Third Person Thursday

She was nervously waiting for her salad dressing callback, when she noticed a tall woman with a pretty face walk into the audition. Her hair was a little less than a quarter inch long. It had obviously been shaved recently. She sat there looking at that girl wondering how she got away with shaving her head in the commercial industry. She didn't want to make a scene about it, so she went back to her book.

When she finished the callback, she rushed over to another audition. After that, she grabbed a quick snack and then headed down into the subway. When she stepped on the train, the shaved-head girl followed. Now was the perfect opportunity to ask about the hair.

Shaved-head girl was really open about her shaved-headness, and explained that she had been booked on a movie that was supposed to be a 6 month project, and ended up ending after 1 week, and she was stuck with a shaved head. It didn't matter that much though, because most of her work is stunt work, which requires wigs. It had however lost her a few commercial jobs, but she seemed ok with it.

After their conversation, she went home and looked shaved-head girl up on the internet, and sure enough she was a hard-working stunt girl. She thought to herself: I love this city, I meet cool people.

The very next week, she was driving in her neighborhood when she saw a tall girl with a pretty face and a shaved head on the sidewalk, being photographed by another girl with a hat on. She recognized her as her ballet-dancer-sometimes-see-at-the-gym-friend, Hollie. She went around the block and pulled over to say hi, and of course to ask her about the hair. Turns out, she had to shave it for a movie. Then the photographer pulled off her hat to reveal the same secret.

She explained to the two shaved-head-girls that she had met another shaved-head-stunt-girl the week before and asked them to tell her why all the shaved heads. The girls said their were ten of them who had their heads shaved. She asked if it was worth it, and they said yes. The name of the film? I AM LEGEND, starring Will Smith.

As she drove away she thought: I think I have to see this movie.

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Had a good feeling...

...about an audition I had last week for Three Musketeers. When the phone rang last night at 6:30 and it was my agent, I made a bet with myself: "Betcha it's a callback for Three Musketeers!" And it was. So, I was really excited. It is one of those floating Musketeers Bars Commercials that we have all seen. I love when I am on hold for a commercial that is casting 4 women. I feel like my chances are a lot better, but I will probably show up and be competing against 400 other girls.

After that audition, I HAD to have a Three Musketeers Bar. I literally went straight to the deli when it was over and bought one. I am SUCH a sucker for the power of suggestion. That Snickers campaign this summer all over cabs and billboards, is why my working out was all for naught, or shall I say, NOUGAT. SATISFECTELLENT, NOUGATCITY,PEANUTOPOLIS---all in those oh-so-recognizable letters. Man I am mad at them.

So, I have to decide before I go, that I will not succumb to the temptation of chocolate....and just walk out and enjoy a sip of my water. Mmmmm...yummy water.

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1000 words...

I don't know exactly what to say about this photo. A lot comes to mind, all at once:

~We do not look good while we dance.
~This does not look like dancing.
~I look perfectly comfortable in this position.
~My husband looks uncomfortable.
~We are not good dancers.
~My ankle looks really weak, like it might buckle at any moment.
~Shouldn't my husband's hands be in a slightly different position?
~I like my rabbit fur bolero
~Why was he looking right into the camera, and I was unaware of it, that is so not like me...
~We should really take some dancing lessons.
~We don't dance much, so I guess it doesn't matter.

My husband came home from work today and handed me this photo. We went to his co-worker's wedding back in September, and apparently this photo was not worth keeping for them, as it has a little proof mark on the right corner. Hmmmm....I wonder why they wouldn't want to scrapbook this? Don't they know I am Kristy Glass...and documentation of my famous dancing is very valuable?

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It's Monday...watch out for flying pigeons

That would have been cool if it had hit her, but I think it was behind her, not in line with her.

It is less than 2 weeks until my performances begin. Strangely, I do not feel any more stressed than usual, which is either good or bad. Either I maintain a high level of stress all the time, and am thus severely cutting into my life expectancy, or I am really prepared for my upcoming performances, or I am just completely numb after an entire year leading up to just 1 week of my life.

Maybe I am just crazy.

Yup, that sounds about right.

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Black Friday

Today was the first time that I went into Manhattan for Black Friday. I knew it would be crowded. I did not know that it would be THAT crowded. I had this brilliant idea that everyone would be shopping, and no one returning, so I lugged my twin aerobed into the city to return at the Macy's at Herald Square. I figured there would be a customer service line JUST for returns. Nope.

The lines were miles long. I didn't even know where any of them lead. I was afraid to stand in a line, in case it lead to the men's room, or an express checkout (where I could not return), or somewhere else. The whole store was madness. It felt like you were in an ocean of people, trying to navigate through the coral reef or something. I did not want to subject my family to waiting for me, so I just lugged it around on my stroller for the next 6 hours.

