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Updated 06/17/2014


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07/01/2006
Posted by:  Jennifer

4:18 a.m.

After leaving the Niantic Motel 6, we discovered we'd left our VERY IMPORTANT wall calendar on the wall of our room.  We called within hours & were basically shrugged off by Lisa but she said she would have housekeeping check.  Today, the next day, we called back again to be treated incredibly rudely by LISA -- who had zero knowledge of class or quality (even low-quality) customer service.  As of this moment, Jeff is sitting on the phone, still unsure if Lisa rudely put him on hold without announcing it, or if she has simply hung up on him.  FANTASTIC way to treat a guest that stayed in your hotel for days, met the VERY polite owner of the hotel . . . & just never expected that simply calling to see about having a wall calendar returned to us would bring out such a poor attitude in Lisa, the Motel 6 employee.

It seems he's had to call back now, after being discarded by Lisa.  He's asked for her manager's name, & been put on the phone with Julie -- more helpful, at least.  Thanks for doing what Lisa seemed completely disinterested in.  We realize we are no longer customers after we checked out, but we WERE your guests for at least three days & deserved a little understanding from one human being to another. 

I guess I just feel the need to share this by the insanely off-chance that someone might actually read it & give a crap or know something.  The calendar was not only helping us keep track of our interviews, but also had notes about personal events that had happened with myself & my family during the year.  I guess the employees just don't understand that it would be very upsetting if it were THEIR OWN personal calendar.  We would pay any expense, of course, and even a small reward, if only . . . but honestly, Lisa did not even care enough to listen or understand so that the conversation could get that far.

We're really hoping nobody has stayed in that room yet, and that Julie will be recovering it momentarily.  (Update:  Julie called back.  Turns out housekeeping simply discarded it.  So, that's pretty sad.  And, by the way, Lisa never did a thing to even remotely come close to checking for or even asking housekeeping about the calendar as soon as we called, possibly preventing my permanent loss of it.  Julie, however, actually called the housekeeper at home -- and confirmed the calendar had, in fact, been trashed.  I at least appreciate her doing that for me.  Thanks, Julie!)

 

07/01/2006
Posted by:  Jennifer

5:30 a.m.

Aside from finding out the calendar was forever gone, yesterday was a really fantastic day.  We had our first big dream-related interview with Jackie Dove!  She was a doll to work with, looked great on camera, and had a lot of fun & interesting things to say about her dreams & related ideas.

After that, we were really hungry, but first headed for Starbucks.  Jeff got a brain-freeze from the super-caramel'ed iced frap. he got!  He said he hadn't had one of those in so long that his body didn't quite know how to react, but it definitely hurt!

Then, we decided to catch a train into Manhattan to hit B & H for some equipment extras we have been waiting to buy for weeks (before we even hit the road, actually)!  We were really excited to go to what is supposedly (so we hear) the world's largest professional video superstore.  We paid our $8 cab fare to the train station, got there literally within the last minute before the train would depart (the cabbie got held up in traffic on his way to pick us up), managed to buy two tickets in time, & hopped on.  Within about five minutes, Jeff called to re-confirm the address of the store.  It was closed.  Early.  (We later found out from our Hard Rock Cafe waitress that the owner is Jewish, which means their religious schedule is different than what we are used to.  Meaning, we also can't go back today, as they are closed, . . . but open Sunday, if we wanted to wait around.  . . . We kind of do.  We'll see.  It's taking us what seems like forever to some people, to get through the Northeast & out into the rest of the country.  Truth is, there are just a lot more people in this area, not to mention working around continual unexpected RV issues, whether it's mechanical or . . . well, against the law for an RV to do something. haha   We've had a heck of a time so far in that regard, but feel that pushing through with a positive attitude & high hopes will work out for the best in the long run.  Patience & hard work, and a great bond for remarkable teamwork, . . . so we are doing just fine.   Anyway, though, about the timing & such, we definitely realize we have been caught up in the Northeast a good month, but also want everyone to know that the speed will definitely change & pick up quite a bit once we get out of this over-populated area of the country!  Plus, there has been a lot we've needed to do before really getting started on the actual interviews . . . now that those are underway, if Matilda's abilities remain strong (fingers crossed) enough, we'll be rolling right along.  To answer one concern, we are not able to tell when we'll be in Texas as of yet, because that will be AFTER Los Angeles.  So, as a joke, Jeff wanted me to say that we'll be there before it's cold! haha

