It's 01:22 Christmas Day.

Everyone with a life is off decking the halls with holly, or if remotely sane, asleep or drunk (maybe a bit of both).

Guess it's just me, the guy in the red suit and the reindeer up (and at least Santa and Rudolf are busy).

Tra la la....bored now.

December, already? Where does the time go? No, I know the answer to that... deadlines, chores, lack of light at this time of the year and more deadlines. I haven't even started on the Christmas card list yet and presents will need to go off internationally sooner rather than later. I'm just glad most of my friends have so many deadlines and chores of their own they haven't realised my slacking.

It's been an interesting year, full of surprising highs and lows. The lows will take care of themselves over time one hopes, but the highs have been good. Two weeks in Australia for HLWW6. Four days shadowing the cast of Serenity in Edinburgh and most recently a week or so on-set with the cast and crew of Highlander: The Source.

It was quite cold out there and slowly got colder by the day - or rather the night. Several layers of clothing didn't suffice - I looked like the Micheline man's cousin. However it was worth it as there's a chance that I may be glimpsed near the start of the movie as a drunk - who says you can't go home again?

Lots of photos were taken, naturally most are too spoilerific (or out of focus), but the two above show the atmosphere and climate on set. The lighting there was just amazing and no frost-bite in the long run...or anywhere else for that matter. I have no idea if the final movie will be great or not but the commitment of the actors, the camera work and the long hours certainly suggest it has everything going for it.

Less than a hundred days until HLWW7 in Leeds. Can I panic now?

So, I'm sitting there flicking through the channels and I come to CNN and Larry King talking with Dr.Phil - a man who does for medicine what Judge Judy does for court room etiquette.
There's a clip of him talking to a refugee and saying that though he can't promise her, he thinks he has a lead on her missing husband and, golly gee, would she and the kids like to jump on a plane with him to go take a look-see?

"So, did you reunite them?" asks Larry

"Gee, Larry, you'll have to tune in to the show to find out!" Phil replies.

Mental note to self: took four days for any real help to reach the people who need it. Took about eight days for the tragedy to be turned from genuine news coverage into primetime entertainment.

How long can it be before 'Survivor: Canal Street' debuts?

Is it me or does this look like a certain 2000AD comic character unmasked?

Whilst this week has been a mixture of highs and lows (aren't they always nowadays?), I did get some good news today. The trip up to Edinburgh is all sorted and I have scheduled time with Joss Whedon, the Serenity cast and a ticket to the premiere. May also do some stuff with Kinky Boots (Another film - get your mind out of the gutter).

Verbatim #8 is still at the printers but should be back shortly and Impact hits the stands at the end of this week.

In the meantime, I've spent so much time in front of a computer screen recently, I think I need to lie down in a dark room. After I've covered the rent.

John

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