The world is changing. The election is over (Yayy, Obama!).  Hurricane Sandy devastated the caribbean and east coast.  And the Nor'easter added to the mess and frustration.  Through it all though, there seems to be a since of calm in the air. Despite divisions, separations and differences, people are pulling together. The stress of what could have been has been lifted, and people are embracing the possibilities of what's to come in the future.  

People are still worried about the end of the world. But as I see it, it's not the end of the world, but the end of a cycle.  In a statement released by Oxlaljuj Ajpop, the end of the cycle simply "means there will be big changes on the personal, family and community level, so that there is harmony and balance between mankind and nature."

It's a growth period for us all. Time to move on from the past into the new and Unknown.

Along with the changing of the leaves, came changes in my life and career.  Both my husband and I got positive boosts in regards to our careers.  His accessory company garnered more attention from some pretty influential people, and he has some good leads on better jobs. His previous job was toxic in so many ways. Now that it's over, his outlook on life and his career goals have changed.  I can see and sense how his spirit has been uplifted after leaving such a negative environment. He's truly coming into his own, and seeing the light in his eyes gleam brighter when he talks about his goals, his abilities, and all the possibilities that can occur in the future, is a wonderful thing to see. I'm so happy and proud of and for him.  It's a wonderful feeling to be on this journey with him.

As for me, it's better if I just bullet point all the things that have occured this season:

• I performed in the Manhattan Monologue Slam
• I did a photo shoot for Bridal Tribe magazine 
• I auditioned for a slew of commercials and films
• As a result of auditioning at Jennifer Euston Casting, I was called in a second time to audition for another project.
• Met talent manager Josselyne Herman-Saccio and producer Joe Kramer at Lisa Gold's networking party.
• I was contacted by Josselyne's office to set up a meeting (yayy!) at the end of this month.
• I was called in to audition, got a call back, and am now a cast member of Joe Kramer and Deepak Ananthapadmabha's Fighting Laughter Warrior improv game show.
• Had a consultation with Paul Michael at The Network, who gave me some wonderful insight on how to move forward the way I've really wanted to in my career, i.e., finding the right audition material, meeting the right people, and getting involved in projects that will truly benefit me, and give me the boost I need to succeed.
• I will be meeting with David Bellantoni, Elizabeth Gans and Erica Palgon at The Network's Diversity Casting Director Fest.
• I enrolled at the Upright Citizens Brigade, and will begin improv classes there later this month.
• I performed in Arthur French III's short play, "Negative Vibes", part of John Chatterton's Short Play Lab.
• I got cast in the staged reading of Duncan Pflaster's "The Tragedy of Dandelion", part of Oberon Theatre Ensemble's original reading series, where I'll be playing 5 different roles (I always love exercising my character voice and accent skills). 
• Lastly, and absolutely not least, I created an indiegogo campaign to help fund the production of the pilot episode of my webseries, "Velma Doesn't Get It". I'm super happy, excited, and blessed at how it's all going. 

Writing all of this, I realize just how grateful, thankful, and blessed I am to be doing what I love, and to have the love and support I have in my life. 

The year isn't even over, and I can't imagine nor wait to find out what blessings and possibilities are in store.

La Vita E' Bella!

How Sweet It Is!

I passed up a networking event last night cause I'm on a mission. 

I listened to two great teleseminars last week, which reawakened my motivation and drive. I've realized that even though I've been doing a lot, I felt like I was at an empasse. I was moving but not really in the direction that I wanted to be going. 

Emily Grace conducted a seminar entitled "Get Known NOW:  From Frantic to Focused in 7 Simple Steps".  What really hit home for me was when she said (this is not verbatim) "Are you one of those actors who says, 'I just want to be working'?  Well, you've probably already reached your goal:  You're probably working at a number of things or a number of jobs, and you're frustrated 'cause you're working your butt off, and you don't seem to be getting anywhere. You need to have a clear goal." I realized in life that when you're ready to make a change, ready to move forward toward the life you want, and toward becoming the person you're meant to be, the path will open up to you, and you'll begin to look at things with new eyes.  I've been performing, auditioning, studying and practicing the majority of my life. Listened to countless suggestions on what to do in my career "in the meantime/to make some money now/cause you never know where it can lead", instead of listening to my own intuition, and believing that I could have what I really wanted.  Just like I let go of my hangups and fears, and opened myself up to a loving relationship, it was now time for me to do the same in my career. I wrote down all 7 steps, and re-worked my five-year plan.  I've taken the steps toward completing my first goal, and I feel like a huge weight has been lifted off of me.  My fiance has been a blessing in my life in so many ways. It was him who told me about Emily's seminar.  I don't know how he came across it, I just know it came right on time.

The second one I listened to was Lisa Gold's teleseminar on social media.  I'm already on facebook, twitter, actors access, ny castings, casting networks, model mayhem, linked in, myspace, skype, etc., and now have a blog.  Lisa's seminar just helped see what more I can do to brand myself as an artist, and how to properly utilize tools I already have.  I've been on Lisa's mailing list for quite awhile, and really enjoy her seminars and her networking parties.

With Emily and Lisa's words fresh in my brain, I quickly got on the ball. I ordered my reproductions, new business cards, updated my profiles on the casting websites and signed up for Scott Powers Studios' Commercial Print Agents' Forum. I finally feel I'm in the right place for myself.

The other end of the spectrum is the wedding prep. Wonderfully and surprisingly enough, things are going rather smoothly. I'm so happy and relieved about that. My fiance almost has his guest list together, and I have some extended family helping out with finding good group rates for hotels.

The other day, my best friend and my roommate went with me to do a cake tasting. A facebook friend recommended Karen Charles Teesdale of Empress Cakes LLC. Let me tell you, we tasted the cake of Life!  She had samples of red velvet, chocolate and vanilla cakes, as well as strawberry champagne, mimosa, lychee, vanilla bean and pistachio buttercream. The three of us attacked those samples like they were our first and last meal. Now considering that I ended the cleanse less than two weeks ago, I'd been very careful about what I had been eating lately.  I haven't had that much sugar in God knows how long, and my body wasted no time in reminding me of that fact.  Once that sugar crash hit, the three of us were completely done in:  I had the worst stomachache, my best friend had a sugar headache because she didn't eat anything all day except fig newtons, and my roommate ended up with the itis. We were miserable by the end of it, but we all agreed it was sooooo worth it!

We were about to finish all of it, until we realized the nice thing to would be to save at least a few forkfuls for my fiance to try.  He didn't care what flavors I picked, he devoured what was left the moment I put the plate in front of him at home. I asked him what flavors he liked, and he said it all tasted the same to him:  like sugar. He doesn't really care what flavors I picked for the cake and cupcakes, this is all he's looking forward to (and I admit, so am I lol): 

Shenanigans aside, if it isn't obvious, I truly do love my fiance more and more each day. He never ceases to amaze me. On Valentine's Day, I opted to work to have the extra cash, so we decided to have our V-day the night before. It was the most romantic thing I could ever hope for. A candlelight dinner, Al Green on wax, cocktails, dessert, "Romancing The Stone" on Netflix, and a little wink wink nudge nudge. Chalky candy hearts, and cardboard valentine cards from grade school were nice, but Grown Up Valentine's are so worth the wait ;-).

Oh life, How Sweet It Is!