A Labor Day Respite
Let's all get some rest
It’s Labor Day Weekend and I could use a little nap!
I had a big shoot this past week with two exterior locations that threatened to be rained out. If you’ve ever been a producer, you know the delicate dance of trying to keep things on schedule while still planning for every possible contingency. That was my week last week.
Shoots are incredibly costly endeavors which involve coordinating the schedules of various freelance crews, actors, locations, and much more. The threat of rain causes producers to scramble to find all possible avenues to keep a shoot on track, or risk either paying big fees for last minute changes or having to rebook new people and places.
We ended up being able to keep our shoot in tact by shifting the schedule of our day, filming an interior sequence during the heaviest of the rains, then heading outdoors for the afternoon. Luckily, the rain had cleared by the time we made it outside and we had a beautifully sunny afternoon. Unfortunately, one sequence took place on a path in the woods that happened to be swarming with post-rain mosquitoes. We ended up finishing the day on schedule, and so far at least, without contracting West Nile virus or EEE.
My mind is swirling with ideas for a long form Sunday piece this week, but I also wanted to have a little time to relax and spend with the family, so today’s post will simply be a brief hello.
My family and I are away for the weekend, getting one last RV trip in for the summer before the kids head back to school. We’re staying at some local Harvest Host sites, including an amazing local winery whose specialties included an asparagus wine. It sounded strange and was worth trying and I actually ended up bringing home a bottle (which includes an asparagus spear inside). It was earthy and dry, but very good.
As we were pulling into the parking lot on Friday night, there was a musician playing live music who was covering Margaritaville. When we woke up the next morning, I was shocked and saddened to learn of the death of Jimmy Buffet. While I never made it to one of his live shows, his music has been on rotation in our house for years now.
The closest that I ever got to interviewing Buffet was speaking to Will Kimbrough a few years ago on the podcast. He’s an artist in his own right, but also collaborated with Buffet for nearly 20 years.
My interview with Will happened to also coincide with the launching of this newsletter (back when the podcast and newsletter were called Quarantine Creatives). If you’re looking for a longer read from me this Sunday, read back to my very first issue of this newsletter. It describes Will’s relationship to Buffet, has an interview with comedy writer
, and tells more of my story for those of you who are relatively new subscribers.I’ll be back with more on Wednesday, but until then, please enjoy this long weekend and let’s all get some much needed rest for a bit.
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