Da Dum Da Dum!

 

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Kiley Kate is gettin' hitched! My mind has been occupied with the logistics of what should go where and how, but it's nice to stop and savor the creative aspects of the wedding-planning process. Invitations for example. I had no idea what an obsession I had with colors, themes, and fonts. I'm designing some of our programs and such which has been a fun foray into the creative for me lately. Maybe I could share those a bit later?

We've also decided to get married in New Orleans! Rich colors, gas flare lanterns, and visions of Spanish moss-covered elm trees have been crossing my mind as of late.

This is kind of a funky way to come back to a long-ignored blog, but I thought it would help me organize my thoughts somehow? Catalog the fun part of the process rather than the multiple phone calls and contracts that go into booking venues and vendors and hotel blocks. It's also a time of transition as Anthony and I decide what to do next. Chicago has been our home for a little over five years, but we're enjoying entertaining the what-ifs lately...we'll see!

Jake Wood

Look at these two wild and crazy kids!

Battle Scars

I got back to my half-packed studio apartment around 1:00pm, 70 degrees, a beautiful fall day. My anxious Dad who can't sit still without drumming his fingers and yet spent two listless days in a hospital with me while I whined and felt like my stomach had been turned inside out, helped me out of his car and to the sidewalk. He carried heavy grocery bags and took small steps so that I could shuffle behind him. Bent over and running my fingers along the sides of the buildings as we passed just in case I decided I couldn't walk anymore. I was so excited to leave the hospital that I hadn't bothered to wait for a wheelchair and I'd ripped the irritating pain patch off hours ago. I was starting to feel the effects.

The previous week I had my gallbladder removed, my stomach reconstructed, and my nerves clipped so hopefully all my gastritis woes would be behind me. This following an extremely emotional time in the ER where I came to grips with the fact that I would be missing work and weeks of performances for All My Sons. Countless friends and family members were there to console me from over the phone, in person, and through some very beautiful floral arrangements. One particular special lady brought me magazines and sat by my side while I slept, mumbled and hyperventilated. Another special guy wrecked his back sleeping on my hospital room sofa so I wouldn't be alone and let me rest my tear-streaked snot-nosed face on his arm. A very special Mom helped me practice walking and getting to the restroom when I was too physically weak to sit up and too emotionally spent to do anything but cry. I'd never felt so lucky to have these people in my life while simultaneously being completely miserable about events completely out of my control.

On the warm fall day I got out of the hospital I sat down on my courtyard apartment's lobby radiator while Dad carried the groceries up the stairs. Anthony came just in time to ease me into bed and prop pillows under my feet and tell me that the pain wouldn't be forever. I cried for maybe the 1,000th time in ten days and he stroked my hand while I fell asleep.

I woke up around dusk to eat some chicken noodle soup and curl up on the couch like a rickety old cat. I watched History Detectives with Dad, who confided in me that it's exactly how he pictured us spending my recovery time together. It was a rock n' roll episode tracing Bob Dylan's guitar and a collage made by Frank Zappa. The collage struck me. An artist more commonly known for his musical experimentation producing such a wild piece of artwork that expressed his musical thoughts on paper before sitting down to write the music itself. I asked myself: "What have I created lately?" I fell still at the thought of unfinished projects, once desired creative goals and this blog.

Armed with new battle scars I'm ready to run back into the trenches of my creative outlets. To do what I set out to do when I moved to Chicago and get my writing back on track. Nothing can stop me now, not even my own internal organs. 

Sunday

When I moved in to my studio apartment I had a couple conflicting feelings about it. The first was utter shock; I had just started a new job and my world had been turned upside down. The second was this giggly weird freedom that made me feel like a little girl playing house rather than an adult paying her own rent. It was confusing, and I find that it still is some nights when I come home to read blogs or watch a movie by myself in MY Chicago apartment.

After moving in I stocked my little half-a-fridge and bought an off-brand, sub-par jar of salsa. I tried opening it and the lid wouldn't budge. I dug my trusty jar opener out of a moving box but the lid stayed put. I ran it under hot water, submerged it in my sink upside down, tried hitting the edge of the lid against my half-a-stove and even went at it with a can opener. For the past seven months I would peer in to the fridge, see that jar of salsa taunting me and give it the old college try. It's become this running joke with Mom: should I lure a guy under false pretenses back to my apartment just so he can open the jar of salsa for me? Or maybe it's my King Arthur moment, he who opens the salsa get the...sword?

