Summer swallowed us whole.
~ Close to Home by The Get Up Kids
This is an attempt to summarize my summer
(which basically includes the last two months) and while I have made
some rough notes, yes notes, it is important to consider that I am also
drinking. So the two may collide and create a
confusing or interesting or confusingly interesting or even an
interestingly confusing story about my last 62-ish days. It
is also important to know that the notes I have written thus far
regarding my summer were not taken over the entire course of the summer
but over the course of about 3 hours last week when I had nothing
better to do but sit in my (Tony W’s) office and write notes about my
summer (it was a slow day).
If you get tired of reading about my exploits feel free to do something about it, like stopping. This is an entry written by a slacker dreamer anyways. A slacker dreamer who needs to remember to buy small plastic zip ties and colored electrical tape before he returns to college. A fact that has nothing to do with the last two months but that he needs to remember of nonetheless. My
point being you probably wont take away anything of value from what I
have to say so there are many “better” ways to be spending your time.
The raw elements of my summer include but are in
no way limited to; confusing dentistry, John Deere, my own nomadic
behavior, the unabashed celebration of table prayers, long hours behind
the wheel, pigs, the greatest of all fireworks display, hours of porch
sitting, a final roller coaster ride and the further realization of
what an old man I have become, ice cream, the terror of a $20,000
camera lens, Slipknot, a blind dog who will forever be never dead, the
Hollywood work ethic and the predictability of celebrities, rain,
drunken violence and the constant awareness of constant awkwardness, All Dogs go to Heaven
and its fanatical viewing, the heat, the Heat, a tragic helicopter
crash, mermaid attacks, a curious coincidence concerning last names,
one giant blue chicken, and an unplanned audition for Deal, or No Deal, Chicago hope (not to be confused with Chicago Hope).
While the list I just provided covers most of the
my summer’s highlights, it is not (to my best knowledge) in
chronological order. I will however try to follow it
the best I can because it would appear (at least from the outside
looking in) that “a tragic helicopter crash, mermaid attacks…and an
unplanned audition for Deal, or No Deal.” Would make for a big and exciting finish to the summer you are all dying to know about.
The dentist’s office is, as I understand, not the favorite place for many people to go. I have personally never really minded. The
off-white walls provide a soothing, non-threatening environment in
which to get my teeth cleaned and with the exception of two cavities
when I was around ten and the fact that my dentist won’t let the
subject of my crooked teeth that run along the front of the bottom of
my mouth drop (damn you wisdom teeth and the crowding that you wrought
on my mouth!!!). So actually don’t mind the trip; I
think its cool that I don’t have to brush my teeth the morning of an
appointment (What’s the point right? They’re gonna
get power washed anyways.) And I like reading AARP magazine in the
waiting room-- I just realized that I have created a relatively large
amount of build-up for this portion of my story. Build-up
that the story’s end will not do justice so I will come out and say
that I thought it was strange that they dental hygienist felt the need
to take my blood pressure before the start of my bi-yearly teeth
cleaning. It also created worry about the person that gets turned away from a cavity check because, “We’re afraid your heart just can’t handle the fluoride treatment today. Sorry. Maybe next week.” However
my blood pressure was 20/80 or 80/20 I don’t really remember its been
too long and I don’t know what a healthy blood pressure rating is
anyway, but I know I got my teeth cleaned so it couldn’t have been too
bad.
From this point further my internship at Applied Art and Technology ( www.appliedart.com
) will figure into the story of my summer heavily so I will introduce
you into the characters which you will need to be familiar with;
George C. – One of Applied Arts founding partners and one hell of a guy. George was actually my “in” at Applied as he went to high school with my mother. Thanks mom.
Ken L. – Ken basically tells me what to do. In
my own short sighted world I think Ken likes me because I am doing
errands and tasks that he would normally have to do and as a result he
gets to sit in his office and surf porn all day. This
also leads me to believe that I could do his job without much problem
as long as I had an intern and a high-speed connection.
Heather C. – Producer at Applied Art, (no relation
to George C.) has put me on several of her shoots this summer as a
“Production Assistant” which means that I do everything. Which for the
record is not a complaint, I have thus far loved this job and learned a
lot as a result of doing everything and I would like to thank Heather
both right now over cyberspace.
885 words thus far and I’m just getting started,
you may want to get some popcorn or perhaps some Fantana (I fucking
love those commercials), it’s going to be a while. (Note that the
number 885 may be inaccurate after a proofread is completed).
Tony W. – Another partner at Applied Art Tony has for most of the summer been living a movie person’s dream.
