Kit Rides Again

The voice session was a great success. Phew!

When I got there, I was somewhat disconcerted to find it was a "different" room full of clients... OK, only 2 this time (that I didn't know) down from 5 the last time - but it's a small room. wink
But LUCKILY... the producer and creative director were all-over the same issues that I had with the script being so long and filled with dialogue "uncharacteristic" of what we'd done before. hee hee... the character integrity issues of an animated KitKat bar. You can laugh... ...I am.

It took me twice as long as my March session, but there was 3 times the dialogue involved, so I don't feel too bad about it. Sadly, this particular material is going into a fully-produced and animated PowerPoint presentation, so it won't even hit the web, and I'm not even certain if I'll ever see what the final product is. BUT... the campaign is a huge success for them (according to some of the facts and figures I was reading) sooooo.... it's lookin' pretty good that they'll need me again for web up-dates. AND I might add, they only asked for me to come back. My female counterpart wasn't included in the presentation. Thank goodness I practiced all the lines, even the ones that I was pretty sure would be assigned to her.

The revised dialogue was cheeky and clever. I might add: I have a new fondness for the word "sassy"... it's fun to say as "Kit". My accent held. Although I was a bit horse and dry by the end of the whole experience. Dry, perhaps because I was sweating like a sauna-bound pig in a mink coat. It was fun though, and I've got more demo-tape material!!
I truly marvel at the talent of Damon, the creative guy who was there to direct me and ask for particular inflections. The guy can do sooo many character voices, including the one I was doing. You should hear his Spanish accent; flawless. I'm lucky they were looking for someone non-unionized, 'cause he could've done the part - easy.

Ted could tell everything went well by how positively "chipper" I was when I got home. It's great to enjoy your work. I have a new appreciation for that notion.

(More on the town house tomorrow or Friday.)

How 'bout an old Canadiana summer rocker... "Keep On Lovin' Me Baby" by Colin James.
He's probably the most underrated guitar player in history. The man treats his axe like an appendage. This song is old... but "timeless" old.

Well I want you to love me.
Well I want you to love me.
Well I want you to love me.

whoa yeah
whoah yeah
whoah baby
you know what pleases me

Well I want you to kiss me
Well I want you to kiss me
Well I want you to kiss me

whoa yeah
whoah yeah
whoah baby
you know what pleases me
YOU KNOW WHAT PLEASES ME!

Early in the morning
any time at night
well I can feel your tender lips
making me feel alright

Keep on loving me girl
Ahow how how
Keep on loving me baby
whoa yah
whoa yah
whoa baby
you know what pleases me

SOLO

Early in the morning
any time at night
well I can feel your tender lips
making me feel alright

Keep on loving me girl
Ahow how how
Keep on loving me baby
whoa yah
whoa yah
whoa baby
you know what pleases me

Anxiety Ridden Tuesday

The good news is, that I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed "The Mask of Zorro". The bad news is, that I've got butterflies so bad this afternoon that I feel like I could throw-up. I'm not comfortable with the volume of lines I have to read, or the choice of dialogue for the character. The more I practice the script, the more awkward I think it sounds. GAHHHH!

And to make matters even more lined with anxiety, we're going to look at a town house in Brampton tonight. The thought of buying a home is both exciting and frightening. I don't know if I'm ready. I don't know if our financial state is ready. It'd be nice to have a yard for the boys, and a place of our own, instead of throwing rent money at something we'll never own. But we know nothing about real estate, and the market (from what I can tell) is really scary right now. Is there anybody who could back me up on my theory that it might be better to keep renting until the market cools or falls? 'Cause right now... my little real-estate-ignorant brain is telling me we could end up paying way too much for a starter home and then not be able to sell it for more than what we paid. Is that off the mark? Mind you, the little place we're looking at is relatively cheap at 150,000. I just don't know much, y'know?? (Ted just called me to say our appointment to see the place has been moved to tomorrow - so at least that's one iota of anxiety belayed.)

Blah... wish me luck staying in character.

Z for Zorro

Alrighty friends... I need help with a house plant. See this picture?

