tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32236352012-01-27T23:59:37.075-08:00The mad musings of a working writerBenjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.comBlogger15491100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-85743214049513954152011-10-24T10:16:00.000-07:002011-10-24T10:37:17.400-07:00

A few quick reminder links about where to find me—and my work—on the interwebs.CLICK HERE for my daily-updated GPTimes porn-biz blog. [Note: NSFW!]CLICK HERE for my GPTimes porn blog on the Kindle. [Note: NSFW!].CLICK HERE for my Camino memoir blog, A Knock on the Head.CLICK HERE for my Camino memoir blog on the Kindle.CLICK HERE to buy Gay Porn Heroes—my first book!—on Amazon.CLICK HERE to buy

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-83565249115560737672011-10-12T07:57:00.001-07:002011-10-12T08:03:42.576-07:00

NEVER FORGETMatthew Shepard, (12/1/76-10/12/98)More information:* The Matthew Shepard Foundation* MatthewsPlace.com* Matthew Shepard Foundation on TwitterSee also:* It Gets Better Project* Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network* The Trevor Project

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-78502604753684991452011-09-13T19:05:00.000-07:002011-09-13T19:06:14.238-07:00

A quick update for you: Both my GPTimes porn blog [NSFW] and my Camino blog are now available via the Amazon Kindle. Both are priced at $1.99 per month and every subscription kicks back a few coins to me. It all helps. There is a free 14-day trial if you want to try it out first. Bless you and everyone who looks like you. CLICK HERE for my GPTimes porn blog on the Kindle [NSFW]. CLICK HERE for

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-73572406347881211822011-08-28T12:13:00.000-07:002011-08-28T12:25:55.547-07:00

Earlier this month, the Berlin-based publisher Bruno Gmunder sent out an email blast to the industry touting its September slate of books and sundry. My first book, Gay Porn Heroes, was among them. Reading that email blast gave me a shiver. It finally felt real, y'know? It's being published next month and it's in pre-order right now on Amazon.com. I humbly demand ask that you visit Amazon and

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-49791530023551867982011-06-09T14:27:00.001-07:002011-06-09T14:29:56.294-07:00

P.S. In addition to the links in the previous post, I also write short, bloggy items about showbiz awards and entertainment industry ephemera for these two websites:* CLICK HERE for BraveNewHollywood.com.* CLICK HERE for GoldDerby.com.More to come as the jobs crop up.

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-47560173696992053492011-06-06T18:28:00.000-07:002011-06-06T18:42:49.605-07:00

Greetings. One year ago today, my birthday, I was recuperating in my hotel in Santiago de Compostela, Spain. I had just finished hiking 500 miles across Northern Spain on the Camino de Santiago. Amazing. I'm continually gobsmacked that it's been a year already.Anyway, I am taking a break from this blog for awhile. An update is coming soon eventually. In the meantime, find me at the following

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-69206221182483664322011-05-09T18:55:00.000-07:002011-05-09T19:06:51.087-07:00

Cheers. A year ago, this month, I was on the Camino. Dang.I'm taking a break from this particular blog for the time being. A revamp is coming at some point this year. In the meantime, I write periodic short items about showbiz stuff for these two websites:* GoldDerby.com (which is affiliated with the Los Angeles Times)* BraveNewHollywood.com.Here is my Camino blog, updated periodically with

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-54011972960741937872011-03-19T08:05:00.000-07:002011-03-19T08:20:36.143-07:00

A few recent stories for your delectation from BraveNewHollywood.com. Otherwise, work on the Camino memoir and other stuff grinds on.* BNH: CLICK HERE for "Will 'Water for Elephants' Lure Vampire-Loving 'Twilight' Crowd?"* BNH: CLICK HERE for "'Girl Walks Into a Bar,' Gets Free YouTube Distribution"* BNH: CLICK HERE for "Emma Watson Puts College Degree on Back Burner"* BNH: CLICK HERE for "

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-75462048783512562062011-02-07T09:40:00.001-08:002011-02-07T09:47:05.291-08:00