We started at 34th St. and Broadway and walked all the way to 87th and Lexington Ave. It took hours. We made a few stops for food and hot cocoa, and of course to look at some of the Windows. Macy's and Lord and Taylor both had animitronics. We also saw the skaters at Rockefeller Center, and the snowflakes at Saks. It was really fun to people watch today. Tourists, locals, Christian Slater, all eye-candy for us.

I tried to capture the droves of people in the above photo. It is taken from 59th and 5th Ave, looking south. The sidewalks were packed. The Upper East side was more sparse, but still busy for the UES. My favorite store windows there were Betsey Johnson and the two Ralph Lauren stores, so pretty.

I did not buy one thing today (accept food). Granted, I only went INSIDE about 3 stores and 2 food establishments, but still...It was just really fun to be out in the beautiful weather with my family, looking at all the festive decor, and trying to snap a Christmas Card photo. The Christmas Season has officially begun at our house and definitely in our city.

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Silverware Turkey

Turkey made of silverware.

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80th Annual Thanksgiving Day Parade

It wasn't my most favorite Macy's Parade of all time. It was REALLY WET. I am glad that my wonderful husband went early and staked out some spots under some scaffolding. We were warmer and dryer than most, and did not require umbrellas. As a result, our view wasn't quite as good, BUT the balloons were being flown VERY low because of the wind, so it didn't matter that much. Super Grover was pretty much licking the pavement the entire parade. Poor Grover.

There was a little adventure at this year's parade. First, my daughter had to go to the bathroom, which believe it or not, has never happened. I walked about a block to a parking garage and a very nice man let me use their facilities. Phewsh.

Then a hotdog/pretzel vendor came UNDER the scaffolding and parked his truck. The smoke was TERRIBLE. We were all breathing it in and smelling like a campfire. I asked a police officer to step in, and he told the guy to leave. About 10 minutes later her came back again. I was on my way to get the cop again (he had moved a ways away), but then I spotted Santa Claus on the parade route, which means the end of the parade, so I let it go.

That's it.

The dinner turned out pretty well. I thought the turkey was a little overdone, but at least we didn't have to wait several more hours for it to be done. Everything was hot and delicious and the gravy was fine....

I unfortunately was hit with a sinus infection thing yesterday, so I actually fell asleep twice during the day, and at night, watching CSI...so I must have been legitimately sick. I feel much better this morning, and I think I will drag my posse into Manhattan for some SIGHT-SEEING.

Happy Thanksgiving.

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Glass Posse Thanksgiving 2006

I officially have less time than required to pull together this meal, but I am going to try dang hard.

The menu:

Turkey, stuffed with sage and lemon (thanks Rachel Ray)

Sweet Potatoes (a la fattening Boston Market kind)

Macaroni and Cheese-I am not southern, but this is something that I incorporate in my Thanksgiving, never had it growing up, just like the idea

Mashed Potatoes and Gravy

NEW ADDITIONS THIS YEAR
Rolls-orange if I am lucky

Salad:
chilled roasted beets
chilled boiled yukon potatoes
chilled boiled string beans
spring greens
goat cheese
dressing
SO YUMMY and SATISFYING

Crockpot Dressing: I don't like stuffing the turkey, plus it adds cook time, which I DON'T need since my oven is already slower than the average, and we had to wait a bit longer than I wanted to last year.

Dessert will be whatever they have at the grocery store, I am NOT baking dessert this year.

I also need to make cinnamon rolls and hot chocolate for the men who go early and stake out a parade spot for us. However, I just heard the forecast, and it is not the best, so that will decrease the amount of crazies who are willing to get utterly chilled in the name of thanksgiving fun.

I just read back the email and I see that it is heavy on carbs...I might need to ad a green dish..maybe green bean casserole...can't go wrong with that.

Happy Cooking/Eating/Sleeping/Parading/Familying.

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Can you tell me how to get...

Yes, this was one of the best days of my New York Life. I love Sesame Street. I love the Muppets. I love the amazing art of puppetry. I love children's television. I love my daughter. To have all of these come together this afternoon, made me smile from ear to ear. I am so happy.

The first time I visited Sesame Street was a few years ago when I was pregnant with my now 19-month-old. I met Gina and Grover. I saw the amazing Jerry Nelson in action, and also Peter Linz, some of you may know him as Snook on the BIG BIG WORLD. And how can I forget Noel Mcneal,
who plays BEAR in Bear in the Big Blue House.

My second visit was today. I have been waiting to take my daughter to the Street. She had to be 4 years old, and time could not have moved slower. Today we saw a scene with Elmo, Telly, Slimy, Oscar the Grouch, Maria and Gordon. Simply Heaven. Oscar of course is played by the incomparable Caroll Spinney, who also plays Big Bird. He was so good to us. Oscar even laid one on me, my second adulterous kiss in two days...ay ya ya...(remember I got engaged yesterday?).


