Tennis anyone?

I went all over the place today and only missed my stop once! Woohoo!
I began my day with a trip out to Queens. Now you might be asking yourself, "self, what is Erin doing in Queens?" Yes, I went there intentionally. The US Open was having a job fair, so I thought "what a great way to see some amazing tennis and get paid for it." So I took the train all the way out there. First the G line (which was voted worst subway line in NY) then the F train up to Arthur Ashe Stadium. Beautiful. I wasn't quite sure where to find this amazing job fair, so I just started walking around the giant USTA Tennis Complex. Flushing Meadows park seemed nice. I realize I have chosen the wrong way around, but I did get a full view of the grounds. As I was coming around Court 9 I noticed some folks playing on the court. Hmmm, that looks a lot like Venus Williams. What do ya know! It was Venus Williams!!!!!!! I casually sauntered over to watch (she totally saw me cause then she went behind the giant bush, blocking my view). Tragically, I didn't have a lot of time cause I still needed to go apply and then get to Manhattan and I had no idea how long that would all take. So I continued on. But as I glanced back to have one more peak from the other side of the court, I noticed someone else hitting on that court too! Oh my goodness.... it was Serena! I had to stop and watch for a little while. I was the ONLY person around and I got to watch the Williams sisters practice. They're good. I also spotted some hefty grounds crew men squeezed into a little golf cart around the corner sneaking a peek. So that was cool.
The job fair turned out to be a bust. All the other applicants seemed a little shady. You know its not a good sign when the application asks if you graduated from grammar school. I'm supposed to bring back photos and IDs to continue my application process but I think the next time I'm in Queens, I hope to be watching the tournament instead of working it.
So I make into Manhattan with plenty of time to spare before my class. Trying to break that Nelson curse of lateness. I headed to Jamba Juice for a little pre-class boost. Delicious! Around 1/4 to 2 p.m. I decided to go on in to teh studio. Early but not freakishly early. You know those folks who are always so excited and show up 30 min. early. Secretly that was me, but I restrained myself and waited til the appropriate "cool" time to arrive at 15 til.
I walk into the assigned studio... dead silent. Which immediately makes me laugh. The other eager beavers are seated and most of the class arrives in the next 10 min. Its the typical acting studio with rows of chairs in the back facing the playing area. So with 20 people all sitting facing forward... its a weird awkward silence. Again, I found this funny. Our instructor for the 6 weeks is Suzanne Esper, wife to Bill Esper for whom the studio is named. Honestly, I'm too tired to give you the rundown of the entire class, but we did a lot of listening and a couple exercises. Basically, what I came away with is that this woman knows her stuff and she will definitely make me better! She will not sugar-coat it but she will instruct with purpose. We were given a partner at the end of class to work with on a listening/repeating exercise. If you really want to know what we're doing in these classes, you can just pick up Bill Esper's book. Its in there verbatim...almost.
My partner is a guy named Ben Davis. He has been acting 8 years and goes to Rutgers. We decide to work right after class, but grab some food before. During our dinner (i had an over-priced salad. delicious, but over-priced) we learned a lot about each other. He seems like a really nice guy. Loves Broadway, as do I. He actually has an internship with the producers of Chicago, so I might get the hook-up there! YES!
So we decide to go work at Central Park, cause my apartment has 4 girls living in it at the moment, and he lives in New Jersey. As we're walking to Central Park the sky starts to grow very dark. Determined to get some work in, we both establish that we have umbrellas and are totally game for powering thru the weather. We find a nice spot off the beaten path to conduct our repetition exercise. Of course, the sky opens up on us a few times. We were under a tree and we had umbrellas so it wasn't too bad, but after an hour or so I was a little damp. I finally had to pull the plug on our work cause I was about to wet myself. We quickly walked to the nearest Starbucks, (you're never far from a starbucks, kinda like Vancouver) and... you know.
I was exhausted so I said goodnight to Ben. I'll see him tomorrow. He is in my Movement and Voice & Speech classes. On the way home I missed the stop to transfer from the C train to the G train. My only mess up of the day, directionally. I don't count the morning at the UTSA b/c it ended with me seeing the Williams sisters. Did I mention I saw them today? Great Day!