Days 179-193

MAN!!! I did such a great job with the blogging all the way up until the end...and then I ruined it.  Well...for those of you that don't know, I am safely back in Fort Wayne with my family and friends.  It is hard to believe that my six month internship is over and now I am home in Indiana getting ready to begin the rest of my life.  I have a lot of tough choices ahead of me but I know that in the end I will make the choices that are right for me.

Let's see where I left off on the blog...oh yes!  I last wrote the day before I left to go to Nashville for the Summer NAMM show.  I left on Tuesday evening (after working a full day in the office) and took a red eye flight to Nashville.  I arrived around 8AM Wednesday morning and heading off to the hotel and convention center.  I was extremely lucky to be able to get into my hotel room at 8AM and was able to shower and freshen up before reporting to work.  Even though they did not need me to report until the afternoon, I was there so I showed up early.  Since the show did not officially open until Thursday, Wednesday was a lot of getting things together and making sure everyone in registration knew what they were doing.  In registration, we had a lot of help from people who work for the convention center.  They were all so sweet and caught on very quickly.  It was an experience for me not to be the lowest man on the totem pole.  I was actually helping to fix problems and was able to override errors and answer questions.  I was also the only NAMM staff that was actually on the line the entire time.  I could get people through the line quickly and efficiently (at least I think so).  That night, I went out with some people to work.  We enjoyed a nice dinner in downtown Nashville and then went to check out some of the live music in the bars on Broadway.  It was nice to just hang out and have a good time.

The show started bright and early Thursday morning.  Most of the next three days were a blur of people and work.  I know that on Thursday I went to lunch with Dr. Piechocinksi and Chels which was wonderful.  Dr. P was in town just for the day to visit and come to the show and Chels is now living in Nashville while doing her internship with Jupiter (one of their brands, Mapex, was actually exhibiting at the show).  It was great to catch up.  Here is a picture of Chels and I outside Demo's (the restaurant we went to)

Don't we just look so professional!  This NAMM show was very different than the winter show which I have attended 3 times before.  I only spent cumulative of about one hour on the actual show floor.  In the past I spent 4 days from 10-6 ON the show floor walking around.  I kept telling everyone this was my easiest NAMM show and I was actually WORKING this one.  Friday night was the first ever Top 100 Dealer Awards.  This is an event to honor 100 of the top music stores in the country.  There were 12 category winners and then the coveted Top Dealer of the Year award.  This was a new experience for everyone and there are definitely improvements to be made for next year but over all it went extremely well.  I was working behind the scenes for the entire event so I did not see how it came out on stage but my job was to present the winners with their actual trophy (they got a decoy on stage) and lead them to the area to take a photo with our CEO and Chairman then figure out of they wanted their trophy to be shipped to their store or if they wanted to take it with them.  So many of the winners were so surprised and excited to even be nominated.  It was great to see people so excited about music.  The Dealer of the Year came off the stage with tears in her eyes.  It meant a lot to her and her store to be called the top dealer out of over 100 stores.  I don't think anyone at NAMM realized how important this honor would be.

Saturday night I went out on the town with some people from work.  We had a really good time.  We went a little off the beaten path of downtown Nashville to some places that some of them had gone to in the past.  We ate a fantastic dinner at a place called South Street Smokehouse and hit up some of the bars in the area of Music Row.  It was a great way to cap off the show and my internship as a whole.

 Playing shuffleboard at Losers...a bar near Music Row...right next door to Winners...often frequented by country stars after a long day of recording.

biggest but most delish tater tots ever!!!!!

The next morning I had a nice relaxing morning and then prepared myself for the trip home.  Chels picked me up at the hotel and we went out to eat and then to her apartment to hang out before she had to bring me to the airport.  The flight home was uneventful and my mom was waiting for me in San Diego at the airport when I arrived!  It was so strange seeing HER pick me up at the airport in California.  Monday I went to work where I had a going away party.  Mom came to the party and was able to meet a lot of the people I had been telling her about as well as see my office.  I was touched by all of the kind words that everyone had to say about me.  I realized I am really going to miss everyone at NAMM.  It was an incredible company to work for and I hope that I can find something half that great for my first REAL job.  That evening, Mom and I met my cousin Steven and Aunt Denise (who was in town visiting Steven from NY) in Del Mar for one final dinner.  It was probably the perfect place for my last dinner in California.  We ate as a seafood place right on the beach where we had an outdoor table and we were able to watch the sunset.  It was also great catching up with Aunt Denise who mom and I hadn't seen in 11 years.