These folks have been making this television show for a hundred years, and they were as fresh as daisies. Everyone was so kind to us and gave us extra special treatment. They have cameramen there that have been at it since day 1, and one even has a muppet made to look like him. Rosita was not in the scene this afternoon, but her muppeteer, Carmen brought her out and did a little photoshoot, and even asked my daughter if she knew any spanish words.

Maria and Gordon (Sonia and Roscoe) were so nice and patient with all the kids. They were (obviously) playing a King and Queen today.

My daughter's favorite part was Hooper's Store. She wanted to order something. My favorite part was just seeing it through her eyes. When we left the building she said: "That was excrodinary"



As we were ringing Grammy to tell her about the days adventures, Mark Feuerstein rode by on his bike. I said a quick hello, and he sort of acted like he was going to stop to talk, but when I just said hi, he picked up his speed again. I think that I might not have recognized him if I hadn't just walked by the 3 LBS Hair & Makeup Door located in Kaufman Studios, right next to the Sesame Hair & Makeup Room.

I love that Sesame Street is right down our Street, and I feel so happy that we have had a chance to experience it first hand.

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Engagement Day

So, my Friday engagement was postponed to this morning at 10:40 AM. I will get engaged over a nice Asian Salad, and then I will head East a few blocks and eat a Three Musketeers Bar with 3 girlfriends. 1 callback, 1 audition, life is good. And even better is that I will have one daughter at school and the other at home with a sitter...I am glad there will be no schlepping.

In other news, I am making progress on the album front. Last night I just sold my 200th CD, thanks to my friend JJ who put in a record order at 20 cds. My business manager (DH) and I were really excited to get to that point in our sales. Also this weekend, my friend helped me put together my album posters for the appearances I make where I am not permitted to sell, and also to put next to the sales table at appearances where I am allowed to sell.

They look really good. My graphic designer for the album put these together and I ordered them off of snapfish, then my friend mounted them on some black foam with photomount adhesive. I am pretty sure all of this was cheaper than if I had gone to a framing place. I am happy. Now, I just have to figure out how to ship them to Naperville. That will be Tuesday's project.

I think that with my combined appearances where I can SELL Cd's, I will reach close to 1000 people. I have about 800 cd's left to sell for this season, so I think it might be doable...we'll see! That would be nice if I was sold out by December 12th...then I could just coast through the holidays.

This past weekend I had a going away party at my home and it was filled. It was really fun. And then I took my daughter to a birthday party on Saturday, so two parties in one weekend equals: a day or two of vocal rest. I am really feeling tired. I have to watch it on Thanksgiving at the parade...I must be quiet, I must be quiet, I must be quiet. Ay ya ya...that's hard for me.

I know this post has been random, but sometimes my life is random, so there you go. Happy Beginning of Thanksgiving Week. I have my turkey bought and in the freezer, how about you?

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LOST MITTEN PHILOSOPHY

Every winter I lose stuff on the subway. Usually it is hats, gloves or scarves...mostly gloves. I usually rush off the train, and then when I hit the cold and go to reach for my various coverings, I realize I have left them on the seat where I was sitting, or when I stood up, they fell off my lap, or because they were put haphazardly in my pocket, they fell out.

I am dissappointed of course, mostly because I am cold, but then I think/hope that someone who needs it more than me, will find the item, and make good use of it.

I try to resort to this philosophy whenever I am dissappointed about losing something.

There are a few kids who sing on my Christmas Album. As part of their "payment" I gave them each 5 cds to keep or give away to their families. I found out yesterday that one of the kids grandma's left the bag of cds on the train. He says he still has one, so I guess there are 4, sealed CD's in a plastic bag riding the train around New York.

At first I was really dissappointed that she had lost those CD's, because that represents lost profits or lost opportunities (because most likely I would have given those 4 cds away as a demo, if I hadn't given them to this child's family). But the more I thought about it, I realized that I could apply my LOST MITTEN PHILOSOPHY, and that made me feel better.

I picture a grocery bag sitting on a seat with these cd's inside, and I wonder who found them. Did they pick them up and look at them? Did they read the front and back and then make the decision whether or not to take one or pass? Did someone find them, and not even think twice about it, grabbed them up and tried to sell them on the sidewalk for 4 dollars? Did 4 different people find the bag and each take one? Did they go home and listen to it? Did they like what they heard and therefore visited my website to find out more? Did someone turn them in to some sort of MTA Lost and Found?

