Year four we moved to West Virginia! We moved to the house my parents and 2 littlest bro's ('littlest being quite relative. They're bigger than me.) still live in. So I write this listening to John Denver's Country Roads. Naturally.
Say what you want about my mountain state (actually I'll probably look at you funny if you do Particularly if your name begins with "Geoff" and ends with "Lake".) it's gorgeous and I was lucky to grow up there. It wasn't until I left home that I realized not everywhere was as beautiful as where I grew up. And I mean I've seen a lot of different beautiful places but I didn't realize I'd been spoiled to grow up wish so much gorgeousness just right there, and with such great opportunity to enjoy being outside. I thought that's just what people did.
But now I know a little better and while I do enjoy city and town life too when I'm home I like to try to remember to go outside at night to get a look at the stars you can actually see. And when I go through woods & by water, I think of home and I smile.
~
This is also the year I started to read .I don't remember learning to read, and don't remember a time when I couldn't, Mom says I just sort of started reading. Stories and words have been an integral part of my life and I suppose it started here. So for that bit I'd best get off of here and actually do some reading before sleep tonight. :)
Wednesday, March 18, 2015
Tuesday, March 17, 2015
Dev~ (Day 3~Year 3: 30 to 30)
Year three, enter Devan. And life was never the same again. No really, I'm sure it wasn't but I wouldn't remember because I don't remember a whole lot pre-Devan and I'm sure it was a lot less interesting. Which is no slight to my parents, it's just a given fact that as soon as Devan is added to any mix it becomes at LEAST more interesting.So yesterday (because I am sort-of-ish a day behind) I wrote (or rather drafted. As aforementioned, I'm sort-of-ish a day behind.) to Devan Whitacre, brother mine, come along when I was 3 (though really it quite feels like 4 as it was closer.) a poem. Not of the sappy variety, it's just a form of communication he and I have sometimes employed out of a love for children's literature, nonsense and word play. This is one of hundreds of elements that have made not only for a fun siblingship (this is so not a word.) but also one of my best friendships.
In trying to figure where to start on describing him or us as kids I just keep laughing. We were a neurotic, happy, worried, creative, weird little duo, and yes, all these were true at the same time. We could be a bundle of nerves worrying over something ridiculous, telling on ourselves over something guilt was eating us over("Why are you telling me this? You're not supposed to tell your Mother this!"-our poor exasperated Mother dealing with her weird little children.), having the time of our lives climbing trees, tromping creeks, swinging on vines or performing together at the OOH.
We made up lots of games and they were pretty awesome. Mom used to tell us yes we were welcome to wrestle in the living room as long as we knew she wasn't taking us to the hospital. There was also deathball, wet paper towels at Grandma's ceiling fan (that was a great game and Grandma approved this invention for the cleanliness of her ceiling fans. Until it backfired when she was showing the house and walked in with the family viewing it to see a paper towel still caught and swinging on a fan blade... You win some, you lose some), or Slip Socks where you get a running start and slide as far as you can on Grandma's shiny linoleum floors in your socks.(Disclaimer: It didn't actually have that fancy name that's just for the reader's benefit. ) And, Dev, what was that game where we would divide up the kitchen floor and then you could lose or gain ground depending on if you got caught sneaking past the divider line?
