Shakespeare Didn't Write Life!

My house!

2006-01-12T19:31:00.000-05:00

My house! With lots of boy toys around...two motorcycles, three boats, random power tools...good grief!

Believe it! It's a new picture of me! Not a great one either...

My housemate David, lounging around. Such a little poser for the camera!

Rainy days

2006-01-11T03:15:00.000-05:00

Fact: The longest streak of rainy days ever had in Seattle numbered 33 and occured in 1953.
Fact: Seattle, as of 01.10.06 is on its 23rd day of measurable rainfall and is already 12 inches over the amount of rainfall at this time last year.
Fact: I love Seattle so far, but the sun came out for about 15 minutes two mornings ago and man, I've never been so happy to see it! I didn't realise it wasn't going to last, I would have stayed outside a few minutes longer!

*Brand new raincoat-- $38.00
*New tires on the truck for better grip-- $300.00
Feeling like a newly intitiated member of your new home city-- priceless

*These transactions have not yet actually occured, but they really should at some point in the near future. Of course, the priceless statement definitely applies. I mean, who wouldn't feel a part of the city that washes them clean every time they step out their front door.

And on it rolls...

2006-01-09T18:08:00.000-05:00

The photos continue! The new camera has a panorama maker, so I used it to capture my room...I had to use it because my room is so small, there isn't a way to stand back and get it in one shot! I love it though. Its mine!

Tattoo is a beautiful thing!

2006-01-09T04:23:00.000-05:00

Here it is! A couple of pics of the new one! Its on my right foot and ankle. And hurt like a...ooh...insert choice phrase here. So worth it though. Its absolutely beautiful. I'm steeling myself to go and get the rest filled in!

The pics are taken, by the way, with the new digital camera. Fun, but definitely just starting to figure it out!

Pictures...

2005-12-21T01:49:00.000-05:00

OK, so I shouldn't even be awake at this point, but I just got some of these pics from my dad from the trip and wanted to put them up. Just a few, but I'll keep putting them up as Dad gets them to me.

Simply, this is me the first night...glazed over and pretty sick of driving, but excited to be getting started. This is at the BBQ restaurant in Memphis. Really, you can't go to Memphis and NOT eat BBQ. Its like getting peanut butter and going without the jelly. No, really, it is...

Me and Dad...both glazed over.

This is far too annoying to do in this structure. I'm posting to my flickr set.

And Exhaustion Sets in...

2005-12-18T22:54:00.000-05:00

Wow.

I've been working straight for over two weeks now. No days off. No breaks. Everyday at least one job, six days a week both the bakery and the theatre, and sometimes bakery in the morning then two shows in the afternoon and evening. Plus I've started rehearsals for my next show. Getting pretty tired.

And pretty homesick. Working like this has really got me missing the ease of finding one of you guys to hang with after a long day. Haven't got that here yet.

Happy holidays to all. Hope the season's treating you with an abundantly joyful abandon. Know how much I miss and care for you all.

Love- N

Opening Weekend

2005-12-12T01:20:00.000-05:00

Wow. I've thought I was busy before, but this takes the cake. I've left SC exactly a month ago today. I can't believe it. It seems like forever ago. I miss everyone so much. But amazingly enough, I'm establishing myself fairly well. I've not only got a "day job" that I enjoy, but there is the distinct possibility of a full-time supervisory position within the next month! I'm working at A La Francaise Bakery in the University District of Seattle. So much fun!

I also opened my first show in Seattle on Friday night! Seattle Public theatre brought me in to SM their production of David Mamet's Boston Marriage in January. However, their SM for their holiday prodution of The Best Christmas Pageant Ever quit on them just after rehearsals began, so I agreed to step into that show immediatly upon getting here. BXPE is the show that opened, and not only has it been sold or nearly so for every performance so far, its projecting to sell nearly every performance! We're doing two performances a day every day up to Christmas Eve, with one on the Eve itself...oy. Quite a schedule.

Then I begin Boston Marriage rehearsals tomorrow night. And did I mention that on my day off from the bakery this week I am attending auditions for another company that I will probably be SMing for this summer. SO much going on. I'm having trouble keeping track.

Cool people here...not meeting people as quickly as I might like, but the people I'm finding are quality. Its been pretty amazing. But there's no one like my 3 am frisbee group, I'll tell you that!

Moved in!

2005-11-28T19:44:00.000-05:00

Quick note: I'm moved in! We got most of my stuff over here to the house today and I started setting things up in my newly painted room!

And, again, amazing housemates. I'm so lucky!

New Room!

2005-11-27T02:46:00.000-05:00

I finished painting my new room today!

I got really lucky. The housemates were already looking at repainting a bunch of stuff in the house, so my paint went on the bill with the stuff for the rest of the house. I still have one more coat to put on the accent wall, but then it will be finished! I start on the bathroom tomorrow!

Hopefully I'll be able to start moving my stuff over there sometime this week. I start my new job on Tuesday, which means that most of it will have to be monday or next weekend. I'm really busy already with the show. I hope I remember how to work two real jobs at the same time. MOTA was so easy on me!

On a more somber note, I finally saw Rent tonight. I cried through 3/4 of the movie and for about an hour and a half afterwards. It made me think about everyone back home and how many of my friends I might lose. For just a second I felt like Roger, running away to Sante Fe thinking he'll find what he's missing. Made me stop and think. I hope this was the right choice. If not, then hopefully I'll get back home too.

525,600 minutes...
525,000 moments so dear...
525,600 minutes...
How do you measure, measure a year...
In daylights, in sunsets, in midnights, in cups of coffee...
In inches, in miles, in laughter, in strife...
In 525,600 minutes...
How do you measure a year in the life...

How about love...measure in love...Seasons of love...

More journeys to plan. Love ya'll.

Hooray!

2005-11-22T18:42:00.000-05:00

I have managed to find a place to live, a supplemental income, and theatre contracts within a week of being here!

I met with Circus today and absolutely fell in love with him and his place. He is a beautiful bisexual with one lesbian roommate and the one straight. I'm meeting Melissa and Kristin tonight after rehearsal.

On a side note, I think I finally completely finished negotiations for the divorce today! Only thing left is the court date!

Good day except for a misunderstanding early this morning. Hope your day went better, you!

Newsflash!

2005-11-22T11:18:00.000-05:00

Front Page Headlines-Seattle Times: Rental Prices Skyrocketing!

Yay. However, I might have lucked out. Yesterday, I met with the super for a couple of different houses in the UW district of Seattle. Neither of the rooms were really what I was hoping for, and one was definitely reaching a bit out of my price range, but the third one he showed off to me would have been acceptable. Really short ceilings though (about 6'6)...I'm not usually claustrophobic, but I would have had my windows open a lot in there. Which is difficult in the middle of winter...in Seattle. :)

Anyhow, we were goofing off, chatting personal a bit while looking at the last room (never hurts to be in good with the super--gets stuff fixed much quicker!). Evidently I passed some test, bc he lowers his voice and says "Look, I interview people everyday for this kind of thing. You're really cool. I think I could live with you. One of my personal housemates is moving out. Her room is medium sized, basement (mmm...not my fav, but wait for it) and cheaper than any of these that I've showed you. " What am I stupid ( no comments from the peanut gallery)?

