I've been busy - how 'bout YOU?

I got sleepy in the middle of the day today, so I took a nap (read: snuggled the furbabies in a reclined position in the bed), and whilst there, I made BIG PLANS for a blog post today.

But I have too much to say. Too much to catch you up on. Too many feels!

So I'll just leave these little morsels here:

• I'm happy and grateful that I get to make my living on set. My goal is to also make pension and health insurance every year, starting with this quarter. So, yeah! Three days of work per week! Let's do it!
• I'm happy and grateful to be walking my body back to lookin' and feelin' great! Beach body before winter ends! Yeah! 5000 steps or more per day, please and thank you! Let's do it!
• I'm happy and grateful to be in an acting class that covers not only acting or auditioning technique, but also technical stuff like websites. I HAVE A NEW WEBSITE! Check me out! emelle4real.com Yeah! Self-promotion like a boss! Let's do it!
• I'm happy and grateful that I'm actually reading for pleasure and growth. I recently checked out from my public library "Big Magic" by Elizabeth Gilbert and "The Slight Edge" by Jeff Olson, and I liked both of these books well enough to purchase copies for myself. Yeah! Read at least 10 pages of a good book each day! Let's do it!
• I'm happy and grateful to be recording audiobooks (kid lit), so far just for the listening enjoyment of the niblings. Could it lead to a contract with a major publisher? Why not? So, yeah! Keep reading to the kiddos! Let's do it!
• I'm happy and grateful to be on the roster of volunteers at the SAG-AFTRA Conservatory. This (school) year is the first time I've taken advantage of the tens of thousands of dollars' worth of acting/business education offered to union members at the low, LOW price of $45/year, and I've gotten so much out of it so far, I'm ready to "give back". Yeah! Help a sistah (or brotha) OUT! Let's do it!

There's still too much to tell you, and maybe I'll get to it tomorrow or the next day. I might be back on set tomorrow, so we'll see. But THIS post needs to be published before I head out to this evening's class, so... YEAH! WRITING MORE BLOG POSTS TO STAY IN TOUCH! LET'S DO IT!

How can it POSSIBLY get even better than this?

I’m a PRINCESS

Last night, I had a “Princess and the Pea” moment. Typically, when I go to bed, I’ll pull the top pillow down to the foot(-ish) of the bed, and get in, lying on my back. Typically, I have to shoo Smokey and/or Cocoa off the covers and top sheet so that I CAN get in bed. The reason I lie on my back (at first recline) is for feline belly rubs.

Smokey comes up my right side, crossing or perching on my chest and ribcage 3 or four times before finally settling into my right armpit. I’ll start his belly rubs, while he rests his head on my diaphragm, watching Cocoa attempt to settle in on my left side. She wants to walk all the way up to my face, and if I reach for her At All (to scratch her head or whatever), she’ll back away toward my feet. She does this three or four times as well, sniffing or licking Smokey’s head in the process, and then she’ll eventually plop down (very ungracefully) against my left ribcage, throwing her back leg over my hand for optimal belly rubs.

Cocoa would honestly rather have me to herself, so she typically hounds me for her personal belly rubs throughout the day, or she’ll wake me (too) early for one-on-one snuggles. This means that she also tends to depart the bedtime belly rubs pretty quickly; within five minutes, Smokey has me to himself.

After ten or twenty minutes (just about when I’ve fallen asleep), Smokey will depart, as well. I don’t blame him; what’s the point of perfect belly rub positioning if you’re not actually getting your belly rubbed? Once I am sans feline, I’ll roll over to one side and curl up, semi-fetal position, and go to sleep for the night (until Cocoa decides to wake me {too} early).

Last Night, when I curled up, I felt a pain in my ankle. It wasn’t a sharp pain, but it did feel like, if I didn’t do something about it, I would end up with a stone bruise. On My ANKLE. So I lifted the pillow I use as weight on my feet, and discovered a mouse.

No, it wasn’t a live mouse. Nor was it a dead mouse. It was a stuffed catnip mouse. When the mouse was new, it was vibrantly colored and had a purple felt tail. It still has the bell or rattle or whatever it is inside it that makes it an appealing toy (the catnip doesn’t hurt its appeal). It no longer has its tail. The ears are frayed. One eye is frayed. Most of its surface is frayed. It seems to be leaking stuffing through its muted-in-color, no-longer-vibrant pelt. Stephen often calls it a FISH (because the ears look like fins, and it has no tail).

Smokey is ALLOWING me to photograph FishMouse

But it’s well-loved, and the bed is honestly the best place for us to store the most-well-loved toys belonging to the cats, so they don’t go “hunting” in the middle of the night, while we’re sleeping. They can “hunt” all they want during the day, as long as we remember to bring the toys to bed with us.

*note to self: don't forget to return FishMouse to the bed, when this is posted

At Any Rate… the bell or rattle or whatever’s inside that damn mouse felt like a stone. It wasn’t a pea at the bottom of the stack of mattresses, it was atop the covers but under a pillow. And it was bugging me, y’all.

#ImAPrincess #ImaFuckingPrincessYall #ImaFuckingPrincessAndDontYouEverForgetIt

New stuff is new

I've been "doing" a lot of educational stuff to move my career forward. The other day, I had to film myself for a couple of auditions for a student film. Not all auditions are in person, unfortunately. Not everyone can coordinate schedules in an appropriate audition space. So sometimes we self-tape. My experience the other day was my first time self-taping in California (I had done one self-tape on the #WrongCoastForMe, and it was really really horrible.)

The other day wasn't as horrible. It still wasn't particularly good, but I ended up with two clips where you *can* see and hear me, and I *did* perform the lines that were given. So we'll see. The good news about all of it was that it'll no longer be "new" if when I have to self-tape again. #HowDoesItGetAnyBetterThanThis?

But sometimes, new stuff is actual stuff. Yesterday, Stephen and I took a little walk, just to get some steps in and also to get some fresh air. As we exited our building, we noticed a complete chest of drawers sitting in the alley. So we walked past it, discussing where we'd put it, in our tiny apartment, if we were to think about adding it to our furnishings.

Stephen's been a touch under the weather for the last few days, so when we got back in from our walk, he sort of "wound down" so he could go to bed relatively early, since he'd have to go in early to work today. So I assumed the chest of drawers would end up in someone else's apartment. But just as he was heading to bed, he suggested I go down and take some measurements. Hmm...

