When did it become fall?

If time flies when you're having fun then time sprints Marion Jones style when you have a job contract that ends in less than 4 months and you have to decide what to do with your life. In July when I started my second contract at EV January seemed ages away. I still had to get through 2 months of unbearable heat and humidity..auditions for the fall season..rehearsals for the fall season..and plenty of shows before even thinking about turning on the heater and breaking the scarves and mittens back out let alone thinking about what comes after January. Two days ago I wore socks to bed..and last night I turned on the heater. Shit.

Luckily I'm not in this alone, a fact that I am so grateful for. My boyfriend and our cat are also factored into the decision and whether I decide to stay or go it's really nice to know that I won't have to do either alone. So, while we figure this all out, I'll just keep you up to date on what's been happening in my life, still here at EV.

Today I castrated my cat. I know, it sounds horrible. I much prefer the word, "neuter" to "castrate" however when we went to make the appointment for Billie Jean two weeks ago the vet didn't understand what "neuter" meant...so "castrate" it became. I am pleased to say he is alive and well...when I picked him up he was eager to get into the backpack we use as our "cat bjorn" though less than thrilled to leave his balls behind. Anand wasn't pro castration but it needed to be done. He is getting to the age where he would start peeing on things, plus he can get really aggressive, plus his balls were getting bigger and hairier by the day and I just can't handle that. Anyway, the deed has been done. Sorry about that BJ.

While I was waiting for Billie Jean to have his...procedure..I went to the eye doctor for my final post-op Lasik exam. For those of you who don't know I had Lasik done about 6 weeks ago. It is amazing and totally worth the 15 minutes of terror it took to get through the operation. I haven't been able to see without glasses since I was in 3rd grade. It still catches me by surprise. I am also still surprised by the service of the health care industry here. I didn't have an appointment but got right in (I mean I know I'm a big deal but I've been assured that even less famous..normal..people get in quickly too). It was included in the price of the surgery...$700.00..and I was out and on my way in about 15 min...on my way to the dentist where I also got right in no appointment necessary. I mean come on.

Work wise the park is finally starting to pick back up. The group of moms and their kids who come to our shows every single day and who we lovingly have labeled, "the stalkers"..have returned in full force. My friend Evan was at EV Mart the other day when a stalker mom we hadn't seen in awhile approached him. She told him that they hadn't been to the park in 2 months because of "H1N1" and apologized that she had only seen last season's shows, "5 times." Our current show is called, "The Firebird," in which I play The Firebird..complete with a 5lb tail covered in feathers. I shed constantly and the stalker kids have started rushing the stage during our curtain call to collect the feathers that might drop to the floor during our bows.

I need to interject now to say I had to put the plastic collar the vet gave me on Billie Jean because he started licking his stitches. He is now running around the kitchen beating his head into the walls in an attempt to get it off.


In other news...we started an Outreach Program within our department. I designed and built a puppet show of, "Where the Wild Things Are" and there are other songs, dances, and even a craft or two. We had the official outreach 'pilot' last week at a kindergarten in Geumchon about 15 min away. It went really well and I think the kids really enjoyed it. The best part was that the kids all wore Halloween costumes for the event. And after seeing them I'm pretty sure South Korean stores only sell 5 different costumes: Kungfu Panda, Witch, purple velveteen suit akin to Phantom of the Opera, a pumpkin outfit with orange sequined crop top and green sequined bottom (worn by more boys than girls), and my personal favorite..2 little boys in zebra striped bell bottoms and silver sequined capes..I'm not sure what they were, but they were fabulous. Hopefully the outreach program will become a hit and I can continue my research into the world of the fabulous and flamboyant Halloween costumes of South Korea.

So there's the update. I am going to try to blog every week from now on. We'll see if I can do it. There's not always a lot to report but don't worry I'll just make stuff up.