If it was not my bedtime past I could go on with a great many tales of misadventures with Devan. For now I'll say this: I'm so glad he's my brother and my friend. I'm so glad for the adventures and stories we share. I'm grateful for how we can keep in touch, how he brings out a side of me nobody else does, for how I've gotten to see him grow from a crazy kid to a crazy grown up who can tame, entertain and manage a room full of crazy kids and actually get them to put together a not just comprehensible but adorable and well performed show. I'm grateful for his walk with God and how that makes us double siblings. I love that I've gotten to perform with him from Who's on First as runt kids to Glass Menagerie as near grown ups. And I love that I got to see him marry his lovely bride Haley last year. And I really love that both of them after asked "Did we say our vows right? All we could really hear was the Peanuts Grown Up voices 'Wah wah wah wah, wah wah wah wah wah.' Incidentally, yes, they definitely said them right. ;)
https://youtu.be/yOCZ5K1vxCQ
Monday, March 16, 2015
Sesame Street Love :and coffee too: (Day 2 ~ Year 2; 30 to 30)
"I feel like I would run out of things. Like, what will you do for year 2?" my friend Emily makes a valid point in the car on the way from the library when I tell her about my 30 to 30 project idea. Most of the years were actually fairly easy to find a "Something" to put in. The 20's were pretty easy although things start to seep together so the 'year' marks sometimes are more the tail end of when that time actually occurred, or maybe only just part of a longer span. The itty bitty years are sometimes harder...."I had a Sesame Street birthday party when I was two." I quip. And so I did. And given that my love of Sesame Street has continued to this day, I'd say it's a valid focus.In light of this today I'm listening to some of my favorite Sesame Street tunes (in fact, since knowing that this was today's subject I may or may not have woke up with Madeline Kahn and Grover in my head singing the echo song.) and posting a few favorite clips on facebook. Two things are funny to me about that last part, the first being that people who aren't aware of this project are going to wonder why the sudden spurt of SS crazy, the second being they may not wonder that so much as "Why is she being so redundant? And Crazy...." (Okay, maybe not so different.) because I have actually posted these before. Like, more than once.
But here, in this space, let's talk about Sesame Street and how great it is and why I have posted these clips before. Because they're freaking great! Seriously, the tunes are fun, the cameos are stellar, the show stays fresh and I'm pretty sure I learned a TON from this show as a wee lass. Plus it kept my parents entertained, rushing home as if to a Soap Opera to check in on Luis and Maria's wedding plans. And this is the genius of Sesame Street, that it can entertain and instruct itty bits while being compelling and entertaining for Grown Ups. Which I think really any GOOD children's story or show ought do, at least if the Grown Up isn't Too Grown Up and interested only in sums as a book I recently began with the boy would say...
Something I learned about Sesame Street as a Grown Up myself makes me respect it all the more. I'm not kidding when I say I have a bit of an SS love even now, and one Christmas my Mom got me a documentary on the show in it's international scope. Sesame Street, when it moves to another country, doesn't simply transplant the American material to that country's network. They gather a team of people from the area and from the organization to discuss what that particular area's issues are, what the culture is, what the social and educational issues and goals are. And then they create a new 'street' or hub from there, with new puppets, new segments, new scripts and they address what they kids of that particular area need. It's awesome.
So cheers to the Street. :) And I posted it first so it now shows up last but this is my Now favorite even though I grew attached to it as an adult: https://youtu.be/hsCOTsE4atQ
Also, the Cleveland International Film Festival begins this week and there's a documentary about Carol Spinney aka Big Bird. :)
i-am-big-bird-the-caroll-spinney-story
What are your favorite Sesame Street bits? Or was another show or story or some such influential in your early years?
bunny trail:
I also remember at what I think was 2 stepping in my Dad's Styrofoam cup of very hot coffee at a church retreat. Today to show my quite changed relationship to that beautiful beverage (well a- I went to work. I do make coffee for a living now.) I got a cuppa at Rising Star while very unexpectedly reading through a script stolen from a theatre friend wanting me to come audition. We remember the weirdest things sometimes.
Sunday, March 15, 2015
Day 1-Year 1; 30 to 30
This post will be short because I am stupid tired and wake up quite early~ but it was a good weekend so that's lovely.
Today, for day one of this count, I write my Mom and Dad to say "hey. Thanks for having your kids. I love you."
There were a few more words but really that's the gist.
Seriously though, I'm grateful to my Mom and Dad for teaching us to value family, for giving of themselves for us, for teaching us to love and live for God, and for our stellar senses of humor. ;) But really we owe that last part to my Mom probably. No offense Dad. We'll give you teaching us about God's word. And we'll give both of you a love of movies and food and music. :) You can both take credit for our weirdness too. And all of this comes together to make our family. Love you guys. (and sorry I'm so tired that my words are not more eloquent to say so.)
