Good Day Friends!!!

I am on my lunch break right now so this is going to have to be a pretty quick post...hahaha. Right. If I can get writing I am not going to stop myself. I would rather stay a little bit late at work to be able to finish my post. So what's been going on in your world? Not much or tons of stuff? For me it is a bit of both.

I want to start us out on a pleasant note so let me show you a picture I took yesterday.

We had an early afternoon rehearsal for Sealed for Freshness, and as I was walking into the building I saw this lovely picture...ah if I were to own a home I would have this painted on my bathroom ceiling! 

OK so let's back up a bit. I went to see the midnight Harry Potter showing last Thursday night/Friday morning...loved it, can't wait for the next one. Proceeded to be a lazy bum and sit around all day Friday just watching HP movies in reverse chronological order. It was nice, well except for the fact that my roommate and I don't have a couch so I had to spend the entire time on the floor...which I am generally OK with especially because it is a carpeted floor! I motivated myself to get up and ready to go meet with EG, B and MRJ. We had dinner at Hunter Gatherer. It was delicious and the place was packed so it is indeed a hot spot for a Friday night! Might be the whole they brew their own beer thing...too bad I am not a big beer drinker. After dinner we went to Workshop Theatre to see their production of A Few Good Men. It was well done. I mean there are always things that could be better in almost every show so of course it was by no means perfect but they did a great job with a hard script. Aaron Sorkin who is one of my favorite writers wrote the show as a stage play but looking back he must have had screen play aspirations in mind when he was pounding it out because it just screams film. Anywho it was nice...we had post-show drinks at Goatfeathers and I was home and in bed pretty early.

Why call it a night so early on Friday...well because my brother asked me to be a volunteer for the annual Shandon Turkey Trot. I may have mentioned it before. It was a lot of fun. I got up early and treated myself to some Starbucks coffee and went to my post. I was on the corner of Duncan and Holly. I just had to make sure that no cars tried to drive over any runners. I tell you what it was a total inspiration watching those runners out there doing their thing. It was chilly and early but they were there running it out. It really made me want to get out there and do it too! I just might. There were kids out there with their parents and I really cannot think of a better way to spend time with your kids then partaking in a community event like this one! You get involved and you are teaching them about health and fitness two of the most important things we can teach our kids.

After the last runner finished I headed over to my parent's house because my step-sister was in town with my two nephews. One of which I had not seen since my return from China. He is 11 now and it is absolutely amazing to see how much he has grown and changed...and matured. That boy is a rock. He has a great head on his shoulders...the term "well adjusted" pops into my head! My other nephew is 5. He is a nut case in the most brilliant of ways. He would own the show Kids Say the Darndest Things. He is constantly entertaining us with some funny story or joke...I mean he is five but he can get us rolling. He says things like "WHAT THE.." and "YOU GOTTA BE KIDDING ME.." adorable.

Well they were in town because we were all heading to Charleston for a celebration. OK follow along while I spell this out. My step-mom Anne's older brother Allen and his wife Sharon were celebrating their 50 wedding anniversary. 50 YEARS!!! Crazy talk!!! Anyway, Anne and Allen put together a surprise party getting a lot of the family together without Sharon knowing. It was held in Charleston, SC (one of the most interesting and beautiful cities in the world) at the Confederate Widows and Orphans home. They have a connection to this place but the details are a but fuzzy...I think someone told me while I was carrying boxes and trays into the room to set up...this place was absolutely majestic. It had a lush garden court yard area  and it had an old charm of hard wood floors giant spiraling staircases...and it is located right on Broad St. one of the oldest streets in the city. I snapped this picture as we were carrying in decorations at dusk:

That is a beautiful church that was right down the road and a Palmetto tree, many of which line the street. I love this town. I would love to go down there for a weekend and just walk around. There is so much to see, so much history and quirky little corners. You should definitely treat yourself to a trip there! The party was lovely and Sharon was surprised, but before you know it the weekend was over and I was on my way back to Columbia. I rode down and back with my dad, which was nice because I was able to ask him a whole host of questions.

The show I am doing (see above ;) is set in 1968 and my character would have been around 25-30 years old which is the same age range of my dad at that time! So I picked his brain a bit. Music, mindset, lifestyle...just some preliminary research. My father is a wealth of knowledge about so much stuff. I just love picking his brain!

After we returned to Columbia I went to the gym for some BodyFlow action, which I love. It is a mixture of yoga and taichi. I need that so much. I love the way stretching feels. But it hasn't done too much to help the piercing pain I feel in my back...constantly, like the muscles in between my shoulder blades are on fire. Not sure what to do about it, but something must be done!!

After the gym I rehearsed and went home to watch the AMAs which was fun. I haven;t seen an awards show in forever so it was entertaining. I loved some more than others but was just excited to see some fancy foot work and magical production. I would love to run a show like that, by run I mean stage manage! #Aspiration

Not it is Monday. I actually made it up this a.m. and went to the gym now I am plowing through my day. I am going to rehearse tonight then go grab a drink with a friend, JH. He is down from the District and I look forward to his entertaining with.

Other than that I am just making it through the week until...THANKSGIVING! I have so much to be thankful for...so I know you will get an ear/eye full of that on Thursday...unless I am in a food coma and it gets posted on Friday...

