Alarms

Around 9 p.m., this incoherent mumbling was coming from the hallway outside our door. Gray and her study partner, John, heard it but didn't move. When I opened the door, the incoherence grew louder and this time it was accompanied by a fire alarm. I hate drills. But we had to play.

So down the 13 flights of stairs we went. When we got to the lobby, we were met by no fewer than 10 of NYC's firefighters with pickaxes in hand, filing into the elevator. Apparently it wasn't a drill. It turns out that some dimwitted young person decided to heat up a pizza in our really cool convection ovens while it was still in the box. For this, we all suffered. And I missed CSI. I have to start carrying my camera with me. I was planning on going to Astoria tonight to celebrate a classmate's birthday. But I was feeling guilty for not having started studying until 3 p.m. So I decided not to go. And instead, to avoid waiting to gain entrance back to our place, a few of us went to a pub down the street.

I'm going to get up at 7 a.m. (5.5 hours from now) and start reading. But I got to hang out with Renata and Marcella again. The studying that I did get done was interesting. I read a little more about race and ethnicity. And what's actually happening is that I'm unlearning the things that have been hammered into my brain all this time. It's both inspirational and frustrating.

I think I was the only person in shorts today. Maybe not but I didn't see anyone else in them. It actually wasn't that cold. And I think what I'm doing is preparing myself for when it's really cold. I can't be wearing coats now if it's only in the 50s. Pretty soon, I hear, it will be close to 0 degrees and then I'll be so used to coats that it will no longer suffice. I still need to buy a scarf and gloves and maybe a hat or two to cover up my ears, which are always exposed. Maybe I'll grow my hair out. No. No I won't. Some of you may already know that Erin and I are no longer together.

We broke up about a month ago, but have obviously been maintaining a good friendship, something very important to me. We spoke tonight, as a matter of fact. We talked about the last couple of weeks and she told me about the review she got. I think they give them reviews every six weeks. And as I'm one of her biggest fans, you will continue to hear about her successes in the world of theatre. The way it worked was that her teachers talked to her adviser and he jotted down what they said.

Her review was as follows: Acting: Terrific Movement: Great and Smart Voice: Introspective and Lovely Speech: Serious and Hardworking Script Analysis/Dramatic Structure: Fantastic During her meeting with her adviser, he asked how old she was and she told him that she is 25. He said that she'd be able to play young parts with depth and that she'll be their next Juliet. So far, it sounds like they plan to have her around for the duration of the program. She will definitely be a star one day.