Exciting News

I have some very exciting news that I get to share with you.

I am happy to announce that I have been accepted to Mountain West Veterinary Technology’s Comprehensive Veterinary Assistant course.  The course will take 6 months to a year depending on what off-site training opportunities become available throughout the course.  I start in February and am planning to continue at Archive in a less involved capacity at least until the course ends.

I am excited and honored to have been accepted into this program and to be able to get into a field with an opportunity for growth.  I am incredibly happy that I will be able to make a tangible difference in the lives of humans and, most importantly, the animals with which I will directly work.

November

Halloween is over at Archive (minus a billion returns we have to process) and we're starting off November with the official opening of our Christmas rentals!  Come on down this Thanksgiving month and be thankful that you rented that epic Santa costume for Christmas!

I am going to take this opportunity to let all of you know that I have applied to a veterinary school in Utah.  I'm still waiting to hear back.

Week #2

It's week #2 of Halloween and we are officially busy.  Lots of customers are booking lots of costumes for Halloween, but there are still lots left.  Use the codeword SPELL for 20% off your full costume rental.

I had my Lyric audition on Oct. 7.  I was super excited to see that Macbeth, my favorite Shakespeare play, had replaced Streetcar (they couldn't get the rights.)

I've branched out with my crockpot recipes!  I have added a baked apple breakfast dish (i made it a bit too liquidy and I there's not enough flavor) to my repertoire and I have a corned beef to make tomorrow!

Halloween at Archive Costumes

It is officially that time of year again!  Halloween is back at Archive Costumes, and I'm wearing my Shakesfeare shirt in honor of the season!  Come dress up like Zombie Shakespeare, or use your birth month and day to get a suggestion from the list on our office door.  Use code SNAP for 10% off of your full costume rental!

Birthday post

My birthday was September 20 and I had a great time relaxing with the latest game in the Uncharted series.  I also went to Whiskey Street in Salt Lake City with my parents.  I highly recommend it.  The best present, I have to say, Is that I get to stay on my parents' insurance plan indefinitely!

One year anniversary/Haloween again

I forgot to announce it here, but June 28 was my official one year anniversary of working at Archive!  Woot!

I just got back from seeing "The Book of Mormon: the Musical" last month and I loved it!  It is one of my favorite musicals and would DEFINITELY not work at HCTO.  I am so glad that it came to "Sal Tla Kasiti."

It's officially Halloween season at Archive!  Come in and rent a costume for Halloween for 30% off!  Indiana Jones commands you!

July

It's been over a month since my last update and nothing exciting has happened.  It's been the daily grind and I'm doing my best to get through it.

We are, once again, gearing up for Halloween at Archive.  We have a bunch of new people and we're getting them all trained before then so that they can be working with customers.

The most exciting thing is that I was prescribed Prozac last week.  It takes a few weeks to work, so we'll see how it goes.

June

I thought I'd update you on a couple of very exciting things that have happened this month.

First and foremost, I went to one of my friends', Christian's, wedding.  I have known Christian since middle school (the 2004-2005 year.)  I just did that math in my head and it'll be thirteen years in August, which is about a month longer than half of my life!  I'm super old.  Anyway, he got married to a woman named Bailey whom I met a few months ago.  She's a sweet girl and I couldn't be happier for them.

The other thing is that my best friend's girlfriend is moving in with her!  I'm really excited for them and to see Jamie for longer than a minute.

May update

May is here and I have been working at Hale for eleven months now!  We have four new people with a fifth on the way and I am excited for them to work their first Halloween.  The sad news is that, in addition to Leisl's departure last month, we now have to say goodbye to Heather (she's getting married).  On the upside, MaryAnne ordered some African fabric for "Tarzan" from Africa and it's beautiful.  Everyone needs to see that show for the costumes alone.

Bree remembers me!  I went over to visit her last Tuesday and we had such a fun time.  She was super excited to see me and go on a walk.  She was a bit constipated, so she had trouble defecating until we reached the Minor's lawn again almost an hour later.  She showed me her pumpkin squeaky toy when we got inside, and we had fun playing tug-of-war with it for about ten minutes until she laid down to rest.  I also met Artemis, the Minor's cat, who was staring me down while I ate an orange.  Madi said cats hate the smell of citrus and that's why Artemis was glaring at me.  She then proceeded to rub her face in a bag of oranges.

