Flight of the Stern

Our dearest friend, Dylan Stern, proving to the world that he can fly at last night's Moonbounce party hosted by the lovely Sara Kordy. It was hands down the best way to end summer. And no, Dylan didn't die.

Clean Shaven and Drunk

And with that, it was the summer of ' 09.

Part 01: Bringing life back to life.

I told myself in January that this year is the year to make things happen. To take leaps, be adventurous and let the past be the past. I spent the early days of '09 devoting my time to the pen, scripting ideas and organizing for the next chapter of this epic jounrey. I spent springtime creating new projects, developing new ideas and shaping what it was we said Phalco would become. In the early days of summer I took months of solitude and brainstorming and brought it to life. Phalco went into production on a brand new sketch comedy pilot (currently in post production) as well as took to the stage for our first ever live sketch show. Words on paper and ideas in my mind had become real and the things that started to take shape around me were also real. It was all quite awesome.

Part 02: An old song sings again.

When you find yourself on a solid path it can exhaust you, but exhaustion doesn't matter when you feel on top of the world. In early July I headed a few miles east where a new environment awaited me. It was time to move on and settle into Los Angeles as a 26-year old inspiring "king of Hollywood." My new home not only brought a breathe of fresh air, but new faces and a new way of life. Surronded by new friends and a fresh new atmosphere, I felt alive again. When I think back to my days in Pittsburgh and the things the drove me to come west I think of friends, old roommates, ex-lovers, friends that were friends then your enemy then your friend again. I'm doing the same thing I was doing then, but with new friends. Friends that will push me to the next level.

Part 03: The unexpected expected.

It's hard to believe how much time has went by since I left home. This journey hasn't been an easy one, but every step, every bump, every shit salad that has come my way has been worth it. So where am I at now? If I were to tell someone where I was in life after the summer of 2009 I would say at the top of my game and at the custp of something very great. The week of my 26th birthday, just a little over a month ago, an opportunity like no other had presented itself. Like many things in this town it was unexpected and for the most part completely out of left field. The infamous Phalco short from two years earlier, 'Destroying Jonah Hill', had re-surfaced itself and virtually acted as a reel, resume, headshot and agent all rolled into one. Within a week I went from a lonely writer with his eyes set on SNL to an actor in a real movie. It wasn't a Phalco short or a stage show at the iO West. It wasn't a Captain Foamy sketch or some goof ball Spike TV show. It was a feature film. And I was in it.

Part 04: The Leap.

The week before my old b-day was a crazy one. When I first found out about the feature and how the legendary 'Destroying Jonah Hill' was still making it's rounds around town I wasn't too down with any of it. Sure, I love hearing that our film was still being seen by the likes of Hollywood, but acting in a feature wasn't exactly what I had next on my "to do" list. I had been writing and producing all summer. I was on a roll. I didn't want to take time away from Phalco's latest productions to act in a movie as a character I wasn't interested in playing. And why would I want to leave work for a week and use all my vacation? Why would I want to break stride from the writing success of this year? Why would I want to shave my beard? Why, why, why? Well...because why the fuck not? It was the months of writing and production that made me think this could be a ticket somewhere. It was my friends who guided me in the right direction and believed in me when my negative mind set took over. And it was everything we've done. Where Phalco has taken things and where I took myself. So at noon on my 26th birthday I decided it was time to take a leap. I took some vacation time from my humble home at World of Wonder and in August of 2009 I acted in a feature.

Part 05: Chapter 2 continues.

The things that are beginning to follow are a story in itself. Like my mom always says, "If that was all it was, wasn't it worth it?" The answer, yes. The reality, that was not all it was. The future of Phalco and this epic journey I call my life will continue to roll along nicely. I could sit here and ramble off what we have up our sleeves, what's in the works and what to expect next, but instead I suggest sitting back, relaxing and enjoy the ride to come. I know I sure will.

Enjoy yourselves this fall. The year is still young and the universe is still expected to amaze us in many beautiful ways. Cheers my friends.

-- Steven M. Sims

I'm an Idiot

Is it okay to eat a turkey sandwich you packed for lunch at 10:00am?

Is it smart to "attempt" to jump a spiked fence?

Is it wise to be drunk for the entire month of May?

There's the obvious answer to all of these. Then there's the "I don't give a fuck" answer. The "I don't give a fuck" answer is one you usually hear from a 19 year old who really doesn't give a fuck. The obvious answer is what you usually hear from your mother or a mature adult who knows that they aren't 19 anymore. So where do I fall into this category? – None of the above.

As I sit here, eating my turkey sandwich while holding an ice pack on my upper thigh/nut region, I wonder why instead of listening to Laura Sims and doing the obvious, I listened to a 19 year old Sims, who never had a good sense of judgement. My leg fucking hurts. And as much as I want to blame it on the PBR and lack of food that day, I can't. I can only blame my dumb shit "I don't give a fuck" self. There's really no moral to this story other than, I'm an idiot.

Summer of '09 continues here in Los Angeles with a banged up left leg and a belly full of cheap beer and turkey sandwiches. Sounds just like freshman year again, only replace turkey sandwiches with cheese steaks. My guess...at this rate, I'm dead by fall.

-- Steven M. Sims

Things Are Happening

The summer of 2009 is upon us. And as said in the past, "things are happening." I remember listening to "Six Different Ways" by The Cure a lot back in those days. The days when things did happen. The days when new chapters were beginning. Here's a little Cure action to help us roll right into the summer of '09 and Chapter 2: The Next Chapter (love me Kenny Powers). Cheers!