The silly thing is I will go to the grocery store and looking at the salsa aisle only strengthens my resolve to march  back to my apartment and open my own salsa. Recently the old fashioned way didn't work as per usual and I tried to get through the top with a wine corker almost cutting my fingers and breaking the corkscrew. "Am I really going to wait for someone to come along and open this damn jar of salsa?" I thought munching on unflavored taco chips.

This Cinco de Mayo I went grocery shopping with a firm purpose. I picked out my favorite jar (no off brands) plunked that baby in the cart and hoped for the best. Low and behold upon my triumphant return to the apartment the jar clicked open like a magical symphony of angels and was consumed with a considerable amount of swagger.


And that is the story that made me want to blog just a lil' bit.

I hope you're having a lovely Sunday!


-K.K.

Hurry Up and Wait

The blogosphere is rife with New Year's resolutions. Mostly, I think, because blog content is hard to create when you're three sheets to the wind on holiday spirit and trying to settle back in to your normal gloomy winter routine. Not only is it harder to get creative, but people need to invent something to look forward to to get them through winter: "I will lose weight!" So I can look good in a bikini that I will wear to the beach with my friends this summer...oh! Leftover Christmas cookies! But there is one particular thing that I find myself doing often and wish I could break the habit. A new year and a fresh start is as good a time as any to tackle it...

I've been accused of wishing my life away, and I am the first person to back those accusations. I am a total ace at wishing I was in some other part of my life. Before I moved to Chicago I remember thinking that once I was settled in I'll feel a wholeness. Like I was making my own life. My career would take off and I would be the adult I always dreamed of in elementary school.


I want to feel about my life now the way I feel looking back on high school: you don't want to go back, but the reflection lets you see how far you've come. That you are more the person that you are supposed to be. I want to recall with some strange fondness how crazy my life was. I moved to Chicago with a little bit of money, lived in a studio apartment, worked a couple of jobs (mostly in theatres at night), and had an amazing time. But now, I feel more like myself. Like the person I always knew I should be.


Let me reiterate: I'm not one to make resolutions in January since for the past two years I've had the __ Before __ list to contend with. But this year I just wanted to take the time to remind myself, even if it's only for this moment, to slow down. Stop wishing it was some other time or place and just enjoy what I have right now. Some day I might find myself wishing deeply for that wild time I spent independent in Chicago.

Z-Pak Holiday

Back in November I had a debilitating  phlegm-y nasty cough for the majority of the month. I kept convincing myself that it would get better on its own and I couldn't possibly break from my busy schedule just to see a doctor. Then a new hire, on his third week of training said: "You know you've been sick since I met you."

I tore myself away from my Saturday of coffee drinking/leaf watching/rain avoidance to go to my local Minute Clinic. Lifesavers those RNs. Ten minutes later and I was out the door with bronchitis and four different medications to get me through the rest of the week.


I got home, took the medications and despite their lack of codeine fell instantly asleep on the couch only to wake up and hour later and discover that the cough medicine had "disagreed with me". As I was hugging the porcelain throne, I lay there uncomfortably warm against the cool tile waiting for someone to come in and ask if I was okay. But Roommate was out and the Captain can't move, so I crawled back out to the living room and nestled myself back on the futon. All at once I just wanted my mom.


24 years old, independently moved out to Chicago to pursue my own goals, have the ability to pay rent all by myself and yet, I still need my mom. Running Buddy and I laughed about it: college degrees, full time jobs, almost to our thirties, and I still want my mom to check up on me and bring me ginger ale. Of course when I'm sick isn't the only time I need my mom. Other times include when I want to see that new musical/romantic/Brad Pitt movie and no one will go with me, when I can't figure out how to switch a magazine subscription, and when my new healthcare plan just doesn't make any sense...

That's why I'm pumped to be seeing her on Sunday!

24 Before 25: 6 Month Review

A little under 6 months in and I thought it was time to do a review of what I have left to do on my 24 Before 25 list...and so far it appears that I have a lot. Being the fanatical list maker that I am, I put a check mark next to the things that I'm well on my way to doing and crossed out the one that is for sure done. I did have to make some edits to the list but that's the way it goes. I think the new goals are more reflective of how I feel about myself and what direction I'm taking my life.

