ brother] was also there as the two of them were doing some voiceover work in the next building.
Daryl was out shopping with our friend Diana and they stopped for lunch. Adam Sandler and his wife were sitting just a few tables away.
We were with our friend JJ last weekend when we saw Ashley Simpson at a shop in Santa Monica. When she stepped out of the store, the paparazzi chased Ashley and her friends to her car, tried to take pictures though the tinted glass, then ran back into their own vehicles and continued their hunt. It was sad, really.
QUOTE OF THE MONTH
Always, January brings reflection.
--Shephard Summers
NEXT MONTH
February should find us hosting our first visitors of 2007, taking a road trip to Indio, California, and welcoming The Year of the Pig. I’ll tell you all about it next month.
Until then,
James & Daryl
