Have I Been in Here Before???

I had a nice bonding moment with my co-PA this week. There are 3 PA's at the Theatre, I'm working with the returning PA on Sherlock, and the other new PA will start on The Scottish Play in a week or so.

Anyways, one morning while making our coffee and doing our daily prep work, Michael Phelps came up in conversation. We agreed that while some people think he's goofy looking, we definitely still think he's sexy. It was a bonding experience, for sure.

Also, and this is totally random, but I just saw a picture online of Brad Pitt at the Venice Film Festival from earlier this week, and it made me insanely jealous. Not because I want to be with Brad Pitt (cuz, honestly, I really don't care for him at all), but because I want to be at the Venice Film Festival. I'm pretty sure going to that is on my list of lifetime goals, no matter how unachievable it may be.

And lastly, I've been dog sitting this weekend for a family who lives the next block down from me. The house??? Oh, just the home one of my best friends growing up. I met her right after we moved in when I was 4 1/2, and she was the only other girl in the neighborhood. We were two peas in a pod until she moved when we were in like 4th or 5th grade. But I spent a lot of time at her house...and it's been totally weird and eerie being there this weekend (and when I've babysat there). Her family's swing-set is still in the back yard. It's a cross between de-ja-vu, a surrealistic experience, and dating myself.

Batter Up!

So, I promised I'd tell you about my trip to Chicago with my dad, and here it is.

*I know, I know, a repeat, but I love this picture. Dad and I at the game.*

Last week my dad decided he was pissed that he hadn't gotten to see a major league baseball game yet this summer (and I had seen 2), and he wanted to remedy that. He got tickets online for Tuesday afternoon's Cubs game and a hotel room for Tuesday night.

*A fresh field-view from our seats!*

He got the tickets off of StubHub, which I've used a handful of times and never had any trouble, but there ended up being some issues with the confirmation from the seller, etc. He spent a good hour or 2 on Saturday trying to sort it out.

We planned to leave between 6 and 7am on Tuesday so we could get checked into the hotel and get up to Wrigley in time to catch some BP. This did't work out so well...Huge storms started around 4:30 on Tuesday morning. He went ahead and woke me up with the cue to get ready to go, but when I got downstairs, he told me I might as well lay down cuz we weren't gonna leave for a while. We didn't leave until about 8:30, but we timed it perfectly. For a while, the storms were in a perfect diagonal line from Chicago to Indy. When we left, they only lasted about 20 more minutes, and the rest of the day was gorgeous (hot, but awesome).

We didn't end up getting to watch BP, but our seats ended up being baller. Because of the seller/confirmation issue, StubHub told my dad just to pick his tickets up at their location near Wrigley. We showed up there before the game and it turned out the seats were limited view. This was not advertised on the listing of the tickets. Dad was pissed, but polite. StubHubg guys were incredibly nice about it, knowing that this was an error on their/the seller's part. They offered to find us new seats immediately and said they'd eat the difference in price from what we originally planned to pay.

*The Shark, Mr. Jeff Samardzija himself, guarding the bull pen.*

3 pairs of tickets later, we had seats right behind home plate in the 7th row...for $7 more than face value. Holy shit. It was amazing.

*Kerry Wood pitching.*

It was a great game. Lots of action and offense on both sides. In the 8th inning, there was a combined total of more than 26 hits. Awesome. Unfortunately we didn't get to see Jeff Samardzija pitch, but we did see him on the field for a while, serving as protector for the guys in the bullpen. Seeing him pitch would have been the only possible thing to make it better. I did get to see Kerry Wood pitch though. I became a big fan of his during his Rookie Year, and for some reason have followed him ever since--he just stuck with me (although I'm not a fan of his beard). It was perfect. Plus the Cubs won.

Yes, yes, I know, I'm a huge Yankees fan. My dad is a Cubs fan, and I'm a believer in being able to have a Second Team-and the Cubs are mine. Plus they are in the NL and not the AL, so they only would compete against the Yankees in a World Series match up, and in that case I'd have to go with my Yanks. And I am a HUGE fan of The Shark, Samardzija.

