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.

The Yin, and the Yang

OK, so normally I try and keep this blog pretty cheerful and upbeat. But sometimes, a girl's gotta vent. The past few days have been rough, sprinkled with a few good things. Better to get the bad news over with, right? So here goes...

1. I don't know whether I'm in Hades or New York City, but they're both about the same temperature. This fact + no A/C in my apartment = an unhappy me. (95 degrees, folks...)

2. Psycho ex-boyfriend contacted me AGAIN through Myspace. Because clearly, my blocking him on facebook was merely an indication that I wanted him to contact me through a different channel. I made the idiotic mistake of responding, because in church they keep saying not to give up on people and whatnot, and I thought naively that maybe I could help him after he's had this time to cool down, so I advised him I think he really needs some help and if he chose to get it, I would be supportive of that but otherwise to please leave me alone, because I can't just be buddy buddy with someone after they basically call me all the derogatory names for women in existence, with absolutely no justification....which of course just made him angry, again. Le sigh. What-ev, I'll get over it and be fine, and that's the last of it FOR REAL this time, he is blocked everywhere, but I am still just irritated with this one. With the exception of one tiny little blessing: he's not my problem anymore!!! Isn't freedom grand?

3. Unemployment. 'Nuff said. But I will elaborate anyway. Because this is a blog. Okay, so I knew this was probably going to happen and I'm not whining or feeling sorry for myself. But it is so frustrating. I have a college degree with a 3.73 GPA and I can't seem to get a damn hostessing job?! For God's sake people, it's not rocket science. The constant rejection of the job search process is an emotional rollercoaster. Couple that with the inherent rejection involved in acting, and I'm feeling pretty rejected all around. Boo hoo...okay, maybe I am feeling sorry for myself just a little... OH YEAH! And I am a really pissed off American, because I know for a FACT if the economy wasn't so godawful I would have a job by now, and it's godawful thanks to all these greedy A-holes on Wall Street or WHEREVER that totally screwed over EVERYONE because of their selfishness!!! Okay, rant complete.

Now, onto the good things!

1. I found out within the last week that I am going to be an aunt TWICE more by April! A little boy in December and TBD in April...yay! I am so happy to have 2 new additions to our family. Congratulations to Greg and Gloria, and Julie and Jeff! Keep it up, siblings; this way, I won't ever have to have kids of my own! (Just kidding :-)

P.S. Next time, a simple phone call will suit me just fine! Seriously!!!! ;-)

2. I had a GREAT time with Mom and Dad here, who unfortunately had to leave on Friday :-( Not only did they let me sleep in their cool air-conditioned room, but we got to explore the city and had lots of fun! Although I think we wore Mom completely out ;-) My favorite things were the Titanic Exhibit, the Broadway Musical "9 to 5," and the Museum of Natural History. I should probably write a whole blog just devoted to their visit, because we certainly did enough to fill an entire blog! I missed them very much and am grateful we were able to spend that time together.

3. I think I am losing lbs...my size 6 shorts are now a little bit loose on me! Must be all the walking I do when I get lost in the city. Or maybe it's just water weight from sweating in the 95 degree heat!

Three for three, well maybe it isn't so bad after all. Oh wait, I forgot one piece of bad news, I really screwed up checking out too many DVDs at the library and now I owe $17 and they won't let me do pretty much anything til I pay it. Arrrrgh, the one place that was free! Well, besides the Staten Island Ferry!

I do have some more pictures to post so stay tuned for another blog soon. Love you all...xoxo

Ch-ch-ch-changes...

It's over! I have now officially completed the summer program at AADA. Thursday went great, we did our scenes for an audience and I wasn't really nervous. The scene went well, I actually wish we had even more time because I feel like I am just now finally getting what it is really about. Here is a picture from a classroom rehearsal...


Fun! I really miss being in a good PLAY...no singing, just plain ol' acting. I think my favorite play I've ever been in was all the way back when I was 17 doing Ten Little Indians...it was SO much fun and I got such a rush when I was on stage. I think it's that feeling that won't let me go, and it's why I keep coming back.

After our performance, we got to watch some of the other classes do their scenes. Let's just say I think I got really lucky with my teacher, because I know our scenes were really good. Sometimes actors think....that they need to put dramatic pauses in....everywhere. But who talks like that in real life? Hardly anyone.

After that we had a short ceremony where we got a certificate in a cute little starry folder (blech) then we got free fruit and cookies. Here they are handing out certificates. See that guy in the middle? He is the one who auditioned me in Atlanta. Turns out he is the registrar. He remembered me, too!



Thursday I had my job interview too, and it went okay (couldn't tell). But later that night I got called for a phone interview on Monday at a different company! I am so happy things are at least starting to happen. Thursday night, MOM & DAD arrived! Yay...we went out to eat at Tom's Restaurant (delicious) and then went for a moonlit walk in Riverside Park!



