calarts visit

I've had this plastic blue bracelet on my wrist for exactly 1 week and 11 hours and 30 minutes. It's one of those flimsy strips they put around your wrist when you go to a theme park, or a fair, or some other event. For me, it was the CAL ARTS HALLOWEEN PARTY. WOo hoo!
My friend from figure drawing and I had been planning a trip down to CalArts for a while, specifically for the Halloween party that was going to take place the first weekend of November. My friend is interested in going to CalArts as well, and she also has a friend there to visit. I wanted to visit friends and get my portfolio reviewed more than anything, but the party was actually pretty fun as well. Plus, I got to use my jellyfish costume one more time!

Our original plan was to pile into her car (her roommate would come with us) and leave on Friday the 2nd. Everything was going fine up until the Tuesday before we were going to leave, when her car broke down for good. Then we switched to using my '96 Saturn...but I received powerful opposition from my parents about using this car, which might or might not be able to make it. So the trip was canceled, two days before we were going to leave. On Thursday my friend said she'd bought another car... I wasn't so sure I wanted to travel 300 miles in a car neither of us knew very well, so I backed out of it, and I thought neither of us would go, and we'd have to find another time to go and another way of getting there. Thursday night I saw my friend in figure drawing again, and I found out that my she and her room mate were still going to go in her new car. It was 8:30 when I called my parents in a last-ditch effort to see if I could go along. I didn't care anymore that it was a new car I had never seen...if my friend was going to go anyways, why should I just stay home?!
My parents were very brave and they let me go. I have them to thank! It was a risky thing to do, to send me away with so many unknowns. But it was SO worth it.

So Thursday night I threw together a bunch of things to take (including a whole backpack of useless stuff) and I was ready to go.
The drive went pretty smoothly, despite getting off to a little later start. We made it there around 4 and I ran into Jeff. Later I met some students in the cafeteria who I believe were from the Character program. My friend jumped over a chair as we left the cafeteria-- I tried to imitate him but tripped over the chair and nearly fell... all in front of a table of people I didn't know. It's been a long time since I felt like the new kid! But I certainly felt it there. I continued tripping throughout the weekend, twice in a row on the same stairs even. But I became so comfortable with the animation students I had met that I was joking about it all by the end of the weekend. It's a great feeling when you can make fun of yourself.
There was one close call on the night of the party. We were all in a huge line to get into the party in the main gallery, me and Jeff and a group of other animation students. But my friend Cindey was somewhere else. I was her guest, and she had bought my ticket. When I got inside to the desk, I found out that I couldn't get in without Cindey being there. I was told I'd have to call her and have her come with me. This would have been impossible...for one, I didn't have my phone. For another, she wouldn't have hers either. It would be close to impossible finding her in all the crowd. So I thought I'd be locked out for good. Then a girl I had only just met a few hours before comes up behind me, claims I'm her guest, and gets me in no problem. I was given the flimsy blue wristband, and was home free. I owe you one, bloody nurse!
This is getting pretty long for a post...maybe I should split it into two parts. So much more happened. The most important thing that came out of this weekend was the reinforcement of my desire to get in that school. The people, the teachers, the assignments, everything, EVERYTHING is amazing. I hope I get in this time, darn it!