Today, for day one of this count, I write my Mom and Dad to say "hey. Thanks for having your kids. I love you."
There were a few more words but really that's the gist.
Seriously though, I'm grateful to my Mom and Dad for teaching us to value family, for giving of themselves for us, for teaching us to love and live for God, and for our stellar senses of humor. ;) But really we owe that last part to my Mom probably. No offense Dad. We'll give you teaching us about God's word. And we'll give both of you a love of movies and food and music. :) You can both take credit for our weirdness too. And all of this comes together to make our family. Love you guys. (and sorry I'm so tired that my words are not more eloquent to say so.)
30 to 30
Through a random comment from a co-worker yesterday ("Oh, well I know you're in your early twenties...." "erm. Yeah. Except not.") it occurred to me that it was a month until I'd turn 30 years old. It seemed a happy accident to have the realization that I could do something with that sort of a timeframe, one that won't happen again, one that I hadn't given any thought to til that moment. And so after pondering what that would look like I've come up with a sort of project. From now til my birthday I'm going to do a "Something" that relates to that days corresponding year. Example: tomorrow being year one, I'll write to my parents. You know, cause they're how I was born and all that. ;) This way I can do something meaningful with that time, with saying goodbye to my 20's and hello to a new decade (!), instead of just letting it pass. I think it could be a fun, small adventure and I'll keep record of it here.
Here goes!
Here goes!
Saturday, March 8, 2014
The Interview
Last Friday Great Lakes Science Center asked me to interview as an engagement specialist and to prepare a 3-5 minute presentation on the scientific topic of my choice. I’d applied but didn’t expect to hear back and was surprised to get the call. I was even more surprised at the words “presentation on the scientific topic of your choice.” The word ‘surprised’ here means an internal freak out of nearly hanging up the phone proportions. Erm….
When my bro and I were young homeschoolers in love with such shows as Bill Nye and The Kratz Brothers we thought it would be super cool to have our own show as a brother/sister duo from a Creationist perspective. That said, Dev would provide the actual know how on factual things while I would provide whatever on screen antics were necessary. Devan is also brilliant at on screen antics but the fact is I’d need a script and he could have written it. Dev used to bury himself in DK books, field guides and thick encyclopedias of nature facts. When enrolled in public kindergarten for the week and a half it lasted, he walked by what was my old classroom [which I‘d loved], peeked in at pictures of dinosaurs on the walls and said to his teachers surprise “Oh look it’s a (some highly scientific and difficult to pronounce and not known by most 5 yr old words here)”
He left kindergarten in tears about a week later complaining that “all they do is draw circles and cut them out!!”
On the flip side of this his older sister loved kindergarten and craft time and Sesame Street. ...
Despite the slight flashback this phrase brought I did NOT hang up the phone and after a pause ventured “Now, I gather you’ll be evaluating me on my presentation skills & not my scientific know-how ?” Oxygen returned to my brain upon hearing the words "Yes. Of course, if you say something blatantly wrong we’ll call you on it, but yes.” Crisis averted.
Still I was freaking out a bit, not at all sure what I should speak on or what ‘presentation’ fully entails. I mean are we talking power point here or what? Thankfully I had the privilege of performing Shakespeare scenes with a couple of actors who in fact work at GLSC. A love for the Bard and mutual fondness for Pho made for a fast friendship with one such actor. I excited/panic texted her and was enormously thankful for her input and encouragement which included “Do NOT do a power point unless they ask for it”.
When helpful roomie Cassie got home I told her the news & she asked what I’d present on.
“I have no idea.”
“Whales! You have to do it on whales.”
This woman is smart. I could easily talk on this subject over 5 minutes even without prep. Which I began to do in the shower, on walks to the grocery store, and around the house to see what material I already had. I decided to divide it into three categories- blues for their size, humpbacks for their song and grays for their long migration-and got to work fact checking and arranging the presentation. I learned some cool stuff including the proper size comparisons for a blue whale, which are pretty awesome (100 people could fit in a blue whale’s mouth and it’s heart is the size of a mini cooper. It’s HEART! Seriously, you could crawl through it’s major arteries. The thing is huge. Thank God they’re docile!)
