OK... So, Here's Where I'm Headed....

I leave in a matter of days!! I can't wait!! So, I have my itinerary as set as it is going to be!! I will be spending the first month in the UK, travelling and visiting family and friends. Then, I will head down to France, Belgium, the Netherlands for some much needed fun in Amsterdam, Germany, Czech Republic, Austria, Italy, and then swing back up into southern France and the Cote D'Azur. After all of the hullaballoo, I will head back to London where I plan to hang out for awhile!! I may take some short mini holidays to various regions in the UK & Ireland, but I will be getting involved in the London Theatre scene! Hopefully, that will include a few auditions!!

OK... so, for those of you who do not know me, I am also a writer. However, I have had horrific writer's block for the past couple of years. A lot of the problem is stress. But.... there has been something else. Something eating away at me.... I just haven't been able to write. Not anything good anyway. And I just gave up. So, I'm hoping that I will regain my Spark... my joie de vivre...my creative juiciness! Yea... I told you.... any-hoo... I'm hoping that part of this adventure will help me open up and I can start writing again. I have so many thoughts knocking around my heart and head that I NEED to start writing again soon... or I will lose my mind!!

I will finish this post later....

I'm SOOOOO Excited!!!! I Just Can't hide it....

So, I bought my plane ticket this weekend and I leave for europe in a matter of weeks! I'm SO excited! I can't wait!!

This trip means the world to me. I have had a shitty few years. I have been planning this trip for well over 2 years now. Then I was in an accident and tore up my back. Everything got put on hold - the trip, my career, my life. Everything. It took well over a year to get to a workable point. Then I had to put all the little pieces back together, which was daunting to say the least. And I had a few trip ups and I've fallen flat on my face once or twice in the process. Including the ordeal with The Terrible Twat of Times Square and you all know about that! Anyway, I'm finally getting steady on my feet again and things are finally looking up! So, this long awaited adventure is much more than a trip. It symbolizes moving forward and ahead! Not to mention new experiences, new friends, and the unexpected!!

I feel like I've been stuck in quicksand.... the more I fought, the more I struggled to free myself from being sucked into oblivion - the harder and faster I was pulled down. Finally, I feel like I'm freeing myself.

So, obviously, I am VERY excited!! And the next few weeks are going to be crazy!! Once I get more details finalized, I will post them here! But to give you an idea.... I will be spending about a week in London staying with friends, then some time around the UK, staying with family in Northen England, visiting Wales and Scotland. I will then go to Paris, Bruges, the Netherlands, Germany, Austria, Czech Republic, Switzerland (??), and then back to France for the Cannes Film Festival and some Northern France touring! After all of that, I will be heading back to London for the rest of my stay. I will be auditioning, exploring, having a grand ole time! This is just a general idea, but you get the picture!!

So, I will be getting my travel blog updated and I am planning on making regular updates as my departure nears! Once my journey begins, I will update it every couple of days to share pics and stories with everyone!

So.... stay tuned! The Misadventures of Pippa promises to be anything but boring! But when is my life, for better or worse, boring?!?

My Master Plan...

Mwha ha ha ha......

Just kidding - sort of.

Any-hoo... I have finally firmed up some plans and made some decisions and so forth. I'm sure this comes as much relief for some of you! LOL!

So... here is the 411 - oh yeah! I will be leaving for Europe on or about March 1. I'll be in Eastern Europe for a couple months, then I will be attending the 2007 Cannes Film festival! After the festival, I will spend a bit of time traveling in Europe and then settle temporarily in the UK! There I will spend some time relaxing and working on some writing and projects that I have been neglecting - myself included. Once I have regained my bearings and bravo, I will return stateside and head back out to LA. I'm getting jerked about - not in the good way - regarding the status of some projects, but in the end, LA is the best place for me at this point. So, that is my Master Plan in a nutshell.... let me know what you think!

Of course, as many of you are painfully aware, my plans are rather fluid and tend to ebb and flow with the tides of the times. So, my wanderlust adventure may be cut short by the sharp sword of opportunity. Oh the drama.... ~sigh~ so it be.... I'll keep you all up to date!

Barring any major upheavals in my plans, I should be back in LA in just enough time to fully prepare for the following pilot season! I think it will be good for me to go back - things are different. I'm different, LA is different, the industry is different. It will be interesting to see what happens this time. The whole "Terrible Twat of Times Square" incident really illuminated certain inaccuracies in my thinking. So, as most of you know, this hateful little bitch threw me into a downward spiral the likes of which I had not seen in years - although, I think it also was a certain backlash from staying with my parent's in "The" house (if you know me, you know what that means). Admittedly, I was more than a bit nutty and decidedly morose. Regardless, the experience almost jaded my opinion of NYC. Then I realized that I was placing a judgment on a location based on a singular experience! That's ridiculous! NYC is not at fault, she and her minions are. LA was not to blame for the heavy baggage I brought with me. In fact, I did very well in LA and it allowed for some of the happiest experiences of my life!! I kept blaming my misery on LA being too fake, too dirty, too lonely. In reality, I would have been miserable no matter where I was. It was where I was emotionally that was dirty and lonely. So, it is with this enlightened thinking that I set my sights ahead. And I look forward to meeting LA once again! Of course, Pinky's, Palm Trees, the Pier, and the Promenade are all worth the trip! Apparently, I enjoy things that start with "P"... hmmmm....

