Tomorrow seems to be promising. While I totally skipped school today (missing two classes, a club thing, and a meeting), I can make up for it tomorrow by, well, going to school. It's the JAC open-house tomorrow and I volunteered to help with an open Combat class. Combat is one of my best Movement/Theatre classes, and we're just going to be doing reviews of everything we've already learnt, so I know that I'm going to be kicking butt (well, not really, but it will look like I'm kicking butt from an audience member's perspective).
So there's that. There's also the Get-Together. Originally, two of my classmates had this awesome idea for everyone to hang out on Saturday (aka tomorrow) before we all had to go downtown to see a play for our Theatre History class. And originally, we were going to have it at Michelle's house. Well, now it's going to be at my house. I leave the Open House early to get home, and people can start showing up at 3.30pm. From then until we leave for the play, we chill at my place and put in a movie and bar-be-que some food. All of my classmates. All thirty (or something like that) of them, if they all come. Should be promising.
After the "Chilling at Home with all of my Classmates," we make our way downtown to see this play called Life Is A Dream. What is it about, you might ask. I don't know. Where are you seeing it, you might ask. I'm not sure. Will it be any good, you might ask. More than likely, because theatre rocks like that.
Now after Life Is A Dream, all the theatre students are downtown on a Saturday night. Use your head and realize that we're not about to all just go home and call it a night. I'm sure at least a few of us will want to go out, myself included (since I'm missing karaoke dj-ing at the Phoenix for this), so we'll figure out some kind of party, no?
So that's what's happening tomorrow. Hallowe'en's in a week, except instead of a one night thing like it usually is, it's going to be at least a two or three night thing for me. Different parties and events and balls and such, you know? Oh, and before I forget; Splash Page, my superhero play, has been cast. I just need extras and to cast Cover Art, but the fact that I have all the main parts for the first play cast is just fantastic. I'm really pleased with the actors I have too. Now I just need to ask Steve if he'd be interested in helping choreograph the fight scenes...
Friday, October 24, 2008
Saturday, October 18, 2008
Mini Cartons with Extend-able Straws
Does anybody even read this?
I take time and put it aside to do this. I put effort into it. There are hundreds, possibly even thousands, of things I could do in place of this. And for what? For no one to read this, or even care that some kid on the internet is writing all of this stuff about him down for people to read? At this rate, my blog could be completely private, or in a book locked in a box under my bed, and it wouldn't make any difference. Why? Because as far as I know, no one really reads this.
There, I got that off my chest.
I'm drinking those mini cartons of orange juice with extend-able straws, while listening to music and stalling on the mowing of the backyard.
I take time and put it aside to do this. I put effort into it. There are hundreds, possibly even thousands, of things I could do in place of this. And for what? For no one to read this, or even care that some kid on the internet is writing all of this stuff about him down for people to read? At this rate, my blog could be completely private, or in a book locked in a box under my bed, and it wouldn't make any difference. Why? Because as far as I know, no one really reads this.
There, I got that off my chest.
I'm drinking those mini cartons of orange juice with extend-able straws, while listening to music and stalling on the mowing of the backyard.
Monday, October 13, 2008
To Whom It May Concern,
My heart is racing faster than I've ever felt it go before.
My heart feels like it's being squeezed really hard.
My ribcage feels tight, like it's being crushed.
My eyes feel ridiculously dry, yet tears are swelling up.
My muscles are spasming, and I feel so weak.
I can barely maintain one single conscious thought that isn't on all of this pain.
I can't speak; my vocal instrument won't work.
I can't breathe; my asthma's spiked up and is worse than it's been... ever.
I was just sick, and blood was in the mix.
And I think I'm going to be sick again really soon.
I don't know what to do. But I know why this is happening. Or, at least, I have a really good idea of why...
My heart feels like it's being squeezed really hard.
My ribcage feels tight, like it's being crushed.
My eyes feel ridiculously dry, yet tears are swelling up.
My muscles are spasming, and I feel so weak.
I can barely maintain one single conscious thought that isn't on all of this pain.
I can't speak; my vocal instrument won't work.