My mind was racing with the possibilities, and thinking about those 4 cds riding the MTA and what sort of adventures they might go on, and where they might end up, made me feel a lot better about the loss. In fact, I think I might have turned it into a gain.

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Macy's Day Parade

One of the greatest things about Thanksgiving in this town is the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. Remember watching it as a kid on tv? When I watched it I thought that the crowd seemed very noisy, and that the parade was just balloons walking down the street. As it turns out, being there in person is quite different from watching it on tv.

The first thing that struck me about the parade, is that even though there are thousands of people on the streets watching the parade, and the band is noisy and the people are cheering, it is quieter than I thought it would be. Maybe because Katie Couric and Willard Scott were always sort of YELLING into their microphones, I thought I would have to yell to talk to my family and friends, but that isn't the case...and when there are pauses in the parade, it is quiet because it is the winter air that invites that still and quiet. It's hard to explain, but true.

I love that aside from the occasional grumpy viewer, most people are really thrilled to be there and the atmosphere is totally festive: Happy Thanksgivings's are exchanged, the pace of walking is cut down from a frantic power walk, to a stroll, and there is a lot of smiling and looking at each other in the eye, which will all fade the next day.

I love watching the people in their apartments open the windows or walk out onto their balconies to watch the parade. Last year there was a beautiful greyhound dog perched on the sill, watching the parade go by.

I love the Macy's workers. It is my goal SOMEDAY to walk in the Macy's Day Parade. I will have to get a job at Macy's first, and then go to clown school, but I am up for the challenge for sure. There are SO many clowns, and balloon holders, all dressed up to match each other or match their balloon.

This is a side of the parade that you cannot experience from televsion. The parade for the locals is more about the "little people" making it all happen, then the big balloons. Last year we must have had at least 20 clowns stop and throw confetti at us (speaking of confetti, I find pieces of it up to 6 months after the parade, while cleaning my house), one clown donned my daughter with his giant glasses, another picked up her friend and gave her a clown nose, and a fourth stopped and dance with my Dad for a few minutes...that personalized attention really makes the parade, especially for the little ones, oh, and the grandpas.

I also love events that touch so many people. I am always amazed at sporting events when the entire crowd sings together the National Anthem or during the seventh inning stretch, and this is a similar phenomenon. Being in the throngs of people reminds me that EVERYONE is celebrating at the same time. We are all eating turkey and showing gratitude together, at the same time. I think it is the closest we come to being truly peaceful, and it's one day a year.

I love the subway ride home, talking over the morning's festivities with each other, and anticipating the smell of the turkey that has been cooking all morning, as soon as you walk in the door. It truly is one of my favorite events of the year, and I hope someday you will come to NYC and experience it too.

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Third Person Thursday

She opens the mail and actually reads the flyer. Macy's 2-day sale, extra savings from 8 to noon. There is a griddle for 17.99, she thinks; "Wow, we could all eat pancakes together instead of in shifts, or one pancake at a time." There is a portable DVD player for 99.99, she thinks: "We have a bunch of plane trips coming up, NOT on jetblue, that could come in handy...two headphone jacks? sign me up!" There is an aerobed on sale for 89.99, she thinks: "Our aerobed knock off just bit the dust, and we have company coming for Thanksgiving...I better get to this sale!"

The baby has croup the night before, but she HAS to get the deals. She drags the baby to the mall. There are two malls right next to each other, and she parks at the wrong one...oh well, she can walk the block, it's not that cold...of course she isn't thinking about all the purchases dancing in her head that she will have to schlepp back.

Chaos surrounds her as EVERYONE is trying to get their hands on the DVD player that is only 20 bucks if you spend 50. Every time she asks an employee about the PORTABLE DVD player, they don't listen and thinks she is talking about that one....finally someone understands and has the key to opening the portable dvd player cabinet.

She is carefully balancing her griddle, aerobed, portable dvd player and impulse-buy-but-very-necessary steamer on the stroller, with sick baby protesting holding hands. Now it's time to pick a line to stand in and it's Russian Roulette. She chooses well. There is a nice couple behind her with one item, the FRY DADDY. Sweet. She approaches the check out and hands Tara the 10 dollar off coupon which apparently you cannot use unless you are paying for your purchases with the Macy's charge card.

She only has two credit cards: a United Miles Plus Visa and Bloomingdales. She wants to get out of there and use the coupon, so she decides to open a Macy's account. She goes through the process...name, id, address, social security # etc., only to be told that she already has a Macy's credit card: She thinks..."well I wonder where it is..." Apparently you don't need the plastic to use the card....my what consumption has come to.

She checks out with her Macy's account, and then begins the carefully balanced walk on elevators, down stairs, up escalators and to her car. She is home 1 and a half hours after she started...not bad. She calls her husband and boasts about her deals...according to the receipt she saved $192.04. She told her husband that the aerobed was even cheaper than they thought...59.99 for a twin.