I'm continuing to blog for GoldDerby and Brave New Hollywood, as well as my adult-biz stuff. I'll update with links here when they're available. Please feel free to click through, give 'em some page view love, and definitely leave comments telling them I am utterly brilliant and deserve a raise, etc. Cheers.* BNH: CLICK HERE for "Charlotte Riley, Beauty and Talent"Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-35327011013197079892010-12-11T12:02:00.001-08:002010-12-11T12:15:08.957-08:00

I'm happy to report I have story running now on major web hub Gay.com. It's a comedic essay exploring the surreal experience of being American abroad in Prague working among the performers and staff of Bel Ami, one of the biggest all-male porn companies in the industry. Gay.com is not a porn site, but the content of my story is probably NSFW.CLICK HERE to read it. Give 'em some page love, leave a

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-20808270574287505602010-12-01T09:47:00.000-08:002010-12-26T10:59:17.489-08:00

UPDATE III (a couple new stories posted below):I've got another freelance showbiz-blogging gig. This one is with a new website called Brave New Hollywood. Its proprietor is a friend from back in the day. I've written a number of pieces for him already. But here are the most recent. Please click through, give 'em some page views, leave a comment and let them how brilliant I am, etc.* "CLICK HERE

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-54413722781137417022010-11-25T14:59:00.000-08:002010-11-25T15:12:50.503-08:00

If you haven't seen these links already on Facebook or Twitter, here ya go: I've got a new freelance gig blogging about showbiz awards (mostly the Oscars) on the relaunched GoldDerby.com (in partnership with the L.A. Times). The site relaunched November 4 and my first three blog entries are up:* Examining the Oscar chances of Burlesque starring Cher and Christina Aguilera: CLICK HERE.* Musing on

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-53534354354626775572010-10-25T17:22:00.000-07:002010-10-25T17:24:10.770-07:00

I'll be posting photos from my Camino trek to the A Knock on the Head blog this week: CLICK HERE.Email: It's Hot in Topeka

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-49361161674494649842010-10-12T09:06:00.000-07:002010-10-12T09:13:51.188-07:00

NEVER FORGETMatthew Shepard, (12/1/76-10/12/98)More information:* The Matthew Shepard Foundation* MatthewsPlace.com* It Gets Better Project

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-19609896799831538442010-09-21T11:08:00.001-07:002010-09-21T11:13:05.939-07:00

Work continues apace on my Camino memoir. May have some related news soon to report. Otherwise:CLICK HERE for my non-adult Twitter account (@500Turtles). This may go away soon, but it's active for now.CLICK HERE for my A Knock on the Head blog. Periodically updated at this point, and will be revamped later this year.See the links at right for my adult-biz writing and other stuff (NSFW, obviously)

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-81825952810587485762010-08-19T05:44:00.000-07:002010-08-21T03:50:39.153-07:00

I received an email this week from an old friend from my Pittsburgh days, asking when I would update this blog again. Argh, I feel bad about neglecting this space. I am in Prague right now doing copyrighting and other promo writing for an adult film company called Bel Ami and it takes up a big chunk of my day. I'll be here for a month.After work, I hump over to my pension apartment, cook some

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-77241061857833037902010-08-03T21:41:00.000-07:002010-08-03T22:14:12.060-07:00

Memoir word count (Saturday): 2013 (total: 8906)Mood (Saturday): Sweaty.Memoir word count (Sunday): 0 (total: 0)Mood (Sunday): Lazy.Memoir word count (yesterday): 0 (total: 0)Mood (yesterday): Distracted.Memoir word count (today): 2040 (total: 10,946)Mood (today): Compartmentalizer.Dreamt last night/early this morning that I'd written an Avenue Q-type musical. I showed up at the theatre

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-33387367337999707472010-07-30T21:58:00.000-07:002010-07-30T22:07:59.159-07:00

Memoir word count (yesterday): 428 (total: 6893)Mood (yesterday): Distracted.Memoir word count (today): 0 (total: 6893)Mood (today): Distracted.Argh.Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-69969708512650533912010-07-28T17:40:00.000-07:002010-07-28T17:46:11.712-07:00

Memoir word count: 2314 (total: 6465)Mood: Contemplative.Was trying to figure out when I was in a particular city on the Camino as I was writing this morning and found myself distracted by all of the stamps on my credencial. Yet again, I found myself thinking, "Wow, did I really do that? Was I really there?" I feel pressure to record every single second in case the whole experience just

