I’m going to Barbados tomorrow morning for a week on the beach with my brothers. Lookin’ forward to it. This city has been slowly strangling me for awhile now, and i’m starting to go red. I need to breathe again. Smell the fresh air.

Not to say Barbados won’t make me turn red as well, but, that’ll just be the sunburn. See ya next week HelL.A. Till then, you’ll have to find someone else to kick around.

8 August 2008 12:06 AM, PDT

An image of Harry Potter star Robbie Coltrane has been featured on a wanted poster in New Zealand.

A photograph of the British actor has been used on a police information leaflet appealing for help catching a 16-year-old burglar.

The country’s laws prohibit the publication of pictures of juvenile criminals, so authorities have used a photo of Coltrane - insisting the perpetrator looks like a younger version of the star.

The poster reads: “Robbie Coltrane is not the burglar, but imagine him aged 16 with lank greasy hair and you have the picture.”

Leaflets have been distributed in the Christchuch area in a bid to catch the thief, who is wanted in connection with a string of robberies.

A spokeswoman for Coltrane was unable to comment on the poster, as the 58-year-old actor is currently on holiday with his family.

What can I say? I’m a multi-tasker. Now ya get TWO blogs for the price of one! Check it out gang:

www.WhoWillWeWill.com

Just banged out an outline for a new high-concept comedy I’m kind of excited about. Spent 4 of the last 5 days brainstorming and hammering out ideas for it. Came up with enough for a complete (and dare I say, funny) story– start to finish. I’m going to be lame here and spout the old line: “I can’t talk about it just yet”, cuz, well, I can’t. I’m pretty stoked on the idea and I can’t risk it getting stolen. Afterall when I was 19, I wrote what would later become Turistas, and when i was 20, I came up with the concept for The Island. Yes, both movies bombed hardcore (and more importantly, they were both awful) but they woulda been great if I wrote [and directed!] them damnit! I kid of course, nobody stole the ideas from me (i dont think), but I did write startlingly similar scripts only to see them eventually hit the silver screen.

     Man, its an awful feeling, I tell ya. To see your brainchild get butchered on the screen and make bajillions of dollars while some suits pat themselves on the back and collect their fat paychecks. I also wrote a dark superhero script about 4 years ago, still my favorite of all my works, that is strikingly similar to Hancock (minus the offbeat comedy). Though to be fair, I heard that script’s been floating around for a decade. There was however a clever construction scene fight i choreographed for it, thought it was kind of smart cuz I’ve never really seen a film with a massive melee at a construction site. Then a little flick called Casino Royale came out. First scene? Beeeeautiful showdown at, where else– a construction site! The following year, a little ditty called Spiderman 3 came out, and someone thought that for the film’s climactic battle “Hey! Lets put it at a construction site!” But that’s ok, nobody will remember those flicks in a year’s time, right? Riiight.

So anyways, yeah, I’m not divulging this new outline to anyone. It’s truly original. And if I see this pop up on screen in the next year or two, without my name attached to it. I’m gonna…I’m gonna…well I’ll probably just put my head between my legs and cry. Lets face it. I can’t compete with Hollywood……yet.

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about my time in SouthEast Asia. Not just this year’s trip, but last year’s as well. I’ve been going through my iPhoto library sifting through the literally thousands of photos, trying to organize them and such. It’s quite an odd and unique experience. Stirs up so many thoughts and feelings. The other day a dear friend (who actually met me because she stumbled upon my blog one day while browsing the internet) told me not to go through my old photos, that it’d only be torture. And to an extent, she’s right. It’s difficult retracing so many unbelievable memories that now feel so far away, so long past.

Even if I’m barely less than a year removed from it all. 

But going through these photos has another, counter-balancing, and believe it or not far more powerful effect. It reminds me how amazing life can be. How extradordinary it can feel to be free. And how much more of the world there is to see.

As hard as life can be for me in LA at times (like now), I have to remember that even though I’m going through a ” 1/4 life crisis” (to quote another good friend), that means only one thing: I still have 3/4ths of my life left to live. And according to some silly Facebook application, 89% more of the world to see. Now i just have to figure out how to finance the trip.

