In the meantime...

I'm still "homeless," but get to move into my new apartment in 11 days. Color me mucho excited. I can't wait to update you all on the new place, and the moving stories I'm bound to acquire. My mother and her friend Susan are moving me in again - you'll recall they moved me into my first apartment, too. So, hilarity is sure to ensue in some form or another.

In the meantime, take a listen to this. I found it pretty awesome, although I don't know that if I were singing a duet with Tony Bennett I'd opt for the Cotton Candy Blue. I'd go the route of the Marilyn Platinum Blonde. But then again, I'm no GaGa. Enjoy!!

xo,

B

Currently a couch-surfer....

I apologize for my absence..... ever since I found my PERFECT apartment in the Upper West Side (thanks in no small part to my kick-ass pitbull of a  realtor Judith), I've fallen off the blog-o-sphere.

I get to move into the 4th floor of a beautiful brownstone in November.... until then, I'll be sleeping in five different "beds" during the month of October. One, being my bed in Cannon Falls, MN :)

In the meantime, I'm playing the role of "transient." Since I can't start my part-time job until I have a permanent address (oh, how laws can be annoying), I'm spending my days seeing the city as a tourist again. I even went to a movie by myself today for the first time EVER (I saw "50/50." Totally recommend it unless you're the type to get embarrassed if you start sobbing in the theater........)

So, check back in a week or so for my random "stories of the city."

Oh, and thoughts and prayers go out tonight to Steve Jobs and his family. 

As I type this blog on my MacBook, I can't help but admire his tenacity and reverence for "the dream." 

Bravo, sir.

~~~~~

"Remembering that you are going to die is the best way that I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose." - Steve Jobs

~~~

Dream big, friends.

xoxo,

B.

Apartment Searching in NYC

I will soon be moving from my little orange apartment in Hell's Kitchen. It's bittersweet.

This was my first "home" in NYC, and I've had a lot of great times here.

However, I'm excited to get into a place of my own.... and have walls that aren't BRIGHT orange.

I'm currently waist-deep in the NYC real estate scene.

After running into countless dead-ends via semi-sketchy apartment search websites and  Craigslist, I was counting down to my first nervous breakdown since moving here.

Thankfully, Melissa, my former voice teacher extraordinaire, came to stay with me this weekend. Among our many adventures, she wanted to check out the semi-annual Eileen Fisher sample sale in the Village. I thought, what the heck, it'll be my first sample sale experience. Yay.

I walked out of the store with a beautiful new fall jacket..... and...... A REALTOR!

Yes, Melissa and I made friends with a wonderful lady who works for a large real estate firm.... over a cashmere sweater.

Funny how life works out sometimes.

So, wish me luck. I have showings tomorrow and hope to have something locked up by next week.

After this is all said and done, I'll be back with crazy audition stories and my normally-scheduled blogging :)

-B.

I 'Heart' the A-Train

Why, you may ask, do I love the A-Train so much that I devote an entire post to it?

First of all, it's an Express train. Last week it got me from Midtown to my friend's enviously large apartment in Washington Heights in only 20 minutes.

On Monday, it got me north of Washington Heights and to my headshot session, miraculously, on time. (Ever since I've moved here my flawless "on-time" record has been tarnished a bit - shameful.)

Today it got me to Brooklyn on the first leg of my new apartment search (more on this hellish hunt later....) and offered SNACK service. How many airlines even offer snack service anymore?!?

Well, okay, it wasn't the MTA offering snacks, it was Reggie... or Tommy... or whatever his name was, the self-proclaimed "Manhattan Candy Man," loudly marketing his 'fine candies' by singing "The Candy Man Can" from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. And good news, folks! Today he had TWO candy offerings. Peanut M&Ms and Welch's Fun Fruits (since when do fruit snacks qualify as candy?). And... it gets better. Because today, and today only, the Fun Fruits were buy-one-get-one. 

I couldn't help but laugh. I found his sales tactics highly entertaining, and, I give him credit. 

Just another day on the A-Train....

-B.

9.11.11

I REMEMBER....

- I was in the hallway of my high school, just heading into the Algebra II classroom when I heard the news

-  watching the second plane hit the south tower of the World Trade Center on live TV, and then hearing about the Pentagon and United 93 hitting near Shanksville, PA

- our Phy Ed teacher telling us to look up and realize this was probably the only day in history where there wasn't a single plane in the sky

- celebrating my cousin's birthday that night, but instead of opening presents and engaging in the usual birthday party chit-chat we were glued to the unending news coverage

- wearing red, white and blue ribbons on our volleyball shoes for the rest of the fall

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Strangely enough, my uncle was living in the exact apartment I'm living in now during 9/11. That  day affected me in a way that's hard to explain... but then again, given the circumstances, I'm sure I'm not the only one who has problems articulating their feelings about such a massive and intentional blow through our country's heart.
But, now, living in this city and having visited Ground Zero about a dozen times, it feels different. It feels more personal.

