Bringing It Into the Central Park and Tracing USA.

I had the pleasure of seeing three shows in this past week, and at first I was very concerned.

I take pride in enjoying everything I see live in the theater. I am the person that LOVES the show even though everyone around me did not like it. At least - I used to be. What we do is so incredibly difficult, so, going to see a show with a critical eye does no one any good. I still believe that, so, seeing shows that I didn't enjoy concerns me. I refuse to be the critical, bitter, out-of-work actor that doesn't like anything because nothing can be perfect or because I'M not starring in it.  I know it can be difficult to watch people who can't sing the role very well have a part when getting a job as an actor can be like winning the lottery. Yes, I know, it HAPPENS ALL THE TIME. I'm prepared for it, but it still feels bad sometimes. So, let's talk about the shows. 

BRING IT ON. I really had high hopes for this musical because it was written by Tom Kitt and Lin- Manuel Miranda. I LOVED their previous shows, and I thought using the plot from this movie would translate beautifully. It just wasn't what I expected and at times I felt a little bored. Even though this was not my favorite thing I've seen on Broadway, there are still aspects of the show that need to be congratulated. The cheerleading tricks were entertaining and Adrienne Warren, who played Danielle, had an amazing voice. I'm glad I saw it because it was an experience.

INTO THE WOODS. This is such a magical experience that The Public does for us every summer, and last summer I did not take advantage of this gift. I almost missed the opportunity THIS summer and it would have been unforgiveable. Anyway, The Public puts on two FREE shows at the Delacorte Theater in Central Park. The event is called Shakespeare in the Park. Usually they do one Shakespeare show and a musical. To get tickets you can either stand in line starting as early at 3am and wait until the ticket distribution at 1pm or you can play the virtual lottery and see if you can win tickets. You can also try and get tickets in the standby line. That's what I did. I got in line at 6pm and waited until 7:45pm and I got a ticket to see the show because someone didn't claim their ticket. I sat in the second row! The whole experience is truly magical, and if you and your friends can do it right. It's such a summer treat. You can picnic all day, drink wine, and enjoy the summer weather in the park. The trouble is that we all live here so it's so easy to just say we are going to do it, but then everyone gets too busy. It's not going to happen next summer. I'm going to make it happen. I got to see INTO THE WOODS starring Amy Adams as the Baker's Wife, Denis O'Hare as the Baker and Donna Murphy as the Witch. My personal favorite for the entire evening was Jessie Mueller as Cinderella. She has such a stellar voice and stage presence. The scenes between her and the prince were AWESOME, and she could sing me the phone book. I loved the choreography: simple and sharp. The little red and wolf scene was a little intense and I thought it made her song not make sense at the end. Some of the singing wasn't my cup of tea, but the show on the whole was great. It's closing this weekend and it just feels like the end of summer.

TRACES. This was one of the most beauitful things I have EVER SEEN. If the muscial Once and Circ Du Soleil had a baby, it would be this show. I'm so disappointed that this show is closing this weekend and if you can get out there to see this gorgeous show you MUST. It's short. 90 minutes no intermission. It's a stunning acrobatic dance show. The way these performers can move and use their body is truly astounding, and their individual artistry comes through in the movement. It is a show that everyone can enjoy. It's gorgeous and breathtaking. I'm so disappointed that Sunday the 2nd is the last time to see it because I would make all my family coming into town see it. 

I guess with labor day coming up it feels like the end of summer. Everyone is back to school and I'm about to finish school. Looking forward to the Fall, to the change, and to a new season of theater. 

So, You Had a Mortifying Day at the Gym....

I finished Insanity a few weeks ago and I wasn't sure what to do with myself after I finished. I had mentioned to a few people that I was thinking about getting a personal trainer and in a few short days I started working with Norman at the New York Sports Club. He came highly recommended and I have not been disappointed.  I wish I was rich and could work out with a trainer three times a week because it's awesome. Every time I feel my limit and know I would take a break, he makes me do 5 more reps or 20 more seconds. Anyway, he's been making me do cardio on the off days.

After rehearsal on Saturday, a few friends and I decided that we were going to grab lunch and then go shopping for showcase outfits. I called the gym around school in the morning to reserve a spot in the 5pm spinning class and planned on taking the 4:30pm abs class. I packed my back in the morning and waited around all afternoon to take the classes. Not sure why I waited until ten minutes before the class started to try on the pants that I had packed earlier that morning because when I put them on, they were two sizes too small.

I wanted to die.

