The Best Day Of My Life!

Dear friends,

Three AMAZING things happened yesterday!!!! Gah!!!!! Easily, the best day of my life (or, at least, of 2014). And here they are, in no particular order.


1. The 9th season of HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER is now available to stream on Netflix!!!!!

No, you don't realize how monumental this is! My fella introduced me to this show last year. I had heard of it, but really didn't have any interested in watching it until Eric assured me how much I would love it. And I did! And in a matter of weeks, we consumed all 8 seasons. And since then, I've managed to live my life for the past YEAR without knowing how the final season plays out. I've managed to avoid all reviews of the show. I still don't know how the show ends! That's how good I've been at screening out any spoilers from my life. But now it's here, it's here, it's here!!! And I FINALLY get to learn how Ted meets their mother!!! Gahhhhh!!!!!!!!


2. I had a phone interview with someone in the HR department of AMERICAN UNIVERSITY!!!

As many of you know, I have been dreaming of a job at AU for quite some time now. As much as I've been loving the "freelance writer" lifestyle, I've actually gone broke. True story. I can pay rent on October 1st, and that's it! So I've been applying for admin jobs since June. But earlier this month, I learned that the School of Communication was looking for an administrative assistant position in the Graduate Student department. Well, I have BEEN a graduate student in the School of Communication, and I have BEEN an administrative assistant (many times), so I immediately KNEW that this was my job. I submitted my application as soon as the job was posted. And I have been picturing my life there ever since.

Look, I know that no job will ever be perfect. Just like no relationship will ever be perfect. And no home will ever be perfect. But I will bring my best self to that office every day. And I will finally be able to return to a regular income (because worrying about money every day is not fun, I have learned). So I will have an income. I will have routine. And I will be working for an organization that I truly care about and that I would like to see myself at for the long run. I have another interview next week, then we'll see how life progresses from there.


3. And finally, the BIGGEST news story of the day. ELIZABETH GILBERT retweeted my blogpost on TWITTER!!!! Gah!!!!!!

This (above) is what it looks like when Elizabeth Gilbert retweets your blogpost (my heart, be still).

I don't know if you read it or not, but two days ago, I wrote a blogpost all about my experience at Oprah's The Life You Want Weekend. And then I posted the link to my blog onto Twitter (as I do). And I also tagged Oprah, Elizabeth Gilbert, Iyanla Vanzant, and Rob Bell in my Tweet, because I had mentioned all of them in the blogpost (especially Elizabeth, I went on and on and on and on about my girl Liz!). 

Well, my girl, Elizabeth Gilbert, then retweeted the link to my blogpost! And then two other people retweeted it! And nine people "favorited" it! I normally get one or two hits a day on this blog. Yesterday alone, I got over 120 hits!!!

Can you read the image above? It's a screen shot of my stats. At the time I took this screen shot, 151 people had read (or at least clicked on) my blogpost about my Oprah experience.

But even more importantly to me, Elizabeth Gilbert actually read something that I wrote! She read my words. She read my soul! Agh, it's just too much to handle!!!

So here's what I have to do now. I have to keep writing. I have to publish my book. Liz Gilbert asked me to publish my female hero's journey story. I must do this! And I must dedicate it to her. The signs are everywhere.

Maybe it's because of my experience this weekend, maybe it's not. But right now, I am TRULY living the life that I want!!! May you ALL live the life that you want.

Much love,
Leila

P.S. Want to watch a web series that I starred in? For free? All 10 episodes of The Sherman House Webisodes are free to stream at www.shwebisodes.com.

(My) Oprah's The Life You Want Weekend

Dear friends,

It was extraordinary! On Friday and Saturday (Sept. 19th and 20th, 2014), I joined Oprah Winfrey and her "trailblazers" for OPRAH'S THE LIFE YOU WANT WEEKEND.

The Verizon Center doors opened at 10:00 AM on Friday. We weren't allowed to take our seats in the arena until 5:30 PM, so most of the day was spent touring the two floors of "O-Town." All around the circumference of the arena, that various corporate sponsors had set-up booths and exhibits. Ikea was holding little talks on home design, and Toyota was letting people take pictures inside of the Rav4. Oil of Olay and Tide were handing out free samples. And everyone was encouraging us to post photos to Facebook and Twitter. I got a picture with a cardboard cut-out of Oprah.

For me, the most exciting part of O-Town was the "O Magazine Lounge." The line to get into the lounge took about on hour, but once inside, I got to meet the one and only (and co-host of CBS This Morning) GAYLE KING!!! Yup, I met Oprah's best friend in the world! And she was kind, open, friendly, and so talkative with everyone who came by. I am a BIG fan of Gayle King.

Finally, it was 5:30 PM, and we could finally take our seats in the arena. Music played (mostly Michael Jackson, Chaka Khan, Whitney Houston, etc.) while audience members' Tweets and Instagrams appeared on the large screens. Then a DJ appeared on stage, encouraging everyone to get up and dance. I didn't stand-up until I saw IYANLA VANZANT start to walk through the audience, encouraging people to stand-up and dance. So I stood-up and danced. The camera people started picking people out from the audience and showing them in the big screen. At one point, the camera was on me!!! I screamed and danced a little harder! The DJ, camera people, and Iyanla all did a pretty great job of pumping us up for the show.

And then we heard her voice. THE VOICE. The lights dimmed, everyone's "Life You Want" bracelets started to glow, and we heard Oprah say, "We are all stars." She spoke about all of our atoms being forged in the hearts of stars and the connectedness of us all. There was a short video introductory video, basically giving people an introduction to Oprah and her work. And then, finally, she appeared!!!!

For 90 minutes, Oprah Winfrey shared her life-story and life-lessons with the audience. We learned that she was conceived under an oak tree, by two teenagers who were only together that one time. She never had a stable family life, living with her grandmother until she was 6 years old, then living with her mother until she was 14 years old, then moving into her father's household after that. Though she had a tragic and traumatizing childhood, she was always a bright girl and a gifted speaker.

She skipped kindergarten because she could read the Bible when her classmates were still playing with block letters. She memorized the poem INVICTUS (by William Ernest Henley) when she was only 8 years old. She won a beauty pageant at the age of 16 and told the judges that she wanted to be a broadcast journalist when she grew-up (she said that because she had just seen Barbara Walters on TV the night before, and all the other girls in the pageant already said "nurse" or "teacher," so she just spouted out the words "broadcast journalist").

