So it's been a long time since I last blogged and I want to get back into it now that I am finally past that all consuming event called Pride. Lots to talk about in retrospect to that (It was a great year, and I need to brag for my sake and my teams! ;-) But that will come later.
I need to make some extra cash. Pay off a few more bills and maybe start stashing some away for a big trip. Any ideas?? I'd love to find a couple small events to actually contract my services for, but in the mean time, am looking at all options! Sometimes its nice to have a PT job that requires less than maximum brain capacity!
Happy summer all!
Showing posts with label Work. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Work. Show all posts
Friday, July 11, 2008
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
Off to Nebraska
So, I'm off to Nebraska to enjoy some time off after the Auto Show. Woohoo, your jealous I know! ;-)
The Auto Show went off without a hitch I'm happy to report. Attendance was up, just under 100,000 people and the show manager i work with, who is impossible to please, seemed very happy. So I shall pat myself on the back for getting excessively positive remarks from probably our toughest client! (cocky? yes thank you!) ;-)
Now I'm off to Nebraska. Get a little time away with the family and friends. Hopefully I'll be able to get some good R & R and have time to sort out alot of thoughts that have been going through my head lately. Life isn't complete without a little turmoil (or a lot). Anyway, I hope it will allow for some positive clarity.
I'll leave you with a little tribute to Nebraska.
The Auto Show went off without a hitch I'm happy to report. Attendance was up, just under 100,000 people and the show manager i work with, who is impossible to please, seemed very happy. So I shall pat myself on the back for getting excessively positive remarks from probably our toughest client! (cocky? yes thank you!) ;-)
Now I'm off to Nebraska. Get a little time away with the family and friends. Hopefully I'll be able to get some good R & R and have time to sort out alot of thoughts that have been going through my head lately. Life isn't complete without a little turmoil (or a lot). Anyway, I hope it will allow for some positive clarity.
I'll leave you with a little tribute to Nebraska.
Saturday, February 16, 2008
Ways to keep your spirit 'up' at work
A little humor for the day!
The boss of a Madison Avenue advertising agency called a spontaneous staff meeting in the middle of a particularly stressful week. (This is one pretty sharp boss!) When everyone gathered, the boss, who understood the benefits of having fun, told the burnt out staff the purpose of the meeting was to have a quick contest. The theme: Viagra advertising slogans. The only rule was they had to use past ad slogans, originally written for other products that captured the essence of Viagra. Slight variations were acceptable. About 7 minutes later, they turned in their suggestions and created a Top 10 List. With all the laughter and camaraderie, the rest of the week went very well for everyone!
The top 10 were:
10. Viagra, Whaazzzz up!
9. Viagra, The quicker pecker picker upper.
8. Viagra, Like a rock!
7. Viagra, When it absolutely, positively has to be there overnight.
6. Viagra, Be all that you can be.
5. Viagra, Reach out and touch someone.
4. Viagra, Strong enough for a man, but made for a woman.
3. Viagra, Home of the whopper!
2. Viagra, We bring good things to Life!
And the unanimous number one slogan:
1. Viagra, This is your peepee, this is your peepee on drugs
Friday, February 15, 2008
Lied Center Layoffs
My hat is off to all of my friends at the Lied Center (my former employer) who lost their jobs due to budget cuts. As reported in the Journal Star on Tuesday 2/12/08, the Lied Center is laying off 6 FTE to make up a major budget shortfall that has been caused by lagging ticket sales over the last three years. From what I've heard there have actually been 8 positions cut and a 9th person has resigned. 1 position was cut a month ago and the other was PT so not listed with the other layoffs. Comments to the story were quite scathing I must say, towards the content that the Lied has been offering as of late and high ticket prices. All my love to them, but I must agree I haven't been excited by much on the brochure over the last couple years.
I am a bit confused by some of the comments. There were several complaints of $90+ tickets and I can't find any show over $60 and that includes the Broadway selection. If we could get our Broadway touring shows in Minneapolis down to $60 for the top tier I'd be ecstatic!
