https://twitter.com/XoMeganStarrXo
Xo Megan Xo, Model, , Modelmayhem.com
Supposedly a professional model, I hired her to fly from Vegas to Tucson to shoot for four days. We planned the entire trip out two weeks ago, and like an idiot I booked an expensive and non-refundable room at a gorgeous lodge in the foothills. She assured me countless times she'd be here, and told me to grab the room since it's such a great location to shoot.
She was scheduled to arrive yesterday at 3:10 pm. Around 1:30 pm she texted me to say she missed her flight but was catching another one and would land at 7:30 pm. She told me she'd text me when she boarded her flight, but by 5:30 pm I still hadn't heard from her. I texted and called but received no response. She finally replied with some long, dramatic story about having nobody to watch her dogs:
"Sorry, I didn't mean to leave you hanging on my reply. I got caught up trying to solve my little problem I've been dealing with for a couple of hours now. Basically, I haven't left town for this long in a while and I recently broke up with my long-term, live-in boyfriend who usually watches my house and dogs while I'm away. I haven't been able to get ahold of my pet sitter (who's usually my step-sister) so I'm worried and not sure what to do with them. I'm trying to find a replacement sitter now and looking into boarding them which I've never done before. I already paid her for the week too, so this isn't like her."
I told her to keep me posted, and a few minutes later she sent me this:
"Just know I'll do whatever necessary to get down there. I can promise you we will get all 100 clips done. I spent two hours packing 70% of my clothes into two suitcases and I would dread putting those clothes back before shooting in them. I'll drive there if I have to or fly to Phoenix and have my friend drive me to Tucson. Please forgive me for this mess, and don't worry. I promise I will get there and get the project done."
I finally told her to just bring her dogs and got this response:
"Worst comes to worst I will take the first flight out and be shoot ready so we can start right when I get there. I would LOVE to take my dogs, I just worry they would be too loud. I'll let you know as soon as possible."
Five hours went by without hearing a single thing. I finally texted her for an update, and she replied that she wrote me a message but forgot to press send. She told me she had found a dog sitter and was grabbing a new flight for noon today. Assured me she'd be here and we'd work extra hard to make up for lost time. I told her to let me know when she booked it, and that's the last I heard. She's since stopped replying entirely.
Such a waste of money. I only secured the non-refundable room because she seemed like a real professional and was always kind and courteous in her replies. I also bought a ton of equipment and other supplies for the shoot that are now useless.
Just a heads-up for those who come across this girl and consider hiring her. Don't do it! She's all talk, no action, and her life seems like one big mess. Unfortunately, I had to find out the hard way. Fourteen years in the business and I've never had a model no-show like this. Guess there's a first (painful) time for everything!