This beauty pageant led to a job reading the news at a radio station station. That led to a job reading the news on TV. That led to a job as a morning show host. And that eventually led to the national Oprah Winfrey Show. Then came O Magazine. Then came OWN: The Oprah Winfrey Network. And here we are today.

Oprah shared her life-story to make a point about listening to the whispers of the universe. The universe is giving you hints and messages all the time. If we listen to these whispers, an extraordinary life can be laid before us. If we ignore the whispers (out of fear, stubbornness, laziness, etc.), then the universe will throw a pebble at us. Then a rock. Then a brick. And eventually, if we keep ignoring the signs, we eventually slam into a brick wall because, for some of us, that's the only way we'll stop and listen.

So take the time for daily silence, quiet, peace. Call it prayer, call it meditation, maybe it's during exercise, maybe it's during cooking. But you must take the time for undisturbed quiet every day, and the whispers of the universe will come in loud and clear. Don't wait until you're slammed into a brick wall. The answers are there.

DAY TWO 

All of that took place on Friday night. But Saturday was an all-day workshop with Oprah and her trailblazers, from 9:00 AM until 6:00 PM. 

After Oprah's introductory remarks, she introduced the first speaker of the day, Mark Nepo. Mark guided the audience through a morning meditation, to bring everyone into a space of gratitude and presence.

He was lovely, but the next speaker was THE ONE I had come to see. Ladies and gentlemen, it's Eat, Pray, Love author ELIZABETH GILBERT!!!!!

She is my girl!!! Love you, Liz!!! Liz started by speaking about her own "brick wall" that she hit at around the age of 30. Before that, she was living the life that she thought she was supposed to live. She was married, had a house, had a great writing career. She said, "Everything was going perfect, until I realized everything was wrong." It took a massive breakdown (accompanied by "the brick wall"'s best friend, depression and anxiety) for Liz to completely change her life. And the only way that she was able to transition from her old (known) life into her new (unknown) life, was by going on her own mythic hero's quest.

Liz spoke about the revered academic Joseph Campbell, and his work in distilling the single, universal, mythic hero's journey. She said that all hero's journey's, all over the world, follow the same formula:

1. There is a call for a quest, and the hero is reluctant to embark on the quest.

2. But the hero agrees and crosses the threshold into the quest, into the unknown.

3. There is a road of trials. Some characters will help the hero, some characters will deceive the hero.

4. In the darkest night, the hero will be completely lost and lose all hope.

5. But finally, there is an epic battle, the hero faces his greatest fear/foe, and after losing the fear, the hero emerges triumphant.

But the problem with the hero's journey, Liz noted, is that it's always a man's journey. Women may be important characters in the stories (they are the wise old woman, the virgin who needs to be rescued, the mother, etc.), but a woman is never the hero. Joseph Campbell said that this was because women are never broken. They already know their journey. They are perfectly content in their roles as wives and mothers. They don't need to be healed by a hero's journey.

But Liz wants to see more women embark on their own hero's journey. If you're not living the life that you want, go on a hero's journey, battle your demons, and return triumphant!

Before her talk was over, I had already Tweeted Elizabeth Gilbert and promised that I would write and publish my own female hero's journey. She replied, "Do it, do it, do it!!!" Thank you, Liz. I will :-) 

There were other beautifully-inspiring speaker.s Rob Bell spoke about the miraculousness of the every day. He said, "Despair is the belief that tomorrow will be just like today. And next time you feel despair, stop and realize that the life you have is miraculous and it counts." His was a message of gratitude. We need to be grateful for the life that was have today. And we must be grateful for the failures, losses, and pain that change us the most. Without them, we never change. You can't have the life that you want if you're not grateful for the life that you have right now.

And then came Iyanla Vanzant. Woo, did the audience cheer for her!!! People cheered louder for her than for Oprah!

People love Iyanla! She spoke of the labor pains of giving birth to the life you want. Facing fears, facing demons, making changes, being alone, all of that can be scary and painful. But it is necessary to get to the next level, to get to the life you want. Don't be afriad of the labor pains.

Iyanla said, "Sometimes we try to squeeze ourselves into situations that aren't right for us." And the universe will scream to you, loud and clear, that that's the wrong situation to be in. Her final words of wisdom were, "Don't aim for perfect. Aim to be authentic."

Between speakers, Oprah would guide the audience through various workbook activities, to help us start to articulate the life that we want (and the steps necessary to get there). There was also a quick workout called "Soul 15" to get our hearts pumping in the late afternoon. Oprah (and Toyota) also donated money to a local charity that helps homeless female veterans and their families.

And then it was over. I have to admit, I didn't feel any different that first day. Honestly, I was exhausted, and I had a headache from all of the loud music and screaming audience members. I took four Ibuprofen as soon as I got home to help take the headache away. I was tired and dehydrated and just wanted to go to sleep.

But the next day, something magical happened. Once I actually started to talk to my friends about the Oprah experience, it all started to sink in. On Sunday night, I met up with four girlfriends for a little wine, a little chocolate, and a little girl talk. I took my program from the Oprah weekend, just in case anyone wanted to ask me about it. And it turned out, everyone wanted to know about this experience, and we all went through the workbook together and did these (very personal) spiritual exercises together. We all got to know each other on a much deeper level, and we were all able to articulate a clearer description of the life we all wanted. It was a hugely profound night!

I learned a life-changing lesson that night. The more vulnerable and honest we are with ourselves and each other, the more rich and beautiful life can be. I would like my life to be filled with more nights like that.

And so, my friends, that was my experience at Oprah's The Life You Want Weekend. It has left a mark on me. And as a result, I am even more committed to co-creating the life I want. Because "I am the master of my fate; I am the captain of my soul."

Turning It Around

Dear friends,

Summer is finally ending. Things are coming to an end. But new things are beginning, too.

Last week was full of goodbyes. Robin Williams committed suicide. So heart-breaking. Really knocked the wind out of me. Turned out, he had the beginning of Parkinson's disease. He didn't want to live with it. So he hung himself. So sad. He was the same age as my mom. I cried. I watched Hook and The Birdcage on Netflix.  I didn't know how else to mourn.