Well I look forward to talking with you again soon!

xoxox

PS a guy just walked by my office with some amazing cologne. The odor is splendiferous. I tell you what men's cologne can really get me. #blush

This is where the title goes!

Sometimes I look at the clock at 8:20 a.m. and think gah I'm ready for a nap! Well I have been awake for 3 hours and so it is kind of warranted. Even though in the 3 hours that I have been awake have not been very strenuous. I woke up, cooked a couple of eggs played on the net, showered and came to work...but man I am exhausted :)! So I am borrowing my friend K's car while he and his wife go to the beach for a week for the Tday holiday! It is going to be pretty exciting, going wherever I want whenever I want...I mean I get around (haha) enough to get things done but now with a car I can do things like spend an hour walking down the grocery aisles or strolling through 5 points. It is at my leisure. I would really love to live in a place where I could have that kind of autonomy naturally. In Columbia you need a car for life. It is like having a part time job when you don't have a car...I have to plan around rides and I know it frustrates people and I hate that, but it is a necessity. I can't afford a car. period. I mean buying a car, car insurance, gas...whoa it kind of makes my head hurt. AND when I have a car I spend more money. If I can't really get around I can't really by stuff. I am not an online shopper so I have to get there to buy. Which I am a bit nervous about having the car for a week but it actually doesn't matter...you have to have money to spend it and I sure don't have it!

Some say money can but happiness some say it can't...I believe both...I mean I don't have any money, honestly I am not just saying that I don't, and I am happy. I love fashion and clothes and shoes and things of that nature and I used to spend tons of money on it...all the time. But I can't do that now. You see I broke that habit cold turkey while I was in China. I mean I am a foot taller and twice as big as most of my Chinese female counterparts. So there is no market for big girls in China, so there was no product. I mean I could find the random shirt/sweater/shoe but it wasn't often. So that helped to break my clothes shopping habit. Also, you know not being able to speak the language was a bit of a deal breaker too...! So it used to be a new dress would bring me joy and it still does but I realize it isn't a need. I can be fine wearing the same clothes I always wear. I used to say that clothing is an extension of my personality, and since I am always changing so must my wardrobe. Well my clothes still express "me" but it is being able to find new ways to work what I already have creating a more accurate parallel!

On my list of things to do now that I have borrowed car...go to a place that serves coffee and read a book...if I was in China I wouldn't even think twice I would go to the Starbucks by the Bell Tower

and get a venti coffee and a blueberry scone and sit in a cozy chair for hours...and I mean hours. Whether I was with David or Kara we would write and read and research and enjoy the company and the familiar surroundings of the American company! But the Starbucks in Columbia are not set up for that kind of lounging. They want you in and out so they can turn that profit. I haven't found one yet that I would feel comfortable just hunkering down and reading! And since Adriana's (best Cola coffee shop ever) closed while I was in China, I feel like I have no where to go...help!!! Suggestions???

Well hopefully I will find somewhere...other plans include but are not limited to going to Big Lots just because...I have a couple of things I need and I have a list so that I can't over do it!!! I will most likely go back here:

The Asian market that my friend K found on his bit about town the other day!! See Kent lived in Japan before I lived in China so we have sort of an Asian connection. This place has a mixture of Korean, Japanese and Chinese products. I am pretty sure the family that owns it is Cantonese, from the Hong Kong-ish region of China. Meaning they are Chinese and speak the Chinese language but it is the Cantonese subset...like Mandarin is the primary language spoken in the large country, also Mandarin is the little bit of Chinese I learned, so unfortunately I won't be able to practice my mad skills with the family....but being able to walk into the store and for a brief moment reexpreience my life in the East is a little treasure in this town!

Tonight at Midnight I am going to see the Harry Potter movie. Ummm PUMPED. I have read all the books twice, I love them and think not only are they great stories but they are literary, layered and well written. I have seen all the movies and wasn't really happy with the last one but in general I wasn't really happy in life at that time...I was kind of a hater! So anywho I will be there tonight...and am thoroughly excited. I am sad that EG and B aren't coming...but they have grown up stuff to do tomorrow!

Other than that I am not really sure what I will do with all my spare time this weekend. I need to hang my art...can't believe I haven't done that...OH wait, duuuh! I am doing exciting things this weekend. On Saturday morning I am going to stand on a corner and make sure runners don't get hit by cars while they are partaking in the Shandon Turkey Trot!! After that I am going somewhere to do something but I just remembered that it is a surprise so I should not say...I mean I doubt that it will make a difference to you guys so if you read this don't get too excited!!! Well get excited about life, anytime!!!

Here is a picture of some of the delights from rehearsal the other night:

The script on the left. The wine on the right, where I like it...and a little tiny Delicious cupcake made by a fellow cast member. She said that she didn't mean for the icing on the tiny cake to match the script but I think she really did...and kudos for her!! It was Dewey our director's birthday...we don't usually drink at rehearsals...usually!

Last image for you...

FUN WITH MIRRORS!!!! There is a mirror on our side deck, great for getting natural light when you need to do things like pluck your eyebrows or check your makeup line...or just stand there and take pictures of yourself...whatevs.

