UPDATES....

Hey again everyone! I hope all is well with you and yours and that the end of summer is finding you all in good spirits. Fall is just around the corner, kids are back to school, football is back in full swing (YES!), and depending on which part of the country you live in leaves are already starting to change color. Speaking of changes, there have been a few that have recently affected me personally.

I recently returned home to spend some time with my family as I enjoy doing every-so-often, but this time it was for a different reason. Not to divulge too much information due to its personal content, my trip was in support of my mother who had a rather routine procedure (surgery) done on her. Now I find it funny that doctors refer to this procedure as “routine” to their patients. It may be that (routine) to them but certainly not to the patient. Obviously my mother was very nervous about going under the knife and so the entire family rallied around her to give their support and love in her time of fear and need. My uncle (my mom’s brother) flew out from California, my sister flew in from England with her son, my brother came up from Richmond, Virginia with his family and I flew down from New York to spend about a week with her leading up to the surgery. Just this act alone of getting the family together was enough to make her weep seeing us all together as well as allowing her to handle the operation more confidently.

I will fast forward a little now just to spare ya’ll some details;p

Mom pulled through the operation like a champ! Within hours she was ready to see all of us who had been waiting for her and to get the good news of her “routine” procedure. She was still groggy from the anesthesia but coherent enough to sustain a conversation with each of us until we had to let her sleep. On a light note, I knew she was already back to her old self when I was saying goodbye to her alone (I had to head to the airport to come home) and she whispered “my throat hurts like a B*&$h! If that one statement didn’t sum up her attitude of where she was, how she felt, and what she wanted to do, I don’t know what would have, lol! I am happy to report that I have spoken with her everyday since then and she’s doing great.

The other change that I want to speak about is I have decided to tackle the New York stage. I have decided to pick-up a second project in addition to Guiding Light. I recently signed a contract with a theatre company to do a four week run of an Off-Broadway show called “Angry Young Women in Low Rise Jeans with High Class Issues”.

“The Players Theatre” on McDougal Street is the location and my run with the show will be from the 13th of September until the 7th of October. There is a chance that if all goes well I may continue longer with the show but at this point that’s my contracted time-frame. The show itself is comprised of a series of monologues and short scenes which were all created by Matt Murillo. The show is predominately driven by the female characters but uses men as the stereotypical well intentioned but poor delivering individuals. The situations may be extreme and the content may be vulgar and unacceptable to some but that is what makes it fun. There is something refreshing about stepping outside of your comfort zone and taking on character roles that are the complete opposite of who you are as a person. Although I am terrified of doing this I am also very excited at the chance to get up on stage. The cast has been absolutely wonderful in welcoming me and patient in catching me up on the blocking and rhythm of the show. During a recent rehearsal I actually had my first accident which although embarrassing I will share anyways. I was in the middle of a scene using a prop awaiting my cue to give my next line when the prop got away from me and smacked me in the face or rather gave me an impressive uppercut much like in a boxing match which left me momentarily dazed. I hoped that although it was a rehearsal no one had seen what I had just done! It was one of those moments that are caught on America’s Funniest Home Videos where the idiot in the background does something stupid that pulls the focus of the scene and no one forgets. Let me just say that I DID NOT miss my cue and continued the scene until its completion where I then proceeded to keel over in pain while laughing at myself. For those of you who decided to come see this production TRUST ME, that will not be part of the scene so don’t expect that to happen twice. I will keep ya’ll updated with the progress of this new endeavor and perhaps maybe even see a few familiar faces after the show. Please think happy thoughts for me not to screw up or even trip, they would be greatly appreciated.

I think for now that about wraps it up for me. I thank all of you who have returned to comment on my page and again I reiterate that I will be regular with my entries. I hope that your summers were filled with fun, laughter, friends and family. If they weren’t, let me say my prayers are with you and yours. Until my next entry…