Photo Hunter: Squeaky

I have never met a swing, particularly of the porch variety, that was not squeaky. Our swing was no exception, yet we still enjoyed employing it for phone calls and the occasional homework binge if the weather was good. In this picture, Rachel is installing a hammock for a couple of days just because she had a hammock for a couple of days. Under the right circumstances, she can be squeaky too.

Sorry for the delay, the time change and diversions got the best of me.

Photo Hunter

Merry Christmas to All

I am writing from the end of a wonderful day, celebrating the beginning of the biggest adventure of all -- the life of Jesus Christ leading to the sacrifice to redeem us all. May the surprises this day brings be full of joy, love, and laughter and pave the way for your own adventure!

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night!

(Mis)Adventure in Trial and Error: Pumpkin Bread

Last year I decided to bake pumpkin bread for all of my friends for Christmas even though I had never made pumpkin bread before. I baked for the better part of two days and let my roommate lick the bowl and while I never tasted a loaf, it seemed like a success.

As early as August, friends were asking if I was going to do the same thing this year. I gave a hopeful response and was fortunate enough to be able to make (and eat!) a trial batch as I provided the pumpkin bread for Thanksgiving. There were pale spots in my bread and my sister told me that my baking soda was out of date. I suspected that it was simply the fact that the pumpkin had not blended in fully since I knew I was having trouble with the mixing.

During the Christmas (finals) baking season, finding time was quite difficult to negotiate, but I managed to pull together a thorough and rather smooth crop. I had an often interesting time trying to make deliveries, and missed a couple of people which gave me a chance to have a appropriately meal-like snack for the long plane ride (on an airplane that naturally served very edible food). Ah, success.

Then...

I arrived at my Mom's and found that she was making pumpkin bread for the staff at her office. We agreed that it was a wonderful, simple gift idea for large masses of people and I watched as she gathered her supplies together including...a mixer. A MIXER? Who knew that you could use a mixer? All of my embarassment and woes and right-arm-muscle-soreness could have been prevented by a simple technique. A mixer. Anyway, the one inherant and unavoidable problem with pumpkin bread is the 50 mins that it takes to bake, so Mom could not finish all of her batches at a time. I offered to finish the last batch so that they would all be ready on the same day. I was pumped to start another round of baking armed with my new knowledge. Here's the result:

Terrible!

Worse than any of the others!

Mom said it tasted good though.

Breaking The Silence

After several weeks of neglect, I am now ready to revisit this blog and give an update on my life that is not given in a picture based on a theme.

Major Event 1:
Cyrano de Bergerac finished up two weeks ago and the performances were impressively smooth. The techs and dresses had been a long and painful process, then the storm suddenly abated. There were a few minor problems throughout, but overall it was quite graceful until our last performance. During the first act, the pit was lowered partway with a step unit leading in and out. At the very end of the act, I was supposed to raise it from backstage so that Cyrano rose while delivering highly inspirational lines and epic music swelled in the background. There is always a moment of hesitation between me pushing the button and the pit raising in which I would never breathe. That last day, my breath was stopped for too long and I realized that the pit was stuck. I ran quickly to the basement and checked the settings - everything was correct. We had an emergency setting for Act 2, so the play proceeded as if nothing was wrong. I flipped the breaker off and back on and we tested the pit during the action. It was working again. For the next scene change, I took a run crew member onstage and we took off the step unit. Awkward! Afterward, we took apart the set and walked away--Cyrano is finished.

Major Event 2:
Finals. A few synonyms: nightmare, delirium, ordeal, tribulation, thorn in my flesh, and, because Merriam Webster gave it to me, bummer. My list at the beginning of the week read 21 projects in 4 1/2 days. The main point is, I survived.

Major Event 3:
I told several of my friends that it would not be enough for me to leave town for Christmas, instead I needed to leave the country. The fortunate happenstance and the basis for this almost-joke is that I am indeed out of the country. Last Tuesday my sister dropped me at the airport for a 24 hour trek to the far east. Emphasis here should be placed on "far." After another delusional day, the semester's woes have finally worn off in exchange for days with the madre, seeing the sights, shopping, and sitting at the apartment. Of course, there are office lunches and a girls (should that be girl'z?) night also in the mix. Now, I am cozy and snug and enjoying the big city life that is decidedly NOT America.

It is likely that I will write again soon, now that vacation has come, but I might be visiting pandas or having tea at a fancy hotel. Regardless, stories and pictures are sure to follow.

