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!

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…

Hump Day

3.18 | 24 hours until my 24th year.  I am walking into it with a head held low, and shoulders slightly a kilter.

Today, I am working on crafting my pitch for the Memphis event next week. A look at Music Appreciation Month in Ken Greene’s classroom with an interactive demonstration of instructional technology in the music program. Then I must must must build a master list and mock-up for America’s Promise on March 30th!

STS9 is playing at The Orange Peel tonight and I have had my ticket since 12.17.2008! Talk about blast from the past! I’d be willing to sell it to Marisa if she can manage to sub her yoga class and drive up from Charleston. Otherwise, I wonder if it is worth it to go to a show when you aren’t in the festive mood? Perhaps, it’s better to not know what you are missing and build some anticipation for a stellar performance when my skies are clearer. Or maybe this will be the thing to snap me out of the funk.

I hate to close abruptly, but my thoughts are robbed by my to-do list and time-sensitive tasks that are flooding my head.

Week in review

Hello, hello…

Things have been hectic between work, 24/7 concierge service to my family, and apt hunting my brain has seen little reprieve. Even watching a movie has equated to laborsome thinking towards dwindling clean clothes and dishes that remain in the sink. No worries the laundry will be resolved tomorrow and the dishes were done yesterday. As for the family vacation I can say, “Phhheeewww!” We have accomodations and flights all at an amazing rate for a group of 10+. So we’ll all be chasing the moon from the Pacific come June!

I must say that I have no idea what is going on with my internal clock. I have been waking up at 5 am and failing to fall into deep sleep for the past three days. It’s catching up to me so I fail to see how I can stay out much later than 8:00 tonight. I am going to wrap a few things up and head to the Rankin Vault for a birthday fiesta. Then home promptly to turn in and get my life in order this weekend. Ergo, taxes…

Highlight from this week  was having Huevos Rancheros from Sunny Point Cafe, in West Asheville, some of the best huevos in town! Molly and I decided to go for a hearty breakfast as soon as they opened, at 8:30 am. Sunny Point was a few minutes behind and so we sat in my car for a few minutes. I looked at her and said, “Oh gawd, stripey pants! Are those Gap?” I was wearing my navy cotton slacks with pin stripes and she was wearing the identical pair in white with blue pin stripes. Molly replied,”From 10 years ago”, and I quipped,”Did we just fall into the Gap? We just fell into the Gap!” It was much funnier in person, but at the time I knew I had to blog about it.

My brain hurts, I think I need to retreat for some sleep. Have a good weekend all and I look forward to posting more next week!

The most disappointing day of work, everrr.

I feel small, and on the verge of tears.

Today, I let myself down. Down so hard I feel like I let everyone else down.

The situation: I was coordinating a media event yesterday at the Rayburn Building in Washington DC. Students and teachers made up a delegation that were presenting to legislators on The Hill with instructional classroom technology. Exciting tools for the 21st Century classroom that are supported in the education stimulus. Hosted by Congressman Jack Kingston’s office, these students had ongoing presentation in 5 stations in the lobby of the Rayburn. I had invited education publications, major print news outlets, local broadcast news stations, all the way up to Fox News and CNN.

The problem: Nobody could confirm because if you have not noticed there is a shortage of staffing everywhere. Journalists are up to their noses in assignments and news tips that breeze by their desk daily. There is no relief and thus a really great story was sidelined by whatever headlines are on the stands today. Apparently, I was informed that a Prime Minister was in attendance.

In hindsight: I felt like I performed to the best of my ability given the timeliness that this event was presented to my inbox. I had 1 week to pitch this story and it takes me a 1/2 day to scouring the internet for relevant contacts that would best cover the beat of this story. I usually have 3-4 wks to prepare for an event, but I rolled with the punches. I am more aware to develop more creative ways to garner attention around the stories I pitch for our clients and explore unconventional outlets when I feel like my story is not being well-received.

I will admit; however, that I was riding on a high from pitching a regional event in Nashville from the day before. I managed to snag two news stations and The Tennessean. My tactics tend to work for a smaller media market, now I need to manifest those skills into the larger playing field. DC is a hot bed for information. I need to hone my skills to capture the attention of the district. I thought personalized pitches would be well-received. I obviously have more learning to do. I would love to hear any advice of comments about breaking into a major media market. Today I will work on follow-up stories in Georgia and I hope I can put something together on AP newswire in Atlanta. I will also try to force my hand for post-event interviews with the delegation that travelled to DC. I have my work cut out for me if I am going to earn redemption, just in my own eyes.

I am so thankful for good friends who promptly checked in on my and the tweet-love from my colleagues. I am even more thankful that I am harder on myself than anyone else I work with because I don’t think I could take the scrutiny. I’ll let you know how it goes at the end of the month, I have an event in Memphis and an America’s Promise event– I am just praying I don’t screw up for Colin Powell!

sunday reflections

I woke up to sounds of the sky dumping the ocean on our ears. I mean it has been raining nonstop for however long. I woke up on CP’s couch with a stolen blanket and a pile of laundry. I can’t even begin wrapping my head around everything we did and everywhere we went. Old haunts like Tigertown Tavern and Loose Change, Wingin’ It and 356. I can’t wait for the Spring Game and some MTV’s at the Esso. That is meat and three’s if you were not aware.

My inside source has an inside source that said Kyle Parker maybe starting, instead of Willy Korn. Drama, super drama. Stay tuned to see how that unfolds. 🙂 My source just interjected that rando fact as I am sitting here typing this entry.

On another note, it’s March! 2009 seems to be getting better and better for me. I will be 24 in 18 days, I am not particularly pumped or fearful. Now I am collecting my thoughts to work and thinking that I need to:

1. Pitch Nashville media
2. Pitch DC media for Capitol Hill Tech Day
3. Prepare questions and schedule interviews to create podcasts
4. Start sifting through news clips for this month’s report
5. Get details ready for upcoming events in TX and TN

Ughhhh…it never ends. I feel like I can never catch up. Well I am hoping to get the biggest bowl of noodle soup at my favorite little hole in the wall in Greenville. Then head up Hwy 25 back to Asheville.