And the Daytime Emmy for Best Melodramatic Perfomance at Work Goes to...

I am typically a pretty relaxed, laid-back person. But when I feel a lot of stress mounting, I'm like a pressure cooker, and when that top pops, it ain't pretty.

I came back to work today after being home sick for the past couple days with the flu. Having the flu stunk, but it did provide a nice vacation from work. I knew today wasn't getting off to a good start when I cried before I'd even been there for two hours.

I was wading through two days of e-mails and had a slightly curt one from a woman informing me that she left me a voicemail yesterday and hadn't heard back from me yet. There is a problem with some data. Oh, even writing about data problems sounds so boring, I want to ggoooo tttooooooooooooooo *zzzzzz*.

Anywho, I explain the situation to my coworker, who patiently explains to me that I've been interpretting data the wrong way on a project that I've been working on for the past month. At that point, I politely told my coworker and my boss, "I need to excuse myself to go cry now." I briskly walked out to the hallway. (And kids, I was wearing high-heeled black boots today, so I'm sure my strides had attitude.) I got out to the hallway, and a lovely string of curse words flowed past my lips like rusty water from a country faucet. And then, with much dramatic flair, I kicked open the ladies room door, made my way to my favorite big stall, locked the door, and did that thing where you lean against the wall and slowly slide down it in melodramatic fashion as the waterworks began. Seriously, if this job isn't preparing me to win my first Daytime Emmy, I don't know what is! Thankfully, no one else was in the john (except for my imaginary, adoring fans who all threw roses at my feet as I drenched them with my tears). It was beautiful. Really.

After I gave my fans a memorable acceptance speech, I took my Emmy to the sink where I splashed cold water on my face and returned to my computer. The rest of the day at work was fairly uneventful.

I think that rewarding myself with a bowl of Ben and Jerry's Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Icecream was the right thing to do. Don't you?

Weekend in San Francisco

This past weekend, eSuitor and I took a roadtrip up to San Francisco to visit my aunt and cousins. One of my goals since moving to California has been to spend more time with my extended family out here. So given that the family was celebrating my aunt's birthday, it was the perfect excuse for a quick visit.

Here are some photos of the party:

My aunt and cousin.

The cousins.

eSuitor and me! :)

A special note to my Bay Area blog buddies: This was a whirlwind weekend roadtrip, so I'm sorry I didn't get to see any of you. Next time I'm up there, I hope we can meet each other!

A Heartfelt Welcome to my Two Main Men

I'd like to take this opportunity to welcome the two men in my life to my blog: my Dad and eSuitor.

Hi Dad! I gave my Dad my blog address yesterday, and he sent me the sweetest e-mail telling me that he read the entire blog in one sitting. I felt so honored and touched. I love you, Dad! My Dad wants me to thank all of you who have been praying for him. And I quote from his e-mail, "Thank all your dear friends who have continually prayed for us, especially those who do not know me but love you." Please continue to pray for God to heal my Dad. Thank you, thank you!

And now a special welcome to eSuitor. So, how does it feel to have official access to my blog? Enjoy! I say lots of nice things about you. eSuitor has known about my blog for a long time and even known that I write about him. And he's been the MOST respectful of my wishes not to give him my blog address until I decided to. I guess it's a little bit like giving your boyfriend the key to your diary. :) Anyway, Baby, you got the key to my heart, and that's pretty much what I share in my blog anyway, so read on. (And please forgive me for what I wrote about in my last post! Tee-hee!)

Dad and eSuitor, welcome! You are both tremendous blessings in my life.

Join me in welcoming my two main men!

He Loves Me That Much

If it seems like I haven't written much about eSuitor lately, it's because he's been out of town...for three weeks...in solitude! Yes, you heard me correctly...in solitude. As part of his seminary program, one of the things he had to do to fulfill the requirements for his degree (an M.A. in Spiritual Formation and Soul Care) is to go on a three week Intensive Spiritual Journey. Three weeks alone with God. His experience was great, and it has been fun to hear about it since his return. I missed him so much while he was gone, but he finally came back on Friday.

