a few months ago i got a haircut. sometimes i do that. i told the lady (lee) that i wanted a trim. in my world a trim means cutting off the very tips of the hair to "clean up" the haircut. in lee's world (korea) a trim apparently means "cutting the hair to make one look like a boy or a lesbian". it was a devastating haircut and i cried on the phone to my mom for an hour after leaving the salon. my mom, ever sympathetic, pointed out the irony that i shaved my head a few years ago and didn't cry about THAT. but, i went into that KNOWING what the outcome would be and i walked into lee's clutches, ignorant and unassuming, thinking that when i asked for a trim, i'd get a trim.
anyway, it finally grew out and today i decided that it was time to get another trim. i avoided lee and her lair of evilness and went to a brand new salon where they'd never seen my hair and hopefully shared my definition of trim. there i met ana. ana asked me how i wanted my hair. i said i want a trim. i said i want very little hair cut off. she asked me if i wanted a new style. i said no, the exact same style, just a little bit off, not too short, because if it's too short it won't curl and i don't want to lose my curl. ana chopped. and she chopped. and when i, in complete shock, said, "that's very short!" she said, "yeah, it's great, isn't it?!" and then when i repeated "that's very short!" she realized it wasn't so great and that it was probably the reason why my eyes were wide and my face pale. defensively she said, "i only cut off an inch and a half...which is half of your hair." WHO GOES IN FOR A TRIM WANTING HALF THEIR HAIR CUT OFF?!?!?! CRAZY PEOPLE?!?!?! PEOPLE WHO DON'T KNOW HOW TO MEASURE?!?!? if somebody with 10 inches of hair asks for a trim do you cut 5 inches?!?! turns out that in ana's world (mexico) trim has the same definition as in lee's world. this time around it was much more difficult for me to hide my despair and ana could tell. she tried to style it for me and see if she could restore some of the curls that were now lying at her feet. she took out a giant brush and a hair dryer (my hair hasn't met a hair dryer since 1998) and tried to fashion some curls. unfortunately, there wasn't enough hair to curl. i ended up with a haircut somewhere between farrah fawcett and david hasselhoff. i have feathers that a bird would be jealous of. my curly hair, my pride and joy, is no longer. and i swear, if one more woman hits on me, i'll scream.
Thursday, March 25, 2010
Monday, March 22, 2010
my acting career is off to a great start
although it wasn't my acting debut, it was my first commercial. my first part was in college. i played the part of a college student in my friend ammon's project for a film class. it was widely acclaimed by critics and audiences alike. as a college student, i could really identify with my character, who was late for class. i didn't say anything, i just walked by the camera wearing a backpack, but it was very moving.
anyway, last saturday i was an extra in a commercial for clean air. in the first scene, on "action!" i was supposed to step off a scale and use a weight machine at the gym. by the end of 10 takes, i not only had all the speaking parts memorized, but i knew my weight right down to the ounce. (blech.) then we had a scene in a movie theater. my job was to sit and eat popcorn. which i did. and even though it had no butter and no salt, i ate about a pound of popcorn. i was just REALLY into my part. then, they changed the scene and i had to roll my eyes at the guy talking loudly next to me. since i teach third grade, i am an expert at rolling my eyes. (i'm also an expert at telling when a kid is faking sick and at naming the thirteen colonies, but those skills weren't necessary at this shoot.) we did that scene MORE than 10 times and my eye sockets were very sore by the end, but as megan (the director) said, "[i] nailed it!" of course, sore eye sockets are just part of the job. we artists will suffer greatly for our craft. that's just how it is. then the annoying talking guy started hitting on me (he was ad-libbing) and megan decided to "keep rolling". so i had to, IN ADDITION TO ROLLING MY EYES, turn away AND look disgusted. ALL AT ONCE! it really required me to draw from my previous life experience. anyway, the whole thing was very fun. so much so, that i think it's time for me to go get my oversized sunglasses and my tiny yapping dog who will wear a collar worth more than my home.