It's 4'4" wide, which was the biggest detriment to us bothering to bring it upstairs, unless it was also #SuperFuckingHeavy. While measuring it, I also removed all the drawers, so I could investigate the pulls and the tracks, and lift the damn thing as well, to gauge the weight. The drawer pulls were mostly tight enough but could use some tightening. The tracks were all in great shape. The dresser itself had one front leg that needed some tightening, and the center-back leg needed some realigning. The only detriment I found in the alley was the 4'4". But my favorite number is 4, so could we find a "home" for this piece?

I measured the wall in the kitchen next to the fridge: kind of a snug fit, and where would we relocate the stack of bins to? I measured the hallway wall, and figured that would work, at least temporarily. But what will a chest of drawers hold in a hallway? Hmm... Stephen eyeballed the living room wall with the entertainment center, and mentioned some rearrangement there. That would definitely give the piece "purpose" (hiding all the not-currently-in-use electronics, etc.), but would also require moving the two small toy chests elsewhere, so where? I told Stephen to sleep on that one, and I planned to spend today doing the tightening/cleaning that it would require.

Which means, YES. We brought it in last night, set it in the hallway with drawers sitting on top, so the cats could give it a good investigation and approval overnight.

And I've spent my morning listening to educational stuff whilst cleaning and rearranging and tightening and sorting and whatnot in the kitchen. We'll see what Stephen thinks before we put anything in the drawers, but I'm pretty happy with the idea of it holding Corningware or serving dishes or other kitcheny stuff, kinda like a china cabinet would (but having no Chinaware, we have no need of a china cabinet).

What do YOU think of our NEW thing? Are you a procurer of new stuff that's actually someone else's old stuff?

I Am Here. Are You Here? Where Are You? Where Will I Be Tomorrow?

Final Sunday with Daddy, right? Our plans today included lunch with Uncle Leroy and Laurie, possibly golf balls at the driving range, possibly a swim, probably some Doctor Who. First thing I actually did was finish (and tweet) this page I'd started yesterday:

"Haters Gonna Hate, Players Gonna Play. I'm Just Gonna
Hide in the Closet Because I Have Social Anxiety."

Daddy was up early (for him), and so was I, after a night of weird-ass dreams. So yes, we watched a little bit of the Bob Mann instructional video and went out to the driving range. Daddy was out of balls, so he rented a small bucket... but there were the remains of a large bucket, abandoned there on the range. I asked the only person to whom they might have "belonged" whether he was set up there, and he said no. So we scored (essentially) TWO buckets for the price of ONE. #WeAreMoneyMagnets #ThankYouThankYouThankYou Not only that, but he hit 10/11 happy balls with the iron and 10/12 happy balls with the driver.

Got back in plenty of time to try to schedule a 4:00 tee time for tomorrow before heading to lunch. Had an issue with logging in and scheduling online, so we popped by the clubhouse on our way out, and he got it scheduled. A TEE TIME! On the actual front nine of the course! Unfortunately, Laurie'd had another bad day and night yesterday, so lunch would only be the three of us. Bummer. I didn't want to miss seeing her this trip. Still, Uncle Leroy looked pretty good, and we had an enjoyable lunch, asking him to send our love to Laurie.

That outing took a bit of the wind outta Daddy's sails, though, and when we got back in, he lay down for a nap, which turned into a pretty long one. He'd asked me not to wake him, but maybe I should've done. 'Cuz at this point, he might not sleep tonight.

Once up from it, he had no interest in going anywhere, so I dressed for a walk and swim, and left him to watch a movie. Not knowing how long I'd be gone, I told him to call me if I wasn't home yet when his movie was done. I walked over, swam a bit, sunned my back a bit, sunned my belly a bit, and started walking back home. He called, though, to tell me he was picking me up so we could drive into Deland to see Uncle Leroy in the hospital - he'd had a heart attack!

Neither of us went into "panic mode", because frankly, we just don't. But I got in, tweeted a request for love and light, plugged my phone in, dressed, and then went back downstairs to find out whether we'd be heading right out or waiting for Uncle Dan to ride with us (since we were the in-between locale). While I was dressing, Laurie called to say that they'd moved him into the ICU, so we were awaiting further instruction...

Daddy fixed himself a drink because I refused to, in case we needed to head out. And he tuned back into various movies, finally settling on Clue. Good choice! Meanwhile, I found an "appropriate" page to color in You Are Here, and during the course of the movie, had time to complete it:

"'Small' Is Not The Same As 'Weak'. Always Remember, Frightened Rabbits Fight Hardest."

I made him a grey/white wabbit with blue-grey eyes, in honor of Uncle Leroy, and dedicated it to him. I suppose if Laurie wants the actual physical page, that'll be the whole reason #TheBloggess had this book perforated. I'm still not particularly confident in my coloring, but I'm enjoying it. I especially like using contrasting "weights" of the same colored pencil, as evidenced in both of these specific doodles.

Ennyhoo. When Laurie finally called, I had to take the phone away from Daddy, because that one drink had been enough to slur his speech. Laurie sounded okay, all things considered. And when she said that she hoped they'd keep him (her dad) in the ICU beyond tomorrow, HE joked in the background that the nurses (already) don't want him to leave! So, assurances made that our presence wasn't needed tonight, I bid her a restful good night, and told her we'll be expecting her call in the morning, and that we would come out to the hospital tomorrow, if requested.

Then I called Uncles Dan and Terry, to keep them in the loop. Uncle Dan was glad to hear that he didn't need to go anywhere tonight; Daddy's first phone call had sent his heart racing, and it still wasn't calm yet! I also told him that we expect to hear from Laurie in the morning, so rather than texting Daddy that he was "okay", why not call and drive over? That way, if/when we do head out, he'll already be here. And if we don't go anywhere, it won't hurt anyone for him to hang out here for a bit. He seemed amenable to that. Uncle Terry will be expecting our update, as he's in Miami and will only come if requested (probably).

So the tee time is cancelled. I'll probably get to see Laurie! But under different circumstances than anyone may have hoped, hmm. Daddy's taken his meds, we watched no Who, I've colored and blogged and acted like a parent, sending Daddy to bed.

Please let tomorrow be a "good" one!

Stayed in bed this morning because...

I'd gotten plenty of sound sleep, but the thunderstorms rolled in, and even though I didn't get a light show, I did get to hear the heavy rain and thunder... so I stayed in bed having a mental war with my bladder, which did eventually win, but not until I heard Daddy puttering around downstairs. That's late enough! Get up and pee, for gooness sakes! #GoonessIsARealWordIJustMadeUp

We started our morning in sleepwear... which progressed to starting our mid-day in sleepwear... which progressed to starting our evening in sleepwear. At some point after just snacking through our morning, there was a question of "real food". I remembered we still had ingrediments for wraps, so that's what I fed us. And then Daddy eventually changed into "outside" clothes, because he was ready to hit a few balls in the backyard. So I raced upstairs to put on real clothes, too, so I could join him outside.