We spent all day together on Saturday, and that evening, he took me out for a lovely dinner at a beautiful French restaurant, complete with live accordian music! As we sat down at the table, my tummy was feeling a little funny. By the time my meal came, I was having sharp pains in my side and my stomach was bloated like a balloon. I could only eat a few bites. We had our meals boxed up and drove straight to a drug store. I knew it was just a lot of gas. So eSuitor ran in the store and bought me some Gas-X. I popped two tablets, and within ten minutes, I was starting to feel better.

I warned eSuitor as we drove back to his house that he was possibly going to hear me fart for the first time. I certainly hoped not, and I told him that I hoped I wouldn't be the first to cross that line in our relationship. Especially not tonight--I was all dressed up and feelin' pretty! He pulled the car into his garage, and as we're getting out, I hear the sound of my galant knight breaking wind.

"I just didn't want you to have to break the fart barrier first, baby!", he said. "You now have farting freedom."

Yep...he loves me that much!

Five Songs for a Sleepy Monday to Help You Get Your Groove Back

Respect by Aretha Franklin
Son of a Preacher Man by Dusty Springfield
Ain’t No Mountain High Enough by Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell
O, Happy Day from the Sister Act 2 Sound Track
Joyful, Joyful from the Sister Act 2 Sound Track

Embarassing Moment

Well, the audition went well. We should know something in the next few days. So I'll let you know if hear any good news.

For the audition, my friend L. and I were standing in front of a blue screen being interviewed together on camera. I think they were trying to get an idea of our personalities and how we interact as friends. They asked us several questions, and they asked me to tell about my most embarassing moment. So...I thought I'd share it with you, too!

In the summer of 1993, I spent half a summer in Eastern Europe. The other women I was traveling with noticed (as did I) that in broad daylight, various drunk men would simply walk up to us and grope us. Needless to say, it was very disconcerting. I decided that the next time it happened, I would do something strong like shove the guy away from me to let him know that his groping wasn't appreciated.

The morning after I made that decision, I was in a lovely bank with marble columns--the last place you'd expect any trouble--changing money. As I was signing on the transaction, I saw a stranger approaching out of the corner of my eye. I felt a tap, tap, tap on the side of my boob. Immediately, I went into denial. "Surely this isn't happening." But a few seconds later, I felt the tap, tap, tap again. So I turned to the strange man, shoved him away from me and like a polite Texan girl said, "Stop it, please!" In broken English, the man politely responded, "I am very sorry." I got a good look at him for the first time and noticed that he had a long silver cane in his hand. He was blind and just feeling his way along! My boob just got in the way! I then started apologizing and the poor man walked away.

I didn't know if I should laugh or cry. I think I did a little of both.

No Wammies!

Tomorrow after work, I'm going to meet a friend of mine at a production studio in Hollywood to audition for a gameshow. So, it's not actually acting, but you might be able to see my face on your tv screen one day soon. Of course, we haven't been chosen yet, but they liked our bios enough to call us in to interview us in person. I'll keep you posted!

Book Recommendation

I am in the middle of reading a fascinating book called Girl Meets God by Lauren Winner. It is a memoir about her spiritual journey that began as a child raised as a reform Jew, continues with her conversion in college to Orthodox Judaism, and culminates in her suprising decision to convert once and for all to Christianity.

Winner is an engaging and brilliant writer, and a bonafide historian. Intrigued by her academic accomplishments and impressed by her spiritual journey, I did a little searching to see if she has a website. I was delighted to discover that she also has a blog! If you decide to read the book, let me know what you think!

A Rich Family History

My mom recently returned from a trip to Connecticut and New York where she reconnected with several friends from her childhood and early adulthood. Many of the friends she saw knew her parents (my dear grandparents, who both passed on years ago).

Mom told me that it was so fun to talk to her friends and hear them recount stories of her dad. My Grampy was a COLORFUL man! He had a thick New York accent and had a tendency to swear like a sailor. One of the treasures we have of him is a video taken at a Shell station. In the 1960s, Shell was doing an ad campaign in which they had a hidden camera and they would have a "service station worker"/actor approach the car and ask the driver filling up why they chose Super Shell gasoline.