Her husband said: Honey, a twin sleeps one person. She said: No, it's double, twin...you know twins equals two. He explained that a double and a twin are not the same, and that twin indicates two separate beds for two separate people. This of course does not make sense to her, why would anyone call something a twin and then make it for only one person.

She considers going back the next morning, but just CAN'T do it. She finds a good deal on a queen aerobed on ebay: 82.90 and free shipping. The next day she opens her portable dvd player only to find that there is no remote control (as the box indicates), and the battery pack has one peg broken so it doesn't hook onto the base. She has already thrown the box and packaging away because it is recycling pick-up day, so feels less-than-optimistic about successfully exchanging it.

She has not opened the steamer yet because she is afraid of what might be wrong with it, nor has she tried out the griddle. Next time she sees the Macy's ad in the mail, she is going to recycle it, instead of reading it.

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I got engaged on Monday...and I will again on Friday

On Monday I had an audition for Kraft Salad Dressing. I didn't write about it until now because I thought it went really bad. Here was the scenario: A very prop-heavy scene: salad dressing, salads, cups, table, chairs, a fortune cookie with a ring in it, and chopsticks. There was no copy (lines), but a very detailed scene of a guy and a girl having lunch. The girl is eating her salad, the guy is nervous, she gets to her fortune cookie, opens it, and there is a ring inside.

So I got to the audition about 20 minutes early, and was the first female signed in, so I went first. The guy I was paired up with, seemed really nervous as we were waiting to go in, so during the audition he was like double-nervous because he already was nervous, and then he had to act nervous too.

It is uncomfortable to do scenes like this with someone you have just met, but you just have to let it go. I did my best. It was also a difficult audition because there were so many acting beats and no written lines, and the casting director was trying to figure out how to direct us and what to say. We were sort of the guinea pigs. After it was all over I didn't think it went very well, so I walked out of the casting office and forgot about it.

Yesterday during my daughter's ballet class, I got a call from my agent putting me on hold for the commercial, and letting me know about a callback on Friday. I was really surprised. I had to wrack my brain to remember what she was even talking about...then I had to try to remember what I was wearing...so, anyway, Friday it is. I wonder if the nervous nervous guy was called back too...

Today I am treating myself to a babysitter because I have 1 go-see in Brooklyn (C-gate), 1 in Flatiron district of Manhattan (HBO), and a podiatrist appointment near my home, all in a 3 hour time frame. Yup, something funky is going on with my toe nails....I think it might be the start of some beautiful fungus...gotta love fungus...does a body good.

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Book Covers

This is the final book cover for Susan Elizabeth Phillips' new novel. This image is from amazon, and is for the audio book. The actual book is pretty much the same thing. If you like the dress, it's on sale now. This will be my first book cover, and I am getting excited about it because the author and I are from the same home town, and we are talking about making a joint appearance at my favorite local bookstore there.

I just got all the proofs for my second book cover, via email today. Below is a crop of one that they did NOT choose...I will wait to reveal the actual cover, once it is listed on amazon...I guess that will mean that amazon is revealing it, not me...but really it's not my place to do so.


I am reminded of my baby's book jobs...the first of which I wrote about here. I recently discovered this book. My baby is on the bottom left corner, and the two of us are on the back of the packaging. She also took a bunch of photos about a year ago for another plush book that I have lost track of...but here is one of the frames:

So, if anybody spots it, let me know.

Updates on Album Sales coming soon. Happy Day.

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19 months old

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I Heart Mary J. Blige

The woman merely needs to walk on to a stage and I get tears in my eyes. When she sings I just can't take it...she just moves me faster and deeper than any other singer I have ever listened to. She is raw, vulnerable, present and sharing it with the world, and it is completely inspiring and fills me with hope.

Here I am pictured with Mary at THE GAP on Lexington. She appears in this ad for the RED CAMPAIGN which I have tried to support through spreading the word, and wearing the clothes. Make something RED one of your stocking stuffers TODAY!

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An Adventure

Sometimes I forget about a project that I have been pretty involved in for the past 3 years, but this past weekend I was reminded again. It all started when I answered an ad in Backstage looking for an actress for the pilot of a new infant video series. What really caught my eye was that the driving force behind it were former Sesame and Disney execs.

I attended I think two auditions and got the job. I shot the pilot back in 2003 in a lickity-split one day shoot. 2 years later I spent 2 weeks creating three infant DVD's called Eebee's Adventures. I had such a great time doing this project for a number of reasons:

1. The creators are crazy passionate about Eebee. It's nice to work with people that care so much.
2. I love puppetry. When my kids and I watch Sesame Street, I am more enthralled then they are...seriously. Eebee is a puppet, and requires two puppetteers and a puppet wrangler, which is endlessly fascinating to me.
3. I love babies. I got to work with SO many babies during this shoot. It was so fun to see how they would react to Eebee and the materials around them, and being on a set that was about 4 feet off the ground.
4. I have babies. It is great to work on something that your children will relate to and understand.

