Everyone Was Offering Snoop Dogg Weed ... So I Offered To Cook Him Dinner

Last fall I went to work one day, only to leave a few hours later no longer employed.

Laid off ... after almost 10yrs with the same organization.

I have a post coming up soon, my latest column for The Laker, which describes how I handled this, and life after the layoff.  

That's not what today's post is about, though.

Today is about an adventure I went on BECAUSE of that layoff.


Those of you who know me personally, especially since childhood, may remember my love of being on stage.

7-8 yrs old

Senior Year

Sometime in my 30's

Yeah, the little girl who loved to write, and act, ended up Ms. Corporate Professional, working in IT and training.

Go figure.


One thing the layoff did provide, was a bit of time to explore my options.

Did i want to go right back to work, doing what I was doing?  Or did I want to try something new? Something totally different.

Then I saw the casting call, looking for background actors for the taping of a new season of a well known TV series being filmed here in Nova Scotia.


I had signed up with Hennessey Casting awhile back.

I filled in a profile.  I sent the required pictures.  Nothing professional, just 'regular' recent shots, because that was all I had.

And then I did nothing.

I didn't apply for anything for a long time, partly because I couldn't exactly take time off from my 'real' job, to 'have fun' for a day as a background actor, and partly because I didn't really think I'd get picked for anything, as I have no professional acting experience.


A few weeks ago though, I saw that call, for a show that my younger boy absolutely LOVES.

Holy Crap!  I've done some pretty interesting things over the years in my career, but if I was picked for this ... the boy would LOSE HIS MIND!

I went to the casting website, read the requirements, took a deep breath, and clicked ... APPLY.

And then I waited.  And didn't say a word.  To anyone.


I didn't want to even say I had applied for anything, so I wouldn't have to hear the 'Ohhh sorry you didn't get it', if nothing happened.

So I waited.  In silence.


And then, a few days later, the email came.

"Congratulations, you are now BOOKED as a background actor on Trailer Park Boys"  

(pic below wasn't actually included with the email

 - just one of my favourites)

 Pic taken from HERE.

Holy Crap! I was picked!

Yes, the boy lost his mind.

Now ... what was I going to wear?  ACK!



The night before I was due to be on set, I got another surprise.

I would be in the same scene as guest stars Snoop Dogg, and Tom Arnold.

Um ... WHAT?!?!?!?  And once again, HOLY CRAP!


Much of Nova Scotia was abuzz about the fact that Snoop was in town to be on the show.

People were stalking the set most of the week, hoping to get an autograph or at least catch a glimpse of the famous rapper.

And then came the Buzzfeed headline, 'Snoop Dogg Is In Small Town Nova Scotia, And Everyone Is Offering Him Weed!' 


Alright, so everyone knows the man likes his herb.  But ... really?

Come on, 'Scotians!  Be a bit more original!

I decided that if I happened to get the chance to talk to him, that's exactly what I'd be! 

Original!


So the day came, and off I went to Truro, the location of the fictional Sunnyvale Trailer Park. 


The biggest thing I think I learned about background acting that day is, it's A LOT of waiting around.

After we signed the paperwork and met with wardrobe ... we waited.

Because I had an afternoon call time, (thank you casting Gods!) we waited for the cast to finish the morning shoot.

There was waiting for everyone to have lunch.  Myself included.

It was catered and really good, but I could hardly eat.  I didn't want to be on camera with food in my teeth, and no dental floss!

There was waiting once we got to the specific location where we were shooting with Snoop, Tom Arnold and the rest of the TPB crew.

This was also the time you were assessed by the hair and makeup people and given your prop and instructions.

And then you waited some more.

And then they said ... 'OK Background, you're up!'


I can't tell you what we did, or what, exactly, the scene entailed because of non-disclosure agreements, and well ... I don't want to spill secrets and piss off Ricky, Julian and Bubbles!  Or Snoop!  Or Hennessey Casting!

You'll just have to watch Season 10 when it comes out on Netflix.

But I CAN tell you ... it was a pretty awesome experience, and a great day overall! 

And yes, I did meet Ricky, Julian, and Snoop Dogg.  And chatted with 'T' out in the parking lot when we were finished.

WHAT?

You think I'd leave there without at least meeting a couple of my boy's favourites, if at all possible?

PFFFFTTT!!!! Right!


Let me be clear in stating that I did NOT bug the cast during taping.

At all.

I didn't go near them.

And yes, the majority of them were there. And this close!

But just because I had never done anything like this before, didn't mean I didn't recognize the importance of professionalism on set.

And we had been specifically warned by the casting company, 'NO PICTURES' on set unless we were given permission!

Since I want to work with this organization again, I followed the rules. 

I took no pictures.

That's not to say others didn't snap a picture of me. With friends.


I waited until we were completely finished for the day and when I saw some of the cast hanging around, casually talking to people in the room, I went over.