An aside: (I saw an aside in one of my brother’s
xanga posts once so I am going to imitate) In 1991 Iowa’s Norway High
School won the state baseball championship for class 1A. Good job Tigers. However, a single State Championship is no big deal in itself. Especially
for Norway who had been to 20 State Championships, winning something
like 12 (maybe 10 but I think its 12, it really doesn’t matter) and
produced several major league ballplayers. None of which I can remember or that you would know so don’t worry about it. What
made the 1991 championship so special was that it would be the last in
the schools history as it was the last year that school would be in
existence. It was what they call in the biz “a Hollywood ending” and Tony W. recognized it. Shortly
after the ’91 season Tony W. called the coaches and others involved and
secured story and movie rights to the their story, he then tracked down
a screenwriter and paid to have a script written, which he then shopped
around to investors for production money. Long story
short (too late) 15 years later Tony is producing his first feature
film starring Sean Astin (Lord of the Rings trilogy, Rudy), Powers
Boothe (HBO’s Underwood, Sin City), Michael Angarano (Almost Famous,
Lords of Dogtown). And was having a hell of a time when I last saw him.
Steve S. – Freelance grip that works for Applied
Art a frequently as he complains, talks about the drugs he used to do,
and the celebrities he used to work with. Which is a lot. A shameless name dropper (by the way did I mention that Sean Astin is working in Tony W’s movie?). However
he surprised the hell out of me and offered to write me a letter of
recommendation if I ever need one so I can’t say I don’t care for the
guy.
Cory D. – Another freelance grip. Former G.I. and a great guy. Makes short films in his free time.
That’s all for now, if I feel you need to know more I will fill you in as we travel along this trip down memory lane.
As I stated earlier I have loved this internship
and have learned a shit ton about gripping, gaffing, and animal
nutrients on shoots for John Deere, DMACC, Wells Blue Bunny, Iowa Farm
Coalition, Hy-Vee, Slipknot, and others. Also note
that these were the first clients that came to mind when I thought,
“okay now I am going to write out some of the people that I have work
of the shoots of.” Which also means that they were
probably the most exciting shoots. There were numerous other shoots I
neglect to mention be they sucked.
The high point of my internship however is definitely the days I spent in Cedar Rapids working on The Final Season. Without a doubt I learned more in those few days than I did the entire rest of the summer. Important things like Don’t fucking let anyone dent the fucking dolly track,
the average person working on a film set seems to do so because a
regular job is just too difficult to understand, celebrities also
wonder about my height, and the most popular thing for a grip to do
between shots is to smoke pot in the trailer (that the final lesson
extends far beyond just grips by the way).
The most interesting story coming from the set of The Final Season came a few days after I left the set. With
one day of shooting remaining a helicopter shooting aerial scenes for
the film and carrying a freelance cameraman from Kansas City and Tony W
ran into some power lines and crashed, killing the cameraman and
sending Tony and 72 year-old pilot to the intensive care. Luckily
Tony was able to escape the crash with his life and a laundry list of
injuries; broken ribs, collapsed lung, broken vertebrae, and a severely
broken leg that had to be shorted up by a few inches in to prevent
infection. However, he is expected to make a full recovery and will hopefully see a rough cut of his film in a few weeks.
I am marking the end of my last summer vacation (god that’s scary to think about) with my unexpected audition for NBC’s Deal or No Deal. Which came about when my sister (whose house I have been living at all summer with her husband and kids. Stories for another time) asked for my help in making a 5 minute audition tape to send in to the show. After
some discussion we decided to do a short documentary about her attempt
to try out for the show’s open call at the Merle Haye Mall in Des
Moines a few weeks ago. I personally believe I was in a weak frame of mind as a result of being forced to stand in line from 4 am –9 am on a Saturday. But whatever the reason, Heather managed to talk me into trying out for the show also.
Here’s the drill. You get 30 seconds to sell yourself, say your name, age, where you’re from, what you do and why you should be on Deal, or No Deal.
My name is Steve Rold, I’m twe—
What I need to back up I can’t get him into the frame. Okay go.
Go?
Yeah go, we’re rolling.
Hi! My name’s Steve Rold, I’m twenty-two, I’m from Elk Horn Iowa, and I am currently a student at the University of Kansas.
And why should you be in Deal, or No Deal?
I
should be on Deal, or No Deal because I have never seen your show and
my sister talked me into trying out but I will certainly jump around
and act crazy if you give me money.
How tall are you?
Seriously?
--
I’m 6’9’’ and I would look like a freak next to Howie that’s another reason to pick me.
*Smile, wink, walk off*
I’m still waiting for a call back.
That was pretty much my summer. Well,
that, and I saw Tones’ tendon when he knocked a hole in his shin while
swimming in the mermaid fountain in Kimballton, oh yeah and I punched a
kid in the face for touching Whitney in the bathing suit area. (I’m the best chaperone ever).
Listen to
Soul Decision – Faded
Gary Allen – Alright Guy
Sufjan Stevens – Detroit, Lift Up Your Weary Heat!…
Cursive – Dorothy At Forty
Cursive – Hymns For the Heathens
Bright Eyes – Method Acting
The New Amsterdams – Turn Out the Light | 