After the game, we went and ate a a pub a block from the stadium to let the crowd die down. We came back to the room, crashed while watching Sports Center and Comcast Sports Net for a while. We finally cleaned up, and went and had appetizers and drinks (a screwdriver and sangria) at Mike Ditka's restaurant--call us tourists, but we love that place.
My dad's original plan was for us to leave early on Wednesday, but we ended up walking around for a while. We walked from our hotel just north of the Hancock building to Millennium Park, then to State Street, and back. Tiring man. I finally got to see the bean that everyone and their mother has a picture of themselves in. We checked out of the hotel, and then had lunch at the Cheesecake Factory--it was close, and I was tired of walking, whatever. Right by the Cheesecake factory is a place that sells Italian pastries and stuff. I'd been in there on a few other occasions, one being right after I got back from Rome and it was awesome. We went in to see if, by chance, they sold the cookies that my roommates and I were obsessed with in Rome. Lo and Behold, they DID!!! Buccaneve's the best things EVER. Not QUITE as good as when I bought them from Di per Di, but still amazing.
Then we got the car and drove home. I drove the whole way, which is a big deal for me because almost always after driving for like an hour, I automatically get tired and my eyes start to close like when you doze off in class. So yeah. Since I was driving, we got to listen to MY IPod on the way home, and not my dad's. That was nice. I'm continuing through my huge John Mayer/John Legend kick with some Josh Groban on the side and a dessert of Dave Matthews&Time Reynolds. Also, I must add that having a BlackBerry makes being away from home that much better. I usually obsess about checking my emails and whether or not I should bring my computer. Now I don't have to!!!

Right Turn Harch

There's a band competition (or something band camp) going on at the fancy school that's at the top of my block. I can hear it in my living room right now. While it doesn't make me want to go back to marching band, it does make me totally nostalgic for all of the awesome memories with those 7 years--but especially the 4 years of high school band, competitions, and camp.

It has been a seriously busy and fun couple of days!
On Sunday I made the ever so exciting drive (read: most boring drive ever) to South Bend for a cast party for the show at the SBCT that I designed. It was loads of fun, and I even went swimming!!! The cast and director got me a present--a frame with a picture of the cast, director, crew, and I, and a huge mat around it with notes from them all. It was absolutely so sweet and awesome. Of course, I made the super extra terribly boring drive home after, and I got home at midnight:thirty.Oh, and I got to see my awesome friend Ays, too! She came into town just for the day to see her boyfriend in a show, and we caught each other right before we were both leaving. It was an amazing 15 minute-stand outside-catch up, but it made me miss her more :(.
I am sad that I didn't get to see any of the other people I know and love who are in the SB area...I just didn't have enough time. Hopefully I will be going up again soon.
My dad and I went up to Chicago on Tuesday morning for a Cubs game. We just got home. It was amazing, and death defying. I'll write a for reals post on it later. For now, enjoy the pictures :)

mooses come walking

Happy RED, WHITE and 'Deep BLUE Sea" DAY!

I'm in Michigan for the weekend. Clio, MI to be exact. It's a teeny-tiny little town about 20 miles north of Flint. My godparents/aunt&uncle live here. They have 2 daughters, one is 8 years older than me, and one is somewhere between 10 and 12 years older than me. Kristina, the 8+ cousin, had a baby in November, and we got to meet her for the first time today. Here is the happpppy baby Morgan getting a quick sink bath before dinner out:While I don't get to see any fireworks this Fourth of July (although some will be done with Connor and Jack next week, I'm sure), it's pretty great. Morgan is the single happiest baby in the world. I have never heard a baby talk as much as she does; Kris said she was born cooing and what not. And she has the most expressive face and eyes ever.

