It's fall...Venice, new shows, new movies, new clothes, very exciting

FH man is looking especially handsome and rugged today. We are shooting on a boat and it's cold.

This is my favorite season. I am so happy I get spend part of it in a city where there is actually a climate change.

Fall always meant new beginnings to me, more so than spring. I think it's because of the school calendar. I loved back to school shopping despite conversations with my mom like this:

8th grade

Me: "Mom can I get a pair of Guess jeans?"

Mom: "No. They are too expensive."

Me: "No they're not. All the girls have them."

Mom: Sucks her teeth loudly and looks very annoyed. "Why do I care what the other girls are wearing? You are going to school to get an education, not for a fashion show. Don't bother me with this foolishness again."

Me: Not crazy enough to argue with a salty West Indian woman. I let it drop and dream of the day I can buy my own clothes.


I was one of those geeky kids who salivated over the Mead notesbooks and binders. Something about the clean, blank pages made me excited...as if the new school year would bring great things to write down. In high school, fall meant football games on Saturdays and band competitions on Sundays. I got to spend the entire weekend out of the house after a long summer.

In the film world fall is the season of the smart and/or adult movies as we gear up for the awards season. I cannot wait to see P.T. Anderson's THERE WILL BE BLOOD, with Daniel Day Lewis. I think Anderson is a very interesting director and Mr. Lewis is one of the fiercest actors on the freaking planet. He hardly acts anymore but when he does, even when the movie is flawed (GANGS OF NEW YORK) you cannot stop watching him. He really commits, to the point where it must be a little scary to star opposite him. I wonder what Cameron Diaz (who was completely miscast) thought about working with him.

Being in production, I haven't had a chance to see all the new TV shows for fall. I did catch DIRTY, SEXY, MONEY and thought it was hilarious. The mean, snarky Episcoplian priest cracked me up. The show is like DYNASTY but with better clothes. Great cast and writing.

I caught another ABC show, PRIVATE PRACTICE. What the hell is this? Why are grown people acting like children? It's too silly.

Speaking of grown people, according to the mags, fall clothes are going to be more sophisticated. Finally! I wished I lived in a cooler climate so I could wear tights, gloves, the wool pencil skirts etc. I am so over the baby doll dresses (which look horrible on most body types) and the weird child-like clothes that have been popular the last few seasons. With my body type I like clothes that have more structure.

One new thing I am very excited about is my "post production/I am done (I will be by then) with my book" trip. I am using my left over per diem money to go to Venice for Thanksgiving. The weather will be a crapshoot but there will be fewer tourists and hotels are cheaper that time of year (however the low dollar is still killing me and it keeps dropping!) I have to stop looking at the exchange rates online and just enjoy the trip. I hear Venice can be pricey but I'm sure I will find good places to eat that will not break the bank. I am going for a week, instead of for only a 3 or 4 days (that would be a very long flight from L.A. for such a short period of time). I am looking forward to taking it easy and not running around trying to see everything on a checklist. That is the one big advantage of traveling by yourself to big cities, you are own your own schedule.