Trouble

Having trouble posting. It seems the high speed internet in my room is on strike and ain't quite so road-runner fast. Whenever I try to post, I time out and all of my ridiculous rambling hard work is lost.

I don't even know if this will post or not. Fingers crossed!

Milestone madness

It's Milestone Sunday once again. And this time it didn't tax me too too much, mostly because I only worked 72 hours instead of the mammoth 87 hour effort of last time.

In reality, one of the big differences is that my temp staff here are wicked. And I just knew that they would be -- it is Ottawa, after all!! But it's amazing how much of an advantage it is to have go-get-'em, enthusiastic, able-to-think-on-their-own, dynamic staff. I LOVE these guys! And having them work their butts off for the past 3 days made the march to Milestone Sunday much easier.

And for that, I am oh so grateful.

So....two shows today. In the rain. Just like last night. Just like Friday night. Just like Premiere night. But we'll make it as memorable (in a good way) as we can for our guests who are so damn excited to see the circus. We have big expectations to live up to, because we have been blessed with unbelievable reviews in the local press -- including one that gave us 7 stars out of 5.

Seven stars out of five! Yay us!

The plans for Milestone Sunday? Well, I'm glad you asked!! Lucky, The Hire Guy and I are going back to Montreal for some more fun. See you at Hot and Dry Festivities tonight (Sunday night) and/or Monday morning. If I can stay awake, that is. I may not be as exhausted as last time, but I'm still not feeling as fresh as a daisy. Nevertheless, I'll soldier on somehow.

Happy Milestone Sunday, everyone!

Premiere, Part 1

So there I am. It's 6:00 am on Thursday morning -- Premiere day -- and I'm on my way to Homo Home Depot to get a Jeep-load of stuff to finish off my suite. I make a wee detour to Mom and Dad's to take out my back seat and leave it on their front doorstep with a note saying, "Sorry I missed you this morning. Please take care of my backseat until I come over next time!"

I head to Home Depot. I buy. I transport. I work work work. I take 10 minutes for lunch. I work work work. I stress, I sweat, I plot, I panic, I plan and replan, I work work work. I seek assistance from the senior catering crew, who are realllly nice and willing to help. (God, how I love the caterers here!!!)

I climb ladders, I realize a projector is busted, I try to get a replacement bulb. I can't, so I move onto the next crisis. I put the finishing touches on the suite. I arrange my terrace with plants, flowers, and new terrace furniture. I make pretty red bows with my red silk organza from Shenzhen, China. I start to determine which of the million things I can't get done will have the least impact on the overall experience in the suite if it's left for the next day. And, based on that lesser-of-a-million-evils, I start crossing things off the to-do list.

I greet my deer-in-the-headlights, but really enthusiastic staff. I prepare them for what's ahead, I explain that a Premiere crowd is not your typical crowd, I explain how things will be chaotic, I give them jobs to do before opening. And I realize that they're AWESOME!

And I continue with my finishing touches. I work work work. I rearrange plans on account of the epic rainfall that's happening outside. I pray that it stops, but expect that it won't. I wish I had no holes in my tent, but realize that it's just a pipedream. I meet the temporary catering staff and give them a bit of a pep talk. I think naughty thoughts about a few of the nice young men. I tell them we're happy to have them on our team and blah blah blan.

And at 10 minutes before we open, I look down at myself and shudder. I'm still wearing my grub clothes. My hands are blackened and disgusting. I'm sweating like a pig. My hair is a mess. And I need to do something about it.

Like NOW! After all, it's not every day that we host people like this in the VIP suite!

To be continued...

Well.....maybe I exaggerate a little bit

Maybe, just maybe, I don't feel like hell. Perhaps I feel more like heck.

And, to be honest, I feel much better tonight than I did this morning. I accomplished a lot today and feel like I can slog through the rest of my tasks before The Big Event happens tomorrow night. One of the wrinkles in this plan, of course, is that our founder is coming into the suite. I have to ensure that there's a roped off area for him and his entourage, and that everything is perfect. And I mean everything. Ev. Ree. Thing.

I sought the advice of one of my colleagues who's hosted our founder for several Premiere parties, and he told me to make sure that there's no dust anywhere. Anywhere! One time, he said that he had an interesting conversation with our founder after he saw some dust on one of the Merchandise displays. I don't think I want a repeat of that situation, so if anyone wants to come on over and do some cleaning of the suite for me....feel free : )

Tomorrow I start work at 6:00 am, with a trip to Homo Home Depot for some plants and other assorted goodies to fix all broken stuff finish all of my projects in the suite. Then it'll be an all-day sweat-fest as I tackle all my last-minute tasks, culminating in our Premiere Party, which will see me working until about 3:00 am.

