PHOTO FLASH: 'Tis the Season to be in Nebraska

As soon as I posted my last two Christmas posts, I was excited about writing the third. However ... life happened and once again, I lost track of myself. Now that Christmas is so far behind, I just wanted to throw a few of my favorite pictures from my two-week visit home to Omaha, NE. Enjoy!

Flying over Chicago

The O'Hare Airport is always gorgeous this time of year. I make sure to stop for a picture every time!

Once home, I went straight to a beauty school for a TEN DOLLAR trim.

Layers, man

The annual New Year's Eve Celebration: The Bro and I

We may have tried our hand at Champagne Jello Shots ... pretty good, if I do say so myself.

All my love,
Little Me

Tis' The Season to be in New York City

It's hard to enjoy the beauty of the holidays in New York City when you're working two jobs and auditioning in your off-time, but I managed to find a few moments of grandeur this year!

In the midst of the bedbug extravaganza, we kicked off December by having our table stolen from the lobby on the same day it was delivered. Enraged and frustrated, I wrote a charming passive-aggressive letter to the BOTTOMFEEDERS who stole our table and posted it on the lobby wall.

It was removed two days later ...

Alas, the table was never returned, but luckily in New York City, these things happen frequently. We were able to call Walmart and have a new table sent to us at no extra charge. We got to have our Christmas Dinner after all!

A piece of homemade pumpkin cheesecake
I made for our apartment Christmas Dinner!

Our table!

Then it was time for the Breads Bakery Company Christmas Party. Working for one of the most popular bakeries in New York City is a tough job, but at least they reward their employees with a holiday bonus and a party!

The party was held at a space in Brooklyn, a converted glass factory. It was the most hipster Brooklyn company party I could have ever imagined. A cement floor in an old warehouse with a traditional Israeli band, odd Israeli appetizers, and of course, an open bar. I had gone for the adventure, as I only worked two days a week at the bakery and didn't really know many of the people there. It was an odd night, to be sure.

Another fun event: the girl I babysit was in a figure skating Christmas Show at Chelsea Piers, Manhattan's only indoor ice rink. I had worked at the figure skating summer camp for three months over the summer and loved every minute of it. Best summer of my life! It was fun to return and see my friends from the camp and to see my little girl wear a costume and skate around with a group, just as I had done back in the day!

In the last few days before I left the city to go home for the Holidays, it snowed! The white blanket covering everything really got me into the Christmas spirit at last, even though it made getting around even harder.

6:00 a.m. on the way to the bakery in Lincoln Square, it was snowing!

The next day, a small winter fair set up right in the middle of Columbus Circle.

The night before my flight back to Omaha, I had to snap a picture of this creative Christmas Tree right in my own neighborhood in Washington Heights!

Not quite as fun as my previous holidays spent in New York City, but still a thoroughly enjoyable time! Treasure the times before adulthood kicks in. Nothing is as fun when you have responsibilities to uphold ...

Love,

Little Me

UPCOMING: Tis the Season to be in Nebraska

Tis' the Season of Bedbugs

Christmas sure sneaks up on you when you're working two survival jobs and trying to book a show in the meantime. It makes me miss the days of school, when one could fully enjoy the anticipation of Christmas. When you become an adult, the holidays become more of a chore.

With that being said, let's recap the events of the Christmas Season, shall we?

The Great Bedbug Infestation of 2016

Back in November, our roommate, Carol, began noticing little red bumps showing up on her body. We dismissed it at first, thinking it may have been a rash or a sensitivity to the laundry detergent she'd used on her bedsheets. After about a week, however, we discovered a little flat bug and immediately turned the apartment upside-down in lieu of a bedbug extermination.

The four of us spent hundreds of dollars and two full days in preparation for the extermination. We washed and dry-cleaned every article of cloth in the apartment, and then put everything we owned into 30-gallon trash bags in the living room and kitchen.

We kept the clothes in the kitchen

And we kept everything else in the living room

After all that work, what should happen? The extermination failed. Just days after we unpacked a few bags of clothes, Carol had fresh new bites on her body. Well, we were not about to re-wash everything, so we decided to take our chances and just throw what we had already opened back into the living room. We called the guy again.



