Initial Impressions 2.0 Blog #112: March Weather, Repeating Timelines, Cape Cod Adventure, etc.

1. It’s amazing how much warmer warm temperatures feel when coming out of a cold winter. This week, we touched 60 degrees on Cape Cod. If you had told me it was 75, I’d have believed you. Being stuck inside working all day, I was itching to get outside into the sun once the day was over. I had an important phone call to take, and I decided rather than sitting in my car, I’d hit up the famed Monday Runday track and do some walking while talking. It was almost perfect. The track had a few snowy patches that had not been hit by the sun, but otherwise it felt just like it did last time we did Monday Runday back in October. In all, I walked a little over 1.5 miles and burned around 200 calories. Not bad considering I could have sat on my ass in my car and burned nothing at all.


2. March is the most bipolar month there is in terms of weather. You can get days that are in the 60s and sunny, and within the same week, have temperatures hovering around freezing with the threat of snow. Obviously, that is what we got this week. I think growing up in New England has conditioned me to get out and fully enjoy the warm days of March since it can quickly go the other way. I think April is a bit like that as well, at least at the beginning of the month. It’s only when we get to around the first of May that we on Cape Cod can fully relax and enjoy spring without the looming threat of a secret frost or snowy day.


3. Incredibly, my story of the tough dealings with the editor of the short film I co-produced did not end last week. After agreeing to double the pay of the editor just to get the film finished, this guy decided to get greedy. The next day, he asked for more money again. He asked if I could get the donors for the When Henry Met Henry film to just cough up some more cash for his ‘expenses.’ Like what? We gave him instructions to use copyright-free music and find royalty-free b-roll footage. Not sure what his ‘expenses’ were. In the end, I set a hard line and said he’d get the money we agreed to for editing the film, or he’d get half if he sent me all of the raw footage and walked away. Not a bad deal. I don’t know if he thought I’d roll over at his attempts to hijack the film, but that didn’t happen. He ended up agreeing (yet again) to the money and to get the film done. I wasn’t a complete ass; I did give him an extension on the deadline until the end of March. I will say, it felt good to stand up to someone trying to screw me over. I might have to do it again sometime soon.


4. My niece Sylvie gave me a makeup case cell phone. It’s a cute pink plastic phone with different lip gloss inside. I began thinking of how I could use it in a video. I came up with a story of me being lost in the woods without my phone and remembering the phone she gave me, only to discover that it’s makeup. I went to a local conservation area with ideas for shots that I could then edit into a 2-3 minute funny horror video. Of course, shooting some scenes where I am scared and calling out for help would be best done with nobody around. I got some basic b-roll video as I walked the paths. Then I got set up for a shot of me wandering the woods while my phone was on a tripod, capturing the scene. Right on cue, came an older couple who appeared to be birdwatching. There I am, standing off in the woods, positioning my phone. They were curious, but I just said hello. Thankfully, I didn’t have to explain to them what I was doing. Shooting skits with my camcorder at 17 was cute and creative. Shooting skits, by myself, in the woods, at 48, might end up with a call to the nuthouse. 


5. One of my favorite things to do for my podcast is to craft unique alternate logos and cover art. I try to capture the nostalgic vibe of the 60s through the 90s while also keeping the basic layout of the logo. I made a pair of them in the past week. As you can see, they both have the classic, typical 70s avocado color palette. I went with two uniquely retro backgrounds. One was the faux wood paneling that I fondly remembered from my Nana’s house growing up. The other was one of the oddly paneled tiled kitchen floors. I believe we had this in one of our kitchens growing up. There is another tile setup that was super 80s, but I’m saving that one for a future podcast logo.




6. An interesting phenomenon that happens way more often than I think has to do with where I go for photography on Cape Cod. I will have an idea of a place I want to go shoot, and I’ll go there. No, that’s not the interesting part. What happens is that many times now I go to a place, and the next day I have photos of that same place in my social media memories. It’s like my subconscious takes me to the same places at the same time each year. It happened this week when I went to get some videos of the bridges at the Cape Cod Canal. The next morning, I was going through my Facebook memories, and there it was, a post filled with photos of the same bridges from 2016. I definitely don’t choose to visit the same places on the same days, but man, does it happen a lot.


7. On that photo trip I just mentioned, I came across a massive flock of Common Eiders, which are sea ducks that are usually black and white. They were hanging out in little crevices along the Cape Cod Canal as the tide was flowing out. When I say a massive flock, I’m talking a few hundred. They typically hang out in a cove at the western end of the canal across from Mass Maritime Academy. It was fascinating, and I found myself trying to get close-up video of these ducks. Naturally, they found me as a threat and would fly further down the canal. Once they’d realize I wasn’t trying to hurt them, they’d stop just far enough away. I kept walking toward them, filming them flying away and landing just enticingly close enough that I’d keep going. This game was repeated a few times. I ended up with several videos of duck wings slapping on the water. I guess it will be good for people who enjoy nature sounds and ASMR.



8. On this same one trip, I ended up with five or six great videos in probably half an hour. While filming a ship passing by, I noticed in the distance that the railroad bridge was lowered. It typically sits 135 feet above the water when raised. It gets lowered a few times a day for trains to pass over the canal. I saw it lowered and knew a train would pass by me in a few minutes since the railroad tracks run along the canal. I was at the Bourne Recreation Area, which sits directly under the Bourne Bridge. I had a minute or two to decide how I wanted to film the passing train. I wanted a cool perspective, but also didn’t want to risk damaging my phone or myself. I settled on filming from the platform where people could board the train. I set up my phone on a tripod in the perfect position and waited. I knew the train wasn’t stopping, so I didn’t have to worry about the conductor getting mad that I was faking them out like I was going to be a passenger. The train approached, blew its horn, and passed by. It rumbled with such force that the phone shook as it passed, maybe less than 10 feet away. The video was great except that I thought it was going to be a big half-mile-long train, but it was a little stubby one with maybe four cars. Oh well, I was lucky just to be there in that moment, so I’ll take it.