Aww, how cute. Friday I had my last day of electives (both went well) then rehearsal. Friday night I went out with my classmates to celebrate and say goodbye as many people are going back home this weekend. We ate a lovely dinner at a Cuban restaurant in Union Square (our teacher even came out) and then went to a pub across the street. I don't usually like pubs lately, but I liked this one. They played great music and had cool old-timey pictures on the wall. You could hear people talk, too!



I just picked the photo I looked best in :-)

Saturday, after catching up on my sleep, I met Mom and Dad at South Ferry station (they had taken the boat over to Staten Island) and we went out to lunch. Had some good pizza, and some terrible service! After that we looked around Trinity Church, St. Paul's Chapel, Wall Street, and did some shopping. I found my new favorite store in SoHo, and got two awesome new dresses!


My fan is on so that's why they are blowing out. After shopping it was time for our 8PM dinner reservation at L'ecole, the French Culinary Institute. We each had a 5 course meal! I got a warm tomato and olive tart, grilled scallops, rib steak and french fries, a "digestive" salad, and mascarpone and strawberry parfait! Talk about yummy...I think I might be spoiled now!

Nothing Gold can Stay

Well, summer school is almost over, and I feel the way I always feel when something great comes to an end. First, I am of course sad. How much I have learned in this class! How much I have grown! How many new and interesting people I have met! I am going to miss my daily routine of getting up, grabbing a quick breakfast, picking up a free newspaper outside, and catching the crowded subway to go to class and see my friends and talk about my favorite subject in the world. But secondly, I am also ready for this chapter to close and for a new one to begin! I can't wait to see what the future holds in store. I'm not always optimistic about the future, so when I am, I try to hang onto the feeling!

Tomorrow we will do the final performances of our scenes. And then "regular" class is over. Friday I will still have electives. In musical theater, we have to perform our song as if we were at an audition. In Career Counseling, we are going to talk about auditioning (I have learned so much great information in this class too)!


Oh yeah, I HAVE A JOB INTERVIEW TOMORROW! It's at a nice little French restaurant on the Upper East Side (where the rich people live...yea!)

Thanks to those who encouraged me to stick this out a little longer. I think I am starting to understand the hiring process at restaurants in NYC a little better, and even if I don't get the job tomorrow, I think it will only be a matter of time. Once classes are over I will be able to devote a lot more time to the job search, and my completely open availability will be a huge plus. Of course, I could be totally wrong - I have no idea!


Rehearsals are going OKAY...I am so undecided about it. It's not that I don't like the show. It's a good show. It's just that singing in front of people still makes me almost physically sick with nerves. It's so challenging for me. I can do my audition song pretty well but only after I had a vocal lesson (30 minutes) devoted to it. I don't know if it's a sign to work really hard and overcome this challenge, or to give up on MT and pursue other areas of theatre. I mean if you're not enjoying something and the thought of doing it again makes you want to vomit, shouldn't you just do something else? I could still sing in choirs or something, I do love singing. I just don't want anyone to listen to me! Right now, I just want this show to be over...


In other news, MOM AND DAD are coming tomorrow! I am so excited to see them. I don't think we have any plans except for the restaurants that Dad has picked to eat at. We are also going to try and see a Broadway show. I am trying to talk Dad into seeing HAIR! But if not, that's okay - I would love to see anything.


Well since I have become a "resident" New Yorker, I seem to have quit taking so many photos so I have no new ones to share. However, I will share this recent photo of me looking retarded! Enjoy!

Riverside Park

After church, I went for a stroll around Riverside Park (which is right by my residence) and took a few photos to share. It rained today which provided a much needed cool down of New York City (last week was STEAMING hot), and it was a lovely evening to go for a walk. Oh I also found a great skirt at Goodwill for my nun's costume and it was only $8! I love Goodwill!

This last photo is the Soldier's and Sailor's Monument and is dedicated to, well, the soldiers and sailors who fought for the Union in the Civil War. I had no idea this was here, and just stumbled upon it! It was very beautiful. Now, I crave cheese, so I am signing off.

How could I forget?

About Musical Theatre class! This is one of my Friday "electives" and it may have been the best class of the week. I looove this class and am sooo happy I took it! The teacher is just really good at getting you to feel the song and give it your all. That's the hardest thing to do, but once I let go and really got into it, singing ceased to be nerve-wracking torture and actually became fun! I hope I can keep it up. I also really, really love my song (Mister Snow from "Carousel").

Also, does anyone want/need an iPod? It's an older one (first generation I think). See photo below. It's 4GB and holds roughly 1000 songs. I decided to cash in my Delta Credit Union Visa/Checkcard points for a $100 Best Buy gift card, and I am going to buy a new mp3 player with a built in voice recorder! It's pretty much essential to have one so you can record your music and practice. So let me know if you want the iPod! Free to good home =)

Lazy Sunday

Hello everyone! Well it has truly been a whirlwind week. Classes are winding up and rehearsals for "Clownsville" are plunging forward. I will try to summarize the week without being too boring! Sunday evening I went to church again and it was amazing. They continued to talk about David and in this sermon they discussed anger. Some anger is good, and even biblical, and they called this gospel anger. But of course there is another kind of anger, which makes things worse, and they called it toxic anger. I could post a whole blog about it, but I will just say that I really love this church. It always makes me think and I am learning a lot of new things!