Photo Hunter: Wide

For me the most wondrous and widespread thing on earth is the ocean (specifically the Atlantic). So here is my niece and I standing at the brink of the greatest Wide I know.

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Photo Hunter: Favorite

Here is yet another word that's virtually impossible to pare down. The first shot that came to mind is one of my favorite pictures of some of my favorite people...Hayley and Lisa, my theatrical counterparts.

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Photo Hunter: Breakfast

Our breakfast at the ever classy KFC before visiting the Great Wall of China. These little pastries had quite a lot of energy packed in though, as we did an extreme amount of physical activity and did not become hungry again until late in the day. Maybe not the breakfast of champions, but definitely the breakfast of intense sightseeing.

Photo Hunter

A Man's Gotta Do What A Man's Gotta Do

Being an assistant stage manager (ASM) can require you to do some strange or difficult tasks. Mostly my job includes the normal stuff: setting up the stage for the beginning of the show and intermission and setting out props. However, some of our set pieces are monstrously heavy. At first it was difficult for me to move these without help, but as the show has progressed, I have become stronger and can lift some of the heaviest pieces on my own. I feel quite hardcore.

In addition to my increased strength, this show has some odd requirements which make me feel rather manly. For a short time in the middle of Act IV, one of the characters smokes a pipe which must be lit offstage and handed to the actor. It is my job to make sure that the pipe is lit at the proper time and stays lit until it goes onstage. Later on in the act, the other ASM and I are responsible for the live gunshots. We shoot several series of blanks in the hallway that mix with the recorded gunshots and cannon sounds and underscoring to produce one rather epic stage battle.

This new level of being hardcore has led me a couple of times to push myself a little too far and fortunately adrenaline carries me through. Sometimes the lifting is undesirable, but when it comes down to it, an ASM's gotta do what an ASM's gotta do and I'm the girl on the job.

MY ROOMMATE'S BACK!!

To quote my favorite line in Cyrano:

"You're not sad anymore!"

So true. Christina's back!! My apartment is no longer empty!!

Photo Hunter: Metal

Whew! I barely made it! This is an awkward topic for me since metal has a rather negative conotation for me, but I thought I'd go ahead for something fun. This was one of my leaders on a mission trip to Juarez, Mexico. Pretty hardcore, I'd say.

Ugh. This week is show week and the last week of classes with LOADS of work. Also, my roommate is coming back tomorrow! I don't know how communicative I'll be, but show stuff will actually be lighter this week than it was last. In case I don't get a chance to get back until the next photo hunter, have a wonderful week!

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Photo Hunter: Reflection

This is one of my favorite pictures that I have taken. Ever.

My friend Lindsay as we are getting ready for a theatre banquet our freshman year of college. I like how Lindsay looks as though she's lost in reflection.

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[Enter Brillance Here]

Boy, oh boy am I tired. This has been a long, crazy semester. I have been running like never before just trying to keep up, and hoping that I can help my friends stay afloat as well. I feel like I haven't had any adventures lately -- either that or I've had too many, I can't remember. There have been several laughs and jokes and ironies, but none of which make sense to anyone outside those involved. I guess I really just wanted to check in and say I'm not dead (at this point). And since this is a random, uninteresting, and unintelligent blog post, I'm going to add a picture simply because I like it and I like having pictures on my blog. Done and done.

Last year's roommates on the playground at Cameron Park Zoo. Good times.

Photo Hunter: Ruin(ed)

In the world of theatre we usually take existing materials and adapt them to our purposes. This can lead to some interesting shopping trips, asking for products that look or can be used a certain way regardless of the objects intended purpose. This summer, we needed a floor made of old and weathered looking lumber. Fortunately, one of the cast members has an uncle who is a fire chief and was in the process of burning some barns that were completely ruined. We were able to take a trip to one of these barns to take some wood before they burned it.

The trees had grown up around it so closely that we could not even see the barn from the road. The wood was nasty and falling apart and filled with rusty nails (which can go through tennis shoes, by the way), still this was one of my favorite days of the year. The magic of theatre is that this ruin became a beautiful set.

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Photo Hunter: Together

Last year I lived with three girls in a two-bedroom apartment. We had many adventures, but we also had difficulty doing anything that involved all four of us. The only outing that the four of us went on together was bowling at our Student Union Building right around Halloween (although one roomie had to bring homework while the rest of us bowled). We had just recieved Halloween goody bags from my past and current roommate's mom, so we all wore our festive socks for the outing. This is the only picture of the four of us together.