I'm meeting Circus today to look at his place. MUCH nicer digs than any of the others he showed me. For example, 4 people total in the house vs the 10-15 that were in the other houses. The location is perfect for the places I'm likely to be working as the university district is pretty central!

Cross your fingers...and toes...are crossed eyes lucky?

Safe and Sound

2005-11-18T21:59:00.000-05:00

Just a quick post to say that I'm here, all safe and sound. I've been rushing around, unpacking and meeting people for my rehearsal process (which starts on Sunday! Ack!) and spending as much time with my family as I can before my Dad flies back to the big SC tomorrow. Light a candle for me you guys. Its gonna be a wild ride!

Quickly,

CA was great. The Mojave desert has this rugged beauty that is indescribable. And the drive up the coast is amazing. The cascades are truly awe-inspiring and the black beaches of N. Cali are just beautiful. They don't feel humanized like southern beaches. You can pull off and not see beach umbrellas and souvineer shops. Its great.

Wine country was really fun. Don't bother with Napa--after the movie, they all started charging for tastings bc of the jump in popularity. Go to the Sonoma valley or, my suggestion, the Alexander Valley. We found some amazing wines, but my favourite was still the winery in Albuequerque.

Oregon is beautiful and, of course, I love WA. Dad and I wanted to get some salmon jerky, but the only places we found weren't open yet...it was only 8:30 in the morning. Got to Seattle and am now, as I said, settling in.

Love to all. Hopefully, I'll get a flickr set up soon!

N

Day Three: TX, NM, and AZ

2005-11-13T21:01:00.000-05:00

LOTS of driving. There's really not a ton to report today. Let's see...

-Left Amarillo at 7 am. Uneventful until I discovered around 10 am that I had left my purse/planner thingy on the edge of the bed of the truck...which of course fell off of the side of the bed and was left sitting in the parking lot. Do not fear. There are honest people left in the world. It was turned in and after receiving a text message from Mike in Amarillo, I will have my planner fedexed to my up-and-coming address in Seattle. Oy. But, amazingly, all is well.
-Driving....NM is the most boring state on the planet. The only point of interest is that one section of the continental divide is foudn there just before you pass into AZ. ~7500 ft above sea level. Let's just say that it makes Chicago look like a calm, still place
-AZ is much prettier. It is definitely the western US, so those of you who love the tropical humidity of the carolinas, this is probably not for you. But for me, this is home. A bit scrubby at times, and lots of brown, but it has such a rugged beauty...it really is an amazing region.
-Stopped in at the petrified forest in the northeast corner of AZ. Unfortunately, we didn't have much time to look around, but we glanced through and got some fun pics. Too come, I promise. Again, the west has such a strange beauty. If you haven't seen petrified wood, it is an amazing thing to behold. Its hard to wrap your head around the concept. But its definitely beautiful.
-Stopped for the night in Flagstaff AZ. We could have pressed on, but there really isn't much between Flagstaff and CA. So, we decided to take our time today. Its nice.
-The best part of the day was actually dinner. Flagstaff is a college town (NUA is here as well as the Lowell Observatory) so there were fun independent places to rest for a bit. We ended up in the Beaver Street Brewery, a nice independent brewery with some of the best microbrews I have ever tasted. Nate, just for you, I got an IPA that was lovely. They also had a berry brew that was hoppy with a light raspberry hint that was really amazing. A side salad the size of a small child and wood-fired pizza (well, one slice of it anyway) that was out of this world later, I am back in my hotel feeling fat and happy.

So, all is well after an alternately interesting and horrid day. Worst news, Gas in NM and AZ is unbelievably expensive. We just filled up for $2.56 vx your $1.96. Merry Christmas to me. Love to all!

Armadillo...I mean Amarillo!

2005-11-12T21:16:00.000-05:00

Greetings from the heart of the Texas panhandle! I am in Amarillo TX for the night, bedding down after having driven since about 6:30 this morning. My lovely father wakes very early. As I have already mistakenly called it armadillo twice, I have decided that blogging the trip might be a better use of my time...and less annoying to the natives! The highlights, as I am not that good at storytelling!

-Atlanta traffic isn't that horrible at 10:30 in the morning.
-Alabama is not fun. Scrubby does not equal love.
-Tupelo was uneventful.
-Corky's BBQ in Memphis beats SC BBQ into the ground! A good thing too as we spent an hour and half looking for the damn place!
-Brinkley AK is home to the newly non-extinct Ivory billed woodpecker. If that means something to you, enjoy. We slept there. Woohoo.
-Driving...driving...driving...
-Its migration time for all flying things in the middle of america. No really. I felt like I was in an Alfred Hitchcock film. Thanks Binford. ;)
-Atlus AK is the AK wine capitol. I know. You're raising your eyebrows at the wine capitol in the middle of the country, but the Wiederkehr Vineyard actually has some really good stuff. I should know, as my father and I, lushes that we are, visited as we were passing through at 9:45 this morning. And oh yes, we did a tasting.
-Bypassed Little Rock (thought of the chesterfly as we did).
-OK is pretty flat. Lots of oil rigs, wheat fields, and windmills. Yes, windmills. We passed through a forest of them right in the middle of OK. It is very unnerving to be surrounded by ~ 60 three-tined white behemoths that look like the parents of edward scissorhands.
-Driving...driving...driving...
-Still in OK- The "you'll never get out of here" state
-FINALLY, we hit TX. I swear I saw cowboys herding longhorns across the terrain. Ok, not really, but the ghosts are there. Its eerie.
-TX is home to the "largest cross in the western hemisphere." ... ... ... Of course it is. Pictures coming.
-Resting place for night two- Armad....Amarillo. I had a burrito for dinner that was out of this world and am now sitting in the lobby of my hotel watching honest to god cowboys walk through every few minutes. I'm the one that's out of place...you know, I'm missing the handlebar mustache. Just shaved it yesterday too...too bad.

Pictures to come. Love to all my friends. Miss you desperately!

Getting to know you...la la la la

2005-10-25T08:15:00.000-05:00

No this is not about The King and I, although I love that musical. Anna and the King, the movie with Jodie Foster, is also a favourite. Back from the rabbit trail. So I was just on myspace and saw a getting to know you-survey-thing on a friends bulletin. I hate these because they are always the same questions and they fill your inbox with all your friends replies. NO. But this one was actually a bit unusual, so I decided I'd post it here for the perusal of anyone who cares. No clogging emails from this conscientious chica!