The next morning we packed up the car and took off back to Indiana.  There are so many stories I could share from our adventures home but this blog is all ready freakishly long since I missed 15 days of blogs.  I will just say that we had a great time.  Points of interest along the way were Las Vegas for a lunch date with Billy, one of my best friends from high school, Yellowstone National Park, Mount Rushmore, and Crazy Horse.  I was so excited to be able to cross some things off of my bucket list along the way.  Mom and I wanted to make the best of a cross country trip because neither of us know when we might be able to take the time to do it ever again.  Since you are not getting stories, here are some of the pictures of our adventures:

 Standing in front of the unfinished mountain sculpture of Crazy Horse in South Dakota

 Wide open desert!

 Grizzly bear at the bear and wolf exhibit in West Yellowstone, MT

 Standing in front of one of the hot springs at Yellowstone

 My two other travel buddies...Mr. Met and Fidget

 MOUNT RUSHMORE

Billy and I in Vegas

So...that is my six month internship.  I am very proud that (until the end) I did a pretty good job of keeping up with this blog.  Mom has printed out each day's blog for me and put them all into a binder.  It will be great to look back at what I did over these six incredible months in California.  I hope to continue posting about my job prospects and jobs on this blog but don't expect a post every day any more.  I think I will write when I actually HAVE something of importance to say and not just every day because I have to.  So check back for anything I might decide to write along my journeys through life.

Day 178

"Ready, let's roll onto something new
Taking its toll, and I'm leaving without you
Cause heaven ain't close in a place like this
I said heaven ain't close in a place like this
Bring it back down, bring it back down tonight
Never thought I'd let a rumor ruin my moonlight

Well, somebody told me you had a boyfriend
Who looked like a girlfriend
That I had in February of last year
It's not confidential
I've got potential
Rushing, rushing around"

---The Killers, "Somebody Told Me"

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!! I have so much to do before I leave for Nashville tomorrow night!!  I don't know where my evening went but I did not get anything done!  Good thing my flight isn't until late tomorrow night so that I can get stuff done after work.  I'm feeling a little anxious about how this is going to work just because I feel like I have NO idea what I am going to be doing in Nashville.  I know I will be sitting at registration and helping out there but I don't know what time they need me to be there in the mornings...I don't know how late I am working in the evenings....I don't know when my lunch break is....I just don't know!  I know that once I get there it will all become clear but this not knowing is weird!

One thing that did take up part of my evening...I skyped with the next NAMM intern to answer any questions she may have about coming out here.  She is coming from IL (so another midwest girl) and this is going to be a big move for her.  I was so glad I was able to help her and answer all of her questions.  We spoke for almost two hours and I was able to show her the apartment and give her some insight into the NAMM intern lifestyle.

Picture of the day is from our trip to Vegas...but it was just posted today...

Love these girls!!! Had an awesome trip and made two new friends :-)

Now...to get back to getting things done!!!  I will not be blogging while in Nashville because I am not bringing my computer.  As soon as I get back I will be finishing my packing and heading back to Indiana!  So until then...

Day 177

"I wonder how it feels to be famous
But wonder is as far as I will go
Because I'd probably lose myself in all the Pictures
And end up being someone I don't know.
So it's probably best I stay in Indiana
Just dreaming of the world as it should be
Where every day is a battle to convince myself
I'm glad she never fell in love with me"

---Jon McLaughlin, "Indiana"

So this song doesn't really represent how I feel..and I don't want you to get the wrong idea...HOWEVER...it was just playing and so now it's in my head which makes it the song on my blog today lol

My final California weekend....two weeks from today I will be pulling back into Fort Wayne (next weekend I will be in Nashville).  Today was filled with a lot of packing...I packed up two large boxes that are going to be shipped back to Indiana and tried to figure out what else I can pack before leaving for Nashville.  I still have a lot to do tomorrow to get ready for this adventure.  Last few days of work here I come....

I really thought I was going to have something of substance to talk about tonight but as I sit here...I am coming up with nothing.  Sorry for having such a short post about nothing.

