First Public Post since 1438
Hello Friends and Family!
To those of you that are on my friends list, nothing has changed that will affect the way you see my journal. The change is that I have returned my LJ to public. Scary and exciting at the same time, eh? The kicker, everyone can see how I'm doing, what I'm up to, what I think about this, that or the other thing, and comment on what you've read. I'm excited to be sharing with a potentially wider audience of people I know have wanted to see something from me and haven't been able to.
Let us see where to start... It has to be someplace that will make a little sense... Ah, yes, just after getting back from DC. That was a great trip. I got to visit my CT family and meet Viv's family and go to a Susan Tedeschi Concert, and eat a lot of really amazing food, and see Baltimore and be in the Prop 8 Protest March at the Capitol. I got some great pictures that are on my facebook and myspace if you want to see them...
I returned home, via Rachel's humble abode, a day before I started rehearsal for A Very Merry Christmas at the Williamsburg. That was a fun show but I was in less than I was for the fall, My Generation, show. Oh, well. It was a fun time with great people so it was worth it. I also got back to find myself eligible to substitute teach in the public schools for TBAISD (Traverse Bay Area Intermediate School District), which included Leelanau County. I had a lot of fun teaching at Suttons Bay, eating in the teachers lounge and listening to discussions about how to punish truant or disruptive students. Over the days I spent teaching I was fortunate enough to put on the mask of a middle school special ed teacher, k-12 art teacher, middle school english teacher, high school math teacher, high school science teacher, high school special ed teacher, and troubled kids 1st through 3rd grade teacher, and teacher's assistant in a classroom for mentally and physically handicapped elementary students. I basically had one day in each of those positions accept art teacher where I was called in to be Mr. Tompkins a couple of times and up in Northport one day. It was a blast to be floating around to so many different subjects and age levels so consistantly. I love teaching. Someday I will probably go back to it...
The other job I held through December was as my Dad's secretary. I have been doing that for a while but it became more necessary the closer I was to moving. I spent a great deal of time getting all of the bookwork up to date and the returned mail re-addressed. From doing that last bit, checking addresses, I really grew to hate the postal service (not the band, mind you, because I love them). I cannot tell you how many people I called that gave me the same address that I had sitting in front of me that had the sticker that said, "Unknown Number" or "Unknown Street" or whatever. Rar. That was so frustrating. I had times where I would have one address in the computer, one in the phone book and one from the customer, all different. Not cool. Consistency is key in business. Keeping up to date with the facts is very important so as to not waste resources. Eh, well.
Thanksgiving and Christmas were good. The Family Christmas Party at Aunt Kathy's was a great time to catch up with everyone.
The big bang on the end of my residency at my Dad's was the New Years Eve show. It was so great because Ashley set it and rehearsed it and I got a mini vocal solo and some more little dance things. I was so excited because the song piece I had was from Fever and the little dance stuff was Fosse-influenced and to On Broadway. Fun times.
I slept late after the New Years Eve show and finished packing that Thursday. Friday I drove my little car full of crap to Mom's and Blake took the car on a slight road trip before returning it to Dad's to be stored next to the garage and started weekly. The next couple of weeks were spent attempting to find work, sleeping and running around doing errands and meeting workers for Mom. It was hectic at times, especially when she would ask me to do something when I had scheduled something on my To Do list or whatever. We got to eat out a lot which was fun because I love being able to say, "I want sushi tonight" and actually fulfill that wish. Other than those little things I started taking voice lessons and was working hard to find a place for me and Viv to live. Momma really wanted us to stay with her but I warned her about my love of naked-time and she had to rethink her offer.
While I was still staying with Mom I got to work for a small theater company called Quest. I was taken on as their ASM though I later quit that position when a paying one came along. This gig was fun but I had very few responsibilities and had already done a similar position before though hadn't realized it, thinking I would learn a lot. It is a fun show, Into The Woods. The music is Sondheim so you know it's catchy. If you ever get the chance to see it, please do. It's still running up in Andersonville through the end of March. Go to www.questensemble.org.
By the end of January I finally had found us a place to live and made all of the arrangements. Viv moved here on the 5th/6th of February. We have been pretty much unemployed until about a week ago. She has been working with a dance LD I found through some other inquiries I sent out to dance companies about designers. I have been working for a dance studio in Oak Park called the Academy of Movement and Music which is also home of the dance company, MOMENTA. Megan, my buddy and lighting/management prof from WMU was just here this past weekend to re-tech the lighting for 3 Loie Fuller reconstructions her friend, Jessica, had done. It was a good time to be able to work with her again. The shows will be the next two weekends. The matinee each day is called "I See America Dancing", a history lesson starting with Pochahontas and John Smith. The evening is a great show with a diverse bunch of dances, one of which I was asked to design. Woot! Come see one or both of those shows. Info at www.momenta-dance.org/index.php and www.momenta-dance.org/index.php
.
Other news, I have a lighting design gig for Ballet Arts in Kalamazoo at the end of March which I am very excited about. I love working with Cathy's dancers and am fortunate to be working in Wellspring's theater. I designed their Encore show last year at Shaw but they appear to be moving up in the world. Sweet for them.
Ok, I think I have given everyone enough to read through for now. Before I steal your vision I will let you go.
Thank you for keeping up/joining us on this wonderful journey.
