Extra, Extra, Read All About It! (aka, my brushes with fame)

Wow… I barely know where to start with this. I'm still sitting here geeking out about Conor, the insanely talented makeup artist who kind of became my friend and painted my face every morning, before I realized he was THE CONOR that WON FACE OFF, which I loved! It is a special effects makeup competition show that was on Syfy!



How I didn't recognize him I just don't know, but I have to say he was the single nicest man ever, and was really looking out for me in that heat, and had a great sense of humor and gave me some great advice and made me feel better about my future and all sorts of stuff. We got along great, and then I was totally starstruck, and he thought it was so funny that I actually knew who he was but didn't recognize him. Here's a pic of him with the host of the show he was on:



Anyway, the point of this post is to tell you guys what little I can about my experience as an extra in The Hunger Games, and what I think of the awesome people I got to meet (Conor included, obviously)! First off, the things I'll avoid talking about: the scenes that were actually filmed, costumes, hair, makeup, dialog, and certain plot elements. Which means all I can really talk about is the weather and the different people I got to know :D.

Work was something interesting and new and exhausting and incredible, as we were filming outside in the sun on days with crazy weather, and I was able to talk with Jennifer Lawrence and meet Liam, Josh, and Elizabeth Banks. Liam, Josh, and Elizabeth I didn't get to talk with much at all, but they were all super nice, and Elizabeth Banks is effing AMAZING as Effie Trinket. Like, WOW. Mainly what I did was walk with a certain expression, pantomime, and stand still and react to various events that played out around me. We were in direct sunlight almost the entire time, and temperatures reached 100 degrees two days in a row, so people were dropping like flies which was really scary (seeing girls collapse all around you makes you paranoid… 'am I going to drop next?? 0.0). I did start to pass out but Keith, a super tall crazy guy from wardrobe, asked if I was okay, and I said I was fine because I thought I was, and he said 'no you're not!', grabbed my hand, and drug me over to a chair right when my vision went and I started to go down. I'm really lucky he was paying attention!

So anyway, on the first day we showed up (at 4:30am!)at the drop off location, and I met two girls, Caroline and Megan, fellow extras. We wound up sticking together the entire time, and really became close friends, and I'm so lucky to have met them both! Caroline brought her copy of The Hunger Games, and was having people sign it, an idea which I totally copied a couple days later. The different people who were kind of in charge wound up with nicknames because we didn't know their real names, like Dinosaur Shirt Guy, Green Hat Guy, Train Robber Guy, and RJG (or, Red Jacket Guy) plus the two guys named Ben, Umbrella Ben(who Caroline called Cute Ben) and Tall Ben(who Caroline called Hat Ben).

One of the assistant directors, John, grabbed me from the back and put me near the front (likely because of my convincing expression… let's just say I put a lot of emotion into it xD lol), and I wound up getting followed by the camera multiple times, so I think I'll wind up with a close up in the movie! :D :D :D. I got to talk with Jennifer Lawrence some, and told her what an amazing job she did in Winter's Bone (seriously, she CARRIED that film). She was super real and nice to everyone, and actually pretty darn funny :D.



One of the peacekeepers hit on me, told me I had pretty eyes, and wanted to stalk me on facebook, but couldn't find me because of the privacy settings I have (I JUST got an account, anyway). I avoided him like the plague the last day, because I didn't want confrontation, and if he'd spoken to me I'd have wound up telling him that I wasn't interested and didn't know him and didn't want to friend him on facebook, which I was worried he'd react badly to. This was just such an amazing experience and I didn't want the last day to be ruined by a fight :-P. Plus, I don't even know how OLD this guy was, OR his name! But moving on, Gary Ross was super cool and really nice to all of us extras, and gave motivational speeches and thanked us numerous times for being there. The medical team was also nice… I have to say pretty much everyone there was, famous or not! One of our surprises was autographs from the main cast, including Willow, Josh, Liam, Jen, and Elizabeth Banks. So I have a piece of paper with all of their autographs, and my book is signed by a lot of the crew and fellow extras as well as Conor :D. They also gave out Hunger Games stickers and I got a Mockingjay slap bracelet :D. I'd give a picture of all my souvenirs, but my camera is dead :-P.

