In answer to the question: "What the hell are you doing?"

I decided it's time to face my demons and actually write about what I'm doing with my life. The truthful answer is that I don't really know, and that I've spent the last few months trying to figure it out.

After graduating, I sort of took the same path as everyone else. I got a summer job, and moved into a house with four friends. Everything was pretty OK - I had enough money to pay the bills but not much else. I was working as a tutor at a college prep company, and while I liked some of the classes (mainly the ones with jr. high instead of high school kids) I absolutely HATED teaching SAT prep. Something about the soulless drilling of vocabulary and grammar really got to me, and I felt like I was sort of wasting my time and theirs. I mean, in all honesty, there's only so much you can teach a non-native English speaker in a few months to try and prep them for the SATs. Needless to say, I was not having the best time.

So I was floating, not really happy with what I was doing, but unable to think of anything better. I could move to LA and try to break into the industry, but I really don't like LA all that much as a city. I could keep teaching SAT prep, and endure the painful feeling that someone was dripping acid onto my inner organs. Or I could think of something else.

Dave came up with the idea originally. We were visiting my grandparent's cabin in the woods, and he recommended coming up here and getting some writing done. I sort of dismissed the idea as impossible, but the more I thought about it, the better it sounded. I looked around and found an online job editing essays that I could do anywhere with an internet connection. It pays between 15-20 bucks an hour, and I can basically work when and however long I like.

I knew that I needed structure, though, and a definite kick in the butt to get started. I had tried to write over the summer, but it was sort of a failure. I have a little bit of trouble self motivating, and I needed someone to help get me on the right path. I called Cole, who had been off having an adventure in the big apple, and low and behold, he had no idea what to do with his fall either. Eureka!

So we came up here, a little later than planned, and we got to work. It's not always easy. Some days we're really productive and we write multiple scenes for our screenplays. Others, we finish a single essay editing assignment and call it a day.

I'm still a little torn about the whole experience, partly because of the mixed responses I've gotten from friends and family. Some think we're really doing something unique and challenging, something that will hopefully get us on the right path to ultimately finding an agent and getting our work to the studios or publishers. Others think we're just escaping from reality and not facing up to getting a real job with medical insurance and stability.

Honestly, I don't always know who to agree with. Don't think I don't ask myself what the hell I'm doing - believe me, I do all the time. Sure I'm sort of avoiding finding a real job, or really buckling down and trying to break into the industry. But at the same time, I'm getting stuff done up here. I've applied for film school, made some money through my online job, and by the time Christmas rolls around, Cole and I will have completed two rough scripts, one pilot and one spec script.

I'm happy, I've lost weight, and I'm doing something I love every single day. It really doesn't get much better than that.