He wasn't particularly happy with his shots, and frankly, for having been landscaped for the past two days, the grass was pretty damn thick. Musta been all that overnight rain.

We came back in, and after resting his back for a mo', I suggested we get ourselves a bit of dessert from Publix. Daddy had mentioned yesterday that they carry cannoli in their bakery, and I reminded him that they also carry key lime pie. So that'll be a "yes" on dessert!

We'd already watched a lot of Doctor Who (from S4 E14 through the DT Specials {which were not so easy to find in Amazon} and into S5 E1), so Daddy was ready to watch something else (and I blamed our sedentary day for his not-great club-swinging). So, since I was still "outside" dressed, I decided to meet my step challenge while Daddy watched "something else". I'd only be gone about a half-hour, and his "night-night meds" alarm would be going off shortly after my return, so we'd have our dessert then, and he could take his meds.

Pretty uneventful day, and if I could have done all I managed to do from the bed, I mighta.

Momma said there'd be days like this. There'd be days like this, my Momma said. When was the last time you had a day like this?

Day "One" with Daddy

Since I'm here to "whip him into shape", as it were, here's our baseline:

The bff neighbors leave, officially tomorrow. Daddy will haz a sad then. (I think he already haz a sad, but I'm expecting it to potentially "worsen" over the next few days, so I'm focusing on physical changes I can "Drill Sergeant" for him.)

Yesterday, I awoke to his throat clearings. I'd managed to get to bed/sleep at a reasonable hour, even though I had traveled forward in time by three zones. Went to bed somewhere in the 11-ish hour, Thursday night. So Friday morning was following a decent sleep. Yes, I'd awoken "in a strange place" a few times, but returned to slumber straightaway & got up with Daddy's "noise" at a reasonable hour, as well (8-9 "ish").

Neither of us had any particular agenda for the day, so we determined together what we planned to accomplish. I want to get him walking in his neighborhood. Number of steps don't matter; speed doesn't matter; time spent outside doesn't matter. Let's just put on our sneakers and take the walker out, walk as far as we can until he gets winded, and then rest by him sitting on the walker. He also figured we'd visit with Uncle Dan and his bff neighbors. That was all the plan we had for Day One.

So we each checked our electronic devices for news or notifications or whatever we checked 'em for. We ate breakfast. He called Uncle Dan, who sends him daily text messages re: how he's feeling, but then he follows up by phone, to see if a visit is in order for that day (especially if he's got a "ride", i.e. me driving a rental car). No visit yesterday; Dan was not "up" to it.

He called Uncle Leroy, just to see how he was doing. He called Uncle Terry, for the same reason. I'm here to make sure Daddy's doing all right, and in the meantime, he's making sure other family is also all right. Apparently, the caregiving apple doesn't fall far from the RN tree. ;)

We put on sneakers and went for a short walk, with the walker. He hated it, because he can't not hold the handles of the walker, and the position(s) of them makes walking feel too much like "work" or physical therapy, or possibly just "looking old". So we discussed "Jerry-rig" improvements, like somehow attaching a long strap so that he could drag it along behind. We stopped at the third shade tree (counting his own), and he sat down to rest. Then we returned to the house to sort some of the ideas we'd had, and set back out again. Made it as far as the third shade tree, having failed in "Jerry-rig Attempt #1", & returned to the house with more ideas.

He'd gotten a bit winded, so he was sucking on a very small, portable oxygen canister. Like, really small. This is the sort of thing that hikers pack for high altitudes, I think. Ánd no, he wasn't actually "sucking" on it. He depressed the button long enough to "spray" straight-up O2 into his mouth and down his windpipe, once or twice.

This action, of course, generated a conversation about his Rx Albuterol. He'd been the one to most clearly explain the delivery of Albuterol into MY lungs when I got my inhaler, with prescribed spacer thingy; why wasn't he using his Albuterol? It didn't work, most likely because he'd had to "Jerry-rig" a spacer... so we planned to stop by CVS to see about getting him a proper one.

So... "baseline" walking distance, check. Convo re: each of our motivations/goals, check. Hopped in the golf cart for the short jaunt over to CVS (no, you need an Rx for a spacer, and glucosamine/chondroitin is NOT CHEAP if you're having joint pains) and Publix (we needed milk and lunchmeats and some crackers and of course, ice cream) and back home, after he'd introduced me to everyone he knows. It was interesting, meeting "his people"... because I'm an extrovert, of course I have "my people" (at my Trader Joe's and Costco, at least), and it made me feel good to know that there are local customer service peeps who would look for him, even if they couldn't necessarily find him... they'd worry as much as family does.

FINALLY got a visit with his bff neighbors! Now, I had met the female half of the couple, and we're in long-distance group convos with the rest of Daddy's progeny, when we need to be. But we hadn't spent much time together. I decided yesterday that she was to be my new bff! Later, we had a separate visit with the couple, when I FINALLY (after all these years) got to meet the male half. My greatest shock was discovering that Daddy's bff neighbors all these years are MY generation, not HIS. Whatever.

Daddy and I wrapped up our pretty-productive (baseline-setting and deep conversation-having) first day together with him going to bed well past his normal bedtime. I grabbed whatever I needed to occupy myself in my upstairs bedroom, tried to hit the sack ~midnight-ish, and found that I Just Wasn't Sleepy. Or Tired. Or able to sleep, for whatever reason.

So I replied to some snail-mail I'd brought with me, and I completed the page I was coloring on my flight. Got to bed/sleep shortly after 2 a.m. just by forcing myself to it. The coloring had in no way calmed me or made me sleepy or relaxed or anything like that. It gave me a stiff neck, frankly, because 1) this is my first experiment with adult coloring and 2) I was sitting/lying in bed, trying to make it work. However, I was pretty damn pleased with the end result, so after posting the photo to Twitter, I did some easy sleep math, and planned to awaken no earlier than 9 a.m.

Easy Peasy, Right?

Twenty-One Days

is what it takes to break a habit, "they" say. It's how long it takes to MAKE a new habit, too, curiously enough. I think it's a nice memory device, that 21 days. It's less than a month, so it doesn't feel daunting. It's more than a fortnight, so you know you will face a challenge or two. But, "they" say, if you can make it 21 days, then you can succeed in whatever that lifestyle change you're attempting.