For the final week of classes (next week!), we are only going to have Acting class to prepare for our final scenes. So this last week brought an end to Voice & Speech, Vocal Production, and Movement classes. For Voice & Speech, our final assignment was to read a poem, song, or something with heightened language aloud to the class so she could further correct our speech problems. I chose "The Tiger" by William Blake (one of my favorite poems)! This class isn't the most exciting in all the world, but it is necessary and useful. I'm glad to have this knowledge. For Vocal Production, we sang our song one last time. It was okay...he told me I need to utilize the "power" in my voice. I liked my song, but I really don't think it was a good fit for my voice. But it was a fun class, and I learned a lot. In Movement, we did our final round of Yoga which consisted of 10 Sun Salutations in a row...yikes! Then we did some Movement exercises from something called "Viewpoints." It's immensely interesting to me...it's all about spacing, tempo, spatial relations with other people, etc. We did not talk the whole time, and you'd be surprised how interesting it was to watch. I guess it's like body language or something. So much is going on even without a single word. Our teacher is so passionate about it that she got teary-eyed when talking about it at the end of class - she said it revolutionized her views of acting. In Acting we just continue to rehearse our scenes.

Rehearsals for the musical are going pretty well and we are about halfway done with blocking the show. There is so much silly stuff we have to do, both in warm-ups and in the actual show. I used to feel stupid doing that sort of thing, but not anymore, because it's so different from what I was doing before I came here (working 9-5 in my little gray windowless cubicle...) that it actually feels kind of good! We learned the choreography for one of the songs and it is a pretty good work out. My quads are killing me!!!

I continue to look for a job, but have not had a lot of time to dedicate to it this week. I have decided to stay in NYC through September to see if I can find something. I will keep you posted on that, but please send good luck wishes this way! :-)

This weekend I have been feeling a bit under the weather (mostly of the sore throat variety), so my time has pretty much consisted of eating, sleeping, reading, and laundry (how exciting)! Oh, I also went to the Performing Arts library again yesterday to return a book and I perused a ballet exhibit (Julie, you would have loved it). I am feeling better today though and I am going out in a bit to the thrift store. I play a nun in my scene and need to find a long black skirt or dress. Afterwards I am going to church. Another girl at my residence is going to the same service, too. I did go out Friday night to celebrate a classmate's birthday. Mar, from Spain, turned 25 and she wanted to go to a Sushi restaurant! It was a really nice place on the Upper East Side. Here is a picture of the gang:

Aww, I am going to miss everyone! This Thursday, Mom and Dad are coming in and I can't wait to see them! I will try to post more often this week :-)

Decisions, Decisions

Well, this weekend I have learned a very important lesson: Laura needs her alone time. Seriously. No for real, give it to me. GIVE IT TO ME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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I was feeling really stressed last week and almost even depressed. I could not figure out what was wrong. Friday I had most of the day free except for rehearsal from 4:30-7:30. I pretty much spent the day by myself. I watched more of "Weeds" (sooo funny...) and just rested. Friday night, the group was going to a Swing Club (where they do swing dancing, not where married couples hook up with other people) and I felt like maybe I should go. I don't want to miss out on anything! But I didn't and stayed home, went to bed at a decent hour rather than paying $10 to get into a club where I probably wouldn't have danced anyway. Saturday I went to get something to eat (and got a fabulous, cheap brunch down the street, it was sooo good) then headed off to the library to get more DVDs. I had lovely chats with Mom, Dad, Andrea, and Julie on the phone. It always makes me feel better to talk to my family on the phone. Seriously, family, I love you! I don't know what I would do without you! Saturday evening I had dinner at my residence and then watched a new DVD, "Sweeney Todd" (the Johnny Depp version). After all this, I felt so much better and I think I realized I just need some quiet, alone time! Wow, I sound like a dork, but I guess it is good to know yourself. I will be sure to fit this into my schedule now, and I am learning it's okay to say no to some things. Sometimes it's better to just stay home!

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Saturday night I finally felt like doing something, so I went out with Jenna and Owain. Owain's roommate was performing in a short sketch comedy show near Times Square and so we went to that. It was $10 admission, but it was worth it, because it reminded my of why I wanted so badly to come here in the first place...to PERFORM! NYC has endless opportunities if you're only looking for them. Which brings me to my next conclusion: I do want to stay here. Yes it's scary, but I don't want to leave yet! However, I also do not want to accumulate a lot of debt, so if I cannot find a job, then it's goodbye New York (for now). So the job search is back ON! I applied for 2 yesterday, and this week I am going to make an extra effort to keep going on these open calls. I still don't know what I am going to tell my apartment, but I have until Friday to decide. After the show, we went to get coffee (I am now a coffee ADDICT, by the way...I love it) and then went home. This is the kind of thing I like to do! Not go out to clubs or bars. Today I have been taking it easy again (I love the weekend!) and probably going to church again this evening (where we get free coffee, yum). Oh yeah, before the show last night, I walked around Times Square a little bit, so here are some photos for your viewing pleasure! :-)

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Here are a few shots of Radio City Music Hall:

See this one below? I had to look into this. It turns out that they are showing "The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring" and whenever the music plays, a live symphony orchestra is going to play it! OMG, if I am still in NYC in October, I will find a way to go to this...

