My 2023 Wins and Losses
This year was a big year of transformation and change for me. I honored my inner teen a lot, babysat more kids than I ever met before in my life and had many twists and turns with job stuff. Below is a recap of my year and sharing both the wonderful things that happened and the not so wonderful things.
January 2023:
I moved into my first NYC Apartment with my two wonderful roommates, Linnea and Marley. We got a bunch of furniture through Buy Nothing Facebook Groups and a couple from my family Rochelle, who passed away.
I got to meet Damon Daunno, an artist that I have long admired at a bar in Brooklyn, where I saw him play his original music. We have mutual friends and I introduced myself to him afterward. He was incredibly nice and I can’t wait to hear the released songs whenever they come out.
Loss: The same week, I moved into my apartment, I learned one of my jobs (a main source of income for me) that I had was closing either in January or in June! This completely came out of left field. The board decided to close the company in June, so luckily I had more time. A lot of my other remote jobs I got to the city froze or didn’t need me anymore. January is a really tough time to look for jobs.
February 2023:
Wins: I got to see one of my favorite artists Maggie Rogers twice in one month! Once in Livitz, PA, where I got to see a sneak peek of her tour and again at Radio City. A moment that lives rent-free in my brain is during my favorite Maggie Rogers song (That’s Where I Am) at Radio City, a woman in front of me left and these lovely women asked me if I wanted to come closer to see Maggie more up close. So I hopped off the chair at Radio City (sorry, Radio City employee) to see Maggie super close. I also saw Dianna Agron from “Glee” talking to someone in my row (I saw the Glee Tour at Radio City in 2010), so it was a full circle moment for me. It reminded me of the goodness of people and womanhood.
Loss: I found out that my first ever violin teacher had passed away. We weren’t very close, but it hurt my heart to think that she could never see me sing. Playing the violin was an instrumental part of my youth and I feel grateful that she gave me a strong musical foundation.
March 2023:
Wins: I got to go to the Jonas Brothers Broadway Residency twice to hear the Jonas Brothers and A Little Bit Longer album. Everyone knows that I’ve been a fan of the Jonas Brothers since 2005 and combining two of the things I love most was nothing short of two magical nights at the Marquis. I feel very grateful that I snagged two cancellation tickets, thank you to Rich at the Marquis Box Office and I got a ticket through Broadway Cares Fights Aids, which I have been a long time supporter of (Shoutout to my mom who sent me the link to those tickets after me crying and wondering how on earth I’m going to go). My other favorite memory is getting to see my friend Talia Susauker play Elphaba in Wicked on Broadway. We went through college auditions together and watching her play her dream role was so exciting. I’m so excited for whatever her career has in store for her and being in a show together one day!
Loss: My friend Sami Coleman passed away unexpectedly and that made me really sad. We met at Williamstown in 2017 and discovered we both were from Long Island and are disabled.
April 2023:
Win: I got Girl Scout cookies and I got to go to a free screening of Are You There God, It’s Me, Margaret? I really enjoyed it.
Loss: I got offered a summer camp job, but turned it down because I couldn’t make the money work. I definitely learned I prefer to babysit kids that are potty trained and 4 and up during this month.
May 2023:
Win: I got a new washer-dryer in my apartment after the other one stopped working, filmed some new singing videos and I started working with a new babysitting company.
Loss: One of my jobs was ending and I took a temp job for two weeks that really wiped me out. I was very grateful for the money, but it made my soul sad.
June 2023:
Wins: I got to a screening at the Tribeca Film Festival of a new movie that Nick Jonas was in called The Good Half. I got a rush ticket and I got to meet Robert Schwartzman afterward. He was in a band called Rooney and he was Michael Moscovitz in The Princess Diaries movie. He and I have the same birthday and I have been trying to meet him for years. After the movie was over, I walked my way up to the front of the theatre and I told someone that I was waiting to talk to Robert and a kind person asked me if I had ever met him before and I said no, but we have the same birthday and I just wanted to tell him how much I enjoyed the movie. That lovely person introduced us and we chatted for a little bit. Like I always say, if you don’t ask, you’ll never know and act like you belong and people won’t question you!
I got to meet the lovely Rachel Brosnahan at the stagedoor of The Sign in Sidney Brustein’s Window, thanks to my wonderful acting teacher that I had when I was sixteen, Tony Award winner, Miriam Silverman.
Loss: I was feeling all the feels while I was on line to audition for something that took me a while to recover and took me a while back in the arena. It’s hard when somebody knows you and believes in your work, but hasn’t given you a chance yet.
July 2023:
Wins: I went swimming in my public pool near my apartment, so I could be my true mermaid self. I also got to meet Kevin Jonas and his wife, Danielle. After meeting them at the Barnes and Noble Union Square, I went out to dinner with a couple of other people and I made a new friend (Hi, Kira!) Also, singing at the Open Mic Broadway Sessions at Green Room 42 and making new friends.
Loss: Working outside in the hot summer heat is not for the faint of heart.
August 2023:
Wins: I got to see my friend Lexie sing her brilliant original music in for the first time in over 10 years and then going to see the opening weekend of the Jonas Brothers The Tour at Yankee Stadium, when on the 2nd night, a kind girl named Dana on a Facebook Group sold me a 7th row ticket for half of the price. Can you put a price on that? (The answer to that question is no).
Loss: I babysat for a week and a half from 10am-6pm at the end of August for a family I had never babysat before. It was a lot and it taught me a lot of what I would say yes and no to in the future.
September 2023:
Wins: The NSYNC Reunion on the VMAs, started two new babysitting jobs, got to see my Cousin Brenda while she was in town for the Jewish holidays and she helped me to film a self-tape.
Loss: On 9/12, it was the first anniversary of my estranged dad’s death. I also lost my uncle in 9/11, so having that back to back for the first time really wrecked me and tore me out.
October 2023:
Wins: I got to see Taylor Swift’s Era Tour Movie for free because someone got COVID and gave me her tickets! I got to take my sister Vana and we had a great time. I also took my first Agent Workshop and she gave me great feedback. It made me feel like I was on the right path.
Loss: The amount of antisemitism happening in the world made me deeply sad.
November 2023:
Wins: I got a new job doing some Data Entry work, my mom bought me a new computer that I desperately needed (Thank you, Mom!) and I performed a bunch in public.
Loss: My body just burnt out right after the week after Thanksgiving, after not listening to it. My current job situation wasn’t working for me anymore, so I had to say no to a bunch of gigs because my body was so burnt out.
December 2023:
Win: I got to see the closing night of the Jonas Brothers US Leg of their tour (Ticketmaster finally dropped not crazy expensive tickets) and they sang Please Be Mine, a song from their first album that they never sing. I celebrated my 28th birthday.
Loss: I fell on the street two weeks ago and my knees are pretty bruised. I lost two of my babysitting jobs, so I felt like I had to scramble a little bit.
This year, I’m grateful for my resilience, resourcefulness, my roommates and my work ethic. I’m hoping for some steady remote job income, easiness and my first agent and/or manager for 2024.