Today I went into work at 9:30 to sell tickets for Katy Perry.  Tickets went on sale at 10, and I left at 10:20 after making about what I make at a Jazz game.  The best part is that I'm getting paid for three hours anyway!  I went to the library to return a movie and get another one, home to eat, Salt Lake Central to get a pass for next month, and am now on the train to Ogden just because.  I also got this beautiful picture from the library roof!

Dogs n' Stuff

"It's gonna be May!"

I was having a really hard day on Thursday.  Everything was going wrong and I wasn't shy about showing it.

My friend, Madi, gives me a ride to the train station when she can, and we usually spend the time talking about our lives.  I ended up talking about how everything was crashing down around me and somehow we got onto the topic of dogs.  She knows I love dogs and I love talking about them, so she told me how she really didn't like taking care of her brother's dog.  I said I would anytime, and she said I would be welcome anytime.  So we got to the station, I asked if I could meet her dog right then, and we left for her parents' house.

When I got there, I met Madi's parents and Bree, a beautiful black lab mix that was rescued from Hurricane Katrina.  I got to take her for a walk in the park and stayed with her for two and a half hours.  During that time, I learned that Madi's mom is a dermatology assistant and way more than strictly necessary about Jeffrey Dahmer (Madi loves serial killers).  I forgot my struggles for that time.

I said good-bye to Bree and went home, and I can't wait until I see her again.

Apartment Living

For those of you who don't know, I officially moved out of my roommate invested apartment and into a lovely studio apartment right next to the trax green line.  This means that I am able to ride light rail to get onto frontrunner for work.  It is also very convenient for my job at the arena, as both places are next to the trax green line.

Today is my day off, which means that it has been a day filled with laundry and cleaning.  In addition, I got tickets to "The Book of Mormon" musical.  I'm super excited, because I've never actually been able to see the show and I love the music and the script.

Last, but not least, "Betty Blue Eyes" opened at HCTO last Thursday.  Since it is a dry cleaning heavy show, Kris bought us a bottle of vodka (yes, vodka) to clean costumes with.  Some high-schoolers at the arena were talking about it the other day and said it had no smell.  How little they know...

The Lion King

Two posts in two days... WHAT?!?!

I saw "The Lion King" performed at the new Eccles Theatre in Salt Lake City and I really thought it was well done.  There were a couple of things that I would change; namely the stupid inflatable plants and the totally unnecessary "gay man's wet dream" dance break, but I liked most of it.  My favorite part was during "He Lives in You" when they made use of lights in the ceiling as a star field.  Some of the other highlights were the incredible use of LEDs and Scar.  Scar was the best actor by far from his timing to his movement.  Every time I think I've seen everything theatre has to offer, she throws something new at me, even if it is a dancer greatly resembling a taco.

April showers bring May flowers, and Mayflowers bring genocide.

Happy April!  I'm really out of it today and I have to thank my manager for completely understanding.

Today was General Conference in Salt Lake City and, since I am loathed to ever have to watch Conference again, I went to my church, the theatre.  My specific church building is Hale Center Theatre Orem and my denomination is Archive Costumes.  My duties within my function are laundry, repairs, organization, and customer service.  I also make money at my church; what do YOU do?

Vivint Arena, HCTO, and housing

Last night was my first game day for ticket sales at Vivint Arena.  I did over $2,000 in sales, which is pretty average I guess.  I had no idea it would go as long as it did, and I stayed up past my bedtime (I'm now on my way to work and super tired, which isn't great).

It is the week before the last week of "Peter and the Starcatcher" at HCTO, so go see it if it isn't sold out.  It's a super good show and I feel lucky to have been able to go to see it.  Also, use code JUMP to get 20% off a full costume rental at Archive Costumes through Friday.

My housing situation is looking okay.  April is my last month having to be in a roommate situation!  I can stand to do without the constant stress of dealing with three other people that I'm not related to.