Oh, yeah!  So, we were walking down Broadway today, and I saw a mic come around the corner, hanging over the head of Jamie Kennedy & his co-star, Stu!  They had a 2-man camera/mic crew, which made us feel much more comfortable, considering they are an established TV show.  Not that we doubted being able to pull it off as just two folks actually doing the camera & audio work ourselves, but that we really would never have guessed that his show was shot with basically just the four of them.  Two camera/audio people and two subjects.  There wasn't even a hint of security around, but then again, they could have been in plain clothes somewhere in the small crowd.  Speaking of which, everyone keeps telling us we picked one of the absolute busiest times to come to New York -- the weekend of the fourth of July festivities, when everyone comes for the parade, fireworks, etc., but yet we haven't seen any big change in the crowd we have seen here in years past.

We ate at the Hard Rock Cafe, which seated us immediately thanks to a quick-thinking hostess (one out of three had the right idea! Thanks, name unknown!)  Our waitress, Nadine, was really nice & a pleasure to talk to.  And, honestly, I don't know if I have ever been to a restaurant where the food comes out SO FAST!  It was the Hard Rock Cafe in Times Square, and it was far from empty, but we got our food as if we were the only ones who had ordered a thing!  It was terrific!

We also went down to Ground Zero so Jeff could check it out.  He hadn't been there since the collapse.  It was really disturbing to him, as for pretty much anyone, of course.  From there, we headed over to Battery Park, & for the first time I went through the end I hadn't seen before, where they actually have the most quaint little dog area.  There are like fountains coming out of the ground for dogs to play in & drink from, & there were three small dogs in there playing fetch & having a blast in the water!  Too bad Hannah had to stay back at the hotel room, considering what it takes for us to get into the city.  Then, there is a small play area for children right next door.  The color of the sand is weird to me, though.  Sand in SC is more in the whitish/cream family.  The sand in this area was more red/orange/yellow . . . like dirt.  Weird.  There's also a concrete volleyball court there, which was active as we passed by . . . to walk along the main path by the water, towards the Statue of Liberty.  What we came across next was so interesting & frustrating that we HAD to stop & sit on a bench nearby to listen.  On one of the benches there were two girls, one sitting on the lap of another.  They were defending themselves to some sort of Park Security who apparently must have caught the two girls kissing & reacted as if they had just taken a garbage can & dumped the contents right into the water!  What I mean is, the security guard was actually sitting there writing them a TICKET for kissing in public!  Both of the girls remained very polite the entire time, but obviously very upset, & rightly so, in my opinion!  What we heard as we walked up initially was one girl telling him that she had stopped as soon as he asked her to, but if he was going to actually write her a ticket, then she might as well continue doing it.  She explained that most teenagers would have been rude & disrespectful to him, but that she was remaining respectful & had completely listened to him when he told them to stop doing what they were doing.  She said she would show she is more mature & the bigger person, which she did.  This guy was THE biggest jerk he could have been.  He was truly harassing them without just cause.  No matter how much she pleaded with him to give her a break, or just leave them alone, he would not really even just write a ticket & go away.  Instead, he took probably five minutes writing each LETTER on the ticket, as he continued simply to stare at them without really even speaking.  They moved away two benches, & he physically planted himself, as if a statue, & did not move -- less than ten feet away from them, & continued to glare directly at them, without breaking his stare, as if (like Jeff said) he was WAITING for some kind of legitimate reason to write a ticket.  It was really upsetting to me, because here is someone supposed to be the Park Security, and this is not the kind of thing he should have his attention fully focused on.  Like one of the girls finally asked . . . he must like to sit & watch.  They asked, "Are we naked?  Are we having sex?"  Nope, they weren't.  And I seriously doubt one rational person in that vicinity was offended.  I so very much felt compelled to go up to him & ask him for the name of his superior, so that I could at least jerk a knot in his tail that his ridiculous behavior was being observed by someone else as a witness.  I wanted to explain to him what his real duty to protect our safety should be . . . & I don't feel threatened by two people kissing on a bench by the water on a gorgeous evening, no matter what their sexual preference.  That was not cool with me.  But, I didn't get involved because the girls did really have it handled themselves.  And I think he KNEW he couldn't really give them a ticket . . . can he?  I mean, if there is a New Yorker out there that knows of some crazy law I am unaware of, please fill me in on the message board!