I spoke to 'Ricky' (Robb Wells) about going to school with his brother many years ago.

I spoke to 'Julian' (John Paul Tremblay) about what is REALLY in that glass.

And then I approached Snoop. 

He had been there for awhile, but I could see him slowly making his way towards the door, and I knew my boys would never forgive me if I let him go without at least saying hello, so it was now or never.


I waked over and said, 'Hi!'.

Then, because the dude is REALLY tall, I stood up on tiptoe, and whispered in his ear, 'I hear everyone in Nova Scotia has been offering you their weed.  Well, I'm going to offer you something different!'

Oh get your minds out of the gutter, people! It wasn't anything inappropriate!

Although I'm sure he also had no idea what I was about to say next.

Since I was no longer at his ear, he looked down at me through his shades and asked, 'What's that?'

I said, 'I'm offering you a home cooked meal.'

He looked surprised and said, 'Ohhhh I haven't had THAT!'

'I figured you hadn't!', I replied. Then continued on ...

'Just think... home cooked beef and broccoli stir-fry ... or tavern style ribs in the slow cooker aallllll day, covered in BBQ sauce ... so much better than take out!'

I could almost see his mouth watering through the smile when he said, 'That sounds GOOD!'

'I know it does.  Now ... those casting people have my information ... you want that home cooked meal ... you find me.  I'll make you dinner.'

And then we took a picture together and I walked away.


Everyone was offering Snoop Dogg weed ... So I offered to cook him dinner.

The man was offered weed by every Tom (not Arnold), Dick, Harry AND Jane in town.  He's not going to remember any of those people.

But ... guaranteed nobody else offered him a home cooked meal while he was here (unless, perhaps, a cast member who lives here full time).  

THAT he'll remember!

Maybe.

Of course, I can't tell you if he took me up on my offer.  Because I did promise him 'NO PAPARAZZI!'  Nobody would even know he was here.

MUAHAHAHAHHAHAHH!

And that was it. That was a wrap.  I waited for my paperwork to be complete, and then left.


As I was heading to my car, I was introduced to and had the pleasure of chatting with 'T' (Tyrone Parsons) for a few minutes. What a nice guy!

All very nice people, including the rest of the background cast and crew.


Overall, it was a great experience.  Something I would most definitely do again.

And as luck would have it ... I DID!

I was back on set at the Trailer Park for a another day the following week!

Different scene.



Don't bother looking for me in the Snoop episode, though.  

I haven't seen the finished product, but I was at the back of a crowded room, so chances are you won't see me.

But keep an eye out for the chick in the red shirt ... just in case!


Oh, and Snoop ... you missed out on the ribs, Dude.  We had them this week.

But the offer still stands, next time you're in town.  

K.

P.S.  Thank you to 'the powers that be' for giving me the go-ahead to publish this post! 

The Comment Of 1000 Likes

I may as well start this off right away by saying, I'm probably going to get some flack for this post.  

I'm going into this knowing that not everyone is going to agree with or like this one.

And that's OK.

Humour is subjective. 


Have you ever said something, or written a comment, that after you'd said/written you thought, 'hmmm ... that was damn funny, but is probably going to offend someone and get me in shit.'  

But you still can't help but think it's funny.

Yeah.  Me too.


I had just gotten out of bed one morning last winter. 

I didn't have to rush out the door anywhere, so I grabbed my coffee, and did the one eye scroll through Facebook while slowly trying to wake up.

Within seconds, I saw it.

A meme that was posted on Drea de Metteo's page.

For those who aren't familiar with Drea, she was affectionately known as 'The Junkie Whore' (aka Wendy) on Sons Of Anarchy and of course mafia princess 'Adriana' on The Sopranos. 

I like her.  I think she'd be cool to hang out with in real life.


After reading the meme, I let out a, 'HA!', and then without even thinking about it, I started to type.  And then hit, ENTER.

I was being a smartass, and thinking about the fact that both Drea and I have ex-husbands, when I said what I did.

And then I forgot about it.

Until the 'likes' started coming in.

A steady stream of likes.

Oh don't get me wrong, there was lots of dislike for my words also, and accusations of bitterness and bitchiness.  Yes, those are there, too.

But the comments in response to mine also contained quite a few 'Yup!', 'Agreed!' and 'Me, too!'.


And just the other day, 6 months later, that comment hit over 1000 likes.

HA!  Really?  I feel like I should say thank you!


I can honestly say that's the first time that's happened to one of my Facebook comments.

And I can also honestly say, there was no bitterness or bitchiness intended, 

I never did specifically say I was referring to *my* ex!

That was an assumption made by the internet.

It's been 11yrs, people!  It's all good. 


In my half-awake, lack of caffeine state, I just thought it was funny and thought if Drea actually read her comments, (after seeing her sense of humour through her posts), SHE would find it funny, too.