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ANT-ics

This apartment has taught me about the habits of ants -- although I cannot claim to fully understand them. First, I learned that they have the ability to get drunk, something that was somehow unexpected. Now, I have found that they prefer to live in my computer than my sugar. While it's true that this choice is preferable to me as well, it is disconcerting and strange to be typing along at a pleasant rate and have an ant crawl out from between the keys.

The Making of Cyrano de Bergerac

I am currently working as the assistant stage manager for Cyrano de Bergerac. It is a fantastic play and story and I highly suggest that everyone sees this play or at least becomes familiar with the plot sometime in their lifetime. If you are interested in seeing behind-the-scenes features or if you want to see what's going on in rehearsal, my director is putting together a series of video blogs. I am including the link to the most current video, but all the videos can be found easily on youtube.com by searching for "Baylor's Cyrano." Enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kDsP6InNOt8

Disclaimer: The part of the video that I am in was filmed the night after my first all-nighter with Rebecca. Rebecca is dancing off screen.

Happy Birthday!

Happy birthday, Alana! I love you!

The Great All-Nighter

When I was in junior high and high school my church youth group had a thing called the Great All-Nighter each year. It was a big event involving hundreds of students from about 12 different churches. There would be speakers and entertainment then we would go to the university's rec center and play games all night long. There were donuts in the morning so it was an exhilirating night of delerium and was awesome to stay up and be with friends.

College also has Great All-Nighters. They just happen differently.

Tuesday, my friend Rebecca and I were working on our lighting project and decided that the best way to get stuff done would be to work through the night. We took turns programming and sleeping, so I left on Wednesday morning having slept from 2am-4am and from 7:15am-8:00am. When I left, I was amazed that there was light outside!

Thursday, I had an involuntary all-nighter. I went to bed at midnight, dozed for about a half hour. I was wide awake after that so when I heard some theatre friends in the parking lot outside my window around 3am I decided it was worthless to just keep laying in bed, so I got up and did a couple things before finally sleeping from 6am-8am.

Tonight, I am sitting in the light booth again, with a pillow and blanket at my disposal. I have actually FINISHED my project (it may need a little tweaking, but it's complete and presentable where it stands). My friend, Hayley, will be programming most of the night, so I am keeping her company. Fortunately, there is more sleeping and less homework ahead for me this evening...I hope.

Photo Hunter: Blue

I knew exactly what picture I wanted to use this week. During a workday on a spring break mission trip to Juarez, Mexico someone pointed out that Anna's shirt matched the wall. She ran up there to be camoflauged so I snapped a picture. I love the colors, the random objects included in the shot, where the shadow falls, and Anna's smile.

This second one I found on my way to Anna's picture. This was also taken in Juarez, right outside our hotel.

PhotoHunt

All Should Know

I am so incredibly close to being DONE with my lighting project. I did not think it was going to happen, but I just might finish! Huzzah!!

Preparing for the Winter

I want a coat rack. You see it in the movies and in plays all the time and it looks so elegant. Also, there is plenty of room between our front door and our couch to comfortably have a coat rack. I have visualized myself many times coming in from a day of class and rehearsal and stopping by the door to take off my coat and my scarf and placing it on the conveniently located hook. I am rather fond of the image it creates.

Recently, I needed to improvise. I am a complete wimp when it comes to cold weather, so I wore my pea coat on Friday even though it's barely past the "chilly" stage. When I got home, I did not want to hang it up in my closet because I expected to use it again the next day, I did not want to toss it on the floor for obvious reasons, and I did not have the folding chair that normally sits at my desk since it was used in my scene and has not found its way home yet. However, I did have the vacuum cleaner sitting proudly, but unnecessarily in the middle of my room. The handle was at the exact right height and the pea coat hung quite well on it. I was also highly amused every time I checked the time Saturday morning and saw my pea coat on my vacuum cleaner. So I am hopeful; if my dream of owning a coat rack is not fulfilled I know I can supply a suitable substitute...that is, until I need to vacuum.

Spike Heels

I did it. It's over. I have now been a director.

Yesterday was the day of truth when our scene was performed for the department. I am very proud of the work the girls did and I think it was a huge success. There were some awkward things like a drink being spilled and the audience laughing at points we did not expect. Also there is a lot of pressure in workshop to do it right since the scene is only performed once. In spite of the small slip-ups, they did a wonderful job and I could not have asked for better! I was also fortunate to have an extreme amount of time for my tech. The group before me had to finish early, so we pounced on the space and set up as soon as they left. That meant we were able to have everything set and ready to go at the time we were supposed to begin instead of fifteen minutes in. That meant that I was able to run the show twice, taking pictures during one run, work some problem areas, take some staged pictures, and get out early. That NEVER happens! The blessings of this were 1) we left feeling confident because we did not need our whole time 2) we left feeling refreshed because we were supposed to finish at midnight 3) I have plenty of pictures to share.