anyway, last saturday i was an extra in a commercial for clean air. in the first scene, on "action!" i was supposed to step off a scale and use a weight machine at the gym. by the end of 10 takes, i not only had all the speaking parts memorized, but i knew my weight right down to the ounce. (blech.) then we had a scene in a movie theater. my job was to sit and eat popcorn. which i did. and even though it had no butter and no salt, i ate about a pound of popcorn. i was just REALLY into my part. then, they changed the scene and i had to roll my eyes at the guy talking loudly next to me. since i teach third grade, i am an expert at rolling my eyes. (i'm also an expert at telling when a kid is faking sick and at naming the thirteen colonies, but those skills weren't necessary at this shoot.) we did that scene MORE than 10 times and my eye sockets were very sore by the end, but as megan (the director) said, "[i] nailed it!" of course, sore eye sockets are just part of the job. we artists will suffer greatly for our craft. that's just how it is. then the annoying talking guy started hitting on me (he was ad-libbing) and megan decided to "keep rolling". so i had to, IN ADDITION TO ROLLING MY EYES, turn away AND look disgusted. ALL AT ONCE! it really required me to draw from my previous life experience. anyway, the whole thing was very fun. so much so, that i think it's time for me to go get my oversized sunglasses and my tiny yapping dog who will wear a collar worth more than my home.
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
cead mile failte!
it's that day. yes, it is. and i love this day. it is my favorite holiday. you will not find any american with as much irish pride as this lass. i decorate my classroom. i do irish jigs. i use my irish accent all the day long. (and it's not too shabby of an accent). i sing raucous drinking songs. but i do not wear green. just like a real irish person.
and so, in honor of the land that i love, the land that is god's own country, i am posting an email i sent just after meeting ireland in february 2004.
***
it's me. sweetpagene. writing from the land of guinness and leprechauns. and boy is it great. oh i mean it's lovely and grand and brilliant. apparently those are the proper adjectives. sara and i got in very tired and disheveled on thursday morning. we somehow found our hostel in the centre of dublin and hauled our suitcases down o'connell street, dublin's main thoroughfare. what a sight we were. our hostel was a 10 bed room with a friendly italian man thrown in for free. he kept inviting us out to the pubs and we reluctantly declined. there were also 3 americans who came to dublin for the sole purpose of getting drunk and sleeping in. when we heard that, sara and i knew that dublin was the place for us. we spent the day doing not much but orienting ourselves. let me tell you, it's quite exhilarating and overwhelming being in a large city in a foreign country where you know nobody and nothing. i daresay it was the first time i've ever REALLY been on my own. the time difference threw us off enough that for the first few days we didn't sleep past two am so it feels like we've been gone forever, the days seem so long. we spent friday job hunting and flat hunting. we found a flat in the center, but were a bit too hasty and in our desperation to leave the grips of luka our italian friend, we said yes to a flat we shouldn't have. it was horrid. mostly the smell. and 3 to a closet, i mean room. oh and did i mention the discoteka that was going on our first night there? we were priveleged to hear the entire abba gold cd at 3 am. brilliant. we moved out and were homeless for a day and hit the streets with our luggage again. we went to look at a flat that sounded nice...until we got there and met the polish guy with leather pants. a wee bit dodgy. sunday we went to church. we met some really great people who were very helpful to us. as far as we know they were helpful, we couldn't understand everything they said. it's like my first few weeks (months?) in russia when all i did was smile and nod. we ended up finding the PERFECT (but dear...that's another lovely word) flat in center. no smell, only one flatmate, two beds, it's great. that night met some really cool people our age among whom was chris, from england who with his charming accent, dashing good looks and sparkling personality swept me and sara off our feet instantly. because we both claimed chris immediately we decided that the only fair way to settle it was to have a paper rock scissors match. the winner got the double bed and the loser got chris. i won and lost my one true british love. but the bed is just brilliant. so here i am still looking for a job. i found a copy centre job, but the hours wouldn't allow for traveling at all so i'm still looking. cross your fingers that i find something soon. anyway, dublin is great. it is, of course, an old european city and it looks like it, but the architecture is just grand. i love it. and the irish are SO friendly and helpful. we pull out our map and there are suddenly people surrounding us offering their help. there are a LOT of foreigners here, we meet as many non-irish as we do irish. and we have come across scads of russians, it's been fun to speak russian with russians again. we've had some adventures and some good laughs, but it's not as exciting in the retelling. sorry about that. so i guess that's it for now. i hope all is well on the other side of the atlantic. things here in the emerald isle are nothing but smashing....and lovely. not a bit dodgy...except for my lack of employment. ok that's all.
sweet o'pagene
***
and so began the best 5 months of my life. i ended up finding a job and awesome friends and a great chipper. it was the beginning of a magical, ethereal and eternal friendship. erin go bragh!!
ps. pog mo thoin.
and so, in honor of the land that i love, the land that is god's own country, i am posting an email i sent just after meeting ireland in february 2004.