This is a tree that I've had for about 11 years. It's starting to look a little shoddy (aside from the dusty leaves -blush-) and the last time we moved, the moving process was not kind to it, so it's missing a lot of it's former lushness. I'd like to cut both trunks down with a saw to let it grow back, but I'm afraid to do so, 'cause quite obviously I don't want to kill it. I don't even know what kind of tree it is after all these years. I cut the very top off every few months to get the branches off the ceiling, and that part always grows back, but I'm worried that if I hack off too much it will just die. It was replanted just a few short months ago and it's looking better since then, but I'd like to restore it to it's former leafy glory. Can anyone tell me what kind of tree this is, and whether I can cut it without killing it? I've e-mailed some plant expert and received no reply, and I've googled all I can think to google to no avail. Help!

On to a different topic... ...remember my mentioning that I'd be doing the KitKat singles campaign again? Well, my voice session is this Tuesday and they gave me the script to practice and I'm freakin' out a little. Why? Because it's LONG!! And the stress of voicing an accent or character voice for any length of time, is tremendous at times. Because you "fall out of it", quite literally. My biggest hurdle with Kit's "Antonio Banderas" accent is not wavering from suave Latino into Count Dracula. Trust me. We had a few giggles at my last voice session because of it. It's amazing how easy it is to drift from one accent to another when you're fakin' it. So my preparation for battle is this: I bought "The Mask of Zorro" on DVD yesterday, starring (of course) Antonio Banderas. hee hee 'Cause I really need to study up on his nuances and just get my mimicking up to par. Funny enough, I'm going to have to watch the movie by myself, because Ted and Tammy have no interest whatsoever in watching it. Ah well. Can't say as I blame them. It's not like I'm a huge Antonio fan. I just happen to be able to mock him. Imitation isn't always the greatest form of flattery.

I hope you're having a great weekend. We're off to a little birthday party tonight for our friend Jamie.

Get a little hot n' dirty with a sexy summer tune from the dearly departed Aaliyah. It's both difficult and sad to think she's been gone for 6 years now. Such a sweet voice and boundless talent.

More Than a Woman

Passion, instant
Sweat beads, fill me
Cupid's shot me
My heartbeat's racing
Tempt me, drive me
Feels so exiting
Thought of highly
It's yours entirely

I'll be
I'll be more than a lover
More than a woman
More than you ever
I'll be
I'll be more than a lover
More than a woman
More than than enough for you
I'll be
(I'll be more) more than your lover
(more) more than a woman
(more) more than your under cover
I'll be
(I'll be more) more than a lover
(more) more than a woman
(more) more than enough for you

Midnight grindin'
Heart rates climbin'
You go, I go
'Cause we share pillows
Taste me, feed me
There's still no separating
Morning massages
Nubaums in your closet

I'll be
I'll be more than a lover
More than a woman
More than you ever
I said I'll be
I'll be
I'll be more than a lover
More than a woman
More than enough for you
I'll be
(I'll be more) more than a lover
(more) more than a woman
(more) more than your under cover
I'm gonna be
(I'll be more) more than a lover
(more) more than a woman
(more) more than enough for you

I don't think your ready
I don't think your ready for this thing
For this thing
I don't think your ready for this thing
You're not ready
I don't think your ready for this thing
This thing, this thing
I don't think your ready for this thing

Constant pleasure
No scale can measure
Secret treasures
Keeps on getting better
Do you wanna roll with me?
We can go to foreign lands
Your hand in my hand
Do you wanna ride with me?
We can be like Bonnie & Clyde
Be by your side

I'll be
I'll be more than a lover
More than a woman
More than you ever
I'll be
I'll be more than a lover
More than a woman
More than than enough for you
I'll be
(I'll be more) more than your lover
(more) more than a woman
(more) more than your under cover
I'll be
(I'll be more) more than a lover
(more) more than a woman
(more) more than enough for you

Sleep Whore, Movie Whore, Attention Whore, James Franco's Whore

Talk about a good weekend. Not a productive one mind you, but still. The word for the weekend was "SLEEEEEEEEP" my friends. I got about 30 hours of it this weekend, and I feel recharged after weeks of going to bed way too late and then getting up early (normal). We've been so busy for so many weekends in a row, that I wasn't making up for my deprivation of slumber at all. I've always been a sleep whore. It makes me envied by many and a bit of a mystic anomaly to just about everybody else.

