Destination: Hollywood
The alarm clock yelled a rude hello this morning, Jay gently and reluctantly exited the bed, taking his warmth with him. Though it’s no thirty degrees like back home in the Appalachia’s, it was a cold morning for Southern California. I grabbed the covers and tucked them under my chin. Unlike Jay, I didn’t have to be up for another thirty-minutes or so. As I laid there all snuggled and warm, I noticed that Lucy, our cat, was behind me on the bed. I rolled towards her and she clawed at the comforter, assuming I was playing the infamous game of “catch the mysterious bump under the covers.” I pulled her close to me, hoping to quell her playful energy that was growing too fast for this Monday morning. After scratching her head for a few minutes, she began to purr. At that point, I knew I my hands and feet were safe from kitty claws and I could fall back into my half-sleep.
Before long, Jay was back in the room, dressed and ready for work. He kissed me a hopeful promise to see me later and said goodbye. It was now my turn to get up. I inched my way out of bed, but begrudgingly grabbed the extra blanket and piled it onto my body like a cloak. The wood flooring was cold on my bare feet, so I tip-toed into the changing room. I pulled my outfit from the closet piece by piece and set it down on the vanity. If I could have gotten dressed with my blanket still hugging my shoulders, I would have. However, I realized that the improbability of success was high, so I uncloaked myself and quickly dressed. Satisfied with “my look” which is usually made up of grays, blacks and heavy leather boots, I moved on to doing my morning chores. Once finished, I threw on a jacket and backpack, said goodbye to my furry friends and left my cozy suburban apartment for Hollywood.
As a kid, I never imagined I would ever live in Los Angeles…that I would ever have the opportunity to attend film school. Being from a small, country town…it’s just not reasonable. What is reasonable is doing the norm; finish high school, graduate college, find a career, buy a house, have a family, retire and then…well…pass on. Now, there is nothing wrong with normal and if I’m truly honest about it, I tried normal…but normal wasn’t for me.
Normal may not be for you either and that is why I decided to catalogue my journey as an artist in LA. I want to share my experiences with you while in hopes that you may find some inspiration in creating your own path.
You see…I too begin my day just like everyone else…my destination is what is different.