I literally contemplated leaving the gym because I could not disgrace myself any further than the woman's locker room. Being naked would have made me feel better than wearing these spandex pants that were cutting me so tightly I couldn't do a squat without exposing my entire butt. Clearly, my only options were to leave or walk out with a towel around me even though I had clothes on. I tried to hike up the pants to function more like spanks than pants, but that wasn't a flattering look either. Woof.

I'm comitted. So, I left the locker room and let myself feel mortified. I worked out in the back of the classroom and just told myself over and over I'll probably never see these people again. When I finished, I threw those pants out before I even left the gym. Yikes!

Meet the Summer 2012 Practicum Students!

Showcase is coming up and I'm so excited, nervous, anxious......

Mostly, I can't wait for my friends and family to see it. I think it's a great complication of all the work we have put into our craft over the years.

For the most part, rehearsals have been very individual. We go in for 30 minutes and rehearse our song, and then we go home. We also go in for an hour and rehearse our group numbers, but we haven't gotten to see the work that our fellow actors have been doing. So, on Saturday when we did a stumble through I was blown away with by my friends. Usually, we get to watch and see the process, but not this time. I learn so much watching someone else's process, but getting to see my friends do their thing is so inspiring. It goes by so fast, and it's awesome.

The public performances are:
Saturday, September 8th 7pm
Sunday, September 9th 3pm and 7pm
Tuesday, September 11th 7pm

Tickets
$10 in advance and $15 at the door
all funds benefit the practicum fundraising goals.

New York Walking Tours

I have such incredible friends that continually blow me away because they are talented in so many ways. This past Saturday I had the chance to go on an awesome walking tour created by my friend Tim Dolan.

The company is called Broadway Up Close, and seriously, it's such a great time.  I learned so many new things about the industry, specific theaters and their haunts, great anecdotes that aren't public knowledge and so much Broadway history.  Theresa is also a tour guide with the company and I can't wait to go again and hear her tour. 

Everyone that comes to town to visit me is going on this tour because it's the jam. Seriously, if you're in town, you should check it out. It's so informative and you'll have a really good time because the guides are so fun. 

GO! You won't be disappointed. 

Living the Dream

I've talked about my first few days in New York City many times before and one of them was spent sitting in the Laurie Beechman Theater feeling incredibly overwhelmed learning about the theater industry here on the east coast. Yesterday felt different. I walked into that theater with confidence and familiarity.  I thought - oh, I've seen some great work done here and yesterday was no exception.

I was lucky enough to see Fiction In Photographs - The Musical, and it was such a special experience and show. Just a little background: during the two years at CAP21, one of the projects the students must complete is a "Pop/Rock" concert/night. In the past, it had been set up like a cabaret/ pop concert type of show with maybe a thin through line. When our class got to the pop/rock project, our inspiring director - Randy Redd, had the idea to put a show together based on the music of the extremely talented Dan Mills. If you haven't had the chance to listen to his music - go. do. it. now. 

Anyway, in February 2012 the students in my class at CAP21 put on the show using the original music by Dan Mills and it was a complete success. Then Randy Redd and Dan Mills revised that show and created Fiction In Photographs - The Musical, which I got to see yesterday at the Laurie Beechman Theater. While it may seem that my love for this show is only based on my involvement in the very beginning stages of the project, that was six months ago and the show is very different now. I just had the luxury of knowing the music when I saw the show, just like any other fan of Dan Mills would.

I don't want to give the plot away, but I will tell you that I laughed and cried throughout. I saw a concert version and it was very enjoyable. I can't wait to see the full production version coming later this fall. It was clear that the cast really loved the material, and they sounded fantastic. The music allows the audience to go on a journey with the characters and they are people we care about - we want to know what happens to them. Cast included: David Mizzoni, Lauren Pritchard, Cole Burden, Alysha Deslorieux, and Adam Day. Take a moment listen to the music and then "Like" it. 

Everyone involved in this project should be very proud because it was an amazing show. 

Life After Insanity

I finished the work out program that I described in this post, and I don't know what to do with myself! Ha! I didn't start to really shift my eating patterns until the last week of month two and that is when I really started to notice a difference in the shape of my body. So, I feel slightly disappointed in myself like I did myself a disservice not starting the diet and the workout at the same time. However, I was trying to not completely throw my body into whack and start off slowly. It's very difficult to go from zero working out and zero attention to food and into intense working out and complete shift in diet. I didn't want my body to go into shock especially because I had practicum to maintain.

