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Author Topic: A Star Is Born…..  (Read 2999 times)

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Offline Moffie65

  • Member
  • Posts: 1,755
  • Living POZ since 1983
A Star Is Born…..
« on: July 21, 2006, 06:07:38 pm »
I hate to keep dredging up old posts, but there are some here who really might benifit from this post, at this time, as a Christmas Re-run.  I am not feeling inspired these days, so please forgive me ahead of time for putting this out there as a re-run.

There are not a whole lot of things in this world that are crystal clear, but one is a standard of the universe; we are here on this planet for the sole purpose of living our lives.

You see, all of us are here, traveling the road of life, and all the people places and things in this life, are a part of our script.  Some of the people are there to give us directions that will either be useful, damaging, or moments of spiritual growth.  Others are there to complete a scene and give it continuity.  Some are walk-ons, sort of like the unexpected turn of events that may make our day, or just be something in passing.  All of them complete the scene, and they change from day to day, as our lives unfold in scenes that are at times tearful, or joyful or any of the many possible human emotions.

In the above scenario, there is one player missing, and that is the lead player, and the writer.  I have news for you; you are all the STAR of your own movie, play, concert or any other type of performance lights your fire, depending on your taste.  The very nature of movies, plays or concerts, are to tell a story, and the writer and Star of the story have to be present and accountable, for a story that is worth while for the star and writer, who in this case are the same person.

(I can just hear you all now, “Oh God/dess, Moffie is all stoned again…”.) 

No, not this time.  All the way through my time with this disease, I have been very aware that the things I write for my script have everything to do with the way my life is going at any given time. 

In your movie, does the star play a secondary role?  Did your writer make sure that the star has the controlling part in the movie to keep continuity and keep the story going and interesting? 

Some of you have recently been in some very life changing things around HIV/AIDS and becoming participants in the way that things are done on a political and social level.  You have done this with your commitments to the movement and to the vacuum that has been created by the passing or retirement of the older generation of HIV+’s.  One of you is now serving in one of the highest positions for People Living With HIV/AIDS in Atlanta, another one in New York, another one has committed to speaking out whenever possible in your world in New Zealand, while yet one more of you are doing so in Greece.  There are also those that are involved in Studies to help move the science ahead, and there are some who have been in this work for years and are now entering yet other drug studies, or already in them. I know that there are many more of you who are doing things in your own movie that are making a difference in your own communities.  What this does is make our own movies richer and deeper for the experience. 

Many of us are coming to the closing scenes of our movie, but are working our damnedest to keep the producers happy and keep the story ever more entertaining, to keep the strings of the movie from being pulled, and coming to “The End”. 

I want to ask one thing, how is your movie going these days?  Are you still playing the starring role, or have you made an attempt to call on the stand-in?  Can there really be a stand-in?  I really don’t think so.  Just remember, this is your movie, and yes you are the star whether or not you like your own script.  I know that many of you are going to be pissed that I haven’t mentioned that lurking fact that we all are living with HIV and there can be no good result for our own script, when such a dastardly thing has come into our lives.  It is really funny that my sweetie last night, looked straight at me and said “you must know that the people who have been given HIV are the ones that are supposed to have it, either for their strengths, or for whatever reason the universe decides”.  That is the reason that some call HIV a gift, while others call it a scourge, and unfair.  Hey, just like in life in the production of movies, stuff happens and it always affects the bottom line.  What do the producers of a blockbuster do when their star becomes ill on the set of a big budget movie?  The filming stops until that star is back on the set and ready to work.

Are you playing the starring role?  Are you on the set early each day?  Is your movie going to have a mass exodus of the audience in the first five minutes of the show? 

Make your movie a blockbuster, get out there and live life.  Add some scenes that are really going to surprise and thrill your audience, go into some of the corners of your story and bring them to the front to deal with them and move on with the story.  The HIV is something that was added to your movie to change the way the script was going; now it is your duty as the writer and the star to make the story something more than a tragedy.  Tragedies fade into oblivion, as the human race is always prone to bury tragedy and turmoil and forget it very soon.  We only like to remember the good stuff, otherwise HIV would not be a problem today, nor would it be spreading like the wild fire that it is.

I can’t wait to hear/see what scene you are creating today.

Thanks for reading.

In Love and Peace
The Bible contains 6 admonishments to homosexuals,
and 362 to heterosexuals.
This doesn't mean that God doesn't love heterosexuals,
It's just that they need more supervision.
Lynn Lavne

Offline Teresa

  • Member
  • Posts: 1,755
Re: A Star Is Born…..
« Reply #1 on: July 21, 2006, 07:05:40 pm »
Thanks Moffie..i loved reading your post!

Im hoping to add more players to my movie when I start volunteering at Positive Directions sometime in August.

Will keep ya posted on my "movie".

Hugs
Teresa
Hubby HIV+ 5/5/06
CD4:320
  %: 26.7
 VL: <20
Atripla (started it 8/24/06)

Offline Oceanbeach

  • Member
  • Posts: 3,564
Re: A Star Is Born…..
« Reply #2 on: July 21, 2006, 10:53:19 pm »
I got to be in a movie once...  I was what they call an "extra" That is the people who fill out the crowd scenes and never get to speak a word because the speaking parts pay more.

When it was all done, every scene I was in was on the cutting room floor except where I can see half of my face for a split second as Jim Carrey said, "I'm not wearing a costume."

I tried the game show circuit for awhile.  My favorite was "The Price is Right" and I learned all the games by watching TV and went to the studio 4 times to sign up as a contestant.  It took 4 hours of waiting in lines to be interviewed before ever being seated in the studio.  Bob Barker would come out and talk to the audience before taping started and between takes.  He usually spoke about his favorite subject, spay and neuter your pets, some past contestants.  He and Rod Roddy would answer questions and then the fun began.

When the camera panned the audience, I never even saw myself there either but did see the person sitting next to me on the Christmas show, which was taped in July.

During the time I was producing the radio show, I began producing a TV show called, "Taking Pride in America, the American Workforce."  This half hour paid program was scheduled to appear on every cable channel from Santa Barbara to Phoenix.  My time slot was 5:30 AM on Sundays and my cost was $186,000.00 for 3 months.  Both the radio and the TV show ended with my hospitalization AIDS diagnosis in June 1996.  My job and everything else I ever worked for ended on that day as well.

Zeph and I were talking once about being from L.A..  We agreed that if you are from Los Angeles and not in film, we are nobody.  I have a whole life of being nobody and I wouldn't trade it for anything, not even an Academy Award.

I dated an Executive from Capitol Records and got to go to the Grammy's that year.  We were seated on the top balcony, far from anyone who was anyone.  We got to see Sheryl Crow win her award for best song and afterwards, we wanted to do was have some fun on Santa Monica Blvd.  I thought for a long time my next movie would be produced by AIDS Project Los Angeles, The Geffen Center and I would be one of the 50,000 extras, living with HIV/AIDS in California.  That is not a bad part IF I can make a difference.  Have the best day
Michael

www.Commission-on-AIDS.org

 


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