Well, after respraying the rooms very well, taking Carol's massive California King-sized bed apart, spraying every single piece, and then putting it back together again, the bites still resurfaced after a few days. By this point, we were at our wit's end. One of our roommates had moved out over the spectacle, leaving us struggling to find a new inhabitant who wouldn't mind a bedbug infestation just before Christmas.

We decided to take matters into our own hands.  Obviously, the deadbeat extermination service the building sent for us was not taking care of the situation. So, after advice from my mother, we ordered three boxes of HotShot Bedbug and Flea Fogger from Walmart. It cost us about $20 total, and we didn't even have to re-wash everything we owned. We just opened the cans and let her rip!

What do you know, Walmart came through for us in the end. We really learned our lesson. If you want something done right, you've gotta do it yourself.

There were no bedbug bites ever again. We re-sprayed the rooms twenty days later just in case any hidden eggs had hatched in the meantime, and now we can officially declare ourselves bedbug free!

Wishing you never have to experience an infestation,
Little Me

Upcoming: Tis The Season to be in New York City

An Attempted Adventure

Yesterday at noon, the family I babysit for called to tell me I didn't need to come to work. I didn't have a problem with it - I have some long hours scheduled for later in the week - and promptly decided that a Monday was a good day for an adventure.

I may have been wrong.

But on a 75 degree day, how could I stay in and rest? After putting the phone down, I spent over an hour researching awesome places to visit in NYC whilst alone. In the end, I didn't come up with anything and went along with my first idea.

A CENTRAL PARK ADVENTURE!

I started this adventure with a lot of enthusiasm. My original plan had been to enter the park at Columbus Circle, where I had never explored before, but a stroke of whimsy struck me at the 81st street stop, and I had to follow through.

I got out at the Museum of Natural History and immediately entered the park. It was here that I first discovered I may have made a mistake in choosing this adventure. People everywhere! This was a day when I was not particularly interested in fighting the crowds of late-season tourists and hyper-active schoolchildren. But, I had made the commitment and had already come this far. I had to journey on!

Within moments of entering the park, I realized with a sinking heart that I knew exactly where I was. How could I have an adventure if I recognised everything? I was at the Delacorte Theatre, where Shakespeare in the Park is held in the summertime. Becoming more and more discouraged about my adventure, I forged onward.

Finally, I stumbled across something beautiful and interesting! On the other side of this underpass lay the pathway to the Cleopatra's Needle monument and, just a bit further, the Met.

Cleopatra's Needle

I hate to admit it, but I didn't actually know the humungous building sitting on the edge of the park was the Metropolitan Art Museum. All I saw was the backside of it. I literally walked in a circle around the entire building - starting from the back corner.
.

A view of the Met from behind

A view of the Met from up front

A nice, long walk later, I was at the front of the museum. On a surprisingly warm fall day, the front steps were crowded with students, tourists, and families alike, as well as hot dog vendors, and street artists.

On the right, artists sell their wares. On the left, a shaded area for all to sit and relax.

One of two gorgeous fountains at the front of the museum.

My small tour of the outside of the Met ended, and I headed back into the park in search of more adventure!

It wasn't long before I stumbled upon what looked to be a large lake. That's not right, I thought, there are no lakes at the edge of the park!

Lo and behold, the Kerbs Memorial Boathouse, the premier spot for model sail boating in central park. Now, when I found this little lake, I realized once again that I knew exactly where I was. I had visited this area with my mom and grandparents back in April, when they had come to see my Musical Showcase. However, because I knew where I was at, I knew what I could visit!

I don't know these children.

There is a statue dedicated to Lewis Carroll's classic Alice in Wonderland located just north of the Boathouse. It is just one of many attractions in this area dedicated to children (and the young-of-heart.) Tune in to Central Park's website and you can listen to Whoopie Goldburg tell you all about this part of the park.

I wanted to explore more, but at this point, I started to feel odd. I was uncomfortable, and my dress was starting to feel tight.  I blamed it on the weather - walking around in the humid summer-like temperatures for an hour could make anyone want to turn back.

I set a course for home, taking very few pictures on the way back, courtesy of this growing uncomfortable feeling, accompanied with anxious thoughts.