Unfortunately for US, this post is going to go "live" at the end of the next (for me, it's the next) 21 days, as I need the next (for me, not for you) 21 days to document the progress. Because of what it's about, it does not behoove me to blog it as I go. You'll understand in just a sec.

"Yesterday" was Day Zero. I had needed to update/upgrade my wardrobe for background work, and I know that Stephanie is both highly fashion-conscious as well as being incredibly deal-spotty. I hate clothing shopping for myself (or probably for others, too), because I am not a finder of deals, I just refuse to spend too much. Also, I don't feel like I have any real fashion sense. Lately, Stephen and I have been binge-watching Arrow, and I wanted to emulate Moira Queen's style. I wanted some basic suit and dress pieces that would be timeless and would only need accessories (another thing I have no skills in, but let's get the big pieces outta the way first).

So Stephanie came over, and we went shopping. Whilst trying stuff on, I noticed what looked like bites or bacne near where my bikini top sits. It doesn't itch or hurt or anything, but having just noticed it, I had Stephanie take a look. She immediately pulled a Stephen (or even Daddy) and tried to diagnose me. Since Stephen's been dealing with a lot of itchy bites lately, Stephanie kept coming back to bedbugs. I was sure we don't have bedbugs; Stephen was sure we don't have bedbugs; Stephanie kept pressing the issue, and guess what the two of them found? Bedbugs. So this 21-day countdown (up?) is going to be about getting rid of the damn things. #KillItWithFire

Day Zero (Wednesday, summer): find and kill 3 bedbugs from the bedskirt. Pull all of the linens off the bed and wash them in hot water and dry them twice per Stephanie's urging. Discover dead bedbugs after laundering the linens. Dunno if it was the hot water or the twice-dry that killed 'em; don't care. Tweet "thanks for the nightmares, Stephanie! ;)" and she makes me take it down. Fine. I took it down. Just as we were ready to go to bed, Stephen killed another one because it had just bitten him. Dammit. We put a bunch of lavender oil in the corners of the bedding, and I went to bed while Stephen kept puttering.

Day One: no evidence of bedbugs anywhere, I go ahead and do a bunch of my own laundry. I also pick up a couple of sprayer bottles and those cheap ketchup/mustard squirt bottles. Whilst laundering my clothing, I spray the baseboards throughout the apartment with undiluted lavender oil. Smells so good! I also Take. Apart. My Bed. so I can spray every surface of it with diluted tea tree oil as I rebuild it. I also vacuum and mop the bedroom again. Then I shower and drive to a fitting, because I booked a day of background work next week! Woo Hoo! Masters of Sex, I'm comin' back! When Stephen gets home, he fills the ketchup squirter bottle with Diatemaceous Earth, which is a pet-friendly way to kill fleas, but also works on bedbugs. He then proceeds to open all the electrical outlets he can get to to lace them with D.E. He's also inspecting the media shelves and will treat them with diluted tea tree oil just as a precaution. We're not fuckin' around!

I can't tell you how many times I filled this bottle, to spray all the bedding parts... I sprayed Every Single Bedding part before putting the bed back together! There was not a single square inch that did not get sprayed. Srsly.

Day Two: no evidence anywhere of any issue, and Stephen slept well last night, once he turned on the A/C (we're in another heat wave, which doesn't help us discover living bedbugs, because they don't care for heat, which is why they don't actually crawl on you, they just bite you where they can reach ya). Neither of us has gotten a new bite since Night Zero. The apartment stills smells very lavendery, and we both slept through the night, as did the cats. We had discussed setting a dry ice "trap" for any living adult bugs (they're attracted to CO2, which is why they feed off the blood of humans... they know where you are because you're exhaling in your sleep!), but frankly, we're unable to purchase less than ten pounds at a time here, and we really only need about a pound or less, and the trap does involve a little bit of setup, and what a waste of nine or more pounds of dry ice! And we're not seeing evidence. So we'll keep spraying lavender and tea tree oils around the place, and if we don't dilute it, those oils will absolutely kill any adult bugs we find, plus we could also draw little lines of D.E. around the walls, to see if the oils need any help... KILLING the BUGS!

Day Three: I'm on set as a Scripty all day in Riverside, which is about sixty miles away. Call time is 3:00 p.m., so by the time I get/got back in to go to bed, I just fell asleep immediately. Awoke early on Sunday for my NOON call time, and had a chance to discover that we're still seeing no evidence, and the bites we have are definitely fading. As we near the end of this particular 21 day cycle, any eggs will/should have hatched, and we'll probably have to step up our game a bit. I'm happy that at this point, we've got a decent handle on the "problem". We managed to get diagnosed in time (Thank You, Stephanie) to reduce the infestation. I'll probably be able to come back to this post by Day Five. Right now, (Day Four), I've gotta pack up my shit so I'm ready to head out when my carpoolees arrive!

Day Five: Nothing to report ... until Stephen was up in the darkness in the wee hours of morning, searching for the little bastard that bit him. It was a teeny bite, so he's assuming an egg we'd not found had hatched. So,

Day Six: He spends his day off spraying diluted tea tree oil everywhere, vacuuming and mopping, and spreading D.E. into the baseboards of the bedroom and then masking-taping all of those little cracks and crevices. Late into the day, we purchase more lavender and tea tree oils at GNC (because they honestly had the best local prices; we found cheaper online, but aren't ready to deal with shipping just yet), and then I sprayed the undiluted lavender oil on all of the baseboards in the bedroom and closet (the only room I'd "missed" the first time, because I ran out). We went to bed that night in lavender heaven.

Day Seven (Wednesday): I'm on set again today, but this time for the 1960's show that I'd had a fitting for last week. Have worked a little, but mostly I'm sitting in holding with the other background actors, waiting to work. This is my "second look":

no, those are my real glasses!

the other "profile", to include my Hunger Games pin (?)

I'll let you know (here, probably much later than from set) whether we have any bedbug evidence today... um, I have no idea; I forgot to tell you. #SorryNotSorry

Day Eight: Stephen's place of business receives stock on Thursdays that includes pet foods packed in dry ice. So today, I raced over there to pick up a little so we could set our "trap"!

tape a t-shirt to an inverted dog bowl; dust insides w/D.E.,

 put dry ice in the cup, and seal the room for an hour

Just a little white powder everywhere either means we have NO MORE BEDBUGS, or (more likely), we may have some eggs still waiting to hatch. Good news is, we can set this trap EVERY Thursday until we're free of bites/evidence! W00t!