I can't breathe; my asthma's spiked up and is worse than it's been... ever.
I was just sick, and blood was in the mix.
And I think I'm going to be sick again really soon.
I don't know what to do. But I know why this is happening. Or, at least, I have a really good idea of why...
Opportunities
So my possibility of becoming a bartender has increased significantly. For multiple reasons.
1: I have completed my bartending course at John Abbott College, and I do have my Introductory Bartending Certificate, which isn't the best but it is better than having zero education in this field, and a lot of people get hired without the education. I know free-pour and how the BERG system works, I know tons of recipes ranging from cocktails to martinis, even to specialty coffees and hot chocolates and teas and whatnot.
2: My bartending teacher liked some of the recipes I came up with, and I'm constantly coming up with new recipes too. I had a lovely chat with the bartender at the Avon Theatre before seeing Cabaret, and she listened to some of my recipes and liked how they sounded. She said if I was ever interested in a summer job and could find a place to stay in Stratford, I could easily be a theatre bartender there.
3: My sister Sarah is in town, and she's told me that this place called Vinyl downtown is looking for a bartender. She's going tomorrow evening with a friend, and I'm going to go with them with a version of my CV (I'm going to make a bartending version for this purpose) and a photocopy of my certificate. With luck, I'll get a job there. Hopefully Friday nights. If I can do one night a week and that night works for Vinyl, then that'd be awesome, because then it doesn't conflict with school and I would still have my weekends to travel and do homework and whatnot.
4: Even though I have my certificate, and even though I'm not a resident of Ontario, I might look into getting what is called a Smart Serve. I can do it online, I just need to get the money in order to do it. If I can get it, it would certainly help with getting a job in this field.
So those are the reasons why my chances of getting a job as a bartender are increasing. Granted, I am a bit young (only of legal age here in Quebec), but if I can prove that I can do it and show promise in my mixing skills, I might have a job. Wish me luck with Vinyl!
1: I have completed my bartending course at John Abbott College, and I do have my Introductory Bartending Certificate, which isn't the best but it is better than having zero education in this field, and a lot of people get hired without the education. I know free-pour and how the BERG system works, I know tons of recipes ranging from cocktails to martinis, even to specialty coffees and hot chocolates and teas and whatnot.
2: My bartending teacher liked some of the recipes I came up with, and I'm constantly coming up with new recipes too. I had a lovely chat with the bartender at the Avon Theatre before seeing Cabaret, and she listened to some of my recipes and liked how they sounded. She said if I was ever interested in a summer job and could find a place to stay in Stratford, I could easily be a theatre bartender there.
3: My sister Sarah is in town, and she's told me that this place called Vinyl downtown is looking for a bartender. She's going tomorrow evening with a friend, and I'm going to go with them with a version of my CV (I'm going to make a bartending version for this purpose) and a photocopy of my certificate. With luck, I'll get a job there. Hopefully Friday nights. If I can do one night a week and that night works for Vinyl, then that'd be awesome, because then it doesn't conflict with school and I would still have my weekends to travel and do homework and whatnot.
4: Even though I have my certificate, and even though I'm not a resident of Ontario, I might look into getting what is called a Smart Serve. I can do it online, I just need to get the money in order to do it. If I can get it, it would certainly help with getting a job in this field.
So those are the reasons why my chances of getting a job as a bartender are increasing. Granted, I am a bit young (only of legal age here in Quebec), but if I can prove that I can do it and show promise in my mixing skills, I might have a job. Wish me luck with Vinyl!
Speaking with Mute Voices
I thought of the expression "falling of deaf ears," but that'd suggest that I'm having a problem listening to people, which isn't the case. It's that no one's telling me anything. Normally such things wouldn't bother me (all that much), but this time it's different, because this time it's the people who I thought could tell me anything that won't tell me a damned thing.
I don't know what to do. I'm worried. I feel like I can't get any words out. And if I try to argue my point to these people, I'll be shot down/ignored/whatever else could happen that isn't them telling me what it is I was promised I'd be told and then suddenly "not in the mood for telling" happens...
