miscellaneous thoughts

Today is just data entry at work, so i'm taking a quick break. It's not so bad; I can listen to my music.

Hip hop was really fun last night. I haven't seen Michelle in forever, and I miss working out with her. In this class, we always stand in the back. My current favorite song is by Justin Timberlake. I don't know what it's called, but he's bringing sexy back. After we learn the routine, she puts that song on for us to dance to. I get very excited. After the class, the instructor comes up to Michelle, Missy (her sis), and I, to ask if we've been before. She's the new instructor and wanted to introduce herself. She turns to me and says, "So, you really like that JT song." I then realize that even though I stand in the back, I am not invisible. There are three walls of mirrors. Also, I don't wear my glasses when I work out. So most of the class is very blurry. But other people have better eyesight than me, and I am not blurry to them. Oh boy.

***

Faith got the mail yesterday. I was finishing some stuff up on the computer, when she yelled, "I can't believe you got this!!!" For a split second I thought I had won money or something, and was very excited.
me: got what?
faith: THX!!!
Apparently, she had just been thinking about that movie two days ago, and was thrilled that it came in the mail.
me: oh, well, you had mentioned you wanted to see it months ago, and it's just now making its way to the top of my netflix list.
It is at this point that her eyes start filling with tears. That was the absolute best reaction to anything I've done on a lark. I mean, the girl couldn't believe that I remembered she wanted to see it, and she couldn't believe that it came in the mail 2 days after she had been thinking about how to get a hold of a copy. That seriously made my day.

***

There is no suspense in the world anymore, thanks to the internet. We tried to tape the series premier of Heroes, but the tape was bad (reason 984 why I miss Tivo). Luckily, you can go to nbc.com and watch the whole episode online. This is wonderful for me, who cannot wait three days to watch it at Bill's (who has Tivo). So, I watch the episode. Did you see it? At the end the nurse kid who thinks he can fly jumps off this building. His older brother ends up flying up to catch him so he doesn't die. The kid is really upset that his brother has the power when he thought he did. So he lets go. That's how the show ends. Now, because I have absolutely zero patience, I immediately went to the imdb to look up the show. The nurse kid is slated for the first 7 episodes. So, clearly, he does not die. I must say, though, I worry about the girl who killed those two thugs and her reflection shushed her.

Caption under Britney Spears photo from msn.com: "Britney Spears' second son may have helped end her feud with fellow singer Christina Aguilera."

You know, I believe this is the real reason behind her second pregnancy...to end this all-too-long feud.

You know how They say you're always sore the second day from lifting? Well, They are not a bunch of liars. I did legs Friday, and that hit me Sunday. I did arms Monday, and that's hitting me today.

My alarm went off at 4:30 this morning. I got my tired bum to work by 6. This is highly impressive, as I am not a morning person by any stretch of the imagination.

15 days until Malibu!

Work just got crazy. We took over this new book of business and have been in a transition. Today I've been in and out of meetings all morning to lay out the next few weeks. For those of you I normally converse with through email all day, I will not be able to do that for a while. Just to let you know. We're also in this mad overtime crunch, so I will be going in to work at 6 am, and putting in a lot of Saturday time. This means that I'm going to attempt to be in bed each night around 9. We'll see how that works out. Probably the first day or so might be hard. But I'm thinking I'm going to be pretty dang tired pretty quick.

I'm also making a valiant effort to get to the gym about 5 times a week. It was easier with Michelle as a partner. But now she lives even farther away. So I'm taking my clothes to work and going across the street. It's pretty boring, but the scenery is nice. I don't have time for classes, and I really want to get into yoga. When I was in college, I had to take dance for a year. I have lost a lot of that flexibility. Hopefully when this overtime thing calms down, I'll be able to make it to more classes.

In other news, I'm getting my hair cut tomorrow. I think this has been the best style I've had. I get tons of compliments from people I don't even know, so it's worth it to me to drive 40 minutes a coupla times a year. Plus, Candy works there, and it's always a pleasure to see her. :-)

16 days until Malibu!

I am going out of town once again in a few weeks. This time to Malibu!! I cannot express how freakin' excited I am about this trip. Caroline and Noor have rented a beach house the past coupla years over Labor Day Weekend. Well, this Labor Day I was in Austin. So I dropped Caroline a note a while ago asking how the weekend was. She said they hadn't done it yet and asked if I wanted in on a room--they had two spots left. Heck yes, I did! And the last person to fill it up is zha! Which means I finally get to meet Mike Sandow, his BFF from film school. Three days in an ocean view condo with a private beach. Um, this is going to be great. Too cold to surf, but not too cold to sit on the beach and be happy with the waves. That Saturday night is the party, which includes a lot of industry people. So this will be my first Hollywood Schmoozefest. I'm looking forward to meeting all sorts of people. And, to be quite honest, I'm also looking forward to hanging out with Foxy Boy, as he will be there, too.

