Odd-Ball Dreams, Improv and Colin Mochrie

Sooo last night, I had THE oddest dream.

Here's how it started: I was in this huuuge hall-type thing with a bunch of people from my high school. It was weird cos it just didn't seem like we belonged there at all. We were all seated in a lecture-style setting and we were just waiting. Waiting for a speaker or something. No one came. We just all ended up chatting with one another. Strange I tell ya.

All of a sudden, I was escorted to this room where a casting director and director from some t.v. show were telling me that they could get me on some show with at least 8 cameos. They told me it would be a great way to get my face and talent known. I was so stoked cos I didn't even have to audition! They just offered me the role. Sweet!

And then, when I came out of the room, I was face-to-face with Colin Mochrie. We were discussing the show and then we got to talking about Improv classes. I told him that I had seen some Improv shows over at Granville Island and he said that he got his start out there. He also told me that I could take some classes there. I said, "Hey, that's a great idea!" And he said, "No need to thank me."

After that, I woke up. I know. Curious. Very Curious.

***************

What I find funny about this particular dream is that I've been itching to join an Improv troupe and lo and behold, I have a dream where Colin Mochrie is telling me to take Improv classes. To be honest, I am scared s***less when it comes to Improv. I dabbled in it a bit in high school and in some of the productions I've been in but, never have I completely immersed myself in Improv. I figure this is the year for me to face one of my biggest fears. Facing your fears, it builds character. I'm hoping that this foray will increase my passion for acting and not hinder it. Only time will tell. As of right now, I'm just going to go and do it.
Release my inhibitions.

Four Qualities Every Actor Needs

I received the following in an email for actors. The information below is all too true! I'd like to think that I've got all four of them down. For any of you fellow starlets out there, I definitely recommend keeping these four points in plain view to remind you that THESE are all you need. Obviously, you have to keep yourself in check but I'd say these four points are good places to start if you're looking to be an actor, whether it be theatre or film.

The most important requirements in this profession are:

1. Hard work. Mostly at trying to get an audition -- some wag
proclaimed accurately that the job of an actor is to get a job.

2. Proper treatment of those who wield the power.

3. Polishing to perfection the ability to audition

4. Talent.

These are the requisites listed in the order of importance for
being successful. Most important is the question "Is this a
profession for which I am qualified?" We have not even mentioned
the emotional requirements, such as the ability to remain open and
receptive to life while simultaneously protecting the ego against
constant and deadening rejection.

But in order to succeed on any level you must possess bounteously numbers 1-4 listed above. No MFA degree, no BFA degree will help get a job without 1-4. The degrees may open doors -- MAYBE. The degrees may get you auditions -- MAYBE. The degrees may even get you an agent if the university is prestigious enough -- MAYBE. Union or non-union is not the key. Degree or no degree is not the key. The keys are 1-4. Period. (An excerpt from "Actor Tips.com")

I know...wow.

As for my plans today, I'm going to go vote. Who I'm voting for is a secret. If I told you, I'd have to kill you. And that's not a threat, it's a promise. Muuuaaaahhahahahaa! Oh and it's also Jenn's 22nd Berfday. Happy Berfday Jenn! We're heading to Memphis Blues for dinner courtesy of her mum. Yay! Free grub! I'll keep you posted about our evenin'.

And one last thing: THE CANUCKS ROCK!

Ciao ciao.

"Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away."

And I share those moments with my friends.....

Roadtrip!!!

What do you do when you've got way too much free time on your hands and a friend who's itching to go somewhere? Roadtrip of course! To where, you ask? Seattle, Washington. So, on a dewey Saturday morning, Mae and I set off at 8 o'clock to rent a car for the day. Her car wasn't in any condition to drive long lengths and neither was my van. We ended up with such a good deal on a reeeally nice car though that we just could not conceal our excitement!

But first thing is first, we needed US Dollars. So, here I am in line, waiting for the bank to open. I have never lined up to wait for a bank to open before. I can now cross it off my list of things to do before I'm 30.

After our short visit at the bank, we were off to the US/CANADA Border! Here's Mae showing off her über awesome driving skills. Trust me, later on during the trip, this girl was driving, eating a Cinnabon and singing along to the radio all at once.

Finally, we get to the Peace Arch Border. No pic of the Arch but we did get the Customs sign. At this exact moment, we realized that we hadn't checked the trunk for any illegal items that might've been left by previous renters. We didn't find anything...*whew*.

Yes, welcome to the U.S. of A. WoOOoOooOO! I don't know how many tries it took for me to actually get this picture right, but I did it!

Aaand after a lengthy talk with the U.S. Customs Officer (he was pretty tough), we were on our way yet again. Notice how I can't conceal my excitement once again. Mae's doing the model pose.

Our first destination. Yes, we wanted a piece of the sale! I ended up getting a ton of new underwear while Mae cleared the fragrance section. We both signed up for 'Angel' Cards as well. They're like credit cards but with Victoria's Secret. HelloOoOOoOoo lingerie!

After that, we were on the road again! This time, to find Hollister. Surprisingly, they didn't have one in downtown Seattle. The lady at the info desk told us to head to North Gate Mall. And so we did.

This is a shot of us leaving downtown Seattle. We had walked quite a bit around this area but didn't get to take too many pictures because it was pouring rain then. North Gate Mall ended up being just your average shopping centre so we didn't take any pictures there. It was funny because there were these big screen tv's set up in the middle of the mall and a whoooole bunch of guys were watching the football game. Quite amusing actually.

After North Gate Mall, we headed to Tulalip Casino. It was preeeetty crazy in there! Here's a shot of the outside sign.

Mae and I tried taking advantage of the self-timer on the camera to take pics of the both of us. This one sorta worked, I guess.