JUST REMEMBERED!!!! I watched the final game of the Women's World Cup Finals of USA against Japan today.  I will say that I am not a soccer fan...I don't find it the most exciting sport to watch BUT I was in to today's game.  I wish the United State could have pulled it off but it was a fantastic game and it was great to see some hope for the country of Japan who has been hit so hard this year.  CONGRATS JAPAN

Day 175 and 176

"What if I fall

If I fall in love with you

I'll give you something that

You never even knew

Everybody wants to say

That we should take our time

I want to fall in love tonight"

---Mark Russell, "Her Song"

I know what you all are thinking..."she didn't write AGAIN?!?!" but I promise I have a good excuse!  Well at least it is a good excuse to me and I have several goodies for you for accepting my excuse!  First off...let me say that yesterday was my FINAL Friday in the office at NAMM!  How freaking crazy is that?!  It was a really quiet day around the office which is strange since it was the last week before the show.  I did a lot of nothing or trying to find things to do at work.  The pennies were back and put to good use which I think everyone enjoyed...

After work, I journeyed to San Diego to hang out with Steven (my cousin) and go downtown to the Hard Rock Cafe to see Mark Russell perform!!  We took the trolley from Steven's apartment down there which was a lot of fun and was cheaper than trying to find a place to park once we got downtown.  (side note...I never knew HOW many homeless there were in downtown San Diego!!!  We passed down one street where there were literally 20-30 homeless making their home on the sidewalk!)  When we finally got a table at the Hard Rock we were super excited because it was right next to the stage!  Little did we know that Mark would be performing on the opposite side of the stage...where there was a giant column right in the middle!  We had to do a little re-arranging to figure out how we both could see but we made it work.  Here are a few pictures of the night...

Oh!!! I forgot to mention the most important part of the evening....Mark performed the song that he wrote for me!!!!  He promised me the very FIRST time I met him that he would write me a song...and like 4 years later I finally got to see my song performed live (I just heard it for the first time about a month ago...he didn't write it until about a month ago HAHA)  Here is a video of Mark performing my song from last night...sorry about the background noise...it is a restaurant and a lot of people were talking around us but you can really hear Mark on the choruses:

Amazing, right?!?!?!  I can't believe someone actually wrote a song for me! :-) Steven says it is bound to be a #1 hit!

As for today...this morning I went to see "Horrible Bosses" with Bonnie at a theater in Vista.  It was a lot funnier than I was expecting it to me!  Some parts were pretty predictable but we both enjoyed the movie a lot.  Then Bonnie took me out to lunch at Chili's!  We enjoyed good food and great company.  I am really going to miss her when I move back home but I hope that we can keep in touch.  This afternoon I had a long conversation with my landlords while sitting out in front of my apartment.  It was a nice and relaxing Saturday.  Tomorrow I have to start playing the packing game...I probably should have started today but I procrastinated so I guess I really have to do it tomorrow!

Day 174

"Woke up in London yesterday
Found myself in the city near Piccadilly
Don't really know how I got here
I got some pictures on my phone

New names and numbers that I don't know
Address to places like Abbey Road
Day turns to night, night turns to whatever we want
We're young enough to say

Oh this has gotta be the good life
This has gotta be the good life
This could really be a good life, good life

Say oh, got this feeling that you can't fight
Like this city is on fire tonight
This could really be a good life
A good, good life"

---One Republic, "Good Life"

Today was a good day at work!  Lots of laughter and good times.  I think with the show so close everyone is getting a little loopy...I can only imagine what it would be like right before the winter show.  We started off the morning with the return of the pennies and penny wars!!

I can't remember if I mentioned this yesterday but the pennies disappeared during the day yesterday!  Everyone was sad that they were gone and there was no more creativity to be had.  Then...this morning...they returned again!  The creativity returned and everyone was happy to continue arranging the pennies into fun shapes and messages.  During the morning, Ken and I had what we call "story time" with our members.  We read lots of e-mail and listened to lots of phone message stories, some of which were quite amusing, about why they hadn't ordered their badges on time or issues that thought they were having.  Always a fun time sitting next to Ken all day.

During lunch, we had an in depth conversation about a million different topics and played some rounds of "would you rather" which can be pretty amusing with a bunch of adults who enjoy acting like kids!  It really makes me realized that I am going to miss the atmosphere at NAMM.  I hope that where ever I get a job, I will have fun people that I work with and people I can joke around with and enjoy my work day.