"I'm the big success story. I moved to Boston, I work in a law office and they have no idea what that means! It means I get to read books I don't understand."

"I'm sorry."

"I think you'd better finish your drink."

"He's the best man I've ever met and he's not good enough for them."

The beginning of the dance. Lydia feels awkward.

The end of the dance. Lydia has finally relaxed.

Photo Hunter: Scary

I noticed that all of my other photo hunter posts talk about how difficult the word is. So this week, I want to say that finding a scary picture was easy. The first one is some dorm fun from freshman year. Scary how time flies!

For the next one, airplane food is always scary but there's something about reconstituted soy beans that is even more frightening than usual.

PhotoHunt

Don't Stop Me Now

Tonight we had the best rehearsal ever! Last night we had a strong run-thru then had to redo one moment many, many times which was wearying. This afternoon we had our dress rehearsal and I think both of the girls were tired (I know I was). The first run dragged without energy and felt strained. We reworked a few moments then I had my girls improv what happened directly before the scene and continue into the scene itself. The girls were slow at first (as was expected) but they soon got into the game and the scene started with a level of tension that we had never had before. They never lost their energy and tension through the shifting emotions of the scene. We were energized and confident and I know we will be satisfied no matter what happens on Friday because we have performed the scene at it's best. I am excited for workshop and so proud of my girls!

At the end of the scene there is a dance. We played with several different songs and styles of music, trying new things each night. We finally chose "Don't Stop Me Now" by Queen which is a highly energizing and empowering song that is fun to dance to and describes the character of Georgie and also our work on the scene. "Don't stop us now, we're having such a good time, having a ball!"

Photo Hunter: Family

For me the term "family" is quite expansive. I was terrified by the thought of digging through the hundreds of pictures of my family and having to choose only one. Or two. Or thirty. However, somewhere in the course of my weekend, although I can't be sure if I was waking or sleeping, I was struck with inspiration. Baseball. When I was a child, we went from Florida to Texas to my aunt and uncle's house where all the family that could met for Thanksgiving and each year we would all get together and play baseball in the back yard. We do not meet like we used to, but my nephews are completely enamored of the sport. This is a picture of my nephew, David, and my cousin, Ben, playing baseball together last Christmas since baseball has been my family's sport for as long as I can remember.

PhotoHunt

You Can't Teach an Old Dog New Tricks

Okay. That's fine. The old tricks work quite well for me. In fact, I am learning at this point so I am not planning to teach anybody anything. I really don't feel like I'm asking for too much.

Here is my first request: Light, turn on.

Unfortunately, this is too large a task for our archaic lighting instruments.

As a part of our lighting design class we must design a moving light show (sometimes called Roboshow) to 3-5 minutes of music. For the past 10.5 hours at least one person in our class (and at least one lighting staff member) has been trying to make the lights work. The good news is we had a school holiday today so we had the time to deal with it. The process is slow and somewhat excruciating, but the project has a lot of value and should produce something I can be extremely proud of and enjoy.

For now, the conclusion of the day is this: You can't teach these old dogs old tricks!

On a lighter note, my friend made up a lighting joke today. (Background: when a light is on at its highest intensity it is at "full," so a lighting designer will ask for a specific light at full).

THE JOKE: What did God say when he created the world? Sun, at full.

Bleagh

I am as













as a














but recovering.

I took the day off to rest up so that I can be strong and alert (or at least awake and functioning) to do my HODGE. And my lighting presentation. And my unit estimate project. Who knows? Maybe being sick is a blessing in disguise, a chance to get work done while there's daylight. We'll see.

Maybe I'm Easily Impressed...

...but this boy is really defying gravity!


I just felt the need to share :)

Photo Hunter: Lazy

This was the HARDEST subject for me! "Lazy" simply does not exist in my vocabulary (not in a positive way at least). I found examples of "restful" and "relaxing" but still "active." I did manage to pull out two pictures that could represent lazy. The first is of my cat, Hanes, who is staying with my brother and sister-in-law. Generally, she only plays with toys she does not have to chase and even in this shot the squirrel is almost too far away.

The next picture was taken at a Christmas party I went to last year. We arranged the candy canes artistically, but still wondered about the presence of a pumpkin at a Christmas party. Apparently, someone was too lazy to go to the trash can!

