DevinRitchie.com

Hey everybody!

I have been settling in here in New York City. A room became available at the house I am staying at so I am moving in here. YAY! so easy and awesome. It is a REAL room (much unlike the others I had checked out) with 4 walls, a door, a closet, and air conditioning. It’s in Bushwick in Brooklyn, its described as an “up and coming area”, basically because it is a hipster bohemian artist community that doesn’t have the affluence of an area like Williamsburg (which basically looks like Berkeley and all the lame hipsters live there). This area is still gritty and has more character. The best thing about this place though is my roommates, a group of  about 9 people live in the house which is divided in two but thought of as one. They are all friends and mostly work in the same places. Artists, film makers, musicians, etc. (basically the cast of rent). They seem to really actually care for each other and have been nothing but super supportive in trying to help me get along here. I cant help but think it was fate that this place opened up right when I got here. We also have an amazing backyard right under the M train that we all hang out in and have barbecues and bonfires. I really feel accepted and am so glad I don’t have to live with some craigslist strangers.

9 days down. Place to live? Check. Friends? Check. Job? … Not so much. I put on my nice suit and nice boy face and hit the streets and handed out my resume this week, applied at jobs on craigslist, and applied at a temp agency. Nothing yet, but its only been a few days. I cant lie, I am a little worried. I need a job to survive much more after this first month or so. All I can do is keep trying and applying. I keep reminding myself that I have only been here for a about a week and to have a job right now would be nothing short of a miracle, but still.

Image by bondidwhat via Flickr

Image by silverfuture via Flickr

My classes at Upright Citizens Brigade have been good. REALLY slow and basic, but everyone needs to start in them, I got pretty frustrated because clearly a lot of people in my class are not there for the same reason I am and I have a fire in belly to do so much more and I am learning how to say “yes, and”, Not to be an asshole, but I know this shit. I pulled my teacher aside after class this week wondering what else I can do to advance and how I can be one of those people on stage, he assured me that there was no short cut but also gave me a list other places to go to and work, he also encouraged me to either join or create an improv team and just perform as much as possible. I felt dumb for asking cause I guess thats the answer I was expecting. I have to learn some more patience because even any semblance of success will take me years and years to achieve. Which is fine, I just need to prepare myself for playing the long haul here.

I have been spending a lot of time walking around getting the lay of the land of the city. Ryan Nichols and I walked around central park the other day (which is amazing!) and I started to get the idea that anything you want can be found here. Opportunities here are truly endless which makes it actually easier to live in.

Everyone I know here is not from here. We all left our homes (mostly California and Florida in this house) in search of something. It has a special home for lost souls feel to it. Which is I guess what I was, and still am. Most people here came here for a new beginning, I certainly did. This is it. And I love it. I am treated like I am young here, which is refreshing. My friends here are late 20’sish. They moved here when they were my age too, many under the same kind of circumstances. I am used to being a bit of a veteran scene kid/club goer/ ARC theatre kid, here I am a veteran nothing. I actually like that. I also love that I don’t have a reputation here. I have always had one, something people associate with me or my family before meeting me. I don’t want to be the tragic kid or the party kid or anything like that. I like being mysterious for once even if it just for a few weeks.

I keep having the thought “god, San Francisco would have been so much easier”. It would be, but it wouldn’t be new or exciting to me. It wouldn’t challenge me to the extent that I am trying to. I know I’ll come back there one day, I love it. But for this time in my life I have to try something and challenge myself. I have been winning my challenge so far. One week down, friends, place to live, haven’t gotten ridiculously drunk (just some beer buzzin), and I actually applied for jobs. Go me.

I don’t know what next month, week, or tomorrow is going to bring me. But I survived a whole week in New York City. That says something.

If you want my address message me.

Peace. Say hello to your mother for me.

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