Days Ten and Eleven: I'm on set as Scripty again. This time, we're in a soundstage. It's for a YouTube (or other) web series, and it's crazy fast-moving (unlike the student film last weekend that took for-freakin'-ever because there didn't seem to be anyone actually in charge), and again, not a lot of time at home other than sleeping, so I dunno what the hell the bedbug sitch is this weekend.

Day Fourteen: I picked up a rush call for a SCRIPTY gig! Day Playing, officially! It's for a feature (I think), and they're almost done with their shoot, and we're filming in the middle of nowhere, and I may have gotten a bug bite or two near my ankle on one of these set days, but I don't think I've been bitten in bed. Honestly, I don't really know, because my earlier bites never itched, which I think is supposed to mean I'm immune or something.

Day Fifteen (Thursday): We're diluting the essential oils less and less, but this means we'll run out again soon. No dry ice in any shipments from Stephen's work, so no new traps. At some point in here (I'm back-blogging this week, because I just haven't been keeping up), Stephen gets bit again, So I re-wash the bed linens and apply DE and tea tree oil (both) to all of the edges where the suckers might climb up. Still don't see any evidence of 'em.

Day TWENTY-ONE (Wednesday): I'm on set, in the background, of a popular television show, out in the middle of nowhere. I'm wearing jeans, so I can't see if I'm bug-bitten, but there's a good chance. Also, on Monday, Stephen and I were out in the world, and I stepped into what felt like a bottomless hole (as I was stepping). It was one of those holes in the sidewalk where there should have been a tree. Had there been a tree there, I'd have missed the hole. But no tree means I wasn't looking, and didn't see that the concrete had ended. RUNNING on set for the television show may have exacerbated things; my knee is now jacked up (but I don't know it yet).

Day Twenty-Two (yeah, that's right, kids, this saga's gonna take a few more weeks, probably): I had put myself on the overnight availability list, and got rush called for some BG work on a new show, with my car. Great day; highly productive and lucrative. I'm really hoping they'll have me back. Fingers crossed! Nothing new to report on the bedbug front, but when I changed into the new suit-dress that Stephanie helped me purchase, I discovered my knee was beginning to swell. Argh. Also, no dry ice again, so we can't set the trap even if we wanted to. ArghArgh.

Day Twenty-Eight (Wednesday, still summer): I'd gone to Kaiser on Monday to catch up on my Depo schedule (I'm behind, primarily because I Just Friggin' Forgot, All Right? Quit yelling at me), and while I was there, a nurse checked out my knee and made a phone appt for fifteen minutes from then with a doc, who ordered x-rays and a follow-up in-person visit (for today, Day 28). Over the phone, she'd Rx'd rest, elevation, ice, and ibuprofen or naproxen sodium as needed. By the follow-up, the swelling had abated quite a bit, so she told me to continue what I'd been doing, as well as some stretching. I'm really bad about "forgetting" to stretch.

Day Twenty-Nine: I get Stephen on a plane very early so that he can visit his mom for what could be the last time she remembers him. Or not. She's no Spring Chicken, and her issues with memory loss could easily be just ... NORMAL ... for someone her age. But she lives in a facility near her younger son, who happens to be the worrier in the family (he takes after his mom), so Stephen scheduled a visit. After I dropped him off, I headed downtown to attend the Production Meeting for my Next Scripty gig, an 18-day shoot for another YouTube series, this time for a dude who already has a real YouTube presence and following. It's gonna be crazy. I'm looking forward to it, and I'm probably also looking forward to a mid-winter night's dream (my next expected good sleep).

Day Thirty: I have no idea how I'll even know if we still have a bedbug problem while Stephen's out of town, but I went ahead and ordered vast quantities of the essential oils again, since we were out of everything. My package arrived today! 16 fluid oz. of each should last to the end of this trauma, even if we don't bother to dilute Any More. Out of sheer joy, I sprayed the edges of the bedding (mattress, foundation, and every pillow) with undiluted lavender oil. Heaven.

Day Thirty-One (Saturday): I've completed most of my prep work for the shoot that starts Monday. I still need to print out script pages, but I've had two cups of French-Press Chocolate Milk-based Vanilla-Nut coffee, and I've vacuumed the bedroom, and cleaned/WD-40'd the air ionizer, and spent the morning on Twitter. I wonder when, in the future, I'll be able to hit "publish" on this post? I wonder when, in the future, I'll have time to sit back down here and catch you up on anything? My life's about to get crazy-busy, and even if it's an amazing ride, I won't have time to keep you up to speed. I now haz a little sad. Lemme drink some yummy coffee.

Day Thirty-Nine (Sunday): Stephen got in on Monday, back from his trip. I went to five consecutive 12-hour workdays, and he stayed home, using PTO to "recover" from the emotional draining he'd just endured. He came back either to or with bites, all clumped together on his back. We have no idea if they're from the futon or from travelling, but we've measured the futon and will invest in a bedbug-resistance mattress pad to put under the duvet, once we've washed and double-dried it again. We just keep treating any "problem" areas with essential oils, and maybe this week, there'll be a shipment with dry ice at his job again.

Day Who-The-Hell-Knows?: I had let this post sit as a draft for a very long time, because when your "current" housing is the root of a problem like bedbugs, you cannot publish that. We resolved the issue long before we moved outta that place, but there's always a lingering anxiety, before and during a move, that we might be bringin' the little bastards with us. If you've been following this blog with any regularity, you already know that the new place is kinda sorta divine, or at least has washer and dryer in the unit, good airflow throughout so we open the windows as we like when the weather allows, and all the mammals that are living here are pretty damn comfortable. Before we moved the first piece of furniture in, I spread DE and sprayed essential oils in all the baseboards. We haven't had to reapply anything, other than using essential oils to make the place smell good, or for soaking in a hot bath. I'm out of lavender oil, and I may re-order 16oz online, which should last me another very long time, considering what I use it for!

Have you ever had to deal with bedbugs? How long did it take to get rid of them? How long did your anxiety last, after they were gone?

More Reviews!

Sully The story of Chesley Sullenberger, an American pilot who became a hero after landing his damaged plane on the Hudson River in order to save the flight's passengers and crew.: This film was released on September 9th, so if you didn't get to see it in a theater, you'll have to look for it in your streaming services or on DVD/Blu-Ray, when that happens. If it does get nominated for any awards this award season, then it may get RE-released in theaters.

It's based on the true story of the "Miracle on the Hudson", and it's more the story of the investigation into the "crash" than it is the events leading up to the water landing (because, really, the story of just the events leading up to and including the landing would NOT make a good feature-length film). That said, I was pleased to "witness" the "crash" multiple times, as well as each of Sully's nightmare crashes. Not that I'm a fan of plane crashes. I'm as much a fan of a bonfire in person as the next person; I only want to see fiery crashes ON SCREEN, because I know they were made in controlled situations or done digitally. But all of the "crashes" they showed in this film, either "real" or imagined, had me bracing for impact, as if I were ON those planes.