Current:
Outfit: Jeans (if you know me...), brown layered shirt, black sweater, beautiful off white scarf that I just finished crocheting
Jewelry: four silver rings, leaf earrings (fall is finally here!), and my wooden disk necklace from express
Underwear: I could make something up but the truth is I just can't deal with it.
Nail colour: pretty shimmery latte on the toes

Do you:
Lick yourself: everyone doesn't do that? ...
Yell: as little as possible
Hate a lot of people: no
Have too many friends: could always use more
Want to die: not at the moment
Do drugs: prescription pain killers count? ;)
Wear dark colors: ALWAYS
Dye your hair: I've been a redhead for almost three years thanks to a little friend I like to call Feria

Have you ever:
Kissed someone: Is this really a question?
Had sex in the back of a volkswagon: nope
Kicked a dog: Lord! No!
Owned a hamster: again, nope. Had a mouse in middle school that I used for a colourblindness experiement.

When was the last time:
Gotten drunk: Saturday night with Binford, Soprano, SilentNinja, and Helga
Talked on the phone for over 3 hours: That would be my definition of hell.
Had a party with over 30 people: Party?
Stolen something : I stole a CD from work yesterday to burn a playlist for a friend
Caught something on fire: Matches! Matches, matches, matches!!!
Wanted to cheat on someone: unfortunately yes. divorce does give you the urge.
Asked someone out: not usually
Had a dream, then the next day it happened: nope
you instant messaged and who: um...right now. With Binford.

Info about yourself:
What is your birth name? Katherine Noël Parkinson
Height: 5 7"
Shoe size?: 8.5
Brothers/sisters: Ian
Job?: Theatre and then the office job to pay the bills at MOTA

Favorites:
What is your favorite band: mm...at the moment? Toss up between STP, Jason Mraz, and Nickel Creek. How's that for variety?
Colour?: charcoals and dark, bright blues
Soda?: Diet Coke
Music?: see above
Stores in the mall?: ick...um. Express and Victoria's, I guess.
Ice cream?: rocky road or butter pecan depending on the mood
Roller coaster?: any and all. I LOVE them!
Candy: York Peppermint patties...oh yum.

In the last 48 hours have you:
Cried?: yes, actually. The constant gardener is...well, its something else.
Missed someone?: always. Bek, I love you.
Yelled at someone?: nope
Changed your underwear? Again with the underwear thing. I don't wear it. Ok? There, I said it!
Drove somewhere?: Are you kidding?
Talked to someone on the phone?: As I answer phones for a living at the moment...yes.
Been online?: Again, are you kidding?
Smiled?: Yep
Had sex?: Nope
Kissed someone?: Yep
Hugged someone?: And Yep
Last thing you ate?: half a calzone from Mellow Mushroom and let me just say...Damn!
Talked to an ugly person?: I'm sure some of the people on the phone weren't the most attractive.

Have you ever:
Been in love?: don't be cynical. don't be cynical.
Kissed someone of the same sex: Yep, lots of times.
Been in trouble with the police?: nope. I'm a good girl. No! Really! I am!
Hit someone? playfully of course
Broke something?: only 14 times a day. Just call me clutz!
Played strip poker?: hee hee hee
Shot a gun?: Yep
Broke something important?: oohh....yeeeeah. About that...

Okay last questions:

What is sitting next to you? All alone at the front of the office. Reception sucks.
Do you get along with your mother?: not so much...
Been in a plane?: Yay!!! I love planes!!! I fly to Seattle on Monday!
Killed someone?: There was that one time, at band camp...
Kicked your cat for the heck of it?: WHAT!!! NO!!!
Slept during class?: Only every geology 201 class ever
Cheated on a test?: On a test? No.
Are you tired?: I live tired...

There ya go! If its too much info, don't read it. This is my blog. Jeez. ;) Peace, love, and chickengrease!

Horseshoe+3 AM+Frisbee+Lesbians=Good times

2005-10-24T08:36:00.000-05:00

I would write about it, but I wouldn't do it nearly as much justice as Binford (who you have known previously as SBB or Sir Belt Buckle). He has the tools and i'm pretty sure he knows how to use them...check out his blog, the frightened turtle, for the scoop. Hilarious. Lets just say Binford, SilentNinja, ShakespearesGal, Helga, Soprano, and FightCaptain had a great, late time! Almost as good a time as the late night window at Taco Bell!

Postsecrets of the week

2005-10-21T08:16:00.001-05:00

Note that this is the central Mormon temple in Salt Lake City. The tabernacle is located directly behind the temple and a bit to the right, just out of the picture. The angel Moroni is the central prominence on the highest steeple. Though it doesn't necessarily mean that this person left the mormon church, my interpretation of this image would make such an assumption likely.

All I can say is, if that is the case, you (whoever you are) have some balls. Having been born in Utah, I can tell you from personal experience that they don't let go easily. Especially of their direct children. Kudos to you my dear.

The first one I like for obvious reasons--related to the Declaration of Revocation (see previous post).

John Cleese is my idol!

2005-10-21T08:16:00.000-05:00

SBB sent me this link. Its for Cleese's "Declaration of Revocation"--a very interesting spin on British thoughts on those of American status. Hilarious!

No real notes. Dropped into Kelly's last night to say goodbye to everyone at my Columbia Kareoke home. It was, as usual, tons of fun and I actually got to sing! Let's see...last night it was Unchained Melody and At this Moment (What did you think I would give at this moment? If you stay I'd subtract 20 years from my li-i-ife). Good times. Good times.

Story Two: The Temper of the Irish

2005-10-19T10:04:00.000-05:00

This is the other extreme in humanity that I mentioned in the previous post. (NOTE: If you haven't read the post before this one, read it now!!! Continuing from this point may result in paralyzing confusion!!!)

Nate and I headed into Asheville Sunday night to seek out a good dinner and, Nate's favourite, some good microbrews. We found ourselves in Jack of the Wood, a great Irish pub on Patton Ave. And when I say great, I mean it fully. I don't complement bars often but this setting, unlike any in Columbia, felt completely sincere--no contrived atmosphere here. It probably had something to do with the amazingly talented improvised Irish/Celtic music circle that lasted throughout the night and the narrow but well-chosen selection of draughts and microbrews.

Nate and I are enjoying our drink, the music, and the atmosphere when a woman at the end of the high bar we're occupying stands and says to her date, "Here, I'll find out." She promptly approaches us and asks Nate directly, "So tell me--guy with a belly ring. Gay or straight?" Well, fate herself could not have chosen a more perfect candidate for such a question. Nate is an incredibly kind and caring person, and his temper does not often get the best of him, even in the face of such blatent stereotyping--a fact made even more amazing by what you'll read next.

Dialogue
Nate: Well, it depends on the person. But I would say straight.
Woman: (jaw drops and then...) WHY?!?
Nate: Because. I have one.

