Singing for a smaller me

I don't talk about it much, but I sing opera on a semi-professional basis. What that means: I have a full-time Monday through Friday job, but also rehearse/perform on evening nights and weekends. When times are good I essentially work two full-time jobs and juggle a pretty full social life.

Last year, there was a big fat nothing in terms of casting. I auditioned, but zip, zero, zilch. I just kept up with a couple of long term projects, and a few other little things.

When I went back to WW last October, I made a conscious decision to keep those elements on the back burner and really focus on weight loss. Sadly, we can't live in a tiny bubble the rest of our lives, and I've spent nearly six months with that one goal in mind.

Those elements are now barreling back into my life. In short, audition season for the Bay Area is back upon me, and I'm looking at a number of auditions all in a row.

The truth is, I'm a little frightened to step foot back into that world. That is the world of time crunches, stress, not enough sleep, and not enough hours in the day. But, at the same time, I love that world. Part of me thrives on that frenetic pace and I'm sure I've mentioned it before I'm much better at scheduling my time when I barely have any.

So, in the event of getting cast in anything, the question I find myself asking is "What can I do to be the most prepared I can be for the upcoming craziness?"

1. Prepare, prepare, prepare - lack of preparation is what really drags me down. Prepare food plans, exercise plans, make food ahead of time. Anything to take additional stress off my shoulders.


2. Stay on plan! - the plan works. I've lost nearly forty pounds as proof.


3. Schedule my day - one of the steps in the Beck Diet Solution is scheduling out your day. Literally. Taking a 10 a.m. - 10 p.m. planner and blocking out where in your day you're going to prepare food, eat food, exercise, relax, work, etc.


4. Find time to breathe - Whether it's meditation, yoga, or just a few minutes to myself.


5. Make time for my friends and family - because those couple hours of sleep in bed with the hubby are not "quality" time.

I don't know what will happen when it comes to casting, but the one thing I can be certain of is that I will succeed. There's no ifs, ands, or butts about it.