 

07/30/2006
Posted by:  Jennifer

3:53 a.m.

Unbelievable that you are seeing an update here again, right?  Well, we are sorry about that, but we've been working really hard on a lot of the "business" side of production while in Charleston for the past few weeks.  Since we have a lot of material to post within the website, you'll see it changing & growing a lot over the next several days.

Now, I must share something embarrassing that I have alluded to recently . . . involving a bank.  I should take you back to the week of my last post here.  We spent the fourth of July in one of the best places to do so:  BOSTON!!  We'd driven Matilda into the city on the third, to check things out, and had a wonderful day downtown.  We decided that's someplace we could really see ourselves living someday, perhaps.  Not that we have any need to leave Charleston, but you never know what will happen day-to-day.  We were walking on the sidewalk in one area, and a college student was approaching us from the opposite direction, when she suddenly exclaimed, "Hey, y'all!"  It was sweet, but totally threw us off because we were in Boston!  We know Bostonians can be wonderfully friendly, of course, but hadn't expected a "y'all" from anyone where the tea isn't automatically sweetened & iced.  We went through a few scenarios:  she's a college student from Texas, & missed home, but found comfort in seeing Jeff's cowboy hat . . . that was the favorite.  Don't you ever sit in a restaurant, and notice a couple dining near you, & maybe try to guess if they are on a first date, or in a new relationship, -- without being an eavesdropper -- really, just making up your own story for other people, for fun.  Try it sometime, you'll see that your imagination enjoys the practice.  When you're bored in a waiting area, let your eyes travel the room & think up all the scenarios of what each person waiting around does on a daily basis.  Why I babbled off in this direction, I don't know, but there you go. 

Back to the story, . . . so we ended up catching the fireworks in Boston on the fourth, as I mentioned.  They were big & beautiful, and as flammable as the breath of the guy standing next to us while we watched.  (Thanks for the sing-a=long to Neil Diamond, funny drunk guy.)  Jeff & I aren't big drinkers, so we're actually in the minority there, I guess.  As expected, when the show was over, the crowd of people (a.k.a. herd of cattle) moved along through the streets back to their cars.  The amazing thing about Boston that night, aside from the obvious, was that we noticed that there were no real parking laws being enforced, and at the same time they were not being taken advantage of . . . as if the cops were just cool with people parking in the marked "no parking" areas so that everyone could enjoy the fireworks.  It was really terrific of the  city to do something like that, whether it was something they made known to the community in advance, or if they just chose to look the other way for the evening.  Brilliant leadership that also reflected in the behavior of the people that live there.  It was a gorgeous night, and we stopped for ice cream sodas from a street vendor on the way back to finding where we had parked Matilda (Hannah was back at the hotel, possibly freaking out from the sounds of fireworks.  Lucky for her, we were not gone long at all.).

