The Mind of Samantha

Review of 2009

2010-01-01T22:50:00.001-08:00

Snow Berries,
originally uploaded by willowforlife.

I am a little late reflecting on 2009 but here goes:

It started out by sleeping on a beach in Texas. I traveled to Mexico / Honduras via a cruise ship, to the south eastern part of the US via a car, and to Paris via a plane. It ended with me in a cabin here in Oklahoma.

I moved to Branson. I got a dog.We had a car catch on fire on the 4th of July! I made wonderful friends. I also created my own photography business.

I acted in a million (not exaggerating...ok maybe a little) Ultimate Murder Mysteries. I performed at the Nightingale Theatre in Shades of Gray. I sang at a gay wedding (a hi-light in my book). I sang and danced at many functions in and around Branson. I performed in An Ozark Radio Christmas at the Branson Star!

It was a hard year to get through having been the first year out on my own but it was pretty dang awesome and I wouldn't change a thing about it.

2010 looks to be promising...
First up Los Angeles and Disney Land auditions. After that who knows. There is a world of possibilities (literally).

December Is Here Once More

2009-12-01T12:09:00.001-08:00

We Are The Beatles Man!,
originally uploaded by willowforlife.

Things are getting busy in the Land of Sam and Derick
Peter Pan is ending in 2 weeks and we have started to look for jobs over the winter months when Branson is deserted. We are auditioning for Silver Dollar City this weekend and I am very hopeful about that.

It seems as if Peter Pan is coming back to Branson next year hopefully we will be around and Derick can reprise his role as Smee. There is also talk of a tour in Dubai for Peter Pan. Due to resent financial problems with Dubai I'll believe it when Derick gets his contract. In the mean time I believe we will bounce around working on our photography business. We are starting to have people interested in headshots and the like so I am very excited about that. There might also be an excursion to California in January.

I am also doing “AN OZARK RADIO CHRISTMAS”

BRANSON, MISSOURI/The year is 1949, and Branson’s own WXMS- “The Biggest Radio Station South of Springfield & North of Little Rock!”- is about to perform their “First Ever Annual Ozark Christmas Eve Spectacular Radio Branson Broadcast Bash”. The problem is… none of the performers have shown up! Can the station manager, a group of stranded strangers, and a little Christmas cheer save the show? Local professional performers and the student youth of the Vagabond Stage Company will take you on a journey through Christmas memories of our community, so you can find out for yourself… at AN OZARK RADIO CHRISTMAS!

December 15 & 16 at 8:00 at the Branson Star Theatre
3750 W Hwy 76, Branson, MO 65616.
Admission is only $10.00, and $6.00 for age 12 and under.

If you are in the area on those days it is a wonderfully funny show with singing and dancing and mayhem.

Plus I have a rather large role in the production :-)

So we are keeping busy and having lots of fun while we are at it.

Good News!

2009-10-09T15:24:00.001-07:00

It Just Means He Likes You,
originally uploaded by willowforlife.

I am now an award winning photographer!!!!! Ok so it is only 3rd place at the Tulsa State Fair but its still awesome to me. Halloween is fast approaching. I am super busy. We are still going back and forth between Branson and Tulsa.

I also finally turned 21! I did not drink anything on my birthday though. I am very proud of myself. Carrie calls me ridiculous because the only thing I really drink still is wine. Every time I look at alcoholic drinks I think they sound good if they didn't have all that alcohol in them.

Things are going great right now. Performances galore, lots of friends and photographying it up. What more do I need?

Round and Round We Go

2009-09-18T12:20:00.001-07:00

EuroDisney!,
originally uploaded by willowforlife.

We are back in the states and we have hit the ground running.

We are doing Murder Mysteries like crazy: One last weekend, one this weekend, at least one a week for the next month I think.

My birthday is in 11 days (I'm turning 21!!!) and I am planning a party in a park with all my friends

I started dance lessons again. 3 hours of crazy dancing so much fun. And we have a show on the 3rd of October which leaves us very little time to learn everything. I hope I can remember that dance!

