Golden Age for Silver Medals

Golden Age for Silver Medals part 2

6 AM has come again. Announced by the shrill din of a tiny hammer ricocheting back and forth between two bells tuned just far enough apart to guarantee an end to any restful slumber. Heidi returns fire bringing the hammer to a halt with one swift and violent motion. She manages to slam her hand right on that part of her finger she pinched during an unusable take yesterday, but her mind is too 'inbetween' states to realise it right now. "Fuck me." She coughs into the crook of her arm. "These 7 AM call times will be the end of me." For a minute or two she wonders what "Whinny" would do if she had to be up at this hour. Maybe a yoga class. There must be one around here, but obviously there's no time for that now. Heidi always makes sure the third alarm clock is set for the last possible minute she could potentially sleep. It goes off on time, but the alarm clock's version of "on time" still seems too early.

Rolling out of bed and into the cleaner pair of sweatpants within toe-reach she grabs the notes and script for todays scenes. She really means to go over them in the makeup chair this time, and not fall asleep like those other days. This character was tough to get into. Far too cheery and a bit dull to talk to so far. A definite test of those character acting classes her agent had insisted on. Then there was all the horrible jewelry and bright clothing that were actually making her far more depressed than usual. A quick trip to the "powder room" then she's off to make-up for a different kind of powder.

"Morning, Maya!" Heidi chirps as she enters the the tiny trailer and settles into her chair. She fumbles the papers a bit in her lap attempting to make sense of her own random notes.

"Morning Heidi. Easy day for you today. With any luck you'll be done by lunch."

"Thank God for that. Pulled a few too many long ones here lately. I could use an afternoon to myself." The pages blur into a hi-lited rainbow streak as she maintains the notion that this prep work will be done. Two scenes today. Both exterior. They'll want this light to be perfectly matchy, so whether they nail this or not she actually will be out early. Phone check. Heidi's finger follows it's conditioned muscle memory perfectly tapping and closing each app in the "social" folder whether she is looking or paying attention or not.

"Just out of bed again, huh?" Maya repeats for the 23rd day in a row.

"Yeah, well... You just do such a great job. I swear when I'm famous I'm gonna hire you as my live-in beautician." Heidi also follows the established morning script. "How do you do it?" She wonders aloud.

"Well today is just a ponytail and-"

"No no, I mean get up so early and look so nice. You're always so perfectly put together and cheerful. I feel a bit guilty showing up like this everyday."

"Haha, well I make it to bed a few hours before you tend to Ms. Cooper."

"Well how do you manage that?"

"I guess we're just on different circadian rhythms. I've always been a bit of an early bird I suppose."

"I bet you get so much done..." Heidi follows the trail back into her own head imagining every closed shop she meant to visit, all the missed trains that derailed her day, and an infinite number of appointments she had apologetically stumbled into. "I bet you don't even mind Sunday's, huh?"

"Oh, Sunday is when I get all my errands done."

"I figured." Sunday had never been a friendly designation on Heidi Cooper's calendar. It had nothing to do with the fact that the universally despised Monday was fast approaching. She didn't mind that day, except when she had a craving for the vegan buffet up the road from her apartment. Like all the best restaurants in her area it was closed on Monday. Sunday, however, everything seemed to be closed, or closing by the time she made it out the door and into the world. Everything to do and nowhere to do it. Sunday is how karma punishes procrastinators.