PhotoHunt

Beginning Directing: You Must Call Me Sister!

In order to graduate with a theatre degree, you must take at least one semester of directing. Each director presents a scene in front of the entire department at Workshop. We are split up into groups so that about five scenes go up each Friday. The seniors (advanced directors) and grad directors also stage scenes, usually one scene at each end of the semester. I am in the beginning class and part of the Group 3 Clan, meaning that our rehearsal period started this Tuesday, October 7 and our scenes will be performed on October 24 (the next Workshop).

There are all sorts of parameters for these scenes, but for my class, we must take 5-7 minutes of a realistic play, using a scene that has only two characters. Our rehearsal period is two weeks (my group has longer because there is a random Friday holiday during our time - the actual number of rehearsals evens out) and we can rehearse an hour a day. Also, we must cast at least one freshman or transfer student.

My scene is from a play called Spike Heels by Theresa Rebeck. It is about a low-class girl (Georgie) who tries to "make it." She moves to the city and meets a man (Andrew) in her apartment building who tries to help her by getting her a job at a law office and teaching her how to act in society. In his effort to help her, he winds up losing sight of her humanity. The scene takes place between Georgie and Andrew's fiancé (Lydia). Lydia has come barging into Georgie's apartment (this is the first time they meet) and degrades Georgie while accusing of having a fling with Andrew. Georgie retaliates and Lydia apologizes saying she was only upset because Andrew postponed their wedding. Lydia tries to leave, but Georgie convinces her to stay and they both lament the fact that the men in their lives can't help but be insensitive. The scene ends with them dancing as a way to unwind.

In The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde, Jack says to Algernon that his fiancé and his niece will call each other sister within thirty minutes of meeting each other. Algernon responds, "Women only do that when they have call each other a lot of other things first." Later, we are given the opportunity to see the girls brutally fight each other over a misunderstanding, then when the truth is revealed they find comfort in each other and they must call each other sister for they share the same suffering. This is my favorite joke in that play, so I am thrilled that it matches the plot of my scene.

An awesome scene is all good and well, but directing is new, awkward, and intimidating. My blessing is that my girls are great to work with and I feel like we are making very good progress. I will probably give a couple more updates, and certainly an update (with pictures!) at the end. In the meantime, wish me luck in a theatrical way!

Photo Hunter: Sad

I love taking pictures and having pictures and sharing pictures with anyone who'll pay attention. So when my sister (Rachel) began playing a photo hunting game - a game where you post a picture a week based on a theme - I knew it would only be a matter of time before I was also drawn in. Interestingly enough, my other sister's (Julie's) blog is dedicated to her photography, particularly in capturing everyday life (and quite beautifully, I might add). I guess it's just in the family!


This week's theme is sad. It was much more difficult than I imagined, but this made me more determined to join this week. I dug through almost all the files on my computer finding smile after smile and several beautiful landscapes, but no frowns. I was interested to discover that some pictures have a beautiful face, but have come to symbolize loss. This one however, has a wholly depressing appearance yet fell in the middle of a rather ironic adventure.


Points of interest:
-the keys sprawled casually upon the seat
-the lock jammed firmly closed
-the flash from the last picture my camera took before the battery died in such a way I thought my camera had completely cratered

Sad day!

Happy Birthday!

Happy birthday, Shery! Hope it's been great!

Problem Solving

Sometimes in college you make the choice to buy gas instead of bread, a textbook instead of a LeanCuisine, or a crossword puzzle book for the person spending 6 hours a day making your project look good instead of milk. Then you find yourself on the first of the month, waiting for a check and looking at a surprisingly bare refrigerator. What happens at this juncture? Creative cooking!

My food stores:
A Brita pitcher
One bottle of Gatorade
Lil' Smokies
Breakfast sausage
1 can of Pillsbury French bread left by my roommate
1 can of Pillsbury pizza dough left by my roommate
Chicken sandwich meat left by the roommate
Some cheese (shredded and sliced)
Spaghetti sauce
Cookie dough
Butter
Pineapple
Pancake mix (filled with ants)
Ritz crackers (afraid to open because of ants)
Peanut butter
Some spices

The options are limited to clogged arteries, sugar rush, and condiments. Anything remotely useful is immediate bait for the ants. After a day or two of contemplation (and one vivid dream -- although in the dream I at least had tortillas) I came up with a solution: Cheese Pizza.