9. This week, for the first time probably since I was a kid, I had cream soda. Well, actually, diet cream soda, but still. Have you ever had something that you loved as a kid but got away from it? Foods, drinks, activities, maybe music? I can’t remember when I stopped drinking cream soda as a kid, but obviously, it happened at some point. I was at the store and walked past it, and wondered when the last time was that I had had it. Weird how something can be your favorite and then just not. I’m sure as a kid, I loved the sugar of the regular cream soda. I can’t do that anymore; it makes me feel terrible. That being said, the diet cream soda was good, so I’ll be making it a part of my drink rotation going forward. Who knows what the next thing from my youth will be that I bring back? My guess is something to do with a flannel shirt.


10. I constantly have to shake my head at the people who complain about a certain social media site from that site. Like, if you go on Twitter(X) and constantly mention how you hate it there, you know what you do? Delete your account and go somewhere else. It’s not hard. You didn’t sign a lifetime contract to remain miserable on a site you hate. You know how I know this? Because I deleted my Twitter account when I got sick of how much of a cesspool it was filled with toxic scum and bots. It’s the same with a job. Unless you’re under contract, you are not being forced to work somewhere you hate and are miserable. Just remember, you are not obligated to be on social media. I grew up in the 90s without it. If tomorrow all social media sites vanished, it would take a little while to get used to, but I’d be fine. It’s mostly just people who are so desperate for attention that they post how they hate whatever site they’re on for engagement farming.


11. Few things are more fun for me than exploring the lesser-known and hidden pathways of the Outer Cape in the offseason. Venturing out to Wellfleet and Truro in March allows you almost total freedom to go wherever and see whatever there is to see. I hiked through the downed branches to visit the Jenny Lind Tower located in the woods near the old North Truro Air Force Base. I wanted some video of the AFB, so I headed toward the chain link fence behind the tower that surrounded the base property. I thought I might be able to follow the fence back to my car. It was mostly true. I got some footage on my way, but also had to bushwhack through a lot of brush. I had a chance to slide under a gap in the fence to get onto the base property. After being sliced and diced by broken branches and thorns, though, I figured with my luck, I’d end up gutting myself sneaking under the fence. Despite it being March, I ended up with several small ticks on my pants. Thankfully, I noticed one and did a more thorough check. Those dang things are going to be a menace this summer.

12. Another adventure from the same trip was something on my ever-dwindling Cape Cod bucket list. Close to a beach in Truro, there is an FAA beacon on a hill. I am being intentionally vague about its whereabouts since I don’t want to get anyone in trouble if they go to seek it out. I ventured through a small but worn path that led up the hill and eventually to a clearing where the beacon stands. I had noticed the location on Google Maps and had wondered for years how to get there. I decided during this trip to wander the parking lot of the beach, looking for a path. Once I found it, I made my way uphill, making sure to stay low and as inconspicuous as I could. I made sure that when I emerged from the clearing, for as much footage as I got, I stayed far enough away. You don’t want to get too close, just in case cameras are rolling. Even if you just take photos from a distance, staying on the edge of the clearing is the wisest move. Getting to see this FAA beacon checks off one of the very few places I have yet to see on Cape Cod. The biggest one remaining is Monomoy Lighthouse in Chatham. We’ll see about making that happen.

Initial Impressions 2.0 Blog #111: First, Film Business, Three Things Sir, etc.

1. Over the past 5 weeks or so, I have seen a huge uptick in the number of followers I have across social media. This began with a video of slushy ocean waves at a Cape Cod beach that went viral when shared by a much larger Instagram account. In the time since, I have had tons of shares, tons of follows, and tons of comments. It wasn’t until this week that I had a seminal moment that comes when one’s social media presence starts to grow. First! That was it. Does anyone remember when a larger account would post something, and the first few comments would be people racing to comment ‘First!’ It was like it was a badge of honor, or bragging rights for something that really didn’t matter. My social media presence is not that large. It’s more than doubled in a month, but still not on the level of most influencers or celebrities. That being said, having someone on TikTok comment ‘first’ on a video I shared of a sunset made me feel next-level. I can now put that on my creator resume: Had a guy comment ‘first’ on a video. I have finally made it. Now, where is my blue check mark without me having to pay for it?!


2. After a week off from work due to the blizzard, it was hard getting my head back in the game. It was like I needed to remember exactly what it was that I did for work. It took an extra energy drink just to get me through the day competently. Sadly, it wasn’t like returning to work from a fun vacation. It was returning after being wailed on by a once-in-a-decade snowstorm and then spending the rest of the time either without power or in a daze, trying to get my bearings back. It was as if I needed an extra day off to fully recover from my week off. With spring less than 3 weeks away, I can only hope that winter is starting to lose interest in beating the hell out of us in New England.


3. I immediately contradict that last entry with this one. The slush waves returned to Cape Cod for a short engagement. Temperatures in the teens at night allowed the phenomenon to happen at a few north-facing beaches in the town of Brewster. I was beside myself with excitement. They looked so cool in the bright sun. The slush piled up in a neat semi-circle on the beach, creating a makeshift barrier between the ocean and land. I would have stayed and watched them for as long as I could, but I had to get to work. That evening, I ventured back down to the same beach. By now, the tide had gone out. The slush waves had led to the return of the ice chunks, although in far smaller form than they were a few weeks ago. I had thought I had grown tired of walking through ice and snow and soaking my shoes, but lo and behold, there I was again up to my ankles in snow trying to get the best angles for photos. Hey, when it’s 90 and humid in August, I’ll be living in the photos and videos of those cold winter days.