I don't know what to do. I'm worried. I feel like I can't get any words out. And if I try to argue my point to these people, I'll be shot down/ignored/whatever else could happen that isn't them telling me what it is I was promised I'd be told and then suddenly "not in the mood for telling" happens...
The Ups and Downs of the JAC Stratford Trip
So I just recently got home after an excruciatingly long bus ride from Stratford, Ontario, back to Montreal (Quebec, naturally). I went on the John Abbott/Dawson College trip; four plays in three days. It was my first time visiting this seemingly wonderful city, and it is an experience I doubt I'll ever forget. But, like any other experiences, this one had it's good moments and bad moments. The pros and cons, if you will.
The four plays involved three of Shakespeare's works, which apparently is tradition for the Stratford trip. The four plays, in the order we saw them in, were; The Taming of the Shrew, Hamlet, Cabaret, and Romeo and Juliette.
Shrew and Cabaret were definitely my favorite shows of the four. I had done a musical adaptation of Shrew in high school (I was Tranio), so it was really incredible to get to see the original production done in a high class professional theatre, such as Stratford's Festival Theatre. The costumes and set were simply jaw dropping, and the acting was ridiculously top notch. Of the three Shakespearean pieces from this weekend, this was my favorite of the trio.
Cabaret was what had me hooked from the beginning. Before the bus even left Montreal at the beginning of the weekend. I had heard so much about it, but had never seen it before. In my Acting class at JAC, we do some choreography of Cabaret as a warm-up, so it was really great to see how it came to be in the show. Everything in it was just... fucking wow. Yeah, I had to swear, it was that good. It was the only show of the four that wasn't in the Festival Theatre. It was in the Avon Theatre, which is more like your traditional theatre (where as the Festival is much in comparison to the National Arts Centre in Ottawa, what with the round stage and large house).
Hamlet... never really hooked me before, and I have to say the same. It was done slightly contemporary, but it remained consistent throughout the show, which is more than I can say about R+J. Romeo and Juliette... was my least favorite of the four. While the cast was great, some things bugged me. Like how they kept jumping back and forth from contemporary props and costumes to Shakespearean, and then back again. It was as if the director couldn't make up their mind or something. The acting in the show was good... except for our leading man and lady. Their performance felt dry and empty, and to me it seemed far too... rehearsed. It didn't feel natural to me. But other than that, it was a fine show with a beautiful set.
I picked up two souvenirs for myself too; a set of juggling balls and a pair of gloves. Now I know that those objects would seem to be random as my selection of souvenirs from my first visit of a new city, but there's good reason. Juggling balls because I started to learn how to juggle during the summer, and I want to resume those lessons, and I figured having the right instrument would help. And the gloves are for my superhero plays, as a costume piece. After trying to make the gloves myself and failing three times, I found this amazing pair for a good price (considering it's a costume piece and not just a regular pair of gloves), so I got it.
My roommates... not something I really want to get into right now. Let's just say that they didn't make the experience the best it could be.
So in short, that was my trip. I'm home now though. I suppose I'll write more details about the trip at a later point in time, but no guarantees. We'll see how long this energy burst from Stratford lasts.
The four plays involved three of Shakespeare's works, which apparently is tradition for the Stratford trip. The four plays, in the order we saw them in, were; The Taming of the Shrew, Hamlet, Cabaret, and Romeo and Juliette.
Shrew and Cabaret were definitely my favorite shows of the four. I had done a musical adaptation of Shrew in high school (I was Tranio), so it was really incredible to get to see the original production done in a high class professional theatre, such as Stratford's Festival Theatre. The costumes and set were simply jaw dropping, and the acting was ridiculously top notch. Of the three Shakespearean pieces from this weekend, this was my favorite of the trio.
Cabaret was what had me hooked from the beginning. Before the bus even left Montreal at the beginning of the weekend. I had heard so much about it, but had never seen it before. In my Acting class at JAC, we do some choreography of Cabaret as a warm-up, so it was really great to see how it came to be in the show. Everything in it was just... fucking wow. Yeah, I had to swear, it was that good. It was the only show of the four that wasn't in the Festival Theatre. It was in the Avon Theatre, which is more like your traditional theatre (where as the Festival is much in comparison to the National Arts Centre in Ottawa, what with the round stage and large house).
