Average Jane

Blog

  • Average Jane’s Random Observations

    Best excuse for not going out to a jam last weekend:
    "Had a run-in with a bat and I had to get rabies shots." (The guitarist from my classic rock band)

    Quote that exemplifies what it’s like to work at an advertising agency:
    "So will the bowl be dancing, too?"

    Oddest public behavior observed yesterday evening:
    An elderly gentleman drinking red wine out of a wine glass using a straw.

    Persistent, heretofore unreported thoughts from last week’s L.A. trip:
    Carrie Fisher is very petite. I loved that the "On the Lot" costume person was reading "Vogue" when we walked by her office. There are a bazillion rock n’ roll clothing shops on Hollywood Boulevard and I am sad that I didn’t have time to shop in any of them. I’d never really given much thought to the Escape Hybrid before, but it really does get great gas mileage. When my husband’s Honda Element finally craps out, the hybrid Escape is on the short list.

    Compare and Contrast BlogHer vs. Ford Escape from Boredom:
    I paid my own way to BlogHer this year and it was EXPENSIVE! Even sharing a room with Suebob, I still spent every cent I brought with me and that was with careful rationing. A Guinness at the W’s bar: $8! Don’t even ask what I paid for the steak I had one night. By the time I got to L.A. on Ford’s dime, I was feeling so frugal that I didn’t so much as order room service or even look inside the mini bar. They definitely served up red carpet treatment, but I didn’t want to overstep.

    Something for which I need the help of the Internets:
    Find me this t-shirt so that I may purchase one for myself!
    Sam_friedlander

    This is "On the Lot" contestant Sam Friedlander wearing an awesome t-shirt depicting monkeys with typewriters. I asked him where it came from, but he’d gotten it from the show’s wardrobe department so he didn’t know. I must have eet!

    All right, enough goofiness. Get back to your lives!

  • Average Jane Is Back to Normal (Whatever That Is)

    I don’t know how some people manage to travel all the time. I just took two trips in two weeks and I required many naps over the weekend to recover.

    I’ve finally put all of my Ford Great Escape photos in Flickr and I’ve started posting my BlogHer 2007 photos, although there are some tourist ones that haven’t made it in yet. As I mentioned in my last post, I’m going to forego putting my photo road rally pix directly on my blog, but you’re welcome to click through to Flickr and try to figure out which blogger I am. It’s not that difficult!

    Here’s a list of the bloggers who attended the Ford event:

    Everyone was really cool and nice, and I got the vibe that we all felt we’d won the blogging jackpot just by being there. I’ve added all of their feeds to Bloglines, which brings my total to 431 (and that’s without any of the people I met at BlogHer this year).

    I’ll be doing interviews about the Ford-sponsored trip with both Susan Getgood and Toby Bloomberg in the coming weeks, so look for more in-depth analysis then.

    Now that I’m finished jet-setting for a while, my schedule is as packed as ever. I have at least one activity – usually two – on my calendar every day after work this week. Between my two bands, Soroptimist Club, yoga, social activities and various therapies (chiropractic and massage) to undo the travel damage, I’m a very busy woman…just the way I like it.

  • Average Jane On Location

    Wednesday started out with a lovely continental breakfast overlooking the hotel pool. Fortunately, I was reunited with both my camera and a jacket that I’d left in one of the vehicles the previous day.

    We paired up again to take the Ford Escapes about 30 minutes outside of town to Disney’s Golden Oak Ranch. I got to drive again – this time in one of the hybrids. It didn’t have quite the pickup of the non-hybrid I’d driven the day before, but later I noticed that the first one I’d driven had a V-6, which explained the difference.

    The ranch was the shooting location for one of Ford’s Contestant 51 short films that they do in conjunction with "On the Lot." The idea is that a young director named Colin Padden (played by actor Steven Siddell, who reminds me of a young Dana Carvey) didn’t quite make the cut for "On the Lot," but  decides to take the show’s weekly theme and make his own films anyway.

