Weekend Review

I must say that I am really disappointed that I have not been able to consistently update this blog. Life has been in overdrive lately and I can’t say that I hate the chaos either. However, here’s the brief.

Thursday my dad came up to help me move into my new apt. Thank goodness he came because I don’t think I really would have made my April 25th deadline. Much appreciation to Derek (@derekrva) for letting me cut into his work time and dealing with the heavy lifting. Ugh. I really hate moving. Next time we’re hiring movers. I love this apt but shooo, it was pretty crappy that there were stairs and oncoming traffic to deal with.

It’s beginning to come together and I hope to have my ducks squared away for a housewarming gathering this weekend But I remind myself to be realistic because I am going to Clemson on Wednesday for the Communication Studies Career Panel and won’t be in Asheville until after lunch tomorrow.

I am still in Charleston, looking forward to a brief introduction in the morning. I am freshly laundered and re-stocked on goodies, so all is well. This weekend was entirely too much fun. It is 11 o’clock and I still have my Alhambra bracelet on. Granted I was on Cinderella curfew last night, which quickly turned into last call after a very long day. I am not sure of the time, when I tucked in, but I was woken up around 5:45 or 6 to shower. I sluggishly obliged and came out to my mom and said, “What am I wearing?” She hands me some clothes and everything was a blur. We drove to Augusta and I was finally able to sleep sometime around Columbia. I don’t think I laughed so hard this month or even last month. Megan and Katie were keeping me stitched up in hilarity between “3 o’clock girls at 1:30″, my running list in my moleskine, the business card swap, and Katie practically reading my thoughts and keeping my lips buttoned before I really embarrassed myself. I saw everyone I have ever known in the past 8-10 years in one weekend. Talk about a blast from the past. As I wrap up another week and my thoughts run together, I prepare for a month. Until my next mental break…

Outland: Charlotte, NC

So after the Orange & White game, I packed the car up and headed to Charlotte to spend Easter with the Kakadelis’. It was nice to “come home” and not feel like I had to see anyone else. Everyone I needed to be with was under the same roof I love visiting them because they are the nicest people you’ll ever meet! We stayed up late catching up and then went to church at the Ballantyne Campus where some jokester decided to pull the fire alarm! The kids had to be collected and evacuated from the building and it became chaotic for everyone.  Thankfully, it was in between services and people were already out the door.

On the way back in we caught up with an old friend, who I had not seen since high school. Karl, Brittany, and I served on the Carolinas District Board of Key Club International. We were “do-gooders” to say the least. I believe we would have been flagged as some of the most notorious troublemakers in our  respective states It was great to be reunited, just like the old reunions we had outside of Key Club. You couldn’t write a better sequence for a movie, but Karl recognized another fellow Key Clubber in the parking lot. One that was in the Class of Lieutenant Governors before our term. From behind him appeared a wife. Surprise, surprise. Then his mother emerged between two cars with a baby! We were shocked and overly congratulatory to say the least. I promptly dialed our other mutual close friend in Phoenix and left the story on  her voicemail. It was just intense that we saw 2 years of Key Club flash before our eyes in 5 mins. Life comes at you fast!

Anyways, the Kakadelis’ own Outland Cigar which boasts an elite club for gentlemen. Gentlemen such as Tom Petty who owns a Founders’ Locker for his personal entertainment at the Outland Lounge. They can set you up, nicely, with great gift ideas and help you try some new cigars like the Gurkha that I am more partial to. It is like a trip to Tommy Bahama-land There are two locations, one in Ballantyne and one on Piedmont Row near SouthPark Mall. The SouthPark location has great chocolates and will have the lounge nearly complete. If you’re looking for a place to play cards, enjoy some scotch, watch any golf, races, or games….Outland is the place for you! They do host some wives’ nights and ladies nights, but memberships are exclusive to gentlemen. Some local restaurants in the area are willing to deliver, so definitely check them out for a new place to meet or have casual business discussions!

Who knows who you’ll run into!

There is something about going home to Asheville. I’ll tell you what, the drive to Charleston is not scenic via I-26. However, the drive from Charleston to HHI through Beaufort, on Hwy 17, ranks on my top 5 views among Hwy 25…all the scenic routes lead to Asheville. It’s funny coming from Charlotte, driving into South Carolina, to get back into North Carolina. I can’t say that I mind it much when I get a preview of the Blue Ridge.

