So dawn goes down to day...

...Nothing gold can stay.

On October 13th, 2009, I departed New York City. Monday the 12th, my last evening in town, was spent with one of my many roommates, Jinee. We went to dinner at Edgar's (I wanted to try my three-berry pie one last time) and then headed to a place called The Dead Poet. It was a lot of fun. In bed at a reasonable hour, I arose the next morning at 7 AM to tie up any remaining loose strings. I even had to take a quick subway trip to the library to return my books and DVDs! I was fed, packed, and checked out by 10 AM, in plenty of time for my airport shuttle at 10:30. Luckily, this time the shuttle driver did not hit on me and the ride to Laguardia was quiet and peaceful! I had plenty of time to kill at the airport as my flight was not until 2, but the minutes passed quickly and before I knew it, I was boarding a flight to Atlanta. As we flew over Manhattan, I whispered a quiet goodbye with a promise to be back again someday!

I think I left the city at the right time - as I was starting to feel twinges of bitterness. I cussed at a random taxi driver in the street when he honked for NO REASON (also I had nothing to eat the entire day and was very irritable, and I was so sick of them honking for no reason right in my ear!)... I began to get a little mouthy with the bossy older women at my residence. At breakfast one morning, I set my tray on the edge of the table while I waited for my bread in the toaster, and one woman advised me that she wanted to knock it over and I should move it because it was in a precarious position. Well, I thought, surely if you concentrate realllllly hard you can manage to NOT knock my tray off...but instead I said rudely, "I'll take my chances." Another woman was scolding me for using the wrong bathroom, since I lived on the other side of the floor, I needed to use the other bathroom. I had my reasons for using the bathroom in question, but felt I did not owe her a justification and simply told her I would use whichever bathroom I wished as there were no rules against it, I paid rent just like her and correct-me-if-I'm-wrong but she did not work there. She left me alone after that ... :) I think I started to understand why New Yorkers have a reputation for being a little jaded or rude...it's simply a necessary defense mechanism to function in that city!

I arrived in Atlanta about 5:30 - a little late due to delays in New York. However I was able to meet Greg for some dinner at Wendy's and some good conversation! I love impromptu get-togethers. Then back through Security I went to hop on the last leg of my flight to Gainesville. Immediately I noticed a difference and realized that good ol' Southern hospitality truly does exist...ah, home sweet home. The flight home was swift, quiet, and uneventful. I sat by a medical intern at Shands who told me he worked 80 hours a week. Yikes! I felt mildly relieved I had never considered being a doctor. One career option down, 180 million to go. He was married with 3 kids. He was very quiet and would not look at me when we talked. I did not get to ponder this too long, because we landed in Gainesville and I was off to meet Mom at baggage claim! She walked in right as I was exiting the plane - talk about good timing! It was great to see her, and after collecting my bags, it was off to home we went.

Having been in Gainesville for a few weeks now, I can say that I think I made the right decision. I am so glad I went to New York - I got to study theatre in the Big Apple for an entire summer, meet some amazing people, and test the waters of the nation's biggest professional theatre scene. I do not think I am ready to commit to the lifestyle of a professional actress (which means TRYING to become a professional actress) but if I do make that choice in the future, I will be better prepared and know what to expect. In the meantime, I am continuing my pursuits by attending State Screenings for the Southeastern Theatre Conference Auditions next weekend, and trying to get my application together to audition for MFA programs this winter. Only time will tell what the future brings, but I am trying to do my part as best I can. We'll see!

When the moon is in the seventh house...

...and Jupiter aligns with Mars, then peace will guide the planet, and love will steer the stars!

So yesterday was my "red tape day" as I spent the day doing a bunch of boring but necessary stuff that I had been putting off. Went to the bank, post office, then spent some time on the phone with the Georgia tag people (who had fined me for no proof of insurance in GA), my insurance company (Geico who were great and sent electronic confirmation to GA of my insurance), and then my old health insurance (BCBS), Piedmont Hospital, and Piedmont Physicians (my PCP). My bill for the physical I had back in May (!) still has not been paid and is about to go into collections. My PCP had submitted the claim wrong and they were supposed to fix it back in June, but I just found out yesterday that apparently, they didn't! I hate dealing with crap like that. I know life ain't fair, but it sure don't seem fair that ALL these people are getting paid, yet I (not getting paid) am the one who has to run around doing all the work to get my bill paid (after I paid quite a pretty penny for that health insurance). C'est la vie.