Brainy bro Dev looked over my material and gave some pointers and encouragement (after inadvertently giving me the 3rd degree via text. “Who is your audience? How long do you have? What kind of presentation? When is it?” “Dev, you‘re freaking me out!” “Sorry.”) and after polishing and prepping on Monday I was about ready to go.
Job searching in the dead of Cleveland’s coldest in decades winter is possibly when I most pointedly feel the annoying side of my car-less state of being. Usually a tromp through snow and ice and ridiculous temperatures to the bus involves layers of real clothing, hats, scarves, general warming wear. Bundled properly, I don’t much feel the cold or the harshness.
Enter job interviews. Suddenly a certain ‘look’ is necessary, often involving hose and heels and dresses. When I see women running around in hose and obviously too little clothing for March, I often scoff glad for leggings and thermals. Now I get to be this person. And this person was very grateful for the pretty, long, heavy dress coat her friend bought her in St Louis because even with it she still froze her butt off. How do business women do this?!
Hopping off the bus a tad early, which means a longer walk, I run into CVS to get my single prop, a print of me kissing the baby grey whale at Magdalena Bay in Baja California. I consider not risking the time but will have to ditch this part of my presentation if I don't because without the evidence I think it will seem made up. I calculate the time carefully hoping the bumper is enough even though the quirky guy at the register still has to print my pics which annoyingly wasn’t done. He’s kind though and I have just enough time.
“Just waiting on Miss Whitacre’s prints. Here we go!” As he places them in a manila envelope and rings it up he remarks, “That is some interesting stuff! I think I need to be more diverse in my choice of activities!”
I laugh wondering what everyone in line behind me thinks might be in that envelope.
And then out to the brisk! I run in heels for the first stretch both for time and hopefully body heat. Then I meet more crosswalks and slow it down. The air is like swallowing ice water and is so piercing I feel like my body might explode. I have never been this cold. The Lake becomes visible and the sight of it makes me colder still. It’s ice as far as you can see. It’s magnificent and if my thoughts weren't so frozen I would be mesmerized at one of Cleveland’s many overlooked attributes. But I am frozen and that occupies all of my brain space.
I make it and wonder what my hair must look like as, halfway here, I decided to don a hat after all. The other darn applicants are so dang early a quick bolt into the bathroom for a mirror check is not in the works. I feel discombobulated and try arranging myself noting as I do that the women waiting with me have arms full of actual science looking props and that they evidently have science & teaching backgrounds. I am the odd duck actress in the room. Because I was already cold and now need to take off the one shield I have, my large coat, I don’t ever actually warm up and when we get a break later on I dodge into the bathroom & realize my lips are actually purple. Odd duck actress now looks like an idiot who can’t dress herself. Awesome.
We get upstairs, I’m still cold, my phone decides to play DC talk though the ringer is off, my materials feel like they’re everywhere and I have to pee. But this museum is totally cool and I am so gonna ride this wave. One of the other applicants remarks (not unkindly) that she’s impressed I could fit all my material into one bag. Seriously these women have beakers and bags and stuff and I have zero props aside from my possibly cheap shot picture of me and the baby gray. During the audition we pair up and find an exhibit to present with our partner. All the other applicants actually know things while I get excited that an echo machine looks like it came from Dr. Suess. My contribution to the zoetrope presentation with my partner is cartoon knowledge.
Mostly I’m just amused by all of this and intrigued by a new feeling; The Uma/Janeane Switch.
There’s a movie I enjoy that is a gender reversal of the classic Cyrano de Bergerac. It stars Uma Thurman as the leggy, gorgeous, brainless model and Janeane Garofalo as the intelligent, snarky, guy-ignored radio host. They forge a friendship through the misled and somewhat accidental venture of winning a guy with Uma’s appearance and Janeane’s wit.
“You and I together make the perfect woman!” Uma excitedly pronounces.
“No you and I together make the perfect political prisoner. What we really do well is act self-righteous and starve.” counters Garofalo.
