tiny lil' update

Whoa, again, long time. Sorry about that. I can't say I've been too busy...I just haven't had the patience to blog. I don't know, not a good excuse.
Not too much has been happening...I was SO glad to go home for Thanksgiving, I really needed that break from the city. I'm also hardcore ready for my long winter break action. I'm coming home Dec. 13 and I'll be in the fabulous state that is Minnesota until Jan. 21. Since I've been back in New York, I've just been keepin' on keepin' on. I went to Georgetown last weekend with Dangerbox for an improv "festival". It was quite the road trip, which resulted in us driving back to New York in our rental car at 5 in the morning. It was fun, though. The other improv groups weren't that impressive to watch, and we didn't have the best set in the world, but it was still fun. I've been doing some Christmas shopping here, which is always fun (even if it is ridiculously expensive). I finished my one-act play, I just have to finish revising and then I'm considering submitting it to a festival. We'll see, it depends on how good my edits are. It needs a lot of work as of right now.
I guess that's about it. It's not that exciting, I'm sorry, I just figured I should probably do a little bit of updating. I'm long overdo.

Hey hey! Ho ho! Management, you can't write that show!

Yeah...so I've been helping out with the strike. I handed out fliers three days last week for a few hours each day. It gives me something productive to do with my afternoons and it does ultimately affect me a lot. Granted, I am not immediately affected in that I don't get to go to my job or make the money I've relied on. But still...no internship in the spring (basically) and what gets decided over this strike will change how I am paid once I am part of the guild and get a job (hopefully). The daily, 9-5 picketing seems to be done for now, but there are a few rallies this week I might try to catch. It feels good to be passionate about something for a legitimate reason. It's not just a random cause to which I've attached myself. Yeah. It's a good thing.

You should help out by signing these online petitions: http://www.petitiononline.com/WGA/petition.html OR www.unitedhollywood.com (select "What can I do to help?" on the right side of the screen).

Frankly, the networks don't really feel like negotiating with the writers at this point. The only way anything is going to get done is if the viewers refuse to watch their online programming and whatever shows they try to replace the sitcoms with (like new game/reality shows that will probably be seriously awful anyway) or if they lose their sponsorship from major companies (like Coca Cola, McDonald's, Johnson & Johnson, etc.). I'm going to write letters to these companies on their websites saying I won't purchase their products because I don't want to indirectly support the networks, and I'm also probably going to write to the networks directly. I guess they feel like the strike ultimately won't really affect them for awhile since they will put on shows that don't require writers, an unless the public refuses to support it, they have no reason to end the strike.

Halloween n' Strikes n' Things

So...that was MY Halloween. :)
I ended up going to the Village parade with some Dangerbox-ers. I guess I was a...devil-thing? Right. I just liked the wig. That's my good friend (and fellow Dangerbox member) Andrew Farmer. He went as...Liz Taylor as a werewolf. Duh! It was thoroughly amusing. The parade was really out of control, and we couldn't really see anything. It's the largest Halloween parade in the world...so you add about a million drunk, costumed people to that...and you get mass chaos. After the parade madness, we watched Poltergeist and ordered pizza. I'm glad I wasn't out in the crazyness, because...yeah, people got shot and stabbed in Union Square that night, apparently. I didn't hear the gunshots because my room faces into the courtyard, but I guess a few people even died. That's terrifying. It was gang-related, but there were SO many people in that park on Halloween (there are every night), just sitting and people-watching and whatnot. Not good.
I'm going to SNL tonight...hopefully. The last time I tried, I didn't get in. Not a good record so far for this season. But, I'm number 10 for tonight, and the host is not really famous (Brian Williams, host of NBC Nightly News). So let's keep our fingers crossed.
You know what's NOT cool? This writer's strike. I mean, I 100% support the writers (obviously), and the whole situation is just sort of awful. I talked to Brian Stack (Conan writer) last night when he came out of 30 Rock, and it was interesting to get an inside perspective on the strike. The last one lasted 5 months apparently, and he said this one could be longer. I just think it's awful that these people are pursuing their passion, doing something that I'm sure many would have done for free when they were my age, but now they are having to support families on their income. Which is really cool...if they're getting appropriately paid to do so. And it's just not fair. So, when these writers go on strike, they basically HAVE to stop doing what they love and also not be able to support their family until the Writer's Guild's demands are met. And the demands make sense...from what I understand, they're not getting royalties from online screenings of tv shows, etc. I don't fully get what's going on, but I know it's related to internet access and just not getting properly compensated for the work they do. This probably means no SNL next week...and after that? Who knows. I'm trying to apply for internships and stuff, and I feel selfish wondering how it all affects me...but I guess we'll just see.
Speaking of writing...I've been doing quite a lot of that lately, and I should have a decent portfolio at the end of the semester. I'm writing a 30 minute play by the end, and I've also completed a 10 minute play as well as several scenes. I really enjoy getting critiqued. As far as my films go, I've screened 2 of them, and I'm in the midst of planning the third and final one. I should have them all on a dvd for Thanksgiving! :)
Speaking of Thanksgiving...18 days until I see many of your shining faces. I just hope I can feel like I really accomplished something before I come home.

Happy Halloween!

