And so it begins

I'm at the airport awaiting the first flight, after checking in at 4:35 AM without a hitch. I thought I should have a little breakfast -- it's going to be a long day and I'm travelling on very little sleep -- so I stopped at the food court just inside security. I picked up what I thought was a bacon, egg and cheese sandwich on and English muffin, but in actuality had no bacon, and a bottle of OJ. The young lady at the register, said nothing to me except "Seven Twenty-seven?"

"I have no idea," I replied, "I haven't even been to the gate yet."

Blank stare. It then occurred to me that my puny sandwich, the one with no bacon, and OJ actually cost, with tax, $7.27. Wow. I hope the humorless, unfriendly chick at the counter is the worst of it today.

The plane is at the gate. There are the usual suspects waiting at the gate with me -- the 50-something couple arguing about something trivial event from their time at the check-in counter, the skinny chick in stiletto heels simultaneously working a sudoku puzzle and conversing, rather loudly, with some unknown person on the other end of her bluetooth headset, the Asian man wearing rather large headphones for the gate area, the crazed woman in the colorful turquoise poncho -- yep, this is my crowd.

I got an internet connection, after a minor bit of wrangling, and everything else seems in place for a smooth ride to Toronto. But I've been down this road before, and I'm not letting my guard down, at least not until I'm writing you from my room.

Of course, there is another way to look at this. I'm not in much of a hurry this year. My first film isn't until 6:00, and my flight arrives before noon. Delaying my flight for a couple hours wouldn't even stress me out all that much, so will the travel gods even bother?

Damn it, Sean, don't even think that way, that is how they will get you!

Just because you're paranoid, don't mean they're not after you.

-- Kurt Cobain

Check-in time is approaching. See you in Detroit.

Flexibility

I finally spent a few minutes looking at the schedules for the three screenings for which I didn't get a ticket and I have a basic plan of action. There aren't any other screenings for Zack and Miri Make a Porno that I can see, so I'll have to try to rush for that one. For those of you who are too lazy to click on the link, "Rushing" is shorthand for "waiting in line and hoping that some extra seats become available". If I don't get in, I can catch it in a major theatre near me when it comes out on Halloween. It won't be the same, though. There's something about seeing a movie like that in a packed house of jazzed Kevin Smith fans. And, I'll have all week to find another movie to see in its place.

I can see Synecdoche, New York on Thursday afternoon before Gigantic, if there any tickets left for that screening. If not, I can always rush for it and most assuredly get in. Since I have nothing pressing going on that day, I could easily be the first person in the rush line. And, of course, I will have the fallback of "a major theatre near me". That one isn't nearly as cool to see with a festival crowd.

The tough one is The Paranoids. It probably won't play at any theatres near me, so Netflix would be my only alternative option. Also, it is the only screening while I'm in town. My schedule dictates that I will have very little time in the rush line, so I guess I'll just hope for the best. If I miss it, well, I suppose worse things have happened to better people. On the bright side, I can have a nap before Sexykiller and see a bonus movie on Saturday.

17 Out of 20 Ain't Bad

I got an e-mail from TIFF today confirming the processing of my order. I got all of my picks with the following exceptions: Zack and Miri Make a Porno, Synecdoche, New York, and The Paranoids. I'll figure out what to do about those later. I'm half asleep right now. Good night.

Calling it "done"

I'm done for now. I need to make another decision or two, but the schedule is pretty much how it's going to be. I'm seeing a little bit of everything. See for yourself.

Good night.

Schedule Taking Shape

I've got a few too many films, but the schedule is taking shape. There is a link in the upper right hand corner of the web page that will pop up a calendar showing my schedule as it stands. It's live, so as I shift things around, it will change. Alternatively, scroll down to the bottom.

Meanwhile, I need to eliminate a few screenings, and contemplate buying a ticket for a special screening or two. It's never easy...

Minor Disappointments #1 and #2

The first film I looked for was the Coen Brothers' new flick Burn After Reading. I immediately notice two things:

1. The movie only shows before I arrive in Toronto. I sort of expected this.
2. The movie only shows at venues where I would have to purchase a single ticket instead of using tickets from my 10-packs. This doesn't make me happy...

Calendar

For those of you playing along at home, check out the calendar at the bottom of this page. It is a view of my film schedule, courtesy of Google Calendar. Neat, huh? You'll need to click on a button a couple times to get to the week beginning Sunday, 9/7, until I figure out how to default the calendar to that week.

Okay, now down to the hard work...