Have a wonderful Thursday my dears and I will be talking to you!

xoxox

Jealous? You should be!!!!

My best friends April and Andrew are hosting Thanksgiving dinner for a few friends!!

This is the menu, I am bringing comfy pants and dessert port!!

Little bit of this and A LOT of that...

Hello there! So I woke up early this morning to get a head start on my writing because it has been a while since my last post...well my not so fantastic computer had other ideas about how it wanted to spend it's morning. Updating itself, slowly so so slow! It is quite frustrating but I can't get too mad I mean hey I have a computer. However, if I want to continue to up my regular writings I am going to need a new piece of equipment. I am going to hope and wish upon every star that I get one for Christmas because honestly I cannot afford one. I live meagerly, I make little and spend little and I am not in debt so I am lucky!

Well let's talk about things that have happened recently! My show at Trustus closed which is very sad indeed. The time spent with that cast and crew was some of the best. I have to send out big props to my friend Trey Hobbs who proposed to his girl friend this past Sunday. He told us about it during rehearsals so it was really nice to have that come to fruition while he was still in my daily! You see when you do a show with a group of people you create a bond. You really do, whether good or bad you bind yourself to these people for however long the process. There are always promises to keep in touch and for a reunion but that usually doesn't happen. I mean you become facebook friends you keep in touch by liking statuses and stalking pictures but you lose that closeness! There are many people that I have done shows with that I became super close to and now they are barely in my periphery! But that is kind of how life goes in general.

I have always been one of those people who has my set of constants, those close friends who know EVERYTHING about me and who can be counted on for anything. Then the rest of my world is filled with an ebb and flow of personalities. I love to give and get from each person that becomes a part of my life, and although people are in no way disposable you can get to a point with a person where you have gathered all you can and you move on. Hopefully there is no resentment and it isn't seen as an abandoning but an opening of other avenues. Does all that make sense? there have been many a friend that I will spend endless amounts of time with then one day it just kind of tapers off. Not so much as I get older but definitely in my youth! I will always count those dear souls as friends and am glad to have had them, they for sure left an imprint on me and an experience was gained. Oh dear how I digress!

Saturday was a relaxing, much needed, girl infusion with my friend April. She is part of the ADG and one of my best friends. She and I started off our day at The Gourmet Shop which has the most delicious EVERYTHING but they are famous for their chicken salad. It is so good I debated on capitalizing it like a proper noun! But I have to admit this was the main reason we were there:

It is the Mimosa Kit and it is only $11. That is totally BA!! After this delight April and I made our rounds around town different stores with different needs. One of our stops was Pier 1, oh I could spend hours in that store. I spent the majority of my money split between Target and The Dollar Tree...hey that is how I roll!

OK I know this:

is TOTALLY random, but on Friday B and I had a totally random run in with each other and sat outside Sbucks sipping coffee and enjoying the beautiful weather and relaxing conversation. As we were sitting down I noticed this little guy just chillin'. I have no idea who put him there or what he is there for but he is brilliant! HIGH FIVE!

So back to the Saturday happenings, show closed and GAMECOCKS WON!!! Hell yeah y'all! We beat Florida to take SEC EAST and will play Auburn in the SEC Championship game. I am so happy for my team. It has been a roller coaster ride in college football this year. It seems like every weekend something crazy is happening to the stats. I like it like that, it shouldn't always be predictable. You need a good season like this to shake things up.

Sunday was a day of Trustus gatherings. Although you would think that now that my show is over that my time at the theatre would decrease exponentially, and it will, but not on STRIKE day. The Sunday following the close of any show is strike and company meeting. Strike is what you do to tear down the set. It is bizarre walking into the theatre and seeing the stage that held so much creativity so many funny moments and tearful endings is being ripped to shreds! It is what has to happen though, I am sure I could tie this into my life somehow. Like actors and theatre people love new beginnings, love to create new things, they use each show to gain something to acquire experience and skill. Kind of like what I do in life. Hmmm, interesting.

So we proceed to tear down the set and clean up the theatre. Wiping down vacuuming up chatting enjoying the company. Then around noon everyone gets lunch. I walked across the parking lot to Publix, for the 3rd time that morning, to get lunch. It was yummy as always, thank you Publix Deli! Then we sit around and have company meeting. We talk about what is going on at the theatre, all the good and A LOT of the bad (money problems always) then we find out what is going on with everyone, how are the upcoming shows going, who is doing what around town. It is an opportunity to share what you need and hopefully to get support from a family type of grouping! Then we post-mortem the show that just closed. It was really great this time, everyone really seemed to enjoy the show! I kind of felt like some people were holding back because they didn't want to be negative which you know what every now and again just keeping it on the bright side can be a good thing. We tell people that we want to hear the things they didn't like as well as the things they did, which I understand we need the criticism to grow...BUT sometimes it is just nice to enjoy something and keep your dislikes to yourself.