Did I mention this would be long?  I mean, yeah, I am getting to my embarrassing story.  At the same time, I have to GET you there . . . you know, . . . to the good part of the story.  Since we haven't posted in about a month, I have quite a bit of ground to cover.  Jeff's sleeping right now (it IS 4:30 a.m., after all), so it is up to me to fill y'all in for the time being.  As a side note, Jeff has been working VERY hard on a screenplay for another movie in development.  THAT one is a really BIG secret, but it will be a bad-ass feature flick one day, possibly our first.  That is a big decision to make, as well.  It doesn't hurt that we have about eight in development . . . all of which we are VERY excited to get into ASAP, . . . it just makes it difficult (in a fun, yet high-pressure way) to prioritize the films to decide which should come first, while evaluating the plethora of reasons why or why not.  Without any formal training in this (which we believe to be a positive rather than a drawback, as do many others), it is really the most in-depth, smash-your-face-in-it learning experience for us.  That's why even though we don't plan to do documentary-style films in the future, we felt it was a good place for us to get our feet wet and learn the ins & outs of things.  Ok, so, Jeff is poring over papers for hours on end every day, usually in the mornings.  We spend the days together discussing the plans and ideas for "Dream States" as well as the other films.  I've spent a lot of time with photos, artwork & finances lately.  Being without the luxury of high-speed internet (after having it cut off at our home while we're away for production) right now, it is a tedious job to transfer photos through dial-up!!  We've also had time to review some footage shot within the last month, and it only makes us look forward to when we will sit & edit it later.  (For those that don't know, editing CAN be done during the production stage, and these days more & more filmmakers are doing so.  Technically, though, it is done during post-production, which allows for better organization of all of the footage before deciding what to use & what to cut, etc.  We're going that route, because with so many different dynamic personalities involved in our interviews, along with the fact that the footage is real and not scripted, it will be better-suited for our format.)

Wow, are you STILL reading this?  You are a real trooper!  For that, you deserve a prize . . . let me skip right along to the good part.  So, the day after the fourth of July, we had spoken to a garage not too far from Braintree, Massachusetts about checking on Matilda for us.  Days earlier, we'd had a little trouble with the generator remaining ON, and at one point when we were trying to figure  out the problem, a spark shot out of the outlet near the fuse panel & I heard a loud pop!  I was petrified that everything was going to just go up in flames.  Basically, our power converter had a problem & we were no longer able to use the generator.  Soooo, there we were in Boston, about to head through the U.S. towards California, and then back to South Carolina, . . . but we had no use of the generator & have never had A/C in the van part, so we figured it was stupid to continue wasting money having to stay in hotels/motels until we could pay to get her repaired.  We had to make the tough decision to head for Charleston, so that we could find a more practical and cost-effective way to take care of things in order to ensure production would continue in the safest and best possible manner.  That said, we decided to skip the garage that was about 45 minutes from our hotel, and instead head for home to re-group.  We left Boston around 11 a.m. I suppose . . . normal check-out time, which I personally always push until the VERY last minute.  We (I, until Jeff gets his license straightened out -- see June's posts if you missed the "why" of that situation) drove all night, anxious to get to "home base" after over a month on the road in a well-loved yet still highly disappointing Minnie Winnie that we only want to make better, . . . & have really tried!  We're determined not to let her sputter out just yet . . . we know she is just not used to stretching her ol' legs yet, after sitting around for so long.  The odometer isn't even over 50,000 miles, and SHE IS A 1983!  Heck, we'd be bowled over if someone with the means came to us with an offer to loan us a reliable camping vehicle for the rest of production, yet at the same time, we feel such a loyalty to Matilda, and an obligation to keep her for the whole production.  She's covered in stickers & looking better as more & more are added all the time!  Thank you all, by the way, for your continued sticker donations!  (I'm going to post some very current photos of Matilda's new look soon (like, on this very early morning). -- I was working on that when I started typing this, so look for those soon.  I'll try to remember to come back here & add a link.)  Plus, we REALLY do LOVE Matilda.  She has character, and drive, . . . pun intended AND not intended, and Hannah, Jeff & I really feel comfortable and at home in there -- when she is working like she should.  So, it's almost time to get back on the road again -- next stop, Kentucky -- and so far, she is looking pretty good for the next leg of the race.