The script was well written; the crashes were realistic; all of the character relationships were believable; there was not a bad performance. That said, I don't really know if there was anything that really "stood out" to qualify this movie as award-winning or Highly Recommended. If you get a chance to see it, you should. You won't be disappointed. Here's my takeaway, from a fortune cookie fortune Sully pulls out of his wallet, after the fact: Delay is better than disaster.

Love & Friendship Lady Susan Vernon takes up temporary residence at her in-laws' estate and, while there, is determined to be a matchmaker for her daughter Frederica -- and herself too, naturally.: This movie was released on my birthday, so the only way you can see it now is on Amazon Prime (I think; "check local listings", as they say). It's based on Jane Austen's book that was posthumously titled "Lady Susan". It's quite a fun period piece, set throughout England, in London and on various country estates.

The dialogue was difficult for me to follow, at first. More difficult than Shakespeare, honestly. So with a lack of captions or subtitles, I just had to focus all the more, in order to follow the story. It is really visually stunning, and once you get what they're talking about, it's quite humourous. Lady Susan is a widow in an era of complete patriarchy, so she's got to do what she's got to do to set herself and her daughter up in the manner-to-which-they'd-been-accustomed. Plenty of intrigue and backstabbery. Really fun.

This film will probably be nominated for its visual aspects, like COSTUME design, so if that's the sort of thing that really juices you, then I would throw that Highly on the Recommended I'm giving it for everyone else. If the eventual Blu-Ray is reasonably priced, we'll own it (because the special features are sure to include commentary about the costumes, locations, dialogue, etc.). And the film itself will be closed-captioned! (Win, for us older kids)

Blue Jay Meeting by chance when they return to their tiny California hometown, two former high-school sweethearts reflect on their shared past.: This one came out on October 11th, so chances are decent you'll still be able to find it in a theater.

If you've heard "our story" and wanted to see it on screen, then Blue Jay is for you. No, they did not base it on my experiences with Stephen, and we're not getting story credit or anything. But there are a lot of similarities in the romantic/nostalgic aspects of reuniting after twenty years and discovering what's changed about each person, and what will never change.

This is almost a short film, in that it only runs 85 minutes. But it is very "private" in its tone, and it was shot in black and white in only 7 days, because we really don't spend much time with anyone other than the two main characters. It will make you laugh; it will make you think; it may make you cry. Look for it. Recommended.

The Founder The story of McDonald's founder Ray Kroc: This one doesn't come out until January 20th, so...

Did you see The Social Network and walk away kinda hating Mark Zuckerberg? Did you see Steve Jobs and kinda walk away hating Steve Jobs? You sort of appreciated what they were able to accomplish, but neither of those movies left you feeling good about the men or their products, right? Well, that's pretty much how The Founder is going to leave you regarding McDonald's.

The performances in this one are really great, totally believable, and you find yourself wishing that the McDonald brothers would have budged just a little when Ray tries to re-negotiate... because had they budged just a little, it may have staved off the much-harsher-for-them consequences. Over the course of time, those boys got screwed, and some of that could have been prevented, in my opinion, by listening to Ray's insights and requests and giving in a bit.

Ray isn't/wasn't an evil person. He was simply a human being with a bigger dream and the chutzpah to realize it, and the McDonald brothers neither had his vision nor his chutzpah, and he just bulldozed right over them.

This screening was followed by a Q&A with Michael Keaton, whom I adore as an actor. The Q&A, in my opinion, would have definitely been better served by also including Nick Offerman and John Carroll Lynch. Keaton was a bit manic, and I'm not sure he completed more than three sentences, even though he spoke for the full half-hour. Not that any of that matters regarding the film. It's good. If you're interested in biopics about men with a dream, then you will definitely enjoy The Founder. Will anyone be nominated for anything? I kinda doubt it, but I'm not on the nominating committee, so what do I know? Recommended.

Bedhead ... and Mailing Shit ... and other Stuff

Yeah, it's been awhile since my last post. No, I haven't been as busy with work as my last post indicated. I have done a bit on the student project; still need to complete my Crew Deal Memo and get that turned in. Yeah, she's going to pay me! Yay!

Had my friend's other gig all lined up and then received an email about another Scripty gig. Have had a phone interview re: that one, and received the scripts for the previously-shot episodes in my email, so I'll be familiar with the story. Haven't yet received the scripts I need for that one, or my Crew Deal Memo, but that shoot doesn't begin until the 25th, so I'm fairly certain at this point that it's a "Go". Meaning, unless my friend's gig gets pushed again, I won't be able to participate. I kinda hope it gets pushed, but that's a selfish hope. I should be hoping that she swings it without me (just not as easily as if with me). Nah, just do the work to beget more work. It's all good. We all want what's best, and she's got me in mind for another gig in December. I should have zero conflicts in December. Nothing is shooting in December. Productions shut down for the holidays, can you believe that? ;)

So I've been getting all my steps in (except for one day when I did some nannying) and getting plenty of sleep, and today's bedhead is courtesy of Cocoa, who joined me for some belly rubs both in the bed this morning and now:

So what else have I done this past week? Let's see, I paid some bills, as I am wont to do. I picked up some supplies at Wal-Mart (yes, kids, we have a Brand Spankin' New Super Wal-Mart in walking distance, and Boy Howdy, is it CLEAN) for a small project I'm working on to enhance my career. I'll show you the finished project, when it's finished. It's not the kinda thing you'll need a blow-by-blow for. I'm a little excited about it, but it's going to take some time, as the Brand Spankin' New Super Wal-Mart hasn't yet settled into a routine, and my supplies keep getting depleted before I can pick 'em up. And no, I can't get 'em elsewhere. I just gotta wait.

I also updated my registration at one of the numerous casting companies around town. Need to do that with more. Gotta send some emails and/or make phone calls to find out about when to do that, if "in person" updates are required. I'll be able to link my SAG-AFTRA profile in emails, so that's something, at least.

Oh, yeah! I mailed some shit this week! No, seriously, I Mailed ... SHIT. I have begun receiving "Old People" Mail, ya know, like from AARP and such. The other day, my health insurance company sent me instructions for Mailing SHIT (a stool sample for a colon cancer screening). The day I collected my sample was a weird day. Well, mostly because those of us who do not work in the medical field don't typically "collect" our shit, we just let it fall into the water and then flush it away. I had to collect it before I could flush it away. Weird. Call your insurance carrier to see if you, too, need to mail in some shit! Fun for the whole family! NOT.

