Good Times in a Good Place

Well, it has been way too long since my last post, and I know that some of my friends out there are curious as to how my life has been going. And the answer is: very good! This internship continues to be as good as i was from the start. Although my hours at work are increasing as the season becomes busier, my paycheck is dramatically increasing as well, allowing me to begin to explore this area and state even more. This Wednesday I will begin volunteering at the Mad Cow Theatre Company in downtown Orlando. I am ushering for a show called Bad Dates. I don't know much about it other than it's a very popular show and has been extended past its original run dates due to that fact. I'm excited to be seeing another professional, regional theatre besides Barter and look forward to comparing the two. Even so, I'm sure that it will hardly be comparable. Barter is a very good theatre and the productions it produces are of such a high calliber that it is often unbeatable. But at any rate, I will have much fun ushering and I look forward to getting back into the theatre scene at any level, something that I've missed since beginning college. I'll post after I see the show and let you know how it is. AND IN APRIL!!! I am going to see Bombay Dreams in Clearwater, FL.!!!! I am so excited that I can hardly wait. I saw the show in NYC and was instantly in love, but the critics weren't so the show closed rather quickly. But the North American tour is starting up at the end of this month, and I am lucky enough to have a chance to catch it. I am really looking forward to it...

And speaking of theatre...I was very saddened to hear about the Barter Theatre's recent incident. The scenic building was recently burned down, but luckily all pertinent set pieces to upcoming tech rehersals were already loaded into The Beast (the barter truck). But it's still very sad. Even with hurtles like this, Barter always recovers much stronger. Rick Rose and his wife Amanda Alderigde are in New York City this week auditioning for the Barter's summer shows. My friend Evalyn Baron has been dining and meeting with them all week, as they are all good friends. I was told by her that the insurance money is very good, but much will still be needed to help recover what was lost. Abingdon has always been behind the Barter, as well as the whole region, so I'm sure that will be no problem. Several local places have already offered to let Barter use space to construct the scenery, including The Paramount. And I hope anyone in Abingdon reading this will help the Barter in anyway that they can. Volunteer, donate money, etc. Every little bit helps.

I have to get ready now and head out to work, those tickets don't tear themselves, haha. So many famous people are down here recently, and adding to the list I will include: Ty Pennington filming his TV show Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, Julia Roberts, Johnny Depp, Orlando Bloom, and George W. Bush. Very exciting stuff is always happening! So let's find out what it is today...

I'm Going to Disneyworld!

And they really do too! For those of us that watched the Superbowl 40 (mainly for the commercials and hideously bad half-time show) this line is from the farmiliar Disney advertisment that aired during the game, showing players on the winning team declaring their pilgrimage plans for Disneyworld right after winning the big game. I didn't think that they always did, but they must because they were here today! I went to Epcot and the Magic Kingdom today with my friends Holly A., Ryan N., and Joe R. to play in the parks. When we entered the Magic Kingdom everyone was waiting for the parade start, except before the parade today was a special pre-parade for the Superbowl MVP and the other guy. We watched as red, white and blue streamer cannons burst open and a marching band came down Mainstreet, USA. All of the farmiliar Disney characters were there, but in their sporting attire. Then, with hundreds of Steeler fans screaming at the tops of their lungs, down rode the three players and their families in true Disney style. Such an exciting thing to see and I'm glad that I was able to be a part of it.

So, anyway, that was the most exciting event of today. I spent the entire rest of the day playing in teh parks and riding all the fun rides, thanks to my Brazillian friends for giving me fastpasses. That made the day so much nicer...

I met my new roommate today. His name is Mike and I sort of already knew him from around. I'm glad it was him though because it's someone that I know and will be able to trust. I was very worried that I might get some kleptomaniac or something. This is my first roommate experience, being down here, so all of this is new to me. Coming from a private room in college to a four person apartment in Orlando, Florida is quite a change. But I've been very lucky and very fortunate with the roommates I have. I get along well with all of them, as they do with me, and we're friends too, which makes it even easier. However I do miss my ex-roommate Yago, who left this past Thursday due to the ending of his program. The International program has been winding down, so my Brazillian friends have been leaving for the past three weeks and will all be gone by this Friday. My remaining Brazillian roommate, Fernando, leaves this Friday. Very sad. When Yago left the apartment was very empty. But now things are all coming back around and I'm making American friends. Everyone is nice and awesome here, so friends are easy to come by, I'm thankful for that. But I wish Yago and Theresa teh best. They flew to NYC on Friday for a week in the city before heading back to their home country. I hope they enjoy it and have the best time, as I'm sure that they will.

I think this is all I'll post for now. I want to thank my readers out there, my friends who care enough about me to read about my life and see how I'm doing. I love to hear that you're reading my blog and what you think, so send me a message sometime. I wish you all the best and I'll write again soon!