Grampy was one of the unsuspecting patrons, and he was in no mood to be trifled with that day. For about five minutes, the attendant/actor tried to get Grampy to say something, anything good about Super Shell. All Grampy had to say was, "I buy it because it's got a higher octane. Now, would you get off my ear?!!" Finally, after minutes of frustration, he said in total exasperation, "It's fabulous! Fabulous! Just fabulous!...Now would you get off my ear?!!!" Shell took his "Fabulous! Just fabulous!" and put it on a national commercial for which Grampy got paid small royalties every time it aired!!!

I love hearing people talk about my Grampy. They remember him as a fun-loving man with a BIG personality, who had a nickname for everyone. They remember him wearing brightly colored Pucci print and Lilly Pulitzer pants on the golf course. I remarked to my mom that it is so amazing that people still tell stories about him as if they just occured yesterday, and Grampy died 20 years ago.

I, too, remember him in vivid, living color. And I'm grateful to be part of a legacy of people who live life just that way....

I miss you, Grampy!

With love,

Your little princess

Birthday Fun!

My birthday was this weekend, and it was so much fun! On Friday, when I got to work, my cubicle was decorated with purple and lavender streamers. I felt like a birthday princess in my purple birthday castle! ;)


And just in case we didn't already know that eSuitor is the most wonderful guy in the world, look what he sent me....

I am one happy girl!!!

New York City--The Best Love/Hate Relationship I Ever Had!

My best friend just moved there. My mom is currently on vacation there. And I once called it home!

The Big Apple.

I lived there for three years in the late '90s. I look back on those as some of the best years of my life. I went to acting school there, booked my first acting jobs there, and made some wonderful friends there. It was a wonderful place to live, and one of the hardest places to live as well.

New York is a city of paradoxes:

So many people, yet oh so lonely.
A concrete jungle, with the most beautiful and enormous park!
Rapid transit that sometimes takes forever.

There are so many things I could write about my relationship with Manhattan, but the one that strikes me the most is how "the city" helped me know myself more deeply and truly. New York pushed me to my personal limits. For perhaps the first time in my life, I found my edges, so to speak. It is a city that requires a person to live under a lot of pressure, a constant rat race. It is a city where the best of everyone is competing in their given field. It requires your soul to find a way to thrive without being refreshed by nature. You learn how to sleep with constant noise outside your window. You learn how to function as an individual in a sea of strangers. In a nutshell, you find out who you are. What you can handle. What you can't.

I remember toward the end of my last year in NYC, I had been away from the city doing a tour of The Wizard of Oz. As I was coming back into Manhattan and saw the skyline--the skyline that typically thrilled me--I wasn't thrilled at all. I didn't want to come back. I knew it was time to go. The city taught me that, as well.

New York will always have a special place in my heart. Probably because I got to know myself a lot better there. Though I may never live there again, I will return to the city for visits throughout the rest of my life. And God willing, I hope I will have the opportunity to perform on one of Broadway's stages.

Things You May Not Have Known About Me

Four jobs I have had in my life:
1.) Waitress
2.) Actress
3.) Peer counselor
4.) Compliance specialist

Four movies I can watch over and over:
1.) The Sound of Music
2.) Sense and Sensibility
3.) Bridget Jones' Diary
4.) Legally Blonde

Four TV Shows I Love to Watch
1.) Grey's Anatomy
2.) Will & Grace
3.) Friends
4.) Big Brother

Four of my favorite foods:
1.) Anything Tex-Mex
2.) Chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream
3.) Pizza
4.) Cheesecake

Four places I would like to be right now:
1.) New York City
2.) On a stage somewhere
3.) Zaragoza, Spain
4.) Hanging out with my man

"Okay, Tracy, when I say 'Standby' you're going to make a farting noise!"

Tonight, I went to my commercial acting class. One of the exercises we did was a group commercial audition scenario. It was for the game Scruples. There were six of us gathered around a card table playing the game. We had to create the illusion of a party atmosphere...lots of laughter. The scene had to start with a big burst of laughter. So when we were out in the hall rehearsing, I gave an off-the-cuff one-liner: "So she she called me into her office, and she farted!" (Insert group laughter here.) My teacher overheard us rehearsing, and thought it was funny. When we went back into the classroom to do our mock audition, we took about eight takes or so. Each one of the takes had to begin with a burst of group laughter. Before each and every take, the teacher said, "Okay, Tracy, when I say 'Standby', make a farting noise!"