In case you don't know the story of "The Terrible Twat of Times Square", email me and I'll fill you in! Suffice it to say, she is evil and I hold grudges. And since I had to take care of myself first, I wasn't able to follow through as I normally would have. No matter! Everyone knows of her now and knows that she is evil and not to be trusted - or employed. The 1st Amendment is a wonderful tool! Especially when you know so many people. OK... I understand that this is not the most enlightened approach, but I'm a work in progress. I acknowledge and accept this.... so leave it be.

Any-hoo.... I guess that's it for now. As most of you know, I have already left the city and I won't be back before leaving for Europe! I know, I know - I love you all and I will miss you! But you know I'll keep in touch while on the road and when I get back. Of course, I'll see many of you in Cannes for the festival!

For those voyeurs who may be reading this blog for shits and giggles, keep readin! I plan on updating it often while I'm on the road! And I am working on getting into the habit of updating it regularly, so bear with me!

Well, I'm off to bed. I promise I will post again in the next few days! Night!

Well, Apparently I'm a Quitter....

After many futile attempts and half victories, I seem to have FINALLY quit smoking! As my friends already know, this time of year is not the best for me. A few days ago, my stress levels sky rocketed, but I did NOT start smoking again! So, I'm pretty confident that I have quit for good! My former M.O. was to quit and then immediately start at the first hint of stress. But, I finally seem to have that part under control. It's been so long since I last had a cig that I can't even remember the date!

Now, I loved smoking. But, I did NOT love being chained to them. And the 4 or 5 cigarettes a day that I truly enjoy were not worth the other 10-15 a day that I had to have. ultimatelt, this will make my life easier - not to mention healthier. I've been smoking for almost 15 years - yes, I started very young. So, it is definitely time to quit.

Any-hoo..... that has been taking up a lot of my energy as of late. Not to mention work and so on, etc. Things are staring to calm down for the holiday break. Then, all the fun stuff starts up! Cannes Film Festival is going to be GREAT this year! Hopefully, if all goes well, I will be in Europe when the festival rolls around! If everything falls into to place, I'll be spending a while in London! Oh, the thought of living and working as an actor in London makes me tingle.... ~Grin~

Well, I have to run, but I wish everyone a Happy Turkey Day!!

Jazz & Cigarettes

I know... I'm not keeping this Blog as up to date as I could... but I have a great "excuse"...

I spent this weekend in DC. I went to the 9:30 Club to see Josh Ritter and Jaime Cullum. It was a B-day present and well worth the wait (my bday was 9/9)!! It ROCKED!!!! For the uninitiated, Jaime Cullum is a British singer/songwriter/pianist who is amazing. He has this raspy soulful voice that touches you unexpectedly! And he puts on a killer show! He incorporates his life into his music that makes it incredibly intimate. His girlfriend is Brazilian, and he uses latin rythms in perfect harmony with his jazz fusion! And he is a nonstop bundle of pure energy - jumping off of his piano, pounding on it with the bench, jumping, etc etc! He is also reviving some old jazz classics with his own hip sexy way. It's awesome to see HS kids swooning over "My Funny Valentine."

If you EVER have the chance to see him live - GO!!!!! You will NOT be disappointed! And Josh Ritter totally took me by surprise! He's a folsky rock kind of guy! I really enjoyed not only his music, but his show as well! If you get a chance, check him out! He too is well worth a ticket, and if you have the chance go see him! Here are both of their MySpace Profiles if you are interested:

http://www.myspace.com/jamiecullum
http://www.myspace.com/joshritter

So... after the show, I went to the back bar and hung out with everyone, getting pissed and having a blast. I met a bunch of really hip fun people! Another band you should check is called Honeychuck! For all my NYC comrades, they play a lot at the Knitting Factory. So, if you are interested, keep an eye out. You can check them out at: http://www.myspace.com/honeychuck.

Now, if you have never been to the 9:30 Club, you are really missing out. I had not been there since they moved, and it was fabulous! GREAT venue!

Any-hoo...

Oy Vey....

Well, so much for writing regularly. In fact, at this point, I'm going to have to finish in the morning.

My life is awful busy, considering I'm not doing much of consequence....

So... Here We Are.....