Back to the point of the story where we were leaving Boston & heading to Charleston, . . . here it comes.  After about a four hour nap stop at a rest area, and some regular food and restroom stops, we made it back to Charleston sometime near or around 2 p.m. on July 6th.  This is the point in time where we remember we live out in the country & if we want food we have to get it now.  We had spent our cash along the way, so I had to go to the ATM at my local bank.  Now, people, keep in mind I have been driving this thing about 96+% of the time after Jeff's "D.C. situation" -- haha -- not to mention, I had just practically driven all night & was a bit weary.  Anyhoo, we pull up to the drive-through area of the bank, where the ATM of this branch is located, . . . YES, I did say the drive-through area -- but I DID stop.  We assessed the situation.  I decided the roof was tall enough.  Jeff got out to confirm, and stated it would be CLOSE.  I looked in my rear-view mirror at the three cars in line behind me & went on in. 

I don't know what to say next.  I heard a slight "crunch" sound maybe, & Jeff's face got a little, um, flash of "I knew it"/concern on it.  Somehow, inside, I figured it was alright.  By now,  I was already AT the ATM, so I proceeded to get our money out for the food we were so hungry for upon our arrival home.  Here comes the tricky part.  I'd heard the crunch, I was already under the roof, & I still had to drive OUT.  I attempted to do so, only to hear constant scraping during the seconds that felt like minutes upon minutes, as Jeff begged me to go as slowly as I could possibly imagine . . . but AGAIN, it was only seconds, if not a split-second, after pulling inches from the ATM that a car's horn honked from behind me & I glanced in the rear view mirror to see acoustic ceiling tiles falling and lights being ripped from the ceiling!!!  I was MORTIFIED, PANIC-STRICKEN, EMBARRASSED, . . . UM, MORTIFIED!!  I mean, what exactly do you do, . . . when you find out that the two bikes you had lying down on top of the RV were now standing upright, embedded in the ceiling of a bank, while four or more cars sat back waiting for the ATM you had now closed-off access to for awhile??  Well, what I did was sat there & . . . just sat there.  I looked to Jeff for a solution, help, . . . be the hero, man.  Oh, My, Goodness.  Seriously, what idiot does that?  July 6th was my day, so it goes.  I sat there for a minute or two, knowing there was no way I was going to personally be able to remove my Winnebago from the crashed-into-a-bank state I had put it in . . . long enough to see the bank manager come up to my driver's-side window.  I rolled it down & he actually said these words to me, "Uh, um, yeah, m'am, we're going to need to get those bikes out of the ceiling."

I stared at him, still in shock (I think we both were), & softly replied, "Yeah."  The next few minutes pretty much consisted of me grabbing my cell phone to call someone, but unsure  of whom, while at the same time watching Jeff try to think of what to do, & begging him to somehow magically make it all better.  Thank you so very much, Jeff, by the way -- let it be known that despite his frustration, that is exactly what he did.  He had to climb on top of the Winnie, while the bank manager & I watched, & somehow cautiously remove the totally mutilated (thanks to my dumb self) bikes I had just bought us for the trip (we were REALLY looking forward to using them out west, in the amazing scenery) from the ceiling of the bank.  All the while, he had to watch for hanging wires & lights & falling tile.  I felt like THE biggest dumbass at that point . . . & I was really glad the news didn't show up to air footage of the most idiotic accident in Charleston for the last ten years.  The cops showed up, took my info., . . . & then we were forced to wait, ultimately so that two OTHER cops (one more important one, you know, with the shirt & tie & all) could seemingly come just to SEE the scene.  I only damaged the bank's property (& the bikes), so there were no charges pressed.  AND, IN MY DEFENSE, there is NO clearance sign there at the bank, either!  I didn't want to bring it up then, but I'm just saying it could be helpful.

Last but not least, I was just a little close to the ATM itself when we had to drive away.  I actually ASKED the cops to STAY while I pulled Matilda out of the bank, because I told them there was a good chance they may need to fill out another accident report.  I was just being honest.  The cop acknowledged that I made the comment, but still proceeded to bid us all a good afternoon, & he & his partner drove off.  I had Jeff pull the RV away from the ATM.  There was just NO WAY I could see myself doing that successfully after what I had just done to the bank.  So, now I will shut up.  I think I have shared enough to tide you all over.  Here's your dessert:  the pictures!


 

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