Generally in my life I have related to Garofalo’s role. (When she finally gets a chance to talk on her own to the handsome Brit she likes she drops salsa on her t-shirt which she then scoops off with the offending tortilla chip.) So it was very strange to suddenly feel a role reversal. I didn't suddenly become drop dead gorgeous & free of thought and certainly these women weren't unattractive or overly snarky, but they actually knew what they were talking about, I didn't and yet my presentation skills trumped theirs. I thought how strange if I were to get this job, if I really was what they were looking for, that it would mean stage presence beat out actual scientific know how. I thought how frustrating that could feel to someone with a well grounded scientific background.
Presentations themselves were fun. One other applicant had some theatre experience but more so in science & I found it interesting that we were the only 2 to stay in the time frame.
Even though I didn't have stunning props, my blue whale facts were pretty sweet and the ladies were kind and gave me their attention. Afterward I told one of the other applicants her presentation was really cool (It was. She had beakers and chemicals. There was smoke and it was awesome.) and she thanked me and said she was impressed I could keep her engaged with just words. Also one of the applicants brought Oreo s which was super smooth move. And tasty too.
My interviews afterward went well and the staff members used really positive language that made me think they were interested. The first was an actual scientist who shared with me that when he first came it was a strange adjustment for him that they wanted actors more than scientists. That made me feel that a) they really were looking for actors even though I felt the odd man out, and b) I was right about how strange it must be to accept that from the other side. In the next interview they told me I’d be a good fit for such and such and could tell the age group I preferred by my presentation [I may or may not have done a Dory speaks whale imitation.] which was where they thought I’d fit. It was all encouraging and I’ll know by Monday. Either way it was a really good and stretching experience.
Leaving the museum I took a moment for how cool this whole thing was. I walked past the Omnimax box office and could look out to Lake Erie just 20 feet from the lobby. Since my brain had thawed I thought of the things I love about Cleveland and how cool it would be to work here at GLSC. I took the train back this time and it looped me around to Tower City providing a stellar view of the city and taking me under bridges I hadn't noticed, seeing architecture and angles of the city I've missed. A daily commute to the Great Lakes Science Center is something this odd duck actress certainly wouldn't mind. Especially if she can wear real clothes.
When my bro and I were young homeschoolers in love with such shows as Bill Nye and The Kratz Brothers we thought it would be super cool to have our own show as a brother/sister duo from a Creationist perspective. That said, Dev would provide the actual know how on factual things while I would provide whatever on screen antics were necessary. Devan is also brilliant at on screen antics but the fact is I’d need a script and he could have written it. Dev used to bury himself in DK books, field guides and thick encyclopedias of nature facts. When enrolled in public kindergarten for the week and a half it lasted, he walked by what was my old classroom [which I‘d loved], peeked in at pictures of dinosaurs on the walls and said to his teachers surprise “Oh look it’s a (some highly scientific and difficult to pronounce and not known by most 5 yr old words here)”
He left kindergarten in tears about a week later complaining that “all they do is draw circles and cut them out!!”
On the flip side of this his older sister loved kindergarten and craft time and Sesame Street. ...
Despite the slight flashback this phrase brought I did NOT hang up the phone and after a pause ventured “Now, I gather you’ll be evaluating me on my presentation skills & not my scientific know-how ?” Oxygen returned to my brain upon hearing the words "Yes. Of course, if you say something blatantly wrong we’ll call you on it, but yes.” Crisis averted.
Still I was freaking out a bit, not at all sure what I should speak on or what ‘presentation’ fully entails. I mean are we talking power point here or what? Thankfully I had the privilege of performing Shakespeare scenes with a couple of actors who in fact work at GLSC. A love for the Bard and mutual fondness for Pho made for a fast friendship with one such actor. I excited/panic texted her and was enormously thankful for her input and encouragement which included “Do NOT do a power point unless they ask for it”.
When helpful roomie Cassie got home I told her the news & she asked what I’d present on.
“I have no idea.”
“Whales! You have to do it on whales.”