Here is a picture of NBC Studios, my future employer. They don't know that yet, though.

Oh yeah, one last thing. Julie: is this the place you were telling me about? Stardust Diner? The wait staff sings. Well, I have to draw the line somewhere. I am NOT working here!

Pictures

These are pictures from "Inside the Actor's Studio" ... I tried to put them on my last blog, but it kept messing up the formatting (arrgh, technology)! Here is a picture of our group. We took up an entire row!

A close up of the set:

And farther out. There were a lot of people in the audience!

Long Time No See

Dear Blog,

I am sorry I have neglected you all week. To make up for it, I will now attack you with a slew of words about this week as best I can. I am already forgetting what I did 4 days ago!

I think Sunday I laid around mostly but I did go to church in the evening and it was back to good. It was a continuation on the life of David called "God gives David a Community." The preacher (pastor? I never know what to call it! <- embarrassing confession) said that becoming a Christian is revolutionary. I understood what he meant at the time, but cannot explain it now. Well I think he meant it isn't easy. Monday I went to class and we got to do our scene. I am now liking the scene a lot. I left Voice and Speech class a little early to go to Audition #2. This was for a touring children's production of a "Junie B. Jones" book. The ad told us to dress like the character, so when I arrived to the audition, there were about 30 girls all dressed like a first grader. It was really annoying. I arrived at 1 PM for sign in and at about 4:20 PM I got to go in for about 5 minutes to do my monologue. I had only picked it out on Saturday so it was not as well prepared as I would have liked but it went okay. The director asked me if all my contact info and email was correct and it was but I have not heard anything. Monday night we had a Career Counseling class (usually on Fridays but we were making up for this Friday when she'll be gone). We talked about resumes. Because of the odd time, about half the class did not show up so we got more individual attention, which means that people asked a lot more stupid questions.

Oh, I should probably let you know, I am a little cranky due to lack of sleep so this might not be the cheeriest blog ever!

On Tuesday we of course had acting and then the singing class. Singing did not go as well as last time but I think I know why (the pianist had changed the key then forgot so we were both confused). The teacher also told me I had a sweet and lovely voice but it will not get me jobs if I don't get bigger and louder. I know what he means and it was good advice. Tuesday night, some of my classmates and I went to a free screening of "Inside the Actor's Studio" (a TV show on Bravo hosted by James Lipton). The guest was Amy Poehler, most known for her run on SNL. I like Amy Poehler and think she is really funny. I half expected her to be wild and zany on the interview but she was totally normal and calm, with a good bit of funny moments still. The interview was very inspiring, but also very long (about 3 hours)! He could have gone without the detailed questions about her childhood (i.e. what elementary school did you go to - who cares!)...but overall it was good.

Wednesday we had class (acting and voice & speech) and it was mostly uneventful. After class I hung around at school until I had to go to my first rehearsal for Clownsville. I had to take the F train down to East Broadway (southeast end of Manhattan close to Brooklyn). Well, on this lovely day of days, the F train was broken, or something, but I did not really know because I could not understand what they were saying on the PA. So I ended up on a different track and had to get out and walk across the island of Manhattan via Canal Street, a busy and crowded street running through China Town, and it just happened to be particularly hot and muggy this day. Needless to say, I was not a happy girl. But eventually I made it to rehearsal. All the people are nice and some are professional actors just starting out (like me, I guess)! The script is pretty funny and I like my part. I am excited to do a comedy show, it has been quite a while. The show will be August 25, 26, and 29 (Tues., Wed., and Sat.). I will let you all know if they add more dates, because I know you can all make it, right? Just kidding ;-) They told us the theatre name but I forget it.

After that, I should have gone to bed, but instead I went to see Harry Potter with some classmates! It was a pretty good movie. Never a dull moment. I still need to see the others.

Which brings us to today. Acting, again, and then movement. Yoga, which was torture, again, and then we did some more spatial relation exercises. I was getting frustrated in class because some people do not pay attention and listen, and then the teachers have to explain it all over again and we lose time. And they can't follow simple instructions, like stand still with your hands at your sides. I am aching to work with serious, professional people! Maybe grad school would be good.

Tonight I have been relaxing and watching "Weeds," a TV show I rented from the New York Public Library (woot woot). It is an awesome show and very addicting! Now I am going to try once again to go to bed early. Wish me luck!

P.S. I hope you all had fun at the reunion! I mean, as much fun as you could have without me around of course.

UPDATE!

I got a call tonight and found out I was cast in said musical mentioned below! I am going to be in an off-broadway musical! Yay! I will let everyone know the details when I learn them. I am excited, but I am taking this good news with a bit of reservation. I am suspicious of good things and happiness, I can't help it. But the people at the audition were really nice, and I think it will be fun. Oh, I am playing Wendleton, a nerdy ventriliquist (no comments)! We'll see how it goes. Our first rehearsal is Wednesday, and the performance will be at the end of August!

