The Return

WHOA! It's been a long long time since my lost post. I blame PLAD (Post-Lost-Anxiety-Disorder) for most of it, but alas, I am better...Or what some people would still call "Unhealthy", since I've started my LOST rewatch, and in a certain circumstance, my LOST re-write, writing scripts for things I personally would of liked to see on the show, but...that's another post on its own. Anyway.

I went to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter the other day. I'm pretty amazed with what they pulled off down here in Orlando, even if it's just a small slice of an already existing theme park, it was still pretty impressive. The new ride "Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey" was pretty freaking intense, and when I say intense, I mean it was a freaking nightmare. Giant spiders spitting water in your faces, while Dementors try and suck out your soul, as the Whomping Willow attempts to smash the junk out of you. It was pretty epic. But I recommend they attach a disclaimer to the ride entrance saying it may or may not completely destroy your child's will to live. Because I think it's pretty horrifying...

Other than that, I haven't been doing too much. Mostly living in my imagination, working on a few ideas that are completely bigger than I am, so I've brought a few friends on board. We're working on a little project I like to call EARTH³, which is a super-intense science fiction fantasy epic based on the Earth, if it was a cube. That's ride. A cube earth. And in this world there are rules that must be followed and wars brewing between the sides of this world, and I really hope it'll be successful one day. I'm talking San Diego Comic Con successful.

But for now I'm still working at Starbucks, making Venti Chai Frappuccinos every single day of my creatively void life. That is until September when a tiny independent film production is coming to my dinky-suck-fest of a town. And this tiny production is called Transformers 3. I've gotten in touch with a few people and am currently throwing together a resume of my very brief film experience (which amounts to being an extra in FINAL DESTINATION 4), and a cover letter telling them of my UNDYING NEED TO BE A PART OF THIS PRODUCTION!

Seriously. My town sucks. Hardcore sucks. There is absolutely NO film industry around here. So when a film as giant and explosive as Transformers swings into town, there is NO WAY I'll be steaming milk and pouring espresso shots when Michael Bay is blowing shit up across town. Oh hell no. So. I'll keep you updated on that. It could lead to really great things.

...Like networking with the right people who may or may not get me onto the set of STAR TREK 2, which would put me in high-five distance from Damon Lindelof and JJ Abrams. And when that happens...Be warned...The Earth's crust might turn into green jello for a few minutes.

Until then. I'll try and write on here more often. Once a week at LEAST.

Thanks for being so awesome and for reading! You won't regret it, I promise!

-Josh

PS: Eclipse sucked major butt, but so did THE LAST AIRBENDER, which broke my heart.

Josh Gets LOST: The End

May 24th 2010

Lost is over.

This was the finale cake for our finale party,
thanks to Kate Jacobs and the rest of our LOSTies.

I’ve sat at my computer for the past 23 minutes staring at those three words, reading them over and over, and realizing I have no idea what to do next. I’m not in the mood to talk about theories, or what the smoke monster really was, or where the food drops came from. I don’t know where Ajira Flight 316 landed. I don’t know who was responsible for the out-rigger shootout. All I know is LOST completely changed my life and that is something I can talk about.

And in order to do that I need to finish what I started and tell you what happened on the remainder of my trip to Hawaii back in January of this year. It’s taken me over four months to finish telling the story of a trip that lasted 4 days, but it’s four days that sparked the fuse that is going to burn for the rest of my life.

Okay, here we go.

January 30, 2010

Evangeline Lilly is looking right at me. She has the biggest smile and the brightest eyes and I don’t think I’ve seen someone happier in my entire life. She is what awesome sauce is made of. And she loved my tattoo. I couldn’t tell from all the screaming that was going on at the red carpet, but she actually had a few things to say about it.

Check it out in this video, which I’m unable to embed here. Check It Out.

I went deaf for a while and I knew it was because Josh Holloway and Dr. Shepherd himself had stepped out onto the red carpet. I don’t know why, but something about Matthew Fox terrifies me. He seemed pretty chill circa 2004, but it seems that recently he’s adopted a Christian Bale “I Don’t Know How To Laugh” attitude. Or perhaps it is Matthew Fox who is terrified of us. That’s food for thought.

Either way, it was cool to see the cast interact at the premiere. Seeing them all smiling and hugging. Too bad they couldn’t all pull a Nestor Carbonell and leap the barriers to share the love. The only reason they didn’t is because they’d be ripped to shreds instantly like that French dude’s arm.

