My longer than normal update (LA has been good to me)

I know its been a while since I've posted.  I've already been in LA for 4 weeks now (man does time fly) and i've been meaning to update about my experience but 1, i've actually been able to stay relatively busy, and 2, i'm lazy. So I guess we can do a quick catch up, even though I feel if we are friends on Facebook, you've got the basic gist. Actually, why not, we can start from the beginning of this journey...(I have no idea how the rest of this is going to go)

So I guess about a month ago I set out for LA. I had left Florida but not yet arrived in LA. My mom and I had stops in Lafayette, LA (good time), San Antonio, Tucson, and was able to stay with Wade and Beth in San Diego. It was a nice drive over and after a few pain staking days of searching I came up with a great room in a lovely lady's home.

The first week I was here I was able to tour around the CBS lot, go backstage and hang out on set of a TV Land show called the exes. I had met a guy online via a site called Couchsurfing.org who works as an accountant on the show so after meeting with a PA he hooked me up with, we toured the lot and met people, and watched the show. It was a great time. Later that week I was able to help out on a web series hosted by Dyan Cannon where she mentors kids who want to be professional dancers, actors, singers, all of the above. I was able to meet a handful of great people who worked on the crew and that was a pretty good experience as well.

Another great opportunity I was able to have was meeting up with a guy who I had e-mailed quite a while ago and talked to on the phone before moving out who works in the business as a PA for union gigs and is assistant directing for non-union projects to get into the DGA. He had asked if I wanted to come visit set where he was the second second (assistant director). I came out for a day, was able to meet him for the first time as well as a handful of the other crew on the show who were all very nice. His name is Jared, for future reference.

I guess next in my "work" timeline was helping build a set for a USC Grad students film thesis. One of the guys that I met at the web series was helping out so he texted me to see if I might want to help out as well. I ended up going for the day, helped put up some walls and then made some fake wood flooring. Everyone there was really nice and it was a good time.

Another project/person i've been meeting up with at this point is a producer/writer/director named David. I got in contact with him after meeting a friend of his in Ocala when I was getting my oil changed right before leaving. David is producing a movie soon so I have been meeting up with him to discuss the business, get more familiar with the area, and learn more about the movie so I can help out in some capacity.

Moving along my timeline, I got a text from Jared (remember, second second) asking if I would like to come help out on set. I of course thought it would be great experience so I obviously jumped on the chance. One of the PA's (Allie) was in charge of another unit that day, so I was going to step in and help out where needed while she was off helping with a photo shoot. The day went by great, I was able to learn a lot of things and grateful for my chance to be around a set again.

At this point I hadn't gone on any hikes yet, but had seen the beautiful scenery and heard the hiking was good, so I set out on some hiking adventures of my own. The Angeles Forest is only about 10 minutes away from me and one day when I was out driving around getting familiar with the area I came across a hiking sign, so I saved it on my GPS and that was my hiking spot for the day. I ended up going on a beautiful hike where I later got lost but, that's a different story for another point in time, haha. Now, trying to work out my timeline and I did go to Griffith Park to the observatory and hiked up to the Hollywood sign before this so, we'll just add that in there.

After my hiking adventures I got another text from Jared asking if I would like to come help again. I went in and helped out on Friday and again on Saturday night-Sunday morning, which was their last day of filming. I ended up helping PA for 3 days of the movie and observed for 1 day and even after that time I already felt almost like part of the crew. I was able to talk and work with another PA, Aaron who is a really nice guy (also known on set as little Aaron), Anthony, Ira, Big Aaron, (As previously mentioned:) Jared and Allie, and more of the crew who I could list but I guess I would just be rolling off names, but trust me they were all very nice. Sunday night was the wrap party for this and I at first was not going to go since I would feel bad, not really being part of the crew, but Anthony, Big Aaron and Ira were talking to me Sunday morning before I left the shoot and said I should go...so I did. And i'm really glad I did. I was able to hang out more with some of the crew, meet some of the cast and even meet some new people like a friend of Jared's (Michael) who is very nice and i'm glad I met.

I feel like this is getting way too long that people won't even want to read it so I don't even want to go into much more, but then there is Teresa who is friends with a friend back home i've been able to meet up with and hike with who is very nice, I was a paid audience member for a Guinness World record show for TruTV, I was able to celebrate the fourth atop a mountain hanging out with Aaron, his friend (and my new friend) Edwin, Jared, his wife and daughter, Allie, and a whole bunch of strangers, haha. But I guess I could just wrap it up by saying its been a lot of fun. I really didn't have all too many expectations or really know what to think coming out here, not knowing anyone. Before leaving everyone was a bit dumbfounded I was coming out here not knowing anyone (and even telling the people i've meet here are too, haha) but i'm so lucky that i've been able to meet the people that I have and been able to have all these experiences so far. There is even a lot more that I haven't even mentioned, but I guess we can save that for a later date (like for example talking for a minute about how awesome Ophelia and Ken are (two of the people who I live with)) Anyway, it is getting rather late and I feel i've written a novel, so I shall conclude my little entry now, but I guess now you know a little bit more what in the world i've been up to here...and i'm loving it!