Closing in on Obama

Yes, that's right now I'm two separate two degrees of separation from Mr.Prez. First I met Michelle (or served/stalked her) and then walaa, this thing with Henry Louis Gates. The prof did a PBS show and so stopped by several different local affiliates, one of them being my station. And I rode the elevator with him. This was of course before the whole key door debacle. It's only a matter of time Obama! Way to go for thinking a beer can solve racial profiling. I do admire him for actually acknowledging American cultural tensions.

Willa the World Wanderer

That sounded silly but...I have officially spent over one thousand dollars on a trip. It better be one hell of a vacation! It's from Sept 4-19, and we are spending about 10 days in Greece and 5 days in Turkey. I'm scared *#$%#*less but super excited. Last night I could barely sleep because I spent so much money on this trip & it is such an uncertain economy, and I haven't done serious backpacking like this ever really and I had to give myself a pep talk. But it's a good kind of scared I think. I keep talking the talk about taking risks and shaking things up. Well, this is a risk and an adventure and that's the point of life as far as I'm concerned! The traveling is the way I like it too, with at least three days in each place so that you can get a feel for it without being totally wiped out from getting place to place. Wooooo!

Recession Blues

The recession finally hit me this week. One of my most wonderful friends and fabulous colleague was let go and it made me so angry, tearful and really feeling that it is unfair. I guess that's one of the points of this recession: a lot of nasty stuff is going to happen to good people. We didn't directly participate in all the greedy practices and foolish spending that led to this point, but it affects everyone. and damn, it's really not fair!

So more people got laid off after we were told that was the end of it. And now our department is going through a complete overhaul and merging with other departments, moving around, getting new bosses and a new work flow. But none of it hurts like losing my friend here...it really won't be the same. It's a big loss :( and I can't even imagine how it will affect her life.

The future remains uncertain. In a way, it's good. It shakes up my complacency and makes me think what else I could, would, should do with my life. I've had a lot of good luck and wonderful things in my life- really been very blessed- so I'm trying to approach this turn in the road in a positive, confident way. But it is not easy and is a hard lesson to learn.

SPF 10

Every summer the Public theater has a Summer Play Festival where they give the stage to several up and coming playwrights for cheap $15 tickets. These plays run throughout July. I love that in New York you can go to reasonably priced independent plays and see budding talents. This is a non profit project so none of the plays expect to do anything more than break even. They really spend the money on getting a good cast and director and making the best out of their performance space.

Last night I went to Tender by Nikki Bloom. The criticism I often have for plays is that they tend to be too wordy. Writers love to write after all, and often have difficulty limiting their egos or their words. Tender did not have that problem. This concise 1 hour play did not have an intermission and flowed through tightly choreographed scenes. The plot was forgettable- something traumatic happens to a family, they deal with it. But the writing was pitch perfect. It swung you through different emotions and viewpoints, twisting around language in different ways, and only a few times becoming superfluous.

Of the four person ensemble, the only one who really shined was the main actress, Kerry Bishe. At first I didn't want to like her because I thought oh, another skinny blonde actress. But she could actually act quite well!

Well worth the money :)

Bah humbug

Drew Barrymore is shooting a new movie in and around my building and I haven't seen her at all! pouty face. also lurking around should be Justin Long and Christina Applegate

New york is a scream

From a little media bee I heard the buzz that David Arquette was in a glass box in front of Madison Square Garden. Waaaa? I said. Why? Well it turns out he was supporting a charity called Feed American and taking a stand (in a glass/plastic box) for hunger. I went to check it and they have perched this plastic tent on the top of MSG right next to the big marquee. Well, cool, I guess. I really liked David in Scream and think he and Courtney Cox are a cute couple. Anything goes in new yawk.

Chugging along

Life has been going at a pretty smooth rate these days. I had a good 4th of July weekend: watched the fireworks on a friend's roof, sunbathed in Prospect Park and Coney Island, ate lots of delicious food.

The job has been kind of crazy, what with me managing myself! Yep, I'm surviving but learning a lot along the way. Which is good in the long run but hard right now. I guess a lot more people in the company are noticing/working with me without my manager because he usually did most of that. I just hope they are getting a good impression.

On the media front, I'm still watching 30 Rock, Kathy Griffin: My life on the D-list, Tori & Dean, The Tudors, and started re-watching Dexter because the 3rd season comes out in August. That show is so good! It makes you realize how much intention crafts our cultural idea of crime. The differences between a serial killer, a vigilante and a solider are finely drawn. You are doing it for the common good, the country, patriotism, justice or all the other glowing euphemisms? Then we can empathize! Anyway, interesting stuff.