Slowly but surely the red carpet portion of the premiere began to wind down. The cast was swept away by managers and people on walkie-talkies. And this is when the night truly climaxed in ridiculous intensity. We had to get back to our seats.

Do you remember that scene from Season 5 when the castaways had to flee their camp after the sky began to rain flaming arrows? Yeah? So do I, because that is exactly how it felt to sprint through the sand, amongst 12,000 other fans, to try and find two fold out chairs you left 200 feet away at the front of this crowd. Serves me right for being the second person on that beach that morning.

Amongst this hostility and danger, the true colors of the LOST community showed. In the words of John Locke, “I looked into the eye of the island and what I saw was beautiful.”, and that’s exactly how I’d explain these fans. You see, a bunch of bottom-feeders decided they would walk off the street 10 minutes before the premiere began and would sneak into the spots we left open.

Lucky for us, Tour Guide Matt, who I’d met less than 3 days ago, and a group of Losties I’d met that very same day, were protecting our seats like Jacob protected the island. And as intense as that sprint was, I was completely moved by the gesture. They pointed us out and grabbed our hands and hauled us through the crowd, making sure we were safe and sound and ready to watch the last first episode of the show that brought us all together in the first place. It was amazing. And it was only the beginning.

We got settled, Damon and Carlton said a few awesome words, and then before we knew it, we were on Oceanic Flight 815 (after reliving the TRAGEDY of losing Juliet) and landing at LAX as if nothing ever happened. The beach was in silence, hanging onto every word. That is until a woman sitting ten feet ahead of us in the VIP section went into FRIGGIN LABOR and was ushered out by paramedics, SIRENS BLARING in the middle of the episode. If you’re going to have a baby, don’t have it during LOST. Please.

Time flew by for the next hour and before we could say “Namaste” it was over. Damon, Carlton, and the rest of the LOST cast said their goodbyes, and that’s when the most unsettling group of emotions took over. These people that I had just met, I was going to have to say goodbye to. Tour Guide Matt and I stuck it out through the sand and the rain and I’m pretty sure if I was living in Hawaii we’d be bros. We shared a hand shake and that was that. Heidi and I made plans to hang out the next day before we flew home, so our goodbye hadn’t happened yet.

Among the 12,000 fans trekking back to their hotels, I dragged my feet, hoping that if I took my time I could make it last longer. I saw limousines pulling up back stage where the cast was getting picked up. I thought to myself “Hmm…Maybe I can snag a high five from Nestor C, or get Damon Lindelof to sign my dvd.” And I even said a few words to God or Jacob or Whoever is out there to the affects of “Make It Happen, Dude”.

I made a 180 and pretty much ran to the curbside barricades and made it there JUST in time to see Damon and Carlton waving goodbye to all of us. That was it. It was done. I had just spent a couple of hours of my life within 100 feet of my heroes. That, I think, was the whole purpose for taking this trip. Sure, it was unbelievable to visit the LOST beach and trek through Dharmaville, but to be so close to the people who shape all of my career and life aspirations made it all so real. They made it tangible.

And walking back to my hotel I pondered over it, nearly in tears, that the only thing separating us from our dreams is distance. Whether it be time, or kilometers, it’s all just distance. Being in the right place at the right time and making all the right steps to get there. I was pretty bummed that I didn’t get to shake hands with Mr. Lindelof, but then again, its not something I necessarily deserved. I didn’t fight to go on this trip. I didn’t slave for months to save the money to go. I asked for help and it was graciously given to me. So it’s only fair that I get a simple taste of what’s to come. A hint of what lies ahead and it’s up to me to fight for it.

In the words of a bearded Jack Shepherd, “We have to go back.” And that is exactly how I’ve felt since coming home from Hawaii. That one evening spent on the beach truly screwed me up. I’ve become so completely dissatisfied with my job, where I live, my daily routine. I want those amazing feelings I had in Hawaii everyday, all day, forever.

As soon I was back in my hotel room I tossed everything I’d dragged to the beach with me onto the floor, pull out paper and pen and tried as hard as I could to write it all down. Everything I was feeling. Everything that was going through my mind. All the people I had met over the past 3 days and how badly I didn’t want to forget any of them. Tour Guide Matt, Heidi, Erika, Jo, and Blythe, the ones who even today I still chat with on a nearly regular basis. I didn’t expect to come home with friends and I came home with five.

It didn’t take me long to fall asleep that night. A mixture of shock, excitement, euphoria, and happiness rocked me to sleep and the next day would be my last in Hawaii. I think another comfort was the idea that there were 12,000 other LOST fans going to sleep with the same feelings I had. That the cast and crew of this one of a kind experience were resting while they still could, because before they knew it, they’d be back on set, hard at work bringing this story to a close.

