living in chicago

it’s october 3rd.

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How in the world is it already October? Time really does fly. In the meantime, I’m trying to get over this cold that settled in nearly two weeks ago and shows no signs of leaving me any time soon. I’m on some good meds, so that’s a concession. Except I can’t DO anything when I’m on the meds except stare at my computer screen and try not to fall asleep. That’s no good. But I do NOT want another four month sore throat, so I’m taking advantage of being in the position to get a lot of rest so I can get better. There’s a lot coming up this month! Two workshops, an author visit, finishing up my Acting 1 class, filming for Sirens, a visit from Aidan, and new books to read! I need to get better and QUICK.

What have I done? This is just today's haul!! #books #ya #andersonsbookshop #abyalitconf #yafandomfrenzy #noregrets

Even though I was sick, I powered through and was able to do a few neat things. The main one being the YA Literature Conference that Anderson’s Bookshop puts on every year. This is the first year I decided to go, and I’m glad I did. Something about being around authors, and books, and watching the panels and talking to people–it’s soooo inspiring. Plus, I got to meet Stephanie Perkins, who is one of my favorite authors. She is super lovely and just amazing all around.

Me and Stephanie Perkins
me and stephanie

Yeah, that was kind of a dream come true right there. πŸ™‚

Among others, I also met Kendare Blake, Demitria Lunetta, T.M. Goeglin, Joan Bauer, Alaya Dawn Johnson, Jenny Han…man I could go on. So many good books and authors and people. It was a very inspirational weekend.

Monday I started filming for Sirens. That was a lot of fun. Yes, I was half-crazed with exhaustion and trying not to cough while the cameras were rolling, but I met some really cool people and had a really fun time on set. And the food was soooo good. Looking forward to going back next week.

This week, my TO DO list was so long that all of it couldn’t fit in my planner. And of course, I was sick! So I lost Tuesday to sleeping, went to the doctor on Wednesday, and lost the rest of that day and some of yesterday to sleeping again. Today I managed to drag myself to a Bar Method class (barre workouts kick my butt but I love them) and over to Native Foods to have lunch with some of my favorite yogi friends, but about halfway through lunch, I started fading. Big time. πŸ™ I was glad to get home.

I finished up a big project that I’ve been working on since August; it’s a relief to have that done. I didn’t realize it was almost 900 pages because I was so into it (plus it was broken down into manageable chunks), but when I look back, I feel proud that I did all that work.

Now it’s Friday night, and being the lame person I am, I’m going to take some medicine, have something to eat, and go to bed with a book and my teddy bear. And possibly a cat. Crookshanks has just plopped himself down very close to me and doesn’t seem inclined to move any time soon. At any rate, I am done for the day.

Till next time….

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#sweatylife.

Classpass Launch at Flywheel Chicago
can you find me?

The first week in September, I was invited to attend launch parties for ClassPass, a monthly services that gives people access to fitness studios all over the city. The program launched in Chicago this month!

There were three parties, and I attended two: The launch at Flywheel Sports, a spin studio, and one at The Dailey Method, a barre studio. What’s so great about ClassPass is that I would have probably never tried either of these on my own, but this program encourages people to try new things.

Classpass Launch at Flywheel Chicago

I LOVED The Dailey Method. I’d heard that barre classes were hard, but I wasn’t expecting to enjoy them so much. They combine ballet, yoga, weights, core work. It’s challenging and you definitely feel a burn, but it’s also low impact and works the entire body.

09.05.14-dailey-method
I’m somewhere in this room, I promise!

I was given a complimentary one-month membership, so I plan to try out some more of the offerings they have, such at The Bar Method, Mazi Dance, and Exhale.

I need to move more, I need to #livethesweatylife. It’s time I got back into shape and started taking better care of myself, yes? I think this month is going to be the month to do that.

Photos lifted from here and here Photography by Joel Maisonet and Azuree Wiitala.

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a game of h.o.r.s.e.

Earlier this month, I was lucky enough to be picked to film a commercial with Doug McDermott, an amazingly talented basketball player. He’s in the NBA draft lottery (taking place in just a few days!) and super nice.

Here is the commercial. See if you can spot me! In his intro, I’m standing under his right shoulder (just look for the fuzzy gold head). Throughout the video and many parts, I’m sitting, cross-legged, on the floor right under the basket. You can see me very clearly at 1:36. πŸ™‚ I’m wearing #46!