4. Welcome to the film business. I learned that things aren’t always smooth sailing when it comes to movies. Longtime readers know that last summer and fall were highlighted by the work I did on the When Henry Met Henry short film. It is a fictional meeting between famed authors Henry Beston and Henry David Thoreau, co-produced by Frank Durant, who wrote the screenplay. We filmed in mid-October, and everything went well. Being that it is a short film, we expected that it would be totally wrapped and edited before the end of 2025. We routinely asked the editor how things were going and rarely got clear answers. My hope is to enter the finished product in at least one local film festival. Those things have deadlines. I needed to know when this film would be done so that I could plan accordingly. This past week, I heard from the editor. He asked if I could at least double what he was getting paid for editing. I was caught off guard but also pretty pissed off. Here he was more than four months after wrapping filming without a finished film, and to top it off, he was asking for more money. That being said, I was kind of caught between a rock and a hard place. I want that film done, and if I balked at the editor’s demands, we might get a poorly done job, or we’d have to edit it ourselves. So I agreed to double his pay. It is technically within our budget of what we raised for the film, so it’s not back-breaking. Still, it was kind of a dick move. I have learned to expect the unexpected when it comes to the film industry. To wrap it up, I hope to have the finished film within a week or two, plenty of time to enter it in a festival I’m interested in. It’ll all work out in the end, hopefully. Except for the editor, I won’t ever do business with him again.


5. This week saw my youngest niece, Sylvie’s 7th birthday. She is, without a doubt, one of my favorite people to ever walk this earth. I am lucky that I have probably at least a couple of handfuls worth of people that I can give that distinction to. They are mainly family and a few close friends. I have always been seen as the ‘fun uncle.’ I never called myself that until my nieces and nephews and their parents gave me the distinction. With Sylvie being the youngest and almost guaranteed to be the last of this generation in my family, I take full advantage of the time I have where she still gets super excited and hyper when she sees me. My mom says she owns me, that I am wrapped around her finger. That’s 100% true. I pretty much do whatever she wants because I want to be associated with fun memories when she grows up. For this birthday, it didn’t disappoint. I had butterfly hair clips in my beard and was fully made up. Eye shadow, lip gloss, eyeliner, the works. I had needed to go to the store after the birthday party was over, and was joking that I just wouldn’t go all made up. The thing is, Sylvie did a good job with the makeup, meaning I didn’t look like a clown as I feared. So I still went to the store in all my made-up glory. It was another present for her birthday. Someday, Sylvie will grow up and not think I am cool anymore, so I cherish all of the moments I can make while she still does.


6. I passed 2,000 days alcohol free this week. It’s amazing how, when you get so far out from a big change in your life, you can almost forget the journey that it took to get to where you are. September marks 6 years since I kicked alcohol the F out of my life. It was a big problem for a while, so I want to make sure that I take every opportunity to celebrate the accomplishment. For too long, I felt I needed alcohol to cope with life and to make me feel better about who I was and where I was at the time. The last thing I wanted to be for younger members of my family was a cautionary tale of things not to do. I have found now 2,000+ days away from my last drink that I am a little of both. The cautionary tale is not to let alcohol become your master. Also, the redemption, if you are down and feel like you might never get up, just keep moving forward and never stop trying. I had days where it was like my brain was on autopilot. My car would seemingly drive itself to the liquor store every day. It was a battle to get out of that habit, but once I was clear of the addiction, I could look back and realize how lucky I was to get away from it. My father is the biggest alcoholic I’ve known in my life, and my greatest fear was ending up like him. The one and pretty much only thing he taught me was that a weak man lets his demons run his life. I chose to be stronger and better. 2,000 days and counting.



7. I got a bit of confirmation this week on something I thought was true. Back late in the summer, I got my car’s oil changed at a Jiffy Lube I had gone to many times. They informed me that, for some reason, they could not get my oil filter off to be replaced. This was even though they were the ones who put the filter on in the first place. I left there thinking they were just incompetent and/or lazy. I would get my answer the next time I needed an oil change. That came this week. I chose to go to the nearest Valvoline spot, which was about 40 minutes from me. The entire process was great. Tire pressure checked, fluids topped off, oil changed, oh yeah, and the filter removed without issue. So, needless to say, it was incompetence and laziness at Jiffy Lube. I don’t think I’ll ever go back there. I’d rather drive 40 minutes each way for a guaranteed positive experience. Thank you, Valvoline. You will see me again.


8. My newest show I’m obsessed with binging is Yellowjackets. The show is about a high school girls' soccer team whose plane crashes deep in the Canadian wilderness and their attempts at survival. It’s a little like Lord of the Flies, but with mostly teenage girls. The show takes place in two timelines. The past is 1996 when the crash happened. I love that because it means the girls would have all been my age, so I immediately relate to them more. Plus, they play a lot of great music from then. But then there’s the other timeline, which is present-day, where the survivors of the crash are trying to cope with the trauma of the events. I won’t spoil anything, but just know it’s far more gory than you might expect. I just finished the first season. There are three out so far, with a fourth that’s supposed to debut soon. It’s also got Christina Ricci and Juliette Lewis as the older versions of two of the characters, which makes the show even better. It comes highly recommended.

9. Going to Walmart is always double the fun. You get to shop for some cheap stuff, and you also get the extra bonus of people watching. Several times in previous blogs, I’ve mentioned the wacky people I’ve come across when visiting Walmart. This time was a slight disappointment. There were no weirdos inside, well, maybe besides me. When pulling into the parking lot, though, I was cut off by some idiot in her SUV. Like she couldn’t wait one extra second for me to pass? She just had to whip out in front of me. I handled it coolly. I followed her around the parking lot until she eventually kept driving. I can’t say if she left and didn’t come back because I found a spot and went in. If you’re gonna be a jerk and nearly cause an accident because you’re jonesing for some Walmart goodies, I’m going to be just as petty and tail you around the lot. So I guess in a way, I was the person today that I would have been looking for to write about when visiting Walmart. Who would have seen that twist coming?