January 31th, 2010

It took me five minutes to fold up my sandy Dharma Jumpsuit and put it into my suitcase. Packing felt like an impossible task, yet alone taking the elevator down to the lobby to check out. I can’t tell you how badly I wanted to text my mom and tell her I wasn’t coming home. I would just bump my flight and live on the island. Maybe get a job at Starbucks. I don’t know. I didn’t care. I just didn’t want to go home.

I met up with Heidi and had lunch at this fancy little joint in her hotel. I must say, I hate pineapple with a passion, but the pineapple I had in Oahu was the best thing I’ve ever tasted on a cheeseburger. The two of us shared theories back and forth, attempting to map out what would become of our beloved characters. I’ll be honest, I’m a bit of a spoiler whore. I was way too curious during season 5 and even though a majority of season 6 I knew what was around the bend, but thank Jacob I managed to control myself for the finale and made it THE FINAL SCENE completely unaware of what was about to take place. And I’m glad I did, because it was one of the most rewarding experiences I’ve had during the show’s six year run.

After lunch, Heidi and I shared a cab to the studio where LOST was filmed. I wasn’t up for getting arrested for trespassing on my last day in Hawaii, so we decided not to jump any fences. Exploring the outside of the studio was awesome, getting to see some of the set pieces and props that brought the show to life. The Donkey Wheel, the Hatch, and the drill that ultimately lead to the Incident. It was surreal.

Heidi and I trekked back to the Diamond Head Health Bar in hopes of visiting Pono (aka, Vincent) one last time, but alas, he wasn’t around. So we dined on expensive strawberry smoothies and hung out in the lobby of her hotel, waiting for her shuttle to return her to reality. We ran into Erika Olson one last time and she had a few cool gifts and a few good theories. It wasn’t long before Heidi’s shuttle arrived and we were hugging it up and saying our goodbyes. As she drove off I found myself pretty surprised. Like I mentioned before, I wasn’t expecting to come home with long lasting friendships, and the island surprised me, like it always has.

To be honest, I was terrified to go home. I was haunted by the idea that perhaps I couldn’t take this experience home with me. That when I got home I would slip back into my daily procrastinating routines. Never get anything accomplished. Never finish a screenplay. Never get out of my dead end retirement home of a town. Never relive the feelings I experienced in Oahu that week. I was horrified at the idea that if I left I couldn’t come back. Not to the state of Hawaii, I mean figuratively. If I left this state of being here in Hawaii, I could never get it back. I was scared of not knowing what was going to happen next.

To remedy this I found a Starbucks, a place I work down here in Florida, and plugged in my phone, tweeting and texting away my thoughts. It didn’t help that out the front windows I could see them dismantling the giant screen we watched the premiere on. Rolling up the red carpet, removing the steel barricades, folding up the chairs the cast and crew sat on. It was like watching your parents take down the Christmas tree in January. No wonder they did it when you weren’t home.

I turned my back to the window and tried to bust out one of my many notebooks. I buy a notebook with every paycheck just about. I buy notebooks and I fill them with ideas. Seasons up seasons of mythology for shows I hope one day people will travel 5000 miles around the world to witness with fans just like them. This is what the trip meant to me. It was like the beginning of a circle. I got LOST and want somebody else to experience what I did for something they love.

A quote taken from the finale “I hope somebody does for you what you’ve done for me” and that is exactly how I feel after this entire experience. If I can put pen to paper and one day, give somebody else the experience LOST gave me then my life is complete. I’ve also had my fair share of religion in my life and done with it. Now that’s not to say I don’t believe in God. I just don’t know who that God is. It could be the one spoken of in tons of books, or a dude living on an island somewhere, but whatever, my point is, I believe all things come from somewhere.

In a lecture the author Elizabeth Gilbert gave at the TED Convention, she said that perhaps our ideas aren’t our ideas at all, but maybe are on loan to us from somewhere else and its up to us to bring these ideas to life and share them with the world and if we don’t do it, somebody else will. I sometimes have no idea where I draw inspiration from, but it flows out of me so fast and with so much certainty that I can only believe that it’s coming from someone/somewhere/something much greater than just me, putting pen to page. And maybe that is how LOST came to be, and how it was used not just to entertain me and my imagination, but to shape the life I would one day lead, and the ideas I’d bring into this world, and the ideas those ideas would spark in others, and the people they’d inspire with their creations, and so on, and so on, until the end of time.

