What Time is it? AB TIME

Today was the first day of classes for both Giordana and I. In fact, we both scored the same section (or class unit)! Because of our good fortune we have the same schedule, so we can help each other out with assignments, choreography, etc.

Speaking of choreo, we had "movement" class first thing this morning, which included stretching and twisting our bodies into painful and irresponsible shapes. It also involved "ab time" and while I can't speak for Gio, I have never been in more pain. Our instructor has done his fair share of shows, including "A Chorus Line", and while he is incredibly funny and nice, It is very clear to me that this man means business. It was the first class and already we're working on choreography for Chicago. It is with a little shame that I can say it was the most fun I have had in awhile.

Following movement, we proceeded down to the fourth floor, and began working our voices. Voice and Speech seems to be the most intense of the subjects at the school. We're being taught two different speech methods while at the school: General American (an untraceable North American accent) and Good Speech (which is kind of a blend of British and American dialect). Of course, finding the textbook (written by Edith Skinner -- I kid you not) was an act in itself: G and I had to go all the way to Juilliard.

As I write this, I am tired as hell...but never have I been so excited.

Squirrels & PB&J

It's the female half of the blog here (for once)! First, I have to say that we got the best care package ever the other day, from my mom and sister. It had balsamic and travel mugs and candles and saffron and awesomeness, in it. So good, that I put the box on my head, apparently.

Things are starting to come together as far as school goes -- we have giant folders full of school rules and pamphlets on crime prevention and sexual harassment and such. We did our 'registration' which was just signing a form or two, and our big orientation is on Monday, which is when we find out which time block we'll be in! Aah! Tonight, we had a chance to meet a bunch of classmates at a sort of dinner party at one of their apartments on the East Side. We had chicken marinated in orange soda. Yes, like C+.

I have to tell you about Garry's near-death by squirrel. In Madison Square Park, the squirrels are very domesticated, and they are also apparently really hungry (but you're not supposed to feed them because it attracts rats, the sign says. Whatever). You can call them by clicking your tongue, and they jump out of trees and hop over the fence and get right at your feet, standing up tall and being all cute. Well, I guess one was pissed because we didn't give him food (or our wallets?) and so he scurried away, turned around and RAN FULL FORCE into Garry's leg. Then it left. So I guess it wasn't a near-death but it was really funny.

Check out the PB&J(ack-o-lantern) sandwich I made for Gar:

Pretty sweet. I get into the holiday spirit. Any holiday spirit.

The world went crazy on a summer's day in Central Park

It's finally cold in the City. It took long enough. After spending October in twenty plus degree heat (I'm still stuck in Celsius, by the way. Fahrenheit confuses me.) the ability to finally wear anything other than a t-shirt and shorts is a welcome event. Seeing as ninety percent of the clothes I packed were packed with my first trip to New York in mind...

We've both managed to get through our auditions successfully, and registration is tomorrow for me. G's (who is smiling in the photo to the left) is the day after, and following a few days later is our first day of school. It's all pretty exciting! We're getting kind of antsy to start learning. You can only kick around the city with no money for so long until you get bored. That and I am craving improv like a pregnant woman craving chocolate dipped deep fried pickles suspended in jello.

If I have learned one thing this month, it is that excel budget spreadsheet is god. Without having a firm outline and history of our moolah I probably would have blown it all on cupcakes and hotdogs by now. It also helps when you watch everyone on wall street sobbing on the side of the street.

Today I had to turn down another Obama pollster. So far in our experience we have found New York city to be grotesquely Democratic. To the extent that if Palin were walking down the street, she would be in severe danger of having a collision with an airborn tomato. The pollsters we love. We get to be one of the 36 percent of Americans who say "No, we will not be voting for Obama" however we do quickly follow up with "we would if we could though!" I don't exactly think I can get rotten fruit out of clothing yet.

Da nuh nah naaah nuh!

Oh yes -- that is right ladies and gentiles! I have stared into the eyes of the messiah and my heart a burst into flames.

And he "KEEPS A FUCKIN' KNIFE UNDER HIS DESK!"

Pardon my expletive, but I am quoting the great Stephan Colbert himself, after pulling a knife on the audience and letting us know that if we rushed his desk, he would stab us. Watch for us tonight at 11:30 on Comedy Central!

The last few days have involved many brushes with fame. From being fed a KFC Snackwrap directly from the hands of Colbert (after shaking his hand and high-fiving him twice) to watching Katie Holmes, John Lithgow, Dianne Wiest, and Patrick Wilson (watch for him in The Watchmen) autograph Giordana's playbill after a great performance of Aurthur Miller's All My Sons.

One final note: I find more and more I am turning into a New Yorker in that if one more goddamned tourist stops in my path to look at one more goddamned fake gucci bag, or takes a picture of their partner doing some stupid-ass pose in front of the MTV building in Times Square, I will push them onto the street. Take your goddamned picture there. Giordana is narrowing her eyes at me for being so bitter.

Post Scriptum: check out our apartment at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4pE2KM57eIE&feature=related

G&G

Edgar was a good rodent...

