The New Adventure

Working at the Starbucks.

Hello friends!

     It's been quite some time since my last post, hasn't it? Not that I haven't had adventures since then, just that they seemed so few and far between that I could hardly muster enough effort to record them. But now as I'm sure most of you know, I have started a new adventure! The biggest one yet! But first, some exposition; let's take it back a bit so I can explain the hows and the whys of it all.

     About three months ago, before one of my rehearsals for The Rocky Horror Show, I found myself in a slump. I was unhappy with my job, struggling to pay rent and student loans, and just generally feeling stuck. This isn't to say that I was completely down on my luck, at the time I had a great boyfriend, two wonderful roommates, and a plethora of good people in my life! I just felt like there was something else out there for me. Thinking of all this, I knew I had to make a decision. I could either move to a city with more theatre opportunities and try to work professionally, or I could try and mold my love of travel into some form of career. What I knew for sure was that things couldn't stay the way they were.

Made it!

     At one point, I remembered my friend and Couchsurfing host Paul in London (see previous posts), and I decided to apply for a position as a flight attendant just like him. Early the next day I received a call inviting me to fly FOR FREE to Houston for a formal interview! OMG! You know how it is, when you get big news that can change everything; anything occurring in the present seems less real than the future you've already constructed in your head. It was hard to concentrate on work after that. Rehearsal was easier because I had to throw all of myself into the challenging dances, but even then I would catch my thoughts drifting back to the approaching interview during breaks. As I excitedly told more and more people about it (and as mom told her entire church), I realized that I didn't just want the job anymore, I desperately needed it. Funny how everyone knowing made me completely unable to accept failure. Luckily, the days melted away and I finally found myself in Houston.

Halloween in FA training! (I'm Professor Umbridge)

     After all the countless hours worrying about this one moment and prepping myself for virtually anything to happen (I even had a plan in case I fell walking in my heels [bend and snap{not really}]), the interview just flew by. (get it? flew. heh.) I was congratulated and invited back to Houston to attend flight attendant training for five weeks in approximately two. I quit my job and my show and then slowly but surely began the move from my beautiful home and roommates (Madi and Gavin and our kitty Wednesday) back to Oklahoma where my stuff would reside for five weeks. Again, the days went fast and soon it was time to start training.

We friends.

     It was five weeks of blood (not really), sweat (it was a hot October), and tears (in my panty hose). I met some lovely people and I met some weirdos, but they met me, so I guess they all can say the same thing. Some drowned their sorrows and some dove into the studying with flashcards and post-its.We all commiserated over the long days and late nights while still beaming underneath it all because we felt so special and enlightened. And holy crap, it really did feel like a never ending exam week, but we did it. We passed and we each received a set of shiny new wings. Our family and ourselves were just bursting with pride! And then it was over and we had to say goodbye. And we had to move across the country to wherever the company decided we should go. And so again, I packed all my belongings and on my 24th birthday, I moved to Chicago, ready to start my new adventure.