While I was crying about Robin Williams, I learned from Facebook that a former AU professor of mine, Prof. Dotty Lynch, had died from melanoma at the age of 69. Here is her obituary in The New York Times, Dotty Lynch, pollster who saw the gender gap, is dead at 69.

Just such a sad week. A former classmate of mine asked me if I wanted to attend Dotty's funeral with her. I said yes. I was grateful that I had the opportunity to attend the funeral. I honestly felt like I needed a funeral. I needed a space and a time to cry with others. To cry about Dotty, Robin Williams, my dad's stroke, my mom's depression, my airplane trauma, my friends' heartbreaks this summer, the shooting in Ferguson, the wars in Gaza and Syria, the plane shot down in the Ukraine, etc, etc, etc. It felt like there was a lot to cry about, a lot to mourn. So I went to Dotty's funeral. And I cried. And I really do think I said goodbye to the summer. Goodbye to the traumas. It was all over. It was time for a new season to begin.

And it feels like a new season is beginning. I love being a freelance writer, but I don't want to worry about money anymore, so I have started to apply for admin jobs again. I applied for three part-time admin jobs at American University. I'm really hoping to get an interview any day now (crossing fingers).

This is what I want. I want to work three days a week as an admin at American University. Then I want to have two other days a week to work on creative projects, freelance projects, and writing projects. That is the life that I want. Do you hear that, Universe? That is the life that I want. I need more financial stability, but I don't want to go back to the 40-hour work week ever again. I'll miss the money, but it's a sacrifice work making. I have art that I want to make. Life is too short to spend it in an office for 40 hours a week.

Below is a picture of me, Ted, and Landon on the set of Church Night TV.

It was a great day. It was a long, hard, and exhausting day, but a great day. I will always want time in my life for things like Church Night TV, The Austin Movie Show, and my own novel. My novel. The thing that's going to make me rich. My great love story. I can't give up on it. It needs to be born into this world.

And speaking of that love story, here's a picture of me and Eric at Tara's fabulous birthday party.

A hard summer is coming to an end. But I am grateful. I am grateful that I am still here. I am grateful that I have this precious time to write in my blog. I am grateful for my friends, my family, and my adorable partner. I am grateful for my health. I am grateful for my home. I have a fabulous, FABULOUS life. Even when life is traumatic, my life is still very, very fabulous.

Happy Friday, friends. And I wish you all fabulous lives.

Love,
Leila

July was a bitch

Dear friends,

I haven't written a new blog post in over a month (you may have noticed). And I'll tell you why. July was a bitch. And June sucked, too.

June was trauma-heavy (dad nearly dying from a stroke, me plunging 6,000 feet in an airplane, etc.). July was basically used to recover from June. July was also when I stopped enjoying my new freelance lifestyle because I realized that the money was drying-up faster than it was coming in. I was worrying about money, I was worrying about my family, and I was just basically worrying all the time. So July was a bitch.

But July forced me to deal with the residual stresses of June. I saw a therapist and went to a couple of group therapy sessions on how to deal and cope with anxiety. I started exercising more regularly (to relieve the anxiety). I started to cut out wheat and sugar (to relieve the anxiety). And I finally started meditating again (to relieve the anxiety). Meditation had once been a vital part of my life and well-being. And even though it took some trauma to get back into it, I'm happy that meditation is a part of my life again.

However, July wasn't all bad. In fact, July had some wonderful experiences that I hope blog about very shortly.

Eric took me to Bath, West Virginia, for a relaxing and romantic three-day weekend.

Then I was given the opportunity to write theatre reviews for the 2014 Capital Fringe Festival!

And I haven't even mentioned the life-affirming Dumpling Tour that we went on last Saturday!

I quickly mention these experiences to highlight how awesome July actually was (ok, I admit, the Dumpling Tour was August 2nd, but close enough to July). Mentally, I was dealing with some stress and anxiety, but I am proud of myself for dealing with it. I faced it head-on.

And life kept going. And the more I think about it, life was pretty fantastic. I mean, my dad didn't die of a stroke (he's doing great by the way, we even had our first phone conversation since the stroke a few days ago), and I didn't die in an airplane crash. I am healthy, I am not homeless, and I am still somehow managing to pay my bills (even though I haven't had a full-time job since April!). I have my family, I have my friends, and I have a lovely partner who looks out for me.

So I guess July wasn't so bad after all.

Keep looking on the bright side!

-Leila

P.S. www.shwebisodes.com

Queer Eye

Dear friends,

I am slowly recovering from the traumas of the last few weeks (i.e. my dad's stroke and my airplane that plummeted over 6,000 feet). But honestly, I am not the girl who started this blog two months ago. I have lost something. Optimism? Energy? Hope for the future? Maybe I simply have a case of the "blahs."

What have I done today, besides taking a shower, making my bed, and eating lunch? I have watched a good many episodes of Bravo's classic series Queer Eye For The Straight Guy. Thank you, Netflix, for providing each and every episode of this comedy gem :-)

Carson, Ted, Jai, Kyan, Thom - if any of the FAB FIVE are reading this, I need your help. I realize that you don't do this show anymore. You taped your last inspiring makeover stories in 2006. I know you've all moved on, but can't we get the band together just one more time? Just for me? Your show premiered eleven years ago, and I think the world would go mad to see y'all work your fabulous magic just one more time. Because I desperately need some of that magic right now.

Remember what life was like when you guys were on the air, back in 2003 to 2007? Those were my Austin years. Those were my early twenties. Those were the years when I actually had the confidence to co-create and co-star in a local TV show. I was a DJ at two different radio stations. And I even worked on film and commercial sets. I was a media girl, and I was making all of my media dreams come true.

And so were you guys! You guys were some of the biggest TV stars of 2000's! Carson, you even starred in a Hillary Duff movie!!!

Despite the fact that these were the Dark Days of the Bush Administration, the Iraq War, and Hurricane Katrina, we still followed our dreams and made some entertaining art to lighten the darkness of the age.

But here I am now, in 2014, and I feel stuck in a rut. I want to make good art again. I want to create stories again. I want to work in broadcasting again. But I am stuck. I've lost my confidence.

When I started this blog two months ago, I really did think that I'd be a successful reporter, blogger, and writer, in no time. I thought I'd have this freelance-career-thing down by now. But I don't. I've only made a few hundred dollars since I left my full-time job (and most of that money was made as a temp receptionist, not as a writer). I'm really close to giving-up and going back to full-time admin work. It's a steady paycheck. It's secure. It's a routine. I can totally see the benefits.