And with this simple response, Nate lifts his shirt to reveal that he does indeed have a belly button stud. Needless to say, the woman is absolutely mortified. She apologizes for ten minutes, interspersed with drunk whispered insistances to her date that they leave immediately...props to her date for making her sit there while he finished his beer. Nate and I openly laughed at least five minutes after they finally left, but then Nate surprised me with a very serious comment about how angry such comments made him. Understandable. We work in theatre--stereotypes are not exactly our favourite view of people, as our own stereotype is not exactly positive most of the time. It ended up being a rather sobering moment of realisation. Be careful making judgements--they'll probably bite you pretty hard in the ass.

Nate and I, not allowing our evening to be ruined, enjoyed our dinner and drinks and finally, loathe to leave, made our way to our campfire. It was a great night all in all, and hopefully a woman somewhere in Asheville has learned that appearances do not the man make.

Thanks for the memories...

2005-10-19T09:44:00.000-05:00

I love camping. And this weekend was about as perfect a weekend as anyone could find to spend in the mountains of NC. The weather was unbelievable (I have never seen the sky so blue, not even out west), the leaves were just beginning to change, and the company was grand!

Nate and I headed up to NC this weekend so I could wish my beloved appalachia goodbye. I move in less than three weeks (God...three weeks) to the great Pacific Northwest and had to give credit and pay homage one last time to the place that has saved my sanity on so many occasions while I've lived down south. We did a lot while we were maxxing 'n relaxing, but the greatest stories are two that demonstrate extremes in humanity. Prepare to play my and Nate's favourite game: Crush the Stereotype! (wild applause and cheering inserted here)

Story One: Firewood Makes the Best Friends

Nate and I drove five hours on Saturday from N. Myrtle Beach (we hung out with PK at the condo Friday night-gorgeous and a great time) to Canton NC. Sunburst campground, our home for the weekend, is about 10 miles outside of Canton heading into Pisgah National Forest, off 276 between Waynesville and the parkway for those who know the area. I had called the campground to let them know we were running a bit late bc we hadn't been able to find anyone selling firewood. Finally, I pulled into a tiny convenience store off 215 to ask if they knew of any kind-hearted sellers of wood. My friend behind the counter called in a favour and Nate and I headed off down the road to seek our firewood fortune.

Well, after only a few minutes but several turns on roads with names like Possum Ridge Drive and Pollywood Farms Road (names have not been changed) we found ourselves dealing with three men of the mountains. It was impossible for me to understand what was being said at first, but as I acclimated to the accent, I realised that we had stumbled on gold. What, on the outside, was a rather shady situation turned out to be one of the best memories of the trip. Bruce, a very large man who throws wood for a living, not only gave us an enormous amount of firewood, but wasn't satisfied with the wood he had on hand and insisted that he go get some better stock to give to us. While he drove away to do that, Nate and I chatted with Nick, an incredibly friendly and unusually hospitable man who, after promptly offering us beers, proceeded to have a great conversation with Nate about bow-hunting and then we all discussed the local scene. After Bruce returned, I tried to give him $10, insisting that this was not enough and would return with more, however he not only refused the offer, but pushed $5 change back into my hands, insisting that we return if we needed anything at all.

The beatiful point of this story is that these men, if stereotyped as they easily could have been, did not look like the kind, hospitable people that they were. However, they were among the kindest people I have ever met, anywhere and anytime. That coincidental meeting has already established itself as one of my fondest memories of my times in that beloved area.

Tux goes Norse!

2005-10-14T08:13:00.000-05:00

Just call him Thor!

Just for Shlee

2005-10-14T07:53:00.000-05:00

Here it is, my darling. The montage in all its glory!

The pic on the left is my favourite by far. My Lord, that man is fine!

A Few Days Away

2005-10-14T07:25:00.000-05:00

Yay! What a weekend this is turning into! Nate, Patrick, Daria perhaps, some other USC folk (who knows) and I are heading to the beach tonight to stay somewhere that Nate swears is "worth it" though he won't tell me what it is or where we're going! Oh well, anything for an adventure!

Then on to camping tomorrow for a few days. Primitive campsites (no showers! hmm...ick!) but there are at least restrooms. I'm sure the sink is good for washing! Looking forward to tons of hiking and exploring a new area. I haven't been up to the Canton area much, but the guy at the campground swears there are tons of trailheads heading into the blue ridge right around the campsite. Very exciting! I do believe an all-day hike is in order! I need to borrow a camera and take pics...sigh. I guess I could buy film and a battery for mine but its so expensive! Anyhow, enough complaining. I'm really looking forward to a few days away!

On the movie front, I created a database in access yesterday to aid with sceduling. I started working with it by myself before I saw Alex and it made things a ton easier. Score one point for technology. Its great--I created fields for scenes (as primary key), location, interior/exterior, night/day, and then individual character fields to break it down as much as possible. Seems to work pretty well! Hopefully it won't take quite so long to get the scheduling out of the way now!

Out last night with some of the La Mancha crew...well, Kyle and me ended up hanging out and grabbing some food, then he, Lou, Alex, and I met up with Ellen and the rest of the nia crew at Rust after their rehearsal. Chocolate martinis are so amazing! yum...

Johnny Depp's impersonation of BA Smith, famous filmmaker

2005-10-13T07:46:00.000-05:00

I want to be in movies!

2005-10-13T07:06:00.000-05:00

I am in theatre. I hear people all the time bragging about how "when they make a million dollars in movies" they'll do this and that and some other thing. Oy. No.

However, I am currently working with the real side of film. Mr. Smith and I are working through production issues for his latest project "Inside," written, directed, and produced by him. Let us dispel some myths. It is not glamourous. It is tedious. Scheduling sucks, especially when you're having to fit it around ten different peoples' schedules and securing masses of extras and props and costumes and locations... Things are moving along, but I have been rather unmotivated the last few days. I feel bad, but I'm realising how soon it is until I move. Oh well...we got some work done last night and I think we're supposed to be having a tea with jesus meeting tonight and get lots of this scheduling out of the way. Joy.

Poor Nat-on, he won't know what to do with all this when I pass the torch!

Potato Heads

2005-10-12T14:50:00.000-05:00

My dear friend Sir Belt Buckle was bored with his endless computer programming today and made me some pics. I thought I'd share. Their beauty is beyond compare.

I promise I didn't mean to rhyme that. Yikes. Linux really is a curious OS. Where else are you going to find "dress the potato heads" as a system game?

Hello? tap tap Anyone? Anyone.

2005-10-11T14:36:00.000-05:00

Wow. Its been a really long time since I've been here.

Opened and close Man of La Mancha with SCSC.

Finalised my move to Seattle. I leave Nov. 11th.

I fly to Seattle October 31-Nov 4 to shore up moving details and meet with theatres.

My divorce papers are in. Waiting on a court date.

