A day in the life of a writer/actor

As a publicity stunt, Midvale Arts Council invited some of their production workers and actors to do a "Day in the Life" feature on Midvale Arts' Instagram and Twitter accounts. I volunteered to give it a whirl about halfway through the run, and I had a good time with it, too. They even trusted me with the Midvale Arts' designated phone and taught me how to post to Twitter (learning new things every day)!

All of the photos included these hashtags: #macnoisesoff #midvalearts #noisesoff #instatakeover #utahtheatre #midvale #utah #poppyspics @miss_dizzy

Wednesday, March 4, 2015

Photo 1

"Good morning! I'm Megan and I play Poppy in Noises Off. I'm taking over Midvale Arts' Instagram today and I'm excited to see what happens and to hear from you!

Photo 2

"Lunch with my darling dad. Can't ask for a better way to break up a work day!"

Photo 3

"By day, I'm a technical writer at a software company. I write the documentation and online help for our product. I'm not a software expert, so I like to say that if an English major like me can understand the steps and use the software based on my descriptions then anyone can!"

Photo 4

"Getting ready for the show and must give a shout out to our faithful and hard-working stage manager, DeeDee, and stagehands Matthew and Ethan. This show would be more more difficult without them! Plus, they are really nice people!"

Photo 5

"Poppy carries a clipboard for most of Act I and II. Here is a peek at her checklist (and some of my notes)."

Photo 6

"The play's the thing and the audience is laughing! Here is a glimpse of my view from off and onstage. Hope you can catch one of our last three performances :)"

A few photos that didn't make the cut, and regular-sized versions of those in the photo grid:

The phone case MacKenzie/Brooke loaned me to use onstage. Obviously, Poppy would be a fan of Doctor Who!

The stage crew all on their phones during Act I.

"I'm glued to a ruddy tax demand!"

My view from backstage through the "broken" window pane.

Poppy's desk in Act II. Note the package of saltines on the left, and the M&Ms tin on the right...

Brooke's meditations.

"Which one are you? Squire, Squire, Hackam, or Dudley?"
(I had enough free time during Act III that I sometimes snuck to the back of the audience to watch.)

Photo 7

"After the show, I ate pancakes at Denny's with some friends before heading home. Now it's time for bed so I can do it all again tomorrow. Thank you for sharing my day with me. Hope to see you at Noises Off this weekend!"

Sometimes I feel like an SCC at work

I had to address Mr. Coworker about something disrespectful that he said to me in a team meeting today. He indicated that my job as a technical writer is to "make the documentation pretty." He says it quite often actually. I know he doesn't mean to be rude, but he is. No, truthfully, he's just ignorant. As a software engineer, Mr. Coworker has no idea what exactly I do or how I do it (and vice versa). So, I guess I have to educate him. Or at the very least ask him not to use his favorite phrase any more.

As an overview of what my job is, here's a definition I borrowed from www.wisegeek.org:

A technical writer prepares clear, concisely written documentation that communicates technical information to a target audience. Some common examples of technical writing include user manuals for software, documentation guides for industrial machinery, and design or engineering specifications for construction projects. This is a very diverse field, and according to the American Bureau of Labor Statistics, it is rapidly growing.
In addition to being able to create clearly written communications, a technical writer must also be knowledgeable about the field in which he or she works. For example, one who works on documentation for medical procedures typically has an education in the medical field in addition to language skills, These writers can be found in engineering, physics, chemistry, biology, medicine, technology, and an assortment of other industries.*

I consider Mr. Coworker and I to be equals. But as I am a younger, single, female, technical writer, several of the engineers don't act as though they agree. It makes me work twice as hard, so comments like his make me feel twice as frustrated. I watch Mad Men and smile and groan because, seriously, I work in a misunderstood job in a male-dominated field, and things haven't changed nearly as much as we'd like to think they have. I identify with Peggy in so many ways!