I started this writing about a four day trip I took to Hawaii and have gotten to talking about the end of all things and what this all means between now and then. I think that was what Damon and Carlton and the entire LOST team was hoping for when they set out to tell this story. To get us to think and to feel. To get out and explore our world, ourselves, and each other. To love and to allow yourself to be loved. To embrace strangers as friends. To move on. To let go. Lost did all of these things for me. And it also filled me with the desire to pay it forward. To write and one day produce something that I love and want to share with the entire world.

And who knows where we’ll all be when this happens. Where Tour Guide Matt, Jo, Erika, Neil, Blythe, and Heidi will all be when this all goes down. But who knows. Maybe we’ll all end up in a well-lit church at the end of it all? I’m definitely not opposed to that. For now, I’d like to say thank you. To everyone who pitched in a dollar or two, or two hundred, so that I could begin this journey. Thanks to the bloggers who inspired this trip. Thanks to the strangers who became my friends. And thanks to the cast and crew of the greatest storytelling experience my life will come to know.

Thank you.
Namaste.

PS: This came in the mail for me a few days before the finale aired.

Josh Gets LOST: Part Six

Monday, March 15th 2010

Approximately 1:46AM, while I was using Lostpedia's Super detailed timeline to plot out a non-canon LOST character based on myself (I know right...SUPER DORK), I was also on facebook and noticed something cuh-ray-zay. Damon Lindelof was online. Within a few nano-seconds I sent him an IM just saying "HEY BUDDY!" - And...nothing. So - I said a little prayer to Jacob asking for Mr. L to chat with me. Because - JUST BECAUSE! (Plus I posted a little comment on his wall saying he'd be making a little boy's dream come true)...Then.


And then my life was complete. I had successfully had a conversation with Damon Lindelof, via the internet, and it was super-epic. Of course, I'm one of those super optimistic human beings who believes that after I'm accepted into NYU and graduate, my pilot will find it's way into the hands of Mr. Damon Lindelof, to which he'll be like "I want to meet the kid who wrote this" and thus a collaborative team much like that of Darlton, will be born, and we'll be BFFL. So this facebook chat didn't come a HUGE surprise to me. I just expected that he would be super cool and do it, and it was awesome that he proved me right. It was a cool reminder of the ridiculousness that took place on the Red Carpet...FLASHBACK!!!

Saturday, January 30th 2010

The premiere was set to start in just 45 minutes and Heidi and myself were itching to do something. Anything. That red carpet was looking pretty inviting, but we already had the BEST spot on the beach to watch the premiere and we didn't want to be greedy and steal the best spot at the carpet too. We were already pretty grateful. This is when Tour Guide Matt spoke some sense into us...It went something like this.

"You guys are going to regret it for the rest of your life if you don't go over there. And if you don't I'll punch you in the face" - Or something to that effect. So Heidi and I instantly traversed the sand and found ourselves RIGHT UP against the railing at the red carpet, amongst hundreds of other fans hopeful to get some of the stars attention. Things were getting super intense.


It was apparent that we weren't going to be getting any high-fives or photo-ops with the cast/crew, but we were still in super close shouting distance, and I would soon learn that being the loudest most obnoxious fan possible would get their attention. So - we waited, backs to the sun, getting cooked alive, surviving a LONG day just to get to this moment. It was FINALLY here. A few cool people began to show up.


JO! - Now. I don't know anything about Jo's work history or life history or history history, but someway somehow she's able to get behind the scenes access to so much cool stuff. It could be because she's just THAT cool, or she slaved in the sweat shops of internet blogging, rising to the top. Regardless, its super sweet, and I wish I started blogging sooner. Like when I was 10. I have a gut feeling that when my shows get picked up, we'll be BFF and her site will get first dibs on anything. Ready JO?!


Heidi snapped this amazing picture of Oceanic 815, before it broke in half over Waikiki Beach. Not really, but that would of made for an excellent premiere. Matt was telling us during our tour that many LOST fans who toured with him didn't know about the Sunset on the Beach premiere and changed their flights so they could stay ONE more day, but for many fans it wasn't an option. I couldn't imagine it. Flying home and looking out the window to see this SUPER EPIC party going down on the beach and NOT being a part of it. I'd lose my mind. I felt super bad for all of them and wished the could experience what we were experiencing.