After lunch, I was covering the receptionist's break and the CEO of NAMM, Joe, came down and we had a pretty lengthy conversation about what is up next in my life.  He was very supportive and said that if I needed anything that I shouldn't hesitate to ask.  He said I am now a part of the NAMM family and there is nothing I can do about it.  I think it is amazing that as an intern in a decent sized company, I was able to actually get to know the CEO.  Not every CEO would take 20 minutes out of their day just to chat with the intern about life.  It really meant a lot to me that I know I can ask him to be a reference for a job.  He told me that if I do not get a job right away that I should definitely talk with Sweetwater...if for nothing else then just to visit with Chuck (who is a NAMM board member).

I am really going to miss it here.  I hope a find a work community that is half as much fun as NAMM has been for me.

Day 173

"So hot in...

So hot in HERE!!

So hot in...

(I said)
Its gettin hot in here (so hot)
So take off all your clothes"

---Nelly, "Hot In Here"

I was told by someone that probably wont even read this blog that tonight's blog needs to be about my evening.  Tonight was my LAST Carlsbad laundry night!  How weird is that to say?  As you may have noticed if you really paid attention to my blogs over the weeks, I do laundry every two weeks on Wednesday nights.  Two weeks from tonight I will be in West Yellowstone, Montana with my mother on our way back to Indiana!  It is so strange that laundry is what is showing me the end of my time in California is near.  I don't feel like it is really time to be moving back to Indiana but when I think about the fact that in two weeks I will not be in California any more I realize that I really am almost done.  I got an e-mail today about my going away "party" in the office which will be on my last day (July 25).  Only 5 days in the office are left.

On another note about laundry night...there must have been something about my laundry outfit of workout pants and a tee that made me look good tonight because I got hit on FOUR times while out and about!  What is up with that?!?  Once in the laundromat, twice in the grocery store, and once at Subway!  By the last one I was so ready to laugh...especially cuz the kid was clearly in high school.  He kept asking me about my husband or boyfriend.  I guess it's a memory of my final laundromat night!  I will be very happy that I can start doing laundry in my own house and not have to remember to grab cash on my way out the door.  SO EXCITED!  Bye bye collecting quarters...bye bye spending a few hours at the laundromat...bye bye people hitting on me :-)

PS...the one I went to wasn't nearly this nice and clean! (notice I said "went" CUZ I NEVER HAVE TO GO AGAIN!

Day 172

"Ma, you always taught me
What was right from wrong
And now I just wanna give it a try
Mama, I've been in the nest for far too long
So please give a push and mama watch me fly
Watch me fly

Hey, mama, say mama

Someday i will meet a man
You won't condemn

And we will have some kids
And you can torture them
But let me be a star
Before i take that vow
'Cause mama, i'm a big girl now"

---Hairspray Cast, "Mama, I'm a Big Girl Now"

And it is officially starting to hit me.  Today I finished my long term project for the internship, my Steinway scanning project!!!  I am super excited to be done but it is strange.  I only have 6 days left in the office until my internship is over and I am spit out into the real world.  How can it be possible that my six months in California are going to be over in two short weeks?  Then I move on to be an unemployed college graduate.  A plus, that I don't think I mentioned in my blog with all of the other stuff going on, is that I applied for my first big person job!!!!  There is a job opening for an Events Manager at the Embassy Theater in Fort Wayne.  It seems to be a new position and I think it would be an awesome position for me to being my career in the entertainment industry.  The resume and cover letter are in and now I play the waiting game.  I am trying not to be to anxious about it but it is hard.  I don't like waiting!!

For my picture of the day I had this BIG plan to do "The Penny Diaries"...

 A few days ago (I think it was Thursday of last week) a pile of 4 or 5 pennies showed up on the ledge next to the stairs at work.  The next time I walked by the pile had grown to about 10 pennies and they were in the shape of a star.  Each time I pass by the stairs (normally at least 4 or 5 times a day) the pennies number of pennies have grown and the shape has changed.  This is actually a picture I took yesterday of the pennies (I haven't been able to capture more photos but if I get some I'll post them).  They have also been in the shape of a happy face, ice cream cone, and hot air balloon.  There are probably more things but those are just the things I remember.  The fact that people keep adding to the pile and changing the shapes is awesome.  I am going to miss the people at NAMM when I am done.  They are so awesome and so creative.