I wrote up an e-mail and asked my boss to take a look at it. This is what we came up with:

I have a request, from one professional to another -- I need you to please refrain from referring to documentation as "making things pretty." You've said it several times during scrum meetings, and while part of my job involves formatting and layout, there is quite a bit more to what I do. I know you aren't trying to be disrespectful, but referring to my job in this way is dismissive and reveals a lack of understanding of the skills, knowledge and abilities of professional technical communicators. I know it's not your intention, but it undermines respect for the specialized skills I bring to the team. Just like software development, content development is a specialized discipline.
As I said, I doubt that you are trying to be disrespectful. You are generally kind and one of the few who doesn't act like I'm putting you out when I ask you to review documentation (a part of your job I know you don't necessarily enjoy). I appreciate our working relationship and hope that we can continue to be amicable in the future.

In the end, though, my boss asked if it would be better to talk with the coworker instead of sending an e-mail. That way, there wouldn't be ambiguity and he'd have a chance to apologize if he wanted to. When I confessed that I don't do well with face-to-face confrontation, my boss sent me this video:


I laughed and laughed, and then said, "Point taken."

I asked Mr. Coworker for a private conversation and we talked it over. He did apologize (though he thought the phrase justified in this case) and I affirmed that I appreciate our working relationship and did not think he was intentionally trying to be disrespectful. It wasn't quite the positive, shining conversation I hoped for, but it was far from the condescending, closed-minded shoutfest I feared.

After I shared the results with my boss and thanked her for encouraging me to just talk with Mr. Coworker, she replied, "In the words of my hero, Winnie the Pooh: 'You're braver than you think.'" I adore my manager. I am so lucky to have her support and understanding. Having a strong female role model in the workplace is invaluable.

I'm glad that I was brave and spoke up for myself. I struggle with that in general. People will never respect me unless I make them, and they won't know what I want or need unless I tell them. I can be kind when I do so. They might not show kindness in return (luckily, Mr. Coworker did), but I have no control over that. I did what I could. Today, that is enough.

*If you want to know more about technical writing, check out the wisegeek link above.

Don't apologize for being who you are

February Fun

To no one's surprise, the shortest calendar month of the year went by really fast. It was mostly filled by rehearsals for Noises Off, but there were other great events. For once, I didn't spend the whole month feeling depressed -- maybe it was the Spring-like weather? I don't know, but I hope next February feels as optimistic!

CenterPoint Legacy Theatre's "Hats Off" Thank You Party

Remember when I won this necklace at the party last year? I love it!

CenterPoint kindly and lavishly threw another bash to celebrate the people who volunteered and worked at CenterPoint in some capacity last year. Since I was in two plays, I was invited twice! I truly enjoyed the opportunity to wear a cocktail dress and heels and chat with some of my favorite people. It's a shame that at parties like this, a "chat" is all the conversation I get with most of them. However, the 2014 production-themed food and show-centric entertainment was delightful. I hope that somehow I am invited again next year!

I love this purple dress. I received a lot of compliments that night.

The contents of my tiny clutch

Program-viewing buddies Seth, Natalie, and Josh

Liz and Summer (a mini Little Women reunion)

Chantryce

Jackie

My Maurie

Amy and Jason

Todd

Jekyll costars Dan, Wendi, Amanda, Angie, Jared, and Madison

Valentine's Day

Another year with no official Valentine date, and yet Valentine's Day was a good day. Not spectacular, but good. 

I made strawberry and chocolate-strawberry fudge for my friends for Noises Off rehearsal in the morning -- it tasted all right but wasn't anything to write home about. One of the women did say: "You make homemade fudge? How are you still single?!" 

After rehearsal, I drove to my mom's house, but she wasn't there, so I left a little container of fudge in the fridge for her and dad. When I arrived home, I found she had left me a plate of cookies. Mom's sugar cookies ARE worth writing home about, or at least writing HERE about! Just sweet enough and the frosting is so smooth. Plus, they're pretty! I was delighted by the thoughtful gift.

Five is just enough. I would happily eat more, but I probably shouldn't!

I spent the early afternoon with my grandmother, talking about whatever one of us might think of. I don't make the time to visit her very often, so she was surprised to see me on her doorstep. She's such a neat lady, and she loves her family so much. I'm glad I took the time. I'm glad she had the time!

The rest of the day was spent eating waffles at IHOP (which is empty at 3 in the afternoon on Valentine's Day), and saw Big Eyes alone. The movie was good, though I was in the mood for something a little more upbeat. Terrific acting is always welcome.