    What we saw of the ranch included a Western town facade, complete with a short length of railroad tracks and a picturesque pond with a dock. We spent the morning and early afternoon watching the production crew film three different scenes, including one in which a stunt driver races into town and stops with a dramatic partial spin-out. We got to share the crew’s craft services lunch (there were hints that the food was a notch above the usual fare because we were there), and talk to the executive producer and cast.

    Once we got back to the hotel, we had just enough time to wash off a little of the ranch grit before we were off on a photo road rally. I teamed up with Megan and Liz and ended up driving the same silvery-blue Escape Hybrid I’d taken that morning. The route included a trip into the hills for a photo with the Hollywood sign in the background, a twisty trip down Mulholland Drive to a scenic overlook of L.A., a stop on Rodeo drive for a photo with the Via Rodeo sign, a chili dog at Pink’s Hot Dogs, and, finally, a walk down Hollywood Boulevard past Grauman’s Chinese Theatre after we’d returned the SUV to the hotel lot.

    I took lots of photos and I’ll put them up on Flickr as soon as I’ve had the opportunity to address some of my photographic incompetence in Photoshop. The idea is that we’ll put all of our photos on our own blogs for judging, but I haven’t decided if I’m going to officially enter because of my long-standing policy of not putting photos of myself or anything including my real name on this blog.

    The rally took longer than anyone had anticipated, but we had time to change clothes and freshen up before it was time to walk across the street for dinner at Vert. The meal was lovely, but I couldn’t eat the whole thing after the huge chili dog I’d had a few hours earlier.

    Because I had adjusted to the local time since the previous day, I made it to the poolside cocktail party at the hotel after dinner. It was nice to have one last chance to talk to the other bloggers, and the Ford and Hill & Knowlton reps.

    I finally turned in around 1:30 a.m. Frankly, I don’t know how I managed to stay up so long.

    So that’s the basic outline of the events. Tomorrow I’ll add a few details to some of the activities and try to sum up the experience.

  • Average Jane On the Lot

    Yesterday was my first whirlwind day of the Ford Great Escape blogger extravaganza. My husband drove me to the airport and I immediately learned that my flight was delayed by at least a half an hour. Oh goody. That meant I wouldn’t get into L.A. until noon. Strangely enough, I ended up sitting with a co-worker and his family on the flight.

    Once we landed, I made my way down to baggage claim, where I was met by a young woman holding a sign with my name on it. I felt bad that she’d probably been standing there for an extra 30 minutes or so.

    A car service brought me to the Roosevelt Hotel, where I received a packet of information about our itinerary, everything you’d ever want to know about the Ford Escape and Ford Escape Hybrid, and a huge name badge/itinerary on a lanyard.

    My room wasn’t ready, so I checked my suitcase with the bellman and dragged my laptop case (also full of books), up to the penthouse for lunch. I sat with Jen of Jen is Famous, Alex and Stefan of Elephant Larry, Liz of Everyday Goddess, Brian of Welcome to Tardville, Michelle Kenobi Osorio (who is videoblogging the event at Stage6.com) and one of the Ford marketing executives. Michelle and I have blue-highlighted hair in common.

    After we ate, we got a quick introduction to Ford’s current marketing programs, including their Late, Late Show with Craig Ferguson partnership and their Boredom Hurts campaign site. Then we paired up and drove Escapes to CBS Studios for our behind-the-scenes tour at On the Lot. I drove a black non-hybrid one, accompanied by Michelle Osorio. We ignored the GPS, followed the map we’d been given, and took a wind-y, scenic route to the studio.

    They weren’t kidding about behind the scenes. We toured the entire office, all throughout the soundstage and even inside the mobile control room, thanks to executive producer David Goffin. Everyone was very friendly and seemed happy to take time out to talk to a bunch of bloggers, even though their production schedule is crazy.

