Sk8er boi

To the dude on the sidewalk in front of me who was on a skateboard in flip-flops while on a cell phone while smoking a cigarette...

dude, it's okay. Slow down. Ain't no reason you have to do five things at once. You weren't even doing it well.

In other news, Fleet Week! And you know what that means, a group of crisp white uniforms walking around Times Square with purses hanging off their arm...what? Yup, I saw my first Fleet Week females walking around NYC today. It was strange to observe that the group of four or five all looked like they were a little overweight, when I have never really noticed the male overweight equivalent. Weird.

Broken hearts around me

Yeah. So, as much as I've been on the dating treadmill seemingly all my life, looking at the cool, green grass that is Other People in a Relationship, sure that their lives are full of home-baked cookies, baby-feet smells, and tip-toeing through tulips, I find myself getting a dose of perspective nowadays, during these wonderful days of spring, because people are getting DUMPED left and right. Like, long-term, "we were so in love and I didn't know anything was wrong" kinda shit. Like, "I gotta get outta here, I'm so depressed" kinda stuff. And as I listen sympathetically and tell them it'll be fine in the future, I am relieved that I'm not going through it myself. And I realize no one's immune. Togetherness doesn't necessarily equal happiness.

In other news, although I'd been singing on and off all my life, sometimes professionally, mostly just for fun, my inner singer is freeing up. I am less afraid to sound a certain way, and therefore free to sing the way my voice naturally wants to. After singing today in front of people I don't know very well, I was told by a Broadway singer-slash-choir director, "I didn't know you sang! You should be singing all the time!" I blushed, I smiled. I look forward to doing it again. Because it's fun. I don't have to try to get a job with it. That's too much pressure. Just doing it for fun, coming back to it this way, is better. And I have a feeling it's going to lead to the next big chapter of my life.

In yet other news, my beloved family visited me for a mere 3 1/2 days from California. We saw shows, ate in ambient restaurants, had colorful drinks, shared (fought over) delicious desserts, and slept in. It was awesome, and too short. Thanks family, for being so cool.



My brother Nick broods in the subway station.
(It's all an act.)

Big Apple occurrences

"I need money to drink so two women can take me home and molest me."

- paraphrased sign held by a homeless guy walking around Times Square

Tangible growth

In February 2004, my three fellow-actor friends Keo, Cindy and Rodney and I, got together on a gorgeously snowy evening at Keo's apartment, ordered some pizza, and talked about about how:

- we were interested in writing our own material
- we didn't know how to start
- we didn't necessarily feel like writers
- we wanted a support system for inspiration and motivation.

Our writing group was then born. Because we were starting from scratch, we just gave ourselves writing assignments. Write a ghost story! Write haikus on a given topic! Write stream-of-consciousness for five minutes straight! We went on field trips and self-imposed retreats. Coney Island! A hotel room overnight! A rented rehearsal space in which to improvise! At first we brainstormed that maybe we'd all work on separate one-person shows that culminated in one evening, like four short pieces as one theatrical experience.

As time went on, we scrapped that idea for tinkering with screenplays instead. Eventually, we wrote a full-length screenplay in which lived characters that we all created and invested a lot of time and laughter in (this picture is of us with our first printed draft, which also fell on Rodney's birthday, hence the cake). After the screenplay was written, life beckoned and although we all remained close, the writing group took an indefinite break. Keo moved to Los Angeles and the onus was on each of us to keep up our writing ourselves. This is why I was so happy to discover blogging; it gave me the outlet I was missing when the group stopped meeting.

Cut to today, roughly a year and a half after our last meeting as a writing group. It was extremely inspiring to contemplate that since that first, tentative meeting in 2004, we had grown leaps and bounds as writers of our own material. For instance:

- Rodney developed a one-person show for HBO executives which he had subsequently performed at the Upright Citizens' Brigade a handful of times.
- Cindy is knee-deep in a very challenging sketch-writing class.
- I have written a novel, and plan to write another.
- Keo's one-man show is currently playing off-Broadway, after several workshops and an L.A. run.

We each came to today's meeting with personal projects to either start or fix. I have a one-person performance piece I want to write, and also want feedback on my short screenplay. Cindy wants to fix a sketch; we all read it and brainstormed. Rodney wants to continue the piece he started for HBO (which they're no longer co-developing) and needs to approach his voluminous material in a way that isn't overwhelming to him. And Keo wants to turn his one-man show into a screenplay. I thought aloud, wouldn't it be interesting if we developed our separate pieces and made them into one theatrical evening? And with that, our original idea came full circle all by itself.

To see the growth was truly amazing! It reminds me that the journey itself really is the accomplishment, and outcomes take care of themselves.

I didn't get the memo

Since when is the word "hot" spelled with two T's?
When did this suddenly become true?

*sigh*

And turn that noise down, kids.

DS Awesome

I joined the 20th century today and installed DSL.
Oh my god. My life has changed.
Hey, you guys hear of something called YouTube?!
You should really check it out!
For hours!
And hours!

*yawn*

I love normal bowel movements!

As you may know, since I've been quite open about it, I've been dealing with a brand new thing for me called lactose intolerance. I finally began a food diary (the Diary-uh), keeping track of what I'm both ingesting and eliminating. It's amazing how unconscious one is about things we do like eat and go to the bathroom until one writes it all down. Anyway, I'm so happy to report that I've had quite normal bowel movements in the last few days! You know you're getting older when this is something to fucking celebrate! Whee! This calls for some ice cream. *




* just kidding. Just the thought gives me phantom cramps.

Busy!

Hello, dear readers. I've been so occupied lately. I'm busy working, socializing, working out, making calls, reading scripts, going to meetings, getting haircuts, shopping for clothes, having brunch, buying theater tickets, trying to keep track of my finances, planning for the family's visit, ordering books from Amazon, drinking lots of water, overeating, staring at my MySpace page, starting another, watching Conan O'Brien funny it up in my beloved San Francisco, bumping into friends in the street who are getting married and having children any day now, and most of all, wishing I could sleep more. Ah, yes, that old chestnut. I am, however, thinking of you. Goodnight.