Started buying warm clothes yesterday. Realised how horribly indigent my wardrobe is for the pacific Northwest. I could use an extra paycheck.

Nate is unbelievably sweet.

The filmmaker has me working until the second I leave as production manager.

I've had less sleep in the last two months that is humanly conceivable. I'll never make up the deficit.

I go to Asheville this weekend for the last time unless vacationing down the road counts. I could cry...probably will.

Drama. Drama. More drama.

I miss all everyone already. Desperately.

Attention Hitchcock Buffs!

2005-08-16T08:26:00.000-05:00

Good morning! Forgive yesterday's post--it was a bit more raw than I'm usually going for. Much better in the new light!

I just ran across this interesting time-waster--Basic Hip Digital Oddio (a fun site in its own rite) has a link to "Vertigo" Then and Now: Before and After Images of Various San Francisco Locations used in Alfred Hitchcock's 1958 Masterpiece. The times they are a-changin'! Thanks to Boing Boing for the link.

Slow night last night. Happy Birthday to the great Matt G. who yesterday, in a hosed haze, turned 26. Congrats, my friend! Its been the week of birthdays. Matt G., Ben C., that dude whose name I really don't remember (Kelly's is loud, come on!) and myself. Good times to be sure!

I'm glad no one reads this on a regular basis

2005-08-15T07:43:00.000-05:00

So the birthday weekend is over. I had a great time until i realised that I wasn't really having a good time at all.

All I want is a clear mind once in a while. I tell my friends not to think so much because I know it depresses them. I really wish just one of them would say that to me.

Opening went really well. I think the reviews will be great in The State and so-so in the Free Times. After the huge article in the State's weekend section though, tickets have been selling great. This show has been a godsend for most of us--i really hate to think that it will be over after this week. Mostly because I know I won't see most of the people involved with it again for possibly years.

Finished McCollough's 1776 on Saturday--on to Mein Kampf today.

Hear me roar!

2005-08-09T15:47:00.000-05:00

There are so many ways I could apply that title at the moment, not the least of them being the very definite fact that I am a woman, however I will restrain from extemporizing AKA bitching at the present time.

I am in a horrible mood. I don't know why I feel the need to blog this, but I think i'm hoping it will be cathartic before I have to go to the theatre. No one likes a bitchy stage manager, and I pulled that yesterday.

So, on a different (and at times happier) note, I want to reiterrate how much I appreciate the postsecret blog. The link is on your left- please make sure your mouse is in the right-side up position and click for the ultimate cathartic experience. Every week this guy posts new cards with anonymous secrets. Anyone can send them in and while he doesn't post them all, the point is not that they're posted, but that someone finally knows. This is the heartbreaker of the week.
Don't freak out, I don't think that way anymore...well, not very often. Everyone has their moments. This second one is my favourite of the week.

Off to the theatre. I adore this show, but tech week's a bitch.

Seeing spots

2005-08-08T07:43:00.000-05:00

Try spending your entire weekend sitting in a very dark theatre--going outside is always fun. You forget about that little thing called sunlight. I've found that the best remedy is to not leave the theatre until after dark. That way you avoid sun spots in your vision for the hour after you've journeyed out into the real world.

We got so much accomplished tech wise this weekend. Todd, the LD, flew in to get lights together (and it already looks amazing, just at rough focus!), and we added first drafts of sound (oy, was that a debacle!) and costumes last night. Tonight we get make-up and food props. I have never worked on a show with so many food props before. Its a good thing our prop designer is unemployed at the moment because cooking all the stuff we need is going to be a full time job! Its really looking good though, and everything should come together no problem. Todd wanted me to skip work today to help out--he offered me a whole four cents! I told him that while that was better pay than most theatres could afford and I appreciated him offering to literally pay me out of his own pocket, I didn't think my folks at work would appreciate the skip day. :)

We open friday night! And I'll be 23! Woo hoo! Good times to be had!

Not quickly, but its going...

2005-08-04T14:49:00.000-05:00

No one in the office at all today...only reception people. What is the point of that really? Don't our jobs exist to help the people with REAL jobs? Of course, the phone rings off the hook with people waiting to be annoyed that you can't fix their lives. Oy. I'm smiling, just so done with the phone!

Rehearsal is coming along nicely. I will be deeply saddened when this show is over. Every so often you find a show that you can't help but love, and this show is that for me. Its an original script, AND a history play, AND working with a cast that loves each other. There had to be some good karma coming together to get this show to be as great as its been so far!

I still have to rent a trailer for the great trek west... And who knew that the bank has to hold huge deposits (like insurance settlements for instance) for almost a week. Don't they know I've got bills to pay?

Oh, and I officially hate having to use a laundromat. Ick. Feel free to bitch about any of your own moving stories in the comments section below. :)

And now, for your viewing amusement...

2005-08-03T10:03:00.000-05:00

If you have few moments to waste, check out this site. Julian Beever is a UK based sidewalk artist who does a variety of drawings, but the coolest are what he calls anamorphic illusions. These renderings are distorted over a long distance (think perspective drawings) in such a way that from the correct angle they appear 3-D. And I'm not talking "Oh I can tell that's supposed to be 3-D." I saw this picture and my jaw dropped. I still can't believe that these are flat chalk drawings!

And I just found this site through Boing Boing. All I can say is, I would be one of the best dressed people in Helsinki!

Ah, Progress!

2005-07-27T11:25:00.000-05:00

Problems are the price of progress. Don't bring me anything but trouble. Good news weakens me.
Charles F. Kettering

I don't know that I completely agree with the above quote, but I do know that problems can certainly force progress. Fortunately, Holy Ghost seems to be relatively free of those so far. Honestly, I'm amazed at how well everything is working.

The cast seems to love one another. I thought "MASTER HAROLD" was low drama--this is even better. No one dating, no one fighting, just lots of drinking and some REALLY late nights at the theatre. Hey, its all in fun!

I'm really enjoying working with all of the actors on this show, especially Dylan and Alex. Alex has this fun quirky nature that he brings to Bergen that I don't know I would have envisioned on my own. Dylan is just so young and innocent, perfect for Cetnik, but he's also starting to take his time, make choices and have some fun. He's not nearly so nervous around us anymore and his future's lookin' great.

The Wonder of Different Browsers...

2005-07-20T07:15:00.000-05:00

As if learning code isn't difficult enough, last night I was checking the Holy Ghost blog at Trustus before I headed home for the evening. Lo and behold, the text on the bio page that I had worked on most of the day was placed into very thin columns. Ok, I can handle this. So I check the code...everything's correct. Nothing was changed. What the hell?

Then it hits me--at Trustus I'm using IE, whereas at work and on the laptop, SBB has me firmly implanted in the Firefox universe. Get to work this morning and sure enough, all is fine on firefox but thin little columns on IE. Using my newly absorbed knowledge, I begin adjusting the code for the table width. Several guesses later, the firefox and IE pages look nearly identical.