10. My oddest interaction this week was not at Walmart but at the grocery store. At one particular store, there is a 60-something-year-old man who fetches carts. I can tell he doesn’t like his job based on what he mutters to himself as he walks around. This visit to the store ended with me walking outside. There was some idiot who had parked their car in the fire lane and left it running unattended. I walked in front of it and stopped to make sure there weren’t any cars coming. The cart guy, out of the blue, says ‘okay sir there are three things.’ I turned around with a confused look. I said ‘excuse me?’ Then this guy finally did what a normal person would have done and asked if it was my car. When I said no, he apologized. I said, ‘okay well that’s one thing.’ I then walked away, not giving him the chance to say or do anything else weird. I have no clue what his three things were or whether he waited outside for the jerk that owned that car to come back.


11. I walked the nearby stretch of the Cape Cod Rail Trail for the first time in nearly two months. That part was great. Getting to walk five miles outside, even if it was drizzly and 45 degrees. However, I wasn’t ready for the sheer number of downed trees scattered across the bike trail. I spotted at least six good-sized trees along the trail in about ½ mile. I can only assume it’s the same or worse throughout the rest of the bike trail. Even as much of the snow from the recent blizzard has melted away, it will take a lot of work to remove what must be many dozens of trees from the trail. Spring is next week, and yes, you’ll be able to ride or walk the bike trail, but it will be a while before you can do so without having to stop and navigate around fallen trees.

Initial Impressions 2.0 Blog #92: One Brain Cell, It's Me Shawn, Papa Gino's Meeting, etc.

1. While entering the supermarket, I caught the sounds of the excellent 1980s song ‘Take On Me,’ by A-ha. Growing up in the 80s, there’s no way I wouldn’t know the lyrics. It sounded different because it was an acoustic version of the song. A woman working one of the registers stopped ringing up a customer to loudly complain about how whoever was singing was ruining the song. She then kept complaining by saying the original is such a great song (truth) and these people should leave the song alone. I had to laugh to myself because the version of the song was an acoustic version BY A-ha. So this lady was shouting into the air about how A-ha was ruining A-ha’s song. I didn’t bother saying anything because she looked like she gets lost in a closet, so trying to explain what I just wrote would have fried her brain cell.

2. Ladybugs are supposed to be good luck, and you can make a wish while holding one and let it fly away and maybe it will come true. That being said, we had one inside at my job. I caught it and brought it outside. I made a wish and let it fly away. Only it flew right back and landed on my shirt. How far does the ladybug have to fly away to break the plane of the wish? Is it like crossing the goal line in football? It was crawling down my shirt so I ended up bringing it back inside with me and putting it in one of our plants. I’ll have to try again to make another wish on it this week.


3. In a follow-up from last week. I did in fact make a behind-the-scenes video for the When Henry Met Henry film. Last week I mentioned being halfway through recording on my webcam when my recording software decided to crash. Later that same day I took my phone and my selfie stick and did a walk and talk. I went to the local bike trail so that I could have some fall aesthetics and nature while discussing the filming process. I was pleasantly surprised that the vast majority of the video went off without a hitch. Granted, there were a few people on bikes but I just paused the video as they approached. The low light of the recording was the pain in the ass kid on his little dirt bike riding up and down the power lines right off the trail. That was an editing challenge. The highlight was the walk itself but also the blue jays yelling as I walked. I find recording at my desk boring and only do it when necessary. If possible, I will try to be outside, or at least somewhere different to give each video its own personality. Speaking of which, here is the finished When Henry Met Henry Behind the Scenes video.

4. Since giving up alcohol 5 years ago, I mostly drink flavored seltzer water. One beverage I will indulge in every now and then is birch beer. If you’ve never had it, the drink comes from the sap or bark of birch trees. I can only describe its taste as a mix of wintergreen with a hint of cinnamon. I can’t remember who in my family liked it, but it is from them that I first tried it. In trying to stay relatively fit in my late 40s, I will drink the diet birch beer, usually from Polar. A liter bottle runs 10 calories. Having drunk unsweetened drinks for many years now, I can tell when something is loaded with sugar. This week I got some birch beer and, within two sips, knew it was regular and not diet. A liter of the regular birch beer runs 410 calories. That’s a big difference so I sadly didn’t finish the bottle. Then, when I went to get diet Birch Beer I saw why I made the mistake. The regular and diet and right next to each other in identical bottles but the kicker is the color. It’s white letters on green-ish white background. I literally had to pull the bottle close to my face like I was 90 to see if it said diet or not. Oh well, at least I got the right one that time.


5. When I go for a walk or run, I wear big over-ear headphones to really get immersed in whatever music or podcast I have going on. That means that I also need to pay attention to my surroundings since the headphones can cancel out any noise. That came back to haunt me this week, but not in a bad way. So I was on a walk and going around the periphery of a golf course. No, I didn’t get hit by a ball. I was walking and I felt something slam into my right arm. This scared the hell out of me and got my heart rate jumping. I spun around, not sure what I’d see. What I did see was the cutest white Golden Retriever. It was a few hundred feet from its owner, whom I did see slowly walking up. The dog must have gotten so excited to see me but when I paid it no attention due to my music, it decided to really let me know it was there. And yes, before continuing on my walk there were copious amounts of belly scratches for the dog.


6. On a break from working, I grabbed my phone, selfie stick and my yearly mini-pumpkin and headed to get some photos. I ended up at the Cape Cod Canal and started wandering around the grounds snapping photos. Everything was normal until I started walking along the water, headed for a marina. I saw a guy fishing and he gave me the side-eye. At first, he joked to me that my photo would be better if his ‘fat old ass’ wasn’t in the way. I smiled and he said, ‘hey it’s good to see you again.’ Now I was confused and asked, ‘really?’ The guy said, ‘yeah it’s me Shawn. I saw you here before not that long ago.’ I told him it definitely wasn’t me, but I was polite and wished him a good evening before going for more photos. No idea who that guy was, or more importantly, the guy who looks like me who is creeping around the canal. Maybe it’s old me from the future coming back to take photos at the canal.

