So Long and Thanks for All the Pineapple Soda
Everyone has things that they are passionate about. It could be anything from family to work to hobbies. When I sit back and think about my passions a few things come to mind: work, sports, television, my dogs, my health and of course; movies. I think it’s safe to say that everyone who contributes to Film Junk, who visits the website, who listens to the podcast has a passion for movies. Jay has worked very hard for his passion for movies and has made it into the business. Not only that, he’s pretty damn talented. Frank loves everything there is to love about movies. From his excellent and well-organized blu-ray collection to his mounted movie posters. Sean, even with fatherhood upon him, still finds time to not only do his 9-5 job, but to run this excellent website. I have always had a passion for movies as well and it has taken me to TIFF for 16 consecutive years. As always though, when you get older and busier, things can get in the way of your passions. Time becomes an enemy and as I like to say poetically, shit happens. Including my commute to work, my job demands 10+ hours a day. I’ve had to make lifestyle choices over the last year to improve my health which require me to be and ready to go at 5am. Add in my desire to care for and see my dogs whenever I get to have custody, it leaves me little time to indulge in my passions.
Over the last year, I don’t think it would be a surprise to anyone to know that my performance on the podcast was not what it used to be. I speak up less in reviews, I hardly ever watch anything else and my participation in the other segments has been, shall we say, sparse. It’s not fair to Sean, Jay and Frank. It’s not fair to you, the unbelievably loyal listeners and it isn’t fair to myself. Being up so early, I have often found it difficult to remain at full attention during the podcast and if you were in the shoes of one of the other guys on the podcast and you looked across the table after spending a few minutes talking about how much you loved a movie only to see your friend barely keeping his eyes open you’d be pretty annoyed. You might even feel disrepected. It is because of my less than stellar performance and lacklustre participation over the last year that Sean, Jay and Frank had to make the difficult decision in asking me to step down from the podcast.
Before anyone sends in an e-mail or comment saying negative towards their decision, take a moment and really read what I just wrote. Can any of you blame them? I can’t. Work takes up a lot of my time. Getting myself healthy takes a massive commitment. I haven’t even talked about the last two months on the show. I went through a very difficult break-up and it was brutally hard on me and I couldn’t keep it together. I showed up to the Die Hard premium intoxicated. Although, the guys were sympathetic to my situation, it was pretty goddamn irresponsible and disrespectful to the hard work that they put in.
Basically, this is my apology to you, the listener, and it’s my public apology to Sean, Jay and Frank for letting them down. I hope they will accept it and we can continue to remain friends. Sean has left the door open for me to return from time to time after I’ve taken an extended period away from the show, which is way more than I deserve. These guys don’t owe me anything and they gave me plenty of chances to shape up and I couldn’t do it.
As you’re all aware, the Film Junk podcast doesn’t hold anything back. It’s always been full disclosure because there’s a connection to the listeners and vice versa that is unlike any other podcast. There was no way I was going to disappear without letting you know what went down. It’s what you deserve. Always has been. Always will be. I will forever be grateful for the opportunity to appear on this show and talk movies with my friends for the last number of years. I’ve appreciated being welcome to Sean and Frank’s homes week after week. I’ve appreciated meeting many of you over the years at the theatre, at TIFF and wherever else you creeps show up. I’m kidding. It’s been a hell of a run and I wanted to thank Sean, Jay and Frank for their patience over the years. I hope they were never truly disappointed with what I brought to the show.
Who knows what the future holds, but for now I say thank you and bid you all adieu.
