Exit Stage Left (pursued by a bear!)

Cute.

I have had an insane amount of cuteness in my life this past week.

Let's start with my new purse:

It's got stripes!  and side bows!  and LEMONS!

I brought it home and showed it to Freddie....who promptly rolled his eyes and was all, " Erin, you are so GIRLIE.  In a pile of 50 purses, I would KNOW that one was yours."

But that's not all...

Look what I made in my Skirt-in-a-Day class at City Quilter:

Let me show you the print just a liiiiiitle closer:

CUTE.

Then, having been admonished by several readers for only giving you one picture of The Peanut (...as if anyone has the willpower to eat only ONE mini peanut butter cup - how cruel of me to hold out on you!), I did a photo shoot with the boys:

"Don't be steppin' on mah shine, lil' bruddah."

"Hey, easy!  I'm new here!!"

"Don't buy into his innocent act. He's 8.5 pounds of crafty."

"But he's ai'ight...he got game."

I know it seems like Sunny is dominating in these pictures, but the boys are actually pretty well matched.  Peanut has made himself very much at home, sometimes usurping Sunny's favorite places to sleep and giving himself first dibs at mealtimes.  I had to "create a duplex" out of the cardboard box that Sunny used to sleep in, because the boys are pretty good at sharing -- but can't seem to come to an agreement when it comes to the comfy & cozy box in the corner of our bedroom:

Yes -- we've pimped out Peanut's "room" with a soft bed since this picture was taken.  He was just SO excited to get his very own spot that he hunkered down the very minute I put the new box down next to Sunny's old box.

Now that I've shown you all that cute -- you know what's NOT cute?

Chevy's Top Shelf Margarita.  On the rocks.

WHICH -- I only drank HALF of (I swear!) but -- stupidly -- did so on an empty stomach at 4pm.

By 8pm?  I was feeling...not so great.

By 11pm?  I was laying on my blessedly cold bathroom floor and I do believe the moaning went a little like this:  "Ohhhhhhhh.  IF only I could THROW UP right now!  I know I would feel  SO MUCH BETTER."

Shameful, isn't it?

What was worst is that a mere 24 hours later, my presence was required at the birthday party of a dear friend.  Who was having her party at Flute.  Which is one of my favorite places.  Because it is a CHAMPAGNE BAR.

I -- sadly -- nursed my pineapple juice and tonic. 

Kdawgg: ''WHY aren't you drinking?  You LOVE champagne."

Erin: "I do NOT love barfing..."

Kdawgg: "baroo?"

Erin: "Yesterday.  Happy Hour.  Margarita.  Half, really.  But with a mere handful of tortilla chips and salsa.  It was great...until it was my -- how to say it? -- Not-So-Happy Hour later in the evening."

Kdawgg: "From...where?"

Erin: "Chevy's in Times Square."

Kdawgg: "OHLISTENHONEY--YOU KNOW BETTER THAN THAT!"

Erin:  (hangs head in shame)

Kdawgg: "Chevy's does NOT mess around with those margaritas."

Erin:  "I thought it would be watered down: you know...Times Square?"

But I'm here to tell you: if you want to get good and soused in NYC, go to Chevy's on 42nd and 8th.  Just, you know, order a few appetizers as well.

Anybody wanna peanut?

So.

Um.

We went to the Humane Society of New York....

You see, Freddie and I are home together an awful lot these days and Sunny has really become quite comfortable with TWO doting humans at all times.  When Freddie went to Kentucky on a business trip last week, Sunny all but flipped out and earned himself a new nickname:  Legion

He stalked me and attacked me and bit me and scratched me and demanded my attention at the most inconvenient hours (as in, like....4:30am with loud and stubborn wailing thru the closed door.)

"I think maybe we should consider getting him a friend..." Freddie proposed.

"Well, " I returned, "I'm putting you in charge of picking the next one.  I wanted a handsome cat.  I made my selection based on looks and wound up with a rogue.  OW!  QUIT IT.  No - not you - the cat!  He just bit the back of my knee.  Ow Owwww."