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-37318746011513328412010-07-27T20:03:00.000-07:002010-07-27T20:10:12.600-07:00

Memoir word count: 2529 (total: 4151)Mood: Relieved.A good writing day today. The weather today in Los Angeles was grey and almost nippy in the morning; that's remarkable in late July, usually a scorching period. This kind of weather never fails to inspire me. I find even mild heat instantly oppressive. Today's output was more a purging in my journal rather than anything I originally intended for

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-79143023242049173632010-07-26T18:59:00.000-07:002010-07-27T20:03:36.245-07:00

Memoir word count: 1622.Mood: Mild depression.Crazy dreams last night, lots of frenzied activity and high emotion. Something isn't being expressed. Not sure it came out in my writing today. Was trying to get to 2000 words, gave up. Most of today's work was tweaking email newsletters I sent out already. A bit of a cheat, but the whole book won't be that way. Wrote less than I thought in those

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-47272754439023986132010-07-18T16:55:00.000-07:002010-07-18T17:09:50.424-07:00

Slogging through my Camino notes and trying to get some momentum and such for the memoir. Ugh. I know I'm making this harder than it has to be.Anyway, it looks like I may be publishing a series of short pieces on the trip for a prominent LGBT website. Just 500 words or so, plus pictures. Haven't sealed the deal just yet, but if it pans out this will help me force me to organize my thoughts.I had

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-82232573850408883112010-07-12T16:21:00.000-07:002010-07-12T16:23:25.004-07:00

I updated the Knock on the Head blog today. CLICK HERE to check it out. Cheers.Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-30541914260592177492010-06-29T01:11:00.000-07:002010-06-29T01:15:52.798-07:00

So as y'all may know, I finished the Camino, worked for several weeks in Bratislava, Slovakia and finally flew home to Los Angeles after some nine weeks abroad.I feel betwixt and between, to be honest. Now the process of writing the book begins in earnest. I will be updating the A Knock on the Head blog periodically: CLICK HERE.You might want to check out the 500 Turtles Twitter account, which is

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-7550165984036607612010-04-28T19:49:00.000-07:002010-04-28T19:54:55.259-07:00

I set out for the Camino de Santiago in just a few days. Finally. I've been sending out email newsletters keeping everyone up to date on my progress and sending them to family, friends, co-workers, essentially anyone to whom I've mentioned the Camino de Santiago over the past few years.By popular request, I've set up a temporary Camino blog where I will be posting from the road when/if wifi is

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-40843307485481466362010-04-25T15:52:00.001-07:002010-04-25T15:58:36.336-07:00

"Remember what Bilbo used to say: 'It's a dangerous business, Frodo, going out your door. You step onto the road, and if you don't keep your feet, there's no knowing where you might be swept off to.'"— Gandalf (via J.R.R. Tolkien), The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring.Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-1669755934510268102010-04-21T18:00:00.001-07:002010-04-21T18:02:22.965-07:00

Okay, so I'm rebooked via British Airways to this coming Sunday, April 25, unless I get an earlier flight somehow and pending any further volcanic fits of temper. I'd packed up my apartment in preparation for sitting empty for three months, so rattling around stacks of boxes feels a bit wonky. Onward and upward.Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-50525327465131839872010-04-18T10:51:00.000-07:002010-04-18T11:01:28.484-07:00

So you dream and save and plan for two years, get yourself all packed and ready to fly overseas for the adventure of a lifetime — and a cranky Icelandic volcano decides to throw a monumental hissy fit and ground every single aircraft in and out of London and most of Europe. Argh.I'd read a few long-haul flights from the U.S. to Heathrow had been re-routed to Gatwick, Scotland with the passengers

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-77980156613949375522010-04-12T03:00:00.000-07:002010-04-12T03:00:08.668-07:00

"The cynics are right nine times out of ten."— H. L. Mencken (1880-1956), author, satirist and social critic.Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-15954523416075254982010-04-11T05:22:00.001-07:002010-04-11T05:29:12.961-07:00

"Distrust any enterprise that requires new clothes."— Henry David Thoreau (1817 - 1862), naturalist and author.Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-33337592599985868012010-04-06T04:04:00.000-07:002010-04-11T10:08:53.233-07:00

