Hello everyone and Happy New Year in 2008.
I actually thought that no-one was checking out the site so we put the counter back up to see. We checked the numbers and there were still quite a few hits every day so I thought I'd better get off my ass and put some new stuff up. So here it is.
I thought I'd start the news on the last day of the year and my resolution this year will be just to maintain the site a little better. I quit drinking caffeine a few years ago, and then quit regular soda a year later and finally last year quit drinking that terrible tasting diet shit. I figure there's no need to quit drinking the juice and water, I eat pretty healthy, don't smoke, so why not give myself some resolution to just maintain the site each month. I can surely hear about it when I slip from someone who asks in the guestbook "When the hell are you going to update the site?". There is always someone to remind me. So lets start with saying goodbye to 2007.
Where do I start on 2007? Been one hell of a year. The biggest thing was losing Reese to cancer. I'm told I should be happy for Reese because he's in a better place. Still having a rough time being happy for him when I can't help but be sad for me. I miss him every moment of every day but when I look at the world and the shape it's in, I do see he is in a better place. At the same time, I do see how this world was a better place with him being here as well. Wonder why the powers that be didn't decide that some child molester be removed as opposed to Reese. Who knows? Not mine to decide or figure out. He's here in spirit, his sister Livia is doing very good and all will be OK. Have no worries. He must be pulling and pushing on things for me because I've never had such a good year working on other projects.
2007 found us getting our first film out with "HURT" releasing all over the world. Took some pretty big hits on certain reviews and also got some real nice reviews on our first project. I'm proud of it no matter what and I think we did pretty good for a couple people, a target camera, and one light we found at the lifeline theatre in Chicago. Still have the light actually. Gonna upload a picture and post it as well. Yes, we lit the film with this single light. Every shot with one light and the occasional lantern you see hanging from the ceiling in a few scenes. "Of the Flesh" is also scheduled to release sometime in 2008 so we will keep you posted there as well. I don't have a date yet and I'm getting the feeling they are waiting to give me the dates based on the numbers from "HURT" which we should have any day. Keep your fingers crossed. As for our other projects, "Sorority House Slaughter" is still on the editing table and coming together. This film has been quite the enigma to put together for many reasons. We haven't wanted to put the trailer up until we had the film completed because it seems the trend now to put up a kick ass trailer and have a crappy film. What most people don't understand is that pretty much anything can be made interesting from the trailer and with digital cameras, it now seems everyone and their mother is making a film, or at least trying to. I get enough people ripping on my films so I dare not mention any of these films by name just because there's no need to start more crap with someone. The trailers are about 20 times as good as the film itself. I think we've managed to stay pretty true with respect to the films we've done. The trailer footage was from the film.
Lots of other things happened in 2007. Brent had a few drunken rants on here late at night. Brent also got a great job with a company we will not name and is very happy in his new position. For those of you who think he got the dream job with Hustler he was trying to get, he did not get that job. He failed the drug tests and was unwilling to wear the leather. Of course I'm joking...or am I? John in Pittsburgh had a good year with his Steelers making it into the playoffs and 2008 will most likely find him crying somewhere when they loose. I hate to say it but I'd like to see the Patriots go undefeated for the year just because I can't stand Miami and Bix (Jonathan) in Boston (Blue Moon Harem) said he'd kill me if I didn't pull for the Pats. But for John I want Pittsburgh to win so I'm torn between the two. We will hear about it on the guestbook I'm certain. John worked on about 20 films this past year, as always, giving his time for free. Tina moved from New York down to Fredericksburg where I once lived as well. For those of you who don't know who these people are, just check out the guestbook. Many would say the guestbook is more interesting than my news. Who did I forget? Our webmaster Paula overcame breast cancer and is doing very well. Doug in Chicago is doing well and although Doug never seems to get drunk and sign the guestbook he does have a tall blonde for a wife and that alone is news. Will try to get him to send pictures so we can post them. You will see why when I post them. I think she's what Rod Stewart had in mind.
