Baptism by Fire

Why hello! 

The Geek Squad at Best Buy has spoken: my lap top is well on it's way to computer heaven. It hasn't turned on in over a month.  And I have been entirely too busy  lately with hockey playoffs to post anything while on the computers at work.  

I have been at work since 7 this morning and it's a relatively quiet show day, which leaves me time to write. (I am a tad concerned for having said that.  Last time I said a show day would be easy, half an hour later, a stagehand fell down a flight of stairs and stopped his fall by slamming his head into a metal guardrail.  Blood was everywhere, an ambulance was called...see my hesitation?) 

True Story.

That was the second concert I worked by myself.  Today is my third. Since February I have been event coordinator for three concerts, twenty-five games, fifteen "small" events, ten graduations, and shadowed five concerts.  Not to sound cliche, but the past four months have been overwhelmingly full of laughing, crying, blood, sweat and tears as I have jumped right into the deep end of my new job (without floaties, much of time). 

Baptism by fire.  Experience is the best teacher.  Learn by making mistakes. Make it up as you go along.  Whatever you would like to call it, I jumped right into the the middle of a busy basketball and hockey season, so there wasn't too much time for training. It's hard to believe that not too long ago, I didn't know what a center hung, a 360 ring, or a rigger is.  Or that a hockey game only needs one fire marshal while a basketball game needs three.  I didn't know what "down stage edge" and "front of house" means. And now I am typing in abbreviations, "Oh yea, the distance from DSE to FOH today will be105 feet." I've learned to make friends with the caterers, and to slow down and triple check the numbers I turn into accounting, so they don't hate me because they have to correct my mistakes.  And for the love of everything, yesterday, I finally got engineering to explain to me what an air handler is, so I will stop being in the middle of air handler battles between the arena engineers and the concert tour managers on showdays.  With basketball and hockey over, there was finally time to sit down for a little EC 101 (event coordinator 101...they use abbreviations around here a lot). While I had learned a lot from working the events over the past couple months, I realized there is still so much more I need to learn and master. 

2nd Rockets game! 

Tux n Tennies Charity Gala

Enjoying my employee tickets with some friends

He is massive.

 A few other noteworthy items have been in the happenings of my life... 

 Mrs.Hartzel become a grandmother! Baby Kaitlyn! 

One of my good friends from Arizona came to visit me! It was so good too see her...it helped me  miss Scottsdale a little less.  We had a blast.  We went to the NCAA Final Four Bracketown, then she came to work with me (the events don't stop just because a friends is in town!) I gave her a tour of my work.  Then we met up with some of my Houston friends.

Kandace! 

Ashley got engaged! So excited for them

Another family graduation! 

I have made a conscious effort to change my attitude about things I don't like or don't enjoy at work. Work has been much more fun lately.  I had so much fun during hockey playoffs (even though it felt like it would never end lol).  It has been extremely satisfying to enjoy work again.  Other people's negative attitudes had begun to influence me, and I was starting to hate my job.  But for the most part, life is what you make it and Lousia and I sure can make work fun.  

New work friends! 

My best friend graduated college! 

 I took a much needed mini vacation for Memorial Day weekend.  I turned the three day weekend into a four day and flew to Pennsylvania to visit Lauren.  We had not seen each other since she left Arizona mid January, so it was a much welcomed reunion.  I finally met her boyfriend in person (rather than through skype and phone calls).  She gave me a tour of the Penn State campus (I am an honorary Nittany Lion, after all), we ate dinner at the Cafe she worked at in college, we hiked mount Nittany, and we cooked out and went swimming on Memorial Day.  

  

Well, I began this post at 11AM, and it is now 11:00PM.  I am finally sitting back at my desk.  It has been a long and interesting day, but I had fun! Regardless of the fact that I had absolutely ridiculous requests from the star tonight, I was thoroughly entertained. A snapshot of my day: The star doesn't like to be photographed from the right side, so media was only allowed to set up on the left.  He doesn't like to be seen backstage so we had to turn off all the lights backstage for his arrival. He last minute requested a police escort for post show. I forgot to tell the AGM to charge for the police escort in the settlement meeting and she got pissed at me. 850 seats for the show had to be relocated.  That air handler issued I mentioned above was a monster tonight, and despite my best efforts to alleviate the situation, I was frequently yelled at about it by multiple people telling me different things.  We found out the $4000 motor that helps drop the show curtain behind the stage went missing after the concert last night, so we couldn't use the curtain. The tour security meeting was so intense that I thought the President of the United States was coming.  Our security director was scratched, pushed, and hit by screaming women trying to get to the stage.  

I really could go on and on, but I need to go down to the service level to check on load out.  Goodnight :) 

Oh, PS

In the time I started and finished this post, Stina got engaged!!!!!!! I danced in an elevator when she called me.  I. Could. Not. Be. Happier. For. Them.