And then the ridgeline really comes up on you and takes your breath away I have gone through a whole bunch of mileage. Needless to say, I will be chasing it down with a trip to Charleston and day trip to Augusta this weekend. When this month ends, I will have some reprieve. I hope I can keep myself together for a few more weeks. Although, I find some comfort in the chaos. I have been training myself since high school to manage multiple schedules and attend conferences back-to-back. Maybe I am meant for a more chaotic future ahead of me. If that’s the case, I welcome it with open arms!

Where the Tigers play…

So I returned to Clemson this weekend to spend quality time with friends and support the new recruits at the Spring Game. Orange & White had record attendance this year. I did not expect to see half of  Death Valley filled to the brim. In the past and present the only access was the North Stands, but this year people were overflowing into the South Stands (people like us). Of course we were scooted closer to The Hill in the weak attempt by event personnel and the one cop who was less than keen on running the stadium to wrangle the strays. It was a perfect 70+ degree day! The sky was clear and perfect for spending a day in the sun! A day I was waiting for a long time.

We stayed for the first half and headed towards The Esso. You just can’t beat an Esso afternoon. It’s funny, but I usually don’t get carded downtown except at a few bars that are off of side roads from College Ave. I won’t need to attempt to recollect my trail of Friday night, but you can imagine that I didn’t pull my id out except once. It was a huge surprise to me when I had been downtown and running tabs Saturday morning, to go to the game, and make it to The Esso where I just realize so far into the day that someone Sharpie-ed my id. I won’t describe into any detail the offense that had taken place. All in all, it’s nice to come home to the blanket of friends and it feels nice to put your feet up in the sunshine and just laugh.

Post script. If anything terrible would happen to anyone, it would happen to me. My strap totally failed on my favorite dress because a button popped and the strap in my recent gift of a Coach wristlet popped as well. The next day I looked at Thomas and said, “This almost made me cry last night!” Typical. I love Clemson, I love my friends, I love Friday nights!

On the other side of the table…

I am greatly distraught over my lack of posts last week. April has really worked me. I am so blessed to have a full plate that is challenging me in new ways. (Un)fortunately I have been able to see lots of people and spend my weekends all over NC & SC, but the travel has quickly worn me down and I am completely exhausted. I am going to write mini-posts and try to catch up on last week. My sister complains, often, that I blog too long and she just gets so discouraged to read them and that words are not her friends.

Last Wednesday, April 8, I attended Clemson’s Communication Studies Career Launch. I was in a Clemson House ballroom with 4 other businesses seeking interns or new hires for the summer and fall. I have to say that it is really strange being on the other side of the table. I doubt my interviewing tactics were well planned, but I was glad to see friends and old classmates. It gave me great practice in speaking about my company succinctly. I met some great candidates and hope everyone finds what they are seeking. Out of the 10 resumes I was able to find 2 worthy candidates for our internship program. They will be having a phone interview on Wednesday and coming to the office on Friday. Business development seems to be growing at an rapid pace, so if you are seeking a great learning experience this summer send me your resume to christinalor@sensiblecity.com. Be sure to visit our freshly launched website at www.sensiblecity.com.

A drive to Clemson is one that I greatly anticipate. How can you not love driving on Hwy 25 through Travelers Rest and Easley? Especially on a day like this?

My lists have lists…

Must be spring because my lists have been getting it on for some days now! This week has uncovered workplace emotions that have I have not really felt until this week. It has been a great exercise for my brain, but at a certain point on Friday my brain just stopped. I was looking at these phone call notes and trying to work on “inbox zero” and I couldn’t make anymore productive decisions. I think the moment I committed to bring the maxi-load of laundry home and jump in the car to Charleston did my day end right there. On the 4 hour drive home I was re-thinking phone conversations, to-do lists, and course of action for Monday. Today I offered to take the kids out to Sullivan’s Island and I’m thinking my time is running out to prepare for the next week. But I owe it to them, on Spring Break, and to myself to turn the brain off and just soak in the sun. So that is what I am doing today. I left my phone charger at home with the Slumdog Millionaire disc I had intended on bringing home for my mom. I was glazing over a book in bed, this morning, did I overhear my mom say,”She left the the disc at home” and my brother say, “She always leaves something.” I better pack the movie case now so I can return it to Blockbuster. Oh and I better grab the jacket I left on my birthday weekend, while I’m at it…