Hamlet... never really hooked me before, and I have to say the same. It was done slightly contemporary, but it remained consistent throughout the show, which is more than I can say about R+J. Romeo and Juliette... was my least favorite of the four. While the cast was great, some things bugged me. Like how they kept jumping back and forth from contemporary props and costumes to Shakespearean, and then back again. It was as if the director couldn't make up their mind or something. The acting in the show was good... except for our leading man and lady. Their performance felt dry and empty, and to me it seemed far too... rehearsed. It didn't feel natural to me. But other than that, it was a fine show with a beautiful set.
I picked up two souvenirs for myself too; a set of juggling balls and a pair of gloves. Now I know that those objects would seem to be random as my selection of souvenirs from my first visit of a new city, but there's good reason. Juggling balls because I started to learn how to juggle during the summer, and I want to resume those lessons, and I figured having the right instrument would help. And the gloves are for my superhero plays, as a costume piece. After trying to make the gloves myself and failing three times, I found this amazing pair for a good price (considering it's a costume piece and not just a regular pair of gloves), so I got it.
My roommates... not something I really want to get into right now. Let's just say that they didn't make the experience the best it could be.
So in short, that was my trip. I'm home now though. I suppose I'll write more details about the trip at a later point in time, but no guarantees. We'll see how long this energy burst from Stratford lasts.
Friday, October 10, 2008
Scene Change
Change of scene ladies and gentlemen! And the following is directed specifically towards the ladies (sorry gents, but I don't swing that way); this writer and performer of various kinds is no longer single! No more of this "in the air" business either. It's official and everything. More details, and a formal introduction, to come later!
Friday, October 3, 2008
Holy kleenex Batman! We blew it!
Oof, it's been a while. Not a month, but this is my first post in at least two weeks I think. Probably. Something silly like that. And let me tell you; it's been some busy times. Let's see if I can recall it all...
The radio show I mentioned in my last post rocked out pretty well. I got the whole booth to myself, so I was able to unwind while playing my tunes, and everyone in a CSKY zone got to hear my choice of songs and my words. While I know that not a whole lot of people actually pay attention at all, it's still nice to know that people are hearing it (even if they aren't listening). I've got a show tomorrow (today, technically), which will be really good because my friend Jenn and this girl I met on Wednesday named Janelle are both joining me for the show. Jenn might even become my regular (or semi-regular) co-host, depending on how scheduling goes for her.
I did indeed go to Ottawa, as I said I wanted to. It was this past weekend. Tegan's birthday. Got to see Tegan (uhm, duh?), Tony, and Suzie. Which was really nice. Not to mention it was really really nice to get out of Montreal for a couple days. Like, this city is fine, but once in a while you just need to get away, right? Well, Ottawa's the place to get away to. There, I feel like I have no problems or troubles. I can relax properly. I can enjoy myself. I think I'll always love it there. And if I end up being a teacher (which is one of my back-up plans for career choices), I think I'd like to teach there. Or at John Abbott. I don't know. If I get there, we'll see.
School's going well. Insomnia's making things difficult when it comes to Humanities class though, since I nod out once in a while. I'm going to talk to my counsellar at school about what I can do about that. I'm also going to talk to the teacher, to see if we can sort anything out. It sucks, yeah, but I want to be a responsible student. And I can't afford to fail any classes. But of all my classes, that's the only one I'm worried about. Everything else is going well. And I'm getting a hell of a work out with most of my theatre courses and my gym class. I'm in better shape than I've been in a long time. I feel stronger, and I am stronger. And you know what? It shows. Even Rob, my acting teacher, has noticed.
