November: The Month of Networking and Waiting

This month was pretty much spent getting adjusted to LA. Since I moved out here with no job I decided that the best way to get work would be to register with some temp agencies and start there. The first week I registered with two agencies, AppleOne and Spherion. My roommate Daphne was so helpful with my whole job search. She started out as a temp and eventually, got here job a Warner Bros. Interactive as an assistant. I was so excited because I ended up getting a one-day assignment right away from Spherion on the Warner Bros. lot. I can't really tell you too mcuh about it but I filled in for the receptionist at Lengendary Pictures (the company who produced movies such as Batman Begins, The Dark Knight, 300, Superman Returns, etc.) so that was cool. I ate lunch at the cafeteria and saw a few people I recognized from TV shows. It was definitely a good first experience. As I sat there during the day, it was weird to realize that I had been in LA less than 3 weeks and already I was sitting on a studio lot. Pretty exciting!

Well, unfortunately, the rest of the month was spent waiting for a job. Neither temp agency seemed to have any work to offer me when I called. I met with a Miami alumni, who works over at Fox Studios and that was a great experience. He directed me to the manager in charge of hiring for productions and they did not have anything to offer me but asked me to check in with them periodically so I was thrilled with the contacts there. I also met with a director I knew from the Oxford International Film Festival last year and he said he would pass my name along to a few people. But since the industry shuts down most production around Thanksgiving and through the first of the year, there was not much to do but wait for the temp agencies. One day, I actually decided to go register with a casting agency so I could possibly get on a set as an extra. It was probably one of the best days I had that month because I was able to finally get out and meet people who had worked in the industry. I got a chance to have some interesting conversations with people while I waited in line to get my paperwork approved and have my picture taken. It was not very expensive to do and I was able to get a little understanding of what it is like for actors trying to make it in the industry. I really give those people credit - it is NOT easy that's for sure!

Overall the month was a good experience because I was continually reminded to have faith that God would provide something and that we often need to wait faithfully on the Lord's timing and not our own. I was able to reflect and realize that God really had provided so much for me already. My roommates and my apartment are one of the most important manifestations of that. I could not have asked for three more wonderful women to live with in such a big city and our apartment is such a nice size for the price we pay. This city can be SO lonely without some good, friendly, trustworthy people to go to when things get tough and it is wonderful to have roommates that are so inclusive and welcoming. The first week I was in LA, I was immediately invited to do so many things with them. I met a bunch of their friends and I even met my roommate, Rosalie's family the second weekend I was here. God provided and continues to provide so faithfully.

Finally, the week of Thanksgiving, I finally decided that I needed to get a steady job of some sort - even if it meant working at Starbucks - which don't get me wrong, I am not dissing that job but that was my go-to last option job and I had desperately hoped not to have to go there. Anyway, I decided to touch base with Spherion one more time before the holidays and see if there were any jobs that would require more work over the holidays since I knew I would not be going back to Ohio and would have more time to dedicate to a position than other people might. Anyway, I emailed back and forth with a lady at the agency and did not get a call until the day before Thanksgiving but it was so worth the wait! She offered me one of their best paying positions as an executive assistant to two producers at Fremantle Media (a reality TV show company). Not only would it pay well, but it would last through the holidays and into February 2009. Of course, I accepted the position and started working there December 1st. I will update you later on work though since this post is pretty long already but the Lord definitely provided at just the right time and it is so fun to look back and see how faithful He was and is. :)

Thanksgiving was a fun experience. Not only, did I now have a job but I was able to spend it with friends and not be alone. My roommates friend, Angela, hosted a Thanksgiving Extravaganza at her apartment and we had a delicious meal with about 15 other "LA orphans" complete with all the usual Thanksgiving trimmings. I got a chance to meet some really great people and discovered that being friends with a bunch of aspiring writers is pretty cool, especially when they are in the Writer's Guild because they get screeners for Academy Award nominated films and we ended up watching one that day. P.S. so glad I did not pay money to see it in the theaters though. haha But fun to see it anyway.

Looking back it is hard to believe all of this stuff happened in one month. It seemed like it lasted FOREVER. I can't say truthfully that I did not get nervous, upset, or have moments of doubt about moving out here but God showed up just when I needed Him and I can't wait to see where He takes me in this New Year!

An update - FINALLY

I am so sorry to all of you who have been waiting to hear from me. As I mentioned in my first post, I cannot promise to keep up with this but I will try. At least you can get some more info now that I am motivated to write but don't forget to let me know what is going on in YOUR life, I would love to hear about anything you want to share, even if it is sad. Don't be strangers!

My First Week Continued:
My dad and I spent the second day in LA trying to decide whether or not we were going to go to the beach or downtown LA and do all the touristy things. Since I did not know which beach we should go to or the best way to get there, we settled for the touristy stuff. It only takes about 30 minutes to get to downtown LA from my place - with traffic so that's nice. We stood outside Grauman's Chinese Theater - which is really small compared to most pictures and we also went to the Kodak Theater complex which sits right next to Grauman's. The Kodak Theater is actually surrounded by a big outdoor mall so you still have to get tickets to see inside of the actual theater, which we did not do. But you can see the big Hollywood sign from the north end of the complex. My dad and I ate at a California Pizza Kitchen and I am pretty sure I had my second celebrity sighting that day though I couldn't get a good look at her face. But I think I saw Busy Philipps from "Freaks and Geeks", "Dawson's Creek", and "ER". Anyway, after lunch my dad and I walked around downtown a little more then drove into Griffith Park and up to Griffith Observatory. It was such a neat place to go. From the mountain you can see the entire city spread out below and there is a great view of the Hollywood sign not far from the Observatory. That's pretty much it for the rest of the week. My dad and I spent the rest of it shopping and getting things set up in my apartment. (You can view photos on Facebook.)

Oh! But I did get a chance to go to the beach on my first Sunday in LA. My roommate, Rosalie, invited me to go to church with her. We went over to the Kodak Theater complex and had Red Robin, which was an interesting experience since we were mobbed by little girls in their moms because it was opening weekend for High School Musical 3 and Disney's El Capitan theater is across the street. But we finally escaped and ended up at the beach. It was so much fun! We stuck our feet in the water and ended up getting really wet since the tide was coming in. It was a great way to cap off the week of new experiences in a new town.