....the scary poll numbers regarding the 2024 election? (I'm reading them but not sure if I believe them but am staying hypervigilant.) Are you keeping up with the vitriolic racist Nazi-speak spewing from the orange f*ckwad's mouth? I hope you're paying attention to what he's saying about YOU and anyone who isn't HIM. This crap about immigrants? Are you kidding me???? He's out Mein Kampfing Mein Kampf and just like that unforgiveable, horrendous, terrifying dictator of old seems to have some sort of hypnotic hold on people. What is that about? I honestly don't understand it AT ALL. He's speaking to the worst part of humanity's fears, that people different from YOU are....what? Trying to take something away from you? And what is that, exactly? We all came here from somewhere, even the orange f*ckwad, so WTF. How can we stop this? VOTE!!! Vote like there's no tomorrow, because if by all that is unholy The Orange Terror were to get back into the White House (when he should be in jail with the key thrown away), then we are in for it, and quite honestly, if you vote him in, you deserve what you have wrought. Yeah, I know, this is not a pleasant blog. But the headlines and the speeches this unholy orange f*ck are giving are scaring the bejeezus out of me. I hope it's doing the same to you and gets you out to the polls to VOTE.
I had to get that out of my system. On a whole nother note, I bought a new ergonomic mouse and it is fabulous!! I had bought one years ago, but the technology and design is better now and this is a lovely and much-needed addition to my workday. I don't mind giving it a plug (although it's bluetooth - no plug needed :-). It's a Logitech Lift Vertical Ergonomic mouse. They make them in both right- and left-handed versions. I couldn't be happier with it :-) I hope your day is full of beautiful and happy.
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....but the wind sure is blowing! A cold and blustery day today, but we haven't had any snow this December so far. I don't want a blizzard, but....December should have some snow! All the folks who poo-poo global warming? How do they explain all the extreme weather? The drought, the hurricanes, the tornadoes, the...everything weather-related that is unprecedented? How is it that one can deny science? I might not understand it, but I can't dispute that people far smarter than I am figure out things that I have no means of figuring out, which is why we rely on experts for a whole host of things - fixing our teeth, curing cancer, building bridges, teaching our children....not the tangent I thought I'd be discussing today, but as I listen to the wind howl outside, this is what I'm thinking about. Also thinking about the holidays and how this is a difficult time of year for so many people. There's such an emphasis on buying gifts (what if you don't have the money?) and being with family (what if you don't have them anymore or near where you can get to?) and the "perfect" holiday in the eyes of others that put such a burden on those with other ideas about what it means to celebrate a day. I hope that whatever you celebrate, you get to do it in the manner you wish, whether it be with your loved ones, your beloved pets, your friends, yourself...whatever makes you happy on these days and doesn't put pressure on you in any way. That's my wish for you. ....happy whatever you celebrate! I bought some really pretty Hanukkah candles this year, so now I'm spoiled forever :-) Though I'm not a religious person, being Jewish is very important to me. I'm so proud of my heritage - shouldn't we all be? -- and of my ancestors who came over for a better life. My great-grandfathers on both sides came over when they were just in their teens, neither spoke English, both learned how to speak English by reading newspapers, and when they had earned enough money in the jobs they took to be able to send it to the rest of the family to come over, they did. My immigrant background is no different of so many who came over and who come to America for a better life. All of us came from somewhere. If the only true natives to the U.S. are the indigenous peoples, then we are all immigrants. So why the outcry from the most red of Republicans or misguided Democrats or anyone who isn't thinking straight to keep people out of our country who want to have a better life when all of them have the same background, if not Jewish, then Catholic, Christian, whatever, that I do? When did we decide we're not the melting pot but the privileged pot? "Come on, people now, smile on your brother, everybody get together, try to love one another right now."