If you want more info on Conor, read this interview. Here are some pictures of his amazing work:

Classic Zombie Chick

This was an amazing piece inspired by the Frog Prince, and is the prince halfway through his transformation. There was actually a bladder inside of the throat piece that the model blew into, making it blow out and in like an actual frog! GENIOUS!

A regal alien woman :).

So yeah, he's pretty much the most insanely talented makeup artist ever-and he touched my face and covered my zits :D :D :D. Haha, the sunscreen totally broke me out, but then he started letting me use his, which was good for sensitive skin, and I cleared back up. Overall, this experience was a LOT of hard work-work days were as long as 15 hours, almost entirely spent standing, and completely outside in an NC summer. Oh, that reminds me, I was in a paparazzi picture! Here is the original-can you find me?



And here I am!



Yep, short dark hair, pale purple dress. But it wasn't just a lot of hard work, it was a lot of FUN, with plenty of laughs and really educational. I kind of want to see if I can get a speaking role in something… but I'm just thinking out loud here. Besides, I can't exactly do that AND go to college at the same time, and my scholarship isn't a 'whenever you feel like it' kind of deal, so that dream is just going to have to be put on hold. Well, now I just have to wait until next March to see the movie and how my scenes turned out, and fingers crossed my close-ups make the final cut! :D. I'm also hoping that Caroline, Megan and I can see it together :D. HUGE HUGE HUGE thanks to Raisa (aka Hunger Games Lova) for posting about the casting calls-I've had the experience of a lifetime all thanks to you! I'll never forget it :). Well, hope this rambling distracted name dropping post didn't bore you too much. Thoughts? Comment! :D. OH, and I'd like to thank everyone who commented on my graduation post-for some reason, blogger isn't letting me comment ANYWHERE, so I haven't been able to respond. But thanks to ALL of you, and Jinnyd, I've missed you, and feel free to email me sometime! :). Until next time,

Update from the Beach (and reminder-10 days left to enter my giveaway!)

Hey everyone! Blogger's issues caused the first comments on my last post to vanish, so I'm planning on copying them from my Reader and posting them back soon, then responding. Sorry to those whose comments disappeared :/. Anyway, just thought I'd give you guys a quick update:

The fitting on Thursday(the day of starvation) went great, and was an exciting new experience. I'm not allowed to talk about anything about it, what I wore, what we're going to do, anything, so I can't really post about it :/. I so, so, SO wish I could tell you guys, cause there's a lot to say, but I can't :-P. Rest assured it was FUN though :D.

The colonoscopy Friday went fine, I'm alive, and we still don't know what's wrong xD lol. I also finally got to eat-my sister swung by McDonald's on the way home (she was kind enough to take me, my mom was working), and I got nuggets and a fish sandwich ^_^. Food is good.

My mom got an 'emergency' phone call last night, and I wound up needing to change costumes due to unforeseen circumstances, so I went in for a second fitting this morning. I was fine with it, and am still so excited :D.

And after the fitting, my family and I hit the road for my graduation vacation at the beach! We got here a couple hours ago, and I just got a chance to sit down and breathe, and thought I'd let you know what was up! My camera is dead, so I don't have any pics yet, but before we left I showed my sister a video I love:



She does Marcel's voice PERFECTLY, it's SO FUNNY!!! She was going through her makeup bag and pulling out stuff, for example a compact that was just powder around the edges, and said in her Marcel voice "this is my sand box. Sometimes-sometimes I fill the middle part with water, and then it's my ocean"… it was too cute! Also, just a reminder, you still have ten days to enter my giveaway! I've been making more items, just need to get them listed :). Also, though no longer listed, I DO have another pair of the Triangular Sunshine earrings (the first pair sold, but I bought more gems because they were so popular :D). Thanks so much to everyone who has entered! Until next time,

Recovering from the Weirdest Day of My Life (thus far)

This tale is not for those who are weak of heart, because it’s really freaking weird. Oh, and HG Lova, you kind of have to read this. Today, I did the following:

Went to physics class, which was a review in prep for the final, and other than me looking like crap because I had a random unexpected breakout on the side of my face, it went great.

