Goin' Out To Cally – Part 25, Nightlife At The BC

Dreams are so weird. You’ll start off talking to a friend, the suddenly find yourself skydiving with Elmo, who then turns into your second grade teacher, which then turns into a rap video with a lot of excessive booty shaking and words ending in “fashizil.” You know what I’m talking about.

So, as the sound of Spanish foreign tongues reveling in song entered my road weary, unconscious brain, I knew I had to be dreaming. Odd, sure. Reality? Impossible.

The Spanish serenade overlapping with the driving beat of a rock band… again, odd, but that’s why they call it dreamland, right?

Then I thought “Is that German I’m hearing? Or Russian? Since I don’t know either language, I can’t tell, but it sounds… Germanic.”

It was finally the body resonating vibrations from numerous motorcycle exhaust pipes that finally lurched me back to the living, at which time I realized I wasn’t dreaming at all. I opened the tent and peered out to find that our campsite appeared to have been turned into the center stage for nightlife of suburban Bedrock City.

At Bone 18, a Latino family sat around their campfire, playing their guitars, singing an energetic song.

Across our tent at Bone 23 was the family of Germans or Russians toasting marshmallows over an opened fire while talking loudly over the Latino contingent.

And next to us, at Bones 20 through 22 was a Hell’s Angel-esque motorcycle gang, with dirty faces, long beards and braless, windblown women, all drinking and laughing.

There was something inherently humorous about seeing a bunch of scary looking bikers camping in front of big, cartoon style bone at a Flintstones inspired campground. It’s just one of those things you wouldn’t think you’d ever see in your life. And it’s one of those moments that cement in me my belief that God has a wonderfully unique and slightly off-centered sense of humor.

Tim and Beth looked up, sleep in their eyes.

“What’s going on?” he asked.

Unable to formulate the Bedrock City nightlife into words, I turned to them. “You have to see it to believe it,” I replied.

Tim and Beth crawled over and peered out. They scanned the sights and upon seeing our cycle-camping brethren amongst us, they turned back and smiled in disbelief.

“Told ya,” I said.

I wasn’t exactly comfortable going outside now that the neighborhood watch was a gang of semi-drunken thugs wearing identical leather jackets… I guess our non-American campers were braver than I.

We laid back down, but we all found it difficult, however, to get back to sleep. After all, when you don’t understand the language, heated conversations sound like noise. Conversations and singing in two different languages is bothersome. Add to that the loud laughing of drunken bikers and the occasional rumbling of a revving motorcycle… well, it was downright annoying.

I may not be a genius, but I was smart enough to keep from poking my head out of my tent and telling them all to shut the hell up, no matter how much I wanted to get back to sleep.

And so ended our fourth day on our trip to Cally.

********

Goin' Out To Cally - Part 25, (Text, Audio) Nightlife At The BC
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 24, (Text, Audio) Bedless In Bedrock
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 23, (Text, Audio) Desert Rain
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 22, (Text, Audio) Bedrock City
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 21, (Text, Audio) The Outhouse
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 20, (Text, Audio) Riding The Hump
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 19, (Text, Audio) Bob Hope, Lil’ Debbie And Restless Gods
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 18, (Text, Audio) Unlevel Headed
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 17, (Text, Audio) Starry Night, Confusing Night
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 16, (Text, Audio) Three Beds + Four People = Oh Crap
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 15, (Text, Audio) Masculinity At Stake
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 14, (Text, Audio) Texas: Latin For Shoot Me Now
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 13, (Text, Audio) Cars, Crossroads and Cosmic Convergence
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 12, (Text, Audio) Tumbleweed Dreams
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 11, (Text, Audio) Wet, Rinse, Repeat
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 10, (Text, Audio) Divine Misdirection
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 09, (Text, Audio) Getting Nowhere Fast
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 08, (Text, Audio) The Cock Crows Nine
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 07, (Text, Audio) Is Jackass A Sign?
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 06, (Text, Audio) Leftovers
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 05, (Text, Audio) The Kiss Of Friendship
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 04, (Text, Audio) Scholastic Intimacy
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 03, (Text, Audio) Space Invaders
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 02, (Text, Audio) The Fourth Wheel
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 01, (Text, Audio) The Seed Planted

Goin' Out To Cally – Part 24, Bedless In Bedrock

I may not be a genius… okay, that’s actually a fact to which a lot of people can attest… but I do know this… in order to sleep in a tent, one must actually have a tent in which to sleep. However, as we arrived at Bedrock City and pulled up to Bone 19 our canvas cave was nowhere to be seen. A rapid and heavy storm had just moved through the area and, to nobodies surprise, it appeared our plastic stakes shoved into gravel were not strong enough to keep it secured to the ground.