Dinner at Potbelly

Remember how much I raved about Potbelly's sandwiches when I visited NYC and Washington D.C. last year? There's a store in Sugarhouse now! I had to stop by for dinner one Monday before rehearsal. The Italian sandwich and berry shake were perfect compliments to each other (I requested jalapenos for the sandwich, so I NEEDED the ice cream). Everybody go now so they know they are welcome and establish more locations nearby!

"Joy in sandwich form. Welcome to Salt Lake, and get in my belly, Potbelly!"
#yummm #itsthelittlethings

Allergies

Since winter in Utah was weird this year, we had nearly 60 degree weather for most of the month. This, of course, wreaked havoc on my allergies. I continue to have monthly allergy shots. Hope to be fully inoculated in about three more years.

We did finally see some snow during the last week. Not a lot, but I'll take what I can get.

The allergies finally got the best of me and blew up into a full-blown cold just in time for an all-day tech rehearsal. It's been about two weeks now and I feel mostly better, but not all the way. That's life. At least I no longer sound like Lauren Bacall.

Noises Off preview performance and opening night

We were asked to invite a few friends to preview our last dress rehearsal. It was such a comfort to hear Chantryce and Mandi laugh from the audience. It gave the cast hope that the show might be pretty good!

Opening night was better than any of us could have imagined. The seats were mostly full, and nobody held back their laughter. Because we could tell they were having fun, we on stage were able to relax and have fun, too. The next night was a little crazy and a LOT of things went wrong, but the audience was just as appreciative. I am relieved that our hard work is paying off!

Noises Off is open, and in a few days it will be over. I plan to wait a few months before my next audition. I'm excited to spend more time with my friends, eat out, and see several plays and the new Cinderella movie. Hoping that March is equal parts fun and relaxing. It will help once we finish up this current software release at work :)

Noises Off opens tonight!

After weeks of rehearsals, and blood, sweat and tears (mostly from our stalwart production team and crew), the set is ready, the jokes rehearsed, and Noises Off opens tonight. I'm excited to share this hilarious script with the general public, and totally rock the performances with my fellow actors and crew members. I hope people enjoy our little show!

Let me know if you decided to come. I'll keep an eye out and say Hi afterwards :)

Spring weather in February

The groundhog saw his shadow, but the "six extra weeks of winter" doesn't seem to apply to Utah. We barely had six weeks OF winter!

I want to be thrilled that Utah is having an inexplicably warm winter. In the part of the Salt Lake valley that I work and live in, it's only snowed once and that was serendipitously on Christmas Day. I want to be thrilled that I don't need to wear a scarf, or a coat, or earmuffs when I go for a walk.

But we had a snow-lite winter last year and I'm worried Utah won't have enough water for the summer and fall... or next year if the east coast continues to steal all the Utah-like storms. The whole "I like snow in the mountains but not in the valley" line of thinking is obnoxious. If we get snow in the valley it means we're getting quality snow in the mountains, too! Good for the economy, good for our health, good for the environment. 

I'd be thrilled if this amazing 60 degree weather were happening next month instead of in February. I like experiencing all four seasons. It's unnatural not to see snow in the winter, especially in Utah, "The Greatest Snow on Earth."

(And I think that "I hate to drive in snow" is a terrible reason to hope we don't have any. News flash: NO ONE --  including an otherwise lover-of-snow like me -- enjoys driving in the snow. Get over it.)

Fortunately, I'm hearing that we're doing ok in the mountains, so I'll try not to stress too much.

Meanwhile, the trees and flowers are starting to bloom. This means that my allergies are starting to flare up. Allergies that haven't had time to recover from last year. For the first time ever, my eyelids itch. A lot. What the heck does a person do to keep her eyelids from itching?! Some kind of topical cream? The anti-histamine isn't cutting it. Boo.

And you just know that in about two weeks we'll get a freak cold snap, and all the flowers and tree blossoms will die. That's going to mess with Spring, and then no one will be happy.

I will admit that I do NOT miss the inversion that comes with cold air. But with my allergies I avoid leaving the windows open anyway... guess I can deal with that sacrifice.

You can't tell me Global Warming isn't real.