6 Minutes with Van Jones, an Urban RE:visionary

Cheers to Van Jones, the new Green Jobs Czar! I love how Van says “You have to have a breakdown to have a breakthrough. You need a crisis.” We are on the brink of a new future, a green future! Van is the burgeoning voice that will lead us to into our more sustainable economy! Human technology is capable of releasing creativity and excitement, we are truly on the brink of an ecstatic and ever-changing era! Please share this with your friends and family, change is on its way, like Van says, “connection, redemption….it’s about us finding each other again, believing each other, helping each other, and holding each other and that being the basis of not just the economic recovery, but the human recovery.”

I just want to you let you know that Van Jones and David Gottfried are not clients of ours. However, Van serves on the Board of Directors on Urban Revision, who is our client. Urban Revision offers to provide solutions to what Van is talking about. The competitions are collecting designs to implement in a fully-sustainable city block.

Stanley connects to Colorado!

So, I am preparing Stanley for another trip. My friend, Beth, has so graciously invited Stanley to join her in Colorado! She is very eager to take him skiing! I’ll be sure to include some pictures for Clarence’s classmates of Stanley’s brief stay in Asheville, NC. He will soon be in the Rockies and I am sure he will have so much to tell you when he returns next week!

The Adventures of Flat Stanley

I was asked by my dear little brother, Clarence, to participate in his class project at Belle Hall Elementary.  He wrote me a letter asking to bring Stanley to “sights in your town” and to “plese mail him back [...] when his trip is over.” For reference, Clarence is seven years old and in first grade!

Here is a picture of Stanley. He arrived in my post box in the course of the weekend, or perhaps last week. I am uncertain as to ascertain his accurate arrival until Clarence asked about him on Saturday. So, today Stanley begins his trip in Asheville, NC. I brought Stanley to work so he could see my office, at The Sensible City,  and people watch downtown. I work right in front of Pritchard Park so there is always interesting voices below my window. Unfortunately, it is very windy and I don’t think Stanley would like the weather.

Do you have any suggestions on where I should bring Stanley this week? I wonder what stories he will bring back to Mt. Pleasant, SC…

Sticky note for this week’s Double Whammy.

Earlier this week, I gave an example of an un-social company. Well I found Jennifer Van Grove’s article on Mashable and thought how interesting that companies, in Client X’s industry, have been embracing social media. I love the layout to how each company is using Twitter to their advantage. Cheers to the Top 40 Best Twitter Brands and thank you Jennifer for revealing the people behind them!

Travel

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This is a big category and it’s growing every day. We’ve include airlines, hotels, a cruise ship, and even a rental car service under the travel umbrella. We admire these big brands for being bold on Twitter, and we hope that their ground-breaking efforts lead to better service for all of us who travel and know just how stressful it can be.

Jet Blue

Twitter Name: JetBlue

Jet Blue Official Tweeter: Meet Morgan Johnston, manager of corporate communications with Jet Blue. Morgan’s high flying Twitter philosophy is to tweet as the community sees fit saying, “our role on Twitter is driven by the requests of our followers. Twitter is a great way to talk to many, but even better for listening.”

Stats: 10,771 following/10,076 followers

So why is JetBlue tweeting?: “Our goal would be to make ourselves available, help whenever possible, and to show that our brand is built by real people who care about our customers.”

Most interesting Twitter discussion: “Probably being asked what our policy was on furries following an exchange http://is.gd/f1k8.” [I'm not sure what furries are, but I think it's a Comic Con thing, and vaguely reminds me of something I saw on Entourage.]

On plans to promote the account to passengers: “Short answer: no, we want to grow naturally with the Twitter audience, long answer: We know we’re guests of the Twitter community. Inviting our own guests who might not understand how Twitter works, and only see it as a tool to talk to us is a bit presumptuous.”