I promised myself that if I made sufficient progress with all that boring stuff, I would reward myself by trying to get tickets to HAIR. So down to the theatre I went to enter the lottery for cheap tickets. Luckily for me, it was a Monday and the show does not normally play on Mondays. But they were making up for next Sunday, in which the entire cast will be going to march for equality in Washington, D.C. (Which I think is AWESOME! Whether you agree with it or not, ALL humans are created equal and deserve equal rights. That's my two cents anyway.) So I don't think too many people knew the show was going and the lottery lot wasn't very big. There were 28 seats and almost everyone got in. I was the very last one called, and only due to some serendipitous circumstances did I win at all (one guy won 2 tickets, but he had no cash - only a credit card, and they take cash only). The show was pretty good. I was close to the stage but we were in the "box" seats so honestly the view was not spectacular because of the angle we were at in relation to the stage, and also because of the two tall men who (of course) sat in front of me. But after much straining, I got to see the whole show. It was fun.

The crowd outside before the show.

Last Monday, I also got to do something out of the norm. Greg was staying in Atlantic City for work, and he invited me to come out. I got a $25 bus ticket and at 11 AM I headed over to AC! The bus ride was awesome, I got to listen to my iPod (oops, I mean my Sansa mp3 player) and watch the scenery. New Jersey actually has a lot of beautiful land. It was only about 2.5 hours, and then it dropped me off at the Hilton Hotel and Casino.

It was incredible inside - bright lights, no windows, TONS of slot machines and all the other casino games...it was a different world. I had to wait for Greg to come and pick me up, and I had a $30 voucher from riding the bus, so I decided to kill some time and GAMBLE! An employee had to show me how to use the slot machines, and then I was off. I won $15 on my first round! I took my ticket to the money machine and got my cash. Gambling is awesome! (Just kidding) Later that night, Greg and I came back to use the rest of my voucher and he took this AWFUL picture of me:

:-)

I only had $4 left, but luckily, on another round at the slots, I won $11 more! So with total winnings of $26, I had enough to cover my bus ticket and technically made a profit. Woohoo! Here is a picture of the boardwalk, famous (to me) from the Monopoly board!

After that we took it easy and watched House. The next day, I got to sleep in while Greg went to work, enjoy the nice continental breakfast, and watch TV and read all day. I haven't watched much TV since I've been in New York, so it was really nice!

Communication Breakdown!

So I just read over my last blog, and wow! I was pretty pissed off. I had had a bad day that day! (I thought about deleting it, but that would be un-blog-like, wouldn't it?) It feels good to vent though. That boss really gets on my nerves because everything I do seems to be wrong to him, and instead of just telling me what he wants, he makes a big to-do about it. I turned in my notice on Friday and he didn't seem surprised at all. It felt good, so I think I made the right decision. I am finishing up my application for SETC and my musical theatre teacher from this summer said she'd be my reference. I am getting really excited thinking about that and also the grad school audition! I have a lot to do, but it will be fun and challenging. I'm not putting all my eggs in either basket, though, because I know what usually happens when I get my hopes up really high. Still, it will be interesting to see which direction my life will go in during the next couple years. I will go wherever God leads me!

Bitch Fest (sweeeeet)

Okay so my plane ticket is booked for October 13th and I am comin' home! For a long time I wasn't sure it was the right thing for me to do, but I prayed about it a lot and all signs seemed to point toward go. I have loved and been changed by New York City, and I do hope to be back someday. However, I have also learned that NYC is a great place to be - if you are in a good position. I have learned that I'm not quite willing to be a starving artist in hopes of getting a chance someday (I cannot even get an audition - I send my headshot/resume and nothing...I don't even get a chance to show them what I can or can't do, as the case may be)! But I am the man (woman?) with the plan, and a plan ALWAYS makes me feel better :)