This attempt proved to be much better! Awww, we look so cute!

Another try with the self-timer. At least you can see us?

This was outside of the casino. The orca was huuuuge! At night, it was a little freaky seeing the fins pop out of the water.

This is Mae 'before' she started going crazy with her FOB accent. Honest to God, she was driving me crazy!

Posing with "Shamu". You can't tell but I was FREEZING while Mae took this picture. It was pretty nippy out there. Plus, I wasn't wearing my usual winter coat either. Brrrr....

Finally, a picture of Mae and me taken by Mae. It turned out pretty well in the end.

Here's Mae in front of the casino's sign. She ended up winning $12.50! WOOT!

This is me in front of the casino's sign. Unfortunately, I lost $5.00. Ah well.. I'm not much of a gambler anyway. It was just soo much fun pressing all the buttons!

Then we headed to the outlets right next to the casino. They had awesome stores for Puma, Calvin Klein, EckoRed, PacSun, Aeropostale, Sony, Journeys and tons more! I didn't get to buy anything there because it was pretty late by the time we got there, but I'm definitely planning a trip back soon. Very soon.

Mae left me at the outlets! Yes, she walked to the car and left me at the entrance to fend for myself because I didn't want to eat Subway with her. It's not that I wasn't hungry but I wanted to put gas in the car first before spending anymore money. She came back to pick me up but only after I had already been hit on by a group of Latinos and lesbians. I shake my fist at thee Mae!

Finally, I caved. We ended up going to Jack in the Box because we don't have that here in Canada. It was pretty good actually. Mind you, I chose not to eat the beef just cos I'm still scarred by that story a couple years back about that person who got food poisoning from their burgers. But then again, I knew somebody who got food poisoning from McD's fries and I still ate them. What doesn't kill you will only make you stronger....right? *rolls eyes* Riiiight.

Yes, I'm driving! No, I didn't hit any poles while I was at it either. For those of you who don't know, last year, I was heading out of an underground parking lot and smashed front-first into one of the pillars. I don't know how. But it was pretty funny. My entire cast from Cinderella saw me do it too which I think helped me freak out less. Hehe. Yeeeah.... At least I'm all smiles!

This was taken right before we headed back to the Canadian border. Ooh check out my pose!

Mae grew quite attached to our rental car. A little TOO attached, as this picture proves. She did miss her 'Shitty' though. Once she gets it fixed, we'll probably be taking 'Shitty' to the U.S. next time. Oh, by the way, 'Shitty' is what Mae affectionately calls her car. (short for 'shitmobile')

Yay! One last pic at the U.S. Mini Mart. We placed the camera on top of the car and set the self-timer again. Not too shabby eh?

This was proof that we were straddling the CANADA/US Border. It was pretty funny cos we had the windows open and I was a little too over-excited about seeing the 'International Boundary'. People in the other cars were giving us funny looks. OH! There was also THE hottest Canadian Customs Officer on the way back. We didn't get him though. He was in charge of the line to the right of us. Trust me, reeeally hott. On our way back through Delta we made a pit-stop at Krispy Kreme Doughnuts. Yumm! I hadn't had one in ages! It was a good way to end our little adventure.

And so, after 14 hours, 2 fill-ups at the gas station and 15 cds, we were finally back in Canada, our home. One thing we learned is that Canada's roads are waaay better. Much smoother than the freeways in the U.S. Well, that and maybe our friendship is just going to keep growing and growing (17 years so far). Teeheeheehee... All in all, our fabulous spontaneous trip was full of laughs and great times that will make for some awesome memories!

Fini.

T.G.I.F.

Yes, it's Friday. Woot! I can finally relax. This week's been pretty crazy with figuring out school and working. Whew! Need a laugh? Check out this funny comic strip:

So far, I'm scheduled for an info meeting at Cap College for a 1-year certificate program with their Theatre Institute. If I like what I hear AND I get in, I'll be starting in September of this year. Finally, I'd be going to school for acting. I've got some auditions this weekend but I'm debating whether or not to audition for them. I'm planning on getting a second job, to save up for school, headshots, braces, voice lessons, etc. With 2 jobs, I really don't think I should be in any productions for a couple of months. I know it's a sacrifice but at least I'd be earning some cash for those 'Actor Necessities'.

Anyway, on to a happier subject, Mae (my best friend of 17 years) and I will be heading to either Victoria, BC or Bellingham, WA tomorrow. What's with the options? Well, Mae's still unsure about where she wants to go. Hahaha! The original plan was to go to Bellis Fair for the Victoria's Secret Sale buuuuut, we don't have a ve-high-cle. Lack of personal transportation made us lean towards Victoria since it's easy to get there by transit. I don't care where we go as long as we get to have an adventure. Yay!

Alright, I'm going to leave this post here. Oh and if anybody knows how I can get free hosting for pics, pleeeeease help a chika out. I tried using Hello.com but my computer just didn't like it. Any tips will be much appreciated.

Love love love!

First Post Ever!

Wow, I finally have my own blog! As you've probably discovered from the heading, I've created this page at blogger.com so that I may chronicle my adventures and misadventures, as I pursue a career in the performing arts, for the web world to read. I don't know how long I'll keep this up or how often I'll post for that matter. But, the important thing is that it's here, it's my own and it's my destiny. If you've been brought here, then fate has intervened so that you, Madame où Monsieur Reader, can know my story. I hope you enjoy reading my posts and please leave me as many comments as you'd like while you follow me on my journey. God bless!

"Destiny is no matter of chance. It is a matter of choice: It is not a thing to be waited for, it is a thing to be achieved.”

- William Jennings Bryan