Making Movies

I have a secret dream of someday making an amazingly cool, super successful movie. Okay, actually it’s not really a “secret” dream, but it is a dream.

Until I can live out my dream, I like to practice by trying to make what some might refer to as “amateur home movies,” but I like to call “Independent short films.”

This weekend, we were shooting what will be a 61-second short film that we plan to enter in 101.9 The End’s “Really, Really, Really Short Film Festival.” Mikal Belicove of the Beli-Blog showed up to snap some photos of the shoot. I really like them ‘cause I think the cool camera makes me look like I know what I’m doing, so I wanted to take the opportunity to post a few of them here.

I need to read over the terms and conditions of the contest to make sure it’s allowed, but if so, I’ll post the film on YouTube when we’re done.

Until then, enjoy the pics!

Setting the White Balance on the Camera
(L to R: Me, Wes, Jake)


Me, Directing. Wes ready with Boom.


L to R: Elwon, Wes, Me


L to R: Wes, Me, Elwon, Jake

We have the coolest camera. Doba rocks!


A cool shot of all our reflections in the doors.
(L to R: Me, Jake, Mikal, Elwon, Wes)

Of PF Chang’s and Fortune Cookies

So I’ve decided that I’m no longer going to eat at PF Chang’s China Bistro. I think their food is pretty tasty, but every time I eat there, I get sick. Sick as in I have to spend a lot of time reading in the bathroom. Not only that, I always get the most disgusting tasting/smelling burps after eating there. If I don’t wait enough time in between visits, I can actually taste elements of the disgusting burps in the food I’m eating. Yes, it’s revolting and nauseating.

A quick poll around the office here showed me that I’m not alone in getting sick. Four other people reported that they’ve experienced similar bodily reactions to the decidedly non-Chinese food served at this so-called Chinese restaurant.



While I’m thinking about Chinese restaurants, I wanted to talk about fortune cookies. I’ve found that a lot of people have funny habits when it comes to fortune cookies. For example, many people like to add the words “in bed” to the end of their fortune.

I picked up an odd superstition (I think from my wife, Linda) that in order for the fortune to come true, you must eat the entire fortune cookie before reading the fortune. In my most recent visit to PF Chang’s I decided to add to this superstition. If you’ve eaten the cookie and then you read the fortune and you don’t like the fortune, you can reduce the chance of the fortune coming true by getting the fortune as close to being back inside the cookie as possible. Since you’ve already eaten the cookie, this means you must now eat the fortune paper.

Now I know what you might be thinking, “Clark, you idiot! No wonder you got sick. You ate the fortune paper.” Well, that might be true, but of all the times I’ve ever eaten at the Chang’s, I’ve gotten sick, and this is the only time I’ve eaten the paper; therefore, my highly scientific brain tells me that your paper theory is wrong.

One last thought: I hate it when a so-called fortune cookie turns out not to be a “fortune” cookie at all. In other words, the piece of paper has words of advice on it, or tells you one of your personality traits. Wouldn’t this make them advice cookies or personality cookies? Listen all Chinese restaurants and fortune cookie chefs: If I want my treats to give me advice or tell me things other than my future, I’ll buy some of those little candy hearts or some individually wrapped Dove chocolates. But when I eat a FORTUNE cookie, that little piece of paper inside better vaguely predict my future or be a one million dollar bill folded up really small. Either of those are acceptable fortunes. All others are not!

Blog Poll:

1. Do you get sick when eating at PF Chang’s or any other restaurant?
   
2. Do you have any weird habits or superstitions that go along with fortune cookies?