Today at work I got a great confirmation of my decision. This morning they installed Open Table, a computer program that helps keep track of, well, open tables, reservations, wait lists, etc. So a group of about 5 or so of us were standing around the host stand, learning the computer system (which by the way, was incredibly easy and one of the most user-friendly systems I have ever seen, can you believe I got turned down at jobs because I didn't know this system?)... so anyway - this man goes to leave the restaurant (he had been there for like 3 hours) and he had left his big ol' heavy bag in the coat check room, which I suggested after he asked me where to stow it. As he passed us, I slowly recognized him and remembered his bag. After manuevering out of the group and going to the coat check room (thinking he would wait for me to open the door), he had actually already opened it and had already picked up his bag. Seeing that there was nothing else I could do, I returned to the host stand. My manager (one of four who had come in to learn the system) scoffed in disbelief and said my name as if I wasn't aware that the man was there. I turned back again, to see the man was still getting his bag (taking his sweet old time), turned back and replied, "He's already picked up his bag," thinking that would be the end of it. I mean, do you want me to pry it from his cold lifeless fingers? Apparently so, as my boss closed his eyes and shook his head as if I was the biggest moron he'd ever encountered. And in front of 5 other people - awesome! So, feeling super cool at that moment, I tried to concentrate on what the computer guy was saying. Because as all the other people scattered away (including my boss, who complained that it was just too much information for him to absorb), I was the only one who stayed for the whole tutorial. After it was over, my boss came up to me and advised me that in the future I should always get things out of the coat check room for people. I explained that when I went over to do just that, he had already grabbed his bag, and I did not want to smother the poor guy. ("Excuse me, sir, I see that you've already grabbed that bag there that belongs to you, but could you kindly put it back down so I can pick it up and hand it to you? Mmkay thanks!") He said he knew that, but that I should smother him because (get ready for this) the man could have tripped and fallen on something in the coat check room and sue us. Um, k. Two things you should know. One, his bag was right at the door, so he didn't even have to go into the room. Two, HE COULD TRIP ON ANYTHING IN THE WHOLE RESTAURANT! Why just the coat check room? It's not like it's filled with booby traps or anything. It's just a room. With hangers in it. Ooh, watch out. Ugh! Actually though, it's not so much the fact that he wanted me to do it differently. I can deal with that. But do you really have to make a big fuss about it in front of everyone and embarass me? I mean really, was it that bad? Surely people have made bigger mistakes than that. Is it too much to ask to just be treated like an adult? So I get to work with this d-bag, who I really think is just not that intelligent (and now maybe on a power trip), another guy who never smiles or says a word to me (or anyone), and another guy who is basically the same but fakes nice. Those are my managers. There is one female manager who I think is really cool, but I never get to work with her. I am turning in my notice tomorrow or Friday, and I am very very happy about that! Sometimes I think I will never find a job that I like.

So, back to the plan. I'm not sure what kind of job I will try to get when I'm in Gainesville (I guess any one that will hire me). However, most of my energy will be devoted to preparing for grad school auditions in January. I will also be trying to audition for the Southeastern Theatre Conference in March (screening auditions in November). If both of those routes do not work out, I would seriously consider trying to take classes at the Esper Studio in NYC (I think I could handle the crappy jobs if I was in classes, and I also found a place similar to where I am that has bedrooms for as little as $450/month, or for $550/month you get a private bathroom, you just don't get meals. They have a long waiting list so I couldn't move there right now, but it's good to know about it, I could even afford that on my measley hostess salary). And if none of that happens, I currently plan on going back to school for...I am 99% sure...psychology. It's one discipline that incorporates a little bit of all my most beloved subjects, and it is always interesting to me. I have mentioned to some that I would like to learn web design, which I still do, but I found out you can take online classes for that and you don't have to be in school (it's pretty cheap too...www.ed2go.com). But otherwise, I think I am done working lame office and restaurant jobs! I really think my soul cannot handle it anymore...I just can't...not saying a career in theatre or psychology would be perfect all the time...but at least I would be passionate for it. Sorry if this blog was bitchy, but I warned you!