I finally have a few moments, so I thought I would write my first real blog post. My life has been ridiculously hectic. This week, I'm on a pseudo vacation, and I already don't know what to do with myself! So, I thought I would do this. It's interesting.... for as much as I talk and write, I somehow find myself lacking words. For once, I'm not really sure what to say?? Shocking, I know. So, I suppose I will simply write and see what happens. As my previous post suggests, my birthday was a couple of weeks ago. I turned 29, which was slightly more trumatic than I had anticipated. All of my friends keep telling me that my 30's will be so much better because being in your 20's suck. Okay.... I must concede to that. My 20's have definitley sucked ass. So, I hold out some hope for the future. We will see. I have less than a year to go. Over the past couple of months, I have decided to work towards embracing my eccentricities. My friends have always used "eccentric" and "quirky" as terms of endearment, so why not? The harder I fight my basic self, the worse I feel. Besides, it's my fate.Most of the women in my family are intelligent, eccentric, strong, opinionated, quirky ,etc. Of course, there are a couple of exceptions - but let's not discuss such unpleasantries. So, who cares? I don't. Perhaps it's because I'm almost 30....

See, with each passing year, I find myself changing in major ways. I wonder if it is me simply growing up, or am I rapidly catching up. Because of all the shit I went through as a child and adolescent, I missed out on a lot. Even as a young adult, I missed out on a lot of important milestones because I was reeling from the backlash of my formative years. Over the past 8 years, and the past 5 years in particular, I have made leaps and bounds. I have certainly taken steps back occassionally, but not nearly as many as I have made forward. It's really interesting... I've always been counter-culture, anti-authoritarian, bohemian yada yada yada. But now, I seem to be finding a balance in my life. At least working towards it....

I'm still my usual liberal self, but I find myself wanting more. Certain creature comforts. I've discovered that I love foam - pillows, mattresses, etc. And cotton. And my DVR... I know. I'm even thinking about kids and marriage! My career will always be very important to me and a huge part of my life, but now I think I would like a family. I've also been thinking about the type of person I would like to spend my life with. In case you did not know already, I identify myself as bisexual. However, I think I will probably end up with a man. That's where I am at the moment. Of course, that depends on me finding a decent man. I've never been attracted to "bad boys"... but they sure like me. I've been in enough shitty relationships to last 5 lifetimes. I don't need or want anymore. I want a honest to goodness "nice guy." Whoever I end up must be intelligent, compassionate, involved, successful, creative, and very funny w/ a sick sense of humor! Beyond that, I'm open. I haven't really dated for years. Nothing worth mentioning anyway. A few tristes here and there. But now, I think I'm ready to get into the game and put myself on the market, so to speak. Once I get settled wherever I land, I'll actually start saying yes.

Oh, so I'm going to move. Again. I think I need a change. It would only do me good. I want to finish some writing projects, and I haven't been able to really write in awhile. My sitcom has stalled for the time being, and I need to do some major revisions before it can move forward. One of my digital shorts seems to be moving forward, so I have to stay within a couple hours of NYC or LA. I'm grappling with which coast I want to be on. For those who know me, you probably know that I wasn't all that happy in LA. But I'm not sure I would have been too happy anywhere at that time. It was a strange time in my life. But career wise, I really can't complain. I will always prefer NYC and the East Coast in general. I love New England. But, I'm willing to consider other places. I've always wanted to move to London! It would be great to see family in the UK. But, despite my efforts, it is not an option at the moment. So, I really only have a few options. I can move to Southern CA, Las Vegas, or southern New England. Southern CA certainly offers the most opportunities for my career, but making friends is a definite challenge. I suspect I would face the same in Las Vegas. Obviously, I'm leaning towards New England. And that's probably where I will land. I may not have quite as many low budget film opportunities there, but I will be happier and meet more people like myself. And I can always catch a flight to LA, so I'm not too worried about it. The big roles cast on both coasts anyway. It's just the bit parts that I would miss out on. And I can make up for that with the projects that I write for myself. Eventually, I will permanently settle in NYC or London. I just need a short break.... anyone in the city who has struggled understands.

I have my overnight sleep study tomorrow night. I am finally able to get that done. It's only been prescribed to me for like 8 or 9 years. When I went in to see the doctors for the intake, they seemed very excited to see my results. Somewhat disconcerting, actually. They said because of my dream activity and so forth, that I may have some interesting brain wave activity. But with any hope, I may actually get a good night of sleep in the near future. Oh, that would be so nice. I'll let you know how it went!

So, anyway.... I think this post is quite long enough. I'm going to try to write at least a little every day. You never know what's going to happen with me.... so, check back!

Yeah, yeah, yeah.....

OK... so, I'm really slacking on this whole Blog thing. I just turned 29 on Saturday so cut me a lil' slack! Oy vey....

Not to fret! I shall return bearing gifts!