Greg - ProfilesArchive

About Me

By day I utilize the analytical part of my brain as a management consultant. On nights and weekends I ply the waters of creative worlds by writing -- film treatments, screenplays, commercials, poems, lyrics, and the occasional work on three novels-in-progress that never seem to get completed. In between, I meditate, read, and take meandering walks. And then there's the music!
My creative work has culminated in several music video projects, and as the co-writer for the BoulderVision Films production "Edge Dancing: A Journey Across Siberia" which was a finalist at the Banff Mountain Film Festival in 2003 and showcased at Telluride in 2004. My musings on concert reviews have appeared in the Kerrville Daily Times as a guest journalist for Kathleen Hudson's Texas Heritage Music Foundation.
Currently writing several feature film treatments and scripts, developing commercials, providing scriptwriting services, and providing assistance with location shooting and editing for web videos.
My journal is always close at hand to be filled with my adventures traveling the country and enjoying great music from my singer/songwriter friends. My world is filled with wonderful eclectic and eccentric friends who make life interesting and intriguing.
I Love:
*Great conversation and sharing stories with friends while dining in quaint bistros and cafes with a cup of coffee or hot tea
*Experiencing (and writing) what a film can do to the emotions
*Taking in a film at the Alamo Drafthouse
*Screening a film at the WGA Theater when I'm in L.A.
*Hearing a song as it's being written
*The acoustics of Rex Foster's Guild guitar and his new Martin J-40 guitar in my living room
*Laughing along with amilia k spicer's cute giggle, and enjoying her soulful voice and cinematic songs
*Singing "Dream of Light" with Scott Martin in his living room
*Sharing road stories with Dana Cooper
*Hearing Ray Wylie Hubbard tell my story (again) and listening to The Messenger
*The resonating hum of Jeff Gilkinson's cello in my living room
*Celtic music at Waterloo Ice House on Wednesday nights
*Trading stories with the great singer/songwriters of the Kerrville Folk Festival
*Trading music insights with Martin Coulter at Waterloo Records
*Soaking in the music of Stefanie Fix and Jean Synodinos and their All-Star bands
*Enjoying the intimacy of a house concert
*Learning new finger-picking styles on guitar
*Spoiling my friends and family
*Country drives with the windows down
*Hiking through the Texas hill country
*Wandering through Japanese gardens
*Meditating during sunrise
*Watching the moon rise from the cabin on the Fountain Ranch
*Viewing impressionistic art and photography in funky little galleries (and on my townhome walls)
*Collecting artwork of Peter Max, Joseph Solmon, Hessam Abrishami, Daryl Colburn, Eric Luplow, Ricardo Acevedo, David Hoelscher, and Ronnie Wood of the Rollling Stones
*The feel of hockey skates on ice
*Reading in bed on cloudy drizzling rainy days
*Giving (and receiving) a good massage
*Philosophising while relaxing in a hot tub
*Meandering along Newport's Cliff Walk to the sound of the Atlantic
*Walking isolated caribbean beaches to the sound of ocean waves
*Sailing crystal blue waters off of caribbean islands
*Sailing quiet nights on Lake Union when I'm in Seattle
*The beauty of Victoria, British Columbia's Inner Harbour
*Dreaming under the moon and under the big star-filled night skies of Texas
*Walking Manhattan Beach pier listening to Pacific waves in the California night
*Viewing art in the many galleries of Laguna Beach
*Strolling artistic streets in Washington, D.C.
*Eating Italian food in Boston's North End
*The swirl of people in New York's Time Square
*Knowing everything is possible through love, peace, and happiness
Dreaming and Believing!

My Interests

Writing; creative endeavors such as film, music, and art; travel; meditating; yoga; hiking; sailing; ice hockey; enjoying the company of good friends; living a full, purpose-filled, eclectic and sometimes eccentric life; and providing love, peace, and happiness to all I meet!

I'd like to meet:

Screenwriters, film makers, songwriters, novelists, artists, and anyone who likes sharing good stories.

Music:

Rex Foster, Ray Wylie Hubbard, amilia k spicer, Scott Martin, Kevin Welch, Dana Cooper, Peter Mayer, Steve Seskin, Tom Kimmel, David Broza, Sarode Maestro Aashish Khan, Stephen Allen Davis, Sam Baker, Dave Gunning, Stefanie Fix, Greg Klyma, Shake Russell, Bob Malone, Jimmy LaFave, Robert Earl Keen, Lyle Lovett, Patty Griffin, Joe Ely, Butch Hancock, Steve Earle, Calvin Russell, John Ims, Tish Hinojosa, Stephen Bruton, Charlie Sexton, John Hiatt, Warren Zevon, Sara McLachlan, Sheryl Crow, Todd Snider, Shawn Mullins, Cindy Cashdollar, and of course, Townes Van Zant, Bob Dylan, John Lennon, Bruce Springsteen, Peter Rowan, Guy Clark, Billy Joe Shaver, both Bob and Ziggy Marley and even Hoagie Carmichael! Just about everything KGSR & KFAN plays! Celtic Music!!