So Sunday's earthquake couldn't have waited another couple weeks until I was back in Europe, huh? Bleah. From where I live in West Hollywood, it felt at first like a bout of dizziness. I'd been sitting slouched over my laptop computer and for a moment or three I thought perhaps I'd been squinting at the computer screen for two long.But, no, the building slowly began to rock back and forth. Stuff

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-78557548980774469522010-04-04T03:00:00.000-07:002010-04-04T03:00:04.835-07:00

"If I could edit my past, I'd get rid of all the commas."— Peter Carey (b. 1943), novelist.Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-63167536354705361422010-04-03T03:00:00.000-07:002010-04-03T03:00:03.308-07:00

"No effort is required to define or even attain happiness, but enormous concentration is needed to abandon everything else."— Quentin Crisp (1908-1999), writer and wit.Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-86598499433626293492010-04-02T22:33:00.001-07:002010-04-02T22:33:58.442-07:00

Heh, so I changed my password and, um, forgot it. So I changed it again and, um... I know I'm turning 40 in a couple months but this is ridiculous. Onward and upward.Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-89098701998676743722010-03-19T08:18:00.000-07:002010-03-19T08:25:34.434-07:00

My animal readings have suddenly taken on new life. This stuff seems to develop in fits and starts. Weeks will go by and nothing, then I'll have a rush of people interested in having me talk to their pets and other animals. I also went through a period where I was reading only cats. Now it's been dogs, dogs, dogs. Many unruly dogs with behavioral issues. I have been coming away from one reading

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-34791817677143407832010-03-17T04:15:00.001-07:002010-03-17T04:17:51.767-07:00

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-72341081518204227082010-03-12T03:00:00.000-08:002010-03-12T03:00:07.769-08:00

"It is better to have a permanent income than to be fascinating."— Oscar Wilde (1854-1900), writer, wit and icon.Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-26620358318089347222010-03-11T12:00:00.000-08:002010-03-11T12:00:00.588-08:00

"Everything has been figured out, except how to live."— Jean-Paul Sartre (1905-1980), writer, philosopher and critic.Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-65472956538056029162010-03-11T06:34:00.001-08:002010-03-11T06:37:16.110-08:00

"Kids, you tried your best and you failed miserably. The lesson is, never try."— Homer Simpson, poet.Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-58587181487364011482010-03-07T12:58:00.000-08:002010-03-07T13:06:26.110-08:00

It's Oscar day, a High Holy Day for me. This also means Hollywood and environs are an utter madhouse. The Kodak Theater is jus a few short miles away from where I live. I can hear helicopters fluttering overheard continuously and fleets of black limos are slithering up and down Sunset Blvd. and Santa Monica Blvd. Whole chunks of major streets in West Hollywood are currently closed off to

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-82236451980756095982010-03-02T05:10:00.000-08:002010-03-02T05:14:14.283-08:00

"Immature poets imitate; mature poets steal."— T.S. Eliot (1888-1965), poet and critic.Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-48679605331793108412010-02-25T04:29:00.000-08:002010-02-25T04:33:09.465-08:00

"Writing isn't generally a lucrative source of income; only a few, exceptional writers reach the income levels associated with the best-sellers. Rather, most of us write because we can make a modest living, or even supplement our day jobs, doing something about which we feel passionately. Even at the worst of times, when nothing goes right, when the prose is clumsy and the ideas feel stale, at

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-28393440351763308572010-02-20T03:00:00.000-08:002010-02-20T03:00:02.957-08:00

"No one realizes how beautiful it is to travel until he comes home and rests his head on his old, familiar pillow."— Lin Yutang (1895-1976), writer and inventor.Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-6792718226031240582010-02-19T11:00:00.000-08:002010-02-19T11:00:02.745-08:00

"To travel is to discover that everyone is wrong about other countries."— Aldous Huxley (1894-1963), author and humanist.Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-55884495185797490782010-02-19T03:00:00.000-08:002010-02-19T03:00:10.917-08:00

"Most of my treasured memories of travel are recollections of sitting."— Robert Thomas Allen, author.Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-89242569076142568782010-02-18T12:51:00.000-08:002010-02-18T12:56:26.350-08:00