For all we knew, the storm had taken our tent somewhere just south of Dorothy and Toto.

We all exited the car and frantically started our search. A few more campers had set stakes in neighboring Bones near our number 19, but none of them had seen our tent. Not a good sign.

Unsure of which direction the storm had hit or the winds had blown, we were kind of at a loss. We split up and headed in different directions. Still drawn to the Bedrock City wall, I headed toward it, scouring the ditches along its edge. The others were looking behind nearby hills and under parked trucks and RVs.

Nothing.

Our concentration was broken by Beth exclaiming, “There it is!” We raced over to her and followed her pointed finger. Across the busy highway lay our traveling makeshift home in a pile, bundled up into a big ball.

Tim and I carefully crossed the busy highway and ran over to our tent, amazed it was still intact. It appears Tim’s log-buying habits were fortuitous as our logs inside the tent were the only thing keeping it from blowing away completely. We picked up the damp tent , dragged it back across the highway and plopped it down at the base of Bone 19.

Our tent reassembled

We had lost a couple of stakes, but were still able to get it setup again with relative speed. We opened it up completely and let the air dry it out. While we waited I bided my time by sitting in the drivers seat of the Acura, sitting back almost to a laying position, allowing my eyes to flutter closed.

My rest was quickly interrupted by Sunday’s voice.

“Can I join you?” she asked.

“Sure,” I replied

As I opened my eyes I was surprised to find that Sunday had abandoned the idea of sitting in the passenger’s seat and, instead, moved into my personal three foot bubble and sat on my lap. If I weren’t a complete chick radar moron I would have recognized this as an aggressively flirtatious move on her part. However, I am a complete chick radar moron, unable to comprehend the obvious and was, therefore, incapable of knowing what the hell was going on.

Overwhelmed with insecurity and not wanting to misread the situation and accidentally escalating the issue like Reagan and Gorbachev during the Cold War, I didn’t know what to do.

My biggest problem was where to put my hands.

If I put them on her legs, which were now resting uncomfortably on my lap, it could be perceived as coming on to her. Or it could be perceived as being merely practical. I couldn’t put my hands by my side due to the door frame on one side and the center console on the other.

Being in the front seat of a small sports car with someone sitting on top of me, there weren’t a lot of options. In what can only be considered a visual display of upper digit non-commitment I put one hand on her leg and the other hand behind my head.

Hanging out in the Acura

Thinking back on it now it was quite obvious she was flirting with me, for whatever reason… attraction, boredom, or some sick and twisted game by females to confuse the lesser gender (i.e., men)… I’m not sure. At the time I was so overly self conscious and uncomfortable that I have no idea what we actually talked about, only that Tim video taped us during this awkward conversation.

Eventually, the conversation subsided and our stomachs began to call, so we headed off to get an overpriced dinner at a local fast food joint while letting our damp tent air dry.

Upon our return to Bedrock City we found that a few more campers had decided to call this home for the night. Our tent was dry enough for us to unload the Acura and get ourselves ready for a well deserved sleep. We set our tent-saving logs ablaze and cozied up around the fire, resting comfortably while watching the hypnotic dance of flickering flames.

There’s something very soothing about an open fire and the smell of burning wood. I don’t know if it recalls in us some instinctive urge buried in our genome from thousands of years of ancestral habit or because it is something which most of us only get to enjoy when vacationing or because we all secretly want to be firemen. No matter the reason, it was very relaxing and our eyes began to droop rather quickly.

We eagerly prepared ourselves for a long overdue sleep and within moments, our bodies had collapsed into a deep and immovable slumber.

Until, of course, the singing started.

********

Goin' Out To Cally - Part 24, (Text, Audio) Bedless In Bedrock
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 23, (Text, Audio) Desert Rain
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 22, (Text, Audio) Bedrock City
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 21, (Text, Audio) The Outhouse
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 20, (Text, Audio) Riding The Hump
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 19, (Text, Audio) Bob Hope, Lil’ Debbie And Restless Gods
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 18, (Text, Audio) Unlevel Headed
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 17, (Text, Audio) Starry Night, Confusing Night
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 16, (Text, Audio) Three Beds + Four People = Oh Crap
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 15, (Text, Audio) Masculinity At Stake
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 14, (Text, Audio) Texas: Latin For Shoot Me Now
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 13, (Text, Audio) Cars, Crossroads and Cosmic Convergence
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 12, (Text, Audio) Tumbleweed Dreams
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 11, (Text, Audio) Wet, Rinse, Repeat
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 10, (Text, Audio) Divine Misdirection
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 09, (Text, Audio) Getting Nowhere Fast
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 08, (Text, Audio) The Cock Crows Nine
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 07, (Text, Audio) Is Jackass A Sign?
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 06, (Text, Audio) Leftovers
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 05, (Text, Audio) The Kiss Of Friendship
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 04, (Text, Audio) Scholastic Intimacy
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 03, (Text, Audio) Space Invaders
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 02, (Text, Audio) The Fourth Wheel
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 01, (Text, Audio) The Seed Planted