I don't get to see this family very often, and the two cousins less than my aunt and uncle, so it's always a nice visit. Plenty of talking about/making fun of/story telling gets done about the Flanigan side of my family by my dad and uncle (the non-blood-Flanigans) that always makes it so much more interesting. I get to hear all sorts of stories about my grandparents when they were young, and my great grandparents too. Of course, there are a couple of stories that get told every time-some because they are important enough to be told every time, and others because my uncle will say "have I told you the one about...?", forgetting he tells it every year. It's generally a good time.

There is the BIGGEST OUTLET MALL EVER a few miles away up here, which my mom was vague about whether or not we would be going. A trip to Michigan on the 4th of July without bout fire works AND the outlet mall? Not fair. My aunt announced this afternoon that tomorrow, after a big sit down breakfast with fresh sausage links and scones, we are going. Hoooorayy!

Also, I brought a few movies to watch on my laptop during the 6 hour car ride. Of course I slept the whole way up here so I wouldn't get car sick, so I didn't watch any. I brought one of my FAVORITE movies EVER-The American President. I grabbed it out of my backpack to watch tonight while I go to sleep, and I just realized how coincidentally patriotic of me it is.

Lastly, remind me to tell you the Story Of The Unbuyable Book Quest And Its Conquering. It's a doozy.

I cant really explain it

Here is a list of things that I consider to be facts:

1. Cake made with Diet Coke is Amazing. It seems that maybe I can be domesticated. Big Maybe still, though.

2. Funfetti icing is the best.

3. The fare for babysitting has soared since I was the neighborhood resident babysitter. For 2 girls (aged 3 and 5.5) from 6:30-11:30, who were incredibly easy to sit, I got $50 last weekend. When I was in junior high, or even early high school, I would have gotten no more than $30 for that. Probably $25. A few weeks ago, for 3 year old triplets, for 7 hours, I got $80. If people keep calling me to sit this summer, I will make a living off of it!

4. My dad is adorable. For many reasons. Most recently: Mom was cleaning the dining room and going through stuff on shelves. Dad found a "Class of 2008" photo album that matches my other photo albums that I prefer and gave it to me saying "Hey, I got this for you, and had planned on printing all the photos from graduation etc while you were still at the Civic, but we got really busy." It was super cute. Even cuter was tonight, while printing pictures to put in it he picked it up and said "I was gonna print pictures for you for when I gave it to you. I'm sorry." 5 minutes later, he says "You know I ordered this specially for you...from Target." It was funny. Trust me.

5. Also on my dad, there are many things he is and isn't. One of the things he is is incredibly protective of me. Which is awesome. It's like he loves me so much, he gets really heated when he hears of someone fucking with me, even slightly. We had a very to moderately minor event at our gym last week that brought that out in him.

6. Sitting on my porch at night, drinking wine, eating diet coke cake, talking about sex and sex toys with Ann and Frankie is the best.

7. Big production numbers in musicals make the world go round. This includes movie musicals, even bad ones.

8. The book The Emperor's Children was amazing. I highly suggest it, especially for transitioning adults/college students. Possible "review" to come.

9. I am going to Michigan for Fourth of July. We're going to visit my Aunt and Uncle/God Parents, their daughters, and their daughter's new baby Morgan. There is an outlet mall near them with, literally, 500+ stores. Hopefully we go.

10. My Aunt Kathy has this beautiful "secretary" (like the piece of furniture) that she is giving me. It used to belong to her Grandma Deeter, meaning my great grandma. How cool is that. Now I have much, much more incentive to get my rear in gear to finish redoing my room so I can put it in there. I saw it last week and its gorgeous. As soon as I get it, I will post a picture.

11. Who makes a list of 11 things? I do. Number 11? I miss my friends from school too much :(.

Update: 12. Getting a manicure from a 3 year old always makes you prettier. For reals.

13. Smiley and Snoop told me I was the strongest girl they know. Heckya!

ReUpdate: 14. My family and I are terrible at doing things on time. My mom and I finally stuffed and addressed my graduation announcements. I graduated on May 17. In case you didn't realize, today was June 30th. Yikes. Good news is I was able to include thank you notes in the envelopes. They turned out quite nicely.