Start with Christina's pizza dough. Add spaghetti sauce. Next add the rest of the shredded cheese and three whole slices of cheese. Eat the last slice of cheese separately. Bake. Let cool. Enjoy. I just pulled it out of the oven, and it is actually successful!

Any other suggestions?

Blackouts

This Friday, my first show of the semester was performed. The show was produced for our workshop, a department wide tradition in which the various directing classes show their work. Each Friday there is a different set of directors, presenting scenes from different types of plays. This past Friday was for the second year grad students to produce a post modern scene. As part of my own course work, I did the light design for 70 Scenes of Halloween. In any production, with light design comes blackouts and with blackouts come hilarity.

Example 1: As a class we got together to hang the instruments for the scenes (there were actually two scenes) and to focus the lights where we wanted them. I was on the ground trying to focus the lights and decided to trade places with the other designer, Tyler. As I walked backstage it was completely dark, but it was not until I hit the door frame of the free-standing door unit that I realized anything was in my path. I was so surprised to find something in my way that in order to get a feel for the object I simply pushed the door open and hugged the frame. Impressively, I had managed to straddle the giant brace on the side that I should have tripped over before reaching the door itself. My friends in the catwalks had no idea what happened and were calling to me, but I didn't know what to say, so I didn't say anything. They all thought I had crashed into something and broke my face! This was all good and well until my professor mentioned it in front of the whole cast during tech. Thanks, JoJo.

Example 2: Most directors want a true blackout for transitions, then realize that they need some sort of glow for the actors to see. The glow was even more necessary this time since the girl moving around during all the transitions was wearing a sheet as a "ghost". When we were adding the cues for the first time, I did not have time to add the glow to all of the blackouts before the run started and it was difficult to find the buttons quickly to fix the cues as they came. The poor girl with a sheet over her head kept crashing into the chairs and walking very confidently into the curtains. This was all good and well until my director told her, "Every bruise on your body is Sarah Chanis' fault." Thanks, Dan.

Overall the show was a success and the lights were fun. Thanks, friends!

Missed Calls

Tonight I as I was digging in my purse I discovered something that made my heart skip a beat: I had left my cell phone at home. After the initial and terrifying discovery, I reminded myself that it probably healthy for me to be without my phone every once and a while. After all, I had spent the previous three hours without it, I could leave it a couple hours more. If anyone called or texted I would be able to see that when I got home and respond then.

When I walked into my apartment, there was my phone sitting on the coffee table. In an effort to detach myself further from the Compulsive Cell Phone Disorder, I refrained from checking it immediately. A minute or so later I heard the satisfactory beep altering me to two missed calls. Both were from the number Unavailable which I knew immediately was my mom. She is the only person I cannot call back since it is actually a Skype number. I won so much ground in my fight against cell phone addiction and I actually missed the call I needed to answer right away and on a rare occasion when I could have talked to her. Sad.

This story does have a happy ending though! I emailed my mom right away to tell her what happened and a few minutes later I received a call from Unavailable. She has the day off today (tomorrow?) for the Midautumn Festival and was able to call later in her day and talk for a while. How long? 40mins 54 secs. When does that ever happen? I am the luckiest girl in the world.

Song of the Week

Hello. The song of the week is Music Box by Regina Spektor. It is an incredibly random song that has no real connection to the week or to much of anything for that matter. The music is fun though, so enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gjWoOk53joM

Audition Season

The first few weeks of school are always filled with auditions for various things. On the first day of class there were auditions for the two new grad students and at the end of the week there were auditions for the opera (people from the theatre department, myself included, will work for the opera, but the majority of it is produced by the music school). For all those in a directing class, myself included, there is a general audition of all the freshmen, fondly known as "cattle call". Lastly, we had auditions for the next two theatre productions which have taken place over the last three days.

The hall overflows with nervous students dressed in heels or ties. Intense.

Normally sophomore designers are in charge of running the auditions, but since we only have half of one, the first thing my professor said to me this year was, "Could you run cattle call?" This was closely followed by, "How was your summer?" He asked me three times, and each time I said I could not attend. He finally roped me in to help run auditions for the opera and for Eurydice (our next mainstage show). My job is relatively simple: collect the forms the actors need to fill out and answer the repetitive questions that are coming at me rapid fire (while smiling calmly of course). I personally find it fascinating to watch the actors deal with their nerves. Some pump themselves up by singing hardcore songs, some shake out their hands, and all of them pace and mutter to themselves. In fact, I love being out on campus on an audition day and finding an actor reciting a monologue to themselves while walking past the library or science building.