I hope your day is full of love for your fellow man, even though sometimes, it's incredibly challenging. ...rainish, coldish Tuesday, a perfect day to be inside doing whatever needs to be done (or whatever doesn't NEED to be done....) I had a season audition for a theater this morning that I've been auditioning for, for years and they never pay any attention to me, but I keep putting it out there! As I said to a friend who was reticent about submitting something for a playwriting contest, you can't win if you don't play (there were a lot of platitudes in my e-mail to her :-), and I never take rejection personally and always feel sorry for the folks who don't cast me in their show or commercial or film or TV show because they're really missing out on something great! I have to tell myself these things because this industry can really suck the soul out of you if you let it. (It can also be the most amazing, supportive, wonderful, magical industry, and though this doesn't make sense to me, sometimes you have to take the good with the bad.) I really try to do my best, leave it all in the room, and move on. Some days that's easier than other days because some jobs you REALLY WANT BADLY. But, hey, if you let that stuff gnaw at you, then you end up a sad, angry, depressed, jealous person who points their finger and blames the world for not choosing them. I tried out a new piece and it went okay. I wasn't fabulous, but I didn't suck, either! And really, the most important thing is that I went :-)
I have a whole new look that I've decided to go with and am so excited to be getting new headshots soon!! I can't wait! I think I've already mentioned that, but I had to give this artistic director my headshot today, which now looks nothing like I look now, and that was a trifle embarrassing, though I did tell her about what I'm doing looks-wise. She said, "I like your new look." So there - a win!! I take them where I can :-) Wherever you are, whatever you're doing, I hope it's bringing you great joy and that whatever thought you had to audition for something or submit a play or a story or a piece of art or ask your boss for a raise or tell someone you love them that you go for it! A positive forward choice can never be bad and you just never know what can happen if you put yourself out there :-) My partner and I went to Oklahoma for work and to visit his dad. While my partner was working, I took a drive to this fabulous park - Will Rogers Park - and had a tremendous walk around acres of beauty. This fountain fascinated me :-) ...for Daylight Saving Time (I've always called it Savings, but I have only very recently learned that that's incorrect) has messed with me yet again. When it gets dark at 4:30, it just seems....wrong. When I was growing up in Indianapolis, we never changed our clocks. The only thing that changed was TV time, so instead of, say, Johnny Carson being on at 10:30 in the summer and my sibs and I being allowed to stay up to watch it because we didn't have to go to school, once the TV time changed with DST and Ed McMahon said his "Heeeeere's Johnny!" at 11:30, that put the kibosh on us being able to stay up and watch. After all these years of changing the clocks, I'm still not used to it. Ah, well....if this is my biggest problem, then I'm doing okay :-)
Speaking of doing okay, I am. I've eased back in to looking at the news, but I'm not immersed in it. I jumped back into the fray after the elections on Tuesday (we didn't vote on anything here, but I was ready!) and it was a very hopeful feeling to see that across the country in states I never would have imagined, people have put their collective feet down about some issues, mainly abortion, which made me breathe just a tad easier. It remains to be seen where our country heads when next year comes and we go to the polls for this incredibly hugely important presidential election, but for a moment, it's given me, and I imagine a whole slew of folks, a little peace of mind. Not an earth-shattering blog today. I just felt like writing something after a scattered can't-concentrate-on-work kind of day. It's Friday, it's dark, it's cold, it's early evening, I'm awaiting the arrival of my wonderful partner (he's going to pick up pizza fixins), and I just thought I'd put some words to....gee, I was going to say paper, but that's clearly wrong....to my blog and wish you a merry and beautiful whatever you might be doing as you read this. And if you need a hug, consider yourself hugged from me. Desperately needed a car wash today. Isn't this cool? ....that I've taken a few days off from reading or watching the news, and my state of mind is MUCH more calm. Whatever is happening in the world is going to happen whether I read about it or not, so giving myself a break in these unnerving and upsetting times is sometimes a must for me. If I'm honest about it, taking a break from the world and national and local news sometimes makes me feel irresponsible, but I think my mental health is more important than keeping up with the headlines.
In Kristie local news, I'm getting new headshots in December! So excited about it! It's been a minute since I've had new headshots and I'm really looking forward to once again working with this fab photographer, Tyler Core, who did headshots for me years back and did an incredible job - and we had a fun, playful, easy, marvelous session that garnered me so many wonderful headshots from which to choose. So stay tuned in December for a revamping of my website's pictures! Because of the above, I treated myself to an eentsy shopping spree :-) New headshots, new clothes, maybe a new hairstyle? Oh, my, the possibilities! See what happens when I stop watching the news? Stuff in my own little world takes on a beautiful hue :-) I hope you're being kind to yourself and others, forgiving yourself if you too need a break from the world and find yourself taking a walk on a beautiful day humming your favorite song with a smile on your face and a lift in your spirits. ...already?! Wow! What happened to October? Well, for half of it, I was in the fabulous production of The Mousetrap at Citadel Theatre in Lake Forest. We closed to full houses, and, boy, what a fun run it was! Our audiences had the best time and I'm so happy that folks came out in droves to the theater and made their hearts happy by sharing a couple of hours with us. Feeling so much gratitude for my life in general, especially when looking at all of the horror going on all over the world. My god, what humans do to each other....it's hard to fathom. I decided to take a break from the news today because I couldn't face starting my day with a broken heart.