There were also several comments that people wanted higher caliber entertainers with much lower ticket prices...
soo...
you want to see more expensive artists
and...
you want to pay less for them.
Hmmm, well that's logical. I'd rather buy a 40" plasma TV and pay less for it than a 19" box TV. If you can find the store that will make that work, I'd be happy to patronize that establishment.
Balancing the schedule for a performing arts center (especially in Nebraska) is an exceedingly difficult task. You simply can't NOT book events with world class orchestras and dance companies. These events need to be accessible to the citizens, but undoubtably will lose money. Many of the orchestras are set to lose money even if they sell out! Hey, it's expensive to tour with 100+ musicians.
Add to that the new Holland Performing Arts Center in Omaha and the fact that they book Broadway through Broadway Across America (formerly of Clear Channel) and you have an uphill battle in scheduling the top acts.
The Lied has missed out on great opportunities to partner more heavily with the University. With the musical talent that is coming out of Omaha these days, there is an abundance of up and coming musical acts that are followed by the large number of students in Lincoln. In my three years alone we passed up opportunities to present Maroon 5, Bright Eyes and Jason Mraz to name a few. Granted both the Student Activities Board and Lied are both responsible for not creating a broader partnership.
Also noted in the article are needs to improve marketing efforts (which have been lacking for several years) and the need to increase fundraising efforst. UNL has shot itself in the foot for the fundraising, they have heavily restricted the Lied's efforts to raise funds to support itself since it opened. A heavy portion of the Lied's revenue comes from ticket sales, which is not a comfortable/safe position to be in. Hopefully the NU Foundation will begin kicking up efforts to grow the Lied's Sponsorship program as well as planned giving and soliciting large donations to the endowment. An arts organization simply can't last (obviously) on the little fundraising that the Lied was allowed to do. That being said, I'm a bit surprised that one of the positions cut was the Development Director. The only develpment position on staff.
I wish the best to all of the staff who have had there positions cut. Your accomplishments are many and I hope you are all recognized for the great work that you have done. In such a small organization (31 total FTE) any cuts are painful and deep, let alone when you are losing a 3rd of your staff. Best wishes also go out to all those that will continue on. I'm sure there will be a lot of changes to adapt to and ever increasing job descriptions as well.
I am a bit confused by some of the comments. There were several complaints of $90+ tickets and I can't find any show over $60 and that includes the Broadway selection. If we could get our Broadway touring shows in Minneapolis down to $60 for the top tier I'd be ecstatic!
There were also several comments that people wanted higher caliber entertainers with much lower ticket prices...
soo...
you want to see more expensive artists
and...
you want to pay less for them.
Hmmm, well that's logical. I'd rather buy a 40" plasma TV and pay less for it than a 19" box TV. If you can find the store that will make that work, I'd be happy to patronize that establishment.
Balancing the schedule for a performing arts center (especially in Nebraska) is an exceedingly difficult task. You simply can't NOT book events with world class orchestras and dance companies. These events need to be accessible to the citizens, but undoubtably will lose money. Many of the orchestras are set to lose money even if they sell out! Hey, it's expensive to tour with 100+ musicians.
Add to that the new Holland Performing Arts Center in Omaha and the fact that they book Broadway through Broadway Across America (formerly of Clear Channel) and you have an uphill battle in scheduling the top acts.
The Lied has missed out on great opportunities to partner more heavily with the University. With the musical talent that is coming out of Omaha these days, there is an abundance of up and coming musical acts that are followed by the large number of students in Lincoln. In my three years alone we passed up opportunities to present Maroon 5, Bright Eyes and Jason Mraz to name a few. Granted both the Student Activities Board and Lied are both responsible for not creating a broader partnership.
