I had stir-fried broccoli for lunch today, using the recipe from the latest issue of Cook’s Illustrated as a guide. The first time I made the stri-fry, I used the stated amount of red pepper flakes. The second time out, I decided to go with jalapeno flakes instead. The third time, today, I decided to bump up the heat by doubling the amount of jalapeno flakes. It wasn’t until I sat down to eat that I realized I’d made a mistake. I hadn’t used jalapeno flakes. I’d used habanero instead. It took my mouth a full hour to recover.
Then for dinner tonight, I made myself some angel hair pasta with sea urchin. I used the package sea urchin sauce my friend Tomomi sent me from Tokyo, then supplemented that with some fresh sea urchin. Some diced garlic, a little olive oil, and a touch of cream completed the dish.
I also sampled two new (to me) fruit:
Ashleigh was quite excited to hear I’d picked these up. She gave me specific instructions on how to eat the prickly pear (warning against touching the fruit with my hands and, instead, telling me how to use a fork and knife to peel it), and referred to the passionfruit as snotfruit (“You’ll know why when you have one,”she assured me).
The second half of SGU’s first season premieres in a matter of weeks (April 2nd to be exact on Syfy) and so, in preparation for the big event, I continue my ongoing peek at some of the design work that went into the show’s first ten episodes. Today, we move on to episode #4, Fire…
Congratulations. Yet another episode title guessed. For those of you keeping score:
Episode #6: TRIAL AND ERROR
Episode #7: THE GREATER GOOD
Episode #8: *A****
Episode #9: ???
Episode #10: RESURGENCE
Today’s entry is dedicated to PBMom, Deni and Summer!
Mailbag:
Charlie’s Angel writes: “Hi Joe — um, isn’t it ALEC Baldwin on 30 Rock?”
Answer: Right. I meant Alec Baldwin. Although Adam Baldwin is mighty terrific as well.
Cat4444 writes: “I’m wondering, though, if “Rob and Carl” spending their time watching director “Robert Carlyle” is in the same vein as “Adam” Baldwin on 30 Rock, or is he really directing an episode? If so, can you leak which one? Is it his first time as a director? Are you folks breaking him in gently, or just breaking him?”
Answer: Yep, Robert Carlyle is directing the first episode on the production schedule – which actually happens to be episode 4 in the airing schedule, Pathogen. No need to be gentle with Bobby. He’s incredibly well-prepared, knows the shots he wants and, more importantly, knows how to get them. He’s also got a fantastic cast and crew backing him up. And the dailies look great!
Rafael writes: “OMG!Erika Kennair is gorgeous!”
Answer: Yeah. We noticed. She’s also whip smart, witty, and an absolute sweetheart.
Brian M. White writes: “How are things gearing up on the SGA movie front?”
Answer: It’s been pretty quiet on the SGA movie front. However, there have been rumblings on the SG-1 movie front.
Brian M. White also writes: “By the way…How has your mom been doing since she left rehabilitation?”
Answer: She’s at home and well on her way to recovery, exercising every day.
Pilota writes: “The entry with the exotic fruit was fun. Ever try a naranjillo? I had one years ago in Ecuador and it was quite tasty. As an added bonus – the inside kinda looked like tiny alien eggs.”
Answer: Sold! I’ll have to track some down.
Niall McNamara writes: “I hope you can answer this question for me i talked to you a couple of moths ago my name is niall mcnamara, i am 14 and from britian what tips would you have of becomming a script writer because it has always been my dream to become one.”
Answer: First, I’d suggest picking up a good book on the craft of scriptwriting (I used Syd Field’s book when I was just getting started). Once you’ve got a good idea of how a script is structured and formatted, watch a lot of film and television and pay attention to things like act structure, plotting, and dialogue. Read scripts. Hell, read anything! Then, sit down and write your first script – be it based on an original idea or a spec based on an existing series. Give it to people you trust and have them criticize your work. If they have nothing but good things to say about it, then they’re wasting your time. Find someone who isn’t afraid to be honest with you. That’s the only way you’ll improve as a writer. Keep watching. Keep reading. Keep writing. Keep rewriting. Start with that.
Michelle writes: “Joe, I’ve noticed your pics lately are sort of soft-focused and the lights blow out the rest of the image. Is that on purpose to make everyone look younger or do you need to have one of your many local camera experts have a look at yours.”
Answer: How perceptive of you. I’m now on my third camera. Maybe I’m due for another upgrade.
Joel writes: “I’m pretty sure that this is not your department, but I’ll aks you anyway if there’s a chance that the right department will hear about this (*hint, hint*). Do you know if there will be a region 2 blu-ray release of SGU season one for us europeans?”
Answer: Sorry, Joel. Not my department.
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