A follow-up to the above question: “There are some rules and practices on Twitter that aren’t immediately obvious to new users. (following, DMs, replys) It’s hard to help when people sign up and simply say, ‘hey, when’s my flight?’ assuming we see an unaddressed tweet.”

Southwest Airlines

Twitter Name: SouthwestAir

Southwest Airlines Official Tweeter: Meet Christi Day, the emerging social media specialist at Southwest Airlines, and the gal behind the famously low fair offering and customer-friendly twittering airline. According to Christi, Southwest, an early Twitter adopter, “had been blogging for more than a year when we discovered and joined Twitter in July 2007. We were intrigued by its possibilities.”

Stats: 6,085 following/8,287 followers

On 2009 promotional opportunities via Twitter: “We will do announcements on Twitter from events…posting pics/vids. And whatever else unfolds, we’re open to ideas : )” [Twitterers take note - I think she's hinting that they want good ideas from you]

On lessons learned: “Be honest, be real, be quick, be FUN”

When asked about internal awareness re:Twitter: “Hard to say for sure, but we promote our activity internally and encourage Employee participation.”

Spreading the Virus. (A little ironic, for me, this week)

Visit the Intern Queen. I was quoted on her blog. Scroll down. See there? @skimtheocean…yes! That’s me!

Today’s post is about high schoolers seeking internships. I have been actively involved (in my short time) with online social networking, not just out of education (cheers to Dr. V), or just out of professional practice (Sensible City embraces online social media), but because of the appreciation for how it has boosted my online presence and given me credibility as a person. I interact with hundreds of people daily who are sharing tidbits of information I pass along, stop by to read my blog, or provide me with vital information that aids me in pitching a media market! Anyway…

I was more than happy to express my fervor for the internship. I was fascinated by Clemson’s policy for Architecture students and Graphic Communication majors to get outside experience Abroad and in their free time from school. Even Packaging Science students have at least 1 co-op in their college career. I never really grasped that until the end of  my Communication Studies degree. Partially, because I have been fearful and not well prepared to see how it would be beneficial to me. That type of thinking won’t get you anywhere. Embrace curiosity and explore the unknown.

Dr. V can vouch, for me, that I was stubborn in my studies. The archaic Communication Studies program embraces thesis papers, and it’s like coming out of the dark for the first time, when she presented us with this plethora of knowledge. Comm Students, far and wide, would joke that Clemson’s program tried to crank out little professors. In practice; however, we are discovering these tools of online social media in the workplace. I am so embarrassed to say that I walked up to the plate not bringing anything to the table and I learned about these valuable tools in 2007! I always remind myself to be mindful and to continue teetering on the edge of innovation.

What I am trying to get at, is that you…Yes, you. I’m talking to Nicholas, Darline, Erica, Emily, and anyone else in high school. Put yourself out there, either online or in the world. Reach for internships and create your own personal brand in high school. Time is precious, time is money, time is wasted. We have heard all of these things before. I hope someone can grasp the need to “up the ante” because competition will be the driving motivation for you to think outside of the box before the next guy in math class beats you to it! The concept of an “internship” should not be lost you, the young ones. You should garner as much experience with the outlook of secondary education skyrocketing in cost and the possibility of shorter matriculation in college. Who knows, it may be a new way to weed-out college applicants. INTERN, INTERN, INTERN! I know I just collected my thoughts on way too many things today, but I hope you can follow the parallels of narrow thinking and open your mind a little more.

Plus, most internships are unpaid. So why not, get as much free work out of the way while you’re in your parents home? Trust me, graduating with a B.A. and working for stipend and 1 unpaid apprenticeship (my past life at a letterpress studio) was not exactly what my parents had in mind for a Clemson graduate. Go Tigers, nonetheless! To my audience, always learn from the mistakes of others! It will save you a lot of trouble in the future. The competition is getting younger and you are all smarter compared to the cronies that are looking at retirement. Utilize your skills and compete. Yesterday is the day where community service was competitive. The kindness of your heart will only get you so far. It is now the time of practical knowledge, so go out there and get it!

Post script. I am sitting in my office alone. Ian is hob-knobbing with Urban Re:vision in San Fran. Amy has an injured son. Ashley Sue is sick. Kimberly came to work and left sick. IT’S ALL MY FAULT for spreading the virus. Get it, get it? Ok, I’m done.