Also noted in the article are needs to improve marketing efforts (which have been lacking for several years) and the need to increase fundraising efforst. UNL has shot itself in the foot for the fundraising, they have heavily restricted the Lied's efforts to raise funds to support itself since it opened. A heavy portion of the Lied's revenue comes from ticket sales, which is not a comfortable/safe position to be in. Hopefully the NU Foundation will begin kicking up efforts to grow the Lied's Sponsorship program as well as planned giving and soliciting large donations to the endowment. An arts organization simply can't last (obviously) on the little fundraising that the Lied was allowed to do. That being said, I'm a bit surprised that one of the positions cut was the Development Director. The only develpment position on staff.
I wish the best to all of the staff who have had there positions cut. Your accomplishments are many and I hope you are all recognized for the great work that you have done. In such a small organization (31 total FTE) any cuts are painful and deep, let alone when you are losing a 3rd of your staff. Best wishes also go out to all those that will continue on. I'm sure there will be a lot of changes to adapt to and ever increasing job descriptions as well.
Wednesday, January 16, 2008
American Idol Resumes for 2008
So, I'm sitting here, watching the second night of American Idol - 7 Auditions.
Its so bad, I don't even know where to begin... You just have to see it to believe it. My favorite one last night would be the girl (I believe Alexis) who lives in a studio Apartment with her mom, two cats and a dog. I'm quite certain that they actually eat the cat food themselves...
My favorite comment of the night was when my friend Lisa said, they shouldn't call this American Idol Auditions, but "People least likely to ever get laid in (insert city here)"
So True
So True
I mean, if I was tone deaf, and trying out for a singing competition on national television, i would most certainly wear a princess lea costume that showed most of my fat and hairy chest. Twas even better when he went and got a full body wax because of Paula's suggestion.
Well at least America's freaks have an outlet to be noticed.
Oh yes, and today at work I found out how they make "animal byproducts". If you have any desire to be a vegetarian, this would be a great video to push you over the edge. You'd never want to eat an animal again.
Oh yes... I love my job...
Its so bad, I don't even know where to begin... You just have to see it to believe it. My favorite one last night would be the girl (I believe Alexis) who lives in a studio Apartment with her mom, two cats and a dog. I'm quite certain that they actually eat the cat food themselves...
My favorite comment of the night was when my friend Lisa said, they shouldn't call this American Idol Auditions, but "People least likely to ever get laid in (insert city here)"
So True
So True
I mean, if I was tone deaf, and trying out for a singing competition on national television, i would most certainly wear a princess lea costume that showed most of my fat and hairy chest. Twas even better when he went and got a full body wax because of Paula's suggestion.
Well at least America's freaks have an outlet to be noticed.
Oh yes, and today at work I found out how they make "animal byproducts". If you have any desire to be a vegetarian, this would be a great video to push you over the edge. You'd never want to eat an animal again.
Oh yes... I love my job...
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
Sigh
Well its been a few days since my last blog, but I haven't forgotten about all of my loyal fan(s).
It was a busy weekend, worked through all of it. The lovely Log & Timber Home Show (read with a thick MN accent, its funnier that way... but then again, isn't everything?) The Roller Girls, which is an absolutely funderful way to spend an evening. Four teams of women on Roller Skates competing and beating on each other. It's awesome, you should check it out. I'll write more on this in an upcoming blog. And I ended the weekend with the ever wonderful, Wedding Fair. A great show, so romantic, but after spending 6 hours with a bunch of newly engaged couples you just want to vomit!
I... mean...
:-)
Final note for this short blog. Why the hell is life so complicated???
cheers!
It was a busy weekend, worked through all of it. The lovely Log & Timber Home Show (read with a thick MN accent, its funnier that way... but then again, isn't everything?) The Roller Girls, which is an absolutely funderful way to spend an evening. Four teams of women on Roller Skates competing and beating on each other. It's awesome, you should check it out. I'll write more on this in an upcoming blog. And I ended the weekend with the ever wonderful, Wedding Fair. A great show, so romantic, but after spending 6 hours with a bunch of newly engaged couples you just want to vomit!
I... mean...
:-)
Final note for this short blog. Why the hell is life so complicated???
cheers!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