So here's the question. Why doesn't the code force the table on the firefox page into the same proportion as the IE page? The table was set at 33% of the page--the firefox view definitely did not have it at 33%. What's the point of learning to write code if it doesn't work universally?

So many new things!

2005-07-19T09:00:00.000-05:00

Wow, you guys, I don't know where to begin.

The last few days have been all about learning both new advertising ideas (well, new to me and new in reality) AND more about technology than I thought possible for my little brain. I have been nonstop for the last few days working on the production blog for Holy Ghost. Lloyd is teaching me about statcounters and tags and other blogging devices that i'm still pretty slow on as I am just launching into this, SBB got me into the world of FTP, site admin, and all things wordpress, and today I've been learning more about RSS feeds.

I came in this morning to an email from Lloyd about a site he found that looks a lot like what we're trying to do. Rather than a production diary for one show, its an ongoing production diary for the theatre company he's involved with in LA called the Son of Semele Ensemble. Its a great site and I'm hoping that we'll get the same type of participation from our group that he seems to be getting from his.

The link to the production diary is at the right but here it is as well.

Some other cool links that I thought people might find interesting:

Threadless: cool, quirky t-shirt eshop
Prophecy Boy Blog: SOSE admin Adam's personal blog
Live 8 site: individual performance browsing...All U2, all the time :)
Seth Godin's Blog: a spin on the marketing world--personal and random--lots of fun

Blogging a blog

2005-07-15T15:05:00.000-05:00

So today has been an adventure...to say the least.

Lloyd, my new friend from London, and I have been comtemplating what effect a promotional blog might have on ticket sales. We decided to set up a production journal type blog for Holy Ghost, where people from every aspect of the production can post entries and anyone can check the site, follow the show, and comment on progress.

I love this idea, and think it could really do pretty well. Its fairly experimental--Lloyd did some precursory searching and couldn't find anything really like it, so off we go.

Now I've drawn another friend into the web--let's just call him Sir Belt Buckle, or SBB for short. SBB is a computer whiz and has been lovely enough to host our Holy Ghost site through one of his. I was attempting to set up a blog through blogsome.com through which I was introduced to wordpress. I fell in love with wordpress, but for some reason the blogsome.com people don't allow you to utilize a lot of the options, which makes it pretty confusing. Its also not highly flexible. I knew SBB uses wordpress bc he has a great blog of his own, and so I bugged him with questions until I finally gave up on the blogsome.com site, having realised it just wasn't going to work.

I then looked at blogger.com for a bit, but SBB being the dear that he is, offered to let me host through his site. This way, I'll have a good deal of flexibility and should be able to tailor the site to the specifications I need for the promotional site for Holy Ghost.

If any of you dears out there have suggestions, feel free to comment. The site address will be http://holyghost.frightened-turtle.com/. There's nothing really there at the moment, but hopefully I'll be working on it over the next few days.

And the race begins

2005-07-12T12:34:00.000-05:00

Wow. So I'm thinking about my life over the next few months and have decided that if I don't go absolutely nuts its going to be the best time of my life. Two shows, possibly directing a reading, moving twice with the second resulting in the probable jump starting of my career. I can't express how unbelievably excited I am. Overwhelmed, but excited. And a little scared...but fear is healthy in small doses.

Although, as I think about it, I'm realising how many people I'm not going to see for a very long time, and some quite possibly not again. Columbia has been so great for me and I'm really going to miss *most of the people I've met here. I've made some amazing friends. People from Aiken too...at least I could still visit as long as I lived here. Its going to be such a huge change. But Cola seems to draw people back into its web. Who knows? Maybe all the cool people really do end up back here?

*You never really miss everyone...there's always that really strange guy from that one bar...

ADD is a load of crap.

2005-07-05T09:24:00.000-05:00

When does lack of focus become self-propagating? I've been exploring a blog called gapingvoid.com and it has caused me to start rethinking a lot of my current lifestyle and the ways that I am going about achieving the goals that I have tentatively set for myself. No, this is not a mindblowing, give-you-the-answers-to-the-universe site, its just an english artist being very straight about what he's learned about curviving one's personal creativity. The one simple thing that continues to resonate with me is his unwavering dedication. What he says is good, but what he does is better. He talks about working for years on the simple drawings that are his medium--he does them on the back of business cards. He speaks to the duality required of the creative spirit in a world where money is necessary no matter how much you want your passion (which doesn't have to be any form of art) to be your life.

Anyhow, all of this got me thinking, "What have I been doing?" Yes, I'm finally making a move. Seattle is becoming more of a surity every day. I'm following my dream. I'm taking the initiative to seek out the work, the place where my creativity may afford me a living wage. Yes, I've been resume building since my move to Columbia. That's what I moved here to do, so I have acheived my goal, right? But what I'm uncovering in myself is that one reason I haven't been terribly happy is that while I've been gaining ground on my main goal, and keeping pretty busy doing so, I've let go almost completely the overall dedication that I had to my art, a dedication that I held fast less than a year ago. Had you asked me then if I would ever be so lacksidaisical toward my reading of scripts, or my research of direction, or of graduate school possibilities, I would have laughed outright. These were sacred dealings for me, dealings that had stayed with me through adolesence, through the loss of my voice, through death, through marriage and through divorce. The hope I hold on to in this moment is this--In my realisation that I have allowed these things to diminish, I also realise that they were not lost but that my focus on a personal heirarchy of priorities has been not scattered but rearranged by a search for comfort and security birthed out of an eight months largely devoid of either.

What I now seek to find is how to restore this heirarchy. I understand that I am not who I was a year ago and so my heirarchy may not be acheived in the ways I had hoped at that time, however its levels can surely come back to their rightful places, perhaps with a bit of rearranging. I am scared to move to Seattle to pursue my career in stage management; I am petrified of the pursuit of direction as a whole. But the biggest fear is the realisation that to accomplish either of these things, I will be looking at a very lonely path. Gapingvoid.com related the notion this way, "Nobody can tell you if what you're doing is good, meaningful or worthwhile. The more compelling the path, the more lonely it is." I have let fear remove my motivation, allowed it to cloud the cogent nature of my goals with whisperings of solitary failure. And this cloud has resulted in a complete lack of focus, one that I have used as an excuse throughout my inner dialogue more and more. This excuse is parasitic, worming breaches through my resolve, brooking laziness and self-doubt. I won't bother to keep reading, I'm not really getting anything out of it. My focus is shot. Bull. Now that I've figured out just which horse I've fallen off of, I'm jumping bak on as fast as I can. And we're not talking a white-man jump here. I'm looking for a MJ vert that even Shaq would envy.

When did we get so old?