Today, I took a life. While cooking a few days ago I noticed a little gray blur dart across our floor. After following his tracks like the trained tracker I am (haha), I followed him to our coat closet. He then proceeded to evade my advances, and take cover underneath our stove. What it came down to was me buying some mouse traps this morning. Now, after carousing the selections at our local uptown Brooklyn hardware store I decided to buy three of the classics and two MOUSEDESTROYER5000's. Imagine them as the Bentley of ethical mouse exterminating devices. I'm pretty sure these things would be suited for Mickey Mouse's coffin. Their price tag did lead Giordana to heckle me a bit, but I stood by my decision.

Lo and behold, at ten o'clock at night, I heard the muffled snap of my beloved black box, and our poor mouse (nicknamed Edgar) had been sent to a better place.

Of course, I did use Nutella as bait, so I can't blame him.

The picture posted above is of the former World Trade Center site. I was amazed to see the bustle of construction as opposed to its opposite. It seems that the city is ready to rebuild, and I could not be happier for them. You can check out the new plans at http://www.wtc.com/media/ which has outlines, etc. We went to the memorial museum, and it was a little hard to handle. It's really hard to keep emotions down when you're faced with an entire wall covered in photographs and items of importance all from loved ones to those they had lost. I almost lost it when I saw a bottle of woman's perfume. Yeah, it was a little much.

Reunion!

Today we dropped by our school again, this time to calculate how much time it would take to make it. The consensus was a good hour, and on our way we passed Madison park, which I might add is one of my new favorite places. The squirrels were so domesticated we had to move away from the trees to avoid having them jump us. I blame those damned tourists who feed them. My audition is scheduled for a couple days from now, so my nerves are a little raw. Which is probably what the scientologists we came across in Times Square were picking up on. I was much too busy, however, to stop and have my Thetan level tested. Instead a stop into the flagship Hershey's store and a multi-level McDonald's calmed my nerves and satiated my stomach.


I'm running out of ideas for meals. I always loved to cook, and its not as if I'm limited with my ingredients (we're finding more and more that Costco is a foodie enabler: I can buy so much for so little...) -- it's that I only really have so many tricks up my sleeve. I'm afraid we can only handle so much tuna fish spaghetti...

G and I walked over the Brooklyn bridge today, which was mind blowing for me as it was the return to a spot I visited four years earlier with a totally different crowd. Nostalgia inspired by a bridge and Brooklyn heights. Does it get much more dramatic than that?

Quick Update!

Giordana is a genius.

Time for you to live your NY dreams vicariously through us.

Call it a contest of sorts: you comment on the blog (either here or on facebook [and for records sake, please make sure the post is either here or on the facebook note]) and tell us what you've always wanted to do in NY. Whether it be run through Central Park, or Break Dance in GCS, just keep it legal and possible and Giordana or myself will do it. With photographic evidence of course!

So please send us your ideas! We're overwhelmed with possibilites here and we need some direction!

G&G

Hello Chairman

Another day, another adventure. This time George and I waltzed our way to the Met and ended up fully saturating ourselves with culture before we could even make it off the first floor. Intelligently (in our opinion), we've become associates of the museum so we have an unlimited free reign there. Considering how large it is (and ever changing) we both thought it would be a good investment.
Outside the museum, Georgie talked me into a hot dog (twist my rubber arm, I know). It was the first of the trip and most excellent.


I can't speak for my partner-in-crime, but I think I'm starting to understand the Subway system here. The lines are easy enough -- that's not what I mean. What I'm referring to are the constant performers who will hop into your car at one stop, whip out a tune, and drop their hat. A good trick is to keep your headphones on, but turn off your MP3 player. This way you can enjoy their noise, but avoid awkwardly avoiding them when they walk by with your hat, and you have no change. It's also quite tricky to figure out where you are, when you not only can't understand a damned word the conductor is saying over the loudspeaker, but you also can't see through the wall of people in order to read what stop you're at. Every ride is a transitorial "Hail Mary."

Home sickness still comes in waves, but it's a less common assault. I'm not sure if the video calls on Skype with the folks help, or just make the pain worse. Soon though, we'll be able to call New York our home.

Until then, please send care packages. We really need dishcloths.

Oh, and Balsamic Vinegar. Plain old spinach and olive oil kind of suck.

G&G

We're here!

Well, it's about time we posted I guess. For the lot of you who have been pressuring us to make the announcement, I should remind you that it is difficult to find time to make a blog post when you're running around trying to put yourself together after moving to the entire opposite side of North America.

I should begin with the flight over. It was long, and while the flight from Calgary was first class, it did little to mask the fact that we were both leaving home for quite a while. The wine helped, I guess...

After arriving, our separation anxiety kicked into high gear. The rock hard mattress, cheap polyester sheets, and that one goddamn car alarm, all amounted to very very little sleep for us. The first day, however, saw a great discovery: Costco! Thanks to Google maps, we discovered one down the street and have since lugged at least a couple hundred pounds of memory foam mattress topper, down comforter, 25 lb. rice bags, and over a dozen boxes of pasta home. We're starting to think about bringing our luggage bags into the store to carry all our spoils back.

All in all, everything is great. Our landlady and fellow tenants are all Spanish. In fact, since we have arrived we have seen only two white people walk down our street. What this translates into is: the passionate shouting of fighting lovers at four in the morning, smashed T.V.'s on the street and ex-boyfriends moving out, screaming children, and coming home to a man playing Spanish guitar and singing on the doorstep.

The apartment is smaller than we thought, but we're making it ours. New post up soon, with some pictures of us around NY.