I'm back in Bratislava for the final night of my latest Central European excursion. I fly back to the U.S. of A. tomorrow. Feels like it's been a quick three weeks. Changing my mental attitude, as I blogged a few days ago, made a world of difference.Spent the last couple of nights in Prague, as I mentioned earlier. The studio has recently hired an American and it was nice to have another English

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-40675375774723041602010-02-16T22:57:00.000-08:002010-02-16T23:10:32.279-08:00

Morning dawns in Prague. I fly back to Los Angeles on Friday and even though I am in one of my favorite cities, I am starting to get that nervous-y, fluttery, airport-y feeling deep in my bowels. I'm not afraid to fly. But it's that constant-motion, stand-here-no-stand-there, airport security, always-mildly-on-alert feeling we all know and love. I had a dream some years ago, set 200 years in the

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-29758824242281986702010-02-15T01:08:00.000-08:002010-02-15T01:19:34.548-08:00

Morning dawns in Bratislava as I write this. Weather is finally warming up and the blustery winds have died down. I fly back to sunny Los Angeles on Friday. Beforehand, I'll be spending a couple days in Prague. The company that hired me for this trip has offices in Slovakia, Budapest and Prague. I've blogged before about my love for Prague. It's much bigger than Bratislava, obviously, and buzzes

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-57759263403407347212010-02-12T01:08:00.001-08:002010-02-18T13:03:46.541-08:00

I'm closing out my second week in Bratislava. Wind, cold, snow; snow, cold, wind. Lather, rinse, repeat.I'm writing press release material, promo copy for DVD inserts and interstitial cards for a forthcoming porno; conducting and transcribing interviews; and so on.Here is a lovely view of West Hollywood this past week. A double rainbow formed over the city during a respite from the torrential

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-29609205073718647172010-02-10T04:00:00.000-08:002010-02-10T04:00:09.258-08:00

"I don't know where my ideas come from, but I know where they come to. They come to my desk, and if I'm not there, they go away again."— Philip Pullman (b. 1946), author.Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-82304334513210068952010-02-09T04:00:00.000-08:002010-02-09T04:00:08.350-08:00

"Whatever inspiration is, it's born from a continuous 'I don't know.'"— Wislawa Szymborska, poet and Nobel Laureate.Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-38237696066128121022010-02-08T01:29:00.000-08:002010-02-08T01:38:27.807-08:00

The Budapest Chain Bridge or, rather, the Széchenyi Chain Bridge. The first permanent bridge to span the Danube, opened in 1849. I'm sure for the people of Budapest who travel it every day, it's just another bridge, yadda yadda. But for me, driving across it on the way into the city last night, it was a real kick. Click to embiggen.Per Wiki, "(t)he bridge is named after István Szécheny, a major

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-66033409531047667402010-02-07T22:55:00.001-08:002010-02-07T23:04:03.381-08:00

I am in Budapest this morning (local time). The owner of the studio for whom I have been hired to do some writing called yesterday afternoon, as I was napping in my hotel in Bratislava, and announced that I was to accompany him on a day trip. So here I am.I woke up earlier, looked out my fourth-story window and was confronted a stone frieze of the face of a leering man about 20 feet away (I may

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-25915698216514229782010-02-04T03:17:00.000-08:002010-02-04T03:28:34.535-08:00

Bratislava Dispatch: Once again, I am immersed in a non-English-speaking culture and it is a fascinating, instructive experience. On the whole, Slovakians largely appear to be indifferent, if not outright annoyed, by those who don't speak the native language. Those who have taken the time to learn enough English to converse seem to have had that annoyance dissipate quickly.The balance tilts the

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-89894308443236952212010-02-02T00:37:00.000-08:002010-02-02T00:46:46.317-08:00

Made it back to Bratislava, Slovakia in one piece. It's cold but not uncomfortable; this morning big, fat snowflakes are falling and clumping on the street. I gloriously had a seat open next to me the entire 10-hour flight from LAX in Los Angeles to London Heathrow.It was not a full flight, perhaps a quarter empty. I was on the aisle and as we were taxing down the runway, the woman at the window

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-55256215914884434462010-01-31T03:00:00.000-08:002010-01-31T03:00:04.060-08:00

Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-42230691081713080022010-01-30T11:30:00.000-08:002010-01-30T11:32:39.239-08:00