Came home because I was starving because I hadn’t eaten, only to realize I didn’t have TIME to eat-I was running late for a doctor’s appointment.

On my way to the doctor, got in a car accident with one other vehicle, holding three generations of women (my first accident ever).

I melted into a puddle of hyperventilating and waterworks, repeating over and over “I’m so sorry, I’m so sorry” (I think I was in shock).

The two younger people with whom I collided were from Maine, visiting the third person, the grandmother, who was behind the wheel. The middle woman grew up in the Bahamas, because the grandmother was a missionary, and the young daughter also grew up in the Bahamas.

The younger daughter was 19, and very nice, and homeschooled. She told me they lived in Maine with a large garden and lots of farm animals, and that she was the youngest of seven siblings, all of whom were married. She reminded me to trust in God while making all of the huge decisions that come with graduation, a reminder which I desperately needed.

My entire town lost power, so I couldn’t get a hold of the insurance guy and my mom couldn’t look up the doctor’s phone number to tell him I’d be late.

My dad arrived at the scene of the crime to assess the damage and make a decision whether to work it out personally or bring in the cops (which the other people did NOT want, at all).

We agreed to go to an Auto Body shop that the grandmother always used in order to get an estimate on the price of the repair of their headlight area (which slammed into the side of my car, which we will not repair… I’d have to pay to fix it, and honestly the car still drives, so I’m okay with it).

It wasn’t her first collision, and she knew the man who ran the auto body shop.

After hearing his name, my dad asked if he was related to a recently departed family friend, and it turns out he was. They wound up talking about Mr. Terry for a while, and Mr. Terry was such a good, Godly, man, so I started fighting tears again.

A price was settled upon, and the man said he would do part of the work for free (generosity which was completely unexpected).

Both vehicles went to the bank, where my dad got a cashier’s check and paid them the agreed amount. Then we said goodbye to the missionary family from Maine, who really were a blessing to get in an accident with (I mean, what if it had been an angry man?!?!).

We swung by the doctor to see if I could be seen, and I couldn’t for forty five minutes, so we went home so I could eat.

We arrived, and my mom said she’d take me to the doctor and we’d go to her interview for a great job afterward, and I STILL didn’t have time to eat, because I was running around doing stuff to help her get ready.

Momma and I went to the GI doctor (I’ve been having severe stomach pains and digestive issues for months now, and we thought antibiotics fixed the mystery problem but they didn’t, so I got a CT a bit back and they found out I have malrotation. Click the link if you want to know just how screwed up I am.). The doctor suggested a second colonoscopy, this time a full one, but he doesn’t know if he’ll be able to do it because my intestine is shaped like a paper clip (again, click the above link for details). We scheduled it for Friday morning, which means I can’t eat anything after midnight tonight, and need to prep(drink some colon cleansing crap) tomorrow.

After the doctor’s appointment, we rushed to the hospital for my mom’s interview at a mother/baby unit. My mom is a CNA :). I sat and watched John Wayne movies while my mom had her interview and went on a tour, and everything went AMAZING, and she’s pretty much hired. It was a real high-point for the day.

We FINALLY ate, hitting the amazing Cracker Barrel, and when we arrived my dad called and told me I had a message that would excite me when I got home-and that it had to do with a casting call I went to (click the link for details).

The food was great, but we had to hurry, because we still had errands and haircuts were scheduled for tonight.

After eating, we hit Michael’s and I got some more triangular gems (the triangular sunshine earrings sold, but I know they were a favorite of some of my giveaway enterers, so I’m making more).

After Michael’s, we came home, and I listened to the message. I am one of the very first extras to be cast in the Hunger Games movie, and was told that I definitely should be excited, as I was one of the first picks. My only hesitation was scheduling-I have my college orientation May 30-June 1.