This morning, I had a Warner Bros. dream. It kinda freaked me out. I would still be happy to go back to touring, if they called me in. I didn't make it into the new summer stash o' folks, but I'm still eligible for re-hire, so after my August Scripty gig, I may check back in...

I had set this aside for a bit, and now that I'm back, I really need to comb out the bedhead and dress for a walk. And print, complete, and scan/email the Crew Deal Memo for the student film. I just wanna be working, ya know? But for some of the work, there's still "preparing" to be done, and for other gigs, it's just submitsubmitsubmit... Gotta do what I gotta do, right? So I guess I'll get on that.

See y'all in a week, maybe. In the meantime, what's the weirdest thing YOU ever had to mail?

So what else?

After the big milestone birthday "blowout" gathering of new friends and "old", the rest of my weekend was pretty chill. Except that I tripped over my laptop cord or bag, or possibly just slipped in my sockfeet on my marble tile living room floor, landing hard on my right elbow, shoulder, hip, knee, and ankle (more upper body than lower, somehow). Enjoy some fun photos! Let me just say here, these are pics of my ELBOW, which is a difficult body part to self-photograph.

I scraped my elbow in what felt like a vertical
fall onto marble tile. Scraped that mofo.

Also, immediately formed a knot, which began bruising,
also immediately.

last night: looks like someone stuck a big,
circular bruise sticker on me

also last night, a different angle,
shot in the medicine cabinet mirror

today, new angle into the tilting mirror

also today, to show you the weird "lump"
that the circular bruise "sticker" makes

The rest of the week has been consumed in getting my steps, looking for work, drinking grown-up Koolaid, and eating hot dogs or burgers because we have a lot of them. Also, my left foot started hurting in the arch, and I don't know if that's because I'm somehow overcompensating for my right-side pain from the fall, or if my new sneaks have me walking differently. The last couple of days, I'm taking more steps than 10,000, but I'm not walking as quickly. I don't like that. I don't mind walking 11k or 12k or 13k, but I'd like to be able to maintain 3.5mph. It's not that that speed makes me winded or anything; it has everything to do with what feels like a lack of arch support. I say "feels like" because I know that's not the problem. The new kicks have significantly more arch support than the old ones did. Ennyhoo. Foot pain, yay. Good news is, the pain I was feeling in the instep of my right foot has either abated or I just don't even notice it anymore because the pain in my left arch is so excruciating! Woo Hoo!

On a side note, in addition to the non-FitBit thingy that I wear daily, I had also downloaded a free Google app to my phone to track my fitness, and the other day, it said that I had taken a 13-minute bike ride. And since it's Google, it shows that that bike ride happened within my apartment building. I don't have access to a bicycle, so What? Crazy.

Three Good Things: My allergies have been pretty calm this week. Cocoa's started using the new scratching post (well, the base of it, at least). My Depression seems to have lifted. I've made a little progress toward networking better for more film work. I seem to be back to blogging (we'll see). I've had a few walking-sampling lunches this week.

And speaking of food: Friday night, the homeowner-hosts of my party renewed their Chuck-E-Cheese dealios (they have a five-year-old), and since it's physically located just over 100 steps from my front door, I went to hang out with them for a little bit (as if we hadn't seen each other in ages, LOL). Chuck-E-Cheese pizza, y'all. Not "bad", per se; probably only not good for ya. Saturday night, I nuked us up some Trader Joe's tamales. Good Stuff. Last night, Stephen's Good Work Reward took us out to eat. Taco Bell, man. YUMMMM. Not hot dogs nor hamburgers, for three straight nights. Good Times.

This morning, I dreamt of Mommy. Or more like, I dreamt of dreaming of Mommy. I awoke within my dream, crying, because I knew it was only a dream. Ten years, kids. Some days, it feels like it just happened. Sucks.

And now you're caught up. Have you done anything as exciting as I have in the last week or so?

I'm a bit rusty

'cuz I'm outta practice. TWO YEARS outta practice! But I did already earn 4 trophies, in addition to setting up a new PS4 user account and playing a coupla "gigs" with my "band", the Delta Butlers.

No, I did not choose or get to participate in the choosing of the name of the band. No, it is not a "real" band. It is a virtual band, with four virtual members, all of whom have been created by Stephen. Yes, "I" am one of the bandmembers. Yes, so is "Stephen". No, we do not look like ourselves.

But Boy, Howdy, am I RUSTY! Then again, it's been more than two years since I've played.

Three Good Things:

1. Lunch date was awesome. Good food, good conversation, good catching up, good insights/leads into where we may find ourselves headed with the whole "forever home" issue.
2. Following the lunch date, we walked over to Best Buy, to check out the RB4 deal. Stopped in at Costco first to see if there were Best Buy gift cards available for cheaper than face value. Apparently, there is quite a selection of gift cards at Costco, for which you pay less than FMV and then redeem as if you had purchased them for full price. Apparently, this is a thing. Apparently, there are people in this world who regularly purchase these and then redeem them for cash, because the law (?) states that a retailer must, if requested, give you the full balance of a gift card in cash, so long as the card is legit. Not that that was how we intended to transact our transaction, but had Costco sold Best Buy gift cards, then we'd have saved that additional amount on our purchase!
3. Speaking of which: Best Buy had the Band in a Box for XBox and PS4 On. The. Shelf. I had been told that if there were none on the shelf, we could still get the sale price and have it shipped for no additional fee, right to our door on the second floor! Stephen had checked to see if we'd get the additional discount for that Gamer's Club thing I mentioned, and according to the FAQs, the answer was no, you just pay the lower price of the GC discount or the sale price. Still, there was something about "rewards points", so we checked in at the customer service desk first to see how it would all hypothetically turn out. Well, hypothetically, you can save $90 off the regular price of the Band in a Box if you also have a two-year membership in the GC and buy it on sale! That's more than 1/3 off regular retail! So I walked back home while Stephen continued "shopping" (to make sure no one else bought our BiaB), and when I returned with the car, we converted hypothesis into reality. Yay!
4. Walking home to pick up the car allowed me to get all my steps in before 3:30 today. The thingy is still hoping I'll add another thousand steps or so, to keep my averages up, but screw that noise. MY goal is 10,000 steps. I don't care that I've mucked up the curve with my 14 and 18 thousand step (anomalous) days. I hit the goal, and I'm still streaking! Yay!
5. I did get enough sleep last night, by going to bed early enough to contribute to the general health of the household. Unfortunately, the last thing we watched on tv was an edge-of-your-seat episode of Jessica Jones, and I was afraid I wouldn't sleep at all. As it turns out, just past 11:20, I Zonked Out, but without telling the thingy that I was in bed now. So when I awoke at 12:50 in the a.m., somewhat refreshed but also panicked (dreams, maybe?), I told it I was in bed. No way to tell it I had been sleeping, rather soundly. I then lay awake for at least half an hour, but because I was mostly lying still, it thought I was sleeping. Stupid technology thingy. Still, it managed to log that I reached my goal of 7.5 hours, so I'm still streaking on that front, as well. Yay! ? :/