I feel very fortunate to be able to share with you guys some of my favorite photos that I’ve taken on some of my extraordinary travels. Whether you’re a Facebook member or not, the link below should work for you. Enjoy. And as always, thanks for reading.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=17473&l=e8073&id=597270464

P.S. Go travellin’.

It’s official. The 3rd annual FEAST charity fundraiser (is that redundant?) is on. Only this time Bryan and I have moved the date from December to October. The location from indoors to outdoors. The ambition from quaint friendly gathering to massive public bonanza. If you don’t know what I’m talkin’ about, or haven’t received our “call to Arms” in your email, there’s a reason for that…I don’t have your email. Leave it here for me in the comments section and I’ll send you the info ASAP. 

For those who can’t wait, this year we’re raising money for a little Cambodian organization called Who Will. Right now it’s just my friend Georgie and another woman, single-handedly taking in orphans off the street into their home (in Phnom Penh, Cambodia). But they’ve drawn up plans to build a wonderful new orphanage. But, like everyone else in Cambodia, they’re lacking the funds. So our goal is to do one of two things. Either raise enough money to help start building that new orphanage- full name Dreamcatcher Children’s Hamlet (I think the name needs work but that’s just me), or, single-handedly fund their current orphanage for a YEAR. It currently costs a mere $380 a month to run, so, we can do this.

So come on people. This is your chance to help. This baby’s gonna be massive. The kids in Cambodia need us, and someone’s gotta answer the call.

Who Will? WE will. Will you?

.  

P.S. As if you couldn’t tell by the two years’ previous invitations above, this baby’s always a hell of a lotta fun too.

I’m not embarassed to say that this video [nearly] brought tears to my eyes. This is the way the world should be.

http://www.vimeo.com/1211060?pg=embed&sec=1211060

The blog is live again, thank you all for your concern, its great to know that so many of you read it. At any rate, I’m back in LA, getting settled, moving into my new place, and looking, once again, for a new job. As soon as i get settled in a week or so, get ready for a whole slew of new blogs. The last 3 weeks in SE Asia were perhaps the craziest of my life, and I’ve got a dozen blogs worth of entertaining stories to tell. Be afraid. And excited…

It’s 10:30am, Friday - June 27th. Im back in LA. Have been for 2 weeks. I went to bed 7 hours ago and now I’m awake. That’s a lot of sleep for me. Now I’m laying here with my new laptop…on top of my lap. Just woke up after yet another dream about life on the road…

…This time I was on a beach in Thailand. Down south somewhere. Splashing and playing in the water with a few friends. I was the veteran here. I’d been to this beach, conquered this continent, loved it, and now I was elated to have the opportunity to take some good friends from back home– first-timers who were in absolute Heaven. We hit the sand, a little beach football. Some of the local kids had never seen one– an American football that is.

At some point I looked at my watch (the most unrealistic part of my dream since I don’t own one) and realized I had a half-hour to get to the airport to catch a plane to Cambodia. “Shoot, guys we gotta bail!” I say. Time for the next stop on your ‘Path to Self-Discovery’ tour. They all look at me kinda funny. That look you give as a kid when mom catches you writing on the walls…again. They forgot to buy their tickets.

They tell me to go on ahead, they’ll meet me there tomorrow. But they look happy on this beach. Like they don’t want to see the grim (and yet awe-inspiring) reality of Cambodia. And who can blame them. Why risk entering the real world when you can live in a dream world? No time to debate. No time to make them understand. Cambodia was calling. I bailed and found a cab. Hoping they’d follow me to Cambodia but knowing they probably wouldn’t. I got to Cambodia. Found my hostel– a simple, dingy little joint I’d been to before, a place I know and love.

