Thursday morning I awoke at about 5:00 and by 5:30 I was sitting at my computer, connected to StageLight’s Terminal Server, taking care of all the demanding tasks that consume my day. There were less insistent tasks than most days, so within an hour I dove into the critical monthly Financials. I made great progress and, in the afternoon, I took a shower and dressed to head to my evening acting event — A Private Party (Phillips 66) murder mystery at Maggiano’s Little Italy in the Galleria.

Which raises two questions:
Does a true actor really get up at 5:00 in the morning?
Can Bookkeepers (those anal retentive folk) really create art?

I attended a Baylor Theatre Reunion over 10 years ago and one of my many-years-earlier classmates asked: “Do you still get up at 5 A.M.?” I was actually surprised that I used to get up that early. I thought that was something that happened with age. But she reminded me that I would set my alarm early and get up to study for the day’s tests, or to wrap up the home work.

But actors stay up late at rehearsal or performances and don’t emerge from bed until they absolutely have to.

So can a true actor really get up so early? I’m an actor (and I’ve worked professionally for a very long time) so the answer to the first question must be yes. True actors can get up at very godly hours of the morning — such as 5:00.

And, yes, accountants can create art. I’ve acted professionally for 35 years and, except for my time at the A.D. Players, always had a day job in accounting. The same 35 years. And at the A.D. Players I worked in the business office. So I guess all 35 years (except for a 15-year self-imposed acting exile) I’ve made my living in Accounting and made extra “play” money as an actor.

When I was on my acting hiatus I put a lot of time and energy into learning and practicing the craft of writing (and I’m going to be doing more of that again soon). I found that if I had any form of “writer’s block” I could just work on a left-brained spreadsheet and it would remove my right-brained blockage. In fact, spreadsheets can be very creative.

I often tell people I’m a bookkeeper by day and an artist by night. I think that says it all.