Summer Gratitude

(Photo: Charlie)

With the echo of 200 girls back inside of ye gray walls, my summer has officially come to a close. It was a brilliant summer, in so many ways. I thought a good way to kick off this Sunday would be to reflect upon that which I have been grateful for this summer. Things I am grateful for/Summer Bests. Here is my list, in order of my arrival to your town:

Helping my grammy find her cat, who was not lost, just hiding.

Charming the guy at the Franchise Tax Board in order to get him to do his job just a little more efficiently. Again, on grammy's behalf.

Spending time with my parents and cousins. Brief, but good.

Playing Rock Band for the first time, with good friends, in my hometown. I rocked.

A four hour talk with my writing professor, Rofiah. Such a good talk.

Sitting inside of First Baptist Church.

My one day at the beach, flying in and out before midnight, leaving behind a glass slipper.

Facing my fears in Tucson, with protectors near and far.

Coffee, Buddhist talk, and walking the desert in Tucson.

Sitting atop a mountain, talking to God.

Talking with my married friends about marriage.

Meeting some of their little ones for the first time.

Learning about Frim Fram Sauce, and life, from my stylish and wise mentor.

Spending two gorgeous weeks with Charlie, aka: kissyboy, aka: west highland terrier.

Slowing down in Lee, MA. Making friends with the seniors.

Singing loudly to Eric Carmen's "Make Me Lose Control" w/Jen E. while driving around Mass. Love that the song is about a Jennifer. And the a cappella part is hot.

Writing, readng, blogging, tweeting.

Writer within found hiding out in Massachusetts.

Talking about deepest fears and greatest hopes while on a 27 hour road trip to Florida with Gemma and Stacey.

Realizing that a Holiday Inn Express parking lot is no place to sleep on the road.

Observing fathers and daughters at Disney World. Melt.

Screaming my head off on the Tower of Terror.

WISHES! (in unison with Gemma and Stacey).

Being re-united w/Calvin and Chris (age 3) after a summer apart. "NANNNNNNNNNNY..." followed by love fest.

"I love you more than the whole world." -Chris. "I wish I could keep you." - Calvin.

Transatlantic emails with my big sis.

Late night dinners with my little sis.

Proudly sending said little sis off for her first year of college. Yesterday.

Thank you to all who were guest-stars on my summer love tour. I wish I could hit rewind and do it again.

Smacked Down

I had a Jo March moment the other night. Remember when Professor Bhaer says to her, "You must write from life, from the depths of your soul. There is nothing in this of the woman I am privileged to know. There is more to you than this... if you have the courage to write it."

One of my most trusted readers challenged the substance of my last article. Reminding me that readers have a low tolerance for the superficial, and to keep it real. If you understood how much I admire this friend of mine, you would know what a blow this was to read. Our email exchange went back and forth late into the night.

The next day found me at our local library with my three year old charge, Christopher. Not to be confused with my other three year old charge, Calvin. After story hour, which included me reading the brilliant Fox in Socks (a very funny experience as Dr. Seuss is crazyyy), I ended up with my favorite book in hand. Elizabeth Gilbert's Eat, Pray, Love. I own the book, of course, but I decided, on this rainy afternoon, that I wanted the audio version. I wanted the experience of hearing Elizabeth Gilbert read it to me.

With the feedback from my friend still on my mind, I moved forward with my evening. This included dinner with another good friend, listening to Elizabeth Gilbert read as I drove to and from, and coming home to a quiet apartment. Without planning to, I spent the remainder of the evening with Elizabeth Gilbert. In particular, I stumbled upon a video of her giving a talk to a bunch of writers. She talks about her “freakish success” with Eat, Pray, Love and her fear that her greatest accomplishment may be behind her. She is funny, and honest, and her words picked me up after the smack down. I hope you will take the time to watch this video—it is amazing. http://blog.beliefnet.com/freshliving/2009/08/elizabeth-gilbert-eats-prays-marries-and-writes-a-new-book.html

The most powerful part of her talk for me, was this: (this first part is paraphrased)

Ole—there it is, a glimpse of god. Think of people chanting this at the end of a bull fight, to celebrate the great accomplishment of the bull fighter.

What is he then supposed to do with the rest of his life?

(this is straight from Elizabeth’s talk)

“But maybe it doesn’t have to be full of anguish if you never happened to believe in the first place that the most extraordinary aspects of your being came from you. But maybe if you just believed that they were on loan to you from some unimaginable source for some exquisite portion of your life… to be passed along. Don’t be afraid, don’t be daunted, just do your job. Continue to show up for your piece of it, whatever that might be. If your job is to dance, do your dance. And if the divine cockeyed genius assigned to your case decides to let some sort of wonderment be glimpsed for just one moment from your efforts, then ‘ole!’ And if not, do your dance anyhow, and ‘ole!’ to you nonetheless. Ole to you nonetheless just for having the sheer human love and stubbornness to keep showing up.”

In what felt like a moment, I realized three hours had passed. Three hours reading, listening, and writing. After my time with Elizabeth, here are the reflections that followed:

I am a writer.
Will I have the courage to be a writer?
Will I share with you my pursuit of all things literary?
Will I show you how much substance I have?
Will my style come forth in this writing?
Will my pieces be varied?
Will you see my love of the written word?
Will you know who I am by reading my work?
Will I surprise you?

YES. So get ready.

Going back to Jo March… she was devastated when her dear Professor Bhaer told her that she had more substance than that which she had shown in her earlier writing. She cried about it and then she picked herself up and produced the novel that was always inside of her, just waiting to be written. Any Little Women fans out there?

So my advice to all of you, from a very rainy New York, is this. Keep showing up. Because I’m going to.