Michelle, this calls for a new outfit. Yes, I am willing to spend money. And I need your help. :-)

Work has been tedious the past couple of days. I'm having to batch and log hundreds of claims in preparation for actually being trained on how to process them. Bo-RING. Luckily, Hagrid is keeping me entertained with the following (p.s. this came out of nowhere. just a random couple of emails):

Here is my prediction on "Ashley and Love". Ashley will meet a guy who she will "slowly" realize over time, with confidence, that she is in love with him and visa versa. They will marry, have baby(s), and open their own theatre/coffee shop while attracting big talent that want to "reconnect" to their craft.

Alternate prediction on "Ashley and Love". Ashley will make her move to L.A. and at once land the best roles of her life while performing improv with Jack McBrayer and others. Many men will be tossed into the trash heap as she burns through her voracious thirst for life and love. She will eventually marry an up and coming director from Wales, live in a castle and star in "Chicago" with Jude Law for as long as she desires. Then she will have baby(s), open an theatre/coffee shop which will be a refuge to big talent that want to reconnect to their craft.

I like how they both end with me opening a coffee shop. :-)

You know who else I'm in love with? Kevin. Anytime he's on screen he cracks me up. Did you see the webisodes? "This is the best day of my life." And his little smile. Kevin was discussed at the PIF meeting last week, and I completely agree with this statement: "When he smiles, it's like he's letting you in on his joke."

Season 3 premier tonight!!!

Last night Faith and I stayed up to finish The Office, instead of sleeping. I am officially in love with Jim Halpert. Not John Krasinski, mind you, but the fictional character of Jim Halpert. Too bad life isn't like a well-written show.

Happy Birthday, Natasha!

The Office is perhaps the best television program of all time.

The Phoenix Neutrino Project

Saturday - September 16th
The Paper Heart
750 NW Grand Avenue
(7th Avenue & Polk, just north of Van Buren in
Downtown Phoenix)
8pm - $5

What is the Neutrino Project?
It is a movie.
It is an improv performance.
It is coming to Phoenix.

We take a load of local artists, get them all together, put a whole bunch of equipment in their hands, place them in front of an audience, turn them loose on the streets of Phoenix, and then blammo!

As quick as you can watch it, they film, score and produce an hour-long movie right before your pretty little eyes.

It's a movie.
It's improv.
It's The Phoenix Neutrino Project.

The Neutrino Project started in New York in 1999 and has spread across the nation. The newest addition to the Neutrino Nation is the Phoenix Neutrino Project.

The Phoenix Neutrino Projects features improvisors from local improv groups Galapagos, Apollo 12, the Remainders and the Originals (plus special guests), and is directed and produced by Mark Jordan of Galapagos.

Here are two YouTube clips from Phoenix Neutrino Project rehearsals to whet your appetite:

Phoenix Neutrino Gets Nabbed by the Cops -
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u8s9gtZNn3s

A Phoenix Neutrino Outtake, "Shoe Phone" -
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hTCL4JX_8NI

http://www.phoenixneutrino.com

---

Hosted By: Phoenix Neutrino Project
When: Saturday Sep 16, 2006
at 8:00 PM
Where: Phoenix Neutrino Project @ The Paper Heart
750 NW Grand Avenue (7th Avenue, just north of Van
Downtown Phoenix, AL 85007
US
Description:
Phoenix Neutrino Project

Klutzy move #496

today i'm helping cassy purge files. this involved a step ladder. well, i'm coming down from said ladder when i hit my butt really hard on the corner of another cabinet. She hears it, looks up at me, and starts laughing. it hurts really bad. like, really bad. bev comes over to see how the project is going and i inform her of my bruised backside. cassy continues laughing. we go about our business for a while, then i get up. she starts laughing uncontrollably and tells me to come back. apparently when i caught the corner, i also managed to rip my pants. luckily i have a long sweater b/c it's always so cold in our office. however, that will not save me from walking from the fourth floor out to my car at the end of the day. is it noticeable? well, it wouldn't be so bad if i wasn't wearing my "sweet cheeks" black-w/-hot-pink-writing underwear.

now, every time we catch eyes, we crack up.

the copier is jammed. i'm uncannily good at fixing things. so i took the copier apart and removed all of the papers. my work continued printing. then it jammed again. what was happening was that the last step--spitting the paper out--wasn't working. so it jams up 8 different places. i put a note on it letting people know what the problem was. virgil is the one who would be able to fix it (i can't get to the jamming part w/o tools) and he is currently at lunch. but i'm watching 2 ladies attempt to fix it. part of me wants to tell them what the problem is, but that's what the sticky was for.