2005-06-27T09:56:00.000-05:00

So the weekend is over. Life returns to the hum-drum...except for the fact that on Saturday, my little brother turned 18. Now, let me explain--when I say "little" brother, that is in reference to age only. I have for the last year gotten a short complex everytime I return to the home of my father as I, at 5'7", am now significantly shorter than anyone else in my family. 5'7" is average, normal, usually I'm fine with it, but with my mom at 5'11", my dad at 6'1" and my brother now approaching 6'5", I feel like the shrimp that I've always known myself to be. Lets just say that its always nice to leave the land of the giants, though its always a blast while I see them. Of course, this weekend was special because not only do I feel short, but now I feel incredibly old! My brother starts college in the fall and I'm moving to Seattle and real jobs and life...fear will set in any second now. I know it!

Oy! Other than that, it was a pretty restful weekend. I was pretty much a homey bookworm. I had forgotten how nice a whole weekend completely sober could be!

Why is two in the morning so interesting?

2005-06-24T07:51:00.000-05:00

So after a blissfully quiet and homey week, I finally headed out last night per my usual antics at Kelly's Kareoke. Of course, being broke, I stopped in at Trustus first and bartended for the SCGLBT preview of "Take Me Out." Vincent has done a pretty damn fine job with the actors he's had to scrape together. Kudos to him! The set was cool and very functional, but the lighting design is what took the cake for me. Chain link fence gobos are cool as *&(^! Loved them. Couple of things I didn't like so much, but overall it was a really interesting and appropriate design. Lighting in Trustus isn't exactly an easy thing, so MANY kudos to the chick LD! And thanks to SBB for the drunk texts. Thursdays in the vista always makes for a good time!

Oh, so, Kelly's. Right. So I get over there about 11:15 (huge previews = good tips and lots of cleanup) and don't even bother to put in anything to sing. I was tired, but I wanted to see my people! I'm really glad I went bc I found out that a friend of mine is moving this morning to MS! Got a great job offer but hopefully won't be gone long. Good luck my Noble friend! A couple of beers and some especially bad kareoke later, I headed home. The funny part of the evening is evidently I'm more popular at two in the morning than any other time. I forgot to unsilence my phone after the show and woke up to several calls and txts this morning. Lots of love to those late night monkeys!

Just a spoonful of sugar

2005-06-21T12:26:00.000-05:00

So I'm talking to the Chesterfly last night and he proceeds to inform me that he is now very ill with some sort of head cold. He had just finished drinking half a bottle of Nyquil before he called me and was beginning to feel a bit woozy. So I'm thinking, "Great! A head cold is JUST what I needed." ick. I guess that's my payment for this weekend. We then had a great conversation about different medicines and their varied "effects" on the brain, including a lovely little suggestion from a certain frightened turtle friend of mine. Evidently, sudafed does quite the number on the head if the stomach is left empty. Haven't tried it myself, but I'm certain that i'll have a report from the fly on it very soon. Personally, I'll stick to the alcohol.

Friends in high places

2005-06-20T07:17:00.000-05:00

Once again this weekend I abandoned my capitol town and headed to the beautiful heights. This time I didn't head into Asheville, but instead stopped short in the sleepy town of Flat Rock. Why here you may ask? An ex-professor and good friend of mine is working summer stock at Flat Rock Playhouse over summer vacation from the university. He's a simple carpenter...and is absolutely loving it. He joked that everyone's job was his vacation. He's used to being a little ball of stress all year as TD for university theatre--I've never seen the man so relaxed or so happy. We're kindred spirits as far as the mountains are concerned, so he's in heaven living there for the summer. And I'm jealous. But I may just have to crash again from time to time. Good to have friends in fun places!

I met tons of people around the Rock and I give them this: I have never walked into a group of theatre people and felt as welcome as I did there. I'm used to the cliquish nature of the insecure folk that we are, yet somehow these seemed to have abandoned that. It makes me very excited to be moving to Seattle. I can only hope that I find the same sort of attitude there!

Chesterfly and I caught up on old times and had a ton of laughs. Carl Sandburg's home is right across the street from the playhouse, so after sleeping in and taking in some of the mountain air, we headed over to see the home of the poet and songwriter, his family, and his wife's prize-winning goats. Yes I said goats. For some reason Mrs. Sandburg, seeing her husband occupied a great deal of the time with his work, decided to raise milking goats. She ended up breeding some of the most productive milking goats in the world and is still much renowned for it in high society goat circles. It all sounds very elite, however I think I'll keep a fence between the goats and me from now on. While goat cheese is very tasty, I'm just not a farm kind of girl.

We went to see 1776 that night at the playhouse. Comp tickets are the bomb! Gotta love free stuff. 1776 is only my favourite musical, so it was very cool to finally see a live production. I've got the movie version memorised (which is very good if you're interested--Ken Howard as Thomas Jefferson and William Daniels as John Adams) but had never seen it in production. Kudos to the playhouse! Chesterly kept throwing me looks as I mouthed the lines and sung the songs...yes I'm a theatre geek. Mea Culpa!

It was very depressing to have to come home after such a great weekend, but I left in high spirits. Maybe this Appalachian Mountain high will stick around for a while...or at least until I can get back up to see the next production! AM got home last night from a week in Colorado with her parents...both of us were too tired to hang out. Sad. But tonight should be quite the time of stories!

Mullets: The "Why the hell do those things still exist" frontier

2005-06-13T15:07:00.000-05:00

Here it is! An informative guide to mullets, their numerous subspecies, and any and all factors relating to their unfortunate reproductive qualities. Enlighten yourself so you can protect yourself and others from this encroacing horror!

R&R at its best!

2005-06-13T08:59:00.000-05:00

I had a great weekend! Sometimes your weekends are just so-so, you really feel like you should be making more of them...blah, blah, blah. No. Not this time. Friday afternoon I headed to one of the more relaxing places on earth- Asheville, NC. Checked into my hotel and it was out on the town with a native Ashvillian. We caught a reading at an idependent bookshop, then found a gallery opening to some pretty strange and interesting art just walking down the street. We stopped in at the weekly drum circle, which was absolutely amazing! Asheville's always fun for cool shops and stuff, but the street musicians were out in force, and the night was much too beautiful to waste inside. After waltzing the city for about four hours, we finally stumbled into Zambra, this amazing tapas place hidden off a side street downtown. Two hours of conversation, some of the best tapas and wine I've had in a long time later, we finally called it a night.

Of course, we were at again the next morning. The weather held out for us and Chimney rock was calling. We climbed to the summit and then took one of the trails to the Hickory Nut falls. The falls were beautiful and there was a great breeze coming through the ravine that misted we weary travelers with the falls...talk about relaxing. After some great views, we headed back towards civilization. We lazed around Biltmore village for a bit, appreciating the history much more than the shops (most were closed anyhow :) and finally ended the day with a visit to the movies. I must say, Cinderella Man was much better than I was expecting it to be. I hate sports movies most of the time. After this one, I may just have to get into boxing!