My Trustus day is not over yet! Kay and Jim Thigpen co-founders of Trustus decided that they needed to throw a company party, and that they did. We drove out to their home out off Clemson Rd. and had hot dogs hamburgers yummy dips and delightful conversations. It was really nice. I spent most of the night in a big comfy recliner by the fire! It was so nice! People kept giving me a hard time about not moving from the chair but hello it was comfortable and it is in the living room so the conversation was constant, changing and entertaining. AND I had Becky's artichoke dip near by!! We called it a night pretty early, around 9 p.m., I mean it is Sunday night people don't really want to throw down on a Sunday night, especially when you have been up all day working, and you are coming off an intensely draining but fantastic show! I slept soundly that night!

My Monday was good! It consisted of a lot of this:

PAPERCLIPS!! I know not as exciting as you would think but hey I like to mix it up!! Let me tell you some of those paper clips have sparkles on them! But to go along with these paper clips would be tons of paper cuts...it is like a paper cut party on my hands. Which reminds me of a story my high school biology teacher told me about a guy who had a paper cut that was infected and he didn't treat it and they had to amputate his hand...good grief. I carried neosporen around for years. (and I know exactly where it is located at my office!)I love my job. It isn't too challenging just some of your typical administrative stuff but the company I work for does so much good on a daily basis that just being a part of that is truly inspiring!

The rest of my Monday was spent with fabulous friends at Village Idiot for $1 slice night! It was deliscious!

Tonight I will make my way to TACO TUESDAY at The Whig, shocker, then on to my 2nd dialect rehearsal for Freshness. It is our director Dewey Scott-Wiley's biday today so we shall have ourselves an extra special good time!!!!

Have a happy Tuesday out there folks!



LOVE and stuff!

Before I start this thing off right I want to throw a little something your way:

How about a little LOVE on a Thursday morning! This is my friend MRJ ring and she is letting me wear it for a while. (And by letting I mean I ganked that junk)
But today is Veterans Day so I am also sending this love out to all those that served, are serving or will serve. You are heroes, and brave beyond what anyone can truly imagine!

And now it is time for the show…

Yoooooooooooooooo! Today is totally one of those days, and what I mean by that is my head is somewhere else. I feel like a Pisces! I don’t mean anything negative by that, my best friend is a Pisces, what I mean is one of the delightful, but sometimes troubling, characteristics of this sign is forgetfulness. I call it living in the clouds, a perpetual dream land. I am kind of having one of those today in that I have forgotten stuff dropped stuff misplaced stuff all morning and it is only 8:30. It is going to be a long day. I have an excuse though; I am still getting over a head cold. I used a Netti Pot for the first time this morning, darn I should’ve taken a picture of it, and it has my face feeling all kinds of weird.

It is great really a nice holistic, natural, way to clean out your nose/sinus area. My friends swear by it! You just mix a little saline solution with warm water in this nifty little tea pot type deal and well honestly stuff it up your nose. Before you even know it you are rinsing out your face. I am all about the face so why not give it a good cleaning every now and again. I just wish I had one while I was in China, I am sure they do I just never found one, because the pollution that tainted my nostril was evil! Well with the Npot and the other all natural meds I am taking like this little packet of JOY:

EMERGEN-C What???!!!!!

I am going to get back on the full force wellness train before you know it! Which is a good thing because next week is going to be a jam-packed week of good times. I am going to go see a lot of theatre I hope, support the arts whoop! I am going to spend lots of time with friends, yeaaaaa!! And I am going to get stuff done…gah what a week! I can’t believe it is already hard into November. I am already trying to figure out what to do for NYE. I know I am going to stay in town for Thanksgiving, which will be great because I am pretty sure a LOT of people are coming into town that I am going to want to see…and ring their necks with hugs!

Christmas is still kind of up-in-the-air. I mean my parents totally teased me with a trip to Grove Park Inn in Asheville but that has been derailed! Boo! But hey I am just thankful that they are factoring me in on holiday plans at all. I mean they always do! Last year they flew to China to see me on Christmas; it doesn’t get much more factored in than that!

But NYE, I love New Year’s Eve. It has the possibility of AWESOMENESS, which means it also has the possibility of let down. Too much anticipation can be a bad thing…but I am not going to think about it that way! I am just going to be thankful for whatever it is that I do, and whomever I am with I will enjoy myself! Although I really hope it is super fun!!! What are you doing? I really wish I could spend NYE with my good buddy DCW but it is doubtful, him being up in Boston and all that. It will be weird without my Lindsay, my adorable roommate from China, but she lives in England. Oh how great would it be to fly over to England for NYE? Right after I win the lottery ;)

So anywho I am making plans. I enjoy making plans. You know what I also enjoy breakfast. And I get a yummy breakfast sandwich ever now and again from this little quaint cafeteria on the first floor of my building.

Some mornings, some special early mornings, the woman is baking fresh chocolate chip cookies to sell for the next couple of days. Today was one of those glorious days. The whole lobby of my building smells like warm surgery sweetness, and for that I thank her, and tip her kindly!

Tonight begins closing weekend for my show. I am not doubt going to get emotional…well honestly there isn’t much that doesn’t make me emotional, but this show will really be a sad one to close. I am going to miss the music and the lights, the actors exploring different choices each night. I am really going to miss the backstage entertainment in my life. But you know I have made a new little set of friends since this show began and for that I am extremely pleased. I think I will keep them!