I made a few last minute Tweets and Texts as the media team was setting up, knowing I wasn't going to be able to for much longer. I had like 8% left on my phone battery. All the beautiful reporters, journalists, and photographers were set up and ready. The premiere was about to begin. BUT WAIT?! WHO IS THAT? WAY OVER THERE?!?!?


ZACK AND EMMA?! THE CHILDREN TAKEN BY THE OTHERS?! Did that mean we were FINALLY going to get their story? Probably not, but it was still super cool to see them there. Suddenly there were people screaming. Far. Far. Away. On the other side of the press tent near the street where fancy cars were pulling up. It was happening. Someone was here. The screams continued for at least 20 minutes and we were all DYING to know what was going on, and who exactly was here. It wasn't much longer, until a WAVE of screams traveled up our side of the beach and-


Ken Leung appeared on the red carpet with his wife (I assume...), and the fans were going nuts. It had begun! The most ridiculous hour of my life. Ken/Miles continued down the carpet, posing for pictures, waving to us fans, and getting interviewed. Finally he was in optimal shouting distance and I knew I only had one chance to say something that would cause him to turn around. So - With a split second left. I screamed...

"KEN! TELL MY SISTER I LOVE HER!" And instantly, Ken turned around with a "Wow......Did you really just say that?" kind of expression on his face. And waved. And it was super cool. So cool that I almost didn't notice Michael Emerson join us on the red carpet.


I heard everyone comment on his super cool shirt. The only words that I could come up with to describe it were "Razzle Dazzle". If it appears on Ebay I'll buy it. In a heartbeat. That's right. Anyway - It was epic to have Benry Gale/Dr. Linus only 15 feet away from us. After a few interviews he turned around and properly greeted the fans. A few girls screamed out that he was super hot and sexy, but Michael found that to be inappropriate since his wife was with him. Carrie Preston is awesome as well. I've only ever seen a handful of True Blood episodes, and of course, the scene from LOST where she gives birth to her husband. (That should sound creepy, but it doesn't...)


Before Michael returned the hundreds of reporters on the carpet I managed to scream out "I TATTOO'D MYSELF!!!" - Brandishing screaming Shannon at our favorite villain. He looked. And laughed. And shrugged. Maybe next time I'll wave around a tattoo of Michael himself, and then the reactions will vary. Who knows. I have video footage of this somewhere on my computer, but I'm writing this from my parents computer, since mine is dead. Hopefully I'll be able to retrieve it and show everyone. Next up though...


Daniel Dae Kim! (aka...Jin) !!! All the girls around me (the ones who flew in from Italy), were all saying adorable he looked. All I could think of was "UDDERS!!! UDDERS!!!!" He was a pretty fly. But nothing else really happened with our D.D.K encounter. So - On to...

But what lies in the shadow of her wardrobe?

Zuleikha Robinson! Now, I couldn't get a very good picture of what she was wearing, but it was a basketball jersey/dress, and a lot of us just didn't understand this. I mean, she looks awesome regardless, but it was just a bit strange to see on the red carpet. Some people had some rude comments, but they can just suck it up, or Illana will tie them to a tree and make them dig their own graves.

There has been some discussion of her character so far into this season, and many people think she is just a new more pissed off Ana Lucia, but I like her. Unlike a few people I know, I LOVE IT, when new characters are brought into LOST. Our LOSTIES now don't have all the answers they need (apart from Richard maybe.........) and the show needs to bring in new roles to help answer some of these endgame questions we've been dying to know for the past six years. So. Illana is cool in my book.


Mr. Jeff Fahey, after recuperating from JO's party last night, appeared on the carpet looking all chill. He might of been wearing the same clothes from the night before, but whatever. He was rather super-fly and seemed like that cool Uncle you get to see at family reunions and he'd take you fishing and such. I hope Frank Lapidus gets more screen time this season. And I hope he doesn't bite it. And if he does, I hope it's super crazy epic.


DUDE!!! Jorge came down next to a friggin wall of screaming fanatics. With Sidekick 22 (his fellow lady friend and podcaster from Geronimo Jack's Beard). Seeing Hurley right in front of us was something else. I guess because Jorge seems to be so much like his character that we just subconsciously believe they are the same person. He gave a few shout out to the fans and was a trooper. I want to hang out with Jorge and Beth. Just chill. Maybe go to Disney or something. I'll add that to the list.

FLASH-SIDEWAYS!!!

