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Rainy day question

Question of the day:


If you aren't currently doing what you've trained to do, what you claim to do, what you love to do, does that mean you aren't what you say you are?


I've had the conversation many times over the years about this in regards to being an actor. Sometimes the seasons just don't have anything for you, so you have to adjust and adapt and do whatever you have to do to keep going. In order to that, you have to shift your focus away from acting. Be it bartending, selling real estate, temping, personal training, teaching, or whatever it may be that makes you money, it's hard to keep your mind on acting during these times.


For me, it stays on my mind, a constant reminder. I have to constantly remind myself that I didn't go to school (twice) to get degrees in bartending. I didn't move to New York right after 9/11 to pursue a career in bar education. I didn't sacrifice months and months of time with my family to build a resume and a career in captaining.


Don't misinterpret. There's nothing wrong with survival jobs. They pay the bills. But it's the mental anguish that comes from having to tell people what you do as you hand them their flute of sparkling wine. At what point/age has the scale tipped in the direction of the survival job?


I'm an actor. I'm a singer. I'm a director. I'm a teacher.


But I'm also a bartender. I'm a bar captain. I design cocktail programs. I'm a freelance writer.


I'm a whiskey connoisseur. I'm a food fanatic and amateur chef. I'm an enthusiast of comics. I'm a gym rat.


I'm all these things. And more. But the question remains-


If I'm not presently acting, if no one is interested in me as an actor, if I can't get a job as an actor,


Am I still an actor?





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