We still have four weeks and three days before we start showcasing. So, I still have some time to get rid of the vanity pounds that I have been talking about. I think for now we're going to do the recovery week again, and then start over. Some of the workouts were just too hard. Maybe this time around I will be able to do more of the moves. I could do the recovery week and then start a different plan. Maybe a different DVD or start going to the gym's classes. I'm not sure yet. I can't decide. I need to do the recovery week first because I need to give my body a little bit of a break. I've been giving it a a pretty intense workout for the last four consecutive weeks.

Last Day of CAP21 Classes

It's such a weird time/sensation. At the end of last semester after we finished Children of Eden we did a graduation because technically the two-year conservatory program technically finished. However, it never felt like the end of school because I knew that I had practicum in the summer and then showcase. I thought that the class portion of the practicum was going to be similar to the classes taken in the conservatory that it wouldn't feel like I had graduated. In someways it didn't feel like I had graduated, but in a lot of ways it did.

The classes in practicum were very different than the classes we took in the conservatory program. They were geared to working on the audition songs for the casting directors and agents and then working on the callback material that was given to us. The mock auditions didn't feel like class - they felt like they were real. While the room is always set up to be a safe learning environment, I still know that the person I'm singing for right now casts eleven Broadway shows.

Anyway, today was the last day of the home classes in the practicum and we have one more mock audition for an agent. Then we go into rehearsals for showcase. I got to class feeling like I had breezed over graduation so much so that nothing was going to feel like a real ending. I suppose when a lot of my friends and family come out to see the showcase, THAT will feel like a real ending, but our vocal performance teacher gave us a few parting/inspiring words to help remind me that this is the end of an era.

Surround ourselves with the people that will go to auditions even when we don't want to. Find away to push through the sludge and go. There are definitely days that I'm not going to want to go to auditions, but I have to muster my energy and do what I love to do.

First Showcase Rehearsal

It's so interesting that I posted about working out and food tips yesterday because we started showcase rehearsals yesterday and everywhere there are conversations about different diets and workout plans. I'm glad I started working towards being in my personal best shape early because so far things are going well, and I have six more weeks to get rid of what Jillian Michaels calls vanity pounds. Hello August, you came very quickly.

Our showcase will run for about one hour. We will open with all twenty of us singing an opening number. Then we each get to sing our chosen solo song. We are also broken up into five groups of four and we get to sing a second number with our group, and then the whole company will close the show with another amazing number.

Last night we started working our opening and closing numbers. They are gorgeous and so beautifully arranged. Our musical director, Joel Waggoner, is incredibly talented and I think the songs are going to sound spetacular. These songs are definitely known songs, but the way they are arranged with new exciting harmonies will blow your mind. It's a very exciting time, and I'm hesitating to say what the songs are because I'm not sure if it's going to ruin the suspense/surprise or whatever.  I'll write about it in six weeks after it's over!

The music rehearsal yesterday did start to remind of me Children of Eden rehearsals from last semester which happened to be a very dark time for me. I'm doing my very best to keep an open mind and just let that experience go. It's in the past and it should stay in the past, but I'm so excited to showcase that it's overriding any of my lingering dark sentiments from Eden. I also have to remember that Eden was cast in Janurary. That is seven months ago - it's a whole different ballgame right now, and I'm ready to play ball.

Insanity

Browsing through my two hundred and some published posts, I realized I'm always mulling over the same things theater, school and health. I changed it up for a bit with the wedding, but now that I'm happily married, I'm back to the same old musings. Well, not to disappoint - Yesterday was the first day of the Perfect 10 Diet, and it was also the first day in the last week of the two-month Insanity program I've been doing with Shawn T.

The program is INSANE! I mean literally. We work out six days a week with one full rest day. The first week, I could hardly move my calves hurt so much. Sleeping was uncomfortable because every time I turned I'd wake up from the pain. The second week, my lower back hurt. I was worried that my form was jeopardized and I wasn't using my center enough or correctly. However, I rolled out on the foam roller, stretched and realized I just needed to strengthen the lower back muscles. Sleeping was difficult during this week as well. The third week, my foot started to ache a little, but that passed quickly. By the forth week, I had a handle on what was being asked of me on a daily bases. The fifth week was recovery week. It was my favorite week. I felt energized after each work out and it was a lot of fun. 

Then month two started. It made month one look like a joke! Woof.  The work outs are longer and more demanding. I'm starting the fourth week now and there are still exercises that I struggle to complete. Like most workouts, it's different each day. Sometimes I'm really strong and sometimes I'm dying by minute five and there are fifty more minutes to go. 