I called the casting agency back, and scheduled a sitting/costume fitting for tomorrow morning at 9 am. The lady, when she heard about my orientation days, was wary, but I was crossing my fingers I’d be able to reschedule.

After that was straightened out, I sat down and was looking for the email address of the orientation people, to ask how easy it was to change days, when THEY CALLED ME TO ASK IF I HAD QUESTIONS. No bull, I was looking for the email, and they called that moment about my orientation.

Turns out, it should be easy to swap days, so when I go tomorrow I’m just going to wait and see what the filming days wind up being.

In summary, today I went to school, got in a car accident, scheduled a colonoscopy, my mom got hired at an awesome place, and I got cast in the movie of my dreams. Pretty much the weirdest day of my entire life. I mean, how RANDOM can you get? The people I collided with were amazing, the repair guy was a friend of a friend, and the phone rang just as I was looking for the email of the caller? Super freaky. SO, the next few days will be just as weird:

Thursday, 9am, going to my HG sitting/fitting.

At 12, I begin my prepping for the colonoscopy.

When at home, I need to take all of my EOG testing in one day.

On Friday, I have my colonoscopy in the morning, and will be out of it all day.

On Saturday, we leave for vacation, which is why I have to hurry it up with the EOGs.

Is my life insane? You tell me.

Oh, It Is Love (Holiday Update + An Acceptance Letter!)

"How was your winter break?"

"Three days were wonderful, and the rest pretty much sucked. How was your break?"

Hmmm… not sure if honesty is the most socially accepted way to answer that question, but honesty IS the best policy, so I just might go with that. You see, I was thinking the other day about school starting back, and what I'd say to those smiling faces who actually dare to try talking to the sullen mute depressing blah I've become. And in my head, that was the simplest summary of my break possible. Which caused me to seriously think about WHY that was the case. Well, how about we look at those three wonderful days?

My 18th Birthday-my family and I went to see Tron in theaters, and met Henry there :). On the way there, my dad was a total jerk and actually shocked us all into silence with his hostility. I mean, it was my 18th birthday, AND I wasn't feeling too good, and he chooses right before we get to the theater to go psycho about tickets and how I shouldn't assume that he was paying for ANYTHING and more I don't even want to think about right now. My mom sister and I were taken aback, and I wanted to beat the snot out of him, but when we were walking up to the theater and I saw Henry I felt worlds better. We all watched the movie, and afterward came home and I had a peanut butter fudge shake from Sonic while everyone else ate pizza. Then, Henry and I watched How To Train Your Dragon in the living room, and I fell asleep… I was still on pain meds and antibiotics, and had been fighting to keep my eyes open all day. It was great, though, because he was still there when I woke up, and gave me the most wonderful birthday card ever written, and was there to hold me as I fought tears of joy ^_^. So, bottom line, my birthday started really rough but wound up wonderful :).

Christmas Eve-my brother and his wife came over, and we opened up a couple gifts, and they gave us their Wii :D. We played it for most of the night, and there was a lot of laughter as my mom learned how to drive on Mariokart XD. After they left, we opened the rest of our gifts, and people liked what I gave them, and I loved my presents, and it was just a lot of fun. I loved seeing momma HAPPY… when she smiles it really does warm my heart. She doesn't smile enough… during the holiday season we call my dad the Grinch, and Christmas is always a desperate attempt to make the day great despite the familial warfare, and this year WE BEASTED. So yeah, I'm happy about it.

December 28th-Henry invited me to celebrate Christmas with his family, and they were getting together that evening. We ate, and talked, and his family is pretty amazing :). They opened gifts, and his family and his aunt actually got me presents, which I wasn't expecting at all, and about made me cry happily... Henry loved his gift(a clan crest key fob-his family is of Scottish descent), which made my lungs feel like they were going to burst I was so relieved and overjoyed!!! I thought it was cool, and was hoping he did too :D :D :D. I gave MG, his awesome sister, Flipped by Wendelin Van Draanen and The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins, both of which are personal favorites. She hasn't gotten to HG yet, but read Flipped and loved it! YAY! Anyway, after we opened presents us three, Henry, MG, and I, went outside and played in the snow-something I haven't done in years. The stars shone brightly, and we laughed, and pelted each other with snow, and made snow angels, and more :). It was just a magical evening ^_^.