After the shoot, he was kind enough to pose for a few pictures. Here I am with him:

Now that the commercial is up, I can post my photo with @dougmcd3.  Super nice guy. I wish him the best.  #dougmcdermott #m&ms #nbadraft #awesomepeople #basketball

I’m standing on stairs because he’s SUPER tall! πŸ™‚

It was such a fun day, and I wish Doug “McBuckets” all the best!

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summertime.

Summer

Summer summer summertime….
Time to kick back and unwind….

So far for me, this has not been the time to kick back and unwind!

It’s been a very busy couple of weeks. Friends visiting from out of town, stints at VSA, us going out of town, events… I wonder if my summer is shaping up to be a busy one? I feel like, now that it’s warmer out, everyone wants to do ALL THE THINGS.

More Friends
me with jen · me with kelly
me with mia · me with kristie

I want to show off my cute new outfit. Well, it was new a couple of weeks ago anyway.

Cute Outfit
sunglasses: Juicy Couture · headphones: Bose
crochet top, necklace, headband: Buckle · cami: Forever 21
jacket: Kohl’s · shorts: American Eagle · boots: Steve Madden

It’s been a few weeks and the temps seem like they’ve stabilized… somewhat. There are still some 50F nights in the near future, which I don’t like but I’ll take them over single digits and teens any day. Especially if I don’t have to go out in them. In fact, I managed to burn myself pretty good over the weekend. I don’t think I’ve been this sunburned since I was in college! I woke up Saturday morning looking like Rudolph. Thank GOD for my Shisiedo BB cream. It would have helped if I’d used it BEFORE I went out Friday, seeing as it has SPF in it, but I didn’t anticipate being out so long.

But before then, I had a week of socializing. My friend Kristie, who I’ve known forever on the internet, came to Chicago to celebrate her 30th birthday. Luckily, I was free to hang out, so we had sushi and got to spend some time together. I knew she was pretty but I was not prepared when I saw her in person. Girlfriend is stunning. And sweet as can be. I really enjoyed hanging out with her.

Me & Kristie

I had to work a couple of days that week, then Angelo was in town for Memorial Day weekend. We hung out Friday, Saturday, Sunday, and Monday (and can you believe I didn’t get one photo of us? I guess I was too busy living in the moment). My friend Hillary came over Saturday night as well. I ate myself sushi-stupid that weekend. Regrets? NOPE.

Tuesday, Adam and I headed to Columbus, Ohio because my baby was having a promotion ceremony! He’s done with elementary school and will be starting middle school in the fall. My friend Jen told me to just shut the hell up right now because there was no way, right?

But it’s for real! Aidan’s truly growing up.

Promotion Ceremony

The ceremony was nice. School gyms are not air-conditioned so it was warm in there, even for me. I felt bad for all the normal people with regulated body temperatures. It was awesome seeing Aidan, hearing the kids’ speeches, and seeing my friend Kelly, who I hadn’t seen since 2008.

The next day, we dropped Aidan off at school (I was confused too, but they still had two days left!) and drove up to Cleveland to visit my mom! We ate delicious dinner at Corky & Lenny’s, and I got to see Janae and Terri and Geneva. Thursday, we had Bob Evans and then drove back to Chicago. I was exhausted, but managed to get some decent sleep. Friday, I got up and headed to Milwaukee Ave. to see my friends Reshma, Genevieve, and Amy. I hadn’t seen them since November and it was nice to catch up.

Yoga

Saturday, Jen and I headed to Grant Park to experience Wanderlust in the City, a free yoga festival. Another day out in the hot sun, but this time I was smart enough to use SPF. (OK, some friends on twitter advised me to use it because apparently sunburn on top of sunburn is NOT GOOD.)

I did two yoga classes, drank a TON of water, and Jen and I posed for a lovely photo.

Yoga in the City!! #wanderlust #wlchicago @wanderlust ??#yoga
l- jen, r- me

Then we came back to my place and went out for… take a wild guess. Here’s a hint: it rhymes with ooo-shee. Then we went out to delicious Brown Cow and had ice cream. It was as yummy as I remembered.

Hell yeah. @yumbrowncow #yummy

THEN I found a planner group on Facebook. And more planner groups. I don’t know if you remember me lamenting the loss of my Life Planner a couple of months ago. I bought a Bloom planner but it wasn’t the same. There’s something about the Life Planner that just works for me. So I ended up ordering a new one on the very last day they had the 2014 ones in stock. Then I waited on pins and needles for it to arrive. I felt so relieved when it was finally here. Now I felt right again.