But dear Queer Eye guys, I don't want to return to that life. I want to be a freelance writer and performer. I want to start making money from creative gigs (writing, production, etc.). I want someone to pay me to write articles about pop culture and politics. But I've lost my confidence.

So this is what I ask of you guys. Please give me the full-on FAB FIVE treatment. I've gained some weight in the past couple of years, and nothing seems to fit, so I need help finding professional-but-comfortable clothing (especially for these crazy-hot DC summers...it's so hot, I don't even want to go outside). I would like a haircut. I would like some help with my apartment (my boyfriend moved in a few months ago, and he's still not unpacked). I would love some help learning to cook delicious-yet-healthy food (for someone who needs to lose about 40 lbs.).

And finally, I would love some career advice. A little push (or "shoosh," as Carson would say) in any direction would be most helpful at this time.

But if nothing else, guys, thanks for making me laugh today. Queer Eye is still one of the funniest shows out there, and thanks to the power of Netflix, I hope that a brand new generation of kids gets the pleasure of discovering your show. It was not only incredibly entertaining, but it really seemed full of heart as well. You guys really did change lives. And it was (and still is) a pleasure to watch.

Your fan,
Leila

P.S. Hey FAB FIVERS, wanna watch a 10-part web series called The Sherman House Webisodes? It's pretty funny! Just click here to watch it all for free: www.shwebisodes.com.

Trauma

Dear friends,

Phew, it's been a hell of a couple of weeks (hence, no blog posts in over two weeks).

As I mentioned at the end of my last post, my dad had a stroke. So I flew down to Aguascalientes, Mexico to be with him. And the flight from Washington to Dallas was the worst flight of my life.

Oh June 15, 2014, I flew on American Airlines flight 1355 from Washington Dulles Airport to Dallas Ft. Worth Airport. The flight was scheduled to depart at 3:50 PM and land at 6:00 PM. About 10 or 15 minutes before landing, as I was watching the movie Hamlet 2 on my laptop, the airplane suddenly fell, very abruptly, to the left and forward. It felt like a free-fall. I don't know how much time passed (10 second, 30 second?), but most of the passengers started screaming.

The plane soon leveled off, and we restored normal flight. The worst  part is that the crew never told us what happened. No word from the flight attendants or pilots. Nothing. So I was left with the job of calming the passenger next to me, because the crew certainly didn't do their part to calm the passengers.

We soon landed at DFW, and I made my way to my next gate, where I was grateful to find a Bennigan's restaurant. I sat down and ordered a Long Island Iced Tea. I had an extremely friendly server named Adam. I told him about my horrific flight, and he was very comforting and sympathetic. He told me about his worst flight, but added that he was so drunk that he didn't care. He made me laugh and helped give me the courage to get on my next flight.

I texted my boyfriend, Eric, during my layover at Bennigan's, and told him about my ordeal. Eric looked-up my flight online and discovered that my flight dropped over 6,000 ft. in the span of a couple of minutes. Ugh.

But by the power of Long Island Iced Tea, I was able to get on my next flight to Aguascalientes. My little regional airplane shook the whole way, and I shook the whole way. But somehow I made it to my destination.

I had no time to process my terrifying flight ordeal. I was picked-up at the airport and immediately taken to the hospital where my dad was in the ICU. I was allowed into the room for a brief visit. My dad was mostly asleep, and he had the oxygen mask on, but he knew who I was. We said hello, and then I let him go back to sleep.

My dad improved the whole time I was in Mexico. I spent every day at the hospital and got 5, 6, or 7 hours of sleep every night. But there were reasons to celebrate every day. My dad walked a little more each day, and he spoke more each day, and he became more "himself" every day.

And in other good news, I was given the opportunity to reconnect with aunts, uncles, and cousins that I hadn't seen in over 10 years. Everyone was loving and supportive, and I promised all of them that I would do a better job of keeping in touch in the future. I promised to come back, and I promised to bring my boyfriend, too (who they all want to meet).

By the time I left, I knew my dad was going to recover fully. He just needs the time and space to heal.

And then I had to fly back. Ugh. I was not looking forward to getting back onto an airplane. But I had no choice. The only way home was on that airplane (and I really wanted to go home).

The Aguascalientes Airport is relatively small. There are only two gates and no bar (and I really needed a bar). But there was a little gift shop, and thankfully, that gift shop sold cans of beer. So I chugged two cans of beer before getting on that little regional airplane back to DFW. It was a shaky flight, and I shook with fear the whole flight, but there were no 6,000-foot-plunges this time.

Landed at DFW, found my next gate, and found a TGI Fridays near by. Once again, I consumed two Long Island Iced Teas before getting on my connecting flight.

And finally, a very scared, very shaky girl landed at Washington Dulles Airport at 12:40 AM on Sunday morning, June 22, 2014. And as soon as I saw Eric at baggage claim, the floodgates opened, and the tears that I had been holding back all week came flooding out.

I haven't been my usual self since getting back home four days ago. I had horrible nightmares on Sunday night (all airplane-related) that kept me up all night. Since then, I've been taking Benadryl to fall asleep at night.

I haven't worked on my book. I've barely left my house. I'm not very productive this week. But that's ok. I need to heal. This is my time to cry, to sleep, and to heal. I'm not just healing from my scary flight that plummeted 6,000 feet. I'm also healing from the sight of my dad in the ICU. He came back to us, but there were no guarantees that he would. It was an emotional week. I had to deal with a lot of family stuff that is very unpleasant to deal with. But I did it. I survived it all. I will heal from all of it. And I will move on.

Lots of love,
Leila

P.S. On a much happier note, why not watch some very happy Sherman House Webisodes at www.shwebisodes.com ?

Kids In The Hall

Dear friends,

A childhood dream came true this past weekend. I saw The Kids In The Hall perform live! SO MUCH FUN!

Remember when I made my "vision boards" a few weeks ago? One of the pictures on one of my vision boards is the advertisement for the Kids in the Hall "Rusty & Ready Tour" at the DAR Constitution Hall. Can you see it below? (Hint: it's in the bottom left corner.)

I didn't buy tickets to the show because I thought it was irresponsible of me to buy $60 tickets when I currently don't have a full-time job. I decided I just didn't have the money for such a luxury.