15. I have a disgusting and embarrassing addiction to Living Lohan. Don't judge me. Yes, I realize it's a terrible, terrible show and that I'm only supporting them by watching, but I can't help it. (hey there terrible grammar/punctuation!) I hate myself for it. One of the upsides of watching? One of my fave blogs, Defamer, does an excellent mock write up of it each week giving the reader/watcher 3 lessons they should have learned from Mother of the Year Dina Lohan. These articles are hilarious.

I know I Can

So I had this really long dream this morning about this kid I went to 1st-8th grade with, named Nick B. He was playing a character in August:Osage County, which I saw in NY and was one of the best things I've ever seen. Only it wasn't the same as the real show; the story was different, but the set was the same. Weird, huh?

I also saw Gypsy (with the EVER FABULOUS Patti LuPone-from the center of the front row, too), Passing Strange, and the revival of Sunday in the Park with George (at the legendary Studio 54). 4 shows in 3 days. Plus, the night we were in Chicago before we left for NY the next morning, instead of getting dinner with my mom and aunt, mom took us to see Wicked.

And a Yankees game.

Yikes.


And lastly, one of the ladies in Intimate Apparel at the Civic is a MarComm writer for SMC and writes the face to face articles on the homepage. She decided to interview and write and article about me for it. I hope it pulls people into our department. The theatre dept at SMC doesn't get a lot of press or attention, and we're always looking to expand, so I hope some prospective students see it and become interested in us.

There's a map or a clue to a map!

It's not a trip for a member of the Deeter Family, unless something bad happens or there's a blip on the radar. I took my mom to the airport tonight for her trip to a conference in Chicago/to hang with her sister. Of course my mom getting ready for a trip always causes insanity at my house--it's like the house flips upside down and runs in double time. Anyways, she decides not to pack until she gets home from work today, she left at 3, and her flight was at 7:45...anyways, she got packed in time and we left on time. There are 2 options for getting to 465, the highway that loops around Indy, off of which is the airport, from my house-actually, there are tons of options, but to get to that specific side of town there are only 2. So we pick option #2, and the ramp to 465 is closed. That's just how things roll for us Deeters.

In other travel related news, I'm meeting Fur at his house tomorrow at 2:00 to drive to Chicago because our flight to NYC leaves at 6am (Chicago time) Tursday. We'll have dinner with my mom and aunt and then crash at Fur's sister's place.

Oh and get this. On Monday, I went to my dad's office to get his car and keys so I could go to storage to get my clothes etc that they brought home from South Bend. So I walk into the building and 3 people are standing outside smoking. That's not so bad, I don't judge people who smoke. They decide that they are coming inside when I walk to the door, and they block the entrance. Then I get inside and head to the elevator, and it's obvious that these people want the elevator too, but they are lollygagging behind. So I stand and wait in the elevator holding the door open button for way too long waiting for them. I know, I know--I didn't have to wait for them, but if I didn't then I would have been an asshole, and I'm not like that. They finally get in the elevator, and it's 2 girls and a guy. And he's one of those outgoing in a douchy guys who is incredibly annoying, and generally rude.

I'm wearing my newest Saint Mary's t-shirt (we left South Bend on Sunday, and we made a last stop at the SMC bookstore and I got a new t-shirt and sweatshirt, cuz who knows when I'll be back up there :'( ). So this douchy guy looks at me with a smug look on his face and says "Saint Mary's, is that a real college?" And I ditch the nice, polite girl face, and I assume a "what the hell" face and say "yes." "Oh, well I didn't know...is it one of those nun-colleges?" I just look at him...and one of the girls says "duh, haven't you heard of Saint Mary's of the Woods? gosh. That's it, right?" And I politely say "No, its just a college, not a nun-school, and it's in South Bend...by Notre Dame." and Mr. Douche says "oh, I just figured it was a fake college. Like I went to Phoenix University and got my degree in 4 days." (Disclaimer: I don't necessarily thing Phoenix University is a fake or illegit school, I'm just quoting him.) And I get off the elevator, after looking at them with a nasty face, and walk into the firm.