Just another day in acting class!

Photos from Texas

Saturday morning at my Dad's place. He lives out in the country. This is my sister and me wading in the creek with Dad's dog Bo-bo.

Dad and me. A few weeks ago, I wrote about my Dad's good news after receiving an optimistic prognosis after finishing his treatments for cancer. My Dad could really use your prayers. He just discovered three new tumors. This is very discouraging news on the heels of such great news. Please pray with me for his complete healing.

On Saturday night, eSuitor and I went country dancing with my sis, bro-in-law, and my friend W. Doesn't eSuitor look so Urban Cowboy in his black t-shirt? Mama like!

It may look like eSuitor and I are sharing a romantic cuddle in the hammock, but we are cracking up because as soon as we both got on, it broke--yep, that's us on the ground!

I’m Baaaaaaaaaaaaaaack!

Did you miss me? :)

eSuitor and I took a trip home to the Lone Star State for a visit with the family from Friday to Monday. It was the first time for anyone in my family to meet him. We had a great time and everyone loved him!

We spent Friday and Saturday with my Dad. My sis and bro-in-law hung out with us, too. My Dad lives WAY out in the country on a ranch. It was so beautiful to look up and see the stars sparkling like diamonds in the night sky. We rode around on my Dad’s 4-wheeler, ate delicious barbecue, and enjoyed the swimming pool.

Saturday afternoon, we drove from my Dad’s place to my hometown and went country-western dancing that night. My man knows how to boot-scoot! So much fun! The dance hall also had a karaoke room, so you know I had to sing my signature song, “Son of a Preacher Man”. eSuitor said he felt proud that I was his girlfriend when I was up there singing. MAJOR BROWNIE POINTS!!! ;)

Sunday, we went to church where he met a lot of my friends. After church, we went out for lunch with my mom, sis, and bro-in-law. Mom treated us to a scrumptious brunch, and it was fun to be all together. Sunday evening, we had a cookout/party where more friends and family convened to size up the man! ;) He was a real trooper, and so far all feedback from the Texas contingency has been positive.

Monday, we relaxed, ate Tex-Mex, hung out with the fam, and then got on the plane to come home. It made my heart melt a little when we collapsed into our seats and he told me what a great time he had. Then he said, “I love you” and I dozed off with my head on his shoulder, exhausted from the weekend, with a big smile on my face. :)

Reflecting on “Play”

On Saturday, after spending a couple of hours in and out of the ocean water, I found myself exhausted. It was the kind of exhaustion I felt as a child after playing for hours outside, trying my hardest to squeeze in as much play time as possible before it got dark. I was so busy having fun, I didn’t realize I was getting exercise. I hadn’t played hard like that for way too long!

What happened? Why do we stop having recess after the 5th grade? Do we become too mature to play? Are we so starved for play time that we pay gobs of money for gym memberships just to put ourselves on treadmills to run like hamsters on a wheel for 30 minutes just to make ourselves sweat?

Somehow, I feel like I’ve taken a wrong turn.

I wake up and sit in my car on my way to work where I sit in a chair staring at my computer screen for the next eight hours. Then I sit in my car to drive home. I sit at a table for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. And I sit on my couch to relax after work. Lots and lots of sitting.

Okay, I often walk for about a half hour in the evening, which is good exercise. But it’s just not the same as running through a playground or a backyard, climbing on monkey bars or up trees, chasing our friends in winded games of ‘tag’.

Mommy, I want recess.

Proof that my Roommate is Good Peeps

She has embraced my ridiculous (yet FUN!) way of turning nearly every word into silliness. This was our conversation this evening.

Me: Roomie-doodle?

Roomie: Walkie-poo?

Me: Yes-ee-doo!!!

Do you need a translation?

Me: Hey Roomie!

Roomie: You want to go take a walk, don't you?

Me: Yes! How did you know?!!!

Saturday in Pictures...