    Then we all ended up in the studio audience for the live show. I wasn’t expecting that or I might have rethought my wardrobe choices. As it was, the production crew decided that my "Rick’s Cafe" shirt from Jamaica was too noticeable on camera and might represent a copyrighted image that they were unwilling to show, so I had to borrow a jacket from one of the PR reps and cover it up.

    Until now, my sole TV studio experience had been answering the phones during the pledge drive at the local public broadcasting station. This was considerably different. The set was really beautiful and far more substantial-looking than I would have expected. Even in places that never show up on camera, there are framed movie posters for the contestants’ previous films.

    Once we were seated, Mark Burnett came over. He seemed like a down-to-earth guy and talked about how America is a country where people value results. He brushed off praise about his status as one of the top risk-taking producers and said he’d learned that a pat on the back and a kick in the balls are more or less the same. The effects of both are short-lived. (That’s a paraphrase – I’d stopped taking notes by then.) He seemed genuinely charmed when Liz Rizzo gave him one of her "Living the Dream" stickers.

    Liz, an aspiring filmmaker, really impressed me with her gung-ho networking while we were at the studio. She already knew several people who work on the show and she did an amazing job of expanding her circle while she had the chance.

    The broadcast was fascinating to watch. My hands started hurting from clapping on command by the time we reached the halfway mark. Before we left the stage area, we got a chance to quickly interview the program judges Gary Ross, Penny Marshall and Carrie Fisher, and host Adrianna Costa.

    Afterwards, we went to a cocktail party in the bungalow area where the contestants live throughout the run of the show (at least until they’re eliminated). We were told that the part of the lot where we were standing was once
    the Gilligan’s Island set and that the koi pond is all that remains of the lagoon. The koi pond part sounded a little too neat, but it was
    cool to think of all of the shows that had been filmed at the studio
    over the years.

    We got to meet the five filmmakers who are still in the running and they later joined us for cocktails and dinner at Social Hollywood.

    By the time we got back from dinner it was nearly 11:00 p.m. L.A. time, which meant it was getting close to 1:00 a.m. my time. I finally got my room key and big bag o’ schwag from Ford. It was a thrill just to be able to stop lugging around my laptop bag.

    My room is huge and very modern. I’d take a picture, but I somehow got separated from my camera last night. I’m guessing it may have fallen out of my purse in the car when I was on my way home from dinner, but I might have taken it out during check-in and left it on the counter. I hope I find it.

    I called my husband when I got to the room because I knew he’d be awake. There was yet another cocktail party out by the hotel pool, but I’d had all I could take. I checked my e-mail and went to bed. 

    More fun activities await today, but first I need to do a solid yoga practice to try to undo the laptop bag damage done to my shoulders. More later!

  • Average Jane’s Next Adventure

    Fortune

    I’d love to talk more about BlogHer, but it’ll have to wait (although you can see a few of my photos on Flickr). Tomorrow morning I’m taking my blogging self to Los Angeles on a trip sponsored by Ford, to go behind the scenes of the TV show On the Lot.

    The whole group of bloggers, which includes Liz of Everyday Goddess and Megan of Divine Reality and A Girl Must Shop, will get to hang out on set, drive around L.A. in Ford Escapes, and be treated to lots of California-style entertainment. I’m particularly looking forward to the road rally. I’ve been both driver and navigator in rallies before and they’re always a lot of fun.

    I’m very interested in getting to be a part of a blogger relations program of this magnitude. I’m curious as to what Ford hopes to accomplish by exposing bloggers to their product in this way and I’ll be quizzing their PR people about it from the moment my plane lands.

    Since this is more of an "official blogger" event for me than BlogHer, I will be bringing a laptop and blogging throughout. Unless I can find the cable for my camera, I might not be able to include pictures until I get home, though.

    It sounds like a blast and I’m really looking forward to meeting the other bloggers. If you’re an "On the Lot" fan and there’s something you’d like me to try to find out, let me know!

