Afternoon, all

Miss J snapped this pic the other morning with her Crackberry. It's rare to see clouds like this in SoCal, especially in the summer so their puffy loveliness caught her attention.

Miss J realizes she has been woefully inattentive to this blog for the past couple weeks. She hasn't really even been visiting the blogs of her interweb friends very much... a little lurking but rarely even commenting... busy-ness is part of it, the other part- just not feelin' it. Miss J's mind has been occupied with other things... the whole agent thing, Mama Janey's visit, new headshots, rehearsal, opening Season 3 of Avalon Terrace and finishing her novel, Miss Janey's Jewels. See, she promised Mr. J she'd finish it by June and by that she means yesterday. Which she did not manage to do. In fact, each time she attempts editing, the damn thing just gets longer.

The ever-supportive Mr. J is so convinced that Jewels is Miss J's ticket to freedom (from the day job), that he has used every type of bargaining possible to entice its completion. "New headshots" but only after the book is done. (Miss J's new agents subverted that, thank ya very much.) "New bed" when the book is done... You get the picture, darlings. Maybe the reason Miss J hasn't finished it is good, old-fashioned fear. What if she finishes the book and no one wants it and she is STILL stuck at her day job? Even though this is not the worst thing that could happen in the universe, it would suck mightily. And with sharp teeth.

Thus while others are off barbecuing and boozing this weekend, Miss J hopes to be locked inside FINISHING HER DAMN BOOK! At least she won't get sunburned.

Happy Independence Day, ya'll.

BTW, doesn't Miss J look like an assassin here? You know, the ol' one last kill before retirement hired killer but our hardened lady assassin develops a heart when she dicovers her target is a child so she has to lam it with the kid while a whole crew of buff dude assassins is trying to track her down? Miss J's excellent photographer Matthew Scott Drake also said, "You totally look like a New York power lesbian..." Either way, Miss J can play that.

RIP Michael Jackson

Miss Janey is surprised at how deeply affected she feels by Michael Jackson's death. She'd kind of given up on him right around the time of the second child molestation charges. All the quirks, the surgeries, the oddball behaviors- seemingly devised to attract media attention- it had just all gotten to be too much. The second allegations of abuse were the final straw.

Like a lot of people, Miss J would have been quite content to hold on forever to little Michael Jackson, the innocent and adorable singer of the Jackson Five who melted our hearts and astounded us with his grown-up talent.


Likewise, the sexy Michael Jackson of “Off the Wall” and Thriller” was a favorite. A graceful dancer, talented singer and cock-sure performer, he seemed on top of his game and the entire world. The release of “Thriller” coincided with Miss J finally feeling comfortable enough to dance in public and she couldn’t begin to count the number of times she danced the night away that album. She LOVED him! Looking back over her life, the songs of the Jackson Five and Michael Jackson have had radio and TV play throughout most of it. No wonder people feel so strongly about Jackson- he’s been in our home via TV and radio so long it’s almost as if he is family. We have watched him grow up. His impact on the entertainment industry is inestimable. Every boy-band since The Jacksons has lifted something from Michael Jackson.

When Miss J was learning to ride a bicycle, Michael Jackson was being prepped for superstardom. And not in a loving, nurturing manner. The stories of Joseph Jackson’s physical and mental abuse are well-known. Take a sensitive child, afflict him with an abusive parent and the results are going to be messy. Add world superstardom and anything is possible- good and bad: generous donations to charities, and allegations of child molestation. Both are part of his legacy.

Miss J has long suspected Jackson was guilty. No doubt the fact that Miss J was molested as a child colors her view.

Yet when she sees photographs as Jackson as a child, and remembers him how he was, she has all the compassion in the world for him and weeps for the inner strife that drove the plastic surgeries and well-documented eccentricities. He was an extremely gifted person and hardly the first or last child star to discover being a grown up celebrity has a lot of pitfalls.

May he find peace. It’s profoundly sad to think he is gone.

RIP Farrah

RIP Farrah

If you came of age in the era of "Charlie's Angels" you remember what a HUGE sensation it was and how influential Farrah was. What girl wasn't trying to rock her own version of Farrah's fabulous 'do back in the day? Miss J had her own pale imitation which never came close to the original. Who could?

Me So Busy

Miss J has been slam-a-ramma-ding-dong bizzizy. She and Mama J stayed on the move during Mama J's visit, and now Miss J is back to normal life. Which is more hectic than ever. Musical improv class on Wednesday nights, rehearsal Thursdays and of course the return of Avalon Terrace. Miss J is So busy, she's not even writing her own blurb, rather just lifting one from a Facebook page.

Avalon Terrace Season 3 begins this Sat. night at 7:00 pm. Who survived the catastrophic flood from the exciting season 2 finale? Is there an Avalon Terrace left? Why are there new names on the credits?

Come have all this answered and more, with a special double episode, at 7:00 and 8:15

$10 for one show, $15 for both.

Beyond Wealth, Beyond Fame, Beyond Passion Lies Avalon Terrace.

Let the drama begin Saturday night.

On ..Miss J'z walk: pea hen

Represent, yo.

What a great day. Mama Janey is here and MIss J has a new agent. Whoo hoo!

The 5000

Here is Mr. J with his invention... the healless drum pedal. The Janeys drove out to Chad Sexton’s Drum City in North Hollywood to see it. One of Mr. J's students told Mr. J they actually had one for sale so they wanted to see it at an actual store. (Another one of Miss J's old 'hoods, btw. Oh, the parties that happened at that apartment...)

Work on this pedal started, hm... at least five years ago. First with the idea, then drawings and drafts, a patent lawyer, prototypes, etc and blahblahblah. It has been a long and expensive process. Now that the pedal is finally in stores, the Janeys will hopefully begin to see a return on their investment. Because Miss J would very much like to start living the life of luxury complete with champagne wishes and caviar dreams.

And a pool boy.

Oops

So, funny story. Last evening, Miss J was sharing her Tale of Agent Woe with her Mister when her cell phone rang. Mr. J said, "It's a 323 area code."

"It's probably Miss Jo. I'll call her back in a minute."

"How do you know it's not that agent?"

Miss J rolled her eyes, practically out of her head. "Pfft. Right."

Mr. J grabbed the phone and passed it to Miss J. And of course it WAS Mr. James from the agency saying that he and his partner (the over-scrutinizing Glenn Close Clone) want to see Miss J again on Monday. Hahahaha! Miss J really did NOT see that coming and feels kinda ridiculous with her premature whining. Now she has to find a comic monolgue to memorize and present- something else she forgot is required when auditioning for agents. You'd think she'd have a couple of these in her back pocket, so to speak, just in case, but no. Also, Miss J is NOT what they call a quick study when it comes to the memorization. She looked around at some monlogues on-line, and thought, Well, hell, Miss J's own material is funnier than most of this. Thus, she has decided to write her own monologue, lifting a little of this and that from her old stand-up stuff. So wish her luck, friends.

The "Mama Janey In Cali" countdown has begun. She will be in Cali in SIX DAYS. Whoo HOO!

And Miss J's beloved Avalon Terrace returns June 25th. Rehearsals started last night. Poor Phillip Carmeister was killed in the epic tidal wave that rolled through Avalon Terrace, but there are three new residents of Avalon Terrace to keep things interesting. Miss J predicts her Chris Chamberlin may become even more unhinged as she is now living in the Montgomery Manse with her lover R.H. and his wife Erica. Let the intrigue begin.