Halfway Point.

Ah, how I love lazy Sundays...the laziness is much needed! For some reason last week seemed very busy, but it was a good week nonetheless.

Thursday we had acting class of course and then movement. In movement, we did some more really hard yoga and then some exercises in "spatial relations." Afterwards my classmates were going off on an adventure to the village, and as hard as it was to say no, I did because I had my very first..... NEW YORK CITY audition at 4:15! I went home to change and relax until I had to leave. The audition was in midtown and I was called into a small little room with the pianist, the director, and the writer/assistant director. The audition was for his new musical called "Clownsville" which is about a man who falls asleep at his boring 9-5 office job (I can relate!) and wakes up in Clownsville, a magical land he created as a child, and he re-discovers his youth or something along those lines. Anyway I had to sing 16 bars and I chose my favorite audition song, "If I were a Bell" from Guys and Dolls. I was pretty nervous, but I actually did all the relaxation things we are being taught in school and it helped me to stay calm and I sang the song pretty well. Then I had to do a comedic monologue. The director then had me improvise a little bit and it was fun, then I did a "cold reading" from the script with another actor (that's when they hand you the script and you read it and act it out as best you can). Overall it went pretty well and everyone was very nice. It would be a non-paid gig but would be at an off-Broadway theatre (!). But even if I don't get it, I am glad I went. It is good to have my first audition here out of the way!

Thursday night I went to a free musical theatre workshop at my school. It was pretty useful, but they had people go up one by one and get individual critiques and I did not get called. That's okay though - I guess I had put my nerves through enough for one day.

Friday morning I had musical theatre and I got to sing my song for the first time with the piano and an audience. It went okay, but I am learning that there is so much more to musical theatre than just singing your song. You actually have to act it, too! Jeez, what do they expect? Then I had career counseling and it was cool. My teacher said that with the economy the way it is, and with our young ages, it's actually better NOT to join a union right now (like Actor's Equity). She also said it's a good time to become an actor and I wondered if she was smoking crack, but it'd be awesome if she's right. After that we all went to lunch and I started feeling really dizzy so I went home and after talking to Julie on the phone for a while I took a much needed nap. That night I went out with everyone and I realized that I am old! I have no desire to get krunk or go clubbing. I'm not sad about it, it's actually quite a blessing from above because there was a time when I did have those desires, and indulged them. But sometimes it makes it hard to relate to people. Friday night I started missing my family very much and wishing I was at the reunion and I sort of had a mental breakdown and started crying! It was just the culmination of everything, and it can be quite overwhelming here in NYC and with all the info we are getting in class. But it's okay, I'm not afraid of crying because once I had done it I felt a lot better! :-)

Saturday I went to the Morningside Heights Library to get a book I had on hold and then went to the Performing Arts Library at Lincoln Center. Here is a picture:

The library is having a free Katharine Hepburn movie series on Saturdays, and this day it was "Morning Glory." The movie was kind of dumb, but she was great. I think I was the youngest person in the theatre. After the movie, I perused the stacks and found a new monologue for another audition I have on Monday (more to come on that). Then I went home for dinner. Saturday night I hung out with Jenna and Owain and we were going to see a movie (500 Days of Summer) but it was sold out. Bummer. So we went and got some really good coffee then went to Jenna's and watched a movie.

Today I am going to try and find a good thrift store because the audition tomorrow wants you to dress like the character! I am going to try and make it to church tonight too (hopefully it won't be quite as boring). Hope everyone enjoyed the reunion! Here are some more pictures....

I realized I never took a picture of my school, so here it is from the outside:

Also, while walking home one day, I realized it was quite near the Empire State Building:

Here is a picture of the city at night, after the musical theatre workshop on Thursday.

Friday night we got off at the Bleecker St. station and I had to take a picture! It's the namesake of one of my favorite Simon and Garfunkel songs. "Thirty dollars pays your rent, on Bleecker Street..."

And just for Dad, I passed this restaurant on the Upper West Side near Morningside Heights Library. I think they filmed the outside of this place for "Seinfeld," although I am sure he'll correct me if I'm wrong!

Hump Day Update

Sadly, I have no pictures to post today...sorry :-( I don't know why I have not been taking any pictures lately!

Tuesday was good. We had acting and we did our scene for the first time in front of class. I thought it was horrible, but the teacher said what I was doing was good. I thought it was boring but my classmates said it was not. After that we had singing class. After doing warm-ups, we got up one by one to sing our individual song in front of the class and then the teacher critiqued us. I was sooo nervous but managed to get through the song okay. I didn't think it was very good though (I definitely missed a couple notes because of nerves and having never done the song before) but when I got done my teacher said I had a lovely voice and not to change anything. We did put it into a higher key more suited for my voice level. I am beginning to wonder if self-confidence (or lack thereof) is going to be my biggest obstacle. Hmm...do they have a school where they teach that? ;-)

After school we got lunch and then went back to the library. I read the full play that my scene is from (Doubt which is an AMAZING play if you're interested)! I also copied another song that the voice teacher said would be good for my range, "Til There was You" from The Music Man (the Beatles also did a rendition I believe). Afterwards I went with my friend Owain to get some coffee and we hung out and talked about future life goals. He is from Wales but wants to come to America permanently. It is really hard to come to America permanently!

