Yesterday, I briefly mentioned that I worked in a car dealership and that I would need to devote a separate post to that story...well, here it is!
That was another experience that I never really planned for. When I was younger, I used to do some work for my parents every once in a while because they felt as though they could ignore the child labor laws. Ha! In all seriousness, I spent so much time with them in their office that I wanted nothing more than to help them. I would answer the phones when I was 8 and confused many callers with my tiny voice, and I would occasionally try to translate some text from English to French for my mom because I thought it was cool. Yeah...that didn't last very long. I still help them now and then whenever they seriously need help and are willing to pay me, but that's about it.
I also started babysitting at a young age and I really enjoyed it, but I didn't want to have to do it for too long.
Once I became old enough to hold a real job, I was too busy with school and dance, so I didn't begin working until I started university. I started in the kitchen of a restaurant in my home town and eventually worked my way to the front as a server. I was also given the chance to start training on the bar before I left, but didn't stay long enough to follow through with that. I was initially looking for a second part-time job once I left school and just spent my days throwing my resume around town and trying to speak to anyone I could. I was desperate and was not even opposed to working at McDonald's...
Luckily, I walked into a few of the car dealerships in town and was offered a part-time job at the local Ford dealership! Yay! My dad only had Fords as I was growing up and had bought them all from there, so after they hired me, they made the connection and then started to hassle me about the fact that I we were now driving two Chrysler products. My poor little Jeep Compass has never been the brunt of so many jokes as when I left it parked on the Ford lot. Its new name in the dealership became "P.O.S. Chrysler" (P.O.S. = Piece Of Shit). I eventually left the restaurant when the dealership offered me a full-time position and a raise. Man... if you ever want a really cool temporary job, try to get into a car dealership! I was the youngest person in there and one of the only women. All of the men either became brothers or adoptive fathers to me - it was so funny. If I started dating a new guy, they had to meet him and wow, would they ever grill him! My boss, the GM, was the worst for that. They would tease me all the time, but if I ever needed anything, they were always there for me and they looked out for me all the time. I was just working at the front desk, but they had me doing everything in there: I would do the standard administrative tasks, but I also did a lot of work for the parts and service departments, I did some accounting and some inventory as well. If I was really lucky, they'd let me move some cars around on the lot. For my 21st birthday, my boss gave me the keys to a brand new, red 2011 Mustang GT convertible and let me take it for a spin. That was the best joy ride ever! Ahhh...if only I could own one of those!
I know I sound like I have an odd interest in cars for a 21-year-old girl who is studying musical theatre, but working in the dealership for a year taught me so much and caused me to develop a love for cars. Driving was already one of my favourite things to do; it was bound to happen!
Thanks to that job, I have made some very useful connections and have a place to work if I am ever stuck. While working there, I would tell my dad everything that I was learning. He is currently in the market for a new vehicle, and he's getting a Ford.
For those of you who are only interested in theatre: I promise to try to not talk about cars anymore!
12.4.11
11.4.11
Introduction
Here I am writing my first ever blog post. I asked myself what I should write about and still am not so sure as to what I will come up with, but I guess I can start with an introduction to my story.
I am 21 years old, I live in Toronto and I go to a musical theatre school where I study dancing, acting and singing. I am also a member of a professional tap company (it was two until just recently, but school is getting too hectic). My lifestyle is rather crazy and I sure experience many exciting things on a regular basis. I seek refuge from my daily stressors by writing and listening to music. My name is Geneviève and most people where I live have a hard time pronouncing that, so I can often be heard saying "just call me Gen" in a reassuring way; hence this blog's URL and my screen name!
Now, let's see... how did I get into musical theatre? Well, it was never my original plan. It's funny how it happened, really. I've been dancing since the age of 4 and playing the piano since the age of 5. Those were my two main focuses as I grew up and by the time I started high school, they were both more important to me than school; I knew I wanted to be an artist after completing school. In grade 11, I started taking psychology and sociology courses, and began to develop a serious interest in these studies. Having always been one to whom my friends would come for advice, I decided that psychology would be a good back-up plan for me if I couldn't make it as a professional dancer (by this time, being a musician had become a nice hobby for me, but I didn't plan to ever make a career out of it). When I graduated from high school, I applied to various universities for both dance and psychology. The school that I was set on going to for dance rejected my application after my audition and interview process, simply because I was not the type of dancer that they were looking for (i.e. I did not want to become a professional ballerina) but at the time, I thought that it meant that I just wasn't meant to be a dancer. It broke my heart and I decided to go straight into the psychology program at the same school. It was alright at first and like any new experience, I appreciated the change, but after a year and half in the program, I realized that it really wasn't the place for me. I was so miserable there and just wanted to leave. I then decided to take time off from school and spent a year working. I continued to work as a server (which I had been doing while in university) and eventually left that to go work full-time in a car dealership. Now that is a whole other story in itself! Anyway, I applied to new schools when the deadlines began approaching, but I wasn't so sure about staying in the psychology/sociology field; if I had to go back to that, I'd stick with sociology and become a social worker for a children's aid society, but I'd much rather be doing what I'm doing now. While filling out my applications, I remembered a school that I wanted to apply to when I was graduating from high school.