  • Average Jane is Back from BlogHer

    My brain is so full from the past few days that I don’t know what it’ll take to dislodge a memory or two to chronicle the event.

    I had a great time, particularly meeting so many of the bloggers I read and also ones I’ve met at previous years’ conferences. I went to some great sessions and really enjoyed both the planned activities and the ones I sought out on my own.

    I haven’t had time to go through all of the business cards and swag I collected, nor have I dumped my photos to my computer yet. I’ll try to put together a more comprehensive post soon, but it may have to wait until the weekend because I’m leaving for Los Angeles tomorrow morning and I won’t be back until Thursday.

    I’m headed to work to cram in as much productivity as possible today, but here’s a quick shout-out to some of the friends with whom I spent much of the weekend:

    That doesn’t even count all of the other lovely people I met and dined with, but that comprehensive list of links will have to wait until I’ve tackled the 100+ business cards I collected.

    I was disappointed that I never ran into Yvonne from Lip-Sticking, even though I know she was there. That can happen when you put almost 800 people in a convention center, I guess.

    Okay, it’s time I made myself semi-presentable for work. More later, I promise.

  • Average Jane Leaves for BlogHer

    Im000988

    My flight is about six hours from now, and Xena is helping me pack. (Isn’t she getting big!)

    I ended up cancelling my evening plans yesterday due to sheer exhaustion. Instead, I took a short nap, made myself some business cards, and took another stab at the mounds of laundry.

    Now I just need to finish packing, shower, buy some more Airborne at the drug store in case my suspicion that I’m fighting off a cold is actually true, and head to my credit union for some traveling money.

    Oh, and I’m going into work this morning for a few hours. I don’t know what drove me to that genius decision, but at least I’ll be a bit closer to the airport there than I would have been at home.

    If you’re headed to BlogHer yourself, have a good trip and I’ll see you this afternoon or evening.

  • Average Jane Is Not Ready To Go

    I didn’t get home from band practice until after 10:30 last night, so I’ve been frantically doing loads of laundry ever since. Frankly, I’d have benefited more from extra sleep instead, but I can’t seem to get more than about six or seven hours a night. I may very well end up checking into the hotel tomorrow and taking a nap for a couple of hours!

    It doesn’t really matter what I take to wear, so I’m not worried too much about that. My husband is getting my camera a new Flash card (I’ll have to ask him to buy batteries, too) and I’m going to skip trying to print quickie business cards for myself in favor of letting Wendy Kline make me some when I get there.

    I was hoping to have two of my band’s songs on CD (or iPod) to bring with me. I’ll have to see if the guys made any progress last night on the guitar sound. I wanted to re-do my vocals on the second one, but I don’t think I’ll have time.

    This morning I need to go by my credit union, deposit a check and get money for the hotel and miscellaneous meals. I found a dollar in the dryer, so I’m already ahead.

    That just leaves packing, which I’ll probably start tonight and finish in the morning. My main imperative is to take my expensive lip glosses out of my purse and put them into my suitcase so the TSA doesn’t take them away. Beyond that, I’m just going to pick out my favorite t-shirts and coordinating Converse and throw them into my duffel bag.

    The real kicker is that I’ll be back in town exactly one day before I leave again. Next week I’m going to L.A. on a sponsored blogger-relations trip. I’ll tell you more about that later.

    Like last year, I’ve decided not to bring my laptop with me to BlogHer. I know! It sounds crazy not to directly blog a blogging conference. However, for me it’s more about meeting people and learning things. I can always make notes and blog when I get home – and I will.

    Thus, this is probably my last post of the week. I’ll start my BlogHer recap on Sunday evening. Until then…enjoy your week!

  • Average Jane Catches Up

    It’s a little scary that I’m leaving town the day after tomorrow considering that I have 200 pounds of dirty laundry piled in my basement and have given no thought to what I’m going to pack.

