great day!

I'm now done with two of my three classes of the quarter! All I have left is a final group performance for Performance of Narrative Fiction and a 20-page script adaptation for that class as well. I had my final acting scene performance this morning and it went really well. Somehow Steph and I have figured out how to relax on stage even though the scene was extremely heartwrenching! It was actually enjoyable which is something I haven't felt in a long time about acting.

So I'll be on a plane to California in less than a week for my brother's wedding! Its kinda scary how fast the end of the quarter got here.

Okay, need something interesting to fill the post with. Hmm. Oh yeah! I get the NYTimes headlines delivered to my email every morning and this morning there was the first headline I've seen in several weeks about Pope Benedict. He apparently just made his first ultra political move by backing the Italian bishops who hope to shut out a referendum which would lighten the harsh laws governing fertility. I'm really interested in this story for two reasons. First is the fact that Italy is extremely Catholic and as a Catholic myself, it is interesting to see what happens in their government, especially with this new pope. The second reason is the matter of fertility in the first place. I'm taking a class called Feminism and Fertility in the religion department in the fall because there is an obvious connection between women's rights and accessability to fertility drugs and treatements. I'm really not sure where I stand on these issues yet but I hope to figure it out more in the coming months. And its always fun to have stories to follow.

CU on Raging Bull!

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/05/28/international/asia/28koran.html?th&emc=th

this is what I'm talking about!

Step up, Bush! It's time for an apology and a promise for change which includes educating our troops! Thank you!

traffic!

Erica, why do you always follow me into traffic?

For some reason, my dear friend Erica trusts me when I start to cross the street against traffic. Usually we are deep into conversation so I'm not paying complete attention. But she still follows me! There have been no incidents yet but it is always a close call. So I just want to advise everyone who is not Erica (because she already knows from experience) - if i start to cross the street, look both ways anyways!

I love random blogging!

I find it so wonderful to share a favorite secret spot with a friend. Erica and I went to my favorite spot by the lake today and it really helped relieve the stress I've been having this week. Tomorrow morning at 11am, I am taking my Islam final and i'm only slightly scared. Because I've been so tired and busy this quarter, I have not devoted the time I should have to doing school work. But after much reading this week, mucho studying of my review sheet, and the somewhat helpful review session this evening, I think I'll pass.

I wish I could do more than just pass because I've come to realize what a fascinating religion Islam is! I think that the members of our armed forces need to study more world religions. I was reading an article in the NYTimes today about the prison abuses and alleged mistreatment of the Qur'an (or Koran if you are not a religious scholar). A soldier apparently told his superiors that he did not know that there were certain things that were highly offensive to do with the Qur'an, such as standing on it or rubbing it with dirt (or something to that effect). I'm sorry, but that should be something our soldiers should be aware of! If we want to make a good impression on the world while still fighting terrorism, a great way to start would be to show we are attempting to understand and respect the religion and culture of the people we are fighting for! Because we supposedly started war against Saddam Hussein to free the people of Iraq, who are Muslim just like the terrorists who flew their planes into the World Trade Center! So we cannot deny that there is value to Islam if we choose to support some muslims and fight others. Of course there are many different sects of Islam with varying degrees of fanaticism and fundamentalism but what a few terrorist do does not reflect an entire religion or culture! All this is to say that America needs to stop being lazy and self-centered. I admire my friends in ROTC here on campus because I can see that in many ways, they make an effort to connect with people of all backgrounds and take classes which will help them understand world cultures. But those few of my friends who will be officers do not reflect the entire military force of the US. The Newsweek "scandel" probably would not have been such a big deal or even happened if Americans in general had more sensitivity and education about other cultures.

Didn't mean to go all political, I just needed to vent. There are so many things in the world that bug me and sometimes the best way is to write them out. Thanks for reading! As always, I would love to have your comments on this issue or any thing else.

Goodnight!

wanna laugh?

One more thing. Thanks to Jonathan's list of links, I found the most amazing website EVER! I think I feel another "cause" coming on inspired by it. Go to www.improveverywhere.com and prepare to be entertained! I want to see about getting some friends together this summer in Chicago to something fun like this group. When I went to Governor's School in high school, we did a similar project where we went to the local bus depot and did random street performances such as a drumline using the newspaper boxes, drawing huge pictures on the sidewalks, interpretive dance by the bus stops, living statues, and bunch of other fun stuff. So yeah, I was on this site for a long time last night and I couldn't help but go to bed smiling!

My "causes"

I've decided that something that makes me really happy is having a cause to work for. I have a lot of them such as:

• feminism and pro-life being equally important and possible in my life.
• anti-war action
• anti-death penalty, especially because of innocent lives taken
• fighting cancer and finding a cure (raising money for this cause, for example)
• fighting AIDS and raising awareness so a cure can be found
• acceptance of other races and sexual preferences
• poverty and racism in the South
• theater for the sake of changing the world or at least making people think
• better education, especially in public schools
• the compatiability and similarities between so many world religions and how recognizing the similarities will help bring about peace in the world.
• and finally, my newest "cause," raising awareness of the disease of depression and trying to reduce the stigma surrounding it.

I guess what I consider a cause is somthing that I believe strongly in and do whatever I can to help. I'm very vocal about all of those things listed; when someone asks me for my opinion, I'm usually pretty open about it. I also challenge people, probably obnoxiously at times, when they make ignorant remarks about those things above which I care about, such as the last post about depression.