Vivint Smart Home Arena

Pending a drug test, I have been hired at Vivint Smart Home Arena in Salt Lake City.  It is a part-time ticket office gig, so I'm still going to be working at Archive (in case anyone was worried).  There are multiple reasons that I took this job, one of which is that working at the arena could be fun.

Moving on to Archive stuff, I want to mention that if you say "JUMP" at the office you'll get 20% off your rental through March 31.  We're about to get a few Belle dresses back and we have a few more currently available, so hurry in between 10am and 5pm Monday through Saturday for your fitting.

Because of all the things that are going on, I have decided that I will not be going to York even if they do contact me; it's just not the right move at this point.  So I am, unfortunately, not going to Canada for the foreseeable future and just have to deal with the government undermining my entire life.

Peter and the Starcatcher

Let me preface this by saying that "Peter and the Starcatcher" at HCTO is not selling well, and I think that I understand why.  Before I get into that, though, let me shamelessly plug the show.

"Peter and the Starcatcher" is probably the best show that HCTO has ever produced.  It is the Peter Pan origin story that you never heard, but you'll sure be glad when you do.  The story follows Peter as he is caught as a stowaway on a ship und unfolds with the introduction of Molly Aster and her magical star stuff.  Black Stache, who later comes to be known as Captain Hook, adds a dash of hilarity to the show and presents an alternate theory as to how he lost his hand.  "Peter and the Starcatcher" plays until April 8 and you can buy tickets by clicking on the link on the right which navigates you to the HCTO website.  From there, click the banner on the upper right that says "buy tickets online."

Let me tell you the beautiful thing about the show and why I think that it isn't selling well.  "Starcatcher" asks the audience to participate.  It takes place in an attic, and all of the props, scenery, and even costumes are things that could be found in an attic space.  The show doesn't have a lot of "luster," and the audience is asked to use their imaginations rather than watch two hours of mindless entertainment.  I think that this is where it loses people; it asks you to take the journey with the actors and make the show into whatever you want it to be.  That is what makes it beautiful; it can be whatever you want it to be.  It takes you back to that time when a fishing pole was a rifle and a sail could be fashioned from your dad's tattered old button up shirt.

Watching the show took me away from the world for a couple of hours and gave me a release from the stresses of life.  This show is definitely not one to be missed.

March

After over a month, I finally heard back from York.  They told me that I would hear back from them in a while.  It's good to hear from them and to know that I haven't been forgotten, but I'm still waiting on tenterhooks to see how this all plays out.

I have a job interview over at the Vivint Arena in Salt Lake.  I have to tell them that I'm still waiting on University stuff and I can start April 1 at the earliest.  I could always tell them that Sundays and Mondays are available.

Archive has been interesting.  There was a huge regency ball in Salt Lake last month and we made a good amount of money on that.  It's been pretty dead otherwise, which is nice because it means we can get things repaired and sort through what probably amounts to a tonne of clothes and accessories to find out what we can get rid of at the yard sale on March 18.  BTW everyone come to the yard sale on March 18, 10am-3pm and get some fancy clothes.

I am still looking for apartments with no roommates or housemates, so if you know of a place, hit me up!

Peter and the Starcatcher, Valentine's Day, school

A new show opens this Thursday, "Peter and the Starcatcher."  It is one of my favorite plays due to its simplistic nature.  It is playing at Hale Center Theatre Orem and everyone needs to buy tickets; just click on link labeled Hale Center Theatre Orem on the right sidebar.  I'm not being paid to say that, I just love the show and the stage looks brilliant.

What's the difference between me and a calendar?  A calendar has a date for Valentine's Day.  The highlight of my Valentine's Day was getting a new iron.  Yes; I am excited about a piece of machinery that gets wrinkles out of clothes.  It's actually pretty cool; it catches all of the minerals in the water on a metal rod that just has to be rinsed off every day.  I matched with a girl on Tinder today, though, and we've been having a nice little conversation.  I hope I can actually have an in person conversation with her.

I still haven't heard anything from York and I'm getting a bit nervous.  I really want to be able to know whether or not I will be going on to the next step so that I don't have to worry about apartments.  If I am going on, I don't have to worry about apartments for another month.  If not, I can put down a deposit on one right now.

