a perfect storm of awkward on vacation
okay, so I've had this irritating cough for almost a week - started off as part of a cold which I thought I had successfully gotten over, but no apparently it wanted to stick around long enough to join me at Provincetown for the film festival. Bastard! Now, this second round is unfortunately coinciding with my period - and I don't know about you, but when I have my period while sick, I bleed like the proverbial stuck pig. So, so unpleasant.
Now - Imagine a newly productive hacking cough WITH copious menses, but at a bed and breakfast! One run by gay boys, with the clothing optional deck that often tends to go along with that sort of lodging. Oh - and? Your room SHARES A BATHROOM.
Shoot me now - I'm about to ruin the fabulous getaway for at least one bear, I'm fairly certain.
Anyhoo - I arrived last night on the 7pm ferry, missed the Opening Night film, but picked up my pass at the box office and grabbed a bite before heading over to the Opening Night party at Paramount. Tons of familiar faces, which is always nice - one of the fulltime staffers, who I usually see at the box office, was checking passes at the door, and she always cracks me up because when she spots me she immediately blurts out my full name (one year they really screwed up my pass situation, and it took them forever to get straightened out, so she remembers my name well!), so now it's become a tradition - my festival doesn't really start until I hear that affectionate bellow!
It was a pretty crowded party, which was good to see. John Waters was there for quite a while, which was surprising - he usually doesn't go to the parties that are open to everyone, and when he does he tends to pop in and out - he likes to hold court from his bike, pedaling up and down Commercial St like the unofficial mayor of the town that he is. Saw B. Ruby Rich as well, again, surprised she was here already. Lots of filmmakers were there, too, which is great - today will be full-on, and I expect the filmmaker party tonight to be jumping (this is a new party, usually there's just a filmmaker reception on Friday, and that's the one that everybody's always trying to crash - it's restricted to filmmakers and patrons only...of which I am one, woohoo!)
I'm thinking it's going to be a crazy year - there are three special award recipients, two of whom are big names: Tilda Swinton and Kevin Smith. B. Ruby will be interviewing Tilda, and Kevin will be paired with John Waters, which means absolutely that is a must-see conversation! I don't even want to guess what bizarro topics they will wander into as they talk!
Normally I'd be full-on with the films and parties, but with my awkward condition, so to speak, which I described above, I've decided to pull back a bit on my film ambition (won't be getting to the 20 I had planned, that's for sure), and will not take as much advantage of the cheaper (or free) booze as I might have (Svedka Vodka being a festival sponsor, and all). So right now I'm chilling, doing a little napping before heading over to the Hospitality Suite to get my swag (the key item being the festival's messenger bag) and some bottled water and fruit. The one good thing about this B&B is its location - it's right behind the Town Hall, across the street from the B&B that's being used for the Hospitality Suite, so it's easy peasy to get to. And I make it a point to hit the suite often - mostly to stock up on the free food than for the star-gazing....usually it's press that hang out there the most. Everybody else is working Commercial Street, as you do when in Ptown.
Anyway - I'll pass along any tips on good flicks I've seen, and any funny anecdotes/guess who I met stories as they happen. I doubt anything will surpass my Jane Lynch one from a couple of years ago, in which we discovered ourselves abandoned by our respective people, and bonded over our state of affairs as we searched the crowds. Seriously - neither of us noticed the other, until we turned at about the same time, and we both had the same expression on our faces, you know that one you get when you're all 'now where the fuck did everybody go, and how did I miss that?'
She is really tall, and likes to wear very flowy slacks. And has that wry kind of voice in real life. After a few minutes standing side by side looking, we wished each other luck in "finding your people", and walked off. Le sigh.