One of the photos taken along the canal.

7. This week, the NBA and the country have been rocked by a gambling scandal involving, as of this moment three people. Damon Jones, who was an assistant coach. Chauncey Billups, who is the head coach of the Portland Trailblazers and a former Boston Celtic. Lastly and the one that has raised my eyebrows is current Miami Heat player Terry Rozier. For those who don’t know the story here is a link to an overview. The reason Rozier got my attention is that he’s accused of point shaving. Basically, betting on the under on his own stats and then allegedly feigning an injury, or having an ‘off night’ to win money on those unders. One NBC Boston analyst mentioned Game 7 of the Celtics v. Cleveland Cavaliers in the 2017-18 Eastern Conference Finals. Rozier went 2-14 from the field, including 0-10 from 3-point range in 36 minutes of play. The Celtics lost 87-79. My mind immediately went to Rozier intentionally having an off night to win his bets and cost the Celtics a trip to the NBA Finals. Maybe it was just a coincidence but with Rozier’s gambling history, it seems like it sadly could be possible. I’m not saying the Celtics would have won the championship. Hell, the Cavs with Lebron James got swept 4-0 by Golden State. Still, you never know and that’s the worst part. Also, it sounds like this is just the tip of the iceberg, so grab your popcorn.


8. Sometimes I go seeking an adventure, other times the adventure finds me. I was out with my pumpkin, grabbing some Halloween-themed photos at an old mansion. It’s on a quiet road near the beach but is almost always deserted, which allows me to take my time setting up shots. I parked in a lot that is fairly hidden. I thought there might be a path so I could walk to the beach without having to get on the actual road. There wasn’t one, but there was a smaller overgrown parking lot, which I took a photo of so that I might be able to find out what it was used for. On the way back to my car, I spotted what looked like a decaying house about 50 or so feet back in the woods. Obviously, I needed to go check it out. Unfortunately, there was no path to it. This meant that I needed to bushwhack my way through the trees and brush to get there. It was a mess inside. There was a lot of graffiti as would be expected. There were also holes in the floor exposing water underneath. Luckily, I caught myself before falling through the floor but it was close. It’s a bit rundown and somewhat dangerous, so I wouldn’t recommend going inside. I got a lot of photos and videos, which I put together into a little Halloween adventure film so that you can see what it’s like.

9. We are in the hurry up and wait portion of the new bike trail extension near where I live. I’ve mentioned before that it begins just after a golf course and will likely go 4 extra miles. This will allow people to theoretically ride their bike from Wellfleet all the way to the Cape Cod Mall, nearly 30 miles. In the past few weeks, I noticed that the extension has been paved. I don’t know if it’s all the way but I did walk a half-mile or so down it. You’d think it’s nearly ready to be open to the public, but you’d be wrong. If the most recent bike trail extension, which connected the main trail to the golf course where it now ends, is any indicator, we’re looking at a year or more to go. The last extension was being worked on for at least 5 years from the time they removed an old railroad bridge to the day it was opened. Why does it take so long? I mean if you can get it paved that fast, why not just hurry up and finish it? Whatever, I’ll still use it even if it’s not ‘finished.’


10. The big news of the week is that come this time next year I will have had a script of mine made into a feature-length film. There is still so much to iron out, and I can only share a little right now, though. I met with the director of the film I acted in earlier this year, Cape Cod Cthulhu. He and his crew were on Cape Cod this week filming a new movie. 5 of us met for dinner and a chat at Papa Gino’s. I hadn’t had that for years so that was already a plus. We then started talking about a story I had written over 15 years ago. It fits 2 great categories: simple and cheap. We won’t need much for cast or sets, which means that the budget should be fairly low. The tentative plan is to shoot late next summer, so obviously, there won’t be a finished film for quite a while. Still, this is a big thing to have on my resume, being the producer of a feature-length film. It’s a really exciting new project, and the pizza at Papa Gino’s was good. Oh, and the director thought I was in my early 30s, so a great time overall.

When Henry Met Henry: Behind the Scenes Wrap-Up

 

When Henry Met Henry is a short film depicting a fictional meeting between famed authors Henry Beston and Henry David Thoreau. It was my first in-depth involvement behind the camera in the film industry. 

In this video, I take a deep dive into the entire process of the film, from fundraising to actual shooting, along with some fun behind-the-scenes footage and stories.

Rather than filming this indoors, I decided to soak in the fall on Cape Cod by walking and talking along the Cape Cod Rail Trail.

Thank you to all of those who donated to the fundraiser. We are working on a special screening of the finished film for donors sometime early in 2026.

Initial Impressions 2.0 Blog #91: Weird Sneezes, Hot Dog Head, When Henry Met Henry, etc.

1. Have you ever noticed how some people have odd-sounding sneezes? Like most people typically have a sneeze that sounds like what you’re probably thinking of right now. Every now and then, though, you come across a sneeze that stands out as weird. I was in my car in a parking lot when I heard a man start sneezing outside his car. Well, either sneezing or coughing. Anyway, it sounded like a human/bird combination. I was able to get a good read on it since the guy stayed outside of his car, sneezing loudly for several minutes. It got to be pretty disturbing because of how loud it was. I couldn’t tell if he was sneezing or having some sort of fit. Other people were looking, but nobody said anything. The guy ended up driving away without incident, but left us all with a strange story to tell.


2. It’s interesting how life comes full circle sometimes. In 1999, I’d go to the beach and listen to new(ish) Toad the Wet Sprocket on CD. All the while being inspired to write poetry in a notebook. In 2025, I’m listening to new(ish) Toad the Wet Sprocket streaming on Spotify while being inspired to write poetry in a Word document. From Quarter-Life to Mid-Life, some things still remain.


