Ten Tryouts on Tuesday

There are so many things I would have liked to have done in life - but way too many of them required that I "tryout" first. Sometimes I just didn't have the patience to go through that. Sometimes I had the smarts to know there was no way I'd make it. And sometimes, I just jumped in with both feet and tried out! Here's a list of 10 things I tried out for in life - not all with good results!

1. Cheerleading - I had to try out every year in middle school and high school that I wanted to cheer. It wasn't one of these things where you automatically made the team again either. Each year, I went to a week of tryout practices that resulted in bruises, sore muscles, and an upset stomach the night before the actual tryouts.

2. I tried out for a production of Cheaper By the Dozen at Town Theater. I had to do a reading on stage in front of lots of people. I thought for sure I would get a part because there only seemed to be 10 kids auditioning and, as the title suggests, there needed to be 12! But - I didn't get any part and never tried out for community theater again.

3. Classic Soccer - I think it's called club soccer now or traveling team - but it was sort of elite. I had played rec soccer for most of my life and the year before, my brother had made it onto a classic team so I decided to try too. I did make the team - it was a U-12 (age) team. I only played for one season but really enjoyed it.

4. Church Youth Group Solo - My frenemy, Lauren Brown Armstrong, and I both wanted to audition for a solo in the youth group choir. At this time, we were known enemies and had to sing in front of the choir director and each other. It was awful and nerve racking to sing in front of her. I knew my voice was shaking the entire time. Apparently she was just as nervous because the choir director ultimately decided to let the entire choir sing the solo portion instead of giving it to either of us.

5. SNA - Sunday Night Alive is a comedy show at USC that is performed every Sunday night and is formatted like Saturday Night Live. My brother was on the cast his freshman year at Carolina and I wanted to try out when I transferred there. Man, to try and be funny in an improv manner with a room full of comedians is pure torture! I never felt more lame and not funny in my whole life. But I did make the cast, I'm sure I just got grandfathered in because of who my brother was but I loved doing the show! I'm still waiting, however, on my call to host the show.

6. Fear Factor - the early version! Before Fear Factor turned into how gross of something can we put in front of you and you will eat it for money - it was about daring, scary, adventure type things. So I printed and mailed in an application in 2001. I got a letter from them saying they received it, but never heard anything else.

7. Varsity Soccer - I was on JV my freshman and sophomore year in high school but was pulled up to varsity for certain games and got enough playing time to earn a letter in the sport. But when I was a junior, I only had one option: play varsity or play nothing (because of my age). But I was up against really good freshmen and sophomores who could very easily earn starting spots because they were so good. I was beyond nervous, but ended up making the team.

8. Church Basketball - I'm not sure that there were really tryouts - but we were carefully watched during practices to see what position we'd play. I never was really assigned a position (I'm not sure I could even list basketball positions anyway) but I did get to play occasionally. Enough to score 2 points in the 2 seasons that I played!

9. Miss RNE - Didn't necessarily tryout, per se, but had to apply and be accepted to participate in our high school beauty pageant. And as seniors, we had to have a talent - mine was a monologue, which was pitiful compared to some of the dancing, singing, and instrument playing that was displayed. I won Miss Congeniality which, according to a student I taught many years later, meant I was nice and not pretty. He didn't get a Miss Congeniality response to that, I promise!

10. 8th Grade Chorus - I auditioned for 8th grade chorus at my middle school. (Probably around the same time as #4.) I didn't make it at all. Some part of me thinks that if I had made it, I would've had a better chance at getting to guest star on Glee!