24 Things To Do Before I’m 25

1.) Travel to one place I've never been before (Atlanta) ✓ 

2.) Write something every day (Blog) ✓

3.) Be happy and self-sufficient with my employment (getting there!) ✓

4.) Find a work-out regiment that makes me happy

5.) Complete a full length play

6.) Save up enough money for a puppy (money, no time) ✓

7.) Take a class (free at work!) ✓

8.) Finish reading all the books on my shelves (three to go) ✓

9.) Wear a bikini

10.) Start sewing/crafting again (Knitting) ✓

11.) Check off every place on my foursquare brunch list ✓

12.) Start shopping vintage/thrift more often

13.) Get a credit card

14.) Promote myself without being embarrassed ✓

15.) Pair down my beauty supply (organizing and finishing products) ✓

16.) Shop my closet and wear all of my clothes. If I don’t I have to donate it at the end of the season ✓

17.) Donate money or time to charity ✓

18.) Run a 10k (Researched, just not training) ✓ 

19.) Learn to cook for myself (Cooking, but same five things) ✓

20.) Get out of my comfort zone professionally

21.) Find a way to manage my stress level ✓

22.) Get a bike

23.) Go to the zoo with my Goddaughter

24.) Dance or sing in public ✓

The Grand Tour

Sine moving in last Monday I haven't had a ton of time in between work and theatre to find a place for everything. Bear with me here, it's not exactly Apartment Therapy Tour-ready!

 

When you walk in to my apartment this is your first view: my bed. Roommate, or should I say Prior Roommate has since installed my red curtains and helped me hang up my little round mirror. It was a little strange at first sleeping in the entry way. It's kind of like staying in a hotel actually.

 Obviously I have a long way to go, but at least I carved out a sleeping space!

 You walk down a little hallway, on the left hand side is the bathroom which had absolutely no storage outside of a small cabinet over the sink. The baby-duck-yellow tiles seem to be clashing with my deep purple shower curtain, but for now it'll do its job. On the right side of the hall is my walk in closet that I haven't been able to take a picture of yet...it is a hot mess. 

The hallway takes you to the breakfast nook where my futon and TV are currently stashed, it's a cozy little nook, and I'll most likely get a tension rod and curtain to block it off when guests come to stay so they have their own little place. As you can see the plant-babies are making themselves at home.

 

My kitchen is also a sad state of affairs as there is about a foot of counter space divided in half by an XL sink. and my microwave is still sitting on boxes...

 

Part of the struggle with studio living combined with quirky Chicago apartment architecture is that there isn't always a lot of storage. This kitchen has extra tall cabinets, but no drawers. The silverware is currently living on the futon until a microwave stand with drawers can make its way in to my apartment.

Despite its peculiarity, from the very beginning it's felt like my own, which I've never had before in an apartment. It's a point of pride that I'm doing it all on my own in Chicago...until the rent is due anyway. I'm more excited than ever to make this apartment my home.

Error!

 

Don't think I've abandoned ship on this blog! My laptop decided to go swan diving from the living room table and is in need of a new hard drive that I'll be getting on Saturday. But I've learned a few things from this laptop-less week (teehee, laptop-less)

1. Redbox is king

2. Books are cool

3. Friends are fantastic

4. UPS customer service really sucks.

In the mean time Mama will be coming to visit this weekend and I'll be gearing up for the big move to my little studio this Monday. Hope everyone is enjoying their crisp October!

Apt.

This Monday I became an official big girl. I sat through new hire orientation and an employee health care meeting and only laughed at the sexual harassment video once (I'm sorry, but those things are just so darn contrived). After that I hopped on the el, set foot on a new red line stop and signed my first solo lease. No co-signers, no roommates, just me and my little studio in Chicago!


I wish I had taken some pictures of it, but it opens up in to a bedroom with a hallway leading to a kitchen and breakfast nook and a giant walk-in closet. I can't wait to move in at the end of October and make it my own!

1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5

Yarn Over

Yesterday was my only day off and aside from taking a good chunk of time to compile a fall list, look at apartments, and precook lunch for the rest of the week, I also spent a lot of time watching movies and trying to knit a scarf. 

This scarf has become the bane of my existence.

I bought the yarn, a beautifully soft emerald green color, to make for someone else and it never quite got finished. I loved the stitch but somewhere in the middle it got messed up. Recovering it on Sunday I decided that I would take the whole thing apart and start over again. I brought it to the theatre and began unraveling it pre show. "What are you doing? That's a nice scarf! Hours of work wasted!" the cast commented, but I had a mind to do it, so I did. I tried another far more complicated pattern for the next three hours and decided I hated it and took it apart again.

