COLD CASE #4 & #5

I crashed at Jansen's last night after doing some stand-in work for some Asian guy who gets killed. I didn't have to stand-in for him when he was killed, just during the times he was talking to a dirty cop and when he was working at his parents shop.

It was hot as hell at the WB since we are facing a heat wave. Of course, we had to shoot outside much of the time, so it was not fun work. I was asked if I was available again tomorrow, but I had to turn it down as the carpet cleaner is coming.

LIVING BETTER LONGER WITH DR. GARY SMALL

Dr. Small is the director of the UCLA Center on Aging. The following are my notes on his lecture that ran on PBS.

It is not enough to add years to one's life . . . one must also add life to those years.
- John F. Kennedy

It's not just about living longer, it's about living better too.

Age Reminders

• Your first gray hair
• The first time someone calls you "Ma'am" or "Mister"
• Walking into a room and forgetting the reason why

Perceptions of Aging
According to George Carlin, we . . .

• Become 21
• Turn 30
• Push 40
• Reach 50
• Make it to 60
• Hit 70

Psychographics - we all perceive and feel we are younger than we actually are

We're Living Longer

• Baby Boomers - born between 1946 & 1964 (78 million) - are now turning 60
• George Bush
• Bill Clinton
• Cher
• Donald Trump
• Average age expectancy of child born in 1935: 61 years
• Average age expectancy of child born today: 77 years

It's Not All About Your Parents!
It's not all about genetics that determine how long and how well we live. It's about 1/3 genetic and 2/3 not genetic.

Mental Workouts, Exercist, Diet, Relaxation, Medicine, Relationships, Positive Outlook, Environment all play a role.

U.S. Healthy Aging Challenge

• 16 million with diabetes
• 5 million with Alzheimer's disease
• Exercise and diet lower risk but
• Less than 50% of people exercise regularly
• 3 out of 4 baby-boomer restaurant meals purchased at fast food restaurants
• 1 out of 3 adults are overweight

Result of Treatment
Cognitive Function goes down upon Onset of issue. It continues to go down during Presymptomatic stages. When it reaches point of Disease, that is when Treatment begins. We wait too long to treat. If treatment began before Disease, then Cognitive Function can last longer or even improve.

PET scans are not used to help diagnose cognitive issues.

Progression of Alzheimer's Abnormal Proteins in Living Humans.
Abnormal proteins tend to build up in memory areas with people who have Alzheimer's. They can see this by injecting something that binds to proteins.

Predicted Effect of Anti-Plaque Treatment on FDDNP Binding
The way to help people the most is to protect a healthy brain versus repairing something that is damaged.

In the future, Dr. Small believes Alzheimer's will be treated pretty much like high cholesterol. You'll be able to take some kind of drug that will help prevent memory diseases.

Protecting the Brain with Mental Exercise
Mental Aerobics Warm-Up
How many months have 28 days?

The P's and Q's for Sharpening the Mind

• Presence - being mindful in the moment, paying attention
• Quality - giving information meaning, putting things in context
• Question - asking questions, learning
• Persevere - repetition

Stay Mentally Sharp

• Travel
• Get creative
• Challenge yourself
• Take on a new hobby
• Join a book club or study group
• Go back to school

Look, Snap, Connect
Look - Actively observe what you want to learn
Snap - Create a vivid mental snapshot or memorable image
Connect - Visualize a link to associate images

For example, if you park in section 3b, visualize three bees buzzing above the car. If you park in 2b, think of Shakespeare "to be or not to be."

Physical Exercise Protects the Brain and the Heart

• You don't need to be a marathon runner
• 10-minute daily walk lowers risk for Alzheimer's and heart disease
• Regular exercise can add 2 or more years to life expectancy
• Cardiovascular conditioning
• Improves brain function
• Produces endorphins
• Increases metabolism

Healthy Brain Diet

• Antioxidant fruits & vegetables
• Omega-3 fats
• Whole grains & other healthy carbhohydrates
• "Cheat Eats"
• Coffee
• Alcohol

Fish for Living Longer

• Calorie for calorie, health benefits of fish oil exceed any other nutrient
• Fights heart disease, Alzheimer's, strokes
• Beware of heavy metals
• Safe daily: snapper, tuna, salmon, sole
• Safe twice weekly: halibut
• High mercury: shark, swordfish

Resveratrol

• Ingredient of red wine
• Mimics the longevity effects of caloric restriction
• Increases life expectancy, prevents weight gain, and slows down aging

Stress on Aging

• Stress hormones impair brain and heart health
• Stress can lead to depression
• We can manage our reaction to stress
• Exercise (walking, Tai Chi)
• Meditation
• Gaining perspective

Keep a Positive Outlook

• Optimists live longer than pessimists
• We can learn optimism
• Positive outlook through spirituality
• In harmony with nature
• Belief in God
• Attending a house of worship extends life expectancy

Building Healthy Relationships

• Socially connected people live longer than isolated individuals
• Good sex makes for a longer life
• Heightens intimacy
• Lowers blood pressure & heart attack risk
• Boosts the immune system
• Let go of "toxic relationships"
• Learn empathic skills

Master Your Environment

• Environment at large
• Smoke, smog, mold, other toxins
• Driving
• Immediate environment (home/office)
• Feng Shui
• Ergonomics
• Information overload
• TV addiction
• Clutter

Tips for Clutter Control

• Think small
• Sort by function and frequency of use
• Donation box
• Must keep box
• Uncertain box
• Isolate necessary clutter
• Schedule de-clutter time

Modern Medicine for Quality Longevity

• Taking blood pressure medicine extends life expectancy by 2 years
• Cholesterol-lowering statin drugs increase survival rates of heart patients by 50%
• Medical breakthroughs every day

Decelerating Brain Aging
Potential Strategies

• Anti-Alzheimer's drugs
• Hormones
• Anti-inflammatory drugs
• Anti-amyloid drugs and vaccines
• Ginkgo biloba
• Curcumin

Tip 1
Practice Mindful Awareness

• Better listening skills and closer friendships
• Improved weight control - you are aware of when you have eaten enough
• Avoid physical injury - you'll see that hidden step so you don't trip
• Stress reduction by knowing when to say "no"

Tip 2
Take a 10-Minute Walk with a Friend

• Improved heart/brain health
• Get cardiovascular conditioning
• Talk about daily frustrations to reduce stress
• Increased metabolism for weight control
• Improve social connection
• More positive outlook
• Better health may reduce need for medicines

Trends

• People are living longer
• Every 8 seconds another baby boomer turns 50
• Today's boomers and seniors are
• Proactive
• Embracing healthy lifestyles
• Perceiving themselves as younger

MONK #2

I had a late call time of 6pm so I suspected it would be a short day. I guess it was relatively speaking since we wrapped six hours later. But since it was a late shoot, you still feel pretty tired for some reason even though the hours are short.

I got into a little trouble because I walked straight to set instead of checking in with wardrobe. I sat around holding and didn't see anyone else who were there for my call time. So I asked an AD what I should do and he told me that they were just about to find a replacement for me. He told me to check-in at the trailer which was right at the entrance to Paramount. There I saw three other extras who were already in their lab coats. I was given one and we were all sent to set.

They only used two of us and the other two lab techs just sat around twiddling their thumbs. Sometimes I like that much better, but at times it definitely is nice to work to get some experience on set. The 2nd AD was very particular about me doing the same exact actions each take. We did it several times and I was thankful that on some angles, I didn't have to work. I still wonder how it would feel to be an actor doing the same line over and over again. Perhaps someday I'll have that opportunity.

SOUTHLAND

It surprised me to hear on Facebook that people love this show. I got two replies from a posting I made that I was booked on this show. It seems that people who like it really like it. I caught a few episodes of the first season and something happened on the show that made me feel like it was so fake and unrealistic.

Ironically, the show actually uses real cops as background. I wondered if it was because they wanted to save money, but others say they want it to be as realistic as possible.

The show shoots at the LA Center Studios and took the place of Women's Murder Club. All the trailers were set-up pretty much where WMC was shot. It reminded me of the first time I worked as an extra as a cop on that show. For Southland, I was booked as a clerical type.

Wardrobe didn't give me too much of a hard time when I seemed to be the only person who didn't have a sports coat of some type. But I didn't hear anything about a sports coat on the info line. So wardrobe just told me to roll up my sleeves and that would be fine.

I wasn't given any props and just walked around the police station set like I was doing office work. I ran into Darin Cooper again who I had worked with on Monk previously. Everyone was called to set but us, so he came by and we talked more about the business and whether we would stay in it or not. He's a veteran, having worked in the industry for over 20 years. He's been making his insurance levels, so he's obviously doing something right.

On the other hand, it's not an easy life. It reminds me of a poker saying - it's an tough way to make an easy living. But he did bring something new up. He said he had a DVD he had produced and financed with some friends. It's called Big and Loud Video and essentially serves the young boys and parents market. Of course, I immediately started to wonder how he could market the video since I have some background in media advertising. Unfortunately, advertising means spending money, so I didn't have much helpful advice for him.

I do think the dvd could do well if marketed on a grass roots level. But again, that requires some work and you can really only make a decent amount of money when your products sell a lot of volume. Still, it's always so interesting to see how someone can make something and generate some kind of money from it. I guess that's what a business ultimately is and I keep wondering what idea I can run with to start making some honest money.

As we sat around after shooting a few scenes, the 2nd asked us if we wanted to stay or leave. I always wonder if that's a trick question, but since Darin said he would stay, I figured I would too since it's always easier when you've got someone to chat with throughout the day. So we stuck around along with a few other backgrounders and were driven to the next location.

Darin is a very cool guy and incredibly encouraging. He told me he could easily see me as a cop on the show doing what those guys on set were doing. He also said that since I have a mixed look (ethnically), they love that sort of thing. I guess you have to be able to see that there are always opportunities out there as long as you're willing to try to take advantage of them. Sure, there are tons of roadblocks, but there's always possibilities as well.

I did some calculating and wondered if it was a good decision to stick around. We could have been wrapped about 11:30am. That meant a five hour day for $134. Instead, I stuck around for another five-and-a-half hours for an additional $38. That meant a little less than $7.00/hour for the extra 5+ hours. Oh well, I guess an extra $30+ is still money in the pocket.

Afterwards, I went to Jansen's since there was just too much traffic to head home. We kicked it at his place, rode his bikes to rent a movie and ate some sinigang he had made. Then I asked Gisele if she had wrapped and since she had, we decided to grab a drink at a little pub I found off La Cienega in mid-Wilshire. Since we were both pretty tired, we got tipsy pretty quickly off our one drink.

P90 BARF

I decided to start P90x today and boy, did it wipe me out. Since it was my very first workout, I wanted to go strong, but I didn't realize how much I should have paced myself. I thought I was pacing myself, but I realized I really wasn't - only too late.

About half-way through the 2nd part of the workout, I was not feeling good at all. I felt dizzy and wanted to barf. I always wondered why recruits sometimes throw-up during a rigorous workout and now I figured out why. I guess your body just doesn't feel good and it throws up whatever you have inside you so it doesn't have to use energy for digestion. That's my theory, but regardless, I didn't barf, I just felt like it.

Even sitting down to dinner seemed tough. I felt light-headed and had to lay down to rest before eating again. Next time I'll know better.