I've been feeling medium with my results. I'll post before and after photos next week, but I have felt a little discouraged. I thought I'd have stronger results. For the most part, I monitored what I ate, but I didn't count calories. I'm in much much better shape than I was when I started, but I don't have those six pack abs that I had hoped to get. 

I listed to a podcast by Jillian Michaels about the infamous plateau which is what I feel like I'm experiencing. I do believe that I am in good shape and that my body believes it's healthy. It is healthy. I eat right and I work out. I'm at the top of the average weight for my height, but I'm healthy. So, I have what Jillian calls "vanity pounds" to loose. Thus, I started the Perfect 10 Diet. This is the diet that I did right before my wedding and it really helped slim me down. I'm really REALLY not into counting calories, but since it's only for a short time I'll do it. We'll see how it goes. 

Power of Practice

Yesterday was my last CAP21 scheduled vocal coaching. I left feeling all the hope I felt right when I first arrived in New York City 3.5 years ago. Hope for a new life and a new career in musical theater. I used to day dream about what it would be like to work as a professional, and back then I didn't know which way was up in this industry. I remember one of my first events out in NYC was with my roommate, at the time, and one of her best friends from highschool. They took me to this awesome concert of an up and coming composer, and I was completely overwhelmed by the wealth of knowledge these ladies had about the NYC theater scene. Then my first couple of auditions were filled with anticipation, excitement and real hope for a chance to perform professionally. Soon I began to feel bogged down by the sea of people with the same aspirations as me, pressures of the restaurant and the endless waiting around in those tiny rooms and halls. It got harder and harder to wake up in the morning and hope quickly turned to despair and I knew that I didn't have the tools to become stronger.

It led me to school.

Two years later I feel revived again and ready to take on the theater world. I have the necessary tools now to feel as prepared as possible. I've learned so much about the industry here in NYC and I no longer feel overwhelmed. I feel like I have a process now to help prepare me. Yet, I still feel discouraged at times because I want results faster based on my practice methods. I practice all the time. I listen to my voice lessons, record the exercises in my journal and practice them everyday. My awesome awesome awesome voice teacher from school sent me this article called How Many Hours a Day Should You Practice?   I'm trying to heed the advice in this article. Practice specifically and focused for a certain amount of time. Eventually, I'll just wake up and my technique will just be there for me. I know it's true now, but I want it to be sharper and more readily available.

Last Monday I went to my first audition in a very very very long time. I felt at ease, practiced and ready. I hope now most of all I have the confidence to continue to believe in myself and feel hopeful. I want the tools to combat the feelings of despair and rejection. Auditioning can be demoralizing but it doesn't have to be debilitating. Practice makes permanent.

New Revamp

Sometimes it feels like I only post on my blog when I'm revamping it. It's partly true. This revamp has a lot of kinks that I need to work out, but for now it will do. Now that I've graduated from CAP21 and just about to finish with the Industry Practicum, I thought it would be a good time to revamp things up and get ready for the industry.

I keep going back and forth about whether or not to maintain the blog or not, but I find it so interesting and helpful to learn what other actors are doing. So, I thought it only fair to write about what THIS actor is doing. 

As of right now, nothing too incredibly interesting is going on.  I'm just about to finish up the home classes and audition part of the Practicum and we are going into rehearsals for the showcase. I'm very excited and feeling hopeful for the future.

Cleanse

I finished the cleanse! Yesterday was my last day of the juices and today is my first day of transition back into "normal" food. By normal I'm sincerely meaning a much cleaner/healthier menu selections and days filled with exercise. The career I have chosen demands I be in tip top shape and my wedding just four months away really has me motivated to change my life.

The prep days were more difficult than I anticipated and severely harder than the actual days of juice on the cleanse. I sticked to the same menu choices I had already made for myself, but I found myself very uncomfortable. Around 3:00pm I got really tired. In fact, the second day of the prep I had to take a nap. On the 3rd day of the prep my digestion system was having problems with only salads, hummus, guac, veggie broth, and veggies. By the end of the 3rd day of the prep I wasn't sure I was going to be up for this.