Yesterday when my internet was down I used my phone to look up stitches, and an hour in to at least three different ones I would take them apart and start over again. Finally I found a stitch that I liked, but it got messed up and after several attempts at repair, I huffed and took it all apart again. 

This scarf has become an allegory for my life. 

It's beautiful yarn, gorgeous color, would compliment so much of my other wardrobe, but I don't know what I want it to be yet. Every time it looks like it's not going to turn out the way I want it to, I take it apart and start all over again. Maybe it's because I didn't buy it for myself and now I have to make it my own, or maybe it's because of the turns my life is taking right now. But, for the time being the "scarf" is unraveled and sitting on my couch in a wound up heap. I don't think I'll know what I want it to be for a while. 

A Little Light Reading

Browsing the Urban Outfitters book section is almost, if not more delightful that wandering their hipster/adorable sales rack offerings, and I often find myself getting sucked in to reading more than a couple before I can physically exit the store. Running Buddy happened upon this gem the other day:

Purchase here

It's a list of 20-something truths accompanied by squiggle illustrations, and the page that got me the most was the real-life resume, which included things like "applying eyeliner" and "making myself throw up after I've has too much to drink". Charming. But it inspired me to create my own Real Life Resume...

Kiley Morgan

Education: The School of Hard Knocks on the Head

Major: Procrastination with a Minor in Sarcasm 

Walking in heels

Falling asleep on the El

Taking care of my friends when they're drunk

Finding a legitimate need to go shopping twice a month

Successfully editing and curating several Pinterest boards

Eating a family-size bowl of popcorn in one sitting

Exploring and implementing fitness methods that don't involve me leaving my house (see couch yoga)

Calling my boyfriend just as he's about to go to sleep with a major life crisis

Throwing away a tooth brush even though I feel that we've formed some sort of kinship



What are your "real life" resume skills?

Foooood

Remember that time a long, long time ago when I said I was going to be an adult and actually start cooking my meals? A whole two weeks in and I've actually stuck with it! Of course this means that now that I've announced it there will be a rapid decline in my kitchen productivity, but so far it's been pretty enjoyable. It got a little hairy for a bit trying to pack lunch and dinner to go straight from the museum to the theatre, but overall I'm pretty darn proud of myself, considering my total lack of Julia-Child-like tendencies.

Here are the recipes that I've made so far...I want to preface this list by saying that if I recipe calls for some six dollar spice that I can't steal from my roommate, I won't use it. I also make things by the recipe, like a serving for four people and then I split it up throughout the week. Less prep time overall if you can do it all on one day.

Quinoa and Black Bean Salad via The Girl Who Ate Everything I actually made a batch of this and it lasted for three days! Huzzah!

Bistro Style Crispy Chicken via The Fit Cook

Blueberry Breakfast Grilled Cheese via Fit From Conception, otherwise known as the easypeasy recipe that's blowing up Pinterest right now. I left out the icing sugar and it still tasted of awesomeness.

Crispy Coconut Chicken via The Fit Cook I precooked a batch of these and it doesn't do so well on the re-heat. There's still some in my fridge if anyone wants to bring the mango salsa!

I've also been throwing together a lot of fruit salads and experimenting with pita pockets (I'm wild and crazy like that.) Hard boiling eggs in advance for meals is also a big help since I can grab it and go...but I haven't phased out eating cereal for meals entirely. I just discovered quick oats with peanut butter though, and that seems to be a slightly better substitute.

If you're stuck, I highly recommend The Fit Cook. Tons of simple easy to make ideas and still healthy. I'm bent on learning how to make her Banana Waffles and Game Day Chili 

Last Day

Amidst the excitement of my new job and making plans for my next year in Chicago, I forgot that I will also be saying goodbye to my food service job that I started on Valentine's Day. Although I'm beyond excited to ditch wrapping burritos and waking up at the crack of dawn, I know I'll miss seeing the co-workers that have gotten me through my first year in Chicago. Their humor, advice, and camaraderie really eased me in to Chicago and lit the fire under me to create a better future for myself.

Tomorrow I'll get my paycheck, say goodbye, and probably celebrate by unceremoniously going grocery shopping and eating some of my stock piled frozen custard from Ollie's. My new chapter begins on Wednesday.