THE BOX - ReEdit

I spent the last two days doing something I've been putting off for about a year... re-editing THE BOX.

At the time when it was completed, I put it together the way I intended, but I felt it was too long. I was too close to the project to view it objectively, so I called it a wrap and moved on.

My mindset with the re-edit was to cut absolutely everything that wasn't 100% critical to the story. No fluff. No excessive character development beyond what is required for the story to move forward. Granted, that was my goal the first time, but my perception of the definition of "required" has changed the farther I got away from the film.

My goal was to cut it down by 30 minutes... I got almost half way there. I was able to remove over 12 minutes from the film, mostly from the first half of the film and reshuffled some scenes around to shorten the time it takes the info to get relayed and for better impact of the character arcs.

I will say that this re-edited mix moves much faster and improves it quite a bit. During the entire process I kept saying to myself "What was I thinking!" I wish I would have made these decisions on the first edit, but, like I said, I was too close to the project to see it objectively.

Lesson learned.

There are things that I wish I could have done differently, but I limited myself to only investing time in a re-edit, not a reshoot or a recreation... that time will be invested in other projects.

The other thing I realized during the process was that THE BOX was shot almost four years ago! I can't believe that! My daughter, in the film, was nine when we shot it (10 when it was released) and she's about to turn 13 in a few weeks.

What the hell have I been doing?

Sure, during the past four years I threw together the short THE BUSINESS TRIP in 14 straight hours of shooting (and it shows), built a small movie room in my house and I've written a couple of scripts, but I desperately need to get back behind the camera... I'm so happy there :)

Anyway, the re-edit was a good challenge, an excellent exercise and far less painful than I thought. I wish I would have done it years ago.

Goin' Out To Cally – Part 23, Desert Rain

I hopped out of the car at the Grand Canyon parking lot like a child running from his bedroom Christmas morning. We all immediately moved to the edge of the parking lot which stood at the edge of the canyon itself. I marveled at the large squirrels that traveled around and over the visible edge of the canyon with no sense of fear of falling to their deaths at the bottom of the canyon hundreds of feet below.

Brave squirrel

Screen capture from Tim's video camera

My great fear of heights immediately kicked in and I instinctively moved back from the edge a bit. I pointed across the canyon at some greenery on the other side.

Trees or bushes?

“Tim,” I said, “are those small bushes or really large trees?”

My mind simply could not fathom the scope of the visual feast in front of me.

Tim stammered, “I… I don’t know.”

Sunday, Pete and Beth at the Canyon

Beth directed us into the air conditioned welcome center built on the edge of the canyon, jutting out over the side. We were given a nice tour of the facility where they explained how it took millions of years for the rivers below to forge such a cut in God’s creation. The Guide also mentioned to me, in passing, that there was a canyon on the planet Mars that would dwarf our own Grand Canyon.

Grand Canyon on Mars

Staring out of the picturesque window at the great canyon below that seemed impossible to me.

Sunday moved up next to me and grabbed my arm, pointing out of the large window to a rain storm approaching in the distance. Growing up in Florida, I was used to thunderstorms. During the summer the winds from the coast would hit the winds from the land and form terrific thunderstorms and light shows everyday around four o’clock in the afternoon. But, I had never been able to see the totality of the thunderstorm itself. Standing in the observation deck of the welcome center with hundreds of miles of horizon within our view, we could see the thunderstorm from edge to edge quickly approach us.

It was interesting to see a thunderstorm in a desert. Considering we were right in the middle of the drought of ’88, it was even more surprising. Within minutes the storm was fast upon us and the winds and rain made a blustery entrance and exit, quickly moving past us on toward Bedrock City.

As I watched the dry ground immediately absorb the newly fallen rain, the length of the day was beginning to weigh on me. I was not alone in this sudden sense of exhaustion and with little fuss we decided to return to Bedrock City, rest up, and tackle the Canyon anew in the morning.