To my surprise my system felt relief when I started juicing. I'm still not entirely sure I did the prep and the transition out correctly because I felt amazing on the juice. First of all, having meals on the go that are good for you is a blessing. I was never hungry. In fact, I sat at restaurants with friends and didn't crave eating. The last juice of the day is a cashew milk, and it's very filling. I sat at a pool table on the 2nd night and forgot for a second I was juicing. I thought, "What did I eat tonight that I feel so full." It was amazing. I never had to think about what I was going to have for meals and snacks. This cleared up space in my brain to think about school, work, wedding and musical theater. I rested better than I can remember. I woke up in the morning NOT feeling tired. I couldn't believe it. By the 3rd day I started to think maybe I could work out. I had been advised to listen to my body because I could feel tired or perhaps week in which case working out would be a bad idea. I felt great both days and it was the last day of juicing so I thought what the heck. I happened to chose a very tough class offered this summer through school called "Total Body Workout." The first time I went, a few weeks ago, I thought I was going to puke. Not yesterday. The class was very difficult, but I got through it. I hadn't worked out since before I left for Vegas over memorial day weekend. It had been two weeks. I felt very proud of myself for finishing that class well given that I had been on a strict diet, juiced, and had taken two weeks off to focus on food. I even woke up today not feeling as sore as I thought I was going to feel.

I woke up this morning filled with pride for completing this dieting task that I have been working on for the past twentyish days. I still have a ways to go with my exercise to finish getting into tip top shape, but I feel great about where I am at with my eating. Tomorrow finally came....

Pre-Cana

Last Saturday Mike and I participated in our 1st out of 2 pre-Cana classes required to marry in a Catholic church. We reserved our spot in these classes months earlier. So, in the weeks leading up to the classes there was a lot of anxiety about what exactly was going to be talked about for both of us. Mike was very concerned that I was going to become very preachy and argue with the priest instead of saying my pre-rehearsed phrases. I had given strict instructions on what to say back to the priest if he had any questions for me. I could choose between these phrases: "yes, sir" -"I believe in the Catholic church and all the values." - "You're right, sir." I had visions of a priest standing up in front of the room lecturing us on natural family methods and us hiding in the back of the room trying to figure out a different New York address I could put down as my own instead of the address we share together. The horrific nightmare stayed with me all the way up to the L train ride over to the church where my instructional phrases were being repeated to me over and over and over again.

As per usual, I'm always afraid of being late and I wanted to make sure we got there in time aaaaaaaaaand we were the first ones there. We were in a church school's gymnasium and it felt like being in junior high again waiting for the assembly to start! There were 70 couples waiting to arrive, thus, 140 people. We sat anxiously in our little chairs in the back and to our surprise the class turned out to be a great success and a lot of fun. The class was taught by a married couple that volunteers at the church. They had been married 39 years and were gracious enough to share some really personal stories about their own marriage. We took surveys on different subjects like, financial concerns, kids, conflict resolution, and of course we talked about sex. We had to guess each others answers and I was pleased to find out that we guessed what each other would say fairly well. Mike and I are really intuitive that way and are good at being able to know how the other person is going to respond. It's a great skill for building offensive tactics. Seriously, we got to talking about stuff that we've talked about but we really started to talk about it deeper. I learned some new stuff that I hadn't learned before but I also rediscovered all the reasons why we're going to be happy together in the future.

Cleanse Prep

Dieting is hard. I mean really hard. Especially when you're sitting around a table with four fabulous girls in a really quaint restaurant in Greenwich Village and all you really want is to eat a one of the french fries sitting on the plate of your girl friends.

Yeah, I know how you feel. That was me last night, and I gave in. I ate a very tasty little french fry! Luckily, I was able to stop myself and not eat the entire plate because it did taste like a salt lick. I have to praise every accomplishment because the old me would have eaten every french fry on that plate. I probably would have licked the rest of the salt on the plate. New me - only ate a couple.

I walked out of the restaurant feeling proud and defeated at the same time. On the one hand, I felt like an addict. Everything inside of me was telling me not to eat it, but my physical salivating reaction said EAT IT! I gave in. On the other hand, I managed to just have a taste and walk away. In the past, if I cheated, I'd just eat whatever I wanted for the rest of the day including french fries, sweet treats and big portions of them both. I also felt ok because yesterday was the last day that I could cheat because I'm starting my juice cleanse on Monday. Thus, today was the first day of the prep day with no cheats allowed.

For breakfast I had a grapefruit.

Then for lunch I had a Lara Bar and some fruit.

Dinner I had some guacamole with corn tortillas and boiled artichokes.

Simple and small raw food meals is how to prep for the cleanse. Earlier this week I gave up the rest of dairy, coffee and meat. I switched to decaf and added almond milk. Then I stopped eating chicken and turkey replacing it with eggs. Then yesterday I stopped eating eggs. Now, I just have to eat cleanly like that for the next two days and Monday I start the juicing. I'm a little nervous about it, but excited at the same time!