Saturday, eSuitor and I had so much fun! The temperatures in Southern California are so HOT right now (101 degrees yesterday), that the only place we could think of to be was in the ice cold Pacific Ocean! So we boogie boarded again, and this time eSuitor got to surf! There are captions above every picture, but it may take a moment for them to appear as you scroll down the posting. Enjoy!

Here's a picture of yours truly with my boogie board.

And here's a picture of my man with his board!

Boogie boarding is fun!

Cowabunga! eSuitor's catching a wave!

After the beach, we got cleaned up and put on our fancy clothes to go out for a night on the town! We went to an Indian restaurant for dinner and then to The Pasadena Playhouse to see a show called The Last Five Years. I had been wanting to see it since I first heard about it a couple of years ago. Our seats were in the second row, and it a lovely evening.

Acrostics

Father
Above
In
The
Heart

Happiness
Of
Possible
Encounter

Luxurious
Of course!
Valuable
Everlasting

The Couch Potato Meme

I got this from Ally Bean. Here’s what you do. Using this list of television shows, bold the shows that you’ve seen at least three episodes of.

24
30 Something
7th Heaven
Adam-12
Alfred Hitchcock Presents
Alias
Angel
Arrested Development
Battlestar Galactica
Baywatch
Beverly Hills 90210
Bonanza
Boy Meets World
Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Bug Juice
Chappelle’s Show
Charlie’s Angels
Charmed
Cheers
Columbo
Commander in Chief
CSI: Miami
CSI: NY
Curb Your Enthusiasm
Dawson’s Creek
Dead Like Me
Deadwood
Degrassi: The Next Generation
Designing Women
Desperate Housewives
Doctor Who
Eastenders
Entourage
ER
Everwood
Extras
Family Guy
Farscape
Father Ted
Fawlty Towers
Felicity
Firefly
Frasier
Friends
Futurama
Get Smart
Gilligan’s Island
Gilmore Girls
Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.
Grey’s Anatomy
Gunsmoke
Hannah Montana
Happy Days
Hill Street Blues
Hogan’s Heroes
Home and Away
Home Improvement
Homicide: Life on the Street
House, M.D.
I Dream of Jeannie
I Love Lucy
Inuyasha
Invader Zim
Invasion
JAG
Jackass
Joey
Keen Eddie
Little House on the Prairie
Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman
Lost
Lost in Space
Love, American Style
M*A*S*H
MacGyver
Mad About You
Malcolm in the Middle
Married… With Children
Medium
Melrose Place
Miami Vice
Mission: Impossible
Monk
Murphy Brown
My Name Is Earl
My Three Sons
My Two Dads
NCIS
Neighbours
Nip/Tuck
Northern Exposure
Numb3rs
NYPD Blue
Only Fools and Horses
Oz
Perry Mason
Pokemon
Power Rangers
Prison Break
Rescue Me
Roseanne
Roswell
Saved by the Bell
Sisters
Scooby-Doo, Where Are You?
Scrubs
Seinfeld
Sex and the City
Six Feet Under
Smallville
So Weird
South Park
Spongebob Squarepants
Starsky and Hutch
Star TrekStar Trek: The Next Generation
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
Star Trek: Voyager
Stargate Atlantis
Stargate SG-1
Superman
Supernatural
Surface
Taxi
That 70’s Show
That’s So Raven
The 4400
The Addams Family
The Andy Griffith Show
The A-Team
The Avengers
The Beverly Hillbillies
The Bob Newhart Show [the first
The Brone with Emily and Carol]

The Bob Newhart Show [the second one with Larry, Daryl and Daryl]

The Brady Bunch

The Cosby Show
The Daily Show
The Dead Zone
The Flintstones
The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air
The Good Life
The Honeymooners
The Jetsons
The Love Boat
The Mary Tyler Moore Show
The Munsters
The O.C.
The Office
The Shield
The Simpsons
The Six Million Dollar Man
The Sopranos
The Suite Life of Zack and Cody
The Twilight Zone
The Waltons
The West Wing
The Wonder Years
The X-Files
Third Watch
Three’s Company
Titus
Twin Peaks
Veronica Mars
Weeds
Whose Line is it Anyway?
Will and Grace
Wings