There are more reasons, but those are my top four. Anyway, I recently learned that Eebee's has a contract with FAO Schwarz. This toy store is housed in the same building where my husband works, so I am very familiar with it. On Friday, the creator of Eebee's and Eebee (along with the puppet creator and puppeteer) were roaming the store telling people about the product. I decided to go and hang out. My baby LOVED meeting Eebee. I had a great time seeing them, and seeing the display of the product. We even brought our own Eebee home with us...I mean come on, I had to.

Here is a photo of my daughter and me in front of the set back in 2004. In my tummy was the other daughter, pictured to the left. I really had such a great time working on this project.

If you want to check it out, here's how:
~Video-on-demand: Check out an adventure on your kids on demand, absolutely FREE
~Eebee's website
~Amazon.com for some reviews...don't believe the one reviewer, those eyelashes were NOT fake.
~My website, a clip is here.

Have an adventurous day!

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Baby Smile

Lately, if I even pull out my camera, my baby smiles quite intentionally like the one on the left. After a few frames like this, she settles back into herself, and I get photos like the one on the right. I find this side-splitting.

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Third Person Thursday

Charlie and Marion are the retired couple who live next door. Charlie suffers from diabetes but does really well. He sits out in front of his door, perched on a stool and waits for the mailman almost every day. Her kids know him, they always say: "Hi Charlie" whenever they go home. She brings them both a plate of cookies whenever she makes them, even though Charlie has to watch his sugar intake.

Two weeks ago Marion told her that Charlie was in the hospital with a toe infection, and would be there for at least a week. She thought about this all day, thought about what she could do. She made cookies, put two in a ziploc bag. She went to the drugstore and perused the magazines: GQ, Us Weekly, Real Simple....no. How about Readers Digest, Newsweek and Time? That will do.

She strapped the kids in the car, drove to the hospital, paid the meter and lugged them inside. The website said "Children under twelve may visit with permission from the nurse." She asked the front desk lady about visiting Charlie. The front desk lady was very rude. She said that she had read about the age of the children on the website and mentioned that there could possibly be exceptions to the rule. The rude front desk lady got ruder. She at least agreed to have someone deliver the magazines and cookies.

A few days later Marion told her Charlie would be at a rehab facility for a few more weeks.

She called Marion yesterday to see how she was doing. Marion said: You're a blessing. The next morning Marion was outside when she got home. Marion said: You know, everybody calls and asks; How's Charlie doing? And no one asks how I'm doing, except you. And when you called, that sort of made my day.

She smiled, because it made her day too.

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Fashion Show

I have been trying to get better at doing my own styling, especially since my BFF, miss Style Guru herself has moved far far away from me. I worked really hard on the styling of my album photos, and now I have been focusing on my live appearances. Aside from concerts, I will be presenting at two high schools during the holidays, so I was thinking about those appearances today while I shopped the Nordstrom Half-Yearly Sale.

In regular old Kage fashion, I wanted to go right when it opened at 7 AM...though I had never done this before, it sounded like fun. So I set the alarm for 5:50 AM, got the baby dressed, picked up my friend and her baby and away we went. How many times have I been to Nordstrom....and I got lost. So....we got to the sale at 8 AM. Oh bother.

We had 1 hour to shop b/c I had to make it back in time for a go-see at 11 in the city. After a half hour in shoes, I went upstairs to the Brass Plum, tried on a few items, bought them, then headed down to TBD to check out the jeans and the free people stuff. I love this outfit, (on the right), and they had the sweater dress but in a size large, and no bloomers. I just love the bloomers.

And of course the rain was so heavy and so wet and I was just on the brink of the timing of my day going to pot, so I skipped the go-see and then my eye stopped twitching. I AM going to go to my audition this afternoon, but I just couldn't bear the rain and the cranky baby and the possibility of being late for picking up my other daughter.

So, I did a little fashion show and took some pix of what I ended up with...hopefully I will have your approval:
These cropped pants I inherited from my friend, I bought the black flats today--the detail on them is that they are sort of gathered all around...and the red top with black belt and black circle earrings, and the green top (reminded me of Jeffrey on PR), with rosebud earrings. I thought these would be fun, casual, holiday outfits for the high school presentations.







Here is the L & T dress that I found in Boston, bought in NYC. Today's goal was to find the right shoe....here they are.