Winner Winner Chicken Dinner

Despite getting my adult stuff together for the most part...full time jobs, apartment searches and whatnot, I feel that in living on my own I haven't been able to conquer one aspect: cooking.

I've never liked the idea of standing in the kitchen for two hours only to have my hard work devoured in five minutes flat. Besides which, in between my two jobs I just don't have the time. Unfortunately when I give up my food service job my one free meal a day goes too, so I have to start getting serious about making food for myself. I've always had fun baking and being the sous chef to my friends, how can I make cooking fun for myself?

First, I found a few great ideas from my beloved Pinterest, and the stand out so far has been thefitcook.net. Fresh, easy and healthy ideas to get to started, a recommendation to all 20-somethings or otherwise who are trying to get in to the routine of cooking healthy.

Second, is making the time. This has been one of the bigger hurdles as I only have a two hour break between jobs. Would it be nicer to sit on my laptop for an extra hour and just eat PB&J? Yes. But would it be as satisfying as Bistro Style Crispy Chicken? No, no it will not be.

Third, making your shopping list/budget. I would love to make every recipe that I come across, but factors like out of season fruit and expensive yet delicious cheeses come in to play. Knowing what's in season and what you can afford greatly affects what I can make...that being said the price of meat is going to rise this year due to the drought, so plan accordingly.

Fourth, try to make recipes that call for the same ingredient in the same week. A family of four could polish off a pound of grapes, but a single gal needs a little more time. Mix them with a salad, freeze them for a sour snack for later, put them in a little baggie for a snack on the train.

I'll have some more 20-something cooking tips to pass along...because hopefully I'll be able to keep up with my progress. Help me out here, what makes cooking fun and easy for you?

How Firm Thy Friendship

The season opener for the Buckeyes is today! But here in Chicago there are few flags being flown and even fewer people shouting "O-H!" at each other. I'm inside all day for the commencement of tech week and I'm just the slightest bit home sick for my Buckeye friends. I came to the realization yesterday that with this new job I won't be eligible for vacation time for six months...March. I hope to have the parade of visitors I had this year, and even more hopeful that some new ones can make the trek. They will be rewarded with museum visits and the best places to get breakfast and pizza in Chicago!

Making me even more homesick is the fact that I won't be going home for Thanksgiving or Christmas this year since I work the day before and day after. I know I'll make it work since so many others in the city manage to, but images of me sitting alone in a studio apartment watching families from my window pile in to their cars Christmas morning to go to Grandma's are haunting me at the moment.

Viking has a theory of my living in the future too much and not enough in the present. So in the spirit of his often wise words, I'm going to celebrate the Buckeyes playing Miami today by wearing my loudest gear and maybe going to McGee's for a beer. I'm happy that tech week is finally beginning and that I have a job that pays me enough to put down some roots and start looking for an apartment. I know I'll see everyone soon enough!

Everybody's Working

I have some good news for this blog: I got a job! A full time with benefits, 9-5, pays me enough to live off of big girl job! I am beyond thrilled, since I thought I would only get some part time seasonal work out of the application and it turned out to be a full fledged entry level job that can lead me to so many other careers. I squealed, then called my mom and she squealed, I put in my two weeks at my food service job and then exhaled deeply for the first time in a long time. My status in Chicago is no longer one big giant question mark and the apartment hunt can begin.

The two more vain developments in my life is that I don't have to wear a uniform, and I can wear nail polish all week long!

Photo Via

Of course I don't know what dress code is quite yet, but for now I can dream!

P.S. Do you think that peter pan collar tee would run away with me? So gosh darn cute!

The Beans

When I read blogs, I feel slightly miffed when the writer goes AWOL only to return with a vague explanation like "I'm fine! Bump in the road but all is well!"

Come on lady, spill the beans! Of course now having had my own "bump" I can understand the hesitation. Suffice to say, I've been having some issues with my employment, which I keep you all constantly updated on, along with the new challenge of looking for an apartment and/or roommate and deciding what I want to do in Chicago next.

The good news is I think things are looking up. Regardless of how this week turns out for jobs, apartments, and such, I'm going to take a deep breath and make another plan. I also had a rather colorful weekend to balance out all the stress and forced me to put things in perspective. Don't you love it when I good weekend does that?