Beth looking hip in her 80's sunglasses

Our drive back to the campground was filled with excited conversation about the canyon, our expectations, our experiences and what we had hoped to accomplish the next day. It was nice to have a unifying experience among the four of us. It was the first real event that brought us together as one.

Pete and Sunday at the Canyon

As we approached Bedrock City we could see the heavy and quick storm had made an impact on the surrounding area. As Tim pulled into the campground he looked curiously from side to side and then back to us.

Tim asked simply, “Where’s our tent?”

********

Goin' Out To Cally - Part 23, (Text, Audio) Desert Rain
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 22, (Text, Audio) Bedrock City
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 21, (Text, Audio) The Outhouse
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 20, (Text, Audio) Riding The Hump
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 19, (Text, Audio) Bob Hope, Lil’ Debbie And Restless Gods
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 18, (Text, Audio) Unlevel Headed
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 17, (Text, Audio) Starry Night, Confusing Night
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 16, (Text, Audio) Three Beds + Four People = Oh Crap
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 15, (Text, Audio) Masculinity At Stake
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 14, (Text, Audio) Texas: Latin For Shoot Me Now
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 13, (Text, Audio) Cars, Crossroads and Cosmic Convergence
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 12, (Text, Audio) Tumbleweed Dreams
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 11, (Text, Audio) Wet, Rinse, Repeat
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 10, (Text, Audio) Divine Misdirection
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 09, (Text, Audio) Getting Nowhere Fast
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 08, (Text, Audio) The Cock Crows Nine
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 07, (Text, Audio) Is Jackass A Sign?
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 06, (Text, Audio) Leftovers
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 05, (Text, Audio) The Kiss Of Friendship
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 04, (Text, Audio) Scholastic Intimacy
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 03, (Text, Audio) Space Invaders
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 02, (Text, Audio) The Fourth Wheel
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 01, (Text, Audio) The Seed Planted

Remicade

Not much today... I'm getting my quarterly remicade treatment today. Thank God for this medicine. Its given my life back.

Hope Madonna Likes The Heat

Since no one really can remember her songs anymore, in her new tour the over-the-hill, aging ex-superstar Madonna, no longer able to rely on her looks or talent, has again taken to shock tactics to try and get people to remember her.

In her latest concert she has taken it upon herself to sing one of her songs while hanging from a mirrored cross while wearing a crown of thorns.

This coming from a woman who believes in Judaism-lite (Kabala) where her life is happy whenever she wears a red piece of yarn around her wrist.

When she finally bites it I'm sure Lucifer and this morally corrupt black hole of a person will get a real chuckle over how many souls she tainted by her sad exploits. In the meantime, God will be sitting on his throne wondering why she took the gifts he gave her at conception and turned them into a blatant attack on his divinity.

Stock up on the tanning lotion, baby cakes, you'll need it where you're going.

Mexico Works to Bar Non-Natives From Jobs

Just when you thought hypocrisy couldn't get any more obvious, check out this story on Yahoo News about the Mexico policy to restrict employment to only Mexican natives for a growing number of jobs.

Pathetic. Why does the U.S. keep putting up with this crap?

Graduation Weekend

This weekend was full of friends and family graduation ceremonies.

Friday night DC and I went to First Baptist Church in Seminole for the highschool graduation of Josh Fortin, a friend of the family and son of the recently married THE BOX producer, Kyme Ingham.

Saturday I recorded the next set of 10 Cally audios for my parents then we had to attend the highschool graduation party of Sarah Laramie, who is in one of our homeschooling groups.

Sunday we went to mass at St. Patricks and attended my niece, Briana's homeschooling highschool graduation. She was very funny in her speech as she thanked her family and friends. I can still remember holding her in my arms and lifting her up so she could touch the ceiling. Amazing how quickly the time flies.

After that we went to a trophy ceremony to pick up Gabe's little league trophy.

After that we went to Mary Beth Kelley's highschool graduation party... a friend of the family who was homeschooled up until highschool and then went to St. Pete Catholic.

A very busy weekend...

Congratulations to all!

Goin' Out To Cally – Part 22, Bedrock City

It felt like weeks since we had left the friendly confines of Tampa Bay, Florida, but the reality was that only 72 hours had passed since we started on this cross country trek. The first major milestone, the first step in our great adventure was soon to be upon us… the Grand Canyon.

As we entered Arizona and headed toward the great landmark, we noticed the price of everything starting to rise. It appeared the combination of being dead smack in the middle of a desert and the fact that tourism was in play were both combinations in the increased cost of water, gas, even the reliably cheap McDonalds cheeseburgers.