"Travel and change of place impart new vigor to the mind."— Seneca the Younger (4 BCE -65 AD), philosopher, statesman and humorist.Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-21164423607928048772010-01-29T06:28:00.000-08:002010-01-29T06:31:49.507-08:00

I am flying back to Bratislava, Slovakia tomorrow. Another three-week trip with stopovers in Budapest, Hungary and Prague, Czech Republic. I was just Instant-Messaging with someone over there — nine-hour time difference — and apparently it's colder than a witch's tit in a brass bra. That's the official reading.I may have mentioned this already, but last time I was over there I remarked that my

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-23045225847902787942010-01-27T03:00:00.000-08:002010-01-27T03:00:07.292-08:00

One lovely side effect of the unending rains? Surprise, we are closely ringed by mountains in the Los Angeles basin. Thanks to smog and cloud cover, it's easy to forget. This view is looking east on Santa Monica Boulevard — Beverly Hills and the Pacific are behind you in this picture — towards the middle of WeHo and Hollywood itself. Quite a few buildings in Los Angeles have neon signs on their

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-91608474141643666462010-01-26T03:00:00.000-08:002010-01-26T03:00:06.617-08:00

"Life is like playing a violin in public and learning the instrument as one goes on."— Samuel Butler (1612-1680), poet.Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-18793779366254193002010-01-25T19:35:00.000-08:002010-01-25T19:40:40.445-08:00

"He enjoys true leisure who has time to improve his soul's estate."— Henry David Thoreau (1817 - 1862), naturalist and author.Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-28507802531351934902010-01-24T03:00:00.000-08:002010-01-24T03:00:01.535-08:00

"When it is obvious that the goals cannot be reached, don't adjust the goals, adjust the actions."— Confucius (551-479 BCE), philosopher and teacher.Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-71388417529442669782010-01-23T20:18:00.001-08:002010-01-23T20:19:09.566-08:00

"If you want to tell people the truth, make them laugh, otherwise they'll kill you."— Oscar Wilde (1854-1900), writer and wit.Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-70688023100120073952010-01-21T12:26:00.001-08:002010-01-21T12:27:56.312-08:00

Soooo — how is today looking in rain-soaked Los Angeles? See the previous post and add more wind.Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-67649446574440294762010-01-20T15:18:00.000-08:002010-01-20T15:29:22.239-08:00

In Los Angeles, you go big — really big — or you go home. Therefore, we don't get a light sprinkling of rain: no, we get a biblical deluge. The photo above is what North Hollywood looked like early yesterday afternoon when I had to dash out to meet a client (click to embiggen). It was like fording the Rio Grande in spots. Today, the rain started up five or six hours ago and has not ceased for a

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-72586107705010700552010-01-19T03:00:00.000-08:002010-01-19T03:00:02.959-08:00

Who doesn't love a meme? This is a good 'un.1. Grab the nearest book.2. Open the book to page 123.3. Find the fifth full sentence.4. Post the text of the sentence in your journal along with these instructions.5. Don't search around for the coolest book you can find. Use what's actually nearest to you.That sentence is your spiritual guide for tomorrow.Here is mine. Strangely perfect:"Guiseppe says

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-59369542845223177162010-01-18T11:38:00.000-08:002010-01-18T11:45:41.127-08:00

Have always loved this one. It's all there, human nature. Chuck Jones is my favorite Hollywood film director (H/T Tim). I can watch those shorts over and over again and still laugh my butt off. It still amazes me that some of Daffy's asides to the camera and facial reactions are animated — to say nothing of Bugs Bunny, of course. They really do feel like spur-of-the-moment wisecracks that were

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-6756233363750456012010-01-18T03:00:00.000-08:002010-01-18T03:00:07.463-08:00

"About the time we think we can make ends meet, somebody moves the ends."— Herbert Hoover (1874-1964), 31st U.S. President.Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-72516589113931064312010-01-15T12:16:00.000-08:002010-01-15T12:19:08.404-08:00

This morning's brilliant orange and yellow sunrise from the POV of Runyon Canyon in Hollywood.[H/T WeHoDaily Twitpic.]Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-60170188491992419642010-01-14T17:22:00.000-08:002010-01-14T17:27:03.225-08:00