Here are some pics of today:

Stephen's Guitar Solo tutorial, earned right away

Stephen also calibrated the system with the guitar

here he is, playing (although it looks like he's not)

The Box for The Band, with Cocoa looking on

My trophy for getting five stars on a song

My trophy for doing ten drum fills

I earned "Impressive stage presence" during a band show

And of course, I calibrated the system using the drum kit

I'm on a streak!

No, I'm not streaking... I was informed by my non-FitBit thingy app in my phone that I've "worked out" or "reached my step goal" (of 10,000 daily steps) for three consecutive days! And that my "daily average" was now 14,000! All this before I actually reached 14,000 steps today. (and yes, I did take 14,000 steps today)

Could not wake from my dream this morning. Not that I wanted to wake from my dream this morning. I was filling out a contract while on set; there was a check for 6 grand included in all the paperwork, "for my work today", according to the producer. Pretty sure I'd been booked as background for the day and upgraded to a principal role without an audition. Would YOU have wanted to wake from that dream?

When I did eventually get up, I got caught in about an hour-long coughing fit. That sucked. Once that was over, I took yesterday's mailbox money to the bank and got my steps in.

I get to be on set tomorrow; yay! I know I'll get plenty of steps in while on set, but I have no idea how many I'll get, or how many days I'll continue my "streak".

But for now, I've packed my bag, I've set up my makeup and hair accoutrements, I've taken my melatonin, brushed my teeth, set the morning alarms and mapped out my route. I get to travel over the hill at Dawn's Tramp Stamp to be checked in and ready by 6:48 a.m. By "ready", I mean "hair and makeup camera-ready" and with timecard in hand by 6:48 in the edge of the crack of Dawn. Oh, and "having had" breakfast. I have to be out my door by 5:30 or so in the freaking morning. No Way am I eating breakfast at that hour!

I'll be arriving on set with my hair in rollers, and no face other than pre-makeup moisturizing. I'll have my hairbrush and hairspray ready. I'll have my makeup ready to paint, but I cannot arrive on set ready to shoot at 6:48 in the morning, and I KNOW that the production doesn't really expect me to be camera-ready at that hour.

But I get to be on set tomorrow; yay! And once I've posted this, I should really get to bed. But I'm not even remotely sleepy. Whadd'rya gonna do?

Are YOU on a streak? What exactly are YOU streaking about/into/over? ;)

Woo Hoo, I'm Working Tomorrow!

No, I did not work today. I slept in as late as I possibly could, considering there were some workmen doing something with some incredibly loud generator or pressure-washer or Some Whatnat Noisy-Ass Piece of Equipment that made a shit-ton of grinding sound. Hey, did I mention I was unable to sleep due to noise? Not that it wasn't late enough to get up; I was just super-tired. Probably had crazy-busy dreams or something. Besides the fact that my breathing was horrible last night.

1. So when I finally got my ass moving today, I deposited my final Warner Bros. check :/
2. did a little more grocery shopping (being out of cereal, and all) :)
3. helped God get my hair color back to its appropriate all-over blonde :)
4. noticed I got booked for work tomorrow :D

I'm really actually excited about tomorrow, even though my call time is 6:30 in the morning, which means I have to hurry up and post this so I can get to bed and get some sleep. But I am excited, and I'll tell you all about it (well, I'll tell you a little bit about it) TOMORROW.

What about you? You got anything exciting up this week?

Welcome, Trinidad and Tobago!

Your countries are so geographically small on my map that I can't see your greenness, but I am glad to see new readership. So welcome. Please check out past posts to see if you have interest in my topics, and join the conversation if you feel inclined! Bring lots of friends on you next visit, and then the greenness will show up on my map! I'm always open for a new geography lesson.

*****

In other news, I bet you believed, your whole life, that if you were falling in a dream, you would wake yourself before you landed, because if you didn't, you'd die. Well, I'm here to tell you that It Ain't So. Last night, in the middle of the night, I fell from a great height in my dream. I landed s*p*l*a*t on some concrete surface, and I died upon impact. And then my spirit walked around, trying to reconnect with my survivors. My spirit didn't float or drift, it walked. I mean, I walked. It was me, with the full knowledge that I was dead. And no one could see me or interact with me. And it wasn't sad. It was just different. I eventually awoke because my bladder was full, and I realized that I had had the falling dream and had died in the dream. And I wasn't sad; I just felt weird.

So for all you dream interpreters out there - what the heck was that all about?

Well, it IS October already.

... and I've had so little to say this past month.

Let's see, what have I been doing? Yeah, um...

• guiding tours at Warner Bros. (and loving it)
• doing a little bit of background acting (and, well, being happy to do it, at least, but certainly not loving it, but there is always room for "loving it" opportunities)
• hanging out with the cats and Jenn and Dave (and their great rugrat Brendan)
• trying to find time to hang out with Stephanie and Jen (succeeding by way of phone and text conversations)
• having occasionally bizarre dreams
• keeping clothing, dishes, and the apartment clean (enough)
• getting the car washed (yay!)
• attending the world premiere of the last film I worked on as a Script Supervisor (FUN!)
• catching up on all those things in the television DVR and consuming wine-n-chocolate
• teaching Stephen a little ballroom dance (yay!)
• commemorating the 6-year anniversary of my wedding to Stephen (we went to Taco Bell, because we really know how to par-tay!)

Here's what I haven't been doing:

• fighting my allergies (hallelujah)
• blogging (duh)
• selling anything on ebay (yay)
• writing the "Great American Novel" (what? did you think I was?)
• suffering from any depressive episodes (seriously, YAY)
• celebrating the arrival of pumpkin everything at the grocery store (seriously? already? why-oh-why do they think we need everything flavored with pumpkin pie spice?)
• preparing myself for the impending Sadiversary. I just don't do that in advance. Each one will arrive soon enough, and I'll cope as I'm able.

What have YOU been doing in the past month? Or NOT doing?