I hadn't kept in touch with a lot of the people I met at JO's party the night before, simply because my phone was about to die. So apart from Heidi and I at the red carpet, I was hoping that they were having an equally fun time as we were. What I wouldn't find out until much much later after returning to Florida, is that they had a much different experience. And DARE I say (because I'm super grateful for what took place that Saturday), a BETTER time. For a few of my friends I had met there had decided they were going to one-up-us and park themselves right where the cast/crew's cars were dropping them off. And the good thing about that was there was only ONE set of barricades, where as the red carpet had two/three rows of barricades keeping us from bum-rushing the actors. That being said, they got some very EPIC photo ops...

The following pictures are of my new BFFL "@Roobadoo87".

(This next picture ruins me...Oh Nestor)

(JACK FENDER-BENDER!)

1/2 of the DARLTON Equation. 1/2 of our Deity.

A part of me wants to be super jealous and crybabyish over this, but since that would be a douchey thing to do I won't, thus I'm still crazy happy about absolutely everything that did/didn't go down on my Hawaii voyage. And with that, FLASHBACK TO THE CARPET!


The most beautiful LOST cast-member appeared on the carpet next in his glorious guyliner-ness. I feel my insatiable man-crush on Nestor Carbonell is self-justified and needs not an explanation. It is what it is. He made his way down the carpet, waving to fans, getting interviewed, and everyone of us was still DYING to know what the hell was up with Mr. Alpert. Luckily, Ab Aeterno just aired and it was everything I hoped it would be. And more. After the cast left the carpet I heard RIDICULOUS screaming and looked just in time to see Nestor JUMPING THE FRIGGIN POLICE BARRICADE to greet fans. That was pretty much the coolest thing anyone has ever done and I give him major kudos for it. He exchanged hugs, posed for pictures, and even gave a girl the pretty flower thing around his neck. I think she turned into water after that. She just evaporated. I know I would. I mean. Just look at him.


And that's when I heard it..."WAAAAAAALLLLTTT!!!" - the fans began to chant.


I managed to get a good glimpse of Harold Perrineau's head. I tried not to get a bit upset, because Michael is my least favorite LOST character of all time. 1) He shot Ana Lucia and Libby, two characters I thought were on the bottom of the "Deserve To Die" list. 2)He never managed to shave, like Jack and the rest of them did. 3) He said "Walt" too much. But I managed to put my feelings aside and accept Harold for who he was. That dude from the Matrix sequels. Aight?

I had a few things in mind that I wanted to scream, but there were many asian people around me and I would of felt horrible screaming "KOREAN PEOPLE DON'T LIKE BLACK PEOPLE!!!!", said Michael many years ago in House of Rising Sun. Thus I just screamed at the top of my lungs "WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAALT!"

THE MOMENT I'VE BEEN DREAMING OF...SORT OF.

Back home it was no question what item of fandom I was bringing to Hawaii with me to hopefully get signed/touched by a personal hero of mine. And that was my "Write Environment" DVD featuring Damon Lindelof. One of the creators/masterminds behind the ENTIRE reason I was even in Hawaii that weekend. And above, is a picture of me whipping out this item of great important because just down the carpet was...


The Equation. Carlton Cuse + Damon Lindelof = Darlton. Plus Jack Bender who bring the things they write to life. It was pure magic seeing these guys marching up the red carpet. I think I peed a little. I wish they could do commentary on absolutely every episode ever, because I get intensely disappointed when those things are over. I'm one of those people who gets ridiculously upset when DVD's don't include commentary, especially if it's a movie I LOVE. When it comes to LOST, they usually don't leave me sitting in the fetal position.

I think Damon and I are going to be BFF's. He's the kind of creative genius I strive to be and I eat up anything he has to say, breakfast, lunch, and dinner. I'm not a kiss-ass, I just think its been a long time since there's been a creative influence in TV-land that actually gives two-shits about the AUDIENCE. Knows how to make a good story and also, DELIVER that great story. Sure, the plot of ABC's "V" is pretty tight, but the delivery of said plot isn't exactly the best.

I completely appreciate how LOST's writers have managed to create such an enigmatic story, and gave us enough credit to follow the story organically, rather than require it being super linear, hoping we wouldn't change the channel at the first hint of confusion. And if I could work for Mr. Lindelof on future projects and see how this all comes together. I'll be a very happy LOSTie. (You see me in the red hat?!?!)

I show my appreciate for Mr. Damon Lindelof in the following video approximately 6 seconds in.