Audition Season is an interesting part of our lives. Hours are long and tensions are high. Yet auditions are a pivotal part of theatre. As my professor says, if the stage manager (SM) makes the actors comfortable at auditions they will perform at their best, which allows the director to put together the best cast, which allows the show to be good, which allows a show to run for a long time, which allows the SM to have more paychecks, which allows the SM to become independently wealthy. Basically, if auditions go well, the SM will become independently wealthy. Therefore, Audition Season provides me with many opportunities to perfect the art of becoming financially secure.

A Perfect Day

It's not today, but yesterday. Yesterday one of my childhood friends got married (on her parents 28th wedding anniversary). Getting to the wedding was an adventure in itself, but it was worth it!

The ceremony took place in Pensacola, FL, a long day's drive from Texas. Fortunately, a Baylor friend, moved to Pensacola three weeks ago so I was able to stay with Michelle. I left Baylor on Thursday evening and stayed with a friend an hour-and-a-half down the road. We wrote papers together while listening to music on pandora.com, then I took off early Friday morning and made the trek to Pensacola. Michelle had a home cooked meal waiting for me and we chatted it up for a while before turning in early.

Saturday: my perfect day. Neither Michelle nor I set our alarms, so we woke up naturally and lazily. We got ready slowly, had a late breakfast, and I even managed to get a good start on a project. The wedding was in the afternoon and when I got there Elisa's dad noticed me straight away and took me to the bridal room. Elisa was precious, repeating the question, "What time is it now?" The ceremony was beautiful, if surreal, and the reception was very enjoyable. After I got back to Michelle's, we went to the beach to watch the sunset. The sun didn't set directly over the water, but it was still beautiful and we were able to get our feet wet and sandy, eat brownies, and make up constellations (a turtle and a camel, myths coming soon). I couldn't ask for a better day!

Today I drove the whole stretch: Pensacola to Waco. About the time I thought I couldn't stand it any more, the radio station I was listening to decided to play a complete set of only Led Zeppelin. What a wonderful way to get a second wind! Since I did not get a chance to post on Friday, I would like to offer two songs for the week. The selection of these songs is based on the trip because every couple of hours I had to change radio stations and I heard the same song on almost every station. Going east, it was The Boys of Summer by Don Henley and going west, it was Ramble On by Led Zeppelin. The good news is, I still like both songs!

With that, it is time to come off the vacation mindset and think about school again. I'll let you know how that works out!

Labor Day's Labors

After one whole week of school, we have a day off! Good 'ol Labor Day. Somewhat miraculously, I went the entire week and weekend without rehearsal, so naturally the best thing to do with my time was visit family. My sister graciously let me come spend a couple day with her and her boys (David 7, Alex 4, Miguel 2 this month). It was a nice time of normalcy -- baseball, Cars video games, and shopping (much to David's lament) -- and the kids were entertaining as always. Here is one particularly amusing conversation that happened while we were trying to cross a street:

Rachel: Do you see any cars?
Alex: No.
Rachel: (pointing to a car coming our way) What do you think that is?
Alex: I think it's a Honda.

He was right; it was a Honda.

I came back home for the day so that I could clean up my apartment and get some work done. I had a chance meeting with my friend, Anna, at Common Grounds (Baylor's coffee place of choice) which led to a pleasantly long lunch and several hours of reading plays for class on my porch and in my living room. It would have nice if I did not need to read the plays, but it was more enjoyable to have a good friend sitting on the ridiculous and brightly colored patio chair next to me. I even pulled out the taco salad for dinner, which should have been delicious except that we found sugar ants in the Tostitos. My roommate, Christina, and I have been fighting the foul intruders ever since we moved in and have built up an arsenal of complaints against the unpleasant trespassers. Anna said I should share this one more often:

One day Christina made dinner for some friends then they went out to a movie afterward, so she did not have a chance to clean up the kitchen. I came home and found the counter absolutely crawling with ants, a whole colony. Some of the ants were moving spryly as usual, but some were sluggish, almost stumbling. I finally realized that a purple spot on the counter was some wine that Christina had used for the sauce and that the ants looked sick because they were drunk! You learn new things every day and that day I learned that even ants can become inebriated.

So the long weekend turned out to be a simple and cozy weekend with family and friends. A great time to take it easy, but get some work done too!

Song of the Week

Friday* seems like a good day to post a song that I like, so here we go; a tradition is born. This week's is "The Way I Am" by Ingrid Michaelson.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jJOzdLwvTHA

It is a catchy, jazzy, precious song. In Thailand, my roommate started singing it one morning while she was getting ready for the day and I was waking up. We soon learned that most of the girls on the team also knew the song, so it was fun to sing it to each other and easy to mean what we sang. I hope you enjoy!