3. This is a bit of the weird and random stuff that I caused myself. In New England, we got a massive Nor’easter for a good 3 days. In all, we ended up with something like 4 inches of rain in total. I was out for a drive surveying the damage when I got an idea. My car is white, therefore it is almost always dirty. With the rain still falling at a good clip, I got an idea. I decided to stop at the store and buy some cleaning wipes and paper towels. You see where this is going. Since there was nobody else on the roads, I stopped at a park. I then proceeded to ‘wash’ my car using the cleaning wipes, rain, and paper towels. I ended up with a pile of wet garbage that I had to throw away. It wasn’t as sparkly clean like a proper car wash would have given, but all in all, my car looked much better after that. Laugh if you want, I know I did as I realized how crazy I looked. I would have died if someone pulled up and saw this idiot using a roll of paper towels to ‘clean’ his car.


4. Some people are an enigma wrapped in a riddle. Some are just idiots. There is a guy at my gym, probably early 50s. He works out in jeans, whatever that says about him. Anyway, he comes into the gym and exclusively uses the elliptical machine. He makes sure to thoroughly clean the machine before using it, which is great. Then he sweats all over it and never cleans it afterward. What is up with that? To top it off, I passed him at the grocery store, and upon entering, he put hand sanitizer on. I was confused. So this guy cares about getting germs from others, but not about sharing his? Okay, buddy, oh, and your head looks like a boiled hot dog in shape and shininess.

Yup, pretty much like that

5. An update from last week. The cute girl came back into my work. I had a client scheduled while she’d be there. As luck would have it, my client rescheduled to an earlier time, meaning I’d be free when she showed up. She ended up arriving 10 minutes late and mentioned being really tired. So even though I was able to speak to her, I knew I needed to keep it shorter since her appointment was behind. It ended up being good, brief but good. I guess I just have to keep practicing patience and persistence. She’ll be back in a few weeks. That’ll give me plenty of time to have some witty lines and try to make sure my schedule is open.


6. In October, as the weather starts to get cooler, we more often see an invasion at my work. Crickets begin to get inside and set up shop in the baseboards and dark corners. Their chirps echo off the cement floors and can drive you crazy. I began stalking one this week and swore that it was a ventriloquist because whenever I got to where I thought it was, the sound started coming from somewhere else. At one point, it slipped out from a baseboard, and I tried to catch it, but it went right back in and chirped like a jerk in my face. The next morning, I came in and there was the cricket sitting in the middle of the bathroom floor. I caught it in a paper cup and put it outside. It didn’t even try to escape. I wonder if it felt bad for humiliating me the day before and gave itself up?


7. I don’t know if this is embarrassing or not, but I only this week discovered that there are two different cookies, macarons and macaroons. I thought there was just the coconut macaroons, and that people sometimes misspell it as macaron. Nope. A macaron is what looks like a fluffy, soft Oreo in different colors. How is this something I’m just realizing? Next, you’re gonna tell me Hellman’s and Best Foods mayo is the same thing. Or that Carl’s Jr. and Hardee’s are the same restaurant.

8. While at the grocery store, I bumped into my Uncle Steve, whom I haven’t seen in months. He was my running mentor since he became a marathon runner in his 50s. Now he’s retired from running and work in general, so it has become harder to bump into him. I was caught off guard a little by just how much he looks like my Grampa, just with shorter hair. I mentioned it to him, and he said that he looked so much like his father that people were mistaking them. The only problem is my Grampa died 6 years ago. My uncle joked that people must have thought Grampa’s ghost was haunting the nursing home where he died, which is also where my uncle worked. I laughed loud enough that people started staring at us, but who cares? I always leave a conversation with my Uncle Steve feeling better about myself. I never take that for granted.


9. This week marked what would have been my Grampa’s 100th birthday. I was thinking of him a lot, and when visiting my mom, we shared stories of him. My sister Ashley arrived, and we all were chatting. I noticed the sunset as the pink sky continued to grow. It wasn’t until my mom called for us that we saw the incredible sunset rainbow from the backyard. It had been raining, but never did I think I’d see a sunset rainbow. As we all took photos, we realized how symbolic it was that the rainbow was on Grampa’s birthday. Maybe it was a gift to him, or for us from him, but it made the day even more special.

10. A good chunk of this week’s blog will be dedicated to the When Henry Met Henry short film project. I had put together a fundraiser to allow us to hire cast and crew. This weekend was the big filming day. Being that in total it will likely be somewhere between 6-8 minutes in length it took us about 4 hours to film it. There were 5 of us total at the shoot, and things went as well as we could have hoped. So there’s a little overview.


11. They say you never get a second chance to make a first impression. I had promised to arrive at the filming location, a beach in Wellfleet, with a Box O’ Joe from Dunkin’. Yes, I did that part. As the crew trickled in, half of us walked the roughly 1/3 mile to where we’d be shooting. Only when we got there did one of the crew ask where the cups were for the coffee. Yup, I forgot the cups. Well, in all honesty, the people at Dunkin’ didn’t give them to me, as it was so busy, but I still should have waited and asked. That was my first impression. Hey, how about we all just chug scalding hot coffee from a box? Nah, I’ll pass.


12. Speaking of the location. It was perfect. A very secluded sand dune that went off the beach and into nearby woods. But as you just read, it was about 1/3 of a mile from the parking lot. Not too bad if you’re out for a leisurely stroll, but when you’re lugging equipment and making 3 trips each way, it can become a chore. I ended up walking well over 3 miles in the sand. All I can say is that it was a better workout than many I have had recently. After eating something small at 6am, and doing all of that walking, I was able to eat a big McDonald’s dinner and still was 400 calories below my allotment for the day.

13. They say the greatest accomplishments come when leaving your comfort zone. I definitely did that. I had no idea about directing, producing, or anything like that. I was dropped into the deep end on this film. Our sound person couldn’t make it, so I was tasked with that. I had to learn on the fly. I think I did all right, but it’ll be determined during the editing. While the actors and director were very loose and chatty with each other, I spent a lot of my time listening and learning all I could. My hope is that with each experience in film, I learn more and more until maybe one day I can lead my own project. We’ll see.