***
it's me. sweetpagene. writing from the land of guinness and leprechauns. and boy is it great. oh i mean it's lovely and grand and brilliant. apparently those are the proper adjectives. sara and i got in very tired and disheveled on thursday morning. we somehow found our hostel in the centre of dublin and hauled our suitcases down o'connell street, dublin's main thoroughfare. what a sight we were. our hostel was a 10 bed room with a friendly italian man thrown in for free. he kept inviting us out to the pubs and we reluctantly declined. there were also 3 americans who came to dublin for the sole purpose of getting drunk and sleeping in. when we heard that, sara and i knew that dublin was the place for us. we spent the day doing not much but orienting ourselves. let me tell you, it's quite exhilarating and overwhelming being in a large city in a foreign country where you know nobody and nothing. i daresay it was the first time i've ever REALLY been on my own. the time difference threw us off enough that for the first few days we didn't sleep past two am so it feels like we've been gone forever, the days seem so long. we spent friday job hunting and flat hunting. we found a flat in the center, but were a bit too hasty and in our desperation to leave the grips of luka our italian friend, we said yes to a flat we shouldn't have. it was horrid. mostly the smell. and 3 to a closet, i mean room. oh and did i mention the discoteka that was going on our first night there? we were priveleged to hear the entire abba gold cd at 3 am. brilliant. we moved out and were homeless for a day and hit the streets with our luggage again. we went to look at a flat that sounded nice...until we got there and met the polish guy with leather pants. a wee bit dodgy. sunday we went to church. we met some really great people who were very helpful to us. as far as we know they were helpful, we couldn't understand everything they said. it's like my first few weeks (months?) in russia when all i did was smile and nod. we ended up finding the PERFECT (but dear...that's another lovely word) flat in center. no smell, only one flatmate, two beds, it's great. that night met some really cool people our age among whom was chris, from england who with his charming accent, dashing good looks and sparkling personality swept me and sara off our feet instantly. because we both claimed chris immediately we decided that the only fair way to settle it was to have a paper rock scissors match. the winner got the double bed and the loser got chris. i won and lost my one true british love. but the bed is just brilliant. so here i am still looking for a job. i found a copy centre job, but the hours wouldn't allow for traveling at all so i'm still looking. cross your fingers that i find something soon. anyway, dublin is great. it is, of course, an old european city and it looks like it, but the architecture is just grand. i love it. and the irish are SO friendly and helpful. we pull out our map and there are suddenly people surrounding us offering their help. there are a LOT of foreigners here, we meet as many non-irish as we do irish. and we have come across scads of russians, it's been fun to speak russian with russians again. we've had some adventures and some good laughs, but it's not as exciting in the retelling. sorry about that. so i guess that's it for now. i hope all is well on the other side of the atlantic. things here in the emerald isle are nothing but smashing....and lovely. not a bit dodgy...except for my lack of employment. ok that's all.
sweet o'pagene
***
and so began the best 5 months of my life. i ended up finding a job and awesome friends and a great chipper. it was the beginning of a magical, ethereal and eternal friendship. erin go bragh!!
ps. pog mo thoin.
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
saturday was a red letter day
it was the day that i joined the digital age and bought my very first computer. it was actually a much harder decision to make than buying a house because i can easily justify having a place to live, but it is much harder to justify what is potentially a big time sucker. but i did it. he is white and smooth and shiny and sleek and oh, so handsome. i'm thinking of calling him manuel, mostly because he will be hooked up to my ipod quite often and his name is juan carlos. it makes sense. anyway, so i was kind of nervous about this purchase, but i charged ahead. and just as i was signing my name on that giant credit card receipt, i received a sign from above (the loudspeaker) letting me know that the gods approved of my purchase (luckily, so did the credit card company):
AND THEN, when i went back the next day to pick it up, i heard another song from my main man that only solidified my feeling that manuel and i are destined to be together forever...until i drop him.
AND THEN, when i went back the next day to pick it up, i heard another song from my main man that only solidified my feeling that manuel and i are destined to be together forever...until i drop him.
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