Oi. Just what I need: a 21-hour work day!! Lucky thing I'll be juiced by caffeine and adrenalin.

Hell

I look like hell. I feel like hell. I'm not sleeping all that well. I've got a million things to do before Premiere, when we'll host 600 people in my suite, including our founder and owner.

Welcome to Premiere week!

Luxury

Montreal with Lucky, The Hire Guy and Tower Girl was mucho fun. We hit Sky Bar, mingling and drinking there before heading to Parking. More mingling and drinking were enjoyed until closing time saw the lights turned on with blinding effectiveness. Is it me, or does anyone else think that's kinda like God's flashlight pointed at your face, interrogating you about the trouble you've been up to?

And we were definitely up to no good nothing much. Still, I'm not the one who woke up with a hickey on their neck...

And Monday being a rare and luxurious day off, Tower Girl and I did a bit of shopping. Being my first Montreal shopping experience since my Ottawa days, when I used to venture there fairly frequently to check out Ste.-Catherine Street, I was surprised and delighted with this little find. After a couple of small purchases later and a vow to return again, we were off and, eventually, on the road back to Ottawa.

I picked up my nephew at my brother's Ultimate frisbee game, went to my parents' place, and had a nice family visit.

Back to work today for the final push before Premiere. On the agenda for the next couple of days: clean up, finishing touches, sourcing plants and flowers, doing laundry, puttin' up projectors and laying electrical leads, training catering staff, traning temp staff, vacuuming, updating documentation, and so much more. it will all get done. It better, cuz we're expecting 600 for the Premiere Party in my suite.

Zoiks!

See you at Sky Bar tonight!

Well, the rains have come. It poured on Friday night, causing a few lakes puddles inside my tent. But at least it reminded me that I can't have any of my electrical stuff (lamps, projectors, speakers) around the perimeter of the tent. I rearranged things to make sure they're either protected (putting a couple of speakers underneath trestle tables that hold programs, for instance) or situated slightly inside the tent.

But all of that is boring. Let's talk about other stuff.

The Senators were eliminated last night by a very wonky goal (whoever heard of a shorthanded, overtime, series-winning goal?!). I heard some news about our new Tour that may prove interesting. I've talked with a few people about some of the consequences for us. I've had to get my Jeep jumpstarted. I've gone to my parents' place for dinner, laundry and the game. I've had a couple of drinks with Lucky and The Hire Guy. I've stayed up too late for my own good.

But today will be a good one. After work today, a few of us are piling in a car and driving to Montreal for a night of fun. And having tomorrow off will be an absolute luxury that I've never enjoyed during Set Up. Ever. Yippee!

See you at Sky Bar tonight!

Mothers, lock up your sons

We put up some verrrry special fabric in the suite today. It's plush, it's tactile, it's colourful, it's awesome. It gives the illusion of layers, which is one of the effects I continually try to achieve inside the suite. In fact, we dubbed the fabric Elmo, on account of the fact that it really and truly looks like the red, fuzzy, huggable fella.

Let me just say that I'm lovin' Elmo in my suite!

So Set Up continues to go well. I'm liking the way we -- Tower Girl and I -- are working together, and I'm mostly just happy to have the help. Today I met my caterer for a food tasting, which was great. Eeveryone will be happy with the selection of hors d'oeuvres we'll offer, and that takes a load off my mind. I'm happy with the way we seem to be on-track, service-wise, with the caterer as well. My confidence is high that this will be a good run.

Tomorrow, I'm heading to Montreal for some Head Office meetings. I've never been to HO before, so it should be cool. And looking ahead to next week -- OMG -- I'm going to get a day off on Monday! A day off during Set Up is something I've never gotten before, so it's all very exciting! Sure, Set Up is spread out over more days than usual, so a day off was kind of expected. Still, to get one is a sweet luxury. Yippee!

And with nearly everyone getting Monday off, it's time to plan for something special. For me, it's a return trip to Montreal with a few other fun folks, heading out on Sunday night and partying all night long until about 3AM, at which point I remember that I'm no longer young and vibrant. I haven't gone out in Montreal in a dog's age, so it should be fun. And with Lucky and The Hire Guy to guide us, we'll be sure to have waaaay too much fun trolling the bars for some young, unsuspecting prey.

Mothers, lock up your sons! The Circus Freaks are on the way.

When it all works out

Set Up continues to go well. It's at the stage where it's a lot of little, finicky things that maked the suite look polished. And the best part of the whole deal is that I've had Tower Girl with me for a longer time than normal. Having her on-board helping me out has been an awesome thing -- she's such fun and is so easy to work with. Plus, we tend to have plenty of fun listening to the various musical selections on my iPod, discussing sex, and mocking talking about other people.