I am nervous about the Gamecock football game this weekend and am almost glad that I won’t be able to watch it! We are gonna do it though, we are going to take the EAST!

A little addendum to yesterday, I never did get the TV working so I sat in front of the computer with two chairs creating sort of a lounge couch type deal, snuggled under my down comforter all day. I had some delicious soup for lunch and some shrimp and grits (YES) for dinner. I watched 5 episodes of Glee on HULU and completely freaked out and now I am going to have to HUNT down season 1 and watch them ALLLLLL. (I told you sometimes I freak out and go crazy on TV on DVD!)

I am going to get to it now, and by it I mean the work they pay me for!

But I want to leave you with this picture. It is one that my sister-in-law Tracy framed and gave to me one Christmas:

It just might be my favorite picture of all times.

There you see my brother smiling and staring out of frame, I know in my heart-of-hearts that he is smiling at my Nanny. He and my grandmother were best friends. Then there is me in the middle, what a mug. Oh my look at that face, I still make that face I am sure! But oh the true glory of this picture is on my left, no it isn’t the cake or the laughter, but it is my mother. In all her beauty. She is absolutely radiant and this is how I remember her. She had a smile that would knock your socks off and a wit that would slap you in the face. I miss her ever day for she was my best friend. I look at this picture every day and I smile and smile and smile! To see my brother’s laughter, my chagrin and my mother’s smile is a treasure. One that was captured here thankfully because it is a moment never to be regained but forever remembered!

xoxox

Cold Feet…literally!

Before I started typing this I said I need a blanket and a snack…done and done! I found a spare down comforter in my parent’s guest bedroom. My parent’s guest bedroom I hear you say…I thought you weren’t living with your parents. Have no fear; although I have recently had some minor financial setbacks I have not moved back home. I am sick, well I am not full-fledged under the weather…I am kind of coasting along side the sickness. And having the day off I figured the best way to try and prevent this from becoming a debilitating cold would be to have some serious rest and relaxation, and tons of food!

What better place to do that than your parent’s house? No where I tell you, no where. My dad and I might not see eye-to-eye on many things when it comes to family and well those pesky things like emotions and feelings but I tell you what, if I call him and tell him I am sick he goes into automatic dad mode. He picked me up and brought me over here. Yessss, I double checked to make sure that all the food in the house was available for eating…hey we have food reserves especially when it comes to leftovers. I hunkered down with the boxes of medicine that he bought for me, ah bless, and have been enjoying my day of hibernation.

Now let me tell you. I am not one for TV. I mean I LOVE TV…I really do but when I went to boarding school in high school we weren’t allowed to watch it on week nights, so I just fell out of the habit. Ever since then I haven’t really lived in a place that has regular access to cable. I never felt like it was worth paying for so I never had it at home. I find that when I do have it sucks me in and makes me lazy…I will watch it for HOURS and not do anything else. SO I usually just stick to movies. I will watch one every now and again. Sometimes I will get on a TV on DVD kick and go all out, like on West Wing and The Wire. But in general TV is not a big part of my life. HOWEVER, when I am sick there is really nothing more that I want than to lie in a comfy bed or on a comfy couch and watch TV. I love when there are good girlie movies on TV, or trashy television…or even better when the History Channel has a documentary about creepy stuff…I LOVE IT.

Unfortunately I am not very techno savvy with all these fancy button pushing remote having TV these days. Hell I have had my iPhone for almost 2 months and I still have barely any idea of how to use it! So after I successfully turned the TV on, in my parent’s family room, I pressed what I thought was the button to change the channel. Well FAIL is what the TV decided to do after that moment. That was 4 hours ago…I have yet to fix it. So I decided that I will watch a movie instead…well I can’t get the freaking DVD player to open….it is ON but won’t open…really…so I thought OK I will just watch it on the computer. Well put me in front of a computer and the last thing I am going to do is watch a movie…navigate all the methods of social media for hours, yes, pull myself away for two hours to watch a movie, probably not.

But I am going to type this and then watch some movies. I mean look at my set up:

That creepy Alice in Wonderland looks amazing. Which will be followed by an even creepier cartoon version of The World of Hans Christian Anderson. Other options include a digitally remasterd version of George C. Scott’s Jane Eyre or Elizabeth Taylor in The last Time I saw Paris. (There is a NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD possibility too)
My step mom finds these $1 movies and buys them in bulk…love it! Many of these will appear in this year’s Christmas stocking too!

In case you are wondering this is what I am snacking on:

Yum, all natural peanut butter with saltines and some pineapple with the juice separated to sip on…protein and vit. C do your magic!!

So let’s see, yesterday was taco night. Yumm as usual. I was totally spaced out the whole time:

Don’t be fooled by the dim lighting and the cool hat, I was in cold medicine lala land.
I would have just gone home and gone to bed after work but I had dialect rehearsal so I figured tacos would be a nice dinner. I had some spicy salsa to help open up my nose and stuff. Besides there are always a host of good-looking guys at The Whig, especially that one…oooh he is good looking. Hey I am single and I enjoy a good looking guy! There is no harm in that ;)

After that I went over to the Workshop rehearsal space which is just unfortunately located. I mean I think it is kind of neat but it is in such a bizarre location. It is literally under the I-26 overpass that heads out of town towards Harbison. It is the last stop on Elmwood right before a big cemetery. I mean I love creepy stuff so I think it is cool but it is in such a weird place. That is neither here nor there…well I guess it is there but oh nevermind!

