5. Changing Gears While I certainly doubt I’ve hung up my director’s hat forever, my time as an ‘indie film director’ has come to an end (on a high note at that – #7). My feel for the craft is on point, but now that putting money away for my future is my number […]
With my spiritual background, I tend to gauge how I’ve progressed in life from the end of one Ramadan to the beginning of the next. Ramadan begins for me in a few weeks, so… Since the last Ramadan, I bought my parents a vacation. They’re both retired now, but they also don’t road trip like […]
I returned to Los Angeles with a different mentality. I love my craft and my artform more than I ever have. Spending time separated from ‘Hollywood’ changed my outlook on the business though. I wasn’t blind; I always knew it was a business, but I didn’t always treat it like a business. I do now. […]
I fixed my financial situation. In spite of my own actions at times, I managed to avoid being permanently tied to the Midwest. It was time to focus my attention back on the Dream. I may not have gotten married yet, but I wasn’t the only Musketeer who started thinking about the long term. Our […]
“This is what happens when an unstoppable force meets an immovable object…You won’t kill me out of some misplaced sense of self-righteousness. And I won’t kill you because you’re just too much fun. I think you and I are destined to do this forever.” The Joker, ‘The Dark Knight’ Life, I feel, is similar to […]
It may have been a side effect of maturity as well as the cultural connection, but as I was going through my ups and downs with Maria, I found I was no longer leaning on my boys for love advice as much as I was leaning on the women I had become friends with. Chief […]
“So go on baby, make your little getaway, My pride will keep me company, and you just gave yours all away Now I’m gonna dress myself for two, once for me, and once for someone new I’m gonna do some things you wouldn’t let me do, Oh! I’m gonna find another you! – John Mayer, […]
(Let me open this chapter by saying I almost certainly do more name dropping in the next few paragraphs than you will ever hear me do in a five minute conversation in real life. Nature of the beast…) Like any film geek worth his salt, I knew the names of the filmmakers who either graduated […]
Everyone assumes that since we were born in the same city, five weeks apart, have well documented militant streaks and share a passion for the same artform, me and Antonio have been best friends since kindergarten. In truth, we never even met each other until my senior year at KU. But with the number of […]
As a kid who grew up loving road trips, the 24 hour drive from Kansas City to Los Angeles didn’t phase me. Having spent most of my years in either Kansas or Louisiana, I didn’t understand when people talked about how ‘flat’ these areas are. Driving through Arizona and New Mexico gave me a new […]
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