This woman is smart. I could easily talk on this subject over 5 minutes even without prep. Which I began to do in the shower, on walks to the grocery store, and around the house to see what material I already had. I decided to divide it into three categories- blues for their size, humpbacks for their song and grays for their long migration-and got to work fact checking and arranging the presentation. I learned some cool stuff including the proper size comparisons for a blue whale, which are pretty awesome (100 people could fit in a blue whale’s mouth and it’s heart is the size of a mini cooper. It’s HEART! Seriously, you could crawl through it’s major arteries. The thing is huge. Thank God they’re docile!)
Brainy bro Dev looked over my material and gave some pointers and encouragement (after inadvertently giving me the 3rd degree via text. “Who is your audience? How long do you have? What kind of presentation? When is it?” “Dev, you‘re freaking me out!” “Sorry.”) and after polishing and prepping on Monday I was about ready to go.
Job searching in the dead of Cleveland’s coldest in decades winter is possibly when I most pointedly feel the annoying side of my car-less state of being. Usually a tromp through snow and ice and ridiculous temperatures to the bus involves layers of real clothing, hats, scarves, general warming wear. Bundled properly, I don’t much feel the cold or the harshness.
Enter job interviews. Suddenly a certain ‘look’ is necessary, often involving hose and heels and dresses. When I see women running around in hose and obviously too little clothing for March, I often scoff glad for leggings and thermals. Now I get to be this person. And this person was very grateful for the pretty, long, heavy dress coat her friend bought her in St Louis because even with it she still froze her butt off. How do business women do this?!
Hopping off the bus a tad early, which means a longer walk, I run into CVS to get my single prop, a print of me kissing the baby grey whale at Magdalena Bay in Baja California. I consider not risking the time but will have to ditch this part of my presentation if I don't because without the evidence I think it will seem made up. I calculate the time carefully hoping the bumper is enough even though the quirky guy at the register still has to print my pics which annoyingly wasn’t done. He’s kind though and I have just enough time.
“Just waiting on Miss Whitacre’s prints. Here we go!” As he places them in a manila envelope and rings it up he remarks, “That is some interesting stuff! I think I need to be more diverse in my choice of activities!”
I laugh wondering what everyone in line behind me thinks might be in that envelope.
And then out to the brisk! I run in heels for the first stretch both for time and hopefully body heat. Then I meet more crosswalks and slow it down. The air is like swallowing ice water and is so piercing I feel like my body might explode. I have never been this cold. The Lake becomes visible and the sight of it makes me colder still. It’s ice as far as you can see. It’s magnificent and if my thoughts weren't so frozen I would be mesmerized at one of Cleveland’s many overlooked attributes. But I am frozen and that occupies all of my brain space.
I make it and wonder what my hair must look like as, halfway here, I decided to don a hat after all. The other darn applicants are so dang early a quick bolt into the bathroom for a mirror check is not in the works. I feel discombobulated and try arranging myself noting as I do that the women waiting with me have arms full of actual science looking props and that they evidently have science & teaching backgrounds. I am the odd duck actress in the room. Because I was already cold and now need to take off the one shield I have, my large coat, I don’t ever actually warm up and when we get a break later on I dodge into the bathroom & realize my lips are actually purple. Odd duck actress now looks like an idiot who can’t dress herself. Awesome.
We get upstairs, I’m still cold, my phone decides to play DC talk though the ringer is off, my materials feel like they’re everywhere and I have to pee. But this museum is totally cool and I am so gonna ride this wave. One of the other applicants remarks (not unkindly) that she’s impressed I could fit all my material into one bag. Seriously these women have beakers and bags and stuff and I have zero props aside from my possibly cheap shot picture of me and the baby gray. During the audition we pair up and find an exhibit to present with our partner. All the other applicants actually know things while I get excited that an echo machine looks like it came from Dr. Suess. My contribution to the zoetrope presentation with my partner is cartoon knowledge.
Mostly I’m just amused by all of this and intrigued by a new feeling; The Uma/Janeane Switch.
