The Alchemist

Once again, seemingly lacking any kind of coherent strategy for world diplomacy and terrorism, politicians are relying on 9/11 induced FUD (fear, uncertainty, and doubt) to drive their election strategy. Obviously this works for some and so I expect we’ll be seeing a whole bunch more of it, but Rudy Giuliani has now officially lost any little bit of credibility he might have had with me with his latest statements (via Politico):

“Rudy Giuliani said if a Democrat is elected president in 2008, America will be at risk for another terrorist attack on the scale of Sept. 11, 2001. But if a Republican is elected, he said, especially if it is him, terrorist attacks can be anticipated and stopped.”

His hubris does not bode well for us.

After a hard weekend full of painful fight stunts (I was SO bruised Saturday!) and dramatic acting (the fun stuff!), I’ve wrapped on “Dependence” - a short film about drug addiction and it’s affect on two brothers. I’m really looking forward to seeing the final result of this one!

Eric Byant and I wrapped up an advanced smallsword fencing class a while back. At the end of that class, Eric, Brian Hartz, and I decided that we were pretty proud of the choreography and fencing and wanted to video tape it to share. So, we did!

We taped the entire sequence about 8 times from different angles (and boy were we tired!). I was tasked with editing the whole mess of footage together. Recently I finally found the time to do the edit and post the film.

So, without further ado, I’d like to share what we did. I hope you like it and I hope this will pique your interest in taking fencing lessons!!!

Enjoy!

Click To Play

I have some fantastic news: I just received word last night that I will be starring as the Citizen Chauvelin, the French Revolutionary, in The Belfry’s production of The Scarlet Pimpernel!

Intrigue, Treachery, Swordplay, Romance, Song, and Dance… what a show this will be!

I can’t wait to meet the rest of the cast!

I’m pleased to announce that I’ve accepted a role playing “Robert” in the upcoming film “Spooky Tales” being directed by Kehaulani Haydon. I’m thrilled to be working with a fantastic crew and set of actors (including finally working with my friend, Steve “Papaw” Pyatte. And I’m in awe over the fact that I’ll be in this film with a true legend of stage, film, and television: Emmy and Tony award winner Nanette Fabray! Wow.

Just FYI - I’ve recut my demo reel to include clips from Foxxy Madonna Vs. The Black Death, so of course it’s far better and worth watching again! It’s available on my Portfolio page.

(BTW: If haven’t seen the Foxxy movie and you don’t want to see spoilers, don’t watch the reel until you watch the film. So, go watch it now!)

What are you currently tolerating? What is it doing to your life? What would your life look like if you stopped tolerating it?

That’s right! Foxxy Madonna vs. The Black Death has been recut and remastered as a director’s cut! It’s way more Foxxy! Be sure to watch to the end after the credits or you’ll miss the end of the story!

(By the way, with Foxxy now listed on IMDB, I’m now at 3 IMDB credits! Sure, 3 isn’t fantastic and it’s far from the number of films that I’ve been in, but hey… I’m working on it.)

And now, without any further delay, to the film…

1. What important tasks would you complete or activities would you plan to achieve if you knew that you only had five years to live?
2. What would you want to do in the next twelve months if your doctor told you that you had one year to live?
3. What would you regret not doing if you died tomorrow?

The article “The Science of Lasting Happiness ” in this month’s Scientific American, discusses a researcher trying to find the keys to happiness. The good news is that you can boost your happiness! The bad news: It’s hard work. But worth the effort, I think.

So meditate on these key happiness factors for a while, put together a plan to increase your happiness, and get going! Life is too precious to spend it unhappy.

• Kindness
• Gratitude
• Optimism
• Variety

(Bonus: Not only will the first two make you happier, but will make those around you happier as well!)