Unfortunately I had to head back to the big city after my long day, but a restful day of friends and down time sunday was just what the doctor ordered. Though I still can't seem to shake this cough...

Peace of spirit is worth a lot!

Some little things...

2005-06-09T15:07:00.000-05:00

The mountains are my haven. Any mountain range is beautiful and a place of peace to me. I like feeling hidden and I don't know any better way to find that than to disappear down a trail. Driving from here to the Pisgah national forest in NC below Asheville, you take I-26 most of the way. There is a section just after Spartanburg where you emerge into the first of the foothills--it takes my breath away every time. I immediately relax into the scenery, the air...the openness and vastness of it all. I'm originally from Utah. I took a friend out there with me once and he hated it because he was used to green mountains, which they are not. They are fairly stark, but that's where their beauty lies. Unlike the mountains here, in Utah they jut up out of the flat plains lands at random. Its so beautiful at sunset, to watch the shadow of the entire range creep across the vast valley. Being able to watch that movement is amazing to me.

Other small joys: I like identifying small moments that are just pleasant and comfortable. Taking a shower before going to bed, then slipping into clean sheets is one of the best feelings I know of. Its clean and pure. There isn't anything to restrict you in that moment.

The first moment that you walk out of work after a long day into the fresh air.

Standing in the middle of a deserted field, or any large open space, and being completely alone.

A morning where you wake up and the first thing you want to do is smile.

Enjoying a really good bottle of reisling and feeling just a bit tipsy afterwards.

Getting friends birthday presents they love, even if they tell you not to get them anything.

Random things, but things that make life a little bit better and a little less mundane!

Rainy Days

2005-06-08T08:13:00.000-05:00

Thunderstorms are complex. There are so many aspects to appreciate. I love the movement of the clouds--the way everything get's progressively darker until you'd swear you had jumped in time to the middle of the night. Its this swirling, disorienting feeling that makes it easy to dream. I like the juxtaposition of the lightning to the thunder--all the power is pent up in the lightning, but when it is finally released it is silent. Then the crack of the thunder follows--loud and ominous or slow and rolling--sounding like it should be able to power the world, but its empty. I like the sound of the rain on the roof and the glass, the wind darting in and out of the architecture, getting through the unseen cracks around the windows. Its the power in it that attracts me, and the individual aspects that make each storm a calming moment in life.

I also enjoy introspection. ;)

And the "sharpest tool in the shed" award narrowly misses...

2005-06-06T10:24:00.000-05:00

Ok. Sunday night. Hanging out with AM and the crew and we were tired of the loud bar scene, so we leave Kelly's behind for the Saucer. As we suspected, no one in the joint and we had all the comfortable couches to ourselves. All rather sick of drinking but toting a serious case of the munchies, we snag a menu and peruse the usual fare. Our naughty school girl for the night introduces herself as Erica and we're off and running. Or so we thought. The kitchen was closed due to some kind of cleaning overhaul, however no one nursed their disappointment very long. Erica, as it turns out, was all the entertainment a group of our character needed. The first hint? AM and I are sick of alcohol...way too much over the course of the weekend...and so order a coke and diet coke respectively. The lovely Erica brings them to our table and stops, looking horribly confused. She finally looks at us, almost in tears, and says "I'm so sorry. I just don't know which one is diet!" Right. AM and I each grab one and disaster is averted on first taste. Then, as we try to order she continues her apology, saying "Oh! The kitchen is closed...they brought in some really loud machinery, I think some pressure wash thingys to clean up or something." Right. Pressure wash thingys. That is the technical term.

So, after the laughter had died away, we decide to let her talk as much as possible. AM, bereft of her dinner, calls for a shot and the normal indecisiveness ensues. Finally we decide on a lemon drop with strawberry vodka...except that Saucer doesn't carry this. Of course. Being evil as I am however, I decide to ask for it anyway. Erica returns and upon my inquiry after strawberry vodka responds "Yes...no....wait, um...maybe...I think we...oh...hang on." And runs away. To make a long, enjoyable evening short, the girl brought us a plate of sweet and low rather than sugar to coat our shot lemons and thoroughly entertained us for the rest of the night with phrases like "I just broke up with my boyfriend. He used to hold guns to my head. (Not funny, but we were rather thrown by that one)" and "I was going to USC, but I failed three out of my last four classes, so I don't know if I'm cut out to be a physical therapist." Please God let her be licensed before my next wreck. I can only imagine the hilarity that she would bring to a PT session!

Success!

2005-06-03T07:45:00.000-05:00

So I actually did it. I went and got my first tattoo yesterday at 6:00 pm. It was so much easier and less painful than I assumed it would be. All in all a really good experience. I had previously met the artist and his girlfriend, and when I showed up at their house, she gave me a tour and I played with their three year old while Jay (the artist) drew up the stencil. After that, the stencil applied and dried, we were off to the races. It felt like a really bad scrape, and because it is on the inside of my right wrist, it was progressively more painful the higher up the arm he went. You never use that skin, you know? Its solid black. I'll post pics as soon as I can get my hands on a digital camera!

After it was finished, I headed home, painted myself up, slipped into my fabulous new summer dress, and headed out to Kelly's. Thursday means Kareoke and this was certainly not going to be an exception. There was an unveiling at 10:45 when the bandage came off, and all agreed that the tattoo was very appropriate and well-chosen...whatever that means for a tattoo. My beautiful roommate still couldn't believe that I actually got it done, but she admired it from a distance! ;) All had a great crazy time as always, drank a bit too much as always, and sang and danced like it was 1999!

God Bless the Samoans!

2005-06-01T16:00:00.000-05:00

I know I've already posted once today, but I'm so excited! I'm finally getting the tattoo that I've been talking about getting for years tomorrow! At 6:00 PM I go under the needle. It shouldn't take long, it's fairly small. I'll probably get it done on the inside of my wrist. For the curious, the link will show you what I'm having done. The name is strange but you'll understand once you read the description!

http://www.welltempered.net/adinkra/htmls/adinkra/funt.htm

2005-06-01T09:19:00.000-05:00

The first post! Here goes nothing.

The White Devil of the Mid-US, otherwise known as Oklahoma, finally closed on Saturday night. A cast party and all the normal hijinks ensued and then was followed by a fabulous weekend in Aiken. My brother graduated from HS on saturday (what!) and some family was in town so I came down again on Sunday to hang with them. Of course, I couldn't miss my Kareoke group, so I met up with them at the Junction (ick, I know, but its not so bad on Sunday nights!) and sung the night away. Brad King was back in town and I got to see Kelly, Tom, and Sheldon. Everyone looks amazing, and hopefully I'll make it back down there soon on a wednesday and catch the rest of the crew. Monday was spent lazing around at Tom's house, eating way too much food and once again, singing into the night. Let's just say that this girl got home from work yesterday and fell asleep at 6:00. Twelve hours later, I'm ready to face the world again!