Wow, it's hard to believe it's almost November already. Time has gone by quickly...but at the same time, incredibly slow. I'm experiencing the sophomore slump that most everyone I know is also feeling. So far, this basically just means loads of homesickness. Getting together with friends often means reminiscing about our homes and how much we are frustrated by New York. Not 100% productive all the time, but it feels good to know I'm not the only one in this boat. And now that it's almost November, I'm coming home so soon! :)

I've got a Halloween-y Dangerbox tonight, plus a Halloween party in Brooklyn tomorrow night. I'm really not a fan of Williamsburg, Brooklyn...too many hipsters for me. I can't deal with hipsters. BUT my friend Ben has a new apartment there, so Anna and I (and the rest of Dangerbox, I think) are heading out there in costume. I'm rather proud of my costume (Anna gave me the idea), and I hope I can find all the parts to put it together. If any of you remember the Nickelodeon show "Doug", I'm going as Doug's older, sort of beatnik-y sister Judy. I'm going on a mission today to find some black leggings, a purple beret and a purple sweater vest. Haha. We'll see how THAT goes...

I'll try to update more often. Not a whole lot is going on in my life, though.

Yes, yes, I'm still alive!

Gah!! Sorry, sorry, SORRY it has been so long since I've posted anything. It seems like not a whole lot is going on, but it's good to just check in on here every once in awhile. More than I have been, at least.
So...things are going well. My classes are interesting in that I really do feel like I'm not going to a real school. I feel like I'm cheating the system or something. Unlike many of the freshmen in my dramatic writing classes, I don't have any other liberal arts electives, so therefore, I never have any "real" homework or papers or anything like that. Basically, I just have to occasionally write a scene or monologue, and read some Shakespeare. It's SO MUCH better than having to do a lab for History of the Universe or write a philosophical paper on Aquinas...but I also feel like that academic part of my life, for the first time since KINDERGARTEN, is gone. It's liberating but also a bit disconcerting.
The plus side is that I'm actually producing some quality material, and soon I should be able to create some semblance of a portfolio.
I've been to both episodes of SNL so far, and that is fun to get back into, obviously. I was worried I wouldn't have as much with that this year, but it's always exciting and hasn't gotten old yet. I've started going with some new friends, which makes it fun.
I do miss Minnesota quite a bit, surprisingly. I am really craving some Midwestern autumn. I think that there's a combination of the city losing some of its magic (because I've already lived here for 9 months) and the fact that over the summer, I was able to realize that I don't have to pick one place over the other. Also, since I live with someone who is from Long Island, I see how many college students get to go home A LOT more than I do. So...college doesn't have to be this big deal, permanent move. I don't know if that makes a whole lot of sense, it's just something I'm slowly discovering. Don't get me wrong, New York is FABULOUS, but I wish I could be home a bit more, too.
Hmm...what else? My birthday was really great. My high school friend Alex visited from Boston University again and we did the whole SNL/ASSSSCAT thing. Also, my wonderful roommates surprised me with a little party late on Sunday night. It was really nice and pretty much the ideal way to celebrate my birthday.
I think that's it! It's rainy and cold, so...ideally, I'll get lost in a book, but I might just watch some trashy TV. :)

Quickie...

- I just found out my favorite Chinese place in Chelsea will deliver their delicious chicken fried rice to me. This may sound obvious, but I never thought of actually ordering it -- I go there with the girls occasionally when we're at the UCB. But now, tonight, I'll get to eat it from my little dorm.

- My roommate Anna and I are the proud parents of two goldfish. Bernadette and Sivi. Bernadette is slightly evil and spotted with black and orange and tries to eat Sivi. Sivi is mostly white with a little orange. She's got to learn how to stick up for herself. They're probably both going to die soon.

- Classes are going well except for the fact that my filmmaking class scares the crap out of me. I don't really know how to make films, nor do I think I really have a "filmmaker's eye". Too bad! But, it's a good learning experience, I'll probably come out of it fairly proficient in the Final Cut Pro editing program. That's good. On the plus side, I'm beginning to write a 10-minute play. Yay!

- We're in the middle of Dangerbox auditions, and it's cool to be on the other side of auditions for once in my life. Also...rather stressful. We had about 60 people try out last night, and I actually had to judge them and determine who I wanted to improvise with. Crazy.

- That is all for now. :)

So I guess it looks like I'm going to be a writer after all

Well, my first "week" of classes is over, and it went sloooowwwwly. I actually have to get up at a normal time and spend my entire day doing stuff. This makes my days last longer. I suppose it's a good thing, since my fall productivity has begun and I'm spending less time...sleeping...but I still get to miss summer laziness a little bit.
While I ultimately did NOT get into the Screenwriting class I really needed to take, my schedule worked itself out, and I'm taking a different requirement instead. My schedule isn't TOO bad...more demanding than last year, but that's because I'm actually taking classes that matter and pertain to my major. Basically:

MONDAY : Craft of Visual and Dramatic Writing, 9:45-noon ; Shakespeare for Writers, 6:10-7:40pm
TUESDAY : Fundamentals of Digital Filmmaking Workshop, 9:30am-4:45pm ; Craft of Visual and Dramatic Writing, 7:30-9:45pm
WEDNESDAY : Forms of Drama, noon-2:45 ; Shakespeare for Writers, 6:10-7:40pm
THURSDAY : Craft of Visual and Dramatic Writing, 10-12:40.

Lots of writing. Lots of workshopping my writing. A little bit of film/drama analysis. Some Shakespeare. A pinch of actual filmmaking (yikes). Not too shabby.

I am going to try to fit in UCB classes soon. I want to keep on keepin' on through those levels. Between all of that plus Dangerbox improv at NYU, I should have my hands full.

I plan on buying a few fish tomorrow. I'm very excited for this, plus the challenge of smuggling them into my no-pets dorm. I still have to think of awkward names for them. That shouldn't be too hard.