I'm really happy in particular tonight because we had the CU planning meeting for Fall Quarter. Erica and I proposed having a night devoted to discussing depression and mental illness and there was strong support for putting it on the schedule! So on November 9th next fall, Erica and I will be leading the meeting and I know I will probably be open about my personal experiences even though there is a lot of unconscious prejudice in people. Tonight even people made some comments about "happy pills" and having this meeting later in the quarter so as not to scare freshman away with such a "depressing" subject. I didn't get very mad because I know it is not intentional in many cases. I let it go because next fall, I will be given the opportunity to speak about it and help raise awareness.

Other than that, its been a pretty uneventful day, other than getting sunburned on various random parts of my body (its amusing - the back of my calves, the tops of my arms, and a little strip on my lower back). I also spent two hours working with my Performance of Narrative Fiction group performance people trying to make really bad dirty Arabian Nights jokes slightly more humorous. Its getting there.... Maybe I'll post an example later.

Well, its off to bed I go since I have Acting at 8:15 tomorrow, 3 hours of work, then the rest of the day to study before my big Islam final exam Friday. Scary!

Goodnight

depression

I am pretty open about the fact that I suffer from depression. And I found a really great site with information and there was a letter to the Editor which really struck me as important. I've been doing research and statistics show that 1 in 5 people will be depressed at least once in their life and I think the other number was something like 1 in 15 people are clinically depressed (found on the Wings of Madness website - www.wingsofmadness.com - I think the statistics are for the US). However, there is a huge stigma about both being diagnosed with depression or being treated in any way, psychotherapy and/or drugs. I know that I have had those moments of anger when people make fun of mental illness which is why I really liked the letter I found. If you're interested in reading this letter, go to the link below.

More happy posts later! Yay for recovery!!

http://www.wingofmadness.com/articles/darren.htm

two weeks? TWO WEEKS?

Yes, it is just over two weeks until I am leaving for California. AAAAH! This means finding somewhere to store my crap until I move into the sublet which I do now have confirmation for yet. So two weeks also to make sure my summer residential plan is still in tact...

So, long tired day again. Did some work. Not much though. Went to dinner with Zev. But then 3 Sisters was sold out so we'll try again tomorrow.

Anyways, seven days until my Islam final so that's a little scary. I'm going to go on Islam reading overdrive now that I actually was able to procrastinate by cleaning some.

Oh yeah :-) Highlight of my night was when Erica was here hanging out with me while I was cleaning and I explained to her my crazy way of cleaning. For those of you who have not witnessed this yet or have never lived with me, apparently my method is innovative and unique. I sit amid the mess and just throw things into seperate unorganized piles and eventually everything finds a home either in an organized pile, a shelf or drawer, someone elses hands, or a makeshift trash bag. By the time Erica left, I could see all the floor by my bed which has not been seen for many weeks! Erica was impressed that my throwing stuff around method actually worked; she said I should write a book. Yay!

That's all for tonight, more tantalizing accounts of my oh so exciting life to come later. Thanks for caring!

i can do this!

So, another update already!

I realized that yesterday I was feeling unnecessarily horrible. I've been thinking about this directing vs. stage management thing. I've been thinking this whole time that it will be almost impossible for me to break into directing. But then I remembered there are ALWAYS steps leading up to that lauded role or at least steps to getting into a good MFA program. I can try to get assistant directing jobs, or jobs at community theaters, etc! Its not just "you're a director or you're not." Just like stage managment, there are logical steps! I still don't know what I want to do with this information but I think that after taking a few directing classes I will have a better idea.

So, long day of thoughts. I went to see a pleasent movie this afternoon though called Ladies in Lavender. It stars Maggie Smith and Judi Dench and that hot German man fromGoodbye Lenin. It was kind of slow but very beautiful. Great cinematography. A nice way to spend an afternoon.

Well, must go to bed. Acting in the morning in which i have to perform a scene I barely have memorized.

So its been awhile.


A little thing called She Loves Me happened. It consumed my life in both good and bad ways. But now its over and I have my "life" back. However, that means way too much time to worry about important things like "the future" and "the summer."

I had a talk with my stage management mentor today and she wants me to work on figuring out what I really want to do when I leave Northwestern. Because after graduating, it won't be so easy to cross back and forth between directing and stage managing. Not that it has been easy here or anything. I petitioned four student theater groups to direct and I was rejected by all of them. Apparently one learns more about directing by being in a show than by running the show as a stage manager because basically all the people who get spots are actor/directors, not stage manager/directors. So I'm going to have to do something different like just try to put up a show outside of any of the groups. Its been done before.

In other news, my sister is engaged now! Yay! She called me during the final show of SLM which made me happy for the rest of the show. So it looks like I will be "three times a bridesmaid" soon. Let's hope that saying isn't really true.

So, two more weeks of classes, on final exam, one final acting performance, one group performance, and a narrative adaptation and then its off to CA for my brother's wedding! Hooray! Then I'm coming back to the great E-town to spend the summer interning at a local light opera company. I'll be living with a dear friend of mine, Cynthia, in a really small appt. but everyone is welcome to come visit us! We'll find room!

I noticed I haven't posted in awhile so I thought I'd update something else. I'm no longer living with Phil, Carla, and Jaime next year. That fell through and instead I am living with the beautiful and all around dream of a friend, Erica! It will just be the two of us and I must say, our place is going to amazing! Lake view and balcony and a real kitchen! Hooray!

That's all I've got time for now. Must go clean before my incredibly sweet roomie gets sick of the mess!