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Bitch Fest Complete!
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New York Life, post-classes

After classes ended and Mom and Dad went back to Florida, I went job-hunting with a shiny new qualification: open availability. Within a few days, I was lucky enough to land a hostessing position at Maxie's Bar and Grill, a sister restaurant to a well-known steakhouse here called Angelo and Maxie's. It is located in Union Square, so it takes me about 30 minutes to get to work on the subway. The remainder of August was very enjoyable, as there were still a few stragglers left from school. I've learned I don't need much in the way of social outings, so living was easy and we went out to do various things (see a movie in Central Park, get frozen yogurt, go out to eat, or catch a free improv show at Upright Citizen's Brigade). The last remaining survivor, Jenna, went back to California at the beginning of September. For her last night, we went to a little cafe called Serendipity. Apparently it is famous for being featured in a movie of the same name. They are also famous for their frrrrozen hot chocolate, so we split one. It was huge! And very good. Here we are indulging in the chocolate goodness...

There are still a couple of people here who live in New York (2 in Queens and 1 in Long Island). I did go visit one guy (Theo) in Queens (Astoria) and we had a decent time. He's from Greece and is here getting his masters in psychology. We basically just walked around and went to Astoria Park, on the East River. There were rats crawling in the rocks below. We got some ice cream and just hung out for a bit before walking back to the subway through the neighborhoods of Astoria. It's actually a pretty nice area and, good for Theo, there are a lot of Greeks that have settled there. The neighborhood itself actually kind of reminded me of Ohio, not sure why. The houses all looked about the same and were close together and older, and it looked like most of the residents had been living there for their entire lives.

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Otherwise I have pretty much just been working. I work Tuesday through Friday and I am off on Saturday, Sunday, and Monday. The job is okay, but not nearly enough money to let me stay here. However, it is certainly helpful to have some sort of income and I am grateful for anything! It's pretty slow at this time of year (so they tell me)... so mostly I just stand there for about six hours. Yep, it's pretty boring. Except when good old Joe comes over to talk to me. Joe is a regular at the bar. Need I say more? He's probably in his 60s and comes in all the time. He drinks until he is pretty wasted so he always reeks of liquor and cigarettes. He's told me he wants to adopt me and/or take me on a date, despite the fact that he is married, and, well, in his 60s. Um, ew. Joe likes to think he is very perceptive and was surprised I wasn't more impressed when he guessed that I was either an only child, or had 3-4 siblings and was the youngest. He said there is something about me that connects with him. No, I am pretty sure there isn't! Actually, a lot of people guess that I am the youngest child (I guess I am pretty obvious somehow)! He also wants me to help him develop an advice website. Sure, I'll get right on that. One day as he was leaving he leaned in to give me a kiss on the cheek. I backed away revolted! He apologized a few days later (when he was sober) but still... what is it with these guys? I just don't get how they have such an overdeveloped self-esteem that would allow them to think that kind of behavior would be okay! Is it me? Ick...now I remember why I don't like working in restaurants, because you have to be nice to people like that all the time. On Friday when he went outside to smoke, the bartender and I were joking about how annoying he was. As I looked at him out in the rain, smoking his clove cigarette, I actually felt a twinge of sadness for him. Because here he is going about his life, thinking that we are nice to him because we like him, with no idea that we can't stand him... oh well. The feeling quickly faded.

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I have also decided I am going to try and see as many Broadway shows as I can until I have to leave. I am trying to get the cheap rush tickets. This weekend I am trying for Avenue Q, because it closes today actually. No luck so far and I doubt it will be any different tonight, but I have to try. I also want to see Hair and Wicked! Wish me luck.

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So due to financial constraints and lack of better job prospects, I have decided to come back home and live with Mom and Dad for a while, who are nice enough to put me up. The tentative date of return is October 13th. I am very okay with it, because it will give me some time to think about my next move without worrying about expensive rent. I need to get ready for grad school auditions in January! Also there is an audition I am going to try and go to for paying theatre companies throughout the entire southeast. There is a screening audition in Florida in November and the audition itself is in March. I feel like I have a lot of things to take care back home anyway.

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Well I am off to try and get theatre tickets, else go to church and maybe a run in the park. I have been so lethargic lately that I can't even go to sleep at night! And I will use my awesome new SanDisk mp3 player (which I recommend completely - $70 for 4GB, radio, recorder so you can record from radio OR your own voice...beat that Apple)!

Mom and Dad visit!