In the evening, I went to an open call for a new restaurant opening in the Times Square/Theatre District. I interviewed with a service assistant and then the Maitre'd (sp?) and they said they'd be making decisions by the end of the week. I think it went okay, but you can never tell. He said they were holding second interviews, but he did not ask me for one at the time. Who knows... back to the Brandon for dinner, fried shrimp and it was delicious!

Wednesday we had acting again, and voice and speech in the second period. Mostly uneventful, except I got to recite a Shakespeare Sonnett in the second class which was okay. I did pick out a Shakespeare monologue that I will do for grad school auditions in the future, it's from Othello and it's really good. I am excited to have that out of the way. After class, I went to Chipotle and got a yummy burrito and then my scene parter and I went to Madison Square Park to rehearse for almost 2 hours. It was good. Then I went walking around to various stores trying to find a cheap Yoga mat for movement class tomorrow (winner: Old Navy, $14.50). Tonight I went to the library and printed off copies of my theatre resume, and checked out some more DVDs that I probably won't watch again! Oh well. Now I am going to try once again to do the thing I have failed at every day this week: go to bed EARLY! I am exhausted. Goodnight!

More Fun in NYC

So I just got back from a pre-screening of the new TNT television series "Dark Blue," starring Dylan McDermott, who came in after the screening for a Q&A session! The event was at my school and I took one of my many "roommates," Jinee, along with me. The pilot episode was actually pretty good, and it was nice to watch some TV! I have not really watched any since I've been up here. Mr. McDermott seemed to be a really nice guy, and talked about his life as an actor and how he got to where he is now. He waited tables until he was 23 years old, then quit because he decided he was going to make a living as an actor, and (luckily) he did! He studied for 7 years before that, at Fordham University, Neighborhood Playhouse, and the Actor's Studio. It was fun. The show is about undercover cops, and it premieres this Wednesday at 10 PM. I recommend it, especially if you like cop shows!

Backing up to Sunday, we unfortunately did not get tickets for Twelfth Night. The Public Theatre gives away free tickets for the summer Shakespeare in the Park series and, as a result, they go very quickly. They open the "box office" for same-day tickets at 1PM in Central Park, but people line up as early as 4 AM. My friend got there at 7 AM and it was too late. They also do a "virtual line" which is like an online lottery, but none of us won. Oh well...I really wanted to see it, but I don't know if I wanted it so bad as to get up at 3:30 AM and wait in line for 9+ hours!

So Sunday I pretty much chilled out. I did go uptown and apply for a hostess position at a little French cafe. Which basically just consisted of me walking in, handing in my resume, and walking out. The manager said they have been getting so much interest that they are going to screen all the resumes and start calling people by the end of this week. So cross your fingers! Tomorrow I am going to apply for a job at a new restaurant opening, so hopefully they will have a lot of positions open! Hopefully...

At 5 PM I went to church again at Redeemer Presbyterian. They continued to discuss the life of David. The title was "God gives David a Friend" and it was about David and Jonathan. Unlike last time, this sermon was extremely boring and I had to struggle not to fall asleep. It was a different preacher so maybe that was why, I don't know. Anyway they are worth another chance, so hopefully next Sunday will be better...

Sunday evening I met my scene partner in Central Park and we worked on our scene from Doubt (which for now mainly consists of trying to memorize the lines)! I have come to like it and I think (hope) it will be good. My lines are pretty easy, and she is stuck with the big paragraphs! But it's a good scene.

Sunday night I could NOT fall asleep for anything, but I would not miss class for the WORLD! Today he made people go up and recite their lines. If they didn't know their lines he made them sit down. He wasn't mad but said you cannot really work on a scene until you know your lines (I love this teacher - I couldn't agree more)! Our turn did not come today, so we have another night to try and memorize! I think I have my lines down, but we'll see tomorrow. After that was Voice & Speech class. This class is kind of boring but now we are reciting Shakespeare Sonnets which is pretty cool. She's just trying to correct any speech issues we have.

After class, we ate lunch and then I went into the school library because they have sound booths and I needed to practice my song for tomorrow (eek). Then I found I was getting really irritated with everyone and everything, so I decided it best to go home and take a nap...and what a glorious nap it was. I forgot how much I love mid-day naps! Then it was dinner and off to AADA for the screening.

Time is starting to become a reality to me. August 7th (last day of classes) is not far off, and I am already starting to feel a twinge of sadness. I wish I could afford to study year round at somewhere like the Neighborhood Playhouse or the William Esper Studio, but it's SO expensive (about $13K per year, plus housing costs). I have a feeling I really need to start thinking about whether I really want to go to grad school (for an MFA) or not. I mean, of course I do, but would I be wasting precious time that I could be trying to find work? Which is more valuable? Hmm...lots of questions! But for now, it's bed time...good night!