But the day before the show, my housemate Marguerite told me that a friend of her's had invited her to the Kid In The Hall show. I was so jealous of her! But she encouraged me to bite the bullet and buy the tickets. It was on my "vision board", after all. It was destiny. So I said, "To hell with fiscal responsibility," and I bought tickets for me and Eric.

And I'm so happy that I did! The show opened with the 5 cast members all on stage in wedding dresses. There was immediate cheer and immediate laughing. The whole skit was them saying, "We wear wedding dresses because..." Hilarious. After the opening skit was over, the lights on stage blinked on and off while the classic Kids In The Hall theme music played ("Bing, buh-bing, buh-bing, budda-bing-bing-bing-bing", etc.). It felt like being at a taping of the actual Kids In The Hall TV show!

 
Apologies. It's not a great photograph. Two of the "Kids" are sitting in chairs, and the other three are standing behind them, and they're all in different wedding dresses. Brilliant.

After the opening skit and opening music, Kevin McDonald came onstage and performed a song about the history of The Kids In The Hall, and admitting that, "Most of you are probably here because your 41-year-old boyfriends made you come."

The next skit was none other than THE ORIGINAL CHICKEN LADY SKIT!!!! Word-for-word. Such hilarity. Such laughter. Such nostalgia.

Again, apologies for the poor photograph quality, but it's clearly Mark McKinney and Dave Foley performing the classic skit. "Do you love life? Chicken lady loves life."

Bruce McCulloch did a funny-yet-despressing monologue about being the only single guy living in a neighborhood of families, and how he's the creepy guy with the poodle. It wouldn't be a Kids In The Hall show without a Bruce monologue.

When Kevin McDonald came on stage in a silk smoking jacket, with a streak of grey through his hair, the crowd (myself included) immediately erupted into thunderous applause. We knew that it must be The Pit of Ultimate Darkness. And of course, his trusty man servant Hecubus, played by Dave Foley. It was a new skit, with classic characters. "I am here to serve you, Master... aaaaaaaaand Satan!"

One of the final skits was a new Buddy Cole skit, played by Scott Thompson. In the skit, he basically mused about kids today and all the anti-bullying campaigns, and how no one talked about or worried about bullying "in my day." He talked about a little boy who thought he was a girl, and his family raised him as a girl. Buddy said, "That little boy wasn't a girl, he just had too much self esteem!"

Yes, the cast is a little older, a little puffier, and a little more grey. But who am I to judge? I am also a little older, a little puffier, and a little more grey than I was in 1990! But watching them on stage, in character, under the bright stage lights, they looked like the same Kids In The Hall to me.

The show ended at around 9:30 PM. We waited outside of the DAR Constitution Hall for almost 2 hours after the show, in the hopes of meeting the cast members in person. We didn't know which doors they would walk out of. About 10-or-so of us fans were waiting around the stage door. By 11:00 PM, we were starting to give up. I told Eric and Marguerite that my cut-off time was 11:15 PM. If these guys didn't come outside by 11:15 PM, I was going to give-up and call it a night.

At 11:13 PM, a girl standing near us screamed, "They're coming out the other door!"

I haven't sprinted that long and that that hard since I was a teenager! But I BOLTED around the building and found Scott Thompson and Mark McKinney signing autographs. I approached Scott, almost in tears and told him, "It is such an honor to meet you. I have been a fan since I was a kid! When I moved to Texas, from Canada, in 1989, the only pop culture that I had in common with the other kids in my class was the Kids In The Hall. So I am a fan on a deep primordial level." And here, on film, is the moment I said that to Scott Thompson (note the hand on his heart).

Scott Thompson was so kind and so personable. It's like he actually enjoyed meeting his fans. He yelled at Mark McKinney to come be in a picture with me. "Hey Mark, she's a fellow Canadian!" "Oh yeah," Mark asked, "where are you from?" I told him, "I was born in Brantford, Ontario." Mark asked, "Where do you live now?" I said, "Washington, DC." Mark replied, "Traitor!" Then we took this picture.

These guys were great to me. I laughed so hard that night. If it's possible, I'm even a bigger fan of the Kids In The Hall now than I was when I was a kid.

And I needed a laugh that day. The night before, I had been awoken by a phone call from my mom at 1:00 AM, telling me that my dad (who lives in Mexico) had had a stoke and was in intensive care. Punch to the gut. It was a scary night. The next day, I didn't know how he was doing, so I was numb, with an aching pain in my stomach.

But then I went to the Kids In The Hall: Rusty & Ready Tour, and I laughed for hours. Then I met some of my comedy heroes! And it was exactly what I needed. And I am happy to report that my dad is getting better, his arms and legs work, and he is recovering his speech. He's going to make it through this.

So thank you, Kids In the Hall, for getting me through that. You guys rock!

~Leila

P.S. After you've caught up on all of your favorite episodes of The Kids In The Hall, why not catch up on all of your favorite episodes of The Sherman House Webisodes? Watch for free at www.shwebisodes.com?

Scandal

Dear friends,

I haven't worked on my book in over a week. My blog posts are few and far between. I am a bad, bad person. I am lazy. I don't deserve to be a writer. And I will be honest and tell you why. Scandal. Oh, holy jebus, I am 100% addicted to Scandal! I am watching it right now, as I type this!

I watch Scandal when I'm making and eating breakfast. I watch Scandal when I'm in the bathtub. I watch Scandal when I'm getting dressed in the morning. That *alone* is a BIG DEAL for me. For the past 6 years, I have watched The Daily Show and The Colbert Report every morning while I got dressed in the morning. Not anymore. I haven't watched Jon Stewart or Stephen Colbert all week long! I have uprooted my sacred morning ritual because I am out-of-control, ADDICTED to Scandal!!!

I write these blog posts (and my book) on my white MacBook laptop. But because I am such a Scandal junkie, I've had my iPad by my side, ALL DAY, playing episode after episode of Scandal on my Netflix app. Laptop on my lap, iPad at my side. Episode after episode. It's out of control!

I've never been addicted to drugs, I've never been addicted to alcohol, but I am addicted to Scandal. It's disrupting my life and my creative process. I want to work on my blog. I want to work on my book! But I can't stop watching this damn TV show!!!

The irony of it all is that this show is so NOT my style. I do NOT like drama. I do NOT like murder. I do NOT like violence. Everything about this show should make me want to stop watching, but I can't!!!