***note worthy tales of rest (and then some): I remember one summer in my teens going to this week-long photography course in Kitchener/Waterloo and losing a lot of sleep because of making friends and having fun... then getting home and sleeping for 3 days straight with apparent bathroom breaks that I don't remember. My dad finally woke me up on the 3rd day, telling me he thought I was dead and I'd better get up and move. hee It used to bug the crap out of him that I'd sleep for 13 hours on a regular basis. He felt I wasted the days away. But at the time I was working evenings and I'd stay up til 2am after my shift, go to bed and sleep til 3pm, get up and go to work for 4pm.
One more note-worthy tale of slumber: when I first moved to Timmins in November of 2004, the second place I found to live was renting a room in this ladie's finished basement. The room had no windows. It was winter in Timmins. Being new there, I had no friends yet. I would routinely go to bed on Friday night and wake up sometime Sunday morning/afternoon. Hungry as a mo-fo of course... but yeah... Johnny like to sleep. Still do.

Anyhoo... I didn't sleep the WHOLE weekend away. We went over to Mel (Ted's sister) and Mark's place on Saturday to spend the afternoon in their backyard. They've got a pretty nice set-up with an above ground pool and nice patio furniture with a canopy and bug netting. (Loves me some bug-netting) Ted bought himself a new little stereo system with his birthday money and work bonus. It's a Harmon Kardon
i-Pod boombox. Beautiful. We call it the "Karmon Hard-on Rude-Box" or Rudy for short. ;) Robbie Williams fans unite! Anyhow, we brought Rudy with us and enjoyed an afternoon of music in the sun with the dogs, some heavy-duty dubes, and bbq.
Then, Saturday night, Ted, Tammy and I went to the 5 Drive-in, to see "Shrek 3" and "Transformers". (I know, I know Kitty. Skip a paragraph darling. xo) What fun! Seriously. Shrek the Third was way better than what I was expecting, although it totally jumped-the-shark with the little baby ogres n'all. It was cute. Not incredibly memorable, but enjoyable. As always, Puss in Boots and Donkey stole the show. And Transformers... OMG... it was a total cgi-orgy of wicked effects. I think I had a thousand tiny orgasms throughout. As a childhood fan of the cartoon and the toys (which were always too expensive sadly) I was completely and totally geekin' out on this movie. I swear, my mouth was gaping wide for most of what I was watching. No... not an Oscar contender, but a complete homage to what the Transformers were all about. The story was fast but coherent and it was everything it was supposed to be. I haven't had that much fun at a movie in a long time. I totally want to see it again. Tammy missed the entire thing. We had agreed that she'd sit in the front for Shrek and I'd sit in the front for Transformers but the moment she got in the back she fell asleep. Ahh well... she had little to no interest in it. Said "it's a boy movie".
We were a little apprehensive about how the car was going to fare at a drive-in, running off the battery for so long (being a hybrid for anyone who hasn't read previous entries). But it was fine. It would have been better had we not needed to close the windows because of the mosquitoes eating me alive. Once you close the windows, you've got to run the A/C for a while, and the car won't just sit and idle, so it runs off the battery. By the end of the movie the battery had depleted quite a bit, but it had fully charged itself again by the time we made it home. All good.

Oh, I also wanted to add, (since I forgot to mention it at all last week) that we finally saw Spiderman 3 (in IMAX) and I was disappointed overall, but it was OK I guess. The whole concept was just to cram as much marketable Spiderman lore into one movie, shake... and sell action figures. Definitely not as good as the first or even the second. BUT... James Franco... hubba hubba. You beautiful, beautiful man. You were the only saving grace of an otherwise mediocre movie. Thank you to yo mama. Thank you to yo daddy. You gots good genes!


Last night, we (Ted, Tammy and I again) went to this fancy, shcmancy restaurant called "Ruth's Chris Steakhouse", because Tammy got a 300-dollar gift certificate from work. So the 3 of us got dressed-up and went for 80-dollar steak n' lobster and 14-dollar martinis. Dee-lish... but not worth the money in my opinion. But then, I'm cheap like that. I did appreciate how steaming/piping hot the food was served; that's rare at a restaurant. Whether or not we loved it, we'd never be able to afford to eat there anyhow so it was a nice time, and our server "Lisa" was just adorable. Loved her.

Before I call it a day blog-wise... I have to toot my own horn a bit. Remember this guy??