I am also working on getting our photography business off the ground. We are working on getting a website together for that.

We are traveling back and forth between Branson and Tulsa so we are busy bees. But we are having a blast doing it. We also went to Silver Dollar City again this week and I learned there is a part of SDC that I had never been to with actual fair type rides! Who knew?

Paris!

2009-09-02T11:32:00.001-07:00

Illinois River Balloon Fest,
originally uploaded by willowforlife.

This past month has been crazy. We left Branson came back to Tulsa for a week where we tried to see everyone we possibly could before hopping on a plane to Paris, France. I write from Paris.

Were are in our third and final week in Paris. We have couchsurfed stayed in a very nice B&B. Spent a week in a hostle and now we are spending the next three days in a hotel. Each one has had its ups and downs. Here is my views on each.

Couchsurfing: I have had many great experiences couch surfing. This one wasn't the best. I did not realize from all my corrispondences with him that he would actually be sharing a bed with us. There was not enough room on that be for three and it was more than a bit akward. Best thing about couchsurfing is its FREE!

The B&B: This is the best place we have stayed so far. Along with a wonderful room we got a very nice breakfastand good conversation. This is by far my favorite place we stayed. We came back one night to find them drinking wine and laughing and they asked if we would like to join. That night goes down as one of my favorites on this trip. A B&B runs about 30€ per person/per night

Hostel: I did not get a good impression when we first checked in. The woman at the desk asked us to wait 10mins until her shift was over so another person could check us in. Then the Man that did check us in was not very nice about it. We had a room for 3 people and every night there was a different person and they wouldn't check in until around 2 in the moring and I would have to wake up to open the door for them because there was only one key. There was a free breakfast but it was nothing fancy and you had to be out of the room from 11 to 4 everyday so they could clean. The hostel is the cheapest in town we spent 15€ per person/per night

The Hotel: It lives up to its name "Perfect Hotel". It truly is perfect. The people who work there are amazingly nice. When we walked in the door we were greeted with a smile which I find is hard to come by in Paris. We realized we had one more night in the hostel and no place to stay the next night. We found this place in ,y travel book I bought and found it online and tried to reserve a room. The form they had online was just a request form so we thought it better to just go there in person. She had a room avaliable for the first night which she reserved for us but there was not a room for the second. She told us she would do everything in her power to get us a room for all four nights we wanted to stay there. We came to check in the next day and she had done just what she said. The room is beautiful complete with a balcony. The free breakfast that comes with the room is wonderful with wait service and everything. At 28€ per person/per night you also can't beat the price most hostels are more expensive than that!

All and all this trip has gone very well and I look forward to telling all my friends and family about our adventures in Paris.

I Need To Set Some Goals

2009-08-01T18:26:00.001-07:00

Dogpatch USA,
originally uploaded by willowforlife.

1. GET A JOB!!! I need one badly or I am going to be living on the street here soon. This I need to do with in the next few months

2. Actually make money with photography and I am not talking about the $3 I have made from stock photography that I will never see. Anyone need headshots? wedding pictures? engagements? pictures for no reason other than they love me and want to give me money? Sometime in the next year I am going to make this happen. I am selling my D40 and getting a shiny new camera!

3. Move to Florida. I have been saying I am going to move to Florida for a while now and I keep getting caught up with other things. I freaking want to work a Disney World. I will move there some time in the next 10 years.

Ok now how do I make it happen?

What Do We Consider Art?

2009-07-08T20:18:00.001-07:00

Ghosts of the South,
originally uploaded by willowforlife.

I ask this question a lot. My mom always said I was the only one in the world that would take a picture of a blade of grass. Some people call that art. But I know for a face that many people take pictures of grass does that mean that it is not art for the fact that it is repeated so many times?

Do we judge the worth of a piece of art by its monetary value only? Does that mean that a painting or print that has not sold is worthless?

