toto, i don't think we're in atlanta anymore

apparently l.a. and santa monica have a higher standard of living. i'm used to hearing homeless ask, "can you spare some change?" or maybe ask for $1. these are definitely some high-class hobos. i have also seen one listening to a creative zen mp3 player, and another wearing a gap sweatshirt. true story. maybe i should start asking them for change. i took the above pic on 3rd street promenade (my fav place)--a very ritzy area where the girls are gorgeous, shops are expensive, street performance is top-notch, and the homeless are rich.

in the gym i recently saw 2 people in front of me. one had a princeton ecomonics shirt on, the other a 'berkeley alumni' shirt. i then realized that this didn't surprise me. i thought about work and realized that not a single fellow employee came from a school less prestigious than mit, harvard, berk, ucla, usc, cal tech, carnegie mellon, or waterloo, or another ivy-league. in fact, i can only list 1 person who came from a school OTHER than those. it's not impressive anymore, it's just my new environment. it's funny to think that just 6 yrs ago i would scribble on my homework or textbooks about 'mit' or other imagery of supposed eliteness. well, i finally made it.

L.A. film festival (part 2)!

the previous post mentions my excitement from seeing the film "it's winter." specifically, hearing the director, rafi pitts, speak afterwards made it an amazing experience.

that night, sonia and i were walking the streets, checking out film festival stuff when we randomly saw the director walk right past us! i wanted to speak to him and tell him how great it was, but it all happened too fast and he was w/ ppl. darn. well, that was exciting.

the next day (today), sonia and i were walking around downtown as i was on the phone w/ tim. i look up and notice the same director again! he was just talking on his cell by the curb w/ nobody around him. we were gonna go up to him, but he was deep in conversation. we were really excited and i wished i could said something to him. dangit.

later, sonia goes to the grocery store. i'm telling the person on the phone about this and how i missed 2 chances to speak to him. it was at this time that i look up and see the director coming my way for the 3rd time. he turns right in front of me to head into the store. i introduce myself, we shake, talk, and i tell him what i loved about it. he initiates to shake my hand again and looks as if he's about to cry. he tells me how much i made his day and repeatedly thanks me. we each walk away smiling. job done. magnolia-style.

i get back to my car, start to back-up as i notice he's sitting in my back seat! k, just kidding. he wasn't in the car w/ us.

L.A. film festival + pharrell = amazing

the 'film independents' series at the film festival got me excited about like a little school girl. i started off my festivities by getting tickets for 'it's winter'--an iranian film in persian w/ english subtitles. the harsh weather and dismal job opportunities sets the depressing tone throughout the entire movie. it basically involves a young lady who is left by her husband as he attempts to find 'better' money/job for his family. he never returns, and her new husband does the same. the story involves love, complacency, and the pain of work and of always wanting something better. afterwards, i think i heard ppl killing themselves in the back of the theatre, but here are the cool parts:

(1) before the movie started, the iranian director and main actress prefaced the movie and the actress said this is the 1st time she's ever seen the movie. it was very emotional for her.

(2) afterwards, the director answered questions and blew all of our minds. it was overwhelmingly deep. it was hands-down one of the most amazing entertainment-based experiences of my life. for example:

(a) the cinematography was so carefully chosen that in important scenes, the background was "complex like a maze," which symbolized the males' interpreted path to solve their problems. yet, the focal point of the picturesque scenes focused narrowly down the center, which represented that their best solution was to merely continue their current roles and not leave what they currently have.

(b) he hired normal, real manual laborers as his entire cast instead of hired actors so as to make it more genuine.

(c) the climax/entire development of the couple's relationship involved no audible words--but merely music and the unusually warm colors--so that the audience can stitch together the story with their definition of love, and because "music invokes imagery, but imagery does not invoke music."

tons of many more comments, plus, i later saw the director walking next to me on the street just like any other passerby.

movie:

at night, sonia and i went to see a 90-minute interview w/ the famous hip-hop producer pharrell. (he's done beats for jay-z, britney spears, justin timerblake, p diddy, etc.) he couldn't hold a conversation and ended up just talking about youtube, startrek, and saying 'uhhhh' a lot. disappointing. nevertheless, i acted as a spy by getting amazingly close to him and taking the following pic:

so basically, the movie turned out to be one of my favorites and pharrell disappointed me.

california - "it was all a dream"

just as background info for all 2 people who may read this blog that may only last for a few entries:

after many years of lusting, i finally moved out to cali in may. i imagined it would be a long, arduous, eventful drive across the country while blasting eagle's 'hotel california' and phantom planet's 'california.' instead, it was a minimal flight that included my packing my entire life into 2 duffel bags. i arrived at my new unfurnished apartment w/ no belongings, food, means of transportation, and i knew nobody. "i don't even have my 88 accord anymore" :-) i'm starting from scratch. still just a man tryin make it in this world. back to the basics starving artist.

this summer = interning at google.
this fall = grad school at ucla

by june, i finally had some stuff: