Last year I worked on a film shoot where we had a mock-up liquor store scene. So, the show purchased several thousands of dollars’ worth of two buck chuck and King Cobra Malt Liquor in addition to having multiple liquor distributors pitch in truckloads of freebies for product placement.

After the show ended and the liquor store set was struck, all the good liquor went home with various crew members. No one ever called accounting . . . no, I’m not holding a grudge about that . . .  However, later I found that no one wanted the cases of King Cobra (or the chuck). Ain’t these people never hear’d o’ malt licka? Anyway, the set decorator was just going to throw the stuff away . . . and that’s when I had an idea!

I took all the chuck and any cases of old, hot beer that I could find and gave it away to my friends. I also took all the King Cobra home. And I saved it til the night of the next full moon. Then I put it all in the freezer for about 45 minutes, til it was nice and frosty. Then I went outside to take a peek onto the night time streets of my lovely Venice ghetto ‘hood, where, sure enough, there were crack dealers and prositutes galore. During the summer, there is alot going on out there and for some reason, the street activity picques even more during times of the full moon. So I thought I’d help out.

I brought the King Cobra outside, lined the street corner with it’s frostiness and left it sitting there for all to enjoy. I checked an hour later. No malt liquor on the sidewalk. Music pumped up a notch in the hood. Hookers dancin’ in the streets. This is how we roll in Venice.

Did you know that more than three of anything is a collection?

What odd collections of things do you all have out there? And I’m not talking about shoes or lame shit like table cloths or wine glasses . . . I mean what kind of obscure collection of three things or more do you have/love/hoard/feel no special attachment to/or is a guilty pleasure?

I have a collection of monkey t-shirts. And I actually have them with me out here with the small amount of stuff I’ve brought along with me while I live on the open road. I wore one of them yesterday. Along with a monkey on each breast, the t-shirt has chinese characters on it that spell “New Person Being Born.” It ended up being my mantra for the day.

But the story of New Anna Being Born is the next post.

Late winter is the best time to plant seeds within yourself. That’s what I’ve decided to do. I’ve been nesting over the winter at home in Venice, working diligently on some personal projects that mean alot to me - building this blog, setting up my art studio, consciously taking better care of myself and getting organized - just to name a few. The Vernal Equinox, which is the herald of spring, falls on March 20 . . . so the bursting of new tree buds is just around the corner . . . another winter survived. (’Cept mine wasn’t so hard because I was mostly in SoCal - sorry to all my winter-weather-enduring peeps!)

And now that I’m about to ride off into the sunrise for a bit and venture away from what I’ve built here at home, it occurs to me that the least I could do is give myself a road map. Upon my return, I’ll be the same ole Anna, but slightly different - and some perspective will be nice. So, I’m going to write a letter to myself within the next couple of days, seal it up and tuck it away in my studio for later perusal. I urge you to undertake this experiment as well.

Now is the perfect time to sow the seeds for later in the year. I plan on reading my letter to my future self in November, which is the height of harvest time. There’s no right or wrong way to write a letter to yourself. Lay out your dreams, hopes and goals for the year. Shower yourself with love and affection. Decorate it, stow it on your altar, squirt it with perfume, put it in a plastic bag and bury it in your yard . . . whatever you want to do with it is fine. This is personal, and most importantly, should be a fun exercise! I’m going to begin my letter with “Dear Future-AnnaBananaFanna,” decorate it with something sparkly and/or strange and tuck it away in a very safe, non-disclosed place that makes my heart feel all mushy when I think of it.

So, right now - get to writing to your future self. And don’t forget to write down a date in your calendar to remember to read it later! Or you can just check back here in November. I’ll remind you to find your letter when I’m rediscovering my own.