And then I woke up. The dream ended while I was lying on my cot, waiting for my friends to show up. Lying there in a beautifully poor little town in Cambodia under a single flourescent bulb, surrounded by cheap fake wood-paneled walls. All of which would be considered luxuries to the Cambodians. I didn’t mind the room one bit. I’d just wished I had someone to share it with. Someone who ‘gets it’. Someone who gets me. Or at least tries to. And then I woke up from the dream. Woke up in my Brentwood apartment. Also alone. A nice big ceiling fan overhead, freshly-painted walls (eggshell white maybe?) and a big down comforter. A Macbook Pro by my bedside. And at the moment, for now…it just feels wrong. It’s difficult to determine which is the dream and which is real. Either way, one thing is for sure…

…its time to wake up. 

Sorry guys. I know this blog is a bit bleak. But hey, life ain’t always a beach. And that’s OK. That’s just life.

Hey all,

Sorry, I know I’ve fallen behind on the blogging lately. WAY behind. And if there are any of you loyal readers left, I commend you. I’ve had a lot on my mind lately. It’s been crazy/stressful/cool/chaotic/exciting/fantastic/overwhelming and even though i do have a lot of free time here, I haven’t been able to properly sit down, relax, and compose my thoughts in a cool, orderly (and most importantly WITTY) fashion, in order to deliver to you faithful followers what you so generously crave…a proper blog. (Don’t you love when the title of a blog/book/movie gets slipped into the body of work?)

Anyways. Most of the crazy stories that have happened to me these past few weeks (and there are some really cool ones) involve our awesome cast, so i really can’t divulge them here anyways. As soon as I get back to the states though (new projected arrival date of June 13th) I’d be more than happy to talk any and all of your ears off for as long as you can possibly stand it. Ya know, I’ve actually just decided, literally as I’m typing this, to hold off on the Thai stories i was going to share, just for now, and explain why things have been so nutso-insane up in ol’ A.H.’s noggin’ lately. Here goes…

…We wrap shooting in 5 days. Holy crap, I just got here. And yet, I feel like I’ve always lived here. Like other than my friends and family back in the states that I miss so much…this is home. And yet, in 5 days we’re done, and in 7 days i gotta move outta my apartment, and then…what’s next? Me being me, and me being in ASIA, i can’t just go home like the rest of the crew. No way, I’m here. Gotta make the most of it. So i extended my ticket 3 weeks. To June 13th. How I’m going to fill that time, no clue. All i know is that this time around, instead of my trusty ol’ backpack and me, I’ve got a duffle bag, a tripod, a camera case, a laptop in a small backpack, and…my trusty ol’ backpack. That’s too much gear to carry with me on the backpacker trail. Hopefully i can find a Thai friend who will let me store it at their place till I get back. Actaully, these Thais are so damn sweet, i could probably walk up to a stranger on the street and ask ‘em, and they’d say “sure no problem.” I have several options in regards to travel. One is locked down. A buddy and I booked a ticket to Macau and Hong Kong for the end of May. That’ll be sweet. But i have about 6 free days until then. Will probably go down south. The beach may be a lonely place on my own, but, i’ll be ‘aight’. Do some writing maybe. But its after China that’s really stressin’ me out. I’ve had a planned trip to Korea now goin on 3 months, and because of the unavoidable and always changing schedule of the girl i know that lives there (funnily enough, a backpacker i met in SE Asia last year), we STILL don’t know if that shite is gonna happen. Ugh. Oh yeah, and when i get back to the states, I may be unemployed. MAY be. Everything in my life is up in the air now.
And i guess that’s the culprit behind my currently-scrambled brain.

But I’m not complaining. I’m a backpacker. And the backpacker relishes the unknown journey ahead. The backpacker adores having the ability, to arrive at that fork in the road, and have that rare freedom to choose any path. The backpacker looks down the road to the right called ‘Brain’, and the road to the left called ‘Heart’, and instead opts for a third path, where these two roads will eventually merge.
Doesn’t mean its not a scary decision. It is. But it’s also exciting. Nerve-wracking. Uplifting. Terrifying. Liberating. And at the end of this trip, I only want to be able to say one thing. Just one.

“I have no regrets.”

So far, so good. No. So far, so amazing. And that’s my life at the moment. Thanks for being a part of it. Stay tuned…