We were having dialect rehearsal so we ladies gathered around and listened to some Midwestern dialect coaching. I think it is so much fun! I am going to just annoy the pants off of all my friends and coworkers. My character is from Steamboat Rock, Iowa so I get to play a little more with the dialect than the other women…yay! Fun!

Well that is about all she wrote for today. I am in the process of having my two tattoos on my back connected so it is going to be a big old wonderful piece of art on my back. I am super excited about it. As of right now I have a Tree of Life on my lower back and a butterfly on my right shoulder…we are going to connect them to make one flowing picture. I will post pics when I can get someone to take them for me.

Well I am going to get back to my get well plan, eat some more delicious food (food in someone else’s house is always yummier) and watch the creepy $1 Alice in Wonderland.

You guys are the best! I hope you have a wonderful Wednesday and try and keep away the colds!!

xoxox

Dear life,

Whoa. Seriously, whoa. What was last week all about? I mean I get it, you have to throw us some curve balls every now and again to keep us on our toes, but it was like I was standing in the batting cage of life with the ball machine stuck on high speed and the only thing I had to protect myself with was a Styrofoam bat. I mean I was able to use my feline instincts to move and tumble my way out of direct beating but it was a lot of work. I am so on my toes right now I need point shoes. It has me thinking, OK what did I do? Where did I misstep? I don’t think there is a direct point of reference but I can generalize and try and figure out what might have led to this downward spiral. Part of me really thinks that breaking that mirror a while back has seriously cursed me.

What do you think about superstitions and such? I don’t know where I stand. There are things that I will not do, like say Macbeth in a theatre. Seriously DON’T DO IT!! Here is the thing I broke a mirror when I was unpacking all my stuff at my new apartment. Since that happening things have been all topsy turvey. I am working through it though. Luckily I have a group of friends that are totally kick ass. Not only my friends but working on a show gives such a since of community. Seriously backstage each night before Reasons to be Pretty is some of the most entertaining moments of the whole show. I wish we could record it and play it for everyone, you would truly enjoy it. I think it is because, let’s be honest, theatre people are weird. And we are totally OK with that, wouldn’t have it any other way really! So having this cast and crew in my life makes laughing and smiling easy and for that I am thankful.

Let me see if I can pick out some stuff that happened this week that is worthy to talk about. Well two of my favorite people had birthdays. I think I told you about birthday taco Tuesday. Well here are a couple of pics from that night:

Michelle in her bday glory


Caitlin’s amazing confectionary talents with this smokin’ hot (seriously) cake.

It was a fun night that ended even more interestingly than it began. I am sad that I will miss tacos this week, but for good reason, dialect rehearsal!

The other exciting thing that happened this week was Nirdvana, the Nirvana tribute show. My dear dear friend Nate got together with some of his former coworkers and decided to put together a Nirvana Unplugged show. Because I am stage managing the mainstage show at Trustus I am responsible for the set and lights and such so I was asked to help out with the Nirdvana show and let me tell you I couldn’t have been more thrilled. I mean Nirvana and I go waaaaay back. One of my fondest memories is the 9 year-old Sumner and Virginia in my brother’s room BLASTING Smells Like Teen Spirit and head banging our little hearts out. We were so badass and no one could tell us differently! That album changed my life, as it did many others I’m sure.

Anywho here is a picture from the Nirdvana rehearsal.

Too bad I didn’t get a picture of the performance night. It was a truly magical show. The audience was right there with them the whole time. Nate spared no expense to make this show something special! He decorated the stage with candles and flowers and the band worked and practiced for months to get each detail down. And get it down they did, I think everyone in the house that night can appreciate the hard work that went into this production. I have to give a shout out to my friend Chris. We haven’t seen each other since I returned from China and getting to work on this show with him was a nice way to reconnect. He did an amazing job with his fancy finger work, that guitar was on fire Friday night!

After that we took to the town. I have to say that my favorite bar in Columbia is Art Bar on Park Street. It is eclectic and funky and you just never know who you will see or what you will get. BUT for some reason, the city of Columbia has decided to focus all of their attention on this bar. Nightly visits from the fire marshal chastising and fining them for being overcrowded. When you can go down to 5 points where in the past year shootings, robbings and overt disruption happen nightly and they take this one bar far away from 5 points to point the finger. It frustrates me because I want to scream discrimination, for this is a bar where you might order a drink next to a gay couple or a friendly tranny. You might spend an hour or two watching scantily clad women shaking their artistic bellies while a man down front plays with fire. Tattoos are the norm and skinny jeans seem like a dress code. It is where I want to go on a Friday night to dance and drink and say silly things and have the MOST fun. But it is becoming impossible. Because of this added attention they can no longer let people in as they feel. They have to restrict the entrance and it becomes a one person out one person in type deal. Meaning that there is a line that takes forever to get into, and once you are in you are never going to leave because you would be forced to wait in line. So on more than one occasion we have been turned away from my favorite bar because of the unsightly line. I give mad props to those of you who wait it out. I, however, have a short attention span when it comes to going out, so if it doesn’t happen quickly my comfy bed will start to call out my name and I will pout all the way home.