Also, I have been having morbid dreams since I started watching this show. Not violent dreams, but morbid. I had a dream the other night about death. It wasn't a violent dream, just a dream where I was contemplating and facing my own mortality all night long. And I think about death all day long, too. I really have to stop watching this show. But I can't!!!

Maybe I just have to play this out. I only have 9 more episodes in Season Two and 18 episodes of Season Three. I can get through this entire show in less than a week. Then it's over. Then I can have my life back. Maybe I just have to admit that I am weak, that I am flawed, and my life will not be mine again until I have consumed every last episode of this violent, gruesome, thrilling, brilliant, addictive TV show.

Dear friends, don't start watching Scandal. Learn from my mistake! Save yourselves!!!

Ok, time to get back to my show ;-)

~Leila

P.S. Oh no! The Pentagon has bugged Olivia Pope's apartment! Aghhhhhhh!!!!!! (Oh, and go to www.shwebisodes.com).

My Day at the Bee

Dear friends,

Ugh, I did it again! I went another week without posting a new blog post! I'm so, so, so sorry.  I'll just end the apologies here and move-on with the story.

Last Wednesday, I attended the Scripps National Spelling Bee at the Gaylord Convention Center in National Harbor, Maryland (why they couldn't hold it somewhere Metro-accessible, I'll never know). Eric, my hero, drove me to National Harbor before 6:00 AM. When I arrived at 6:30 AM, neither the ballroom nor the media table were open, so I took a little stroll around the convention center, and this is what I saw from the window:

Not too shabby. I wish I had had some time to explore National Harbor, maybe take a spin on the new wheel, but every second was spent focused on my roll as a correspondent for The Repository newspaper in Canton, Ohio. I walked back to the spelling bee area to see if the media table had opened, and this is what I saw:

You know how Academy Award nominees always say, "It was such an honor just to be nominated"? Well, I know how they feel. I was honored just to be there as a journalist. I like seeing the world through the eyes of a journalist. I like doing a thing, then coming home and talking/writing about the thing. I think that being a journalist makes me more present and in-the-moment. I go to more events and search for more experiences when I know that I'm going to report on it to others afterwards. I like that. I like leading the life of a storyteller.

Back to the spelling bee. I checked-in with the media table as soon as they opened, and I staked out my seat at the "media tables," right near the front of the spelling bee stage. I took out my laptop, plugged it into the outlet, and connected to the WiFi. I connected my iPad and iPhone to the WiFi. I was ready to do some reporting... a full hour before the spelling bee even began ;-)

The spelling bee began at 8:00 AM sharp. The first group of students were in place on the stage, the lights were shining, and the cameras were rolling. About 40 students in a row all spelled their words correctly before any students made an error and were eliminated. The student I was reporting on was the 185th student speller of the day, and he got his first word right!

By the way, I'm not going to re-cap the whole spelling bee here. If you want to know how my student did at the spelling bee, you can read my full story at The Repository's website, here: Area speller eliminated in second round of national bee.

The day was long. 281 spellers all came to the microphone in the morning for their turn to compete. Then there was an hour-long lunch break. I spent most of that time at the press conference, with the official bee "pronouncer", as well as the director of the spelling bee. I was wooed to the press conference by the promise of free lunch (a sack lunch consisting of a turkey sandwich, apple, bag of chips, chocolate chip cookie, and cup of pasta salad). I tried to think of a provocative-yet-intelligent question to ask, but I couldn't think of one. So I just wrote-down what other people said.

One journalist asked why all the winners of the past 6 years had all been of Southern Asian decent. The director of the bee couldn't give a scientific reason for this, but she praised the diversity of the student spellers. The students came from a wide variety of ethnic and economic backgrounds. As an audience member, the spellers on stage looked like an even mix of White, Black, Asian, and Hispanic backgrounds. The students on that stage were a visual representation of what is best about this country. 

The student that I was reporting on spelled his first word correctly, and therefore moved-on to the second round of competition in the afternoon. Unfortunately, he spelled his second word incorrectly. So he was out of the competition. 

After the second round of spelling, an announcer from ESPN announced which 50 (or so) students would be moving-on to the semifinal rounds the next day. After all the spellers were announced, I left my seat and met-up with the student I was reporting on, and his parents. The speller was bummed, and clearly disappointed in himself for getting his word wrong, but his parents were gushing with pride. 

Once I had my quotes from them, I returned to my seat at the ballroom and spent the next hour writing the full story for the newspaper. I was done at around 6:45 PM. At which point, my hero, Eric, offered to drive all the way back out to National Harbor to pick me up at take me home. What a sweetie.

So how did I do on my first freelance job as a Washington correspondent? I honestly think I kinda sucked. While I am happy with the final article that I wrote, I'm disappointed in myself for not really understanding what my editor meant by, "Send me web updates." I thought those "web updates" were just supposed to be Twitter-length sentences. They weren't. He wanted me to write short articles for the web after each time my student went up to the microphone for his word. My "web updates" were kinda crap, and my editor had to fix my mistakes.

But you know, I should be proud of myself for just taking a chance and offering to write the article at all. I didn't 100% know what I was getting myself into, but I took a leap of faith that I could do it anyway. And just like all those kids who didn't make it to final round of the spelling bee, I should be proud of myself for just getting there. We should all learn from those brave young spellers. We should all be striving for something great, even if we don't get all the way there. There is beauty in the trying.

Love and light to all of you.

~Leila

P.S. If you've never watched all 10 episodes of The Sherman House Webisodes before, well, you really should start watching them today (for free!) at www.shwebisodes.com.

Freelance Reporter

Dear friends,

I'm sorry I don't write on the weekends. Even on the 3-day holiday weekends. I really do try to schedule writing time during the weekend. But I fail. So I am sorry. I feel (as usual) like we have lifetimes to catch-up on!

I had a fun-filled Memorial Day weekend. Eric and I went to the National Zoo on Sunday...along with the rest of the population of DC. Ugh, it was too hot, too crowded. We saw some lions, some tigers, some lemurs. But then I overheated and needed to find an exit strategy pronto.

But we didn't leave before seeing the adorable Ant Eater!!! So cute!!! He came right over to me! Here he is:

I also went to my dear friend Angie's birthday celebration yesterday. Just a few friends and a few glasses of sangria on a rooftop patio. But it was lovely. I had a perfectly delightful Memorial Day weekend.