Here are a few other outfits that I want to perform in for the day-time or less casual events: The first one is the dress I am wearing in the album-don't worry, I don't carry a clutch while I sing.



I was a little dismayed because most of my items were full price at the half yearly SALE...I did get a good deal on the black flats. Then, as I was walking out I saw a pair of jeans that were 45 dollars off. I thought that was a good deal, and I desperately need new jeans...and I want to wear them today but it is SO rainy. Here they are....

Ok, so you can't really see them, and there is some distorted color b/c of baby fingerprints, but at least you can see the back of the shirt....

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Runway Moms

Runway Moms will air on November 9th @ 12:30 and 4:00 PM EST on Discovery Health Channel. Just an FYI, if you haven't seen it yet.

Yesterday we had a job for Nick Jr. Magazine in Weston, CT. The drive up was so beautiful, we got to see all the leaves with their reds, oranges and yellows. The baby and I had to sing Itsy Bity Spider...she was crazy and wiggly and it was fun...she liked her socks, click on READ MORE.

It's becoming a little dicey having photoshoots in sprawling homes across the tri-state area. Every time we go to one my daughters wonder why we live in an apartment the size of their laundry rooms/bathrooms/front stoops. My older daughter said: Mom, I want to live here. I guess I don't blame her....but seriously...I could never keep a house that big clean, or the lawn mowed, or the cupboards stocked or the shelves dusted or the...

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Election Day

This morning, approximately 7:36 AM:
ME: You voting?
DH: I don't know, you?
ME: No, I don't even know who is running and what for...
DH: Well, it's the governor elections
ME: Oh...
(in my head: well that seems important)
Well, what do I need to vote?
DH: ID
ME: Oh.

I have only voted twice before today. I voted for the last two presidential elections. I have only been of age to vote for 9 years, so thus only two. I felt dumb this morning that I did not even know about the elections. This is why: I am a busy mother of two. When I watch television it is Oprah, comedies and dramas. It is all tivoed, so I often race through commercials (ironic since commercials are my bread and butter). I watch news when I go to the gym, but lately my workouts have been walking outside, so I am not up on that. I do not subscribe to a newspaper. I have seen one commercial that stood out to me, and that was for Joe Lieberman. He had the word Republicans and Democrats on a chalkboard and then he popped into frame and talked about this election being about people and not parties. I liked that. But I don't even know what office he is running for.

It is because of my utter stupidity when it comes to this subject that I don't even feel worthy to vote. I realize that these people are depending on Americans for their jobs, and I just feel like I would be voting without any knowledge of what I am voting for, and doing everyone a disservice.

After my conversation with DH (see above), I changed my baby girl's clothes and I said to her: "Baby, you should always vote when you have the opportunity, because we didn't always have the right to vote, and many women made many sacrifices so that our vote would count." That much I do know. So, I asked my DH about who he thought was a good candidate, and then took my daughter to school. Fortunately, her school is where I vote. I figured it would be crazy busy as all the parents would have the idea I had: vote while you're there. Sadly, it was not even close to being busy. I walked in and out and left for my walk 4 minutes later than I do on most mornings when I drop off my daughter.

I wish I had a sticker that said "I voted" because even though I wasn't informed, I did feel it was important to exercise that right that was given to me, and if anything it taught me to take it even more seriously the next time the opportunity comes around.

So, go vote...you have four minutes right?

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Crunch Time

It's crunch time. In less than one month everything I have been working towards in the year 2006 will be here. My mind is constantly filled to capacity with all that I have to do. Today on the way to school a mom friend said "HI" to me, I think 3 times before I realized that I was walking down the street, taking my daughter to school and that she was saying hi to me. I just looked at her and said: Sorry, ZONING!

Last night we had the first run-through of our Joy to the World Christmas Concert. It is the first one that our church in the Queens area is putting on. I volunteered to be in charge, and it turns out that it is quite a big undertaking! It was so great though to see everything come together. We have two violinists that sound so amazing, a guitar ensemble, and vibraphone. We also have a children and adult chorus and a singer who is soloing with the guitar. Each number after the other brought a different flavor and I got chills several times last night. I hope that all of our hard work is rewarded with a large audience...that would be awesome.

I am waiting to hear about a few holds: Nick Jr. Magazine cover-try with my 18-month-old, and a Levaquin Ad. I have a go-see for Nokia today. Here is the description: I am at an art gallery, I am dressed smart, a word I cannot read in my hand writing, not to dressy. I have no idea what I will end up wearing. I might also be doing a little voice over work this week if everything can get negotiated.

The big exciting event of the week however is happening Wednesday! At 7 AM the doors open for the Nordstrom Half-Yearly Sale. I need to get some shoes and maybe a few other odds and ends for my performance wardrobe, so I am actually planning on getting there around when it opens. Sounds crazy and that's why I love it. It's a radical plan...good thing my baby wakes up at the crack of dawn...