This shot of the angel at one of my favorite spots in the park was among my last of the day. I simply couldn't pass up this artsy angle! (no pun intended)

It was just as I was zooming past a group of tourists that the thought hit me - I hadn't taken my medicine that day. I can't remember the last time I simply forgot to take my daily Crohn's medication. Suddenly, the uncomfortable bloating and fatigue was making sense. I sped up my pace and took what I thought would be a nice short-cut around one of Central Park's lakes.

Perhaps it would have been if I hadn't been harassed by a young man collecting money for his basketball team at a more secluded passageway in the park. In NYC, people will ask you to give money for various activities and charities, and the common customs are to wave and avert your eyes if you're not interested. They will usually leave you alone.

NOT THIS GUY.

I tried to pass him discreetly, waving him away. He took it as an opportunity to get right in front of me, wave at me, and get up in my face until I couldn't ignore him any longer. After constantly commenting on how beautiful I was, this man shoved his red folder in my face, asking for me to write my name and how much money I would give to support his team.

I told him the same story a dozen times. I don't have any money. Sorry. I can't help. But he kept trying to talk to me, waving his red folder under my nose, and walking so close, we could touch.

I am not a particularly social person. After my constant quiet and indiscreet replies, he took a negative turn. Asked why I wouldn't talk to him, if it was because I had a boyfriend, if it was because he was black. On this day, after battling the crowds and feeling the growing pain in my belly, I couldn't handle it. I actually growled with frustration, pulled at the ends of my hair, and said, "I just don't like talking to people."

We ran into a clump of people coming the other direction, and he let me go to harrass some other poor young couple. "The most beautiful couple in this park ..." I heard as I literally ran away.

Finally I exited the park ... at the exact same spot I had entered. I had come full circle, it seemed. I sped my way over to the C train and made it home without further spectacle.

After getting some medicine into my belly, I felt better about the adventure. It didn't go quite as I thought it would, but then again, adventures rarely do. I plan to make this a more common occurrence in my ever-growing free time.

An adventure well-had

Here's to the next adventure!

Little Me

A Day in the Life: The Audition Grind

an average day at the office

As a very young, struggling actor just starting out in the business, the first thing you learn is that your job is not to act. Acting is a job perk. Your job is to audition.

Five hours a day, Monday through Friday, auditioning is just like having any other job, with one exception. You don't get paid.

So here's how it works. Over the weekend, you log onto that handy dandy Backstage account you paid a $160 yearly subscription to, and you schedule your week ahead. Scour the site for non-union open calls, and send out your headshot and resume to several projects, hoping you can get an appointment for later than 10 a.m.

Several hours later, you have your entire week planned. You know which auditions to go to, which 16-bar-cuts you're going to dazzle them with, and hope to God you make it to the callbacks so you can do that awesome monologue you've been working on.

The week at the office begins.

Monday morning alarms are set for 6:00 a.m. This gives you an hour and a half to do your hair, throw together your audition bag, get something good to eat, and try not to let the vampires of despair get to you before the audition begins.

You head out to the train with a cup of tea, vocalizing ever-so-subtly as other passengers roll their eyes. You arrive at the audition studio when it opens, at 8:00 a.m. and write your name down on a list with fifteen other girls who have been here since six. Those are the dedicated ones.

5:00 a.m. at Chelsea Studios, lucky enough to be allowed to wait inside for the building to open.

You take as long as you possibly can to put on makeup that makes you look alive. When you've finished, you settle in and wait for at least an hour until the audition monitor shows up to take your headshots and resumes, which you have fifteen copies of in your bag.

It is now 10:00 a.m. and the audition is finally beginning. The entire production team has finally shown up, they're all sitting behind their nice white table with a fresh cup of coffee in their hands, and they are ready to crush the dreams of the 300 girls sitting in the holding room.

The Cinderella Nonunion National Tour had over 300 girls in line before 10 a.m.

A lot of work has gone into this final moment. You've already spent hours on your hair and makeup. You've spent hundreds of dollars on headshots and resumes. You've spent years putting together your gargantuan audition book of music.  And you've agonized endlessly over which outfit was right for this audition.

And now, you walk in with confidence, smile at the directors, point out your cut with grace and charm, and SING.