Love,
Francesca
To those of you that are on my friends list, nothing has changed that will affect the way you see my journal. The change is that I have returned my LJ to public. Scary and exciting at the same time, eh? The kicker, everyone can see how I'm doing, what I'm up to, what I think about this, that or the other thing, and comment on what you've read. I'm excited to be sharing with a potentially wider audience of people I know have wanted to see something from me and haven't been able to.
Let us see where to start... It has to be someplace that will make a little sense... Ah, yes, just after getting back from DC. That was a great trip. I got to visit my CT family and meet Viv's family and go to a Susan Tedeschi Concert, and eat a lot of really amazing food, and see Baltimore and be in the Prop 8 Protest March at the Capitol. I got some great pictures that are on my facebook and myspace if you want to see them...
I returned home, via Rachel's humble abode, a day before I started rehearsal for A Very Merry Christmas at the Williamsburg. That was a fun show but I was in less than I was for the fall, My Generation, show. Oh, well. It was a fun time with great people so it was worth it. I also got back to find myself eligible to substitute teach in the public schools for TBAISD (Traverse Bay Area Intermediate School District), which included Leelanau County. I had a lot of fun teaching at Suttons Bay, eating in the teachers lounge and listening to discussions about how to punish truant or disruptive students. Over the days I spent teaching I was fortunate enough to put on the mask of a middle school special ed teacher, k-12 art teacher, middle school english teacher, high school math teacher, high school science teacher, high school special ed teacher, and troubled kids 1st through 3rd grade teacher, and teacher's assistant in a classroom for mentally and physically handicapped elementary students. I basically had one day in each of those positions accept art teacher where I was called in to be Mr. Tompkins a couple of times and up in Northport one day. It was a blast to be floating around to so many different subjects and age levels so consistantly. I love teaching. Someday I will probably go back to it...
The other job I held through December was as my Dad's secretary. I have been doing that for a while but it became more necessary the closer I was to moving. I spent a great deal of time getting all of the bookwork up to date and the returned mail re-addressed. From doing that last bit, checking addresses, I really grew to hate the postal service (not the band, mind you, because I love them). I cannot tell you how many people I called that gave me the same address that I had sitting in front of me that had the sticker that said, "Unknown Number" or "Unknown Street" or whatever. Rar. That was so frustrating. I had times where I would have one address in the computer, one in the phone book and one from the customer, all different. Not cool. Consistency is key in business. Keeping up to date with the facts is very important so as to not waste resources. Eh, well.
Thanksgiving and Christmas were good. The Family Christmas Party at Aunt Kathy's was a great time to catch up with everyone.
The big bang on the end of my residency at my Dad's was the New Years Eve show. It was so great because Ashley set it and rehearsed it and I got a mini vocal solo and some more little dance things. I was so excited because the song piece I had was from Fever and the little dance stuff was Fosse-influenced and to On Broadway. Fun times.
I slept late after the New Years Eve show and finished packing that Thursday. Friday I drove my little car full of crap to Mom's and Blake took the car on a slight road trip before returning it to Dad's to be stored next to the garage and started weekly. The next couple of weeks were spent attempting to find work, sleeping and running around doing errands and meeting workers for Mom. It was hectic at times, especially when she would ask me to do something when I had scheduled something on my To Do list or whatever. We got to eat out a lot which was fun because I love being able to say, "I want sushi tonight" and actually fulfill that wish. Other than those little things I started taking voice lessons and was working hard to find a place for me and Viv to live. Momma really wanted us to stay with her but I warned her about my love of naked-time and she had to rethink her offer.
While I was still staying with Mom I got to work for a small theater company called Quest. I was taken on as their ASM though I later quit that position when a paying one came along. This gig was fun but I had very few responsibilities and had already done a similar position before though hadn't realized it, thinking I would learn a lot. It is a fun show, Into The Woods. The music is Sondheim so you know it's catchy. If you ever get the chance to see it, please do. It's still running up in Andersonville through the end of March. Go to www.questensemble.org.
By the end of January I finally had found us a place to live and made all of the arrangements. Viv moved here on the 5th/6th of February. We have been pretty much unemployed until about a week ago. She has been working with a dance LD I found through some other inquiries I sent out to dance companies about designers. I have been working for a dance studio in Oak Park called the Academy of Movement and Music which is also home of the dance company, MOMENTA. Megan, my buddy and lighting/management prof from WMU was just here this past weekend to re-tech the lighting for 3 Loie Fuller reconstructions her friend, Jessica, had done. It was a good time to be able to work with her again. The shows will be the next two weekends. The matinee each day is called "I See America Dancing", a history lesson starting with Pochahontas and John Smith. The evening is a great show with a diverse bunch of dances, one of which I was asked to design. Woot! Come see one or both of those shows. Info at www.momenta-dance.org/index.php and www.momenta-dance.org/index.php
.
Other news, I have a lighting design gig for Ballet Arts in Kalamazoo at the end of March which I am very excited about. I love working with Cathy's dancers and am fortunate to be working in Wellspring's theater. I designed their Encore show last year at Shaw but they appear to be moving up in the world. Sweet for them.
Ok, I think I have given everyone enough to read through for now. Before I steal your vision I will let you go.
Thank you for keeping up/joining us on this wonderful journey.
Love,
Francesca