So, I was feeling bummed out because of the Shakespeare thing this week.  Freddie thought it would be a good time to go play with the shelter kitties.  We had lots of cats to choose from and they were all so much fun to get to know.  The Human Society has an entire floor just for cats and they let them out of their cages all day (except for feeding times) to romp and play.  Dogs are sometimes walked thru the area to get into another area of the building quickly...and they let several groups of visitors up to the cat floor at the same time.  It was a great environment for seeing how each cat personality emerges around other animals, people of various ages and energy levels, sudden loud noises and/or excessive handling. 

Out of all the shelter cats I've seen (and I've seen alot in my day...), I think the ones at the Humane Society were the most well-adjusted socially -- I gotta give the shelter props for that.

Anyway.

As I was sitting in the center of the room with one cat slung over my shoulders and two on my lap, I cried out:

"THEY ARE ALL SO GREAT -- I LOVE THEM ALL!!  HOW CAN I POSSIBLY PICK JUST ONE?"

To which Freddie so wisely (and maybe a little facetiously) replied:

"GEE.  DO YOU THINK CASTING DIRECTORS FEEL THAT WAY SOMETIMES?"

Ooooo.  Facial.  I get it.

They were all great an any one of them would have been a fine addition to our family.  Well, except the one silly tuxedo boy who's audition was going great -- until he turned his fanny the wrong way and deposited juuuuust outside the litter box.

"oh.  yeah.  he does that." confessed the vet technician, sheepishly.   

"...is that a problem...?" she added with a bit of wonderment in her voice.  (Those crazy cat people!)

It took three visits, two character referrals and an interview with the head of the "cat" department at HSNY, but we finally settled on...

 

Peanut.

Welcome to the family, little guy! 

God's Appointments...

Dear Erin;

Thank you so much for your application and subsequent audition for the 2008 Shakespeare Lab.  We truly enjoyed getting to know you as an artist.  Unfortunately, we are unable to provide a place for you in this year’s lab.  We see a number of highly qualified applicants for the Lab, but in order to maintain the integrity of the program, we must keep class sizes small.

Thank you so much for sharing your talent with us.  All the best with your future endeavors.

----------------------------------------

I'm so disappointed.  I shared the news with a few close people and they responded in kind.

From my Dad:

"What  a bummer - but, at the end of the day all you can do is your best.  However, as some consolation, I thought of a comment made last night at Men's Bible study that I thought was especially insightful:

       Life's disappointments are really God's appointments.

You can now go to Plan B and enjoying some summer travel while looking for new challenges.  We are sorry that you didn't get in, because we know that it was important to you, but we'll be praying for you that something even better will open up in the future."

From Beth:

"We should totally go out for margaritas this week."

(Beth is the Director of Worship Arts at my church.)

Sooooo...apparently God intends for me to relax and travel this summer, spend time with friends and family, write a book with Vern.

And drink tequila.

To Be or Not To Be.....?

I feel like a senior in high school all over again.  Every day, I check the mailbox with butterflies in my stomach.  Will it be a fat envelope or a thin envelope?  I am waiting to hear back from my Big Deal Audition.  I know they will contact all of the auditioners via snail mail because I have been thru this process with this theatre before.  I am at peace with whatever happens, but I am at the point now where I just want to KNOW.

My entire summer hinges on whether or not I get into this conservatory.  If I get in, I will not be able to do anything.  I will stay here in the city and schmact my heart out from 9 - 6 Monday thru Friday and rehearse in the evening and weekends.  However, If I am not in the program this year, I have all sorts of travel plans in the pipeline.  I've done all I can and now I'd just like to know if it's a "yes" or "no" so I can start purchasing plane tickets, if that's the case.

I like the letter idea.  I have had a few theatres in my past circle back to me with "closure" -- and I think it is good etiquette for them to do so.  I mean, I know some of these bigger regional theatres see hundreds of people each Spring, but it would all be so much more civil if a prompt answer came in the mail.  Usually, these letters would be a "no" but isn't it better to just KNOW rather than be left hanging? 

At the very least, a letter could be sent to the call back group.  I think I know when I haven't done well enough in an initial audition (or they are just not feeling me), but when you've been called back and they've done a work session with you and you hear "thanks so much...we'll be in touch" as you are shuffled to the door at the end of your appointment time, I think actually BEING in touch (even if the answer is "no thank you") is an admirable thing. 

I mean, we (actors) took the time to invest in presenting our work to you!  We rehearsed with our coaches. We got ourselves warmed up and dressed up all cute.  We took time out of our day to come in and work (unpaid) for you.  I think the VERY LEAST a theatre could do is send a "we are so appreciative, but don't have a spot for you right now" letter.