Speechless

It's an interesting subject: Death.

I myself have been blessed to never feel the true pangs of losing someone incredibly close to me effecting my daily life. However, I have been surrounded by sadness in the last couple of months with the passing of my grandmother, my grandfather and a bartender in my restaurant family with whom I encountered very few times.

I'm amazed and very touched by how people truly come together in times of need. The true survivors of death become surrounded by people who love them and love the person who just recently passed. We often times start to reflect on our own lives and how we can stop taking for granted our loved ones and the passing of time.

Feeling humbled, tonight I pray for all the people who are having to live with the absence of their beloveds. I'm squeezing mine a little tighter tonight and making him go to the doctor and get a full physical work up done.

Ready for a New Me.

It's summer now which means that it's wedding crunch time.

Ever since the hectic school year ended, I have thrown my life into the cruxes of wedding planning. It's funny the very first thing that pops on when you sign into theknot.com or start doing any type of wedding research the very first ad is, "have you got your personal trainer yet?" The google ads on the side are all about different gyms you can sign up for and you're researching "wedding flowers" It's funny, but it's true.

I'm the first one to admit that I've been complaining about my weight for the last two years and I've done nothing about it. I've tried these fad-esk type diets on for size that just don't stick and I go in and out of working out, but the truth is that I'm just not motivated or consistent enough. After I stuffed my face in Vegas for my dear friend's wedding, I got home and said, "if my wedding isn't going to motivate me to get into a healthier and better physical shape and life-style, then nothing will."

So, for the next few weeks I'm turning my diet upside down.
For the first two weeks I'm doing a sugar control diet. The idea of this is to help the body deal with the addiction to sugar, keeping the blood sugar levels balanced by eating good fats and protein, and eating small portions 6 times a day. I usually start the morning off with two hard boiled eggs, a snack, lunch which is usually a leafy salad, a snack, then dinner which is usually chicken and a veggie. Snacks can be 1 piece of dark fruit that is low on the glycemic index like green apples, lemons or oranges. A handful of almonds, half an avocado with olive oil spread on it and some sea salt. I'm actually finding that I can only fit 5 meals in a day, which my nutritionist said was ok. Yesterday, I fit another snack in after dinner because my waking hours were much longer. You're supposed to eat every 2-3 hours and I've been leaving 2 hours after my last meal to digest and then I go to bed.

Then after the two weeks is over - I'm going on a 3 day raw food diet which will be all veggies with some olive oil. My body will have to have healthy fats like olive oil, coconut oil, almonds, and flax seed oil to help keep my blood sugar levels neutral. The fat also helps keep the body full longer.

Today is the end of day 5, and this was my menu for today.

Breakfast-
Grilled Chicken Skewers... ok, I know this sounds weird, but I closed the restaurant last night so I wasn't home until 2:30am. Thus, I didn't wake up until noon. It was already lunch time.

Snack
a handful of almonds.

Lunch
I had this amazing shake at this health food store made with almond milk and some fruit. (I probably should have some more protein, but eh.. it's ok.)

Snack
Almonds

Dinner
Grilled breast of Chicken with asparagus. Now, the asparagus had some hardboiled egg on top with a little bit of buttered balsamic vinegar poured over it.

The trouble that I have been finding is that I'm getting bored with my options of what to eat. Sometimes I have egg twice and chicken twice! I did however buy two new cookbooks to help spice up my different veggies and proteins. I'm also a little worried about transitioning from the sugar control diet into the detox juice cleanse because I'm hoping that the prep and the juice will keep my blood sugar stabilized enough. The sugar control diet is high in fat and in protein and sugar too but mostly from leafy greens and other veggies. The juicing will bring a higher fruit content.

My hopes with for the next three weeks is to deal with my carb/sugar addiction then detox the body, and give my body a new way of eating while working out in the hopes of getting into shape and getting rid of the access fat that I'm always complaining about. It's time for a change. I'm ready for a new me.

Rome, Italy March 2011

While in Rome, I wrote 20 pages detailing my vacation, but then I got back to the States and hit the ground running with school. I had the intent to give a detailed report of everything we did, but then I lost my desire to write it down because of being bogged down with school. This weekend I've had some time so I popped in the movie "Eat Pray Love," since I didn't finish the movie on the plane and I felt inspired. Instead of writing every detail - I figured I'd just post the highlights.