I also managed to complete my first goal on my 24 Before 25 List! Stay tuned for gratuitous pictures and gushing.

Reach

I stayed up most of last night with a sore throat and chest pains nibbling on colby jack slices and beefing up my Pinterest for a few hours...until four in the morning to be exact. This sudden inability to sleep was driven by panic, and the panic was being steered by my life which has become out of my control in the past couple weeks. The moment I think that I have something lined up, it's intercepted and I'm back at square one.

For instance, Running Buddy, who was my intended roommate for next year, has decided not to live in Chicago anymore but instead return to our mutual home-base to be closer to her family. I can hardly blame her. Once she explained her intentions I was sobbing on the phone to my own mother: "should I come home?!" I'm sure my dad was jumping up and down enthusiastically in the background, but nonetheless Mom listened patiently while I vented my frustrations about being over-worked, under-paid, and without a plan for the future or a roommate to share it with. Ultimately I know it will be best for my theatre career if I stick it out here, but as of last night the worst of premonitions started creeping in to my head.

What if I can't find a full time job? What if I have to rent a shoe-box studio apartment for premium cash? What if I can't pay rent at all? What if I never make it any farther than I am now in theatre? What if I never define a clear enough path for myself to make goals? What if I never get to do the other wonderful things in life that I want to do?

Even typing this out it doesn't feel freeing. It sits on my shoulders, makes my mind race and my chest bind. I'm no stranger to anxiety but it's uncontrollable, slipping in whenever I try to think about my next move. My life will be full of choices. Will the anxiety ever cease? Or just lessen over time...

Despite my inherent reaction to lay down on the floor, the only course is action. In six months, hopefully, this will only be a memory and everything will be working out in the best possible of ways. Until then, if anyone needs a roommate, a co-worker, a friend, someone to give soothing advice to, a low key Saturday night buddy, or someone who loves to get ice cream and IPAs with: I'm your girl.

Sunday

A week later and the internet has finally been restored! Headache after headache this week. Despite my ability to relocate to a coffee shop, I just couldn't make myself re-connect until this morning.

Photo Via

It's funny how once life really starts to take a turn for the worst you really don't feel like sharing anything, much less the better parts of what's going on. I had an awakening moment when I realized that I'm not focusing enough on the good things and accomplishments. I'm a strong person and I have the will and drive to get through this 20-something anxiety. I will figure it out. I will keep going.

Enjoy your Beatles Sunday!

-K.K.

Adult Choices

A pre-dinner walk turned in to a hike to find the Lake Shore bike path, and before I knew it I was two miles away from the apartment and in need of some distraction from my achy sad feet. I called E and we gabbed about the usual: work, schemes to visit each other, and her brother's upcoming wedding. Houses, marriage, and kids seems weirdly close and yet so far...mostly far as I still work a daytime job that pays minimum wage. "I guess you have to decide what you want." she assessed. I have one job that doesn't feel like work I love it so much, but is it enough for me to put up with another job I hate and being broke all the time? I have other dreams that I want to accomplish.

When I decided to become a theatre major, there was the ultimate choice of "doing what I love every day for little money" or "giving up a career I love to have a comfortable life." It's easy to put off making that choice in college because, dammit, theatre is just the greatest! But once graduation came I was faced with the choice head on and still don't know that right answer for me.

I know a handful of people who graduated and knew instantly that they'd rather make money and live comfortably than make theatre their full time career. In the other camp are those who are perfectly content holding down a flexible yet financially unfulfilling daytime job just to get to do what they love in the evenings. It's not impossible to have a full time career in theatre, but for most of the people I work with a supplemental job is required to pay the rent. I realize that this is obvious to most, but when I moved to Chicago I didn't have a clue.

My hope is that I will work through things as they come and make the right choices for me while still keeping the future in mind. Recently I had to make a very tough decision regarding that future: I had to give up a theatre job. I was scheduled to work with the same fantastic company I'm currently with and I had to turn them down. Luckily they understood my predicament. 'It's a shame that money has to play so much in to this' they remarked.

The goal right this minute is to find a great-paying day job so I can continue to do and see theatre in the evening. I think it would be downright un-spirited to not give Chicago and my theatre career all the hard work and chances that it deserves, but I know I'll be running up against more walls like this in the future where I have to make a tough choice. If it all pans out, who knows? Maybe I can jump right back in to theatre after Christmas time, but for now my daytime job situation needs to be worked on.