I will share that when I was little, I used to have dreams of being carted off in a train boxcar to parts unknown for a fate beyond comprehension because I'm Jewish. These dreams are coming back to haunt me again. I've been reading about the rise in antisemitism, which seemed to foment during the time of the orange terror who sat in the White House who gave everyone with hate in their heart a loud voice and a platform and the idea that it's okay to not only hate, but to show how much you hate people who aren't like you by shooting them, hurting them, calling them awful names, calling for their annihilation, shaming them, and a myriad of reprehensible things. A dear friend once asked me, "Why is it always the Jewish people who are targeted?" I honestly have no answer for that. Why is anyone targeted? What the heck are people so afraid of? I try to live my life as an example of how I want to be treated yet I find that sometimes, it just doesn't matter how kind or sympathetic or empathetic you are. My old neighbor who lived across the hall from me in my old apartment knew me for 16 years, found out a few years into our across-the-hall friendship that I was Jewish, bent over backwards to say he knows Jewish people and they're okay (like they wouldn't be?), then went out of his way during the pandemic to say very hurtful things about Jews and money and WTF was he thinking???? I try to overwhelm people with kindness, but I'm not going to lie - that one was a hard one to find my way through without saying all the nasty things that had collected in my mind over the years of hearing his racist and abhorrent talk against all non-white, non-Christian people. But then if I unleashed all those thoughts, what would I be? Sorry. This is not the blog I intended. I guess I had to get some of this out. Whoever you are, whatever you believe in, I hope love and understanding and embracing what is different from you are the overriding themes for your life to help make our world a better place to live. If someone scares you because of their color or their religion, find the courage to talk to them. I think you'll find out they're just a human being like you, someone who just wants to go about their day happy, healthy, and unafraid. The Golden Rule is a beautiful thing. You can't go wrong with it. Here's a fun picture of the fab folks I got to play with for two months :-) ...over the weekend! We had tech for The Mousetrap, tech meaning adding all the elements together - actors, costumes, makeup, lights, sound, props, and working out all the kinks of when everyone's been working on things on their own, and then we all come together and fit it together like a puzzle. It is magical when all the things we've seen renderings of all come together and make a show A SHOW!!! I think sometimes people think of an ensemble as just the actors. No, no, no. The ensemble is everyone doing what they do best - the costume designer, lighting designer, set designer, sound designer, props designer, crew, director, actors, and stage manager all working together to make this beautiful thing happen. Tech days are inherently long days because sometimes things go wonky, computers with cues are trying to catch up, actors forget which door they were supposed to enter through, a prop breaks....a myriad of things can happen. Luckily -- oh, so luckily!!! -- everyone associated with this show is really great at what they do, and our intrepid, gentle, and marvelous stage manager, Jessica, kept her cool and kept it fun and flowing. Hard to believe that we're at this stage of the game - final dress coming up, then previews, then opening! It's flown by SO FAST!!! Oh, my gosh, I am having THE BEST TIME! Feeling incredibly happy and grateful for multitudes of things in my life....I can hardly believe my great good fortune. Interested in seeing the show? It's at Citadel Theatre in Lake Forest and runs September 15th through October 15th. Here's their website for tickets. Hope to see you there! https://www.citadeltheatre.org/
Here's me meeting my dressing table :-) ....I am so tired!!! I went to my oldest brother's wedding over the weekend and talked and laughed and listened and met a ton of people and talked and laughed and listened some more! Played with a lot of kids, hugged a lot of nieces and nephews, met my brother's now-wife, stayed up till the morning hours talking with my sis, who I shared a hotel room with. Roasted in the sun during the ceremony, ate some marvelous food, and all in all had an amazing time! But my gosh, all that talking and laughing and hugging and listening and no sleep makes for a sleepy gal! My fab partner picked me up from the airport late afternoon yesterday, made me dinner (oh, how I love him!), and then after only being home for about 45 minutes, I had to hightail it to rehearsal for a work-through of the play. I'm surprised my voice held out! And upon the heels of a joyful weekend came a fantastic rehearsal. Sometimes I pinch myself at how marvelous life is. Sometimes it feels like a dream, a wonderful, happy, beautiful, sunny dream.
I love taking pictures out of airplanes. I'm amazed at the world below. I've written of this before. I was thinking about the urban planning that went into all the cities and towns we flew across to and fro. Fascinated by that! I sure hope you're living your dream and enjoying every minute of it. And if you're not, I hope whatever you've found for yourself to do, it fulfills your heart and soul while you figure out what dreams you're chasing. ....and lots of preparation and timing, I'M IN A SHOW!!! Let the trumpets blare! :-) I'm in rehearsals for The Mousetrap at Citadel Theatre in Lake Forest, a lovely theater where previously I did The Birds. I won't ruin the play for you if you've never seen or read it (I hadn't!) It's the longest-running show in the world (!) since opening in 1952 in London's West End...and it's still going! Oh, my gosh, I'm having A BLAST!!!! There's really nothing like being in a rehearsal, the fun discoveries, the moment where you realize you're going to walk and talk at the same time!, getting to know the cast and crew, working with the director, bringing in new ideas, trying things out that don't work at all but finding something fabulous out of your failure, those epiphanies where the angels sing. I always feel totally alive and energized when working on a play, like all of my creative juices are flowing rivers, and though sometimes the river takes me in a wonky direction, it doesn't matter because it's all the joy of discovery! I'm loving this cast, crew, and director. The director, Scott Westerman, is marvelously open to ideas and is SO excited about directing this play. You can feel his infectious energy when you walk in the rehearsal room. I've brought in some certainly questionable ideas, and he's 100% on board with his excitement to discuss them, try them, further them. It's a seriously fantastic atmosphere. I pinch myself every day at my amazement of being in a show - finally! It's been a minute! We open September 15th and run through October 15th. Come one, come all! Support your local theater!
I hope you're finding as much joy in your day as I am in mine :-) |
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