Reflection

Wow.  Just finished the second incarnation of Theatre Tribe's 24 Hour Play Festival.  It couldn't be more different from my first experience with this animal in college.  And it was also totally different from when I did it in February.

I am also about to step in to a one act play with some people I don't know very well.  I was totally flattered to be asked, and I said yes although it made things kind of hectic with work.  But then I was trying to arrange rehearsal with the person I am playing across from, but got a completely hostile response from him.

I wonder some times if I get so wrapped up in what's going on with myself that I am not open to what's going on with the people around me.  I try to be giving to my friends and collaborators, but I fear that I am also terribly selfish with them at times.  Not "what can I give you" but "what do you have to offer me"? 

There is so much going on around me and in me.  Lots of theatre and projects, and I have a lot of ideas!  And I love that, and I feel like I need to say yes and yes and yes.  Immerse myself in work.  But then it's also confusing because how do you balance your personal life with your work?  And should there be a balance?  Should your personal life be in there?  But you need to be there for the people around you...  I guess this is my journey.  This is where I am.  And right now there is a cat pawing at me.  I guess he needs me to stop indulging myself and pay attention to him.

Vacuum My Way Into Adulthood

What's that, oh, you'd like to vacuum? It just so happens I have one!  Yeah!  Good news; I bought a vacuum.  What what!  Something about buying that vacuum really made me feel like an adult.

It's called the Shark, maybe you've heard of it.  It has its own infomercial-pretty fancy.

I haven't figured out how to embed a video, so here's the link:
http://youtu.be/Pl0_hzoxaqM  "Offering 'No loss of suction' technology"

That's right, The Shark: it really sucks.  Better watch out cat hair, cause The Shark is coming to getcha!  da-DUM, da-DUM, da-DUM (this is meant to signify the theme music from Jaws.  OBVIOUSLY)

I've got to say though, for a vacuum called "The Shark" I was a bit surprised that it only comes in pearl-finished lavendar.  And all that nonsense about turbo-powered pet hair brushes...  Hmmm...  They're really not marketing this vacuum for men, are they?  Or badasses.  Luckily I've got an at-home badass kit to upgrade my vacuum.  Check it out:

BOOM.  Dorsal fin!  This aerodynamic addition to my vacuum increases it's suction power by about 250%.  And it's coolness is now off the charts!  Can your feeble little mind even handle it?  Probably not.  Don't worry, you'll probably understand on your death bed.  Now get ready carpet, your day has come.

Surrealist Awards

So last night I went to the LA Weekly 32 Annual Theatre Awards.  The *ahem adult retelling of Winnie the Pooh I was in last year-Dirty Pooh, was nominated for best comedy ensemble.  Who dat!  I played Rabbit.  Why I have no pictures of myself as Rabbit is a mystery.
When I was looking at the invite I thought it was a bit weird that it had a theme-what awards ceremony has a theme?  But you know me, any excuse to dress up, so pj's it would be.  Yeah, that's right, it was a pajama party theme.  Okay.  So that's an excuse for dudes not to have to get dressed while women wear something skimpy.  Right?
Whatev's.  Rather than wearing saggy fleece pants covered with kitty hair or a nightie, I decided to go comical and edgy.  I mean, after all, I was there because I was nominated for a play that took the text of Winnie the Pooh verbatim and found every possible innuendo.  So I wore a man's shirt.

This is the part where you make scandalized comments about what I'm wearing.  Go for it.  Get it out.  I can take it.  You're only young and foolish once, right?  Besides, look at my lovely bodyguard, Jaclyn.  She does Muay Thai.  That's right, don't mess with her.

The whole event was so surreal.  You have the El Rey Theatre, a lovely venue.  You've got a bunch of LA theatre weirdos (including darling Deva!) wearing every possible form of pajamas.   

Darling Deva!

There was a haunted house featuring scenes of slumber parties gone wrong (where I found Billy Minogue!)

I don't know why, but I was unable to rotate these pictures.  Which is fine given that after my third gin and tonic this is pretty much how the world looked anyway. 

The  weird thing though was that the entertainment for the evening was a tween band called Ash Panda.  They sang some standards-you know, Led Zepplin, Van Halen.  A bunch of bands from before they were born.  Not only that, but the evening was combined with the LAUSD Middle School Drama awards.  Now, call me crazy, but don't you think that if you're inviting a bunch of adult actors and theatre folk to a pajama party themed awards ceremony that it might be a good idea to let them know there would be a bunch of kids there?  Because, let me be sure you understand this:

Had I known there would be kids there, I would've worn pants.

That's right.  I do have limits to my indecency, and corrupting 12 year olds is one of them.

Oh well.  We didn't win, and drinks were expensive.  And we left too early to score the after party catering (I KNEW it was supposed to be catered!  I just didn't realize it was later on!  Bah humbug!)  But I did get nominated for an award.  BOOYAH

The New Pad!

         A number of people have asked to see pictures of my new apartment.  So I, always the people pleaser, hereby oblige. 

       

          My modest dining area came together really nicely.  It's one of my favorite spots, aesthetically, and I would say it's probably the one "room" that I consider finished.  Everything else is more or less a work in progress.  Like me.

     

 

Not that I meant to be so blunt about it, but those lanterns stacked in the corner are one of the things I still have to take care of in the apartment.  But I found that funky frame at Out of the Closet and lugged it home (it must weigh 10 lbs).  A perfect fit for previously homeless print.  My formerly messy (and hairy-thank you Zaphod) stacks of books have found more order than in the old place. 

              This would be the living room.  I do a lot of my living here I guess.  I wouldn't necessarily say that I'm a super neat person, but I do like things to be put away.  Everything has been so chaotic lately though, that I feel the need to keep my pad tidy (I'll have to come up with something better than "my pad").  Also, at this point I have no one else to blame if things are a mess.  Of course Kitty makes messes, but he takes no responsibility for them.  So lazy.

This is the view from the hall, just so you can get an idea of the layout.  It's 90 degrees right now, and I don't have a/c, so I'm sure I'll have the doors open a lot.  The good thing is I love the sound of traffic.

      Finally this is my bedroom.  It's dominated by the bed.  Again.  Not much to see there.  What is really important, I think, is the view.

Admittedly the sight of the roof is not spectacular, but it's the mountains and the trees that I'm excited about.  Remember that my last apartment had a lovely view of the 101.