There’s a movie I enjoy that is a gender reversal of the classic Cyrano de Bergerac. It stars Uma Thurman as the leggy, gorgeous, brainless model and Janeane Garofalo as the intelligent, snarky, guy-ignored radio host. They forge a friendship through the misled and somewhat accidental venture of winning a guy with Uma’s appearance and Janeane’s wit.
“You and I together make the perfect woman!” Uma excitedly pronounces.
“No you and I together make the perfect political prisoner. What we really do well is act self-righteous and starve.” counters Garofalo.
Generally in my life I have related to Garofalo’s role. (When she finally gets a chance to talk on her own to the handsome Brit she likes she drops salsa on her t-shirt which she then scoops off with the offending tortilla chip.) So it was very strange to suddenly feel a role reversal. I didn't suddenly become drop dead gorgeous & free of thought and certainly these women weren't unattractive or overly snarky, but they actually knew what they were talking about, I didn't and yet my presentation skills trumped theirs. I thought how strange if I were to get this job, if I really was what they were looking for, that it would mean stage presence beat out actual scientific know how. I thought how frustrating that could feel to someone with a well grounded scientific background.
Presentations themselves were fun. One other applicant had some theatre experience but more so in science & I found it interesting that we were the only 2 to stay in the time frame.
Even though I didn't have stunning props, my blue whale facts were pretty sweet and the ladies were kind and gave me their attention. Afterward I told one of the other applicants her presentation was really cool (It was. She had beakers and chemicals. There was smoke and it was awesome.) and she thanked me and said she was impressed I could keep her engaged with just words. Also one of the applicants brought Oreo s which was super smooth move. And tasty too.
My interviews afterward went well and the staff members used really positive language that made me think they were interested. The first was an actual scientist who shared with me that when he first came it was a strange adjustment for him that they wanted actors more than scientists. That made me feel that a) they really were looking for actors even though I felt the odd man out, and b) I was right about how strange it must be to accept that from the other side. In the next interview they told me I’d be a good fit for such and such and could tell the age group I preferred by my presentation [I may or may not have done a Dory speaks whale imitation.] which was where they thought I’d fit. It was all encouraging and I’ll know by Monday. Either way it was a really good and stretching experience.
Leaving the museum I took a moment for how cool this whole thing was. I walked past the Omnimax box office and could look out to Lake Erie just 20 feet from the lobby. Since my brain had thawed I thought of the things I love about Cleveland and how cool it would be to work here at GLSC. I took the train back this time and it looped me around to Tower City providing a stellar view of the city and taking me under bridges I hadn't noticed, seeing architecture and angles of the city I've missed. A daily commute to the Great Lakes Science Center is something this odd duck actress certainly wouldn't mind. Especially if she can wear real clothes.
Monday, September 9, 2013
Let the Adventures Begin
Today Terrell and I had a long day prepping H4 to be polished and ready to perform on Wednesday, running through workshops, and loading up the van for the start of a fall season of taking Margie & Mike and H4 (or so we call it) to schools in Ohio and also Pennsylvania and Michigan. We got to the rehearsal space at 9:30 and made our last trip down the elevator after load in at 6:30. After the last load of stage equipment going into the van we both collapsed against the elevator walls and laughed at the unplanned mutual expression. "This is the beginning of a beautiful partnership." Only not the beginning because we've just spent the past month getting these shows ready to hit the road. As we finished up final touches to H4 today Nina commented on the subtle but poignant changes "Wow, you miss a day...." Because of how right she was I couldn't help but think what it would be like if someone had missed a week. It's been so fun to watch how this brand new show has evolved as we've worked it this past month. I ran across pages from the first draft the other day and laughed at how foreign some of the lines seemed now. Watching the characters and story become more concise, direct, and tight has been a fun adventure. And now we'll get to watch and see how the kids react, what they relate to, where they laugh, and where they don't.
Nowadays there are multiple moments where something brings me back to the happy reality of "This is my JOB. And I love it." Today one such moment came when Al gave me t-shirts to try on for going to schools. They have the Cleveland Play House logo on the front and it made me grin to remember yet again that this is where I work. So good.
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