HuffPost: "The Web Is Flat — The World Responds to Haiti's Earthquake Online""We've said it before and we'll say it again: The Web is flat. And in a world made smaller by the Internet and new technologies, we become each other's witnesses — one text, one tweet, one Facebook status update, one YouTube video, one Wikipedia view and edit at a time... [snip]"Wikipedia, as always, has been a source

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-24641036438658634332010-01-13T04:05:00.000-08:002010-01-13T04:07:18.942-08:00

Who knew Aristotle was a freelance writer?"All paid jobs absorb and degrade the mind."— Aristotle (384-322 BCE)Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-6489093451275362662010-01-12T11:00:00.000-08:002010-01-12T11:00:01.795-08:00

"Follow the path of your aroused thought, and you will soon meet this infernal inscription: There is nothing so beautiful as that which does not exist."— Paul Valéry (1871-1945), writer and philosopher.

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-20098693214137153922010-01-12T03:00:00.000-08:002010-01-12T03:00:08.354-08:00

"Easy reading is damned hard writing."— Provenance unknown.Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-71342828371910102812010-01-11T17:32:00.000-08:002010-01-11T17:35:06.816-08:00

"I was working on the proof of one of my poems all the morning, and took out a comma. In the afternoon I put it back again."— Oscar Wilde (1854-1900), writer and wit.Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-60798288075829259642010-01-10T09:00:00.000-08:002010-01-10T09:00:01.617-08:00

"Writing is not necessarily something to be ashamed of, but do it in private and wash your hands afterwards."— Robert A. Heinlein (1907-1988), author, "the dean of science fiction authors."Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-84317467094245596542010-01-10T03:00:00.000-08:002010-01-10T03:00:00.104-08:00

"If you're a freelance writer and aren't used to being ignored, neglected, and generally given short shrift, you must not have been in the business very long."— Poppy Z. Brite (b. 1967), author.Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-52491540962433367552010-01-09T21:48:00.000-08:002010-01-09T21:52:30.169-08:00

A glorious, smog-filtered sunset in West Hollywood, California, Wednesday, January 6, 2010. Click to embiggen. I live about a half-mile down Santa Monica Blvd., pictured here, in the opposite direction.[H/T WeHoDaily Twitpic.]Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-23177523246315063392010-01-07T03:00:00.000-08:002010-01-07T03:00:07.002-08:00

"In a thousand words I can have the Lord's Prayer, the 23rd Psalm, the Hippocratic Oath, a sonnet by Shakespeare, the Preamble to the Constitution, Lincoln's Gettysburg Address and almost all of the Boy Scout Oath. Now exactly what picture were you planning to trade for all that?"— Roy H. Williams, author and marketing consultant.Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-23163574422627956202010-01-06T19:52:00.001-08:002010-01-06T19:58:05.868-08:00

"If you can tell stories, create characters, devise incidents, and have sincerity and passion, it doesn't matter a damn how you write."— W. Somerset Maugham (1874-1965), author.Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-81319724408548593182010-01-05T11:00:00.000-08:002010-01-05T11:00:00.180-08:00

"You can't wait for inspiration. You have to go after it with a club."— Jack London (1876-1916), author.

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-70395095808113592010-01-05T03:00:00.000-08:002010-01-05T03:00:04.557-08:00

"Invent your own mythology or be slave to another man's."— William Blake (1757-1827), artist and author.Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-43901986906884879642010-01-04T03:00:00.000-08:002010-01-04T03:00:07.524-08:00

"I hate quotations. Tell me what you know."— Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882), author and philosopher.Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-66697721408587041502010-01-03T15:45:00.000-08:002010-01-03T15:47:12.632-08:00

"Our life is frittered away by detail. Simplify, simplify."— Henry David Thoreau (1817 - 1862), naturalist and author.Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-1192913124912634782010-01-02T12:02:00.001-08:002010-01-02T12:03:46.307-08:00

"A civilized society is one which tolerates eccentricity to the point of doubtful sanity."— Robert Frost (1874-1963), poet.Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-36803834562352119632010-01-01T12:51:00.000-08:002010-01-01T12:55:56.231-08:00

Ten years and a day ago, just after midnight EST on New Year's Eve, I asked Best Friend Tim, who lives in D.C., what the new decade looked like from his time zone."Like the ass-end of the '90s!" was his reply. Ten years later? Different verse, same as the first...Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-61784742115962049102009-12-31T14:33:00.000-08:002009-12-31T14:41:21.675-08:00