I throw paint on a canvas. Is this art? it has no skill to it. Anyone can do it. Or is it the emotion that I am feeling when I paint it that makes it art? If that is so how do I convince others of those emotions?

Today I painted. Its nothing fancy but to me it conveys all the mixed feelings I have in myself today. Happiness, guilt, love. Does it show in the painting? Its just color. I like it but will anyone else.

What exactly is art?

Top 5 Moments on My Trip

2009-07-08T20:10:00.001-07:00

Clowning Around,
originally uploaded by willowforlife.

Here is a list of my top 5 favorite moments in order as they happened

1. Beaches all day. We didn't want to go to Disney world on a Saturday so we spent all day driving for a hour and stopping at a beach, driving for an hour stopping at a beach. The beaches in Florida are amazing and it was just wonderful. We didn't make it too far but we had a wonderful time.

2. Disney World. Obviously this has to be on the list. We went to Epcot. We headed right to the France portion (as if anyone would expect different) to have breakfast and had a lovely quiche. We spent a good portion of the day there talking to a man that worked in the shop who was from Paris. I learned I can even hold a conversation in French. I was great and I didn't stutter once.

3. Boca Grande. After we left Orlando we went to an island call Gillespe Island. Unfortunately we weren't to sure where we were going to camp but we decided to stop and swim. While we were there we met a nice man (Dennis) who offered to let us stay at his place. He had the most interesting stories from his past. He loves sailing and has sailed all over the world. He had such an adventurous spirit.

4. Dancing in the Rain. When we got to Charleston it rained almost all night but we weren't going to let that stop us. We walked around downtown all evening in the pouring rain. Many people looked at us like we were crazy but some admired us. It was so much fun just to talk a leisurely walk in the pouring rain. On man walked with us holding an umbrella over our heads until he got to where he needed to go. We jumped in puddles and danced around and fun was had by all.

5. Chattanooga, TN. Everything about this place is magical. We met some great guy there who played so beautiful music for us. We spent several hours on the foot bridge playing music and singing and talking. The next day we went and climbed a mountain and swam in a stream. It felt like we were kids again. More people need to do that. We get so caught up in our daily lives that we forget what its like to be totally free and have fun. I really want to move there. If you have a chance go and experience the magic.

but the best part of all was coming home to my wonderful companion and best friend Derick. I missed him so much and it is wonderful to be back in his arms

Dreaming of You

2009-05-30T13:01:00.001-07:00

Dreaming of You,
originally uploaded by willowforlife.

Lets see... Not much happening in my little world right now. I have been planning a trip with Jes to the southern states on the east coast. We are leaving in mid-ish June returning first week of July. I am very excited! Until then I am trying to stay busy. I am going to Tulsa this next weekend to have fun with Carrie and to see a play.

Derick and I took some fun pictures the other day. I am hoping to do more along those lines in the near future.

I hoping this trip might get some creative parts moving and working again. I am feeling a bit low on those juices and maybe beautiful gardens and oceans will be just what the doctor ordered.

My silly days trying to stay busy

2009-05-13T20:11:00.000-07:00

I emailed a bunch of photographers about being a photo assistant but so far I haven't heard anything back from any of them. I'm not too worried about it because I am planning a road trip with Jes in June. That should be fun. I am also trying to find some cool places to hang out in Branson. The closest thing I have found in the bookstore and the Landing. I'm trying to find a cool coffee shop but nothing. :-(

Schmoopers (my new puppy) is doing well. I think she is starting to understand how to walk on a leash. She is just so hyper and ADD she basically runs from one side of me to the other and back but she is still the cutest dog in the world.

Here I am

2009-05-10T17:45:00.000-07:00

So I live in Hollister, MO for the time being. My first week here and been interesting. I started dance lessons and voice lessons at a studio down the street from me. I feels great to get back to what I love to do. For a while I have just been feeling lost because I had no way to get my feelings out. I am hoping to find a fun job in the near future either having to do with theatre or photography.