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Q101 Bus Stop

Can you see us in our puffy coats in the reflection of the Casino Royale ad at the bus stop?

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From Darkness to Light

My first bout with depression was during my senior year of high school. I was in a zone/funk/episode of life that was really all-encompassing. I was trying to figure out my next step in life; where to go to college, what to study, who to be. I was so low and so down, I knew I was officially depressed. I was busy and I didn't have time to do anything about it, but just wait it out.

I finally broke out of it when I attended the All-State Chorus. I auditioned for a solo and did not do my best. I was used to being overprepared and nailing auditions all throughout high school, and I was just off, for this audition. The choral director who was leading the Honors All-State Chorus just looked at me and said: "You can do this." And so I did. And she gave me the solo, even though others sang it right-on the first time.

The rest of the weekend she paid me special attention and really brought me out of the depths of despair, right back onto the path that I needed to be on. I consider my experience with her a defining moment, and she probably doesn't even know how she affected me. I thanked her in the acknowledgements of my album, for those 2 days of inspiration. Thank you Sandra Snow.

My second bout with depression happened this past summer. I got home from California and I never recovered. I blamed it on jet lag for a few weeks, but my sleeping became increasingly off, I never felt rested, I was agitated and anxious all the time. I blamed everything on my kids. I could barely function. My worst point was around the beginning of September and I just stood and sobbed for no lucid reason. My husband was patient but did not quite know what to do with me. I was desperately trying to figure out what was wrong. In theory there was nothing for me to be sad/agitated/upset/tired about...I could see quite clearly that I had a blessed life, beautiful family, amazing opportunities, but the reality was just not paralleling that.

I reached out to a friend. The email went like this: I think I'm depressed, how can I know for sure? She sent me a link to a test on the web. The scoring went somethingn like this: 0-10 sad, 11-25 sorta sad......54-over SEVERELY DEPRESSED. I scored a 62. When she heard that, we made a phone appt. (b/c she lives out of state). She talked me through it and made things a lot clearer for me. After that phone call, my good days started outnumbering my bad ones. I started to find genuine joy in my life again.

For a while there I was blaming a lot on my two challenging children. I was only seeing them 1-dimensionally: Kids with Needs that I cannot fulfill. Now the light is shining again, the merkiness is clearing, and I can see them in all their dimensional glory: 32 flavors, and then some. The other day I found myself saying their names over and over again in my head, and quipping about what great names those are, and what great girls they are to go with those names. I am so glad to be back and fully present with them again, and I am so grateful that they loved me all the while.

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Third Person Thursday

She decided to have crazy hair and makeup that day. Day after day she has to do the same old hair and the same old makeup in order to be clean, commercial, young mom, and marketable. Today she teased and sprayed her hair. Today she wore crazy silver and blue eye makeup.

She took her picture in the kitchen. Held her own photoshoot. Later, she uploaded the photos and added some hues and saturation to make the pictures look even crazier. She wore her iron-on Barbra Streisand tee (circo GUILTY album age), and was crazy mom instead of young mom.

Her baby had a job that day, so she took her with the crazy hair, makeup and tee. When she got to the set they asked if she could be in the photo too. Huh? There was no makeup artist there, no wardrobe...just her craziness. So, she went into the bathroom and tried to UNtease her hair, and rub off some of the crazy blue/silver madness on her eyes.

She took off her Babs tee (luckily she had a nice black tee underneath), and put on her purplish sweater. Luckily the photo ended up being pretty anonymous, but of course the ONE day she steps outside of her commercially box, she has to get right back in again.

Third Person Thursday's past:
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Sigh...it's November

It's over. I made it through October...the cursed month. On a whole 2006's October was pretty amazing, ending with my CD's finally getting here about 6 hours until the end of the dreaded month. I spent part of this evening packaging them for the very awesome pre-orderers...thanks guys!

I am excited. And I am relieved that they are here right on schedule. I don't even care if I meet my goal as far as how many CD's I want to sell, because I intend on enjoying the next few months sharing my music with whoever will listen!

I had an interesting email yesterday from Susan Elizabeth Phillips. She is the author of a book that I modeled for. Pre-orders will begin soon, but it will not be released until February. She explained that when she is promoting the book, she also likes to promote the cover model, and asked permission to link to my websites etc. I, of course was glad for the publicity, and referred her to GLASS POSSE and my website. After reading the blog, she realized that we share the same home town. It was a very weird coincidence. I hope to run into her some time when I go to visit.

Today is the second "music class" for my daughter Pukey, my go-see where I have to dress like a nurse, and my lunch meeting with the Dean....should be an interesting day.

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