I never even really thought about the rest of her followers.

I had only had two mouthfuls of coffee ... I wasn't thinking about anything yet!


I don't want to post the meme here, because there's a big 'ol *F*-word right in the middle of it, that definitely jumps out at you, and I know some of you are reading while at work, or have little ones hanging around, and we wouldn't want the boss or kids to walk by, and take that big 'ol *F*-word personally! 

So if you'd like to see the meme, and the comment of 1000 likes at a more appropriate time, you can find them HERE.

I think you can figure out which comment is mine.

But don't read more into it, than it really was.



Agree with me, don't agree with me, find it funny, don't find it funny, think I'm a terrible person ... whatever. 

I still think Drea laughed. And that was my sole intention.

Other than more coffee.



K.

P.S.  Before you send me hate mail, YES, I know it goes for ex-wives, too, of course!

And if I reeeeaaaallllyyyy thought the ex was that bad, I wouldn't be letting the boy go live with him in another province for the summer, would I?  

No.  Didn't think so.

Words To Die For?

My latest column in The Laker.

Last week, I was looking at one of those meaningless, time wasting, online lists that are so popular lately, when one of the headlines over in the sidebar caught my attention.

It said, 'Yet another Bangladeshi blogger hacked to death'.

It didn't really matter to me where they were from, what my brain registered was 'another blogger hacked to death'.

Wow. I realize there are many serious issues happening all over our world that are important, and require our time and attention, but this one jumped out at me as a 'must read', because I figured it had to be a bogus article, and … well … I'm a blogger.

(Pic from a previous column)

Who would go around killing bloggers? And so viciously!

People who don't agree with bloggers who speak out against Islam, according to the article.

Three bloggers had been attacked and killed, two of them leaving their homes in the morning, on their way to work. According to other articles, the actual total is nine bloggers.

Seriously?

And people wonder why I don't tackle the 'tough issues' when I blog.

I've been a blogger for over eight years.

At one point, I was referred to as 'one of Canada's top bloggers', but I can honestly say I haven't put the time and effort into it the last couple of years that I once did. Certainly not enough to retain that 'title'.

When I started out, it was uncharted territory. People were posting pretty much anything and everything, but there were definitely a few hard and fast rules for most.

Don't say anything that would get you fired or piss off your family, and keep your anonymity at all costs.

And if you can't/don't follow Rule 2, refer to Rule 1!

Some followed these rules. Some were public figures immediately. And others revealed more and more of their personal lives, with pictures, as time went on.

In the beginning, you never saw a picture of my kid's faces on my blog and it's still VERY rare you'll see one now that they're a teenager and adult.

I also had a couple of personal rules as well.

Don't bash the ex, and don't use my words to hurt my kids in any way.

For eight years, I've kept my blog 'light' and hopefully humorous, entertaining, sometimes educational, and meaningful.

At least, that's what I was shooting for.

It's not that I don't have an opinion on the 'hot' topics plaguing our society. I do! Strong ones!

But am I going to put them out there in a public forum, for the entire digitally connected world to read, and judge and possibly react to? No.

Not because I'm afraid to express my opinion, especially among my inner circle, (anyone who knows me, probably just chuckled at that remark) but because as a single parent, the fear of someone harming me or my children, in any way, to 'get back at' me for something I've said, or an opinion I've expressed publicly that doesn't match with some psychopath's, has kept me reserved with my thoughts.

Always.

If something happens to me, what happens to the kids. Or worse, what if something happens to the kids.

Plain and simple. It all comes down to a healthy does of paranoia.

And yes, I do say healthy, because if you remember the headline above, 'Yet another Bangladeshi blogger hacked to death' ... I don't want to end up as one of those bloggers.

Are my views of the world that extreme that I honestly think someone is going to track me down and hack me up in front of my house one day? Or target my children? No. But I also know this world can be pretty messed up.

People DIE for their views and opinions. And not only in Bangladesh.

Have I written about things that I feel are important to me, and other members of society?

Absolutely.

I've talked about mental health, suicide, losing both a pet and a parent, teenagers and alcohol, bullying, and a whole slew of other topics, including zombies.

And yes, when I really DO believe in something, I'll go places I'm not supposed to, like breaking the law, and writing a post about Rehtaeh Parsons during the publication ban on her name.

But, I will never do so in a way that would intentionally aggravate or antagonize anyone.

Never wanting to poke the bear. Never wanting to attract the Psychos.

Because while I do love my blog, and it will always be my outlet and release, and my posts are important to me, are they words to die for?

No.

And that will never be my intended audience. Not for my blog, or even my column.

But if I can make you smile, keep you entertained for a few minutes, and sometimes maybe even teach you something new, then I'm happy with that.

I don't have to change the world with my words, I just enjoy sharing my little korner of it with those who occasionally want to stop by.

Please leave machete at the door.

K.