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The Daily Grind 4

Nov

13

2007

Wearing a mouthguard is weird. I had to order one because I’ve been super-stressed what with the strike and all, and have been grinding my teeth when I sleep, leading to some fairly irritating jaw pain. I’d done this before when I was unemployed, and my dentist had suggested $1500 worth of contraptions to prevent ...

It Begins 2

Nov

8

2007

Five of my friends got laid off today. Four days into the strike, not a “your last day is Friday,” not a “you have until the end of the day”, a letter from the conglomerate stating “your employment is terminated effective immediately.” Turn in your badge and your keys this minute, and don’t let the ...

Deeper Down The Rabbit Hole

Nov

6

2007

This is getting ridiculously ugly very quickly. When even Variety is this pessimistic this early in the ballgame, we’re all fucked. Someone at the WGA made the extremely smart move of making a fairly simple video explaining their entirely rational demands on the internet residuals, which you should watch if you’ve found my explanations of ...

A Little Perspective

Nov

5

2007

Strike day 1 came and went. Some pictures of the group picketing the lot this morning are up on LAist, but our writers were on the afternoon shift, so none of my friends are pictured there. However, this afternoon I found out another friend I used to work with got hit by a car and ...

And Now, Back To Your Regularly Scheduled Strike 2

Nov

4

2007

Back from San Diego, and sadly, it appears we’re headed down the rabbit hole for real. I’m at least modestly heartened to hear that the sides talked for over eight hours (though apparently talks collapsed around 10). I fully expected at least one if not both sides to walk out telling the other side to ...

Armageddon Arrives 6

Nov

1

2007

It’s on like Donkey Kong, kids. Writers announce tomorrow when they’re officially going to start picketing. In all likelihood I’m going to have to cross my first picket line on Monday, something I’m not at all happy about. But I need this job and especially the health insurance it provides, so I’ll drive past my ...

This Will Get Much Worse Before It Gets Better

Oct

31

2007

Sorry to be on all-strike, all the time mode, but really, this is pretty much the future of the industry I work in on the line here. Why do I think it’s going to get worse? The following two lines from the AMPTP’s statement: In referring to DVDs, we include not only traditional DVDs, but ...

Cheap Eats

Oct

30

2007

So I’ve mentioned my joking plan to subsist on cat food should the strike put me out of work to several people, and I’ve learned a couple of things about inexpensive food: 1. There are a lot more ways to prepare Ramen than you’d think. 2. People seriously will eat anything when they’re stoned. More ...

For A Few Days (And Dollars) More

Oct

30

2007

The rumor du jour is that the strike might get held off until next week. This is good for TV production, because every extra day means another chance to maybe get another script in under the line.* Also, at the end of that article is a good summary of what the key issues are in ...

Who Wants To Feed A Starving TV Industry Employee?

Oct

29

2007

This is looking increasingly likely to become a reality show starting Friday. At least the mediator the Feds are sending in is a black belt in aikido, and can kick the shit out of the moron negotiators if they have another fight over chairs. Looks like me and Chaplin are going to be fighting over ...