Ok, so I'm not narcissistic enough to think that everyone knows what or where my beloved SMC is. But I do think that that's a pretty rude and obnoxious thing to say to someone on an elevator, especially while smirking. Also, it kind of puts a damper on a recent graduate's excitement about the future. Does anyone else think that's rude?

to learn more, go to...... .com

I've done a lot since my last post, and in an effort to save us all some time, I'll just list stuff.

-Moved out of 430 Le Mans Hall. Packed the dad's van, then took 2 hampers and a suitcase to Castle Point to live til the end of the month.
-Began realizing a scene design at the Civic here for Intimate Apparel.
-Had said design be beautiful. I know that's really self-praise-filled and all, but, for reasons you will see in the next item, it's been a rough week and so I'm really proud of myself for getting through this far.
-Had the TD, who is usually a very jovial, nice man fucking EXPLODE at me. Not because of my actions in particular, but I was the outlet, and boy was it terrifying.
-Tonight, said TD tried to make amends in a most awkward way of saying the set looks really nice.
-Officially gotten over the most recent crush I've had.
-After asking a certain person if he'd come see a dress rehearsal for my show (I invited him and everyone else to the real show, but tickets are expensive, and I can bring whomever I want to dress rehearsals for free) and he said "Are you acting in it? No? then just show me pictures." Yeah, douchy, right?
-Officially fallen in love with an older man. Ok, he's not like OLD. He's just older than me. I don't actually know how old he is. I'm guessing 30.
-Bonded with Caroline's devil cat Lola.
-Grilled out TWICE. On daddy deeter's awesome portable grill. He brought it up for us to use between senior week and when I come home next weekend.
-Bought my airline tickets for NYC with Fur. Booked our hostel. Ordered our Yankees tickets.
-Cooked spaghetti. I realize that cooking isn't usually an accomplishment for people. But for me, it's huge. I've never cooked before. And this past week staying at an apartment is my first experience not having a dining hall or being at home where my parents always cook or we eat out.
-Went to a graduation party where I had the best cake ever, played Apples to Apples with some of my fave people, roasted mallows, dipped the roasted mallows in melted chocolate and teddy grahms, and told ghost stories.
-Had tech and first dress for Intimate Apparel.
-Drove home in the worst downpour/storm I've ever experienced. That was tonight. And I thought I was going to die.

you're hired?

So, the wedding. In Houston.

It was a good time. Minus me being sick and all. But it was a beautiful ceremony and a fancy reception. I was included as part of the extended family and all, which was fantastic. ANd it was great to see these people that I haven't seen in so long. Unfortunately I didn't get to do as mch hanging out (READ: hanging out, catching up, and drinking) as planned and wanted because I was sick. I did make it to the fancy ass mall they have there-the Galleria-wht like 500 stores. I got a new Swatch Watch ( i have watches, yes, but i dont have any dressy or nicer ones), plus used my Sephora gift card for some more Philosophy stuff, and got a sweet super cute light blue patent leather wristlet for $12!

Anyways, the drive to and from Midway as well as the flight to and from Houston were uneventful and fine. Despite that whole phobia of flying.

And I'm still sick, but getting better, I think. Friday I woke up with some really nasty congestion and head stuff. Over the weekend I was miserable. I'm less congested now, but I'm having trouble with coughing and haven't had much of a voice this week. Awesome.

In other news, I had my comp rehearsals started this week. Monday we had a read thru and it went really well. They really seemed to appreciate the play for the reasons I do and see the importance of the social issues involved. I started blocking last night, and it's coming along :).


Here's a picture of Claire and I. We've been friends since we were born, and our parents friends since they were younger than us.