You wouldn't believe how incredibly stoked I was to find this video online. Like - I was having a super lame day at Starbucks and was super bummed how I'd sunken back into the daily routines of Non-Hawaii life, when I discovered this video on E-Online. I was at a friend's house too and she was super stoked for me as well. It was beyond epic. I got a few upsets from Christian Friends claiming I was being blasphemous and indulging in "Idol Worship", but all I had to say to them was. "Geez. At least my messiah is tangible...". Not to hate on anyone's God or anything, but I got to see my hero with my own two eyes, get over it.

Alas, I waved and waved and waved that poor Write Environment DVD, screaming at the top of my lungs hoping Damon would pull a Nestor Carbonell and leap the barrier to high five me and sign it. But...It didn't happen. Him, Carlton, and the rest of the creators/writers were leaving the carpet and attending to other super-epic premiere duties. So I tried one more time.

"DAMON LINDELOF!" - I screamed. And...He turned. Looked right at me. And waved. I was waving too, brandishing the Shannon Tattoo he re-tweeted to the entire twiverse in December. And I managed to snap this photograph mid-wave, thus the out-of-focus-awesomeness. It's been my desktop background since then and I marvel over it everyday. Damon Lindelof. Waving at me.

TO BE CONTINUED...SOON.

Josh Gets LOST: Part Five

Saturday, January 30th 2010

(aka...The Best Day Of My Entire Life...So Far)

My alarm went off at 4:00AM and instantly I threw some expensive ABC Store raman into the microwave. I needed all the energy I could get and clearly a bowl of raman would make up for 4 hours of sleep. I was full of nerves. What if I get mugged on the beach? What if there is already 48,151,623,42 people there? What if getting up this early is a HUGE mistake? But it wasn't something I was willing to risk. I made it all the way to Hawaii with the help of some amazing people and I was going to make sure everything happened that needed to happen, and if that meant sleeping on the beach for 13 hours then so be it. With that - I rolled my Dharma Jumpsuit into my backpack, stoked my Season 6 Premiere Meet Up Tote Bag (Thanks JO!!!!!!!!!) with bottled water and set off for the Waikiki Beach.

Of course it was raining outside, but that just added to the excitement. I caught a few interesting looks from the island indigenous population on my way to the beach, but I didn't blame them. I was a teenager with a Canada t-shirt on, wearing Hawaiian themed shorts, sandals, with an AVATAR backpack and a tote bag. I was the definition of LOSTie. And it felt GLORIOUS. I crossed the deserted street and began trekking through the cold, rain-saturated beach sand. Now, for anyone who knows me. I HATE THE BEACH. I live in Florida and I hate the beach. I probably go to the beach once or twice a year with friends who force me to do it. That being said - My beach phobias weren't allowed in Waikiki and thus, I buried them Nikki and Paolo style as soon I set foot in that sand.

And the reason I had pushed them to the back of my mind was the fact that I appeared to be the ONLY person on the beach. There was an umbrella about 100 feet away, perched next to the Anti-Fan-Barricades set up for the actor's protection. I was a little nervous. Was it a LOSTie? Was it an other? Was it Damon Lindelof?!?!?! Or maybe it could of been a predator, aiming to scoop up an innocent little Lostie like me. But alas....It was.............(building Giacchino music)...

TOUR GUIDE MATT!

Yes! That's right folks! My super cool LOST acolyte was chillin' and saving a spot for me (duh...), front and center. I was super relieved to see him and glad I wouldn't need to sit 30 feet away from this stranger until some friendly faces showed up. And also, being the first 2 people there. We had chairs. Oh yes. Chairs. Matt, Shannon, and I were super ready for Sunset on the Beach.

Matt left for fifteen minutes to get some emergency back up umbrellas, both for the stupid rain and for the stupid sun that would be beating us senseless in 10 hours. I was alone on the beach. And that is when "she" arrived. I don't quite know how to explain her. Mid 40's, early 50's. Dressed in all black. I didn't know it yet, but Matt and I would soon refer to her as "The Monster"...

She was one of those people who likes to talk. Not that it's a bad thing, exactly, because certainly...LOST fans LOVE to talk about LOST. But this woman just complained, and spewed crazy negativity all over Waikiki Beach. I realized that this was the cost of getting out here at 5AM. Putting up with "The Monster". It went a little like this...