    I woke up early this morning, but focused my energies on cleaning up the kitchen and making a loaf of banana bread. You can only neglect overripe bananas so long…

    All is not lost, though – I’ve started delegating. My husband has generously offered to make a pilgrimage to Micro Center (such a sacrifice for him to make a trip to his favorite store!) and get me a bigger Flash card for my camera. I am determined to take a reasonable number of photos at BlogHer this year, for once.

    Before I go, I need to do something about the blue streaks in my hair. The blue is fading quickly, even though it’s only been a little over a week. I have purchased two different semi-permanent blue dyes with which I hope to keep nursing the color along until my next hair appointment. I wouldn’t mind the fading so much except that light blue looks an awful lot like grey, and I don’t want to run around with white or grey streaks in my dark hair. That would tend to reverse the kind of impression I was trying to make.

    Tonight I have a practice with the cover band for which I auditioned last week. Apparently they liked me. The good news is that we’re practicing in someone else’s studio instead of the tiny, ring-y basement room where we got together last time. I’m still bringing ear plugs, though.

    I won’t be taking the Jeep with me to practice this time. Last Thursday’s gig pretty much finished the poor thing off until it can have some serious repairs done. By the time my husband managed to limp it home, the engine was knocking so loud I could hear it a couple of blocks away. Even before that, the steering rack (or maybe the tie rods) were protesting even the gentlest turn, and of course, the air conditioner isn’t working. We’re going to drop it off with our favorite slow mechanic with the idea that by the time we: a) have the money to pay for repairs and, b) need it for winter driving conditions, it’ll be ready.

    The timer for the banana bread just went off, so I’ll wrap this up. Enjoy your Tuesday and if you’re going to BlogHer and haven’t yet commented, say something!

  • Average Jane’s Planning Style

    If you don’t read She Doesn’t Get It, you should. Two sisters take turns answering the same questions submitted by readers, and their answers are always fascinating.

    Last week I asked them, "How much of your life do you try to plan versus just riding things out and seeing what happens?"

    You can see Blondie’s answer here and Dorothy’s answer here.

    Now here’s my take on my own question:

    It’s no secret that I stay very, very busy. I consider an empty calendar space to be a sign that I need to find something interesting to do that day, pronto! Some days, I end up with so many activities that I have to print out my calendar to make sure I don’t forget something. Even so, I occasionally get so busy and sidetracked that I simply fail to show up for something. It makes me feel like a horrible flaker, but it’s almost unavoidable under the circumstances.

    You’d think with a framework like that, I’d be equally regimented about what I expect to happen when I arrive at each activity. In reality, that’s where all planning goes out the window.

    For example, I’m leaving for BlogHer on Thursday. My flight gets in around 2 p.m. and I’m leaving around 4:30 p.m. on Sunday. In between those times, I have absolutely no idea what’s going to happen. Of course there’s the conference on Friday and Saturday. I’ll attend both days and maybe I’ll even decide in advance which sessions I’m going to attend. I don’t know exactly when I’ll track down my roommate, SueBob, after I get into town, nor do I have any idea where or with whom I’ll be having dinner on Thursday. At some point, I’m planning on meeting up with Bruno for coffee – maybe Sunday morning, but we haven’t set a time.

    That’s how I always travel and I love it that way. Detailed itineraries are just not for me. Sure, I have a couple of ideas about other things I might like to do while I’m in Chicago, but it won’t be the end of the world if I can’t work them in.

    I feel the same way about life planning. I’ve never been the sort of person to try to plan my life as a whole. Even growing up I didn’t have anything set in my mind about whether or not I’d get married (I did), have children (I didn’t), or work in a particular industry or job.

    When I was a kid and one of our cats had kittens, my mom would always tell us, "Don’t pick up the kittens, just put them on the floor and watch what they do."

    I’ve managed to apply that advice to my entire life: I don’t try to force the action, I just sit back and watch what happens. I actively pursue the things I really want to do and then let the pieces fall into place from there. It may not be the most efficient way to make things happen, but it certainly keeps the stress down.

    So what’s YOUR planning style?