14. Oh, and by the way, just because it’s mid-October and summer is long gone doesn’t mean you can’t get sunburned. Take it from me and my red face. Well, except for the whiter areas around my eyes since I was wearing sunglasses. The only good thing about a sunburn in the fall is that the temperatures dropping into the 40s at night make sleeping easier than if it were 70 and humid at night.


15. Fun fact: we filmed When Henry Met Henry on the same weekend as the famed Wellfleet Oysterfest. It typically brings 10-20,000 people to the town over the weekend. Luckily, we all got to the beach way ahead of the crowds, so we didn’t worry about parking. Not too long after, several school buses showed up as they would be shuttling people over to the festival. When we headed out to the shooting location, there were maybe a dozen cars in the parking lot. When we returned at the end, not only was the lot full, but cars were lined down the street. On my drive home, going through Wellfleet, the vehicles were lining the streets in a lot of places. It just shows how luck was on our side with the film.

The cast and crew

16. To wrap it up, I plan on making a video where I go over more of the behind-the-scenes of the making of the film. I decided to get a jump on that this weekend. I was about 7 minutes into recording the video when my recording software froze up and I lost it all. Obviously, I was mad, but what made it worse was that this was the 2nd straight time I’d tried to record a video on that software only for it to glitch out mid-record. I was so blinded with rage that I nearly shattered my webcam slam dunking it on the floor. It took several rounds of embarrassing fail videos on YouTube for me to feel better.

Initial Impressions 2.0 Blog #85: Labor Day, Angry Eyebrows, Wings of Love, etc.

1. Growing up on Cape Cod in the 1980s, I can remember a tradition we had on Labor Day. People would walk from their homes to a nearby overpass, if they lived close enough, and they would wave to the throng of vehicles exiting the Cape. It was a fun tradition, I know I partook in a few times. It was a celebration of the end of tourist season, but more gratefully and thankfully. We appreciated the crowds that chose to come and spend their time and money on our little peninsula. I don’t know if anyone still does that on the Cape in the 2020s. I haven’t heard of it in any great way since the 90s. I feel as though some people who visit now are rude and entitled. They treat locals like we’re their servants and we should kiss their feet because they grace us with their presence. Like I said, this is ‘some,’ and probably a small percentage, but those people make Labor Day feel more like a celebration of getting rid of tourists rather than a celebration of a wonderful summer.


2. I would like to think that I have a pretty strong stomach. I mean, after all, I grew up in the 1980s, where we could rent disgusting horror movies as kids. That strong stomach got put to the test at work this week. There was a woman who came in to use our PEMF (Pulsed Electromagnetic Field) machine to help speed the healing of an injury. She needed to lie down on a padded table with her leg elevated on a thick green bolster to feel more comfortable. I was training a client in the gym next door, but once I was done and had a free moment, I went back into the therapy room to get the PEMF machine set up for the next patient. That is when I noticed that the bolster had a pretty sizable wet patch on it. Now I know what you’re thinking. No, it was not pee. Oh no, it was actually more gross than that. What I haven’t mentioned is that the woman had a bandaged wound on her leg, which is what she was trying to heal. Yup, you’ve got it right, the giant wet patch on the bolster was weeping fluid from her wound. It looked as though someone had poured a full bottle of water on the bolster and table. It was just disgusting and a bit disrespectful and careless of this person to use our facilities with a severely leaking wound, and wearing shorts to boot. Unreal. Needless to say, that bolster was quickly carried out to the dumpster.


3. Not far from where I live, they are in the beginning stages of building a new bike path extension. It is located on a walking route through a golf course that I like to go on a few times a month. It is fun to see the progress. This week I really got a show. I was walking when I noticed three large trucks coming down the bike path toward me. Needless to say, that’s something you don’t see very often on a bike/walking path. After seeing the trucks driving to get to where the extension is set to begin, I thought I was done with vehicles on the trail. Nope, right after I also had to dodge what had to be a golf course maintenance vehicle. I saw more motorized vehicles on the bike trail in one walk than I have in every other bike trail walk I’ve ever done combined. I also saw this wild traffic cone stalking those trucks. Nature at its best.



4. You have to respect people who try to pull a fast one despite fully knowing they’re going to fail. This example comes from visiting a Subway to get lunch one day. I order ahead through the app so I am in and out in a flash. However, I was in there long enough to watch a guy try to use a paper coupon on his meal at the register. Not only had this coupon expired, but the woman working the register remarked that it had expired by more than a year. You could see the expiration date on the coupon. Either this guy was ultra stupid and didn’t know how to use a calendar (shout out to people who think the last day of summer is Labor Day). Or this guy thought he was way smarter than he actually was. Honestly, I think both can be true, as most stupid people have disproportionately high levels of confidence.


5. To try to get some more donations for the When Henry Met Henry short film I am directing in October, I decided to take a location field trip. I went to Coast Guard Beach in Eastham to get some video and photos from the southern end near where Henry Beston’s Outermost House used to be. I figured a little narrated video from that spot might entice a few more people to donate to the fundraiser. Of course, I couldn’t just do the easy route and drive to the beach. I decided to park at the Cape Cod National Seashore visitor’s center and walk the bike trail to the beach and back. It was a perfect afternoon. I ended up doing about 6 miles, with more than 2 of those being a beach walk. I loved every second of the walk, but was wiped out afterward. I was so tired that I was sitting on the ground at the amphitheater behind the visitor’s center. I would have stayed there longer, but about a dozen ants started circling me, and I didn’t want any trouble, so I left.