I just got back from walking through Times Square and was amazed at the feeling of calm reverence that has enveloped the city today... even despite the increased security and feeling of "being on alert."

My heart still goes out to all the men and women who lost their lives ten years ago... and to the families they left behind.

We're re-building, but we'll never forget.

Hurricanes, Earthquakes & Floods. Oh My!

So, I've begun taking stock of what interesting situations I (and my fellow New Yorkers) found myself in these past 2 weeks. Here's the run-down:

-AN EARTHQUAKE

Whhaaat? I'm going to be completely honest and admit that I didn't even know about said earthquake until I got home ten minutes after it happened. I had wandered down the street for some Pinkberry frozen yogurt, when, upon my return, I felt a slight sway. My balance has never been something to brag about, so I thought it was in my head or thought I was so invested in my fro-yo that I tripped. But, once I got home and opened my laptop, everyone was all a-twitter about an earthquake; so cool, I can say I've survived an earthquake.

-A "HURRICANE"

The best part about this "hurricane" (besides the fact NYC was very lucky and in no way got the brunt of the storm as forecasted) was the preparation for said "storm of the century." My house guests for the weekend, who were forced to stay two extra days because of flight cancellations, and I made sure we stocked up on the 'essentials.' The essentials, of course, being: Cliff bars, eggs, $5 trail mix (?!?), apples, Koala Yummies (yes, they still make them!), bottled water, soda, coffee and a few options in terms of adult beverages.... We filled my entire bathtub in case the power went out and we weren't able to flush the toilet (thanks to the ever-knowledgeable Jacquelyn Wegmann for texting me that tip before the storm..). We attempted, with no luck, to find an extra flashlights. We made it over to Bourbon Street for $5 Pre-Hurricane Hurricanes (we couldn't resist!) and we even managed to attract the AccuWeather.com reporter, who, despite our haggard appearances, insisted on interviewing us on how upset we were the stores in Times Square all closed early. (Ironically, we weren't upset at all -- See, Mom! Actor training is paying off already!)

Besides our individual preparation, the city itself prepared for the impending storm, and essentially shut down. Words can not express how creepy an empty Manhattan is (think end-of-the-world movies, and you'll get a good sense of it).

Empty 42nd Street

Palm trees secured in Rockefeller Plaza

Times Square clearing out

So... we buckled up for what was predicted to be a hide-in-the-closet-because-glass-is-flying kind of storm.....

Embarrassingly, we slept through most of Irene's show.

AFTER THE STORM:

You should be able to see the George Washington Bridge here.... This was the morning Irene blew through.... it was pretty flippin' windy, but nothing compared to what up-state NY and Vermont got... 

Taxis lined the curbs Sunday morning, and the streets were empty. People were laying in the middle of 8th Avenue taking pictures.

NYC was luckily just side-swiped, and Lower Manhattan did see some flooding, but overall, we fared well.

After being pent-up for an entire night, we happily celebrated a night out after we emerged from my apartment.

Besides all of that excitement, Katie, Kristin and I walked about a thousand miles, seeing the sights, doing some shopping and eating some cupcakes and sushi.  All in all it was a great and memorable visit.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This week I'm heading home to good 'ol MINNESOTA. 

My week will be filled with:

Friends

Family

A(nother) wedding

A much-anticipated trip to my cabin in Wisconsin

and

a few visits to the MINNESOTA STATE FAIR. 

Yay.

I'll be back blogging with my "fair"-share a good stories in a week. 

Until then~

xo,

B.

Good night, Irene.

So, we're gearing up for what they're saying is the Storm of the Century for the NE.

Hurricane Irene just shut Broadway down for the entire up-coming weekend. First time ever.

She also already ruined Kristin and Katie's travel plans, as their return flight for Sunday was already canceled, and the soonest they can get out of here is TUESDAY. So, I'll have them around for a few extra days, which will definitely be welcome.

My sublet Paul emailed me yesterday. The subject of his e-mail was "Hurricane!" and here's what it said:

Brooke,
I don't know how to prepare you for a hurricane, except to ask if you're ready for this.  Are you ready for this?

-Paul

As of now we have food, one flashlight and two bottles of wine.

I forsee another grocery run in our future. And then, yes, Paul, we're ready.

I'll keep ya'll posted!

-B.