My Single Peeps: Jami R.

Although I’ve met Jami, 39, a few times over the years, it’s generally been when I’ve been auditioning, as an actor, for her, a casting director. And you can’t really get to know someone when you’re nervously reading for a part you want to book. So I was excited to turn the tables on her and ask her out on a date … a date for my single peeps. 

I’m quoting Jami here, but it’s pretty accurate — “I give really good date.” When I asked her why she was so good at dating she said, “I’ve been on some horrible dates, and I can still make it good. I make a game out of it.” If there’s no romantic spark, she’ll find a way to make it interesting — she likes learning about people. It’s the same reason she loves being a casting director. She loves to give people their first acting job — big or small. “I love finding actors I know will be big stars.” 

Jami was born in Denver, where her father runs a deli called Zaidy’s. “Whoever marries me gets free bagels and lox for life.” She’s still a food lover and searches for out-of-the-way restaurants and taco trucks. Recently, a guy took her to a wine tasting in Malibu Canyon and laid out a blanket, where they drank wine and ate from his picnic basket. “That was a good date.” She likes when men take the initiative in making plans, and she enjoys being active. She’s run 15 marathons, so don’t be afraid to take her on a hike. She loves a challenge — including the crossword puzzles. She wants a man who’s as driven as she is: “It’s not wealth that matters to me, but drive. But No. 1 is a sense of humor.”

She’s pretty funny herself. During the show “Mortified,” where people stand on stage and read from their teenage diaries, she described her trip to Israel this way: “I went there to discover my heritage and instead discovered I was really horny.” 

The week before Thanksgiving, she was driving in her Volvo to work out — a boot camp class at 5:45 a.m. — and was hit by a semi. Her car flipped three times, but she walked out of it alive. It’s put things in perspective for her about life. She got a new Volvo and challenged herself to do the work on it. So far — all with help from YouTube — she’s changed the anti-lock brake control module and the heater core. I ran upstairs last week to brag to my wife that I screwed on my own license plate, so I’m impressed.

As independent as Jami is, she’d like to be taken care of occasionally. “When I come home at night, I want to have someone to share my day with — good and bad — instead of my dogs.”

After her car accident, as she lay on the ground trying to make sense of what happened, the fireman standing over her said, “OK ma’am, do you have anyone to call?” She thought, “I have a million people to call, but I don’t have that person. I want to find that person.”

If you’re interested in anyone you see on My Single Peeps, send an e-mail and a picture, including the person’s name in the subject line, to {encode=”mysinglepeeps@jewishjournal.com” title=”mysinglepeeps@jewishjournal.com”}, and we’ll forward it to your favorite peep.

Seth Menachem is an actor and writer living in Los Angeles with his wife and daughter. You can see more of his work on his Web site, sethmenachem.com, and meet even more single peeps at mysinglepeeps.com.