Oh wait I almost forgot...here is a photo of my friend Tania posing with Dylan:

He is really good looking in person, and has very blue eyes!

I also took a picture of my street at night on the walk home, because the sky was very beautiful, but it did not turn out so well in the picture. Here it is anyway:

Weekend Update

Friday turned out to be a pretty good day! I started with Musical Theatre at 9 AM. Our class is all female, and I am the oldest. The youngest is 17! The teacher is pretty young herself, no more than 30, and went to school for music at NYU. We started the class with vocal warm-ups. We were supposed to have a song prepared for the class so she could hear what our voice is like and assign us a new song. I ended up going last, because I was not too excited about having all these people hear me sing! But it went okay. I sang "If I Were a Bell" from Guys and Dolls (great song). I was a little nervous but got through the song decently. She assigned me "Mr. Snow" from Carousel. I downloaded the song and it's really cute! It's higher than the song for my other class.

Next I had "Career Counseling." The teacher is a casting director and she's really funny, but goes on tangents easily. We went around the room and said why we wanted to be in this business. It was a little hokey but she said it was important to remember why we want to do this in the first place. I can see her point. She talked a lot about what we are going to cover in the class, which was a lot! I hope we can get to it all. At the end of class she said her friend needs some extras for his film and told us to email her our headshot/resume for consideration. Groovy! Not holding my breath though...

After class we got lunch and then I went to Herald Square, which has some really good shopping. I went into Forever 21, another of my favorite stores. I have discovered this is really good motivation for me to apply for jobs. I just look at all the things I'd like to buy, and it lights a fire under my ass! Whatever works, I guess! When I got home, I changed and went on my first in-person application journey. I went to Calle Ocho, a nice Latin restaurant on the UWS about a 10 minute walk from me. They had posted an ad for servers on Craigslist. There were about 6-7 other people applying at the same time. I finished my application first (probably because I did not have answers to some of the questions!) and a manager came out to speak to me. He was very nice and seemed to be interested in my catering experience. He said the servers average $100 per shift on weekdays and $140 on weekends. He told me that he would be sending all the applications to the main manager who would be seeing people for additional interviews on Tuesday. Again, I'm not holding my breath. It's been a few years since I've waited tables, plus they like people to have "New York experience"...and it seems they will have plenty of people to choose from! There were some questions on the app about alcohol, like what is a dirty martini, why do you decant wine, and I had no idea. Ideally I would love to get a serving job where there is no alcohol, because with it comes a plethora of additional knowledge you are supposed to have! Anyway it was a good experience regardless and it made me realize that it's not hard, and I think if I do it enough I will get something eventually. One guy who was applying (and had his 2 years NYC experience) said he usually gets a job within a few days, but has been trying for 3 weeks now and still has not gotten anything. Sign of the times I guess!

Friday night I met up with my classmates for a night on the town! We went to a little restaurant/pub (of course I did not eat as I had already had my meal at the Brandon)! Here is my favorite picture of the night...

I really like all my classmates! Will be sad when they leave.

Today I have just been resting and taking it easy...it's been awesome! I did get an urge to take a walk and did not want to stay here, so I took the subway downtown. I got off near Ground Zero and walked by it. It looked about the same as when I saw it 6 years ago. They have built some towers nearby (Freedom Towers I think?) but the actual site looks the same. From what I can tell anyway...they have most of it blocked off and there were already tons of people anywhere there was a sightline, and I did not want to see it that bad. I did not take any pictures of it. Too sad and depressing. So then I walked around the financial district. All the streets are very narrow with very tall buildings, including Wall Street! Here it is:

This is the New York Stock Exchange. I don't really know what they do here, but it looks important! After perusing that area, I wandered down to Battery Park where you can see the Statue of Liberty from afar:

After the park, I was headed back to the subway when I passed Trinity Episcopalian Church which is beautiful on the outside...

as well as the inside:

I sat in the pew and rested for a while, and walked around the church. I loved being in there, it was so still, quiet, and peaceful. Then it was back out into the hustle and bustle of the streets so I could head home for dinner and laundry! On a Saturday night...I am so cool! Well, it's bedtime, and I am exhausted! It's raining right now, and I love sleeping to the rain... tomorrow I have to get up and moving early because we are going to try and get tickets for the final performance of the Public Theatre's Twelfth Night in Central Park. But first, here is one last picture from today!

Tiffany & Co., where my future husband is going to purchase my wedding rings! ;-)

Ramble on...

OK, so I have been a bad blogger, as my very attentive audience has pointed out! Well, thank you all so much for reading. I can't tell you how nice it feels to see a comment from you, and I love being able to share everything with you all! Blogging is cool! Okay, super-nerd-dom over. Oh wait one more thing. I sometimes try to comment after you and this stupid website messes up and won't let me. But thanks for all the nice things you are saying! It really is awesome to read and makes it seem a little less lonely up here!