Well, I got an e-mail last week, asking me to reprise my voice role, so Kit will ride again. I don't have a voice session date yet, but I should know soon. Cool huh?

Anyhow... for a while I'm going to shift my songs towards stuff you can really appreciate in the hot, n' sticky summer time. :D It makes me melty-bitchy-sweaty, but you have to appreciate every season while it lasts, for what it is.

India.Arie "There's Hope"

Back when I had a little
I thought that I needed a lot
A little was over rated,
but a lot was a little too complicated
You see-Zero didn't satisfy me
A million didn't make me happy
That's when I learned a lesson
That it's all about your perception
Hey-are you a papa or a superstar
So you act, so you feel, so you are
It ain't about the size of your car
It's about the size of the faith in your heart

[Chorus:]
There's hope
It doesn't cost a thing to smile
You don't have to pay to laugh
You better thank God for that
[repeat]

There's hope

Off in the back country of Brazil
A met a young brotha that made me feel
That I could accomplish anything.
You see just like me he wanted to sing
He had no windows and no doors
He lived a simple life and was extremely poor
On top of all of that he had no eye sight,
but that didn't keep him from seein' the light
He said, what's it like in the USA,
and all I did was complain
He said-livin' here is paridise
He taught me paridise is in your mind
You know that

[Chorus]

[Bridge:]
Every time I turn on the T.V. (There's Hope)
Somebody's acting crazy (There's Hope)
If you let it, it will drive you crazy (There's Hope)
but I'm takin' back my power today (There's Hope)
Gas prices they just keep on rising (There's Hope)
The government they keep on lying
but we gotta keep on surviving
Keep living our truth and do the best we can do

Stand up for your rights [echo]
Keep shining your light [echo]
And show the world your smile [echo]

Demo Me This, Demo Me That

It is Wednesday May 30th, and John still has no demo tape prepared. Wasn't I talking about this in like late December/early January? D'AAAH! I'm completely ridiculous. (Deborah, if you're reading this, I'm really sorry to have not taken you up on your offer of passing along my non-existent demo. And I have no excuse.) I have clips here and there of stuff I've voiced, but can't bring myself to impose on my producer-co-workers to put it together for me. Well, one of them I wouldn't trust with it to be honest, but needless to say, I'm getting nowhere under my own steam. Wanna hear something you might find funny...? I bought a book of children's stories to narrate as a portion of my (non-existent) demo. It calls for quite a few different character voices... which is the whole strength of my appeal. It's not very good reading though. The characters are under-developed and the dialogue is infantile. (wink wink)

I'm not really in "Blogging" mode lately. I wonder what the term is for that.... Have I lost my "blojo"? Hmmm.... that sounds like something else entirely.

If you're reading this, I hope you're happy and well. I promise to be upbeat and some-what entertaining sometime soon.

Today's song is an old tear-jerker by Sinead O'Connor from the album "Universal Mother". Yeah, the lyrics are simplistic, but if you can find the song, I highly recommend it. It's beautiful and loving, with a twist of pain.

"Thank You for Hearing Me"

Thank you for hearing me
Thank you for hearing me
Thank you for hearing me
Thank you for hearing me

Thank you for loving me
Thank you for loving me
Thank you for loving me
Thank you for loving me

Thank you for seeing me
Thank you for seeing me
Thank you for seeing me
Thank you for seeing me

And for not leaving me
And for not leaving me
And for not leaving me
And for not leaving me

Thank you for staying with me
Thank you for staying with me
Thank you for staying with me
Thank you for staying with me

Thanks for not hurting me
Thanks for not hurting me
Thanks for not hurting me
Thanks for not hurting me

You are gentle with me
You are gentle with me
You are gentle with me
You are gentle with me

Thanks for silence with me
Thanks for silence with me
Thanks for silence with me
Thanks for silence with me

Thank you for holding me
And saying I could be
Thank you for saying "Baby"
Thank you for holding me

Thank you for helping me
Thank you for helping me
Thank you for helping me
Thank you, thank you for helping me

Thank you for breaking my heart
Thank you for tearing me apart
Now I've a strong, strong heart
Thank you for breaking my heart

Send a Cand-E-gram

http://www.minglewithsingles.ca/cand_e_gram.htm

In great haste the other day I made a post linking to the site that I did some voice-work for. After re-reading the post, I thought it best that I delete it and post again at my earliest convenience (which happens to be today), just to be extra careful about how I was representing the site. (Hey - they might want more voice clips right?) Not that I'd said anything bad per say, but I just wanted to make sure I wasn't doing myself a disservice, by posting a picture from their site etc, etc.