Of course, there are times when this goes horribly wrong.  Such as what happened this past week to a ridiculously talented friend of mine. Observe the following Facebook exchange:

RTF (Ridiculously Talented Friend): 

Um...I just received an email from a theatre in Utah with an attachment entitled "Rejection Letter 2008"

Me:

OMG. They need a new office administrator. That is so CHINTZY. Seriously -- would it kill ya to copy the text and paste it to each individual email? And insert the actor's name? That would take, what, all of a half a minute per actor? That's the least they could do....

RTF:

I know! And then I got another e-mail, saying that the first one went out mistakenly, and they were supposed to actually send instead the attachment "Casting Update" (which, when I opened it, was of course the same letter). This office person was all apologetic and acting like it was a random mistake, but come on! I would prefer no letter at all; I actually had forgotten about that audition.

GLAMOROUS -- at 23rd and 6th.

Today I had to go to Chelsea for a costume fitting and hair consultation.  Because -- WHAT? -- yeah, that's right: I BOOKED A JOB.

I am going to be working on a film that is the hottest project shooting around New York City these days.  I received a call from the background casting folks a couple weeks ago.  They asked me to come in to the office looking very 50's and European and "kinda like a Donna Reed type who might sneak a smoke while her kids are playing in the backyard" -- that was the description they gave me --  so that they could take a couple digital pics (close up face and full body) and submit them to the director.

I didn't hear from them for two weeks, so I just assumed I didn't make the cut.  But then, they called yesterday and asked if I could come in for a fitting (today!) for a wedding scene that is shooting in early May.  Originally, I was told that I was being submitted for a scene in a French bistro. I guess I wasn't right for that.  But I am glad I got called in anyway.  I know it is background work -- but it is a major studio flick and I am getting a SAG waiver for my work. 

I don't know much about the film, except that I had a chance to take a gander at the current production schedule while I was at the fitting this morning and it appears that only a handful of us extras were on the list for wedding fittings this morning.  I am lumped in with the SAG actors, so I am hoping that I will get to be close to the action and treated well, by proxy.

Already, I can tell it's going to be such fun.  They had all my stuff laid out for me when I showed up for the fitting -- including 1950-style foundations!  I am wearing a gorgeous, pink chiffon dress (truly from the early 1950's -- I'm vintage!) with all the right underpinings underneath. Yes, a girdle. Hee hee!  The shoes are a little tight, but I love the dress so much that I have decided to suffer for the one day of shooting.  It's only one day.

(Later, Freddie laughed and was all, "You are gonna let your toes go numb so you can be the pwitty, pwitty pwincess in the pwitty pink dwess?"  Oh yes.  Is that so hard to understand?)

The costume designer positively swooned when she saw me in the ensemble. I didn't have the heart to tell her that the shoes (also vintage and the exact same shade as the dress) were a bit pinchy.  I hope I am sitting in a pew at a church for this thing.  It would really suck if I had to dance for twelve hours.  I am planning to bring some comfy flat slip-ons to wear in between shots.

After the costume work, I was whisked over to the hair department.  They were cutting and coloring hair that wasn't quite right and I was told that I needed to be okay with whatever they decided to do with me.  (It's like makeover week on "Top Model"!!)  Luckily, my new short hairdo was just the right look.  The hair designer said "Yay! I don't have to do anything for this actress -- this is perfect!"  She brushed my hair smooth and styled my bangs still swooping to the side, but off my face with a little spit curl and it was another digital picture and I was done.

Total time: 35 minutes.

Oh -- and I filled out a time sheet.  I get paid for a the full hour. Of putting on pretty clothes and get fawned over.  I know some of you SAG actor friends of mine are reading this and rolling your eyes all, "Well, yeeeeeees. Of course!"  But - understand this - my limited indie film experience has been more along the lines of "What -- you are a 6? an 8?  Here.  Put this on.  Whatever.  It's fine."  And my payment has been a meal and a promise of a copy of the scene for my reel (hahahahahahahahahah.  I laugh because, yeah, that NON-existent reel of mine.  Because I've never been able to successfully secure a copy of my work!)

I rather enjoyed the consideration I received today. And I am looking forward to the shoot.