The problems back then were that:
a) The school could only supply graduates with a certificate (my father did not approve)
b) I just wanted to be a dancer
c) It was VERY expensive
What had changed this time was:
a) They had become an accredited private college and could supply graduates with college diplomas
b) I had begun to understand that if I wanted to make it as a performing artist in this day and age, I would have to learn to do other things in order to compliment my dancing
c) I had been making a lot of money
I applied to this school, prepared myself for my audition despite the fact that I had never had a vocal lesson nor had any experience as an actor, and just went for it. I received a call within 3 weeks saying that I was invited to join the program that following September. "HOLY CRAP," I said aloud in the car with my parents after that phone call. I simply could not believe that they were willing to let me join the program. After receiving their student contract and reading it over very carefully, I took one very deep breath and signed it, promising myself to just dive head-first into whatever was to be thrown at me, and assuring myself that I must belong there, despite the lack of experience.
After my first day of school, I was in love. As time went on, I let go of all of my previous fears and inhibitions and did everything that was asked of me by my teachers. Now, two semesters later, I have received some wonderful reviews and have been told some very reassuring words. This is where I belong. The other students in this school are just as weird as I am and they are my family. The building itself is more of a home to me than my apartment. We spend long, gruelling days there and it will only get worse, and I can't wait. Yes, it is hard work, but it hardly seems like work when I think about what I was doing two years ago. I have found my niche and am set on doing this for the rest of my life.
As this blog grows and develops, I will tell you more stories from my past as well as what is currently going on in my life. I am not vain enough to believe that people will be interested in my stories - this is mostly for myself. However, if you come across my posts and feel as though you can relate, feel free to follow my story and give me your feedback!
I am 21 years old, I live in Toronto and I go to a musical theatre school where I study dancing, acting and singing. I am also a member of a professional tap company (it was two until just recently, but school is getting too hectic). My lifestyle is rather crazy and I sure experience many exciting things on a regular basis. I seek refuge from my daily stressors by writing and listening to music. My name is Geneviève and most people where I live have a hard time pronouncing that, so I can often be heard saying "just call me Gen" in a reassuring way; hence this blog's URL and my screen name!
Now, let's see... how did I get into musical theatre? Well, it was never my original plan. It's funny how it happened, really. I've been dancing since the age of 4 and playing the piano since the age of 5. Those were my two main focuses as I grew up and by the time I started high school, they were both more important to me than school; I knew I wanted to be an artist after completing school. In grade 11, I started taking psychology and sociology courses, and began to develop a serious interest in these studies. Having always been one to whom my friends would come for advice, I decided that psychology would be a good back-up plan for me if I couldn't make it as a professional dancer (by this time, being a musician had become a nice hobby for me, but I didn't plan to ever make a career out of it). When I graduated from high school, I applied to various universities for both dance and psychology. The school that I was set on going to for dance rejected my application after my audition and interview process, simply because I was not the type of dancer that they were looking for (i.e. I did not want to become a professional ballerina) but at the time, I thought that it meant that I just wasn't meant to be a dancer. It broke my heart and I decided to go straight into the psychology program at the same school. It was alright at first and like any new experience, I appreciated the change, but after a year and half in the program, I realized that it really wasn't the place for me. I was so miserable there and just wanted to leave. I then decided to take time off from school and spent a year working. I continued to work as a server (which I had been doing while in university) and eventually left that to go work full-time in a car dealership. Now that is a whole other story in itself! Anyway, I applied to new schools when the deadlines began approaching, but I wasn't so sure about staying in the psychology/sociology field; if I had to go back to that, I'd stick with sociology and become a social worker for a children's aid society, but I'd much rather be doing what I'm doing now. While filling out my applications, I remembered a school that I wanted to apply to when I was graduating from high school.
The problems back then were that:
a) The school could only supply graduates with a certificate (my father did not approve)
b) I just wanted to be a dancer
c) It was VERY expensive
What had changed this time was:
a) They had become an accredited private college and could supply graduates with college diplomas
b) I had begun to understand that if I wanted to make it as a performing artist in this day and age, I would have to learn to do other things in order to compliment my dancing
c) I had been making a lot of money
I applied to this school, prepared myself for my audition despite the fact that I had never had a vocal lesson nor had any experience as an actor, and just went for it. I received a call within 3 weeks saying that I was invited to join the program that following September. "HOLY CRAP," I said aloud in the car with my parents after that phone call. I simply could not believe that they were willing to let me join the program. After receiving their student contract and reading it over very carefully, I took one very deep breath and signed it, promising myself to just dive head-first into whatever was to be thrown at me, and assuring myself that I must belong there, despite the lack of experience.
After my first day of school, I was in love. As time went on, I let go of all of my previous fears and inhibitions and did everything that was asked of me by my teachers. Now, two semesters later, I have received some wonderful reviews and have been told some very reassuring words. This is where I belong. The other students in this school are just as weird as I am and they are my family. The building itself is more of a home to me than my apartment. We spend long, gruelling days there and it will only get worse, and I can't wait. Yes, it is hard work, but it hardly seems like work when I think about what I was doing two years ago. I have found my niche and am set on doing this for the rest of my life.
As this blog grows and develops, I will tell you more stories from my past as well as what is currently going on in my life. I am not vain enough to believe that people will be interested in my stories - this is mostly for myself. However, if you come across my posts and feel as though you can relate, feel free to follow my story and give me your feedback!
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