6. On a curvy road not far from me, there is a speed detector. You know, one of those contraptions that shows the speed limit on that road and then your speed, typically in a large digital font. Usually, these detectors flash your speed, and then if you go over the limit, your speed either flashes or changes color, or something like that. This particular detector does neither. Once you go above the speed limit, your speed disappears and is replaced with a ‘slow down.’ If you keep going, it is then replaced by a pair of eyes with angry eyebrows. Seriously? If you got caught speeding on this road, what are they going to tell you as far as how fast you were going? ‘Sorry sir you were going ‘angry eyebrows’ in a 25 zone.’ So stupid.


7. Back in 1982, a singer named Jeffrey Osborne released a song called ‘On the Wings of Love.’ It peaked at #29 on the Billboard Hot 100. I definitely remember it as a kid. What does this have to do with this past week? My sister Ashley was insisting that she recalled a comedy sketch where Osborne had opened a restaurant appropriately named ‘Wings of Love.’ It was a chicken wing joint. Despite searching the internet, she couldn’t find any such sketch. Well, I took the bet and decided to create my own advertisement for Jeffrey Osborne’s chicken wing establishment, ‘Wings of Love.’ So here you go. Yes, my insanity and humor blend seamlessly.


8. It’s pretty sad that you can have a pair of flashing lights at a bike trail crossing and drivers will still just blow through and not stop if you’re standing there. It happens more than it should. Luckily, I stop and wait, rather than just walking across and assuming that people know that the crazy flashing lights mean to stop. During one walk this week, there was one car that stopped for me and another that just flew through. It’s like you’re either not paying attention when you drive, or you’re just a piece of garbage who doesn’t care about anyone but yourself. It’s just simple common courtesy and respect. I need to start carrying a rock in my pocket to throw at someone if they don’t stop.


9. As some of you know, back in March, I filmed a small role in a campy indie horror film, Cape Cod Cthulhu. It was my first acting gig, and I was told it was pretty good, which is always nice to hear. I have lots of footage I’ve been waiting to share to coincide with the film being released. There is an interview with one of the stars, and then a bigger interview with several of the cast and crew. It was such a fun experience, and I have been waiting for some news on the film’s release. Well, I can share the trailer for the film here. I don’t know the firm release date for streaming and DVD’s but it seems to be late October. I’ll keep you posted but until then, enjoy the first trailer for Cape Cod Cthulhu.



10. I am typically very easy to please. I would like to do amazing things and achieve huge amounts of success, but in reality, I am about as low-maintenance as they come. For example, this week I went out driving in the rain. I was listening to a podcast and I had an idea of where I wanted to go. I went to a beach that was deserted. There I parked in a far corner of the lot, turned off the car, and listened to the podcast while the rain poured all around me. It was so bland and mundane and perfectly soothing. I would love to travel the world and see everything there is to see, but honestly, I feel like I get the same amount of satisfaction from sitting in an empty beach parking lot in the rain listening to a podcast.

When Henry Met Henry Film Update

 

Donate here: When Henry Met Henry Film

On location at Coast Guard Beach in Eastham on Cape Cod. Here Henry Beston wrote his seminal work The Outermost House a century ago. Here Henry David Thoreau walked in a journey that became his iconic book, Cape Cod. Frank Durant and I are raising funds to create a short film about a fictional meeting between these two literary giants. Please consider donating through GoFundMe. We plan on commencing filming in late October 2025.

Help Me Bring 'When Henry Met Henry' To Life!

Big news!
I’m partnering with producer Frank Durant and the Eastham Chamber of Commerce to raise funds to create a deeply personal short film called “When Henry Met Henry.” This is a fictional and poetic meeting between two literary giants, Henry David Thoreau and Henry Beston, set along the windswept shores of Cape Cod.
This isn’t just a film. It’s a love letter to Cape Cod, to its wild beauty, its literary soul, and its power to inspire across centuries.


What’s the Film About?
Imagine this:
On a quiet Cape Cod beach, as the tide rolls out and the sun sets, Henry David Thoreau—the philosopher of Walden Pond—meets Henry Beston, author of The Outermost House and poetic guardian of the Cape’s outer beach.
They talk. They reflect. They debate solitude, nature, and the human spirit.
“When Henry Met Henry” imagines this powerful, fictional conversation as a way to explore timeless questions—about our connection to nature, to each other, and the land beneath our feet.


Why This Film Matters
This project blends my lifelong love for Cape Cod, my background as a writer and historian, and my desire to share a story that’s never been told on film.
• It celebrates two literary voices who shaped how we see nature.
• It honors the soul of Cape Cod—past and present.
• It’s my first film as a director, and I’m pouring everything I have into making it meaningful and beautiful.
I believe this story has the power to move people, especially in a time when we’re all craving connection to the earth, to art, and quiet wisdom.


How You Can Help
Even a short, simple film takes resources. Your support will go toward:
• Equipment rental (camera, sound, lighting)
• Paying (3) local actors
• Filming on authentic Cape Cod locations
• Post-production (editing, sound design, music)
• Meals, gas, and basic crew support
Our goal is to raise $3,000, and every donation, big or small, brings us one step closer.


Why Donate?
• You’re supporting a local Cape Cod filmmaker on his first cinematic journey
• You’re helping preserve and promote Cape Cod culture and literary history
• You believe in independent film and authentic, thoughtful storytelling
• You love the work of Thoreau, Beston, or simply love the Cape
• You’ll be part of something heartfelt, artistic, and unique


The short film will not be seen online or have any DVD/Blu-rays available. The Eastham Chamber of Commerce will own the final film and have it among its digital archive for viewing.


On behalf of Frank Durant and the Eastham Chamber of Commerce, we say thank you.
Cape Cod runs in my blood. I’ve spent my life walking these beaches, writing about this land, and honoring its stories.
Now I’m asking for your help to bring this one to the screen.
If you can’t donate, please consider sharing this campaign with anyone who might connect to it.
Let’s bring “When Henry Met Henry” to life together.


With deep gratitude,
Christopher Setterlund