So needless to say Friday night we were unable to make it into Art Bar, so we headed down to CJ’s in 5 points. I have only been to this bar a couple of times but I had myself quite a good time. My friend Courtney works there on Friday nights so that was an added bonus. I spent a little bit of time drinking, grooving and chatting away. The whole night was filled with this bit of energy that I just don’t think I could describe. It was a mixture of nervousness and pure excitement with a shot of adrenaline! Crazy! The night ended with EG spilling an entire beer down my leg, which I was not mad about because she was so upset by it that it was actually funny. And seriously you really can’t get mad at EG for anything! She did buy me a Waffle House sandwich which totally makes up for it ;)

So that bizarre energy I was talking about, well that coupled with the unbelievable stresses from the week took their toll on my body and I slept like I have never slept before! Literally I did not get out of bed on Saturday until 5 o’clock in the afternoon. I read a bit and napped and slept and ate and slept some more. I feel like I was plugging myself into the outlet of life to recharge my batteries. Speaking of recharging batteries, one of the FML things that happened this week would have been my iphone being completely wiped out. I kid you not. It tried to update itself and by doing so completely crashed. IT was horrible! I tried everything to get it working but it was all in vain. Until trusty B. came to the rescue. He is like a ninja when it comes to all things computer, wires and all that stuff that I have really no clue about at all! Oh and let me tell you this is not the first time this week that B. has literally saved the show.

On Thursday night before the show we are all hanging out, preshow music playing away, when all of a sudden the music stops. The music doesn’t just stop….it explodes. The little box that changes music from digital to analog literally went up in smoke. Well this show is a great show but Chad’s artistic direction is so greatly accentuated by the music that it would be a crime against art for this show to have to be performed sans music! This would not be the first time B. has been compared to Batman but it is like we put up the single and he swooped in to save the day. He fixed the box and BAM! We had an awesome show. The show had an excited quality that just added to each actor’s performance!

Now it is a Monday morning, again. I am so happy to start a new week! I am going to do all that I can to appreciate the negatives that were handed down last week and mold them into positives for this week. I start rehearsals for Sealed for Freshness tonight and I couldn’t be more thrilled. This week has something special in store for me and I can’t wait to find it out!

Until next time, have a drink on me:

Margarita from Monterrey’s my Sunday night foray into happy hour drinking. I had two of these and slept like a queen!

xoxo

I am back baby!!!

Whoa I know it has been quite a while since our last chat but man I have been busy. Not only have I been busy but I have been kind of out of sorts lately too. I think it is because I haven’t had the time to just sit and think. I love to just sit in my room on my bed and listen to music and think about things. I have not been able to do that for quite awhile so I feel a bit scattered. AND I was literally scattered.

So I told you last week that I did something exciting but I couldn’t talk about it yet, not to be so cryptic but I moved into a new apartment and started moving stuff in a tad bit earlier than the 1st and didn’t want my landlord to ask for more money. I mean I work a lot but it is all at part time wage so….you know!

Anywho, I have never been so excited (and if you haven’t figured it out yet I over use this statement…a lot) about moving into a new place. I have moved in with my long-time friend Abbie J. She is super laid back and has a great dog named Ben! I was able to get all of my stuff out of storage, big props to E&T for letting me use their garage while I was in the big C. One thing that has returned since my big move is THIS…

YES, no more little pod coffee. It isn’t all the way back to my delicious French Press coffee process but we will get there. This is also the return of my pre-China favorite coffee cup curtousie of MRB!!

But in close competition with coffee is my art collection that is now unpacked, I haven’t been able to hang any of it yet, lacking proper utensils, but soon. Once I get them all in place I am going to take pictures and post them for you to see. I have some great stuff by great people. I think I will include my tattoos in that post too!

So last night, after the busiest few days ever, I was able to come home and just be. It feels so good to be on my own again. Not that I am not 100% thankful to have been able to stay at my parents house for that short stint (longest amount of time ever) but we have a better relationship when I am out and about and doing my own thing. Last night I was able to buy some groceries and go home to a room that smells like me, sit on my bed, do my laundry, cook my dinner and all the while I am in the presence of one of my best friends! Awesome! After laundry and dinner Abbie and I settled down to watch a flick…after pursuing through our library of movie selections Abbie reveled that she had never seen one of the best, most classic movies EVER…

RIGHT!!!!

A movie that has two of my favorite quotes delivered by the dashing Clark Gable/Rhett Butler:

“You should be kissed and often, and by someone who knows how.”
And

“With enough courage, you can do without a reputation.”

BRILLIANCE!!!

OK so that was my last night. My come down from a long weekend. Let me tell you a bit about all that. So Friday night I had a show…OBVIOUSLY! After that I went home, I know I know it is the Friday before When, but I just couldn’t do it! I knew I was going out Saturday night and more importantly I had to work all day at the toy store on Sat. day. Let’s put this in perspective…the day before Halloween at a toy shop…oh yeah pandemonium. Not just that but 5 points has a trick or treat fest for kids, so I needed to be on my game. So I went home Fri. night and played around with ideas for my face paint to go with my Peacock costume! SUCCESS!