Our AAA Trip Ticket led us to the closest campground directly between Tucumcari and the Grand Canyon, a wonderfully unique place titled Bedrock City. As we pulled into the red clay and gravel parking lot directly off the main highway I was immediately struck by a large wall that ran the length of the long parking lot/campground. Over this lengthy, high wall we could spy the tops of dinosaur heads and rock structures.

Just where the hell were we?

Growing up I spent an unhealthy number of hours watching the animated version of The Honeymooners, called The Flintstones. The Flintstones were a couple from the Stone Age named Fred and Wilma with a pet dinosaur appropriately called Dino. Their best friends were Betty and Barney Rubble. And their hometown? Bedrock City, of course.

So, I could not help but be slightly dumbfounded to find our group setting stakes next to an oversized, cartoon-looking bone sticking out of the ground with a big number 19 painted on it. Around us, Bones 18 and 20 were currently empty, as was most of the rest of the campground. Fortunately, the main event was less than a half hour away, so where we slept wasn’t nearly as important as was the Grand Canyon itself.

The Bones at Bedrock City

After we setup our portable canvas home, Tim bought some more firewood and placed it inside the tent, so no one would steal it while we headed to the Canyon. As we finished unpacking some of our belongings I couldn’t help but be drawn to the big wall separating the campground from the heart of Bedrock City. Like Carl Denham staring at the wall on Skull Island designed to keep King Kong at bay, I was drawn toward the wall separating me from whatever tourist attraction sat on the other side. Instead of keeping a Kong-sized animal in, I realized this wall, instead, was to keep pint-sized prying eyes out. The price of your campsite didn’t cover entry into Bedrock City.

The mystery of the attractions behind that big wall would have to wait until later. Now we had to get to the main event and we all quickly hopped into the car and headed West.

As the car traveled down the highway I kept wondering how long before the Grand Canyon would come into view. After all, it’s massive, winding through multiple states. Surely we’d be able to see it from the distance, but no… only the highway and the surrounding sands were visible.

“How much farther?” I said with childlike excitement.

Beth, looking at the map, turned back to me and said “It should be just up this hill.”

The Grand Canyon can’t be hidden by a hill, could it?

The road winded up the increasingly steep hill, spotted with the occasional tree, until it reached the flattened ground at the top, where suddenly the grandeur of the great canyon laid directing in front of us.

It was jaw-droppingly big. It was so large, in fact, that my mind had a hard time wrapping itself around its immensity. Nothing in my practical experience had ever prepared me for such a sight.

As we pulled into the parking lot, I thought “Could you imagine the first wagon train that stumbled across this path?”

“How much longer?” the kids in the back of the wagon would whine to their grumpy parents.

“Just past this hill,” they’d reply. Once reaching the top they’d look at the massive crevasse stretching as far as the eye could see in either direction. The father would look, dumbfounded and confused.

“I guess we’ll have to go around,” the mother would say not quite realizing it would only take a couple of hundred of miles in either direction.

Fortunately, the four travelers from the south were blessed with gasoline powered transportation and an air-conditioned welcome center directly in front of us.

********

Goin' Out To Cally - Part 22, (Text, Audio) Bedrock City
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 21, (Text, Audio) The Outhouse
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 20, (Text, Audio) Riding The Hump
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 19, (Text, Audio) Bob Hope, Lil’ Debbie And Restless Gods
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 18, (Text, Audio) Unlevel Headed
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 17, (Text, Audio) Starry Night, Confusing Night
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 16, (Text, Audio) Three Beds + Four People = Oh Crap
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 15, (Text, Audio) Masculinity At Stake
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 14, (Text, Audio) Texas: Latin For Shoot Me Now
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 13, (Text, Audio) Cars, Crossroads and Cosmic Convergence
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 12, (Text, Audio) Tumbleweed Dreams
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 11, (Text, Audio) Wet, Rinse, Repeat
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 10, (Text, Audio) Divine Misdirection
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 09, (Text, Audio) Getting Nowhere Fast
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 08, (Text, Audio) The Cock Crows Nine
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 07, (Text, Audio) Is Jackass A Sign?
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 06, (Text, Audio) Leftovers
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 05, (Text, Audio) The Kiss Of Friendship
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 04, (Text, Audio) Scholastic Intimacy
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 03, (Text, Audio) Space Invaders
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 02, (Text, Audio) The Fourth Wheel
Goin' Out To Cally - Part 01, (Text, Audio) The Seed Planted