We left the house in NYC at 2pm for a 6:40pm flight. The train ride to JFK was the worst part of the entire travel experience because we were cramped in a tiny car with 5 pieces of luggage and one million people. Due to the last horrifying experience I had in Italy where they lost my luggage for 5 days and the only thing I had with me was one pair of extra underwear, we decided to only check one joint suitcase filled with the items to give to his sister, who is studying abroad this semester and our toiletries. The flight to London was super easy breezy sicne it's only an extra 30 min than what I'm used to flying to California. Plus, British Airways makes you feel like royalty: first we had a free cocktail hour followed by an actual hot meal with deserts. Then coffee and tea and then they served us a continental breakfast. Our layover in London was only an hour and we had to go through security again which caused use to race on to the plane putting us in Rome a mere two hours later.

We landed at 11:30am their time - went to baggage claim and the 1 bag that we checked didn't make it on the plane because our connection was too tight. I couldn't help but laugh considering the last time I arrived in Rome by luggage took five days to arrive and join me. At least this time I had all my clothes with me and they knew exactly where the baggage was and assures us that when we got home to the hotel that night the luggage would be there - sure enough it was there. We enjoyed a quick cab ride over to our hotel checked in and waited patiently for Mike's sister to arrive. Even in my delirious state, I knew that I was in Rome for a foodcation: to eat my face off and I couldn't wait to taste the delicious dishes I knew I was in for. When Mike's sister arrived, we walked in the pouring rain for a place to eat lunch. The trouble was that in Italy the restaurants are only open for lunch between the hours of 12pm - 3:00pm. It was 2:45pm when we arrived in this really cute hole in the wall restaurant that was tucked away in this deserted side street called Colline Emilane. This tiny little Italian place looked like a house that was converted into a restaurant. They seated us anyway, but we had to eat our food in a haste. The freshly baked pasta and the beef dish with the most tender meat that couldn't stay on the fork made us forget the fact that we were positively soaked to the bone. After lunch we headed around the corner to a cafe and feasted on the best cappuccino I've ever had and had a chocolate canoli. We couldn't push through the jet lag, so we headed into the hotel to rest before dinner.

For dinner we walked over to Piazza Nabona (Fountain of the 3 rivers!) It's built in a big circle and in ancient times they had horse races in this Piazza. We randomly landed at a seemingly mediocre spot and had an incredible meat and cheese plate and a pizza each. I really don't think I can describe just how amazing the food appropriately enough. Then we headed to one of Mike's favorite spots called the Abby Theater which is an Irish bar stopping only for a delicious crepe and felt like I had died and gone to heaven! Then we walked home passing the wedding cake stopping for gelato and arrived home to our luggage.

I fell asleep at 1am woke up at 4:20am to use the potty and then I was wide awake at 7:30am. I then proceeded to work out for an hour so I can get my body ready to eat lots of goodies. I came home took a hot shower then napped till 11am. We met Mike's sister to have coffee and a light snack given that I had already eaten a cranberry muffin. Nevertheless, we stopped at for breakfast enjoyed a cappuccino and a chocolate croissant. The coffee is to die for and I close my eyes and drink my Starbucks coffee as if it were the coffee in Italy. We then headed to the Trevi Fountain and stopped at a place called Il Gelato di San Crispino for Gelato which turned out to be the very best gelato that I have ever eaten. I had the menagerie camel which had actual chunks for meringue and carmel. One of the main differences I noticed in Italy was the fact that they don't have any prices on anything. The people at the counter decide wheter or not they like you before they tell you what the price is. Then we walked all around town we visited Pantheon, the fountains and the Vatican city. I guess it's called Vatican country considering that it is a different county with country lines and everything. It was something new I discovered. We stopped at Mike's favorite spot for Gelato called Old Bridge Gelato. I couldn't have any more sweet stuff so I opted for a pannini next door. On our way back to the hotel we stopped at one of Mike's favorite bars.

Those are extreme details of the first few days, and we spent the majority of the trip doing exactly that. Sleeping, eating, napping and relaxing. We had a perfect amount of shopping, site seeing and relaxing. I loved visiting all of Mike's memories and seeing his school where he lived and I wished that I could have studied abroad. Just recounting the experience makes me yearn for another trip.

I loved every minute I spent with Mike and with his sister. It was such a relaxing time and I spent so many meals laughing and drinking wine. I enjoyed every pound I put on in the 10 days I was gone.

beverleyviljoen's photostream on Flickr.

Revamp

Thought it was time to revamp the blog. I got the inspiration for the new title from Stephen Sondheim and the logo inspiration from a tattoo I saw on a fellow cap's foot. Since I'm on vocal rest, I thought it would be a perfect time.