Speaking of women, Kim is doing very well and making all things here at Sorry Dog continue to go around and I finally convinced her to wear my ring. We are not married but she does manage to wear it well. I think 2007 might possibly have been harder on her than me because through all that has happened she has managed to keep everything moving along for all of us here at the home front as well as everyone at the business. Pretty remarkable if I do say so. John in Princeton found a new woman named Sara, Wayne in Chicago continued writing on his trilogy and his co-writer of the new screenplay got out of prison. Yes, I said prison. Last I heard, Jim Riordan was doing book signings all over Kankakee and teasing the young girls and when he wasn't signing books he was just teasing young girls. Go Jim. Meredith is still laying low in Princeton and not working with the dog right now. We wonder when he will return. He's the character "Bernie" in "HURT" and was my main partner until a few years ago when he went awol. Joe in Phoenix is doing well although I wonder if his wife has seen the film because he was naked in the tub with another woman. Joe, I didn't really think it would release either. My parents are doing good with the craft business and my mom seems to keep a steady flow of work for my dad just so he can say "I need to do this for your mom". Seth lost his two front teeth in a skateboard fall and can now whistle much easier. God bless him. All is well and was well in 2007. You made it to read this news so no matter what happened, it was a good year. We really have nothing to complain about.
Lastly, I wanted to speak about being stuck in the past. I'm not some great authority on this but I can speak about it simply because I have been guilty of doing so and it is not healthy. It's not healthy because if we are stuck there, we can't move forward. If we can't get a realistic look at our past, how could we have a realistic look at our future.
My best friend recently met with his old girlfriend from high school and he told me some very interesting things. They had not seen one another in years. They met in a restaurant and decided to get caught up. He said it was strange looking at her after all these years noticing all the changes. She still looked good but the 18 year old was now a 40 year old. Wrinkles that he'd not seen where there and a body that was so firm years ago was nothing like he remembered, it was gone. She didn't need the bra years ago or the make-up. He was once the center of attention and now her pager on the table was of main concern. Her children with her husband were the most important things in her life, not him. A simple smile wasn't enough to warm a heart and the sparkle in her eye wasn't there anymore. He'd spent the last 20 years remembering all those moments and keeping them in some special place along with putting her on a pedestal as "the one". He had told me that she had not wanted to meet him because she was fearful that he'd meet her and then she'd loose that status as "the one" and just be another girl from the past. She would loose her special status. He and I talked about it and it seemed like she was being pretty selfish. Then we got to talking about it and we realized that we all have one person like this somewhere in the past. We all have one. But the moment was here and it was now.
He sat there across from her just looking at her. Taking it all in, and then all of a sudden, he realized she must be doing the same thing. His hair was thinner and his wrinkles were more defined. His children where now the most important and his phone ringing would take priority over her pager. The only sparkle in his eye was one that wanted to have seen his girlfriend 20 years ago. Not this 40 year old wife of another and mother of children not his. It was living in the past that had brought him to the table with unrealistic expectations and her fear of the future that had kept her away from the table for so long. They got up after having lunch and walked away. I asked him what he took from the meeting and he said on one hand it made him sad because that person was gone. At the same time, he said he was happy because having the knowledge that it was an illusion made it possible for him to move on and let her go. She was no longer "the one" and just another person he'd met along the way. She wasn't some special trophy. She was just a girl he dated along the way and it was over. Just as he was some guy she dated and it was now over. He also realized that he wasn't "the one" to anyone either. Who we are with is "the one" and it really is just that simple.
I made my first film 'Seven to Midnight' for 'the one' I had in my life many years ago. I am 40 years old and it has taken me 20 years to see what my best friend found out in a 30 minute lunch. I hope each and every one of you reading this find out your truth in 2008 and have a wonderful new year.
All the best!
Scott-