Ok, so now onto the exciting news =)

Last Thursday, I saw a post on Facebook from a friend of mine from grad school. He asked if any of his DC journalists friends were interested in writing a story about the National Spelling Bee for a newspaper in Ohio. Even though I haven't written for a newspaper since college (over a decade ago), I jumped at the opportunity. So I messaged my friend and I told him I was absolutely interested in writing this article. He gave the newspaper editor my phone number, and the editor called me that evening.

So ladies and gentlemen, I am thrilled to announce that I will reporting on the Scripps National Spelling Bee for The Repository in Canton, Ohio! This is my first freelance job as a journalist! This is exactly the kind of life I've been dreaming of!

Very excited, but also very scared. I don't want to f**k this up for the newspaper, or for the student who I'm writing about. I'm their only correspondent on the ground in DC. If I blow it, they will have no story from the National Spelling Bee. So basically, I cannot blow this!

I feel confident that I've done all the research ahead of time that I possibly can. I've read The Repository's last four articles on the National Spelling Bee. I've gone to the official spelling bee website and read their Wikipedia page, too. I've contacted the father of the contestant I am writing about, and even though I haven't heard back from him yet, I am fully confident that I will find him (and his son) after the competition tomorrow.

Oh, Nelly, I'm nervous.

But Eric is doing me the biggest favor in the world and DRIVING me to the Gaylord Convention Center (at the National Harbor) at 6:00 AM tomorrow morning. Aww, bless his heart! He's doing me this huge favor because the National Harbor is not very easy to get to by public transport. To get there, without a car, I would have to leave at 5:30 AM, take the Green Line train all the way past Anacostia, to the Southern Avenue Metro Station, which is across the border, in Maryland. Then, from there, I would have to take a 30-minute bus ride all the way to the National Harbor. Best case scenario, if I didn't have to wait for a train or a bus, the journey would take me an hour. But I happen to live with a very generous and kind man, and he will drive me there, and spare me the "Lord-of-the-Rings Journey" through Anacostia in the wee hours of the morning.

I have NO idea what tomorrow will be like. But honestly, I think I'm going to love it. Whenever I've been a part of any major news story (the re-opening of the Washington Monument, the royal wedding, Obama's first inauguration, etc.), I've always wanted to be in the press box, reporting on the event, rather than just spectating. I wanted to write a story about the Washington Monument a couple of weeks ago, but I didn't have anyone to write it for.

But tomorrow will be the dream. I will be at the major news event, reporting on the event, not just living it. To me, I don't feel like I've really lived an experience until I've written about it. I always felt that way.

I have my press credentials. I have my laptop. Hell, I even bought an iPhone (and added myself to Eric's AT&T phone plan) on Saturday so that I can send updates to my editor back in Ohio throughout the day, even if the WiFi goes out. I am ready for this. I've studied this. I've talked about this. Now it's time to go be a reporter.

Oh, and I went jogging this morning! I know! Me?! After Eric and I had breakfast, we kissed goodbye, and I got into stretch-pants and a big t-shirt, and I jogged to U Street and back! It was only 30 minutes, and it was on-and-off jogging-and-walking, but I did it! I figured, it's time.

It's time to be done with not fitting into clothes and cropping my body out of photographs. It's time to make my body as happy as I've made my mind and soul. Everything else is going great in my life. So it's time to overcome my body dilemma. I'm so grateful for my health, my body, and everything that body does for me, but it's time to do better. It's time to get back into shape. I'm working on every part of me. This is the year it all gets better.

So I shall end with a recent photo of a very grateful Leila. This picture was taken in the patio of my local bar, the Wonderland Ballroom, last Thursday (the day I got the job at the Ohio newspaper).

 I also had my hair done that day. It was a big day. I could (and still can) feel the Earth shift that day. Things are happening. It's all happening.

I love you all.

~Leila

P.S. It's time to rediscover all of your favorite episodes of The Sherman House Webisodes at www.shwebisodes.com.

The Suit

Dear friends,

British R&B group Soul II Soul had a great song back in the early 90's called "Back To Life" (the lyrics went, "Back to life, back to reality, back to the hear and now"). Hmm, great song. I'm listening to it right now, while I type this, because the words are very fitting for my life right now.

Don't worry, I'm not going all the way back to how my life was before the start of "Dream Month". I'm not applying for any full-time office jobs right now, but I am starting to get back to work. I visited a temp agency on Monday called Trak Services. I worked with them when I first moved back to DC in 2012, and I got my previous office job through them. They're great.

So I visited Trak Services on Monday morning and spoke with my rep about what kinds of jobs I'm looking for. I told them that I'm only interested in temporary jobs, just a few days a week (but I'm also willing to work occasional week-long jobs). I told them that I'm pursuing a freelance lifestyle so that I will always have time to work on my creative projects. I said that I was looking for short-term gigs at conferences, reception, admin, data-entry, etc.

The only thing I needed was a black pant suit. Ugh. A lot of the conference jobs require a black suit and white button-up shirt. I told my rep that I would go out a buy a suit that day. Ugh.

I don't own a black pant suit. Let me be more specific. I don't own one that FITS me anymore (my waist-line declared war on my body two years ago and is continuing to annex more and more land mass). And, as I have mentioned in previous blogs, I HATE SHOPPING!!! These things ALWAYS end in tears. But if I want to be able to work temporary jobs, I have to own one black suit.

My first attempt to buy a suit was right after my Monday morning meeting at Trak. I told them I would buy a suit immediately, so I walked out of that office and immediately started to look for women's clothing stores. I soon found an Ann Taylor shop on Connecticut Ave. NW, south of Dupont Circle. No one came over and asked me if I needed help, so I walked around the shop by myself. I didn't see ANY clothing in a size 14 (and let's be honest, even 14 is a little tight these days), so I got frustrated, and I left.

Later that night, my roommate Marguerite asked me how my day went. I told her about the soul-crushing attempt to buy a suit. She empathized and agreed that the clothing industry does NOT make it easy for women to buy...well, anything. We all come in different shapes and sizes. She recommended that I try the big department stores at the mall at Pentagon City. So I agreed to do that in the morning.

The next day (Tuesday, of this week), I took the Yellow Line train to Pentagon City, bright and early (I've lived in DC off-and-on since 2008, and this was my first time EVER at the mall at Pentagon City, but that's really just because I hate malls so much). I made the mistake of walking into an Express store first. Ugh. No one there to help, and no sizes bigger than a size 8. Another fail.