Since I've been back from Rome, we've gotten back into the full swing at school. We've started working on the Sondheim project. It's been a very very difficult time for me. There's been A LOT of singing and learning music quickly. So, my voice has started to give out a little bit which is why I'm on vocal rest now. Last week I had serious melt downs about the process because I've been told at nauseam that the voice goes when you're using it incorrectly. In our circumstances these days it's hard to tell the difference between using incorrectly or just being vocal fatigued. It's hard to tell the difference. I'm in process. I'm working it through it.

Anyway, I'm working on an update from Rome... I'll post that tomorrow.

The Past Few Months

Has time really gotten that far away from me?

It's true it really has. After the winter break and the second semester started I literally went 2 months without seeing my New York friends -never mind catching up with my friends and family in Florida and California. However, spring break is approaching soon and classes are slowing down and morphing into more rehearsals. It sounds torturous, but it's much better. The first part of the semester included classes and tons of rehearsals. Thursdays I'd leave the apartment at 8am and I wouldn't walk in until 10pm. It's brutal.

The schedule is brutal and so is the material, but I'm going to leave that for another post.

I spent the winter break finalizing a lot of the wedding details which put me in a much calmer place about the event. We've booked the location, the food, the dj, the photographer, the florist, the church, got all the bridesmaids dresses, and bought my wedding dress. Not too shabby for only three weeks of a winter break. I felt pretty good about where we were in the processes until I looked at the checklist which is literally 4 pages long aaaaaaand I checked off 5 items. (sigh) We have the big stuff pretty much under control - but the devil is in the details, right? At least there is enough done that I don't have to think about it until May when I'm done with school.

I guess that's a quick enough update. Oh! I'm leaving for Rome tomorrow! Yes, Rome Italy. I'm looking forward to the much needed relaxing vacation time. I intend to post my traveling updates here, and include some awesome photos.

Acting Year End

Picture this: 11am on a Monday morning, 10 degrees outside-but the window's open, my hair's knotted up in one big dread lock, a belly filled with french fries -burgers - buffalo fingers - pickle chips - and a salad with no dressing (wanted to save on calories), an empty coffee cup from yesterday trying to be filled by a willful gaze and most importantly an empty room with a giant soap box that I'm about to step on. Ok, ready?


It's my first real day off since the end of my 1st semester at Cap. I asked my old restaurant to put me on the schedule and they did very kindly! However, I have been on the go every since the semester ended. I hadn't really let go since and I haven't gotten a chance to digest all the information that has been thrown at me. All I want to do is eat and drink. Anyway, on Saturday I volunteered to sing Christmas carols at a soup kitchen (that's for a different blog post,) and along side me I had one other gentleman caroler and we were accompanied by a medical resident. He was asking me what I "do," and when I told him I was in school for musical theater he asked me how that was going... I replied, "It's great but it's really tough and takes a lot of energy."
He laughed and said, "Oh, how hard can that be? All you guys do is sing and dance and stuff right?" I laughed gleefully in response as I reached over the table throwing any and all the food l could see at his face!

no, I didn't really do that, but I did stare him down without blinking as I lifted up my shirt reveling my six-pack abs- these didn't come over night buddy.

ok, ok, I didn't really do that either, and I don't really have six-pack abs. I might if I stopped eating all those tasty buffalo fingers. Anyway, that is besides the point. I just smiled and said actually it's a lot of work. It takes a lot to be an actor. I wish I could have shared this quote with him. It's a quote that my acting teacher gave us on our last day. I thought I would share it now with you guys and it'll be like I shared it with him:

Actors are some of the most driven, courageous people on the face of the earth. They deal with more day-to-day rejection in one year than most people do in a lifetime. Every day, actors face the financial challenge of living a freelance lifestyle, the disrespect of people who they should get "real" jobs, and their own fear that they'll never work again. Ever day they have to ignore the possibility that the vision to which they have dedicated their lives is a pipe dream. With every passing year, many of them watch as the other people their age achieve the predictable milestones of normal life-the car, the family, the house, the nest egg. But they stay true to their dream, in spite of sacrifices. Why? Because actors are willing to give their entire lives to a moment - to that line, that laugh, that gesture, or that interpretation that will stir the audience's soul. Actors are beings who have tasted life's nectar in that crystal moment when they poured out their creative spirit and touched another's heart. In that instant, they were as close to magic, God, and perfection as anyone could ever be. And in their own hearts, they know how to dedicate oneself to that moment is worth a thousand lifetimes. - David Ackert

There so take that Dr. :)