We even had the luxury of having Lucky with us today, making it the bestest day ever. I love it when it all works out.

Set Up Day #2

The day started OK enough, but a rude comment by someone I barely like know really pissed me off. Boy, it's amazing how one little comment can put you in a foul mood for the remainder of the day. But I got a lot done and things are lookin' good in my suite.

I have mentioned how great the accommodation is here, haven't I? Yup. But have I mentioned how perfect the weather is? Best possible weather for Set Up ever! And it's so evident that Ottawans are appreciative of this great weather after enduring a typical ugly winter.

Everyone's got a smile on their face, the pub patios are overflowing with happy, drinking people, and you can just see that everyone has a bounce in their step. And it's infectious, too! I've put that nasty comment behind me, I've brightened up from my foul mood, and I'm heading out to take a walk. It's a perfect evening that tells me I need to get out and explore the neighbourhood a wee bit.

L8r.

An oddball

The first day of Set Up went pretty well. The weather was absolutely perfect, which ensured everyone was in a pleasant mood. Laying the carpet tiles was a bit of a pain, simply because the tent poles were abnormally slightly misaligned and that made my pre-cut pole holes correspondingly out of whack. But a million few re-cuts later, the holes were expanded, the slightly-askew poles were accommodated, and Abbey got layed.

I'm a bit sore, with the usual suspects being the most affected: shoulders and hands.

I hear that the attention seeking guy didn't succeed in his latest stunt to hold his breath for nine minutes. Oh well, he's still a rich man. And an oddball.

Whew!

I made it to New York City. I had an excellent time. I stayed for three days. I finally met a fellow blogger for the first time (this absolutely charming gentleman). I caught up with my good friend P. I ate sushi. I did some shopping. I saw a spotlight seeker who will be rich at the conclusion of his latest publicity stunt. I know this (that he'll be rich) because I met his neighbour. I took plenty of pictures. I went to several bars. I saw our newest touring show at Randall's Island. I talked with my colleague on said tour. I paid a small fortune some money to park my Jeep. I met a bartender from Calgary who liked my t-shirt. I realized just how much I like New York City.

And now I'm in Ottawa, getting ready to start work tomorrow. Yikes! Three weeks off has left me far too comfortable and unwilling to work. But at least I reaped the rewards of a family dinner at Mom and Dad's tonight. And I got sent home with some of the remaining chocolate cake. Yum.

Our accommodation here is unbelievable. I'm in my own suite and am happy to say that it's the best quality accommodation in my 14-month circus career. Yippee!!

So if any of my readers want to come visit Ottawa.....the party's in my room!

Rich in Richmond

I had a good day of driving today, making it from Atlanta to Richmond, Virginia without any problem. I had expected to end up in Raleigh, but hoped to be able to keep going if I felt up to it. And, fueled by peanut M&M's and Diet Coke, I was pumped and primed for mileage. Hence the end point of Richmond.

Today I touched my 39th (South Carolina) and 40th (North Carolina) states of the union. Only 10 more states to go before I've hit them all. Or -- if you believe Label Guy and his excellent knowledge of geography -- only 11 more to go : )

Tomorrow it's NYC. I've got my accommodation all ready, and I'm primed for a great visit. Yippee!!

Part B

Ahhh, Atlanta. Let's just call is Ahhhtlanta. Anyone want a great place to rest, recharge and rejuvenate? Luscious Lorna offers great hospitality at low, low prices!!

The past week has been great. I've had a chance to relax my back after 4800 km of driving; I've had a chance to get hit on my very drunk men; I've had a chance to learn a bit more about LL (just when I thought I knew everything there was to know) in the course of some very revealing what-is-discussed-in-the-car-stays-in-the-car conversations (all your secrets are safe with me, LL!); I've had a chance to drive a nice car that has shocks and air conditioning; I've had a chance to watch LL achieve her time goal -- to the exact second, no less -- in the St. Anthony's Triathlon in St. Pete's, Fla.; and I've had a chance to spend time with LL's parents in Sarasota, Fla. (and aren't they the coolest folks ever). A good time has, indeed, been had.

But it's time to bid adieu to Ahhhtlanta and get back on the road for Part B of The Big Ol' Road Trip 2006, Phase II. Time to get at it so that I can get all of my pitstops happening on the way. Washington may be out, but it looks like NYC is on the agenda, and I'm stoked. Still, there are about a million 2200 km to go before I get to Ottawa, so it ain't all fun 'n games.

Destination: points north! Well, northeast.

Thanks, Luscious Lorna, for a terrific time in Atlanta. Your commitment to your new adventure lifestyle is inspiring, and I know you'll do amazing things at Primal Quest. Go get 'em, Adventure Babe!!