Been trying to think of something poetic and thoughtful to see off 2009 and the Naughty Aughties decade. And all I can come up with is an oldie-but-goodie: Seeya, 2009. Don't let the door hit ya where the good Lord split ya.Cheers to the tens of you who have visited this humble blog the past 12 months (or, really, for the past eight years). Big stuff afoot for the new year, including my big

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-87515733248890219772009-12-30T03:00:00.000-08:002009-12-30T03:00:07.189-08:00

"One has to live a life that creates a writer."— Erno Paasilinna (1935-2000), journalist, author and "National Cynic Laureate" of Finland.Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-75657536683942377042009-12-29T14:12:00.000-08:002009-12-29T14:16:06.248-08:00

"I take the view, and always have, that if you cannot say what you are going to say in twenty minutes you ought to go away and write a book about it."— Lord Brabazon (1884-1964), aviation pioneer and British politician.Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-79702782697950608942009-12-28T03:00:00.000-08:002009-12-28T03:00:06.520-08:00

"Forgive him, for he believes that the customs of his tribe are the laws of nature."— George Bernard Shaw (1856-1950), author and Nobel laureate.Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-91540226715163184182009-12-27T03:00:00.000-08:002009-12-27T03:00:02.367-08:00

"We must embrace pain and burn it as fuel for our journey."— Kenji Miyazawa (1896-1933) activist, poet and storyteller.Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-69097500463358366112009-12-26T14:51:00.000-08:002009-12-26T14:56:20.276-08:00

"And if there were a God, I think it very unlikely that He would have such an uneasy vanity as to be offended by those who doubt His existence."— Bertrand Russell (1872-1970), philosopher, mathematician, author, Nobel laureate.Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-31192607976622037022009-12-25T10:59:00.000-08:002009-12-25T11:01:45.071-08:00

Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-72758819901695031572009-12-24T09:49:00.000-08:002009-12-24T09:55:48.998-08:00

I was jolted awake perilously early this Xmas Eve by the throaty roar of two leafblowers echoing through the canyon between my apartment building and the building next door. I laid in bed and had to laugh as I listened to what sounded like a pair of battling motorcycle warriors feint, parry and thrust.I had risen, put on the kettle, showered, dressed and was waiting for my tea to steep before the

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-72438702274945994172009-12-23T13:58:00.000-08:002009-12-23T14:05:44.363-08:00

Los Angeles always clears out during the holidays. The empty roads are a bit startling, actually. And the air quality? I may have blogged about this over Thanksgiving, but the air immediately clears less than 24 hours after thousands of cars and trucks off the road. Amazing.Anyway, an empty City of Angels is a delight over the holidays. But after spending over hour just to pick up my mail and hit

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-25869223355826157942009-12-22T03:00:00.000-08:002009-12-22T03:00:02.479-08:00

"An artist's career always begins tomorrow."— James Whistler (1834-1903), painter.Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-83891278786964890362009-12-21T03:00:00.000-08:002009-12-21T03:00:03.985-08:00

"The first chapter sells the book. The last chapter sells the next book."— Mickey Spillane (1918-2006), novelist.Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-56670742193604347942009-12-20T17:27:00.000-08:002009-12-20T17:30:47.489-08:00

"The brain that doesn't feed itself, eats itself."— Gore Vidal (b. 1925), author, activist and critic.Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-26902713783755154782009-12-19T03:00:00.000-08:002009-12-19T03:00:03.474-08:00

I'm at Kindred Spirits bookstore in Claremont today between 12-5 p.m. for animal readings and general holiday merriment. Stop by if you're in the area!Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-65113565383816363522009-12-18T15:54:00.000-08:002009-12-18T15:57:11.777-08:00

"Half of being smart is knowing what you're dumb at."— David Gerrold (b. 1944), author.Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3223635.post-1449139562471869042009-12-17T03:00:00.000-08:002009-12-17T03:00:02.490-08:00

"Good writing is supposed to evoke sensation in the reader. Not the fact that it is raining, but the feeling of being rained upon."— E.L. Doctorow (b. 1931), novelist.Email: It's Hot in TopekaTwitter: 500Turtles

Benjaminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02623191460863933721noreply@blogger.com0