February news

February has been somewhat of a month and it's only the eleventh!  There have been a couple of days where Archive is totally swamped and it's been great.  I am getting more and more responsibility as well and that's been nice.  I'm working full-time and feeling much more stable.  I can afford a single apartment in Salt Lake by myself.  The only bummer news is that I was not accepted by the Canadian Stage program.  I only have York now.  Honestly, if I am not accepted there, I don't know if I'll reapply.  I'm comfortable where I am and might want to stay here permanently as long as I am given more opportunity.

Constellations statement of vision

Earlier today I sent in my statement of vision for "Constellations."  I am now playing the waiting game to see if I am selected to move forward with the process.  The next step would involve traveling to York and directing undergraduate students in a selection of scenes.

Today I also received notification that I was not recommended for acceptance into the University of Guelph.  Guelph was my backup school in case I wasn't selected for York, so it wasn't as big a blow as it could have been.  I now have all my eggs riding in one basket; I need to make sure they're all golden.

Constellations

I've had this play for almost a week and I am almost finished with it.  What are you doing, Andrew?  Why's it taking you so long to read a goddamn play?  I'm glad I asked myself this question, because I feel like I'm SO far behind.  It usually takes me just five hours to read a play, including breaking for food.  There is a reason it's taking me so long, and even I forget it sometimes.

When I read a play or a screenplay (or a book), I build the world in my head and watch it play out like a movie.  That requires me to do more than just recognize that the word is there and it means something.  I have to really understand the context and what that word means at this particular moment in the story.  Sometimes, I have to recall previous events that already happened to get the full meaning of the word.  That's why "The Cursed Child" took so long.

But why has this play taken me nearly a week and I'm still not finished with it?  In addition to building the world and watching the story play out, I am analyzing every scene, beat, and word.  I learned in college that writing the story down word for word is a great way to do this.  Not only am I writing his play down (for personal use, copyright police) but I am also taking copious notes.  These note are what I will use to approach staging and the general feel I am going for.

Another reason that I am very excited to present my take on this work is that one of the overarching themes is the theme of cancer.  Being a cancer survivor who is not, and perhaps never will be, out of the woods, I have an incredibly unique perspective of having faced overwhelming odds as well as having been in the position of watching someone that I care about lose.  I can empathize with both positions.

I'll update you again when I submit my pitch and again when I know if I will be traveling to Canada to direct a few scenes of this work.

York University

I am excited to announce that I have been selected to move forward with the application process for York University.  For this step, I am required to act as if I am mounting a production of "Constellations" by Nick Payne.

What is exciting for me is that it is the first full length script that I have the opportunity to pitch.  I have only ever pitched short plays; "The Satellite Disaster," "Moments," etc.  These pitches are interesting, because there is not very much story line and can easily be done in two to three minutes.  A full length script is much more intricate; however, and a two to three minute pitch requires one to boil the story down to the essentials so that one still has time to talk about the scene and staging.

The fact that this is my first real opportunity to pitch a full length script also scares me a bit.  I am used to pitching short plays; in these pitches, it is possible to bring to light some of the details.  I expect that, for a full length script, this will not be possible.  If I am not able to pull back the first half of my pitch to show the entire story, I am done for.

Riding on this pitch is the opportunity to direct two to three scenes from this play with undergraduate actors from York University and to explore the campus.

Happy 2017!

Congratulations!  You made it through to 2017!

2017 marks the year when I officially finished my two applications to schools in Canada.  I spent a good chunk of time completing these applications, most of which was taken up by compiling materials together from my senior year of my undergraduate study.  I knew there was a reason I am taking up space on my computer to keep that stuff.

The first show of 2017 at HCTO, "Cash on Delivery," is halfway though its run, and the first fittings of 2017 for "Peter and the Starcatcher" were completed yesterday.  I was the assistant to the production assistant (because MaryAnne, the designer, was not there,) which is a kind of, sort of fancy title for the guy that helps pull the costumes from stock.

Of course, not everything has been great.  Donald Trump had his first press conference this week in which he spent more time than necessary telling everyone that Russia did not hack the US elections, but that the Russian hacking is unimportant because he's literally the best person that ever lived.  He also said that he would repeal and replace the ACA more or less synonymously with each other.  With what?  He didn't say, but he did say that it was the best.