Saturday started early with some breakfast and then getting CKTS ready for Halloween in 5 points…I of course needed to have a costume on but my peacock was prime time only so I color coordinated with some stuff that we sell at the shop and VIOLA:

Fairy Princess Time!!!

It was perfect too because I was the one who gave out the candy to the kids and so I was like the candy fairy Godmother. It was such a delight seeing all the children dressed up. Like this little angel:

It really doesn’t get much cuter than that!

OK here are some of the downer moments of the afternoon. First off I saw so many of the same costumes it was saddening. I mean let’s spark some creativity parents. I know it is tough to find the time to make stuff when you have kids but what a great opportunity to spend quality time with your kids than designing and orchestrating a Halloween costume?! Secondly, I gave away over 300 pieces of candy in the first 30 minutes and that was given 1 piece to 1 kid. After that I started to recognize repeat offenders WITH THEIR PARENTS. They were going around then going back to their cars dumping their stash and going for seconds…COME ON! And there were a lot of parents with their own bags for candy. REALY??? I was miffed but what can you do at that point, I was not about to incite a riot by say no candy for you! That about covers it.

So after that I dewinged myself and headed over to Trustus, where I happily surprised with a large crowd on the books for the night. We had 61 reservations which is the largest yet! Bring it on folks; let’s try to break that number! The show went well but I have to admit I was a little tuned out during Act II because I was using that time to put on my face paint. Don’t worry no cues were harmed in the application of this face paint! I had some before and after shots of the face but think they were accidentally erased. EG and I finished up the show then quickly changed into our costumes and headed home to pick up B. He and EG were unicorns…EG bright and sparkly, B. black emo-corn! LOVE it. Here is a pic before we headed to the PARTY:

WOOT!

So we went to the party. It was nice but we arrived a bit late and everyone was kind of game over. I did have some funny conversations though, and overall it was a good time. Sometimes I set my expectations for fun too high and they are easily let down. But I need to be thankful for the excitement that WAS had. I mean just wearing face paint is excitement in my book!

I spent all Sunday morning in bed. I wasn’t feeling ill from alcohol just tired and a bit run down. I think I need to stretch more, or so says my friend Rach. It will help me keep my muscles limber and not so easily tired. After I got up guess what I did, bet you will never guess…I went to Trustus. Gah I know you are shocked. We had a Sunday matinee which happened. I am sure it was fine, I am comfortable enough now with my cues that I can do some extracurricular reading whilst in the booth. Oh so you want to know what it looks like from my booth:

Here it is. This is a pretty crap picture but as you can see that is my cue sheet to the left. I try to have the script down well enough that I don’t actually need it by the time we open the show and I can just feel my way through it with my cue sheet. That is the light board, unseen to the right is the light board monitor and to the left is the computer I run the sound from, yes for this show I am running lights and sound…ninja. The audience is below me in the dark and that is the stage in all its glory!

So as if we had not had enough theatre this weekend EG and I decided to go see The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. A production I was in for 5 years running. It is at an out door amphitheatre which is an absolutely enchanting place to work. It is right on the river so the view at night is marvelous. The show is great for kids and a good laugh and there were moments where I found myself wishing I was down there dancing and Pshawing away. Here is a poorly snapped pic:

It was actual Halloween night so I thought it was a great way to spend the evening. It was chilly but they had yummy warm apple cider for a treat at intermission. We were outnumbered by couples and I was thankful to have a good couple of girlfriends to go with me. No date nights on this girls calendar as of yet!

So now that I have delighted you with my busy weekend and told you about my wonderfully stress-free Monday I need to get you all up-to-date on my Tuesday, TODAY, ELECTION DAY!!!

The smiley face in the bottom right hand corner is my own personal handiwork!!!

Well needless to say I voted as early as possible. My dad picked me up at 7:20 and we went to our precinct. There was a bit of a line but I will count that as a good thing. Midterm elections don’t bring ‘em out in hordes but it should! There was a woman standing outside the voting stating talking about some of the questions that were on the ballot this time around; about our penny tax increase. She is for the increase and was doing some polite encouraging. Now someone inside the station apparently not happy about this and reported her to the official inside. He grabbed his rule book and headed outside.

I had already voted and was waiting for my dad when all this was going down. I talked to her a bit and she said she had spoken to the election commission and they informed her that she was allowed to be within 200 feet as long as she was not carrying a sign and especially because she was not promoting a candidate. Well the official wasn’t sure of that and was trying to find out…we all know that you have to be 200 feet away from a voting station with any signage or candidate promotion. She was kind of special I thought and whether you vote for the penny increase or not I still think she deserves a little kudos for getting up early and standing out in the chilly air for something she believes!! Well done you, well done. If anyone knows whether or not she was allowed to stay let me know!

Well that about does it for today. Tonight is another yummy night of Taco Tuesday and we will be celebrating some fabulous birthdays Shout out to Michelle and Toft!

I will give you cupcake details tomorrow!

And hey on this election Tuesday I Voted:

How about you???

xoxox