*Haha, I forgot that it is after midnight. Friday's song is actually posted on Saturday, which I did not realize until I posted it originally. I guess "Friday" is somewhat a matter of opinion anyway. The truth is, my friend Meg and I had an hour and a half movie date (Aladdin) tonight, but turned into almost eight hours of time together. It was a wonderful evening and felt like no time had passed at all! Midnight, where did you come from?

Mid-Week Pampering

WARNING: Girly Content
My friend, Lauren just started working for Mary Kay so I went to one of her opening parties tonight for the Satin Hands treatment and a sampling of face care products and makeup. My friend, Michelle had her beginning Mary Kay party about two months ago, so I felt like a pro at Lauren's (although the summer sun had altered my foundation color). It was great to see Lauren, since we're both in extremely time-consuming majors and don't have many opportunities to hang out. It was also a rare treat to take a break and relax on a school night. I love noticing my face when I walk past the mirror, but there are two problems with this pampering. 1) All the products I tried are really great and all the stuff I own right now is far from great, so I want to buy a lot. 2) Now I don't want to do my homework.
Overall, it was well worth the time. Thanks, Lauren!

Textbooks...and More!

I went to the bookstore to pick up a textbook for one of my classes and as I was leaving the store I reached in the bag to pull out the reciept for examination and my hand fell upon an object with an odd shape and texture. As it turns out, I am now the proud owner of 5 Garnier Fructis shampoo and conditioner samples. Who says buying textbooks is always a loss?

Snooze and Syllabi

For me, snoozing is something of an art. I time it perfectly so that I have ample opportunity to come to terms with the fact that I need to wake up. Today was the beginning of snooze season and I was well prepared except that I had forgotten one thing: my alarm clock is LOUD. The violent jolt of surprise nearly carried me into the wall. I have faith that I will become accustomed to it, but I do fear some retaliation from my neighbors.
Still, today is a special day! It is syllabus day/assign-the-first-project-due-next-class day. My first prof was MIA, but the others were eager to flaunt their list of daily projects. The syllabi caused me to ask a lot of questions, most concerning the wisdom of renting an apartment rather than making use of the theatre's many resources. Of course, those that know me are rolling their eyes right now knowing that the busiest times are when I'm the most content. The key for me will be to schedule well and to keep the snoozing habit under control.
So here's to the kind of first day that could give you nightmares!
It is so good to be back :)

What Did You Do For Summer Vacation?

Since school starts tomorrow I thought I would ask the classic question... My answer be as brief as possible.
For the month of June, I stage managed the grad production of Brilliant Traces. It is a very endearing play and one of the best I have ever worked on. Afterward, I bummed around for a while then spent a week living large at my sister's house. I spent the next week touristing in China with my mother, then joined some folks from my church at home in Thailand for three weeks of loving Jesus and loving Thais. I came home and in a daze of jetlag visited some high school friends and my brother/sister-in-law.
Adventure was plentiful this summer. During the show we tore down a barn which became the floor for the set. My travels began by getting stranded at the Beijing airport: my flight was canceled and the airlines would not give me a new flight. I had to spend the night at the airport before I was rescued. However, we made up the time by finding the egg-shaped and very shiny National Theatre, climbing too much of the Great Wall, viewing the Olympic stadiums through an imposing fence, getting lost in the Forbidden City, photographng the pandas at the zoo, and strolling around the grounds of the Temple of Heaven. We also went to Qingdao for hydrobiking. Thailand was laden with tuk tuk rides, days at Thaksin University, gleeful trips to 7 eleven, and lots of laughter and love from our team and the people we met. Thailand was capped off by a few days lounging around an island, riding elephants, spending a half day in Bangkok, and making friends during the 31 hours of August 15 that we experienced (the sun rose twice on the same day).
So that's my summer in a nutshell (a very large nutshell with very small, cramped writing)and to prevent extended wordiness, I will also share some (several) pictures.

We got to dress up as firefighters when we went to tear down the barn.

A guard tower at the Great Wall.

The best bad translation ever. We found this at the Beijing Zoo.

The Temple of Heaven is a Beijing must-see. It is beautiful, accessible, and fascinating.

Our first tuk tuk ride.

The suprise crab in my waffle. I thought there was something fishy about that place...

(Additional photo commentary provided by Alexa)

Yep. We rode elephants.