To be clear, I'm just the on-line voice of "Kit". I'm not affiliated with the site, or Rogers Publishing... I'm just as much in awe of what a cute/fun site it is as the next person. But if you want to hear my contribution, click on the link above and the little "cassette" icon near the bottom, right hand corner. I'm going to be sending out an e-mail (eventually) encouraging people to send Cand-E-grams. They're cute... and if the site's successful, maybe I'll get more voice-work. I certainly had fun doing it. (and no, that's not my day-to-day "speaking" voice for those who might not know. wink)

The Anti-Dork Pill & Infernal Journal Giggles

Before I talk about ANYTHING today... I have to, have to, have to post a link to what my friend Nat is doing at her radio station in Montreal in conjunction with Apple computers latest campaign. Go HERE and laff, laff, laff (especially at the 3rd video in the series) at the complete zany humour that this brilliant girl is capable of. (Incidentally, I'm so happy that's she's ended up with such a handsome guy who is as equally twisted as she.) Her two Chihuahua's Flea and Chachi make hysterical cameos as well. hah

In other news, my voice session was last night and it went well. (or at least I think it did.) It only took about 15-20 minutes, which is not an unreasonable amount of time for a first time outing. I wish there was an anti-dork pill that one could take before such engagements, to calm the nerves and insecurities of performing a silly cartoon voice in front of a room of six strangers and being subject to scrutiny. Not that it turned out to be a bad thing. Not at all. Although I was incredibly self-conscious and subsequently sweating like a pig because of it. In all fairness, I should clarify that I couldn't see the 6 people. I was isolated in a booth - BUT - there was a camera on me - so they could see me. GAAAAH
I think at one point just before I began, there was a solitary moment where I thought "What the hell am I doing here?" and started to doubt myself. But then I countered that with... "You've got this huge chance to do what you've always wanted to do - now just show 'em what you got. They're expecting a professional, and only YOU know that you're an impostor." So I did it. And last night in bed I was lying there thinking about it and I kept giggling. Which was keeping poor Ted up. He asked me why I was giggling and I just had to tell him, it was one of the most fun things I've ever done. I loved it. What a great thing!
So now what? I'm going to pursue this. I mean really pursue it. And I'm saying it in my blog to make sure that I've got a few witnesses that I'm going to carry-out one of my infamous big ideas that I usually only talk about but never do. 'Cause THAT, my friends, THAT which I did last night is something that I could do for the rest of my life and always have fun doing it.
Phew! All this inspiration from voicing an animated Kit Kat bar for a website!! Who knew?
Now here's hoping they don't secretly recast/replace my part before the whole thing comes to fruition. hah

Anyhow, I should be thinkin' 'bout work. So I bid you a great weekend!

The song of the day is for my dad. Today would have been his 71st birthday and I'm grateful now that he instilled a love of country music in me. He'd be happy to know that, considering his love of HEE HAW aggravated me so much when I was a kid.

Turn It On, Turn It Up, Turn Me Loose - Dwight Yoakam

Well I'm back again
for another night
Of trying to break free from the sadness I can't lay to rest
This old honky-tonk
sure does feel like home
And the music and the laughter seem to soothe my loneliness

So turn it on,
turn it up,
turn me loose
From the memory that's driving me lonely, crazy and blue
It helps me forget her
so the louder the better
Hey mister, turn it on, turn it up, turn me loose

Now if a tear should fall,
if I should whisper her name
To some stranger I'm holdin' while we're dancin' to an old Buck Owens' song
I know she won't mind,
she won't even know
'Cause she'll be dancing with a memory crying teardrops of her own

So turn it on,
turn it up,
turn me loose
From the memory that's driving me lonely, crazy and blue
It helps me forget her
so the louder the better
Hey mister, turn it on, turn it up, turn me loose

So turn it on,
turn it up,
turn me loose
From the memory that's driving me lonely, crazy and blue
It helps me forget her
so the louder the better
Hey mister, turn it on, turn it up, turn me loose
Yeah mister, turn it on, turn it up, turn me loose