Apparently, there are people who decorate the crap out of their planners. See, I use some stickers and draw a few pictures and use lots of pens. But these people go all out. It’s fun to see them. The best part is that there are people out there who are planner/pen crazy like I am and it’s fun to chat with them. I don’t feel so alone/weird now! πŸ™‚

planner
my week

I spent a lot of time hibernating in the winter. I’ve made up for it the past two weeks, and Aidan’s arriving on Saturday! I plan to do a lot more activities with him, instead of us sitting at our computers all day. I’d like to go to the Planetarium, Legoland Discovery Center, the beach, the zoo, and more. I’m determined to make loads of memories this summer.

OK, that’s all for now. Till next time….

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up and down and around and around.

Airborne. ?? #latergram flying to Cleveland to surprise my mommy  @lenorakita and Aidan for Valentines Day. ??

Finally! It is the last day of February. Believe me, I am not sad to see this bitterly cold month go! Right now, even though the temp says it’s 30F, I’m buried under an electric blanket, trying to get warm. I am looking forward to summer more than ever. (I also don’t think that particular temp gauge is quite right–another one says 19F, which is what it feels more like.)

I haven’t posted in a while, so here’s what I’ve gotten myself in to the past few weeks:

one

I flew to Cleveland to surprise Aidan and my mom for Valentine’s Day. Oh, it was so genius. Chris and I came up with the idea sometime last month. He was taking Aidan to visit her for the long weekend. I booked a flight into Hopkins, and Chris picked me up from there. Aidan’s face when he saw me was priceless! Then… we drove out to Twinsburgh, where my mom was waiting outside the door for Aidan and Chris. She realized there was a third person with them, but didn’t notice it was me until I was up close, but she was so happy! πŸ™‚ It was a fun surprise.

It was a fun long weekend. I gorged myself on reality television, ate good food (mmm greens) and saw some friends. I hadn’t seen Charla in nearly 10 years, so it was so nice to catch up with her. And I got to hang out with my friend Amy, who I email with all the time. I saw some of my favorite cousins, and really had fun talking to them, eating good food, and just hanging out.

While I was there, a snowstorm came. My flight would have been delayed hours. So, I just switched my flight to the next day, and Aidan and I got an extra day with my mommy. πŸ™‚

two

Acting class. I’m still at it somehow. I honestly want to quit all the time because it is so hard. So, so hard. I’ve spent so many years silencing my voice that it’s hard for me to stop hiding. But then I have a day like today, when I start to break through, and people tell me I did a good job, and I FEEL that I did a good job… that I love it. I can’t stop. I know if I quit, I will hate myself. I can’t stop, I won’t stop, no matter how many bad days I have. Because no one ever said this journey would be easy. I don’t even know what’s at the end of it. I just know I need to stay doing it. I need to keep pulling out what I used to bring so easily when I was younger. Who knows what will happen if I keep going?

Roadmapping it. #acting #scene #lines

I got a new scene assignment and partner a few weeks ago. This time, I’m working on a comedy: The Visitor from Forest Hills from Plaza Suite by Neil Simon. I always pictured myself as a drama girl, but I am loving working on this comedy. I’m having fun with it!

But now we’re starting with Shakespeare. I don’t know about you, but Shakespeare scares the hot poop out of me. It terrifies me. But I’m going to do it.

three

Even though I know this won’t help my career in acting–if I decide to pursue one–I still enjoy doing background roles. In the acting world, anyone serious about it won’t settle for background work. Really, an extra is nothing but a prop. But I enjoy being on set, meeting people, and learning what I can about filming. I make friends and we keep in touch and hopefully see each other on more sets.

This past Tuesday, I got the chance to do some background work for NBC’s Crisis, which premieres March 16. I It’s the first TV show I’ve done and I hope I get the chance to do more. Maybe one day I’ll be a special guest with an actual speaking role. No harm in dreaming, right? πŸ™‚

Other things:
– Still obsessed with Odesza.
– Still trying to reduce my meat intake.
– Still trying to fight the depression. Some days it’s a lot easier than others.
– Making new friends in my acting class? Awesome.
– NEED to get my car jumped and running again. It’s been in the same place since December. It’s dead. The weather killed it.

I’m looking forward to Spring. Even though it won’t FEEL like Spring here for a long time, at least the calendar will say it is soon. And maybe the weather will catch up sooner than later.

Now it’s off to do a workout DVD. Paula Abdul, NYC Ballet, or Rodney Yee yoga? I guess we’ll see.

Till next time!

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