It appears the last blog I wrote was Monday...and a lot has happened since then! Let's see...Tuesday was somewhat uneventful. Acting class, more repetition. I don't think I went that day but it's cool to watch other people squirm up there! Then we had singing class. Thankfully we did not have to sing our songs, but I did not know this so was still incredibly nervous when he made us all go up and speak the words of our song. He had to stop me because I was not breathing right, or something. Later he pulled us all aside individually and said that I was holding my breath when I spoke, and not releasing it. This guy knows his stuff! He is right. I guess I do that when I'm nervous. It's kind of funny actually. So anyway if I concentrate on letting my breath out, it helps a lot. Then the pianist recorded the accompaniment for our tunes so we can practice. The remaining 4 classes we will be singing and working on our songs. So, I have FIVE more days until I have to panic! Sweet!

Tuesday I was in a funk, as some of you know. Sudden, random panic about the realization that I am up here in this big city all by myself with no job, no income, lots of outcome, what if I can't find a job here, ohmygod I'm taking acting classes? what the hell am I going to do with my life, la la la. So Tuesday I had a big old pity party and tried to sleep the day away which did not work, and I had to sulk in my misery with full consciousness! Life is so cruel. But luckily, Wednesday I realized I do NOT want to waste my time up here worrying! And if I do fail here and fall flat on my face, I am so blessed to have two wonderful parents who would take my unemployed self back into their home. So after some phone calls, long walks, and a few valium (kidding), I am feeling much better! :-)

Wednesday we had...you guessed it, acting! I just have to say, I freaking LOVE this class. When I am there, I sometimes find myself just grinning...I just love everything about it. Well this day I did get a turn. The couple that went before us had a very emotional exercise, I mean, it was intense. So maybe it was partly that, or my stress and anxiety built up from Tuesday, or the fact that my partner was being particularly judgmental of me that day, or whatever...but I actually started crying, out of the blue, unexpectedly. It was so weird! I have never experienced such intense emotion on stage before. Of course it felt bad at the time, but afterwards, it felt really good! Not that crying is the goal of this exercise - the goal is whatever comes out, as long as it is genuine and honest. I am anxious to see how the technique will apply to our scenes, which he assigned at the end of class. We got a scene from Doubt (originally a play but they recently made it into a movie with Meryl Streep, Amy Adams, Philip Seymour Hoffman). I am playing the Amy Adams character - a sweet, young, innocent, passive Catholic nun. My scene partner is the Meryl Streep nun - the uptight, nasty principal. Eh...we'll see. Oh yeah then we had voice and speech which was not interesting enough to write about, or maybe I'm just too tired.

Sidenote: I found a really great article about the Meisner technique (what we are doing in acting class). Actually, it's a blog I think. Here is the link in case anyone is interested in what we are doing, I guess if you're really bored or something! Anyway it's just a great description of what it's LIKE, but it does not describe the actual exercises (if I described those you'd probably think I was crazy, you really have to see it I think).

Wednesday night a girl at my residence, who goes to Circle in the Square summer conservatory, told me that her teacher got so mad at a student because the student would not get angry, that the teacher started a fist fight and the student ended up with a bloody nose. That sure made me grateful for my teacher! He yells and screams at us sometimes, to try and rile up some emotion from us, but he draws the line at physical violence, thank God! Wednesday night I went to a Q&A with some talent agents in New York City. It was at my school. Very interesting. Moral of the story: it's hella hard to get an agent.

Thursday: acting again. Got a turn again. Did not cry today! But it was good. Different than yesterday. It's different every time, depending on what mood you and your partner are in. Then we had some drama in drama class, and not the good kind! I think it will be helpful for everyone to have a few days away. After that we had movement class which I was dreading. We started class by doing some weird stretches but ohmygosh they were amazing. The class is very zen-like... After that we did the yoga again, but it was gobs easier than last time. Teacher said it was because we had warmed up with the stretches. Then we did an exercise where we had to get in a circle and be totally silent but still try to run, stop, jump, etc at the same time as the whole group. It's supposed to hone your focus and keep you in tune with what the group is doing, or something like that. After class we got pizza which was sooo yummy... hung out in the park for a bit and walked around then went home.

Tonight I visited yet another library, the 58th Street branch. No picture because it was ugly - they were doing construction. It was on the upper east side which is kind of ritzy. But they DID have my book, which I was happy about! I am starting An American Tragedy by Theodore Dreiser...I know Julie will remember this, because Jeff had to read it for school! I read a little of it at their house way back when and liked what I saw, and then a line from the book randomly shot into my head during a recent Thursday evening, and I thought I must read it! When I came out of the library, there it was, looming, inviting me in, calling my name...

The New York & Company of New York! My favorite store! I did have to go in and take a peek. Then back home for dinner and I applied for another job. (So I can go shopping - what good motivation!)

Well that is all for now! I am so exhausted and have to get up early - tomorrow we have electives. Musical theatre from 9-11 (why oh why did I take this class) and Career Counseling from 11-1 (maybe they can tell me what the hell to do with my life)!

I promise to take better pictures and update more often in the future, so they won't have to be this long! Goodnight :-)