"Thank you."

Less than a minute later, you're back outside with the other girls, praying that they liked you, knowing that they've probably already forgotten.

Now you're off to your day job, to make barely enough to pay your bills so that you can get up the next morning and do it all over again.

{----}----{----}----{----}----{----}----{----}----{----}----{----}----{----}----{----}----{----}----{----}----{----}

It's the best job in the world. It's the hardest job in the world. Not everyone can do it, but everyone sure tries. It takes a heart of steel to get through the endless rejections, and high endurance to get through the physical and mental stress of running around from place to place each day.

But it just takes one. One director. One day. One song. One moment.

And that's what keeps you going. Knowing that one day, you're going to be the one they call for that job. And you're gonna book it.  And then everything you've been through up to that point will seem silly, because you've finally got that job.

For a little while, anyway. Then it's back to the audition grind all over again.

Love Always,
Little Me

Gradumacation

Why, yes, that is Anthony Ramos from the Original Broadway Cast of Hamilton on the right side.

A little over a month ago, I graduated from the American Musical and Dramatic Academy. 

Musical theatre school is hard. It makes you question your sanity at least once a day, even after you realize that you are, in fact, insane. It demands so much from you physically, mentally, and emotionally. You go through glorious highs that send you plummeting down to the pits of hell during the lows, only to put yourself back together again and repeat the process.

You give up everything for your craft. You choose rehearsal over cleaning your room. You choose to study Shakespeare over cooking a healthy, cost-efficient meal. You choose singing in an empty practice room over a party. You choose character paperwork over sleep. And all these things you choose and sacrifice out of your passion for that which you do.

But graduation was only the end of the beginning. AMDA may have ended, but nothing else did. I still rehearse and study Shakespeare. I still belt my face off. I still audition every moment I can. Not only because I love it more than I have loved anything else, but because I will succeed in this industry.

Upon graduating from AMDA, I signed the lease for a four-bedroom apartment in Washington Heights and moved in with three Brazilian roommates. Then I quit my month-long job as a barista and signed on for a full-time summer position with the Cheslea Piers figure skating summer camp. Now I work nearly nine hours a day, rehearse in the evenings, exercise when I can, send out auditions for anything I fit, and live life to the fullest every day. 

And though it's a struggle, I'm having more fun than I've ever had before in my lifetime. And that's really saying something.

Here's to a lifetime of fun,

Little Me

November 2015 Recap - Thanksgiving Fun!

at our secret spot in Central Park at night as an acting exercise

So I have this bad habit of going into long periods of absence during which I don't write.  However, I've been taking pictures! So even though I may have been MIA for the last few months, I thought I'd post a brief recap of the adventures I've been up to.  Turn back your calendars and follow me as I take a trip back in time to November!

 On a particularly nice weekend evening in November, I headed out for a stroll to clear my thoughts. Living near Lincoln Center is a true blessing during such moments, and sitting in the small park inside the complex while looking out at the lights of the city all around always helps me to remember why I'm here.

 During the hectic stress of third semester, early mornings and late nights at AMDA are part of the deal.  If you're lucky, you may be able to witness a gorgeous sunset through the stairwell windows while you're running up and down four flights between rehearsals.

Thanksgiving!

Even though I didn't have plans to go out or have dinner with anyone (many of my friends went home for the weekend) I still needed to get dolled up for the day.  Nothing says holiday like spending two hours in front of the mirror on hair and makeup!

 The school provided Thanksgiving Dinner for all of the students who weren't able to go home.  Not only was it delicious and satisfying, there were so many leftovers that they sent everyone home with four or five containers of turkey, lasagna, pumpkin pie, and all of the classic Thanksgiving goodies.  It was my lunch and dinner for the next four days! 

 

After dinner (and second dinner) I decided I wanted to try to transform my room into a fairy palace again.  If you've been following since last year, you'll remember when I strung up curtains and lights to make my room my own.  Well this year, I received a much smaller room, and I couldn't find a way to string up my curtains so that they wouldn't fall down.  After three nights of waking up being smothered by lime green tulle, I was forced to take them down.  They were so pretty while they lasted, though!

Stay tuned!

Love always,

Little Me