I then walked into a Nordstrom's. It took me ages to locate the women's suits part of the store. But I found it. I was already defeated and on the verge of tears when a sweet blond girl named Jill asked me if I needed any help. I said, "I really do. I have to buy a suit for work, but I've already tried two other stores, and no one has my size, and I'm huge, and I'm about to start crying again." She was kind and attentive and offered to help pick out some different suits for me.

After about 45 minutes of taking clothes off and putting clothes on, I eventually found a jacket, shirt, and pair of pants that fit! It all needed to be altered (the pants were about a foot longer than my own legs), but it all got around my hips, my waist, and my broad torso. I was ecstatic! But not about the price. Ugh.

The white blouse was $74, the black pants were $248, and the black jacket was $448. The alternations were $17. For a crushing grand total of $833.20. Ugggghhhhhhhhh. But I bought it! I bought it because I hate shopping. I bought it because Jill, the sales lady, was so sweet and helpful! I bought it because I wanted the whole ordeal to be over with. I bought it because I couldn't handle walking into anymore gosh-darn clothing stores. So I bought it.

All I could think was, "I'm going to have to work a hell of a lot of temp jobs to pay for this damn suit. I thought about the fact that the damn suit cost almost as much as a month of rent. I thought, "Is it even worth it?" But I need a suit. I will need that stupid black suit for every temp job that I will ever have, ever again. I will use that suit for substitute-teaching jobs. I will even use that suit when I go on my book tour.

I bought that suit because I believe, deep down, that I will be able to afford that suit one day. One day, I will pay-off my $19,000 in student loans with a single check. One day, my publisher will hand me a check for $100,000, and I will laugh to myself about how much I once freaked-out about buying a damn suit. I will laugh because I will realize that that $100,000-check would not have been possible if I hadn't taken a leap of faith one day and decided to quit my job in an effort to be a writer, once and for all. One day it will all have been worth it, and I will laugh.

I'm going to the hair salon this afternoon. Along with my $800 suit (gulp!), I've also decided to tidy-up my hair a bit, now that I'm heading back into the job market. I have...some grey hairs, you may or may not know, and I need to go to the salon and have them covered up. And while my friend Ted really wants to see me dye all of my hair grey, I'm just not ready to take that step. I think I'm a cute brunette. And I like getting the occasional red or blond highlights. I'm not ready to give-up on my brown hair quite yet. So off to the salon I go, to spend more hundreds of dollars that I don't have. Ha!

 
Let me wrap this up with a bit of good news about my present situation. While I was at the Mall at Pentagon City on Tuesday, I popped into the Apple Store to say hello to my dear friend, Landon, co-creator of Church Night. Landon was just about to embark on his 15-minute break, so my timing was perfect. We walked to a coffee kiosk and Landon bought me an iced coffee (I had been sweating from the moment I stepped foot inside of that Nordstrom's, and I hadn't stopped sweating, even after I left).

Landon asked me if I would be willing and able to come work for Church Night as a production assistant (PA). I had been a PA for a Church Night film shoot a couple months ago, and Landon and Linsay (the other co-creator of Church Night) thought I'd be a perfect PA for the actual nights of the show. I told Landon that I would be HONORED and DELIGHTED to work for Church Night, in any capacity that they needed me.

So, ladies and gentlemen, I am proud to announce that I have my first freelance job!!! I'm going to be working for Church Night!!! And I don't even need that damn suit!!!!

"It's all happening." (Below is a clip from the movie Almost Famous, where the characters use that line...sorry for everyone reading this on a mobile device who can't watch this clip below because of the Flash player).



It's all happening.

Love and happiness to all of you, my friends.

~Leila

P.S. All your favorite episodes of the Sherman House Webisodes are always available to stream at www.shwebisodes.com!

All Good Things...

Dear friends,

All good things must come to an end.

Below is a 30-second clip from the last episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation where Q says to Picard, "Goodbye, Jean-Luc. I'm going to miss you. You had such potential. But then, again, all good things must come to an end." You have to be on a computer or laptop to watch it, something about Flash not working on mobile devises.



My "Dream Month" has come to an end. I can't believe it's been a full month! But I guess time really does fly when you're having fun.

Life used to go by very slowly. When I was working the office life, doing the same thing, day-in and day-out, always waiting for weekend, a single week would feel like a lifetime. Life used to be dreary. I used to think that that's how life was supposed to be. I used to think that growing-up meant tolerating misery. But I don't think that way anymore. Not after the month that I've just had.

My new philosophy is this: Make this life great! It's meant to be fun! Have adventures, learn new things, get outside more, and create something that moves you and moves others, too!

Stare at beautiful flowers, bake a cheesecake, imagine one day living in that gorgeous high-rise condominium, drink a glass of port, tour a historical landmark, watch your friend perform at a music festival, peruse a chocolate shop, explore a new culture, wear a sun dress, make a pasta salad, tour a winery, go to the top of the Washington Monument, face a fear, watch local comedians, make a collage, read a book (write a book!), eat from a food truck, attend an old friend's graduation, go to a new friend's BBQ, and climb to the top of a mountain!

No, really. Go do one of those things right now! I'm not saying you have to quit your job, like I did. But hey, if you want to quit your job, then by all means, quit your job! I'm just saying that life is fun! It's exciting! And it's all of these things RIGHT NOW! Don't wait until you're retired to enjoy life. Life is an adventure, and it's an adventure today!

So the "Dream Month" is over. What's next? Well, now it's time to start earning some money again. I had an interview at a temp agency this morning. I told my representative that I'm looking for a freelance lifestyle from here on out. I told her that I was looking for one, two, or three-day gigs. I said I would even be happy doing the occasional week-long job. My goal is to keep working on this blog and keep working on my book, while working temp jobs to pay some bills. I even plan to sign-up as a substitute teacher here in DC. I want to keep my schedule open and flexible. I don't want to give-up this "Dream Month" lifestyle completely. I just need to integrate some money-making into this new creative lifestyle. So that's the plan.

I wish all of you a Dream Month. I wish all of you a Dream Life!

All my love,
Leila

P.S. All ten episodes of The Sherman House Webisodes are available to stream for free at www.shwebisodes.com.