This happens all the time to me. The last time was when I had to call Cox Communications. I almost had a stroke. Now, I'm a bit computer savvy. I know how to reset my modem. Cox has this automated system that they make you go through before you can even speak to an agent. This took over 20 minutes of the stupid voice prompter telling me how to disconnect and reconnect my cables. I had already done this several times. By the time I got a freaking person on the phone, I was so stinking frustrated. Then the tech had the nerve to ask me if I had tried rebooting. ARE YOU KIDDING ME?? It ended up being a problem on their end, and they had to send a tech out to my place to fix it.

When I was 16, my braces were removed. My 12 year bottom right molar was just coming in. The retainer I had at the time had plastic over where my molar was coming in. My orthodontist had to shave off the plastic for the tooth to emerge. But he didn't shave enough off. I pointed this out to him and told him that my tooth was going to grow in crooked b/c the tiny bit of plastic would push it out. He gave me a "Don't-you-tell-me-how-to-do-my-job-you're-16-and-I-went-to-school-for-7-years-for-this" look. Needless to say, my bottom right molar is crooked and I can't stand it. I'm seriously considering invisalign to fix it.

The world makes me insane sometimes.

Stop signs and red lights

In Austin with a car full of 7 people: me driving, Darin/Michelle in the passenger bucket seat, three in the back seat, and Bill in my trunk. We were on our way from Coldtowne Manor to the theater. I blew through a stop sign. No flinching. I just completely didn't see it at all. Plus, you know, the distraction of having 7 people in a 5 person vehicle and all. Well, Darin (of course) does not let me forget this the rest of the week. He even brings it up during the show Monday night as an Armando.

Cut to this weekend: I'm driving down Camelback Rd, and there's a ton of construction. The traffic is routed to the other side of the street. So, on top of there being an insane amount of orange cones/barrels, night time and dark, I'm driving on the wrong side of the street on purpose. I'm trying to figure out where to go next, as the construction has you weaving in and out of stuff, when I realize the car behind me is no longer behind me. It had stopped. Why? Oh, that would be for the red light that I blew through like it was an Austin stop sign.

Sigh...it's a miracle I'm alive at all sometimes.

happy birthday, arthur simone!

hey, for his birthday, you should all go check out his site and buy some artwork!

didn't even try to get to work on time this morning. if i'm gonna relax and catch up with my journal reading over a leisurely breakfast, i'm gonna need to get up before 5:30.

the last two weeks i walked everywhere and swam a lot. got lots of exercise. now that i'm back home, i'm sitting in front of a computer 9 hours a day. ugh. i need to make an effort to get to the gym.

i haven't heard from my director from Demons. and i've decided not to call about it. i will quietly memorize my lines. if they decide to have rehearsals, it's their responsibility to get in touch with me. not the other way around. i've worked on a couple of plays that i've been frustrated enough with to realize it's not worth the effort. i hope this one works out. but if not, at least i didn't waste my time stressing.

i shut my phone off yesterday. it was much easier to be a hermit in OH.

*grumbly*

PIF planning begins tomorrow. After coming off of two weeks worth of festivals, I'm anxious to start planning for April!

It was strange to be back at work after being gone for so long. I forgot how much Barb hated being on phones. I got to listen to her whisper curses at her computer everytime she had to take a call. Couldn't find my badge, still don't know where it is. I remember taking it out of my car so it wouldn't get lost. Now I can't remember my "safe place".

Got David and Renée's wedding invitation. OK, so how modern are they: The stamp was a picture of them! I've never seen that before. Faith had, apparently, but I thought it was the coolest. And the RSVP is online! It's very Jetson's. Oh, and the pic of them on the inside was supercute. I showed Faith the invitation so she could get ideas for her own.

Anyway, life is getting back to normal. I'm off to bed (an hour later than originally intended)(as usual).

I was all excited to finally be home. To sleep in my own bed. To bathe in my own shower.

But then I read her email.

I have managed to destroy one of the two most important friendships of my life.