And the rest of the days of my break? I worked some (got told to look for another job by my manager, who simply said that I wasn't 'raunchy and wild' enough to fit in with my coworkers, and just didn't belong. Not kidding. I'm okay with it though… I'll explain further if anyone cares to hear details), slept a LOT (I met with a clinical psychologist, who I didn't like that all, and he prescribed a low dose antidepressant to help me cope with my 'situational depression', which I DO like because it seems to be helping, but it made me freakishly drowsy all the time, so I'm now taking it at night), and was mostly home with my dad… and we don't get along. When the new year arrived, I was home alone with D. A little while after an awkward toast, I went to the bathroom and was fighting tears, chewing myself out for being an emotional wreck. This year will be a HUGE one for me-I'm FINALLY moving out, going to college, growing up, breaking FREE from this prison. I'm going to need my mom's support more than ever… and she, and my sister, were at work when the ball dropped. It wasn't their fault, and I'm not mad about it at all, it just felt wrong. Everything has felt wrong lately. The biggest difference between those few great days and all of the crappy ones is who I was with. On those three days, I was with people I love, and who love me. I was able to laugh, able to smile… and the rest, not so much. I'm sorry I haven't posted, or read your posts or commented. I'm just disconnected right now, emotionally detached, and haven't even been checking my email.

Anyway, on a VERY POSITIVE NOTE: I've been accepted to the Great University, and received the Presidential Scholarship-which means full tuition! It is really amazing, and I'm so fortunate… I'll be going there next weekend for a scholars' dinner and a campus tour. I can't wait! Right now that is the only college that has given me a response, but I can't imagine getting a better offer than that…. I guess I'll see ^_^. I'm also making another college visit next week, and school starts back tomorrow, so I'm going to have to snap out of this and really get myself moving. There is too much to be done for me to be a space cadet! Thankfully I know that no matter how hard it gets, I'll make it-because I'm not alone, no matter how alone I feel sometimes. I am loved, and focusing on that fact is what has allowed me to smile at all during my time in this house. Soon enough, I will be free… anyway, I'm sorry for vanishing everyone. I hope you haven't given up on me! I also hope that you had a wonderful Christmas, that you were able to spend time with loved ones, and that this coming year is better than last year was for all of you :).

--

"But you see, it's not me, it's not my family.

In your head, in your head they are fighting,

With their tanks and their bombs,

And their bombs and their guns.

In your head, in your head, they are crying..."

´¨)

¸.·´¸.·*´¨)*´¨)

(¸.·´¸.·*´¨) *

(¸.· Elizabeth *´¨)

¸.·´ ¸.·*´¨) *

(¸.·´*

Mockingjay!

Today I got an email from Borders.com, telling me that my order for The Hunger Games Trilogy Boxset is ON IT'S WAY!!! Many months ago, I read The Hunger Games in one night, not realizing it was part of a series, then hurried back to the library the next day to get Catching Fire, which I also read in one night.


I absolutely love this series; it is dystopian fiction, Katniss (the protagonist) is kick-a, and the world building is absolutely incredible. For those of you who aren't familiar with the series, the basic story takes place in a futuristic world where a corrupt government annually sends 24 randomly selected kids to fight to the death on live tv, and forces everyone to watch. Sound insane? It is :). I recommend this series to anyone, unless they can't stand a little blood. Have any of you read The Hunger Games? Are you psyched about Mockingjay too?

And P.S. Steph Su just did a post on Mockingjay (which contains spoilers from the first two books, so don't read it if you haven't read them), and included this awesome playlist, if you want to check it out :). I haven't gotten to listen to the entire list, but I love what I've heard and how it relates to the books!