The week after classes, Mom and Dad came for a visit. I am writing this blog mostly to remember all the fun things we did!

When they arrived, I met them at their hotel in Times Square and then we headed uptown to eat at Tom's Restaurant (where they filmed the exterior shots of the diner in "Seinfeld"). The food was great! After dinner we took a twilight stroll through Riverside Park. The weather was perfect: warm, breezy...I wish New York would stay like that the whole year! Friday I had rehearsal and a celebration with my classmates, and I think they went to the Met. Saturday, I met them at South Ferry as they had taken the ferry to Staten Island that morning. We ate lunch and did some shopping around the city until evening when we ate dinner at L'Ecole (yummmmmmy)! On Sunday, Mom and Dad finished their bus tour in Brooklyn. They met me at 5 to go to church, and then we went for a walk through Central Park.

Monday we visited the Museum of Natural History and pretty much spent the whole day there.



It was awesome! We saw a star show narrated by Whoopi Goldberg and learned that every single particle on earth (including you and me) is made up from materials that were once in stars. Or something. It was a lot to swallow but pretty profound when you think about it. Tuesday we woke up VERY early to go see the taping of Good Morning America. As you can see, it wasn't a very good morning for us:


We didn't get to see much, but I was so tired that I don't really remember. When we got back to the hotel, we spent most of the day napping! We had a dinner at the 21 Club that night, care of Dud...


It was pretty darn good. After dinner we had theatre tickets. We saw the off-Broadway musical The Marvelous Wonderettes. It was a nostalgic type musical set in the 60s and then the 70s, and the music was a compilation of tunes from the era (think "Mr. Sandman", "Leader of the Pack", "It's my Party and I'll Cry if I want to"). Wednesday night we saw another show: "9 to 5" on Broadway. It was incredible! Everything - the dancing, the sets and set changes, the costumes, wigs and makeup, the singing, wow! I think that Dolly Parton wrote all or most of the songs and proved herself as a very talented songwriter. The actors were great and the story was uplifting. Did I mention that I liked it?

I think it was Thursday that we went on the boat tour around Manhattan. The tour guide was really amazing and we learned a lot about New York and its history.


I took this picture from inside the boat. It was really nice and very informative! I think Thursday we also saw the Titanic Exhibit at Discovery Times Square. It was AWESOME! I can't believe all those artifacts were just sitting at the bottom of the ocean for 70-odd years. A lot of it stayed pretty well preserved.

I think that pretty much covers it, although I did leave out Katz's Deli. Can't remember which day we went. It is famous for being the location of the cafe scene in "When Harry Met Sally." However, we did not find the food to be so great.

Overall, I had a lot of fun during their visit, but we sure did get tired out! New York is fun, but it can be totally exhausting :-)

Gee golly whitakers!

I have been uber lazy with my blog lately! Which is dumb, cause there is so much to write about! Quick summary. I forgot that the Hudson River boat tour around Manhattan with Mom and Dad was also one of my favorite things that we did :). I went to a (FREE!) improv show at Upright Citizen's Brigade theatre (co-founded by Amy Poehler from SNL!) and saw a really funny improv show and also Seth Meyer (also from SNL) was there! I was like 5 feet from him! He is really cute and he was funny, but not funnier than the other guys or anything. Made me want to take improv classes really bad! Three: started a new job hostessing at Maxie's Bar and Grill in Union Square. Pros: good work environment, nice people, easy job. Cons: pay is not enough, it's slow right now so really boring for me, and it makes my feet hurt. Sometimes famous people come in, like David Wright from the NY Mets (even though I did not know who he was until they told me). They said Jimmy Fallon comes in sometimes too but I have not seen him yet. One of my bosses is really nice and got me a free cheeseburger/fries tonight! And four, I completed my first show in NYC, "Clownsville the Musical!" Sometimes I was not sure how I felt about it all, but in the end, I am very glad I did it. It was a ton of fun, I learned a lot and met some cool people, and got to do one of my favorite things in the world: perform! We will be getting DVDs so in case you missed it (read: everyone), don't worry. We can all gather round the fireplace and watch it one chilly evening :-)

I have lots of pictures to post and stories to tell, so one day when I decide not to be lazy, I will post a better update! Love and miss you all.