On the subject of Rob, I had the best Acting class today (well, on Thursday). For vocal warm-up, we do regular voice-warm-up-exercises, but we also sing some. Tender Shepards, Hallelujah, and Will I (from Rent). Sometimes for Will I, Rob will single out a couple people at a time or even just one person at a time. The lyrics are simple; "Will I lose my dignity? Will someone care? Will I wake tomorrow from this nightmare." Well, I was singled out in class today, and let me tell you this; I was at the top of my singing game. Got the notes spot on, and even held "nightmare" on a single breath.
I'm online this late because I only got in a little while ago. I went out to karaoke downtown with some friends; Paws, Kenevin, Lauren, and Adam. Adam's friend Laurence came too. We were having a good time, but after a couple drinks and some bitter truths, shit kinda hit the fan. Nothing that'll cause earth-shattering-results though... I hope. I'll make some calls tomorrow and sort everything out. Everything should be okay.
I'm still on the single scene. Well, actually, I don't know. It's up in the air. I've met this girl that I really really like. I'm 100% positive she knows. Nothing's set in stone or anything, but we are talking quite a bit and want to hang out more often. I'm hopeful, but I'm not letting my hopes get too high. More to come... as soon as there's more to report, I guess.
Oof. Class in three hours and fourteen minutes. And counting.
The radio show I mentioned in my last post rocked out pretty well. I got the whole booth to myself, so I was able to unwind while playing my tunes, and everyone in a CSKY zone got to hear my choice of songs and my words. While I know that not a whole lot of people actually pay attention at all, it's still nice to know that people are hearing it (even if they aren't listening). I've got a show tomorrow (today, technically), which will be really good because my friend Jenn and this girl I met on Wednesday named Janelle are both joining me for the show. Jenn might even become my regular (or semi-regular) co-host, depending on how scheduling goes for her.
I did indeed go to Ottawa, as I said I wanted to. It was this past weekend. Tegan's birthday. Got to see Tegan (uhm, duh?), Tony, and Suzie. Which was really nice. Not to mention it was really really nice to get out of Montreal for a couple days. Like, this city is fine, but once in a while you just need to get away, right? Well, Ottawa's the place to get away to. There, I feel like I have no problems or troubles. I can relax properly. I can enjoy myself. I think I'll always love it there. And if I end up being a teacher (which is one of my back-up plans for career choices), I think I'd like to teach there. Or at John Abbott. I don't know. If I get there, we'll see.
School's going well. Insomnia's making things difficult when it comes to Humanities class though, since I nod out once in a while. I'm going to talk to my counsellar at school about what I can do about that. I'm also going to talk to the teacher, to see if we can sort anything out. It sucks, yeah, but I want to be a responsible student. And I can't afford to fail any classes. But of all my classes, that's the only one I'm worried about. Everything else is going well. And I'm getting a hell of a work out with most of my theatre courses and my gym class. I'm in better shape than I've been in a long time. I feel stronger, and I am stronger. And you know what? It shows. Even Rob, my acting teacher, has noticed.
On the subject of Rob, I had the best Acting class today (well, on Thursday). For vocal warm-up, we do regular voice-warm-up-exercises, but we also sing some. Tender Shepards, Hallelujah, and Will I (from Rent). Sometimes for Will I, Rob will single out a couple people at a time or even just one person at a time. The lyrics are simple; "Will I lose my dignity? Will someone care? Will I wake tomorrow from this nightmare." Well, I was singled out in class today, and let me tell you this; I was at the top of my singing game. Got the notes spot on, and even held "nightmare" on a single breath.
I'm online this late because I only got in a little while ago. I went out to karaoke downtown with some friends; Paws, Kenevin, Lauren, and Adam. Adam's friend Laurence came too. We were having a good time, but after a couple drinks and some bitter truths, shit kinda hit the fan. Nothing that'll cause earth-shattering-results though... I hope. I'll make some calls tomorrow and sort everything out. Everything should be okay.
I'm still on the single scene. Well, actually, I don't know. It's up in the air. I've met this girl that I really really like. I'm 100% positive she knows. Nothing's set in stone or anything, but we are talking quite a bit and want to hang out more often. I'm hopeful, but I'm not letting my hopes get too high. More to come... as soon as there's more to report, I guess.
Oof. Class in three hours and fourteen minutes. And counting.
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