Love to my readers. And to my friend for her thoughtful feedback.

Sex and the City 2 Audition!

Just like any actress/model would, I got out of bed at 5:15 AM to prepare for the day ahead. Becca and I would soon be off to our New York audition for a role in the upcoming film, Sex and the City 2. The part(s) we were auditioning for: fashion model, celebrity type, or upscale socialite. To get myself ready, I tweeted with Tyra, had a shower, and practiced my model walk. Stomping an imaginary runway if you will. My background music.. "Walk This Way."

As any model would, I went to a different location for hair, makeup, and wardrobe. I arrived at Becca's house and got ready there. She outfitted me in a cream colored Grecian style dress, that ties over one shoulder, with a black wrap around belt. Becca and I did our hair and makeup together in her bathroom, and I realized how much fun it is to share the mirror with someone. Becca is so much my little sis, and that felt like a very sisterly thing to do, sharing the mirror.

Becca and I arrived in Manhattan and headed straight for the Metropolitan Pavilion, which is where the casting call was happening. As we approached 18th Street, we were not surprised to see thousands of people lining the block. It was an amazing scene. There were those auditioning for the film (model, socialite, celeb, wannabe carrie bradshaw, fabulous looking gay guys, urban club goers, etc.) and then there were people lining the block just to watch this madness. Construction workers, fire men, photographers, and best of all... camera crews! I guess this would be a good time to tell you that Becca and I made it on to Access Hollywood! Oh yes... how right is that... Becca and I end up on the same celebrity news page as Katie Holmes, Sarah Jessica, and all of the other It girls. It is sooooo right! One trip to New York, and I am already sharing a screen with Sarah Jessica! Are you ready to watch? Ok, look for us after the reporter says, "thousands of ladies and gents in their city chic best..." I am on the left, and Becca is beside me. Click the link to view video. http://www.accesshollywood.com/sex-and-the-city

It was an interesting dynamic between all who were there. On the one hand, we all showed up, head shot in hand, competing in dress, attitude, and style. On the other hand, there was a strange camaraderie between us. Thousands of people, completely different from one another, gathering in one place to pay homage to Carrie Bradshaw. We all wanted to be part of it, part of the next (and potentially last) movie made with Carrie, Charlotte, Samantha, and Miranda. And Mr. Big-- let's just be honest. No sign of him at the audition. I kept an eye out for his town car.

After a long wait outside and in... we at last made it to the casting agents. There were four, and four photographers. Becca pulled us over to line # 2 as she said that is her lucky number. Becca went first, then me. I handed over my details and head shot, took my place on the "X" and got ready to start posing. "click, flash, picture perfect beautiful..." Hands on hips, shoulders in, good side toward the camera, ok, I'm ready. "Can you please face the camera," the photographer says unamused by the posing knowledge I've received from watching years of America's Next Top Model. I face the camera, give my best model pout, and the bulb flashes. "Next," she says.

Just one photo? After all that time... you are not even going to let me stomp a runway or anything..?! Not even 20 frames, or ten, or even five? Just one. Hope it was fierce. Becca and I agreed that why on earth would they need more than one photo of either of us. We totally worked it out, and one will be all that is needed. "Worked it out" is model speak for aced it, in the bag, totally got it.

If we are cast in the film, we will receive a call just a few days before they shoot our scene. So we wont know for a while what the outcome will be. I expect we should both be cast as we had some serious style going on. No matter the outcome, we will always be a part of this movie because we came to New York, joined the thousands, and went for it. That alone makes us part of history.

A Life Of Style And Purpose

When I think of my life within the context of style and purpose, suddenly it all makes sense. The woman I am. One who possesses an eye for beauty and an attention to detail. One who is both a seeker and a mentor. A fervent observer and steadfast communicator. A woman of print for sure. Upon careful examination, I realize that it is my requisite for style and purpose that has driven my life, and will continue to do so.

I have given a great deal of thought lately to my personal and professional ambitions. Having said that, the one thing I know more than anything else, is that I am a writer. I have spent much of my summer immersed in the written word. Reading the news, researching my favorite authors, and those with a similar writing voice. Following the blogs of great writers and starting my own. I have also joined the Twitterverse and am now able to connect with authors, editors, publishers, and literary agents via one simple tweet.

This week I had a meeting with author Liz Funk, who wrote, Supergirls Speak Out: Inside the Secret Crisis of Overachieving Girls. She talked with me about her inspiration for the book, what her readers get to learn about her through her work, the process of freelance writing as well as getting an agent and a book deal. Liz provided me with a wealth of information, and the most important piece I took away was this: write what you know.

That is just what I am going to do. For the next year, I am going to chronicle my experiences having to do with A Life Of Style And Purpose, and invite you follow me as I do it. I will show you every success, every failure, every crazy idea I intend to chase for a story. And when I am finished, I am going turn this blog into a best seller. Get ready world--you will be seeing my name in print.

My first assignment, which can be filed under style rather than purpose, will be the following:

An audition this Tuesday for a part in the upcoming film, Sex And The City 2. There is an open casting call in New York City, and I am going to audition for the role of: fashion model, celebrity type, or upscale socialite. You will not want to miss next week's blog where I give you a detailed account of this experience. How I prepared, who was there, and what everyone was wearing. The casting notice specifically requests that all who attend should show up looking "sex and the city fabulous." This open audition has been publicized in over 90 online articles in two days. Therefore, one can expect a crowd that is going to rival American Idol and Top Model auditions combined. And I will be there, in the thick of it, with my partner in crime and fellow fashionista Rebecca Endryck, to observe all of the madness. Log on to http://www.alifeofstyleandpurpose.blogspot.com/ next week to read my full account of what it is like to be one audition away from a role in the hottest movie on the planet.