Movies:

Being There (w/Peter Sellers), Le Fabuleux destin d..'Amelie Poulain (Amelie), The Journey (directed by Eric Saperston), Paris Texas, L..'Homme du train (Man on the Train), Under Solen (Under the Sun), Nikita, Hors de prix (Priceless), La Veuve de Saint-Pierre (The Widow of St. Pierre), Todo sobre mi madre (All About My Mother), Amores Perros, Once, Juno, World..'s Fastest Indian, City of Angels, As Good As It Gets, Forrest Gump, A Good Year, French Kiss, Don Juan DeMarco, The Fifth Element, Whale Rider, Amadeus, Best In Show, A Beautiful Mind, Braveheart, Harold and Maude, One Hour Photo, Donnie Darko, The Green Mile, Pleasantville, The Committments, Secondhand Lions, My Big Fat Greek Wedding, Big, The Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill, Miracle, and Slap Shot (about minor league ice hockey)

Television:

I don't partake in much television, but do try to catch NHL hockey, The University of Texas football games, some NFL games, and Red Sox baseball games. I also occasionally catch The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, Southpark, Saving Grace, and independent films I hear about that are showing on IFC. And, Grey's Anatomy -- the least I can do since Executive Producer Peter Horton had me as his guest on the set.

Books:

The Dhammapada, Tao Te Ching, As A Man Thinketh, A Hero With A Thousand Faces, Rainer Maria Rilke's Letters To A Young Poet, Stranger In A Strange Land, Richard Bach's Illusions, The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success, Peace Pilgrim's Steps Toward Inner Peace, Kahlil Gibran's The Prophet, Zen and the Art of Falling in Love, The Secret of the Shadow, The Way of the Wizard, The Tibetan Book of the Dead, The Four Agreements, The Mastery of Love, The Voice of Knowledge, Only Love Is Real by Brian Weiss, M.D., The Way of the Superior Man, A New Earth, Brian Cutean's Bite-Sized Mantras, Zamboni Rodeo by Jason Cohen

Heroes:

My friends, family (especially my grandparents), Buddha, Lao Tzu, Gandhi, Peace Pilgrim, Thich Nhat Hanh, Rex Foster, Ray Wylie Hubbard, Bill Baldwin, and anyone who overcomes adversity to make the world a better place with a song, a painting, a sculpture, a film, a poem, a book, a photograph, or just some kind words or a smile when walking by on the street.

My Blog

Ann Arbor, Airplanes, Gandhi, and the Sarode Maestro

I drove easily toward Detroit on Interstate concrete after leaving Ann Arbor, Michigan on a cold foggy morning before the throngs of thousands invaded for the big Michigan -- Ohio State game. After a...
Posted by Greg on Sun, 30 Dec 2007 11:20:00 PST

Reflections Among Dear Friends

In times when the roads of life bleed away your energy leaving your mind and body tired and worn, there always appears a moment of reflection to spark a reminder that we are always surrounded by the w...
Posted by Greg on Mon, 12 Nov 2007 10:04:00 PST

A Look into a New England September - Excerpts from the Journal

Some excerpts from my journal during my journey through New England in September:---------------Mornings were chilled outside Augusta, Maine, while walking through quiet woods of eerie shadows. Calls...
Posted by Greg on Mon, 22 Oct 2007 08:12:00 PST

A Simple Gesture of Human Kindness

Driving down 5th street to make that odd wide right turn at Lamar is always a tricky dilemma. The light stacks up traffic and the street widens into five lanes from three. The far right lane must tu...
Posted by Greg on Sat, 28 Jul 2007 06:54:00 PST

Music in the Rain

The journey to the 36th Annual Kerrville Folk Festival began three days late on wet asphalt with dark rain clouds looming in the distance. The car was packed with gear and instruments and excellent c...
Posted by Greg on Sat, 28 Jul 2007 06:38:00 PST

Simple Secret to Surviving SXSW 2007

Since I moved from north Texas down to Austin in 1998 I have had the pleasure of enjoying South By Southwest (SXSW) in its various forms and functions. I have seen the proliferation of the music scen...
Posted by Greg on Mon, 02 Apr 2007 07:46:00 PST

Saving Don Quixote

I sit watching the moonrise in the east. It is a fire red orb melting into orange as it rises over the distant hills and through the light scattering of narrow clouds. Being present for this wonderf...
Posted by Greg on Sun, 19 Nov 2006 11:26:00 PST

The Sands of Babylon

While walking through a VA medical center recently, I passed by the prosthetic ward and noticed something different. Previously I have seen older men from the World War II, Korea, and Vietnam eras in...
Posted by Greg on Fri, 01 Sep 2006 09:56:00 PST

Butterflies and Feathers Outside My Window

Over the last two weeks I have noticed daily occurrences from my tenth story office window overlooking the traffic on I-35 toward downtown Austin. Sometimes the traffic is moving; sometimes not. How...
Posted by Greg on Sun, 23 Jul 2006 02:26:00 PST

Renoir, van Gogh, and Me

Inside the famous Phillips Collection in Washington, DC I found myself pondering a unique question from an observation bouncing around inside my brain.I had spent the last two hours entranced by Dunca...
Posted by Greg on Mon, 10 Jul 2006 09:23:00 PST