"I went to a local print shop and made some really amazing glossy photographs of EVERY actor on the show and if ALL of them aren't signed by the end of this day, then I'm going to be so pissed, because they should have the decency to sign everything since I'm such a huge fan and came all the way out here to see them and I won't be pleased if they don't sign anything, I mean, they shouldn't even have barricades here because then its possible I won't get my stuff signed, and when I went to Paley Fest I only got a few signed and that wasn't good enough, and I can't believe they aren't even going to show us the entire episode, I mean, I flew all the way out here to see it and they can't even show me the entire thing, I mean, what the heck-"

Come to think of it, if Illana really wanted to kill Ben, she could of just tied him to a tree next to this woman and sooner or late he would of just buried HIMSELF alive. She went on to say she was trying to book a hummer tour around the island, which freaked Matt out, but rest assured, the day she spoke of was his day off. Thank Jacob.

"Oh, but I don't know why I'm worrying about not meeting the entire cast and crew of LOST ,because I have a friend who is a VIP and is going to get me in there with a press pass, so I don't even know why I came out here this early. hahahahahaahahhahhah what a waste of time, but oh well, like seriously!" - said the MONSTER.

By this time she got a tip-off that there was a "prime" cast viewing location on the OTHER end of the beach and she got up and moved her crap down to the other end of the barricades, far, far, far, far away from us. And the balance was restored to the beach. Also, by this time, our premiere "Survivor's Camp" was being established.

As the hours dragged on I slowly realized "Wow...We have a long way to go", but it was still going great. For some reason I'm unable to take power-naps like Matt can (PUNK!), and I remained awake, conserving cell-phone tweeting capabilities and checking up on my LOSTie friends to see when they were going to arrive. As figured - A whole lot of waiting took place in our little camp.

TIMEFLASH!!!!!!

As the sun began to rise over Waikiki, more survivors began to surface and I knew it was time to begin to ration our supplies. The sunblock, water, and the ABC Store roast beef croissant sandwich I purchased the night before. A few more hours passed and around 10AM-ish, Erika and Jo arrived and set up camp a few feet behind us. To pass the time I intended on bringing my notebook to create some sort of LOST fan-fiction, assigning roles to my fellow fan-camp survivors. Like who would pull a "Joanna" and go drown themselves on accident, and who would be the first person to go save them. Or who would get dragged into the jungle by Ethan first. I couldn't decide whether or not Tour Guide Matt would be our Jack, for lending memorabilia-less Italian girls his spare LOST t-shirts and being the hero, or if he'd be our Locke since he knew more about the island than any of us. And because of this picture...

(I mean. Seriously? Come on. How cool is that?)

Heidi showed up not too long later and we negotiated with the Island, allowing her to sneak up front and camp out under our pink umbrella even though she wasn't there at 5AM (for shame, Heidi!) and we hung out, talked about everything and anything. Neil showed up too in his Dr. Grant Jurassic Park hat which I thought was pretty epic. The hot dog vender was taking FOR-EVER to set up, which sucked so much since we were all starving and unwilling to leave the beach to hunt boar.


I was expecting a majority of the LOSTies to be overweight and dorky like me, but they was a vast diversity of people. We met a group of girls who came all the way from Italy for the premiere. They were also in Hawaii to study, but I'm not going to mention it since it's cooler to say they came JUST for LOST. I met another lady who was pretty much our camp "Mom", and she had a LOST tattoo just like me, but maybe a little more subtle. Things began to get really busy. Crew members quickly putting together the giant school that we'd be watching the first episode of the final season on in just a few hours.


FINALLY - The Giver of the Hotdogs was open for business. Heidi and I enjoyed some delicious "Shave Ice"...I referred to it as "Shaved Ice" and Tour Guide Matt corrected me. I felt like a tourist. The sun out and cooking my feet. My main concern was Shannon. Tattoos hate the sun, and unlike the Shannon of LOST, my tattoo would NOT be sun-tanning on this particular beach day. We also discovered the youngest LOST fan, decked out in Dharma Overalls.


This little girl put me in the mood to do something I had been waiting to do since my plane took off from Orlando, FL, two days earlier. And that thing was waiting for me inside my backpack. It was my Dharma Jumpsuit. I ran back to the umbrella, asked my friends not to judge me, and suited up. It was like putting on my armor before battle. Or putting on a tuxedo for a wedding. It was a glorious moment, 6 years in the making, dating back to September 22, 2004.



I went for a small walk around the beach and was met with laughs, applause, points, pictures, and a whole lot of more LOSTie support. I ignored the fact that it was stupid hot outside (and inside...) and marches my way through the crowd, feeling like the Messiah. Heidi and I made our way to the entrance to the VIP area, which wasn't blocked off yet. I was hoping to see name placements on the seats, so I could worship Damon Lindelof's chair, but alas, nothing. So I picked a good one, took a seat, and basked in the glory of this entire trip.

In the next entry...The Red Carpet.